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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/18941-8.txt b/18941-8.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..8779ab9 --- /dev/null +++ b/18941-8.txt @@ -0,0 +1,5698 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Fight for a Free Sea: A Chronicle of +the War of 1812, by Ralph D. Paine + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The Fight for a Free Sea: A Chronicle of the War of 1812 + The Chronicles of America Series, Volume 17 + +Author: Ralph D. Paine + +Release Date: July 30, 2006 [EBook #18941] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FIGHT FOR A FREE SEA: A *** + + + + +Produced by Steven desJardins and Distributed Proofreaders + + + + + +[Illustration: "_OLD IRONSIDES_" + +The old frigate _Constitution_ as she appears today in her snug +berth at the Boston Navy Yard where she is preserved as an +historical relic. + +Photograph by N. L. Stebbins, Boston.] + + + + +THE FIGHT FOR A FREE SEA + +A CHRONICLE OF THE WAR OF 1812 + +BY RALPH D. PAINE + +[Illustration] + +VOLUME 17 +THE CHRONICLES OF AMERICA SERIES +ALLEN JOHNSON, EDITOR + +1920 + + + + +CONTENTS + +I. "ON TO CANADA!" +II. LOST GROUND REGAINED +III. PERRY AND LAKE ERIE +IV. EBB AND FLOW ON THE NORTHERN FRONT +V. THE NAVY ON BLUE WATER +VI. MATCHLESS FRIGATES AND THEIR DUELS +VII. "DON'T GIVE UP THE SHIP!" +VIII. THE LAST CRUISE OF THE ESSEX +IX. VICTORY ON LAKE CHAMPLAIN +X. PEACE WITH HONOR + +BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE +INDEX + + + + +ILLUSTRATIONS + + +"OLD IRONSIDES" + +The old frigate _Constitution_ as she appears today in her snug berth at +the Boston Navy Yard where she is preserved as an historical relic. +Photograph by N. L. Stebbins, Boston. + + +THE THEATRE OF OPERATIONS IN THE WAR OF 1812 + +Map by W. L. G. Joerg, American Geographical Society. + + +OLIVER HAZARD PERRY AT THE BATTLE OF LAKE ERIE + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. Reproduced by courtesy of the Municipal Art Commission of +the City of New York. + + +ISAAC CHAUNCEY + +Painting in the Comptroller's Office, City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. Reproduced by courtesy of the Municipal Art Commission of +the City of New York. + + +COMMODORE STEPHEN DECATUR + +Painting by Thomas Sully, 1811. In the Comptroller's Office, owned by +the City of New York. Reproduced by courtesy of the Art Commission of +the City of New York. + + +CONSTITUTION AND GUERRIÈRE + +An old print, illustrating the moment in the action at which the +mainmast of the _Guerrière_, shattered by the terrific fire of the +American frigate, fell overside, transforming the former vessel into a +floating wreck and terminating the action. The picture represents +accurately the surprisingly slight damage done the _Constitution_: note +the broken spanker gaff and the shot holes in her topsails. + + +ISAAC HULL + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. + + +WILLIAM BAINBRIDGE + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. Reproduced by courtesy of the Municipal Art Commission of +the City of New York. + + +A FRIGATE OF 1812 UNDER SAIL + +The _Constellation_, of which this is a photograph, is somewhat smaller +than the _Constitution_, being rated at 38 guns as against 44 for the +latter. In general appearance, however, and particularly in rig, the two +types are very similar. Although the Constellation did not herself see +action in the War of 1812, she is a good example of the heavily armed +American frigate of that day--and the only one of them still to be seen +at sea under sail within recent years. At the present time the +_Constellation_ lies moored at the pier of the Naval Training Station, +Newport, R. I. Photograph by E. Müller, Jr., Inc., New York. + + +JACOB BROWN + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. + + +THOMAS MACDONOUGH + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. + + + + +CHAPTER I + +"ON TO CANADA!" + + +The American people of today, weighed in the balances of the greatest +armed conflict of all time and found not wanting, can afford to survey, +in a spirit of candid scrutiny and without reviving an ancient grudge, +that turbulent episode in the welding of their nation which is called +the War of 1812. In spite of defeats and disappointments this war was, +in the large, enduring sense, a victory. It was in this renewed defiance +of England that the dream of the founders of the Republic and the ideals +of the embattled farmers of Bunker Hill and Saratoga achieved their +goal. Henceforth the world was to respect these States, not as so many +colonies bitterly wrangling among themselves, but as a sovereign and +independent nation. + +The War of 1812, like the American Revolution, was a valiant contest +for survival on the part of the spirit of freedom. It was essentially +akin to the world-wide struggle of a century later, when sons of the old +foemen of 1812--sons of the painted Indians and of the Kentucky pioneers +in fringed buckskins, sons of the New Hampshire ploughboys clad in +homespun, sons of the Canadian militia and the red-coated regulars of +the British line, sons of the tarry seamen of the _Constitution_ and the +_Guerrière_--stood side by side as brothers in arms to save from brutal +obliteration the same spirit of freedom. And so it is that in Flanders +fields today the poppies blow above the graves of the sons of the men +who fought each other a century ago in the Michigan wilderness and at +Lundy's Lane. + +The causes and the background of the War of 1812 are presented elsewhere +in this series of Chronicles.[1] Great Britain, at death grips with +Napoleon, paid small heed to the rights and dignities of neutral +nations. The harsh and selfish maritime policy of the age, expressed in +the British Navigation Acts and intensified by the struggle with +Napoleon, led the Mistress of the Seas to perpetrate indignity after +indignity on the ships and sailors which were carrying American commerce +around the world. The United States demanded a free sea, which Great +Britain would not grant. Of necessity, then, such futile weapons as +embargoes and non-intercourse acts had to give place to the musket, the +bayonet, and the carronade. There could be no compromise between the +clash of doctrines. It was for the United States to assert herself, +regardless of the odds, or sink into a position of supine dependency +upon the will of Great Britain and the wooden walls of her invincible +navy. + +[Footnote 1: See _Jefferson and His Colleagues_, by Allen Johnson (in +_The Chronicles of America_).] + +"Free Trade and Sailors' Rights!" was the American war cry. It expressed +the two grievances which outweighed all others--the interference with +American shipping and the ruthless impressment of seamen from beneath +the Stars and Stripes. No less high-handed than Great Britain's were +Napoleon's offenses against American commerce, and there was just cause +for war with France. Yet Americans felt the greater enmity toward +England, partly as an inheritance from the Revolution, but chiefly +because of the greater injury which England had wrought, owing to her +superior strength on the sea. + +There were, to be sure, other motives in the conflict. It is not to be +supposed that the frontiersmen of the Northwest and Southwest, who +hailed the war with enthusiasm, were ardently aroused to redress wrongs +inflicted upon their seafaring countrymen. Their enmity towards Great +Britain was compounded of quite different grievances. Behind the recent +Indian wars on the frontier they saw, or thought they saw, British +paymasters. The red trappers and hunters of the forest were bloodily +defending their lands; and there was a long-standing bond of interest +between them and the British in Canada. The British were known to the +tribes generally as fur traders, not "land stealers"; and the great +traffic carried on by the merchants of Montreal, not only in the +Canadian wilderness but also in the American Northwest, naturally drew +Canadians and Indians into the same camp. "On to Canada!" was the slogan +of the frontiersmen. It expressed at once their desire to punish the +hereditary foe and to rid themselves of an unfriendly power to the +north. + +The United States was poorly prepared and equipped for military and +naval campaigns when, in June, 1812, Congress declared war on Great +Britain. Nothing had been learned from the costly blunders of the +Revolution, and the delusion that readiness for war was a menace to +democracy had influenced the Government to absurd extremes. The regular +army comprised only sixty-seven hundred men, scattered over an enormous +country and on garrison service from which they could not be safely +withdrawn. They were without traditions and without experience in actual +warfare. Winfield Scott, at that time a young officer in the regular +army, wrote: + + The old officers had very generally sunk into either sloth, + ignorance, or habits of intemperate drinking.... Many of the + appointments were positively bad, and a majority of the remainder + indifferent. Party spirit of that day knew no bounds, and was of + course blind to policy. Federalists were almost entirely excluded + from selection, though great numbers were eager for the field.... + Where there was no lack of educated men in the dominant party, the + appointments consisted generally of swaggerers, dependents, decayed + gentlemen, and others "fit for nothing else," which always turned + out utterly unfit for any military purpose whatever. + +The main reliance was to be on militia and volunteers, an army of the +free people rushing to arms in defense of their liberties, as voiced by +Jefferson and echoed more than a century later by another spokesman of +democracy. There was the stuff for splendid soldiers in these farmers +and woodsmen, but in many lamentable instances their regiments were no +more than irresponsible armed mobs. Until as recently as the War with +Spain, the perilous fallacy persisted that the States should retain +control of their several militia forces in time of war and deny final +authority to the Federal Government. It was this doctrine which so +nearly wrecked the cause of the Revolution. George Washington had +learned the lesson through painful experience, but his counsel was +wholly disregarded; and, because it serves as a text and an +interpretation for much of the humiliating history which we are about to +follow, that counsel is here quoted in part. Washington wrote in +retrospect: + + Had we formed a permanent army in the beginning, which by the + continuance of the same men in service had been capable of + discipline, we never should have had to retreat with a handful of + men across the Delaware in 1776, trembling for the fate of America, + which nothing but the infatuation of the enemy could have saved; we + should not have remained all the succeeding winter at their mercy, + with sometimes scarcely a sufficient body of men to mount the + ordinary guards, liable at every moment to be dissipated if they + had only thought proper to march against us; we should not have + been under the necessity of fighting Brandywine with an unequal + number of raw troops, and afterwards of seeing Philadelphia fall a + prey to a victorious army; we should not have been at Valley Forge + with less than half the force of the enemy, destitute of + everything, in a situation neither to resist or to retire; we + should not have seen New York left with a handful of men, yet an + overmatch for the main army of these States, while the principal + part of their force was detached for the reduction of two of them; + we should not have found ourselves this spring so weak as to be + insulted by 5000 men, unable to protect our baggage and magazines, + their security depending on a good countenance and a want of + enterprise in the enemy; we should not have been, the greatest part + of the war, inferior to the enemy, indebted for our safety to their + inactivity, enduring frequently the mortification of seeing + inviting opportunities to ruin them pass unimproved for want of a + force which the country was completely able to afford, and of + seeing the country ravaged, our towns burnt, the inhabitants + plundered, abused, murdered, with impunity from the same cause. + +The War of 1812, besides being hampered by short enlistments, confused +authority, and incompetent officers, was fought by a country and an army +divided against itself. When Congress authorized the enrollment of one +hundred thousand militia, the governors of Massachusetts and Connecticut +refused to furnish their quotas, objecting to the command of United +States officers and to the sending of men beyond the borders of their +own States. This attitude fairly indicated the feeling of New England, +which was opposed to the war and openly spoke of secession. Moreover, +the wealthy merchants and bankers of New England declined to subscribe +to the national loans when the Treasury at Washington was bankrupt, and +vast quantities of supplies were shipped from New England seaports to +the enemy in Canada. It was an extraordinary paradox that those States +which had seen their sailors impressed by thousands and which had +suffered most heavily from England's attacks on neutral commerce should +have arrayed themselves in bitter opposition to the cause and the +Government. It was "Mr. Madison's War," they said, and he could win or +lose it--and pay the bills, for that matter. + +The American navy was in little better plight than the army. England +flew the royal ensign over six hundred ships of war and was the +undisputed sovereign of the seas. Opposed to this mighty armada were +five frigates, three ships, and seven brigs, which Monroe recommended +should be "kept in a body in a safe port." Not worth mention were the +two hundred ridiculous little gunboats which had to stow the one cannon +below to prevent capsizing when they ventured out of harbor. These craft +were a pet notion of Jefferson. "Believing, myself," he said of them, +"that gunboats are the only water defense which can be useful to us and +protect us from the ruinous folly of a navy, I am pleased with +everything which promises to improve them." + +A nation of eight million people, unready, blundering, rent by internal +dissension, had resolved to challenge an England hardened by war and +tremendously superior in military resources. It was not all madness, +however, for the vast empire of Canada lay exposed to invasion, and in +this quarter the enemy was singularly vulnerable. Henry Clay spoke for +most of his countrymen beyond the boundaries of New England when he +announced to Congress: "The conquest of Canada is in your power. I trust +that I shall not be deemed presumptuous when I state that I verily +believe that the militia of Kentucky are alone competent to place +Montreal and Upper Canada at your feet. Is it nothing to the British +nation; is it nothing to the pride of her monarch to have the last +immense North American possession held by him in the commencement of his +reign wrested from his dominions?" Even Jefferson was deluded into +predicting that the capture of Canada as far as Quebec would be a mere +matter of marching through the country and would give the troops +experience for the attack on Halifax and the final expulsion of England +from the American continent. + +The British Provinces, extending twelve hundred miles westward to Lake +Superior, had a population of less than five hundred thousand; but a +third of these were English immigrants or American Loyalists and their +descendants, types of folk who would hardly sit idly and await invasion. +That they should resist or strike back seems not to have been expected +in the war councils of the amiable Mr. Madison. Nor were other and +manifold dangers taken into account by those who counseled war. The +Great Lakes were defenseless, the warlike Indians of the Northwest were +in arms and awaiting the British summons, while the whole country beyond +the Wabash and the Maumee was almost unguarded. Isolated here and there +were stockades containing a few dozen men beyond hope of rescue, +frontier posts of what is now the Middle West. Plans of campaign were +prepared without thought of the insuperable difficulties of transport +through regions in which there were neither roads, provisions, towns, +nor navigable rivers. Armies were maneuvered and victories won upon the +maps in the office of the Secretary of War. Generals were selected by +some inscrutable process which decreed that dull-witted, pompous +incapables should bungle campaigns and waste lives. + +It was wisely agreed that of all the strategic points along this +far-flung and thinly held frontier, Detroit should receive the earliest +attention. At all costs this point was to be safeguarded as a base for +the advance into Canada from the west. A remote trading post within +gunshot of the enemy across the river and menaced by tribes of hostile +Indians, Detroit then numbered eight hundred inhabitants and was +protected only by a stout enclosure of logs. For two hundred miles to +the nearest friendly settlements in Ohio, the line of communications was +a forest trail which skirted Lake Erie for some distance and could +easily be cut by the enemy. From Detroit it was the intention of the +Americans to strike the first blow at the Canadian post of Amherstburg +near by. + +The stage was now set for the entrance of General William Hull as one of +the luckless, unheroic figures upon whom the presidential power of +appointment bestowed the trappings of high military command. He was by +no means the worst of these. In fact, the choice seemed auspicious. Hull +had seen honorable service in the Revolution and had won the esteem of +George Washington. He was now Governor of Michigan Territory. At sixty +years of age he had no desire to gird on the sword. He was persuaded by +Madison, however, to accept a brigadier general's commission and to lead +the force ordered to Detroit. His instructions were vague, but in June, +1812, shortly before the declaration of war, he took command of two +thousand regulars and militia at Dayton, Ohio, and began the arduous +advance through the wilderness towards Detroit. The adventure was +launched with energy. These hardy, reliant men knew how to cut roads, to +bridge streams, and to exist on scanty rations. Until sickness began to +decimate their ranks, they advanced at an encouraging rate and were +almost halfway to Detroit when the tidings of the outbreak of +hostilities overtook them. General Hull forthwith hurried his troops to +the Maumee River, leaving their camp equipment and heavy stores behind. +He now committed his first crass blunder. Though the British controlled +the waters of Lake Erie, yet he sent a schooner ahead with all his +hospital supplies, intrenching tools, official papers, and muster rolls. +The little vessel was captured within sight of Detroit and the documents +proved invaluable to the British commander of Upper Canada, Major +General Isaac Brock, who gained thereby a complete idea of the American +plans and proceeded to act accordingly. Brock was a soldier of uncommon +intelligence and resolution, acquitting himself with distinction, and +contrasting with his American adversaries in a manner rather painful to +contemplate. + +At length Hull reached Detroit and crossed the river to assume the +offensive. He was strongly hopeful of success. The Canadians appeared +friendly and several hundred sought his protection. Even the enemy's +militia were deserting to his colors. In a proclamation Hull looked +forward to a bloodless conquest, informing the Canadians that they were +to be emancipated from tyranny and oppression and restored to the +dignified station of freemen. "I have a force which will break down all +opposition," said he, "and that force is but the vanguard of a much +greater." + +He soundly reasoned that unless a movement could be launched against +Niagara, at the other end of Lake Erie, the whole strength of the +British might be thrown against him and that he was likely to be trapped +in Detroit. There was a general plan of campaign, submitted by Major +General Henry Dearborn before the war began, which provided for a +threefold invasion--from Sackett's Harbor on Lake Ontario, from +Niagara, and from Detroit--in support of a grand attack along the route +leading past Lake Champlain to Montreal. Theoretically, it was good +enough strategy, but no attempt had been made to prepare the execution, +and there was no leader competent to direct it. + +In response to Hull's urgent appeal, Dearborn, who was puttering about +between Boston and Albany, confessed that he knew nothing about what was +going on at Niagara. He ranked as the commander-in-chief of the American +forces and he awoke from his habitual stupor to ask himself this amazing +question: "Who is to have the command of the operations in Upper Canada? +I take it for granted that my command does not extend to that distant +quarter." If Dearborn did not know who was in control of the operations +at Niagara, it was safe to say that nobody else did, and Hull was left +to deal with the increasing forces in front of him and the hordes of +Indians in the rear, to garrison Detroit, to assault the fort at +Amherstburg, to overcome the British naval forces on Lake Erie--and all +without the slightest help or cooperation from his Government. + +Meanwhile Brock had ascertained that the American force at Niagara +consisted of a few hundred militia with no responsible officer in +command, who were making a pretense of patrolling thirty-six miles of +frontier. They were undisciplined, ragged, without tents, shoes, money, +or munitions, and ready to fall back if attacked or to go home unless +soon relieved. Having nothing to fear in that quarter, Brock gathered up +a small body of regulars as he marched and proceeded to Amherstburg to +finish the business of the unfortunate Hull. + +That Hull deserves some pity as well as the disgrace which overwhelmed +him is quite apparent. Most of his troops were ill-equipped, unreliable, +and insubordinate. Even during the march to Detroit he had to use a +regular regiment to compel the obedience of twelve hundred mutinous +militiamen who refused to advance. Their own officer could do nothing +with them. At Detroit two hundred of them refused to cross the river, on +the ground that they were not obliged to serve outside the United +States. Granted such extenuation as this, however, Hull showed himself +so weak and contemptible in the face of danger that he could not expect +his fighting men to maintain any respect for him. + +His fatal flaw was lack of courage and promptitude. He did not know how +to play a poor hand well. In the emergency which confronted him he was +like a dull sword in a rusty scabbard. While the enemy waited for +reinforcements, he might have captured Amherstburg. He had the superior +force, and yet he delayed and lost heart while his regiments dwindled +because of sickness and desertion and jeered at his leadership. The +watchful Indians, led by the renowned Tecumseh, learned to despise the +Americans instead of fearing them, and were eager to take the warpath +against so easy a prey. Already other bands of braves were hastening +from Lake Huron and from Mackinac, whose American garrison had been +wiped out. + +Brooding and shaken, like an old man utterly undone, Hull abandoned his +pretentious invasion of Canada and retreated across the river to shelter +his troops behind the log barricades of Detroit. He sent six hundred men +to try to open a line to Ohio, but, after a sharp encounter with a +British force, Hull was obliged to admit that they "could only open +communication as far as the points of their bayonets extended." His only +thought was to extricate himself, not to stand and fight a winning +battle without counting the cost. His officers felt only contempt for +his cowardice. They were convinced that the tide could be turned in +their favor. There were steadfast men in the ranks who were eager to +take the measure of the redcoats. The colonels were in open mutiny and, +determined to set General Hull aside, they offered the command to +Colonel Miller of the regulars, who declined to accept it. When Hull +proposed a general retreat, he was informed that every man of the Ohio +militia would refuse to obey the order. These troops who had been so +fickle and jealous of their rights were unwilling to share the leader's +disgrace. + +Two days after his arrival at Amherstburg, General Brock sent to the +Americans a summons to surrender, adding with a crafty discernment of +the effect of the threat upon the mind of the man with whom he was +dealing: "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." Hull could see only the horrid picture of a +massacre of the women and children within the stockades of Detroit. He +failed to realize that his thousand effective infantrymen could hold out +for weeks behind those log ramparts against Brock's few hundred regulars +and volunteers. Two and a half years later, Andrew Jackson and his +militia emblazoned a very different story behind the cypress +breastworks of New Orleans. Besides the thousand men in the fort, Hull +had detached five hundred under Colonels McArthur and Cass to attempt to +break through the Indian cordon in his rear and obtain supplies. These +he now vainly endeavored to recall while he delayed a final reply to +Brock's mandate. + +Indecision had doomed the garrison which was now besieged. Tecumseh's +warriors had crossed the river and were between the fort and McArthur's +column. Brock boldly decided to assault, a desperate venture, but he +must have known that Hull's will had crumbled. No more than seven +hundred strong, the little British force crossed the river just before +daybreak on the 16th of August and was permitted to select its positions +without the slightest molestation. A few small field pieces, posted on +the Canadian side of the river, hurled shot into the fort, killing four +of Hull's men, and two British armed schooners lay within range. + +Brock advanced, expecting to suffer large losses from the heavy guns +which were posted to cover the main approach to the fort, but his men +passed through the zone of danger and found cover in which they made +ready to storm the defenses of Detroit. As Brock himself walked forward +to take note of the situation before giving the final commands, a white +flag fluttered from the battery in front of him. Without firing a shot, +Hull had surrendered Detroit and with it the great territory of +Michigan, the most grievous loss of domain that the United States has +ever suffered in war or peace. On the same day Fort Dearborn (Chicago), +which had been forgotten by the Government, was burned by Indians after +all its defenders had been slain. These two disasters with the earlier +fall of Mackinac practically erased American dominion from the western +empire of the Great Lakes. Visions of the conquest of Canada were thus +rudely dimmed in the opening actions of the war. + +General Hull was tried by court-martial on charges of treason, +cowardice, and neglect of duty. He was convicted on the last two charges +and sentenced to be shot, with a recommendation to the mercy of the +President. The verdict was approved by Madison, but he remitted the +execution of the sentence because of the old man's services in the +Revolution. Guilty though he was, an angry and humiliated people also +made him the scapegoat for the sins of neglect and omission of which +their Government stood convicted. In the testimony offered at his trial +there was a touch, rude, vivid, and very human, to portray him in the +final hours of the tragic episode at Detroit. Spurned by his officers, +he sat on the ground with his back against the rampart while "he +apparently unconsciously filled his mouth with tobacco, putting in quid +after quid more than he generally did; the spittle colored with tobacco +juice ran from his mouth on his neckcloth, beard, cravat, and vest." + +Later events in the Northwest Territory showed that the British +successes in that region were gained chiefly because of an unworthy +alliance with the Indian tribes, whose barbarous methods of warfare +stained the records of those who employed them. "Not more than seven or +eight hundred British soldiers ever crossed the Detroit River," says +Henry Adams, "but the United States raised fully twenty thousand men and +spent at least five million dollars and many lives in expelling them. +The Indians alone made this outlay necessary. The campaign of +Tippecanoe, the surrender of Detroit and Mackinaw, the massacres at Fort +Dearborn, the river Raisin, and Fort Meigs, the murders along the +frontier, and the campaign of 1813 were the prices paid for the Indian +lands in the Wabash Valley." + +Before the story shifts to the other fields of the war, it seems +logical to follow to its finally successful result the bloody, wasteful +struggle for the recovery of the lost territory. This operation required +large armies and long campaigns, together with the naval supremacy of +Lake Erie, won in the next year by Oliver Hazard Perry, before the +fugitive British forces fell back from the charred ruins of Detroit and +Amherstburg and were soundly beaten at the battle of the Thames--the one +decisive, clean-cut American victory of the war on the Canadian +frontier. These events showed that far too much had been expected of +General William Hull, who comprehended his difficulties but made no +attempt to batter a way through them, forgetting that to die and win is +always better than to live and fail. + + + + +CHAPTER II + +LOST GROUND REGAINED + + +General William Henry Harrison, the hero of Tippecanoe and the Governor +of Indiana Territory, whose capital was at Vincennes on the Wabash, +possessed the experience and the instincts of a soldier. He had foreseen +that Hull, unless he received support, must either abandon Detroit or be +hopelessly hemmed in. The task of defending the western border was +ardently undertaken by the States of Kentucky and Ohio. They believed in +the war and were ready to aid it with the men and resources of a +vigorous population of almost a million. When the word came that Hull +was in desperate straits, Harrison hastened to organize a relief +expedition. Before he could move, Detroit had fallen. But a high tide of +enthusiasm swept him on toward an attempt to recover the lost empire. +The Federal Government approved his plans and commissioned him as +commander of the Northwestern army of ten thousand men. + +In the early autumn of 1812, General Harrison launched his ambitious and +imposing campaign, by which three separate bodies of troops were to +advance and converge within striking distance of Detroit, while a fourth +was to invade and destroy the nests of Indians on the Wabash and +Illinois rivers. An active British force might have attacked and +defeated these isolated columns one by one, for they were beyond +supporting distance of each other; but Brock now needed his regulars for +the defense of the Niagara frontier. The scattered American army, +including brigades from Virginia and Pennsylvania, was too strong to be +checked by Indian forays, but it had not reckoned with the obstacles of +an unfriendly wilderness and climate. In October, no more than a month +after the bugles had sounded the advance, the campaign was halted, +demoralized and darkly uncertain. A vast swamp stretched as a barrier +across the route and heavy rains made it impassable. + +Hull had crossed the same swamp with his small force in the favorable +summer season, but Harrison was unable to transport the food and war +material needed by his ten thousand men. A million rations were +required at the goal of the Maumee Rapids, and yet after two months of +heartbreaking endeavor not a pound of provisions had been carried within +fifty miles of this place. Wagons and pack-trains floundered in the mud +and were abandoned. The rivers froze and thwarted the use of flotillas +of scows. Winter closed down, and the American army was forlornly mired +and blockaded along two hundred miles of front. The troops at Fort +Defiance ate roots and bark. Typhus broke out among them, and they died +like flies. For the failure to supply the army, the War Department was +largely responsible, and Secretary Eustis very properly resigned in +December. This removed one glaring incompetent from the list but it +failed to improve Harrison's situation. + +It was not until the severe frosts of January, 1813, fettered the swamps +that Harrison was able to extricate his troops and forward supplies to +the shore of Lake Erie for an offensive against Amherstburg. First in +motion was the left wing of thirteen hundred Kentucky militia and +regulars under General Winchester. This officer was an elderly planter +who, like Hull, had worn a uniform in the Revolution. He had no great +aptitude for war and was held in low esteem by the Kentuckians of his +command--hungry, mutinous, and disgusted men, who were counting the days +before their enlistments should expire. The commonplace Winchester was +no leader to hold them in hand and spur their jaded determination. + +While they were building storehouses and log defenses, within +dangerously easy distance of the British post at Amherstburg, the +tempting message came that the settlement of Frenchtown, on the Raisin, +thirty miles away and within the British lines, was held by only two +companies of Canadian militia. Here was an opportunity for a dashing +adventure, and Winchester ordered half his total force to march and +destroy this detachment of the enemy. The troops accordingly set out, +drove home a brisk assault, cleared Frenchtown of its defenders, and +held their ground awaiting orders. + +Winchester then realized that he had leaped before he looked. He had +seriously weakened his own force while the column at Frenchtown was in +peril from two thousand hostile troops and Indians only eighteen miles +beyond the river Raisin. The Kentuckians left with him decided matters +for themselves. They insisted on marching to the support of their +comrades at Frenchtown. Meanwhile General Harrison had learned of this +fatuous division of strength and was hastening to the base at the falls +of the Maumee. There he found only three hundred men. All the others had +gone with Winchester to reinforce the men at Frenchtown. It was too late +to summon troops from other points, and Harrison waited with forebodings +of disaster. + +News reached him after two days. The Americans at the Raisin had +suffered not only a defeat but a massacre. Nearly four hundred were +killed in battle or in flight. Those who survived were prisoners. No +more than thirty had escaped of a force one thousand strong. The enemy +had won this extraordinary success with five hundred white troops and +about the same number of Indians, led by Colonel Procter, whom Brock had +placed in command of the fort at Amherstburg. Procter's name is infamous +in the annals of the war. The worst traditions of Indian atrocity, +uncontrolled and even encouraged, cluster about his memory. He was later +promoted in rank instead of being degraded, a costly blunder which +England came to regret and at last redeemed. A notoriously incompetent +officer, on this one occasion of the battle of the Raisin he acted with +decision and took advantage of the American blunder. + +The conduct of General Winchester after his arrival at Frenchtown is +inexplicable. He did nothing to prepare his force for action even on +learning that the British were advancing from Amherstburg. A report of +the disaster, after recording that no patrols or pickets were ordered +out during the night, goes on: + + The troops were permitted to select, each for himself, such + quarters on the west side of the river as might please him best, + whilst the general took his quarters on the east side--not the + least regard being paid to defense, order, regularity, or system in + the posting of the different corps.... Destitute of artillery, or + engineers, of men who had ever heard or seen the least of an enemy; + and with but a very inadequate supply of ammunition--how he ever + could have entertained the most distant hope of success, or what + right he had to presume to claim it, is to me one of the strangest + things in the world. + +At dawn, on the 21st of January, the British and Indians, having crossed +the frozen Detroit River the day before, formed within musket shot of +the American lines and opened the attack with a battery of +three-pounders. They might have rushed the camp with bayonet and +tomahawk and killed most of the defenders asleep, but the cannonade +alarmed the Kentuckians and they took cover behind a picket fence, using +their long rifles so expertly that they killed or wounded a hundred and +eighty-five of the British regulars, who thereupon had to abandon their +artillery. Meanwhile, the American regular force, caught on open ground, +was flanked and driven toward the river, carrying a militia regiment +with it. Panic spread among these unfortunate men and they fled through +the deep snow, Winchester among them, while six hundred whooping Indians +slew and scalped them without mercy as they ran. + +But behind the picket fence the Kentuckians still squinted along the +barrels of their rifles and hammered home more bullets and patches. +Three hundred and eighty-four of them, they showed a spirit that made +their conduct the bright, heroic episode of that black day. Forgotten +are their mutinies, their profane disregard of the Articles of War, +their jeers at generals and such. They finished in style and covered the +multitude of their sins. Unclothed, unfed, uncared for, dirty, and +wretched, they proved themselves worthy to be called American soldiers. +They fought until there was no more ammunition, until they were +surrounded by a thousand of the enemy, and then they honorably +surrendered. + +The brutal Procter, aware that the Indians would commit hideous +outrages if left unrestrained, nevertheless returned to Amherstburg with +his troops and his prisoners, leaving the American wounded to their +fate. That night the savages came back to Frenchtown and massacred those +hurt and helpless men, thirty in number. + +This unhappy incident of the campaign, not so much a battle as a +catastrophe, delayed Harrison's operations. His failures had shaken +popular confidence, and at the end of this dismal winter, after six +months of disappointments in which ten thousand men had accomplished +nothing, he was compelled to report to the Secretary of War: + + Amongst the reasons which make it necessary to employ a large + force, I am sorry to mention the dismay and disinclination to the + service which appears to prevail in the western country; numbers + must give that confidence which ought to be produced by conscious + valor and intrepidity, which never existed in any army in a + superior degree than amongst the greater part of the militia which + were with me through the winter. The new drafts from this State + [Ohio] are entirely of another character and are not to be depended + upon. I have no doubt, however, that a sufficient number of good + men can be procured, and should they be allowed to serve on + horseback, Kentucky would furnish some regiments that would not be + inferior to those that fought at the river Raisin; and these were, + in my opinion, superior to any militia that ever took the field in + modern times. + +There was to be no immediate renewal of action between Procter and +Harrison. Each seemed to have conceived so much respect for the forces +of the other that they proceeded to increase the distance between them +as rapidly as possible. Fearing to be overtaken and greatly outnumbered, +the British leader retreated to Canada while the American leader was in +a state of mind no less uneasy. Harrison promptly set fire to his +storehouses and supplies at the Maumee Rapids, his advanced base near +Lake Erie. Thus all this labor and exertion and expense vanished in +smoke while, in the set diction of war, he retired some fifteen miles. +In such a vast hurry were the adversaries to be quit of each other that +a day and a half after the fight at Frenchtown they were sixty miles +apart. Harrison remained a fortnight on this back trail and collected +two thousand of his troops, with whom he returned to the ruins of his +foremost post and undertook the task all over again. + +The defensive works which he now built were called Fort Meigs. For the +time there was no more talk of invading Canada. The service of the +Kentucky and Ohio militia was expiring, and these seasoned regiments +were melting away like snow. Presently Fort Meigs was left with no more +than five hundred war-worn men to hold out against British operations +afloat and ashore. Luckily Procter had expended his energies at +Frenchtown and seemed inclined to repose, for he made no effort to +attack the few weak garrisons which guarded the American territory near +at hand. From January until April he neglected his opportunities while +more American militia marched homeward, while Harrison was absent, while +Fort Meigs was unfinished. + +At length the British offensive was organized, and a thousand white +soldiers and as many Indians, led by Tecumseh, sallied out of +Amherstburg with a naval force of two gunboats. Heavy guns were dragged +from Detroit to batter down the log walls, for it was the intention to +surround and besiege Fort Meigs in the manner taught by the military +science of Europe. Meanwhile Harrison had come back from a recruiting +mission; and a new brigade of Kentucky militia, twelve hundred strong, +under Brigadier General Green Clay, was to follow in boats down the +Auglaize and Maumee rivers. Procter's guns were already pounding the +walls of Fort Meigs on the 5th of May when eight hundred troops of this +fresh American force arrived within striking distance. They dashed upon +the British batteries and took them with the bayonet in a wild, +impetuous charge. It was then their business promptly to reform and +protect themselves, but through lack of training they failed to obey +orders and were off hunting the enemy, every man for himself. In the +meantime three companies of British regulars and some volunteers took +advantage of the confusion, summoned the Indians, and let loose a +vicious counter-attack. + +Within sight of General Harrison and the garrison of Fort Meigs, these +bold Kentuckians were presently driven from the captured guns, +scattered, and shot down or taken prisoner. Only a hundred and seventy +of them got away, and they lost even their boats and supplies. The +British loss was no more than fifty in killed and wounded. Again Procter +inflamed the hatred and contempt of his American foes because forty of +his prisoners were tomahawked while guarded by British soldiers. He made +no effort to save them and it was the intervention of Tecumseh, the +Indian leader, which averted the massacre of the whole body of five +hundred prisoners. + +Across the river, Colonel John Miller, of the American regular +infantry, had attempted a gallant sortie from the fort and had taken a +battery but this sally had no great effect on the issue of the +engagement. Harrison had lost almost a thousand men, half his fighting +force, and was again shut up within the barricades and blockhouses of +Fort Meigs. Procter continued the siege only four days longer, for his +Indian allies then grew tired of it and faded into the forest. He was +not reluctant to accept this excuse for withdrawing. His own militia +were drifting away, his regulars were suffering from illness and +exposure, and Fort Meigs itself was a harder nut to crack than he had +anticipated. Procter therefore withdrew to Amherstburg and made no more +trouble until June, when he sent raiding parties into Ohio and created +panic among the isolated settlements. + +Harrison had become convinced that his campaign must be a defensive one +only, until a strong American naval force could be mustered on Lake +Erie. He moved his headquarters to Upper Sandusky and Cleveland and +concluded to mark time while Perry's fleet was building. The outlook was +somber, however, for his thin line of garrisons and his supply bases. +They were threatened in all directions, but he was most concerned for +the important depot which he had established at Upper Sandusky, no more +than thirty miles from any British landing force which should decide to +cross Lake Erie. The place had no fortifications; it was held by a few +hundred green recruits; and the only obstacle to a hostile ascent of the +Sandusky River was a little stockade near its mouth, called Fort +Stephenson. + +For the Americans to lose the accumulation of stores and munitions which +was almost the only result of a year's campaign would have been a fatal +blow. Harrison was greatly disturbed to hear that Tecumseh had gathered +his warriors and was following the trail that led to Upper Sandusky and +that Procter was moving coastwise with his troops in a flotilla under +oars and sail. Harrison was, or believed himself to be, in grave danger +of confronting a plight similar to that of William Hull, beset in front, +in flank, in rear. His first thought was to evacuate the stockade of +Fort Stephenson and to concentrate his force, although this would leave +the Sandusky River open for a British advance from the shore of Lake +Erie. + +An order was sent to young Major Croghan, who held Fort Stephenson with +one hundred and sixty men, to burn the buildings and retreat as fast as +possible up the river or along the shore of Lake Erie. This officer, a +Kentuckian not yet twenty-one years old, who honored the regiment to +which he belonged, deliberately disobeyed his commander. By so doing he +sounded a ringing note which was like the call of trumpets amidst the +failures, the cloudy uncertainties, the lack of virile leadership, that +had strewn the path of the war. In writing he sent this reply back to +General William Henry Harrison: "We have determined to maintain this +place, and by Heaven, we will." + +It was a turning point, in a way, presaging more hopeful events, a +warning that youth must be served and that the doddering oldsters were +to give place to those who could stand up under the stern and exacting +tests of warfare. Such rash ardor was not according to precedent. +Harrison promptly relieved the impetuous Croghan of his command and sent +a colonel to replace him. But Croghan argued the point so eloquently +that the stockade was restored to him next day and he won his chance to +do or die. Harrison consolingly informed him that he was to retreat if +attacked by British troops "but that to attempt to retire in the face of +an Indian force would be vain." + +Major Croghan blithely prepared to do anything else than retreat, while +General Harrison stayed ten miles away to plan a battle against +Tecumseh's Indians if they should happen to come in his direction. On +the 1st of August, Croghan's scouts informed him that the woods swarmed +with Indians and that British boats were pushing up the river. Procter +was on the scene again, and no sooner had his four hundred regulars +found a landing place than a curt demand for surrender came to Major +Croghan. The British howitzers peppered the stockade as soon as the +refusal was delivered, but they failed to shake the spirit of the +dauntless hundred and sixty American defenders. On the following day, +the 2d of August, Procter stupidly repeated his error of a direct +assault upon sheltered riflemen, which had cost him heavily at the +Raisin and at Fort Meigs. He ordered his redcoats to carry Fort +Stephenson. Again and again they marched forward until all the officers +had been shot down and a fifth of the force was dead or wounded. +American valor and marksmanship had proved themselves in the face of +heavy odds. At sunset the beaten British were flocking into their boats, +and Procter was again on his way to Amherstburg. His excuse for the +trouncing laid the blame on the Indians: + + The troops, after the artillery had been used for some hours, + attacked two faces and, impossibilities being attempted, failed. + The fort, from which the severest fire I ever saw was maintained + during the attack, was well defended. The troops displayed the + greatest bravery, the much greater part of whom reached the fort + and made every effort to enter; but the Indians who had proposed + the assault and, had it not been assented to, would have ever + stigmatized the British character, scarcely came into fire before + they ran out of its reach. A more than adequate sacrifice having + been made to Indian opinion, I drew off the brave assailants. + +The sound of Croghan's guns was heard in General Harrison's camp at +Seneca, ten miles up the river. Harrison had nothing to say but this: +"The blood be upon his own head. I wash my hands of it." This was a +misguided speech which the country received with marked disfavor while +it acclaimed young Croghan as the sterling hero of the western campaign. +He could be also a loyal as well as a successful subordinate, for he +ably defended Harrison against the indignation which menaced his station +as commander of the army. The new Secretary of War, John Armstrong, +ironically referred to Procter and Harrison as being always in terror of +each other, the one actually flying from his supposed pursuer after his +fiasco at Fort Stephenson, the other waiting only for the arrival of +Croghan at Seneca to begin a camp conflagration and flight to Upper +Sandusky. + +The reconquest of Michigan and the Northwest depended now on the +American navy. Harrison wisely halted his inglorious operations by land +until the ships and sailors were ready to cooperate. Because the British +sway on the Great Lakes was unchallenged, the general situation of the +enemy was immensely better than it had been at the beginning of the +campaign. During a year of war the United States had steadily lost in +men, in territory, in prestige, and this in spite of the fact that the +opposing forces across the Canadian border were much smaller. + +That the men of the American navy would be prompt to maintain the +traditions of the service was indicated in a small way by an incident of +the previous year on Lake Erie. In September, 1812, Lieutenant Jesse D. +Elliott had been sent to Buffalo to find a site for building naval +vessels. A few weeks later he was fitting out several purchased +schooners behind Squaw Island. Suddenly there came sailing in from +Amherstburg and anchored off Fort Erie two British armed brigs, the +_Detroit_ which had been surrendered by Hull, and the _Caledonia_ which +had helped to subdue the American garrison at Mackinac. Elliott had no +ships ready for action, but he was not to be daunted by such an +obstacle. It so happened that ninety Yankee seamen had been sent across +country from New York by Captain Isaac Chauncey. These worthy tars had +trudged the distance on foot, a matter of five hundred miles, with their +canvas bags on their backs, and they rolled into port at noon, in the +nick of time to serve Elliott's purpose. They were indubitably tired, +but he gave them not a moment for rest. A ration of meat and bread and a +stiff tot of grog, and they turned to and manned the boats which were to +cut out the two British brigs when darkness fell. + +Elliott scraped together fifty soldiers and, filling two cutters with +his amphibious company, he stole out of Buffalo and pulled toward Fort +Erie. At one o'clock in the morning of the 9th of October they were +alongside the pair of enemy brigs and together the bluejackets and the +infantry tumbled over the bulwarks with cutlass, pistols, and boarding +pike. In ten minutes both vessels were captured and under sail for the +American shore. The _Caledonia_ was safely beached at Black Rock, where +Elliott was building his little navy yard. The wind, however, was so +light that the _Detroit_ was swept downward by the river current and had +to anchor under the fire of British batteries. These she fought with her +guns until all her powder was shot away. Then she cut her cable, hoisted +sail again, and took the bottom on Squaw Island, where both British and +American guns had the range of her. Elliott had to abandon her and set +fire to the hull, but he afterward recovered her ordnance. + +What Elliott had in mind shows the temper of this ready naval officer. +"A strong inducement," he wrote, "was that with these two vessels and +those I have purchased, I should be able to meet the remainder of the +British force on the Upper Lakes." The loss of the _Detroit_ somewhat +disappointed this ambitious scheme but the success of the audacious +adventure foreshadowed later and larger exploits with far-reaching +results. Isaac Brock, the British general in Canada, had the genius to +comprehend the meaning of this naval exploit. "This event is +particularly unfortunate," he wrote, "and may reduce us to incalculable +distress. The enemy is making every exertion to gain a naval superiority +on both lakes; which, if they accomplish, I do not see how we can retain +the country." And to Procter, his commander at Detroit, he disclosed +the meaning of the naval loss as it affected the fortunes of the western +campaign: "This will reduce us to great distress. You will have the +goodness to state the expedients you possess to enable us to replace, as +far as possible, the heavy loss we have suffered in the _Detroit_." + +But another year was required to teach the American Government the +lesson that a few small vessels roughly pegged together of planks sawn +from the forest, with a few hundred seamen and guns, might be far more +decisive than the random operations of fifty thousand troops. This +lesson, however, was at last learnt; and so, in the summer of 1813, +General William Henry Harrison waited at Seneca on the Sandusky River +until he received, on the 10th of September, the deathless despatch of +Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry: "We have met the enemy and they are +ours." The navy had at last cleared the way for the army. + +Expeditiously forty-five hundred infantry were embarked and set ashore +only three miles from the coveted fort at Amherstburg. A mounted +regiment of a thousand Kentuckians, raised for frontier defense by +Richard M. Johnson, moved along the road to Detroit. Harrison was about +to square accounts with Procter, who had no stomach for a stubborn +defense. Tecumseh, still loyal to the British cause, summoned +thirty-five hundred of his warriors to the royal standard to stem this +American invasion. They expected that Procter would offer a courageous +resistance, for he had also almost a thousand hard-bitted British +troops, seasoned by a year's fighting. But Procter's sun had set and +disgrace was about to overtake him. To Tecumseh, a chieftain who had +waged war because of the wrongs suffered by his own people, the thought +of flight in this crisis was cowardly and intolerable. When Procter +announced that he proposed to seek refuge in retreat, Tecumseh told him +to his face that he was like a fat dog which had carried its tail erect +and now that it was frightened dropped its tail between its legs and +ran. The English might scamper as far as they liked but the Indians +would remain to meet the American invaders. + +It was a helter-skelter exodus from Amherstburg and Detroit. All +property that could not be moved was burned or destroyed, and Procter +set out for Moraviantown, on the Thames River, seventy miles along the +road to Lake Ontario. Harrison, amazed at this behavior, reported: +"Nothing but infatuation could have governed General Proctor's conduct. +The day I landed below Malden [Amherstburg] he had at his disposal +upward of three thousand Indian warriors; his regular force reinforced +by the militia of the district would have made his number nearly equal +to my aggregate, which on the day of landing did not exceed forty-five +hundred.... His inferior officers say that his conduct has been a series +of continued blunders." + +Procter had put a week behind him before Harrison set out from +Amherstburg in pursuit, but the British column was hampered in flight by +the women and children of the deserted posts, the sick and wounded, the +wagon trains, the stores, and baggage. The organization had gone to +pieces because of the demoralizing example set by its leader. A hundred +miles of wilderness lay between the fugitives and a place of refuge. +Overtaken on the Thames River, they were given no choice. It was fight +or surrender. Ahead of the American infantry brigades moved Johnson's +mounted Kentuckians, armed with muskets, rifles, knives, and tomahawks, +and led by a resourceful and enterprising soldier. Procter was compelled +to form his lines of battle across the road on the north bank of the +Thames or permit this formidable American cavalry to trample his +straggling ranks under hoof. Tecumseh's Indians, stationed in a swamp, +covered his right flank and the river covered his left. Harrison came +upon the enemy early in the afternoon of the 5th of October and formed +his line of battle. The action was carried on in a manner "not +sanctioned by anything that I had seen or heard of," said Harrison +afterwards. This first American victory of the war on land was, indeed, +quite irregular and unconventional. It was won by Johnson's mounted +riflemen, who divided and charged both the redcoats in front and the +Indians in the swamp. One detachment galloped through the first and +second lines of the British infantry while the other drove the Indians +into the American left wing and smashed them utterly. Tecumseh was among +the slain. It was all over in one hour and twenty minutes. Harrison's +foot soldiers had no chance to close with the enemy. The Americans lost +only fifteen killed and thirty wounded, and they took about five hundred +prisoners and all Procter's artillery, muskets, baggage, and stores. + +Not only was the Northwest Territory thus regained for the United States +but the power of the Indian alliance was broken. Most of the hostile +tribes now abandoned the British cause. Tecumseh's confederacy of Indian +nations fell to pieces with the death of its leader. The British army +of Upper Canada, shattered and unable to receive reinforcements from +overseas, no longer menaced Michigan and the western front of the +American line. General Harrison returned to Detroit at his leisure, and +the volunteers and militia marched homeward, for no more than two +regular brigades were needed to protect all this vast area. The struggle +for its possession was a closed episode. In this quarter, however, the +war cry "On to Canada!" was no longer heard. The United States was +satisfied to recover what it had lost with Hull's surrender and to rid +itself of the peril of invasion and the horrors of Indian massacres +along its wilderness frontiers. Of the men prominent in the struggle, +Procter suffered official disgrace at the hands of his own Government +and William Henry Harrison became a President of the United States. + +[Illustration: _OLIVER HAZARD PERRY AT THE BATTLE OF LAKE ERIE_ + +Painting by J.W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation.] + +[Illustration: _ISAAC CHAUNCEY_ + +Painting in the Comptroller's Office, City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation.] + + + + +CHAPTER III + +PERRY AND LAKE ERIE + + +Amid the prolonged vicissitudes of these western campaigns, two +subordinate officers, the boyish Major Croghan at Fort Stephenson and +the dashing Colonel Johnson with his Kentucky mounted infantry, +displayed qualities which accord with the best traditions of American +arms. Of kindred spirit and far more illustrious was Captain Oliver +Hazard Perry of the United States Navy. Perry dealt with and overcame, +on a much larger scale, similar obstacles and discouragements--untrained +men, lack of material, faulty support--but was ready and eager to meet +the enemy in the hour of need. If it is a sound axiom never to despise +the enemy, it is nevertheless true that excessive prudence has lost many +an action. Farragut's motto has been the keynote of the success of all +the great sea-captains, "_L'audace, et encore de l'audace, et toujours +de l'audace._" + +It was not until the lesson of Hull's surrender had aroused the civil +authorities that Captain Chauncey of the navy yard at New York received +orders in September, 1812, "to assume command of the naval force on +Lakes Erie and Ontario and to use every exertion to obtain control of +them this fall." Chauncey was an experienced officer, forty years old, +who had not rusted from inactivity like the elderly generals who had +been given command of armies. He knew what he needed and how to get it. +Having to begin with almost nothing, he busied himself to such excellent +purpose that he was able to report within three weeks that he had +forwarded to Sackett's Harbor on Lake Ontario, "one hundred and forty +ship carpenters, seven hundred seamen and marines, more than one hundred +pieces of cannon, the greater part of large caliber, with musket, shot, +carriages, etc. The carriages have nearly all been made and the shot +cast in that time. Nay, I may say that nearly every article that has +been forwarded has been made." + +It was found impossible to divert part of this ordnance to Buffalo +because of the excessively bad roads, which were passable for heavy +traffic only by means of sleds during the snows of winter. This +obstacle spoiled the hope of putting a fighting force afloat on Lake +Erie during the latter part of 1812. Chauncey consequently established +his main base at Sackett's Harbor and lost no time in building and +buying vessels. In forty-five days from laying the keel he launched a +ship of the corvette class, a third larger than the ocean cruisers +_Wasp_ and _Hornet_, "and nine weeks ago," said he, "the timber that she +is composed of was growing in the forest." + +Lieutenant Elliott at the same time had not been idle in his little navy +yard at Black Rock near Buffalo, where he had assembled a small brig and +several schooners. In December Chauncey inspected the work and decided +to shift it to Presqu' Isle, now the city of Erie, which was much less +exposed to interference by the enemy. Here he got together the material +for two brigs of three hundred tons each, which were to be the main +strength of Perry's squadron nine months later. Impatient to return to +Lake Ontario, where a fleet in being was even more urgently needed, +Chauncey was glad to receive from Commander Oliver Hazard Perry an +application to serve under him. To Perry was promptly turned over the +burden and the responsibility of smashing the British naval power on +Lake Erie. Events were soon to display the notable differences in +temperament and capabilities between these two men. Though he had +greater opportunities on Lake Ontario, Chauncey was too cautious and +held the enemy in too much respect; wherefore he dodged and parried and +fought inconclusive engagements with the fleet of Sir James Yeo until +destiny had passed him by. He lives in history as a competent and +enterprising chief of dockyards and supplies but not as a victorious +seaman. + +To Perry, in the flush of his youth at twenty-eight years, was granted +the immortal spark of greatness to do and dare and the personality which +impelled men gladly to serve him and to die for him. His difficulties +were huge, but he attacked them with a confidence which nothing could +dismay. First he had to concentrate his divided force. Lieutenant +Elliott's flotilla of schooners at that time lay at Black Rock. It was +necessary to move them to Erie at great risk of capture by the enemy, +but vigilance and seamanship accomplished this feat. It then remained to +finish and equip the larger vessels which were being built. Two of these +were the brigs ordered laid down by Chauncey, the _Lawrence_ and the +_Niagara_. Apart from these, the battle squadron consisted of seven +small schooners and the captured British brig, the _Caledonia_. In size +and armament they were absurd cockleshells even when compared with a +modern destroyer, but they were to make themselves superbly memorable. +Perry's flagship was no larger than the ancient coasting schooners which +ply today between Bangor and Boston with cargoes of lumber and coal. + +Through the winter and spring of 1813, the carpenters, calkers, and +smiths were fitting the new vessels together from the green timber and +planking which the choppers and sawyers wrought out of the forest. The +iron, the canvas, and all the other material had to be hauled by horses +and oxen from places several hundred miles distant. Late in July the +squadron was ready for active service but was dangerously short of men. +This, however, was the least of Perry's concerns. He had reckoned that +seven hundred and forty officers and sailors were required to handle and +fight his ships, but he did not hesitate to put to sea with a total +force of four hundred and ninety. + +Of these a hundred were soldiers sent him only nine days before he +sailed, and most of them trod a deck for the first time. Chauncey was so +absorbed in his own affairs and hazards on Lake Ontario that he was not +likely to give Perry any more men than could be spared. This reluctance +caused Perry to send a spirited protest in which he said: "The men that +came by Mr. Champlin are a motley set, blacks, soldiers, and boys. I +cannot think you saw them after they were selected." + +As the superior officer, Chauncey resented the criticism and replied +with this warning reproof: "As you have assured the Secretary that you +should conceive yourself equal or superior to the enemy, with a force of +men so much less than I had deemed necessary, there will be a great deal +expected from you by your country, and I trust they will not be +disappointed in the high expectations formed of your gallantry and +judgment." + +The quick temper of Perry flared at this. He was about to sail in search +of the British fleet with what men he had because he was unable to +obtain more, and he had rightly looked to Chauncey to supply the +deficiency. Impulsively he asked to be relieved of his command and gave +expression to his sense of grievance in a letter to the Secretary of the +Navy in which he said, among other things: "I cannot serve under an +officer who has been so totally regardless of my feelings.... The +critical state of General Harrison was such that I took upon myself the +responsibility of going out with the few young officers you had been +pleased to send me, with the few seamen I had, and as many volunteers as +I could muster from the militia. I did not shrink from this +responsibility but, Sir, at that very moment I surely did not anticipate +the receipt of a letter in every line of which is an insult." Most +fortunately Perry's request for transfer could not be granted until +after the battle of Lake Erie had been fought and won. The Secretary +answered in tones of mild rebuke: "A change of commander under existing +circumstances, is equally inadmissible as it respects the interest of +the service and your own reputation. It is right that you should reap +the harvest which you have sown." + +Perry's indignation seems excusable. He had shown a cheerful willingness +to shoulder the whole load and his anxieties had been greater than his +superiors appeared to realize. Captain Barclay, who commanded the +British naval force on Lake Erie and who had been hovering off Erie +while the American ships were waiting for men, might readily have sent +his boats in at night and destroyed the entire squadron. Perry had not +enough sailors to defend his ships, and the regiment of Pennsylvania +militia stationed at Erie to guard the naval base refused to do duty on +shipboard after dark. "I told the boys to go, Captain Perry," explained +their worthless colonel, "but the boys won't go." + +Perry's lucky star saved him from disaster, however, and on the 2d of +August he undertook the perilous and awkward labor of floating his +larger vessels over the shallow bar of the harbor at Erie. Barclay's +blockading force had vanished. For Perry it was then or never. At any +moment the enemy's topsails might reappear, and the American ships would +be caught in a situation wholly defenseless. Perry first disposed his +light-draft schooners to cover his channel, and then hoisted out the +guns of the _Lawrence_ brig and lowered them into boats. Scows, or +"camels," as they were called, were lashed alongside the vessel to lift +her when the water was pumped out of them. There was no more than four +feet of water on the bar, and the brig-of-war bumped and stranded +repeatedly even when lightened and assisted in every possible manner. +After a night and a day of unflagging exertion she was hauled across +into deep water and the guns were quickly slung aboard. The _Niagara_ +was coaxed out of harbor in the same ingenious fashion, and on the 4th +of August Perry was able to report that all his vessels were over the +bar, although Barclay had returned by now and "the enemy had been in +sight all day." + +Perry endeavored to force an engagement without delay, but the British +fleet retired to Amherstburg because Barclay was waiting for a new and +powerful ship, the _Detroit_, and he preferred to spar for time. The +American vessels thereupon anchored off Erie and took on stores. They +had fewer than three hundred men aboard, and it was bracing news for +Perry to receive word that a hundred officers and men under Commander +Jesse D. Elliott were hastening to join him. Elliott became second in +command to Perry and assumed charge of the _Niagara_. + +For almost a month the Stars and Stripes flew unchallenged from the +masts of the American ships. Perry made his base at Put-in Bay, thirty +miles southeast of Amherstburg, where he could intercept the enemy +passing eastward. The British commander, Barclay, had also been troubled +by lack of seamen and was inclined to postpone action. He was +nevertheless urged on by Sir George Prevost, the Governor General of +Canada, who told him that "he had only to dare and he would be +successful." A more urgent call on Barclay to fight was due to the lack +of food in the Amherstburg region, where the water route was now +blockaded by the American ships. The British were feeding fourteen +thousand Indians, including warriors and their families, and if +provisions failed the red men would be likely to vanish. + +At sunrise of the 10th of September, a sailor at the masthead of the +_Lawrence_ sighted the British squadron steering across the lake with a +fair wind and ready to give battle. Perry instantly sent his crews to +quarters and trimmed sail to quit the bay and form his line in open +water. He was eager to take the initiative, and it may be assumed that +he had forgotten Chauncey's prudent admonition: "The first object will +be to destroy or cripple the enemy's fleet; but in all attempts upon the +fleet you ought to use great caution, for the loss of a single vessel +may decide the fate of a campaign." + +Small, crude, and hastily manned as were the ships engaged in this +famous fresh-water battle, it should be borne in mind that the proven +principles of naval strategy and tactics used were as sound and true as +when Nelson and Rodney had demonstrated them in mighty fleet actions at +sea. In the final council in his cabin, Perry echoed Nelson's words in +saying that no captain could go very far wrong who placed his vessel +close alongside those of the enemy. Chauncey's counsel, on the other +hand, would have lost the battle. Perry's decision to give and take +punishment, no matter if it should cost him a ship or two, won him the +victory. + +The British force was inferior, both in the number of vessels and the +weight of broadsides, but this inferiority was somewhat balanced by the +greater range and hitting power of Barclay's longer guns. Each had what +might be called two heavy ships of the line: the British, the _Detroit_ +and the _Queen Charlotte,_ and the Americans, the _Lawrence_ and the +_Niagara_. Next in importance and fairly well matched were the _Lady +Prevost_ under Barclay's flag and the _Caledonia_ under Perry's. There +remained the light schooner craft of which the American squadron had six +and the British only three. Perry realized that if he could put ship +against ship the odds would be largely in his favor, for, with his +batteries of carronades which threw their shot but a short distance, he +would be unwise to maneuver for position and let the enemy pound him to +pieces at long range. His plan of battle was therefore governed entirely +by his knowledge of Barclay's strength and of the possibilities of his +own forces. + +With a light breeze and working to windward, Perry's ship moved to +intercept the British squadron which lay in column, topsails aback and +waiting. The American brigs were fanned ahead by the air which breathed +in their lofty canvas, but the schooners were almost becalmed and four +of them straggled in the rear, their crews tugging at the long sweeps or +oars. Two of the faster of these, the _Scorpion_ and the _Ariel_, were +slipping along in the van where they supported the American flagship +_Lawrence_, and Perry had no intention of delaying for the others to +come up. Shortly before noon Barclay opened the engagement with the long +guns of the _Detroit_, but as yet Perry was unable to reach his opponent +and made more sail on the _Lawrence_ in order to get close. + +The British gunners of the _Detroit_ were already finding the target, +and Perry discovered that the _Lawrence_ was difficult to handle with +much of her rigging shot away. He ranged ahead until his ship was no +more than two hundred and fifty yards from the _Detroit_. Even then the +distance was greater than desirable for the main battery of carronades. +A good golfer can drive his tee shot as far as the space of water which +separated these two indomitable flagships as they fought. It was a +different kind of naval warfare from that of today in which +superdreadnaughts score hits at battle ranges of twelve and fourteen +miles. + +Perry's plans were now endangered by the failure of his other heavy +ship, the _Niagara_, to take care of her own adversary, the _Queen +Charlotte_, which forged ahead and took a station where her broadsides +helped to reduce the _Lawrence_ to a mass of wreckage. A bitter dispute +which challenged the courage and judgment of Commander Elliott of the +_Niagara_ was the aftermath of this flaw in the conduct of the battle. +It was charged that he failed to go to the support of his +commander-in-chief when the flagship was being destroyed under his eyes. +The facts admit of no doubt: he dropped astern and for two hours +remained scarcely more than a spectator of a desperate action in which +his ship was sorely needed, whereas if he had followed the order to +close up, the _Lawrence_ need never have struck to the enemy. + +In his defense he stated that lack of wind had prevented him from +drawing ahead to engage and divert the _Queen Charlotte_ and that he had +been instructed to hold a certain position in line. At the time Perry +found no fault with him, merely setting down in his report that "at +half-past two, the wind springing up, Captain Elliott was enabled to +bring his vessel, the _Niagara_, gallantly into close action." Later +Perry formulated charges against his second in command, accusing him of +having kept on a course "which would in a few minutes have carried said +vessel entirely out of action." These documents were pigeonholed and a +Court of Inquiry commended Elliott as a brave and skillful officer who +had gained laurels in that "splendid victory." + +The issue was threshed out by naval experts who violently disagreed, but +there was glory enough for all and the flag had suffered no stain. +Certain it is that the battle would have lacked its most brilliantly +dramatic episode if Perry had not been compelled to shift his pennant +from the blazing hulk of the _Lawrence_ and, from the quarter-deck of +the _Niagara_, to renew the conflict, rally his vessels, and snatch a +triumph from the shadow of disaster. It was one of the great moments in +the storied annals of the American navy, comparable with a John Paul +Jones shouting "_We have not yet begun to fight!_" from the deck of the +shattered, water-logged _Bon Homme Richard_, or a Farragut lashed in the +rigging and roaring "_Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!_" + +Because of the failure of Elliott to bring the _Niagara_ into action at +once, as had been laid down in the plan of battle, Perry found himself +in desperate straits aboard the beaten _Lawrence_. Her colors still flew +but she could fire only one gun of her whole battery, and more than half +the ship's company had been killed or wounded--eighty-three men out of +one hundred and forty-two. It was impossible to steer or handle her and +she drifted helpless. Then it was that Perry, seeing the laggard +_Niagara_ close at hand, ordered a boat away and was transferred to a +ship which was still fit and ready to continue the action. As soon as he +had left them, the survivors of the _Lawrence_ hauled down their flag in +token of surrender, for there was nothing else for them to do. + +As soon as he jumped on deck, Perry took command of the _Niagara_, +sending Elliott off to bring up the rearmost schooners. There was no +lagging or hesitation now. With topgallant sails sheeted home, the +_Niagara_ bore down upon the _Detroit_, driven by a freshening breeze. +Barclay's crippled flagship tried to avoid being raked and so fouled her +consort, the _Queen Charlotte_. The two British ships lay locked +together while the American guns pounded them with terrific fire. +Presently they got clear of each other and pluckily attempted to carry +on the fight. But the odds were hopeless. The officer whose painful +duty it was to signal the surrender of the _Detroit_ said of this +British flagship: "The ship lying completely unmanageable, every brace +cut away, the mizzen-topmast and gaff down, all the other masts badly +wounded, not a stay left forward, hull shattered very much, a number of +guns disabled, and the enemy's squadron raking both ships ahead and +astern, none of our own in a position to support us, I was under the +painful necessity of answering the enemy to say we had struck, the +_Queen Charlotte_ having previously done so." + +It was later reported of the _Detroit_ that it was "impossible to place +a hand upon that broadside which had been exposed to the enemy's fire +without covering some portion of a wound, either from grape, round, +canister, or chain shot." The crew had suffered as severely as the +vessel. The valiant commander of the squadron, Captain Barclay, was a +fighting sailor who had lost an arm at Trafalgar. In the battle of Lake +Erie he was twice wounded and had to be carried below. His first +lieutenant was mortally hurt and in the critical moments the ship was +left in charge of the second lieutenant. In this gallant manner did +Perry and Barclay, both heirs of the bulldog Anglo-Saxon strain, wage +their bloody duel without faltering and thus did the British sailor +keep his honor bright in defeat. + +The little American schooners played a part in smashing the enemy. The +_Ariel_ and _Scorpion_ held their positions in the van and their long +guns helped deal the finishing blows to the _Detroit_, while the others +came up when the breeze grew stronger and engaged their several +opponents. The _Caledonia_ was effective in putting the _Queen +Charlotte_ out of action. When the larger British ships surrendered, the +smaller craft were compelled to follow the example, and the squadron +yielded to Perry after three hours of battle. It was in no boastful +strain but as the laconic fact that he sent his famous message to the +nation. He had met the enemy and they were all his. It was +leadership--brilliant and tenacious--which had employed makeshift +vessels, odd lots of guns, and crews which included militia, sick men, +and "a motley set of blacks and boys." Barclay had labored under +handicaps no less heavy, but it was his destiny to match himself against +a superior force and a man of unquestioned naval genius. Oliver Hazard +Perry would have made a name for himself, no doubt, if his career had +led him to blue water and the command of stately frigates. + +On Lake Ontario, Chauncey dragged his naval campaign through two +seasons and then left the enemy in control. Perry, by opening the way +for Harrison, rewon the Northwest for the United States because he +sagaciously upheld the doctrine of Napoleon that "war cannot be waged +without running risks." Behind his daring, however, lay tireless, +painstaking preparation and a thorough knowledge of his trade. + + + + +CHAPTER IV + +EBB AND FLOW ON THE NORTHERN FRONT + + +The events of the war by land are apt to be as confusing in narration as +they were in fact. The many forays, skirmishes, and retreats along the +Canadian frontier were campaigns in name only, ambitiously conceived but +most haltingly executed. Major General Dearborn, senior officer of the +American army, had failed to begin operations in the center and on the +eastern flank in time to divert the enemy from Detroit; but in the +autumn of 1812 he was ready to attempt an invasion of Canada by way of +Niagara. The direct command was given to Major General Stephen Van +Rensselaer of the New York State militia, who was to advance as soon as +six thousand troops were assembled. At first Dearborn seemed hopeful of +success. He predicted that "with the militia and other troops there or +on the march, they will be able, I presume, to cross over into Canada, +carry all the works in Niagara, and proceed to the other posts in that +province in triumph." + +The fair prospect soon clouded, however, and Dearborn, who was of a +doubtful, easily discouraged temperament, partly due to age and +infirmities, discovered that "a strange fatality seemed to have pervaded +the whole arrangements." Yet this was when the movement of troops and +supplies was far brisker and better organized than could have been +expected and when the armed strength was thrice that of Brock, the +British general, who was guarding forty miles of front along the Niagara +River with less than two thousand men. At Queenston which was the +objective of the first American attack there were no more than two +companies of British regulars and a few militia, in all about three +hundred troops. The rest of Brock's forces were at Chippawa and Fort +Erie, where the heavy assaults were expected. + +An American regular brigade was on the march to Buffalo, but its +commander, Brigadier General Alexander Smyth, was not subordinate to Van +Rensselaer, and the two had quarreled. Smyth paid no attention to a +request for a council of war and went his own way. On the night of the +10th of October Van Rensselaer attempted to cross the Niagara River, +but there was some blunder about the boats and the disgruntled troops +returned to camp. Two nights later they made another attempt but found +the British on the alert and failed to dislodge them from the heights of +Queenston. A small body of American regulars, led by gallant young +Captain Wool, managed to clamber up a path hitherto regarded as +impassable. There they held a precarious position and waited for help. +Brock, who was commanding the British in person, was instantly killed +while storming this hillside at the head of reinforcements. In him the +enemy lost its ablest and most intrepid leader. + +The forenoon wore on and Captain Wool, painfully wounded, still clung to +the heights with his two hundred and fifty men. A relief column which +crossed the river found itself helpless for lack of artillery and +intrenching tools and was compelled to fall back. Van Rensselaer forgot +his bickering with General Smyth and sent him urgent word to hasten to +the rescue. Winfield Scott, then a lieutenant colonel, came forward as a +volunteer and took command of young Captain Wool's forlorn hope. +Gradually more men trickled up the heights until the ground was defended +by three hundred and fifty regulars and two hundred and fifty militia. + +Meanwhile the British troops were mustering up the river at Chippawa, +and the red lines of their veterans were descried advancing from Fort +George below. Bands of Indians raced by field and forest to screen the +British movements and to harass the American lines. The tragic turn of +events appears to have dazed General Van Rensselaer. The failure to save +the beleaguered and outnumbered Americans on the heights he blamed upon +his troops, reporting next day that his reinforcements embarked very +slowly. "I passed immediately over to accelerate them," said he, "but to +my utter astonishment I found that at the very moment when complete +victory was in our hands the ardor of the unengaged troops had entirely +subsided. I rode in all directions, urged the men by every consideration +to pass over; but in vain." + +The candid fact seems to be that this general of militia had made a +sorry mess of the whole affair, and his men had lost all faith in his +ability to turn the adverse tide. He stood and watched six hundred +valiant American soldiers make their last stand on the rocky eminence +while the British hurled more and more men up the slope. One concerted +attack by the idle American army would have swept them away like chaff. +But there was only one Winfield Scott in the field, and his lot was +cast with those who fought to the bitter end as a sacrifice to +stupidity. The six hundred were surrounded. They were pushed back by +weight of opposing numbers. Still they died in their tracks, until the +survivors were actually pushed over a cliff and down to the bank of the +river. + +There they surrendered, for there were no boats to carry them across. +The boatmen had fled to cover as soon as the Indians opened fire on +them. Winfield Scott was among the prisoners together with a brigadier +general and two more lieutenant colonels who had been bagged earlier in +the day. Ninety Americans were killed and many more wounded, while a +total of nine hundred were captured during the entire action. Van +Rensselaer had lost almost as many troops as Hull had lost at Detroit, +and he had nothing to show for it. He very sensibly resigned his command +on the next day. + +The choice of his successor, however, was again unfortunate. Brigadier +General Alexander Smyth had been inspector general in the regular army +before he was given charge of an infantry brigade. He had a most +flattering opinion of himself, and promotion to the command of an army +quite turned his head. The oratory with which he proceeded to bombard +friend and foe strikes the one note of humor in a chapter that is +otherwise depressing. Through the newspapers he informed his troops that +their valor had been conspicuous "but the nation has been unfortunate in +the selection of some of those who have directed it... The cause of +these miscarriages is apparent. The commanders were popular men, +'destitute alike of theory and experience' in the art of war." "In a few +days," he announced, "the troops under my command will plant the +American standard in Canada. They are men accustomed to obedience, +silence, and steadiness. They will conquer or they will die. Will you +stand with your arms folded and look on this interesting struggle?... +Has the race degenerated? Or have you, under the baneful influence of +contending factions, forgot your country?... Shame, where is thy blush? +No!" + +This invasion of Canada was to be a grim, deadly business; no more +trifling. His heroic troops were to hold their fire until they were +within _five paces_ of the enemy, and then to charge bayonets with +shouts. They were to think on their country's honor torn, her rights +trampled on, her sons enslaved, her infants perishing by the hatchet, +not forgetting to be strong and brave and to let the ruffian power of +the British King cease on this continent. + +Buffalo was the base of this particular conquest of Canada. The advance +guard would cross the Niagara River from Black Rock to destroy the +enemy's batteries, after which the army was to move onward, three +thousand strong. The first detachments crossed the river early in the +morning on the 28th of November and did their work well and bravely and +captured the guns in spite of heavy loss. The troops then began to +embark at sunrise, but by noon only twelve hundred were in boats. +Upstream they moved at a leisurely pace and went ashore for dinner. The +remainder of the three thousand, however, had failed to appear, and +Smyth refused to invade unless he had the full number. Altogether, four +thousand troops, all regulars, had been sent to Niagara but many of them +had been disabled by sickness. + +General Smyth then called a council of war, shifted the responsibility +from his own shoulders, and decided to delay the invasion. Again he +changed his mind and ordered the men into the boats two days later. +Fifteen hundred men answered the summons. Again the general marched them +ashore after another council of war, and then and there he abandoned +his personal conquest of Canada. His army literally melted away, "about +four thousand men without order or restraint discharging their muskets +in every direction," writes an eyewitness. They riddled the general's +tent with bullets by way of expressing their opinion of him, and he left +the camp not more than two leaps ahead of his earnest troops. He +requested permission to visit his family, after the newspapers had +branded him as a coward, and the visit became permanent. His name was +dropped from the army rolls without the formality of an inquiry. It +seemed rather too much for the country to bear that, in the first year +of the war, its armies should have suffered from the failures of Hull, +Van Rensselaer, and Smyth. + +It had been hoped that General Dearborn might carry out his own idea of +an operation against Montreal at the same time as the Niagara campaign +was in progress. On the shore of Lake Champlain, Dearborn was in command +of the largest and most promising force under the American flag, +including seven regiments of the regular army. Taking personal charge at +Plattsburg, he marched this body of troops twenty miles in the direction +of the Canadian border. Here the militia refused to go on, and he +marched back again after four days in the field. Beset with rheumatism +and low spirits, he wrote to the Secretary of War: "I had anticipated +disappointment and misfortune in the commencement of the war, but I did +by no means apprehend such a deficiency of regular troops and such a +series of disasters as we have witnessed." Coupled with this complaint +was the request that he might be allowed "to retire to the shades of +private life and remain a mere but interested spectator of passing +events." + +The Government, however, was not yet ready to release Major General +Dearborn but instructed him to organize an offensive which should obtain +control of the St. Lawrence River and thereby cut communication between +Upper and Lower Canada. This was the pet plan of Armstrong when he +became Secretary of War, and as soon as was possible he set the military +machinery in motion. In February, 1813, Armstrong told Dearborn to +assemble four thousand men at Sackett's Harbor, on Lake Ontario, and +three thousand at Buffalo. The larger force was to cross the lake in the +spring, protected by Chauncey's fleet, capture the important naval +station of Kingston, then attack York (Toronto), and finally join the +corps at Buffalo for another operation against the British on the +Niagara River. But Dearborn was not eager for the enterprise. He +explained that he lacked sufficient strength for an operation against +Kingston. With the support of Commodore Chauncey he proposed a different +offensive which should be aimed first against York, then against +Niagara, and finally against Kingston. This proposal reversed +Armstrong's programme, and he permitted it to sway his decision. Thus +the war turned westward from the St. Lawrence. + +The only apparent success in this campaign occurred at York, the capital +of Upper Canada, where on the 27th of April one ship under construction +was burned and another captured after the small British garrison had +been driven inland. The public buildings were also destroyed by fire, +though Dearborn protested that this was done against his orders. In the +next year, however, the enemy retaliated by burning the Capitol at +Washington. The fighting at York was bloody, and the American forces +counted a fifth killed or wounded. They remained on the Canadian side +only ten days and then returned to disembark at Niagara. Here Dearborn +fell ill, and his chief of staff, Colonel Winfield Scott, was left in +virtual control of the army. + +In May, 1813, most of the troops at Plattsburg and Sackett's Harbor +were moved to the Niagara region for the purpose of a grand movement to +take Fort George, at the mouth of that river, from the rear and thus +redeem the failure of the preceding campaign. Commodore Chauncey with +his Ontario fleet was prepared to cooperate and to transport the troops. +Three American brigadiers, Boyd, Winder, and Chandler, effected a +landing in handsome fashion, while Winfield Scott led an advance +division. Under cover of the ships they proceeded along the beach and +turned the right flank of the British defenses. Fort George was +evacuated, but most of the force escaped and made their way to +Queenston, whence they continued to retreat westward along the shore of +Lake Ontario. Vincent, the British general, reported his losses in +killed and wounded and missing as three hundred and fifty-six. The +Americans suffered far less. It was a clean-cut, workmanlike operation, +and, according to an observer, "Winfield Scott fought nine-tenths of the +battle." But the chief aim had been to destroy the British force, and in +this the adventure failed. + +General Dearborn was not at all reconciled to letting the garrison of +Fort George get clean away from him, and he therefore sent General +Winder in pursuit with a thousand men. These were reinforced by as many +more; and together they followed the trail of the retreating British to +Stony Creek and camped there for the night. Vincent and his sixteen +hundred British regulars were in bivouac ten miles beyond. The mishap at +Fort George had by no means knocked the fight out of them. Vincent +himself led six hundred men back in the middle of a black night (the 6th +of June) and fell upon the American camp. A confused battle followed. +The two forces intermingled in cursing, stabbing, swirling groups. The +American generals, Chandler and Winder, walked straight into the enemy's +arms and were captured. The British broke through and took the American +batteries but failed to keep them. At length both parties retired, badly +punished. The Americans had lost all ardor for pursuit and on the +following day retreated ten miles and were soon ordered to return to +Fort George. + +General Dearborn was much distressed by this unlucky episode and was in +such feeble health that he again begged to be relieved. He was, he said, +"so reduced in strength as to be incapable of any command." General +Morgan Lewis took temporary command at Niagara, but, being soon called +to Sackett's Harbor, he was succeeded by General Boyd, whom Lewis was +kind enough to describe, by way of recommendation, in these terms: "A +compound of ignorance, vanity, and petulance, with nothing to recommend +him but that species of bravery in the field which is vaporing, +boisterous, stifling reflection, blinding observation, and better +adapted to the bully than the soldier." + +In order to live up to this encomium, Boyd sent Colonel Boerstler on the +24th of June, with four hundred infantry and two guns, to bombard and +take an annoying stone house a day's march from Fort George. But two +hundred hostile Indians so alarmed Boerstler that he attempted to +retreat. Thirty hostile militia then caused him to halt the retreat and +send for reinforcements. The reinforcements came to the number of a +hundred and fifty, but the British also appeared with forty-seven more +men. Colonel Boerstler thereupon surrendered his total of five hundred +and forty soldiers. General Dearborn, still the nominal commander of the +forces, sadly mentioned the disaster as "an unfortunate and +unaccountable event." + +There is a better account to be given, however, of events at Sackett's +Harbor in this same month of May. The operations on the Niagara front +had stripped this American naval base of troops and of the protection of +Chauncey's fleet. Sir George Prevost, the Governor in Chief of Canada, +could not let the opportunity slip, although he was not notable for +energy. He embarked with a force of regulars, eight hundred men, on Sir +James Yeo's ships at Kingston and sailed across Lake Ontario. + +Sackett's Harbor was defended by only four hundred regulars of several +regiments and about two hundred and fifty militia from Albany. Couriers +rode through the countryside as soon as the British ships were sighted, +and several hundred volunteers came straggling in from farm and shop and +mill. In them was something of the old spirit of Lexington and Bunker +Hill, and to lead them there was a real man and a soldier with his two +feet under him, Jacob Brown, a brigadier general of the state militia, +who consented to act in the emergency. He knew what to do and how to +communicate to his men his own unshaken courage. On the beach of the +beautiful little harbor he posted five hundred of his militia and +volunteers to hamper the British landing. His second line was composed +of regulars. In rear were the forts with the guns manned. + +The British grenadiers were thrown ashore at dawn on the 28th of May +under a wicked fire from American muskets and rifles, but their +disciplined ranks surged forward, driving the militia back at the point +of the bayonet and causing even the regulars to give ground. The +regulars halted at a blockhouse, where they had also the log barracks +and timbers of the shipyard for a defense, and there they stayed in +spite of the efforts of the British grenadiers to dislodge them. Jacob +Brown, stout-hearted and undismayed, rallied his militia in new +positions. Of the engagement a British officer said: "I do not +exaggerate when I tell you that the shot, both of musketry and grape, +was falling about us like hail... Those who were left of the troops +behind the barracks made a dash out to charge the enemy; but the fire +was so destructive that they were instantly turned by it, and the +retreat was sounded. Sir George, fearless of danger and disdaining to +run or to suffer his men to run, repeatedly called out to them to retire +in order; many, however, made off as fast as they could." + +Before the retreat was sounded, the British expedition had suffered +severely. One man in three was killed or wounded, and the rest of them +narrowly escaped capture. Jacob Brown serenely reported to General +Dearborn that "the militia were all rallied before the enemy gave way +and were marching perfectly in his view towards the rear of his right +flank; and I am confident that even then, if Sir George had not retired +with the utmost precipitation to his boats, he would have been cut off." + +Though he had given the enemy a sound thrashing, Jacob Brown found his +righteous satisfaction spoiled by the destruction of the naval barracks, +shipping, and storehouses. This was the act of a flighty lieutenant of +the American navy who concluded too hastily that the battle was lost and +therefore set fire to the buildings to keep the supplies and vessels out +of the enemy's hands. Jacob Brown in his straightforward fashion +emphatically placed the blame where it belonged: + + The burning of the marine barracks was as infamous a transaction as + ever occurred among military men. The fire was set as the enemy met + our regulars upon the main line; and if anything could have + appalled these gallant men it would have been the flames in their + rear. We have all, I presume, suffered in the public estimation in + consequence of this disgraceful burning. The fact is, however, that + the army is entitled to much higher praise than though it had not + occurred. The navy alone are responsible for what happened on Navy + Point and it is fortunate for them that they have reputations + sufficient to sustain the shock. + +A few weeks later General Dearborn, after his repeated failures to +shake the British grip on the Niagara front and the misfortunes which +had darkened his campaigns, was retired according to his wish. But the +American nation was not yet rid of its unsuccessful generals. James +Wilkinson, who was inscrutably chosen to succeed Dearborn, was a man of +bad reputation and low professional standing. "The selection of this +unprincipled imbecile," said Winfield Scott, "was not the blunder of +Secretary Armstrong." Added to this, Wilkinson was a man of broken +health. He was shifted from command at New Orleans because the Southern +Senators insisted that he was untrustworthy and incompetent. The regular +army regarded him with contempt. + +Secretary Armstrong endeavored to mend matters by making his own +headquarters at Sackett's Harbor, where the next offensive, directed +against Montreal, was planned under his direction. Success hung upon the +cooperation and junction of two armies moving separately, the one under +Wilkinson descending the St. Lawrence, the other under Wade Hampton +setting out from Plattsburg on Lake Champlain. The fact that these two +officers had hated each other for years made a difficult problem no +easier. Hampton possessed uncommon ability and courage, but he was proud +and sensitive, as might have been expected in a South Carolina +gentleman, and he loathed Wilkinson with all his heart. That he should +yield the seniority to one whom he considered a blackguard was to him +intolerable, and he accepted the command on Lake Champlain with the +understanding that he would take no orders from Wilkinson until the two +armies were combined. + +The expedition from Sackett's Harbor was ready to advance by way of the +St. Lawrence in October, 1813, and comprised seven thousand effective +troops. Even then the commanding general and the Secretary of War had +begun to regard the adventure as dubious and were accusing each other of +dodging the responsibility. Said Wilkinson to Armstrong: "It is +necessary to my justification that you should, by the authority of the +President, direct the operations of the army under my command +particularly against Montreal." Said Armstrong to Wilkinson: "I speak +conjecturally, but should we surmount every obstacle in descending the +river we shall advance upon Montreal ignorant of the force arrayed +against us and in case of misfortune having no retreat, the army must +surrender at discretion." This was scarcely the spirit to inspire a +conquering army. As though to clinch his lack of faith in the +enterprise, the Secretary of War ordered winter quarters built for ten +thousand men many miles this side of Montreal, explaining in later years +that he had suspected the campaign would terminate as it did, "with the +disgrace of doing nothing." + +On the 17th of October the army embarked in bateaux and coasted along +Lake Ontario to the entrance of the St. Lawrence. After being delayed by +stormy weather, the flotilla passed the British guns across from +Ogdensburg and halted twenty miles below. There Wilkinson called a +council of war to decide whether to proceed or retreat. Four generals +voted to attack Montreal and two were reluctant but could see "no other +alternative." Wilkinson then became ill and was unable to leave his boat +or to give orders. Several British gunboats evaded Chauncey's blockade +and annoyed the rear of the expedition. Eight hundred British infantry +from Kingston followed along shore and peppered the boats with musketry +and canister wherever the river narrowed. Finally it became necessary +for the Americans to land a force to drive the enemy away. Jacob Brown +took a brigade and cleared the bank in advance of the flotilla which +floated down to a farm called Chrystler's and moored for the night. + +General Boyd, who had been sent back with a strong force to protect the +rear, reported next morning that the enemy was advancing in column. He +was told to turn back and attack. This he did with three brigades. It +was a brilliant opportunity to capture or destroy eight hundred British +troops led by a dashing naval officer, Captain Mulcaster. Boyd lived up +to his reputation, which was such that Jacob Brown had refused to serve +under him. At this engagement of Chrystler's Farm, with two thousand +regulars at his disposal, he was unmercifully beaten. Both Wilkinson and +Morgan Lewis were flat on their backs, too feeble to concern themselves +with battles. The American troops fought without a coherent plan and +were defeated and broken in detail. Almost four hundred of them were +killed, wounded, or captured. Their conduct reflected the half-hearted +attitude of their commanding general and some of his subordinates. The +badly mauled brigades hastily took to the boats and ran the rapids, +stopping at the first harbor below. There Wilkinson received tidings +from Wade Hampton's army which caused him to abandon the voyage down +the St. Lawrence, and it is fair to conjecture that he shed no tears of +disappointment. + +In September Hampton had led his forces, recruited to four thousand +infantry and a few dragoons, from Lake Champlain to the Canadian border +in faithful compliance with his instructions to join the movement +against Montreal. His line of march was westward to the Chateauguay +River where he took a position which menaced both Montreal and that +vital artery, the St. Lawrence. Building roads and bringing up supplies, +he waited there for Wilkinson to set his own undertaking in motion. Word +came from Secretary Armstrong to advance along the river, hold the enemy +in check, and prepare to unite with Wilkinson's army. Hampton acted +promptly and alarmed the British at Montreal, who foresaw grave +consequences and assembled troops from every quarter. Hampton then +learned that his army faced an enemy which was of vastly superior +strength and which had every advantage of natural defense, while he +himself was becoming convinced that Wilkinson was a broken reed and that +no further support could be expected from the Government. General +Prevost's own reports and letters showed that he had collected in the +Montreal district and available for defense at least fifteen thousand +rank and file, including the militia which had been mustered to repel +Hampton's advance. The American position at Chateauguay was not less +perilous than that of Harrison on the Maumee and far more so than that +which had cost Dearborn so many disasters at Niagara. + +Hampton moved forward half-heartedly. He had received a message from the +War Department that his troops were to prepare winter quarters and these +orders confirmed his suspicions that no attempt against Montreal was +intended. "These papers sunk my hopes," he wrote in reply, "and raised +serious doubts of that efficacious support that had been anticipated. I +would have recalled the column, but it was in motion and the darkness of +the night rendered it impracticable." + +The last words refer to a collision with a small force of Canadian +militia, led by Lieutenant Colonel de Salaberry, who had come forward to +impede the American advance. These Canadians had obstructed the road +with fallen trees and abatis, falling back until they found favorable +ground where they very pluckily intrenched themselves. The intrepid +party was comprised of a few Glengarry Fencibles and three hundred +French-Canadian Voltigeurs. Colonel de Salaberry was a trained soldier, +and he now displayed brilliant courage and resourcefulness. Two American +divisions attacking him were unable to carry his breastworks and were +driven along the river bank and routed. Hampton's troops abandoned much +of their equipment, and returned to camp with a loss of about fifty men. + +There was great rejoicing in Canada and rightly so, for a victory had +been handsomely won without the aid of British regulars; and Colonel de +Salaberry's handful of French Canadians received the credit for +thwarting the American plans against Montreal. But, without belittling +the signal valor of the achievement, the documentary evidence goes to +prove that Hampton's failure was largely due to the neglect of his +Government. His state of mind at this time was such that he wrote: +"Events have no tendency to change my opinion of the destiny intended +for me, nor my determination to retire from a service where I can feel +neither security nor expect honor." + +With this tame conclusion the armies of Wilkinson and Hampton tucked +themselves into log huts for the winter. Both accused the Secretary of +War of leading them into an impossible venture and of then deserting +them, while he in his turn accepted their resignations from the army. +The fiasco was a costly one in quite another direction, for the Niagara +sector had been overlooked in the elaborate attempt to capture Montreal. +The few American troops who had gained a foothold on the Canadian side, +at Fort George and the village of Niagara, were left unsupported while +all the available regulars were sent to the armies of Wilkinson and +Hampton. As soon as the British comprehended that the grand invasion had +crumbled, they bethought themselves of the tempting opportunity to +recover their forts at Niagara. + +Wilkinson advised that the Americans evacuate Fort George, which they +did on the 10th of December, when five hundred British soldiers were +marching to retake it. There was no effort to reinforce the garrison, +although at the time ten thousand American troops were idle in winter +quarters. Fort Niagara, on the American side, still flew the Stars and +Stripes, but on the night of the 18th of December Colonel Murray with +five hundred and fifty British regulars rushed the fort, surprised the +sentries, and lost only eight men in capturing this stronghold and its +three hundred and fifty defenders. It was more like a massacre. +Sixty-seven Americans were killed by the bayonet. A few nights later +the Indian allies were loosed against Buffalo and Black Rock and ravaged +thirty miles of frontier. The settlements were helpless. The Government +had made not the slightest attempt to protect or defend them. + +The war had come to the end of its second year, and by land the United +States had done no more than to regain what Hull lost at Detroit. The +conquest of Canada was a shattered illusion, a sorry tale of wasted +energy, misdirected armies, sordid intrigue, lack of organization. A few +worthless generals had been swept into the rubbish heap where they +belonged, and this was the chief item on the credit side of the ledger. +The state militia system had been found wanting; raw levies, defying +authority and miserably cared for, had been squandered against a few +thousand disciplined British regulars. The nation, angry and bewildered, +was taking these lessons to heart. The story of 1814 was to contain far +brighter episodes. + + + + +CHAPTER V + +THE NAVY ON BLUE WATER + + +It has pleased the American mind to regard the War of 1812 as a maritime +conflict. This is natural enough, for the issue was the freedom of the +sea, and the achievements of Yankee ships and sailors stood out in +brilliant relief against the somber background of the inefficiency of +the army. The offensive was thought to be properly a matter for the land +forces, which had vastly superior advantages against Canada, while the +navy was compelled to act on the defensive against overwhelming odds. +The truth is that the navy did amazingly well, though it could not +prevent the enemy's squadrons from blockading American ports or raiding +the coasts at will. A few single ship actions could not vitally +influence the course of the war; but they served to create an +imperishable renown for the flag and the service, and to deal a +staggering blow to the pride and prestige of an enemy whose ancient +boast it was that Britannia ruled the waves. + +The amazing thing is that the navy was able to accomplish anything at +all, neglected and almost despised as it was by the same opinion which +had suffered the army system to become a melancholy jest. During the +decade in which Great Britain captured hundreds of American merchant +ships in time of peace and impressed more than six thousand American +seamen, the United States built two sloops-of-war of eighteen guns and +allowed three of her dozen frigates to hasten to decay at their mooring +buoys. Officers in the service were underpaid and shamefully treated by +the Government. Captain Bainbridge, an officer of distinction, asked for +leave that he might earn money to support himself, giving as a reason: +"I have hitherto refused such offers on the presumption that my country +would require my services. That presumption is removed, and even doubts +entertained of the permanency of the naval establishment." + +But, though Congress refused to build more frigates or to formulate a +programme for guarding American shores and commerce, the tiny navy kept +alive the spark of duty and readiness, while the nation drifted +inevitably towards war. There was no scarcity of capable seamen, for +the merchant marine was an admirable training-school. In those far-off +days the technique of seafaring and sea fighting was comparatively +simple. The merchant seaman could find his way about a frigate, for in +rigging, handling, and navigation the ships were very much alike. And +the American seamen of 1812 were in fighting mood; they had been whetted +by provocation to a keen edge for war. They understood the meaning of +"Free Trade and Sailors' Rights," if the landsmen did not. There were +strapping sailors in every deep-water port to follow the fife and drum +of the recruiting squad. The militia might quibble about "rights," but +all the sailors asked was the weather gage of a British man-of-war. They +had no patience with such spokesmen as Josiah Quincy, who said that +Massachusetts would not go to war to contest the right of Great Britain +to search American vessels for British seamen. They had neither +forgotten nor forgiven the mortal affront of 1807, when their frigate +_Chesapeake_, flying the broad pennant of Commodore James Barron, +refused to let the British _Leopard_ board and search her, and was fired +into without warning and reduced to submission, after twenty-one of the +American crew had been killed or wounded. + +That shameful episode was in keeping with the attitude of the British +navy toward the armed ships of the United States, "a few fir-built +things with bits of striped bunting at their mast-heads," as George +Canning, British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, described them. +Long before the declaration of war British squadrons hovered off the +port of New York to ransack merchant vessels or to seize them as prizes. +In the course of the Napoleonic wars England had met and destroyed the +navies of all her enemies in Europe. The battles of Copenhagen, the +Nile, Trafalgar, and a hundred lesser fights had thundered to the world +the existence of an unconquerable sea power. + +Insignificant as it was, the American naval service boasted a history +and a high morale. Its ships had been active. The younger officers +served with seniors who had sailed and fought with Biddle and Barney and +Paul Jones in the Revolution. Many of them had won promotions for +gallantry in hand-to-hand combats in boarding parties, for following the +bold Stephen Decatur in 1804 when he cut out and set fire to the +_Philadelphia_, which had fallen into the hands of pirates at Tripoli, +and helping Thomas Truxtun in 1799-1800 when the _Constellation_ whipped +the Frenchmen, _L'Insurgente_ and _La Vengeance_. In wardroom or +steerage almost every man could tell of engagements in which he had +behaved with credit. Trained in the school of hard knocks, the sailor +knew the value of discipline and gunnery, of the smart ship and the +willing crew, while on land the soldier rusted and lost his zeal. + +The bluejackets were volunteers, not impressed men condemned to brutal +servitude, and they had fought to save their skins in merchant vessels +which made their voyages, in peril of privateer, pirate, and picaroon, +from the Caribbean to the China Sea. The American merchant marine was at +the zenith of its enterprise and daring, attracting the pick and flower +of young manhood, and it offered incomparable material for the naval +service and the fleets of swift privateers which swarmed out to harry +England's commerce.[2] + +[Footnote 2: For an account of the privateers of 1812, see _The Old +Merchant Marine_, by Ralph D. Paine (in _The Chronicles of America_).] + +The American frigates which humbled the haughty Mistress of the Seas +beyond all precedent were superior in speed and hitting power to +anything of their class afloat. It detracts not at all from the glory +they won to remember that in every instance they were larger and of +better design and armament than the British frigates which they shot to +pieces with such methodical accuracy. + +When war was declared, the American Government was not quite clear as to +what should be done with the navy. In New York harbor was a squadron of +five ships under Commodore John Rodgers, including two of the heavier +frigates or forty-fours, the _President_ and the _United States_. +Rodgers had also the lighter frigate _Congress_, the brig _Argus_, and +the sloop _Hornet_. His orders were to look for British cruisers which +were annoying commerce off Sandy Hook, chase them away, and then return +to port for "further more extensive and particular orders." One hour +after receiving these instructions the eager Rodgers put out to sea, +with Captain Stephen Decatur as a squadron commander. The quarry was the +frigate _Belvidera_, the most offensive of the British blockading force. +This warship was sighted by the _President_ and overtaken within +forty-eight hours. An unlucky accident then occurred. Instead of running +alongside, the _President_ began firing at a distance and was hulling +the enemy's stern when a gun on the forecastle burst, and killed or +wounded sixteen American sailors. Commodore Rodgers was picked up with a +broken leg. Meanwhile the _Belvidera_ cast overboard her boats and +anchors, emptied the fresh water barrels to better her sailing trim, +and, crowding on every stitch of canvas, drew away and was lost to view. +Rodgers then forgot his orders to return to New York and went off in +search of the great convoy of British merchant vessels homeward bound +from Jamaica, which was called the plate fleet. He sailed as far as the +English Channel before quitting the chase and then cruised back to +Boston. + +Meanwhile Captain Isaac Hull of the _Constitution_ had taken on a crew +and stores at Annapolis and was bound up the coast to New York. Hull's +luck appeared to be no better than Rodgers's. Off Barnegat he sailed +almost into a strong British squadron, which had been sent from Halifax. +The escape from this grave predicament was an exploit of seamanship +which is among the treasured memories of the service. It was the +beginning of the career of the _Constitution_, whose name is still the +most illustrious on the American naval list and whose commanders, Hull +and Bainbridge, are numbered among the great captains. It is a privilege +to behold today, in the Boston Navy Yard, this gallant frigate preserved +as a heritage, her tall masts and graceful yards soaring above the grim, +gray citadels that we call battleships. True it is that a single modern +shell would destroy this obsolete, archaic frigate which once swept the +seas like a meteor, but the very image of her is still potent to thrill +the hearts and animate the courage of an American seaman. + +On that luckless July morning, at break of day, off the New Jersey +coast, it seemed as though the _Constitution_ would be flying British +colors ere she had a chance to fight. On her leeward side stood two +English frigates, the _Guerrière_ and the _Belvidera_, with the +_Shannon_ only five miles astern, and the rest of the hostile fleet +lifting topsails above the southern horizon. + +Not a breath of wind stirred. Captain Hull called away his boats, and +the sailors tugged at the oars, towing the _Constitution_ very slowly +ahead. Captain Broke of the _Shannon_ promptly followed suit and +signaled for all the boats of the squadron. In a long column they +trailed at the end of the hawser; and the _Shannon_ crept closer. +Catspaws of wind ruffled the water, and first one ship and then the +other gained a few hundred yards as upper tiers of canvas caught the +faint impulse. The _Shannon_ was a crack ship, and there was no better +crew in the British navy, as Lawrence of the _Chesapeake_ afterwards +learned to his mortal sorrow. Gradually the _Shannon_ cut down the +intervening distance until she could make use of her bow guns. + +At this Captain Hull resolved to try kedging his ship along, sending a +boat half a mile ahead with a light anchor and all the spare rope on +board. The crew walked the capstan round and hauled the ship up to the +anchor, which they then lifted, carried ahead, and dropped again. The +_Constitution_ kept two kedges going all through that summer day, but +the _Shannon_ was playing the same game, and the two ships maintained +their relative positions. They shot at each other at such long range +that no damage was done. Before dusk the _Guerrière_ caught a slant of +breeze and worked nearer enough to bang away at the _Constitution_, +which was, indeed, between the devil and the deep sea. + +Night came on. The sailors, British and American, toiled until they +dropped in their tracks, pulling at the kedge anchors and hawsers or +bending to the sweeps of the cutters which towed at intervals and were +exposed to the spatter of shot. It seemed impossible that the +_Constitution_ could slip clear of this pack of able frigates which +trailed her like hounds. Toward midnight the fickle breeze awoke and +wafted the ships along under studding sails and all the light cloths +that were wont to arch skyward. For two hours the men slept on deck +like logs while those on watch grunted at the pump-brakes and the hose +wetted the canvas to make it draw better. + +The breeze failed, however, and through the rest of the night it was +kedge and tow again, the _Shannon_ and the _Guerrière_ hanging on +doggedly, confident of taking their quarry. Another day dawned, hot and +windless, and the situation was unchanged. Other British ships had +crawled or drifted nearer, but the _Constitution_ was always just beyond +range of their heavy guns. We may imagine Isaac Hull striding across the +poop and back again, ruddy, solid, composed, wearing a cocked hat and a +gold-laced coat, lifting an eye aloft, or squinting through his brass +telescope, while he damned the enemy in the hearty language of the sea. +He was a nephew of General William Hull, but it would have been unfair +to remind him of it. + +Near sunset of the second day of this unique test of seamanship and +endurance, a rain squall swept toward the _Constitution_ and obscured +the ocean. Just before the violent gust struck the ship her seamen +scampered aloft and took in the upper sails. This was all that safety +required, but, seeing a chance to trick the enemy, Hull ordered the +lower sails double-reefed as though caught in a gale of wind. The +British ships hastily imitated him before they should be overtaken in +like manner and veered away from the chase. Veiled in the rain and dusk, +the _Constitution_ set all sail again and foamed at twelve knots on her +course toward a port of refuge. Though two of the British frigates were +in sight next morning, the _Constitution_ left them far astern and +reached Boston safely. + +Seafaring New England was quick to recognize the merit of this escape. +Even the Federalists, who opposed and hampered the war by land, were +enthusiastic in praise of Captain Hull and his ship. They had outsailed +and outwitted the best of the British men-of-war on the American coast, +and a general feeling of hopelessness gave way to an ardent desire to +try anew the ordeal of battle. With this spirit firing his officers and +crew, Hull sailed again a few days later on a solitary cruise to the +eastward with the intention of vexing the enemy's merchant trade and +hopeful of finding a frigate willing to engage him in a duel. From +Newfoundland he cruised south until a Salem privateer spoke him on the +18th of August and reported a British warship close by. The +_Constitution_ searched until the afternoon of the next day and then +sighted her old friend, the _Guerrière_. + +To retell the story of their fight in all the vanished sea lingo of that +day would bewilder the land-man and prove tedious to those familiar with +the subject. The boatswains piped the call, "all hands clear ship for +action"; the fife and drum beat to quarters; and four hundred men stood +by the tackles of the muzzle-loading guns with their clumsy wooden +carriages, or climbed into the tops to use their muskets or trim sail. +Decks were sanded to prevent slipping when blood flowed. Boys ran about +stacking the sacks of powder or distributing buckets of pistols ready +for the boarding parties. And against the masts the cutlasses and pikes +stood ready. + +Captain John Dacres of the ill-fated _Guerrière_ was an English +gentleman as well as a gallant officer. But he did not know his +antagonist. Like his comrades of the service he had failed to grasp the +fact that the _Constitution_ and the other American frigates of her +class were the most formidable craft afloat, barring ships of the line, +and that they were to revolutionize the design of war-vessels for half a +century thereafter. They were frigates, or cruisers, in that they +carried guns on two decks, but the main battery of long +twenty-four-pound guns was an innovation, and the timbers and planking +were stouter than had ever been built into ships of the kind. So stout, +indeed, were the sides that shot rebounded from them more than once and +thus gave the _Constitution_ the affectionate nickname of "Old +Ironsides." + +Sublimely indifferent to these odds, Captain Dacres had already sent a +challenge, with his compliments, to Commodore Rodgers of the United +States frigate _President_, saying that he would be very happy to meet +him or any other American frigate of equal force, off Sandy Hook, "for +the purpose of having a few minutes' tête-à-tête." It was therefore with +the utmost willingness that the _Constitution_ and the _Guerrière_ +hoisted their battle ensigns and approached each other warily for an +hour while they played at long bowls, as was the custom, each hoping to +disable the other's spars or rigging and so gain the advantage of +movement. Finding this sort of action inconclusive, however, Hull set +more sail and ran down to argue it with broadsides, coolly biding his +time, although Morris, his lieutenant, came running up again and again +to beg him to begin firing. Men were being killed beside their guns as +they stood ready to jerk the lock strings. The two ships were abreast +of each other and no more than a few yards apart before the +_Constitution_ returned the cannonade that thundered from every gun port +of her adversary. + +Within ten minutes the _Guerrière's_ mizzenmast was knocked over the +side and her hull was shattered by the accurate fire of the Yankee +gunners, who were trained to shoot on the downward roll of their ship +and so smash below the water line. Almost unhurt, the _Constitution_ +moved ahead and fearfully raked the enemy's deck before the ships fouled +each other. They drifted apart before the boarders could undertake their +bloody business, and then the remaining masts of the British frigate +toppled overside and she was a helpless wreck. Seventy-nine of her crew +were dead or wounded and the ship was sinking beneath their feet. +Captain Isaac Hull could truthfully report: "In less than thirty minutes +from the time we got alongside of the enemy she was left without a spar +standing, and the hull cut to pieces in such a manner as to make it +difficult to keep her above water." + +Captain Dacres struck his flag, and the American sailors who went aboard +found the guns dismounted, the dead and dying scattered amid a wild +tangle of spars and rigging, and great holes blown through the sides +and decks. The _Constitution_ had suffered such trifling injury that she +was fit and ready for action a few hours later. Of her crew only seven +men were killed and the same number hurt. She was the larger ship, and +the odds in her favor were as ten to seven, reckoned in men and guns, +for which reasons Captain Hull ought to have won. The significance of +his victory was that at every point he had excelled a British frigate +and had literally blown her out of the water. His crew had been together +only five weeks and could fairly be called green while the _Guerrière_, +although short-handed, had a complement of veteran tars. The British +navy had never hesitated to engage hostile men-of-war of superior force +and had usually beaten them. Of two hundred fights between single ships, +against French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Danish, and Dutch, the +English had lost only five. The belief of Captain Dacres that he could +beat the _Constitution_ was therefore neither rash nor ill-founded. + +The English captain had ten Americans in his crew, but he would not +compel them to fight against their countrymen and sent them below, +although he sorely needed every man who could haul at a gun-tackle or +lay out on a yard. Wounded though he was and heartbroken by the +disaster, his chivalry was faultless, and he took pains to report: "I +feel it my duty to state that the conduct of Captain Hull and his +officers toward our men has been that of a brave and generous enemy, the +greatest care being taken to prevent our men losing the smallest trifle +and the greatest attention being paid to the wounded." + +When the Englishman was climbing up the side of the _Constitution_ as a +prisoner, Isaac Hull ran to help him, exclaiming, "Give me your hand, +Dacres. I know you are hurt." No wonder that these two captains became +fast friends. It is because sea warfare abounds in such manly incidents +as these that the modern naval code of Germany, as exemplified in the +acts of her submarine commanders, was so peculiarly barbarous and +repellent. + +On board the _Guerrière_ was Captain William B. Orne, of the Salem +merchant brig _Betsy_, which had been taken as a prize. His story of the +combat is not widely known and seems worth quoting in part: + + At two P.M. we discovered a large sail to windward bearing about + north from us. We soon made her out to be a frigate. She was + steering off from the wind, with her head to the southwest, + evidently with the intention of cutting us off as soon as possible. + Signals were soon made by the _Guerrière_, but as they were not + answered the conclusion was, of course, that she was either a + French or American frigate. Captain Dacres appeared anxious to + ascertain her character and after looking at her for that purpose, + handed me his spyglass, requesting me to give him my opinion of the + stranger. I soon saw from the peculiarity of her sails and from her + general appearance that she was, without doubt, an American + frigate, and communicated the same to Captain Dacres. He + immediately replied that he thought she came down too boldly for an + American, but soon after added, "The better he behaves, the more + honor we shall gain by taking him." + + When the strange frigate came down to within two or three miles' + distance, he hauled upon the wind, took in all his light sails, + reefed his topsails, and deliberately prepared for action. It was + now about five o'clock in the afternoon when he filled away and ran + down for the _Guerrière_. At this moment Captain Dacres politely + said to me: "Captain Orne, as I suppose you do not wish to fight + against your own countrymen, you are at liberty to go below the + water-line." It was not long after this before I retired from the + quarter-deck to the cock-pit; of course I saw no more of the action + until the firing ceased, but I heard and felt much of its effects; + for soon after I left the deck the firing commenced on board the + _Guerrière_, and was kept up almost incessantly until about six + o'clock when I heard a tremendous explosion from the opposing + frigate. The effect of her shot seemed to make the _Guerrière_ reel + and tremble as though she had received the shock of an earthquake. + + Immediately after this, I heard a tremendous crash on deck and was + told that the mizzen-mast was shot away. In a few moments + afterward, the cock-pit was filled with wounded men. After the + firing had ceased I went on deck and there beheld a scene which it + would be difficult to describe: all the _Guerrière's_ masts were + shot away and, as she had no sails to steady her, she lay rolling + like a log in the trough of the sea. Many of the men were employed + in throwing the dead overboard. The decks had the appearance of a + butcher's slaughter-house; the gun tackles were not made fast and + several of the guns got loose and were surging from one side to the + other. + + Some of the petty officers and seamen, after the action, got liquor + and were intoxicated; and what with the groans of the wounded, the + noise and confusion of the enraged survivors of the ill-fated ship + rendered the whole scene a perfect hell. + +Setting the hulk of the _Guerrière_ on fire, Captain Hull sailed for +Boston with the captured crew. The tidings he bore were enough to amaze +an American people which expected nothing of its navy, which allowed its +merchant ships to rot at the wharves, and which regarded the operations +of its armies with the gloomiest forebodings. New England went wild with +joy over a victory so peculiarly its own. Captain Hull and his officers +were paraded up State Street to a banquet at Faneuil Hall while cheering +thousands lined the sidewalks. A few days earlier had come the news of +the surrender of Detroit, but the gloom was now dispelled. Americans +could fight, after all. Popular toasts of the day were: + +OUR INFANT NAVY--_We must nurture the young Hercules in his cradle, if +we mean to profit by the labors of his manhood._ + +THE VICTORY WE CELEBRATE--_An invaluable proof that we are able to +defend our rights on the ocean._ + +Handbills spread the news through the country, and artillery salutes +proclaimed it from Carolina to the Wabash. Congress voted fifty thousand +dollars as prize money to the heroes of the _Constitution_ and medals to +her officers. The people of New York gave them swords, and Captain Hull +and Lieutenant Morris received pieces of plate from the patriots of +Philadelphia. Federalists laid aside for the moment their opposition to +the war and proclaimed that their party had founded and supported the +navy. The moral effect of the victory was out of all proportion to its +strategic importance. It was like sunshine breaking through a fog. Such +rejoicing had been unknown, even in the decisive moments of the War of +the Revolution. It served to show how deep-seated had been the American +conviction that Britain's mastery of the sea was like a spell which +could not be broken. + +[Illustration: _COMMODORE STEPHEN DECATUR_ + +Painting by Thomas Sully, 1811. In the Comptroller's Office, owned by +the City of New York.] + +[Illustration: _"CONSTITUTION" AND "GUERRIÈRE"_ + +An old print, illustrating the moment in the action at which the +mainmast of the _Guerrière_, shattered by the terrific fire of the +American frigate, fell overside, transforming the former vessel into a +floating wreck and terminating the action. The picture represents +accurately the surprisingly slight damage done the _Constitution_; note +the broken spanker gaff and the shot holes in her topsails.] + + + + +CHAPTER VI + +MATCHLESS FRIGATES AND THEIR DUELS + + +It was soon made clear that the impressive victory over the _Guerrière_ +was neither a lucky accident nor the result of prowess peculiar to the +_Constitution_ and her crew. Ship for ship, the American navy was better +than the British. This is a truth which was demonstrated with +sensational emphasis by one engagement after another. During the first +eight months of the war there were five such duels, and in every +instance the enemy was compelled to strike his colors. In tavern and +banquet hall revelers were still drinking the health of Captain Isaac +Hull when the thrilling word came that the _Wasp_, an eighteen-gun ship +or sloop, as the type was called in naval parlance, had beaten the +_Frolic_ in a rare fight. The antagonists were so evenly matched in +every respect that there was no room for excuses, and on both sides were +displayed such stubborn hardihood and a seamanship so dauntless as to +make an Anglo-Saxon proud that these foemen were bred of a common stock. + +The _Wasp_ had sailed from the Delaware on the 13th of October, heading +southeast to look for British merchantmen in the West India track. Her +commander was Captain Jacob Jones, a name revived in modern days by a +destroyer of the Queenstown fleet in the arduous warfare against the +German submarines. Shattered by a torpedo, the _Jacob Jones_ sank in +seven minutes, and sixty-four of the officers and crew perished, doing +their duty to the last, disciplined, unafraid, so proving themselves +worthy of the American naval service and of the memory of the +unflinching captain of 1812. + +The little _Wasp_ ran into a terrific gale which blew her sails away and +washed men overboard. But she made repairs and stood bravely after a +British convoy which was escorted by the eighteen-gun brig _Frolic_, +Captain Thomas Whinyates. The _Frolic_, too, had been battered by the +weather, and the cargo ships had been scattered far and wide. The _Wasp_ +sighted several of them in the moonlight but, fearing they might be war +vessels, followed warily until morning revealed on her leeward side the +_Frolic_. Jacob Jones promptly shortened sail, which was the nautical +method of rolling up one's sleeves, and steered close to attack. + +It seemed preposterous to try to fight while the seas were still +monstrously swollen and their crests were breaking across the decks of +these vessels of less than five hundred tons burden. Wildly they rolled +and pitched, burying their bows in the roaring combers. The merchant +ships which watched this audacious defiance of wind and wave were having +all they could do to avoid being swept or dismasted. Side by side +wallowed _Wasp_ and _Frolic_, sixty yards between them, while the cannon +rolled their muzzles under water and the gunners were blinded with +spray. Britisher and Yank, each crew could hear the hearty cheers of the +other as they watched the chance to ply rammer and sponge and fire when +the deck lifted clear of the sea. + +Somehow the _Wasp_ managed to shoot straight and fast. They were of the +true webfooted breed in this hard-driven sloop-of-war, but there were no +fair-weather mariners aboard the _Frolic_, and they hit the target much +too often for comfort. Within ten minutes they had saved Captain Jacob +Jones the trouble of handling sail, for they shot away his upper masts +and yards and most of his rigging. The _Wasp_ was a wreck aloft but the +_Frolic_ had suffered more vitally, for as usual the American gun +captains aimed for the deck and hull; and they had been carefully +drilled at target practice. The British sailors suffered frightfully +from this storm of grape and chain shot, but those who were left alive +still fought inflexibly. It looked as though the _Frolic_ might get +away, for the masts of the _Wasp_ were in danger of tumbling over the +side. With this mischance in mind, Captain Jacob Jones shifted helm and +closed in for a hand-to-hand finish. + +For a few minutes the two ships plunged ahead so near each other that +the rammers of the American sailors struck the side of the _Frolic_ as +they drove the shot down the throats of their guns. It was literally +muzzle to muzzle. Then they crashed together and the _Wasp's_ jib-boom +was thrust between the _Frolic's_ masts. In this position the British +decks were raked by a murderous fire as Jacob Jones trumpeted the order, +"Boarders away!" Jack Lang, a sailor from New Jersey, scrambled out on +the bowsprit, cutlass in his fist, without waiting to see if his +comrades were with him, and dropped to the forecastle of the _Frolic_. +Lieutenant Biddle tried it by jumping on the bulwark and climbing to the +other ship as they crashed together on the next heave of the sea, but a +doughty midshipman, seeking a handy purchase, grabbed him by the coat +tails and they fell back upon their own deck. Another attempt and Biddle +joined Jack Lang by way of the bowsprit. These two thus captured the +_Frolic_, for as they dashed aft the only living men on deck were the +undaunted sailor at the wheel and three officers, including Captain +Whinyates and Lieutenant Wintle, who were so severely wounded that they +could not stand without support. They tottered forward and surrendered +their swords, and Lieutenant Biddle then leaped into the rigging and +hauled the British ensign down. + +Of the _Frolic's_ crew of one hundred and ten men only twenty were +unhurt, and these had fled below to escape the dreadful fire from the +_Wasp_. The gun deck was strewn with bodies, and the waves which broke +over the ship swirled them to and fro, the dead and the wounded +together. Not an officer had escaped death or injury. The _Wasp_ was +more or less of a tangle aloft but her hull was sound and only five of +her men had been killed and five wounded. No sailors could have fought +more bravely than Captain Whinyates and his British crew, but they had +been overwhelmed in three-quarters of an hour by greater skill, +coolness, and judgment. + +No sea battle of the war was more brilliant than this, but Captain Jacob +Jones was delayed in sailing home to receive the plaudits due him. His +prize crew was aboard the _Frolic_, cleaning up the horrid mess and +fitting the beaten ship for the voyage to Charleston, and the _Wasp_ was +standing by when there loomed in sight a towering three-decker--a +British ship of the line--the _Poictiers_. The _Wasp_ shook out her +sails to make a run for it, but they had been cut to ribbons and she was +soon overhauled. Now an eighteen-gun ship could not argue with a +majestic seventy-four. Captain Jacob Jones submitted with as much grace +as he could muster, and _Wasp_ and _Frolic_ were carried to Bermuda. The +American crew was soon exchanged, and Congress applied balm to the +injured feelings of these fine sailormen by filling their pockets to the +amount of twenty-five thousand dollars in prize money. + +It was only a week later that the navy vouchsafed an encore to a +delighted nation. This time the sport royal was played between stately +frigates. On the 8th of October Commodore Rodgers had taken his squadron +out of Boston for a second cruise. After four days at sea the _United +States_ was detached, and Captain Stephen Decatur ranged off to the +eastward in quest of diversion. A fortnight of monotony was ended by a +strange sail which proved to be the British thirty-eight-gun frigate +_Macedonian_, newly built. Her commander, Captain Carden, had the +highest opinion of his ship and crew, and one of his officers testified +that "the state of discipline on board was excellent; in no British ship +was more attention paid to gunnery. Before this cruise the ship had been +engaged almost every day with the enemy; and in time of peace the crew +were constantly exercised at the great guns." + +The _United States_ was a sister frigate of the _Constitution_, built +from the same designs and therefore more formidable than her British +opponent as three is to two. Captain Carden had no misgivings, however, +and instantly set out in chase of the American frigate. But he was +unfortunate enough to pit himself against one of the ablest officers +afloat, and his own talent was mediocre. The result was partly +determined by this personal equation in an action in which the +_Macedonian_ was outgeneraled as well as outfought. And again gunnery +was a decisive factor. Observers said that the broadsides of the +_United States_ flamed with such rapidity that the ship looked as though +she were on fire. + +Early in the fight Captain Carden bungled an opportunity to pass close +ahead of the _United States_ and so rake her with a destructive attack. +Then rashly coming to close quarters, the _Macedonian_ was swept by the +heavy guns of the American frigate and reduced to wreckage in ninety +minutes. The weather was favorable for the Yankee gun crews, and the war +offered no more dramatic proof of their superbly intelligent training. +The _Macedonian_ had received more than one hundred shot in her hull, +several below the water line, one mast had been cut in two, and the +others were useless. More than a hundred of her officers and men were +dead or injured. The _United States_ was almost undamaged, a few ropes +and small spars were shot away, and only twelve of her men were on the +casualty list. Captain Decatur rightfully boasted that he had as fine a +crew as ever walked a deck, American sailors who had been schooled for +the task with the greatest care. English opinion went so far as to +concede this much: "As a display of courage the character of our service +was nobly upheld, but we would be deceiving ourselves were we to admit +that the comparative expertness of the crews in gunnery was equally +satisfactory. Now taking the difference of effect as given by Captain +Carden, we must draw this conclusion--that the comparative loss in +killed and wounded, together with the dreadful account he gives of the +condition of his own ship, while he admits that the enemy's vessel was +in comparatively good order, must have arisen from inferiority in +gunnery as well as in force." + +Decatur sent the _Macedonian_ to Newport as a trophy of war and +forwarded her battle flag to Washington. It arrived just when a great +naval ball was in progress to celebrate the capture of the _Guerrière_, +whose ensign was already displayed from the wall. It was a great moment +for the young lieutenant of the _United States_, who had been assigned +this duty, when he announced his mission and, amid the cheers of the +President, the Cabinet, and other distinguished guests, proudly +exhibited the flag of another British frigate to decorate the ballroom! + +Meanwhile the _Constitution_ had returned to sea to spread her royals to +the South Atlantic trades and hunt for lumbering British East-Indiamen. +Captain Isaac Hull had gracefully given up the command in favor of +Captain William Bainbridge, who was one of the oldest and most respected +officers of his rank and who deserved an opportunity to win distinction. +Bainbridge had behaved heroically at Tripoli and was logically in line +to take over one of the crack frigates. The sailors of the +_Constitution_ grumbled a bit at losing Isaac Hull but soon regained +their alert and willing spirit as they comprehended that they had +another first-rate "old man" in William Bainbridge. Henry Adams has +pointed out that the average age of Bainbridge, Hull, Rodgers, and +Decatur was thirty-seven, while that of the four generals most +conspicuous in the disappointments of the army, Dearborn, Wilkinson, +William Hull, and Wade Hampton, was fifty-eight. The difference is +notable and is mentioned for what it may be worth. + +Through the autumn of 1812 the frigate cruised beneath tropic suns, much +of the time off the coast of Brazil. Today the health and comfort of the +bluejacket are so scrupulously provided for in every possible way that a +battleship is the standard of perfection for efficiency in organization. +It is amazing that in such a ship as the _Constitution_ four hundred men +could be cheerful and ready to fight after weeks and even months at sea. +They were crowded below the water line, without proper heat, plumbing, +lighting, or ventilation, each man being allowed only twenty-eight +inches by eight feet of space in which to sling his hammock against the +beams overhead. Scurvy and other diseases were rampant. As many as +seventy of the crew of the _Constitution_ were on the sick list shortly +before she fought the _Guerrière_. The food was wholesome for rugged +men, but it was limited solely to salt beef, hard bread, dried peas, +cheese, pork, and spirits. + +Such conditions, however, had not destroyed the vigor of those hardy +seamen of the _Constitution_ when, on the 29th of December and within +sight of the Brazilian coast, the lookout at the masthead sang out to +Captain Bainbridge that a heavy ship was coming up under easy canvas. It +turned out to be His Britannic Majesty's frigate _Java_, Captain Henry +Lambert, who, like Carden, made the mistake of insisting upon a combat. +His reasons were sounder than those of Dacres or Carden, however, for +the _Java_ was only a shade inferior to the _Constitution_ in guns and +carried as many men. In every respect they were so evenly matched that +the test of battle could have no aftermath of extenuation. + +The _Java_ at once hastened in pursuit of the American ship which drew +off the coast as though in flight, the real purpose being to get clear +of the neutral Brazilian waters. The _Constitution_ must have been a +picture to stir the heart and kindle the imagination, her black hull +heeling to the pressure of the tall canvas, the long rows of guns +frowning from the open ports, while her bunting rippled a glorious +defiance, with a commodore's pennant at the mainmast-head, the Stars and +Stripes streaming from the mizzen peak and main-topgallant mast, and a +Union Jack at the fore. The _Java_ was adorned as bravely, and Captain +Lambert had lashed an ensign in the rigging on the chance that his other +colors might be shot away. + +The two ships began the fray at what they called long range, which would +be about a mile, and then swept onward to pass on opposite tacks. It was +the favorite maneuver of trying to gain the weather gage, and while they +were edging to windward a round shot smashed the wheel of the +_Constitution_ which so hampered her for the moment that Captain +Lambert, handsomely taking advantage of the mishap, let the _Java_ run +past his enemy's stern and poured in a broadside which hit several of +the American seamen. Both commanders displayed, in a high degree, the +art of handling ships under sail as they luffed or wore and tenaciously +jockeyed for position, while the gunners fought in the smoke that +drifted between the frigates. + +At length Captain Lambert became convinced that he had met his master at +this agile style of warfare and determined to come to close quarters +before the _Java_ was fatally damaged. Her masts and yards were crashing +to the deck and the slaughter among the crew was already appalling. +Marines and seamen gathered in the gangways and upon the forecastle head +to spring aboard the _Constitution_, but Captain Bainbridge drove his +ship clear very shortly after the collision and continued to pound the +_Java_ to kindling-wood with his broadsides. The fate of the action was +no longer in doubt. The British frigate was on fire, Captain Lambert was +mortally wounded, and all her guns had been silenced. The _Constitution_ +hauled off to repair damages and stood back an hour later to administer +the final blow. But the flag of the _Java_ fluttered down, and the +lieutenant in command surrendered. + +The _Constitution_ had again crushed the enemy with so little damage to +herself that she was ready to continue her cruise, with a loss of only +nine killed and twenty-five wounded. The _Java_ was a fine ship utterly +destroyed, a sinking, dismasted hulk, with a hundred and twenty-four of +her men dead or suffering from wounds. It is significant to learn that +during six weeks at sea they had fired but six practice broadsides, of +blank cartridges, although there were many raw hands in the crew, while +the men of the _Constitution_ had been incessantly drilled in firing +until their team play was like that of a football eleven. There was no +shooting at random. Under Hull and Bainbridge they had been taught their +trade, which was to lay the gun on the target and shoot as rapidly as +possible. + +For the diminutive American navy, the year of 1812 came to its close +with a record of success so illustrious as to seem almost incredible. It +is more dignified to refrain from extolling our own exploits and to +recall the effects of these sea duels upon the minds of the people, the +statesmen, and the press of the England of that period. Their outbursts +of wrathful humiliation were those of a maritime race which cared little +or nothing about the course of the American war by land. Theirs was the +salty tradition, virile and perpetual, which a century later and in a +friendlier guise was to create a Grand Fleet which should keep watch and +ward in the misty Orkneys and hold the Seven Seas safe against the +naval power of Imperial Germany. Then, as now, the English nation +believed that its armed ships were its salvation. + +It is easier to understand, bearing this in mind, why after the fight of +the _Guerrière_ the London _Times_ indulged in such frenzied +lamentations as these: + + We witnessed the gloom which that event cast over high and + honorable minds.... Never before in the history of the world did an + English frigate strike to an American, and though we cannot say + that Captain Dacres, under all circumstances, is punishable for + this act, yet we do say there are commanders in the English navy + who would a thousand times rather have gone down with their colors + flying than to have set their fellow sailors so fatal an example. + + Good God! that a few short months should have so altered the tone + of British sentiments! Is it true, or is it not, that our navy was + accustomed to hold the Americans in utter contempt? Is it true, or + is it not, that the _Guerrière_ sailed up and down the American + coast with her name painted in large characters on her sails in + boyish defiance of Commodore Rodgers? Would any captain, however + young, have indulged such a foolish piece of vain-boasting if he + had not been carried forward by the almost unanimous feeling of his + associates? + + We have since sent out more line-of-battle ships and heavier + frigates. Surely we must now mean to smother the American navy. A + very short time before the capture of the _Guerrière_ an American + frigate was an object of ridicule to our honest tars. Now the + prejudice is actually setting the other way and great pains seems + to be taken by the friends of ministers to prepare the public for + the surrender of a British seventy-four to an opponent lately so + much contemned. + +It was when the news reached England that the _Java_ had been destroyed +by the _Constitution_ that indignation found a climax in the outcry of +the _Pilot_, a foremost naval authority: + + The public will learn, with sentiments which we shall not presume + to anticipate, that a third British frigate has struck to an + American. This is an occurrence that calls for serious + reflection,--this, and the fact stated in our paper of yesterday, + that Lloyd's list contains notices of upwards of five hundred + British vessels captured in seven months by the Americans. Five + hundred merchantmen and three frigates! Can these statements be + true; and can the English people hear them unmoved? Any one who + would have predicted such a result of an American war this time + last year would have been treated as a madman or a traitor. He + would have been told, if his opponents had condescended to argue + with him, that long ere seven months had elapsed the American flag + would have been swept from the seas, the contemptible navy of the + United States annihilated, and their maritime arsenals rendered a + heap of ruins. Yet down to this moment not a single American + frigate has struck her flag. They insult and laugh at our want of + enterprise and vigor. They leave their ports when they please and + return to them when it suits their convenience; they traverse the + Atlantic; they beset the West India Islands; they advance to the + very chops of the Channel; they parade along the coasts of South + America; nothing chases, nothing intercepts, nothing engages them + but to yield them triumph. + +It was to be taken for granted that England would do something more than +scold about the audacity of the American navy. Even after the +declaration of war her most influential men hoped that the repeal of the +obnoxious Orders-in-Council might yet avert a solution of the American +problem by means of the sword. There was hesitation to apply the utmost +military and naval pressure, and New England was regarded with feelings +almost friendly because of its opposition to an offensive warfare +against Great Britain and an invasion of Canada. + +Absorbed in the greater issue against Napoleon, England was nevertheless +aroused to more vigorous action against the United States and devised +strong blockading measures for the spring of 1813. Unable to operate +against the enemy's ships in force or to escape from ports which were +sealed by vigilant squadrons, the American navy to a large extent was +condemned to inactivity for the remainder of the war. Occasional actions +were fought and merit was justly won, but there was nothing like the +glory of 1812, which shone undimmed by defeat and which gave to the +annals of the nation one of its great chapters of heroic and masterful +achievement. It was singularly apt that the noble and victorious +American frigates should have been called the _Constitution_ and the +_United States_. They inspired a new respect for the flag with the +stripes and the stars and for all that it symbolized. + +[Illustration: _ISAAC HULL_ + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation.] + +[Illustration: _WILLIAM BAINBRIDGE_ + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation.] + + + + +CHAPTER VII + +"DON'T GIVE UP THE SHIP!" + + +The second year of the war by sea opened brilliantly enough to satisfy +the American people, who were now in a mood to expect too much of their +navy. In February the story of the _Wasp_ and the _Frolic_ was repeated +by two ships of precisely the same class. The American sloop-of-war +_Hornet_ had sailed to South America with the _Constitution_ and was +detached to blockade, in the port of Bahia, the British naval sloop +_Bonne Citoyenne_, which contained treasure to the amount of half a +million pounds in specie. Captain James Lawrence of the _Hornet_ sent in +a challenge to fight, ship against ship, pledging his word that the +_Constitution_ would not interfere, but the British commander, perhaps +mindful of his precious cargo, declined the invitation. Instead of this, +he sensibly sent word to a great seventy-four at Rio de Janeiro, begging +her to come and drive the pestiferous _Hornet_ away. + +The British battleship arrived so suddenly that Captain Lawrence was +compelled to dodge and flee in the darkness. By a close shave he gained +the open sea and made off up the coast. For several weeks the _Hornet_ +idled to and fro, vainly seeking merchant prizes, and then off the +Demerara River on February 24, 1813, she fell in with the British brig +_Peacock_, that flew the royal ensign. The affair lasted no more than +fifteen minutes. The _Peacock_ was famous for shining brass work, +spotless paint, and the immaculate trimness of a yacht, but her gunnery +had been neglected, for which reason she went to the bottom in six +fathoms of water with shot-holes in her hull and thirty-seven of her +crew put out of action. The sting of the _Hornet_ had been prompt and +fatal. Captain Lawrence had only one man killed and two wounded, and his +ship was as good as ever. Crowding his prisoners on board and being +short of provisions and water, he set sail for a home port and anchored +in New York harbor. He was in time to share with Bainbridge the carnival +of salutes, processions, dinners, addresses of congratulation, votes of +thanks, swords, medals, prize money, promotion--every possible tribute +of an adoring and grateful people. + +One of the awards bestowed upon Lawrence was the command of the frigate +_Chesapeake_. Among seamen she was rated an unlucky ship, and Lawrence +was confidently expected to break the spell. Her old crew had left her +after the latest voyage, which met with no success, and other sailors +were reluctant to join her. Privateering had attracted many of them, and +the navy was finding it difficult to recruit the kind of men it desired. +Lawrence was compelled to sign on a scratch lot, some Portuguese, a few +British, and many landlubbers. Given time to shake them together in hard +service at sea, he would have made a smart crew of them no doubt, as +Isaac Hull had done in five weeks with the men of the _Constitution_, +but destiny ordered otherwise. + +In the spring of 1813 the harbor of Boston was blockaded by the +thirty-eight-gun British frigate _Shannon_, Captain Philip Vere Broke, +who had been in this ship for seven years. In the opinion of Captain +Mahan, "his was one of those cases where singular merit as an officer +and an attention to duty altogether exceptional had not yet obtained +opportunity for distinction. It would probably be safe to say that no +more thoroughly efficient ship of her class had been seen in the British +navy during the twenty years' war with France." + +Captain Broke was justly confident in his own leadership and in the +efficiency of a ship's company, which had retained its identity of +organization through so many years of his personal and energetic +supervision. Indeed, the captain of the British flagship on the American +station wrote: "The _Shannon's_ men were trained and understood gunnery +better than any men I ever saw." Every morning the men were exercised at +training the guns and in the afternoon in the use of the broadsword, +musket, and pike. Twice each week the crew fired at targets with great +guns and musketry and the sailor who hit the bull's eye received a pound +of tobacco. Without warning Captain Broke would order a cask tossed +overboard and then suddenly order some particular gun to sink it. In +brief, the _Shannon_ possessed those qualities which had been notable in +the victorious American frigates and which were lamentably deficient in +the _Chesapeake_. + +Lawrence's men were unknown to each other and to their officers, and +they had never been to sea together. The last draft came aboard, in +fact, just as the anchor was weighed and the _Chesapeake_ stood out to +meet her doom. Even most of her officers were new to the ship. They had +no chance whatever to train or handle the rabble between decks. Now +Captain Broke had been anxious to fight this American frigate as +matching the _Shannon_ in size and power. He had already addressed to +Captain Lawrence a challenge whose wording was a model of courtesy but +which was provocative to the last degree. A sailor of Lawrence's heroic +temper was unlikely to avoid such a combat, stimulated as he was by the +unbroken success of his own navy in duels between frigates. + +On the first day of June, Captain Broke boldly ran into Boston harbor +and broke out his flag in defiance of the _Chesapeake_ which was riding +at anchor as though waiting to go to sea. Instantly accepting the +invitation, Captain Lawrence hoisted colors, fired a gun, and mustered +his crew. In this ceremonious fashion, as gentlemen were wont to meet +with pistols to dispute some point of honor, did the _Chesapeake_ sail +out to fight the waiting _Shannon_. The news spread fast and wide and +thousands of people, as though they were bound to the theater, hastened +to the heights of Malden, to Nahant, and to the headlands of Salem and +Marblehead, in hopes of witnessing this famous sight. They assumed that +victory was inevitable. Any other surmise was preposterous. + +These eager crowds were cheated of the spectacle, however, for the +_Chesapeake_ bore away to the eastward after rounding Boston Light and +dropped hull down until her sails were lost in the summer haze, with the +_Shannon_ in her company as if they steered for some rendezvous. They +were firing when last seen and the wind bore the echo of the guns, faint +and far away. It was most extraordinary that three weeks passed before +the people would believe the tidings of the disaster. A pilot who had +left the _Chesapeake_ at five o'clock in the afternoon reported that he +was still near enough an hour later to see the two ships locked side by +side, that a fearful explosion had happened aboard the _Chesapeake_, and +that through a rift in the battle smoke he had beheld the British flag +flying above the American frigate. + +This report was confirmed by a fishing boat from Cape Ann and by the +passengers in a coastwise packet, but the public doubted and still hoped +until the newspapers came from Halifax with an account of the arrival of +the _Chesapeake_ as prize to the _Shannon_ and of the funeral honors +paid to the body of Captain James Lawrence. The tragic defeat came at an +extremely dark moment of the war when almost every expectation had been +disappointed and the future was clouded. Richard Rush, the American +diplomatist, wrote, recalling the event: + + I remember--what American does not!--the first rumor of it. I + remember the startling sensation. I remember at first the universal + incredulity. I remember how the post-offices were thronged for + successive days by anxious thousands; how collections of citizens + rode out for miles on the highway, accosting the mail to catch + something by anticipation. At last, when the certainty was known, I + remember the public gloom; funeral orations and badges of mourning + bespoke it. "Don't give up the ship"--the dying words of + Lawrence--were on every tongue. + +It was learned that the _Chesapeake_ had followed the _Shannon_ until +five o'clock, when the latter luffed and showed her readiness to begin +fighting. Lawrence was given the choice of position, with a westerly +breeze, but he threw away this advantage, preferring to trust to his +guns with a green crew rather than the complex and delicate business of +maneuvering his ship under sail. He came bowling straight down at the +_Shannon_, luffed in his turn, and engaged her at a distance of fifty +yards. The breeze was strong and the nimble American frigate forged +ahead more rapidly than Lawrence expected, so that presently her +broadside guns had ceased to bear. + +While Lawrence was trying to slacken headway and regain the desired +position, the enemy's shot disabled his headsails, and the _Chesapeake_ +came up into the wind with canvas all a-flutter. It was a mishap which a +crew of trained seamen might have quickly mended, but the frigate was +taken aback--that is, the breeze drove her stern foremost toward the +_Shannon_ and exposed her to a deadly cannonade which the American +gunners were unable to return. The hope of salvation lay in getting the +ship under way again or in boarding the _Shannon_. It was in this moment +that the battle was won and lost, for every gun of the British broadside +was sweeping the American deck diagonally from stern to bow, while the +marines in the tops of the _Shannon_ picked off the officers and seamen +of the _Chesapeake_, riddling them with musket balls. It was like the +swift blast of a hurricane. Lawrence fell, mortally wounded. Ludlow, his +first lieutenant, was carried below. The second lieutenant was stationed +between decks, and the third forsook his post to assist those who were +carrying Lawrence below to the gun deck. Not an officer remained on the +spar deck and not a living man was left on the quarter deck when the +_Chesapeake_ drifted against the _Shannon_ after four minutes of this +infernal destruction. As the ships collided, Captain Broke dashed +forward and shouted for boarders, leading them across to the American +deck. No more than fifty men followed him and three hundred Yankee +sailors should have been able to wipe the party out, but most of the +_Chesapeake_ crew were below, and, demoralized by lack of discipline and +leadership, they refused to come up and stand the gaff. Brave resistance +was made by the few who remained on deck and a dozen more followed the +second lieutenant, George Budd, as he rushed up to rally a forlorn hope. + +It was a desperate encounter while it lasted, and Captain Broke was +slashed by a saber as he led a charge to clear the forecastle. Yet two +minutes sufficed to clear the decks of the _Chesapeake_, and the few +visible survivors were thrown down the hatchways. The guns ceased +firing, and the crew below sent up a message of surrender. The frigates +had drifted apart, leaving Broke and his seamen to fight without +reinforcement, but before they came together again the day was won. This +was the most humiliating phase of the episode, that a handful of British +sailors and marines should have carried an American frigate by boarding. + +It must not be inferred that the _Chesapeake_ inflicted no damage +during the fifteen minutes of this famous engagement. Thirty-seven of +the British boarding party were killed or wounded and the American +marines--"leather-necks" then and "devil-dogs" now--fought in accordance +with the spirit of a corps which had won its first laurels in the +Revolution. Such broadsides as the _Chesapeake_ was able to deliver were +accurately placed and inflicted heavy losses. The victory cost the +_Shannon_ eighty-two men killed and wounded, while the American frigate +lost one hundred and forty-seven of her crew, or more than one-third of +her complement. Even in defeat the _Chesapeake_ had punished the enemy +far more severely than the _Constitution_ had been able to do. + +Lawrence lay in the cockpit, or hospital, when his men began to swarm +down in confusion and leaderless panic. Still conscious, he was aware +that disaster had overtaken them and he muttered again and again with +his dying breath, "Don't give up the ship. Blow her up." Thus passed to +an honorable fame an American naval officer of great gallantry and +personal charm. Although he brought upon his country a bitter +humiliation, the fact that he died sword in hand, his last thought for +his flag and his service, has atoned for his faults of rashness and +overconfidence. The odds were against him, and ill-luck smashed his +chance of overcoming them. He was no more disgraced than Dacres when he +surrendered the _Guerrière_ to a heavier ship, or than Lambert, dying on +his own deck, when he saw the colors of the _Java_ hauled down. + +The _Shannon_ took her prize to Halifax, and when the news came back +that the captain of the _Chesapeake_ lay dead in a British port, the +bronzed sea-dogs of the Salem Marine Society resolved to fetch his body +home in a manner befitting his end. Captain George Crowninshield +obtained permission from the Government to sail with a flag of truce for +Halifax, and he equipped the brig _Henry_ for the sad and solemn +mission. Her crew was picked from among the shipmasters of Salem, some +of them privateering skippers, every man of them a proven deep-water +commander. It was such a crew as never before or since took a vessel out +of an American port. When they returned to Salem with the remains of +Captain Lawrence and Lieutenant Ludlow, the storied old seaport saw +their funeral column pass through the quiet and crowded streets. The +pall-bearers bore names to thrill American hearts today--Hull, Stewart, +Bainbridge, Blakely, Creighton, and Parker, all captains of the navy. A +Salem newspaper described the ceremonies simply and with an unconscious +pathos: + + The day was unclouded, as if no incident should be wanting to crown + the mind with melancholy and woe--the wind from the same direction + and the sea presented the same unruffled surface as was exhibited + to our anxious view when on that memorable first day of July we saw + the immortal Lawrence proudly conducting his ship to action.... The + brig _Henry_ containing the precious relics lay at anchor in the + harbor. They were placed in barges and, preceded by a long + procession of boats filled with seamen uniformed in blue jackets + and trousers, with a blue ribbon on their hats bearing the motto of + "Free Trade and Sailors' Rights," were rowed by minute strokes to + the end of India Wharf, where the bearers were ready to receive the + honored dead. From the time the boats left the brig until the + bodies were landed, the United States brig _Rattlesnake_ and the + brig _Henry_ alternately fired minute guns... On arriving at the + meeting-house the coffins were placed in the centre of the church + by the seamen who rowed them ashore and who stood during the + ceremony leaning upon them in an attitude of mourning. The church + was decorated with cypress and evergreen, and the names of Lawrence + and Ludlow appeared in gilded letters on the front of the pulpit. + +It was wholly reasonable that the exploit of the _Shannon_ should arouse +fervid enthusiasm in the breast of every Briton. The wounds inflicted +by Hull, Decatur, and Bainbridge still rankled, but they were now +forgotten and the loud British boastings equaled all the tales of Yankee +brag. A member of Parliament declared that the "action which Broke +fought with the _Chesapeake_ was in every respect unexampled. It was +not--and he knew it was a bold assertion which he made--to be surpassed +by any other engagement which graced the naval annals of Great Britain." +Admiral Warren was still in a peevish humor at the hard knocks inflicted +on the Royal Navy when he wrote, in congratulating Captain Broke: "At +this critical moment you could not have restored to the British naval +service the preeminence it has always preserved, or contradicted in a +more forcible manner the foul aspersions and calumnies of a conceited, +boasting enemy than by the brilliant act you have performed. The +relation of such an event restores the history of ancient times and will +do more good to the service than it is possible to conceive." + +Captain Broke was made a baronet and received other honors and awards +which he handsomely deserved, but the wound he had suffered at the head +of his boarding party disabled him for further sea duty. If the +influence of the _Constitution_ and the _United States_ was far-reaching +in improving the efficiency of the American navy, it can be said also +that the victory of the _Shannon_ taught the British service the value +of rigorous attention to gunnery and a highly trained and disciplined +personnel. + +American chagrin was somewhat softened a few weeks later when two very +small ships, the _Enterprise_ and the _Boxer_, met in a spirited combat +off the harbor of Portland, Maine, like two bantam cocks, and the +Britisher was beaten in short order on September 5, 1813. The +_Enterprise_ had been a Yankee schooner in the war with Tripoli but had +been subsequently altered to a square rig and had received more guns and +men to worry the enemy's privateers. The brig-of-war was a kind of +vessel heartily disliked by seamen and now vanished from blue water. The +immortal Boatswain Chucks of Marryat proclaimed that "they would +certainly damn their inventor to all eternity" and that "their common, +low names, 'Pincher,' 'Thrasher,' 'Boxer,' 'Badger,' and all that sort, +are quite good enough for them." + +Commanding the _Enterprise_ was Captain William Burrows, twenty-eight +years old, who had seen only a month of active service in the war. +Captain Samuel Blyth of the _Boxer_ had worked his way up to this +unimportant post after many years of arduous duty in the British navy. +He might have declined a tussel with the _Enterprise_ for his crew +numbered only sixty-six men against a hundred and twenty, but he nailed +his colors to the mainmast and remarked that they would never come down +while there was any life in him. + +The day was calm, the breeze fitful, and the little brigs drifted about +each other until they lay within pistol shot. Then both loosed their +broadsides, while the sailors shouted bravely, and both captains fell, +Blyth killed instantly and Burrows mortally hurt but crying out that the +flag must never be struck. There was no danger of this, for the +_Enterprise_ raked the British brig through and through until resistance +was hopeless. Captain Blyth was as good as his word. He did not live to +see his ensign torn down. Great hearts in little ships, these two +captains were buried side by side in a churchyard which overlooks Casco +Bay, and there you may read their epitaphs today. + +The grim force of circumstances was beginning to alter the naval policy +of the United States. Notwithstanding the dramatic successes, her flag +was almost banished from the high seas by the close of the year 1813. +The frigates _Constellation_, _United States_, and _Macedonian_ were +hemmed in port by the British blockade; the _Adams_ and the +_Constitution_ were laid up for repairs; and the only formidable ships +of war which roamed at large were the _President_, the _Essex_, and the +_Congress_. The smaller vessels which had managed to slip seaward and +which were of such immense value in destroying British commerce found +that the system of convoying merchantmen in fleets of one hundred or two +hundred sail had left the ocean almost bare of prizes. It was the habit +of these convoys, however, to scatter as they neared their home ports, +every skipper cracking on sail and the devil take the hindmost--a +failing which has survived unto this day, and many a wrathful officer of +an American cruiser or destroyer in the war against Germany could +heartily echo the complaint of Nelson when he was a captain, "behaving +as all convoys that ever I saw did, shamefully ill, and parting company +every day." + +This was the reason why American naval vessels and privateers left their +own coasts and dared to rove in the English Channel, as Paul Jones had +done in the _Ranger_ a generation earlier. It was discovered that enemy +merchantmen could be snapped up more easily within sight of their own +shores than thousands of miles away. First to emphasize this fact in the +War of 1812 was the naval brig _Argus_, Captain William H. Allen, which +made a summer crossing and cruised for a month on end in the Irish Sea +and in the chops of the Channel with a gorgeous recompense for her +shameless audacity. England scolded herself red in the face while the +saucy _Argus_ captured twenty-seven ships and took her pick of their +valuable cargoes. Her course could be traced by the blazing hulls that +she left in her wake and this was how the British gun brig _Pelican_ +finally caught up with her. + +Although the advantage of size and armament was with the _Pelican_, it +was to be expected that the _Argus_ would prove more than a match for +her. The American commander, Captain Allen, had played a distinguished +part in several of the most famous episodes of the navy. As third +lieutenant of the _Chesapeake_, in 1807, he had picked up a live coal in +the cook's galley, held it in his fingers, and so fired the only gun +discharged against the _Leopard_ in that inglorious surprise and +surrender. As first officer of the frigate _United States_ he received +credit for the splendid gunnery which had overwhelmed the _Macedonian_, +and he enjoyed the glory of bringing the prize to port. It was as a +reward of merit that he was given command of the _Argus_. Alas, in this +fight off the coast of Wales he lost both his ship and his life, and +England had scored again. There was no ill-luck this time--nothing to +plead in excuse. The American brig threw away a chance of victory +because her shooting was amazingly bad, and instead of defending the +deck with pistol, pike, and musket, when the boarders came over the bow +the crew lowered the flag. + +It was an early morning fight, on August 14, 1813, in which Captain +Allen had his leg shot off within five minutes after the two brigs had +engaged. He refused to be taken below, but loss of blood soon made him +incapable of command, and presently his first lieutenant was stunned by +a grapeshot which grazed his scalp. The ship was well sailed, however, +and gained a position for raking the _Pelican_ in deadly fashion, but +the shot went wild and scarcely any harm was done. The British captain +chose his own range and methodically made a wreck of the _Argus_ in +twenty minutes of smashing fire, working around her at will while not a +gun returned his broadsides. Then he sheered close and was prepared to +finish it on the deck of the _Argus_ when she surrendered with +twenty-three of her crew out of action. The _Pelican_ was so little +punished that only two men were killed. The officer left in command of +the _Argus_ laid this unhappy conclusion to "the superior size and metal +of our opponent, and the fatigue which the crew underwent from a very +rapid succession of prizes." There were those on board who blamed it to +the casks of Oporto wine which had been taken out of the latest prize +and which the sailors had secretly tapped. Honesty is the best policy, +even in dealing with an enemy. The affair of the _Argus_ and the +_Pelican_ was not calculated to inflate Yankee pride. + +To balance this, however, came two brilliant actions by small ships. The +new _Peacock_, named for the captured British brig, under Captain Lewis +Warrington, stole past the blockade of New York. Off the Florida coast +on the 29th of April she sighted a convoy and attacked the escort brig +of eighteen guns, the _Epervier_. In this instance the behavior of the +American vessel and her crew was supremely excellent and not a flaw +could be found. They hulled the British brig forty-five times and made a +shambles of her deck and did it with the loss of one man. + +Even more sensational was the last cruise of the _Wasp_, Captain +Johnston Blakely, which sailed from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, in May +and roamed the English Channel to the dismay of all honest British +merchantmen. The brig-of-war _Reindeer_ endeavored to put an end to her +career but nineteen minutes sufficed to finish an action in which the +_Wasp_ slaughtered half the British crew and thrice repelled boarders. +This was no light task, for as Michael Scott, the British author of _Tom +Cringle's Log_, candidly expressed it: + + In the field, or grappling in mortal combat on the blood-slippery + deck of an enemy's vessel, a British soldier or sailor is the + bravest of the brave. No soldier or sailor of any other country, + saving and excepting those damned Yankees, can stand against + them... I don't like Americans. I never did and never shall like + them. I have no wish to eat with them, drink with them, deal with + or consort with them in any way; but let me tell the whole + truth,--_nor fight_ with them, were it not for the laurel to be + acquired by overcoming an enemy so brave, determined, and alert, + and every way so worthy of one's steel as they have always proved. + +Refitting in a French port, the dashing Blakely took the _Wasp_ to sea +again and encountered a convoy in charge of a huge, lumbering ship of +the line. Nothing daunted, the _Wasp_ flitted in among the timid +merchant ships and snatched a valuable prize laden with guns and +military stores. Attempting to bag another, she was chased away by the +indignant seventy-four and winged it in search of other quarry until she +sighted four strange sails. Three of them were British war brigs in hot +pursuit of a Yankee privateer, and Johnston Blakely was delighted to +play a hand in the game. He selected his opponent, which happened to be +the _Avon_, and overtook her in the darkness of evening. Before a strong +wind they foamed side by side, while the guns flashed crimson beneath +the shadowy gleam of tall canvas. Thus they ran for an hour and a half, +and then the _Avon_ signaled that she was beaten, with five guns +dismounted, forty-two men dead or wounded, seven feet of water in the +hold, the magazine flooded, and the spars and rigging almost destroyed. + +Blakely was about to send a crew aboard when another hostile brig, +forsaking the agile Yankee privateer, came up to help the _Avon_. The +_Wasp_ was perfectly willing to take on this second adversary, but just +then a third British ship loomed through the obscurity, and the ocean +seemed a trifle overpopulated for safety. Blakely ran off before the +wind, compelled to abandon his prize. The _Avon_, however, was so badly +battered that she went to the bottom before the wounded seamen could be +removed from her. Thence the _Wasp_ went to Madeira and was later +reported as spoken near the Cape Verde Islands, but after that she +vanished from blue water, erased by some tragic fate whose mystery was +never solved. To the port of missing ships she carried brave Blakely and +his men after a meteoric career which had swept her from one victory to +another. + +Of the frigates, only three saw action during the last two years of the +war, and of these the _President_ and the _Essex_ were compelled to +strike to superior forces of the enemy. The _Constitution_ was lucky +enough to gain the open sea in December, 1814, and fought her farewell +battle with the frigate _Cyane_ and the sloop-of-war _Levant_ on the +20th of February. In this fight Captain Charles Stewart showed himself a +gallant successor to Hull and Bainbridge. Together the two British ships +were stronger than the _Constitution_, but Stewart cleverly hammered the +one and then the other and captured both. Honor was also due the plucky +little _Levant_, which, instead of taking to her heels, stood by to +assist her larger comrade like a terrier at the throat of a wolf. It is +interesting to note that the captains, English and American, had +received word that peace had been declared, but without official +confirmation they preferred to ignore it. The spirit which lent to naval +warfare the spirit of the duel was too strong to let the opportunity +pass. + +The _President_ was a victim of a continually increased naval strength +by means of which Great Britain was able to strangle the seafaring trade +and commerce of the United States as the war drew toward its close. +Captain Decatur, who had taken command of this frigate, remarked "the +great apprehension and danger" which New York felt, in common with the +entire seaboard, and the anxiety of the city government that the crew of +the ship should remain for defense of the port. Coastwise navigation was +almost wholly suspended, and thousands of sloops and schooners feared to +undertake voyages to Philadelphia, Baltimore, or Charleston. Instead of +these, canvas-covered wagons struggled over the poor highways in +continuous streams between New England and the Southern coast towns. +This awkward result of the blockade moved the sense of humor of the +Yankee rhymsters who placarded the wagons with such mottoes as "Free +Trade and Oxen's Rights" and parodied _Ye Mariners of England_ with the +lines: + + Ye wagoners of Freedom + Whose chargers chew the cud, + Whose wheels have braved a dozen years + The gravel and the mud; + Your glorious hawbucks yoke again + To take another jag, + And scud through the mud + Where the heavy wheels do drag, + Where the wagon creak is long and low + And the jaded oxen lag. + + Columbia needs no wooden walls, + No ships where billows swell; + Her march is like a terrapin's, + Her home is in her shell. + To guard her trade and sailor's rights, + In woods she spreads her flag. + +Such ribald nonsense, however, was unfair to a navy which had done +magnificently well until smothered and suppressed by sheer weight of +numbers. It was in January, 1815, that Captain Decatur finally sailed +out of New York harbor in the hope of taking the _President_ past the +blockading division which had been driven offshore by a heavy northeast +gale. The British ships were struggling back to their stations when they +spied the Yankee frigate off the southern coast of Long Island. It was a +stern chase, Decatur with a hostile squadron at his heels and unable to +turn and fight because the odds were hopeless. The frigate _Endymion_ +was faster than her consorts and, as she came up alone, the _President_ +delayed to exchange broadsides before fleeing again with every sail set. +Her speed had been impaired by stranding as she came out past Sandy +Hook, else she might have out-footed the enemy. But soon the _Pomone_ +and the _Tenedos_, frigates of the class of the _Shannon_ and the +_Guerrière_, were in the hunt. Decatur was cornered, but his guns were +served until a fifth of the crew were disabled, the ship was crippled, +and a force fourfold greater than his own was closing in to annihilate +him at its leisure. "I deemed it my duty to surrender," said he, and a +noble American frigate, more formidable than the _Constitution_, was +added to the list of the Royal Navy. + +[Illustration: _A FRIGATE OF 1812 UNDER SAIL_ + +The _Constellation_, of which this is a photograph, is somewhat smaller +than the _Constitution_, being rated at 38 guns as against 44 for the +latter. In general appearance, however, and particularly in rig, the two +types are very similar. Although the _Constellation_ did not herself see +action in the War of 1812, she is a good example of the heavily armed +American frigate of that day--and the only one of them still to be seen +at sea under sail within recent years. At the present time the +_Constellation_ lies moored at the pier of the Naval Training Station, +Newport, R.I. + +Photograph by E. Müller, Jr., Inc., New York.] + + + + +CHAPTER VIII + +THE LAST CRUISE OF THE ESSEX + + +The last cruise of the _Essex_ frigate, although an ill-fated one, makes +a story far less mournful than that of the _President_. She was the +first man-of-war to display the American flag in the wide waters of the +Pacific. Her long and venturesome voyage is still regarded as one of the +finest achievements of the navy, and it made secure the fame of Captain +David Porter. The _Essex_ has a peculiar right to be held in +affectionate memory, apart from the very gallant manner of her ending, +because into her very timbers were builded the faith and patriotism of +the people of the New England seaport which had framed and launched her +as a loan to the nation in an earlier time of stress. + +At the end of the eighteenth century France had been the maritime enemy +more hotly detested than England, and unofficial war existed with the +"Terrible Republic." This situation was foreshadowed as early as 1798 +by James McHenry, Secretary of War, when he indignantly announced to +Congress: "To forbear under such circumstances from taking naval and +military measures to secure our trade, defend our territories in case of +invasion, and to prevent or suppress domestic insurrection would be to +offer up the United States a certain prey to France and exhibit to the +world a sad spectacle of national degradation and imbecility." + +Congress thereupon resolved to build two dozen ships which should teach +France to mend her manners on the high seas, but the Treasury was too +poor to pay the million dollars which this modest navy was to cost. +Subscription lists were therefore opened in several shipping towns, and +private capital advanced the funds to put the needed frigates afloat. +The _Essex_ was promptly contributed by Salem, and the advertisement of +the master builder is brave and resonant reading: + + To Sons of Freedom! All true lovers of Liberty of your Country! + Step forth and give your assistance in building the frigate to + oppose French insolence and piracy. Let every man in possession of + a white oak tree be ambitious to be foremost in hurrying down the + timber to Salem where the noble structure is to be fabricated to + maintain your rights upon the seas and make the name of America + respected among the nations of the world. Your largest and longest + trees are wanted, and the arms of them for knees and rising timber. + Four trees are wanted for the keel which altogether will measure + 146 feet in length and hew sixteen inches square. + +The story of the building of the _Essex_ is that of an aroused and +reliant people. The great timbers were cut in the wood lots of the towns +near by and were hauled through the snowy streets of Salem on ox-sleds +while the people cheered them as they passed. The _Essex_ was a Salem +ship from keel to truck. Her cordage was made in three ropewalks. +Captain Jonathan Haraden, the most famous Salem privateersman of the +Revolution, made the rigging for the mainmast in his loft. The sails +were cut from duck woven for the purpose in the mill on Broad Street and +the ironwork was forged by Salem shipsmiths. When the huge hempen cables +were ready to be conveyed to the frigate, the workmen hoisted them upon +their shoulders and in procession marched to the music of fife and drum. +In 1799, six months after the oak timbers had been standing trees, the +_Essex_ slid from the stocks into the harbor of old Salem. She was the +handsomest and fastest American frigate of her day and when turned over +to the Government, she cost what seemed at that day the very +considerable amount of seventy-five thousand dollars. + +Peace was patched up with France, however, and the _Essex_ was compelled +to pursue more humdrum paths, now in the Indian Ocean and again with the +Mediterranean squadron, until war with England began in 1812. It was +intended that Captain Porter should rendezvous with the _Constitution_ +and the _Hornet_ in South American waters for a well-planned cruise +against British commerce, but other engagements detained Bainbridge, +notably his encounter with the _Java_, and so they missed each other by +a thousand miles or so. Since he had no means of communication, it was +characteristic of Porter to conclude to strike out for himself instead +of wandering about in an uncertain search for his friends. + +Porter conceived the bold plan of rounding the Horn and playing havoc +with the British whaling fleet. This adventure would take him ten +thousand miles from the nearest American port, but he reckoned that he +could capture provisions enough to feed his crew and supplies to refit +the ship. As a raid there was nothing to match this cruise until the +_Alabama_ ran amuck among the Yankee clippers and whaling barks half a +century later. It was the wrong time of year to brave the foul weather +of Cape Horn, however, and the _Essex_ was battered and swept by one +furious gale after another. But at last she won through, stout ship that +she was, and her weary sailors found brief respite in the harbor of +Valparaiso on March 14, 1813. Thence Porter headed up the coast, +disguising the trim frigate so that she looked like a lubberly, +high-pooped Spanish merchantman. + +The luck of the navy was with the American captain for, as he went +poking about the Galapagos Islands, he surprised three fine, large +British whaling ships, all carrying guns and too useful to destroy. To +one of them, the _Georgiana_, he shifted more guns, put a crew of forty +men aboard under Lieutenant John Downes, ran up the American flag, and +commissioned his prize as a cruiser. The other two he also manned--and +now behold him, if you please, sailing the Pacific with a squadron of +four good ships! Soon he ran down and captured two British +letter-of-marque vessels, well armed and in fighting trim, and in a +trice he had not a squadron but a fleet under his command, seven ships +in all, mounting eighty guns and carrying three hundred and forty men +and eighty prisoners. Two of these prizes he discovered to be crammed +to the hatches with cordage, paint, tar, canvas, and fresh provisions. +The list could not have been more acceptable if Captain David Porter +himself had signed the requisition in the New York Navy Yard. + +Lieutenant Downes was now sent off cruising by himself, and so well did +he profit by his captain's example and precepts that in a little while +he had bagged a squadron of his own, three ships with twenty-seven guns +and seventy-five men. When he rejoined the flagship in a harbor of the +mainland, Porter rewarded him by calling his cruiser the _Essex, +Junior_, promoting him to the rank of commander, and increasing his +armament. They then resumed cruising in two squadrons, finding more +British ships and sending them into the neutral harbor of Valparaiso or +home to the United States with precious cargoes of whale oil and bone. +Within a few months he swept the Southern Pacific almost clean of +British merchantmen, whalers, and privateers. Winter coming on, Porter +then sailed to the pleasant Marquesas Islands and laid the _Essex_ up +for a thorough overhauling. The enemy had furnished all needful supplies +and even the money to pay the wages of the officers and crew. + +Fit for sea again, the _Essex_ and the _Essex, Junior_, betook +themselves to Valparaiso where they received information that the +thirty-six-gun frigate _Phoebe_ of the British navy was earnestly +looking for them. She had been sent out from England to proceed to the +northwest American coast and destroy the fur station at the mouth of the +Columbia River. At Rio de Janeiro Captain Hillyar had heard reports of +the ravages of the _Essex_ and he considered it his business to hunt +down this defiant Yankee. To make sure of success, he took the +sloop-of-war _Cherub_ along with him and, doubling the Horn, they made +straight for Valparaiso. David Porter got wind of the pursuit but +assumed that the _Phoebe_ was alone. He made no attempt to avoid a +meeting but on the contrary rather courted a fight with his old friend +Hillyar, whom he had known socially on the Mediterranean station. For an +officer of Porter's temper and training the capture of British whalers +was a useful but by no means glorious employment. He believed the real +vocation of a frigate of the American navy was to engage the enemy. + +The _Phoebe_ and the _Cherub_ sailed into the Chilean roadstead in +February, 1814, and found the _Essex_ there. As Captain Hillyar was +passing in to seek an anchorage, the mate of a British merchantman +climbed aboard to tell him that the _Essex_ was unprepared for attack +and could be taken with ease. Her officers had given a ball the night +before in honor of the Spanish dignitaries of Valparaiso, and the decks +were still covered with awnings and gay with bunting and flags. +Reluctant to forego such a tempting opportunity, Captain Hillyar ran in +and luffed his frigate within a few yards of the Essex. To his +disappointed surprise, the American fighting ship was ready for action +on the instant. Though the punctilious restraints of a neutral port +should have compelled them to delay battle, Porter was vigilant and took +no chances. The liberty parties had been recalled from shore, the decks +had been cleared, the gunners were sent to quarters with matches +lighted, and the boarders were standing by the hammock nettings with +cutlasses gripped. Making the best of this unexpected turn of events, +the English captain shouted a greeting to David Porter and politely +conveyed his compliments, adding that his own ship was also ready for +action. So close were the two frigates at this moment that the jib-boom +of the _Phoebe_ hung over the bulwarks of the _Essex_, and Porter called +out sharply that if so much as a rope was touched he would reply with a +broadside. The urbane Captain Hillyar, perceiving his disadvantage, +exclaimed, "I had no intention of coming so near you. I am very sorry +indeed." With that he moved his ship to a respectful distance. Later he +had a chat with Captain Porter ashore and, when asked if he intended to +maintain the neutrality of the port, made haste to protest, "Sir, you +have been so careful to observe the rules that I feel myself bound in +honor to do the same." + +After a few days the _Phoebe_ and the _Cherub_ left the harbor and +watchfully waited outside, enforcing a strict blockade and determined to +render the _Essex_ harmless unless she should choose to sally out and +fight. David Porter was an intrepid but not a reckless sailor. He had +the faster frigate but he had unluckily changed her battery from the +long guns to the more numerous but shorter range carronades. He was not +afraid to risk a duel with the _Phoebe_ even with this handicap in +armament, but the sloop-of-war _Cherub_ was a formidable vessel for her +size and the _Essex, Junior_, which was only a converted merchantman, +was of small account in a hammer-and-tongs action between naval ships. + +For his part, Captain Hillyar had no intention of letting the Yankee +frigate escape him. "He was an old disciple of Nelson," observes Mahan, +"fully imbued with the teaching that the achievement of success and not +personal glory must dictate action. Having a well established reputation +for courage and conduct, he intended to leave nothing to the chances of +fortune which might decide a combat between equals. He therefore would +accept no provocation to fight without the _Cherub_. His duty was to +destroy the _Essex_ with the least possible loss." + +Porter endured this vexatious situation for six weeks and then, learning +that other British frigates were on his trail, determined to escape to +the open sea. This decision involved waiting for the most favorable +moment of wind and weather, but Porter found his hand forced on the 28th +of March by a violent southerly gale which swept over the exposed bay of +Valparaiso and dragged the _Essex_ from her anchorage. One of her cables +parted while the crew struggled to get sail on her. As she drifted +seaward, Porter decided to seize the emergency and take the long chance +of running out to windward of the _Phoebe_ and the _Cherub_. He +therefore cut the other cable, and the _Essex_ plunged into the wind +under single-reefed topsails to claw past the headland. Just as she was +about to clear it, a whistling squall carried away the maintopmast. +This accident was a grave disaster, for the disabled frigate was now +unable either to regain a refuge in the bay or to win her way past the +British ship. + +As a last resort Captain Porter turned and ran along the coast, within +pistol shot of it, far inside the three-mile limit of neutral water, and +came to an anchor about three miles north of the city. Captain Hillyar +had no legal right to molest him, but in his opinion the end justified +the means and he resolved to attack. Deliberately the _Phoebe_ and +_Cherub_ selected their stations and, late in this stormy afternoon, +bombarded the crippled _Essex_ without mercy. Porter with his carronades +was unable to repay the damage inflicted by the broadsides of the longer +guns, nor could he handle his ship to close in and retrieve the day in +the desperate game of boarding. He tried this ultimate venture, +nevertheless, and let go his cables. But the ship refused to move ahead. +Her sheets, tacks, and halliards had been shot away. The canvas was +hanging loose. + +Porter's guns were by no means silent, however, even in this hopeless +situation, and few crews have died harder or fought more grimly than +these seamen of the _Essex_. Among them was a little midshipman, wounded +but still at his post, a mere child of thirteen years whose name was +David Farragut. His fortune it was to link those early days of the +American navy with a period half a century later when he won his renown +as the greatest of American admirals. + +In many a New England seaport were told the tales of this last fight of +the _Essex_ until they became almost legendary--of Seaman John Ripley, +who cried, after losing his leg, "Farewell, boys, I can be of no more +use to you," and thereupon flung himself overboard out of a bow port; of +James Anderson, who died encouraging his comrades to fight bravely in +defense of liberty; of Benjamin Hazen, who dressed himself in a clean +shirt and jerkin, told his messmates that he could never submit to being +taken prisoner by the English and forthwith leaped into the sea and was +drowned. Such incidents help us to descry, amid the smoke and slaughter +of that desperate encounter, the spirit of the gallant David Porter. +Never was the saying, "It's not the ships but the men in them," better +exemplified. To Porter was granted greatness in defeat, a lot that comes +to few. + +For two hours he and his men endured such dreadful punishment as not +many ships have suffered. Again he attempted to work his way nearer the +enemy, until he had not enough men left unhurt to serve the guns or to +haul at the pitifully splintered spars. In the last extremity, Porter +made an effort to destroy his vessel and to save her people from +captivity by letting the _Essex_ drive ashore. A kedge anchor was let +go, and a dozen sailors tramped around the capstan while the chantey man +piped up a tune, but again fortune seemed against him for the hawser +snapped, and the wind began to blow the frigate into deeper water. What +happened then is best recalled in the simple words of Captain David +Porter himself: + + I now sent for the officers of division to consult them and what + was my surprise to find only acting Lieutenant Stephen Decatur + M'Knight remaining.... I was informed that the cockpit, the + steerage, the wardroom, and the berth deck could contain no more + wounded, that the wounded were killed while the surgeons were + dressing them, and that if something was not speedily done to + prevent it, the ship would soon sink from the number of shot holes + in her bottom. On sending for the carpenter he informed me that all + his crew had been killed or wounded. + + The enemy, from the impossibility of reaching him with our + carronades and the little apprehension that was excited by our + fire, which had now become much slackened, was enabled to take aim + at us as at a target; his shot never missed our hull and my ship + was cut up in a manner which was perhaps never before witnessed; in + fine, I saw no hope of saving her, and at twenty minutes after 6 + P.M. I gave the painful order to strike the colors. Seventy-five + men including officers were all that remained of my whole crew + after the action, many of them severely wounded, some of whom have + since died. + + The enemy still continued his fire and my brave, though unfortunate + companions were still falling about me. I directed an opposite gun + to be fired to show them we intended no further resistance but they + did not desist. Four men were killed at my side and others at + different parts of the ship. I now believed he intended to show us + no quarter, that it would be as well to die with my flag flying as + struck, and was on the point of again hoisting it when about ten + minutes after hauling down the colors he ceased firing. + + ... We have been unfortunate but not disgraced--the defense of the + _Essex_ has not been less honorable to her officers and crew than + the capture of an equal force; and I now consider my situation less + unpleasant than that of Captain Hillyar, who in violation of every + principle of honor and generosity, and regardless of the rights of + nations, attacked the _Essex_ in her crippled state within pistol + shot of a neutral shore, when for six weeks I had daily offered him + fair and honorable combat on terms greatly to his advantage. + +The behavior of Captain Hillyar after the surrender, however, was most +humane and courteous, and lapse of time has dispelled somewhat of the +bitterness of the American opinion of him. If he was not as chivalrous +as his Yankee foemen had expected, it must be remembered that there was +a heavy grudge and a long score to pay in the havoc wrought among +British merchantmen and whalers and that in those days the rights of +South American neutrals were rather lightly regarded. + + + + +CHAPTER IX + +VICTORY ON LAKE CHAMPLAIN + + +Spectacular as were the exploits of the American navy on the sea, they +were of far less immediate consequence in deciding the destinies of the +war than were the naval battles fought on fresh water between hastily +improvised squadrons. On Lake Erie Perry's victory had recovered a lost +empire and had made the West secure against invasion. Macdonough's +handful of little vessels on Lake Champlain compelled the retreat of ten +thousand British veterans of Wellington's campaigns who had marched down +from Canada with every promise of crushing American resistance. This was +the last and most formidable attempt on the part of the enemy to conquer +territory and to wrest a decision by means of a sustained offensive. Its +collapse marked the beginning of the end, and such events as the capture +of Washington and the battle of New Orleans were in the nature of +episodes. + +That September day of 1814, when Macdonough won his niche in the naval +hall of fame, was also the climax and the conclusion of the long +struggle of the American armies on the northern frontier, a confused +record of defeat, vacillation, and crumbling forces, which was redeemed +towards the end by troops who had learned how to fight and by new +leaders who restored the honor of the flag at Chippawa and Lundy's Lane. +Although the ambitious attempts against Canada, so often repeated, were +so much wasted effort until the very end, they ceased to be inglorious. +The tide turned in the summer of 1814 with the renewal of the struggle +for the Niagara region where the British had won a foothold upon +American soil. + +In command of a vigorous and disciplined American army was General Jacob +Brown, that stout-hearted volunteer who had proved his worth when the +enemy landed at Sackett's Harbor. He was not a professional soldier but +his troops had been trained and organized by Winfield Scott who was now +a brigadier. After two years of dismal reverses, the United States was +learning how to wage war. Incompetency was no longer the badge of high +military rank. A general was supposed to know something about his trade +and to have a will of his own. + +With thirty-five hundred men, Jacob Brown made a resolute advance to +find and join battle with the British forces of General Riall which +garrisoned the forts of St. George's, Niagara, Erie, Queenston, and +Chippawa. Early in the morning of July 3, 1814, the American troops in +two divisions crossed the river and promptly captured Fort Erie. They +then pushed ahead fifteen miles until they encountered the British +defensive line on the Chippawa River where it flows into the Niagara. + +The field was like a park, with open, grassy spaces and a belt of +woodland which served as a green curtain to screen the movements of both +armies. Riall boldly assumed the offensive, although he was aware that +he had fewer men. His instructions intimated that liberties might be +taken with the Americans which would seem hazardous "to a military man +unacquainted with the character of the enemy he had to contend with, or +with the events of the last two campaigns on that frontier." The +deduction was unflattering but very much after the fact. + +The British attack was unlooked for. It was the Fourth of July and in +celebration Winfield Scott had given his men the best dinner that the +commissary could supply and was marching them into a meadow in the cool +of the summer afternoon for drill and review. The celebration, however, +was interrupted by firing and confusion among the militia who happened +to be in front, and Scott rushed his brigade forward to take the brunt +of the heavy assault. General Jacob Brown rode by at a gallop, waving +his hat and cheerily shouting, "You will have a battle." He was hurrying +to bring up his other forces, but meanwhile Scott's column crossed a +bridge at the double-quick and faced the enemy's batteries. + +Exposed, taken by surprise, and outnumbered, Winfield Scott and his +regiments were nevertheless equal to the occasion. A battalion was sent +to cover one flank in the dense woodland, while the main body drove +straight for the columns of British infantry and then charged with +bayonets at sixty paces. The American ranks were steady and unbroken +although they were pelted with musketry fire, and they smashed a British +counter-charge by three regiments before it gained momentum. Handsomely +fought and won, it was not a decisive battle and might be called no more +than a skirmish but its significance was highly important, for at +Chippawa there was displayed a new spirit in the American army. + +Riall retreated with his red-coated regulars to a stronger line at +Queenston, while Jacob Brown was sending anxious messages to Commodore +Chauncey begging him to use his fleet in cooperation and so break the +power of the enemy in Upper Canada. "For God's sake, let me see you," he +implored. But again the American ships on Lake Ontario failed to seize +an opportunity, and in this instance Chauncey's inactivity dismayed not +only General Brown but also the Government at Washington. The fleet +remained at Sackett's Harbor with excuses which appeared inadequate: +certain changes were being made among the officers and crews, and again +"the squadron had been prevented being earlier fitted for sea in +consequence of the delay in obtaining blocks and iron-work." Chauncey +subsequently fell ill, which may have had something to do with his lapse +of energy. The whole career of this naval commander on Lake Ontario had +disappointed expectations, even though the Secretary had commended his +"zeal, talent, constancy, courage, and prudence of the highest order." +The trouble was that Chauncey let slip one chance after another to win +the control of Lake Ontario in pitched battle. Always too intent on +building more ships instead of fighting with those he had, he is +therefore not remembered in the glorious companionship of Perry and +Macdonough. + +This failure to act at the moment when Jacob Brown was so valiantly +endeavoring to wrest from the British the precious Niagara peninsula was +responsible for the desperate and inconclusive battle of Lundy's Lane. +Winfield Scott frankly blamed the unsuccessful result upon the freedom +with which the British troops and supplies were moved on Lake Ontario. +For ten days Jacob Brown had remained in a painful state of suspense and +perplexity, until finally the word came that nobody knew when the +American fleet would sail. As he had feared, the British command, able +to move its troops unmolested across the lake, planned to attack him in +the rear and to cut his communications on the New York side of the +Niagara River. For this purpose two enemy brigs were filled with troops +and were sent over to Fort Niagara with more to follow. + +It was to parry this threat that Brown moved his forces and brought +about the clash at Lundy's Lane. "As it appeared," he explained, "that +the enemy with his increased strength was about to avail himself of the +hazard under which our baggage and stores were on our side of the +Niagara, I conceived the most effectual method of recalling him from the +object was to put myself in motion towards Queenston. General Scott with +his brigade were accordingly put in march on the road leading thither." + +The action was fought about a mile back from the torrent of the Niagara, +below the Falls, where the by-road known as Lundy's Lane joined the main +road running parallel with the river. Here Scott's column came suddenly +upon a force of British redcoats led by General Drummond. Scott +hesitated to attack, because the odds were against his one brigade, but, +fearing the effect of a retreat on the divisions behind him, he sent +word to Brown that he would hold his ground and try to turn the enemy's +left toward the Niagara. It was late in the day and the sun had almost +set. Gradually Scott forced the British wing back, and Brown threw in +reinforcements until the engagement became general. The fight continued +furious even after darkness fell and never have men employed in the +business of killing each other shown courage more stubborn. Both sides +were equally determined and they fought until exhaustion literally +compelled a halt. + +Later in the evening fresh troops were hurled in on both sides, and +they were at it again with the same impetuosity. A small hill, over +which ran Lundy's Lane, was the goal the Americans fought for. They +finally stormed it, "in so determined a manner," reported the enemy, +"that our artillery men were bayoneted in the act of loading and the +muzzles of the enemy's guns were advanced within a few yards of ours." +Back and forth flowed the tide of battle in bloody waves, until +midnight. Then sullenly and in good order the Americans retired three +miles to camp at Chippawa. Next day the enemy resumed the position and +held it unattacked. + +It is fair to call Lundy's Lane a drawn battle. The casualties were +something more than eight hundred for each side, and the troops engaged +were about twenty-five hundred Americans and a like number of British. +Both the shattered columns soon retired behind strong defenses. General +Drummond led the British troops into camp at Niagara Falls, and General +Ripley, in temporary command of the American brigades, Scott and Brown +having been wounded, occupied the unfinished works of Fort Erie, on the +Canadian side, just where the waters of Lake Erie enter the Niagara +River. + +The British determined to bombard these walls and intrenchments with +heavy guns and then carry them by infantry assault. But this plan failed +disastrously. On the 15th of August the British charged in three columns +the bastions and batteries only to be savagely repulsed at every point +with a loss of nine hundred men killed, wounded, or prisoners, while the +defenders had only eighty-five casualties. Then Drummond settled down to +besiege the place and succeeded in making it so uncomfortable that Jacob +Brown, now recovered from his wound, organized a sortie in force which +was made on the 17th of September. In the action which followed, the +British batteries were overwhelmed and the American militia displayed +magnificent steadiness and valor. Jacob Brown proudly informed the +Governor of New York that "the militia of New York have redeemed their +character--they behaved gallantly. Of those called out by the last +requisition, fifteen hundred have crossed the state border to our +support. This reinforcement has been of immense importance to us; it +doubled our effective strength, and their good conduct cannot but have +the happiest effect upon our nation." + +This bold stroke ended the Niagara campaign. The British fell back, and +the American army was in no condition for pursuit. In ten weeks Jacob +Brown had fought four engagements without defeat and, barring the battle +of New Orleans, his brief campaign was the one operation of the land war +upon which Americans could look back with any degree of satisfaction. + +The scene now shifted to Lake Champlain. The main work was the building +up of an army to resist the menacing preparations for a British invasion +from Montreal. Among the new American generals who had gained promotion +by merit instead of favor was George Izard, trained in the military +schools of England and Prussia, and an aide to Alexander Hamilton during +his command of the army of the United States. Izard had been sent to +Plattsburg in May, 1814, on the very eve of the great British campaign, +and found everything in a deplorable state of unreadiness and +inefficiency. While he was manfully struggling with these difficulties, +Secretary Armstrong directed him to send four thousand of his men to the +assistance of Jacob Brown on the Niagara front. General Izard obediently +and promptly set out, although the defense of Lake Champlain was thereby +deprived of this large body of troops. The expedition was almost barren +of results, however, and at a time when every trained soldier was needed +to oppose the march of the British veterans, Izard was at Fort Erie, +idle, waiting to build winter quarters and writing to the War +Department: "I confess I am greatly embarrassed. At the head of the most +efficient army the United States have possessed during this war, much +must be expected of me; and yet I can discern no object which can be +achieved at this point worthy of the risk which will attend its +attempt." + +Izard had already predicted that the withdrawal of his forces from +Plattsburg would leave northeastern New York at the mercy of the British +and he spoke the truth. No sooner had his divisions started westward +than the British army, ten thousand strong, under General Prevost, +crossed the frontier and marched rapidly toward the Saranac River and +then straight on to Plattsburg. Possession of this trading town the +British particularly desired because through it passed an enormous +amount of illicit traffic with Canada. Both Izard and Prevost agreed in +the statement that the British army was almost entirely fed on supplies +drawn from New York and Vermont by way of Lake Champlain. "Two thirds of +the army in Canada are supplied with beef by American contractors," +wrote Prevost, and there were not enough highways to accommodate the +herds of cattle which were driven across the border. + +To protect this source of supply by conquering the region was the task +assigned the splendid army of British regulars who had fought under +Wellington. The conclusion of the Peninsular campaign had released them +for service in America, and England was now able for the first time to +throw her military strength against the feeble forces of the United +States. It was announced as the intention of the British Government to +take and hold the lakes, from Champlain to Erie, as territorial waters +and a permanent barrier. To oppose the large and seasoned army which was +to effect these projects, there was an American force of only fifteen +hundred men, led by Brigadier General Alexander Macomb. All he could do +was to try to hold the defensive works at Plattsburg and to send forward +small skirmishing parties to annoy the British army which advanced in +solid column, without taking the trouble to deploy. + +On the 6th of September Sir George Prevost with his army reached +Plattsburg and encamped just outside the town. From a ridge the British +leader beheld the redoubts, strong field works, and blockhouses, and at +anchor in the bay the little American fleet of Commodore Thomas +Macdonough. To Prevost it looked like a costly business to attempt to +carry these defenses by assault and he therefore decided to await the +arrival of the British ships of Captain George Downie. A combined attack +by land and sea, he believed, should find no difficulty in wiping out +American resistance. + +Such was the situation and the weighty responsibility which confronted +Macdonough and his sailors. It was the most critical moment of the war. +With a seaman's eye for defense Macdonough met it by stationing his +vessels in a carefully chosen position and prepared with a seaman's +foresight for every contingency. Plattsburg Bay is about two miles wide +and two long and lies open to the southward, with a cape called +Cumberland Head bounding it on the east. It was in this sheltered water +that Macdonough awaited attack, his ships riding about a mile from the +American shore batteries. These guns were to be captured by the British +army and turned against him, according to the plans of General Prevost, +who was urging Captain Downie to hasten with his fleet and undertake a +joint action, for, as he said, "it is of the highest importance that +the ships, vessels, and gunboats of your command should combine a +cooperation with the division of the army under my command. I only wait +for your arrival to proceed against General Macomb's last position on +the south bank of the Saranac." + +These demands became more and more insistent, although the largest +British ship, the _Confiance_, had been launched only a few days before +and the mechanics were still toiling night and day to fit her for +action. She was a formidable frigate, of the size of the American +_Chesapeake_, and was expected to be more than a match for Macdonough's +entire fleet. Captain Downie certainly expected the support of the army, +which he failed to receive, for he clearly stated his position before +the naval battle. "When the batteries are stormed and taken possession +of by the British land forces, which the commander of the land forces +has promised to do at the moment the naval action commences, the enemy +will be obliged to quit their position, whereby we shall obtain decided +advantage over them during the confusion. I would otherwise prefer +fighting them on the lake and would wait until our force is in an +efficient state but I fear they would take shelter up the lake and would +not meet me on equal terms." + +Compelled to seek and offer battle in Plattsburg Bay, the British +vessels rounded Cumberland Head on the morning of the 11th of September +and hove to while Captain Downie went ahead in a boat to observe the +American position. He perceived that Macdonough had anchored his fleet +in line in this order: the brig _Eagle_, twenty guns, the flagship +_Saratoga_, twenty-six guns, the schooner _Ticonderoga_, seven guns, and +the sloop _Preble_, seven guns. There was also a considerable squadron +of little gunboats, or galleys, propelled by oars and mounting one gun. +Opposed to this force was the stately _Confiance_, with her three +hundred men and thirty-seven guns, such a ship as might have dared to +engage the _Constitution_ on blue water, and the _Chub_, _Linnet_, and +_Finch_, much like Macdonough's three smaller vessels, besides a +flotilla of the tiny, impudent gunboats which were like so many hornets. + +Macdonough was a youngster of twenty-eight years to whom was granted +this opportunity denied the officers who had grown gray in the service. +The navy, which was also very young, had set its own stamp upon him, and +his advancement he had won by sheer ability. Self-reliant and +indomitable, like Oliver Hazard Perry, he had wrestled with obstacles +and was ready to meet the enemy in spite of them. His fame among naval +men outshines Perry's, and he is rated as the greatest fighting sailor +who flew the American flag until Farragut surpassed them all. + +The battle of Plattsburg Bay was contested straight from the shoulder +with little chance for such evolutions as seeking the weather gage or +wearing ship. With one fleet at anchor, as Nelson demonstrated at the +Nile, the proper business of the other was to drive ahead and try to +break the line or turn an end of it. This Captain Downie proceeded to +attempt in a brave and highly skillful manner, with the _Confiance_ +leading into the bay and proposing to smash the _Eagle_ with her first +broadsides. The wind failed, however, and the British frigate dropped +anchor within close range of the _Saratoga_, which displayed +Macdonough's pennant, and pounded this vessel so accurately that forty +American seamen, or one-fifth of the crew, were struck down by the first +blast of the British guns. + +Meanwhile the _Linnet_ had reached her assigned berth and fought the +American _Eagle_ so successfully that the latter was disabled and had to +leave the line. To balance this the _Chub_ was so badly damaged that +she drifted helpless among the American ships and was compelled to haul +down her colors. The _Finch_ committed a blunder of seamanship and by +failing to keep close enough to the wind, which soon died away, she +finally went aground and took no part in the battle. The _Preble_ was +driven from her anchorage and ran ashore under the Plattsburg batteries, +and the _Ticonderoga_ played no heavier part than to beat off the little +British galleys. + +The decisive battle was therefore fought by four ships, the American +_Saratoga_ and _Eagle_, and the British _Confiance_ and _Linnet_. It was +then that Macdonough acquitted himself as a man who did not know when he +was beaten. The _Confiance_, which must have towered like a ship of the +line, had so cruelly mauled the _Saratoga_ that she seemed doomed to be +blown out of water. So many of his gunners were killed by the +double-shotted broadsides that Macdonough jumped from the quarter-deck to +take a hand himself and encourage the survivors. He was sighting a gun +when a round shot cut the spanker boom, and a fragment of the heavy spar +knocked him senseless. + +Recovering his wits, however, he returned to his gun. But another shot +tore off the head of the gun captain and flung it in Macdonough's face +with such force that he was hurled across the deck. At length all but +one of the guns along the side exposed to the _Confiance_ had been +smashed or dismounted, and this last gun broke its fastening bolts, +leaped from its carriage with the heavy recoil, and plunged into the +main hatch. Silenced, shot through and through, her decks strewn with +dead, the _Saratoga_ might then have struck her colors with honor. But +Macdonough had not begun to fight. Prepared for such an emergency, he +let go a stern anchor, cut his bow cable, and "winded" or turned his +ship around so that her other side with its uninjured row of guns was +presented to the _Confiance_. Captain Downie had by this time been +killed, and the acting commander of the British flagship endeavored to +execute the same maneuver, but the _Confiance_ was too badly crippled to +be swung about. While she floundered, the Saratoga reduced her to +submission. One of the surviving officers stated that "the ship's +company declared they would no longer stand to their quarters nor could +the officers with their utmost exertions rally them." The ship was +sinking, with more than a hundred ragged holes in her hull and fivescore +men dead or hurt. Fifteen minutes later the plucky _Linnet_ surrendered +after a long and desperate duel with the _Eagle_. The British galleys +escaped from the bay under sail and oar because no American ships were +fit to chase them, but the Royal Navy had ceased to exist on Lake +Champlain. For more than two hours the battle had been fought with a +bulldog endurance not often equaled in the grim pages of naval history. +And more nearly than any other incident of the War of 1812 it could be +called decisive. + +The American victory made the position of Prevost's army wholly +untenable. With the control of Lake Champlain in Macdonough's hands, the +British line of communication would be continually menaced. For the ten +thousand veterans of Wellington's campaigns there was nothing to do but +retreat, nor did they linger until they had marched across the Canada +border. Though the way had lain open before them, they had not fought a +battle, but were turned out of the United States, evicted, one might +say, by a few small ships manned by several hundred American sailors. As +Perry had regained the vast Northwest for his nation so, more +momentously, did Macdonough avert from New York and New England a tide +of invasion which could not otherwise have been stemmed. + +[Illustration: _THOMAS MACDONOUGH_ + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. Reproduced by courtesy of the Municipal Art Commission of +the City of New York.] + +[Illustration: _JACOB BROWN_ + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. Reproduced by courtesy of the Municipal Art Commission of +the City of New York.] + + + + +CHAPTER X + +PEACE WITH HONOR + + +The raids of the British navy on the American sea-coast through the last +two years of the war were so many efforts to make effective the blockade +which began with the proclamation of December, 1812, closing Chesapeake +and Delaware bays. Successive orders in 1813 closed practically all the +seaports from New London, Connecticut, to the Florida boundary, and the +last sweeping proclamation of May, 1814, placed under strict blockade +"all the ports, harbors, bays, creeks, rivers, inlets, outlets, islands, +and seacoasts of the United States." It was the blockade of ports of the +Middle States which caused such widespread ruin among merchants and +shippers and which finally brought the Government itself to the verge of +bankruptcy. + +The first serious alarm was caused in the spring of 1813 by the +appearance of a British fleet, under command of Admiral Sir John Borlase +Warren and Rear-Admiral George Cockburn, in the Chesapeake and Delaware +bays. Apparently it had not occurred to the people of the seaboard that +the war might make life unpleasant for them, and they had undertaken no +measures of defense. Unmolested, Cockburn cruised up Chesapeake Bay to +the mouth of the Susquehanna in the spring of 1813 and established a +pleasant camp on an island from which five hundred sailors and marines +harried the country at their pleasure, looting and burning such +prosperous little towns as Havre de Grace and Fredericktown. The men of +Maryland and Virginia proceeded to hide their chattels and to move their +families inland. Panic took hold of these proud and powerful +commonwealths. Cockburn had no scruples about setting the torch to +private houses, "to cause the proprietors who had deserted them and +formed part of the militia which had fled to the woods to understand and +feel what they were liable to bring upon themselves by building forts +and acting toward us with so much useless rancor." Though Cockburn was +an officer of the British navy, he was also an unmitigated ruffian in +his behavior toward non-combatants, and his own countrymen could not +regard his career with satisfaction. + +Admiral Warren had more justification in attacking Norfolk, which had a +navy yard and forts and was therefore frankly belligerent. Unluckily for +him the most important battery was manned by a hundred sailors from the +_Constellation_ and fifty marines. Seven hundred British seamen tried to +land in barges, but the battery shattered three of the boats with heavy +loss of life. Somewhat ruffled, Admiral Warren decided to go elsewhere +and made a foray upon the defenseless village of Hampton during which he +permitted his men to indulge in wanton pillage and destruction. Part of +his fleet then sailed up to the Potomac and created a most distressing +hysteria in Washington. The movement was a feint, however, and after +frightening Baltimore and Annapolis, the ships cruised and blockaded the +bay for several months. + +In September of the following year another British division harassed the +coast of Maine, first capturing Eastport and then landing at Belfast, +Bangor, and Castine, and extorting large ransoms in money and supplies. +New England was wildly alarmed. In a few weeks all of Maine east of the +Penobscot had been invaded, conquered, and formally annexed to New +Brunswick, although two counties alone might easily have furnished +twelve thousand fighting men to resist the small parties of British +sailors who operated in leisurely security. The people of the coastwise +towns gave up their sheep and bullocks to these rude trespassers, cut +the corn and dug the potatoes for them, handed over all their powder and +firearms, and agreed to finish and deliver schooners that were on the +stocks. + +Cape Cod was next to suffer, for two men-of-war levied contributions of +thousands of dollars from Wellfleet, Brewster, and Eastham, and robbed +and destroyed other towns. Farther south another fleet entered Long +Island Sound, bombarded Stonington, and laid it in ruins. The pretext +for all this havoc was a raid made by a few American troops who had +crossed to Long Point on Lake Erie, May 15, 1814, and had burned some +Canadian mills and a few dwellings. The expedition was promptly disowned +by the American Government as unauthorized, but in retaliation the +British navy was ordered to lay waste all towns on the Atlantic coast +which were assailable, sparing only the lives of the unarmed citizens. + +Included in the British plan of campaign for 1814 was a coastal attack +important enough to divert American efforts from the Canadian frontier. +This was why an army under General Ross was loaded into transports at +Bermuda and escorted by a fleet to Chesapeake Bay. The raids against +small coastwise ports, though lucrative, had no military value beyond +shaking the morale of the population. The objective of this larger +operation was undecided. Either Baltimore or Washington was tempting. +But first the British had to dispose of the annoying gunboat flotilla of +Commodore Joshua Barney, who had made his name mightily respected as a +seaman of the Revolution and who had never been known to shake in his +shoes at sight of a dozen British ensigns. He had found shelter for his +armed scows, for they were no more than this, in the Patuxent River, but +as he could not hope to defend them against a combined attack by British +ships and troops he wisely blew them up. This turn of affairs left a +fine British army all landed and with nothing else to do than promenade +through a pleasant region with nobody to interfere. The generals and +admirals discussed the matter and decided to saunter on to Washington +instead of to Baltimore. In the heat of August the British regiments +tramped along the highways, frequently halting to rest in the shade, +until they were within ten miles of the capital of the nation. There +they found the American outposts in a strong position on high ground, +but these tarried not, and the invaders sauntered on another mile before +making camp for the night. It is difficult to regard the capture of +Washington with the seriousness which that lamentable episode deserves. +The city was greatly surprised to learn that the enemy actually intended +a discourtesy so gross, and the Government was pained beyond expression. +But beyond this display of emotion nothing was done. The war was now two +years old but no steps whatever had been taken to defend Washington, +although there was no room for doubt that a British naval force could +ascend the river whenever it pleased. + +The disagreeable tidings that fifty of the enemy's ships had anchored +off the Potomac, however, reminded the President and his advisers that +not a single ditch or rampart had been even planned, that no troops were +at hand, that it was rather late for advice which seemed to be the only +ammunition that was plentiful. Quite harmoniously, the soldier in +command was General Winder who could not lose his head, even in this +dire emergency, because he had none to lose. His record for ineptitude +on the fighting front had, no doubt, recommended him for this place. He +ran about Washington, ordering the construction of defenses which there +was no time to build, listening to a million frenzied suggestions, +holding all manner of consultations, and imploring the Governors of +Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia to send militia. + +The British army was less than five thousand strong. To oppose them +General Winder hastily scrambled together between five and six thousand +men, mostly militia with a sprinkling of regulars and four hundred +sailors from Barney's flotilla. During the night before the alleged +battle the camp was a scene of such confusion as may be imagined while +futile councils of war were held. The troops when reviewed by President +Madison realized Jefferson's ideal of a citizen soldiery, unskilled but +strong in their love of home, flying to arms to oppose an invader. +General Jacob Brown and Winfield Scott at Lundy's Lane, which was fought +within the same month, could have pointed out, in language quite +emphatic, that a large difference existed between the raw material and +the finished product. + +On the 24th of August the British army advanced to Bladensburg, five +miles from Washington, where a bridge spanned the eastern branch of the +Potomac. Here the hilly banks offered the Americans an excellent line of +defense. The Cabinet had gone to the Washington Navy Yard, by request +of General Winder, to tell him what he ought to do, but this final +conference was cut short by the news that the enemy was in motion. The +American forces were still mobilizing in helter-skelter fashion, and +there was a wild race to the scene of action by militiamen, volunteers, +unattached regulars, sailors, generals, citizens at large, Cabinet +members, and President Madison himself. + +Some Maryland militia hastily joined the Baltimore troops on the ridge +behind the village of Bladensburg, but part of General Winder's own +forces were still on the march and had not yet been assigned positions +when the advance column of British light infantry were seen to rush down +the slope across the river and charge straight for the bridge. They +bothered not to seek a ford or to turn a flank but made straight for the +American center. It was here that Winder's artillery and his steadiest +regiments were placed and they offered a stiff resistance, ripping up +the British vanguard with grapeshot and mowing men down right and left. +But these hardened British campaigners had seen many worse days than +this on the bloody fields of Spain, and they pushed forward, closing the +gaps in their ranks, until they had crossed the bridge and could find a +brief respite under cover of the trees which lined the stream. Advancing +again, they ingeniously discharged flights of rockets and with these +novel missiles they not only disorganized the militia in front of them +but also stampeded the battery mules. Most of the American army promptly +followed the mules and endeavored to set a new record for a foot race +from Bladensburg to Washington. The Cabinet members and other dignified +spectators were swept along in the rout. + +Commodore Joshua Barney and his four hundred weather-beaten bluejackets +declined to join this speed contest. They were used to rolling decks and +had no aptitude for sprinting, besides which they held the simple-minded +notion that their duty was to fight. Up to this time they had been held +back by orders and now arrived just as the American lines broke in wild +confusion. With them were five guns which they dragged into position +across the main highway and speedily unlimbered. The British were +hastening to overtake the fleeing enemy when they encountered this +awkward obstacle. Three times they charged Barney's battery and were +three times repulsed by sailors and marines who fought them with +muskets, cutlasses, and handspikes, and who served those five guns with +an efficiency which would have pleased Isaac Hull or Bainbridge. + +Unwilling to pay the price of direct attack, the British General Ross +wisely ordered his infantry to surround Barney's stubborn contingent. +The American troops who were presumed to support and protect this naval +battery failed to hold their ground and melted into the mob which was +swirling toward Washington. The sailors, though abandoned, continued to +fight until the British were firing into them from the rear and from +both flanks. Barney fell wounded and some of his gunners were bayoneted +with lighted fuses in their hands. Snarling, undaunted, the sailors +broke through the cordon and saved themselves, the last to leave a +battlefield upon which not one American soldier was visible. They had +used their ammunition to the end and they faced five thousand British +veterans; wherefore they had done what the navy expected of them. On a +day so shameful that no self-respecting American can read of it without +blushing they had enacted the one redeeming episode. Commodore Barney +described this action in a manner blunt and unadorned: + + The engagement continued, the enemy advancing and our own army + retreating before them, apparently in much disorder. At length the + enemy made his appearance on the main road, in force, in front of + my battery, and on seeing us made a halt. I reserved our fire. In a + few minutes the enemy again advanced, when I ordered an + eighteen-pounder to be fired, which completely cleared the road; + shortly after, a second and a third attempt was made by the enemy + to come forward but all were destroyed. They then crossed into an + open field and attempted to flank our right. He was met there by + three twelve-pounders, the marines under Captain Miller, and my men + acting as infantry, and again was totally cut up. By this time not + a vestige of the American army remained, except a body of five or + six hundred posted on a height on my right, from which I expected + much support from their fine situation. + +Barney was made a prisoner, although his men stood by him until he +ordered them to retreat. Loss of blood had made him too weak to be +carried from the field. General Ross and Admiral Cockburn saw to it +personally that he was well cared for and paid him the greatest respect +and courtesy. As for the other British officers, they, too, were +sportsmen who admired a brave man, even in the enemy's uniform, and +Barney reported that they treated him "like a brother." + +The American army had scampered to Washington with a total loss of ten +killed and forty wounded among the five thousand men who had been +assembled at Bladensburg to protect and save the capital. The British +tried to pursue but the afternoon heat was blistering and the rapid pace +set by the American forces proved so fatiguing to the invaders that many +of them were bowled over by sunstroke. To permit their men to run +themselves to death did not appear sensible to the British commanders, +and they therefore sat down to gain their breath before the final +promenade to Washington in the cool of the evening. They found a +helpless, almost deserted city from which the Government had fled and +the army had vanished. + +The march had been orderly, with a proper regard for the peaceful +inhabitants, but now Ross and Cockburn carried out their orders to +plunder and burn. At the head of their troops they rode to the Capitol, +fired a volley through the windows, and set fire to the building. Two +hundred men then sought the President's mansion, ransacked the rooms, +and left it in flames. Next day they burned the official buildings and +several dwellings and, content with the mischief thus wrought, abandoned +the forlorn city and returned to camp at Bladensburg. But more vexation +for the Americans was to follow, for a British fleet was working its way +up the Potomac to anchor off Alexandria. Here there was the same +frightened submission, with the people asking for terms and yielding up +a hundred thousand dollars' worth of flour, tobacco, naval stores, and +shipping. + +The British squadron then returned to Chesapeake Bay and joined the main +fleet which was preparing to attack Baltimore. The army of General Ross +was recalled to the transports and was set ashore at the mouth of the +Patapsco River while the ships sailed up to bombard Fort McHenry, where +the star-spangled banner waved. To defend Baltimore by land there had +been assembled more than thirteen thousand troops under command of +General Samuel Smith. The tragical farce of Bladensburg, however, had +taught him no lesson, and to oppose the five thousand toughened regulars +of General Ross he sent out only three thousand green militia most of +whom had never been under fire. They put up a wonderfully good fight and +deserved praise for it, but wretched leadership left them drawn up in an +open field, with both flanks unprotected, and they were soon driven +back. Next morning--the 13th of September--the British advanced but +found the roads so blocked by fallen trees and entanglements that +progress was slow and laborious. The intrenchments which crowned the +hills of Baltimore appeared so formidable that the British decided to +await action by the fleet and attempt a night assault. + +General Ross was killed during the advance, and this loss caused +confusion of council. The heavy ships were unable to lie within +effective range of the forts because of shoal water and a barrier of +sunken hulks, and Fort McHenry was almost undamaged by the bombardment +of the lighter craft. All through the night a determined fire was +returned by the American garrison of a thousand men, and, although the +British fleet suffered little, Vice-Admiral Cochrane concluded that a +sea attack was a hopeless enterprise. He so notified the army, which +thereupon retreated to the transports, and the fleet sailed down +Chesapeake Bay, leaving Baltimore free and unscathed. + +Among those who watched Fort McHenry by the glare of artillery fire +through this anxious night was a young lawyer from Washington, Francis +Scott Key, who had been detained by the British fleet down the bay while +endeavoring to effect an exchange of prisoners. He had a turn for +verse-making. Most of his poems were mediocre, but the sight of the +Stars and Stripes still fluttering in the early morning breeze inspired +him to write certain deathless stanzas which, when fitted to the old +tune of _Anacreon in Heaven_, his country accepted as its national +anthem. In this exalted moment it was vouchsafed him to sound a trumpet +call, clear and far-echoing, as did Rouget de Lisle when, with soul +aflame, he wrote the _Marseillaise_ for France. If it was the destiny of +the War of 1812 to weld the nation as a union, the spirit of the +consummation was expressed for all time in the lines which a hundred +million of free people sing today: + + O! say can you see by the dawn's early light, + What so proudly we hail'd at the twilight's last gleaming + Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight, + O'er the ramparts we watch'd, were so gallantly streaming? + +The luckless endeavor to capture Baltimore by sea and land was the last +British expedition that alarmed the Atlantic coast. The hostile army and +naval forces withdrew to Jamaica, from which base were planned and +undertaken the Louisiana campaign and the battle of New Orleans. + + * * * * * + +The brilliant leadership and operations of Andrew Jackson were so +detached and remote from all other activities that he may be said to +have fought a private war of his own. It had seemed clear to Madison +that, as a military precaution, the control of West Florida should be +wrenched from Spain, whose neutrality was dubious and whose Gulf +territory was the rendezvous of privateers, pirates, and other lawless +gentry, besides offering convenient opportunity for British invasion by +sea. As early as the autumn of 1812 troops were collected to seize and +hold this region for the duration of the war. The people of the +Mississippi Valley welcomed the adventure with enthusiasm. It was to be +aimed against a European power presumably friendly, but the sheer love +of conquest and old grudges to settle were motives which brushed +argument aside. Andrew Jackson was the major general of the Tennessee +militia, and so many hardy volunteers flocked to follow him that he had +to sift them out, mustering in at Nashville two thousand of whom he +said: "They are the choicest of our citizens. They go at our call to do +the will of Government. No constitutional scruples trouble them. Nay, +they will rejoice at the opportunity of placing the American eagle on +the ramparts of Pensacola, Mobile, and Fort St. Augustine." + +Where the fiery Andrew Jackson led, there was neither delay nor +hesitation. At once he sent his backwoods infantry down river in boats, +while the mounted men rode overland. Four weeks later the information +overtook him at Natchez that Congress had refused to sanction the +expedition. When the Secretary of War curtly told him that his corps was +"dismissed from public service," Andrew Jackson in a furious temper +ignored the order and marched his men back to Nashville instead of +disbanding them. He was not long idle, however, for the powerful +confederacy of the Creek Indians had been aroused by a visit of the +great Tecumseh, and the drums of the war dance were sounding in sympathy +with the tribes of the Canadian frontier. In Georgia and Alabama the +painted prophets and medicine men were spreading tales of Indian +victories over the white men at the river Raisin and Detroit. British +officials, moreover, got wind of a threatened uprising in the South and +secretly encouraged it. + +The Alabama settlers took alarm and left their log houses and clearings +to seek shelter in the nearest blockhouses and stockades. One of these +belonged to Samuel Mims, a half-breed farmer, who had prudently +fortified his farm on a bend of the Alabama River. A square stockade +enclosed an acre of ground around his house and to this refuge hastened +several hundred pioneers and their families, with their negro slaves, +and a few officers and soldiers. Here they were surprised and massacred +by a thousand naked Indians who called themselves Red Sticks because of +the wands carried by their fanatical prophets. Two hundred and fifty +scalps were carried away on poles, and when troops arrived they found +nothing but heaps of ashes, mutilated bodies, and buzzards feeding on +the carrion. + +From Fort Mims the Indians overran the country like a frightful scourge, +murdering and burning, until a vast region was emptied of its people. +First to respond to the pitiful calls for help was Tennessee, and within +a few weeks twenty-five hundred infantry and a thousand cavalry were +marching into Alabama, led by Andrew Jackson, who had not yet recovered +from a wound received in a brawl with Thomas H. Benton. Among Jackson's +soldiers were two young men after his own heart, David Crockett and +Samuel Houston. The villages of the fighting Creeks, at the Hickory +Ground, lay beyond a hundred and sixty miles of wilderness, but Jackson +would not wait for supplies. He plunged ahead, living somehow on the +country, until his men, beginning to break under the strain of +starvation and other hardships, declared open mutiny. But Jackson +cursed, threatened, argued them into obedience again and again. When +such persuasions failed, he planted cannon to sweep their lines and told +them they would have to pass over his dead body if they refused to go +on. + +The failure of other bodies of troops to support his movements and a +discouraged Governor of Tennessee could not daunt his purpose. He was +told that the campaign had failed and that the struggle was useless. To +this he replied that he would perish first and that energy and decision, +together with the fresh troops promised him, would solve the crisis. +Months passed, and the militia whose enlistments had expired went home, +while the other broke out in renewed and more serious mutinies. The few +regulars sent to Jackson he used as police to keep the militia in order. +The court-martialing and shooting of a private had a beneficial effect. + +With this disgruntled, unreliable, weary force, Jackson came, at +length, to a great war camp of the Creek Indians at a loop of the +Tallapoosa River called Horseshoe Bend. Here some ten hundred picked +warriors had built defensive works which were worthy of the talent of a +trained engineer. They also had as effective firearms as the white +troops who assaulted the stronghold. Andrew Jackson bombarded them with +two light guns, sent his men over the breastworks, and captured the +breastworks in hand-to-hand fighting in which quarter was neither asked +nor given. No more than a hundred Indians escaped alive, and dead among +the logs and brushwood were the three famous prophets, gorgeous in war +paint and feathers, who had preached the doctrine of exterminating the +paleface. + +The name of Andrew Jackson spread far and wide among the hostile Indian +tribes, and the fiercest chiefs dreaded it like a tempest. Some made +submission, and others joined in signing a treaty of peace which Jackson +dictated to them with terms as harsh as the temper of the man who had +conquered them. + +For his distinguished services Jackson was made a major general of the +regular army. He was then ordered to Mobile, where his impetuous anger +was aroused by the news that the British had landed at Pensacola and +had pulled down the Spanish flag. The splendor of this ancient seaport +had passed away, and with it the fleets of galleons whose sailors heard +the mission bells and saw the brass guns gleam from the stout fortresses +which in those earlier days guarded the rich commerce of the overland +trade route to St. Augustine. + +Aforetime one of the storied and romantic ports of the Spanish Main, +Pensacola now slumbered in unlovely decay and was no more than a village +to which resorted the smugglers of the Caribbean, the pirates of the +Gulf, and rascally men of all races and colors. The Spanish Governor +still lived in the palace with a few slovenly troops, but he could no +more than protest when a hundred royal marines came ashore from two +British sloops-of-war, and the commander, Major Nicholls, issued a +thunderous proclamation to the oppressed people of the American States +adjoining, letting them know that he was ready to assist them in +liberating their paternal soil from a faithless, imbecile Government. +They were not to be alarmed at his approach. They were to range +themselves under the standard of their forefathers or be neutral. + +Having fired this verbal blunderbuss, Major Nicholls sent a sloop-of-war +to enlist the support of Jean and Pierre Lafitte, enterprising brothers +who maintained on Barataria Bay in the Gulf, some forty miles south of +New Orleans, a most lucrative resort for pirates and slave traders. +There they defied the law and the devil, trafficking in spoils filched +from honest merchantmen whose crews had walked the plank. Pierre Lafitte +was a very proper figure of a pirate himself, true to the best +traditions of his calling. But withal he displayed certain gallantry to +atone for his villainies, for he spurned British gold and persuasions +and offered his sword and his men to defend New Orleans as one faithful +to the American cause. + +If it was the purpose of Nicholls to divert Jackson's attention from New +Orleans which was to be the objective of the British expedition +preparing at Jamaica, he succeeded admirably; but in deciding to attack +Jackson's forces at Mobile, he committed a grievous error. The worthy +Nicholls failed to realize that he had caught a Tartar in General +Jackson--"Old Hickory," the sinewy backwoodsman who would sooner fight +than eat and who was feared more than the enemy by his own men. As might +have been expected, the garrison of one hundred and sixty soldiers who +held Fort Bowyer, which dominated the harbor of Mobile, solemnly swore +among themselves that they would never surrender until the ramparts were +demolished over their heads and no more than a corporal's guard +survived. This was Andrew Jackson's way. + +Four British ships, with a total strength of seventy-eight guns, sailed +into Mobile Bay on the 15th of September and formed in line of battle, +easily confident of smashing Fort Bowyer with its twenty guns, while the +landing force of marines and Indians took position behind the sand dunes +and awaited the signal. The affair lasted no more than an hour. The +American gunnery overwhelmed the British squadron. The _Hermes_ +sloop-of-war was forced to cut her cable and drifted under a raking fire +until she ran aground and was blown up. The _Sophie_ withdrew after +losing many of her seamen, and the two other ships followed her to sea +after delaying to pick up the marines and Indians who merely looked on. +Daybreak saw the squadron spreading topsails to return to Pensacola. + +Andrew Jackson was eager to return the compliment but, not having troops +enough at hand to march on Pensacola, he had to wait and fret until his +force was increased to four thousand men. Then he hurled them at the +objective with an energy that was fairly astounding. On the 3d of +November he left Mobile and three days later was demanding the surrender +of Pensacola. The next morning he carried the town by storm, waited +another day until the British had evacuated and blown up Fort Barrancas, +six miles below the city, and then returned to Mobile. Sickness laid him +low but, enfeebled as he was, he made the journey to New Orleans by easy +stages and took command of such American troops as he could hastily +assemble to ward off the mightiest assault launched by Great Britain +during the War of 1812. It was known, and the warning had been repeated +from Washington, that the enemy intended sending a formidable expedition +against Louisiana, but when Jackson arrived early in December the +Legislature had voted no money, raised no regiments, devised no plan of +defense, and was unprepared to make any resistance whatever. + +A British fleet of about fifty sail, carrying perhaps a thousand guns, +had gathered for the task in hand. The decks were crowded with trained +and toughened troops, the divisions which had scattered the Americans at +Bladensburg with a volley and a shout, kilted Highlanders, famous +regiments which had earned the praise of the Iron Duke in the Spanish +Peninsula, and brawny negro detachments recruited in the West Indies. It +was such an army as would have been considered fit to withstand the +finest troops in Europe. In command was one of England's most brilliant +soldiers, General Sir Edward Pakenham, of whom Wellington had said, "my +partiality for him does not lead me astray when I tell you that he is +one of the best we have." He was the idol of his officers, who agreed +that they had never served under a man whose good opinion they were so +desirous of having, "and to fall in his estimation would have been worse +than death." In brief, he was a high-minded and knightly leader who had +seen twenty years of active service in the most important campaigns of +Europe. + +It was Pakenham's misfortune to be unacquainted with the highly +irregular and unconventional methods of warfare as practiced in America, +where troops preferred to take shelter instead of being shot down while +parading across open ground in solid columns. Improvised breastworks +were to him a novelty, and the lesson of Bunker Hill had been forgotten. +These splendidly organized and seasoned battalions of his were confident +of walking through the Americans at New Orleans as they had done at +Washington, or as Pakenham himself had smashed the finest French +infantry at Salamanca when Wellington told him, "Ned, d'ye see those +fellows on the hill? Throw your division into column; at them, and drive +them to the devil." + +Stranger than fiction was the contrast between the leaders and between +the armies that fought this extraordinary battle of New Orleans when, +after the declaration of peace, the United States won its one famous but +belated victory on land. On the northern frontier such a man as Andrew +Jackson might have changed the whole aspect of the war. He was a great +general with the rare attribute of reading correctly the mind of an +opponent and divining his course of action, endowed with an unyielding +temper and an iron hand, a relentless purpose, and the faculty of +inspiring troops to follow, obey, and trust him in the last extremity. +He was one of them, typifying their passions and prejudices, their +faults and their virtues, sharing their hardships as if he were a common +private, never grudging them the credit in success. + +In the light of previous events it is probable that any other American +general would have felt justified in abandoning New Orleans without a +contest. In the city itself were only eight hundred regulars newly +recruited and a thousand volunteers. But Jackson counted on the arrival +of the hard-bitted, Indian-fighting regiments of Tennessee who were +toiling through the swamps with their brigadiers, Coffee and Carroll. +The foremost of them reached New Orleans on the very day that the +British were landing on the river bank. Gaunt, unshorn, untamed were +these rough-and-tumble warriors who feared neither God nor man but were +glad to fight and die with Andrew Jackson. In coonskin caps, buckskin +shirts, fringed leggings, they swaggered into New Orleans, defiant of +discipline and impatient of restraint, hunting knives in their belts, +long rifles upon their shoulders. There they drank with seamen as wild +as themselves who served in the ships of Jackson's small naval force or +had offered to lend a hand behind the stockades, and with lean, +long-legged Yankees from down East, swarthy outlaws who sailed for +Pierre Lafitte, Portuguese and Norwegian wanderers who had deserted +their merchant vessels, and even Spanish adventurers from the West +Indies. + +The British fleet disembarked its army late in December after the most +laborious difficulties because of the many miles of shallow bayou and +toilsome marsh which delayed the advance. A week was required to carry +seven thousand men in small boats from the ships to the Isle aux Poix +on Lake Borgne chosen as a landing base. Thence a brigade passed in +boats up the bayou and on the 23d of December disembarked at a point +some three miles from the Mississippi and then by land and canal pushed +on to the river's edge. Here they were attacked at night by Jackson with +about two thousand troops, while a war schooner shelled the British left +from the river. It was a weird fight. Squads of Grenadiers, Highlanders, +Creoles, and Tennessee backwoodsmen blindly fought each other in the fog +with knives, fists, bayonets, and musket butts. Jackson then fell back +while the British brigade waited for more troops and artillery. + +On Christmas Day Pakenham took command of the forces at the front now +augmented to about six thousand, but hesitated to attack. And well he +might hesitate, in spite of his superior numbers, for Jackson had +employed his time well and now lay entrenched behind a parapet, +protected by a canal or ditch ten feet wide. With infinite exertion more +guns were dragged and floated to the front until eight heavy batteries +were in position. On the morning of the 1st of January the British +gunners opened fire and felt serenely certain of destroying the rude +defenses of cotton bales and cypress logs. To their amazement the +American artillery was served with far greater precision and effect by +the sailors and regulars who had been trained under Jackson's direction. +By noon most of the British guns had been silenced or dismounted and the +men killed or driven away. "Never was any failure more remarkable or +unlooked for than this," said one of the British artillery officers. +General Pakenham, in dismay, held a council of war. It is stated that +his own judgment was swayed by the autocratic Vice-Admiral Cochrane who +tauntingly remarked that "if the army could not take those mud-banks, +defended by ragged militia, he would undertake to do it with two +thousand sailors armed only with cutlases and pistols." + +Made cautious by this overwhelming artillery reverse, the British army +remained a week in camp, a respite of which every hour was priceless to +Andrew Jackson, for his mud-stained, haggard men were toiling with pick +and shovel to complete the ditches and log barricades. They could hear +the British drums and bugles echo in the gloomy cypress woods while the +cannon grumbled incessantly. The red-coated sentries were stalked and +the pickets were ambushed by the Indian fighters who spread alarm and +uneasiness. Meanwhile Pakenham was making ready with every resource +known to picked troops, who had charged unshaken through the slaughter +of Ciudad Rodrigo, Badajoz, and San Sebastian, and who were about to +justify once more the tribute to the British soldier: "Give him a plain, +unconditional order--go and do _that_--and he will do it with a cool, +self-forgetting pertinacity that can scarcely be too much admired." + +It was Pakenham's plan to hurl a flank attack against the right bank of +the Mississippi while he directed the grand assault on the east side of +the river where Jackson's strength was massed. To protect the flank, +Commodore Patterson of the American naval force had built a water +battery of nine guns and was supported by eight hundred militia. Early +in the morning of the 8th of January twelve hundred men in boats, under +the British Colonel Thornton, set out to take this west bank as the +opening maneuver of the battle. Their errand was delayed, although later +in the day they succeeded in defeating the militia and capturing the +naval guns. This minor victory, however, was too late to save Pakenham's +army which had been cut to pieces in the frontal assault. + +Jackson had arranged his main body of troops along the inner edge of +the small canal extending from a levee to a tangled swamp. The legendary +cotton bales had been blown up or set on fire during the artillery +bombardment and protection was furnished only by a raw, unfinished +parapet of earth and a double row of log breastworks with red clay +tamped between them. It was a motley army that Jackson led. Next to the +levee were posted a small regiment of regular infantry, a company of New +Orleans Rifles, a squad of dragoons who were handling a howitzer, and a +battalion of Creoles in bright uniforms. The line was extended by the +freebooters of Pierre Lafitte, their heads bound with crimson kerchiefs, +a group of American bluejackets, a battalion of blacks from San Domingo, +a few grizzled old French soldiers serving a brass gun, long rows of +tanned, saturnine Tennesseans, more regulars with a culverin, and rank +upon rank of homespun hunting shirts and long rifles, John Adair and his +savage Kentuckians, and, knee-deep in the swamp, the frontiersmen who +followed General Coffee to death or glory. + +A spirit of reckless elation pervaded this bizarre and terrible little +army, although it was well aware that during two and a half years almost +every other American force had been defeated by an enemy far less +formidable. The anxious faces were those of the men of Louisiana who +fought for hearth and home, with their backs to the wall. Many a brutal +tale had they heard of these war-hardened British veterans whose +excesses in Portugal were notorious and who had laid waste the harmless +hamlets of Maryland. All night Andrew Jackson's defenders stood on the +_qui vive_ until the morning mist of the 8th of January was dispelled +and the sunlight flashed on the solid ranks of British bayonets not more +than four hundred yards away. + +At the signal rocket the enemy swept forward toward the canal, with +companies of British sappers bearing scaling ladders and fascines of +sugar cane. They moved with stolid unconcern, but the American cannon +burst forth and slew them until the ditch ran red with blood. With +cheers the invincible British infantry tossed aside its heavy knapsacks, +scrambled over the ditch, and broke into a run to reach the earthworks +along which flamed the sparse line of American rifles. Against such +marksmen as these there was to be no work with the bayonet, for the +assaulting column literally fell as falls the grass under the keen +scythe. The survivors retired, however, only to join a fresh attack +which was rallied and led by Pakenham himself. + +He died with his men, but once more British pluck attempted the +impossible, and the Highland brigade was chosen to lead this forlorn +hope. That night the pipers wailed _Lochaber no more_ for the mangled +dead of the MacGregors, the MacLeans, and the MacDonalds who lay in +windrows with their faces to the foe. This was no Bladensburg holiday, +and the despised Americans were paying off many an old score. Two +thousand of the flower of Britain's armies were killed or wounded in the +few minutes during which the two assaults were so rashly attempted in +parade formation. Coolly, as though at a prize turkey shoot on a tavern +green, the American riflemen fired into these masses of doomed men, and +every bullet found its billet. + +On the right of the line a gallant British onslaught led by Colonel +Rennie swept over a redoubt and the American defenders died to a man. +But the British wave was halted and rolled back by a tempest of bullets +from the line beyond, and the broken remnant joined the general retreat +which was sounded by the British trumpeters. An armistice was granted +next day and in shallow trenches the dead were buried, row on row, while +the muffled drums rolled in honor of three generals, seven colonels, +and seventy-five other officers who had died with their men. Behind the +log walls and earthworks loafed the unkempt, hilarious heroes of whom +only seventy-one had been killed or hurt, and no more than thirteen of +these in the grand assault which Pakenham had led. "Old Hickory" had +told them that they could lick their weight in wildcats, and they were +ready to agree with him. + +Magnificent but useless, after all, excepting as a proud heritage for +later generations and a vindication of American valor against odds, was +this battle of New Orleans which was fought while the Salem ship, +_Astrea_, Captain John Derby, was driving home to the westward with the +news that a treaty of peace had been signed at Ghent. With a sense of +mutual relief the United States and England had concluded a war in which +neither nation had definitely achieved its aims. The treaty failed to +mention such vital issues as the impressment of seamen and the injury to +commerce by means of paper blockades, while on the other hand England +relinquished its conquest of the Maine coast and its claim to military +domination of the Great Lakes. English statesmen were heartily tired of +a war in which they could see neither profit nor glory, and even the +Duke of Wellington had announced it as his opinion "that no military +advantage can be expected if the war goes on, and I would have great +reluctance in undertaking the command unless we made a serious effort +first to obtain peace without insisting upon keeping any part of our +conquests." The reverses of first-class British armies at Plattsburg, +Baltimore, and New Orleans had been a bitter blow to English pride. +Moreover, British commerce on the seas had been largely destroyed by a +host of Yankee privateers, and the common people in England were +suffering from scarcity of food and raw materials and from high prices +to a degree comparable with the distress inflicted by the German +submarine campaign a century later. And although the terms of peace were +unsatisfactory to many Americans, it was implied and understood that the +flag and the nation had won a respect and recognition which should +prevent a recurrence of such wrongs as had caused the War of 1812. One +of the Peace Commissioners, Albert Gallatin, a man of large experience, +unquestioned patriotism, and lucid intelligence, set it down as his +deliberate verdict: + + The war has been productive of evil and of good, but I think the + good preponderates. Independent of the loss of lives, and of the + property of individuals, the war has laid the foundation of + permanent taxes and military establishments which the Republicans + had deemed unfavorable to the happiness and free institutions of + our country. But under our former system we were becoming too + selfish, too much attached exclusively to the acquisition of + wealth, above all, too much confined in our political feelings to + local and state objects. The war has renewed and reinstated the + national feeling and character which the Revolution had given, and + which were daily lessening. The people have now more general + objects of attachment, with which their pride and political + opinions are connected. They are more Americans; they feel and act + more as a nation; and I hope that the permanency of the Union is + thereby better secured. + +After a hundred years, during which this peace was unbroken, a commander +of the American navy, speaking at a banquet in the ancient Guildhall of +London, was bold enough to predict: "If the time ever comes when the +British Empire is seriously menaced by an external enemy, it is my +opinion that you may count upon every man, every dollar, and every drop +of blood of your kindred across the sea." + +The prediction came true in 1917, and traditional enmities were +extinguished in the crusade against a mutual and detestable foe. The +candid naval officer became Vice-Admiral William S. Sims, commanding +all the American ships and sailors in European waters, where the Stars +and Stripes and the British ensign flew side by side, and the squadrons +toiled and dared together in the finest spirit of admiration and +respect. Out from Queenstown sailed an American destroyer flotilla +operated by a stern, inflexible British admiral who was never known to +waste a compliment. At the end of the first year's service he said to +the officers of these hard-driven vessels: + + I wish to express my deep gratitude to the United States officers + and ratings for the skill, energy, and unfailing good nature which + they have all so consistently shown and which qualities have so + materially assisted in the war by enabling ships of the Allied + Powers to cross the ocean in comparative freedom. + + _To command you is an honor, to work with you is a pleasure, to + know you is to know the finest traits of the Anglo-Saxon race._ + +The United States waged a just war in 1812 and vindicated the principles +for which she fought, but as long as the poppies blow in Flanders fields +it is the clear duty, and it should be the abiding pleasure, of her +people to remember, not those far-off days as foemen, but these latter +days as comrades in arms. + + + + +BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE + + +Of the scores of books that have been written about the War of 1812, +many deal with particular phases, events, or personalities, and most of +them are biased by partisan feeling. This has been unfortunately true of +the textbooks written for American schools, which, by ignoring defeats +and blunders, have missed the opportunity to teach the lessons of +experience. By all odds the best, the fairest, and the most complete +narrative of the war as written by an American historian is the +monumental work of Henry Adams, _History of the United States of +America_, 9 vols. (1889-91). The result of years of scholarly research, +it is also most excellent reading. + +Captain Mahan's _Sea Power in its Relation to the War of 1812_, 2 vols. +(1905), is, of course, the final word concerning the naval events, but +he also describes with keen analysis the progress of the operations on +land and fills in the political background of cause and effect. Theodore +Roosevelt's _The Naval War of 1812_ (1882) is spirited and accurate but +makes no pretensions to a general survey. Akin to such a briny book as +this but more restricted in scope is _The Frigate Constitution_ (1900) +by Ira N. Hollis, or Rodney Macdonough's _Life of Commodore Thomas +Macdonough_ (1909). Edgar Stanton Maclay in _The History of the Navy_, 3 +vols. (1902), has written a most satisfactory account, which contains +some capital chapters describing the immortal actions of the Yankee +frigates. + +Benson J. Lossing's _The Pictorial Field Book of the War of 1812_ (1868) +has enjoyed wide popularity because of his gossipy, entertaining +quality. The author gathered much of his material at first hand and had +the knack of telling a story; but he is not very trustworthy. + +As a solemn warning, the disasters of the American armies have been +employed by several military experts. The ablest of these was Bvt. Major +General Emory Upton, whose invaluable treatise, _The Military Policy of +the United States_ (1904), was pigeonholed in manuscript by the War +Department and allowed to gather dust for many years. He discusses in +detail the misfortunes of 1812 as conclusive proof that the national +defense cannot be entrusted to raw militia and untrained officers. Of a +similar trend but much more recent are Frederic L. Huidekoper's _The +Military Unpreparedness of the United States_ (1915) and Major General +Leonard Wood's _Our Military History; Its Facts and Fallacies_ (1916). + +Of the British historians, William James undertook the most diligent +account of them all, calling it _A Full and Correct Account of the +Military Occurrences of the Late War between Great Britain and the +United States of America_, 2 vols. (1818). It is irritating reading for +an American because of an enmity so bitter that facts are willfully +distorted and glaring inaccuracies are accepted as truth. As a naval +historian James undertook to explain away the American victories in +single-ship actions, a difficult task in which he acquitted himself with +poor grace. Theodore Roosevelt is at his best when he chastises James +for his venomous hatred of all things American. + +To the English mind the War of 1812 was only an episode in the mighty +and prolonged struggle against Napoleon, and therefore it finds but +cursory treatment in the standard English histories. To Canada, however, +the conflict was intimate and vital, and the narratives written from +this point of view are sounder and of more moment than those produced +across the water. _The Canadian War of 1812_ (1906), published almost a +century after the event, is the work of an Englishman, Sir Charles P. +Lucas, whose lifelong service in the Colonial Office and whose thorough +acquaintance with Canadian history have both been turned to the best +account. Among the Canadian authors in this field are Colonel Ernest A. +Cruikshank and James Hannay. To Colonel Cruikshank falls the greater +credit as a pioneer with his _Documentary History of the Campaign upon +the Niagara Frontier_, 8 vols. (1896-). Hannay's _How Canada Was Held +for the Empire; The Story of the War of 1812_ (1905) displays careful +study but is marred by the controversial and one-sided attitude which +this war inspired on both sides of the border. + +Colonel William Wood has avoided this flaw in his _War with the United +States_ (1915) which was published as a volume of the _Chronicles of +Canada_ series. As a compact and scholarly survey, this little book is +recommended to Americans who comprehend that there are two sides to +every question. The Canadians fought stubbornly and successfully to +defend their country against invasion in a war whose slogan "Free Trade +and Sailors' Rights" was no direct concern of theirs. + + + + +INDEX + +Adair, John, 215 +Adams, Henry, quoted, 20, 117 +_Adams_ (ship), 141 +Alabama, Indians aroused in, 201 +_Alabama_ raids compared with those of _Essex_, 154 +Albany, militia at Sackett's Harbor from, 77 +Alexandria, British fleet at, 197 +Allen, Captain W. H., 142, 143 +Amherstburg, Canadian post, 11; + Hull plans assault, 11, 14, 16; + Brock at, 17; + defeat of British, 21, 42; + Harrison against, 24, 25; + Procter commands, 26; + British advance from, 27 +Anderson, James, of the _Essex_, 162 +Annapolis, British fleet at, 187 +_Argus_ (brig), 94; + and the _Pelican_, 142-44 +_Ariel_ (brig), 57, 62 +Armstrong, John, Secretary of War, 37, 175; + plans offensive, 72, 80, 84; + and Wilkinson, 81-82; + orders winter quarters, 82 +Army, in 1812, 5-8; + state control, 6-8; + incapable officers, 10-11; + at Niagara, 14-15; + Hull's forces, 15; + mutiny, 17; + failure to supply, 24; + forces under Winchester, 25; + at New Orleans, 210-11 +_Astrea_ (ship), 218 +_Avon_ (British brig), fight with _Wasp_, 146-47 +Bainbridge, Captain William, 90, 95, 117, 121, 127, 136-137, 138 +Baltimore, British fleet at, 187; + attack on, 197-99, 219 +Bangor (Me.), British land at, 187 +Barclay, Captain R. H., British officer, 52, 53, 54, 56, 60, 61 +Barney, Commodore Joshua, 92, 189, 193, 194; + account of battle of Bladensburg, 195 +Barrancas, Fort, 208 +Barron, Commodore James, 91 +Belfast (Me.), British at, 187 +_Belvidera_ (British frigate), 96; + fight with _President_, 94-95 +Benton, T. H., and Jackson, 202 +_Betsy_ (brig), 104 +Biddle, Lieutenant James, on the _Wasp_, 111-12 +Biddle, Captain Nicholas, 92 +Black Rock, navy yard at, 39, 48; + Elliott at, 49; + invasion of Canada from, 70; + Indians against, 88 +Bladensburg, battle, 191-96 +Blakely, Captain Johnston, 137, 144, 145, 146, 147 +Blockade, 124-25, 148, 185 +Blyth, Captain Samuel, 140 +Boerstler, Colonel, 76 +_Bonne Citoyenne_ (British sloop-of-war), 126 +Bowyer, Fort, 206, 207 +_Boxer_, duel with _Enterprise_, 189-40 +Boyd, General J. P., 74, 76, 83 +Brewster (Mass.), war levy, 188 +Brock, Major General Isaac, British commander, 12-13, 14; + against Hull, 15, 17; + Hull surrenders Detroit to, 18-19; + on Elliott's victory, 40; + on Niagara River, 65; + killed, 66 +Broke, Captain P. V., of the _Shannon_, 96, 128-29, 130, 134, 138-39 +Brown, General Jacob, at Sackett's Harbor, 77, 78, 79; + at Chrystler's Farm, 82-83; + Niagara campaign, 167, 168, 169, 170; + at Lundy's Lane, 171-72, 191 +Budd, George, second lieutenant on _Chesapeake_, 134 +Buffalo, Elliott at, 38; + difficulty of taking supplies to, 47; + American regulars sent to, 65; + base of operations, 70, 72; + Indians against, 88 +Burrows, Captain William, of the _Enterprise_, 139 + +Cabinet advises General Winder, 192 + +_Caledonia_ (British brig), 38-39; + Elliott captures, 39; + in American squadron, 49-50, 56 +Canada, "On to Canada!" slogan of frontiersmen, 4; + vulnerable point in War of 1812, 9, 10; + population and extent, 10; + plans for invasion of, 13-14; + Hull abandons invasion of, 16; + Niagara campaign, 64 _et seq._, 167-77 +Canning, George, British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, 92 +Carden, Captain J. S., of the _Macedonian_, 114, 115, 116 +Cass, Colonel Lewis, 18 +Castine, British land at, 187 +Champlain, Lake, Dearborn on, 71; + Hampton in command, 80, 81; + Macdonough's victory, 166 _et seq._ +Chandler, General John, 74, 75 +Chateauguay River, Hampton on, 84, 85 +Chauncey, Captain Isaac, leads sailors from New York to Buffalo, 39; + in command of naval forces on Lakes Erie and Ontario, 47, 48; + extreme caution, 49, 55, 56, 170-71; + on Lake Ontario, 49, 50, 63; + and Perry, 50-51, 55, 56; + and Niagara campaign, 72, 73, 74, 77, 82, 170-71 +_Cherub_ (British sloop-of-war), 157, 159, 160, 161 +_Chesapeake_ (frigate), and _Leopard_, 91; + Lawrence on, 96, 127-28; + defeated by _Shannon_, 128-39; + Allen on, 142 +Chesapeake Bay, blockade of 185; + Cockburn in, 186; + British army comes to, 189; + British fleet in, 197 +Chippawa, Brock's forces at 65, 67; + battle, 168-70 +Chrystler's Farm, battle, 83 +_Chub_ (British schooner), 180 +Clay, Brigadier General Green, 31 +Clay, Henry, on conquest of Canada, 9 +Cleveland, Harrison's headquarters at, 33 +Cochrane, Vice Admiral Alexander, 198, 218 +Cockburn, Rear Admiral George, 186, 195, 196 +Cod, Cape, British raids on, 188 +Coffee, General John, 211, 215 +_Confiance_ (British frigate), 179, 180 +Congress, declares war on Great Britain (1812), 4; + and the navy, 90; + votes prize money for _Constitution_, 107; + prize money for _Wasp_, 113; + and maritime trouble with France, 152; + refuses to sanction Jackson's expedition, 201 +_Congress_ (frigate), 94, 141 +Connecticut, attitude toward War of 1812, 7 +_Constellation_ (frigate), 92, 141, 187 +_Constitution_ (frigate), 2, 125; + Hull and, 95, 116, 128; + now in Boston Navy Yard, 95-96; + encounter with British squadron, 96-99; + and _Guerrière_, 100-07, 108, 122-23; + "Old Ironsides," 101; + under Bainbridge, 116-17; + health conditions on, 117-18; + encounter with _Java_, 118-21, 123-24, 154; + Lawrence and, 126; + influence, 139; + in 1813, 141; + gains open sea in 1814, 147 +Creek Indians, 201 +Creighton, Captain J. O., 137 +Crockett, David, 202 +Croghan, Major George, at Fort Stephenson, 34-35, 36, 38, 46 +Crowninshield, Captain George, 136 +_Cyane_ (British frigate), 147 + +Dacres, Captain John, of the _Guerrière_, 100, 101, 102, 103, 104 +Dayton (O.), Hull takes command at, 12 +Dearborn, Major General Henry, plans invasion of Canada, 13, 73; + commander-in-chief of American forces, 14; + incompetency, 14; + and Niagara campaign, 64, 65, 74-75, 76; + campaign against Montreal, 71-72; + wishes to retire, 72, 75; + Armstrong and, 72; + Brown reports battle of Sackett's Harbor to, 78-79; + retired, 80; + age, 117 +Dearborn, Fort (Chicago), burned, 19; + massacre, 20 +Decatur, Captain Stephen, 138; + and the _Philadelphia_ (1804), 92; + squadron commander, 94; + on the _United States_, 114, 115; + on the _President_, 148, 149; +Defiance, Fort, 24 +Delaware Bay, blockade of, 185 +Derby, Captain John, 218 +Detroit, 64; + first campaign from, 11, 14; + Hull at, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16; + mutiny at, 15; + surrender of, 17-18, 19, 20, 22, 106-07; + in British hands, 31; + Procter abandons, 42; + Harrison returns to, 45 +_Detroit_ (brig), taken from Hull, 38; + Elliott captures, 39-40 +_Detroit_ (British ship), 54, 56, 57, 60 +Downes, Lieutenant John, 155, 156 +Downie, Captain George, British officer, 178, 183 +Drummond, General Sir George Gordon, 172 + +_Eagle_ (brig), 180 +Eastham (Mass.), war levy, 188 +Eastport (Me.), captured, 187 +Elliott, Lieutenant J. D., builds fleet on Lake Erie, 38, 48; + captures _Caledonia_ and _Detroit_, 39-40; + with Perry, 54, 58 +_Endymion_ (British frigate), 150 +_Enterprise_ (brig), encounter with _Boxer_, 139-40 +_Epervier_ (British brig), fight with _Peacock_, 144 +Erie, Barclay off, 52; + _see also_ Presqu' Isle +Erie, Fort, Elliott captures ships near, 39; + Brock at, 65; + Americans capture, 168; + Scott and Brown occupy, 173 +Erie, Lake, Hull's schooner captured on, 12; + Perry on, 21, 40 _et seq._; + Harrison on shores of, 24, 30; + Chauncey in command on, 47, 48 +_Essex_ (frigate), 141, 147; + last cruise, 151 _et seq._; + building of, 153; + capture by Hillyar, 161-65 +_Essex, Junior_ (cruiser), 156, 159 +Eustis, William, Secretary of War, 24 + +Faneuil Hall, banquet for Hull at, 106 +Farragut, Admiral D. G., 181; + motto, 46; + cited, _59_; + midshipman on _Essex_, 161-62 +_Finch_ (British schooner), 180 +Florida, West, Jackson and, 200 +France, American feeling toward, 3; + as maritime enemy, 151-52, 154 +Fredericktown burned, 186 +"Free Trade and Sailors' Rights," 3, 91, 137 +Frenchtown, _see_ Raisin River +_Frolic_ (British brig), encounter with _Wasp_, 108-13 + +Galapagos Islands, _Essex_ at, 155 +Gallatin, Albert, quoted, 219-220 +George, Fort, British fort, 67; + evacuated by British, 74-75; + retaken, 87 +Georgia, Indians aroused in, 201 +_Georgiana_ (British whaling ship), _Essex_ captures, 155; + renamed _Essex, Junior_, 156 +Great Britain, and free sea, 2-3; + Indian wars, 4; + war declared on (1812), 4; + and Indians, 10; + and Napoleon, 124; + blockading measures, 124-25 +Great Lakes, British on, 38 +_Guerrière_ (British frigate), 2, 96; + encounter with _Constitution_, 100-07, 108, 122-23; + celebration of capture, 116 + +Hamilton, Alexander, Izard aide to, 175 +Hampton, General Wade, in campaign against Montreal, 80, 81, 83-84, 86; + and Wilkinson, 80-81; + cause of failure, 86; + age, 117 +Hampton, British foray on village of, 187 +Haraden, Captain Jonathan, 153 +Harrison, General W. H., campaign, 22 _et seq._; + report to Secretary of War, 29-30; + Croghan and, 35; + Armstrong on, 37-38; + and Perry's victory, 41, 63; + resumes campaign, 42; + becomes President of United States, 45 +Havre de Grace burned, 186 +Hazen, Benjamin, of the _Essex,_ 162 +_Henry_ (brig), 186, 187 +_Hermes_ (British sloop-of-war), 207 +Hillyar, Captain James, British officer, 157, 158, 159-60, 161, 164-65 +_Hornet_ (sloop-of-war), 48, 94; + Lawrence on, 126; + and _Peacock_, 127; + in South American waters, 154 +Horseshoe Bend, battle, 204 +Houston, Samuel, 202 +Hull, Captain Isaac, of the _Constitution_, 95, 128, 138; + and British squadron, 96, 97, 98, 99; + and _Guerrière_, 101, 102, 103, 106; + and Dacres, 104; + victory celebrated, 106, 107, 108; + gives up command of _Constitution_, 116-17; + at Lawrence's funeral, 136 +Hull, General William, 34, 68, 71, 88, 98; + Detroit campaign, 11 _et seq._; + troops, 15, 17; + surrender, 19; + court-martial, 19-20; + Harrison and, 22; + age, 117 + +Impressment of seamen, 90 +Indian wars, enmity toward Great Britain because of, 4 +Indians, British and, 10, 55; + against Americans, 16, 67, 76; + in Canadian army, 17; + Procter and, 26; + abandon British cause, 44; + ravage frontier, 88; + massacre at Fort Mims, 202 +Izard, General George, 175, 176 + +Jackson, Andrew, at New Orleans, 17-18, 208 _et seq._; + and Florida expedition, 200-03; + at Horseshoe Bend, 204; + at Pensacola, 207-08 +_Jacob Jones_ (destroyer), 109 +_Java_ (British frigate), encounter with _Constitution_, 118-20, 154 +Jefferson, Thomas, and gunboats, 8-9; + on conquest of Canada, 9-10 +Johnson, Allen, _Jefferson and his Colleagues_, cited, 2 +Johnson, Colonel R. M., 41, 43, 44, 46; +Jones, Captain, Jacob, of the _Wasp_, 109, 110, 111, 113; +Jones, John Paul, cited, 59; + American naval officers serve with, 92; + on the _Ranger_, 141 + +Kentucky, defends western border, 22; + militia, 24, 31 +Key, F. S., _Star-Spangled Banner_, 198-99 +Kingston, plan to capture, 72, 73; + Prevost embarks at, 77 + +_Lady Prevost_ (British schooner), 56 +Lafitte, Jean, 206 +Lafitte, Pierre, 206, 211, 215 +Lambert, Captain Henry, of the _Java_, 118 +Lang, Jack, sailor on the _Wasp_, 111 +_La Vengeance_ (French ship) and _Constellation_, 93 +Lawrence, Captain James, of the _Chesapeake_, 96, 127-28, 129-30; + on the _Hornet_, 126, 127; + fights _Shannon_, 130-136; + death, 131, 133, 135; + account of funeral, 136-37 +_Lawrence_ (brig), 49, 53, 55, 56, 57, 58 +_Leopard_ and _Chesapeake_, 91, 142 +_Levant_ (British sloop-of-war), fight with _Constitution_, 147 +Lewis, General Morgan, 75-76, 83 +_Linnet_ (British brig), 180 +_L'Insurgente_ (French ship) and _Constellation_, 92 +Long Island Sound, British fleet in, 188 +Ludlow, Lieutenant A. C, of the _Chesapeake_, 133,136, 137 +Lundy's Lane, battle, 2, 171-173 + +McArthur, Colonel, 18 +Macdonough, Commodore Thomas, on Lake Champlain, 166, 167, 171, 178, 179-84 +_Macedonian_ (British frigate), Decatur captures, 114-16, 142; + as American frigate, 141 +McHenry, Fort, 197, 198 +Mackinac, fall of, 19, 20 +Mackinaw, _see_ Mackinac +M'Knight, Lieutenant, S. D., of the _Essex_, 163 +Macomb, Brigadier General Alexander, 177 +Madison, James, and Hull, 12, 19; + reviews troops, 191; + at battle of Bladensburg, 192; + policy as to West Florida, 200 +Mahan, Captain A. T., quoted, 128 +Maine, British raids, 187 +Malden (Amherstburg), 43; + _see also_ Amherstburg +Massachusetts, attitude toward War of 1812, 7, 91 +Maumee Rapids, Harrison at, 30 +Maumee River, Hull at, 12 +Meigs, Fort, massacre at, 20, 32; + built, 30; + Procter besieges, 31-32, 36; + Harrison again at, 33 +Merchant marine, 93 +Miller, Captain, at battle of Bladensburg, 195 +Miller, Colonel John, 17, 33 +Mims, Samuel, 202 +Mims, Fort, massacre, 202 +Mississippi Valley and invasion of Florida, 200 +Mobile, Jackson at, 204, 206-207, 208 +Montreal, plan of attack, 14; + campaign against, 71, 82-87 +Moraviantown, Procter goes to, 42 +Morris, Lieutenant Charles, on the _Constitution_, 101, 107 +Mulcaster, Captain W. H., 83 +Murray, Colonel, British officer, 87 + +Napoleon, Great Britain and, 2; + offenses against American commerce, 8 +Navy, 8-9,38; + on Lake Erie, 46 _et seq._; + on the sea, 89 _et seq._; + augmented by private subscriptions, 152; + victory on Lake Champlain, 166 _et seq._ +Nelson, Horatio, Viscount, quoted, 141 +New England, attitude toward War of 1812, 7-8; + British raids in, 187-88 +New Orleans, battle of, 166, 175, 208-18, 219 +New York, apprehension in, 148 +Niagara, campaign planned, 13-14; + American forces at, 14-15; + campaign, 64 _et seq._; + renewal of struggle for region of (1814), 167-77 +_Niagara_ (brig), 49, 53, 54, 56, 58, 59 +Niagara, Fort, 87 +Nicholls, Major Edward, 205 +Norfolk, Warren attacks, 187 +Northwest Territory regained for United States, 44, 63 + +Ohio, Hull sends troops to, 16; + defends western border, 22; + militia, 31 +"Old Ironsides," 101, see also _Constitution_ +Ontario, Lake, Chauncey in command on, 47, 48, 49, 50; + battle at Sackett's Harbor, 77-79 +Orne, Captain W. B., 104 + +Paine, R. D., _The Old Merchant Marine_, cited, 93 (note) +Pakenham, General Sir Edward, at New Orleans, 209-210, 212, 213, 214, 216-17 +Patterson, Commodore D. T., at New Orleans, 214 +_Peacock_ (British brig) and _Hornet_, 127 +_Peacock_ (sloop-of-war), 144 +_Pelican_ (British brig), 142 +Pennsylvania, brigade in Western campaign from, 23; + militia at Erie, 52-53 +Pensacola, British pull down Spanish flag at, 204-05; + Jackson at, 207-08 +Perry, O. H., 180-81; + victory on Lake Erie, 21, 46 _et seq._, 166; + and Harrison, 41, 63; + famous message, 41, 62 +_Philadelphia_ (frigate), 92 +_Phoebe_ (British frigate) and _Essex_, 157-65 +_Pilot_, The, on destruction of the _Java_, 123-24 +Plattsburg, Dearborn at, 71; + troops moved from, 74, 80; + Izard at, 175, 176; + Prevost at, 176, 177,178 +Plattsburg Bay, battle of, 177-184, 219 +_Poictiers_ (British ship), 113 +_Pomone_ (British frigate), 150 +Porter, Captain David, of the _Essex_, 151; + raids on British whaling fleet, 154-56; + _Phoebe_ and _Cherub_ seek, 157-64; + account of surrender of _Essex_, 163-64 +_President_ (frigate), 141, 147, 148, 149; + encounters _Belvidera_, 94-95; + Rodgers in command of, 101; + captured, 150 +Presqu' Isle (Erie), navy yard at, 48; + _see also_ Erie +Prevost, Sir George, Governor General of Canada, 54; + crosses Lake Ontario, 77; + defends Montreal, 84-85; + goes to Plattsburg, 176, 177; + quoted, 176-77, 178-79 +Privateers, 93 +Procter, Colonel Henry, battle of the Raisin, 26; + character, 26; + and Harrison, 30, 34, 37-38; + at Fort Meigs, 31-32, 33; + at Fort Stephenson, 36; + blames Indians for defeat, 36-37; + Brock reports to, 40-41; + and Tecumseh, 42; + official disgrace, 45 +Put-in Bay, Perry at, 54 + +_Queen Charlotte_ (British ship), 56, 58, 60 +Queenston, attack on, 65-67; + British at, 168, 170 +Quincy, Josiah, 91 + +Raisin River, massacre at, 20, 26-30, 36; + Winchester at Frenchtown, 25 +_Ranger_ (frigate), 141 +_Rattlesnake_ (brig), 137 +_Reindeer_ (British brig), 145 +Rennie, Colonel, British officer, 217 +Riall, General Phineas, 168,170 +Ripley, General E. W., 173 +Ripley, John, seaman on _Essex_, 162 +Rodgers, Commodore John, 94, 95, 101, 113-14 +Ross, General Robert, 188, 194; + and Barney, 195; + in Washington, 196; + against Baltimore, 197; + killed, 198 +Rush, Richard, quoted, 132 + +Sackett's Harbor, Lake Ontario, invasion of Canada planned from, 13-14; + Chauncey, at, 47, 48; + in Niagara campaign, 72, 74, 76-77; + battle at, 77-79; + campaign against Montreal, 80, 81; + Brown at, 167; + fleet at, 170 +St. Lawrence River, plan to gain control of, 72; + Wilkinson's army descends, 80; + Wilkinson abandons voyage down, 83-84 +Salaberry, Colonel de, 85, 86 +Salem contributes _Essex_ to navy, 152 +Salem Marine Society, 136 +_Saratoga_ (flagship), 180 +_Scorpion_ (brig), 57, 62 +Scott, Michael, _Tom Cringle's Log_, quoted, 145 +Scott, Winfield, quoted, 5; + at Queenston, 66; + at Chippawa, 68, 168-69; + taken prisoner, 68; + in control of army, 73; + at Fort George, 74; + on Wilkinson, 80; + trains Brown's troops, 167; + at Lundy's Lane, 171, 172,191; + wounded, 173 +Seneca, Harrison at, 37, 38, 41 +_Shannon_ (British frigate), encounter with _Constitution_, 96-99; + defeats _Chesapeake_, 128-39 +Shipbuilding on Lake Erie, 50 +Sims, Vice-Admiral W. S., 220-21 +Smith, General Samuel, 197 +Smyth, Brigadier General Alexander, 65, 66, 68-69, 70-71 +_Sophie_ (British ship), 207 +Spain and West Florida, 200 +Squaw Island, Elliott at, 38 +Stephenson, Fort, Harrison at, 34; + Croghan at, 36, 46; + Procter's defeat, 36, 37-38 +Stewart, Captain Charles, 136, 147 +Stonington, British bombard, 188 +Stony Creek, battle, 75 + +Tecumseh, 16, 18, 31, 32, 34, 42; + death, 44; + and Creek Indians, 201 +_Tenedos_ (British frigate), 150 +Thames River, Procter's defeat at, 43-44 +Thornton, Colonel Sir William, British officer, 214 +_Ticonderoga_ (schooner), 180 +_Times_, London, account of fight of _Guerrière_, 122-23 +Tippecanoe campaign, 20 +Toronto, _see_ York +Transportation, effect of blockade on, 148 + +_United States_ (frigate), 94, 139; + captures _Macedonian_, 114-116, 142; + and blockade, 141 +Upper Sandusky, Harrison's headquarters, 33, 34 + +Valparaiso, _Essex_ at, 155, 156, 157; + _Essex_ and _Phoebe_ at, 158 _et seq._ +Van Rensselaer, Major General Stephen, 64, 65, 66, 68, 71 +Vincent, General John, British officer, 74, 75 +Virginia, brigades from, 23 + +War of 1812, a victory, 1; + causes, 2-4; + army, 5-8; + "Mr. Madison's War," 8; + navy, 8-9, 89 _et seq._; + campaign in West, 11 _et seq._; + Perry and Lake Erie, 46 _et seq._; + the Northern Front, 64 _et seq._; + victory on Lake Champlain, 166 _et seq._; + peace with honor, 185 _et seq._; + bibliography, 223-25 +Warren, Admiral Sir J. B., 138, 185, 187 +Warrington, Captain Lewis, of the _Peacock_, 144 +Washington, George, on need of regular army, 6-7; + and Hull, 11 +Washington, Capitol burned, 73, 196; + naval ball to celebrate capture of _Guerrière_, 116; + British fleet causes consternation in, 187; + British decide to attack, 189; + capture of, 166, 190-96 +_Wasp_ (sloop-of-war), 48; + encounter with _Frolic_, 108-13; + last cruise, 144-47; + disappearance, 147 +Wellfleet (Mass.), war levy, 188 +Whinyates, Captain Thomas, of the _Frolic_, 109, 112 +Wilkinson, James, succeeds Dearborn, 80; + character, 80; + Hampton and, 81, 84; + and Armstrong, 81; + campaign, 82, 83, 84, 86, 87; + age, 117 +Winchester, General James, as a leader, 24-25; + at Raisin River, 25, 26-27, 28 +Winder, General W. H., in Niagara campaign, 74, 75; + at Washington, 190-91, 192 +Wool, Captain J. E., at Queenston, 66 + +Yeo, Sir James, 49, 77 +York (Toronto), plans to capture, 72, 73 + capture, 73 + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Fight for a Free Sea: A Chronicle +of the War of 1812, by Ralph D. Paine + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FIGHT FOR A FREE SEA: A *** + +***** This file should be named 18941-8.txt or 18941-8.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/1/8/9/4/18941/ + +Produced by Steven desJardins and Distributed Proofreaders + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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Paine + </title> + <style type="text/css"> +/*<![CDATA[ XML blockout */ +<!-- + p { margin-top: .75em; + text-align: justify; + margin-bottom: .75em; + } + h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6 { + text-align: center; /* all headings centered */ + } + hr { width: 33%; + margin-top: 2em; + margin-bottom: 2em; + margin-left: auto; + margin-right: auto; + } + body{margin-left: 10%; + margin-right: 10%; + } + + table {margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;} + + ul { list-style-type: upper-roman; + text-align: center; + font-variant: small-caps; } + + .linenum {position: absolute; top: auto; left: 4%;} /* poetry number */ + .blockquot{margin-left: 5%; margin-right: 10%;} + .pagenum {position: absolute; left: 92%; font-size: smaller; text-align: right;} /* page numbers */ + + .bb {border-bottom: solid 2px;} + .bl {border-left: solid 2px;} + .bt {border-top: solid 2px;} + .br {border-right: solid 2px;} + .bbox {border: solid 2px;} + + .center {text-align: center;} + .smcap {font-variant: small-caps;} + + .figcenter {margin: auto; text-align: center;} + + .figleft {float: left; clear: left; margin-left: 0; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-top: + 1em; margin-right: 1em; padding: 0; text-align: center;} + + .figright {float: right; clear: right; margin-left: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em; + margin-top: 1em; margin-right: 0; padding: 0; text-align: center;} + + .footnotes {border: dashed 1px;} + .footnote {margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; font-size: 0.9em;} + .footnote .label {position: absolute; left: 12%; text-align: left;} + .index {text-align: left;} + .index .newletter {margin: 1em 0em 1em 0em;} + .index span {display: block; margin: 0; padding-left: 3em; text-indent: -3em;} + .index span.i1 {display: block; margin-left: 1em;} + + .poem {margin-left:10%; margin-right:10%; text-align: left;} + .poem br {display: none;} + .poem .stanza {margin: 1em 0em 1em 0em;} + .poem span {display: block; margin: 0; padding-left: 3em; text-indent: -3em;} + .poem span.i2 {display: block; margin-left: 2em;} + .poem span.i4 {display: block; margin-left: 4em;} + // --> + /* XML end ]]>*/ + </style> + </head> +<body> + + +<pre> + +The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Fight for a Free Sea: A Chronicle of +the War of 1812, by Ralph D. Paine + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The Fight for a Free Sea: A Chronicle of the War of 1812 + The Chronicles of America Series, Volume 17 + +Author: Ralph D. Paine + +Release Date: July 30, 2006 [EBook #18941] +[Last updated: September 10, 2012] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: UTF-8 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FIGHT FOR A FREE SEA: A *** + + + + +Produced by Steven desJardins and Distributed Proofreaders + + + + + +</pre> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 700px;"> +<img src="images/image-1.jpg" width="700" height="559" alt=""OLD IRONSIDES"" title="" /> +<p><b>"OLD IRONSIDES"</b></p> + +<p><b>The old frigate Constitution as she appears today in her snug +berth at the Boston Navy Yard where she is preserved as an +historical relic.</b></p> + +<p><b>Photograph by N. L. Stebbins, Boston.</b></p> +</div> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<h1><a name="THE_FIGHT_FOR_A_FREE_SEA" id="THE_FIGHT_FOR_A_FREE_SEA" />THE FIGHT FOR A FREE SEA</h1> + +<h3>A CHRONICLE OF THE WAR OF 1812</h3> + +<h2>BY RALPH D. PAINE</h2> + +<div class="figcenter"> +<img src="images/bookplate.png" width="20%" alt="bookplate" title="" /> +</div> + +<h4>VOLUME 17</h4> +<h4>THE CHRONICLES OF AMERICA SERIES</h4> +<h4>ALLEN JOHNSON, EDITOR</h4> + +<h4>1920</h4> + + + +<hr style="width: 25%;" /> + +<h2><a name="CONTENTS" id="CONTENTS" /><a name="Page_-1" id="Page_-1" />CONTENTS</h2> + +<p style="text-align: center;">I. <a href="#CHAPTER_I">"ON TO CANADA!"</a></p> +<p style="text-align: center;">II. <a href="#CHAPTER_II">LOST GROUND REGAINED</a></p> +<p style="text-align: center;">III. <a href="#CHAPTER_III">PERRY AND LAKE ERIE</a></p> +<p style="text-align: center;">IV. <a href="#CHAPTER_IV">EBB AND FLOW ON THE NORTHERN FRONT</a></p> +<p style="text-align: center;">V. <a href="#CHAPTER_V">THE NAVY ON BLUE WATER</a></p> +<p style="text-align: center;">VI. <a href="#CHAPTER_VI">MATCHLESS FRIGATES AND THEIR DUELS</a></p> +<p style="text-align: center;">VII. <a href="#CHAPTER_VII">"DON'T GIVE UP THE SHIP!"</a></p> +<p style="text-align: center;">VIII. <a href="#CHAPTER_VIII">THE LAST CRUISE OF THE ESSEX</a></p> +<p style="text-align: center;">IX. <a href="#CHAPTER_IX">VICTORY ON LAKE CHAMPLAIN</a></p> +<p style="text-align: center;">X. <a href="#CHAPTER_X">PEACE WITH HONOR</a></p> +<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="#BIBLIOGRAPHICAL_NOTE">BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE</a></p> +<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="#INDEX">INDEX</a></p> + + + +<hr style="width: 25%;" /> + +<h2><a name="ILLUSTRATIONS" id="ILLUSTRATIONS" /><a name="Page_0" id="Page_0" />ILLUSTRATIONS</h2> + + +<p>"OLD IRONSIDES"</p> + +<p>The old frigate <i>Constitution</i> as she appears today in her snug berth at +the Boston Navy Yard where she is preserved as an historical relic. +Photograph by N. L. Stebbins, Boston.</p> + + +<p>THE THEATRE OF OPERATIONS IN THE WAR OF 1812</p> + +<p>Map by W. L. G. Joerg, American Geographical Society.</p> + + +<p>OLIVER HAZARD PERRY AT THE BATTLE OF LAKE ERIE</p> + +<p>Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. Reproduced by courtesy of the Municipal Art Commission of +the City of New York.</p> + + +<p>ISAAC CHAUNCEY</p> + +<p>Painting in the Comptroller's Office, City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. Reproduced by courtesy of the Municipal Art Commission of +the City of New York.</p> + + +<p>COMMODORE STEPHEN DECATUR</p> + +<p>Painting by Thomas Sully, 1811. In the Comptroller's Office, owned by +the City of New York. Reproduced by courtesy of the Art Commission of +the City of New York.</p> + + +<p>CONSTITUTION AND GUERRIÈRE</p> + +<p>An old print, illustrating the moment in the action at which the +mainmast of the <i>Guerrière</i>, shattered by the terrific fire of the +American frigate, fell overside, transforming the former vessel into a +floating wreck and terminating the action. The picture represents +accurately the surprisingly slight damage done the <i>Constitution</i>: note +the broken spanker gaff and the shot holes in her topsails.</p> + + +<p>ISAAC HULL</p> + +<p>Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation.</p> + + +<p>WILLIAM BAINBRIDGE</p> + +<p>Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. Reproduced by courtesy of the Municipal Art Commission of +the City of New York.</p> + + +<p>A FRIGATE OF 1812 UNDER SAIL</p> + +<p>The <i>Constellation</i>, of which this is a photograph, is somewhat smaller +than the <i>Constitution</i>, being rated at 38 guns as against 44 for the +latter. In general appearance, however, and particularly in rig, the two +types are very similar. Although the Constellation did not herself see +action in the War of 1812, she is a good example of the heavily armed +American frigate of that day—and the only one of them still to be seen +at sea under sail within recent years. At the present time the +<i>Constellation</i> lies moored at the pier of the Naval Training Station, +Newport, R. I. Photograph by E. Müller, Jr., Inc., New York.</p> + + +<p>JACOB BROWN</p> + +<p>Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation.</p> + + +<p>THOMAS MACDONOUGH</p> + +<p>Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation.</p> + + +<hr style="width: 25%;" /> + +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_I" id="CHAPTER_I" /><a name="Page_1" id="Page_1" />CHAPTER I</h2> + +<h3>"ON TO CANADA!"</h3> + +<p>The American people of today, weighed in the balances of the greatest +armed conflict of all time and found not wanting, can afford to survey, +in a spirit of candid scrutiny and without reviving an ancient grudge, +that turbulent episode in the welding of their nation which is called +the War of 1812. In spite of defeats and disappointments this war was, +in the large, enduring sense, a victory. It was in this renewed defiance +of England that the dream of the founders of the Republic and the ideals +of the embattled farmers of Bunker Hill and Saratoga achieved their +goal. Henceforth the world was to respect these States, not as so many +colonies bitterly wrangling among themselves, but as a sovereign and +independent nation.</p> + +<p><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2" />The War of 1812, like the American Revolution, was a valiant contest +for survival on the part of the spirit of freedom. It was essentially +akin to the world-wide struggle of a century later, when sons of the old +foemen of 1812—sons of the painted Indians and of the Kentucky pioneers +in fringed buckskins, sons of the New Hampshire ploughboys clad in +homespun, sons of the Canadian militia and the red-coated regulars of +the British line, sons of the tarry seamen of the <i>Constitution</i> and the +<i>Guerrière</i>—stood side by side as brothers in arms to save from brutal +obliteration the same spirit of freedom. And so it is that in Flanders +fields today the poppies blow above the graves of the sons of the men +who fought each other a century ago in the Michigan wilderness and at +Lundy's Lane.</p> + +<p>The causes and the background of the War of 1812 are presented elsewhere +in this series of Chronicles.<a name="FNanchor_1_1" id="FNanchor_1_1" /><a href="#Footnote_1_1"><sup>[1]</sup></a> Great Britain, at death grips with +Napoleon, paid small heed to the rights and dignities of neutral +nations. The harsh and selfish maritime policy of the age, expressed in +the British Navigation Acts and intensified by the struggle with +Napoleon, led the Mistress of the Seas to perpetrate <a name="Page_3" id="Page_3" />indignity after +indignity on the ships and sailors which were carrying American commerce +around the world. The United States demanded a free sea, which Great +Britain would not grant. Of necessity, then, such futile weapons as +embargoes and non-intercourse acts had to give place to the musket, the +bayonet, and the carronade. There could be no compromise between the +clash of doctrines. It was for the United States to assert herself, +regardless of the odds, or sink into a position of supine dependency +upon the will of Great Britain and the wooden walls of her invincible +navy.</p> + +<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_1_1" id="Footnote_1_1" /><a href="#FNanchor_1_1">[1]</a> See <i>Jefferson and His Colleagues</i>, by Allen Johnson (in +<i>The Chronicles of America</i>).</p></div> + +<p>"Free Trade and Sailors' Rights!" was the American war cry. It expressed +the two grievances which outweighed all others—the interference with +American shipping and the ruthless impressment of seamen from beneath +the Stars and Stripes. No less high-handed than Great Britain's were +Napoleon's offenses against American commerce, and there was just cause +for war with France. Yet Americans felt the greater enmity toward +England, partly as an inheritance from the Revolution, but chiefly +because of the greater injury which England had wrought, owing to her +superior strength on the sea.</p> + +<p>There were, to be sure, other motives in the conflict. It is not to be +supposed that the frontiersmen <a name="Page_4" id="Page_4" />of the Northwest and Southwest, who +hailed the war with enthusiasm, were ardently aroused to redress wrongs +inflicted upon their seafaring countrymen. Their enmity towards Great +Britain was compounded of quite different grievances. Behind the recent +Indian wars on the frontier they saw, or thought they saw, British +paymasters. The red trappers and hunters of the forest were bloodily +defending their lands; and there was a long-standing bond of interest +between them and the British in Canada. The British were known to the +tribes generally as fur traders, not "land stealers"; and the great +traffic carried on by the merchants of Montreal, not only in the +Canadian wilderness but also in the American Northwest, naturally drew +Canadians and Indians into the same camp. "On to Canada!" was the slogan +of the frontiersmen. It expressed at once their desire to punish the +hereditary foe and to rid themselves of an unfriendly power to the +north.</p> + +<p>The United States was poorly prepared and equipped for military and +naval campaigns when, in June, 1812, Congress declared war on Great +Britain. Nothing had been learned from the costly blunders of the +Revolution, and the delusion that readiness for war was a menace to +democracy had influenced <a name="Page_5" id="Page_5" />the Government to absurd extremes. The regular +army comprised only sixty-seven hundred men, scattered over an enormous +country and on garrison service from which they could not be safely +withdrawn. They were without traditions and without experience in actual +warfare. Winfield Scott, at that time a young officer in the regular +army, wrote:</p> + +<blockquote><p>The old officers had very generally sunk into either sloth, + ignorance, or habits of intemperate drinking. . . . Many of the + appointments were positively bad, and a majority of the remainder + indifferent. Party spirit of that day knew no bounds, and was of + course blind to policy. Federalists were almost entirely excluded + from selection, though great numbers were eager for the field. + . . . Where there was no lack of educated men in the dominant + party, the appointments consisted generally of swaggerers, + dependents, decayed gentlemen, and others "fit for nothing else," + which always turned out utterly unfit for any military purpose + whatever.</p></blockquote> + +<p>The main reliance was to be on militia and volunteers, an army of the +free people rushing to arms in defense of their liberties, as voiced by +Jefferson and echoed more than a century later by another spokesman of +democracy. There was the stuff for splendid soldiers in these farmers +and woodsmen, but in many lamentable instances their regiments were <a name="Page_6" id="Page_6" />no +more than irresponsible armed mobs. Until as recently as the War with +Spain, the perilous fallacy persisted that the States should retain +control of their several militia forces in time of war and deny final +authority to the Federal Government. It was this doctrine which so +nearly wrecked the cause of the Revolution. George Washington had +learned the lesson through painful experience, but his counsel was +wholly disregarded; and, because it serves as a text and an +interpretation for much of the humiliating history which we are about to +follow, that counsel is here quoted in part. Washington wrote in +retrospect:</p> + +<blockquote><p>Had we formed a permanent army in the beginning, which by the + continuance of the same men in service had been capable of + discipline, we never should have had to retreat with a handful of + men across the Delaware in 1776, trembling for the fate of America, + which nothing but the infatuation of the enemy could have saved; we + should not have remained all the succeeding winter at their mercy, + with sometimes scarcely a sufficient body of men to mount the + ordinary guards, liable at every moment to be dissipated if they + had only thought proper to march against us; we should not have + been under the necessity of fighting Brandywine with an unequal + number of raw troops, and afterwards of seeing Philadelphia fall a + prey to a victorious army; we should not have been at Valley Forge + with<a name="Page_7" id="Page_7" /> less than half the force of the enemy, destitute of + everything, in a situation neither to resist or to retire; we + should not have seen New York left with a handful of men, yet an + overmatch for the main army of these States, while the principal + part of their force was detached for the reduction of two of them; + we should not have found ourselves this spring so weak as to be + insulted by 5000 men, unable to protect our baggage and magazines, + their security depending on a good countenance and a want of + enterprise in the enemy; we should not have been, the greatest part + of the war, inferior to the enemy, indebted for our safety to their + inactivity, enduring frequently the mortification of seeing + inviting opportunities to ruin them pass unimproved for want of a + force which the country was completely able to afford, and of + seeing the country ravaged, our towns burnt, the inhabitants + plundered, abused, murdered, with impunity from the same cause.</p></blockquote> + +<p>The War of 1812, besides being hampered by short enlistments, confused +authority, and incompetent officers, was fought by a country and an army +divided against itself. When Congress authorized the enrollment of one +hundred thousand militia, the governors of Massachusetts and Connecticut +refused to furnish their quotas, objecting to the command of United +States officers and to the sending of men beyond the borders of their +own States. This attitude fairly indicated the feeling of New England, +which was opposed to the war and <a name="Page_8" id="Page_8" />openly spoke of secession. Moreover, +the wealthy merchants and bankers of New England declined to subscribe +to the national loans when the Treasury at Washington was bankrupt, and +vast quantities of supplies were shipped from New England seaports to +the enemy in Canada. It was an extraordinary paradox that those States +which had seen their sailors impressed by thousands and which had +suffered most heavily from England's attacks on neutral commerce should +have arrayed themselves in bitter opposition to the cause and the +Government. It was "Mr. Madison's War," they said, and he could win or +lose it—and pay the bills, for that matter.</p> + +<p>The American navy was in little better plight than the army. England +flew the royal ensign over six hundred ships of war and was the +undisputed sovereign of the seas. Opposed to this mighty armada were +five frigates, three ships, and seven brigs, which Monroe recommended +should be "kept in a body in a safe port." Not worth mention were the +two hundred ridiculous little gunboats which had to stow the one cannon +below to prevent capsizing when they ventured out of harbor. These craft +were a pet notion of Jefferson. "Believing, myself," he said of them, +"that gunboats are the <a name="Page_9" id="Page_9" />only water defense which can be useful to us and +protect us from the ruinous folly of a navy, I am pleased with +everything which promises to improve them."</p> + +<p>A nation of eight million people, unready, blundering, rent by internal +dissension, had resolved to challenge an England hardened by war and +tremendously superior in military resources. It was not all madness, +however, for the vast empire of Canada lay exposed to invasion, and in +this quarter the enemy was singularly vulnerable. Henry Clay spoke for +most of his countrymen beyond the boundaries of New England when he +announced to Congress: "The conquest of Canada is in your power. I trust +that I shall not be deemed presumptuous when I state that I verily +believe that the militia of Kentucky are alone competent to place +Montreal and Upper Canada at your feet. Is it nothing to the British +nation; is it nothing to the pride of her monarch to have the last +immense North American possession held by him in the commencement of his +reign wrested from his dominions?" Even Jefferson was deluded into +predicting that the capture of Canada as far as Quebec would be a mere +matter of marching through the country and would give the troops +experience for <a name="Page_10" id="Page_10" />the attack on Halifax and the final expulsion of England +from the American continent.</p> + +<p>The British Provinces, extending twelve hundred miles westward to Lake +Superior, had a population of less than five hundred thousand; but a +third of these were English immigrants or American Loyalists and their +descendants, types of folk who would hardly sit idly and await invasion. +That they should resist or strike back seems not to have been expected +in the war councils of the amiable Mr. Madison. Nor were other and +manifold dangers taken into account by those who counseled war. The +Great Lakes were defenseless, the warlike Indians of the Northwest were +in arms and awaiting the British summons, while the whole country beyond +the Wabash and the Maumee was almost unguarded. Isolated here and there +were stockades containing a few dozen men beyond hope of rescue, +frontier posts of what is now the Middle West. Plans of campaign were +prepared without thought of the insuperable difficulties of transport +through regions in which there were neither roads, provisions, towns, +nor navigable rivers. Armies were maneuvered and victories won upon the +maps in the office of the Secretary of War. Generals were selected by +some inscrutable process which decreed <a name="Page_11" id="Page_11" />that dull-witted, pompous +incapables should bungle campaigns and waste lives.</p> + +<p>It was wisely agreed that of all the strategic points along this +far-flung and thinly held frontier, Detroit should receive the earliest +attention. At all costs this point was to be safeguarded as a base for +the advance into Canada from the west. A remote trading post within +gunshot of the enemy across the river and menaced by tribes of hostile +Indians, Detroit then numbered eight hundred inhabitants and was +protected only by a stout enclosure of logs. For two hundred miles to +the nearest friendly settlements in Ohio, the line of communications was +a forest trail which skirted Lake Erie for some distance and could +easily be cut by the enemy. From Detroit it was the intention of the +Americans to strike the first blow at the Canadian post of Amherstburg +near by.</p> + +<p>The stage was now set for the entrance of General William Hull as one of +the luckless, unheroic figures upon whom the presidential power of +appointment bestowed the trappings of high military command. He was by +no means the worst of these. In fact, the choice seemed auspicious. Hull +had seen honorable service in the Revolution and had won the esteem of +George Washington. <a name="Page_12" id="Page_12" />He was now Governor of Michigan Territory. At sixty +years of age he had no desire to gird on the sword. He was persuaded by +Madison, however, to accept a brigadier general's commission and to lead +the force ordered to Detroit. His instructions were vague, but in June, +1812, shortly before the declaration of war, he took command of two +thousand regulars and militia at Dayton, Ohio, and began the arduous +advance through the wilderness towards Detroit. The adventure was +launched with energy. These hardy, reliant men knew how to cut roads, to +bridge streams, and to exist on scanty rations. Until sickness began to +decimate their ranks, they advanced at an encouraging rate and were +almost halfway to Detroit when the tidings of the outbreak of +hostilities overtook them. General Hull forthwith hurried his troops to +the Maumee River, leaving their camp equipment and heavy stores behind. +He now committed his first crass blunder. Though the British controlled +the waters of Lake Erie, yet he sent a schooner ahead with all his +hospital supplies, intrenching tools, official papers, and muster rolls. +The little vessel was captured within sight of Detroit and the documents +proved invaluable to the British commander of Upper Canada, Major +General Isaac Brock, who <a name="Page_13" id="Page_13" />gained thereby a complete idea of the American +plans and proceeded to act accordingly. Brock was a soldier of uncommon +intelligence and resolution, acquitting himself with distinction, and +contrasting with his American adversaries in a manner rather painful to +contemplate.</p> + +<p>At length Hull reached Detroit and crossed the river to assume the +offensive. He was strongly hopeful of success. The Canadians appeared +friendly and several hundred sought his protection. Even the enemy's +militia were deserting to his colors. In a proclamation Hull looked +forward to a bloodless conquest, informing the Canadians that they were +to be emancipated from tyranny and oppression and restored to the +dignified station of freemen. "I have a force which will break down all +opposition," said he, "and that force is but the vanguard of a much +greater."</p> + +<p>He soundly reasoned that unless a movement could be launched against +Niagara, at the other end of Lake Erie, the whole strength of the +British might be thrown against him and that he was likely to be trapped +in Detroit. There was a general plan of campaign, submitted by Major +General Henry Dearborn before the war began, which provided for a +threefold invasion—from Sackett's Harbor on <a name="Page_14" id="Page_14" />Lake Ontario, from +Niagara, and from Detroit—in support of a grand attack along the route +leading past Lake Champlain to Montreal. Theoretically, it was good +enough strategy, but no attempt had been made to prepare the execution, +and there was no leader competent to direct it.</p> + +<p>In response to Hull's urgent appeal, Dearborn, who was puttering about +between Boston and Albany, confessed that he knew nothing about what was +going on at Niagara. He ranked as the commander-in-chief of the American +forces and he awoke from his habitual stupor to ask himself this amazing +question: "Who is to have the command of the operations in Upper Canada? +I take it for granted that my command does not extend to that distant +quarter." If Dearborn did not know who was in control of the operations +at Niagara, it was safe to say that nobody else did, and Hull was left +to deal with the increasing forces in front of him and the hordes of +Indians in the rear, to garrison Detroit, to assault the fort at +Amherstburg, to overcome the British naval forces on Lake Erie—and all +without the slightest help or cooperation from his Government.</p> + +<p>Meanwhile Brock had ascertained that the American force at Niagara +consisted of a few <a name="Page_15" id="Page_15" />hundred militia with no responsible officer in +command, who were making a pretense of patrolling thirty-six miles of +frontier. They were undisciplined, ragged, without tents, shoes, money, +or munitions, and ready to fall back if attacked or to go home unless +soon relieved. Having nothing to fear in that quarter, Brock gathered up +a small body of regulars as he marched and proceeded to Amherstburg to +finish the business of the unfortunate Hull.</p> + +<p>That Hull deserves some pity as well as the disgrace which overwhelmed +him is quite apparent. Most of his troops were ill-equipped, unreliable, +and insubordinate. Even during the march to Detroit he had to use a +regular regiment to compel the obedience of twelve hundred mutinous +militiamen who refused to advance. Their own officer could do nothing +with them. At Detroit two hundred of them refused to cross the river, on +the ground that they were not obliged to serve outside the United +States. Granted such extenuation as this, however, Hull showed himself +so weak and contemptible in the face of danger that he could not expect +his fighting men to maintain any respect for him.</p> + +<p>His fatal flaw was lack of courage and promptitude. He did not know how +to play a poor hand <a name="Page_16" id="Page_16" />well. In the emergency which confronted him he was +like a dull sword in a rusty scabbard. While the enemy waited for +reinforcements, he might have captured Amherstburg. He had the superior +force, and yet he delayed and lost heart while his regiments dwindled +because of sickness and desertion and jeered at his leadership. The +watchful Indians, led by the renowned Tecumseh, learned to despise the +Americans instead of fearing them, and were eager to take the warpath +against so easy a prey. Already other bands of braves were hastening +from Lake Huron and from Mackinac, whose American garrison had been +wiped out.</p> + +<p>Brooding and shaken, like an old man utterly undone, Hull abandoned his +pretentious invasion of Canada and retreated across the river to shelter +his troops behind the log barricades of Detroit. He sent six hundred men +to try to open a line to Ohio, but, after a sharp encounter with a +British force, Hull was obliged to admit that they "could only open +communication as far as the points of their bayonets extended." His only +thought was to extricate himself, not to stand and fight a winning +battle without counting the cost. His officers felt only contempt for +his cowardice. They were convinced that the tide could be turned in +their favor. <a name="Page_17" id="Page_17" />There were steadfast men in the ranks who were eager to +take the measure of the redcoats. The colonels were in open mutiny and, +determined to set General Hull aside, they offered the command to +Colonel Miller of the regulars, who declined to accept it. When Hull +proposed a general retreat, he was informed that every man of the Ohio +militia would refuse to obey the order. These troops who had been so +fickle and jealous of their rights were unwilling to share the leader's +disgrace.</p> + +<p>Two days after his arrival at Amherstburg, General Brock sent to the +Americans a summons to surrender, adding with a crafty discernment of +the effect of the threat upon the mind of the man with whom he was +dealing: "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." Hull could see only the horrid picture of a +massacre of the women and children within the stockades of Detroit. He +failed to realize that his thousand effective infantrymen could hold out +for weeks behind those log ramparts against Brock's few hundred regulars +and volunteers. Two and a half years later, Andrew Jackson and his +militia emblazoned a very different story behind the cypress +<a name="Page_18" id="Page_18" />breastworks of New Orleans. Besides the thousand men in the fort, Hull +had detached five hundred under Colonels McArthur and Cass to attempt to +break through the Indian cordon in his rear and obtain supplies. These +he now vainly endeavored to recall while he delayed a final reply to +Brock's mandate.</p> + +<p>Indecision had doomed the garrison which was now besieged. Tecumseh's +warriors had crossed the river and were between the fort and McArthur's +column. Brock boldly decided to assault, a desperate venture, but he +must have known that Hull's will had crumbled. No more than seven +hundred strong, the little British force crossed the river just before +daybreak on the 16th of August and was permitted to select its positions +without the slightest molestation. A few small field pieces, posted on +the Canadian side of the river, hurled shot into the fort, killing four +of Hull's men, and two British armed schooners lay within range.</p> + +<p>Brock advanced, expecting to suffer large losses from the heavy guns +which were posted to cover the main approach to the fort, but his men +passed through the zone of danger and found cover in which they made +ready to storm the defenses of Detroit. As Brock himself walked forward +to take <a name="Page_19" id="Page_19" />note of the situation before giving the final commands, a white +flag fluttered from the battery in front of him. Without firing a shot, +Hull had surrendered Detroit and with it the great territory of +Michigan, the most grievous loss of domain that the United States has +ever suffered in war or peace. On the same day Fort Dearborn (Chicago), +which had been forgotten by the Government, was burned by Indians after +all its defenders had been slain. These two disasters with the earlier +fall of Mackinac practically erased American dominion from the western +empire of the Great Lakes. Visions of the conquest of Canada were thus +rudely dimmed in the opening actions of the war.</p> + +<p>General Hull was tried by court-martial on charges of treason, +cowardice, and neglect of duty. He was convicted on the last two charges +and sentenced to be shot, with a recommendation to the mercy of the +President. The verdict was approved by Madison, but he remitted the +execution of the sentence because of the old man's services in the +Revolution. Guilty though he was, an angry and humiliated people also +made him the scapegoat for the sins of neglect and omission of which +their Government stood convicted. In the testimony offered at his trial +there was a touch, rude, vivid, and very <a name="Page_20" id="Page_20" />human, to portray him in the +final hours of the tragic episode at Detroit. Spurned by his officers, +he sat on the ground with his back against the rampart while "he +apparently unconsciously filled his mouth with tobacco, putting in quid +after quid more than he generally did; the spittle colored with tobacco +juice ran from his mouth on his neckcloth, beard, cravat, and vest."</p> + +<p>Later events in the Northwest Territory showed that the British +successes in that region were gained chiefly because of an unworthy +alliance with the Indian tribes, whose barbarous methods of warfare +stained the records of those who employed them. "Not more than seven or +eight hundred British soldiers ever crossed the Detroit River," says +Henry Adams, "but the United States raised fully twenty thousand men and +spent at least five million dollars and many lives in expelling them. +The Indians alone made this outlay necessary. The campaign of +Tippecanoe, the surrender of Detroit and Mackinaw, the massacres at Fort +Dearborn, the river Raisin, and Fort Meigs, the murders along the +frontier, and the campaign of 1813 were the prices paid for the Indian +lands in the Wabash Valley."</p> + +<p>Before the story shifts to the other fields of the <a name="Page_21" id="Page_21" />war, it seems +logical to follow to its finally successful result the bloody, wasteful +struggle for the recovery of the lost territory. This operation required +large armies and long campaigns, together with the naval supremacy of +Lake Erie, won in the next year by Oliver Hazard Perry, before the +fugitive British forces fell back from the charred ruins of Detroit and +Amherstburg and were soundly beaten at the battle of the Thames—the one +decisive, clean-cut American victory of the war on the Canadian +frontier. These events showed that far too much had been expected of +General William Hull, who comprehended his difficulties but made no +attempt to batter a way through them, forgetting that to die and win is +always better than to live and fail.</p> + +<div class="figcenter"> +<a href="images/map.jpg"><img src="images/map-small.jpg" alt="THE THEATER OF OPERATIONS IN THE WAR OF 1812" title="THE THEATER OF OPERATIONS IN THE WAR OF 1812" /></a> +</div> + + +<hr style="width: 25%;" /> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_II" id="CHAPTER_II" /><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22" />CHAPTER II</h2> + +<h3>LOST GROUND REGAINED</h3> + +<p>General William Henry Harrison, the hero of Tippecanoe and the Governor +of Indiana Territory, whose capital was at Vincennes on the Wabash, +possessed the experience and the instincts of a soldier. He had foreseen +that Hull, unless he received support, must either abandon Detroit or be +hopelessly hemmed in. The task of defending the western border was +ardently undertaken by the States of Kentucky and Ohio. They believed in +the war and were ready to aid it with the men and resources of a +vigorous population of almost a million. When the word came that Hull +was in desperate straits, Harrison hastened to organize a relief +expedition. Before he could move, Detroit had fallen. But a high tide of +enthusiasm swept him on toward an attempt to recover the lost empire. +The Federal Government approved his plans and commissioned him <a name="Page_23" id="Page_23" />as +commander of the Northwestern army of ten thousand men.</p> + +<p>In the early autumn of 1812, General Harrison launched his ambitious and +imposing campaign, by which three separate bodies of troops were to +advance and converge within striking distance of Detroit, while a fourth +was to invade and destroy the nests of Indians on the Wabash and +Illinois rivers. An active British force might have attacked and +defeated these isolated columns one by one, for they were beyond +supporting distance of each other; but Brock now needed his regulars for +the defense of the Niagara frontier. The scattered American army, +including brigades from Virginia and Pennsylvania, was too strong to be +checked by Indian forays, but it had not reckoned with the obstacles of +an unfriendly wilderness and climate. In October, no more than a month +after the bugles had sounded the advance, the campaign was halted, +demoralized and darkly uncertain. A vast swamp stretched as a barrier +across the route and heavy rains made it impassable.</p> + +<p>Hull had crossed the same swamp with his small force in the favorable +summer season, but Harrison was unable to transport the food and war +material needed by his ten thousand men. A million <a name="Page_24" id="Page_24" />rations were +required at the goal of the Maumee Rapids, and yet after two months of +heartbreaking endeavor not a pound of provisions had been carried within +fifty miles of this place. Wagons and pack-trains floundered in the mud +and were abandoned. The rivers froze and thwarted the use of flotillas +of scows. Winter closed down, and the American army was forlornly mired +and blockaded along two hundred miles of front. The troops at Fort +Defiance ate roots and bark. Typhus broke out among them, and they died +like flies. For the failure to supply the army, the War Department was +largely responsible, and Secretary Eustis very properly resigned in +December. This removed one glaring incompetent from the list but it +failed to improve Harrison's situation.</p> + +<p>It was not until the severe frosts of January, 1813, fettered the swamps +that Harrison was able to extricate his troops and forward supplies to +the shore of Lake Erie for an offensive against Amherstburg. First in +motion was the left wing of thirteen hundred Kentucky militia and +regulars under General Winchester. This officer was an elderly planter +who, like Hull, had worn a uniform in the Revolution. He had no great +aptitude for war and was held in low esteem by the Kentuckians <a name="Page_25" id="Page_25" />of his +command—hungry, mutinous, and disgusted men, who were counting the days +before their enlistments should expire. The commonplace Winchester was +no leader to hold them in hand and spur their jaded determination.</p> + +<p>While they were building storehouses and log defenses, within +dangerously easy distance of the British post at Amherstburg, the +tempting message came that the settlement of Frenchtown, on the Raisin, +thirty miles away and within the British lines, was held by only two +companies of Canadian militia. Here was an opportunity for a dashing +adventure, and Winchester ordered half his total force to march and +destroy this detachment of the enemy. The troops accordingly set out, +drove home a brisk assault, cleared Frenchtown of its defenders, and +held their ground awaiting orders.</p> + +<p>Winchester then realized that he had leaped before he looked. He had +seriously weakened his own force while the column at Frenchtown was in +peril from two thousand hostile troops and Indians only eighteen miles +beyond the river Raisin. The Kentuckians left with him decided matters +for themselves. They insisted on marching to the support of their +comrades at Frenchtown. Meanwhile General Harrison had learned of this +fatuous <a name="Page_26" id="Page_26" />division of strength and was hastening to the base at the falls +of the Maumee. There he found only three hundred men. All the others had +gone with Winchester to reinforce the men at Frenchtown. It was too late +to summon troops from other points, and Harrison waited with forebodings +of disaster.</p> + +<p>News reached him after two days. The Americans at the Raisin had +suffered not only a defeat but a massacre. Nearly four hundred were +killed in battle or in flight. Those who survived were prisoners. No +more than thirty had escaped of a force one thousand strong. The enemy +had won this extraordinary success with five hundred white troops and +about the same number of Indians, led by Colonel Procter, whom Brock had +placed in command of the fort at Amherstburg. Procter's name is infamous +in the annals of the war. The worst traditions of Indian atrocity, +uncontrolled and even encouraged, cluster about his memory. He was later +promoted in rank instead of being degraded, a costly blunder which +England came to regret and at last redeemed. A notoriously incompetent +officer, on this one occasion of the battle of the Raisin he acted with +decision and took advantage of the American blunder.</p> + +<p>The conduct of General Winchester after his <a name="Page_27" id="Page_27" />arrival at Frenchtown is +inexplicable. He did nothing to prepare his force for action even on +learning that the British were advancing from Amherstburg. A report of +the disaster, after recording that no patrols or pickets were ordered +out during the night, goes on:</p> + +<blockquote><p>The troops were permitted to select, each for himself, such + quarters on the west side of the river as might please him best, + whilst the general took his quarters on the east side—not the + least regard being paid to defense, order, regularity, or system in + the posting of the different corps. . . . Destitute of artillery, + or engineers, of men who had ever heard or seen the least of an + enemy; and with but a very inadequate supply of ammunition—how he + ever could have entertained the most distant hope of success, or + what right he had to presume to claim it, is to me one of the + strangest things in the world.</p></blockquote> + +<p>At dawn, on the 21st of January, the British and Indians, having crossed +the frozen Detroit River the day before, formed within musket shot of +the American lines and opened the attack with a battery of +three-pounders. They might have rushed the camp with bayonet and +tomahawk and killed most of the defenders asleep, but the cannonade +alarmed the Kentuckians and they took cover behind a picket fence, using +their long rifles so <a name="Page_28" id="Page_28" />expertly that they killed or wounded a hundred and +eighty-five of the British regulars, who thereupon had to abandon their +artillery. Meanwhile, the American regular force, caught on open ground, +was flanked and driven toward the river, carrying a militia regiment +with it. Panic spread among these unfortunate men and they fled through +the deep snow, Winchester among them, while six hundred whooping Indians +slew and scalped them without mercy as they ran.</p> + +<p>But behind the picket fence the Kentuckians still squinted along the +barrels of their rifles and hammered home more bullets and patches. +Three hundred and eighty-four of them, they showed a spirit that made +their conduct the bright, heroic episode of that black day. Forgotten +are their mutinies, their profane disregard of the Articles of War, +their jeers at generals and such. They finished in style and covered the +multitude of their sins. Unclothed, unfed, uncared for, dirty, and +wretched, they proved themselves worthy to be called American soldiers. +They fought until there was no more ammunition, until they were +surrounded by a thousand of the enemy, and then they honorably +surrendered.</p> + +<p>The brutal Procter, aware that the Indians would <a name="Page_29" id="Page_29" />commit hideous +outrages if left unrestrained, nevertheless returned to Amherstburg with +his troops and his prisoners, leaving the American wounded to their +fate. That night the savages came back to Frenchtown and massacred those +hurt and helpless men, thirty in number.</p> + +<p>This unhappy incident of the campaign, not so much a battle as a +catastrophe, delayed Harrison's operations. His failures had shaken +popular confidence, and at the end of this dismal winter, after six +months of disappointments in which ten thousand men had accomplished +nothing, he was compelled to report to the Secretary of War:</p> + +<blockquote><p>Amongst the reasons which make it necessary to employ a large + force, I am sorry to mention the dismay and disinclination to the + service which appears to prevail in the western country; numbers + must give that confidence which ought to be produced by conscious + valor and intrepidity, which never existed in any army in a + superior degree than amongst the greater part of the militia which + were with me through the winter. The new drafts from this State + [Ohio] are entirely of another character and are not to be depended + upon. I have no doubt, however, that a sufficient number of good + men can be procured, and should they be allowed to serve on + horseback, Kentucky would furnish some regiments that would not be + inferior to those that fought at the river Raisin; and these were, + in my<a name="Page_30" id="Page_30" /> opinion, superior to any militia that ever took the field in + modern times.</p></blockquote> + +<p>There was to be no immediate renewal of action between Procter and +Harrison. Each seemed to have conceived so much respect for the forces +of the other that they proceeded to increase the distance between them +as rapidly as possible. Fearing to be overtaken and greatly outnumbered, +the British leader retreated to Canada while the American leader was in +a state of mind no less uneasy. Harrison promptly set fire to his +storehouses and supplies at the Maumee Rapids, his advanced base near +Lake Erie. Thus all this labor and exertion and expense vanished in +smoke while, in the set diction of war, he retired some fifteen miles. +In such a vast hurry were the adversaries to be quit of each other that +a day and a half after the fight at Frenchtown they were sixty miles +apart. Harrison remained a fortnight on this back trail and collected +two thousand of his troops, with whom he returned to the ruins of his +foremost post and undertook the task all over again.</p> + +<p>The defensive works which he now built were called Fort Meigs. For the +time there was no more talk of invading Canada. The service of the +<a name="Page_31" id="Page_31" />Kentucky and Ohio militia was expiring, and these seasoned regiments +were melting away like snow. Presently Fort Meigs was left with no more +than five hundred war-worn men to hold out against British operations +afloat and ashore. Luckily Procter had expended his energies at +Frenchtown and seemed inclined to repose, for he made no effort to +attack the few weak garrisons which guarded the American territory near +at hand. From January until April he neglected his opportunities while +more American militia marched homeward, while Harrison was absent, while +Fort Meigs was unfinished.</p> + +<p>At length the British offensive was organized, and a thousand white +soldiers and as many Indians, led by Tecumseh, sallied out of +Amherstburg with a naval force of two gunboats. Heavy guns were dragged +from Detroit to batter down the log walls, for it was the intention to +surround and besiege Fort Meigs in the manner taught by the military +science of Europe. Meanwhile Harrison had come back from a recruiting +mission; and a new brigade of Kentucky militia, twelve hundred strong, +under Brigadier General Green Clay, was to follow in boats down the +Auglaize and Maumee rivers. Procter's guns were already pounding the +walls of <a name="Page_32" id="Page_32" />Fort Meigs on the 5th of May when eight hundred troops of this +fresh American force arrived within striking distance. They dashed upon +the British batteries and took them with the bayonet in a wild, +impetuous charge. It was then their business promptly to reform and +protect themselves, but through lack of training they failed to obey +orders and were off hunting the enemy, every man for himself. In the +meantime three companies of British regulars and some volunteers took +advantage of the confusion, summoned the Indians, and let loose a +vicious counter-attack.</p> + +<p>Within sight of General Harrison and the garrison of Fort Meigs, these +bold Kentuckians were presently driven from the captured guns, +scattered, and shot down or taken prisoner. Only a hundred and seventy +of them got away, and they lost even their boats and supplies. The +British loss was no more than fifty in killed and wounded. Again Procter +inflamed the hatred and contempt of his American foes because forty of +his prisoners were tomahawked while guarded by British soldiers. He made +no effort to save them and it was the intervention of Tecumseh, the +Indian leader, which averted the massacre of the whole body of five +hundred prisoners.</p> + +<p><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33" />Across the river, Colonel John Miller, of the American regular +infantry, had attempted a gallant sortie from the fort and had taken a +battery but this sally had no great effect on the issue of the +engagement. Harrison had lost almost a thousand men, half his fighting +force, and was again shut up within the barricades and blockhouses of +Fort Meigs. Procter continued the siege only four days longer, for his +Indian allies then grew tired of it and faded into the forest. He was +not reluctant to accept this excuse for withdrawing. His own militia +were drifting away, his regulars were suffering from illness and +exposure, and Fort Meigs itself was a harder nut to crack than he had +anticipated. Procter therefore withdrew to Amherstburg and made no more +trouble until June, when he sent raiding parties into Ohio and created +panic among the isolated settlements.</p> + +<p>Harrison had become convinced that his campaign must be a defensive one +only, until a strong American naval force could be mustered on Lake +Erie. He moved his headquarters to Upper Sandusky and Cleveland and +concluded to mark time while Perry's fleet was building. The outlook was +somber, however, for his thin line of garrisons and his supply bases. +They were threatened in all <a name="Page_34" id="Page_34" />directions, but he was most concerned for +the important depot which he had established at Upper Sandusky, no more +than thirty miles from any British landing force which should decide to +cross Lake Erie. The place had no fortifications; it was held by a few +hundred green recruits; and the only obstacle to a hostile ascent of the +Sandusky River was a little stockade near its mouth, called Fort +Stephenson.</p> + +<p>For the Americans to lose the accumulation of stores and munitions which +was almost the only result of a year's campaign would have been a fatal +blow. Harrison was greatly disturbed to hear that Tecumseh had gathered +his warriors and was following the trail that led to Upper Sandusky and +that Procter was moving coastwise with his troops in a flotilla under +oars and sail. Harrison was, or believed himself to be, in grave danger +of confronting a plight similar to that of William Hull, beset in front, +in flank, in rear. His first thought was to evacuate the stockade of +Fort Stephenson and to concentrate his force, although this would leave +the Sandusky River open for a British advance from the shore of Lake +Erie.</p> + +<p>An order was sent to young Major Croghan, who held Fort Stephenson with +one hundred and sixty <a name="Page_35" id="Page_35" />men, to burn the buildings and retreat as fast as +possible up the river or along the shore of Lake Erie. This officer, a +Kentuckian not yet twenty-one years old, who honored the regiment to +which he belonged, deliberately disobeyed his commander. By so doing he +sounded a ringing note which was like the call of trumpets amidst the +failures, the cloudy uncertainties, the lack of virile leadership, that +had strewn the path of the war. In writing he sent this reply back to +General William Henry Harrison: "We have determined to maintain this +place, and by Heaven, we will."</p> + +<p>It was a turning point, in a way, presaging more hopeful events, a +warning that youth must be served and that the doddering oldsters were +to give place to those who could stand up under the stern and exacting +tests of warfare. Such rash ardor was not according to precedent. +Harrison promptly relieved the impetuous Croghan of his command and sent +a colonel to replace him. But Croghan argued the point so eloquently +that the stockade was restored to him next day and he won his chance to +do or die. Harrison consolingly informed him that he was to retreat if +attacked by British troops "but that to attempt to retire in the face of +an Indian force would be vain."</p> + +<p><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36" />Major Croghan blithely prepared to do anything else than retreat, while +General Harrison stayed ten miles away to plan a battle against +Tecumseh's Indians if they should happen to come in his direction. On +the 1st of August, Croghan's scouts informed him that the woods swarmed +with Indians and that British boats were pushing up the river. Procter +was on the scene again, and no sooner had his four hundred regulars +found a landing place than a curt demand for surrender came to Major +Croghan. The British howitzers peppered the stockade as soon as the +refusal was delivered, but they failed to shake the spirit of the +dauntless hundred and sixty American defenders. On the following day, +the 2d of August, Procter stupidly repeated his error of a direct +assault upon sheltered riflemen, which had cost him heavily at the +Raisin and at Fort Meigs. He ordered his redcoats to carry Fort +Stephenson. Again and again they marched forward until all the officers +had been shot down and a fifth of the force was dead or wounded. +American valor and marksmanship had proved themselves in the face of +heavy odds. At sunset the beaten British were flocking into their boats, +and Procter was again on his way to Amherstburg. His excuse for the +trouncing laid the blame on the Indians:</p> + +<blockquote><p>The troops, after the artillery had been used for some hours,<a name="Page_37" id="Page_37" /> + attacked two faces and, impossibilities being attempted, failed. + The fort, from which the severest fire I ever saw was maintained + during the attack, was well defended. The troops displayed the + greatest bravery, the much greater part of whom reached the fort + and made every effort to enter; but the Indians who had proposed + the assault and, had it not been assented to, would have ever + stigmatized the British character, scarcely came into fire before + they ran out of its reach. A more than adequate sacrifice having + been made to Indian opinion, I drew off the brave assailants.</p></blockquote> + +<p>The sound of Croghan's guns was heard in General Harrison's camp at +Seneca, ten miles up the river. Harrison had nothing to say but this: +"The blood be upon his own head. I wash my hands of it." This was a +misguided speech which the country received with marked disfavor while +it acclaimed young Croghan as the sterling hero of the western campaign. +He could be also a loyal as well as a successful subordinate, for he +ably defended Harrison against the indignation which menaced his station +as commander of the army. The new Secretary of War, John Armstrong, +ironically referred to Procter and Harrison as being always in terror of +each other, the one actually flying from his supposed pursuer after his +fiasco at <a name="Page_38" id="Page_38" />Fort Stephenson, the other waiting only for the arrival of +Croghan at Seneca to begin a camp conflagration and flight to Upper +Sandusky.</p> + +<p>The reconquest of Michigan and the Northwest depended now on the +American navy. Harrison wisely halted his inglorious operations by land +until the ships and sailors were ready to cooperate. Because the British +sway on the Great Lakes was unchallenged, the general situation of the +enemy was immensely better than it had been at the beginning of the +campaign. During a year of war the United States had steadily lost in +men, in territory, in prestige, and this in spite of the fact that the +opposing forces across the Canadian border were much smaller.</p> + +<p>That the men of the American navy would be prompt to maintain the +traditions of the service was indicated in a small way by an incident of +the previous year on Lake Erie. In September, 1812, Lieutenant Jesse D. +Elliott had been sent to Buffalo to find a site for building naval +vessels. A few weeks later he was fitting out several purchased +schooners behind Squaw Island. Suddenly there came sailing in from +Amherstburg and anchored off Fort Erie two British armed brigs, the +<i>Detroit</i> which had been surrendered by Hull, and the <a name="Page_39" id="Page_39" /><i>Caledonia</i> which +had helped to subdue the American garrison at Mackinac. Elliott had no +ships ready for action, but he was not to be daunted by such an +obstacle. It so happened that ninety Yankee seamen had been sent across +country from New York by Captain Isaac Chauncey. These worthy tars had +trudged the distance on foot, a matter of five hundred miles, with their +canvas bags on their backs, and they rolled into port at noon, in the +nick of time to serve Elliott's purpose. They were indubitably tired, +but he gave them not a moment for rest. A ration of meat and bread and a +stiff tot of grog, and they turned to and manned the boats which were to +cut out the two British brigs when darkness fell.</p> + +<p>Elliott scraped together fifty soldiers and, filling two cutters with +his amphibious company, he stole out of Buffalo and pulled toward Fort +Erie. At one o'clock in the morning of the 9th of October they were +alongside the pair of enemy brigs and together the bluejackets and the +infantry tumbled over the bulwarks with cutlass, pistols, and boarding +pike. In ten minutes both vessels were captured and under sail for the +American shore. The <i>Caledonia</i> was safely beached at Black Rock, where +Elliott was building his little navy yard. The <a name="Page_40" id="Page_40" />wind, however, was so +light that the <i>Detroit</i> was swept downward by the river current and had +to anchor under the fire of British batteries. These she fought with her +guns until all her powder was shot away. Then she cut her cable, hoisted +sail again, and took the bottom on Squaw Island, where both British and +American guns had the range of her. Elliott had to abandon her and set +fire to the hull, but he afterward recovered her ordnance.</p> + +<p>What Elliott had in mind shows the temper of this ready naval officer. +"A strong inducement," he wrote, "was that with these two vessels and +those I have purchased, I should be able to meet the remainder of the +British force on the Upper Lakes." The loss of the <i>Detroit</i> somewhat +disappointed this ambitious scheme but the success of the audacious +adventure foreshadowed later and larger exploits with far-reaching +results. Isaac Brock, the British general in Canada, had the genius to +comprehend the meaning of this naval exploit. "This event is +particularly unfortunate," he wrote, "and may reduce us to incalculable +distress. The enemy is making every exertion to gain a naval superiority +on both lakes; which, if they accomplish, I do not see how we can retain +the country." And to Procter, his commander at <a name="Page_41" id="Page_41" />Detroit, he disclosed +the meaning of the naval loss as it affected the fortunes of the western +campaign: "This will reduce us to great distress. You will have the +goodness to state the expedients you possess to enable us to replace, as +far as possible, the heavy loss we have suffered in the <i>Detroit</i>."</p> + +<p>But another year was required to teach the American Government the +lesson that a few small vessels roughly pegged together of planks sawn +from the forest, with a few hundred seamen and guns, might be far more +decisive than the random operations of fifty thousand troops. This +lesson, however, was at last learnt; and so, in the summer of 1813, +General William Henry Harrison waited at Seneca on the Sandusky River +until he received, on the 10th of September, the deathless despatch of +Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry: "We have met the enemy and they are +ours." The navy had at last cleared the way for the army.</p> + +<p>Expeditiously forty-five hundred infantry were embarked and set ashore +only three miles from the coveted fort at Amherstburg. A mounted +regiment of a thousand Kentuckians, raised for frontier defense by +Richard M. Johnson, moved along the road to Detroit. Harrison was about +to square accounts with Procter, who had no stomach for a <a name="Page_42" id="Page_42" />stubborn +defense. Tecumseh, still loyal to the British cause, summoned +thirty-five hundred of his warriors to the royal standard to stem this +American invasion. They expected that Procter would offer a courageous +resistance, for he had also almost a thousand hard-bitted British +troops, seasoned by a year's fighting. But Procter's sun had set and +disgrace was about to overtake him. To Tecumseh, a chieftain who had +waged war because of the wrongs suffered by his own people, the thought +of flight in this crisis was cowardly and intolerable. When Procter +announced that he proposed to seek refuge in retreat, Tecumseh told him +to his face that he was like a fat dog which had carried its tail erect +and now that it was frightened dropped its tail between its legs and +ran. The English might scamper as far as they liked but the Indians +would remain to meet the American invaders.</p> + +<p>It was a helter-skelter exodus from Amherstburg and Detroit. All +property that could not be moved was burned or destroyed, and Procter +set out for Moraviantown, on the Thames River, seventy miles along the +road to Lake Ontario. Harrison, amazed at this behavior, reported: +"Nothing but infatuation could have governed General Proctor's conduct. +The day I landed <a name="Page_43" id="Page_43" />below Malden [Amherstburg] he had at his disposal +upward of three thousand Indian warriors; his regular force reinforced +by the militia of the district would have made his number nearly equal +to my aggregate, which on the day of landing did not exceed forty-five +hundred. . . . His inferior officers say that his conduct has been a +series of continued blunders."</p> + +<p>Procter had put a week behind him before Harrison set out from +Amherstburg in pursuit, but the British column was hampered in flight by +the women and children of the deserted posts, the sick and wounded, the +wagon trains, the stores, and baggage. The organization had gone to +pieces because of the demoralizing example set by its leader. A hundred +miles of wilderness lay between the fugitives and a place of refuge. +Overtaken on the Thames River, they were given no choice. It was fight +or surrender. Ahead of the American infantry brigades moved Johnson's +mounted Kentuckians, armed with muskets, rifles, knives, and tomahawks, +and led by a resourceful and enterprising soldier. Procter was compelled +to form his lines of battle across the road on the north bank of the +Thames or permit this formidable American cavalry to trample his +straggling ranks under hoof. <a name="Page_44" id="Page_44" />Tecumseh's Indians, stationed in a swamp, +covered his right flank and the river covered his left. Harrison came +upon the enemy early in the afternoon of the 5th of October and formed +his line of battle. The action was carried on in a manner "not +sanctioned by anything that I had seen or heard of," said Harrison +afterwards. This first American victory of the war on land was, indeed, +quite irregular and unconventional. It was won by Johnson's mounted +riflemen, who divided and charged both the redcoats in front and the +Indians in the swamp. One detachment galloped through the first and +second lines of the British infantry while the other drove the Indians +into the American left wing and smashed them utterly. Tecumseh was among +the slain. It was all over in one hour and twenty minutes. Harrison's +foot soldiers had no chance to close with the enemy. The Americans lost +only fifteen killed and thirty wounded, and they took about five hundred +prisoners and all Procter's artillery, muskets, baggage, and stores.</p> + +<p>Not only was the Northwest Territory thus regained for the United States +but the power of the Indian alliance was broken. Most of the hostile +tribes now abandoned the British cause. Tecumseh's confederacy of Indian +nations fell to pieces <a name="Page_45" id="Page_45" />with the death of its leader. The British army +of Upper Canada, shattered and unable to receive reinforcements from +overseas, no longer menaced Michigan and the western front of the +American line. General Harrison returned to Detroit at his leisure, and +the volunteers and militia marched homeward, for no more than two +regular brigades were needed to protect all this vast area. The struggle +for its possession was a closed episode. In this quarter, however, the +war cry "On to Canada!" was no longer heard. The United States was +satisfied to recover what it had lost with Hull's surrender and to rid +itself of the peril of invasion and the horrors of Indian massacres +along its wilderness frontiers. Of the men prominent in the struggle, +Procter suffered official disgrace at the hands of his own Government +and William Henry Harrison became a President of the United States.</p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 700px;"> +<img src="images/image-2.jpg" width="700" height="649" alt="OLIVER HAZARD PERRY AT THE BATTLE OF LAKE ERIE" title="" /> +<p><b>OLIVER HAZARD PERRY AT THE BATTLE OF LAKE ERIE</b></p> + +<p><b>Painting by J.W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation.</b></p> +</div> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 481px;"> +<img src="images/image-3.jpg" width="481" height="422" alt="ISAAC CHAUNCEY" title="" /> +<p><b>ISAAC CHAUNCEY</b></p> + +<p><b>Painting in the Comptroller's Office, City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation.</b></p> +</div> + + + +<hr style="width: 25%;" /> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_III" id="CHAPTER_III" /><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46" />CHAPTER III</h2> + +<h3>PERRY AND LAKE ERIE</h3> + +<p>Amid the prolonged vicissitudes of these western campaigns, two +subordinate officers, the boyish Major Croghan at Fort Stephenson and +the dashing Colonel Johnson with his Kentucky mounted infantry, +displayed qualities which accord with the best traditions of American +arms. Of kindred spirit and far more illustrious was Captain Oliver +Hazard Perry of the United States Navy. Perry dealt with and overcame, +on a much larger scale, similar obstacles and discouragements—untrained +men, lack of material, faulty support—but was ready and eager to meet +the enemy in the hour of need. If it is a sound axiom never to despise +the enemy, it is nevertheless true that excessive prudence has lost many +an action. Farragut's motto has been the keynote of the success of all +the great sea-captains, "<i>L'audace, et encore de l'audace, et toujours +de l'audace.</i>"</p> + +<p><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47" />It was not until the lesson of Hull's surrender had aroused the civil +authorities that Captain Chauncey of the navy yard at New York received +orders in September, 1812, "to assume command of the naval force on +Lakes Erie and Ontario and to use every exertion to obtain control of +them this fall." Chauncey was an experienced officer, forty years old, +who had not rusted from inactivity like the elderly generals who had +been given command of armies. He knew what he needed and how to get it. +Having to begin with almost nothing, he busied himself to such excellent +purpose that he was able to report within three weeks that he had +forwarded to Sackett's Harbor on Lake Ontario, "one hundred and forty +ship carpenters, seven hundred seamen and marines, more than one hundred +pieces of cannon, the greater part of large caliber, with musket, shot, +carriages, etc. The carriages have nearly all been made and the shot +cast in that time. Nay, I may say that nearly every article that has +been forwarded has been made."</p> + +<p>It was found impossible to divert part of this ordnance to Buffalo +because of the excessively bad roads, which were passable for heavy +traffic only by means of sleds during the snows of winter. This +<a name="Page_48" id="Page_48" />obstacle spoiled the hope of putting a fighting force afloat on Lake +Erie during the latter part of 1812. Chauncey consequently established +his main base at Sackett's Harbor and lost no time in building and +buying vessels. In forty-five days from laying the keel he launched a +ship of the corvette class, a third larger than the ocean cruisers +<i>Wasp</i> and <i>Hornet</i>, "and nine weeks ago," said he, "the timber that she +is composed of was growing in the forest."</p> + +<p>Lieutenant Elliott at the same time had not been idle in his little navy +yard at Black Rock near Buffalo, where he had assembled a small brig and +several schooners. In December Chauncey inspected the work and decided +to shift it to Presqu' Isle, now the city of Erie, which was much less +exposed to interference by the enemy. Here he got together the material +for two brigs of three hundred tons each, which were to be the main +strength of Perry's squadron nine months later. Impatient to return to +Lake Ontario, where a fleet in being was even more urgently needed, +Chauncey was glad to receive from Commander Oliver Hazard Perry an +application to serve under him. To Perry was promptly turned over the +burden and the responsibility of smashing the British naval power on +Lake Erie. Events were soon to display the notable <a name="Page_49" id="Page_49" />differences in +temperament and capabilities between these two men. Though he had +greater opportunities on Lake Ontario, Chauncey was too cautious and +held the enemy in too much respect; wherefore he dodged and parried and +fought inconclusive engagements with the fleet of Sir James Yeo until +destiny had passed him by. He lives in history as a competent and +enterprising chief of dockyards and supplies but not as a victorious +seaman.</p> + +<p>To Perry, in the flush of his youth at twenty-eight years, was granted +the immortal spark of greatness to do and dare and the personality which +impelled men gladly to serve him and to die for him. His difficulties +were huge, but he attacked them with a confidence which nothing could +dismay. First he had to concentrate his divided force. Lieutenant +Elliott's flotilla of schooners at that time lay at Black Rock. It was +necessary to move them to Erie at great risk of capture by the enemy, +but vigilance and seamanship accomplished this feat. It then remained to +finish and equip the larger vessels which were being built. Two of these +were the brigs ordered laid down by Chauncey, the <i>Lawrence</i> and the +<i>Niagara</i>. Apart from these, the battle squadron consisted of seven +small schooners and the captured British brig, the <a name="Page_50" id="Page_50" /><i>Caledonia</i>. In size +and armament they were absurd cockleshells even when compared with a +modern destroyer, but they were to make themselves superbly memorable. +Perry's flagship was no larger than the ancient coasting schooners which +ply today between Bangor and Boston with cargoes of lumber and coal.</p> + +<p>Through the winter and spring of 1813, the carpenters, calkers, and +smiths were fitting the new vessels together from the green timber and +planking which the choppers and sawyers wrought out of the forest. The +iron, the canvas, and all the other material had to be hauled by horses +and oxen from places several hundred miles distant. Late in July the +squadron was ready for active service but was dangerously short of men. +This, however, was the least of Perry's concerns. He had reckoned that +seven hundred and forty officers and sailors were required to handle and +fight his ships, but he did not hesitate to put to sea with a total +force of four hundred and ninety.</p> + +<p>Of these a hundred were soldiers sent him only nine days before he +sailed, and most of them trod a deck for the first time. Chauncey was so +absorbed in his own affairs and hazards on Lake Ontario that he was not +likely to give Perry any more men than <a name="Page_51" id="Page_51" />could be spared. This reluctance +caused Perry to send a spirited protest in which he said: "The men that +came by Mr. Champlin are a motley set, blacks, soldiers, and boys. I +cannot think you saw them after they were selected."</p> + +<p>As the superior officer, Chauncey resented the criticism and replied +with this warning reproof: "As you have assured the Secretary that you +should conceive yourself equal or superior to the enemy, with a force of +men so much less than I had deemed necessary, there will be a great deal +expected from you by your country, and I trust they will not be +disappointed in the high expectations formed of your gallantry and +judgment."</p> + +<p>The quick temper of Perry flared at this. He was about to sail in search +of the British fleet with what men he had because he was unable to +obtain more, and he had rightly looked to Chauncey to supply the +deficiency. Impulsively he asked to be relieved of his command and gave +expression to his sense of grievance in a letter to the Secretary of the +Navy in which he said, among other things: "I cannot serve under an +officer who has been so totally regardless of my feelings. . . . The +critical state of General Harrison was such that I took upon myself the +responsibility of going out with the few <a name="Page_52" id="Page_52" />young officers you had been +pleased to send me, with the few seamen I had, and as many volunteers as +I could muster from the militia. I did not shrink from this +responsibility but, Sir, at that very moment I surely did not anticipate +the receipt of a letter in every line of which is an insult." Most +fortunately Perry's request for transfer could not be granted until +after the battle of Lake Erie had been fought and won. The Secretary +answered in tones of mild rebuke: "A change of commander under existing +circumstances, is equally inadmissible as it respects the interest of +the service and your own reputation. It is right that you should reap +the harvest which you have sown."</p> + +<p>Perry's indignation seems excusable. He had shown a cheerful willingness +to shoulder the whole load and his anxieties had been greater than his +superiors appeared to realize. Captain Barclay, who commanded the +British naval force on Lake Erie and who had been hovering off Erie +while the American ships were waiting for men, might readily have sent +his boats in at night and destroyed the entire squadron. Perry had not +enough sailors to defend his ships, and the regiment of Pennsylvania +militia stationed at Erie to guard the naval base refused to do duty on +shipboard after dark. "<a name="Page_53" id="Page_53" />I told the boys to go, Captain Perry," explained +their worthless colonel, "but the boys won't go."</p> + +<p>Perry's lucky star saved him from disaster, however, and on the 2d of +August he undertook the perilous and awkward labor of floating his +larger vessels over the shallow bar of the harbor at Erie. Barclay's +blockading force had vanished. For Perry it was then or never. At any +moment the enemy's topsails might reappear, and the American ships would +be caught in a situation wholly defenseless. Perry first disposed his +light-draft schooners to cover his channel, and then hoisted out the +guns of the <i>Lawrence</i> brig and lowered them into boats. Scows, or +"camels," as they were called, were lashed alongside the vessel to lift +her when the water was pumped out of them. There was no more than four +feet of water on the bar, and the brig-of-war bumped and stranded +repeatedly even when lightened and assisted in every possible manner. +After a night and a day of unflagging exertion she was hauled across +into deep water and the guns were quickly slung aboard. The <i>Niagara</i> +was coaxed out of harbor in the same ingenious fashion, and on the 4th +of August Perry was able to report that all his vessels were over the +<a name="Page_54" id="Page_54" />bar, although Barclay had returned by now and "the enemy had been in +sight all day."</p> + +<p>Perry endeavored to force an engagement without delay, but the British +fleet retired to Amherstburg because Barclay was waiting for a new and +powerful ship, the <i>Detroit</i>, and he preferred to spar for time. The +American vessels thereupon anchored off Erie and took on stores. They +had fewer than three hundred men aboard, and it was bracing news for +Perry to receive word that a hundred officers and men under Commander +Jesse D. Elliott were hastening to join him. Elliott became second in +command to Perry and assumed charge of the <i>Niagara</i>.</p> + +<p>For almost a month the Stars and Stripes flew unchallenged from the +masts of the American ships. Perry made his base at Put-in Bay, thirty +miles southeast of Amherstburg, where he could intercept the enemy +passing eastward. The British commander, Barclay, had also been troubled +by lack of seamen and was inclined to postpone action. He was +nevertheless urged on by Sir George Prevost, the Governor General of +Canada, who told him that "he had only to dare and he would be +successful." A more urgent call on Barclay to fight was due to the lack +of food in the Amherstburg region, <a name="Page_55" id="Page_55" />where the water route was now +blockaded by the American ships. The British were feeding fourteen +thousand Indians, including warriors and their families, and if +provisions failed the red men would be likely to vanish.</p> + +<p>At sunrise of the 10th of September, a sailor at the masthead of the +<i>Lawrence</i> sighted the British squadron steering across the lake with a +fair wind and ready to give battle. Perry instantly sent his crews to +quarters and trimmed sail to quit the bay and form his line in open +water. He was eager to take the initiative, and it may be assumed that +he had forgotten Chauncey's prudent admonition: "The first object will +be to destroy or cripple the enemy's fleet; but in all attempts upon the +fleet you ought to use great caution, for the loss of a single vessel +may decide the fate of a campaign."</p> + +<p>Small, crude, and hastily manned as were the ships engaged in this +famous fresh-water battle, it should be borne in mind that the proven +principles of naval strategy and tactics used were as sound and true as +when Nelson and Rodney had demonstrated them in mighty fleet actions at +sea. In the final council in his cabin, Perry echoed Nelson's words in +saying that no captain could go very far wrong who placed his vessel +close alongside those <a name="Page_56" id="Page_56" />of the enemy. Chauncey's counsel, on the other +hand, would have lost the battle. Perry's decision to give and take +punishment, no matter if it should cost him a ship or two, won him the +victory.</p> + +<p>The British force was inferior, both in the number of vessels and the +weight of broadsides, but this inferiority was somewhat balanced by the +greater range and hitting power of Barclay's longer guns. Each had what +might be called two heavy ships of the line: the British, the <i>Detroit</i> +and the <i>Queen Charlotte,</i> and the Americans, the <i>Lawrence</i> and the +<i>Niagara</i>. Next in importance and fairly well matched were the <i>Lady +Prevost</i> under Barclay's flag and the <i>Caledonia</i> under Perry's. There +remained the light schooner craft of which the American squadron had six +and the British only three. Perry realized that if he could put ship +against ship the odds would be largely in his favor, for, with his +batteries of carronades which threw their shot but a short distance, he +would be unwise to maneuver for position and let the enemy pound him to +pieces at long range. His plan of battle was therefore governed entirely +by his knowledge of Barclay's strength and of the possibilities of his +own forces.</p> + +<p>With a light breeze and working to windward, <a name="Page_57" id="Page_57" />Perry's ship moved to +intercept the British squadron which lay in column, topsails aback and +waiting. The American brigs were fanned ahead by the air which breathed +in their lofty canvas, but the schooners were almost becalmed and four +of them straggled in the rear, their crews tugging at the long sweeps or +oars. Two of the faster of these, the <i>Scorpion</i> and the <i>Ariel</i>, were +slipping along in the van where they supported the American flagship +<i>Lawrence</i>, and Perry had no intention of delaying for the others to +come up. Shortly before noon Barclay opened the engagement with the long +guns of the <i>Detroit</i>, but as yet Perry was unable to reach his opponent +and made more sail on the <i>Lawrence</i> in order to get close.</p> + +<p>The British gunners of the <i>Detroit</i> were already finding the target, +and Perry discovered that the <i>Lawrence</i> was difficult to handle with +much of her rigging shot away. He ranged ahead until his ship was no +more than two hundred and fifty yards from the <i>Detroit</i>. Even then the +distance was greater than desirable for the main battery of carronades. +A good golfer can drive his tee shot as far as the space of water which +separated these two indomitable flagships as they fought. It was a +different kind of naval warfare from that of today <a name="Page_58" id="Page_58" />in which +superdreadnaughts score hits at battle ranges of twelve and fourteen +miles.</p> + +<p>Perry's plans were now endangered by the failure of his other heavy +ship, the <i>Niagara</i>, to take care of her own adversary, the <i>Queen +Charlotte</i>, which forged ahead and took a station where her broadsides +helped to reduce the <i>Lawrence</i> to a mass of wreckage. A bitter dispute +which challenged the courage and judgment of Commander Elliott of the +<i>Niagara</i> was the aftermath of this flaw in the conduct of the battle. +It was charged that he failed to go to the support of his +commander-in-chief when the flagship was being destroyed under his eyes. +The facts admit of no doubt: he dropped astern and for two hours +remained scarcely more than a spectator of a desperate action in which +his ship was sorely needed, whereas if he had followed the order to +close up, the <i>Lawrence</i> need never have struck to the enemy.</p> + +<p>In his defense he stated that lack of wind had prevented him from +drawing ahead to engage and divert the <i>Queen Charlotte</i> and that he had +been instructed to hold a certain position in line. At the time Perry +found no fault with him, merely setting down in his report that "at +half-past two, the wind springing up, Captain Elliott was enabled to +bring <a name="Page_59" id="Page_59" />his vessel, the <i>Niagara</i>, gallantly into close action." Later +Perry formulated charges against his second in command, accusing him of +having kept on a course "which would in a few minutes have carried said +vessel entirely out of action." These documents were pigeonholed and a +Court of Inquiry commended Elliott as a brave and skillful officer who +had gained laurels in that "splendid victory."</p> + +<p>The issue was threshed out by naval experts who violently disagreed, but +there was glory enough for all and the flag had suffered no stain. +Certain it is that the battle would have lacked its most brilliantly +dramatic episode if Perry had not been compelled to shift his pennant +from the blazing hulk of the <i>Lawrence</i> and, from the quarter-deck of +the <i>Niagara</i>, to renew the conflict, rally his vessels, and snatch a +triumph from the shadow of disaster. It was one of the great moments in +the storied annals of the American navy, comparable with a John Paul +Jones shouting "<i>We have not yet begun to fight!</i>" from the deck of the +shattered, water-logged <i>Bon Homme Richard</i>, or a Farragut lashed in the +rigging and roaring "<i>Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!</i>"</p> + +<p>Because of the failure of Elliott to bring the <i>Niagara</i> into action at +once, as had been laid down <a name="Page_60" id="Page_60" />in the plan of battle, Perry found himself +in desperate straits aboard the beaten <i>Lawrence</i>. Her colors still flew +but she could fire only one gun of her whole battery, and more than half +the ship's company had been killed or wounded—eighty-three men out of +one hundred and forty-two. It was impossible to steer or handle her and +she drifted helpless. Then it was that Perry, seeing the laggard +<i>Niagara</i> close at hand, ordered a boat away and was transferred to a +ship which was still fit and ready to continue the action. As soon as he +had left them, the survivors of the <i>Lawrence</i> hauled down their flag in +token of surrender, for there was nothing else for them to do.</p> + +<p>As soon as he jumped on deck, Perry took command of the <i>Niagara</i>, +sending Elliott off to bring up the rearmost schooners. There was no +lagging or hesitation now. With topgallant sails sheeted home, the +<i>Niagara</i> bore down upon the <i>Detroit</i>, driven by a freshening breeze. +Barclay's crippled flagship tried to avoid being raked and so fouled her +consort, the <i>Queen Charlotte</i>. The two British ships lay locked +together while the American guns pounded them with terrific fire. +Presently they got clear of each other and pluckily attempted to carry +on the fight. But the odds were hopeless. <a name="Page_61" id="Page_61" />The officer whose painful +duty it was to signal the surrender of the <i>Detroit</i> said of this +British flagship: "The ship lying completely unmanageable, every brace +cut away, the mizzen-topmast and gaff down, all the other masts badly +wounded, not a stay left forward, hull shattered very much, a number of +guns disabled, and the enemy's squadron raking both ships ahead and +astern, none of our own in a position to support us, I was under the +painful necessity of answering the enemy to say we had struck, the +<i>Queen Charlotte</i> having previously done so."</p> + +<p>It was later reported of the <i>Detroit</i> that it was "impossible to place +a hand upon that broadside which had been exposed to the enemy's fire +without covering some portion of a wound, either from grape, round, +canister, or chain shot." The crew had suffered as severely as the +vessel. The valiant commander of the squadron, Captain Barclay, was a +fighting sailor who had lost an arm at Trafalgar. In the battle of Lake +Erie he was twice wounded and had to be carried below. His first +lieutenant was mortally hurt and in the critical moments the ship was +left in charge of the second lieutenant. In this gallant manner did +Perry and Barclay, both heirs of the bulldog Anglo-Saxon strain, wage +their <a name="Page_62" id="Page_62" />bloody duel without faltering and thus did the British sailor +keep his honor bright in defeat.</p> + +<p>The little American schooners played a part in smashing the enemy. The +<i>Ariel</i> and <i>Scorpion</i> held their positions in the van and their long +guns helped deal the finishing blows to the <i>Detroit</i>, while the others +came up when the breeze grew stronger and engaged their several +opponents. The <i>Caledonia</i> was effective in putting the <i>Queen +Charlotte</i> out of action. When the larger British ships surrendered, the +smaller craft were compelled to follow the example, and the squadron +yielded to Perry after three hours of battle. It was in no boastful +strain but as the laconic fact that he sent his famous message to the +nation. He had met the enemy and they were all his. It was +leadership—brilliant and tenacious—which had employed makeshift +vessels, odd lots of guns, and crews which included militia, sick men, +and "a motley set of blacks and boys." Barclay had labored under +handicaps no less heavy, but it was his destiny to match himself against +a superior force and a man of unquestioned naval genius. Oliver Hazard +Perry would have made a name for himself, no doubt, if his career had +led him to blue water and the command of stately frigates.</p> + +<p><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63" />On Lake Ontario, Chauncey dragged his naval campaign through two +seasons and then left the enemy in control. Perry, by opening the way +for Harrison, rewon the Northwest for the United States because he +sagaciously upheld the doctrine of Napoleon that "war cannot be waged +without running risks." Behind his daring, however, lay tireless, +painstaking preparation and a thorough knowledge of his trade.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 25%;" /> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_IV" id="CHAPTER_IV" /><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64" />CHAPTER IV</h2> + +<h3>EBB AND FLOW ON THE NORTHERN FRONT</h3> + +<p>The events of the war by land are apt to be as confusing in narration as +they were in fact. The many forays, skirmishes, and retreats along the +Canadian frontier were campaigns in name only, ambitiously conceived but +most haltingly executed. Major General Dearborn, senior officer of the +American army, had failed to begin operations in the center and on the +eastern flank in time to divert the enemy from Detroit; but in the +autumn of 1812 he was ready to attempt an invasion of Canada by way of +Niagara. The direct command was given to Major General Stephen Van +Rensselaer of the New York State militia, who was to advance as soon as +six thousand troops were assembled. At first Dearborn seemed hopeful of +success. He predicted that "with the militia and other troops there or +on the march, they will be able, I presume, to cross over into Canada, +carry <a name="Page_65" id="Page_65" />all the works in Niagara, and proceed to the other posts in that +province in triumph."</p> + +<p>The fair prospect soon clouded, however, and Dearborn, who was of a +doubtful, easily discouraged temperament, partly due to age and +infirmities, discovered that "a strange fatality seemed to have pervaded +the whole arrangements." Yet this was when the movement of troops and +supplies was far brisker and better organized than could have been +expected and when the armed strength was thrice that of Brock, the +British general, who was guarding forty miles of front along the Niagara +River with less than two thousand men. At Queenston which was the +objective of the first American attack there were no more than two +companies of British regulars and a few militia, in all about three +hundred troops. The rest of Brock's forces were at Chippawa and Fort +Erie, where the heavy assaults were expected.</p> + +<p>An American regular brigade was on the march to Buffalo, but its +commander, Brigadier General Alexander Smyth, was not subordinate to Van +Rensselaer, and the two had quarreled. Smyth paid no attention to a +request for a council of war and went his own way. On the night of the +10th of October Van Rensselaer attempted to cross the <a name="Page_66" id="Page_66" />Niagara River, +but there was some blunder about the boats and the disgruntled troops +returned to camp. Two nights later they made another attempt but found +the British on the alert and failed to dislodge them from the heights of +Queenston. A small body of American regulars, led by gallant young +Captain Wool, managed to clamber up a path hitherto regarded as +impassable. There they held a precarious position and waited for help. +Brock, who was commanding the British in person, was instantly killed +while storming this hillside at the head of reinforcements. In him the +enemy lost its ablest and most intrepid leader.</p> + +<p>The forenoon wore on and Captain Wool, painfully wounded, still clung to +the heights with his two hundred and fifty men. A relief column which +crossed the river found itself helpless for lack of artillery and +intrenching tools and was compelled to fall back. Van Rensselaer forgot +his bickering with General Smyth and sent him urgent word to hasten to +the rescue. Winfield Scott, then a lieutenant colonel, came forward as a +volunteer and took command of young Captain Wool's forlorn hope. +Gradually more men trickled up the heights until the ground was defended +by three hundred and fifty regulars and two hundred and fifty militia.</p> + +<p><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67" />Meanwhile the British troops were mustering up the river at Chippawa, +and the red lines of their veterans were descried advancing from Fort +George below. Bands of Indians raced by field and forest to screen the +British movements and to harass the American lines. The tragic turn of +events appears to have dazed General Van Rensselaer. The failure to save +the beleaguered and outnumbered Americans on the heights he blamed upon +his troops, reporting next day that his reinforcements embarked very +slowly. "I passed immediately over to accelerate them," said he, "but to +my utter astonishment I found that at the very moment when complete +victory was in our hands the ardor of the unengaged troops had entirely +subsided. I rode in all directions, urged the men by every consideration +to pass over; but in vain."</p> + +<p>The candid fact seems to be that this general of militia had made a +sorry mess of the whole affair, and his men had lost all faith in his +ability to turn the adverse tide. He stood and watched six hundred +valiant American soldiers make their last stand on the rocky eminence +while the British hurled more and more men up the slope. One concerted +attack by the idle American army would have swept them away like chaff. +But there was only <a name="Page_68" id="Page_68" />one Winfield Scott in the field, and his lot was +cast with those who fought to the bitter end as a sacrifice to +stupidity. The six hundred were surrounded. They were pushed back by +weight of opposing numbers. Still they died in their tracks, until the +survivors were actually pushed over a cliff and down to the bank of the +river.</p> + +<p>There they surrendered, for there were no boats to carry them across. +The boatmen had fled to cover as soon as the Indians opened fire on +them. Winfield Scott was among the prisoners together with a brigadier +general and two more lieutenant colonels who had been bagged earlier in +the day. Ninety Americans were killed and many more wounded, while a +total of nine hundred were captured during the entire action. Van +Rensselaer had lost almost as many troops as Hull had lost at Detroit, +and he had nothing to show for it. He very sensibly resigned his command +on the next day.</p> + +<p>The choice of his successor, however, was again unfortunate. Brigadier +General Alexander Smyth had been inspector general in the regular army +before he was given charge of an infantry brigade. He had a most +flattering opinion of himself, and promotion to the command of an army +quite turned his head. The oratory with which he proceeded <a name="Page_69" id="Page_69" />to bombard +friend and foe strikes the one note of humor in a chapter that is +otherwise depressing. Through the newspapers he informed his troops that +their valor had been conspicuous "but the nation has been unfortunate in +the selection of some of those who have directed it . . . The cause of +these miscarriages is apparent. The commanders were popular men, +'destitute alike of theory and experience' in the art of war." "In a few +days," he announced, "the troops under my command will plant the +American standard in Canada. They are men accustomed to obedience, +silence, and steadiness. They will conquer or they will die. Will you +stand with your arms folded and look on this interesting struggle? . . . +Has the race degenerated? Or have you, under the baneful influence of +contending factions, forgot your country? . . . Shame, where is thy +blush? No!"</p> + +<p>This invasion of Canada was to be a grim, deadly business; no more +trifling. His heroic troops were to hold their fire until they were +within <i>five paces</i> of the enemy, and then to charge bayonets with +shouts. They were to think on their country's honor torn, her rights +trampled on, her sons enslaved, her infants perishing by the hatchet, +not forgetting to be strong and brave and to let the <a name="Page_70" id="Page_70" />ruffian power of +the British King cease on this continent.</p> + +<p>Buffalo was the base of this particular conquest of Canada. The advance +guard would cross the Niagara River from Black Rock to destroy the +enemy's batteries, after which the army was to move onward, three +thousand strong. The first detachments crossed the river early in the +morning on the 28th of November and did their work well and bravely and +captured the guns in spite of heavy loss. The troops then began to +embark at sunrise, but by noon only twelve hundred were in boats. +Upstream they moved at a leisurely pace and went ashore for dinner. The +remainder of the three thousand, however, had failed to appear, and +Smyth refused to invade unless he had the full number. Altogether, four +thousand troops, all regulars, had been sent to Niagara but many of them +had been disabled by sickness.</p> + +<p>General Smyth then called a council of war, shifted the responsibility +from his own shoulders, and decided to delay the invasion. Again he +changed his mind and ordered the men into the boats two days later. +Fifteen hundred men answered the summons. Again the general marched them +ashore after another council of war, and then <a name="Page_71" id="Page_71" />and there he abandoned +his personal conquest of Canada. His army literally melted away, "about +four thousand men without order or restraint discharging their muskets +in every direction," writes an eyewitness. They riddled the general's +tent with bullets by way of expressing their opinion of him, and he left +the camp not more than two leaps ahead of his earnest troops. He +requested permission to visit his family, after the newspapers had +branded him as a coward, and the visit became permanent. His name was +dropped from the army rolls without the formality of an inquiry. It +seemed rather too much for the country to bear that, in the first year +of the war, its armies should have suffered from the failures of Hull, +Van Rensselaer, and Smyth.</p> + +<p>It had been hoped that General Dearborn might carry out his own idea of +an operation against Montreal at the same time as the Niagara campaign +was in progress. On the shore of Lake Champlain, Dearborn was in command +of the largest and most promising force under the American flag, +including seven regiments of the regular army. Taking personal charge at +Plattsburg, he marched this body of troops twenty miles in the direction +of the Canadian border. Here the militia refused to go <a name="Page_72" id="Page_72" />on, and he +marched back again after four days in the field. Beset with rheumatism +and low spirits, he wrote to the Secretary of War: "I had anticipated +disappointment and misfortune in the commencement of the war, but I did +by no means apprehend such a deficiency of regular troops and such a +series of disasters as we have witnessed." Coupled with this complaint +was the request that he might be allowed "to retire to the shades of +private life and remain a mere but interested spectator of passing +events."</p> + +<p>The Government, however, was not yet ready to release Major General +Dearborn but instructed him to organize an offensive which should obtain +control of the St. Lawrence River and thereby cut communication between +Upper and Lower Canada. This was the pet plan of Armstrong when he +became Secretary of War, and as soon as was possible he set the military +machinery in motion. In February, 1813, Armstrong told Dearborn to +assemble four thousand men at Sackett's Harbor, on Lake Ontario, and +three thousand at Buffalo. The larger force was to cross the lake in the +spring, protected by Chauncey's fleet, capture the important naval +station of Kingston, then attack York (Toronto), and finally join the +corps at Buffalo for <a name="Page_73" id="Page_73" />another operation against the British on the +Niagara River. But Dearborn was not eager for the enterprise. He +explained that he lacked sufficient strength for an operation against +Kingston. With the support of Commodore Chauncey he proposed a different +offensive which should be aimed first against York, then against +Niagara, and finally against Kingston. This proposal reversed +Armstrong's programme, and he permitted it to sway his decision. Thus +the war turned westward from the St. Lawrence.</p> + +<p>The only apparent success in this campaign occurred at York, the capital +of Upper Canada, where on the 27th of April one ship under construction +was burned and another captured after the small British garrison had +been driven inland. The public buildings were also destroyed by fire, +though Dearborn protested that this was done against his orders. In the +next year, however, the enemy retaliated by burning the Capitol at +Washington. The fighting at York was bloody, and the American forces +counted a fifth killed or wounded. They remained on the Canadian side +only ten days and then returned to disembark at Niagara. Here Dearborn +fell ill, and his chief of staff, Colonel Winfield Scott, was left in +virtual control of the army.</p> + +<p><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74" />In May, 1813, most of the troops at Plattsburg and Sackett's Harbor +were moved to the Niagara region for the purpose of a grand movement to +take Fort George, at the mouth of that river, from the rear and thus +redeem the failure of the preceding campaign. Commodore Chauncey with +his Ontario fleet was prepared to cooperate and to transport the troops. +Three American brigadiers, Boyd, Winder, and Chandler, effected a +landing in handsome fashion, while Winfield Scott led an advance +division. Under cover of the ships they proceeded along the beach and +turned the right flank of the British defenses. Fort George was +evacuated, but most of the force escaped and made their way to +Queenston, whence they continued to retreat westward along the shore of +Lake Ontario. Vincent, the British general, reported his losses in +killed and wounded and missing as three hundred and fifty-six. The +Americans suffered far less. It was a clean-cut, workmanlike operation, +and, according to an observer, "Winfield Scott fought nine-tenths of the +battle." But the chief aim had been to destroy the British force, and in +this the adventure failed.</p> + +<p>General Dearborn was not at all reconciled to letting the garrison of +Fort George get clean away <a name="Page_75" id="Page_75" />from him, and he therefore sent General +Winder in pursuit with a thousand men. These were reinforced by as many +more; and together they followed the trail of the retreating British to +Stony Creek and camped there for the night. Vincent and his sixteen +hundred British regulars were in bivouac ten miles beyond. The mishap at +Fort George had by no means knocked the fight out of them. Vincent +himself led six hundred men back in the middle of a black night (the 6th +of June) and fell upon the American camp. A confused battle followed. +The two forces intermingled in cursing, stabbing, swirling groups. The +American generals, Chandler and Winder, walked straight into the enemy's +arms and were captured. The British broke through and took the American +batteries but failed to keep them. At length both parties retired, badly +punished. The Americans had lost all ardor for pursuit and on the +following day retreated ten miles and were soon ordered to return to +Fort George.</p> + +<p>General Dearborn was much distressed by this unlucky episode and was in +such feeble health that he again begged to be relieved. He was, he said, +"so reduced in strength as to be incapable of any command." General +Morgan Lewis took temporary <a name="Page_76" id="Page_76" />command at Niagara, but, being soon called +to Sackett's Harbor, he was succeeded by General Boyd, whom Lewis was +kind enough to describe, by way of recommendation, in these terms: "A +compound of ignorance, vanity, and petulance, with nothing to recommend +him but that species of bravery in the field which is vaporing, +boisterous, stifling reflection, blinding observation, and better +adapted to the bully than the soldier."</p> + +<p>In order to live up to this encomium, Boyd sent Colonel Boerstler on the +24th of June, with four hundred infantry and two guns, to bombard and +take an annoying stone house a day's march from Fort George. But two +hundred hostile Indians so alarmed Boerstler that he attempted to +retreat. Thirty hostile militia then caused him to halt the retreat and +send for reinforcements. The reinforcements came to the number of a +hundred and fifty, but the British also appeared with forty-seven more +men. Colonel Boerstler thereupon surrendered his total of five hundred +and forty soldiers. General Dearborn, still the nominal commander of the +forces, sadly mentioned the disaster as "an unfortunate and +unaccountable event."</p> + +<p>There is a better account to be given, however, of events at Sackett's +Harbor in this same month <a name="Page_77" id="Page_77" />of May. The operations on the Niagara front +had stripped this American naval base of troops and of the protection of +Chauncey's fleet. Sir George Prevost, the Governor in Chief of Canada, +could not let the opportunity slip, although he was not notable for +energy. He embarked with a force of regulars, eight hundred men, on Sir +James Yeo's ships at Kingston and sailed across Lake Ontario.</p> + +<p>Sackett's Harbor was defended by only four hundred regulars of several +regiments and about two hundred and fifty militia from Albany. Couriers +rode through the countryside as soon as the British ships were sighted, +and several hundred volunteers came straggling in from farm and shop and +mill. In them was something of the old spirit of Lexington and Bunker +Hill, and to lead them there was a real man and a soldier with his two +feet under him, Jacob Brown, a brigadier general of the state militia, +who consented to act in the emergency. He knew what to do and how to +communicate to his men his own unshaken courage. On the beach of the +beautiful little harbor he posted five hundred of his militia and +volunteers to hamper the British landing. His second line was composed +of regulars. In rear were the forts with the guns manned.</p> + +<p>The British grenadiers were thrown ashore at <a name="Page_78" id="Page_78" />dawn on the 28th of May +under a wicked fire from American muskets and rifles, but their +disciplined ranks surged forward, driving the militia back at the point +of the bayonet and causing even the regulars to give ground. The +regulars halted at a blockhouse, where they had also the log barracks +and timbers of the shipyard for a defense, and there they stayed in +spite of the efforts of the British grenadiers to dislodge them. Jacob +Brown, stout-hearted and undismayed, rallied his militia in new +positions. Of the engagement a British officer said: "I do not +exaggerate when I tell you that the shot, both of musketry and grape, +was falling about us like hail . . . Those who were left of the troops +behind the barracks made a dash out to charge the enemy; but the fire +was so destructive that they were instantly turned by it, and the +retreat was sounded. Sir George, fearless of danger and disdaining to +run or to suffer his men to run, repeatedly called out to them to retire +in order; many, however, made off as fast as they could."</p> + +<p>Before the retreat was sounded, the British expedition had suffered +severely. One man in three was killed or wounded, and the rest of them +narrowly escaped capture. Jacob Brown serenely reported to General +Dearborn that "the militia were <a name="Page_79" id="Page_79" />all rallied before the enemy gave way +and were marching perfectly in his view towards the rear of his right +flank; and I am confident that even then, if Sir George had not retired +with the utmost precipitation to his boats, he would have been cut off."</p> + +<p>Though he had given the enemy a sound thrashing, Jacob Brown found his +righteous satisfaction spoiled by the destruction of the naval barracks, +shipping, and storehouses. This was the act of a flighty lieutenant of +the American navy who concluded too hastily that the battle was lost and +therefore set fire to the buildings to keep the supplies and vessels out +of the enemy's hands. Jacob Brown in his straightforward fashion +emphatically placed the blame where it belonged:</p> + +<blockquote><p>The burning of the marine barracks was as infamous a transaction as + ever occurred among military men. The fire was set as the enemy met + our regulars upon the main line; and if anything could have + appalled these gallant men it would have been the flames in their + rear. We have all, I presume, suffered in the public estimation in + consequence of this disgraceful burning. The fact is, however, that + the army is entitled to much higher praise than though it had not + occurred. The navy alone are responsible for what happened on Navy + Point and it is fortunate for them that they have reputations + sufficient to sustain the shock.</p></blockquote> + +<p><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80" />A few weeks later General Dearborn, after his repeated failures to +shake the British grip on the Niagara front and the misfortunes which +had darkened his campaigns, was retired according to his wish. But the +American nation was not yet rid of its unsuccessful generals. James +Wilkinson, who was inscrutably chosen to succeed Dearborn, was a man of +bad reputation and low professional standing. "The selection of this +unprincipled imbecile," said Winfield Scott, "was not the blunder of +Secretary Armstrong." Added to this, Wilkinson was a man of broken +health. He was shifted from command at New Orleans because the Southern +Senators insisted that he was untrustworthy and incompetent. The regular +army regarded him with contempt.</p> + +<p>Secretary Armstrong endeavored to mend matters by making his own +headquarters at Sackett's Harbor, where the next offensive, directed +against Montreal, was planned under his direction. Success hung upon the +cooperation and junction of two armies moving separately, the one under +Wilkinson descending the St. Lawrence, the other under Wade Hampton +setting out from Plattsburg on Lake Champlain. The fact that these two +officers had hated each other for years made a difficult problem <a name="Page_81" id="Page_81" />no +easier. Hampton possessed uncommon ability and courage, but he was proud +and sensitive, as might have been expected in a South Carolina +gentleman, and he loathed Wilkinson with all his heart. That he should +yield the seniority to one whom he considered a blackguard was to him +intolerable, and he accepted the command on Lake Champlain with the +understanding that he would take no orders from Wilkinson until the two +armies were combined.</p> + +<p>The expedition from Sackett's Harbor was ready to advance by way of the +St. Lawrence in October, 1813, and comprised seven thousand effective +troops. Even then the commanding general and the Secretary of War had +begun to regard the adventure as dubious and were accusing each other of +dodging the responsibility. Said Wilkinson to Armstrong: "It is +necessary to my justification that you should, by the authority of the +President, direct the operations of the army under my command +particularly against Montreal." Said Armstrong to Wilkinson: "I speak +conjecturally, but should we surmount every obstacle in descending the +river we shall advance upon Montreal ignorant of the force arrayed +against us and in case of misfortune having no retreat, the army must +surrender <a name="Page_82" id="Page_82" />at discretion." This was scarcely the spirit to inspire a +conquering army. As though to clinch his lack of faith in the +enterprise, the Secretary of War ordered winter quarters built for ten +thousand men many miles this side of Montreal, explaining in later years +that he had suspected the campaign would terminate as it did, "with the +disgrace of doing nothing."</p> + +<p>On the 17th of October the army embarked in bateaux and coasted along +Lake Ontario to the entrance of the St. Lawrence. After being delayed by +stormy weather, the flotilla passed the British guns across from +Ogdensburg and halted twenty miles below. There Wilkinson called a +council of war to decide whether to proceed or retreat. Four generals +voted to attack Montreal and two were reluctant but could see "no other +alternative." Wilkinson then became ill and was unable to leave his boat +or to give orders. Several British gunboats evaded Chauncey's blockade +and annoyed the rear of the expedition. Eight hundred British infantry +from Kingston followed along shore and peppered the boats with musketry +and canister wherever the river narrowed. Finally it became necessary +for the Americans to land a force to drive the enemy away. Jacob Brown +took a brigade and <a name="Page_83" id="Page_83" />cleared the bank in advance of the flotilla which +floated down to a farm called Chrystler's and moored for the night.</p> + +<p>General Boyd, who had been sent back with a strong force to protect the +rear, reported next morning that the enemy was advancing in column. He +was told to turn back and attack. This he did with three brigades. It +was a brilliant opportunity to capture or destroy eight hundred British +troops led by a dashing naval officer, Captain Mulcaster. Boyd lived up +to his reputation, which was such that Jacob Brown had refused to serve +under him. At this engagement of Chrystler's Farm, with two thousand +regulars at his disposal, he was unmercifully beaten. Both Wilkinson and +Morgan Lewis were flat on their backs, too feeble to concern themselves +with battles. The American troops fought without a coherent plan and +were defeated and broken in detail. Almost four hundred of them were +killed, wounded, or captured. Their conduct reflected the half-hearted +attitude of their commanding general and some of his subordinates. The +badly mauled brigades hastily took to the boats and ran the rapids, +stopping at the first harbor below. There Wilkinson received tidings +from Wade Hampton's army which caused him <a name="Page_84" id="Page_84" />to abandon the voyage down +the St. Lawrence, and it is fair to conjecture that he shed no tears of +disappointment.</p> + +<p>In September Hampton had led his forces, recruited to four thousand +infantry and a few dragoons, from Lake Champlain to the Canadian border +in faithful compliance with his instructions to join the movement +against Montreal. His line of march was westward to the Chateauguay +River where he took a position which menaced both Montreal and that +vital artery, the St. Lawrence. Building roads and bringing up supplies, +he waited there for Wilkinson to set his own undertaking in motion. Word +came from Secretary Armstrong to advance along the river, hold the enemy +in check, and prepare to unite with Wilkinson's army. Hampton acted +promptly and alarmed the British at Montreal, who foresaw grave +consequences and assembled troops from every quarter. Hampton then +learned that his army faced an enemy which was of vastly superior +strength and which had every advantage of natural defense, while he +himself was becoming convinced that Wilkinson was a broken reed and that +no further support could be expected from the Government. General +Prevost's own reports and letters showed that he had collected in <a name="Page_85" id="Page_85" />the +Montreal district and available for defense at least fifteen thousand +rank and file, including the militia which had been mustered to repel +Hampton's advance. The American position at Chateauguay was not less +perilous than that of Harrison on the Maumee and far more so than that +which had cost Dearborn so many disasters at Niagara.</p> + +<p>Hampton moved forward half-heartedly. He had received a message from the +War Department that his troops were to prepare winter quarters and these +orders confirmed his suspicions that no attempt against Montreal was +intended. "These papers sunk my hopes," he wrote in reply, "and raised +serious doubts of that efficacious support that had been anticipated. I +would have recalled the column, but it was in motion and the darkness of +the night rendered it impracticable."</p> + +<p>The last words refer to a collision with a small force of Canadian +militia, led by Lieutenant Colonel de Salaberry, who had come forward to +impede the American advance. These Canadians had obstructed the road +with fallen trees and abatis, falling back until they found favorable +ground where they very pluckily intrenched themselves. The intrepid +party was comprised of a few Glengarry Fencibles and three hundred +French-Canadian <a name="Page_86" id="Page_86" />Voltigeurs. Colonel de Salaberry was a trained soldier, +and he now displayed brilliant courage and resourcefulness. Two American +divisions attacking him were unable to carry his breastworks and were +driven along the river bank and routed. Hampton's troops abandoned much +of their equipment, and returned to camp with a loss of about fifty men.</p> + +<p>There was great rejoicing in Canada and rightly so, for a victory had +been handsomely won without the aid of British regulars; and Colonel de +Salaberry's handful of French Canadians received the credit for +thwarting the American plans against Montreal. But, without belittling +the signal valor of the achievement, the documentary evidence goes to +prove that Hampton's failure was largely due to the neglect of his +Government. His state of mind at this time was such that he wrote: +"Events have no tendency to change my opinion of the destiny intended +for me, nor my determination to retire from a service where I can feel +neither security nor expect honor."</p> + +<p>With this tame conclusion the armies of Wilkinson and Hampton tucked +themselves into log huts for the winter. Both accused the Secretary of +War of leading them into an impossible venture and of then deserting +them, while he in his turn accepted <a name="Page_87" id="Page_87" />their resignations from the army. +The fiasco was a costly one in quite another direction, for the Niagara +sector had been overlooked in the elaborate attempt to capture Montreal. +The few American troops who had gained a foothold on the Canadian side, +at Fort George and the village of Niagara, were left unsupported while +all the available regulars were sent to the armies of Wilkinson and +Hampton. As soon as the British comprehended that the grand invasion had +crumbled, they bethought themselves of the tempting opportunity to +recover their forts at Niagara.</p> + +<p>Wilkinson advised that the Americans evacuate Fort George, which they +did on the 10th of December, when five hundred British soldiers were +marching to retake it. There was no effort to reinforce the garrison, +although at the time ten thousand American troops were idle in winter +quarters. Fort Niagara, on the American side, still flew the Stars and +Stripes, but on the night of the 18th of December Colonel Murray with +five hundred and fifty British regulars rushed the fort, surprised the +sentries, and lost only eight men in capturing this stronghold and its +three hundred and fifty defenders. It was more like a massacre. +Sixty-seven Americans were killed by the bayonet. A few <a name="Page_88" id="Page_88" />nights later +the Indian allies were loosed against Buffalo and Black Rock and ravaged +thirty miles of frontier. The settlements were helpless. The Government +had made not the slightest attempt to protect or defend them.</p> + +<p>The war had come to the end of its second year, and by land the United +States had done no more than to regain what Hull lost at Detroit. The +conquest of Canada was a shattered illusion, a sorry tale of wasted +energy, misdirected armies, sordid intrigue, lack of organization. A few +worthless generals had been swept into the rubbish heap where they +belonged, and this was the chief item on the credit side of the ledger. +The state militia system had been found wanting; raw levies, defying +authority and miserably cared for, had been squandered against a few +thousand disciplined British regulars. The nation, angry and bewildered, +was taking these lessons to heart. The story of 1814 was to contain far +brighter episodes.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 25%;" /> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_V" id="CHAPTER_V" /><a name="Page_89" id="Page_89" />CHAPTER V</h2> + +<h3>THE NAVY ON BLUE WATER</h3> + +<p>It has pleased the American mind to regard the War of 1812 as a maritime +conflict. This is natural enough, for the issue was the freedom of the +sea, and the achievements of Yankee ships and sailors stood out in +brilliant relief against the somber background of the inefficiency of +the army. The offensive was thought to be properly a matter for the land +forces, which had vastly superior advantages against Canada, while the +navy was compelled to act on the defensive against overwhelming odds. +The truth is that the navy did amazingly well, though it could not +prevent the enemy's squadrons from blockading American ports or raiding +the coasts at will. A few single ship actions could not vitally +influence the course of the war; but they served to create an +imperishable renown for the flag and the service, and to deal a +staggering blow to the pride and prestige of an enemy <a name="Page_90" id="Page_90" />whose ancient +boast it was that Britannia ruled the waves.</p> + +<p>The amazing thing is that the navy was able to accomplish anything at +all, neglected and almost despised as it was by the same opinion which +had suffered the army system to become a melancholy jest. During the +decade in which Great Britain captured hundreds of American merchant +ships in time of peace and impressed more than six thousand American +seamen, the United States built two sloops-of-war of eighteen guns and +allowed three of her dozen frigates to hasten to decay at their mooring +buoys. Officers in the service were underpaid and shamefully treated by +the Government. Captain Bainbridge, an officer of distinction, asked for +leave that he might earn money to support himself, giving as a reason: +"I have hitherto refused such offers on the presumption that my country +would require my services. That presumption is removed, and even doubts +entertained of the permanency of the naval establishment."</p> + +<p>But, though Congress refused to build more frigates or to formulate a +programme for guarding American shores and commerce, the tiny navy kept +alive the spark of duty and readiness, while the nation drifted +inevitably towards war. There was <a name="Page_91" id="Page_91" />no scarcity of capable seamen, for +the merchant marine was an admirable training-school. In those far-off +days the technique of seafaring and sea fighting was comparatively +simple. The merchant seaman could find his way about a frigate, for in +rigging, handling, and navigation the ships were very much alike. And +the American seamen of 1812 were in fighting mood; they had been whetted +by provocation to a keen edge for war. They understood the meaning of +"Free Trade and Sailors' Rights," if the landsmen did not. There were +strapping sailors in every deep-water port to follow the fife and drum +of the recruiting squad. The militia might quibble about "rights," but +all the sailors asked was the weather gage of a British man-of-war. They +had no patience with such spokesmen as Josiah Quincy, who said that +Massachusetts would not go to war to contest the right of Great Britain +to search American vessels for British seamen. They had neither +forgotten nor forgiven the mortal affront of 1807, when their frigate +<i>Chesapeake</i>, flying the broad pennant of Commodore James Barron, +refused to let the British <i>Leopard</i> board and search her, and was fired +into without warning and reduced to submission, after twenty-one of the +American crew had been killed or wounded.</p> + +<p><a name="Page_92" id="Page_92" />That shameful episode was in keeping with the attitude of the British +navy toward the armed ships of the United States, "a few fir-built +things with bits of striped bunting at their mast-heads," as George +Canning, British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, described them. +Long before the declaration of war British squadrons hovered off the +port of New York to ransack merchant vessels or to seize them as prizes. +In the course of the Napoleonic wars England had met and destroyed the +navies of all her enemies in Europe. The battles of Copenhagen, the +Nile, Trafalgar, and a hundred lesser fights had thundered to the world +the existence of an unconquerable sea power.</p> + +<p>Insignificant as it was, the American naval service boasted a history +and a high morale. Its ships had been active. The younger officers +served with seniors who had sailed and fought with Biddle and Barney and +Paul Jones in the Revolution. Many of them had won promotions for +gallantry in hand-to-hand combats in boarding parties, for following the +bold Stephen Decatur in 1804 when he cut out and set fire to the +<i>Philadelphia</i>, which had fallen into the hands of pirates at Tripoli, +and helping Thomas Truxtun in 1799-1800 when the <i>Constellation</i> whipped +the Frenchmen, <i>L'Insurgente</i> <a name="Page_93" id="Page_93" />and <i>La Vengeance</i>. In wardroom or +steerage almost every man could tell of engagements in which he had +behaved with credit. Trained in the school of hard knocks, the sailor +knew the value of discipline and gunnery, of the smart ship and the +willing crew, while on land the soldier rusted and lost his zeal.</p> + +<p>The bluejackets were volunteers, not impressed men condemned to brutal +servitude, and they had fought to save their skins in merchant vessels +which made their voyages, in peril of privateer, pirate, and picaroon, +from the Caribbean to the China Sea. The American merchant marine was at +the zenith of its enterprise and daring, attracting the pick and flower +of young manhood, and it offered incomparable material for the naval +service and the fleets of swift privateers which swarmed out to harry +England's commerce.<a name="FNanchor_2_2" id="FNanchor_2_2" /><a href="#Footnote_2_2"><sup>[2]</sup></a></p> + +<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_2_2" id="Footnote_2_2" /><a href="#FNanchor_2_2">[2]</a> For an account of the privateers of 1812, see <i>The Old +Merchant Marine</i>, by Ralph D. Paine (in <i>The Chronicles of America</i>).</p></div> + +<p>The American frigates which humbled the haughty Mistress of the Seas +beyond all precedent were superior in speed and hitting power to +anything of their class afloat. It detracts not at all from the glory +they won to remember that in every instance they were larger and of +better design and <a name="Page_94" id="Page_94" />armament than the British frigates which they shot to +pieces with such methodical accuracy.</p> + +<p>When war was declared, the American Government was not quite clear as to +what should be done with the navy. In New York harbor was a squadron of +five ships under Commodore John Rodgers, including two of the heavier +frigates or forty-fours, the <i>President</i> and the <i>United States</i>. +Rodgers had also the lighter frigate <i>Congress</i>, the brig <i>Argus</i>, and +the sloop <i>Hornet</i>. His orders were to look for British cruisers which +were annoying commerce off Sandy Hook, chase them away, and then return +to port for "further more extensive and particular orders." One hour +after receiving these instructions the eager Rodgers put out to sea, +with Captain Stephen Decatur as a squadron commander. The quarry was the +frigate <i>Belvidera</i>, the most offensive of the British blockading force. +This warship was sighted by the <i>President</i> and overtaken within +forty-eight hours. An unlucky accident then occurred. Instead of running +alongside, the <i>President</i> began firing at a distance and was hulling +the enemy's stern when a gun on the forecastle burst, and killed or +wounded sixteen American sailors. Commodore Rodgers was picked up with a +broken leg. Meanwhile the <i>Belvidera</i> cast overboard her <a name="Page_95" id="Page_95" />boats and +anchors, emptied the fresh water barrels to better her sailing trim, +and, crowding on every stitch of canvas, drew away and was lost to view. +Rodgers then forgot his orders to return to New York and went off in +search of the great convoy of British merchant vessels homeward bound +from Jamaica, which was called the plate fleet. He sailed as far as the +English Channel before quitting the chase and then cruised back to +Boston.</p> + +<p>Meanwhile Captain Isaac Hull of the <i>Constitution</i> had taken on a crew +and stores at Annapolis and was bound up the coast to New York. Hull's +luck appeared to be no better than Rodgers's. Off Barnegat he sailed +almost into a strong British squadron, which had been sent from Halifax. +The escape from this grave predicament was an exploit of seamanship +which is among the treasured memories of the service. It was the +beginning of the career of the <i>Constitution</i>, whose name is still the +most illustrious on the American naval list and whose commanders, Hull +and Bainbridge, are numbered among the great captains. It is a privilege +to behold today, in the Boston Navy Yard, this gallant frigate preserved +as a heritage, her tall masts and graceful yards soaring above the grim, +gray citadels that we call battleships. True it is that a <a name="Page_96" id="Page_96" />single modern +shell would destroy this obsolete, archaic frigate which once swept the +seas like a meteor, but the very image of her is still potent to thrill +the hearts and animate the courage of an American seaman.</p> + +<p>On that luckless July morning, at break of day, off the New Jersey +coast, it seemed as though the <i>Constitution</i> would be flying British +colors ere she had a chance to fight. On her leeward side stood two +English frigates, the <i>Guerrière</i> and the <i>Belvidera</i>, with the +<i>Shannon</i> only five miles astern, and the rest of the hostile fleet +lifting topsails above the southern horizon.</p> + +<p>Not a breath of wind stirred. Captain Hull called away his boats, and +the sailors tugged at the oars, towing the <i>Constitution</i> very slowly +ahead. Captain Broke of the <i>Shannon</i> promptly followed suit and +signaled for all the boats of the squadron. In a long column they +trailed at the end of the hawser; and the <i>Shannon</i> crept closer. +Catspaws of wind ruffled the water, and first one ship and then the +other gained a few hundred yards as upper tiers of canvas caught the +faint impulse. The <i>Shannon</i> was a crack ship, and there was no better +crew in the British navy, as Lawrence of the <i>Chesapeake</i> afterwards +learned to his mortal sorrow. <a name="Page_97" id="Page_97" />Gradually the <i>Shannon</i> cut down the +intervening distance until she could make use of her bow guns.</p> + +<p>At this Captain Hull resolved to try kedging his ship along, sending a +boat half a mile ahead with a light anchor and all the spare rope on +board. The crew walked the capstan round and hauled the ship up to the +anchor, which they then lifted, carried ahead, and dropped again. The +<i>Constitution</i> kept two kedges going all through that summer day, but +the <i>Shannon</i> was playing the same game, and the two ships maintained +their relative positions. They shot at each other at such long range +that no damage was done. Before dusk the <i>Guerrière</i> caught a slant of +breeze and worked nearer enough to bang away at the <i>Constitution</i>, +which was, indeed, between the devil and the deep sea.</p> + +<p>Night came on. The sailors, British and American, toiled until they +dropped in their tracks, pulling at the kedge anchors and hawsers or +bending to the sweeps of the cutters which towed at intervals and were +exposed to the spatter of shot. It seemed impossible that the +<i>Constitution</i> could slip clear of this pack of able frigates which +trailed her like hounds. Toward midnight the fickle breeze awoke and +wafted the ships along under studding sails and all the light cloths +that were wont to <a name="Page_98" id="Page_98" />arch skyward. For two hours the men slept on deck +like logs while those on watch grunted at the pump-brakes and the hose +wetted the canvas to make it draw better.</p> + +<p>The breeze failed, however, and through the rest of the night it was +kedge and tow again, the <i>Shannon</i> and the <i>Guerrière</i> hanging on +doggedly, confident of taking their quarry. Another day dawned, hot and +windless, and the situation was unchanged. Other British ships had +crawled or drifted nearer, but the <i>Constitution</i> was always just beyond +range of their heavy guns. We may imagine Isaac Hull striding across the +poop and back again, ruddy, solid, composed, wearing a cocked hat and a +gold-laced coat, lifting an eye aloft, or squinting through his brass +telescope, while he damned the enemy in the hearty language of the sea. +He was a nephew of General William Hull, but it would have been unfair +to remind him of it.</p> + +<p>Near sunset of the second day of this unique test of seamanship and +endurance, a rain squall swept toward the <i>Constitution</i> and obscured +the ocean. Just before the violent gust struck the ship her seamen +scampered aloft and took in the upper sails. This was all that safety +required, but, seeing a <a name="Page_99" id="Page_99" />chance to trick the enemy, Hull ordered the +lower sails double-reefed as though caught in a gale of wind. The +British ships hastily imitated him before they should be overtaken in +like manner and veered away from the chase. Veiled in the rain and dusk, +the <i>Constitution</i> set all sail again and foamed at twelve knots on her +course toward a port of refuge. Though two of the British frigates were +in sight next morning, the <i>Constitution</i> left them far astern and +reached Boston safely.</p> + +<p>Seafaring New England was quick to recognize the merit of this escape. +Even the Federalists, who opposed and hampered the war by land, were +enthusiastic in praise of Captain Hull and his ship. They had outsailed +and outwitted the best of the British men-of-war on the American coast, +and a general feeling of hopelessness gave way to an ardent desire to +try anew the ordeal of battle. With this spirit firing his officers and +crew, Hull sailed again a few days later on a solitary cruise to the +eastward with the intention of vexing the enemy's merchant trade and +hopeful of finding a frigate willing to engage him in a duel. From +Newfoundland he cruised south until a Salem privateer spoke him on the +18th of August and reported a British warship close by. The +<i>Constitution</i> searched until <a name="Page_100" id="Page_100" />the afternoon of the next day and then +sighted her old friend, the <i>Guerrière</i>.</p> + +<p>To retell the story of their fight in all the vanished sea lingo of that +day would bewilder the land-man and prove tedious to those familiar with +the subject. The boatswains piped the call, "all hands clear ship for +action"; the fife and drum beat to quarters; and four hundred men stood +by the tackles of the muzzle-loading guns with their clumsy wooden +carriages, or climbed into the tops to use their muskets or trim sail. +Decks were sanded to prevent slipping when blood flowed. Boys ran about +stacking the sacks of powder or distributing buckets of pistols ready +for the boarding parties. And against the masts the cutlasses and pikes +stood ready.</p> + +<p>Captain John Dacres of the ill-fated <i>Guerrière</i> was an English +gentleman as well as a gallant officer. But he did not know his +antagonist. Like his comrades of the service he had failed to grasp the +fact that the <i>Constitution</i> and the other American frigates of her +class were the most formidable craft afloat, barring ships of the line, +and that they were to revolutionize the design of war-vessels for half a +century thereafter. They were frigates, or cruisers, in that they +carried guns on two decks, <a name="Page_101" id="Page_101" />but the main battery of long +twenty-four-pound guns was an innovation, and the timbers and planking +were stouter than had ever been built into ships of the kind. So stout, +indeed, were the sides that shot rebounded from them more than once and +thus gave the <i>Constitution</i> the affectionate nickname of "Old +Ironsides."</p> + +<p>Sublimely indifferent to these odds, Captain Dacres had already sent a +challenge, with his compliments, to Commodore Rodgers of the United +States frigate <i>President</i>, saying that he would be very happy to meet +him or any other American frigate of equal force, off Sandy Hook, "for +the purpose of having a few minutes' tête-à-tête." It was therefore with +the utmost willingness that the <i>Constitution</i> and the <i>Guerrière</i> +hoisted their battle ensigns and approached each other warily for an +hour while they played at long bowls, as was the custom, each hoping to +disable the other's spars or rigging and so gain the advantage of +movement. Finding this sort of action inconclusive, however, Hull set +more sail and ran down to argue it with broadsides, coolly biding his +time, although Morris, his lieutenant, came running up again and again +to beg him to begin firing. Men were being killed beside their guns as +they stood ready to jerk the lock <a name="Page_102" id="Page_102" />strings. The two ships were abreast +of each other and no more than a few yards apart before the +<i>Constitution</i> returned the cannonade that thundered from every gun port +of her adversary.</p> + +<p>Within ten minutes the <i>Guerrière's</i> mizzenmast was knocked over the +side and her hull was shattered by the accurate fire of the Yankee +gunners, who were trained to shoot on the downward roll of their ship +and so smash below the water line. Almost unhurt, the <i>Constitution</i> +moved ahead and fearfully raked the enemy's deck before the ships fouled +each other. They drifted apart before the boarders could undertake their +bloody business, and then the remaining masts of the British frigate +toppled overside and she was a helpless wreck. Seventy-nine of her crew +were dead or wounded and the ship was sinking beneath their feet. +Captain Isaac Hull could truthfully report: "In less than thirty minutes +from the time we got alongside of the enemy she was left without a spar +standing, and the hull cut to pieces in such a manner as to make it +difficult to keep her above water."</p> + +<p>Captain Dacres struck his flag, and the American sailors who went aboard +found the guns dismounted, the dead and dying scattered amid a wild +tangle of spars and rigging, and great holes <a name="Page_103" id="Page_103" />blown through the sides +and decks. The <i>Constitution</i> had suffered such trifling injury that she +was fit and ready for action a few hours later. Of her crew only seven +men were killed and the same number hurt. She was the larger ship, and +the odds in her favor were as ten to seven, reckoned in men and guns, +for which reasons Captain Hull ought to have won. The significance of +his victory was that at every point he had excelled a British frigate +and had literally blown her out of the water. His crew had been together +only five weeks and could fairly be called green while the <i>Guerrière</i>, +although short-handed, had a complement of veteran tars. The British +navy had never hesitated to engage hostile men-of-war of superior force +and had usually beaten them. Of two hundred fights between single ships, +against French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Danish, and Dutch, the +English had lost only five. The belief of Captain Dacres that he could +beat the <i>Constitution</i> was therefore neither rash nor ill-founded.</p> + +<p>The English captain had ten Americans in his crew, but he would not +compel them to fight against their countrymen and sent them below, +although he sorely needed every man who could haul at a gun-tackle or +lay out on a yard. Wounded though <a name="Page_104" id="Page_104" />he was and heartbroken by the +disaster, his chivalry was faultless, and he took pains to report: "I +feel it my duty to state that the conduct of Captain Hull and his +officers toward our men has been that of a brave and generous enemy, the +greatest care being taken to prevent our men losing the smallest trifle +and the greatest attention being paid to the wounded."</p> + +<p>When the Englishman was climbing up the side of the <i>Constitution</i> as a +prisoner, Isaac Hull ran to help him, exclaiming, "Give me your hand, +Dacres. I know you are hurt." No wonder that these two captains became +fast friends. It is because sea warfare abounds in such manly incidents +as these that the modern naval code of Germany, as exemplified in the +acts of her submarine commanders, was so peculiarly barbarous and +repellent.</p> + +<p>On board the <i>Guerrière</i> was Captain William B. Orne, of the Salem +merchant brig <i>Betsy</i>, which had been taken as a prize. His story of the +combat is not widely known and seems worth quoting in part:</p> + +<blockquote><p>At two P.M. we discovered a large sail to windward bearing about + north from us. We soon made her out to be a frigate. She was + steering off from the wind, with her head to the southwest, + evidently with the intention of cutting us off as soon as possible. + Signals <a name="Page_105" id="Page_105" />were soon made by the <i>Guerrière</i>, but as they were not + answered the conclusion was, of course, that she was either a + French or American frigate. Captain Dacres appeared anxious to + ascertain her character and after looking at her for that purpose, + handed me his spyglass, requesting me to give him my opinion of the + stranger. I soon saw from the peculiarity of her sails and from her + general appearance that she was, without doubt, an American + frigate, and communicated the same to Captain Dacres. He + immediately replied that he thought she came down too boldly for an + American, but soon after added, "The better he behaves, the more + honor we shall gain by taking him."</p> + +<p> When the strange frigate came down to within two or three miles' + distance, he hauled upon the wind, took in all his light sails, + reefed his topsails, and deliberately prepared for action. It was + now about five o'clock in the afternoon when he filled away and ran + down for the <i>Guerrière</i>. At this moment Captain Dacres politely + said to me: "Captain Orne, as I suppose you do not wish to fight + against your own countrymen, you are at liberty to go below the + water-line." It was not long after this before I retired from the + quarter-deck to the cock-pit; of course I saw no more of the action + until the firing ceased, but I heard and felt much of its effects; + for soon after I left the deck the firing commenced on board the + <i>Guerrière</i>, and was kept up almost incessantly until about six + o'clock when I heard a tremendous explosion from the opposing + frigate. The effect of her shot seemed to make the <i>Guerrière</i> reel + and tremble as though she had received the shock of an earthquake.</p> + +<p> Immediately after this, I heard a tremendous crash<a name="Page_106" id="Page_106" /> on deck and was + told that the mizzen-mast was shot away. In a few moments + afterward, the cock-pit was filled with wounded men. After the + firing had ceased I went on deck and there beheld a scene which it + would be difficult to describe: all the <i>Guerrière's</i> masts were + shot away and, as she had no sails to steady her, she lay rolling + like a log in the trough of the sea. Many of the men were employed + in throwing the dead overboard. The decks had the appearance of a + butcher's slaughter-house; the gun tackles were not made fast and + several of the guns got loose and were surging from one side to the + other.</p> + +<p> Some of the petty officers and seamen, after the action, got liquor + and were intoxicated; and what with the groans of the wounded, the + noise and confusion of the enraged survivors of the ill-fated ship + rendered the whole scene a perfect hell.</p></blockquote> + +<p>Setting the hulk of the <i>Guerrière</i> on fire, Captain Hull sailed for +Boston with the captured crew. The tidings he bore were enough to amaze +an American people which expected nothing of its navy, which allowed its +merchant ships to rot at the wharves, and which regarded the operations +of its armies with the gloomiest forebodings. New England went wild with +joy over a victory so peculiarly its own. Captain Hull and his officers +were paraded up State Street to a banquet at Faneuil Hall while cheering +thousands lined the sidewalks. A few days earlier had come the news of +the <a name="Page_107" id="Page_107" />surrender of Detroit, but the gloom was now dispelled. Americans +could fight, after all. Popular toasts of the day were:</p> + +<p>OUR INFANT NAVY—<i>We must nurture the young Hercules in his cradle, if +we mean to profit by the labors of his manhood.</i></p> + +<p>THE VICTORY WE CELEBRATE—<i>An invaluable proof that we are able to +defend our rights on the ocean.</i></p> + +<p>Handbills spread the news through the country, and artillery salutes +proclaimed it from Carolina to the Wabash. Congress voted fifty thousand +dollars as prize money to the heroes of the <i>Constitution</i> and medals to +her officers. The people of New York gave them swords, and Captain Hull +and Lieutenant Morris received pieces of plate from the patriots of +Philadelphia. Federalists laid aside for the moment their opposition to +the war and proclaimed that their party had founded and supported the +navy. The moral effect of the victory was out of all proportion to its +strategic importance. It was like sunshine breaking through a fog. Such +rejoicing had been unknown, even in the decisive moments of the War of +the Revolution. It served to show how deep-seated had been the American +conviction that Britain's mastery of the sea was like a spell which +could not be broken.</p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 433px;"> +<img src="images/image-4.jpg" width="433" height="700" alt="COMMODORE STEPHEN DECATUR" title="" /> +<p><b>COMMODORE STEPHEN DECATUR</b></p> + +<p><b>Painting by Thomas Sully, 1811. In the Comptroller's Office, owned by +the City of New York.</b></p> +</div> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 750px;"> +<img src="images/image-5.jpg" width="750" height="519" alt=""CONSTITUTION" AND "GUERRIÈRE"" title="" /> +<p><b>"CONSTITUTION" AND "GUERRIÈRE"</b></p> + +<p><b>An old print, illustrating the moment in the action at which the +mainmast of the Guerrière, shattered by the terrific fire of the +American frigate, fell overside, transforming the former vessel into a +floating wreck and terminating the action. The picture represents +accurately the surprisingly slight damage done the Constitution; note +the broken spanker gaff and the shot holes in her topsails.</b></p> +</div> + + + +<hr style="width: 25%;" /> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VI" id="CHAPTER_VI" /><a name="Page_108" id="Page_108" />CHAPTER VI</h2> + +<h3>MATCHLESS FRIGATES AND THEIR DUELS</h3> + +<p>It was soon made clear that the impressive victory over the <i>Guerrière</i> +was neither a lucky accident nor the result of prowess peculiar to the +<i>Constitution</i> and her crew. Ship for ship, the American navy was better +than the British. This is a truth which was demonstrated with +sensational emphasis by one engagement after another. During the first +eight months of the war there were five such duels, and in every +instance the enemy was compelled to strike his colors. In tavern and +banquet hall revelers were still drinking the health of Captain Isaac +Hull when the thrilling word came that the <i>Wasp</i>, an eighteen-gun ship +or sloop, as the type was called in naval parlance, had beaten the +<i>Frolic</i> in a rare fight. The antagonists were so evenly matched in +every respect that there was no room for excuses, and on both sides were +displayed such stubborn hardihood and a seamanship so dauntless <a name="Page_109" id="Page_109" />as to +make an Anglo-Saxon proud that these foemen were bred of a common stock.</p> + +<p>The <i>Wasp</i> had sailed from the Delaware on the 13th of October, heading +southeast to look for British merchantmen in the West India track. Her +commander was Captain Jacob Jones, a name revived in modern days by a +destroyer of the Queenstown fleet in the arduous warfare against the +German submarines. Shattered by a torpedo, the <i>Jacob Jones</i> sank in +seven minutes, and sixty-four of the officers and crew perished, doing +their duty to the last, disciplined, unafraid, so proving themselves +worthy of the American naval service and of the memory of the +unflinching captain of 1812.</p> + +<p>The little <i>Wasp</i> ran into a terrific gale which blew her sails away and +washed men overboard. But she made repairs and stood bravely after a +British convoy which was escorted by the eighteen-gun brig <i>Frolic</i>, +Captain Thomas Whinyates. The <i>Frolic</i>, too, had been battered by the +weather, and the cargo ships had been scattered far and wide. The <i>Wasp</i> +sighted several of them in the moonlight but, fearing they might be war +vessels, followed warily until morning revealed on her leeward side the +<i>Frolic</i>. Jacob Jones promptly shortened sail, <a name="Page_110" id="Page_110" />which was the nautical +method of rolling up one's sleeves, and steered close to attack.</p> + +<p>It seemed preposterous to try to fight while the seas were still +monstrously swollen and their crests were breaking across the decks of +these vessels of less than five hundred tons burden. Wildly they rolled +and pitched, burying their bows in the roaring combers. The merchant +ships which watched this audacious defiance of wind and wave were having +all they could do to avoid being swept or dismasted. Side by side +wallowed <i>Wasp</i> and <i>Frolic</i>, sixty yards between them, while the cannon +rolled their muzzles under water and the gunners were blinded with +spray. Britisher and Yank, each crew could hear the hearty cheers of the +other as they watched the chance to ply rammer and sponge and fire when +the deck lifted clear of the sea.</p> + +<p>Somehow the <i>Wasp</i> managed to shoot straight and fast. They were of the +true webfooted breed in this hard-driven sloop-of-war, but there were no +fair-weather mariners aboard the <i>Frolic</i>, and they hit the target much +too often for comfort. Within ten minutes they had saved Captain Jacob +Jones the trouble of handling sail, for they shot away his upper masts +and yards and most of his rigging. The <i>Wasp</i> was a wreck aloft but the +<i>Frolic</i> had <a name="Page_111" id="Page_111" />suffered more vitally, for as usual the American gun +captains aimed for the deck and hull; and they had been carefully +drilled at target practice. The British sailors suffered frightfully +from this storm of grape and chain shot, but those who were left alive +still fought inflexibly. It looked as though the <i>Frolic</i> might get +away, for the masts of the <i>Wasp</i> were in danger of tumbling over the +side. With this mischance in mind, Captain Jacob Jones shifted helm and +closed in for a hand-to-hand finish.</p> + +<p>For a few minutes the two ships plunged ahead so near each other that +the rammers of the American sailors struck the side of the <i>Frolic</i> as +they drove the shot down the throats of their guns. It was literally +muzzle to muzzle. Then they crashed together and the <i>Wasp's</i> jib-boom +was thrust between the <i>Frolic's</i> masts. In this position the British +decks were raked by a murderous fire as Jacob Jones trumpeted the order, +"Boarders away!" Jack Lang, a sailor from New Jersey, scrambled out on +the bowsprit, cutlass in his fist, without waiting to see if his +comrades were with him, and dropped to the forecastle of the <i>Frolic</i>. +Lieutenant Biddle tried it by jumping on the bulwark and climbing to the +other ship as they crashed <a name="Page_112" id="Page_112" />together on the next heave of the sea, but a +doughty midshipman, seeking a handy purchase, grabbed him by the coat +tails and they fell back upon their own deck. Another attempt and Biddle +joined Jack Lang by way of the bowsprit. These two thus captured the +<i>Frolic</i>, for as they dashed aft the only living men on deck were the +undaunted sailor at the wheel and three officers, including Captain +Whinyates and Lieutenant Wintle, who were so severely wounded that they +could not stand without support. They tottered forward and surrendered +their swords, and Lieutenant Biddle then leaped into the rigging and +hauled the British ensign down.</p> + +<p>Of the <i>Frolic's</i> crew of one hundred and ten men only twenty were +unhurt, and these had fled below to escape the dreadful fire from the +<i>Wasp</i>. The gun deck was strewn with bodies, and the waves which broke +over the ship swirled them to and fro, the dead and the wounded +together. Not an officer had escaped death or injury. The <i>Wasp</i> was +more or less of a tangle aloft but her hull was sound and only five of +her men had been killed and five wounded. No sailors could have fought +more bravely than Captain Whinyates and his British crew, but they had +been overwhelmed in <a name="Page_113" id="Page_113" />three-quarters of an hour by greater skill, +coolness, and judgment.</p> + +<p>No sea battle of the war was more brilliant than this, but Captain Jacob +Jones was delayed in sailing home to receive the plaudits due him. His +prize crew was aboard the <i>Frolic</i>, cleaning up the horrid mess and +fitting the beaten ship for the voyage to Charleston, and the <i>Wasp</i> was +standing by when there loomed in sight a towering three-decker—a +British ship of the line—the <i>Poictiers</i>. The <i>Wasp</i> shook out her +sails to make a run for it, but they had been cut to ribbons and she was +soon overhauled. Now an eighteen-gun ship could not argue with a +majestic seventy-four. Captain Jacob Jones submitted with as much grace +as he could muster, and <i>Wasp</i> and <i>Frolic</i> were carried to Bermuda. The +American crew was soon exchanged, and Congress applied balm to the +injured feelings of these fine sailormen by filling their pockets to the +amount of twenty-five thousand dollars in prize money.</p> + +<p>It was only a week later that the navy vouchsafed an encore to a +delighted nation. This time the sport royal was played between stately +frigates. On the 8th of October Commodore Rodgers had taken his squadron +out of Boston for a second <a name="Page_114" id="Page_114" />cruise. After four days at sea the <i>United +States</i> was detached, and Captain Stephen Decatur ranged off to the +eastward in quest of diversion. A fortnight of monotony was ended by a +strange sail which proved to be the British thirty-eight-gun frigate +<i>Macedonian</i>, newly built. Her commander, Captain Carden, had the +highest opinion of his ship and crew, and one of his officers testified +that "the state of discipline on board was excellent; in no British ship +was more attention paid to gunnery. Before this cruise the ship had been +engaged almost every day with the enemy; and in time of peace the crew +were constantly exercised at the great guns."</p> + +<p>The <i>United States</i> was a sister frigate of the <i>Constitution</i>, built +from the same designs and therefore more formidable than her British +opponent as three is to two. Captain Carden had no misgivings, however, +and instantly set out in chase of the American frigate. But he was +unfortunate enough to pit himself against one of the ablest officers +afloat, and his own talent was mediocre. The result was partly +determined by this personal equation in an action in which the +<i>Macedonian</i> was outgeneraled as well as outfought. And again gunnery +was a decisive factor. Observers said that <a name="Page_115" id="Page_115" />the broadsides of the +<i>United States</i> flamed with such rapidity that the ship looked as though +she were on fire.</p> + +<p>Early in the fight Captain Carden bungled an opportunity to pass close +ahead of the <i>United States</i> and so rake her with a destructive attack. +Then rashly coming to close quarters, the <i>Macedonian</i> was swept by the +heavy guns of the American frigate and reduced to wreckage in ninety +minutes. The weather was favorable for the Yankee gun crews, and the war +offered no more dramatic proof of their superbly intelligent training. +The <i>Macedonian</i> had received more than one hundred shot in her hull, +several below the water line, one mast had been cut in two, and the +others were useless. More than a hundred of her officers and men were +dead or injured. The <i>United States</i> was almost undamaged, a few ropes +and small spars were shot away, and only twelve of her men were on the +casualty list. Captain Decatur rightfully boasted that he had as fine a +crew as ever walked a deck, American sailors who had been schooled for +the task with the greatest care. English opinion went so far as to +concede this much: "As a display of courage the character of our service +was nobly upheld, but we would be deceiving ourselves <a name="Page_116" id="Page_116" />were we to admit +that the comparative expertness of the crews in gunnery was equally +satisfactory. Now taking the difference of effect as given by Captain +Carden, we must draw this conclusion—that the comparative loss in +killed and wounded, together with the dreadful account he gives of the +condition of his own ship, while he admits that the enemy's vessel was +in comparatively good order, must have arisen from inferiority in +gunnery as well as in force."</p> + +<p>Decatur sent the <i>Macedonian</i> to Newport as a trophy of war and +forwarded her battle flag to Washington. It arrived just when a great +naval ball was in progress to celebrate the capture of the <i>Guerrière</i>, +whose ensign was already displayed from the wall. It was a great moment +for the young lieutenant of the <i>United States</i>, who had been assigned +this duty, when he announced his mission and, amid the cheers of the +President, the Cabinet, and other distinguished guests, proudly +exhibited the flag of another British frigate to decorate the ballroom!</p> + +<p>Meanwhile the <i>Constitution</i> had returned to sea to spread her royals to +the South Atlantic trades and hunt for lumbering British East-Indiamen. +Captain Isaac Hull had gracefully given up the <a name="Page_117" id="Page_117" />command in favor of +Captain William Bainbridge, who was one of the oldest and most respected +officers of his rank and who deserved an opportunity to win distinction. +Bainbridge had behaved heroically at Tripoli and was logically in line +to take over one of the crack frigates. The sailors of the +<i>Constitution</i> grumbled a bit at losing Isaac Hull but soon regained +their alert and willing spirit as they comprehended that they had +another first-rate "old man" in William Bainbridge. Henry Adams has +pointed out that the average age of Bainbridge, Hull, Rodgers, and +Decatur was thirty-seven, while that of the four generals most +conspicuous in the disappointments of the army, Dearborn, Wilkinson, +William Hull, and Wade Hampton, was fifty-eight. The difference is +notable and is mentioned for what it may be worth.</p> + +<p>Through the autumn of 1812 the frigate cruised beneath tropic suns, much +of the time off the coast of Brazil. Today the health and comfort of the +bluejacket are so scrupulously provided for in every possible way that a +battleship is the standard of perfection for efficiency in organization. +It is amazing that in such a ship as the <i>Constitution</i> four hundred men +could be cheerful and ready to fight after weeks and even months at sea. +They <a name="Page_118" id="Page_118" />were crowded below the water line, without proper heat, plumbing, +lighting, or ventilation, each man being allowed only twenty-eight +inches by eight feet of space in which to sling his hammock against the +beams overhead. Scurvy and other diseases were rampant. As many as +seventy of the crew of the <i>Constitution</i> were on the sick list shortly +before she fought the <i>Guerrière</i>. The food was wholesome for rugged +men, but it was limited solely to salt beef, hard bread, dried peas, +cheese, pork, and spirits.</p> + +<p>Such conditions, however, had not destroyed the vigor of those hardy +seamen of the <i>Constitution</i> when, on the 29th of December and within +sight of the Brazilian coast, the lookout at the masthead sang out to +Captain Bainbridge that a heavy ship was coming up under easy canvas. It +turned out to be His Britannic Majesty's frigate <i>Java</i>, Captain Henry +Lambert, who, like Carden, made the mistake of insisting upon a combat. +His reasons were sounder than those of Dacres or Carden, however, for +the <i>Java</i> was only a shade inferior to the <i>Constitution</i> in guns and +carried as many men. In every respect they were so evenly matched that +the test of battle could have no aftermath of extenuation.</p> + +<p><a name="Page_119" id="Page_119" />The <i>Java</i> at once hastened in pursuit of the American ship which drew +off the coast as though in flight, the real purpose being to get clear +of the neutral Brazilian waters. The <i>Constitution</i> must have been a +picture to stir the heart and kindle the imagination, her black hull +heeling to the pressure of the tall canvas, the long rows of guns +frowning from the open ports, while her bunting rippled a glorious +defiance, with a commodore's pennant at the mainmast-head, the Stars and +Stripes streaming from the mizzen peak and main-topgallant mast, and a +Union Jack at the fore. The <i>Java</i> was adorned as bravely, and Captain +Lambert had lashed an ensign in the rigging on the chance that his other +colors might be shot away.</p> + +<p>The two ships began the fray at what they called long range, which would +be about a mile, and then swept onward to pass on opposite tacks. It was +the favorite maneuver of trying to gain the weather gage, and while they +were edging to windward a round shot smashed the wheel of the +<i>Constitution</i> which so hampered her for the moment that Captain +Lambert, handsomely taking advantage of the mishap, let the <i>Java</i> run +past his enemy's stern and poured in a broadside which hit several of +the American seamen. Both commanders <a name="Page_120" id="Page_120" />displayed, in a high degree, the +art of handling ships under sail as they luffed or wore and tenaciously +jockeyed for position, while the gunners fought in the smoke that +drifted between the frigates.</p> + +<p>At length Captain Lambert became convinced that he had met his master at +this agile style of warfare and determined to come to close quarters +before the <i>Java</i> was fatally damaged. Her masts and yards were crashing +to the deck and the slaughter among the crew was already appalling. +Marines and seamen gathered in the gangways and upon the forecastle head +to spring aboard the <i>Constitution</i>, but Captain Bainbridge drove his +ship clear very shortly after the collision and continued to pound the +<i>Java</i> to kindling-wood with his broadsides. The fate of the action was +no longer in doubt. The British frigate was on fire, Captain Lambert was +mortally wounded, and all her guns had been silenced. The <i>Constitution</i> +hauled off to repair damages and stood back an hour later to administer +the final blow. But the flag of the <i>Java</i> fluttered down, and the +lieutenant in command surrendered.</p> + +<p>The <i>Constitution</i> had again crushed the enemy with so little damage to +herself that she was ready to continue her cruise, with a loss of only +nine <a name="Page_121" id="Page_121" />killed and twenty-five wounded. The <i>Java</i> was a fine ship utterly +destroyed, a sinking, dismasted hulk, with a hundred and twenty-four of +her men dead or suffering from wounds. It is significant to learn that +during six weeks at sea they had fired but six practice broadsides, of +blank cartridges, although there were many raw hands in the crew, while +the men of the <i>Constitution</i> had been incessantly drilled in firing +until their team play was like that of a football eleven. There was no +shooting at random. Under Hull and Bainbridge they had been taught their +trade, which was to lay the gun on the target and shoot as rapidly as +possible.</p> + +<p>For the diminutive American navy, the year of 1812 came to its close +with a record of success so illustrious as to seem almost incredible. It +is more dignified to refrain from extolling our own exploits and to +recall the effects of these sea duels upon the minds of the people, the +statesmen, and the press of the England of that period. Their outbursts +of wrathful humiliation were those of a maritime race which cared little +or nothing about the course of the American war by land. Theirs was the +salty tradition, virile and perpetual, which a century later and in a +friendlier guise was to create a Grand Fleet which should keep watch and +ward in the <a name="Page_122" id="Page_122" />misty Orkneys and hold the Seven Seas safe against the +naval power of Imperial Germany. Then, as now, the English nation +believed that its armed ships were its salvation.</p> + +<p>It is easier to understand, bearing this in mind, why after the fight of +the <i>Guerrière</i> the London <i>Times</i> indulged in such frenzied +lamentations as these:</p> + +<blockquote><p>We witnessed the gloom which that event cast over high and + honorable minds. . . . Never before in the history of the world did + an English frigate strike to an American, and though we cannot say + that Captain Dacres, under all circumstances, is punishable for + this act, yet we do say there are commanders in the English navy + who would a thousand times rather have gone down with their colors + flying than to have set their fellow sailors so fatal an example.</p> + +<p> Good God! that a few short months should have so altered the tone + of British sentiments! Is it true, or is it not, that our navy was + accustomed to hold the Americans in utter contempt? Is it true, or + is it not, that the <i>Guerrière</i> sailed up and down the American + coast with her name painted in large characters on her sails in + boyish defiance of Commodore Rodgers? Would any captain, however + young, have indulged such a foolish piece of vain-boasting if he + had not been carried forward by the almost unanimous feeling of his + associates?</p> + +<p> <a name="Page_123" id="Page_123" />We have since sent out more line-of-battle ships and heavier + frigates. Surely we must now mean to smother the American navy. A + very short time before the capture of the <i>Guerrière</i> an American + frigate was an object of ridicule to our honest tars. Now the + prejudice is actually setting the other way and great pains seems + to be taken by the friends of ministers to prepare the public for + the surrender of a British seventy-four to an opponent lately so + much contemned.</p></blockquote> + +<p>It was when the news reached England that the <i>Java</i> had been destroyed +by the <i>Constitution</i> that indignation found a climax in the outcry of +the <i>Pilot</i>, a foremost naval authority:</p> + +<blockquote><p>The public will learn, with sentiments which we shall not presume + to anticipate, that a third British frigate has struck to an + American. This is an occurrence that calls for serious + reflection,—this, and the fact stated in our paper of yesterday, + that Lloyd's list contains notices of upwards of five hundred + British vessels captured in seven months by the Americans. Five + hundred merchantmen and three frigates! Can these statements be + true; and can the English people hear them unmoved? Any one who + would have predicted such a result of an American war this time + last year would have been treated as a madman or a traitor. He + would have been told, if his opponents had condescended to argue + with him, that long ere seven months had elapsed the American flag + would have been swept from the seas, the contemptible navy of the + United States annihilated, and their maritime <a name="Page_124" id="Page_124" />arsenals rendered a + heap of ruins. Yet down to this moment not a single American + frigate has struck her flag. They insult and laugh at our want of + enterprise and vigor. They leave their ports when they please and + return to them when it suits their convenience; they traverse the + Atlantic; they beset the West India Islands; they advance to the + very chops of the Channel; they parade along the coasts of South + America; nothing chases, nothing intercepts, nothing engages them + but to yield them triumph.</p></blockquote> + +<p>It was to be taken for granted that England would do something more than +scold about the audacity of the American navy. Even after the +declaration of war her most influential men hoped that the repeal of the +obnoxious Orders-in-Council might yet avert a solution of the American +problem by means of the sword. There was hesitation to apply the utmost +military and naval pressure, and New England was regarded with feelings +almost friendly because of its opposition to an offensive warfare +against Great Britain and an invasion of Canada.</p> + +<p>Absorbed in the greater issue against Napoleon, England was nevertheless +aroused to more vigorous action against the United States and devised +strong blockading measures for the spring of 1813. Unable to operate +against the enemy's ships in force <a name="Page_125" id="Page_125" />or to escape from ports which were +sealed by vigilant squadrons, the American navy to a large extent was +condemned to inactivity for the remainder of the war. Occasional actions +were fought and merit was justly won, but there was nothing like the +glory of 1812, which shone undimmed by defeat and which gave to the +annals of the nation one of its great chapters of heroic and masterful +achievement. It was singularly apt that the noble and victorious +American frigates should have been called the <i>Constitution</i> and the +<i>United States</i>. They inspired a new respect for the flag with the +stripes and the stars and for all that it symbolized.</p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 508px;"> +<img src="images/image-6.jpg" width="508" height="600" alt="ISAAC HULL" title="" /> +<p><b>WILLIAM BAINBRIDGE</b></p> + +<p><b>Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation.</b></p> +</div> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 490px;"> +<img src="images/image-7.jpg" width="490" height="600" alt="WILLIAM BAINBRIDGE" title="" /> +<p><b>ISAAC HULL</b></p> + +<p><b>Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation.</b></p> +</div> + + + + +<hr style="width: 25%;" /> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VII" id="CHAPTER_VII" /><a name="Page_126" id="Page_126" />CHAPTER VII</h2> + +<h3>"DON'T GIVE UP THE SHIP!"</h3> + +<p>The second year of the war by sea opened brilliantly enough to satisfy +the American people, who were now in a mood to expect too much of their +navy. In February the story of the <i>Wasp</i> and the <i>Frolic</i> was repeated +by two ships of precisely the same class. The American sloop-of-war +<i>Hornet</i> had sailed to South America with the <i>Constitution</i> and was +detached to blockade, in the port of Bahia, the British naval sloop +<i>Bonne Citoyenne</i>, which contained treasure to the amount of half a +million pounds in specie. Captain James Lawrence of the <i>Hornet</i> sent in +a challenge to fight, ship against ship, pledging his word that the +<i>Constitution</i> would not interfere, but the British commander, perhaps +mindful of his precious cargo, declined the invitation. Instead of this, +he sensibly sent word to a great seventy-four at Rio de Janeiro, begging +her to come and drive the pestiferous <i>Hornet</i> away.</p> + +<p><a name="Page_127" id="Page_127" />The British battleship arrived so suddenly that Captain Lawrence was +compelled to dodge and flee in the darkness. By a close shave he gained +the open sea and made off up the coast. For several weeks the <i>Hornet</i> +idled to and fro, vainly seeking merchant prizes, and then off the +Demerara River on February 24, 1813, she fell in with the British brig +<i>Peacock</i>, that flew the royal ensign. The affair lasted no more than +fifteen minutes. The <i>Peacock</i> was famous for shining brass work, +spotless paint, and the immaculate trimness of a yacht, but her gunnery +had been neglected, for which reason she went to the bottom in six +fathoms of water with shot-holes in her hull and thirty-seven of her +crew put out of action. The sting of the <i>Hornet</i> had been prompt and +fatal. Captain Lawrence had only one man killed and two wounded, and his +ship was as good as ever. Crowding his prisoners on board and being +short of provisions and water, he set sail for a home port and anchored +in New York harbor. He was in time to share with Bainbridge the carnival +of salutes, processions, dinners, addresses of congratulation, votes of +thanks, swords, medals, prize money, promotion—every possible tribute +of an adoring and grateful people.</p> + +<p>One of the awards bestowed upon Lawrence was <a name="Page_128" id="Page_128" />the command of the frigate +<i>Chesapeake</i>. Among seamen she was rated an unlucky ship, and Lawrence +was confidently expected to break the spell. Her old crew had left her +after the latest voyage, which met with no success, and other sailors +were reluctant to join her. Privateering had attracted many of them, and +the navy was finding it difficult to recruit the kind of men it desired. +Lawrence was compelled to sign on a scratch lot, some Portuguese, a few +British, and many landlubbers. Given time to shake them together in hard +service at sea, he would have made a smart crew of them no doubt, as +Isaac Hull had done in five weeks with the men of the <i>Constitution</i>, +but destiny ordered otherwise.</p> + +<p>In the spring of 1813 the harbor of Boston was blockaded by the +thirty-eight-gun British frigate <i>Shannon</i>, Captain Philip Vere Broke, +who had been in this ship for seven years. In the opinion of Captain +Mahan, "his was one of those cases where singular merit as an officer +and an attention to duty altogether exceptional had not yet obtained +opportunity for distinction. It would probably be safe to say that no +more thoroughly efficient ship of her class had been seen in the British +navy during the twenty years' war with France."</p> + +<p>Captain Broke was justly confident in his own <a name="Page_129" id="Page_129" />leadership and in the +efficiency of a ship's company, which had retained its identity of +organization through so many years of his personal and energetic +supervision. Indeed, the captain of the British flagship on the American +station wrote: "The <i>Shannon's</i> men were trained and understood gunnery +better than any men I ever saw." Every morning the men were exercised at +training the guns and in the afternoon in the use of the broadsword, +musket, and pike. Twice each week the crew fired at targets with great +guns and musketry and the sailor who hit the bull's eye received a pound +of tobacco. Without warning Captain Broke would order a cask tossed +overboard and then suddenly order some particular gun to sink it. In +brief, the <i>Shannon</i> possessed those qualities which had been notable in +the victorious American frigates and which were lamentably deficient in +the <i>Chesapeake</i>.</p> + +<p>Lawrence's men were unknown to each other and to their officers, and +they had never been to sea together. The last draft came aboard, in +fact, just as the anchor was weighed and the <i>Chesapeake</i> stood out to +meet her doom. Even most of her officers were new to the ship. They had +no chance whatever to train or handle the rabble between <a name="Page_130" id="Page_130" />decks. Now +Captain Broke had been anxious to fight this American frigate as +matching the <i>Shannon</i> in size and power. He had already addressed to +Captain Lawrence a challenge whose wording was a model of courtesy but +which was provocative to the last degree. A sailor of Lawrence's heroic +temper was unlikely to avoid such a combat, stimulated as he was by the +unbroken success of his own navy in duels between frigates.</p> + +<p>On the first day of June, Captain Broke boldly ran into Boston harbor +and broke out his flag in defiance of the <i>Chesapeake</i> which was riding +at anchor as though waiting to go to sea. Instantly accepting the +invitation, Captain Lawrence hoisted colors, fired a gun, and mustered +his crew. In this ceremonious fashion, as gentlemen were wont to meet +with pistols to dispute some point of honor, did the <i>Chesapeake</i> sail +out to fight the waiting <i>Shannon</i>. The news spread fast and wide and +thousands of people, as though they were bound to the theater, hastened +to the heights of Malden, to Nahant, and to the headlands of Salem and +Marblehead, in hopes of witnessing this famous sight. They assumed that +victory was inevitable. Any other surmise was preposterous.</p> + +<p>These eager crowds were cheated of the spectacle, <a name="Page_131" id="Page_131" />however, for the +<i>Chesapeake</i> bore away to the eastward after rounding Boston Light and +dropped hull down until her sails were lost in the summer haze, with the +<i>Shannon</i> in her company as if they steered for some rendezvous. They +were firing when last seen and the wind bore the echo of the guns, faint +and far away. It was most extraordinary that three weeks passed before +the people would believe the tidings of the disaster. A pilot who had +left the <i>Chesapeake</i> at five o'clock in the afternoon reported that he +was still near enough an hour later to see the two ships locked side by +side, that a fearful explosion had happened aboard the <i>Chesapeake</i>, and +that through a rift in the battle smoke he had beheld the British flag +flying above the American frigate.</p> + +<p>This report was confirmed by a fishing boat from Cape Ann and by the +passengers in a coastwise packet, but the public doubted and still hoped +until the newspapers came from Halifax with an account of the arrival of +the <i>Chesapeake</i> as prize to the <i>Shannon</i> and of the funeral honors +paid to the body of Captain James Lawrence. The tragic defeat came at an +extremely dark moment of the war when almost every expectation had been +disappointed and the future was clouded. Richard <a name="Page_132" id="Page_132" />Rush, the American +diplomatist, wrote, recalling the event:</p> + +<blockquote><p>I remember—what American does not!—the first rumor of it. I + remember the startling sensation. I remember at first the universal + incredulity. I remember how the post-offices were thronged for + successive days by anxious thousands; how collections of citizens + rode out for miles on the highway, accosting the mail to catch + something by anticipation. At last, when the certainty was known, I + remember the public gloom; funeral orations and badges of mourning + bespoke it. "Don't give up the ship"—the dying words of + Lawrence—were on every tongue.</p></blockquote> + +<p>It was learned that the <i>Chesapeake</i> had followed the <i>Shannon</i> until +five o'clock, when the latter luffed and showed her readiness to begin +fighting. Lawrence was given the choice of position, with a westerly +breeze, but he threw away this advantage, preferring to trust to his +guns with a green crew rather than the complex and delicate business of +maneuvering his ship under sail. He came bowling straight down at the +<i>Shannon</i>, luffed in his turn, and engaged her at a distance of fifty +yards. The breeze was strong and the nimble American frigate forged +ahead more rapidly than Lawrence expected, so that presently her +broadside guns had ceased to bear.</p> + +<p><a name="Page_133" id="Page_133" />While Lawrence was trying to slacken headway and regain the desired +position, the enemy's shot disabled his headsails, and the <i>Chesapeake</i> +came up into the wind with canvas all a-flutter. It was a mishap which a +crew of trained seamen might have quickly mended, but the frigate was +taken aback—that is, the breeze drove her stern foremost toward the +<i>Shannon</i> and exposed her to a deadly cannonade which the American +gunners were unable to return. The hope of salvation lay in getting the +ship under way again or in boarding the <i>Shannon</i>. It was in this moment +that the battle was won and lost, for every gun of the British broadside +was sweeping the American deck diagonally from stern to bow, while the +marines in the tops of the <i>Shannon</i> picked off the officers and seamen +of the <i>Chesapeake</i>, riddling them with musket balls. It was like the +swift blast of a hurricane. Lawrence fell, mortally wounded. Ludlow, his +first lieutenant, was carried below. The second lieutenant was stationed +between decks, and the third forsook his post to assist those who were +carrying Lawrence below to the gun deck. Not an officer remained on the +spar deck and not a living man was left on the quarter deck when the +<i>Chesapeake</i> drifted against the <i>Shannon</i> after four minutes <a name="Page_134" id="Page_134" />of this +infernal destruction. As the ships collided, Captain Broke dashed +forward and shouted for boarders, leading them across to the American +deck. No more than fifty men followed him and three hundred Yankee +sailors should have been able to wipe the party out, but most of the +<i>Chesapeake</i> crew were below, and, demoralized by lack of discipline and +leadership, they refused to come up and stand the gaff. Brave resistance +was made by the few who remained on deck and a dozen more followed the +second lieutenant, George Budd, as he rushed up to rally a forlorn hope.</p> + +<p>It was a desperate encounter while it lasted, and Captain Broke was +slashed by a saber as he led a charge to clear the forecastle. Yet two +minutes sufficed to clear the decks of the <i>Chesapeake</i>, and the few +visible survivors were thrown down the hatchways. The guns ceased +firing, and the crew below sent up a message of surrender. The frigates +had drifted apart, leaving Broke and his seamen to fight without +reinforcement, but before they came together again the day was won. This +was the most humiliating phase of the episode, that a handful of British +sailors and marines should have carried an American frigate by boarding.</p> + +<p>It must not be inferred that the <i>Chesapeake</i> <a name="Page_135" id="Page_135" />inflicted no damage +during the fifteen minutes of this famous engagement. Thirty-seven of +the British boarding party were killed or wounded and the American +marines—"leather-necks" then and "devil-dogs" now—fought in accordance +with the spirit of a corps which had won its first laurels in the +Revolution. Such broadsides as the <i>Chesapeake</i> was able to deliver were +accurately placed and inflicted heavy losses. The victory cost the +<i>Shannon</i> eighty-two men killed and wounded, while the American frigate +lost one hundred and forty-seven of her crew, or more than one-third of +her complement. Even in defeat the <i>Chesapeake</i> had punished the enemy +far more severely than the <i>Constitution</i> had been able to do.</p> + +<p>Lawrence lay in the cockpit, or hospital, when his men began to swarm +down in confusion and leaderless panic. Still conscious, he was aware +that disaster had overtaken them and he muttered again and again with +his dying breath, "Don't give up the ship. Blow her up." Thus passed to +an honorable fame an American naval officer of great gallantry and +personal charm. Although he brought upon his country a bitter +humiliation, the fact that he died sword in hand, his last thought for +his flag and his service, has atoned for his faults <a name="Page_136" id="Page_136" />of rashness and +overconfidence. The odds were against him, and ill-luck smashed his +chance of overcoming them. He was no more disgraced than Dacres when he +surrendered the <i>Guerrière</i> to a heavier ship, or than Lambert, dying on +his own deck, when he saw the colors of the <i>Java</i> hauled down.</p> + +<p>The <i>Shannon</i> took her prize to Halifax, and when the news came back +that the captain of the <i>Chesapeake</i> lay dead in a British port, the +bronzed sea-dogs of the Salem Marine Society resolved to fetch his body +home in a manner befitting his end. Captain George Crowninshield +obtained permission from the Government to sail with a flag of truce for +Halifax, and he equipped the brig <i>Henry</i> for the sad and solemn +mission. Her crew was picked from among the shipmasters of Salem, some +of them privateering skippers, every man of them a proven deep-water +commander. It was such a crew as never before or since took a vessel out +of an American port. When they returned to Salem with the remains of +Captain Lawrence and Lieutenant Ludlow, the storied old seaport saw +their funeral column pass through the quiet and crowded streets. The +pall-bearers bore names to thrill American hearts today—Hull, Stewart, +Bain<a name="Page_137" id="Page_137" />bridge, Blakely, Creighton, and Parker, all captains of the navy. A +Salem newspaper described the ceremonies simply and with an unconscious +pathos:</p> + +<blockquote><p>The day was unclouded, as if no incident should be wanting to crown + the mind with melancholy and woe—the wind from the same direction + and the sea presented the same unruffled surface as was exhibited + to our anxious view when on that memorable first day of July we saw + the immortal Lawrence proudly conducting his ship to action. . . . + The brig <i>Henry</i> containing the precious relics lay at anchor in + the harbor. They were placed in barges and, preceded by a long + procession of boats filled with seamen uniformed in blue jackets + and trousers, with a blue ribbon on their hats bearing the motto of + "Free Trade and Sailors' Rights," were rowed by minute strokes to + the end of India Wharf, where the bearers were ready to receive the + honored dead. From the time the boats left the brig until the + bodies were landed, the United States brig <i>Rattlesnake</i> and the + brig <i>Henry</i> alternately fired minute guns . . . On arriving at the + meeting-house the coffins were placed in the centre of the church + by the seamen who rowed them ashore and who stood during the + ceremony leaning upon them in an attitude of mourning. The church + was decorated with cypress and evergreen, and the names of Lawrence + and Ludlow appeared in gilded letters on the front of the pulpit.</p></blockquote> + +<p>It was wholly reasonable that the exploit of the <i>Shannon</i> should arouse +fervid enthusiasm in the <a name="Page_138" id="Page_138" />breast of every Briton. The wounds inflicted +by Hull, Decatur, and Bainbridge still rankled, but they were now +forgotten and the loud British boastings equaled all the tales of Yankee +brag. A member of Parliament declared that the "action which Broke +fought with the <i>Chesapeake</i> was in every respect unexampled. It was +not—and he knew it was a bold assertion which he made—to be surpassed +by any other engagement which graced the naval annals of Great Britain." +Admiral Warren was still in a peevish humor at the hard knocks inflicted +on the Royal Navy when he wrote, in congratulating Captain Broke: "At +this critical moment you could not have restored to the British naval +service the preeminence it has always preserved, or contradicted in a +more forcible manner the foul aspersions and calumnies of a conceited, +boasting enemy than by the brilliant act you have performed. The +relation of such an event restores the history of ancient times and will +do more good to the service than it is possible to conceive."</p> + +<p>Captain Broke was made a baronet and received other honors and awards +which he handsomely deserved, but the wound he had suffered at the head +of his boarding party disabled him for further <a name="Page_139" id="Page_139" />sea duty. If the +influence of the <i>Constitution</i> and the <i>United States</i> was far-reaching +in improving the efficiency of the American navy, it can be said also +that the victory of the <i>Shannon</i> taught the British service the value +of rigorous attention to gunnery and a highly trained and disciplined +personnel.</p> + +<p>American chagrin was somewhat softened a few weeks later when two very +small ships, the <i>Enterprise</i> and the <i>Boxer</i>, met in a spirited combat +off the harbor of Portland, Maine, like two bantam cocks, and the +Britisher was beaten in short order on September 5, 1813. The +<i>Enterprise</i> had been a Yankee schooner in the war with Tripoli but had +been subsequently altered to a square rig and had received more guns and +men to worry the enemy's privateers. The brig-of-war was a kind of +vessel heartily disliked by seamen and now vanished from blue water. The +immortal Boatswain Chucks of Marryat proclaimed that "they would +certainly damn their inventor to all eternity" and that "their common, +low names, 'Pincher,' 'Thrasher,' 'Boxer,' 'Badger,' and all that sort, +are quite good enough for them."</p> + +<p>Commanding the <i>Enterprise</i> was Captain William Burrows, twenty-eight +years old, who had seen only a month of active service in the war. +<a name="Page_140" id="Page_140" />Captain Samuel Blyth of the <i>Boxer</i> had worked his way up to this +unimportant post after many years of arduous duty in the British navy. +He might have declined a tussel with the <i>Enterprise</i> for his crew +numbered only sixty-six men against a hundred and twenty, but he nailed +his colors to the mainmast and remarked that they would never come down +while there was any life in him.</p> + +<p>The day was calm, the breeze fitful, and the little brigs drifted about +each other until they lay within pistol shot. Then both loosed their +broadsides, while the sailors shouted bravely, and both captains fell, +Blyth killed instantly and Burrows mortally hurt but crying out that the +flag must never be struck. There was no danger of this, for the +<i>Enterprise</i> raked the British brig through and through until resistance +was hopeless. Captain Blyth was as good as his word. He did not live to +see his ensign torn down. Great hearts in little ships, these two +captains were buried side by side in a churchyard which overlooks Casco +Bay, and there you may read their epitaphs today.</p> + +<p>The grim force of circumstances was beginning to alter the naval policy +of the United States. Notwithstanding the dramatic successes, her flag +was almost banished from the high seas by the close of <a name="Page_141" id="Page_141" />the year 1813. +The frigates <i>Constellation</i>, <i>United States</i>, and <i>Macedonian</i> were +hemmed in port by the British blockade; the <i>Adams</i> and the +<i>Constitution</i> were laid up for repairs; and the only formidable ships +of war which roamed at large were the <i>President</i>, the <i>Essex</i>, and the +<i>Congress</i>. The smaller vessels which had managed to slip seaward and +which were of such immense value in destroying British commerce found +that the system of convoying merchantmen in fleets of one hundred or two +hundred sail had left the ocean almost bare of prizes. It was the habit +of these convoys, however, to scatter as they neared their home ports, +every skipper cracking on sail and the devil take the hindmost—a +failing which has survived unto this day, and many a wrathful officer of +an American cruiser or destroyer in the war against Germany could +heartily echo the complaint of Nelson when he was a captain, "behaving +as all convoys that ever I saw did, shamefully ill, and parting company +every day."</p> + +<p>This was the reason why American naval vessels and privateers left their +own coasts and dared to rove in the English Channel, as Paul Jones had +done in the <i>Ranger</i> a generation earlier. It was discovered that enemy +merchantmen could be <a name="Page_142" id="Page_142" />snapped up more easily within sight of their own +shores than thousands of miles away. First to emphasize this fact in the +War of 1812 was the naval brig <i>Argus</i>, Captain William H. Allen, which +made a summer crossing and cruised for a month on end in the Irish Sea +and in the chops of the Channel with a gorgeous recompense for her +shameless audacity. England scolded herself red in the face while the +saucy <i>Argus</i> captured twenty-seven ships and took her pick of their +valuable cargoes. Her course could be traced by the blazing hulls that +she left in her wake and this was how the British gun brig <i>Pelican</i> +finally caught up with her.</p> + +<p>Although the advantage of size and armament was with the <i>Pelican</i>, it +was to be expected that the <i>Argus</i> would prove more than a match for +her. The American commander, Captain Allen, had played a distinguished +part in several of the most famous episodes of the navy. As third +lieutenant of the <i>Chesapeake</i>, in 1807, he had picked up a live coal in +the cook's galley, held it in his fingers, and so fired the only gun +discharged against the <i>Leopard</i> in that inglorious surprise and +surrender. As first officer of the frigate <i>United States</i> he received +credit for the splendid gunnery which had overwhelmed the <i>Macedonian</i>, +and he enjoyed the glory of bringing <a name="Page_143" id="Page_143" />the prize to port. It was as a +reward of merit that he was given command of the <i>Argus</i>. Alas, in this +fight off the coast of Wales he lost both his ship and his life, and +England had scored again. There was no ill-luck this time—nothing to +plead in excuse. The American brig threw away a chance of victory +because her shooting was amazingly bad, and instead of defending the +deck with pistol, pike, and musket, when the boarders came over the bow +the crew lowered the flag.</p> + +<p>It was an early morning fight, on August 14, 1813, in which Captain +Allen had his leg shot off within five minutes after the two brigs had +engaged. He refused to be taken below, but loss of blood soon made him +incapable of command, and presently his first lieutenant was stunned by +a grapeshot which grazed his scalp. The ship was well sailed, however, +and gained a position for raking the <i>Pelican</i> in deadly fashion, but +the shot went wild and scarcely any harm was done. The British captain +chose his own range and methodically made a wreck of the <i>Argus</i> in +twenty minutes of smashing fire, working around her at will while not a +gun returned his broadsides. Then he sheered close and was prepared to +finish it on the deck of the <i>Argus</i> when she surrendered with +twenty-three <a name="Page_144" id="Page_144" />of her crew out of action. The <i>Pelican</i> was so little +punished that only two men were killed. The officer left in command of +the <i>Argus</i> laid this unhappy conclusion to "the superior size and metal +of our opponent, and the fatigue which the crew underwent from a very +rapid succession of prizes." There were those on board who blamed it to +the casks of Oporto wine which had been taken out of the latest prize +and which the sailors had secretly tapped. Honesty is the best policy, +even in dealing with an enemy. The affair of the <i>Argus</i> and the +<i>Pelican</i> was not calculated to inflate Yankee pride.</p> + +<p>To balance this, however, came two brilliant actions by small ships. The +new <i>Peacock</i>, named for the captured British brig, under Captain Lewis +Warrington, stole past the blockade of New York. Off the Florida coast +on the 29th of April she sighted a convoy and attacked the escort brig +of eighteen guns, the <i>Epervier</i>. In this instance the behavior of the +American vessel and her crew was supremely excellent and not a flaw +could be found. They hulled the British brig forty-five times and made a +shambles of her deck and did it with the loss of one man.</p> + +<p>Even more sensational was the last cruise of the <i>Wasp</i>, Captain +Johnston Blakely, which sailed <a name="Page_145" id="Page_145" />from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, in May +and roamed the English Channel to the dismay of all honest British +merchantmen. The brig-of-war <i>Reindeer</i> endeavored to put an end to her +career but nineteen minutes sufficed to finish an action in which the +<i>Wasp</i> slaughtered half the British crew and thrice repelled boarders. +This was no light task, for as Michael Scott, the British author of <i>Tom +Cringle's Log</i>, candidly expressed it:</p> + +<blockquote><p>In the field, or grappling in mortal combat on the blood-slippery + deck of an enemy's vessel, a British soldier or sailor is the + bravest of the brave. No soldier or sailor of any other country, + saving and excepting those damned Yankees, can stand against them + . . . I don't like Americans. I never did and never shall like + them. I have no wish to eat with them, drink with them, deal with + or consort with them in any way; but let me tell the whole + truth,—<i>nor fight</i> with them, were it not for the laurel to be + acquired by overcoming an enemy so brave, determined, and alert, + and every way so worthy of one's steel as they have always proved.</p></blockquote> + +<p>Refitting in a French port, the dashing Blakely took the <i>Wasp</i> to sea +again and encountered a convoy in charge of a huge, lumbering ship of +the line. Nothing daunted, the <i>Wasp</i> flitted in among the timid +merchant ships and snatched a valuable prize <a name="Page_146" id="Page_146" />laden with guns and +military stores. Attempting to bag another, she was chased away by the +indignant seventy-four and winged it in search of other quarry until she +sighted four strange sails. Three of them were British war brigs in hot +pursuit of a Yankee privateer, and Johnston Blakely was delighted to +play a hand in the game. He selected his opponent, which happened to be +the <i>Avon</i>, and overtook her in the darkness of evening. Before a strong +wind they foamed side by side, while the guns flashed crimson beneath +the shadowy gleam of tall canvas. Thus they ran for an hour and a half, +and then the <i>Avon</i> signaled that she was beaten, with five guns +dismounted, forty-two men dead or wounded, seven feet of water in the +hold, the magazine flooded, and the spars and rigging almost destroyed.</p> + +<p>Blakely was about to send a crew aboard when another hostile brig, +forsaking the agile Yankee privateer, came up to help the <i>Avon</i>. The +<i>Wasp</i> was perfectly willing to take on this second adversary, but just +then a third British ship loomed through the obscurity, and the ocean +seemed a trifle overpopulated for safety. Blakely ran off before the +wind, compelled to abandon his prize. The <i>Avon</i>, however, was so badly +battered that she <a name="Page_147" id="Page_147" />went to the bottom before the wounded seamen could be +removed from her. Thence the <i>Wasp</i> went to Madeira and was later +reported as spoken near the Cape Verde Islands, but after that she +vanished from blue water, erased by some tragic fate whose mystery was +never solved. To the port of missing ships she carried brave Blakely and +his men after a meteoric career which had swept her from one victory to +another.</p> + +<p>Of the frigates, only three saw action during the last two years of the +war, and of these the <i>President</i> and the <i>Essex</i> were compelled to +strike to superior forces of the enemy. The <i>Constitution</i> was lucky +enough to gain the open sea in December, 1814, and fought her farewell +battle with the frigate <i>Cyane</i> and the sloop-of-war <i>Levant</i> on the +20th of February. In this fight Captain Charles Stewart showed himself a +gallant successor to Hull and Bainbridge. Together the two British ships +were stronger than the <i>Constitution</i>, but Stewart cleverly hammered the +one and then the other and captured both. Honor was also due the plucky +little <i>Levant</i>, which, instead of taking to her heels, stood by to +assist her larger comrade like a terrier at the throat of a wolf. It is +interesting to note that the captains, English and American, had +received word that peace had <a name="Page_148" id="Page_148" />been declared, but without official +confirmation they preferred to ignore it. The spirit which lent to naval +warfare the spirit of the duel was too strong to let the opportunity +pass.</p> + +<p>The <i>President</i> was a victim of a continually increased naval strength +by means of which Great Britain was able to strangle the seafaring trade +and commerce of the United States as the war drew toward its close. +Captain Decatur, who had taken command of this frigate, remarked "the +great apprehension and danger" which New York felt, in common with the +entire seaboard, and the anxiety of the city government that the crew of +the ship should remain for defense of the port. Coastwise navigation was +almost wholly suspended, and thousands of sloops and schooners feared to +undertake voyages to Philadelphia, Baltimore, or Charleston. Instead of +these, canvas-covered wagons struggled over the poor highways in +continuous streams between New England and the Southern coast towns. +This awkward result of the blockade moved the sense of humor of the +Yankee rhymsters who placarded the wagons with such mottoes as "Free +Trade and Oxen's Rights" and parodied <i>Ye Mariners of England</i> with the +lines:</p> + +<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"><a name="Page_149" id="Page_149" /> +<span>Ye wagoners of Freedom<br /></span> +<span>Whose chargers chew the cud,<br /></span> +<span>Whose wheels have braved a dozen years<br /></span> +<span>The gravel and the mud;<br /></span> +<span>Your glorious hawbucks yoke again<br /></span> +<span>To take another jag,<br /></span> +<span>And scud through the mud<br /></span> +<span>Where the heavy wheels do drag,<br /></span> +<span>Where the wagon creak is long and low<br /></span> +<span>And the jaded oxen lag.<br /></span> +</div><div class="stanza"> +<span>Columbia needs no wooden walls,<br /></span> +<span>No ships where billows swell;<br /></span> +<span>Her march is like a terrapin's,<br /></span> +<span>Her home is in her shell.<br /></span> +<span>To guard her trade and sailor's rights,<br /></span> +<span>In woods she spreads her flag.<br /></span> +</div></div> + +<p>Such ribald nonsense, however, was unfair to a navy which had done +magnificently well until smothered and suppressed by sheer weight of +numbers. It was in January, 1815, that Captain Decatur finally sailed +out of New York harbor in the hope of taking the <i>President</i> past the +blockading division which had been driven offshore by a heavy northeast +gale. The British ships were struggling back to their stations when they +spied the Yankee frigate off the southern coast of Long Island. It was a +stern chase, Decatur with a hostile squadron at his heels and unable to +turn and fight because <a name="Page_150" id="Page_150" />the odds were hopeless. The frigate <i>Endymion</i> +was faster than her consorts and, as she came up alone, the <i>President</i> +delayed to exchange broadsides before fleeing again with every sail set. +Her speed had been impaired by stranding as she came out past Sandy +Hook, else she might have out-footed the enemy. But soon the <i>Pomone</i> +and the <i>Tenedos</i>, frigates of the class of the <i>Shannon</i> and the +<i>Guerrière</i>, were in the hunt. Decatur was cornered, but his guns were +served until a fifth of the crew were disabled, the ship was crippled, +and a force fourfold greater than his own was closing in to annihilate +him at its leisure. "I deemed it my duty to surrender," said he, and a +noble American frigate, more formidable than the <i>Constitution</i>, was +added to the list of the Royal Navy.</p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 700px;"> +<img src="images/image-8.jpg" width="700" height="478" alt="A FRIGATE OF 1812 UNDER SAIL" title="" /> +<p><b>A FRIGATE OF 1812 UNDER SAIL</b></p> + +<p><b>The Constellation, of which this is a photograph, is somewhat smaller +than the Constitution, being rated at 38 guns as against 44 for the +latter. In general appearance, however, and particularly in rig, the two +types are very similar. Although the Constellation did not herself see +action in the War of 1812, she is a good example of the heavily armed +American frigate of that day—and the only one of them still to be seen +at sea under sail within recent years. At the present time the +Constellation lies moored at the pier of the Naval Training Station, +Newport, R.I.</b></p> + +<p><b>Photograph by E. Müller, Jr., Inc., New York.</b></p> +</div> + + + +<hr style="width: 25%;" /> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VIII" id="CHAPTER_VIII" /><a name="Page_151" id="Page_151" />CHAPTER VIII</h2> + +<h3>THE LAST CRUISE OF THE ESSEX</h3> + +<p>The last cruise of the <i>Essex</i> frigate, although an ill-fated one, makes +a story far less mournful than that of the <i>President</i>. She was the +first man-of-war to display the American flag in the wide waters of the +Pacific. Her long and venturesome voyage is still regarded as one of the +finest achievements of the navy, and it made secure the fame of Captain +David Porter. The <i>Essex</i> has a peculiar right to be held in +affectionate memory, apart from the very gallant manner of her ending, +because into her very timbers were builded the faith and patriotism of +the people of the New England seaport which had framed and launched her +as a loan to the nation in an earlier time of stress.</p> + +<p>At the end of the eighteenth century France had been the maritime enemy +more hotly detested than England, and unofficial war existed with the +"Terrible Republic." This situation was foreshadowed <a name="Page_152" id="Page_152" />as early as 1798 +by James McHenry, Secretary of War, when he indignantly announced to +Congress: "To forbear under such circumstances from taking naval and +military measures to secure our trade, defend our territories in case of +invasion, and to prevent or suppress domestic insurrection would be to +offer up the United States a certain prey to France and exhibit to the +world a sad spectacle of national degradation and imbecility."</p> + +<p>Congress thereupon resolved to build two dozen ships which should teach +France to mend her manners on the high seas, but the Treasury was too +poor to pay the million dollars which this modest navy was to cost. +Subscription lists were therefore opened in several shipping towns, and +private capital advanced the funds to put the needed frigates afloat. +The <i>Essex</i> was promptly contributed by Salem, and the advertisement of +the master builder is brave and resonant reading:</p> + +<blockquote><p>To Sons of Freedom! All true lovers of Liberty of your Country! + Step forth and give your assistance in building the frigate to + oppose French insolence and piracy. Let every man in possession of + a white oak tree be ambitious to be foremost in hurrying down the + timber to Salem where the noble structure is to be fabricated to + maintain your rights upon the seas and make the name of America + respected among the<a name="Page_153" id="Page_153" /> nations of the world. Your largest and longest + trees are wanted, and the arms of them for knees and rising timber. + Four trees are wanted for the keel which altogether will measure + 146 feet in length and hew sixteen inches square.</p></blockquote> + +<p>The story of the building of the <i>Essex</i> is that of an aroused and +reliant people. The great timbers were cut in the wood lots of the towns +near by and were hauled through the snowy streets of Salem on ox-sleds +while the people cheered them as they passed. The <i>Essex</i> was a Salem +ship from keel to truck. Her cordage was made in three ropewalks. +Captain Jonathan Haraden, the most famous Salem privateersman of the +Revolution, made the rigging for the mainmast in his loft. The sails +were cut from duck woven for the purpose in the mill on Broad Street and +the ironwork was forged by Salem shipsmiths. When the huge hempen cables +were ready to be conveyed to the frigate, the workmen hoisted them upon +their shoulders and in procession marched to the music of fife and drum. +In 1799, six months after the oak timbers had been standing trees, the +<i>Essex</i> slid from the stocks into the harbor of old Salem. She was the +handsomest and fastest American frigate of her day and when turned over +to the Government, she cost what seemed at <a name="Page_154" id="Page_154" />that day the very +considerable amount of seventy-five thousand dollars.</p> + +<p>Peace was patched up with France, however, and the <i>Essex</i> was compelled +to pursue more humdrum paths, now in the Indian Ocean and again with the +Mediterranean squadron, until war with England began in 1812. It was +intended that Captain Porter should rendezvous with the <i>Constitution</i> +and the <i>Hornet</i> in South American waters for a well-planned cruise +against British commerce, but other engagements detained Bainbridge, +notably his encounter with the <i>Java</i>, and so they missed each other by +a thousand miles or so. Since he had no means of communication, it was +characteristic of Porter to conclude to strike out for himself instead +of wandering about in an uncertain search for his friends.</p> + +<p>Porter conceived the bold plan of rounding the Horn and playing havoc +with the British whaling fleet. This adventure would take him ten +thousand miles from the nearest American port, but he reckoned that he +could capture provisions enough to feed his crew and supplies to refit +the ship. As a raid there was nothing to match this cruise until the +<i>Alabama</i> ran amuck among the Yankee clippers and whaling barks half a +century later. It was <a name="Page_155" id="Page_155" />the wrong time of year to brave the foul weather +of Cape Horn, however, and the <i>Essex</i> was battered and swept by one +furious gale after another. But at last she won through, stout ship that +she was, and her weary sailors found brief respite in the harbor of +Valparaiso on March 14, 1813. Thence Porter headed up the coast, +disguising the trim frigate so that she looked like a lubberly, +high-pooped Spanish merchantman.</p> + +<p>The luck of the navy was with the American captain for, as he went +poking about the Galapagos Islands, he surprised three fine, large +British whaling ships, all carrying guns and too useful to destroy. To +one of them, the <i>Georgiana</i>, he shifted more guns, put a crew of forty +men aboard under Lieutenant John Downes, ran up the American flag, and +commissioned his prize as a cruiser. The other two he also manned—and +now behold him, if you please, sailing the Pacific with a squadron of +four good ships! Soon he ran down and captured two British +letter-of-marque vessels, well armed and in fighting trim, and in a +trice he had not a squadron but a fleet under his command, seven ships +in all, mounting eighty guns and carrying three hundred and forty men +and eighty prisoners. Two of these prizes he discovered to be crammed +<a name="Page_156" id="Page_156" />to the hatches with cordage, paint, tar, canvas, and fresh provisions. +The list could not have been more acceptable if Captain David Porter +himself had signed the requisition in the New York Navy Yard.</p> + +<p>Lieutenant Downes was now sent off cruising by himself, and so well did +he profit by his captain's example and precepts that in a little while +he had bagged a squadron of his own, three ships with twenty-seven guns +and seventy-five men. When he rejoined the flagship in a harbor of the +mainland, Porter rewarded him by calling his cruiser the <i>Essex, +Junior</i>, promoting him to the rank of commander, and increasing his +armament. They then resumed cruising in two squadrons, finding more +British ships and sending them into the neutral harbor of Valparaiso or +home to the United States with precious cargoes of whale oil and bone. +Within a few months he swept the Southern Pacific almost clean of +British merchantmen, whalers, and privateers. Winter coming on, Porter +then sailed to the pleasant Marquesas Islands and laid the <i>Essex</i> up +for a thorough overhauling. The enemy had furnished all needful supplies +and even the money to pay the wages of the officers and crew.</p> + +<p>Fit for sea again, the <i>Essex</i> and the <i>Essex, Junior</i>, <a name="Page_157" id="Page_157" />betook +themselves to Valparaiso where they received information that the +thirty-six-gun frigate <i>Phoebe</i> of the British navy was earnestly +looking for them. She had been sent out from England to proceed to the +northwest American coast and destroy the fur station at the mouth of the +Columbia River. At Rio de Janeiro Captain Hillyar had heard reports of +the ravages of the <i>Essex</i> and he considered it his business to hunt +down this defiant Yankee. To make sure of success, he took the +sloop-of-war <i>Cherub</i> along with him and, doubling the Horn, they made +straight for Valparaiso. David Porter got wind of the pursuit but +assumed that the <i>Phoebe</i> was alone. He made no attempt to avoid a +meeting but on the contrary rather courted a fight with his old friend +Hillyar, whom he had known socially on the Mediterranean station. For an +officer of Porter's temper and training the capture of British whalers +was a useful but by no means glorious employment. He believed the real +vocation of a frigate of the American navy was to engage the enemy.</p> + +<p>The <i>Phoebe</i> and the <i>Cherub</i> sailed into the Chilean roadstead in +February, 1814, and found the <i>Essex</i> there. As Captain Hillyar was +passing in to seek an anchorage, the mate of a British merchantman +<a name="Page_158" id="Page_158" />climbed aboard to tell him that the <i>Essex</i> was unprepared for attack +and could be taken with ease. Her officers had given a ball the night +before in honor of the Spanish dignitaries of Valparaiso, and the decks +were still covered with awnings and gay with bunting and flags. +Reluctant to forego such a tempting opportunity, Captain Hillyar ran in +and luffed his frigate within a few yards of the Essex. To his +disappointed surprise, the American fighting ship was ready for action +on the instant. Though the punctilious restraints of a neutral port +should have compelled them to delay battle, Porter was vigilant and took +no chances. The liberty parties had been recalled from shore, the decks +had been cleared, the gunners were sent to quarters with matches +lighted, and the boarders were standing by the hammock nettings with +cutlasses gripped. Making the best of this unexpected turn of events, +the English captain shouted a greeting to David Porter and politely +conveyed his compliments, adding that his own ship was also ready for +action. So close were the two frigates at this moment that the jib-boom +of the <i>Phoebe</i> hung over the bulwarks of the <i>Essex</i>, and Porter called +out sharply that if so much as a rope was touched he would reply with a +broadside. The <a name="Page_159" id="Page_159" />urbane Captain Hillyar, perceiving his disadvantage, +exclaimed, "I had no intention of coming so near you. I am very sorry +indeed." With that he moved his ship to a respectful distance. Later he +had a chat with Captain Porter ashore and, when asked if he intended to +maintain the neutrality of the port, made haste to protest, "Sir, you +have been so careful to observe the rules that I feel myself bound in +honor to do the same."</p> + +<p>After a few days the <i>Phoebe</i> and the <i>Cherub</i> left the harbor and +watchfully waited outside, enforcing a strict blockade and determined to +render the <i>Essex</i> harmless unless she should choose to sally out and +fight. David Porter was an intrepid but not a reckless sailor. He had +the faster frigate but he had unluckily changed her battery from the +long guns to the more numerous but shorter range carronades. He was not +afraid to risk a duel with the <i>Phoebe</i> even with this handicap in +armament, but the sloop-of-war <i>Cherub</i> was a formidable vessel for her +size and the <i>Essex, Junior</i>, which was only a converted merchantman, +was of small account in a hammer-and-tongs action between naval ships.</p> + +<p>For his part, Captain Hillyar had no intention of letting the Yankee +frigate escape him. "He was an old disciple of Nelson," observes Mahan, +"fully <a name="Page_160" id="Page_160" />imbued with the teaching that the achievement of success and not +personal glory must dictate action. Having a well established reputation +for courage and conduct, he intended to leave nothing to the chances of +fortune which might decide a combat between equals. He therefore would +accept no provocation to fight without the <i>Cherub</i>. His duty was to +destroy the <i>Essex</i> with the least possible loss."</p> + +<p>Porter endured this vexatious situation for six weeks and then, learning +that other British frigates were on his trail, determined to escape to +the open sea. This decision involved waiting for the most favorable +moment of wind and weather, but Porter found his hand forced on the 28th +of March by a violent southerly gale which swept over the exposed bay of +Valparaiso and dragged the <i>Essex</i> from her anchorage. One of her cables +parted while the crew struggled to get sail on her. As she drifted +seaward, Porter decided to seize the emergency and take the long chance +of running out to windward of the <i>Phoebe</i> and the <i>Cherub</i>. He +therefore cut the other cable, and the <i>Essex</i> plunged into the wind +under single-reefed topsails to claw past the headland. Just as she was +about to clear it, a whistling squall carried away the maintopmast. +<a name="Page_161" id="Page_161" />This accident was a grave disaster, for the disabled frigate was now +unable either to regain a refuge in the bay or to win her way past the +British ship.</p> + +<p>As a last resort Captain Porter turned and ran along the coast, within +pistol shot of it, far inside the three-mile limit of neutral water, and +came to an anchor about three miles north of the city. Captain Hillyar +had no legal right to molest him, but in his opinion the end justified +the means and he resolved to attack. Deliberately the <i>Phoebe</i> and +<i>Cherub</i> selected their stations and, late in this stormy afternoon, +bombarded the crippled <i>Essex</i> without mercy. Porter with his carronades +was unable to repay the damage inflicted by the broadsides of the longer +guns, nor could he handle his ship to close in and retrieve the day in +the desperate game of boarding. He tried this ultimate venture, +nevertheless, and let go his cables. But the ship refused to move ahead. +Her sheets, tacks, and halliards had been shot away. The canvas was +hanging loose.</p> + +<p>Porter's guns were by no means silent, however, even in this hopeless +situation, and few crews have died harder or fought more grimly than +these seamen of the <i>Essex</i>. Among them was a little midshipman, wounded +but still at his post, a mere <a name="Page_162" id="Page_162" />child of thirteen years whose name was +David Farragut. His fortune it was to link those early days of the +American navy with a period half a century later when he won his renown +as the greatest of American admirals.</p> + +<p>In many a New England seaport were told the tales of this last fight of +the <i>Essex</i> until they became almost legendary—of Seaman John Ripley, +who cried, after losing his leg, "Farewell, boys, I can be of no more +use to you," and thereupon flung himself overboard out of a bow port; of +James Anderson, who died encouraging his comrades to fight bravely in +defense of liberty; of Benjamin Hazen, who dressed himself in a clean +shirt and jerkin, told his messmates that he could never submit to being +taken prisoner by the English and forthwith leaped into the sea and was +drowned. Such incidents help us to descry, amid the smoke and slaughter +of that desperate encounter, the spirit of the gallant David Porter. +Never was the saying, "It's not the ships but the men in them," better +exemplified. To Porter was granted greatness in defeat, a lot that comes +to few.</p> + +<p>For two hours he and his men endured such dreadful punishment as not +many ships have suffered. Again he attempted to work his way <a name="Page_163" id="Page_163" />nearer the +enemy, until he had not enough men left unhurt to serve the guns or to +haul at the pitifully splintered spars. In the last extremity, Porter +made an effort to destroy his vessel and to save her people from +captivity by letting the <i>Essex</i> drive ashore. A kedge anchor was let +go, and a dozen sailors tramped around the capstan while the chantey man +piped up a tune, but again fortune seemed against him for the hawser +snapped, and the wind began to blow the frigate into deeper water. What +happened then is best recalled in the simple words of Captain David +Porter himself:</p> + +<blockquote><p>I now sent for the officers of division to consult them and what + was my surprise to find only acting Lieutenant Stephen Decatur + M'Knight remaining. . . . I was informed that the cockpit, the + steerage, the wardroom, and the berth deck could contain no more + wounded, that the wounded were killed while the surgeons were + dressing them, and that if something was not speedily done to + prevent it, the ship would soon sink from the number of shot holes + in her bottom. On sending for the carpenter he informed me that all + his crew had been killed or wounded.</p> + +<p> The enemy, from the impossibility of reaching him with our + carronades and the little apprehension that was excited by our + fire, which had now become much slackened, was enabled to take aim + at us as at a target; his shot never missed our hull and my ship + was cut up in a manner which was perhaps never before witnessed;<a name="Page_164" id="Page_164" /> + in fine, I saw no hope of saving her, and at twenty minutes after 6 + P.M. I gave the painful order to strike the colors. Seventy-five + men including officers were all that remained of my whole crew + after the action, many of them severely wounded, some of whom have + since died.</p> + +<p> The enemy still continued his fire and my brave, though unfortunate + companions were still falling about me. I directed an opposite gun + to be fired to show them we intended no further resistance but they + did not desist. Four men were killed at my side and others at + different parts of the ship. I now believed he intended to show us + no quarter, that it would be as well to die with my flag flying as + struck, and was on the point of again hoisting it when about ten + minutes after hauling down the colors he ceased firing.</p> + +<p> . . . We have been unfortunate but not disgraced—the defense of + the <i>Essex</i> has not been less honorable to her officers and crew + than the capture of an equal force; and I now consider my situation + less unpleasant than that of Captain Hillyar, who in violation of + every principle of honor and generosity, and regardless of the + rights of nations, attacked the <i>Essex</i> in her crippled state + within pistol shot of a neutral shore, when for six weeks I had + daily offered him fair and honorable combat on terms greatly to his + advantage.</p></blockquote> + +<p>The behavior of Captain Hillyar after the surrender, however, was most +humane and courteous, and lapse of time has dispelled somewhat of the +bitterness of the American opinion of him. If he <a name="Page_165" id="Page_165" />was not as chivalrous +as his Yankee foemen had expected, it must be remembered that there was +a heavy grudge and a long score to pay in the havoc wrought among +British merchantmen and whalers and that in those days the rights of +South American neutrals were rather lightly regarded.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 25%;" /> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_IX" id="CHAPTER_IX" /><a name="Page_166" id="Page_166" />CHAPTER IX</h2> + +<h3>VICTORY ON LAKE CHAMPLAIN</h3> + +<p>Spectacular as were the exploits of the American navy on the sea, they +were of far less immediate consequence in deciding the destinies of the +war than were the naval battles fought on fresh water between hastily +improvised squadrons. On Lake Erie Perry's victory had recovered a lost +empire and had made the West secure against invasion. Macdonough's +handful of little vessels on Lake Champlain compelled the retreat of ten +thousand British veterans of Wellington's campaigns who had marched down +from Canada with every promise of crushing American resistance. This was +the last and most formidable attempt on the part of the enemy to conquer +territory and to wrest a decision by means of a sustained offensive. Its +collapse marked the beginning of the end, and such events as the capture +of Washington and the battle of New Orleans were in the nature of +episodes.</p> + +<p><a name="Page_167" id="Page_167" />That September day of 1814, when Macdonough won his niche in the naval +hall of fame, was also the climax and the conclusion of the long +struggle of the American armies on the northern frontier, a confused +record of defeat, vacillation, and crumbling forces, which was redeemed +towards the end by troops who had learned how to fight and by new +leaders who restored the honor of the flag at Chippawa and Lundy's Lane. +Although the ambitious attempts against Canada, so often repeated, were +so much wasted effort until the very end, they ceased to be inglorious. +The tide turned in the summer of 1814 with the renewal of the struggle +for the Niagara region where the British had won a foothold upon +American soil.</p> + +<p>In command of a vigorous and disciplined American army was General Jacob +Brown, that stout-hearted volunteer who had proved his worth when the +enemy landed at Sackett's Harbor. He was not a professional soldier but +his troops had been trained and organized by Winfield Scott who was now +a brigadier. After two years of dismal reverses, the United States was +learning how to wage war. Incompetency was no longer the badge of high +military rank. A general was supposed to <a name="Page_168" id="Page_168" />know something about his trade +and to have a will of his own.</p> + +<p>With thirty-five hundred men, Jacob Brown made a resolute advance to +find and join battle with the British forces of General Riall which +garrisoned the forts of St. George's, Niagara, Erie, Queenston, and +Chippawa. Early in the morning of July 3, 1814, the American troops in +two divisions crossed the river and promptly captured Fort Erie. They +then pushed ahead fifteen miles until they encountered the British +defensive line on the Chippawa River where it flows into the Niagara.</p> + +<p>The field was like a park, with open, grassy spaces and a belt of +woodland which served as a green curtain to screen the movements of both +armies. Riall boldly assumed the offensive, although he was aware that +he had fewer men. His instructions intimated that liberties might be +taken with the Americans which would seem hazardous "to a military man +unacquainted with the character of the enemy he had to contend with, or +with the events of the last two campaigns on that frontier." The +deduction was unflattering but very much after the fact.</p> + +<p>The British attack was unlooked for. It was the Fourth of July and in +celebration Winfield <a name="Page_169" id="Page_169" />Scott had given his men the best dinner that the +commissary could supply and was marching them into a meadow in the cool +of the summer afternoon for drill and review. The celebration, however, +was interrupted by firing and confusion among the militia who happened +to be in front, and Scott rushed his brigade forward to take the brunt +of the heavy assault. General Jacob Brown rode by at a gallop, waving +his hat and cheerily shouting, "You will have a battle." He was hurrying +to bring up his other forces, but meanwhile Scott's column crossed a +bridge at the double-quick and faced the enemy's batteries.</p> + +<p>Exposed, taken by surprise, and outnumbered, Winfield Scott and his +regiments were nevertheless equal to the occasion. A battalion was sent +to cover one flank in the dense woodland, while the main body drove +straight for the columns of British infantry and then charged with +bayonets at sixty paces. The American ranks were steady and unbroken +although they were pelted with musketry fire, and they smashed a British +counter-charge by three regiments before it gained momentum. Handsomely +fought and won, it was not a decisive battle and might be called no more +than a skirmish but its significance was highly important, for at +<a name="Page_170" id="Page_170" />Chippawa there was displayed a new spirit in the American army.</p> + +<p>Riall retreated with his red-coated regulars to a stronger line at +Queenston, while Jacob Brown was sending anxious messages to Commodore +Chauncey begging him to use his fleet in cooperation and so break the +power of the enemy in Upper Canada. "For God's sake, let me see you," he +implored. But again the American ships on Lake Ontario failed to seize +an opportunity, and in this instance Chauncey's inactivity dismayed not +only General Brown but also the Government at Washington. The fleet +remained at Sackett's Harbor with excuses which appeared inadequate: +certain changes were being made among the officers and crews, and again +"the squadron had been prevented being earlier fitted for sea in +consequence of the delay in obtaining blocks and iron-work." Chauncey +subsequently fell ill, which may have had something to do with his lapse +of energy. The whole career of this naval commander on Lake Ontario had +disappointed expectations, even though the Secretary had commended his +"zeal, talent, constancy, courage, and prudence of the highest order." +The trouble was that Chauncey let slip one chance after another to win +the control of Lake Ontario in <a name="Page_171" id="Page_171" />pitched battle. Always too intent on +building more ships instead of fighting with those he had, he is +therefore not remembered in the glorious companionship of Perry and +Macdonough.</p> + +<p>This failure to act at the moment when Jacob Brown was so valiantly +endeavoring to wrest from the British the precious Niagara peninsula was +responsible for the desperate and inconclusive battle of Lundy's Lane. +Winfield Scott frankly blamed the unsuccessful result upon the freedom +with which the British troops and supplies were moved on Lake Ontario. +For ten days Jacob Brown had remained in a painful state of suspense and +perplexity, until finally the word came that nobody knew when the +American fleet would sail. As he had feared, the British command, able +to move its troops unmolested across the lake, planned to attack him in +the rear and to cut his communications on the New York side of the +Niagara River. For this purpose two enemy brigs were filled with troops +and were sent over to Fort Niagara with more to follow.</p> + +<p>It was to parry this threat that Brown moved his forces and brought +about the clash at Lundy's Lane. "As it appeared," he explained, "that +the enemy with his increased strength was about to <a name="Page_172" id="Page_172" />avail himself of the +hazard under which our baggage and stores were on our side of the +Niagara, I conceived the most effectual method of recalling him from the +object was to put myself in motion towards Queenston. General Scott with +his brigade were accordingly put in march on the road leading thither."</p> + +<p>The action was fought about a mile back from the torrent of the Niagara, +below the Falls, where the by-road known as Lundy's Lane joined the main +road running parallel with the river. Here Scott's column came suddenly +upon a force of British redcoats led by General Drummond. Scott +hesitated to attack, because the odds were against his one brigade, but, +fearing the effect of a retreat on the divisions behind him, he sent +word to Brown that he would hold his ground and try to turn the enemy's +left toward the Niagara. It was late in the day and the sun had almost +set. Gradually Scott forced the British wing back, and Brown threw in +reinforcements until the engagement became general. The fight continued +furious even after darkness fell and never have men employed in the +business of killing each other shown courage more stubborn. Both sides +were equally determined and they fought until exhaustion literally +compelled a halt.</p> + +<p><a name="Page_173" id="Page_173" />Later in the evening fresh troops were hurled in on both sides, and +they were at it again with the same impetuosity. A small hill, over +which ran Lundy's Lane, was the goal the Americans fought for. They +finally stormed it, "in so determined a manner," reported the enemy, +"that our artillery men were bayoneted in the act of loading and the +muzzles of the enemy's guns were advanced within a few yards of ours." +Back and forth flowed the tide of battle in bloody waves, until +midnight. Then sullenly and in good order the Americans retired three +miles to camp at Chippawa. Next day the enemy resumed the position and +held it unattacked.</p> + +<p>It is fair to call Lundy's Lane a drawn battle. The casualties were +something more than eight hundred for each side, and the troops engaged +were about twenty-five hundred Americans and a like number of British. +Both the shattered columns soon retired behind strong defenses. General +Drummond led the British troops into camp at Niagara Falls, and General +Ripley, in temporary command of the American brigades, Scott and Brown +having been wounded, occupied the unfinished works of Fort Erie, on the +Canadian side, just where the waters of Lake Erie enter the Niagara +River.</p> + +<p><a name="Page_174" id="Page_174" />The British determined to bombard these walls and intrenchments with +heavy guns and then carry them by infantry assault. But this plan failed +disastrously. On the 15th of August the British charged in three columns +the bastions and batteries only to be savagely repulsed at every point +with a loss of nine hundred men killed, wounded, or prisoners, while the +defenders had only eighty-five casualties. Then Drummond settled down to +besiege the place and succeeded in making it so uncomfortable that Jacob +Brown, now recovered from his wound, organized a sortie in force which +was made on the 17th of September. In the action which followed, the +British batteries were overwhelmed and the American militia displayed +magnificent steadiness and valor. Jacob Brown proudly informed the +Governor of New York that "the militia of New York have redeemed their +character—they behaved gallantly. Of those called out by the last +requisition, fifteen hundred have crossed the state border to our +support. This reinforcement has been of immense importance to us; it +doubled our effective strength, and their good conduct cannot but have +the happiest effect upon our nation."</p> + +<p>This bold stroke ended the Niagara campaign. <a name="Page_175" id="Page_175" />The British fell back, and +the American army was in no condition for pursuit. In ten weeks Jacob +Brown had fought four engagements without defeat and, barring the battle +of New Orleans, his brief campaign was the one operation of the land war +upon which Americans could look back with any degree of satisfaction.</p> + +<p>The scene now shifted to Lake Champlain. The main work was the building +up of an army to resist the menacing preparations for a British invasion +from Montreal. Among the new American generals who had gained promotion +by merit instead of favor was George Izard, trained in the military +schools of England and Prussia, and an aide to Alexander Hamilton during +his command of the army of the United States. Izard had been sent to +Plattsburg in May, 1814, on the very eve of the great British campaign, +and found everything in a deplorable state of unreadiness and +inefficiency. While he was manfully struggling with these difficulties, +Secretary Armstrong directed him to send four thousand of his men to the +assistance of Jacob Brown on the Niagara front. General Izard obediently +and promptly set out, although the defense of Lake Champlain was thereby +deprived of this large body of troops. The expedition was <a name="Page_176" id="Page_176" />almost barren +of results, however, and at a time when every trained soldier was needed +to oppose the march of the British veterans, Izard was at Fort Erie, +idle, waiting to build winter quarters and writing to the War +Department: "I confess I am greatly embarrassed. At the head of the most +efficient army the United States have possessed during this war, much +must be expected of me; and yet I can discern no object which can be +achieved at this point worthy of the risk which will attend its +attempt."</p> + +<p>Izard had already predicted that the withdrawal of his forces from +Plattsburg would leave northeastern New York at the mercy of the British +and he spoke the truth. No sooner had his divisions started westward +than the British army, ten thousand strong, under General Prevost, +crossed the frontier and marched rapidly toward the Saranac River and +then straight on to Plattsburg. Possession of this trading town the +British particularly desired because through it passed an enormous +amount of illicit traffic with Canada. Both Izard and Prevost agreed in +the statement that the British army was almost entirely fed on supplies +drawn from New York and Vermont by way of Lake Champlain. "Two thirds of +the army in <a name="Page_177" id="Page_177" />Canada are supplied with beef by American contractors," +wrote Prevost, and there were not enough highways to accommodate the +herds of cattle which were driven across the border.</p> + +<p>To protect this source of supply by conquering the region was the task +assigned the splendid army of British regulars who had fought under +Wellington. The conclusion of the Peninsular campaign had released them +for service in America, and England was now able for the first time to +throw her military strength against the feeble forces of the United +States. It was announced as the intention of the British Government to +take and hold the lakes, from Champlain to Erie, as territorial waters +and a permanent barrier. To oppose the large and seasoned army which was +to effect these projects, there was an American force of only fifteen +hundred men, led by Brigadier General Alexander Macomb. All he could do +was to try to hold the defensive works at Plattsburg and to send forward +small skirmishing parties to annoy the British army which advanced in +solid column, without taking the trouble to deploy.</p> + +<p>On the 6th of September Sir George Prevost with his army reached +Plattsburg and encamped just outside the town. From a ridge the British +leader <a name="Page_178" id="Page_178" />beheld the redoubts, strong field works, and blockhouses, and at +anchor in the bay the little American fleet of Commodore Thomas +Macdonough. To Prevost it looked like a costly business to attempt to +carry these defenses by assault and he therefore decided to await the +arrival of the British ships of Captain George Downie. A combined attack +by land and sea, he believed, should find no difficulty in wiping out +American resistance.</p> + +<p>Such was the situation and the weighty responsibility which confronted +Macdonough and his sailors. It was the most critical moment of the war. +With a seaman's eye for defense Macdonough met it by stationing his +vessels in a carefully chosen position and prepared with a seaman's +foresight for every contingency. Plattsburg Bay is about two miles wide +and two long and lies open to the southward, with a cape called +Cumberland Head bounding it on the east. It was in this sheltered water +that Macdonough awaited attack, his ships riding about a mile from the +American shore batteries. These guns were to be captured by the British +army and turned against him, according to the plans of General Prevost, +who was urging Captain Downie to hasten with his fleet and undertake a +joint action, for, as he said, "it is of the highest <a name="Page_179" id="Page_179" />importance that +the ships, vessels, and gunboats of your command should combine a +cooperation with the division of the army under my command. I only wait +for your arrival to proceed against General Macomb's last position on +the south bank of the Saranac."</p> + +<p>These demands became more and more insistent, although the largest +British ship, the <i>Confiance</i>, had been launched only a few days before +and the mechanics were still toiling night and day to fit her for +action. She was a formidable frigate, of the size of the American +<i>Chesapeake</i>, and was expected to be more than a match for Macdonough's +entire fleet. Captain Downie certainly expected the support of the army, +which he failed to receive, for he clearly stated his position before +the naval battle. "When the batteries are stormed and taken possession +of by the British land forces, which the commander of the land forces +has promised to do at the moment the naval action commences, the enemy +will be obliged to quit their position, whereby we shall obtain decided +advantage over them during the confusion. I would otherwise prefer +fighting them on the lake and would wait until our force is in an +efficient state but I fear they would take shelter up the lake and would +not meet me on equal terms."</p> + +<p><a name="Page_180" id="Page_180" />Compelled to seek and offer battle in Plattsburg Bay, the British +vessels rounded Cumberland Head on the morning of the 11th of September +and hove to while Captain Downie went ahead in a boat to observe the +American position. He perceived that Macdonough had anchored his fleet +in line in this order: the brig <i>Eagle</i>, twenty guns, the flagship +<i>Saratoga</i>, twenty-six guns, the schooner <i>Ticonderoga</i>, seven guns, and +the sloop <i>Preble</i>, seven guns. There was also a considerable squadron +of little gunboats, or galleys, propelled by oars and mounting one gun. +Opposed to this force was the stately <i>Confiance</i>, with her three +hundred men and thirty-seven guns, such a ship as might have dared to +engage the <i>Constitution</i> on blue water, and the <i>Chub</i>, <i>Linnet</i>, and +<i>Finch</i>, much like Macdonough's three smaller vessels, besides a +flotilla of the tiny, impudent gunboats which were like so many hornets.</p> + +<p>Macdonough was a youngster of twenty-eight years to whom was granted +this opportunity denied the officers who had grown gray in the service. +The navy, which was also very young, had set its own stamp upon him, and +his advancement he had won by sheer ability. Self-reliant and +indomitable, like Oliver Hazard Perry, he had wrestled with <a name="Page_181" id="Page_181" />obstacles +and was ready to meet the enemy in spite of them. His fame among naval +men outshines Perry's, and he is rated as the greatest fighting sailor +who flew the American flag until Farragut surpassed them all.</p> + +<p>The battle of Plattsburg Bay was contested straight from the shoulder +with little chance for such evolutions as seeking the weather gage or +wearing ship. With one fleet at anchor, as Nelson demonstrated at the +Nile, the proper business of the other was to drive ahead and try to +break the line or turn an end of it. This Captain Downie proceeded to +attempt in a brave and highly skillful manner, with the <i>Confiance</i> +leading into the bay and proposing to smash the <i>Eagle</i> with her first +broadsides. The wind failed, however, and the British frigate dropped +anchor within close range of the <i>Saratoga</i>, which displayed +Macdonough's pennant, and pounded this vessel so accurately that forty +American seamen, or one-fifth of the crew, were struck down by the first +blast of the British guns.</p> + +<p>Meanwhile the <i>Linnet</i> had reached her assigned berth and fought the +American <i>Eagle</i> so successfully that the latter was disabled and had to +leave the line. To balance this the <i>Chub</i> was so badly <a name="Page_182" id="Page_182" />damaged that +she drifted helpless among the American ships and was compelled to haul +down her colors. The <i>Finch</i> committed a blunder of seamanship and by +failing to keep close enough to the wind, which soon died away, she +finally went aground and took no part in the battle. The <i>Preble</i> was +driven from her anchorage and ran ashore under the Plattsburg batteries, +and the <i>Ticonderoga</i> played no heavier part than to beat off the little +British galleys.</p> + +<p>The decisive battle was therefore fought by four ships, the American +<i>Saratoga</i> and <i>Eagle</i>, and the British <i>Confiance</i> and <i>Linnet</i>. It was +then that Macdonough acquitted himself as a man who did not know when he +was beaten. The <i>Confiance</i>, which must have towered like a ship of the +line, had so cruelly mauled the <i>Saratoga</i> that she seemed doomed to be +blown out of water. So many of his gunners were killed by the +double-shotted broadsides that Macdonough jumped from the quarter-deck to +take a hand himself and encourage the survivors. He was sighting a gun +when a round shot cut the spanker boom, and a fragment of the heavy spar +knocked him senseless.</p> + +<p>Recovering his wits, however, he returned to his gun. But another shot +tore off the head of the <a name="Page_183" id="Page_183" />gun captain and flung it in Macdonough's face +with such force that he was hurled across the deck. At length all but +one of the guns along the side exposed to the <i>Confiance</i> had been +smashed or dismounted, and this last gun broke its fastening bolts, +leaped from its carriage with the heavy recoil, and plunged into the +main hatch. Silenced, shot through and through, her decks strewn with +dead, the <i>Saratoga</i> might then have struck her colors with honor. But +Macdonough had not begun to fight. Prepared for such an emergency, he +let go a stern anchor, cut his bow cable, and "winded" or turned his +ship around so that her other side with its uninjured row of guns was +presented to the <i>Confiance</i>. Captain Downie had by this time been +killed, and the acting commander of the British flagship endeavored to +execute the same maneuver, but the <i>Confiance</i> was too badly crippled to +be swung about. While she floundered, the Saratoga reduced her to +submission. One of the surviving officers stated that "the ship's +company declared they would no longer stand to their quarters nor could +the officers with their utmost exertions rally them." The ship was +sinking, with more than a hundred ragged holes in her hull and fivescore +men dead or hurt. Fifteen minutes later the plucky <i>Linnet</i> <a name="Page_184" id="Page_184" />surrendered +after a long and desperate duel with the <i>Eagle</i>. The British galleys +escaped from the bay under sail and oar because no American ships were +fit to chase them, but the Royal Navy had ceased to exist on Lake +Champlain. For more than two hours the battle had been fought with a +bulldog endurance not often equaled in the grim pages of naval history. +And more nearly than any other incident of the War of 1812 it could be +called decisive.</p> + +<p>The American victory made the position of Prevost's army wholly +untenable. With the control of Lake Champlain in Macdonough's hands, the +British line of communication would be continually menaced. For the ten +thousand veterans of Wellington's campaigns there was nothing to do but +retreat, nor did they linger until they had marched across the Canada +border. Though the way had lain open before them, they had not fought a +battle, but were turned out of the United States, evicted, one might +say, by a few small ships manned by several hundred American sailors. As +Perry had regained the vast Northwest for his nation so, more +momentously, did Macdonough avert from New York and New England a tide +of invasion which could not otherwise have been stemmed.</p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 489px;"> +<img src="images/image-9.jpg" width="489" height="600" alt="THOMAS MACDONOUGH" title="" /> +<p><b>THOMAS MACDONOUGH</b></p> + +<p><b>Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. Reproduced by courtesy of the Municipal Art Commission of +the City of New York.</b></p> +</div> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 486px;"> +<img src="images/image-10.jpg" width="486" height="600" alt="JACOB BROWN" title="" /> +<p><b>JACOB BROWN</b></p> + +<p><b>Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. Reproduced by courtesy of the Municipal Art Commission of +the City of New York.</b></p> +</div> + + + +<hr style="width: 25%;" /> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_X" id="CHAPTER_X" /><a name="Page_185" id="Page_185" />CHAPTER X</h2> + +<h3>PEACE WITH HONOR</h3> + +<p>The raids of the British navy on the American sea-coast through the last +two years of the war were so many efforts to make effective the blockade +which began with the proclamation of December, 1812, closing Chesapeake +and Delaware bays. Successive orders in 1813 closed practically all the +seaports from New London, Connecticut, to the Florida boundary, and the +last sweeping proclamation of May, 1814, placed under strict blockade +"all the ports, harbors, bays, creeks, rivers, inlets, outlets, islands, +and seacoasts of the United States." It was the blockade of ports of the +Middle States which caused such widespread ruin among merchants and +shippers and which finally brought the Government itself to the verge of +bankruptcy.</p> + +<p>The first serious alarm was caused in the spring of 1813 by the +appearance of a British fleet, under command of Admiral Sir John Borlase +Warren and <a name="Page_186" id="Page_186" />Rear-Admiral George Cockburn, in the Chesapeake and Delaware +bays. Apparently it had not occurred to the people of the seaboard that +the war might make life unpleasant for them, and they had undertaken no +measures of defense. Unmolested, Cockburn cruised up Chesapeake Bay to +the mouth of the Susquehanna in the spring of 1813 and established a +pleasant camp on an island from which five hundred sailors and marines +harried the country at their pleasure, looting and burning such +prosperous little towns as Havre de Grace and Fredericktown. The men of +Maryland and Virginia proceeded to hide their chattels and to move their +families inland. Panic took hold of these proud and powerful +commonwealths. Cockburn had no scruples about setting the torch to +private houses, "to cause the proprietors who had deserted them and +formed part of the militia which had fled to the woods to understand and +feel what they were liable to bring upon themselves by building forts +and acting toward us with so much useless rancor." Though Cockburn was +an officer of the British navy, he was also an unmitigated ruffian in +his behavior toward non-combatants, and his own countrymen could not +regard his career with satisfaction.</p> + +<p><a name="Page_187" id="Page_187" />Admiral Warren had more justification in attacking Norfolk, which had a +navy yard and forts and was therefore frankly belligerent. Unluckily for +him the most important battery was manned by a hundred sailors from the +<i>Constellation</i> and fifty marines. Seven hundred British seamen tried to +land in barges, but the battery shattered three of the boats with heavy +loss of life. Somewhat ruffled, Admiral Warren decided to go elsewhere +and made a foray upon the defenseless village of Hampton during which he +permitted his men to indulge in wanton pillage and destruction. Part of +his fleet then sailed up to the Potomac and created a most distressing +hysteria in Washington. The movement was a feint, however, and after +frightening Baltimore and Annapolis, the ships cruised and blockaded the +bay for several months.</p> + +<p>In September of the following year another British division harassed the +coast of Maine, first capturing Eastport and then landing at Belfast, +Bangor, and Castine, and extorting large ransoms in money and supplies. +New England was wildly alarmed. In a few weeks all of Maine east of the +Penobscot had been invaded, conquered, and formally annexed to New +Brunswick, although two counties alone might easily have furnished +twelve <a name="Page_188" id="Page_188" />thousand fighting men to resist the small parties of British +sailors who operated in leisurely security. The people of the coastwise +towns gave up their sheep and bullocks to these rude trespassers, cut +the corn and dug the potatoes for them, handed over all their powder and +firearms, and agreed to finish and deliver schooners that were on the +stocks.</p> + +<p>Cape Cod was next to suffer, for two men-of-war levied contributions of +thousands of dollars from Wellfleet, Brewster, and Eastham, and robbed +and destroyed other towns. Farther south another fleet entered Long +Island Sound, bombarded Stonington, and laid it in ruins. The pretext +for all this havoc was a raid made by a few American troops who had +crossed to Long Point on Lake Erie, May 15, 1814, and had burned some +Canadian mills and a few dwellings. The expedition was promptly disowned +by the American Government as unauthorized, but in retaliation the +British navy was ordered to lay waste all towns on the Atlantic coast +which were assailable, sparing only the lives of the unarmed citizens.</p> + +<p>Included in the British plan of campaign for 1814 was a coastal attack +important enough to divert American efforts from the Canadian frontier. +This was why an army under General Ross was <a name="Page_189" id="Page_189" />loaded into transports at +Bermuda and escorted by a fleet to Chesapeake Bay. The raids against +small coastwise ports, though lucrative, had no military value beyond +shaking the morale of the population. The objective of this larger +operation was undecided. Either Baltimore or Washington was tempting. +But first the British had to dispose of the annoying gunboat flotilla of +Commodore Joshua Barney, who had made his name mightily respected as a +seaman of the Revolution and who had never been known to shake in his +shoes at sight of a dozen British ensigns. He had found shelter for his +armed scows, for they were no more than this, in the Patuxent River, but +as he could not hope to defend them against a combined attack by British +ships and troops he wisely blew them up. This turn of affairs left a +fine British army all landed and with nothing else to do than promenade +through a pleasant region with nobody to interfere. The generals and +admirals discussed the matter and decided to saunter on to Washington +instead of to Baltimore. In the heat of August the British regiments +tramped along the highways, frequently halting to rest in the shade, +until they were within ten miles of the capital of the nation. There +they found the American outposts in a strong position <a name="Page_190" id="Page_190" />on high ground, +but these tarried not, and the invaders sauntered on another mile before +making camp for the night. It is difficult to regard the capture of +Washington with the seriousness which that lamentable episode deserves. +The city was greatly surprised to learn that the enemy actually intended +a discourtesy so gross, and the Government was pained beyond expression. +But beyond this display of emotion nothing was done. The war was now two +years old but no steps whatever had been taken to defend Washington, +although there was no room for doubt that a British naval force could +ascend the river whenever it pleased.</p> + +<p>The disagreeable tidings that fifty of the enemy's ships had anchored +off the Potomac, however, reminded the President and his advisers that +not a single ditch or rampart had been even planned, that no troops were +at hand, that it was rather late for advice which seemed to be the only +ammunition that was plentiful. Quite harmoniously, the soldier in +command was General Winder who could not lose his head, even in this +dire emergency, because he had none to lose. His record for ineptitude +on the fighting front had, no doubt, recommended him for this place. He +ran about Washington, ordering the construction of defenses which <a name="Page_191" id="Page_191" />there +was no time to build, listening to a million frenzied suggestions, +holding all manner of consultations, and imploring the Governors of +Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia to send militia.</p> + +<p>The British army was less than five thousand strong. To oppose them +General Winder hastily scrambled together between five and six thousand +men, mostly militia with a sprinkling of regulars and four hundred +sailors from Barney's flotilla. During the night before the alleged +battle the camp was a scene of such confusion as may be imagined while +futile councils of war were held. The troops when reviewed by President +Madison realized Jefferson's ideal of a citizen soldiery, unskilled but +strong in their love of home, flying to arms to oppose an invader. +General Jacob Brown and Winfield Scott at Lundy's Lane, which was fought +within the same month, could have pointed out, in language quite +emphatic, that a large difference existed between the raw material and +the finished product.</p> + +<p>On the 24th of August the British army advanced to Bladensburg, five +miles from Washington, where a bridge spanned the eastern branch of the +Potomac. Here the hilly banks offered the Americans an excellent line of +defense. The <a name="Page_192" id="Page_192" />Cabinet had gone to the Washington Navy Yard, by request +of General Winder, to tell him what he ought to do, but this final +conference was cut short by the news that the enemy was in motion. The +American forces were still mobilizing in helter-skelter fashion, and +there was a wild race to the scene of action by militiamen, volunteers, +unattached regulars, sailors, generals, citizens at large, Cabinet +members, and President Madison himself.</p> + +<p>Some Maryland militia hastily joined the Baltimore troops on the ridge +behind the village of Bladensburg, but part of General Winder's own +forces were still on the march and had not yet been assigned positions +when the advance column of British light infantry were seen to rush down +the slope across the river and charge straight for the bridge. They +bothered not to seek a ford or to turn a flank but made straight for the +American center. It was here that Winder's artillery and his steadiest +regiments were placed and they offered a stiff resistance, ripping up +the British vanguard with grapeshot and mowing men down right and left. +But these hardened British campaigners had seen many worse days than +this on the bloody fields of Spain, and they pushed forward, closing the +gaps in their ranks, until they had crossed the <a name="Page_193" id="Page_193" />bridge and could find a +brief respite under cover of the trees which lined the stream. Advancing +again, they ingeniously discharged flights of rockets and with these +novel missiles they not only disorganized the militia in front of them +but also stampeded the battery mules. Most of the American army promptly +followed the mules and endeavored to set a new record for a foot race +from Bladensburg to Washington. The Cabinet members and other dignified +spectators were swept along in the rout.</p> + +<p>Commodore Joshua Barney and his four hundred weather-beaten bluejackets +declined to join this speed contest. They were used to rolling decks and +had no aptitude for sprinting, besides which they held the simple-minded +notion that their duty was to fight. Up to this time they had been held +back by orders and now arrived just as the American lines broke in wild +confusion. With them were five guns which they dragged into position +across the main highway and speedily unlimbered. The British were +hastening to overtake the fleeing enemy when they encountered this +awkward obstacle. Three times they charged Barney's battery and were +three times repulsed by sailors and marines who fought them with +muskets, cutlasses, <a name="Page_194" id="Page_194" />and handspikes, and who served those five guns with +an efficiency which would have pleased Isaac Hull or Bainbridge.</p> + +<p>Unwilling to pay the price of direct attack, the British General Ross +wisely ordered his infantry to surround Barney's stubborn contingent. +The American troops who were presumed to support and protect this naval +battery failed to hold their ground and melted into the mob which was +swirling toward Washington. The sailors, though abandoned, continued to +fight until the British were firing into them from the rear and from +both flanks. Barney fell wounded and some of his gunners were bayoneted +with lighted fuses in their hands. Snarling, undaunted, the sailors +broke through the cordon and saved themselves, the last to leave a +battlefield upon which not one American soldier was visible. They had +used their ammunition to the end and they faced five thousand British +veterans; wherefore they had done what the navy expected of them. On a +day so shameful that no self-respecting American can read of it without +blushing they had enacted the one redeeming episode. Commodore Barney +described this action in a manner blunt and unadorned:</p> + +<blockquote><p>The engagement continued, the enemy advancing and our own army<a name="Page_195" id="Page_195" /> + retreating before them, apparently in much disorder. At length the + enemy made his appearance on the main road, in force, in front of + my battery, and on seeing us made a halt. I reserved our fire. In a + few minutes the enemy again advanced, when I ordered an + eighteen-pounder to be fired, which completely cleared the road; + shortly after, a second and a third attempt was made by the enemy + to come forward but all were destroyed. They then crossed into an + open field and attempted to flank our right. He was met there by + three twelve-pounders, the marines under Captain Miller, and my men + acting as infantry, and again was totally cut up. By this time not + a vestige of the American army remained, except a body of five or + six hundred posted on a height on my right, from which I expected + much support from their fine situation.</p></blockquote> + +<p>Barney was made a prisoner, although his men stood by him until he +ordered them to retreat. Loss of blood had made him too weak to be +carried from the field. General Ross and Admiral Cockburn saw to it +personally that he was well cared for and paid him the greatest respect +and courtesy. As for the other British officers, they, too, were +sportsmen who admired a brave man, even in the enemy's uniform, and +Barney reported that they treated him "like a brother."</p> + +<p>The American army had scampered to Wash<a name="Page_196" id="Page_196" />ington with a total loss of ten +killed and forty wounded among the five thousand men who had been +assembled at Bladensburg to protect and save the capital. The British +tried to pursue but the afternoon heat was blistering and the rapid pace +set by the American forces proved so fatiguing to the invaders that many +of them were bowled over by sunstroke. To permit their men to run +themselves to death did not appear sensible to the British commanders, +and they therefore sat down to gain their breath before the final +promenade to Washington in the cool of the evening. They found a +helpless, almost deserted city from which the Government had fled and +the army had vanished.</p> + +<p>The march had been orderly, with a proper regard for the peaceful +inhabitants, but now Ross and Cockburn carried out their orders to +plunder and burn. At the head of their troops they rode to the Capitol, +fired a volley through the windows, and set fire to the building. Two +hundred men then sought the President's mansion, ransacked the rooms, +and left it in flames. Next day they burned the official buildings and +several dwellings and, content with the mischief thus wrought, abandoned +the forlorn city and returned to camp at <a name="Page_197" id="Page_197" />Bladensburg. But more vexation +for the Americans was to follow, for a British fleet was working its way +up the Potomac to anchor off Alexandria. Here there was the same +frightened submission, with the people asking for terms and yielding up +a hundred thousand dollars' worth of flour, tobacco, naval stores, and +shipping.</p> + +<p>The British squadron then returned to Chesapeake Bay and joined the main +fleet which was preparing to attack Baltimore. The army of General Ross +was recalled to the transports and was set ashore at the mouth of the +Patapsco River while the ships sailed up to bombard Fort McHenry, where +the star-spangled banner waved. To defend Baltimore by land there had +been assembled more than thirteen thousand troops under command of +General Samuel Smith. The tragical farce of Bladensburg, however, had +taught him no lesson, and to oppose the five thousand toughened regulars +of General Ross he sent out only three thousand green militia most of +whom had never been under fire. They put up a wonderfully good fight and +deserved praise for it, but wretched leadership left them drawn up in an +open field, with both flanks unprotected, and they were soon driven +back. Next morning—the 13th of September—the British <a name="Page_198" id="Page_198" />advanced but +found the roads so blocked by fallen trees and entanglements that +progress was slow and laborious. The intrenchments which crowned the +hills of Baltimore appeared so formidable that the British decided to +await action by the fleet and attempt a night assault.</p> + +<p>General Ross was killed during the advance, and this loss caused +confusion of council. The heavy ships were unable to lie within +effective range of the forts because of shoal water and a barrier of +sunken hulks, and Fort McHenry was almost undamaged by the bombardment +of the lighter craft. All through the night a determined fire was +returned by the American garrison of a thousand men, and, although the +British fleet suffered little, Vice-Admiral Cochrane concluded that a +sea attack was a hopeless enterprise. He so notified the army, which +thereupon retreated to the transports, and the fleet sailed down +Chesapeake Bay, leaving Baltimore free and unscathed.</p> + +<p>Among those who watched Fort McHenry by the glare of artillery fire +through this anxious night was a young lawyer from Washington, Francis +Scott Key, who had been detained by the British fleet down the bay while +endeavoring to effect an exchange of prisoners. He had a turn for +<a name="Page_199" id="Page_199" />verse-making. Most of his poems were mediocre, but the sight of the +Stars and Stripes still fluttering in the early morning breeze inspired +him to write certain deathless stanzas which, when fitted to the old +tune of <i>Anacreon in Heaven</i>, his country accepted as its national +anthem. In this exalted moment it was vouchsafed him to sound a trumpet +call, clear and far-echoing, as did Rouget de Lisle when, with soul +aflame, he wrote the <i>Marseillaise</i> for France. If it was the destiny of +the War of 1812 to weld the nation as a union, the spirit of the +consummation was expressed for all time in the lines which a hundred +million of free people sing today:</p> + +<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> +<span>O! say can you see by the dawn's early light,<br /></span> +<span class="i2">What so proudly we hail'd at the twilight's last gleaming<br /></span> +<span>Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight,<br /></span> +<span class="i2">O'er the ramparts we watch'd, were so gallantly streaming?<br /></span> +</div></div> + +<p>The luckless endeavor to capture Baltimore by sea and land was the last +British expedition that alarmed the Atlantic coast. The hostile army and +naval forces withdrew to Jamaica, from which <a name="Page_200" id="Page_200" />base were planned and +undertaken the Louisiana campaign and the battle of New Orleans.</p> + +<hr style='width: 45%;' /> + +<p>The brilliant leadership and operations of Andrew Jackson were so +detached and remote from all other activities that he may be said to +have fought a private war of his own. It had seemed clear to Madison +that, as a military precaution, the control of West Florida should be +wrenched from Spain, whose neutrality was dubious and whose Gulf +territory was the rendezvous of privateers, pirates, and other lawless +gentry, besides offering convenient opportunity for British invasion by +sea. As early as the autumn of 1812 troops were collected to seize and +hold this region for the duration of the war. The people of the +Mississippi Valley welcomed the adventure with enthusiasm. It was to be +aimed against a European power presumably friendly, but the sheer love +of conquest and old grudges to settle were motives which brushed +argument aside. Andrew Jackson was the major general of the Tennessee +militia, and so many hardy volunteers flocked to follow him that he had +to sift them out, mustering in at Nashville two thousand of whom he +said: "They are the choicest of our citizens. They go at our call to do +the will of <a name="Page_201" id="Page_201" />Government. No constitutional scruples trouble them. Nay, +they will rejoice at the opportunity of placing the American eagle on +the ramparts of Pensacola, Mobile, and Fort St. Augustine."</p> + +<p>Where the fiery Andrew Jackson led, there was neither delay nor +hesitation. At once he sent his backwoods infantry down river in boats, +while the mounted men rode overland. Four weeks later the information +overtook him at Natchez that Congress had refused to sanction the +expedition. When the Secretary of War curtly told him that his corps was +"dismissed from public service," Andrew Jackson in a furious temper +ignored the order and marched his men back to Nashville instead of +disbanding them. He was not long idle, however, for the powerful +confederacy of the Creek Indians had been aroused by a visit of the +great Tecumseh, and the drums of the war dance were sounding in sympathy +with the tribes of the Canadian frontier. In Georgia and Alabama the +painted prophets and medicine men were spreading tales of Indian +victories over the white men at the river Raisin and Detroit. British +officials, moreover, got wind of a threatened uprising in the South and +secretly encouraged it.</p> + +<p>The Alabama settlers took alarm and left their <a name="Page_202" id="Page_202" />log houses and clearings +to seek shelter in the nearest blockhouses and stockades. One of these +belonged to Samuel Mims, a half-breed farmer, who had prudently +fortified his farm on a bend of the Alabama River. A square stockade +enclosed an acre of ground around his house and to this refuge hastened +several hundred pioneers and their families, with their negro slaves, +and a few officers and soldiers. Here they were surprised and massacred +by a thousand naked Indians who called themselves Red Sticks because of +the wands carried by their fanatical prophets. Two hundred and fifty +scalps were carried away on poles, and when troops arrived they found +nothing but heaps of ashes, mutilated bodies, and buzzards feeding on +the carrion.</p> + +<p>From Fort Mims the Indians overran the country like a frightful scourge, +murdering and burning, until a vast region was emptied of its people. +First to respond to the pitiful calls for help was Tennessee, and within +a few weeks twenty-five hundred infantry and a thousand cavalry were +marching into Alabama, led by Andrew Jackson, who had not yet recovered +from a wound received in a brawl with Thomas H. Benton. Among Jackson's +soldiers were two young men after his own heart, David Crockett and +Samuel Houston. The <a name="Page_203" id="Page_203" />villages of the fighting Creeks, at the Hickory +Ground, lay beyond a hundred and sixty miles of wilderness, but Jackson +would not wait for supplies. He plunged ahead, living somehow on the +country, until his men, beginning to break under the strain of +starvation and other hardships, declared open mutiny. But Jackson +cursed, threatened, argued them into obedience again and again. When +such persuasions failed, he planted cannon to sweep their lines and told +them they would have to pass over his dead body if they refused to go +on.</p> + +<p>The failure of other bodies of troops to support his movements and a +discouraged Governor of Tennessee could not daunt his purpose. He was +told that the campaign had failed and that the struggle was useless. To +this he replied that he would perish first and that energy and decision, +together with the fresh troops promised him, would solve the crisis. +Months passed, and the militia whose enlistments had expired went home, +while the other broke out in renewed and more serious mutinies. The few +regulars sent to Jackson he used as police to keep the militia in order. +The court-martialing and shooting of a private had a beneficial effect.</p> + +<p>With this disgruntled, unreliable, weary force, <a name="Page_204" id="Page_204" />Jackson came, at +length, to a great war camp of the Creek Indians at a loop of the +Tallapoosa River called Horseshoe Bend. Here some ten hundred picked +warriors had built defensive works which were worthy of the talent of a +trained engineer. They also had as effective firearms as the white +troops who assaulted the stronghold. Andrew Jackson bombarded them with +two light guns, sent his men over the breastworks, and captured the +breastworks in hand-to-hand fighting in which quarter was neither asked +nor given. No more than a hundred Indians escaped alive, and dead among +the logs and brushwood were the three famous prophets, gorgeous in war +paint and feathers, who had preached the doctrine of exterminating the +paleface.</p> + +<p>The name of Andrew Jackson spread far and wide among the hostile Indian +tribes, and the fiercest chiefs dreaded it like a tempest. Some made +submission, and others joined in signing a treaty of peace which Jackson +dictated to them with terms as harsh as the temper of the man who had +conquered them.</p> + +<p>For his distinguished services Jackson was made a major general of the +regular army. He was then ordered to Mobile, where his impetuous anger +was aroused by the news that the British had landed at <a name="Page_205" id="Page_205" />Pensacola and +had pulled down the Spanish flag. The splendor of this ancient seaport +had passed away, and with it the fleets of galleons whose sailors heard +the mission bells and saw the brass guns gleam from the stout fortresses +which in those earlier days guarded the rich commerce of the overland +trade route to St. Augustine.</p> + +<p>Aforetime one of the storied and romantic ports of the Spanish Main, +Pensacola now slumbered in unlovely decay and was no more than a village +to which resorted the smugglers of the Caribbean, the pirates of the +Gulf, and rascally men of all races and colors. The Spanish Governor +still lived in the palace with a few slovenly troops, but he could no +more than protest when a hundred royal marines came ashore from two +British sloops-of-war, and the commander, Major Nicholls, issued a +thunderous proclamation to the oppressed people of the American States +adjoining, letting them know that he was ready to assist them in +liberating their paternal soil from a faithless, imbecile Government. +They were not to be alarmed at his approach. They were to range +themselves under the standard of their forefathers or be neutral.</p> + +<p>Having fired this verbal blunderbuss, Major Nicholls sent a sloop-of-war +to enlist the support of <a name="Page_206" id="Page_206" />Jean and Pierre Lafitte, enterprising brothers +who maintained on Barataria Bay in the Gulf, some forty miles south of +New Orleans, a most lucrative resort for pirates and slave traders. +There they defied the law and the devil, trafficking in spoils filched +from honest merchantmen whose crews had walked the plank. Pierre Lafitte +was a very proper figure of a pirate himself, true to the best +traditions of his calling. But withal he displayed certain gallantry to +atone for his villainies, for he spurned British gold and persuasions +and offered his sword and his men to defend New Orleans as one faithful +to the American cause.</p> + +<p>If it was the purpose of Nicholls to divert Jackson's attention from New +Orleans which was to be the objective of the British expedition +preparing at Jamaica, he succeeded admirably; but in deciding to attack +Jackson's forces at Mobile, he committed a grievous error. The worthy +Nicholls failed to realize that he had caught a Tartar in General +Jackson—"Old Hickory," the sinewy backwoodsman who would sooner fight +than eat and who was feared more than the enemy by his own men. As might +have been expected, the garrison of one hundred and sixty soldiers who +held Fort Bowyer, which dominated the harbor of <a name="Page_207" id="Page_207" />Mobile, solemnly swore +among themselves that they would never surrender until the ramparts were +demolished over their heads and no more than a corporal's guard +survived. This was Andrew Jackson's way.</p> + +<p>Four British ships, with a total strength of seventy-eight guns, sailed +into Mobile Bay on the 15th of September and formed in line of battle, +easily confident of smashing Fort Bowyer with its twenty guns, while the +landing force of marines and Indians took position behind the sand dunes +and awaited the signal. The affair lasted no more than an hour. The +American gunnery overwhelmed the British squadron. The <i>Hermes</i> +sloop-of-war was forced to cut her cable and drifted under a raking fire +until she ran aground and was blown up. The <i>Sophie</i> withdrew after +losing many of her seamen, and the two other ships followed her to sea +after delaying to pick up the marines and Indians who merely looked on. +Daybreak saw the squadron spreading topsails to return to Pensacola.</p> + +<p>Andrew Jackson was eager to return the compliment but, not having troops +enough at hand to march on Pensacola, he had to wait and fret until his +force was increased to four thousand men. Then he hurled them at the +objective with an energy <a name="Page_208" id="Page_208" />that was fairly astounding. On the 3d of +November he left Mobile and three days later was demanding the surrender +of Pensacola. The next morning he carried the town by storm, waited +another day until the British had evacuated and blown up Fort Barrancas, +six miles below the city, and then returned to Mobile. Sickness laid him +low but, enfeebled as he was, he made the journey to New Orleans by easy +stages and took command of such American troops as he could hastily +assemble to ward off the mightiest assault launched by Great Britain +during the War of 1812. It was known, and the warning had been repeated +from Washington, that the enemy intended sending a formidable expedition +against Louisiana, but when Jackson arrived early in December the +Legislature had voted no money, raised no regiments, devised no plan of +defense, and was unprepared to make any resistance whatever.</p> + +<p>A British fleet of about fifty sail, carrying perhaps a thousand guns, +had gathered for the task in hand. The decks were crowded with trained +and toughened troops, the divisions which had scattered the Americans at +Bladensburg with a volley and a shout, kilted Highlanders, famous +regiments which had earned the praise of the Iron Duke in the <a name="Page_209" id="Page_209" />Spanish +Peninsula, and brawny negro detachments recruited in the West Indies. It +was such an army as would have been considered fit to withstand the +finest troops in Europe. In command was one of England's most brilliant +soldiers, General Sir Edward Pakenham, of whom Wellington had said, "my +partiality for him does not lead me astray when I tell you that he is +one of the best we have." He was the idol of his officers, who agreed +that they had never served under a man whose good opinion they were so +desirous of having, "and to fall in his estimation would have been worse +than death." In brief, he was a high-minded and knightly leader who had +seen twenty years of active service in the most important campaigns of +Europe.</p> + +<p>It was Pakenham's misfortune to be unacquainted with the highly +irregular and unconventional methods of warfare as practiced in America, +where troops preferred to take shelter instead of being shot down while +parading across open ground in solid columns. Improvised breastworks +were to him a novelty, and the lesson of Bunker Hill had been forgotten. +These splendidly organized and seasoned battalions of his were confident +of walking through the Americans at New Orleans as they had done at +Washington, or as Pakenham himself <a name="Page_210" id="Page_210" />had smashed the finest French +infantry at Salamanca when Wellington told him, "Ned, d'ye see those +fellows on the hill? Throw your division into column; at them, and drive +them to the devil."</p> + +<p>Stranger than fiction was the contrast between the leaders and between +the armies that fought this extraordinary battle of New Orleans when, +after the declaration of peace, the United States won its one famous but +belated victory on land. On the northern frontier such a man as Andrew +Jackson might have changed the whole aspect of the war. He was a great +general with the rare attribute of reading correctly the mind of an +opponent and divining his course of action, endowed with an unyielding +temper and an iron hand, a relentless purpose, and the faculty of +inspiring troops to follow, obey, and trust him in the last extremity. +He was one of them, typifying their passions and prejudices, their +faults and their virtues, sharing their hardships as if he were a common +private, never grudging them the credit in success.</p> + +<p>In the light of previous events it is probable that any other American +general would have felt justified in abandoning New Orleans without a +contest. In the city itself were only eight hundred regulars newly +recruited and a thousand volunteers. But <a name="Page_211" id="Page_211" />Jackson counted on the arrival +of the hard-bitted, Indian-fighting regiments of Tennessee who were +toiling through the swamps with their brigadiers, Coffee and Carroll. +The foremost of them reached New Orleans on the very day that the +British were landing on the river bank. Gaunt, unshorn, untamed were +these rough-and-tumble warriors who feared neither God nor man but were +glad to fight and die with Andrew Jackson. In coonskin caps, buckskin +shirts, fringed leggings, they swaggered into New Orleans, defiant of +discipline and impatient of restraint, hunting knives in their belts, +long rifles upon their shoulders. There they drank with seamen as wild +as themselves who served in the ships of Jackson's small naval force or +had offered to lend a hand behind the stockades, and with lean, +long-legged Yankees from down East, swarthy outlaws who sailed for +Pierre Lafitte, Portuguese and Norwegian wanderers who had deserted +their merchant vessels, and even Spanish adventurers from the West +Indies.</p> + +<p>The British fleet disembarked its army late in December after the most +laborious difficulties because of the many miles of shallow bayou and +toilsome marsh which delayed the advance. A week was required to carry +seven thousand men in small <a name="Page_212" id="Page_212" />boats from the ships to the Isle aux Poix +on Lake Borgne chosen as a landing base. Thence a brigade passed in +boats up the bayou and on the 23d of December disembarked at a point +some three miles from the Mississippi and then by land and canal pushed +on to the river's edge. Here they were attacked at night by Jackson with +about two thousand troops, while a war schooner shelled the British left +from the river. It was a weird fight. Squads of Grenadiers, Highlanders, +Creoles, and Tennessee backwoodsmen blindly fought each other in the fog +with knives, fists, bayonets, and musket butts. Jackson then fell back +while the British brigade waited for more troops and artillery.</p> + +<p>On Christmas Day Pakenham took command of the forces at the front now +augmented to about six thousand, but hesitated to attack. And well he +might hesitate, in spite of his superior numbers, for Jackson had +employed his time well and now lay entrenched behind a parapet, +protected by a canal or ditch ten feet wide. With infinite exertion more +guns were dragged and floated to the front until eight heavy batteries +were in position. On the morning of the 1st of January the British +gunners opened fire and felt serenely certain of destroying the rude +defenses of cotton bales and <a name="Page_213" id="Page_213" />cypress logs. To their amazement the +American artillery was served with far greater precision and effect by +the sailors and regulars who had been trained under Jackson's direction. +By noon most of the British guns had been silenced or dismounted and the +men killed or driven away. "Never was any failure more remarkable or +unlooked for than this," said one of the British artillery officers. +General Pakenham, in dismay, held a council of war. It is stated that +his own judgment was swayed by the autocratic Vice-Admiral Cochrane who +tauntingly remarked that "if the army could not take those mud-banks, +defended by ragged militia, he would undertake to do it with two +thousand sailors armed only with cutlases and pistols."</p> + +<p>Made cautious by this overwhelming artillery reverse, the British army +remained a week in camp, a respite of which every hour was priceless to +Andrew Jackson, for his mud-stained, haggard men were toiling with pick +and shovel to complete the ditches and log barricades. They could hear +the British drums and bugles echo in the gloomy cypress woods while the +cannon grumbled incessantly. The red-coated sentries were stalked and +the pickets were ambushed by the Indian fighters who <a name="Page_214" id="Page_214" />spread alarm and +uneasiness. Meanwhile Pakenham was making ready with every resource +known to picked troops, who had charged unshaken through the slaughter +of Ciudad Rodrigo, Badajoz, and San Sebastian, and who were about to +justify once more the tribute to the British soldier: "Give him a plain, +unconditional order—go and do <i>that</i>—and he will do it with a cool, +self-forgetting pertinacity that can scarcely be too much admired."</p> + +<p>It was Pakenham's plan to hurl a flank attack against the right bank of +the Mississippi while he directed the grand assault on the east side of +the river where Jackson's strength was massed. To protect the flank, +Commodore Patterson of the American naval force had built a water +battery of nine guns and was supported by eight hundred militia. Early +in the morning of the 8th of January twelve hundred men in boats, under +the British Colonel Thornton, set out to take this west bank as the +opening maneuver of the battle. Their errand was delayed, although later +in the day they succeeded in defeating the militia and capturing the +naval guns. This minor victory, however, was too late to save Pakenham's +army which had been cut to pieces in the frontal assault.</p> + +<p>Jackson had arranged his main body of troops <a name="Page_215" id="Page_215" />along the inner edge of +the small canal extending from a levee to a tangled swamp. The legendary +cotton bales had been blown up or set on fire during the artillery +bombardment and protection was furnished only by a raw, unfinished +parapet of earth and a double row of log breastworks with red clay +tamped between them. It was a motley army that Jackson led. Next to the +levee were posted a small regiment of regular infantry, a company of New +Orleans Rifles, a squad of dragoons who were handling a howitzer, and a +battalion of Creoles in bright uniforms. The line was extended by the +freebooters of Pierre Lafitte, their heads bound with crimson kerchiefs, +a group of American bluejackets, a battalion of blacks from San Domingo, +a few grizzled old French soldiers serving a brass gun, long rows of +tanned, saturnine Tennesseans, more regulars with a culverin, and rank +upon rank of homespun hunting shirts and long rifles, John Adair and his +savage Kentuckians, and, knee-deep in the swamp, the frontiersmen who +followed General Coffee to death or glory.</p> + +<p>A spirit of reckless elation pervaded this bizarre and terrible little +army, although it was well aware that during two and a half years almost +every other American force had been defeated by an enemy far <a name="Page_216" id="Page_216" />less +formidable. The anxious faces were those of the men of Louisiana who +fought for hearth and home, with their backs to the wall. Many a brutal +tale had they heard of these war-hardened British veterans whose +excesses in Portugal were notorious and who had laid waste the harmless +hamlets of Maryland. All night Andrew Jackson's defenders stood on the +<i>qui vive</i> until the morning mist of the 8th of January was dispelled +and the sunlight flashed on the solid ranks of British bayonets not more +than four hundred yards away.</p> + +<p>At the signal rocket the enemy swept forward toward the canal, with +companies of British sappers bearing scaling ladders and fascines of +sugar cane. They moved with stolid unconcern, but the American cannon +burst forth and slew them until the ditch ran red with blood. With +cheers the invincible British infantry tossed aside its heavy knapsacks, +scrambled over the ditch, and broke into a run to reach the earthworks +along which flamed the sparse line of American rifles. Against such +marksmen as these there was to be no work with the bayonet, for the +assaulting column literally fell as falls the grass under the keen +scythe. The survivors retired, however, only to join a fresh attack +which was rallied and led by Pakenham himself.</p> + +<p><a name="Page_217" id="Page_217" />He died with his men, but once more British pluck attempted the +impossible, and the Highland brigade was chosen to lead this forlorn +hope. That night the pipers wailed <i>Lochaber no more</i> for the mangled +dead of the MacGregors, the MacLeans, and the MacDonalds who lay in +windrows with their faces to the foe. This was no Bladensburg holiday, +and the despised Americans were paying off many an old score. Two +thousand of the flower of Britain's armies were killed or wounded in the +few minutes during which the two assaults were so rashly attempted in +parade formation. Coolly, as though at a prize turkey shoot on a tavern +green, the American riflemen fired into these masses of doomed men, and +every bullet found its billet.</p> + +<p>On the right of the line a gallant British onslaught led by Colonel +Rennie swept over a redoubt and the American defenders died to a man. +But the British wave was halted and rolled back by a tempest of bullets +from the line beyond, and the broken remnant joined the general retreat +which was sounded by the British trumpeters. An armistice was granted +next day and in shallow trenches the dead were buried, row on row, while +the muffled drums rolled in honor of three generals, seven <a name="Page_218" id="Page_218" />colonels, +and seventy-five other officers who had died with their men. Behind the +log walls and earthworks loafed the unkempt, hilarious heroes of whom +only seventy-one had been killed or hurt, and no more than thirteen of +these in the grand assault which Pakenham had led. "Old Hickory" had +told them that they could lick their weight in wildcats, and they were +ready to agree with him.</p> + +<p>Magnificent but useless, after all, excepting as a proud heritage for +later generations and a vindication of American valor against odds, was +this battle of New Orleans which was fought while the Salem ship, +<i>Astrea</i>, Captain John Derby, was driving home to the westward with the +news that a treaty of peace had been signed at Ghent. With a sense of +mutual relief the United States and England had concluded a war in which +neither nation had definitely achieved its aims. The treaty failed to +mention such vital issues as the impressment of seamen and the injury to +commerce by means of paper blockades, while on the other hand England +relinquished its conquest of the Maine coast and its claim to military +domination of the Great Lakes. English statesmen were heartily tired of +a war in which they could see neither profit nor glory, and even the +Duke of Wellington had announced it as <a name="Page_219" id="Page_219" />his opinion "that no military +advantage can be expected if the war goes on, and I would have great +reluctance in undertaking the command unless we made a serious effort +first to obtain peace without insisting upon keeping any part of our +conquests." The reverses of first-class British armies at Plattsburg, +Baltimore, and New Orleans had been a bitter blow to English pride. +Moreover, British commerce on the seas had been largely destroyed by a +host of Yankee privateers, and the common people in England were +suffering from scarcity of food and raw materials and from high prices +to a degree comparable with the distress inflicted by the German +submarine campaign a century later. And although the terms of peace were +unsatisfactory to many Americans, it was implied and understood that the +flag and the nation had won a respect and recognition which should +prevent a recurrence of such wrongs as had caused the War of 1812. One +of the Peace Commissioners, Albert Gallatin, a man of large experience, +unquestioned patriotism, and lucid intelligence, set it down as his +deliberate verdict:</p> + +<blockquote><p>The war has been productive of evil and of good, but I think the + good preponderates. Independent of the loss of lives, and of the + property of individuals, the<a name="Page_220" id="Page_220" /> war has laid the foundation of + permanent taxes and military establishments which the Republicans + had deemed unfavorable to the happiness and free institutions of + our country. But under our former system we were becoming too + selfish, too much attached exclusively to the acquisition of + wealth, above all, too much confined in our political feelings to + local and state objects. The war has renewed and reinstated the + national feeling and character which the Revolution had given, and + which were daily lessening. The people have now more general + objects of attachment, with which their pride and political + opinions are connected. They are more Americans; they feel and act + more as a nation; and I hope that the permanency of the Union is + thereby better secured.</p></blockquote> + +<p>After a hundred years, during which this peace was unbroken, a commander +of the American navy, speaking at a banquet in the ancient Guildhall of +London, was bold enough to predict: "If the time ever comes when the +British Empire is seriously menaced by an external enemy, it is my +opinion that you may count upon every man, every dollar, and every drop +of blood of your kindred across the sea."</p> + +<p>The prediction came true in 1917, and traditional enmities were +extinguished in the crusade against a mutual and detestable foe. The +candid naval officer became Vice-Admiral William S. Sims, <a name="Page_221" id="Page_221" />commanding +all the American ships and sailors in European waters, where the Stars +and Stripes and the British ensign flew side by side, and the squadrons +toiled and dared together in the finest spirit of admiration and +respect. Out from Queenstown sailed an American destroyer flotilla +operated by a stern, inflexible British admiral who was never known to +waste a compliment. At the end of the first year's service he said to +the officers of these hard-driven vessels:</p> + +<blockquote><p>I wish to express my deep gratitude to the United States officers + and ratings for the skill, energy, and unfailing good nature which + they have all so consistently shown and which qualities have so + materially assisted in the war by enabling ships of the Allied + Powers to cross the ocean in comparative freedom.</p> + +<p> <i>To command you is an honor, to work with you is a pleasure, to + know you is to know the finest traits of the Anglo-Saxon race.</i></p></blockquote> + +<p>The United States waged a just war in 1812 and vindicated the principles +for which she fought, but as long as the poppies blow in Flanders fields +it is the clear duty, and it should be the abiding pleasure, of her +people to remember, not those far-off days as foemen, but these latter +days as comrades in arms.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 25%;" /> +<h2><a name="BIBLIOGRAPHICAL_NOTE" id="BIBLIOGRAPHICAL_NOTE" /><a name="Page_223" id="Page_223" />BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE</h2> + +<p>Of the scores of books that have been written about the War of 1812, +many deal with particular phases, events, or personalities, and most of +them are biased by partisan feeling. This has been unfortunately true of +the textbooks written for American schools, which, by ignoring defeats +and blunders, have missed the opportunity to teach the lessons of +experience. By all odds the best, the fairest, and the most complete +narrative of the war as written by an American historian is the +monumental work of Henry Adams, <i>History of the United States of +America</i>, 9 vols. (1889-91). The result of years of scholarly research, +it is also most excellent reading.</p> + +<p>Captain Mahan's <i>Sea Power in its Relation to the War of 1812</i>, 2 vols. +(1905), is, of course, the final word concerning the naval events, but +he also describes with keen analysis the progress of the operations on +land and fills in the political background of cause and effect. Theodore +Roosevelt's <i>The Naval War of 1812</i> (1882) is spirited and accurate but +makes no pretensions to a general survey. Akin to such a briny book as +this but more restricted in scope is <i>The Frigate Constitution</i> (1900) +by Ira N. Hollis, or Rodney Macdonough's <i>Life of Commodore Thomas +Macdonough</i> (1909). Edgar Stanton Maclay in <i>The History of the Navy</i>, 3 +vols. <a name="Page_224" id="Page_224" />(1902), has written a most satisfactory account, which contains +some capital chapters describing the immortal actions of the Yankee +frigates.</p> + +<p>Benson J. Lossing's <i>The Pictorial Field Book of the War of 1812</i> (1868) +has enjoyed wide popularity because of his gossipy, entertaining +quality. The author gathered much of his material at first hand and had +the knack of telling a story; but he is not very trustworthy.</p> + +<p>As a solemn warning, the disasters of the American armies have been +employed by several military experts. The ablest of these was Bvt. Major +General Emory Upton, whose invaluable treatise, <i>The Military Policy of +the United States</i> (1904), was pigeonholed in manuscript by the War +Department and allowed to gather dust for many years. He discusses in +detail the misfortunes of 1812 as conclusive proof that the national +defense cannot be entrusted to raw militia and untrained officers. Of a +similar trend but much more recent are Frederic L. Huidekoper's <i>The +Military Unpreparedness of the United States</i> (1915) and Major General +Leonard Wood's <i>Our Military History; Its Facts and Fallacies</i> (1916).</p> + +<p>Of the British historians, William James undertook the most diligent +account of them all, calling it <i>A Full and Correct Account of the +Military Occurrences of the Late War between Great Britain and the +United States of America</i>, 2 vols. (1818). It is irritating reading for +an American because of an enmity so bitter that facts are willfully +distorted and glaring inaccuracies are accepted as truth. As a naval +historian James undertook to explain away the American victories in +single-ship actions, a difficult task in which he acquitted himself with +poor grace. Theodore Roosevelt is at his best <a name="Page_225" id="Page_225" />when he chastises James +for his venomous hatred of all things American.</p> + +<p>To the English mind the War of 1812 was only an episode in the mighty +and prolonged struggle against Napoleon, and therefore it finds but +cursory treatment in the standard English histories. To Canada, however, +the conflict was intimate and vital, and the narratives written from +this point of view are sounder and of more moment than those produced +across the water. <i>The Canadian War of 1812</i> (1906), published almost a +century after the event, is the work of an Englishman, Sir Charles P. +Lucas, whose lifelong service in the Colonial Office and whose thorough +acquaintance with Canadian history have both been turned to the best +account. Among the Canadian authors in this field are Colonel Ernest A. +Cruikshank and James Hannay. To Colonel Cruikshank falls the greater +credit as a pioneer with his <i>Documentary History of the Campaign upon +the Niagara Frontier</i>, 8 vols. (1896-). Hannay's <i>How Canada Was Held +for the Empire; The Story of the War of 1812</i> (1905) displays careful +study but is marred by the controversial and one-sided attitude which +this war inspired on both sides of the border.</p> + +<p>Colonel William Wood has avoided this flaw in his <i>War with the United +States</i> (1915) which was published as a volume of the <i>Chronicles of +Canada</i> series. As a compact and scholarly survey, this little book is +recommended to Americans who comprehend that there are two sides to +every question. The Canadians fought stubbornly and successfully to +defend their country against invasion in a war whose slogan "Free Trade +and Sailors' Rights" was no direct concern of theirs.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 25%;" /> +<h2><a name="INDEX" id="INDEX" /><a name="Page_227" id="Page_227" />INDEX</h2> +<div class="index"><div class="newletter"><span>Adair, John, <a href="#Page_215">215</a><br /></span> +<span>Adams, Henry, quoted, <a href="#Page_20">20</a>, <a href="#Page_117">117</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Adams</i> (ship), <a href="#Page_141">141</a><br /></span> +<span>Alabama, Indians aroused in, <a href="#Page_201">201</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Alabama</i> raids compared with those of <i>Essex</i>, <a href="#Page_154">154</a><br /></span> +<span>Albany, militia at Sackett's Harbor from, <a href="#Page_77">77</a><br /></span> +<span>Alexandria, British fleet at, <a href="#Page_197">197</a><br /></span> +<span>Allen, Captain W. H., <a href="#Page_142">142</a>, <a href="#Page_143">143</a><br /></span> +<span>Amherstburg, Canadian post, <a href="#Page_11">11</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Hull plans assault, <a href="#Page_11">11</a>, <a href="#Page_14">14</a>, <a href="#Page_16">16</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Brock at, <a href="#Page_17">17</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">defeat of British, <a href="#Page_21">21</a>, <a href="#Page_42">42</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Harrison against, <a href="#Page_24">24</a>, <a href="#Page_25">25</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Procter commands, <a href="#Page_26">26</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">British advance from, <a href="#Page_27">27</a><br /></span> +<span>Anderson, James, of the <i>Essex</i>, <a href="#Page_162">162</a><br /></span> +<span>Annapolis, British fleet at, <a href="#Page_187">187</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Argus</i> (brig), <a href="#Page_94">94</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and the <i>Pelican</i>, <a href="#Page_142">142-44</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Ariel</i> (brig), <a href="#Page_57">57</a>, <a href="#Page_62">62</a><br /></span> +<span>Armstrong, John, Secretary of War, <a href="#Page_37">37</a>, <a href="#Page_175">175</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">plans offensive, <a href="#Page_72">72</a>, <a href="#Page_80">80</a>, <a href="#Page_84">84</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Wilkinson, <a href="#Page_81">81-82</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">orders winter quarters, <a href="#Page_82">82</a><br /></span> +<span>Army, in 1812, <a href="#Page_5">5-8</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">state control, <a href="#Page_6">6-8</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">incapable officers, <a href="#Page_10">10-11</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">at Niagara, <a href="#Page_14">14-15</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Hull's forces, <a href="#Page_15">15</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">mutiny, <a href="#Page_17">17</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">failure to supply, <a href="#Page_24">24</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">forces under Winchester, <a href="#Page_25">25</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">at New Orleans, <a href="#Page_210">210-11</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Astrea</i> (ship), <a href="#Page_218">218</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Avon</i> (British brig), fight with <i>Wasp</i>, <a href="#Page_146">146-47</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Bainbridge, Captain William, <a href="#Page_90">90</a>, <a href="#Page_95">95</a>, <a href="#Page_117">117</a>, <a href="#Page_121">121</a>, <a href="#Page_127">127</a>, <a href="#Page_136">136-137</a>, <a href="#Page_138">138</a><br /></span> +<span>Baltimore, British fleet at, <a href="#Page_187">187</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">attack on, <a href="#Page_197">197-99</a>, <a href="#Page_219">219</a><br /></span> +<span>Bangor (Me.), British land at, <a href="#Page_187">187</a><br /></span> +<span>Barclay, Captain R. H., British officer, <a href="#Page_52">52</a>, <a href="#Page_53">53</a>, <a href="#Page_54">54</a>, <a href="#Page_56">56</a>, <a href="#Page_60">60</a>, <a href="#Page_61">61</a><br /></span> +<span>Barney, Commodore Joshua, <a href="#Page_92">92</a>, <a href="#Page_189">189</a>, <a href="#Page_193">193</a>, <a href="#Page_194">194</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">account of battle of Bladensburg, <a href="#Page_195">195</a><br /></span> +<span>Barrancas, Fort, <a href="#Page_208">208</a><br /></span> +<span>Barron, Commodore James, <a href="#Page_91">91</a><br /></span> +<span>Belfast (Me.), British at, <a href="#Page_187">187</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Belvidera</i> (British frigate), <a href="#Page_96">96</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">fight with <i>President</i>, <a href="#Page_94">94-95</a><br /></span> +<span>Benton, T. H., and Jackson, <a href="#Page_202">202</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Betsy</i> (brig), <a href="#Page_104">104</a><br /></span> +<span>Biddle, Lieutenant James, on the <i>Wasp</i>, <a href="#Page_111">111-12</a><br /></span> +<span>Biddle, Captain Nicholas, <a href="#Page_92">92</a><br /></span> +<span>Black Rock, navy yard at, <a href="#Page_39">39</a>, <a href="#Page_48">48</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Elliott at, <a href="#Page_49">49</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">invasion of Canada from, <a href="#Page_70">70</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Indians against, <a href="#Page_88">88</a><br /></span> +<span>Bladensburg, battle, <a href="#Page_191">191-96</a><br /></span> +<span>Blakely, Captain Johnston, <a href="#Page_137">137</a>, <a href="#Page_144">144</a>, <a href="#Page_145">145</a>, <a href="#Page_146">146</a>, <a href="#Page_147">147</a><br /></span> +<span>Blockade, <a href="#Page_124">124-25</a>, <a href="#Page_148">148</a>, <a href="#Page_185">185</a><br /></span> +<span>Blyth, Captain Samuel, <a href="#Page_140">140</a><br /></span> +<span>Boerstler, Colonel, <a href="#Page_76">76</a><br /></span> +<span><a name="Page_228" id="Page_228" /><i>Bonne Citoyenne</i> (British sloop-of-war), <a href="#Page_126">126</a><br /></span> +<span>Bowyer, Fort, <a href="#Page_206">206</a>, <a href="#Page_207">207</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Boxer</i>, duel with <i>Enterprise</i>, <a href="#Page_189">189-40</a><br /></span> +<span>Boyd, General J. P., <a href="#Page_74">74</a>, <a href="#Page_76">76</a>, <a href="#Page_83">83</a><br /></span> +<span>Brewster (Mass.), war levy, <a href="#Page_188">188</a><br /></span> +<span>Brock, Major General Isaac, British commander, <a href="#Page_12">12-13</a>, <a href="#Page_14">14</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">against Hull, <a href="#Page_15">15</a>, <a href="#Page_17">17</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Hull surrenders Detroit to, <a href="#Page_18">18-19</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">on Elliott's victory, <a href="#Page_40">40</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">on Niagara River, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">killed, <a href="#Page_66">66</a><br /></span> +<span>Broke, Captain P. V., of the <i>Shannon</i>, <a href="#Page_96">96</a>, <a href="#Page_128">128-29</a>, <a href="#Page_130">130</a>, <a href="#Page_134">134</a>, <a href="#Page_138">138-39</a><br /></span> +<span>Brown, General Jacob, at Sackett's Harbor, <a href="#Page_77">77</a>, <a href="#Page_78">78</a>, <a href="#Page_79">79</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">at Chrystler's Farm, <a href="#Page_82">82-83</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Niagara campaign, <a href="#Page_167">167</a>, <a href="#Page_168">168</a>, <a href="#Page_169">169</a>, <a href="#Page_170">170</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">at Lundy's Lane, <a href="#Page_171">171-72</a>, <a href="#Page_191">191</a><br /></span> +<span>Budd, George, second lieutenant on <i>Chesapeake</i>, <a href="#Page_134">134</a><br /></span> +<span>Buffalo, Elliott at, <a href="#Page_38">38</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">difficulty of taking supplies to, <a href="#Page_47">47</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">American regulars sent to, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">base of operations, <a href="#Page_70">70</a>, <a href="#Page_72">72</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Indians against, <a href="#Page_88">88</a><br /></span> +<span>Burrows, Captain William, of the <i>Enterprise</i>, <a href="#Page_139">139</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Cabinet advises General Winder, <a href="#Page_192">192</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Caledonia</i> (British brig), <a href="#Page_38">38-39</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Elliott captures, <a href="#Page_39">39</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">in American squadron, <a href="#Page_49">49-50</a>, <a href="#Page_56">56</a><br /></span> +<span>Canada, "On to Canada!" slogan of frontiersmen, <a href="#Page_4">4</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">vulnerable point in War of 1812, <a href="#Page_9">9</a>, <a href="#Page_10">10</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">population and extent, <a href="#Page_10">10</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">plans for invasion of, <a href="#Page_13">13-14</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Hull abandons invasion of, <a href="#Page_16">16</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Niagara campaign, <a href="#Page_64">64</a> <i>et seq.</i>, <a href="#Page_167">167-77</a><br /></span> +<span>Canning, George, British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, <a href="#Page_92">92</a><br /></span> +<span>Carden, Captain J. S., of the <i>Macedonian</i>, <a href="#Page_114">114</a>, <a href="#Page_115">115</a>, <a href="#Page_116">116</a><br /></span> +<span>Cass, Colonel Lewis, <a href="#Page_18">18</a><br /></span> +<span>Castine, British land at, <a href="#Page_187">187</a><br /></span> +<span>Champlain, Lake, Dearborn on, <a href="#Page_71">71</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Hampton in command, <a href="#Page_80">80</a>, <a href="#Page_81">81</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Macdonough's victory, <a href="#Page_166">166</a> <i>et seq.</i><br /></span> +<span>Chandler, General John, <a href="#Page_74">74</a>, <a href="#Page_75">75</a><br /></span> +<span>Chateauguay River, Hampton on, <a href="#Page_84">84</a>, <a href="#Page_85">85</a><br /></span> +<span>Chauncey, Captain Isaac, leads sailors from New York to Buffalo, <a href="#Page_39">39</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">in command of naval forces on Lakes Erie and Ontario, <a href="#Page_47">47</a>, <a href="#Page_48">48</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">extreme caution, <a href="#Page_49">49</a>, <a href="#Page_55">55</a>, <a href="#Page_56">56</a>, <a href="#Page_170">170-71</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">on Lake Ontario, <a href="#Page_49">49</a>, <a href="#Page_50">50</a>, <a href="#Page_63">63</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Perry, <a href="#Page_50">50-51</a>, <a href="#Page_55">55</a>, <a href="#Page_56">56</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Niagara campaign, <a href="#Page_72">72</a>, <a href="#Page_73">73</a>, <a href="#Page_74">74</a>, <a href="#Page_77">77</a>, <a href="#Page_82">82</a>, <a href="#Page_170">170-71</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Cherub</i> (British sloop-of-war), <a href="#Page_157">157</a>, <a href="#Page_159">159</a>, <a href="#Page_160">160</a>, <a href="#Page_161">161</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Chesapeake</i> (frigate), and <i>Leopard</i>, <a href="#Page_91">91</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Lawrence on, <a href="#Page_96">96</a>, <a href="#Page_127">127-28</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">defeated by <i>Shannon</i>, <a href="#Page_128">128-39</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Allen on, <a href="#Page_142">142</a><br /></span> +<span>Chesapeake Bay, blockade of <a href="#Page_185">185</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Cockburn in, <a href="#Page_186">186</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">British army comes to, <a href="#Page_189">189</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">British fleet in, <a href="#Page_197">197</a><br /></span> +<span>Chippawa, Brock's forces at <a href="#Page_65">65</a>, <a href="#Page_67">67</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">battle, <a href="#Page_168">168-70</a><br /></span> +<span>Chrystler's Farm, battle, <a href="#Page_83">83</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Chub</i> (British schooner), <a href="#Page_180">180</a><br /></span> +<span>Clay, Brigadier General Green, <a href="#Page_31">31</a><br /></span> +<span>Clay, Henry, on conquest of Canada, <a href="#Page_9">9</a><br /></span> +<span>Cleveland, Harrison's headquarters at, <a href="#Page_33">33</a><br /></span> +<span>Cochrane, Vice Admiral Alexander, <a href="#Page_198">198</a>, <a href="#Page_218">218</a><br /></span> +<span>Cockburn, Rear Admiral George, <a href="#Page_186">186</a>, <a href="#Page_195">195</a>, <a href="#Page_196">196</a><br /></span> +<span><a name="Page_229" id="Page_229" />Cod, Cape, British raids on, <a href="#Page_188">188</a><br /></span> +<span>Coffee, General John, <a href="#Page_211">211</a>, <a href="#Page_215">215</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Confiance</i> (British frigate), <a href="#Page_179">179</a>, <a href="#Page_180">180</a><br /></span> +<span>Congress, declares war on Great Britain (1812), <a href="#Page_4">4</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and the navy, <a href="#Page_90">90</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">votes prize money for <i>Constitution</i>, <a href="#Page_107">107</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">prize money for <i>Wasp</i>, <a href="#Page_113">113</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and maritime trouble with France, <a href="#Page_152">152</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">refuses to sanction Jackson's expedition, <a href="#Page_201">201</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Congress</i> (frigate), <a href="#Page_94">94</a>, <a href="#Page_141">141</a><br /></span> +<span>Connecticut, attitude toward War of 1812, <a href="#Page_7">7</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Constellation</i> (frigate), <a href="#Page_92">92</a>, <a href="#Page_141">141</a>, <a href="#Page_187">187</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Constitution</i> (frigate), <a href="#Page_2">2</a>, <a href="#Page_125">125</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Hull and, <a href="#Page_95">95</a>, <a href="#Page_116">116</a>, <a href="#Page_128">128</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">now in Boston Navy Yard, <a href="#Page_95">95-96</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">encounter with British squadron, <a href="#Page_96">96-99</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and <i>Guerrière</i>, <a href="#Page_100">100-07</a>, <a href="#Page_108">108</a>, <a href="#Page_122">122-23</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">"Old Ironsides," <a href="#Page_101">101</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">under Bainbridge, <a href="#Page_116">116-17</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">health conditions on, <a href="#Page_117">117-18</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">encounter with <i>Java</i>, <a href="#Page_118">118-21</a>, <a href="#Page_123">123-24</a>, <a href="#Page_154">154</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Lawrence and, <a href="#Page_126">126</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">influence, <a href="#Page_139">139</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">in 1813, <a href="#Page_141">141</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">gains open sea in 1814, <a href="#Page_147">147</a><br /></span> +<span>Creek Indians, <a href="#Page_201">201</a><br /></span> +<span>Creighton, Captain J. O., <a href="#Page_137">137</a><br /></span> +<span>Crockett, David, <a href="#Page_202">202</a><br /></span> +<span>Croghan, Major George, at Fort Stephenson, <a href="#Page_34">34-35</a>, <a href="#Page_36">36</a>, <a href="#Page_38">38</a>, <a href="#Page_46">46</a><br /></span> +<span>Crowninshield, Captain George, <a href="#Page_136">136</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Cyane</i> (British frigate), <a href="#Page_147">147</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Dacres, Captain John, of the <i>Guerrière</i>, <a href="#Page_100">100</a>, <a href="#Page_101">101</a>, <a href="#Page_102">102</a>, <a href="#Page_103">103</a>, <a href="#Page_104">104</a><br /></span> +<span>Dayton (O.), Hull takes command at, <a href="#Page_12">12</a><br /></span> +<span>Dearborn, Major General Henry, plans invasion of Canada, <a href="#Page_13">13</a>, <a href="#Page_73">73</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">commander-in-chief of American forces, <a href="#Page_14">14</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">incompetency, <a href="#Page_14">14</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Niagara campaign, <a href="#Page_64">64</a>, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>, <a href="#Page_74">74-75</a>, <a href="#Page_76">76</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">campaign against Montreal, <a href="#Page_71">71-72</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">wishes to retire, <a href="#Page_72">72</a>, <a href="#Page_75">75</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Armstrong and, <a href="#Page_72">72</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Brown reports battle of Sackett's Harbor to, <a href="#Page_78">78-79</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">retired, <a href="#Page_80">80</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">age, <a href="#Page_117">117</a><br /></span> +<span>Dearborn, Fort (Chicago), burned, <a href="#Page_19">19</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">massacre, <a href="#Page_20">20</a><br /></span> +<span>Decatur, Captain Stephen, <a href="#Page_138">138</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and the <i>Philadelphia</i> (1804), <a href="#Page_92">92</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">squadron commander, <a href="#Page_94">94</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">on the <i>United States</i>, <a href="#Page_114">114</a>, <a href="#Page_115">115</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">on the <i>President</i>, <a href="#Page_148">148</a>, <a href="#Page_149">149</a>;<br /></span> +<span>Defiance, Fort, <a href="#Page_24">24</a><br /></span> +<span>Delaware Bay, blockade of, <a href="#Page_185">185</a><br /></span> +<span>Derby, Captain John, <a href="#Page_218">218</a><br /></span> +<span>Detroit, <a href="#Page_64">64</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">first campaign from, <a href="#Page_11">11</a>, <a href="#Page_14">14</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Hull at, <a href="#Page_12">12</a>, <a href="#Page_13">13</a>, <a href="#Page_14">14</a>, <a href="#Page_15">15</a>, <a href="#Page_16">16</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">mutiny at, <a href="#Page_15">15</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">surrender of, <a href="#Page_17">17-18</a>, <a href="#Page_19">19</a>, <a href="#Page_20">20</a>, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>, <a href="#Page_106">106-07</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">in British hands, <a href="#Page_31">31</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Procter abandons, <a href="#Page_42">42</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Harrison returns to, <a href="#Page_45">45</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Detroit</i> (brig), taken from Hull, <a href="#Page_38">38</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Elliott captures, <a href="#Page_39">39-40</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Detroit</i> (British ship), <a href="#Page_54">54</a>, <a href="#Page_56">56</a>, <a href="#Page_57">57</a>, <a href="#Page_60">60</a><br /></span> +<span>Downes, Lieutenant John, <a href="#Page_155">155</a>, <a href="#Page_156">156</a><br /></span> +<span>Downie, Captain George, British officer, <a href="#Page_178">178</a>, <a href="#Page_183">183</a><br /></span> +<span>Drummond, General Sir George Gordon, <a href="#Page_172">172</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span><i>Eagle</i> (brig), <a href="#Page_180">180</a><br /></span> +<span>Eastham (Mass.), war levy, <a href="#Page_188">188</a><br /></span> +<span>Eastport (Me.), captured, <a href="#Page_187">187</a><br /></span> +<span>Elliott, Lieutenant J. D., builds fleet on Lake Erie, <a href="#Page_38">38</a>, <a href="#Page_48">48</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">captures <i>Caledonia</i> and <i>Detroit</i>, <a href="#Page_39">39-40</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">with Perry, <a href="#Page_54">54</a>, <a href="#Page_58">58</a><br /></span> +<span><a name="Page_230" id="Page_230" /><i>Endymion</i> (British frigate), <a href="#Page_150">150</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Enterprise</i> (brig), encounter with <i>Boxer</i>, <a href="#Page_139">139-40</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Epervier</i> (British brig), fight with <i>Peacock</i>, <a href="#Page_144">144</a><br /></span> +<span>Erie, Barclay off, <a href="#Page_52">52</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1"><i>see also</i> Presqu' Isle<br /></span> +<span>Erie, Fort, Elliott captures ships near, <a href="#Page_39">39</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Brock at, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Americans capture, <a href="#Page_168">168</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Scott and Brown occupy, <a href="#Page_173">173</a><br /></span> +<span>Erie, Lake, Hull's schooner captured on, <a href="#Page_12">12</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Perry on, <a href="#Page_21">21</a>, <a href="#Page_40">40</a> <i>et seq.</i>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Harrison on shores of, <a href="#Page_24">24</a>, <a href="#Page_30">30</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Chauncey in command on, <a href="#Page_47">47</a>, <a href="#Page_48">48</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Essex</i> (frigate), <a href="#Page_141">141</a>, <a href="#Page_147">147</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">last cruise, <a href="#Page_151">151</a> <i>et seq.</i>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">building of, <a href="#Page_153">153</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">capture by Hillyar, <a href="#Page_161">161-65</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Essex, Junior</i> (cruiser), <a href="#Page_156">156</a>, <a href="#Page_159">159</a><br /></span> +<span>Eustis, William, Secretary of War, <a href="#Page_24">24</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Faneuil Hall, banquet for Hull at, <a href="#Page_106">106</a><br /></span> +<span>Farragut, Admiral D. G., <a href="#Page_181">181</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">motto, <a href="#Page_46">46</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">cited, <a href="#Page_59"><i>59</i></a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">midshipman on <i>Essex</i>, <a href="#Page_161">161-62</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Finch</i> (British schooner), <a href="#Page_180">180</a><br /></span> +<span>Florida, West, Jackson and, <a href="#Page_200">200</a><br /></span> +<span>France, American feeling toward, <a href="#Page_3">3</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">as maritime enemy, <a href="#Page_151">151-52</a>, <a href="#Page_154">154</a><br /></span> +<span>Fredericktown burned, <a href="#Page_186">186</a><br /></span> +<span>"Free Trade and Sailors' Rights," <a href="#Page_3">3</a>, <a href="#Page_91">91</a>, <a href="#Page_137">137</a><br /></span> +<span>Frenchtown, <i>see</i> Raisin River<br /></span> +<span><i>Frolic</i> (British brig), encounter with <i>Wasp</i>, <a href="#Page_108">108-13</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Galapagos Islands, <i>Essex</i> at, <a href="#Page_155">155</a><br /></span> +<span>Gallatin, Albert, quoted, <a href="#Page_219">219-220</a><br /></span> +<span>George, Fort, British fort, <a href="#Page_67">67</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">evacuated by British, <a href="#Page_74">74-75</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">retaken, <a href="#Page_87">87</a><br /></span> +<span>Georgia, Indians aroused in, <a href="#Page_201">201</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Georgiana</i> (British whaling ship), <i>Essex</i> captures, <a href="#Page_155">155</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">renamed <i>Essex, Junior</i>, <a href="#Page_156">156</a><br /></span> +<span>Great Britain, and free sea, <a href="#Page_2">2-3</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Indian wars, <a href="#Page_4">4</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">war declared on (1812), <a href="#Page_4">4</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Indians, <a href="#Page_10">10</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Napoleon, <a href="#Page_124">124</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">blockading measures, <a href="#Page_124">124-25</a><br /></span> +<span>Great Lakes, British on, <a href="#Page_38">38</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Guerrière</i> (British frigate), <a href="#Page_2">2</a>, <a href="#Page_96">96</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">encounter with <i>Constitution</i>, <a href="#Page_100">100-07</a>, <a href="#Page_108">108</a>, <a href="#Page_122">122-23</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">celebration of capture, <a href="#Page_116">116</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Hamilton, Alexander, Izard aide to, <a href="#Page_175">175</a><br /></span> +<span>Hampton, General Wade, in campaign against Montreal, <a href="#Page_80">80</a>, <a href="#Page_81">81</a>, <a href="#Page_83">83-84</a>, <a href="#Page_86">86</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Wilkinson, <a href="#Page_80">80-81</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">cause of failure, <a href="#Page_86">86</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">age, <a href="#Page_117">117</a><br /></span> +<span>Hampton, British foray on village of, <a href="#Page_187">187</a><br /></span> +<span>Haraden, Captain Jonathan, <a href="#Page_153">153</a><br /></span> +<span>Harrison, General W. H., campaign, <a href="#Page_22">22</a> <i>et seq.</i>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">report to Secretary of War, <a href="#Page_29">29-30</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Croghan and, <a href="#Page_35">35</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Armstrong on, <a href="#Page_37">37-38</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Perry's victory, <a href="#Page_41">41</a>, <a href="#Page_63">63</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">resumes campaign, <a href="#Page_42">42</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">becomes President of United States, <a href="#Page_45">45</a><br /></span> +<span>Havre de Grace burned, <a href="#Page_186">186</a><br /></span> +<span>Hazen, Benjamin, of the <i>Essex,</i> <a href="#Page_162">162</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Henry</i> (brig), <a href="#Page_186">186</a>, <a href="#Page_187">187</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Hermes</i> (British sloop-of-war), <a href="#Page_207">207</a><br /></span> +<span>Hillyar, Captain James, British officer, <a href="#Page_157">157</a>, <a href="#Page_158">158</a>, <a href="#Page_159">159-60</a>, <a href="#Page_161">161</a>, <a href="#Page_164">164-65</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Hornet</i> (sloop-of-war), <a href="#Page_48">48</a>, <a href="#Page_94">94</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Lawrence on, <a href="#Page_126">126</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and <i>Peacock</i>, <a href="#Page_127">127</a>;<br /></span><a name="Page_231" id="Page_231" /><br /> +<span class="i1">in South American waters, <a href="#Page_154">154</a><br /></span> +<span>Horseshoe Bend, battle, <a href="#Page_204">204</a><br /></span> +<span>Houston, Samuel, <a href="#Page_202">202</a><br /></span> +<span>Hull, Captain Isaac, of the <i>Constitution</i>, <a href="#Page_95">95</a>, <a href="#Page_128">128</a>, <a href="#Page_138">138</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and British squadron, <a href="#Page_96">96</a>, <a href="#Page_97">97</a>, <a href="#Page_98">98</a>, <a href="#Page_99">99</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and <i>Guerrière</i>, <a href="#Page_101">101</a>, <a href="#Page_102">102</a>, <a href="#Page_103">103</a>, <a href="#Page_106">106</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Dacres, <a href="#Page_104">104</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">victory celebrated, <a href="#Page_106">106</a>, <a href="#Page_107">107</a>, <a href="#Page_108">108</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">gives up command of <i>Constitution</i>, <a href="#Page_116">116-17</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">at Lawrence's funeral, <a href="#Page_136">136</a><br /></span> +<span>Hull, General William, <a href="#Page_34">34</a>, <a href="#Page_68">68</a>, <a href="#Page_71">71</a>, <a href="#Page_88">88</a>, <a href="#Page_98">98</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Detroit campaign, <a href="#Page_11">11</a> <i>et seq.</i>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">troops, <a href="#Page_15">15</a>, <a href="#Page_17">17</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">surrender, <a href="#Page_19">19</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">court-martial, <a href="#Page_19">19-20</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Harrison and, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">age, <a href="#Page_117">117</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Impressment of seamen, <a href="#Page_90">90</a><br /></span> +<span>Indian wars, enmity toward Great Britain because of, <a href="#Page_4">4</a><br /></span> +<span>Indians, British and, <a href="#Page_10">10</a>, <a href="#Page_55">55</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">against Americans, <a href="#Page_16">16</a>, <a href="#Page_67">67</a>, <a href="#Page_76">76</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">in Canadian army, <a href="#Page_17">17</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Procter and, <a href="#Page_26">26</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">abandon British cause, <a href="#Page_44">44</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">ravage frontier, <a href="#Page_88">88</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">massacre at Fort Mims, <a href="#Page_202">202</a><br /></span> +<span>Izard, General George, <a href="#Page_175">175</a>, <a href="#Page_176">176</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Jackson, Andrew, at New Orleans, <a href="#Page_17">17-18</a>, <a href="#Page_208">208</a> <i>et seq.</i>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Florida expedition, <a href="#Page_200">200-03</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">at Horseshoe Bend, <a href="#Page_204">204</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">at Pensacola, <a href="#Page_207">207-08</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Jacob Jones</i> (destroyer), <a href="#Page_109">109</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Java</i> (British frigate), encounter with <i>Constitution</i>, <a href="#Page_118">118-20</a>, <a href="#Page_154">154</a><br /></span> +<span>Jefferson, Thomas, and gunboats, <a href="#Page_8">8-9</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">on conquest of Canada, <a href="#Page_9">9-10</a><br /></span> +<span>Johnson, Allen, <i>Jefferson and his Colleagues</i>, cited, <a href="#Page_2">2</a><br /></span> +<span>Johnson, Colonel R. M., <a href="#Page_41">41</a>, <a href="#Page_43">43</a>, <a href="#Page_44">44</a>, <a href="#Page_46">46</a>;<br /></span> +<span>Jones, Captain, Jacob, of the <i>Wasp</i>, <a href="#Page_109">109</a>, <a href="#Page_110">110</a>, <a href="#Page_111">111</a>, <a href="#Page_113">113</a>;<br /></span> +<span>Jones, John Paul, cited, <a href="#Page_59">59</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">American naval officers serve with, <a href="#Page_92">92</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">on the <i>Ranger</i>, <a href="#Page_141">141</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Kentucky, defends western border, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">militia, <a href="#Page_24">24</a>, <a href="#Page_31">31</a><br /></span> +<span>Key, F. S., <i>Star-Spangled Banner</i>, <a href="#Page_198">198-99</a><br /></span> +<span>Kingston, plan to capture, <a href="#Page_72">72</a>, <a href="#Page_73">73</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Prevost embarks at, <a href="#Page_77">77</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span><i>Lady Prevost</i> (British schooner), <a href="#Page_56">56</a><br /></span> +<span>Lafitte, Jean, <a href="#Page_206">206</a><br /></span> +<span>Lafitte, Pierre, <a href="#Page_206">206</a>, <a href="#Page_211">211</a>, <a href="#Page_215">215</a><br /></span> +<span>Lambert, Captain Henry, of the <i>Java</i>, <a href="#Page_118">118</a><br /></span> +<span>Lang, Jack, sailor on the <i>Wasp</i>, <a href="#Page_111">111</a><br /></span> +<span><i>La Vengeance</i> (French ship) and <i>Constellation</i>, <a href="#Page_93">93</a><br /></span> +<span>Lawrence, Captain James, of the <i>Chesapeake</i>, <a href="#Page_96">96</a>, <a href="#Page_127">127-28</a>, <a href="#Page_129">129-30</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">on the <i>Hornet</i>, <a href="#Page_126">126</a>, <a href="#Page_127">127</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">fights <i>Shannon</i>, <a href="#Page_130">130-136</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">death, <a href="#Page_131">131</a>, <a href="#Page_133">133</a>, <a href="#Page_135">135</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">account of funeral, <a href="#Page_136">136-37</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Lawrence</i> (brig), <a href="#Page_49">49</a>, <a href="#Page_53">53</a>, <a href="#Page_55">55</a>, <a href="#Page_56">56</a>, <a href="#Page_57">57</a>, <a href="#Page_58">58</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Leopard</i> and <i>Chesapeake</i>, <a href="#Page_91">91</a>, <a href="#Page_142">142</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Levant</i> (British sloop-of-war), fight with <i>Constitution</i>, <a href="#Page_147">147</a><br /></span> +<span>Lewis, General Morgan, <a href="#Page_75">75-76</a>, <a href="#Page_83">83</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Linnet</i> (British brig), <a href="#Page_180">180</a><br /></span> +<span><i>L'Insurgente</i> (French ship) and <i>Constellation</i>, <a href="#Page_92">92</a><br /></span> +<span>Long Island Sound, British fleet in, <a href="#Page_188">188</a><br /></span> +<span>Ludlow, Lieutenant A. C, of the <i>Chesapeake</i>, <a href="#Page_133">133</a>, <a href="#Page_136">136</a>, <a href="#Page_137">137</a><br /></span> +<span>Lundy's Lane, battle, <a href="#Page_2">2</a>, <a href="#Page_171">171-173</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>McArthur, Colonel, <a href="#Page_18">18</a><br /></span> +<span>Macdonough, Commodore <a name="Page_232" id="Page_232" />Thomas, on Lake Champlain, <a href="#Page_166">166</a>, <a href="#Page_167">167</a>, <a href="#Page_171">171</a>, <a href="#Page_178">178</a>, <a href="#Page_179">179-84</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Macedonian</i> (British frigate), Decatur captures, <a href="#Page_114">114-16</a>, <a href="#Page_142">142</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">as American frigate, <a href="#Page_141">141</a><br /></span> +<span>McHenry, Fort, <a href="#Page_197">197</a>, <a href="#Page_198">198</a><br /></span> +<span>Mackinac, fall of, <a href="#Page_19">19</a>, <a href="#Page_20">20</a><br /></span> +<span>Mackinaw, <i>see</i> Mackinac<br /></span> +<span>M'Knight, Lieutenant, S. D., of the <i>Essex</i>, <a href="#Page_163">163</a><br /></span> +<span>Macomb, Brigadier General Alexander, <a href="#Page_177">177</a><br /></span> +<span>Madison, James, and Hull, <a href="#Page_12">12</a>, <a href="#Page_19">19</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">reviews troops, <a href="#Page_191">191</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">at battle of Bladensburg, <a href="#Page_192">192</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">policy as to West Florida, <a href="#Page_200">200</a><br /></span> +<span>Mahan, Captain A. T., quoted, <a href="#Page_128">128</a><br /></span> +<span>Maine, British raids, <a href="#Page_187">187</a><br /></span> +<span>Malden (Amherstburg), <a href="#Page_43">43</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1"><i>see also</i> Amherstburg<br /></span> +<span>Massachusetts, attitude toward War of 1812, <a href="#Page_7">7</a>, <a href="#Page_91">91</a><br /></span> +<span>Maumee Rapids, Harrison at, <a href="#Page_30">30</a><br /></span> +<span>Maumee River, Hull at, <a href="#Page_12">12</a><br /></span> +<span>Meigs, Fort, massacre at, <a href="#Page_20">20</a>, <a href="#Page_32">32</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">built, <a href="#Page_30">30</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Procter besieges, <a href="#Page_31">31-32</a>, <a href="#Page_36">36</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Harrison again at, <a href="#Page_33">33</a><br /></span> +<span>Merchant marine, <a href="#Page_93">93</a><br /></span> +<span>Miller, Captain, at battle of Bladensburg, <a href="#Page_195">195</a><br /></span> +<span>Miller, Colonel John, <a href="#Page_17">17</a>, <a href="#Page_33">33</a><br /></span> +<span>Mims, Samuel, <a href="#Page_202">202</a><br /></span> +<span>Mims, Fort, massacre, <a href="#Page_202">202</a><br /></span> +<span>Mississippi Valley and invasion of Florida, <a href="#Page_200">200</a><br /></span> +<span>Mobile, Jackson at, <a href="#Page_204">204</a>, <a href="#Page_206">206-207</a>, <a href="#Page_208">208</a><br /></span> +<span>Montreal, plan of attack, <a href="#Page_14">14</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">campaign against, <a href="#Page_71">71</a>, <a href="#Page_82">82-87</a><br /></span> +<span>Moraviantown, Procter goes to, <a href="#Page_42">42</a><br /></span> +<span>Morris, Lieutenant Charles, on the <i>Constitution</i>, <a href="#Page_101">101</a>, <a href="#Page_107">107</a><br /></span> +<span>Mulcaster, Captain W. H., <a href="#Page_83">83</a><br /></span> +<span>Murray, Colonel, British officer, <a href="#Page_87">87</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Napoleon, Great Britain and, <a href="#Page_2">2</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">offenses against American commerce, <a href="#Page_8">8</a><br /></span> +<span>Navy, <a href="#Page_8">8-9</a>, <a href="#Page_38">38</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">on Lake Erie, <a href="#Page_46">46</a> <i>et seq.</i>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">on the sea, <a href="#Page_89">89</a> <i>et seq.</i>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">augmented by private subscriptions, <a href="#Page_152">152</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">victory on Lake Champlain, <a href="#Page_166">166</a> <i>et seq.</i><br /></span> +<span>Nelson, Horatio, Viscount, quoted, <a href="#Page_141">141</a><br /></span> +<span>New England, attitude toward War of 1812, <a href="#Page_7">7-8</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">British raids in, <a href="#Page_187">187-88</a><br /></span> +<span>New Orleans, battle of, <a href="#Page_166">166</a>, <a href="#Page_175">175</a>, <a href="#Page_208">208-18</a>, <a href="#Page_219">219</a><br /></span> +<span>New York, apprehension in, <a href="#Page_148">148</a><br /></span> +<span>Niagara, campaign planned, <a href="#Page_13">13-14</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">American forces at, <a href="#Page_14">14-15</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">campaign, <a href="#Page_64">64</a> <i>et seq.</i>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">renewal of struggle for region of (1814), <a href="#Page_167">167-77</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Niagara</i> (brig), <a href="#Page_49">49</a>, <a href="#Page_53">53</a>, <a href="#Page_54">54</a>, <a href="#Page_56">56</a>, <a href="#Page_58">58</a>, <a href="#Page_59">59</a><br /></span> +<span>Niagara, Fort, <a href="#Page_87">87</a><br /></span> +<span>Nicholls, Major Edward, <a href="#Page_205">205</a><br /></span> +<span>Norfolk, Warren attacks, <a href="#Page_187">187</a><br /></span> +<span>Northwest Territory regained for United States, <a href="#Page_44">44</a>, <a href="#Page_63">63</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Ohio, Hull sends troops to, <a href="#Page_16">16</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">defends western border, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">militia, <a href="#Page_31">31</a><br /></span> +<span>"Old Ironsides," <a href="#Page_101">101</a>, see also <i>Constitution</i><br /></span> +<span>Ontario, Lake, Chauncey in command on, <a href="#Page_47">47</a>, <a href="#Page_48">48</a>, <a href="#Page_49">49</a>, <a href="#Page_50">50</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">battle at Sackett's Harbor, <a href="#Page_77">77-79</a><br /></span> +<span>Orne, Captain W. B., <a href="#Page_104">104</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Paine, R. D., <i>The Old Merchant Marine</i>, cited, <a href="#Page_93">93</a> (note)<br /></span> +<span>Pakenham, General Sir Edward, at New Orleans, <a href="#Page_209">209-210</a>, <a href="#Page_212">212</a>, <a href="#Page_213">213</a>, <a href="#Page_214">214</a>, <a href="#Page_216">216-17</a><br /></span> +<span><a name="Page_233" id="Page_233" />Patterson, Commodore D. T., at New Orleans, <a href="#Page_214">214</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Peacock</i> (British brig) and <i>Hornet</i>, <a href="#Page_127">127</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Peacock</i> (sloop-of-war), <a href="#Page_144">144</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Pelican</i> (British brig), <a href="#Page_142">142</a><br /></span> +<span>Pennsylvania, brigade in Western campaign from, <a href="#Page_23">23</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">militia at Erie, <a href="#Page_52">52-53</a><br /></span> +<span>Pensacola, British pull down Spanish flag at, <a href="#Page_204">204-05</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Jackson at, <a href="#Page_207">207-08</a><br /></span> +<span>Perry, O. H., <a href="#Page_180">180-81</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">victory on Lake Erie, <a href="#Page_21">21</a>, <a href="#Page_46">46</a> <i>et seq.</i>, <a href="#Page_166">166</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Harrison, <a href="#Page_41">41</a>, <a href="#Page_63">63</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">famous message, <a href="#Page_41">41</a>, <a href="#Page_62">62</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Philadelphia</i> (frigate), <a href="#Page_92">92</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Phoebe</i> (British frigate) and <i>Essex</i>, <a href="#Page_157">157-65</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Pilot</i>, The, on destruction of the <i>Java</i>, <a href="#Page_123">123-24</a><br /></span> +<span>Plattsburg, Dearborn at, <a href="#Page_71">71</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">troops moved from, <a href="#Page_74">74</a>, <a href="#Page_80">80</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Izard at, <a href="#Page_175">175</a>, <a href="#Page_176">176</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Prevost at, <a href="#Page_176">176</a>, <a href="#Page_177">177</a>, <a href="#Page_178">178</a><br /></span> +<span>Plattsburg Bay, battle of, <a href="#Page_177">177-184</a>, <a href="#Page_219">219</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Poictiers</i> (British ship), <a href="#Page_113">113</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Pomone</i> (British frigate), <a href="#Page_150">150</a><br /></span> +<span>Porter, Captain David, of the <i>Essex</i>, <a href="#Page_151">151</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">raids on British whaling fleet, <a href="#Page_154">154-56</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1"><i>Phoebe</i> and <i>Cherub</i> seek, <a href="#Page_157">157-64</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">account of surrender of <i>Essex</i>, <a href="#Page_163">163-64</a><br /></span> +<span><i>President</i> (frigate), <a href="#Page_141">141</a>, <a href="#Page_147">147</a>, <a href="#Page_148">148</a>, <a href="#Page_149">149</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">encounters <i>Belvidera</i>, <a href="#Page_94">94-95</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Rodgers in command of, <a href="#Page_101">101</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">captured, <a href="#Page_150">150</a><br /></span> +<span>Presqu' Isle (Erie), navy yard at, <a href="#Page_48">48</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1"><i>see also</i> Erie<br /></span> +<span>Prevost, Sir George, Governor General of Canada, <a href="#Page_54">54</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">crosses Lake Ontario, <a href="#Page_77">77</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">defends Montreal, <a href="#Page_84">84-85</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">goes to Plattsburg, <a href="#Page_176">176</a>, <a href="#Page_177">177</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">quoted, <a href="#Page_176">176-77</a>, <a href="#Page_178">178-79</a><br /></span> +<span>Privateers, <a href="#Page_93">93</a><br /></span> +<span>Procter, Colonel Henry, battle of the Raisin, <a href="#Page_26">26</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">character, <a href="#Page_26">26</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Harrison, <a href="#Page_30">30</a>, <a href="#Page_34">34</a>, <a href="#Page_37">37-38</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">at Fort Meigs, <a href="#Page_31">31-32</a>, <a href="#Page_33">33</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">at Fort Stephenson, <a href="#Page_36">36</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">blames Indians for defeat, <a href="#Page_36">36-37</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Brock reports to, <a href="#Page_40">40-41</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Tecumseh, <a href="#Page_42">42</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">official disgrace, <a href="#Page_45">45</a><br /></span> +<span>Put-in Bay, Perry at, <a href="#Page_54">54</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span><i>Queen Charlotte</i> (British ship), <a href="#Page_56">56</a>, <a href="#Page_58">58</a>, <a href="#Page_60">60</a><br /></span> +<span>Queenston, attack on, <a href="#Page_65">65-67</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">British at, <a href="#Page_168">168</a>, <a href="#Page_170">170</a><br /></span> +<span>Quincy, Josiah, <a href="#Page_91">91</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Raisin River, massacre at, <a href="#Page_20">20</a>, <a href="#Page_26">26-30</a>, <a href="#Page_36">36</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Winchester at Frenchtown, <a href="#Page_25">25</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Ranger</i> (frigate), <a href="#Page_141">141</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Rattlesnake</i> (brig), <a href="#Page_137">137</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Reindeer</i> (British brig), <a href="#Page_145">145</a><br /></span> +<span>Rennie, Colonel, British officer, <a href="#Page_217">217</a><br /></span> +<span>Riall, General Phineas, <a href="#Page_168">168</a>, <a href="#Page_170">170</a><br /></span> +<span>Ripley, General E. W., <a href="#Page_173">173</a><br /></span> +<span>Ripley, John, seaman on <i>Essex</i>, <a href="#Page_162">162</a><br /></span> +<span>Rodgers, Commodore John, <a href="#Page_94">94</a>, <a href="#Page_95">95</a>, <a href="#Page_101">101</a>, <a href="#Page_113">113-14</a><br /></span> +<span>Ross, General Robert, <a href="#Page_188">188</a>, <a href="#Page_194">194</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Barney, <a href="#Page_195">195</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">in Washington, <a href="#Page_196">196</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">against Baltimore, <a href="#Page_197">197</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">killed, <a href="#Page_198">198</a><br /></span> +<span>Rush, Richard, quoted, <a href="#Page_132">132</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Sackett's Harbor, Lake Ontario, invasion of Canada planned from, <a href="#Page_13">13-14</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Chauncey, at, <a href="#Page_47">47</a>, <a href="#Page_48">48</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">in Niagara campaign, <a href="#Page_72">72</a>, <a href="#Page_74">74</a>, <a href="#Page_76">76-77</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">battle at, <a href="#Page_77">77-79</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">campaign against Montreal, <a href="#Page_80">80</a>, <a href="#Page_81">81</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Brown at, <a href="#Page_167">167</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">fleet at, <a href="#Page_170">170</a><br /></span> +<span>St. Lawrence River, plan to gain control of, <a href="#Page_72">72</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Wilkinson's army descends, <a href="#Page_80">80</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Wilkinson abandons voyage down, <a href="#Page_83">83-84</a><br /></span> +<span><a name="Page_234" id="Page_234" />Salaberry, Colonel de, <a href="#Page_85">85</a>, <a href="#Page_86">86</a><br /></span> +<span>Salem contributes <i>Essex</i> to navy, <a href="#Page_152">152</a><br /></span> +<span>Salem Marine Society, <a href="#Page_136">136</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Saratoga</i> (flagship), <a href="#Page_180">180</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Scorpion</i> (brig), <a href="#Page_57">57</a>, <a href="#Page_62">62</a><br /></span> +<span>Scott, Michael, <i>Tom Cringle's Log</i>, quoted, <a href="#Page_145">145</a><br /></span> +<span>Scott, Winfield, quoted, <a href="#Page_5">5</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">at Queenston, <a href="#Page_66">66</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">at Chippawa, <a href="#Page_68">68</a>, <a href="#Page_168">168-69</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">taken prisoner, <a href="#Page_68">68</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">in control of army, <a href="#Page_73">73</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">at Fort George, <a href="#Page_74">74</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">on Wilkinson, <a href="#Page_80">80</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">trains Brown's troops, <a href="#Page_167">167</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">at Lundy's Lane, <a href="#Page_171">171</a>, <a href="#Page_172">172</a>, <a href="#Page_191">191</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">wounded, <a href="#Page_173">173</a><br /></span> +<span>Seneca, Harrison at, <a href="#Page_37">37</a>, <a href="#Page_38">38</a>, <a href="#Page_41">41</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Shannon</i> (British frigate), encounter with <i>Constitution</i>, <a href="#Page_96">96-99</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">defeats <i>Chesapeake</i>, <a href="#Page_128">128-39</a><br /></span> +<span>Shipbuilding on Lake Erie, <a href="#Page_50">50</a><br /></span> +<span>Sims, Vice-Admiral W. S., <a href="#Page_220">220-21</a><br /></span> +<span>Smith, General Samuel, <a href="#Page_197">197</a><br /></span> +<span>Smyth, Brigadier General Alexander, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>, <a href="#Page_66">66</a>, <a href="#Page_68">68-69</a>, <a href="#Page_70">70-71</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Sophie</i> (British ship), <a href="#Page_207">207</a><br /></span> +<span>Spain and West Florida, <a href="#Page_200">200</a><br /></span> +<span>Squaw Island, Elliott at, <a href="#Page_38">38</a><br /></span> +<span>Stephenson, Fort, Harrison at, <a href="#Page_34">34</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Croghan at, <a href="#Page_36">36</a>, <a href="#Page_46">46</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Procter's defeat, <a href="#Page_36">36</a>, <a href="#Page_37">37-38</a><br /></span> +<span>Stewart, Captain Charles, <a href="#Page_136">136</a>, <a href="#Page_147">147</a><br /></span> +<span>Stonington, British bombard, <a href="#Page_188">188</a><br /></span> +<span>Stony Creek, battle, <a href="#Page_75">75</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Tecumseh, <a href="#Page_16">16</a>, <a href="#Page_18">18</a>, <a href="#Page_31">31</a>, <a href="#Page_32">32</a>, <a href="#Page_34">34</a>, <a href="#Page_42">42</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">death, <a href="#Page_44">44</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Creek Indians, <a href="#Page_201">201</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Tenedos</i> (British frigate), <a href="#Page_150">150</a><br /></span> +<span>Thames River, Procter's defeat at, <a href="#Page_43">43-44</a><br /></span> +<span>Thornton, Colonel Sir William, British officer, <a href="#Page_214">214</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Ticonderoga</i> (schooner), <a href="#Page_180">180</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Times</i>, London, account of fight of <i>Guerrière</i>, <a href="#Page_122">122-23</a><br /></span> +<span>Tippecanoe campaign, <a href="#Page_20">20</a><br /></span> +<span>Toronto, <i>see</i> York<br /></span> +<span>Transportation, effect of blockade on, <a href="#Page_148">148</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span><i>United States</i> (frigate), <a href="#Page_94">94</a>, <a href="#Page_139">139</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">captures <i>Macedonian</i>, <a href="#Page_114">114-116</a>, <a href="#Page_142">142</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and blockade, <a href="#Page_141">141</a><br /></span> +<span>Upper Sandusky, Harrison's headquarters, <a href="#Page_33">33</a>, <a href="#Page_34">34</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Valparaiso, <i>Essex</i> at, <a href="#Page_155">155</a>, <a href="#Page_156">156</a>, <a href="#Page_157">157</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1"><i>Essex</i> and <i>Phoebe</i> at, <a href="#Page_158">158</a> <i>et seq.</i><br /></span> +<span>Van Rensselaer, Major General Stephen, <a href="#Page_64">64</a>, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>, <a href="#Page_66">66</a>, <a href="#Page_68">68</a>, <a href="#Page_71">71</a><br /></span> +<span>Vincent, General John, British officer, <a href="#Page_74">74</a>, <a href="#Page_75">75</a><br /></span> +<span>Virginia, brigades from, <a href="#Page_23">23</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>War of 1812, a victory, <a href="#Page_1">1</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">causes, <a href="#Page_2">2-4</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">army, <a href="#Page_5">5-8</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">"Mr. Madison's War," <a href="#Page_8">8</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">navy, <a href="#Page_8">8-9</a>, <a href="#Page_89">89</a> <i>et seq.</i>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">campaign in West, <a href="#Page_11">11</a> <i>et seq.</i>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Perry and Lake Erie, <a href="#Page_46">46</a> <i>et seq.</i>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">the Northern Front, <a href="#Page_64">64</a> <i>et seq.</i>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">victory on Lake Champlain, <a href="#Page_166">166</a> <i>et seq.</i>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">peace with honor, <a href="#Page_185">185</a> <i>et seq.</i>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">bibliography, <a href="#Page_223">223-25</a><br /></span> +<span>Warren, Admiral Sir J. B., <a href="#Page_138">138</a>, <a href="#Page_185">185</a>, <a href="#Page_187">187</a><br /></span> +<span>Warrington, Captain Lewis, of the <i>Peacock</i>, <a href="#Page_144">144</a><br /></span> +<span>Washington, George, on need of regular army, <a href="#Page_6">6-7</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Hull, <a href="#Page_11">11</a><br /></span> +<span>Washington, Capitol burned, <a href="#Page_73">73</a>, <a href="#Page_196">196</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">naval ball to celebrate capture of <i>Guerrière</i>, <a href="#Page_116">116</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">British fleet causes consternation in, <a href="#Page_187">187</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">British decide to attack, <a href="#Page_189">189</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">capture of, <a href="#Page_166">166</a>, <a href="#Page_190">190-96</a><br /></span> +<span><i>Wasp</i> (sloop-of-war), <a href="#Page_48">48</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">encounter with <i>Frolic</i>, <a href="#Page_108">108-13</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">last cruise, <a href="#Page_144">144-47</a>; <a name="Page_235" id="Page_235"></a><br /></span> +<span class="i1">disappearance, <a href="#Page_147">147</a><br /></span> +<span>Wellfleet (Mass.), war levy, <a href="#Page_188">188</a><br /></span> +<span>Whinyates, Captain Thomas, of the <i>Frolic</i>, <a href="#Page_109">109</a>, <a href="#Page_112">112</a><br /></span> +<span>Wilkinson, James, succeeds Dearborn, <a href="#Page_80">80</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">character, <a href="#Page_80">80</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">Hampton and, <a href="#Page_81">81</a>, <a href="#Page_84">84</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">and Armstrong, <a href="#Page_81">81</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">campaign, <a href="#Page_82">82</a>, <a href="#Page_83">83</a>, <a href="#Page_84">84</a>, <a href="#Page_86">86</a>, <a href="#Page_87">87</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">age, <a href="#Page_117">117</a><br /></span> +<span>Winchester, General James, as a leader, <a href="#Page_24">24-25</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">at Raisin River, <a href="#Page_25">25</a>, <a href="#Page_26">26-27</a>, <a href="#Page_28">28</a><br /></span> +<span>Winder, General W. H., in Niagara campaign, <a href="#Page_74">74</a>, <a href="#Page_75">75</a>;<br /></span> +<span class="i1">at Washington, <a href="#Page_190">190-91</a>, <a href="#Page_192">192</a><br /></span> +<span>Wool, Captain J. E., at Queenston, <a href="#Page_66">66</a><br /></span></div> + +<div class="newletter"><span>Yeo, Sir James, <a href="#Page_49">49</a>, <a href="#Page_77">77</a><br /></span> +<span>York (Toronto), plans to capture, <a href="#Page_72">72</a>, <a href="#Page_73">73</a><br /></span> +<span class="i1">capture, <a href="#Page_73">73</a><br /></span></div></div> + + + + + + + + +<pre> + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Fight for a Free Sea: A Chronicle +of the War of 1812, by Ralph D. 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Paine + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The Fight for a Free Sea: A Chronicle of the War of 1812 + The Chronicles of America Series, Volume 17 + +Author: Ralph D. Paine + +Release Date: July 30, 2006 [EBook #18941] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FIGHT FOR A FREE SEA: A *** + + + + +Produced by Steven desJardins and Distributed Proofreaders + + + + + +[Illustration: "_OLD IRONSIDES_" + +The old frigate _Constitution_ as she appears today in her snug +berth at the Boston Navy Yard where she is preserved as an +historical relic. + +Photograph by N. L. Stebbins, Boston.] + + + + +THE FIGHT FOR A FREE SEA + +A CHRONICLE OF THE WAR OF 1812 + +BY RALPH D. PAINE + +[Illustration] + +VOLUME 17 +THE CHRONICLES OF AMERICA SERIES +ALLEN JOHNSON, EDITOR + +1920 + + + + +CONTENTS + +I. "ON TO CANADA!" +II. LOST GROUND REGAINED +III. PERRY AND LAKE ERIE +IV. EBB AND FLOW ON THE NORTHERN FRONT +V. THE NAVY ON BLUE WATER +VI. MATCHLESS FRIGATES AND THEIR DUELS +VII. "DON'T GIVE UP THE SHIP!" +VIII. THE LAST CRUISE OF THE ESSEX +IX. VICTORY ON LAKE CHAMPLAIN +X. PEACE WITH HONOR + +BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE +INDEX + + + + +ILLUSTRATIONS + + +"OLD IRONSIDES" + +The old frigate _Constitution_ as she appears today in her snug berth at +the Boston Navy Yard where she is preserved as an historical relic. +Photograph by N. L. Stebbins, Boston. + + +THE THEATRE OF OPERATIONS IN THE WAR OF 1812 + +Map by W. L. G. Joerg, American Geographical Society. + + +OLIVER HAZARD PERRY AT THE BATTLE OF LAKE ERIE + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. Reproduced by courtesy of the Municipal Art Commission of +the City of New York. + + +ISAAC CHAUNCEY + +Painting in the Comptroller's Office, City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. Reproduced by courtesy of the Municipal Art Commission of +the City of New York. + + +COMMODORE STEPHEN DECATUR + +Painting by Thomas Sully, 1811. In the Comptroller's Office, owned by +the City of New York. Reproduced by courtesy of the Art Commission of +the City of New York. + + +CONSTITUTION AND GUERRIERE + +An old print, illustrating the moment in the action at which the +mainmast of the _Guerriere_, shattered by the terrific fire of the +American frigate, fell overside, transforming the former vessel into a +floating wreck and terminating the action. The picture represents +accurately the surprisingly slight damage done the _Constitution_: note +the broken spanker gaff and the shot holes in her topsails. + + +ISAAC HULL + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. + + +WILLIAM BAINBRIDGE + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. Reproduced by courtesy of the Municipal Art Commission of +the City of New York. + + +A FRIGATE OF 1812 UNDER SAIL + +The _Constellation_, of which this is a photograph, is somewhat smaller +than the _Constitution_, being rated at 38 guns as against 44 for the +latter. In general appearance, however, and particularly in rig, the two +types are very similar. Although the Constellation did not herself see +action in the War of 1812, she is a good example of the heavily armed +American frigate of that day--and the only one of them still to be seen +at sea under sail within recent years. At the present time the +_Constellation_ lies moored at the pier of the Naval Training Station, +Newport, R. I. Photograph by E. Mueller, Jr., Inc., New York. + + +JACOB BROWN + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. + + +THOMAS MACDONOUGH + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. + + + + +CHAPTER I + +"ON TO CANADA!" + + +The American people of today, weighed in the balances of the greatest +armed conflict of all time and found not wanting, can afford to survey, +in a spirit of candid scrutiny and without reviving an ancient grudge, +that turbulent episode in the welding of their nation which is called +the War of 1812. In spite of defeats and disappointments this war was, +in the large, enduring sense, a victory. It was in this renewed defiance +of England that the dream of the founders of the Republic and the ideals +of the embattled farmers of Bunker Hill and Saratoga achieved their +goal. Henceforth the world was to respect these States, not as so many +colonies bitterly wrangling among themselves, but as a sovereign and +independent nation. + +The War of 1812, like the American Revolution, was a valiant contest +for survival on the part of the spirit of freedom. It was essentially +akin to the world-wide struggle of a century later, when sons of the old +foemen of 1812--sons of the painted Indians and of the Kentucky pioneers +in fringed buckskins, sons of the New Hampshire ploughboys clad in +homespun, sons of the Canadian militia and the red-coated regulars of +the British line, sons of the tarry seamen of the _Constitution_ and the +_Guerriere_--stood side by side as brothers in arms to save from brutal +obliteration the same spirit of freedom. And so it is that in Flanders +fields today the poppies blow above the graves of the sons of the men +who fought each other a century ago in the Michigan wilderness and at +Lundy's Lane. + +The causes and the background of the War of 1812 are presented elsewhere +in this series of Chronicles.[1] Great Britain, at death grips with +Napoleon, paid small heed to the rights and dignities of neutral +nations. The harsh and selfish maritime policy of the age, expressed in +the British Navigation Acts and intensified by the struggle with +Napoleon, led the Mistress of the Seas to perpetrate indignity after +indignity on the ships and sailors which were carrying American commerce +around the world. The United States demanded a free sea, which Great +Britain would not grant. Of necessity, then, such futile weapons as +embargoes and non-intercourse acts had to give place to the musket, the +bayonet, and the carronade. There could be no compromise between the +clash of doctrines. It was for the United States to assert herself, +regardless of the odds, or sink into a position of supine dependency +upon the will of Great Britain and the wooden walls of her invincible +navy. + +[Footnote 1: See _Jefferson and His Colleagues_, by Allen Johnson (in +_The Chronicles of America_).] + +"Free Trade and Sailors' Rights!" was the American war cry. It expressed +the two grievances which outweighed all others--the interference with +American shipping and the ruthless impressment of seamen from beneath +the Stars and Stripes. No less high-handed than Great Britain's were +Napoleon's offenses against American commerce, and there was just cause +for war with France. Yet Americans felt the greater enmity toward +England, partly as an inheritance from the Revolution, but chiefly +because of the greater injury which England had wrought, owing to her +superior strength on the sea. + +There were, to be sure, other motives in the conflict. It is not to be +supposed that the frontiersmen of the Northwest and Southwest, who +hailed the war with enthusiasm, were ardently aroused to redress wrongs +inflicted upon their seafaring countrymen. Their enmity towards Great +Britain was compounded of quite different grievances. Behind the recent +Indian wars on the frontier they saw, or thought they saw, British +paymasters. The red trappers and hunters of the forest were bloodily +defending their lands; and there was a long-standing bond of interest +between them and the British in Canada. The British were known to the +tribes generally as fur traders, not "land stealers"; and the great +traffic carried on by the merchants of Montreal, not only in the +Canadian wilderness but also in the American Northwest, naturally drew +Canadians and Indians into the same camp. "On to Canada!" was the slogan +of the frontiersmen. It expressed at once their desire to punish the +hereditary foe and to rid themselves of an unfriendly power to the +north. + +The United States was poorly prepared and equipped for military and +naval campaigns when, in June, 1812, Congress declared war on Great +Britain. Nothing had been learned from the costly blunders of the +Revolution, and the delusion that readiness for war was a menace to +democracy had influenced the Government to absurd extremes. The regular +army comprised only sixty-seven hundred men, scattered over an enormous +country and on garrison service from which they could not be safely +withdrawn. They were without traditions and without experience in actual +warfare. Winfield Scott, at that time a young officer in the regular +army, wrote: + + The old officers had very generally sunk into either sloth, + ignorance, or habits of intemperate drinking.... Many of the + appointments were positively bad, and a majority of the remainder + indifferent. Party spirit of that day knew no bounds, and was of + course blind to policy. Federalists were almost entirely excluded + from selection, though great numbers were eager for the field.... + Where there was no lack of educated men in the dominant party, the + appointments consisted generally of swaggerers, dependents, decayed + gentlemen, and others "fit for nothing else," which always turned + out utterly unfit for any military purpose whatever. + +The main reliance was to be on militia and volunteers, an army of the +free people rushing to arms in defense of their liberties, as voiced by +Jefferson and echoed more than a century later by another spokesman of +democracy. There was the stuff for splendid soldiers in these farmers +and woodsmen, but in many lamentable instances their regiments were no +more than irresponsible armed mobs. Until as recently as the War with +Spain, the perilous fallacy persisted that the States should retain +control of their several militia forces in time of war and deny final +authority to the Federal Government. It was this doctrine which so +nearly wrecked the cause of the Revolution. George Washington had +learned the lesson through painful experience, but his counsel was +wholly disregarded; and, because it serves as a text and an +interpretation for much of the humiliating history which we are about to +follow, that counsel is here quoted in part. Washington wrote in +retrospect: + + Had we formed a permanent army in the beginning, which by the + continuance of the same men in service had been capable of + discipline, we never should have had to retreat with a handful of + men across the Delaware in 1776, trembling for the fate of America, + which nothing but the infatuation of the enemy could have saved; we + should not have remained all the succeeding winter at their mercy, + with sometimes scarcely a sufficient body of men to mount the + ordinary guards, liable at every moment to be dissipated if they + had only thought proper to march against us; we should not have + been under the necessity of fighting Brandywine with an unequal + number of raw troops, and afterwards of seeing Philadelphia fall a + prey to a victorious army; we should not have been at Valley Forge + with less than half the force of the enemy, destitute of + everything, in a situation neither to resist or to retire; we + should not have seen New York left with a handful of men, yet an + overmatch for the main army of these States, while the principal + part of their force was detached for the reduction of two of them; + we should not have found ourselves this spring so weak as to be + insulted by 5000 men, unable to protect our baggage and magazines, + their security depending on a good countenance and a want of + enterprise in the enemy; we should not have been, the greatest part + of the war, inferior to the enemy, indebted for our safety to their + inactivity, enduring frequently the mortification of seeing + inviting opportunities to ruin them pass unimproved for want of a + force which the country was completely able to afford, and of + seeing the country ravaged, our towns burnt, the inhabitants + plundered, abused, murdered, with impunity from the same cause. + +The War of 1812, besides being hampered by short enlistments, confused +authority, and incompetent officers, was fought by a country and an army +divided against itself. When Congress authorized the enrollment of one +hundred thousand militia, the governors of Massachusetts and Connecticut +refused to furnish their quotas, objecting to the command of United +States officers and to the sending of men beyond the borders of their +own States. This attitude fairly indicated the feeling of New England, +which was opposed to the war and openly spoke of secession. Moreover, +the wealthy merchants and bankers of New England declined to subscribe +to the national loans when the Treasury at Washington was bankrupt, and +vast quantities of supplies were shipped from New England seaports to +the enemy in Canada. It was an extraordinary paradox that those States +which had seen their sailors impressed by thousands and which had +suffered most heavily from England's attacks on neutral commerce should +have arrayed themselves in bitter opposition to the cause and the +Government. It was "Mr. Madison's War," they said, and he could win or +lose it--and pay the bills, for that matter. + +The American navy was in little better plight than the army. England +flew the royal ensign over six hundred ships of war and was the +undisputed sovereign of the seas. Opposed to this mighty armada were +five frigates, three ships, and seven brigs, which Monroe recommended +should be "kept in a body in a safe port." Not worth mention were the +two hundred ridiculous little gunboats which had to stow the one cannon +below to prevent capsizing when they ventured out of harbor. These craft +were a pet notion of Jefferson. "Believing, myself," he said of them, +"that gunboats are the only water defense which can be useful to us and +protect us from the ruinous folly of a navy, I am pleased with +everything which promises to improve them." + +A nation of eight million people, unready, blundering, rent by internal +dissension, had resolved to challenge an England hardened by war and +tremendously superior in military resources. It was not all madness, +however, for the vast empire of Canada lay exposed to invasion, and in +this quarter the enemy was singularly vulnerable. Henry Clay spoke for +most of his countrymen beyond the boundaries of New England when he +announced to Congress: "The conquest of Canada is in your power. I trust +that I shall not be deemed presumptuous when I state that I verily +believe that the militia of Kentucky are alone competent to place +Montreal and Upper Canada at your feet. Is it nothing to the British +nation; is it nothing to the pride of her monarch to have the last +immense North American possession held by him in the commencement of his +reign wrested from his dominions?" Even Jefferson was deluded into +predicting that the capture of Canada as far as Quebec would be a mere +matter of marching through the country and would give the troops +experience for the attack on Halifax and the final expulsion of England +from the American continent. + +The British Provinces, extending twelve hundred miles westward to Lake +Superior, had a population of less than five hundred thousand; but a +third of these were English immigrants or American Loyalists and their +descendants, types of folk who would hardly sit idly and await invasion. +That they should resist or strike back seems not to have been expected +in the war councils of the amiable Mr. Madison. Nor were other and +manifold dangers taken into account by those who counseled war. The +Great Lakes were defenseless, the warlike Indians of the Northwest were +in arms and awaiting the British summons, while the whole country beyond +the Wabash and the Maumee was almost unguarded. Isolated here and there +were stockades containing a few dozen men beyond hope of rescue, +frontier posts of what is now the Middle West. Plans of campaign were +prepared without thought of the insuperable difficulties of transport +through regions in which there were neither roads, provisions, towns, +nor navigable rivers. Armies were maneuvered and victories won upon the +maps in the office of the Secretary of War. Generals were selected by +some inscrutable process which decreed that dull-witted, pompous +incapables should bungle campaigns and waste lives. + +It was wisely agreed that of all the strategic points along this +far-flung and thinly held frontier, Detroit should receive the earliest +attention. At all costs this point was to be safeguarded as a base for +the advance into Canada from the west. A remote trading post within +gunshot of the enemy across the river and menaced by tribes of hostile +Indians, Detroit then numbered eight hundred inhabitants and was +protected only by a stout enclosure of logs. For two hundred miles to +the nearest friendly settlements in Ohio, the line of communications was +a forest trail which skirted Lake Erie for some distance and could +easily be cut by the enemy. From Detroit it was the intention of the +Americans to strike the first blow at the Canadian post of Amherstburg +near by. + +The stage was now set for the entrance of General William Hull as one of +the luckless, unheroic figures upon whom the presidential power of +appointment bestowed the trappings of high military command. He was by +no means the worst of these. In fact, the choice seemed auspicious. Hull +had seen honorable service in the Revolution and had won the esteem of +George Washington. He was now Governor of Michigan Territory. At sixty +years of age he had no desire to gird on the sword. He was persuaded by +Madison, however, to accept a brigadier general's commission and to lead +the force ordered to Detroit. His instructions were vague, but in June, +1812, shortly before the declaration of war, he took command of two +thousand regulars and militia at Dayton, Ohio, and began the arduous +advance through the wilderness towards Detroit. The adventure was +launched with energy. These hardy, reliant men knew how to cut roads, to +bridge streams, and to exist on scanty rations. Until sickness began to +decimate their ranks, they advanced at an encouraging rate and were +almost halfway to Detroit when the tidings of the outbreak of +hostilities overtook them. General Hull forthwith hurried his troops to +the Maumee River, leaving their camp equipment and heavy stores behind. +He now committed his first crass blunder. Though the British controlled +the waters of Lake Erie, yet he sent a schooner ahead with all his +hospital supplies, intrenching tools, official papers, and muster rolls. +The little vessel was captured within sight of Detroit and the documents +proved invaluable to the British commander of Upper Canada, Major +General Isaac Brock, who gained thereby a complete idea of the American +plans and proceeded to act accordingly. Brock was a soldier of uncommon +intelligence and resolution, acquitting himself with distinction, and +contrasting with his American adversaries in a manner rather painful to +contemplate. + +At length Hull reached Detroit and crossed the river to assume the +offensive. He was strongly hopeful of success. The Canadians appeared +friendly and several hundred sought his protection. Even the enemy's +militia were deserting to his colors. In a proclamation Hull looked +forward to a bloodless conquest, informing the Canadians that they were +to be emancipated from tyranny and oppression and restored to the +dignified station of freemen. "I have a force which will break down all +opposition," said he, "and that force is but the vanguard of a much +greater." + +He soundly reasoned that unless a movement could be launched against +Niagara, at the other end of Lake Erie, the whole strength of the +British might be thrown against him and that he was likely to be trapped +in Detroit. There was a general plan of campaign, submitted by Major +General Henry Dearborn before the war began, which provided for a +threefold invasion--from Sackett's Harbor on Lake Ontario, from +Niagara, and from Detroit--in support of a grand attack along the route +leading past Lake Champlain to Montreal. Theoretically, it was good +enough strategy, but no attempt had been made to prepare the execution, +and there was no leader competent to direct it. + +In response to Hull's urgent appeal, Dearborn, who was puttering about +between Boston and Albany, confessed that he knew nothing about what was +going on at Niagara. He ranked as the commander-in-chief of the American +forces and he awoke from his habitual stupor to ask himself this amazing +question: "Who is to have the command of the operations in Upper Canada? +I take it for granted that my command does not extend to that distant +quarter." If Dearborn did not know who was in control of the operations +at Niagara, it was safe to say that nobody else did, and Hull was left +to deal with the increasing forces in front of him and the hordes of +Indians in the rear, to garrison Detroit, to assault the fort at +Amherstburg, to overcome the British naval forces on Lake Erie--and all +without the slightest help or cooperation from his Government. + +Meanwhile Brock had ascertained that the American force at Niagara +consisted of a few hundred militia with no responsible officer in +command, who were making a pretense of patrolling thirty-six miles of +frontier. They were undisciplined, ragged, without tents, shoes, money, +or munitions, and ready to fall back if attacked or to go home unless +soon relieved. Having nothing to fear in that quarter, Brock gathered up +a small body of regulars as he marched and proceeded to Amherstburg to +finish the business of the unfortunate Hull. + +That Hull deserves some pity as well as the disgrace which overwhelmed +him is quite apparent. Most of his troops were ill-equipped, unreliable, +and insubordinate. Even during the march to Detroit he had to use a +regular regiment to compel the obedience of twelve hundred mutinous +militiamen who refused to advance. Their own officer could do nothing +with them. At Detroit two hundred of them refused to cross the river, on +the ground that they were not obliged to serve outside the United +States. Granted such extenuation as this, however, Hull showed himself +so weak and contemptible in the face of danger that he could not expect +his fighting men to maintain any respect for him. + +His fatal flaw was lack of courage and promptitude. He did not know how +to play a poor hand well. In the emergency which confronted him he was +like a dull sword in a rusty scabbard. While the enemy waited for +reinforcements, he might have captured Amherstburg. He had the superior +force, and yet he delayed and lost heart while his regiments dwindled +because of sickness and desertion and jeered at his leadership. The +watchful Indians, led by the renowned Tecumseh, learned to despise the +Americans instead of fearing them, and were eager to take the warpath +against so easy a prey. Already other bands of braves were hastening +from Lake Huron and from Mackinac, whose American garrison had been +wiped out. + +Brooding and shaken, like an old man utterly undone, Hull abandoned his +pretentious invasion of Canada and retreated across the river to shelter +his troops behind the log barricades of Detroit. He sent six hundred men +to try to open a line to Ohio, but, after a sharp encounter with a +British force, Hull was obliged to admit that they "could only open +communication as far as the points of their bayonets extended." His only +thought was to extricate himself, not to stand and fight a winning +battle without counting the cost. His officers felt only contempt for +his cowardice. They were convinced that the tide could be turned in +their favor. There were steadfast men in the ranks who were eager to +take the measure of the redcoats. The colonels were in open mutiny and, +determined to set General Hull aside, they offered the command to +Colonel Miller of the regulars, who declined to accept it. When Hull +proposed a general retreat, he was informed that every man of the Ohio +militia would refuse to obey the order. These troops who had been so +fickle and jealous of their rights were unwilling to share the leader's +disgrace. + +Two days after his arrival at Amherstburg, General Brock sent to the +Americans a summons to surrender, adding with a crafty discernment of +the effect of the threat upon the mind of the man with whom he was +dealing: "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." Hull could see only the horrid picture of a +massacre of the women and children within the stockades of Detroit. He +failed to realize that his thousand effective infantrymen could hold out +for weeks behind those log ramparts against Brock's few hundred regulars +and volunteers. Two and a half years later, Andrew Jackson and his +militia emblazoned a very different story behind the cypress +breastworks of New Orleans. Besides the thousand men in the fort, Hull +had detached five hundred under Colonels McArthur and Cass to attempt to +break through the Indian cordon in his rear and obtain supplies. These +he now vainly endeavored to recall while he delayed a final reply to +Brock's mandate. + +Indecision had doomed the garrison which was now besieged. Tecumseh's +warriors had crossed the river and were between the fort and McArthur's +column. Brock boldly decided to assault, a desperate venture, but he +must have known that Hull's will had crumbled. No more than seven +hundred strong, the little British force crossed the river just before +daybreak on the 16th of August and was permitted to select its positions +without the slightest molestation. A few small field pieces, posted on +the Canadian side of the river, hurled shot into the fort, killing four +of Hull's men, and two British armed schooners lay within range. + +Brock advanced, expecting to suffer large losses from the heavy guns +which were posted to cover the main approach to the fort, but his men +passed through the zone of danger and found cover in which they made +ready to storm the defenses of Detroit. As Brock himself walked forward +to take note of the situation before giving the final commands, a white +flag fluttered from the battery in front of him. Without firing a shot, +Hull had surrendered Detroit and with it the great territory of +Michigan, the most grievous loss of domain that the United States has +ever suffered in war or peace. On the same day Fort Dearborn (Chicago), +which had been forgotten by the Government, was burned by Indians after +all its defenders had been slain. These two disasters with the earlier +fall of Mackinac practically erased American dominion from the western +empire of the Great Lakes. Visions of the conquest of Canada were thus +rudely dimmed in the opening actions of the war. + +General Hull was tried by court-martial on charges of treason, +cowardice, and neglect of duty. He was convicted on the last two charges +and sentenced to be shot, with a recommendation to the mercy of the +President. The verdict was approved by Madison, but he remitted the +execution of the sentence because of the old man's services in the +Revolution. Guilty though he was, an angry and humiliated people also +made him the scapegoat for the sins of neglect and omission of which +their Government stood convicted. In the testimony offered at his trial +there was a touch, rude, vivid, and very human, to portray him in the +final hours of the tragic episode at Detroit. Spurned by his officers, +he sat on the ground with his back against the rampart while "he +apparently unconsciously filled his mouth with tobacco, putting in quid +after quid more than he generally did; the spittle colored with tobacco +juice ran from his mouth on his neckcloth, beard, cravat, and vest." + +Later events in the Northwest Territory showed that the British +successes in that region were gained chiefly because of an unworthy +alliance with the Indian tribes, whose barbarous methods of warfare +stained the records of those who employed them. "Not more than seven or +eight hundred British soldiers ever crossed the Detroit River," says +Henry Adams, "but the United States raised fully twenty thousand men and +spent at least five million dollars and many lives in expelling them. +The Indians alone made this outlay necessary. The campaign of +Tippecanoe, the surrender of Detroit and Mackinaw, the massacres at Fort +Dearborn, the river Raisin, and Fort Meigs, the murders along the +frontier, and the campaign of 1813 were the prices paid for the Indian +lands in the Wabash Valley." + +Before the story shifts to the other fields of the war, it seems +logical to follow to its finally successful result the bloody, wasteful +struggle for the recovery of the lost territory. This operation required +large armies and long campaigns, together with the naval supremacy of +Lake Erie, won in the next year by Oliver Hazard Perry, before the +fugitive British forces fell back from the charred ruins of Detroit and +Amherstburg and were soundly beaten at the battle of the Thames--the one +decisive, clean-cut American victory of the war on the Canadian +frontier. These events showed that far too much had been expected of +General William Hull, who comprehended his difficulties but made no +attempt to batter a way through them, forgetting that to die and win is +always better than to live and fail. + + + + +CHAPTER II + +LOST GROUND REGAINED + + +General William Henry Harrison, the hero of Tippecanoe and the Governor +of Indiana Territory, whose capital was at Vincennes on the Wabash, +possessed the experience and the instincts of a soldier. He had foreseen +that Hull, unless he received support, must either abandon Detroit or be +hopelessly hemmed in. The task of defending the western border was +ardently undertaken by the States of Kentucky and Ohio. They believed in +the war and were ready to aid it with the men and resources of a +vigorous population of almost a million. When the word came that Hull +was in desperate straits, Harrison hastened to organize a relief +expedition. Before he could move, Detroit had fallen. But a high tide of +enthusiasm swept him on toward an attempt to recover the lost empire. +The Federal Government approved his plans and commissioned him as +commander of the Northwestern army of ten thousand men. + +In the early autumn of 1812, General Harrison launched his ambitious and +imposing campaign, by which three separate bodies of troops were to +advance and converge within striking distance of Detroit, while a fourth +was to invade and destroy the nests of Indians on the Wabash and +Illinois rivers. An active British force might have attacked and +defeated these isolated columns one by one, for they were beyond +supporting distance of each other; but Brock now needed his regulars for +the defense of the Niagara frontier. The scattered American army, +including brigades from Virginia and Pennsylvania, was too strong to be +checked by Indian forays, but it had not reckoned with the obstacles of +an unfriendly wilderness and climate. In October, no more than a month +after the bugles had sounded the advance, the campaign was halted, +demoralized and darkly uncertain. A vast swamp stretched as a barrier +across the route and heavy rains made it impassable. + +Hull had crossed the same swamp with his small force in the favorable +summer season, but Harrison was unable to transport the food and war +material needed by his ten thousand men. A million rations were +required at the goal of the Maumee Rapids, and yet after two months of +heartbreaking endeavor not a pound of provisions had been carried within +fifty miles of this place. Wagons and pack-trains floundered in the mud +and were abandoned. The rivers froze and thwarted the use of flotillas +of scows. Winter closed down, and the American army was forlornly mired +and blockaded along two hundred miles of front. The troops at Fort +Defiance ate roots and bark. Typhus broke out among them, and they died +like flies. For the failure to supply the army, the War Department was +largely responsible, and Secretary Eustis very properly resigned in +December. This removed one glaring incompetent from the list but it +failed to improve Harrison's situation. + +It was not until the severe frosts of January, 1813, fettered the swamps +that Harrison was able to extricate his troops and forward supplies to +the shore of Lake Erie for an offensive against Amherstburg. First in +motion was the left wing of thirteen hundred Kentucky militia and +regulars under General Winchester. This officer was an elderly planter +who, like Hull, had worn a uniform in the Revolution. He had no great +aptitude for war and was held in low esteem by the Kentuckians of his +command--hungry, mutinous, and disgusted men, who were counting the days +before their enlistments should expire. The commonplace Winchester was +no leader to hold them in hand and spur their jaded determination. + +While they were building storehouses and log defenses, within +dangerously easy distance of the British post at Amherstburg, the +tempting message came that the settlement of Frenchtown, on the Raisin, +thirty miles away and within the British lines, was held by only two +companies of Canadian militia. Here was an opportunity for a dashing +adventure, and Winchester ordered half his total force to march and +destroy this detachment of the enemy. The troops accordingly set out, +drove home a brisk assault, cleared Frenchtown of its defenders, and +held their ground awaiting orders. + +Winchester then realized that he had leaped before he looked. He had +seriously weakened his own force while the column at Frenchtown was in +peril from two thousand hostile troops and Indians only eighteen miles +beyond the river Raisin. The Kentuckians left with him decided matters +for themselves. They insisted on marching to the support of their +comrades at Frenchtown. Meanwhile General Harrison had learned of this +fatuous division of strength and was hastening to the base at the falls +of the Maumee. There he found only three hundred men. All the others had +gone with Winchester to reinforce the men at Frenchtown. It was too late +to summon troops from other points, and Harrison waited with forebodings +of disaster. + +News reached him after two days. The Americans at the Raisin had +suffered not only a defeat but a massacre. Nearly four hundred were +killed in battle or in flight. Those who survived were prisoners. No +more than thirty had escaped of a force one thousand strong. The enemy +had won this extraordinary success with five hundred white troops and +about the same number of Indians, led by Colonel Procter, whom Brock had +placed in command of the fort at Amherstburg. Procter's name is infamous +in the annals of the war. The worst traditions of Indian atrocity, +uncontrolled and even encouraged, cluster about his memory. He was later +promoted in rank instead of being degraded, a costly blunder which +England came to regret and at last redeemed. A notoriously incompetent +officer, on this one occasion of the battle of the Raisin he acted with +decision and took advantage of the American blunder. + +The conduct of General Winchester after his arrival at Frenchtown is +inexplicable. He did nothing to prepare his force for action even on +learning that the British were advancing from Amherstburg. A report of +the disaster, after recording that no patrols or pickets were ordered +out during the night, goes on: + + The troops were permitted to select, each for himself, such + quarters on the west side of the river as might please him best, + whilst the general took his quarters on the east side--not the + least regard being paid to defense, order, regularity, or system in + the posting of the different corps.... Destitute of artillery, or + engineers, of men who had ever heard or seen the least of an enemy; + and with but a very inadequate supply of ammunition--how he ever + could have entertained the most distant hope of success, or what + right he had to presume to claim it, is to me one of the strangest + things in the world. + +At dawn, on the 21st of January, the British and Indians, having crossed +the frozen Detroit River the day before, formed within musket shot of +the American lines and opened the attack with a battery of +three-pounders. They might have rushed the camp with bayonet and +tomahawk and killed most of the defenders asleep, but the cannonade +alarmed the Kentuckians and they took cover behind a picket fence, using +their long rifles so expertly that they killed or wounded a hundred and +eighty-five of the British regulars, who thereupon had to abandon their +artillery. Meanwhile, the American regular force, caught on open ground, +was flanked and driven toward the river, carrying a militia regiment +with it. Panic spread among these unfortunate men and they fled through +the deep snow, Winchester among them, while six hundred whooping Indians +slew and scalped them without mercy as they ran. + +But behind the picket fence the Kentuckians still squinted along the +barrels of their rifles and hammered home more bullets and patches. +Three hundred and eighty-four of them, they showed a spirit that made +their conduct the bright, heroic episode of that black day. Forgotten +are their mutinies, their profane disregard of the Articles of War, +their jeers at generals and such. They finished in style and covered the +multitude of their sins. Unclothed, unfed, uncared for, dirty, and +wretched, they proved themselves worthy to be called American soldiers. +They fought until there was no more ammunition, until they were +surrounded by a thousand of the enemy, and then they honorably +surrendered. + +The brutal Procter, aware that the Indians would commit hideous +outrages if left unrestrained, nevertheless returned to Amherstburg with +his troops and his prisoners, leaving the American wounded to their +fate. That night the savages came back to Frenchtown and massacred those +hurt and helpless men, thirty in number. + +This unhappy incident of the campaign, not so much a battle as a +catastrophe, delayed Harrison's operations. His failures had shaken +popular confidence, and at the end of this dismal winter, after six +months of disappointments in which ten thousand men had accomplished +nothing, he was compelled to report to the Secretary of War: + + Amongst the reasons which make it necessary to employ a large + force, I am sorry to mention the dismay and disinclination to the + service which appears to prevail in the western country; numbers + must give that confidence which ought to be produced by conscious + valor and intrepidity, which never existed in any army in a + superior degree than amongst the greater part of the militia which + were with me through the winter. The new drafts from this State + [Ohio] are entirely of another character and are not to be depended + upon. I have no doubt, however, that a sufficient number of good + men can be procured, and should they be allowed to serve on + horseback, Kentucky would furnish some regiments that would not be + inferior to those that fought at the river Raisin; and these were, + in my opinion, superior to any militia that ever took the field in + modern times. + +There was to be no immediate renewal of action between Procter and +Harrison. Each seemed to have conceived so much respect for the forces +of the other that they proceeded to increase the distance between them +as rapidly as possible. Fearing to be overtaken and greatly outnumbered, +the British leader retreated to Canada while the American leader was in +a state of mind no less uneasy. Harrison promptly set fire to his +storehouses and supplies at the Maumee Rapids, his advanced base near +Lake Erie. Thus all this labor and exertion and expense vanished in +smoke while, in the set diction of war, he retired some fifteen miles. +In such a vast hurry were the adversaries to be quit of each other that +a day and a half after the fight at Frenchtown they were sixty miles +apart. Harrison remained a fortnight on this back trail and collected +two thousand of his troops, with whom he returned to the ruins of his +foremost post and undertook the task all over again. + +The defensive works which he now built were called Fort Meigs. For the +time there was no more talk of invading Canada. The service of the +Kentucky and Ohio militia was expiring, and these seasoned regiments +were melting away like snow. Presently Fort Meigs was left with no more +than five hundred war-worn men to hold out against British operations +afloat and ashore. Luckily Procter had expended his energies at +Frenchtown and seemed inclined to repose, for he made no effort to +attack the few weak garrisons which guarded the American territory near +at hand. From January until April he neglected his opportunities while +more American militia marched homeward, while Harrison was absent, while +Fort Meigs was unfinished. + +At length the British offensive was organized, and a thousand white +soldiers and as many Indians, led by Tecumseh, sallied out of +Amherstburg with a naval force of two gunboats. Heavy guns were dragged +from Detroit to batter down the log walls, for it was the intention to +surround and besiege Fort Meigs in the manner taught by the military +science of Europe. Meanwhile Harrison had come back from a recruiting +mission; and a new brigade of Kentucky militia, twelve hundred strong, +under Brigadier General Green Clay, was to follow in boats down the +Auglaize and Maumee rivers. Procter's guns were already pounding the +walls of Fort Meigs on the 5th of May when eight hundred troops of this +fresh American force arrived within striking distance. They dashed upon +the British batteries and took them with the bayonet in a wild, +impetuous charge. It was then their business promptly to reform and +protect themselves, but through lack of training they failed to obey +orders and were off hunting the enemy, every man for himself. In the +meantime three companies of British regulars and some volunteers took +advantage of the confusion, summoned the Indians, and let loose a +vicious counter-attack. + +Within sight of General Harrison and the garrison of Fort Meigs, these +bold Kentuckians were presently driven from the captured guns, +scattered, and shot down or taken prisoner. Only a hundred and seventy +of them got away, and they lost even their boats and supplies. The +British loss was no more than fifty in killed and wounded. Again Procter +inflamed the hatred and contempt of his American foes because forty of +his prisoners were tomahawked while guarded by British soldiers. He made +no effort to save them and it was the intervention of Tecumseh, the +Indian leader, which averted the massacre of the whole body of five +hundred prisoners. + +Across the river, Colonel John Miller, of the American regular +infantry, had attempted a gallant sortie from the fort and had taken a +battery but this sally had no great effect on the issue of the +engagement. Harrison had lost almost a thousand men, half his fighting +force, and was again shut up within the barricades and blockhouses of +Fort Meigs. Procter continued the siege only four days longer, for his +Indian allies then grew tired of it and faded into the forest. He was +not reluctant to accept this excuse for withdrawing. His own militia +were drifting away, his regulars were suffering from illness and +exposure, and Fort Meigs itself was a harder nut to crack than he had +anticipated. Procter therefore withdrew to Amherstburg and made no more +trouble until June, when he sent raiding parties into Ohio and created +panic among the isolated settlements. + +Harrison had become convinced that his campaign must be a defensive one +only, until a strong American naval force could be mustered on Lake +Erie. He moved his headquarters to Upper Sandusky and Cleveland and +concluded to mark time while Perry's fleet was building. The outlook was +somber, however, for his thin line of garrisons and his supply bases. +They were threatened in all directions, but he was most concerned for +the important depot which he had established at Upper Sandusky, no more +than thirty miles from any British landing force which should decide to +cross Lake Erie. The place had no fortifications; it was held by a few +hundred green recruits; and the only obstacle to a hostile ascent of the +Sandusky River was a little stockade near its mouth, called Fort +Stephenson. + +For the Americans to lose the accumulation of stores and munitions which +was almost the only result of a year's campaign would have been a fatal +blow. Harrison was greatly disturbed to hear that Tecumseh had gathered +his warriors and was following the trail that led to Upper Sandusky and +that Procter was moving coastwise with his troops in a flotilla under +oars and sail. Harrison was, or believed himself to be, in grave danger +of confronting a plight similar to that of William Hull, beset in front, +in flank, in rear. His first thought was to evacuate the stockade of +Fort Stephenson and to concentrate his force, although this would leave +the Sandusky River open for a British advance from the shore of Lake +Erie. + +An order was sent to young Major Croghan, who held Fort Stephenson with +one hundred and sixty men, to burn the buildings and retreat as fast as +possible up the river or along the shore of Lake Erie. This officer, a +Kentuckian not yet twenty-one years old, who honored the regiment to +which he belonged, deliberately disobeyed his commander. By so doing he +sounded a ringing note which was like the call of trumpets amidst the +failures, the cloudy uncertainties, the lack of virile leadership, that +had strewn the path of the war. In writing he sent this reply back to +General William Henry Harrison: "We have determined to maintain this +place, and by Heaven, we will." + +It was a turning point, in a way, presaging more hopeful events, a +warning that youth must be served and that the doddering oldsters were +to give place to those who could stand up under the stern and exacting +tests of warfare. Such rash ardor was not according to precedent. +Harrison promptly relieved the impetuous Croghan of his command and sent +a colonel to replace him. But Croghan argued the point so eloquently +that the stockade was restored to him next day and he won his chance to +do or die. Harrison consolingly informed him that he was to retreat if +attacked by British troops "but that to attempt to retire in the face of +an Indian force would be vain." + +Major Croghan blithely prepared to do anything else than retreat, while +General Harrison stayed ten miles away to plan a battle against +Tecumseh's Indians if they should happen to come in his direction. On +the 1st of August, Croghan's scouts informed him that the woods swarmed +with Indians and that British boats were pushing up the river. Procter +was on the scene again, and no sooner had his four hundred regulars +found a landing place than a curt demand for surrender came to Major +Croghan. The British howitzers peppered the stockade as soon as the +refusal was delivered, but they failed to shake the spirit of the +dauntless hundred and sixty American defenders. On the following day, +the 2d of August, Procter stupidly repeated his error of a direct +assault upon sheltered riflemen, which had cost him heavily at the +Raisin and at Fort Meigs. He ordered his redcoats to carry Fort +Stephenson. Again and again they marched forward until all the officers +had been shot down and a fifth of the force was dead or wounded. +American valor and marksmanship had proved themselves in the face of +heavy odds. At sunset the beaten British were flocking into their boats, +and Procter was again on his way to Amherstburg. His excuse for the +trouncing laid the blame on the Indians: + + The troops, after the artillery had been used for some hours, + attacked two faces and, impossibilities being attempted, failed. + The fort, from which the severest fire I ever saw was maintained + during the attack, was well defended. The troops displayed the + greatest bravery, the much greater part of whom reached the fort + and made every effort to enter; but the Indians who had proposed + the assault and, had it not been assented to, would have ever + stigmatized the British character, scarcely came into fire before + they ran out of its reach. A more than adequate sacrifice having + been made to Indian opinion, I drew off the brave assailants. + +The sound of Croghan's guns was heard in General Harrison's camp at +Seneca, ten miles up the river. Harrison had nothing to say but this: +"The blood be upon his own head. I wash my hands of it." This was a +misguided speech which the country received with marked disfavor while +it acclaimed young Croghan as the sterling hero of the western campaign. +He could be also a loyal as well as a successful subordinate, for he +ably defended Harrison against the indignation which menaced his station +as commander of the army. The new Secretary of War, John Armstrong, +ironically referred to Procter and Harrison as being always in terror of +each other, the one actually flying from his supposed pursuer after his +fiasco at Fort Stephenson, the other waiting only for the arrival of +Croghan at Seneca to begin a camp conflagration and flight to Upper +Sandusky. + +The reconquest of Michigan and the Northwest depended now on the +American navy. Harrison wisely halted his inglorious operations by land +until the ships and sailors were ready to cooperate. Because the British +sway on the Great Lakes was unchallenged, the general situation of the +enemy was immensely better than it had been at the beginning of the +campaign. During a year of war the United States had steadily lost in +men, in territory, in prestige, and this in spite of the fact that the +opposing forces across the Canadian border were much smaller. + +That the men of the American navy would be prompt to maintain the +traditions of the service was indicated in a small way by an incident of +the previous year on Lake Erie. In September, 1812, Lieutenant Jesse D. +Elliott had been sent to Buffalo to find a site for building naval +vessels. A few weeks later he was fitting out several purchased +schooners behind Squaw Island. Suddenly there came sailing in from +Amherstburg and anchored off Fort Erie two British armed brigs, the +_Detroit_ which had been surrendered by Hull, and the _Caledonia_ which +had helped to subdue the American garrison at Mackinac. Elliott had no +ships ready for action, but he was not to be daunted by such an +obstacle. It so happened that ninety Yankee seamen had been sent across +country from New York by Captain Isaac Chauncey. These worthy tars had +trudged the distance on foot, a matter of five hundred miles, with their +canvas bags on their backs, and they rolled into port at noon, in the +nick of time to serve Elliott's purpose. They were indubitably tired, +but he gave them not a moment for rest. A ration of meat and bread and a +stiff tot of grog, and they turned to and manned the boats which were to +cut out the two British brigs when darkness fell. + +Elliott scraped together fifty soldiers and, filling two cutters with +his amphibious company, he stole out of Buffalo and pulled toward Fort +Erie. At one o'clock in the morning of the 9th of October they were +alongside the pair of enemy brigs and together the bluejackets and the +infantry tumbled over the bulwarks with cutlass, pistols, and boarding +pike. In ten minutes both vessels were captured and under sail for the +American shore. The _Caledonia_ was safely beached at Black Rock, where +Elliott was building his little navy yard. The wind, however, was so +light that the _Detroit_ was swept downward by the river current and had +to anchor under the fire of British batteries. These she fought with her +guns until all her powder was shot away. Then she cut her cable, hoisted +sail again, and took the bottom on Squaw Island, where both British and +American guns had the range of her. Elliott had to abandon her and set +fire to the hull, but he afterward recovered her ordnance. + +What Elliott had in mind shows the temper of this ready naval officer. +"A strong inducement," he wrote, "was that with these two vessels and +those I have purchased, I should be able to meet the remainder of the +British force on the Upper Lakes." The loss of the _Detroit_ somewhat +disappointed this ambitious scheme but the success of the audacious +adventure foreshadowed later and larger exploits with far-reaching +results. Isaac Brock, the British general in Canada, had the genius to +comprehend the meaning of this naval exploit. "This event is +particularly unfortunate," he wrote, "and may reduce us to incalculable +distress. The enemy is making every exertion to gain a naval superiority +on both lakes; which, if they accomplish, I do not see how we can retain +the country." And to Procter, his commander at Detroit, he disclosed +the meaning of the naval loss as it affected the fortunes of the western +campaign: "This will reduce us to great distress. You will have the +goodness to state the expedients you possess to enable us to replace, as +far as possible, the heavy loss we have suffered in the _Detroit_." + +But another year was required to teach the American Government the +lesson that a few small vessels roughly pegged together of planks sawn +from the forest, with a few hundred seamen and guns, might be far more +decisive than the random operations of fifty thousand troops. This +lesson, however, was at last learnt; and so, in the summer of 1813, +General William Henry Harrison waited at Seneca on the Sandusky River +until he received, on the 10th of September, the deathless despatch of +Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry: "We have met the enemy and they are +ours." The navy had at last cleared the way for the army. + +Expeditiously forty-five hundred infantry were embarked and set ashore +only three miles from the coveted fort at Amherstburg. A mounted +regiment of a thousand Kentuckians, raised for frontier defense by +Richard M. Johnson, moved along the road to Detroit. Harrison was about +to square accounts with Procter, who had no stomach for a stubborn +defense. Tecumseh, still loyal to the British cause, summoned +thirty-five hundred of his warriors to the royal standard to stem this +American invasion. They expected that Procter would offer a courageous +resistance, for he had also almost a thousand hard-bitted British +troops, seasoned by a year's fighting. But Procter's sun had set and +disgrace was about to overtake him. To Tecumseh, a chieftain who had +waged war because of the wrongs suffered by his own people, the thought +of flight in this crisis was cowardly and intolerable. When Procter +announced that he proposed to seek refuge in retreat, Tecumseh told him +to his face that he was like a fat dog which had carried its tail erect +and now that it was frightened dropped its tail between its legs and +ran. The English might scamper as far as they liked but the Indians +would remain to meet the American invaders. + +It was a helter-skelter exodus from Amherstburg and Detroit. All +property that could not be moved was burned or destroyed, and Procter +set out for Moraviantown, on the Thames River, seventy miles along the +road to Lake Ontario. Harrison, amazed at this behavior, reported: +"Nothing but infatuation could have governed General Proctor's conduct. +The day I landed below Malden [Amherstburg] he had at his disposal +upward of three thousand Indian warriors; his regular force reinforced +by the militia of the district would have made his number nearly equal +to my aggregate, which on the day of landing did not exceed forty-five +hundred.... His inferior officers say that his conduct has been a series +of continued blunders." + +Procter had put a week behind him before Harrison set out from +Amherstburg in pursuit, but the British column was hampered in flight by +the women and children of the deserted posts, the sick and wounded, the +wagon trains, the stores, and baggage. The organization had gone to +pieces because of the demoralizing example set by its leader. A hundred +miles of wilderness lay between the fugitives and a place of refuge. +Overtaken on the Thames River, they were given no choice. It was fight +or surrender. Ahead of the American infantry brigades moved Johnson's +mounted Kentuckians, armed with muskets, rifles, knives, and tomahawks, +and led by a resourceful and enterprising soldier. Procter was compelled +to form his lines of battle across the road on the north bank of the +Thames or permit this formidable American cavalry to trample his +straggling ranks under hoof. Tecumseh's Indians, stationed in a swamp, +covered his right flank and the river covered his left. Harrison came +upon the enemy early in the afternoon of the 5th of October and formed +his line of battle. The action was carried on in a manner "not +sanctioned by anything that I had seen or heard of," said Harrison +afterwards. This first American victory of the war on land was, indeed, +quite irregular and unconventional. It was won by Johnson's mounted +riflemen, who divided and charged both the redcoats in front and the +Indians in the swamp. One detachment galloped through the first and +second lines of the British infantry while the other drove the Indians +into the American left wing and smashed them utterly. Tecumseh was among +the slain. It was all over in one hour and twenty minutes. Harrison's +foot soldiers had no chance to close with the enemy. The Americans lost +only fifteen killed and thirty wounded, and they took about five hundred +prisoners and all Procter's artillery, muskets, baggage, and stores. + +Not only was the Northwest Territory thus regained for the United States +but the power of the Indian alliance was broken. Most of the hostile +tribes now abandoned the British cause. Tecumseh's confederacy of Indian +nations fell to pieces with the death of its leader. The British army +of Upper Canada, shattered and unable to receive reinforcements from +overseas, no longer menaced Michigan and the western front of the +American line. General Harrison returned to Detroit at his leisure, and +the volunteers and militia marched homeward, for no more than two +regular brigades were needed to protect all this vast area. The struggle +for its possession was a closed episode. In this quarter, however, the +war cry "On to Canada!" was no longer heard. The United States was +satisfied to recover what it had lost with Hull's surrender and to rid +itself of the peril of invasion and the horrors of Indian massacres +along its wilderness frontiers. Of the men prominent in the struggle, +Procter suffered official disgrace at the hands of his own Government +and William Henry Harrison became a President of the United States. + +[Illustration: _OLIVER HAZARD PERRY AT THE BATTLE OF LAKE ERIE_ + +Painting by J.W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation.] + +[Illustration: _ISAAC CHAUNCEY_ + +Painting in the Comptroller's Office, City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation.] + + + + +CHAPTER III + +PERRY AND LAKE ERIE + + +Amid the prolonged vicissitudes of these western campaigns, two +subordinate officers, the boyish Major Croghan at Fort Stephenson and +the dashing Colonel Johnson with his Kentucky mounted infantry, +displayed qualities which accord with the best traditions of American +arms. Of kindred spirit and far more illustrious was Captain Oliver +Hazard Perry of the United States Navy. Perry dealt with and overcame, +on a much larger scale, similar obstacles and discouragements--untrained +men, lack of material, faulty support--but was ready and eager to meet +the enemy in the hour of need. If it is a sound axiom never to despise +the enemy, it is nevertheless true that excessive prudence has lost many +an action. Farragut's motto has been the keynote of the success of all +the great sea-captains, "_L'audace, et encore de l'audace, et toujours +de l'audace._" + +It was not until the lesson of Hull's surrender had aroused the civil +authorities that Captain Chauncey of the navy yard at New York received +orders in September, 1812, "to assume command of the naval force on +Lakes Erie and Ontario and to use every exertion to obtain control of +them this fall." Chauncey was an experienced officer, forty years old, +who had not rusted from inactivity like the elderly generals who had +been given command of armies. He knew what he needed and how to get it. +Having to begin with almost nothing, he busied himself to such excellent +purpose that he was able to report within three weeks that he had +forwarded to Sackett's Harbor on Lake Ontario, "one hundred and forty +ship carpenters, seven hundred seamen and marines, more than one hundred +pieces of cannon, the greater part of large caliber, with musket, shot, +carriages, etc. The carriages have nearly all been made and the shot +cast in that time. Nay, I may say that nearly every article that has +been forwarded has been made." + +It was found impossible to divert part of this ordnance to Buffalo +because of the excessively bad roads, which were passable for heavy +traffic only by means of sleds during the snows of winter. This +obstacle spoiled the hope of putting a fighting force afloat on Lake +Erie during the latter part of 1812. Chauncey consequently established +his main base at Sackett's Harbor and lost no time in building and +buying vessels. In forty-five days from laying the keel he launched a +ship of the corvette class, a third larger than the ocean cruisers +_Wasp_ and _Hornet_, "and nine weeks ago," said he, "the timber that she +is composed of was growing in the forest." + +Lieutenant Elliott at the same time had not been idle in his little navy +yard at Black Rock near Buffalo, where he had assembled a small brig and +several schooners. In December Chauncey inspected the work and decided +to shift it to Presqu' Isle, now the city of Erie, which was much less +exposed to interference by the enemy. Here he got together the material +for two brigs of three hundred tons each, which were to be the main +strength of Perry's squadron nine months later. Impatient to return to +Lake Ontario, where a fleet in being was even more urgently needed, +Chauncey was glad to receive from Commander Oliver Hazard Perry an +application to serve under him. To Perry was promptly turned over the +burden and the responsibility of smashing the British naval power on +Lake Erie. Events were soon to display the notable differences in +temperament and capabilities between these two men. Though he had +greater opportunities on Lake Ontario, Chauncey was too cautious and +held the enemy in too much respect; wherefore he dodged and parried and +fought inconclusive engagements with the fleet of Sir James Yeo until +destiny had passed him by. He lives in history as a competent and +enterprising chief of dockyards and supplies but not as a victorious +seaman. + +To Perry, in the flush of his youth at twenty-eight years, was granted +the immortal spark of greatness to do and dare and the personality which +impelled men gladly to serve him and to die for him. His difficulties +were huge, but he attacked them with a confidence which nothing could +dismay. First he had to concentrate his divided force. Lieutenant +Elliott's flotilla of schooners at that time lay at Black Rock. It was +necessary to move them to Erie at great risk of capture by the enemy, +but vigilance and seamanship accomplished this feat. It then remained to +finish and equip the larger vessels which were being built. Two of these +were the brigs ordered laid down by Chauncey, the _Lawrence_ and the +_Niagara_. Apart from these, the battle squadron consisted of seven +small schooners and the captured British brig, the _Caledonia_. In size +and armament they were absurd cockleshells even when compared with a +modern destroyer, but they were to make themselves superbly memorable. +Perry's flagship was no larger than the ancient coasting schooners which +ply today between Bangor and Boston with cargoes of lumber and coal. + +Through the winter and spring of 1813, the carpenters, calkers, and +smiths were fitting the new vessels together from the green timber and +planking which the choppers and sawyers wrought out of the forest. The +iron, the canvas, and all the other material had to be hauled by horses +and oxen from places several hundred miles distant. Late in July the +squadron was ready for active service but was dangerously short of men. +This, however, was the least of Perry's concerns. He had reckoned that +seven hundred and forty officers and sailors were required to handle and +fight his ships, but he did not hesitate to put to sea with a total +force of four hundred and ninety. + +Of these a hundred were soldiers sent him only nine days before he +sailed, and most of them trod a deck for the first time. Chauncey was so +absorbed in his own affairs and hazards on Lake Ontario that he was not +likely to give Perry any more men than could be spared. This reluctance +caused Perry to send a spirited protest in which he said: "The men that +came by Mr. Champlin are a motley set, blacks, soldiers, and boys. I +cannot think you saw them after they were selected." + +As the superior officer, Chauncey resented the criticism and replied +with this warning reproof: "As you have assured the Secretary that you +should conceive yourself equal or superior to the enemy, with a force of +men so much less than I had deemed necessary, there will be a great deal +expected from you by your country, and I trust they will not be +disappointed in the high expectations formed of your gallantry and +judgment." + +The quick temper of Perry flared at this. He was about to sail in search +of the British fleet with what men he had because he was unable to +obtain more, and he had rightly looked to Chauncey to supply the +deficiency. Impulsively he asked to be relieved of his command and gave +expression to his sense of grievance in a letter to the Secretary of the +Navy in which he said, among other things: "I cannot serve under an +officer who has been so totally regardless of my feelings.... The +critical state of General Harrison was such that I took upon myself the +responsibility of going out with the few young officers you had been +pleased to send me, with the few seamen I had, and as many volunteers as +I could muster from the militia. I did not shrink from this +responsibility but, Sir, at that very moment I surely did not anticipate +the receipt of a letter in every line of which is an insult." Most +fortunately Perry's request for transfer could not be granted until +after the battle of Lake Erie had been fought and won. The Secretary +answered in tones of mild rebuke: "A change of commander under existing +circumstances, is equally inadmissible as it respects the interest of +the service and your own reputation. It is right that you should reap +the harvest which you have sown." + +Perry's indignation seems excusable. He had shown a cheerful willingness +to shoulder the whole load and his anxieties had been greater than his +superiors appeared to realize. Captain Barclay, who commanded the +British naval force on Lake Erie and who had been hovering off Erie +while the American ships were waiting for men, might readily have sent +his boats in at night and destroyed the entire squadron. Perry had not +enough sailors to defend his ships, and the regiment of Pennsylvania +militia stationed at Erie to guard the naval base refused to do duty on +shipboard after dark. "I told the boys to go, Captain Perry," explained +their worthless colonel, "but the boys won't go." + +Perry's lucky star saved him from disaster, however, and on the 2d of +August he undertook the perilous and awkward labor of floating his +larger vessels over the shallow bar of the harbor at Erie. Barclay's +blockading force had vanished. For Perry it was then or never. At any +moment the enemy's topsails might reappear, and the American ships would +be caught in a situation wholly defenseless. Perry first disposed his +light-draft schooners to cover his channel, and then hoisted out the +guns of the _Lawrence_ brig and lowered them into boats. Scows, or +"camels," as they were called, were lashed alongside the vessel to lift +her when the water was pumped out of them. There was no more than four +feet of water on the bar, and the brig-of-war bumped and stranded +repeatedly even when lightened and assisted in every possible manner. +After a night and a day of unflagging exertion she was hauled across +into deep water and the guns were quickly slung aboard. The _Niagara_ +was coaxed out of harbor in the same ingenious fashion, and on the 4th +of August Perry was able to report that all his vessels were over the +bar, although Barclay had returned by now and "the enemy had been in +sight all day." + +Perry endeavored to force an engagement without delay, but the British +fleet retired to Amherstburg because Barclay was waiting for a new and +powerful ship, the _Detroit_, and he preferred to spar for time. The +American vessels thereupon anchored off Erie and took on stores. They +had fewer than three hundred men aboard, and it was bracing news for +Perry to receive word that a hundred officers and men under Commander +Jesse D. Elliott were hastening to join him. Elliott became second in +command to Perry and assumed charge of the _Niagara_. + +For almost a month the Stars and Stripes flew unchallenged from the +masts of the American ships. Perry made his base at Put-in Bay, thirty +miles southeast of Amherstburg, where he could intercept the enemy +passing eastward. The British commander, Barclay, had also been troubled +by lack of seamen and was inclined to postpone action. He was +nevertheless urged on by Sir George Prevost, the Governor General of +Canada, who told him that "he had only to dare and he would be +successful." A more urgent call on Barclay to fight was due to the lack +of food in the Amherstburg region, where the water route was now +blockaded by the American ships. The British were feeding fourteen +thousand Indians, including warriors and their families, and if +provisions failed the red men would be likely to vanish. + +At sunrise of the 10th of September, a sailor at the masthead of the +_Lawrence_ sighted the British squadron steering across the lake with a +fair wind and ready to give battle. Perry instantly sent his crews to +quarters and trimmed sail to quit the bay and form his line in open +water. He was eager to take the initiative, and it may be assumed that +he had forgotten Chauncey's prudent admonition: "The first object will +be to destroy or cripple the enemy's fleet; but in all attempts upon the +fleet you ought to use great caution, for the loss of a single vessel +may decide the fate of a campaign." + +Small, crude, and hastily manned as were the ships engaged in this +famous fresh-water battle, it should be borne in mind that the proven +principles of naval strategy and tactics used were as sound and true as +when Nelson and Rodney had demonstrated them in mighty fleet actions at +sea. In the final council in his cabin, Perry echoed Nelson's words in +saying that no captain could go very far wrong who placed his vessel +close alongside those of the enemy. Chauncey's counsel, on the other +hand, would have lost the battle. Perry's decision to give and take +punishment, no matter if it should cost him a ship or two, won him the +victory. + +The British force was inferior, both in the number of vessels and the +weight of broadsides, but this inferiority was somewhat balanced by the +greater range and hitting power of Barclay's longer guns. Each had what +might be called two heavy ships of the line: the British, the _Detroit_ +and the _Queen Charlotte,_ and the Americans, the _Lawrence_ and the +_Niagara_. Next in importance and fairly well matched were the _Lady +Prevost_ under Barclay's flag and the _Caledonia_ under Perry's. There +remained the light schooner craft of which the American squadron had six +and the British only three. Perry realized that if he could put ship +against ship the odds would be largely in his favor, for, with his +batteries of carronades which threw their shot but a short distance, he +would be unwise to maneuver for position and let the enemy pound him to +pieces at long range. His plan of battle was therefore governed entirely +by his knowledge of Barclay's strength and of the possibilities of his +own forces. + +With a light breeze and working to windward, Perry's ship moved to +intercept the British squadron which lay in column, topsails aback and +waiting. The American brigs were fanned ahead by the air which breathed +in their lofty canvas, but the schooners were almost becalmed and four +of them straggled in the rear, their crews tugging at the long sweeps or +oars. Two of the faster of these, the _Scorpion_ and the _Ariel_, were +slipping along in the van where they supported the American flagship +_Lawrence_, and Perry had no intention of delaying for the others to +come up. Shortly before noon Barclay opened the engagement with the long +guns of the _Detroit_, but as yet Perry was unable to reach his opponent +and made more sail on the _Lawrence_ in order to get close. + +The British gunners of the _Detroit_ were already finding the target, +and Perry discovered that the _Lawrence_ was difficult to handle with +much of her rigging shot away. He ranged ahead until his ship was no +more than two hundred and fifty yards from the _Detroit_. Even then the +distance was greater than desirable for the main battery of carronades. +A good golfer can drive his tee shot as far as the space of water which +separated these two indomitable flagships as they fought. It was a +different kind of naval warfare from that of today in which +superdreadnaughts score hits at battle ranges of twelve and fourteen +miles. + +Perry's plans were now endangered by the failure of his other heavy +ship, the _Niagara_, to take care of her own adversary, the _Queen +Charlotte_, which forged ahead and took a station where her broadsides +helped to reduce the _Lawrence_ to a mass of wreckage. A bitter dispute +which challenged the courage and judgment of Commander Elliott of the +_Niagara_ was the aftermath of this flaw in the conduct of the battle. +It was charged that he failed to go to the support of his +commander-in-chief when the flagship was being destroyed under his eyes. +The facts admit of no doubt: he dropped astern and for two hours +remained scarcely more than a spectator of a desperate action in which +his ship was sorely needed, whereas if he had followed the order to +close up, the _Lawrence_ need never have struck to the enemy. + +In his defense he stated that lack of wind had prevented him from +drawing ahead to engage and divert the _Queen Charlotte_ and that he had +been instructed to hold a certain position in line. At the time Perry +found no fault with him, merely setting down in his report that "at +half-past two, the wind springing up, Captain Elliott was enabled to +bring his vessel, the _Niagara_, gallantly into close action." Later +Perry formulated charges against his second in command, accusing him of +having kept on a course "which would in a few minutes have carried said +vessel entirely out of action." These documents were pigeonholed and a +Court of Inquiry commended Elliott as a brave and skillful officer who +had gained laurels in that "splendid victory." + +The issue was threshed out by naval experts who violently disagreed, but +there was glory enough for all and the flag had suffered no stain. +Certain it is that the battle would have lacked its most brilliantly +dramatic episode if Perry had not been compelled to shift his pennant +from the blazing hulk of the _Lawrence_ and, from the quarter-deck of +the _Niagara_, to renew the conflict, rally his vessels, and snatch a +triumph from the shadow of disaster. It was one of the great moments in +the storied annals of the American navy, comparable with a John Paul +Jones shouting "_We have not yet begun to fight!_" from the deck of the +shattered, water-logged _Bon Homme Richard_, or a Farragut lashed in the +rigging and roaring "_Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!_" + +Because of the failure of Elliott to bring the _Niagara_ into action at +once, as had been laid down in the plan of battle, Perry found himself +in desperate straits aboard the beaten _Lawrence_. Her colors still flew +but she could fire only one gun of her whole battery, and more than half +the ship's company had been killed or wounded--eighty-three men out of +one hundred and forty-two. It was impossible to steer or handle her and +she drifted helpless. Then it was that Perry, seeing the laggard +_Niagara_ close at hand, ordered a boat away and was transferred to a +ship which was still fit and ready to continue the action. As soon as he +had left them, the survivors of the _Lawrence_ hauled down their flag in +token of surrender, for there was nothing else for them to do. + +As soon as he jumped on deck, Perry took command of the _Niagara_, +sending Elliott off to bring up the rearmost schooners. There was no +lagging or hesitation now. With topgallant sails sheeted home, the +_Niagara_ bore down upon the _Detroit_, driven by a freshening breeze. +Barclay's crippled flagship tried to avoid being raked and so fouled her +consort, the _Queen Charlotte_. The two British ships lay locked +together while the American guns pounded them with terrific fire. +Presently they got clear of each other and pluckily attempted to carry +on the fight. But the odds were hopeless. The officer whose painful +duty it was to signal the surrender of the _Detroit_ said of this +British flagship: "The ship lying completely unmanageable, every brace +cut away, the mizzen-topmast and gaff down, all the other masts badly +wounded, not a stay left forward, hull shattered very much, a number of +guns disabled, and the enemy's squadron raking both ships ahead and +astern, none of our own in a position to support us, I was under the +painful necessity of answering the enemy to say we had struck, the +_Queen Charlotte_ having previously done so." + +It was later reported of the _Detroit_ that it was "impossible to place +a hand upon that broadside which had been exposed to the enemy's fire +without covering some portion of a wound, either from grape, round, +canister, or chain shot." The crew had suffered as severely as the +vessel. The valiant commander of the squadron, Captain Barclay, was a +fighting sailor who had lost an arm at Trafalgar. In the battle of Lake +Erie he was twice wounded and had to be carried below. His first +lieutenant was mortally hurt and in the critical moments the ship was +left in charge of the second lieutenant. In this gallant manner did +Perry and Barclay, both heirs of the bulldog Anglo-Saxon strain, wage +their bloody duel without faltering and thus did the British sailor +keep his honor bright in defeat. + +The little American schooners played a part in smashing the enemy. The +_Ariel_ and _Scorpion_ held their positions in the van and their long +guns helped deal the finishing blows to the _Detroit_, while the others +came up when the breeze grew stronger and engaged their several +opponents. The _Caledonia_ was effective in putting the _Queen +Charlotte_ out of action. When the larger British ships surrendered, the +smaller craft were compelled to follow the example, and the squadron +yielded to Perry after three hours of battle. It was in no boastful +strain but as the laconic fact that he sent his famous message to the +nation. He had met the enemy and they were all his. It was +leadership--brilliant and tenacious--which had employed makeshift +vessels, odd lots of guns, and crews which included militia, sick men, +and "a motley set of blacks and boys." Barclay had labored under +handicaps no less heavy, but it was his destiny to match himself against +a superior force and a man of unquestioned naval genius. Oliver Hazard +Perry would have made a name for himself, no doubt, if his career had +led him to blue water and the command of stately frigates. + +On Lake Ontario, Chauncey dragged his naval campaign through two +seasons and then left the enemy in control. Perry, by opening the way +for Harrison, rewon the Northwest for the United States because he +sagaciously upheld the doctrine of Napoleon that "war cannot be waged +without running risks." Behind his daring, however, lay tireless, +painstaking preparation and a thorough knowledge of his trade. + + + + +CHAPTER IV + +EBB AND FLOW ON THE NORTHERN FRONT + + +The events of the war by land are apt to be as confusing in narration as +they were in fact. The many forays, skirmishes, and retreats along the +Canadian frontier were campaigns in name only, ambitiously conceived but +most haltingly executed. Major General Dearborn, senior officer of the +American army, had failed to begin operations in the center and on the +eastern flank in time to divert the enemy from Detroit; but in the +autumn of 1812 he was ready to attempt an invasion of Canada by way of +Niagara. The direct command was given to Major General Stephen Van +Rensselaer of the New York State militia, who was to advance as soon as +six thousand troops were assembled. At first Dearborn seemed hopeful of +success. He predicted that "with the militia and other troops there or +on the march, they will be able, I presume, to cross over into Canada, +carry all the works in Niagara, and proceed to the other posts in that +province in triumph." + +The fair prospect soon clouded, however, and Dearborn, who was of a +doubtful, easily discouraged temperament, partly due to age and +infirmities, discovered that "a strange fatality seemed to have pervaded +the whole arrangements." Yet this was when the movement of troops and +supplies was far brisker and better organized than could have been +expected and when the armed strength was thrice that of Brock, the +British general, who was guarding forty miles of front along the Niagara +River with less than two thousand men. At Queenston which was the +objective of the first American attack there were no more than two +companies of British regulars and a few militia, in all about three +hundred troops. The rest of Brock's forces were at Chippawa and Fort +Erie, where the heavy assaults were expected. + +An American regular brigade was on the march to Buffalo, but its +commander, Brigadier General Alexander Smyth, was not subordinate to Van +Rensselaer, and the two had quarreled. Smyth paid no attention to a +request for a council of war and went his own way. On the night of the +10th of October Van Rensselaer attempted to cross the Niagara River, +but there was some blunder about the boats and the disgruntled troops +returned to camp. Two nights later they made another attempt but found +the British on the alert and failed to dislodge them from the heights of +Queenston. A small body of American regulars, led by gallant young +Captain Wool, managed to clamber up a path hitherto regarded as +impassable. There they held a precarious position and waited for help. +Brock, who was commanding the British in person, was instantly killed +while storming this hillside at the head of reinforcements. In him the +enemy lost its ablest and most intrepid leader. + +The forenoon wore on and Captain Wool, painfully wounded, still clung to +the heights with his two hundred and fifty men. A relief column which +crossed the river found itself helpless for lack of artillery and +intrenching tools and was compelled to fall back. Van Rensselaer forgot +his bickering with General Smyth and sent him urgent word to hasten to +the rescue. Winfield Scott, then a lieutenant colonel, came forward as a +volunteer and took command of young Captain Wool's forlorn hope. +Gradually more men trickled up the heights until the ground was defended +by three hundred and fifty regulars and two hundred and fifty militia. + +Meanwhile the British troops were mustering up the river at Chippawa, +and the red lines of their veterans were descried advancing from Fort +George below. Bands of Indians raced by field and forest to screen the +British movements and to harass the American lines. The tragic turn of +events appears to have dazed General Van Rensselaer. The failure to save +the beleaguered and outnumbered Americans on the heights he blamed upon +his troops, reporting next day that his reinforcements embarked very +slowly. "I passed immediately over to accelerate them," said he, "but to +my utter astonishment I found that at the very moment when complete +victory was in our hands the ardor of the unengaged troops had entirely +subsided. I rode in all directions, urged the men by every consideration +to pass over; but in vain." + +The candid fact seems to be that this general of militia had made a +sorry mess of the whole affair, and his men had lost all faith in his +ability to turn the adverse tide. He stood and watched six hundred +valiant American soldiers make their last stand on the rocky eminence +while the British hurled more and more men up the slope. One concerted +attack by the idle American army would have swept them away like chaff. +But there was only one Winfield Scott in the field, and his lot was +cast with those who fought to the bitter end as a sacrifice to +stupidity. The six hundred were surrounded. They were pushed back by +weight of opposing numbers. Still they died in their tracks, until the +survivors were actually pushed over a cliff and down to the bank of the +river. + +There they surrendered, for there were no boats to carry them across. +The boatmen had fled to cover as soon as the Indians opened fire on +them. Winfield Scott was among the prisoners together with a brigadier +general and two more lieutenant colonels who had been bagged earlier in +the day. Ninety Americans were killed and many more wounded, while a +total of nine hundred were captured during the entire action. Van +Rensselaer had lost almost as many troops as Hull had lost at Detroit, +and he had nothing to show for it. He very sensibly resigned his command +on the next day. + +The choice of his successor, however, was again unfortunate. Brigadier +General Alexander Smyth had been inspector general in the regular army +before he was given charge of an infantry brigade. He had a most +flattering opinion of himself, and promotion to the command of an army +quite turned his head. The oratory with which he proceeded to bombard +friend and foe strikes the one note of humor in a chapter that is +otherwise depressing. Through the newspapers he informed his troops that +their valor had been conspicuous "but the nation has been unfortunate in +the selection of some of those who have directed it... The cause of +these miscarriages is apparent. The commanders were popular men, +'destitute alike of theory and experience' in the art of war." "In a few +days," he announced, "the troops under my command will plant the +American standard in Canada. They are men accustomed to obedience, +silence, and steadiness. They will conquer or they will die. Will you +stand with your arms folded and look on this interesting struggle?... +Has the race degenerated? Or have you, under the baneful influence of +contending factions, forgot your country?... Shame, where is thy blush? +No!" + +This invasion of Canada was to be a grim, deadly business; no more +trifling. His heroic troops were to hold their fire until they were +within _five paces_ of the enemy, and then to charge bayonets with +shouts. They were to think on their country's honor torn, her rights +trampled on, her sons enslaved, her infants perishing by the hatchet, +not forgetting to be strong and brave and to let the ruffian power of +the British King cease on this continent. + +Buffalo was the base of this particular conquest of Canada. The advance +guard would cross the Niagara River from Black Rock to destroy the +enemy's batteries, after which the army was to move onward, three +thousand strong. The first detachments crossed the river early in the +morning on the 28th of November and did their work well and bravely and +captured the guns in spite of heavy loss. The troops then began to +embark at sunrise, but by noon only twelve hundred were in boats. +Upstream they moved at a leisurely pace and went ashore for dinner. The +remainder of the three thousand, however, had failed to appear, and +Smyth refused to invade unless he had the full number. Altogether, four +thousand troops, all regulars, had been sent to Niagara but many of them +had been disabled by sickness. + +General Smyth then called a council of war, shifted the responsibility +from his own shoulders, and decided to delay the invasion. Again he +changed his mind and ordered the men into the boats two days later. +Fifteen hundred men answered the summons. Again the general marched them +ashore after another council of war, and then and there he abandoned +his personal conquest of Canada. His army literally melted away, "about +four thousand men without order or restraint discharging their muskets +in every direction," writes an eyewitness. They riddled the general's +tent with bullets by way of expressing their opinion of him, and he left +the camp not more than two leaps ahead of his earnest troops. He +requested permission to visit his family, after the newspapers had +branded him as a coward, and the visit became permanent. His name was +dropped from the army rolls without the formality of an inquiry. It +seemed rather too much for the country to bear that, in the first year +of the war, its armies should have suffered from the failures of Hull, +Van Rensselaer, and Smyth. + +It had been hoped that General Dearborn might carry out his own idea of +an operation against Montreal at the same time as the Niagara campaign +was in progress. On the shore of Lake Champlain, Dearborn was in command +of the largest and most promising force under the American flag, +including seven regiments of the regular army. Taking personal charge at +Plattsburg, he marched this body of troops twenty miles in the direction +of the Canadian border. Here the militia refused to go on, and he +marched back again after four days in the field. Beset with rheumatism +and low spirits, he wrote to the Secretary of War: "I had anticipated +disappointment and misfortune in the commencement of the war, but I did +by no means apprehend such a deficiency of regular troops and such a +series of disasters as we have witnessed." Coupled with this complaint +was the request that he might be allowed "to retire to the shades of +private life and remain a mere but interested spectator of passing +events." + +The Government, however, was not yet ready to release Major General +Dearborn but instructed him to organize an offensive which should obtain +control of the St. Lawrence River and thereby cut communication between +Upper and Lower Canada. This was the pet plan of Armstrong when he +became Secretary of War, and as soon as was possible he set the military +machinery in motion. In February, 1813, Armstrong told Dearborn to +assemble four thousand men at Sackett's Harbor, on Lake Ontario, and +three thousand at Buffalo. The larger force was to cross the lake in the +spring, protected by Chauncey's fleet, capture the important naval +station of Kingston, then attack York (Toronto), and finally join the +corps at Buffalo for another operation against the British on the +Niagara River. But Dearborn was not eager for the enterprise. He +explained that he lacked sufficient strength for an operation against +Kingston. With the support of Commodore Chauncey he proposed a different +offensive which should be aimed first against York, then against +Niagara, and finally against Kingston. This proposal reversed +Armstrong's programme, and he permitted it to sway his decision. Thus +the war turned westward from the St. Lawrence. + +The only apparent success in this campaign occurred at York, the capital +of Upper Canada, where on the 27th of April one ship under construction +was burned and another captured after the small British garrison had +been driven inland. The public buildings were also destroyed by fire, +though Dearborn protested that this was done against his orders. In the +next year, however, the enemy retaliated by burning the Capitol at +Washington. The fighting at York was bloody, and the American forces +counted a fifth killed or wounded. They remained on the Canadian side +only ten days and then returned to disembark at Niagara. Here Dearborn +fell ill, and his chief of staff, Colonel Winfield Scott, was left in +virtual control of the army. + +In May, 1813, most of the troops at Plattsburg and Sackett's Harbor +were moved to the Niagara region for the purpose of a grand movement to +take Fort George, at the mouth of that river, from the rear and thus +redeem the failure of the preceding campaign. Commodore Chauncey with +his Ontario fleet was prepared to cooperate and to transport the troops. +Three American brigadiers, Boyd, Winder, and Chandler, effected a +landing in handsome fashion, while Winfield Scott led an advance +division. Under cover of the ships they proceeded along the beach and +turned the right flank of the British defenses. Fort George was +evacuated, but most of the force escaped and made their way to +Queenston, whence they continued to retreat westward along the shore of +Lake Ontario. Vincent, the British general, reported his losses in +killed and wounded and missing as three hundred and fifty-six. The +Americans suffered far less. It was a clean-cut, workmanlike operation, +and, according to an observer, "Winfield Scott fought nine-tenths of the +battle." But the chief aim had been to destroy the British force, and in +this the adventure failed. + +General Dearborn was not at all reconciled to letting the garrison of +Fort George get clean away from him, and he therefore sent General +Winder in pursuit with a thousand men. These were reinforced by as many +more; and together they followed the trail of the retreating British to +Stony Creek and camped there for the night. Vincent and his sixteen +hundred British regulars were in bivouac ten miles beyond. The mishap at +Fort George had by no means knocked the fight out of them. Vincent +himself led six hundred men back in the middle of a black night (the 6th +of June) and fell upon the American camp. A confused battle followed. +The two forces intermingled in cursing, stabbing, swirling groups. The +American generals, Chandler and Winder, walked straight into the enemy's +arms and were captured. The British broke through and took the American +batteries but failed to keep them. At length both parties retired, badly +punished. The Americans had lost all ardor for pursuit and on the +following day retreated ten miles and were soon ordered to return to +Fort George. + +General Dearborn was much distressed by this unlucky episode and was in +such feeble health that he again begged to be relieved. He was, he said, +"so reduced in strength as to be incapable of any command." General +Morgan Lewis took temporary command at Niagara, but, being soon called +to Sackett's Harbor, he was succeeded by General Boyd, whom Lewis was +kind enough to describe, by way of recommendation, in these terms: "A +compound of ignorance, vanity, and petulance, with nothing to recommend +him but that species of bravery in the field which is vaporing, +boisterous, stifling reflection, blinding observation, and better +adapted to the bully than the soldier." + +In order to live up to this encomium, Boyd sent Colonel Boerstler on the +24th of June, with four hundred infantry and two guns, to bombard and +take an annoying stone house a day's march from Fort George. But two +hundred hostile Indians so alarmed Boerstler that he attempted to +retreat. Thirty hostile militia then caused him to halt the retreat and +send for reinforcements. The reinforcements came to the number of a +hundred and fifty, but the British also appeared with forty-seven more +men. Colonel Boerstler thereupon surrendered his total of five hundred +and forty soldiers. General Dearborn, still the nominal commander of the +forces, sadly mentioned the disaster as "an unfortunate and +unaccountable event." + +There is a better account to be given, however, of events at Sackett's +Harbor in this same month of May. The operations on the Niagara front +had stripped this American naval base of troops and of the protection of +Chauncey's fleet. Sir George Prevost, the Governor in Chief of Canada, +could not let the opportunity slip, although he was not notable for +energy. He embarked with a force of regulars, eight hundred men, on Sir +James Yeo's ships at Kingston and sailed across Lake Ontario. + +Sackett's Harbor was defended by only four hundred regulars of several +regiments and about two hundred and fifty militia from Albany. Couriers +rode through the countryside as soon as the British ships were sighted, +and several hundred volunteers came straggling in from farm and shop and +mill. In them was something of the old spirit of Lexington and Bunker +Hill, and to lead them there was a real man and a soldier with his two +feet under him, Jacob Brown, a brigadier general of the state militia, +who consented to act in the emergency. He knew what to do and how to +communicate to his men his own unshaken courage. On the beach of the +beautiful little harbor he posted five hundred of his militia and +volunteers to hamper the British landing. His second line was composed +of regulars. In rear were the forts with the guns manned. + +The British grenadiers were thrown ashore at dawn on the 28th of May +under a wicked fire from American muskets and rifles, but their +disciplined ranks surged forward, driving the militia back at the point +of the bayonet and causing even the regulars to give ground. The +regulars halted at a blockhouse, where they had also the log barracks +and timbers of the shipyard for a defense, and there they stayed in +spite of the efforts of the British grenadiers to dislodge them. Jacob +Brown, stout-hearted and undismayed, rallied his militia in new +positions. Of the engagement a British officer said: "I do not +exaggerate when I tell you that the shot, both of musketry and grape, +was falling about us like hail... Those who were left of the troops +behind the barracks made a dash out to charge the enemy; but the fire +was so destructive that they were instantly turned by it, and the +retreat was sounded. Sir George, fearless of danger and disdaining to +run or to suffer his men to run, repeatedly called out to them to retire +in order; many, however, made off as fast as they could." + +Before the retreat was sounded, the British expedition had suffered +severely. One man in three was killed or wounded, and the rest of them +narrowly escaped capture. Jacob Brown serenely reported to General +Dearborn that "the militia were all rallied before the enemy gave way +and were marching perfectly in his view towards the rear of his right +flank; and I am confident that even then, if Sir George had not retired +with the utmost precipitation to his boats, he would have been cut off." + +Though he had given the enemy a sound thrashing, Jacob Brown found his +righteous satisfaction spoiled by the destruction of the naval barracks, +shipping, and storehouses. This was the act of a flighty lieutenant of +the American navy who concluded too hastily that the battle was lost and +therefore set fire to the buildings to keep the supplies and vessels out +of the enemy's hands. Jacob Brown in his straightforward fashion +emphatically placed the blame where it belonged: + + The burning of the marine barracks was as infamous a transaction as + ever occurred among military men. The fire was set as the enemy met + our regulars upon the main line; and if anything could have + appalled these gallant men it would have been the flames in their + rear. We have all, I presume, suffered in the public estimation in + consequence of this disgraceful burning. The fact is, however, that + the army is entitled to much higher praise than though it had not + occurred. The navy alone are responsible for what happened on Navy + Point and it is fortunate for them that they have reputations + sufficient to sustain the shock. + +A few weeks later General Dearborn, after his repeated failures to +shake the British grip on the Niagara front and the misfortunes which +had darkened his campaigns, was retired according to his wish. But the +American nation was not yet rid of its unsuccessful generals. James +Wilkinson, who was inscrutably chosen to succeed Dearborn, was a man of +bad reputation and low professional standing. "The selection of this +unprincipled imbecile," said Winfield Scott, "was not the blunder of +Secretary Armstrong." Added to this, Wilkinson was a man of broken +health. He was shifted from command at New Orleans because the Southern +Senators insisted that he was untrustworthy and incompetent. The regular +army regarded him with contempt. + +Secretary Armstrong endeavored to mend matters by making his own +headquarters at Sackett's Harbor, where the next offensive, directed +against Montreal, was planned under his direction. Success hung upon the +cooperation and junction of two armies moving separately, the one under +Wilkinson descending the St. Lawrence, the other under Wade Hampton +setting out from Plattsburg on Lake Champlain. The fact that these two +officers had hated each other for years made a difficult problem no +easier. Hampton possessed uncommon ability and courage, but he was proud +and sensitive, as might have been expected in a South Carolina +gentleman, and he loathed Wilkinson with all his heart. That he should +yield the seniority to one whom he considered a blackguard was to him +intolerable, and he accepted the command on Lake Champlain with the +understanding that he would take no orders from Wilkinson until the two +armies were combined. + +The expedition from Sackett's Harbor was ready to advance by way of the +St. Lawrence in October, 1813, and comprised seven thousand effective +troops. Even then the commanding general and the Secretary of War had +begun to regard the adventure as dubious and were accusing each other of +dodging the responsibility. Said Wilkinson to Armstrong: "It is +necessary to my justification that you should, by the authority of the +President, direct the operations of the army under my command +particularly against Montreal." Said Armstrong to Wilkinson: "I speak +conjecturally, but should we surmount every obstacle in descending the +river we shall advance upon Montreal ignorant of the force arrayed +against us and in case of misfortune having no retreat, the army must +surrender at discretion." This was scarcely the spirit to inspire a +conquering army. As though to clinch his lack of faith in the +enterprise, the Secretary of War ordered winter quarters built for ten +thousand men many miles this side of Montreal, explaining in later years +that he had suspected the campaign would terminate as it did, "with the +disgrace of doing nothing." + +On the 17th of October the army embarked in bateaux and coasted along +Lake Ontario to the entrance of the St. Lawrence. After being delayed by +stormy weather, the flotilla passed the British guns across from +Ogdensburg and halted twenty miles below. There Wilkinson called a +council of war to decide whether to proceed or retreat. Four generals +voted to attack Montreal and two were reluctant but could see "no other +alternative." Wilkinson then became ill and was unable to leave his boat +or to give orders. Several British gunboats evaded Chauncey's blockade +and annoyed the rear of the expedition. Eight hundred British infantry +from Kingston followed along shore and peppered the boats with musketry +and canister wherever the river narrowed. Finally it became necessary +for the Americans to land a force to drive the enemy away. Jacob Brown +took a brigade and cleared the bank in advance of the flotilla which +floated down to a farm called Chrystler's and moored for the night. + +General Boyd, who had been sent back with a strong force to protect the +rear, reported next morning that the enemy was advancing in column. He +was told to turn back and attack. This he did with three brigades. It +was a brilliant opportunity to capture or destroy eight hundred British +troops led by a dashing naval officer, Captain Mulcaster. Boyd lived up +to his reputation, which was such that Jacob Brown had refused to serve +under him. At this engagement of Chrystler's Farm, with two thousand +regulars at his disposal, he was unmercifully beaten. Both Wilkinson and +Morgan Lewis were flat on their backs, too feeble to concern themselves +with battles. The American troops fought without a coherent plan and +were defeated and broken in detail. Almost four hundred of them were +killed, wounded, or captured. Their conduct reflected the half-hearted +attitude of their commanding general and some of his subordinates. The +badly mauled brigades hastily took to the boats and ran the rapids, +stopping at the first harbor below. There Wilkinson received tidings +from Wade Hampton's army which caused him to abandon the voyage down +the St. Lawrence, and it is fair to conjecture that he shed no tears of +disappointment. + +In September Hampton had led his forces, recruited to four thousand +infantry and a few dragoons, from Lake Champlain to the Canadian border +in faithful compliance with his instructions to join the movement +against Montreal. His line of march was westward to the Chateauguay +River where he took a position which menaced both Montreal and that +vital artery, the St. Lawrence. Building roads and bringing up supplies, +he waited there for Wilkinson to set his own undertaking in motion. Word +came from Secretary Armstrong to advance along the river, hold the enemy +in check, and prepare to unite with Wilkinson's army. Hampton acted +promptly and alarmed the British at Montreal, who foresaw grave +consequences and assembled troops from every quarter. Hampton then +learned that his army faced an enemy which was of vastly superior +strength and which had every advantage of natural defense, while he +himself was becoming convinced that Wilkinson was a broken reed and that +no further support could be expected from the Government. General +Prevost's own reports and letters showed that he had collected in the +Montreal district and available for defense at least fifteen thousand +rank and file, including the militia which had been mustered to repel +Hampton's advance. The American position at Chateauguay was not less +perilous than that of Harrison on the Maumee and far more so than that +which had cost Dearborn so many disasters at Niagara. + +Hampton moved forward half-heartedly. He had received a message from the +War Department that his troops were to prepare winter quarters and these +orders confirmed his suspicions that no attempt against Montreal was +intended. "These papers sunk my hopes," he wrote in reply, "and raised +serious doubts of that efficacious support that had been anticipated. I +would have recalled the column, but it was in motion and the darkness of +the night rendered it impracticable." + +The last words refer to a collision with a small force of Canadian +militia, led by Lieutenant Colonel de Salaberry, who had come forward to +impede the American advance. These Canadians had obstructed the road +with fallen trees and abatis, falling back until they found favorable +ground where they very pluckily intrenched themselves. The intrepid +party was comprised of a few Glengarry Fencibles and three hundred +French-Canadian Voltigeurs. Colonel de Salaberry was a trained soldier, +and he now displayed brilliant courage and resourcefulness. Two American +divisions attacking him were unable to carry his breastworks and were +driven along the river bank and routed. Hampton's troops abandoned much +of their equipment, and returned to camp with a loss of about fifty men. + +There was great rejoicing in Canada and rightly so, for a victory had +been handsomely won without the aid of British regulars; and Colonel de +Salaberry's handful of French Canadians received the credit for +thwarting the American plans against Montreal. But, without belittling +the signal valor of the achievement, the documentary evidence goes to +prove that Hampton's failure was largely due to the neglect of his +Government. His state of mind at this time was such that he wrote: +"Events have no tendency to change my opinion of the destiny intended +for me, nor my determination to retire from a service where I can feel +neither security nor expect honor." + +With this tame conclusion the armies of Wilkinson and Hampton tucked +themselves into log huts for the winter. Both accused the Secretary of +War of leading them into an impossible venture and of then deserting +them, while he in his turn accepted their resignations from the army. +The fiasco was a costly one in quite another direction, for the Niagara +sector had been overlooked in the elaborate attempt to capture Montreal. +The few American troops who had gained a foothold on the Canadian side, +at Fort George and the village of Niagara, were left unsupported while +all the available regulars were sent to the armies of Wilkinson and +Hampton. As soon as the British comprehended that the grand invasion had +crumbled, they bethought themselves of the tempting opportunity to +recover their forts at Niagara. + +Wilkinson advised that the Americans evacuate Fort George, which they +did on the 10th of December, when five hundred British soldiers were +marching to retake it. There was no effort to reinforce the garrison, +although at the time ten thousand American troops were idle in winter +quarters. Fort Niagara, on the American side, still flew the Stars and +Stripes, but on the night of the 18th of December Colonel Murray with +five hundred and fifty British regulars rushed the fort, surprised the +sentries, and lost only eight men in capturing this stronghold and its +three hundred and fifty defenders. It was more like a massacre. +Sixty-seven Americans were killed by the bayonet. A few nights later +the Indian allies were loosed against Buffalo and Black Rock and ravaged +thirty miles of frontier. The settlements were helpless. The Government +had made not the slightest attempt to protect or defend them. + +The war had come to the end of its second year, and by land the United +States had done no more than to regain what Hull lost at Detroit. The +conquest of Canada was a shattered illusion, a sorry tale of wasted +energy, misdirected armies, sordid intrigue, lack of organization. A few +worthless generals had been swept into the rubbish heap where they +belonged, and this was the chief item on the credit side of the ledger. +The state militia system had been found wanting; raw levies, defying +authority and miserably cared for, had been squandered against a few +thousand disciplined British regulars. The nation, angry and bewildered, +was taking these lessons to heart. The story of 1814 was to contain far +brighter episodes. + + + + +CHAPTER V + +THE NAVY ON BLUE WATER + + +It has pleased the American mind to regard the War of 1812 as a maritime +conflict. This is natural enough, for the issue was the freedom of the +sea, and the achievements of Yankee ships and sailors stood out in +brilliant relief against the somber background of the inefficiency of +the army. The offensive was thought to be properly a matter for the land +forces, which had vastly superior advantages against Canada, while the +navy was compelled to act on the defensive against overwhelming odds. +The truth is that the navy did amazingly well, though it could not +prevent the enemy's squadrons from blockading American ports or raiding +the coasts at will. A few single ship actions could not vitally +influence the course of the war; but they served to create an +imperishable renown for the flag and the service, and to deal a +staggering blow to the pride and prestige of an enemy whose ancient +boast it was that Britannia ruled the waves. + +The amazing thing is that the navy was able to accomplish anything at +all, neglected and almost despised as it was by the same opinion which +had suffered the army system to become a melancholy jest. During the +decade in which Great Britain captured hundreds of American merchant +ships in time of peace and impressed more than six thousand American +seamen, the United States built two sloops-of-war of eighteen guns and +allowed three of her dozen frigates to hasten to decay at their mooring +buoys. Officers in the service were underpaid and shamefully treated by +the Government. Captain Bainbridge, an officer of distinction, asked for +leave that he might earn money to support himself, giving as a reason: +"I have hitherto refused such offers on the presumption that my country +would require my services. That presumption is removed, and even doubts +entertained of the permanency of the naval establishment." + +But, though Congress refused to build more frigates or to formulate a +programme for guarding American shores and commerce, the tiny navy kept +alive the spark of duty and readiness, while the nation drifted +inevitably towards war. There was no scarcity of capable seamen, for +the merchant marine was an admirable training-school. In those far-off +days the technique of seafaring and sea fighting was comparatively +simple. The merchant seaman could find his way about a frigate, for in +rigging, handling, and navigation the ships were very much alike. And +the American seamen of 1812 were in fighting mood; they had been whetted +by provocation to a keen edge for war. They understood the meaning of +"Free Trade and Sailors' Rights," if the landsmen did not. There were +strapping sailors in every deep-water port to follow the fife and drum +of the recruiting squad. The militia might quibble about "rights," but +all the sailors asked was the weather gage of a British man-of-war. They +had no patience with such spokesmen as Josiah Quincy, who said that +Massachusetts would not go to war to contest the right of Great Britain +to search American vessels for British seamen. They had neither +forgotten nor forgiven the mortal affront of 1807, when their frigate +_Chesapeake_, flying the broad pennant of Commodore James Barron, +refused to let the British _Leopard_ board and search her, and was fired +into without warning and reduced to submission, after twenty-one of the +American crew had been killed or wounded. + +That shameful episode was in keeping with the attitude of the British +navy toward the armed ships of the United States, "a few fir-built +things with bits of striped bunting at their mast-heads," as George +Canning, British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, described them. +Long before the declaration of war British squadrons hovered off the +port of New York to ransack merchant vessels or to seize them as prizes. +In the course of the Napoleonic wars England had met and destroyed the +navies of all her enemies in Europe. The battles of Copenhagen, the +Nile, Trafalgar, and a hundred lesser fights had thundered to the world +the existence of an unconquerable sea power. + +Insignificant as it was, the American naval service boasted a history +and a high morale. Its ships had been active. The younger officers +served with seniors who had sailed and fought with Biddle and Barney and +Paul Jones in the Revolution. Many of them had won promotions for +gallantry in hand-to-hand combats in boarding parties, for following the +bold Stephen Decatur in 1804 when he cut out and set fire to the +_Philadelphia_, which had fallen into the hands of pirates at Tripoli, +and helping Thomas Truxtun in 1799-1800 when the _Constellation_ whipped +the Frenchmen, _L'Insurgente_ and _La Vengeance_. In wardroom or +steerage almost every man could tell of engagements in which he had +behaved with credit. Trained in the school of hard knocks, the sailor +knew the value of discipline and gunnery, of the smart ship and the +willing crew, while on land the soldier rusted and lost his zeal. + +The bluejackets were volunteers, not impressed men condemned to brutal +servitude, and they had fought to save their skins in merchant vessels +which made their voyages, in peril of privateer, pirate, and picaroon, +from the Caribbean to the China Sea. The American merchant marine was at +the zenith of its enterprise and daring, attracting the pick and flower +of young manhood, and it offered incomparable material for the naval +service and the fleets of swift privateers which swarmed out to harry +England's commerce.[2] + +[Footnote 2: For an account of the privateers of 1812, see _The Old +Merchant Marine_, by Ralph D. Paine (in _The Chronicles of America_).] + +The American frigates which humbled the haughty Mistress of the Seas +beyond all precedent were superior in speed and hitting power to +anything of their class afloat. It detracts not at all from the glory +they won to remember that in every instance they were larger and of +better design and armament than the British frigates which they shot to +pieces with such methodical accuracy. + +When war was declared, the American Government was not quite clear as to +what should be done with the navy. In New York harbor was a squadron of +five ships under Commodore John Rodgers, including two of the heavier +frigates or forty-fours, the _President_ and the _United States_. +Rodgers had also the lighter frigate _Congress_, the brig _Argus_, and +the sloop _Hornet_. His orders were to look for British cruisers which +were annoying commerce off Sandy Hook, chase them away, and then return +to port for "further more extensive and particular orders." One hour +after receiving these instructions the eager Rodgers put out to sea, +with Captain Stephen Decatur as a squadron commander. The quarry was the +frigate _Belvidera_, the most offensive of the British blockading force. +This warship was sighted by the _President_ and overtaken within +forty-eight hours. An unlucky accident then occurred. Instead of running +alongside, the _President_ began firing at a distance and was hulling +the enemy's stern when a gun on the forecastle burst, and killed or +wounded sixteen American sailors. Commodore Rodgers was picked up with a +broken leg. Meanwhile the _Belvidera_ cast overboard her boats and +anchors, emptied the fresh water barrels to better her sailing trim, +and, crowding on every stitch of canvas, drew away and was lost to view. +Rodgers then forgot his orders to return to New York and went off in +search of the great convoy of British merchant vessels homeward bound +from Jamaica, which was called the plate fleet. He sailed as far as the +English Channel before quitting the chase and then cruised back to +Boston. + +Meanwhile Captain Isaac Hull of the _Constitution_ had taken on a crew +and stores at Annapolis and was bound up the coast to New York. Hull's +luck appeared to be no better than Rodgers's. Off Barnegat he sailed +almost into a strong British squadron, which had been sent from Halifax. +The escape from this grave predicament was an exploit of seamanship +which is among the treasured memories of the service. It was the +beginning of the career of the _Constitution_, whose name is still the +most illustrious on the American naval list and whose commanders, Hull +and Bainbridge, are numbered among the great captains. It is a privilege +to behold today, in the Boston Navy Yard, this gallant frigate preserved +as a heritage, her tall masts and graceful yards soaring above the grim, +gray citadels that we call battleships. True it is that a single modern +shell would destroy this obsolete, archaic frigate which once swept the +seas like a meteor, but the very image of her is still potent to thrill +the hearts and animate the courage of an American seaman. + +On that luckless July morning, at break of day, off the New Jersey +coast, it seemed as though the _Constitution_ would be flying British +colors ere she had a chance to fight. On her leeward side stood two +English frigates, the _Guerriere_ and the _Belvidera_, with the +_Shannon_ only five miles astern, and the rest of the hostile fleet +lifting topsails above the southern horizon. + +Not a breath of wind stirred. Captain Hull called away his boats, and +the sailors tugged at the oars, towing the _Constitution_ very slowly +ahead. Captain Broke of the _Shannon_ promptly followed suit and +signaled for all the boats of the squadron. In a long column they +trailed at the end of the hawser; and the _Shannon_ crept closer. +Catspaws of wind ruffled the water, and first one ship and then the +other gained a few hundred yards as upper tiers of canvas caught the +faint impulse. The _Shannon_ was a crack ship, and there was no better +crew in the British navy, as Lawrence of the _Chesapeake_ afterwards +learned to his mortal sorrow. Gradually the _Shannon_ cut down the +intervening distance until she could make use of her bow guns. + +At this Captain Hull resolved to try kedging his ship along, sending a +boat half a mile ahead with a light anchor and all the spare rope on +board. The crew walked the capstan round and hauled the ship up to the +anchor, which they then lifted, carried ahead, and dropped again. The +_Constitution_ kept two kedges going all through that summer day, but +the _Shannon_ was playing the same game, and the two ships maintained +their relative positions. They shot at each other at such long range +that no damage was done. Before dusk the _Guerriere_ caught a slant of +breeze and worked nearer enough to bang away at the _Constitution_, +which was, indeed, between the devil and the deep sea. + +Night came on. The sailors, British and American, toiled until they +dropped in their tracks, pulling at the kedge anchors and hawsers or +bending to the sweeps of the cutters which towed at intervals and were +exposed to the spatter of shot. It seemed impossible that the +_Constitution_ could slip clear of this pack of able frigates which +trailed her like hounds. Toward midnight the fickle breeze awoke and +wafted the ships along under studding sails and all the light cloths +that were wont to arch skyward. For two hours the men slept on deck +like logs while those on watch grunted at the pump-brakes and the hose +wetted the canvas to make it draw better. + +The breeze failed, however, and through the rest of the night it was +kedge and tow again, the _Shannon_ and the _Guerriere_ hanging on +doggedly, confident of taking their quarry. Another day dawned, hot and +windless, and the situation was unchanged. Other British ships had +crawled or drifted nearer, but the _Constitution_ was always just beyond +range of their heavy guns. We may imagine Isaac Hull striding across the +poop and back again, ruddy, solid, composed, wearing a cocked hat and a +gold-laced coat, lifting an eye aloft, or squinting through his brass +telescope, while he damned the enemy in the hearty language of the sea. +He was a nephew of General William Hull, but it would have been unfair +to remind him of it. + +Near sunset of the second day of this unique test of seamanship and +endurance, a rain squall swept toward the _Constitution_ and obscured +the ocean. Just before the violent gust struck the ship her seamen +scampered aloft and took in the upper sails. This was all that safety +required, but, seeing a chance to trick the enemy, Hull ordered the +lower sails double-reefed as though caught in a gale of wind. The +British ships hastily imitated him before they should be overtaken in +like manner and veered away from the chase. Veiled in the rain and dusk, +the _Constitution_ set all sail again and foamed at twelve knots on her +course toward a port of refuge. Though two of the British frigates were +in sight next morning, the _Constitution_ left them far astern and +reached Boston safely. + +Seafaring New England was quick to recognize the merit of this escape. +Even the Federalists, who opposed and hampered the war by land, were +enthusiastic in praise of Captain Hull and his ship. They had outsailed +and outwitted the best of the British men-of-war on the American coast, +and a general feeling of hopelessness gave way to an ardent desire to +try anew the ordeal of battle. With this spirit firing his officers and +crew, Hull sailed again a few days later on a solitary cruise to the +eastward with the intention of vexing the enemy's merchant trade and +hopeful of finding a frigate willing to engage him in a duel. From +Newfoundland he cruised south until a Salem privateer spoke him on the +18th of August and reported a British warship close by. The +_Constitution_ searched until the afternoon of the next day and then +sighted her old friend, the _Guerriere_. + +To retell the story of their fight in all the vanished sea lingo of that +day would bewilder the land-man and prove tedious to those familiar with +the subject. The boatswains piped the call, "all hands clear ship for +action"; the fife and drum beat to quarters; and four hundred men stood +by the tackles of the muzzle-loading guns with their clumsy wooden +carriages, or climbed into the tops to use their muskets or trim sail. +Decks were sanded to prevent slipping when blood flowed. Boys ran about +stacking the sacks of powder or distributing buckets of pistols ready +for the boarding parties. And against the masts the cutlasses and pikes +stood ready. + +Captain John Dacres of the ill-fated _Guerriere_ was an English +gentleman as well as a gallant officer. But he did not know his +antagonist. Like his comrades of the service he had failed to grasp the +fact that the _Constitution_ and the other American frigates of her +class were the most formidable craft afloat, barring ships of the line, +and that they were to revolutionize the design of war-vessels for half a +century thereafter. They were frigates, or cruisers, in that they +carried guns on two decks, but the main battery of long +twenty-four-pound guns was an innovation, and the timbers and planking +were stouter than had ever been built into ships of the kind. So stout, +indeed, were the sides that shot rebounded from them more than once and +thus gave the _Constitution_ the affectionate nickname of "Old +Ironsides." + +Sublimely indifferent to these odds, Captain Dacres had already sent a +challenge, with his compliments, to Commodore Rodgers of the United +States frigate _President_, saying that he would be very happy to meet +him or any other American frigate of equal force, off Sandy Hook, "for +the purpose of having a few minutes' tete-a-tete." It was therefore with +the utmost willingness that the _Constitution_ and the _Guerriere_ +hoisted their battle ensigns and approached each other warily for an +hour while they played at long bowls, as was the custom, each hoping to +disable the other's spars or rigging and so gain the advantage of +movement. Finding this sort of action inconclusive, however, Hull set +more sail and ran down to argue it with broadsides, coolly biding his +time, although Morris, his lieutenant, came running up again and again +to beg him to begin firing. Men were being killed beside their guns as +they stood ready to jerk the lock strings. The two ships were abreast +of each other and no more than a few yards apart before the +_Constitution_ returned the cannonade that thundered from every gun port +of her adversary. + +Within ten minutes the _Guerriere's_ mizzenmast was knocked over the +side and her hull was shattered by the accurate fire of the Yankee +gunners, who were trained to shoot on the downward roll of their ship +and so smash below the water line. Almost unhurt, the _Constitution_ +moved ahead and fearfully raked the enemy's deck before the ships fouled +each other. They drifted apart before the boarders could undertake their +bloody business, and then the remaining masts of the British frigate +toppled overside and she was a helpless wreck. Seventy-nine of her crew +were dead or wounded and the ship was sinking beneath their feet. +Captain Isaac Hull could truthfully report: "In less than thirty minutes +from the time we got alongside of the enemy she was left without a spar +standing, and the hull cut to pieces in such a manner as to make it +difficult to keep her above water." + +Captain Dacres struck his flag, and the American sailors who went aboard +found the guns dismounted, the dead and dying scattered amid a wild +tangle of spars and rigging, and great holes blown through the sides +and decks. The _Constitution_ had suffered such trifling injury that she +was fit and ready for action a few hours later. Of her crew only seven +men were killed and the same number hurt. She was the larger ship, and +the odds in her favor were as ten to seven, reckoned in men and guns, +for which reasons Captain Hull ought to have won. The significance of +his victory was that at every point he had excelled a British frigate +and had literally blown her out of the water. His crew had been together +only five weeks and could fairly be called green while the _Guerriere_, +although short-handed, had a complement of veteran tars. The British +navy had never hesitated to engage hostile men-of-war of superior force +and had usually beaten them. Of two hundred fights between single ships, +against French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Danish, and Dutch, the +English had lost only five. The belief of Captain Dacres that he could +beat the _Constitution_ was therefore neither rash nor ill-founded. + +The English captain had ten Americans in his crew, but he would not +compel them to fight against their countrymen and sent them below, +although he sorely needed every man who could haul at a gun-tackle or +lay out on a yard. Wounded though he was and heartbroken by the +disaster, his chivalry was faultless, and he took pains to report: "I +feel it my duty to state that the conduct of Captain Hull and his +officers toward our men has been that of a brave and generous enemy, the +greatest care being taken to prevent our men losing the smallest trifle +and the greatest attention being paid to the wounded." + +When the Englishman was climbing up the side of the _Constitution_ as a +prisoner, Isaac Hull ran to help him, exclaiming, "Give me your hand, +Dacres. I know you are hurt." No wonder that these two captains became +fast friends. It is because sea warfare abounds in such manly incidents +as these that the modern naval code of Germany, as exemplified in the +acts of her submarine commanders, was so peculiarly barbarous and +repellent. + +On board the _Guerriere_ was Captain William B. Orne, of the Salem +merchant brig _Betsy_, which had been taken as a prize. His story of the +combat is not widely known and seems worth quoting in part: + + At two P.M. we discovered a large sail to windward bearing about + north from us. We soon made her out to be a frigate. She was + steering off from the wind, with her head to the southwest, + evidently with the intention of cutting us off as soon as possible. + Signals were soon made by the _Guerriere_, but as they were not + answered the conclusion was, of course, that she was either a + French or American frigate. Captain Dacres appeared anxious to + ascertain her character and after looking at her for that purpose, + handed me his spyglass, requesting me to give him my opinion of the + stranger. I soon saw from the peculiarity of her sails and from her + general appearance that she was, without doubt, an American + frigate, and communicated the same to Captain Dacres. He + immediately replied that he thought she came down too boldly for an + American, but soon after added, "The better he behaves, the more + honor we shall gain by taking him." + + When the strange frigate came down to within two or three miles' + distance, he hauled upon the wind, took in all his light sails, + reefed his topsails, and deliberately prepared for action. It was + now about five o'clock in the afternoon when he filled away and ran + down for the _Guerriere_. At this moment Captain Dacres politely + said to me: "Captain Orne, as I suppose you do not wish to fight + against your own countrymen, you are at liberty to go below the + water-line." It was not long after this before I retired from the + quarter-deck to the cock-pit; of course I saw no more of the action + until the firing ceased, but I heard and felt much of its effects; + for soon after I left the deck the firing commenced on board the + _Guerriere_, and was kept up almost incessantly until about six + o'clock when I heard a tremendous explosion from the opposing + frigate. The effect of her shot seemed to make the _Guerriere_ reel + and tremble as though she had received the shock of an earthquake. + + Immediately after this, I heard a tremendous crash on deck and was + told that the mizzen-mast was shot away. In a few moments + afterward, the cock-pit was filled with wounded men. After the + firing had ceased I went on deck and there beheld a scene which it + would be difficult to describe: all the _Guerriere's_ masts were + shot away and, as she had no sails to steady her, she lay rolling + like a log in the trough of the sea. Many of the men were employed + in throwing the dead overboard. The decks had the appearance of a + butcher's slaughter-house; the gun tackles were not made fast and + several of the guns got loose and were surging from one side to the + other. + + Some of the petty officers and seamen, after the action, got liquor + and were intoxicated; and what with the groans of the wounded, the + noise and confusion of the enraged survivors of the ill-fated ship + rendered the whole scene a perfect hell. + +Setting the hulk of the _Guerriere_ on fire, Captain Hull sailed for +Boston with the captured crew. The tidings he bore were enough to amaze +an American people which expected nothing of its navy, which allowed its +merchant ships to rot at the wharves, and which regarded the operations +of its armies with the gloomiest forebodings. New England went wild with +joy over a victory so peculiarly its own. Captain Hull and his officers +were paraded up State Street to a banquet at Faneuil Hall while cheering +thousands lined the sidewalks. A few days earlier had come the news of +the surrender of Detroit, but the gloom was now dispelled. Americans +could fight, after all. Popular toasts of the day were: + +OUR INFANT NAVY--_We must nurture the young Hercules in his cradle, if +we mean to profit by the labors of his manhood._ + +THE VICTORY WE CELEBRATE--_An invaluable proof that we are able to +defend our rights on the ocean._ + +Handbills spread the news through the country, and artillery salutes +proclaimed it from Carolina to the Wabash. Congress voted fifty thousand +dollars as prize money to the heroes of the _Constitution_ and medals to +her officers. The people of New York gave them swords, and Captain Hull +and Lieutenant Morris received pieces of plate from the patriots of +Philadelphia. Federalists laid aside for the moment their opposition to +the war and proclaimed that their party had founded and supported the +navy. The moral effect of the victory was out of all proportion to its +strategic importance. It was like sunshine breaking through a fog. Such +rejoicing had been unknown, even in the decisive moments of the War of +the Revolution. It served to show how deep-seated had been the American +conviction that Britain's mastery of the sea was like a spell which +could not be broken. + +[Illustration: _COMMODORE STEPHEN DECATUR_ + +Painting by Thomas Sully, 1811. In the Comptroller's Office, owned by +the City of New York.] + +[Illustration: _"CONSTITUTION" AND "GUERRIERE"_ + +An old print, illustrating the moment in the action at which the +mainmast of the _Guerriere_, shattered by the terrific fire of the +American frigate, fell overside, transforming the former vessel into a +floating wreck and terminating the action. The picture represents +accurately the surprisingly slight damage done the _Constitution_; note +the broken spanker gaff and the shot holes in her topsails.] + + + + +CHAPTER VI + +MATCHLESS FRIGATES AND THEIR DUELS + + +It was soon made clear that the impressive victory over the _Guerriere_ +was neither a lucky accident nor the result of prowess peculiar to the +_Constitution_ and her crew. Ship for ship, the American navy was better +than the British. This is a truth which was demonstrated with +sensational emphasis by one engagement after another. During the first +eight months of the war there were five such duels, and in every +instance the enemy was compelled to strike his colors. In tavern and +banquet hall revelers were still drinking the health of Captain Isaac +Hull when the thrilling word came that the _Wasp_, an eighteen-gun ship +or sloop, as the type was called in naval parlance, had beaten the +_Frolic_ in a rare fight. The antagonists were so evenly matched in +every respect that there was no room for excuses, and on both sides were +displayed such stubborn hardihood and a seamanship so dauntless as to +make an Anglo-Saxon proud that these foemen were bred of a common stock. + +The _Wasp_ had sailed from the Delaware on the 13th of October, heading +southeast to look for British merchantmen in the West India track. Her +commander was Captain Jacob Jones, a name revived in modern days by a +destroyer of the Queenstown fleet in the arduous warfare against the +German submarines. Shattered by a torpedo, the _Jacob Jones_ sank in +seven minutes, and sixty-four of the officers and crew perished, doing +their duty to the last, disciplined, unafraid, so proving themselves +worthy of the American naval service and of the memory of the +unflinching captain of 1812. + +The little _Wasp_ ran into a terrific gale which blew her sails away and +washed men overboard. But she made repairs and stood bravely after a +British convoy which was escorted by the eighteen-gun brig _Frolic_, +Captain Thomas Whinyates. The _Frolic_, too, had been battered by the +weather, and the cargo ships had been scattered far and wide. The _Wasp_ +sighted several of them in the moonlight but, fearing they might be war +vessels, followed warily until morning revealed on her leeward side the +_Frolic_. Jacob Jones promptly shortened sail, which was the nautical +method of rolling up one's sleeves, and steered close to attack. + +It seemed preposterous to try to fight while the seas were still +monstrously swollen and their crests were breaking across the decks of +these vessels of less than five hundred tons burden. Wildly they rolled +and pitched, burying their bows in the roaring combers. The merchant +ships which watched this audacious defiance of wind and wave were having +all they could do to avoid being swept or dismasted. Side by side +wallowed _Wasp_ and _Frolic_, sixty yards between them, while the cannon +rolled their muzzles under water and the gunners were blinded with +spray. Britisher and Yank, each crew could hear the hearty cheers of the +other as they watched the chance to ply rammer and sponge and fire when +the deck lifted clear of the sea. + +Somehow the _Wasp_ managed to shoot straight and fast. They were of the +true webfooted breed in this hard-driven sloop-of-war, but there were no +fair-weather mariners aboard the _Frolic_, and they hit the target much +too often for comfort. Within ten minutes they had saved Captain Jacob +Jones the trouble of handling sail, for they shot away his upper masts +and yards and most of his rigging. The _Wasp_ was a wreck aloft but the +_Frolic_ had suffered more vitally, for as usual the American gun +captains aimed for the deck and hull; and they had been carefully +drilled at target practice. The British sailors suffered frightfully +from this storm of grape and chain shot, but those who were left alive +still fought inflexibly. It looked as though the _Frolic_ might get +away, for the masts of the _Wasp_ were in danger of tumbling over the +side. With this mischance in mind, Captain Jacob Jones shifted helm and +closed in for a hand-to-hand finish. + +For a few minutes the two ships plunged ahead so near each other that +the rammers of the American sailors struck the side of the _Frolic_ as +they drove the shot down the throats of their guns. It was literally +muzzle to muzzle. Then they crashed together and the _Wasp's_ jib-boom +was thrust between the _Frolic's_ masts. In this position the British +decks were raked by a murderous fire as Jacob Jones trumpeted the order, +"Boarders away!" Jack Lang, a sailor from New Jersey, scrambled out on +the bowsprit, cutlass in his fist, without waiting to see if his +comrades were with him, and dropped to the forecastle of the _Frolic_. +Lieutenant Biddle tried it by jumping on the bulwark and climbing to the +other ship as they crashed together on the next heave of the sea, but a +doughty midshipman, seeking a handy purchase, grabbed him by the coat +tails and they fell back upon their own deck. Another attempt and Biddle +joined Jack Lang by way of the bowsprit. These two thus captured the +_Frolic_, for as they dashed aft the only living men on deck were the +undaunted sailor at the wheel and three officers, including Captain +Whinyates and Lieutenant Wintle, who were so severely wounded that they +could not stand without support. They tottered forward and surrendered +their swords, and Lieutenant Biddle then leaped into the rigging and +hauled the British ensign down. + +Of the _Frolic's_ crew of one hundred and ten men only twenty were +unhurt, and these had fled below to escape the dreadful fire from the +_Wasp_. The gun deck was strewn with bodies, and the waves which broke +over the ship swirled them to and fro, the dead and the wounded +together. Not an officer had escaped death or injury. The _Wasp_ was +more or less of a tangle aloft but her hull was sound and only five of +her men had been killed and five wounded. No sailors could have fought +more bravely than Captain Whinyates and his British crew, but they had +been overwhelmed in three-quarters of an hour by greater skill, +coolness, and judgment. + +No sea battle of the war was more brilliant than this, but Captain Jacob +Jones was delayed in sailing home to receive the plaudits due him. His +prize crew was aboard the _Frolic_, cleaning up the horrid mess and +fitting the beaten ship for the voyage to Charleston, and the _Wasp_ was +standing by when there loomed in sight a towering three-decker--a +British ship of the line--the _Poictiers_. The _Wasp_ shook out her +sails to make a run for it, but they had been cut to ribbons and she was +soon overhauled. Now an eighteen-gun ship could not argue with a +majestic seventy-four. Captain Jacob Jones submitted with as much grace +as he could muster, and _Wasp_ and _Frolic_ were carried to Bermuda. The +American crew was soon exchanged, and Congress applied balm to the +injured feelings of these fine sailormen by filling their pockets to the +amount of twenty-five thousand dollars in prize money. + +It was only a week later that the navy vouchsafed an encore to a +delighted nation. This time the sport royal was played between stately +frigates. On the 8th of October Commodore Rodgers had taken his squadron +out of Boston for a second cruise. After four days at sea the _United +States_ was detached, and Captain Stephen Decatur ranged off to the +eastward in quest of diversion. A fortnight of monotony was ended by a +strange sail which proved to be the British thirty-eight-gun frigate +_Macedonian_, newly built. Her commander, Captain Carden, had the +highest opinion of his ship and crew, and one of his officers testified +that "the state of discipline on board was excellent; in no British ship +was more attention paid to gunnery. Before this cruise the ship had been +engaged almost every day with the enemy; and in time of peace the crew +were constantly exercised at the great guns." + +The _United States_ was a sister frigate of the _Constitution_, built +from the same designs and therefore more formidable than her British +opponent as three is to two. Captain Carden had no misgivings, however, +and instantly set out in chase of the American frigate. But he was +unfortunate enough to pit himself against one of the ablest officers +afloat, and his own talent was mediocre. The result was partly +determined by this personal equation in an action in which the +_Macedonian_ was outgeneraled as well as outfought. And again gunnery +was a decisive factor. Observers said that the broadsides of the +_United States_ flamed with such rapidity that the ship looked as though +she were on fire. + +Early in the fight Captain Carden bungled an opportunity to pass close +ahead of the _United States_ and so rake her with a destructive attack. +Then rashly coming to close quarters, the _Macedonian_ was swept by the +heavy guns of the American frigate and reduced to wreckage in ninety +minutes. The weather was favorable for the Yankee gun crews, and the war +offered no more dramatic proof of their superbly intelligent training. +The _Macedonian_ had received more than one hundred shot in her hull, +several below the water line, one mast had been cut in two, and the +others were useless. More than a hundred of her officers and men were +dead or injured. The _United States_ was almost undamaged, a few ropes +and small spars were shot away, and only twelve of her men were on the +casualty list. Captain Decatur rightfully boasted that he had as fine a +crew as ever walked a deck, American sailors who had been schooled for +the task with the greatest care. English opinion went so far as to +concede this much: "As a display of courage the character of our service +was nobly upheld, but we would be deceiving ourselves were we to admit +that the comparative expertness of the crews in gunnery was equally +satisfactory. Now taking the difference of effect as given by Captain +Carden, we must draw this conclusion--that the comparative loss in +killed and wounded, together with the dreadful account he gives of the +condition of his own ship, while he admits that the enemy's vessel was +in comparatively good order, must have arisen from inferiority in +gunnery as well as in force." + +Decatur sent the _Macedonian_ to Newport as a trophy of war and +forwarded her battle flag to Washington. It arrived just when a great +naval ball was in progress to celebrate the capture of the _Guerriere_, +whose ensign was already displayed from the wall. It was a great moment +for the young lieutenant of the _United States_, who had been assigned +this duty, when he announced his mission and, amid the cheers of the +President, the Cabinet, and other distinguished guests, proudly +exhibited the flag of another British frigate to decorate the ballroom! + +Meanwhile the _Constitution_ had returned to sea to spread her royals to +the South Atlantic trades and hunt for lumbering British East-Indiamen. +Captain Isaac Hull had gracefully given up the command in favor of +Captain William Bainbridge, who was one of the oldest and most respected +officers of his rank and who deserved an opportunity to win distinction. +Bainbridge had behaved heroically at Tripoli and was logically in line +to take over one of the crack frigates. The sailors of the +_Constitution_ grumbled a bit at losing Isaac Hull but soon regained +their alert and willing spirit as they comprehended that they had +another first-rate "old man" in William Bainbridge. Henry Adams has +pointed out that the average age of Bainbridge, Hull, Rodgers, and +Decatur was thirty-seven, while that of the four generals most +conspicuous in the disappointments of the army, Dearborn, Wilkinson, +William Hull, and Wade Hampton, was fifty-eight. The difference is +notable and is mentioned for what it may be worth. + +Through the autumn of 1812 the frigate cruised beneath tropic suns, much +of the time off the coast of Brazil. Today the health and comfort of the +bluejacket are so scrupulously provided for in every possible way that a +battleship is the standard of perfection for efficiency in organization. +It is amazing that in such a ship as the _Constitution_ four hundred men +could be cheerful and ready to fight after weeks and even months at sea. +They were crowded below the water line, without proper heat, plumbing, +lighting, or ventilation, each man being allowed only twenty-eight +inches by eight feet of space in which to sling his hammock against the +beams overhead. Scurvy and other diseases were rampant. As many as +seventy of the crew of the _Constitution_ were on the sick list shortly +before she fought the _Guerriere_. The food was wholesome for rugged +men, but it was limited solely to salt beef, hard bread, dried peas, +cheese, pork, and spirits. + +Such conditions, however, had not destroyed the vigor of those hardy +seamen of the _Constitution_ when, on the 29th of December and within +sight of the Brazilian coast, the lookout at the masthead sang out to +Captain Bainbridge that a heavy ship was coming up under easy canvas. It +turned out to be His Britannic Majesty's frigate _Java_, Captain Henry +Lambert, who, like Carden, made the mistake of insisting upon a combat. +His reasons were sounder than those of Dacres or Carden, however, for +the _Java_ was only a shade inferior to the _Constitution_ in guns and +carried as many men. In every respect they were so evenly matched that +the test of battle could have no aftermath of extenuation. + +The _Java_ at once hastened in pursuit of the American ship which drew +off the coast as though in flight, the real purpose being to get clear +of the neutral Brazilian waters. The _Constitution_ must have been a +picture to stir the heart and kindle the imagination, her black hull +heeling to the pressure of the tall canvas, the long rows of guns +frowning from the open ports, while her bunting rippled a glorious +defiance, with a commodore's pennant at the mainmast-head, the Stars and +Stripes streaming from the mizzen peak and main-topgallant mast, and a +Union Jack at the fore. The _Java_ was adorned as bravely, and Captain +Lambert had lashed an ensign in the rigging on the chance that his other +colors might be shot away. + +The two ships began the fray at what they called long range, which would +be about a mile, and then swept onward to pass on opposite tacks. It was +the favorite maneuver of trying to gain the weather gage, and while they +were edging to windward a round shot smashed the wheel of the +_Constitution_ which so hampered her for the moment that Captain +Lambert, handsomely taking advantage of the mishap, let the _Java_ run +past his enemy's stern and poured in a broadside which hit several of +the American seamen. Both commanders displayed, in a high degree, the +art of handling ships under sail as they luffed or wore and tenaciously +jockeyed for position, while the gunners fought in the smoke that +drifted between the frigates. + +At length Captain Lambert became convinced that he had met his master at +this agile style of warfare and determined to come to close quarters +before the _Java_ was fatally damaged. Her masts and yards were crashing +to the deck and the slaughter among the crew was already appalling. +Marines and seamen gathered in the gangways and upon the forecastle head +to spring aboard the _Constitution_, but Captain Bainbridge drove his +ship clear very shortly after the collision and continued to pound the +_Java_ to kindling-wood with his broadsides. The fate of the action was +no longer in doubt. The British frigate was on fire, Captain Lambert was +mortally wounded, and all her guns had been silenced. The _Constitution_ +hauled off to repair damages and stood back an hour later to administer +the final blow. But the flag of the _Java_ fluttered down, and the +lieutenant in command surrendered. + +The _Constitution_ had again crushed the enemy with so little damage to +herself that she was ready to continue her cruise, with a loss of only +nine killed and twenty-five wounded. The _Java_ was a fine ship utterly +destroyed, a sinking, dismasted hulk, with a hundred and twenty-four of +her men dead or suffering from wounds. It is significant to learn that +during six weeks at sea they had fired but six practice broadsides, of +blank cartridges, although there were many raw hands in the crew, while +the men of the _Constitution_ had been incessantly drilled in firing +until their team play was like that of a football eleven. There was no +shooting at random. Under Hull and Bainbridge they had been taught their +trade, which was to lay the gun on the target and shoot as rapidly as +possible. + +For the diminutive American navy, the year of 1812 came to its close +with a record of success so illustrious as to seem almost incredible. It +is more dignified to refrain from extolling our own exploits and to +recall the effects of these sea duels upon the minds of the people, the +statesmen, and the press of the England of that period. Their outbursts +of wrathful humiliation were those of a maritime race which cared little +or nothing about the course of the American war by land. Theirs was the +salty tradition, virile and perpetual, which a century later and in a +friendlier guise was to create a Grand Fleet which should keep watch and +ward in the misty Orkneys and hold the Seven Seas safe against the +naval power of Imperial Germany. Then, as now, the English nation +believed that its armed ships were its salvation. + +It is easier to understand, bearing this in mind, why after the fight of +the _Guerriere_ the London _Times_ indulged in such frenzied +lamentations as these: + + We witnessed the gloom which that event cast over high and + honorable minds.... Never before in the history of the world did an + English frigate strike to an American, and though we cannot say + that Captain Dacres, under all circumstances, is punishable for + this act, yet we do say there are commanders in the English navy + who would a thousand times rather have gone down with their colors + flying than to have set their fellow sailors so fatal an example. + + Good God! that a few short months should have so altered the tone + of British sentiments! Is it true, or is it not, that our navy was + accustomed to hold the Americans in utter contempt? Is it true, or + is it not, that the _Guerriere_ sailed up and down the American + coast with her name painted in large characters on her sails in + boyish defiance of Commodore Rodgers? Would any captain, however + young, have indulged such a foolish piece of vain-boasting if he + had not been carried forward by the almost unanimous feeling of his + associates? + + We have since sent out more line-of-battle ships and heavier + frigates. Surely we must now mean to smother the American navy. A + very short time before the capture of the _Guerriere_ an American + frigate was an object of ridicule to our honest tars. Now the + prejudice is actually setting the other way and great pains seems + to be taken by the friends of ministers to prepare the public for + the surrender of a British seventy-four to an opponent lately so + much contemned. + +It was when the news reached England that the _Java_ had been destroyed +by the _Constitution_ that indignation found a climax in the outcry of +the _Pilot_, a foremost naval authority: + + The public will learn, with sentiments which we shall not presume + to anticipate, that a third British frigate has struck to an + American. This is an occurrence that calls for serious + reflection,--this, and the fact stated in our paper of yesterday, + that Lloyd's list contains notices of upwards of five hundred + British vessels captured in seven months by the Americans. Five + hundred merchantmen and three frigates! Can these statements be + true; and can the English people hear them unmoved? Any one who + would have predicted such a result of an American war this time + last year would have been treated as a madman or a traitor. He + would have been told, if his opponents had condescended to argue + with him, that long ere seven months had elapsed the American flag + would have been swept from the seas, the contemptible navy of the + United States annihilated, and their maritime arsenals rendered a + heap of ruins. Yet down to this moment not a single American + frigate has struck her flag. They insult and laugh at our want of + enterprise and vigor. They leave their ports when they please and + return to them when it suits their convenience; they traverse the + Atlantic; they beset the West India Islands; they advance to the + very chops of the Channel; they parade along the coasts of South + America; nothing chases, nothing intercepts, nothing engages them + but to yield them triumph. + +It was to be taken for granted that England would do something more than +scold about the audacity of the American navy. Even after the +declaration of war her most influential men hoped that the repeal of the +obnoxious Orders-in-Council might yet avert a solution of the American +problem by means of the sword. There was hesitation to apply the utmost +military and naval pressure, and New England was regarded with feelings +almost friendly because of its opposition to an offensive warfare +against Great Britain and an invasion of Canada. + +Absorbed in the greater issue against Napoleon, England was nevertheless +aroused to more vigorous action against the United States and devised +strong blockading measures for the spring of 1813. Unable to operate +against the enemy's ships in force or to escape from ports which were +sealed by vigilant squadrons, the American navy to a large extent was +condemned to inactivity for the remainder of the war. Occasional actions +were fought and merit was justly won, but there was nothing like the +glory of 1812, which shone undimmed by defeat and which gave to the +annals of the nation one of its great chapters of heroic and masterful +achievement. It was singularly apt that the noble and victorious +American frigates should have been called the _Constitution_ and the +_United States_. They inspired a new respect for the flag with the +stripes and the stars and for all that it symbolized. + +[Illustration: _ISAAC HULL_ + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation.] + +[Illustration: _WILLIAM BAINBRIDGE_ + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation.] + + + + +CHAPTER VII + +"DON'T GIVE UP THE SHIP!" + + +The second year of the war by sea opened brilliantly enough to satisfy +the American people, who were now in a mood to expect too much of their +navy. In February the story of the _Wasp_ and the _Frolic_ was repeated +by two ships of precisely the same class. The American sloop-of-war +_Hornet_ had sailed to South America with the _Constitution_ and was +detached to blockade, in the port of Bahia, the British naval sloop +_Bonne Citoyenne_, which contained treasure to the amount of half a +million pounds in specie. Captain James Lawrence of the _Hornet_ sent in +a challenge to fight, ship against ship, pledging his word that the +_Constitution_ would not interfere, but the British commander, perhaps +mindful of his precious cargo, declined the invitation. Instead of this, +he sensibly sent word to a great seventy-four at Rio de Janeiro, begging +her to come and drive the pestiferous _Hornet_ away. + +The British battleship arrived so suddenly that Captain Lawrence was +compelled to dodge and flee in the darkness. By a close shave he gained +the open sea and made off up the coast. For several weeks the _Hornet_ +idled to and fro, vainly seeking merchant prizes, and then off the +Demerara River on February 24, 1813, she fell in with the British brig +_Peacock_, that flew the royal ensign. The affair lasted no more than +fifteen minutes. The _Peacock_ was famous for shining brass work, +spotless paint, and the immaculate trimness of a yacht, but her gunnery +had been neglected, for which reason she went to the bottom in six +fathoms of water with shot-holes in her hull and thirty-seven of her +crew put out of action. The sting of the _Hornet_ had been prompt and +fatal. Captain Lawrence had only one man killed and two wounded, and his +ship was as good as ever. Crowding his prisoners on board and being +short of provisions and water, he set sail for a home port and anchored +in New York harbor. He was in time to share with Bainbridge the carnival +of salutes, processions, dinners, addresses of congratulation, votes of +thanks, swords, medals, prize money, promotion--every possible tribute +of an adoring and grateful people. + +One of the awards bestowed upon Lawrence was the command of the frigate +_Chesapeake_. Among seamen she was rated an unlucky ship, and Lawrence +was confidently expected to break the spell. Her old crew had left her +after the latest voyage, which met with no success, and other sailors +were reluctant to join her. Privateering had attracted many of them, and +the navy was finding it difficult to recruit the kind of men it desired. +Lawrence was compelled to sign on a scratch lot, some Portuguese, a few +British, and many landlubbers. Given time to shake them together in hard +service at sea, he would have made a smart crew of them no doubt, as +Isaac Hull had done in five weeks with the men of the _Constitution_, +but destiny ordered otherwise. + +In the spring of 1813 the harbor of Boston was blockaded by the +thirty-eight-gun British frigate _Shannon_, Captain Philip Vere Broke, +who had been in this ship for seven years. In the opinion of Captain +Mahan, "his was one of those cases where singular merit as an officer +and an attention to duty altogether exceptional had not yet obtained +opportunity for distinction. It would probably be safe to say that no +more thoroughly efficient ship of her class had been seen in the British +navy during the twenty years' war with France." + +Captain Broke was justly confident in his own leadership and in the +efficiency of a ship's company, which had retained its identity of +organization through so many years of his personal and energetic +supervision. Indeed, the captain of the British flagship on the American +station wrote: "The _Shannon's_ men were trained and understood gunnery +better than any men I ever saw." Every morning the men were exercised at +training the guns and in the afternoon in the use of the broadsword, +musket, and pike. Twice each week the crew fired at targets with great +guns and musketry and the sailor who hit the bull's eye received a pound +of tobacco. Without warning Captain Broke would order a cask tossed +overboard and then suddenly order some particular gun to sink it. In +brief, the _Shannon_ possessed those qualities which had been notable in +the victorious American frigates and which were lamentably deficient in +the _Chesapeake_. + +Lawrence's men were unknown to each other and to their officers, and +they had never been to sea together. The last draft came aboard, in +fact, just as the anchor was weighed and the _Chesapeake_ stood out to +meet her doom. Even most of her officers were new to the ship. They had +no chance whatever to train or handle the rabble between decks. Now +Captain Broke had been anxious to fight this American frigate as +matching the _Shannon_ in size and power. He had already addressed to +Captain Lawrence a challenge whose wording was a model of courtesy but +which was provocative to the last degree. A sailor of Lawrence's heroic +temper was unlikely to avoid such a combat, stimulated as he was by the +unbroken success of his own navy in duels between frigates. + +On the first day of June, Captain Broke boldly ran into Boston harbor +and broke out his flag in defiance of the _Chesapeake_ which was riding +at anchor as though waiting to go to sea. Instantly accepting the +invitation, Captain Lawrence hoisted colors, fired a gun, and mustered +his crew. In this ceremonious fashion, as gentlemen were wont to meet +with pistols to dispute some point of honor, did the _Chesapeake_ sail +out to fight the waiting _Shannon_. The news spread fast and wide and +thousands of people, as though they were bound to the theater, hastened +to the heights of Malden, to Nahant, and to the headlands of Salem and +Marblehead, in hopes of witnessing this famous sight. They assumed that +victory was inevitable. Any other surmise was preposterous. + +These eager crowds were cheated of the spectacle, however, for the +_Chesapeake_ bore away to the eastward after rounding Boston Light and +dropped hull down until her sails were lost in the summer haze, with the +_Shannon_ in her company as if they steered for some rendezvous. They +were firing when last seen and the wind bore the echo of the guns, faint +and far away. It was most extraordinary that three weeks passed before +the people would believe the tidings of the disaster. A pilot who had +left the _Chesapeake_ at five o'clock in the afternoon reported that he +was still near enough an hour later to see the two ships locked side by +side, that a fearful explosion had happened aboard the _Chesapeake_, and +that through a rift in the battle smoke he had beheld the British flag +flying above the American frigate. + +This report was confirmed by a fishing boat from Cape Ann and by the +passengers in a coastwise packet, but the public doubted and still hoped +until the newspapers came from Halifax with an account of the arrival of +the _Chesapeake_ as prize to the _Shannon_ and of the funeral honors +paid to the body of Captain James Lawrence. The tragic defeat came at an +extremely dark moment of the war when almost every expectation had been +disappointed and the future was clouded. Richard Rush, the American +diplomatist, wrote, recalling the event: + + I remember--what American does not!--the first rumor of it. I + remember the startling sensation. I remember at first the universal + incredulity. I remember how the post-offices were thronged for + successive days by anxious thousands; how collections of citizens + rode out for miles on the highway, accosting the mail to catch + something by anticipation. At last, when the certainty was known, I + remember the public gloom; funeral orations and badges of mourning + bespoke it. "Don't give up the ship"--the dying words of + Lawrence--were on every tongue. + +It was learned that the _Chesapeake_ had followed the _Shannon_ until +five o'clock, when the latter luffed and showed her readiness to begin +fighting. Lawrence was given the choice of position, with a westerly +breeze, but he threw away this advantage, preferring to trust to his +guns with a green crew rather than the complex and delicate business of +maneuvering his ship under sail. He came bowling straight down at the +_Shannon_, luffed in his turn, and engaged her at a distance of fifty +yards. The breeze was strong and the nimble American frigate forged +ahead more rapidly than Lawrence expected, so that presently her +broadside guns had ceased to bear. + +While Lawrence was trying to slacken headway and regain the desired +position, the enemy's shot disabled his headsails, and the _Chesapeake_ +came up into the wind with canvas all a-flutter. It was a mishap which a +crew of trained seamen might have quickly mended, but the frigate was +taken aback--that is, the breeze drove her stern foremost toward the +_Shannon_ and exposed her to a deadly cannonade which the American +gunners were unable to return. The hope of salvation lay in getting the +ship under way again or in boarding the _Shannon_. It was in this moment +that the battle was won and lost, for every gun of the British broadside +was sweeping the American deck diagonally from stern to bow, while the +marines in the tops of the _Shannon_ picked off the officers and seamen +of the _Chesapeake_, riddling them with musket balls. It was like the +swift blast of a hurricane. Lawrence fell, mortally wounded. Ludlow, his +first lieutenant, was carried below. The second lieutenant was stationed +between decks, and the third forsook his post to assist those who were +carrying Lawrence below to the gun deck. Not an officer remained on the +spar deck and not a living man was left on the quarter deck when the +_Chesapeake_ drifted against the _Shannon_ after four minutes of this +infernal destruction. As the ships collided, Captain Broke dashed +forward and shouted for boarders, leading them across to the American +deck. No more than fifty men followed him and three hundred Yankee +sailors should have been able to wipe the party out, but most of the +_Chesapeake_ crew were below, and, demoralized by lack of discipline and +leadership, they refused to come up and stand the gaff. Brave resistance +was made by the few who remained on deck and a dozen more followed the +second lieutenant, George Budd, as he rushed up to rally a forlorn hope. + +It was a desperate encounter while it lasted, and Captain Broke was +slashed by a saber as he led a charge to clear the forecastle. Yet two +minutes sufficed to clear the decks of the _Chesapeake_, and the few +visible survivors were thrown down the hatchways. The guns ceased +firing, and the crew below sent up a message of surrender. The frigates +had drifted apart, leaving Broke and his seamen to fight without +reinforcement, but before they came together again the day was won. This +was the most humiliating phase of the episode, that a handful of British +sailors and marines should have carried an American frigate by boarding. + +It must not be inferred that the _Chesapeake_ inflicted no damage +during the fifteen minutes of this famous engagement. Thirty-seven of +the British boarding party were killed or wounded and the American +marines--"leather-necks" then and "devil-dogs" now--fought in accordance +with the spirit of a corps which had won its first laurels in the +Revolution. Such broadsides as the _Chesapeake_ was able to deliver were +accurately placed and inflicted heavy losses. The victory cost the +_Shannon_ eighty-two men killed and wounded, while the American frigate +lost one hundred and forty-seven of her crew, or more than one-third of +her complement. Even in defeat the _Chesapeake_ had punished the enemy +far more severely than the _Constitution_ had been able to do. + +Lawrence lay in the cockpit, or hospital, when his men began to swarm +down in confusion and leaderless panic. Still conscious, he was aware +that disaster had overtaken them and he muttered again and again with +his dying breath, "Don't give up the ship. Blow her up." Thus passed to +an honorable fame an American naval officer of great gallantry and +personal charm. Although he brought upon his country a bitter +humiliation, the fact that he died sword in hand, his last thought for +his flag and his service, has atoned for his faults of rashness and +overconfidence. The odds were against him, and ill-luck smashed his +chance of overcoming them. He was no more disgraced than Dacres when he +surrendered the _Guerriere_ to a heavier ship, or than Lambert, dying on +his own deck, when he saw the colors of the _Java_ hauled down. + +The _Shannon_ took her prize to Halifax, and when the news came back +that the captain of the _Chesapeake_ lay dead in a British port, the +bronzed sea-dogs of the Salem Marine Society resolved to fetch his body +home in a manner befitting his end. Captain George Crowninshield +obtained permission from the Government to sail with a flag of truce for +Halifax, and he equipped the brig _Henry_ for the sad and solemn +mission. Her crew was picked from among the shipmasters of Salem, some +of them privateering skippers, every man of them a proven deep-water +commander. It was such a crew as never before or since took a vessel out +of an American port. When they returned to Salem with the remains of +Captain Lawrence and Lieutenant Ludlow, the storied old seaport saw +their funeral column pass through the quiet and crowded streets. The +pall-bearers bore names to thrill American hearts today--Hull, Stewart, +Bainbridge, Blakely, Creighton, and Parker, all captains of the navy. A +Salem newspaper described the ceremonies simply and with an unconscious +pathos: + + The day was unclouded, as if no incident should be wanting to crown + the mind with melancholy and woe--the wind from the same direction + and the sea presented the same unruffled surface as was exhibited + to our anxious view when on that memorable first day of July we saw + the immortal Lawrence proudly conducting his ship to action.... The + brig _Henry_ containing the precious relics lay at anchor in the + harbor. They were placed in barges and, preceded by a long + procession of boats filled with seamen uniformed in blue jackets + and trousers, with a blue ribbon on their hats bearing the motto of + "Free Trade and Sailors' Rights," were rowed by minute strokes to + the end of India Wharf, where the bearers were ready to receive the + honored dead. From the time the boats left the brig until the + bodies were landed, the United States brig _Rattlesnake_ and the + brig _Henry_ alternately fired minute guns... On arriving at the + meeting-house the coffins were placed in the centre of the church + by the seamen who rowed them ashore and who stood during the + ceremony leaning upon them in an attitude of mourning. The church + was decorated with cypress and evergreen, and the names of Lawrence + and Ludlow appeared in gilded letters on the front of the pulpit. + +It was wholly reasonable that the exploit of the _Shannon_ should arouse +fervid enthusiasm in the breast of every Briton. The wounds inflicted +by Hull, Decatur, and Bainbridge still rankled, but they were now +forgotten and the loud British boastings equaled all the tales of Yankee +brag. A member of Parliament declared that the "action which Broke +fought with the _Chesapeake_ was in every respect unexampled. It was +not--and he knew it was a bold assertion which he made--to be surpassed +by any other engagement which graced the naval annals of Great Britain." +Admiral Warren was still in a peevish humor at the hard knocks inflicted +on the Royal Navy when he wrote, in congratulating Captain Broke: "At +this critical moment you could not have restored to the British naval +service the preeminence it has always preserved, or contradicted in a +more forcible manner the foul aspersions and calumnies of a conceited, +boasting enemy than by the brilliant act you have performed. The +relation of such an event restores the history of ancient times and will +do more good to the service than it is possible to conceive." + +Captain Broke was made a baronet and received other honors and awards +which he handsomely deserved, but the wound he had suffered at the head +of his boarding party disabled him for further sea duty. If the +influence of the _Constitution_ and the _United States_ was far-reaching +in improving the efficiency of the American navy, it can be said also +that the victory of the _Shannon_ taught the British service the value +of rigorous attention to gunnery and a highly trained and disciplined +personnel. + +American chagrin was somewhat softened a few weeks later when two very +small ships, the _Enterprise_ and the _Boxer_, met in a spirited combat +off the harbor of Portland, Maine, like two bantam cocks, and the +Britisher was beaten in short order on September 5, 1813. The +_Enterprise_ had been a Yankee schooner in the war with Tripoli but had +been subsequently altered to a square rig and had received more guns and +men to worry the enemy's privateers. The brig-of-war was a kind of +vessel heartily disliked by seamen and now vanished from blue water. The +immortal Boatswain Chucks of Marryat proclaimed that "they would +certainly damn their inventor to all eternity" and that "their common, +low names, 'Pincher,' 'Thrasher,' 'Boxer,' 'Badger,' and all that sort, +are quite good enough for them." + +Commanding the _Enterprise_ was Captain William Burrows, twenty-eight +years old, who had seen only a month of active service in the war. +Captain Samuel Blyth of the _Boxer_ had worked his way up to this +unimportant post after many years of arduous duty in the British navy. +He might have declined a tussel with the _Enterprise_ for his crew +numbered only sixty-six men against a hundred and twenty, but he nailed +his colors to the mainmast and remarked that they would never come down +while there was any life in him. + +The day was calm, the breeze fitful, and the little brigs drifted about +each other until they lay within pistol shot. Then both loosed their +broadsides, while the sailors shouted bravely, and both captains fell, +Blyth killed instantly and Burrows mortally hurt but crying out that the +flag must never be struck. There was no danger of this, for the +_Enterprise_ raked the British brig through and through until resistance +was hopeless. Captain Blyth was as good as his word. He did not live to +see his ensign torn down. Great hearts in little ships, these two +captains were buried side by side in a churchyard which overlooks Casco +Bay, and there you may read their epitaphs today. + +The grim force of circumstances was beginning to alter the naval policy +of the United States. Notwithstanding the dramatic successes, her flag +was almost banished from the high seas by the close of the year 1813. +The frigates _Constellation_, _United States_, and _Macedonian_ were +hemmed in port by the British blockade; the _Adams_ and the +_Constitution_ were laid up for repairs; and the only formidable ships +of war which roamed at large were the _President_, the _Essex_, and the +_Congress_. The smaller vessels which had managed to slip seaward and +which were of such immense value in destroying British commerce found +that the system of convoying merchantmen in fleets of one hundred or two +hundred sail had left the ocean almost bare of prizes. It was the habit +of these convoys, however, to scatter as they neared their home ports, +every skipper cracking on sail and the devil take the hindmost--a +failing which has survived unto this day, and many a wrathful officer of +an American cruiser or destroyer in the war against Germany could +heartily echo the complaint of Nelson when he was a captain, "behaving +as all convoys that ever I saw did, shamefully ill, and parting company +every day." + +This was the reason why American naval vessels and privateers left their +own coasts and dared to rove in the English Channel, as Paul Jones had +done in the _Ranger_ a generation earlier. It was discovered that enemy +merchantmen could be snapped up more easily within sight of their own +shores than thousands of miles away. First to emphasize this fact in the +War of 1812 was the naval brig _Argus_, Captain William H. Allen, which +made a summer crossing and cruised for a month on end in the Irish Sea +and in the chops of the Channel with a gorgeous recompense for her +shameless audacity. England scolded herself red in the face while the +saucy _Argus_ captured twenty-seven ships and took her pick of their +valuable cargoes. Her course could be traced by the blazing hulls that +she left in her wake and this was how the British gun brig _Pelican_ +finally caught up with her. + +Although the advantage of size and armament was with the _Pelican_, it +was to be expected that the _Argus_ would prove more than a match for +her. The American commander, Captain Allen, had played a distinguished +part in several of the most famous episodes of the navy. As third +lieutenant of the _Chesapeake_, in 1807, he had picked up a live coal in +the cook's galley, held it in his fingers, and so fired the only gun +discharged against the _Leopard_ in that inglorious surprise and +surrender. As first officer of the frigate _United States_ he received +credit for the splendid gunnery which had overwhelmed the _Macedonian_, +and he enjoyed the glory of bringing the prize to port. It was as a +reward of merit that he was given command of the _Argus_. Alas, in this +fight off the coast of Wales he lost both his ship and his life, and +England had scored again. There was no ill-luck this time--nothing to +plead in excuse. The American brig threw away a chance of victory +because her shooting was amazingly bad, and instead of defending the +deck with pistol, pike, and musket, when the boarders came over the bow +the crew lowered the flag. + +It was an early morning fight, on August 14, 1813, in which Captain +Allen had his leg shot off within five minutes after the two brigs had +engaged. He refused to be taken below, but loss of blood soon made him +incapable of command, and presently his first lieutenant was stunned by +a grapeshot which grazed his scalp. The ship was well sailed, however, +and gained a position for raking the _Pelican_ in deadly fashion, but +the shot went wild and scarcely any harm was done. The British captain +chose his own range and methodically made a wreck of the _Argus_ in +twenty minutes of smashing fire, working around her at will while not a +gun returned his broadsides. Then he sheered close and was prepared to +finish it on the deck of the _Argus_ when she surrendered with +twenty-three of her crew out of action. The _Pelican_ was so little +punished that only two men were killed. The officer left in command of +the _Argus_ laid this unhappy conclusion to "the superior size and metal +of our opponent, and the fatigue which the crew underwent from a very +rapid succession of prizes." There were those on board who blamed it to +the casks of Oporto wine which had been taken out of the latest prize +and which the sailors had secretly tapped. Honesty is the best policy, +even in dealing with an enemy. The affair of the _Argus_ and the +_Pelican_ was not calculated to inflate Yankee pride. + +To balance this, however, came two brilliant actions by small ships. The +new _Peacock_, named for the captured British brig, under Captain Lewis +Warrington, stole past the blockade of New York. Off the Florida coast +on the 29th of April she sighted a convoy and attacked the escort brig +of eighteen guns, the _Epervier_. In this instance the behavior of the +American vessel and her crew was supremely excellent and not a flaw +could be found. They hulled the British brig forty-five times and made a +shambles of her deck and did it with the loss of one man. + +Even more sensational was the last cruise of the _Wasp_, Captain +Johnston Blakely, which sailed from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, in May +and roamed the English Channel to the dismay of all honest British +merchantmen. The brig-of-war _Reindeer_ endeavored to put an end to her +career but nineteen minutes sufficed to finish an action in which the +_Wasp_ slaughtered half the British crew and thrice repelled boarders. +This was no light task, for as Michael Scott, the British author of _Tom +Cringle's Log_, candidly expressed it: + + In the field, or grappling in mortal combat on the blood-slippery + deck of an enemy's vessel, a British soldier or sailor is the + bravest of the brave. No soldier or sailor of any other country, + saving and excepting those damned Yankees, can stand against + them... I don't like Americans. I never did and never shall like + them. I have no wish to eat with them, drink with them, deal with + or consort with them in any way; but let me tell the whole + truth,--_nor fight_ with them, were it not for the laurel to be + acquired by overcoming an enemy so brave, determined, and alert, + and every way so worthy of one's steel as they have always proved. + +Refitting in a French port, the dashing Blakely took the _Wasp_ to sea +again and encountered a convoy in charge of a huge, lumbering ship of +the line. Nothing daunted, the _Wasp_ flitted in among the timid +merchant ships and snatched a valuable prize laden with guns and +military stores. Attempting to bag another, she was chased away by the +indignant seventy-four and winged it in search of other quarry until she +sighted four strange sails. Three of them were British war brigs in hot +pursuit of a Yankee privateer, and Johnston Blakely was delighted to +play a hand in the game. He selected his opponent, which happened to be +the _Avon_, and overtook her in the darkness of evening. Before a strong +wind they foamed side by side, while the guns flashed crimson beneath +the shadowy gleam of tall canvas. Thus they ran for an hour and a half, +and then the _Avon_ signaled that she was beaten, with five guns +dismounted, forty-two men dead or wounded, seven feet of water in the +hold, the magazine flooded, and the spars and rigging almost destroyed. + +Blakely was about to send a crew aboard when another hostile brig, +forsaking the agile Yankee privateer, came up to help the _Avon_. The +_Wasp_ was perfectly willing to take on this second adversary, but just +then a third British ship loomed through the obscurity, and the ocean +seemed a trifle overpopulated for safety. Blakely ran off before the +wind, compelled to abandon his prize. The _Avon_, however, was so badly +battered that she went to the bottom before the wounded seamen could be +removed from her. Thence the _Wasp_ went to Madeira and was later +reported as spoken near the Cape Verde Islands, but after that she +vanished from blue water, erased by some tragic fate whose mystery was +never solved. To the port of missing ships she carried brave Blakely and +his men after a meteoric career which had swept her from one victory to +another. + +Of the frigates, only three saw action during the last two years of the +war, and of these the _President_ and the _Essex_ were compelled to +strike to superior forces of the enemy. The _Constitution_ was lucky +enough to gain the open sea in December, 1814, and fought her farewell +battle with the frigate _Cyane_ and the sloop-of-war _Levant_ on the +20th of February. In this fight Captain Charles Stewart showed himself a +gallant successor to Hull and Bainbridge. Together the two British ships +were stronger than the _Constitution_, but Stewart cleverly hammered the +one and then the other and captured both. Honor was also due the plucky +little _Levant_, which, instead of taking to her heels, stood by to +assist her larger comrade like a terrier at the throat of a wolf. It is +interesting to note that the captains, English and American, had +received word that peace had been declared, but without official +confirmation they preferred to ignore it. The spirit which lent to naval +warfare the spirit of the duel was too strong to let the opportunity +pass. + +The _President_ was a victim of a continually increased naval strength +by means of which Great Britain was able to strangle the seafaring trade +and commerce of the United States as the war drew toward its close. +Captain Decatur, who had taken command of this frigate, remarked "the +great apprehension and danger" which New York felt, in common with the +entire seaboard, and the anxiety of the city government that the crew of +the ship should remain for defense of the port. Coastwise navigation was +almost wholly suspended, and thousands of sloops and schooners feared to +undertake voyages to Philadelphia, Baltimore, or Charleston. Instead of +these, canvas-covered wagons struggled over the poor highways in +continuous streams between New England and the Southern coast towns. +This awkward result of the blockade moved the sense of humor of the +Yankee rhymsters who placarded the wagons with such mottoes as "Free +Trade and Oxen's Rights" and parodied _Ye Mariners of England_ with the +lines: + + Ye wagoners of Freedom + Whose chargers chew the cud, + Whose wheels have braved a dozen years + The gravel and the mud; + Your glorious hawbucks yoke again + To take another jag, + And scud through the mud + Where the heavy wheels do drag, + Where the wagon creak is long and low + And the jaded oxen lag. + + Columbia needs no wooden walls, + No ships where billows swell; + Her march is like a terrapin's, + Her home is in her shell. + To guard her trade and sailor's rights, + In woods she spreads her flag. + +Such ribald nonsense, however, was unfair to a navy which had done +magnificently well until smothered and suppressed by sheer weight of +numbers. It was in January, 1815, that Captain Decatur finally sailed +out of New York harbor in the hope of taking the _President_ past the +blockading division which had been driven offshore by a heavy northeast +gale. The British ships were struggling back to their stations when they +spied the Yankee frigate off the southern coast of Long Island. It was a +stern chase, Decatur with a hostile squadron at his heels and unable to +turn and fight because the odds were hopeless. The frigate _Endymion_ +was faster than her consorts and, as she came up alone, the _President_ +delayed to exchange broadsides before fleeing again with every sail set. +Her speed had been impaired by stranding as she came out past Sandy +Hook, else she might have out-footed the enemy. But soon the _Pomone_ +and the _Tenedos_, frigates of the class of the _Shannon_ and the +_Guerriere_, were in the hunt. Decatur was cornered, but his guns were +served until a fifth of the crew were disabled, the ship was crippled, +and a force fourfold greater than his own was closing in to annihilate +him at its leisure. "I deemed it my duty to surrender," said he, and a +noble American frigate, more formidable than the _Constitution_, was +added to the list of the Royal Navy. + +[Illustration: _A FRIGATE OF 1812 UNDER SAIL_ + +The _Constellation_, of which this is a photograph, is somewhat smaller +than the _Constitution_, being rated at 38 guns as against 44 for the +latter. In general appearance, however, and particularly in rig, the two +types are very similar. Although the _Constellation_ did not herself see +action in the War of 1812, she is a good example of the heavily armed +American frigate of that day--and the only one of them still to be seen +at sea under sail within recent years. At the present time the +_Constellation_ lies moored at the pier of the Naval Training Station, +Newport, R.I. + +Photograph by E. Mueller, Jr., Inc., New York.] + + + + +CHAPTER VIII + +THE LAST CRUISE OF THE ESSEX + + +The last cruise of the _Essex_ frigate, although an ill-fated one, makes +a story far less mournful than that of the _President_. She was the +first man-of-war to display the American flag in the wide waters of the +Pacific. Her long and venturesome voyage is still regarded as one of the +finest achievements of the navy, and it made secure the fame of Captain +David Porter. The _Essex_ has a peculiar right to be held in +affectionate memory, apart from the very gallant manner of her ending, +because into her very timbers were builded the faith and patriotism of +the people of the New England seaport which had framed and launched her +as a loan to the nation in an earlier time of stress. + +At the end of the eighteenth century France had been the maritime enemy +more hotly detested than England, and unofficial war existed with the +"Terrible Republic." This situation was foreshadowed as early as 1798 +by James McHenry, Secretary of War, when he indignantly announced to +Congress: "To forbear under such circumstances from taking naval and +military measures to secure our trade, defend our territories in case of +invasion, and to prevent or suppress domestic insurrection would be to +offer up the United States a certain prey to France and exhibit to the +world a sad spectacle of national degradation and imbecility." + +Congress thereupon resolved to build two dozen ships which should teach +France to mend her manners on the high seas, but the Treasury was too +poor to pay the million dollars which this modest navy was to cost. +Subscription lists were therefore opened in several shipping towns, and +private capital advanced the funds to put the needed frigates afloat. +The _Essex_ was promptly contributed by Salem, and the advertisement of +the master builder is brave and resonant reading: + + To Sons of Freedom! All true lovers of Liberty of your Country! + Step forth and give your assistance in building the frigate to + oppose French insolence and piracy. Let every man in possession of + a white oak tree be ambitious to be foremost in hurrying down the + timber to Salem where the noble structure is to be fabricated to + maintain your rights upon the seas and make the name of America + respected among the nations of the world. Your largest and longest + trees are wanted, and the arms of them for knees and rising timber. + Four trees are wanted for the keel which altogether will measure + 146 feet in length and hew sixteen inches square. + +The story of the building of the _Essex_ is that of an aroused and +reliant people. The great timbers were cut in the wood lots of the towns +near by and were hauled through the snowy streets of Salem on ox-sleds +while the people cheered them as they passed. The _Essex_ was a Salem +ship from keel to truck. Her cordage was made in three ropewalks. +Captain Jonathan Haraden, the most famous Salem privateersman of the +Revolution, made the rigging for the mainmast in his loft. The sails +were cut from duck woven for the purpose in the mill on Broad Street and +the ironwork was forged by Salem shipsmiths. When the huge hempen cables +were ready to be conveyed to the frigate, the workmen hoisted them upon +their shoulders and in procession marched to the music of fife and drum. +In 1799, six months after the oak timbers had been standing trees, the +_Essex_ slid from the stocks into the harbor of old Salem. She was the +handsomest and fastest American frigate of her day and when turned over +to the Government, she cost what seemed at that day the very +considerable amount of seventy-five thousand dollars. + +Peace was patched up with France, however, and the _Essex_ was compelled +to pursue more humdrum paths, now in the Indian Ocean and again with the +Mediterranean squadron, until war with England began in 1812. It was +intended that Captain Porter should rendezvous with the _Constitution_ +and the _Hornet_ in South American waters for a well-planned cruise +against British commerce, but other engagements detained Bainbridge, +notably his encounter with the _Java_, and so they missed each other by +a thousand miles or so. Since he had no means of communication, it was +characteristic of Porter to conclude to strike out for himself instead +of wandering about in an uncertain search for his friends. + +Porter conceived the bold plan of rounding the Horn and playing havoc +with the British whaling fleet. This adventure would take him ten +thousand miles from the nearest American port, but he reckoned that he +could capture provisions enough to feed his crew and supplies to refit +the ship. As a raid there was nothing to match this cruise until the +_Alabama_ ran amuck among the Yankee clippers and whaling barks half a +century later. It was the wrong time of year to brave the foul weather +of Cape Horn, however, and the _Essex_ was battered and swept by one +furious gale after another. But at last she won through, stout ship that +she was, and her weary sailors found brief respite in the harbor of +Valparaiso on March 14, 1813. Thence Porter headed up the coast, +disguising the trim frigate so that she looked like a lubberly, +high-pooped Spanish merchantman. + +The luck of the navy was with the American captain for, as he went +poking about the Galapagos Islands, he surprised three fine, large +British whaling ships, all carrying guns and too useful to destroy. To +one of them, the _Georgiana_, he shifted more guns, put a crew of forty +men aboard under Lieutenant John Downes, ran up the American flag, and +commissioned his prize as a cruiser. The other two he also manned--and +now behold him, if you please, sailing the Pacific with a squadron of +four good ships! Soon he ran down and captured two British +letter-of-marque vessels, well armed and in fighting trim, and in a +trice he had not a squadron but a fleet under his command, seven ships +in all, mounting eighty guns and carrying three hundred and forty men +and eighty prisoners. Two of these prizes he discovered to be crammed +to the hatches with cordage, paint, tar, canvas, and fresh provisions. +The list could not have been more acceptable if Captain David Porter +himself had signed the requisition in the New York Navy Yard. + +Lieutenant Downes was now sent off cruising by himself, and so well did +he profit by his captain's example and precepts that in a little while +he had bagged a squadron of his own, three ships with twenty-seven guns +and seventy-five men. When he rejoined the flagship in a harbor of the +mainland, Porter rewarded him by calling his cruiser the _Essex, +Junior_, promoting him to the rank of commander, and increasing his +armament. They then resumed cruising in two squadrons, finding more +British ships and sending them into the neutral harbor of Valparaiso or +home to the United States with precious cargoes of whale oil and bone. +Within a few months he swept the Southern Pacific almost clean of +British merchantmen, whalers, and privateers. Winter coming on, Porter +then sailed to the pleasant Marquesas Islands and laid the _Essex_ up +for a thorough overhauling. The enemy had furnished all needful supplies +and even the money to pay the wages of the officers and crew. + +Fit for sea again, the _Essex_ and the _Essex, Junior_, betook +themselves to Valparaiso where they received information that the +thirty-six-gun frigate _Phoebe_ of the British navy was earnestly +looking for them. She had been sent out from England to proceed to the +northwest American coast and destroy the fur station at the mouth of the +Columbia River. At Rio de Janeiro Captain Hillyar had heard reports of +the ravages of the _Essex_ and he considered it his business to hunt +down this defiant Yankee. To make sure of success, he took the +sloop-of-war _Cherub_ along with him and, doubling the Horn, they made +straight for Valparaiso. David Porter got wind of the pursuit but +assumed that the _Phoebe_ was alone. He made no attempt to avoid a +meeting but on the contrary rather courted a fight with his old friend +Hillyar, whom he had known socially on the Mediterranean station. For an +officer of Porter's temper and training the capture of British whalers +was a useful but by no means glorious employment. He believed the real +vocation of a frigate of the American navy was to engage the enemy. + +The _Phoebe_ and the _Cherub_ sailed into the Chilean roadstead in +February, 1814, and found the _Essex_ there. As Captain Hillyar was +passing in to seek an anchorage, the mate of a British merchantman +climbed aboard to tell him that the _Essex_ was unprepared for attack +and could be taken with ease. Her officers had given a ball the night +before in honor of the Spanish dignitaries of Valparaiso, and the decks +were still covered with awnings and gay with bunting and flags. +Reluctant to forego such a tempting opportunity, Captain Hillyar ran in +and luffed his frigate within a few yards of the Essex. To his +disappointed surprise, the American fighting ship was ready for action +on the instant. Though the punctilious restraints of a neutral port +should have compelled them to delay battle, Porter was vigilant and took +no chances. The liberty parties had been recalled from shore, the decks +had been cleared, the gunners were sent to quarters with matches +lighted, and the boarders were standing by the hammock nettings with +cutlasses gripped. Making the best of this unexpected turn of events, +the English captain shouted a greeting to David Porter and politely +conveyed his compliments, adding that his own ship was also ready for +action. So close were the two frigates at this moment that the jib-boom +of the _Phoebe_ hung over the bulwarks of the _Essex_, and Porter called +out sharply that if so much as a rope was touched he would reply with a +broadside. The urbane Captain Hillyar, perceiving his disadvantage, +exclaimed, "I had no intention of coming so near you. I am very sorry +indeed." With that he moved his ship to a respectful distance. Later he +had a chat with Captain Porter ashore and, when asked if he intended to +maintain the neutrality of the port, made haste to protest, "Sir, you +have been so careful to observe the rules that I feel myself bound in +honor to do the same." + +After a few days the _Phoebe_ and the _Cherub_ left the harbor and +watchfully waited outside, enforcing a strict blockade and determined to +render the _Essex_ harmless unless she should choose to sally out and +fight. David Porter was an intrepid but not a reckless sailor. He had +the faster frigate but he had unluckily changed her battery from the +long guns to the more numerous but shorter range carronades. He was not +afraid to risk a duel with the _Phoebe_ even with this handicap in +armament, but the sloop-of-war _Cherub_ was a formidable vessel for her +size and the _Essex, Junior_, which was only a converted merchantman, +was of small account in a hammer-and-tongs action between naval ships. + +For his part, Captain Hillyar had no intention of letting the Yankee +frigate escape him. "He was an old disciple of Nelson," observes Mahan, +"fully imbued with the teaching that the achievement of success and not +personal glory must dictate action. Having a well established reputation +for courage and conduct, he intended to leave nothing to the chances of +fortune which might decide a combat between equals. He therefore would +accept no provocation to fight without the _Cherub_. His duty was to +destroy the _Essex_ with the least possible loss." + +Porter endured this vexatious situation for six weeks and then, learning +that other British frigates were on his trail, determined to escape to +the open sea. This decision involved waiting for the most favorable +moment of wind and weather, but Porter found his hand forced on the 28th +of March by a violent southerly gale which swept over the exposed bay of +Valparaiso and dragged the _Essex_ from her anchorage. One of her cables +parted while the crew struggled to get sail on her. As she drifted +seaward, Porter decided to seize the emergency and take the long chance +of running out to windward of the _Phoebe_ and the _Cherub_. He +therefore cut the other cable, and the _Essex_ plunged into the wind +under single-reefed topsails to claw past the headland. Just as she was +about to clear it, a whistling squall carried away the maintopmast. +This accident was a grave disaster, for the disabled frigate was now +unable either to regain a refuge in the bay or to win her way past the +British ship. + +As a last resort Captain Porter turned and ran along the coast, within +pistol shot of it, far inside the three-mile limit of neutral water, and +came to an anchor about three miles north of the city. Captain Hillyar +had no legal right to molest him, but in his opinion the end justified +the means and he resolved to attack. Deliberately the _Phoebe_ and +_Cherub_ selected their stations and, late in this stormy afternoon, +bombarded the crippled _Essex_ without mercy. Porter with his carronades +was unable to repay the damage inflicted by the broadsides of the longer +guns, nor could he handle his ship to close in and retrieve the day in +the desperate game of boarding. He tried this ultimate venture, +nevertheless, and let go his cables. But the ship refused to move ahead. +Her sheets, tacks, and halliards had been shot away. The canvas was +hanging loose. + +Porter's guns were by no means silent, however, even in this hopeless +situation, and few crews have died harder or fought more grimly than +these seamen of the _Essex_. Among them was a little midshipman, wounded +but still at his post, a mere child of thirteen years whose name was +David Farragut. His fortune it was to link those early days of the +American navy with a period half a century later when he won his renown +as the greatest of American admirals. + +In many a New England seaport were told the tales of this last fight of +the _Essex_ until they became almost legendary--of Seaman John Ripley, +who cried, after losing his leg, "Farewell, boys, I can be of no more +use to you," and thereupon flung himself overboard out of a bow port; of +James Anderson, who died encouraging his comrades to fight bravely in +defense of liberty; of Benjamin Hazen, who dressed himself in a clean +shirt and jerkin, told his messmates that he could never submit to being +taken prisoner by the English and forthwith leaped into the sea and was +drowned. Such incidents help us to descry, amid the smoke and slaughter +of that desperate encounter, the spirit of the gallant David Porter. +Never was the saying, "It's not the ships but the men in them," better +exemplified. To Porter was granted greatness in defeat, a lot that comes +to few. + +For two hours he and his men endured such dreadful punishment as not +many ships have suffered. Again he attempted to work his way nearer the +enemy, until he had not enough men left unhurt to serve the guns or to +haul at the pitifully splintered spars. In the last extremity, Porter +made an effort to destroy his vessel and to save her people from +captivity by letting the _Essex_ drive ashore. A kedge anchor was let +go, and a dozen sailors tramped around the capstan while the chantey man +piped up a tune, but again fortune seemed against him for the hawser +snapped, and the wind began to blow the frigate into deeper water. What +happened then is best recalled in the simple words of Captain David +Porter himself: + + I now sent for the officers of division to consult them and what + was my surprise to find only acting Lieutenant Stephen Decatur + M'Knight remaining.... I was informed that the cockpit, the + steerage, the wardroom, and the berth deck could contain no more + wounded, that the wounded were killed while the surgeons were + dressing them, and that if something was not speedily done to + prevent it, the ship would soon sink from the number of shot holes + in her bottom. On sending for the carpenter he informed me that all + his crew had been killed or wounded. + + The enemy, from the impossibility of reaching him with our + carronades and the little apprehension that was excited by our + fire, which had now become much slackened, was enabled to take aim + at us as at a target; his shot never missed our hull and my ship + was cut up in a manner which was perhaps never before witnessed; in + fine, I saw no hope of saving her, and at twenty minutes after 6 + P.M. I gave the painful order to strike the colors. Seventy-five + men including officers were all that remained of my whole crew + after the action, many of them severely wounded, some of whom have + since died. + + The enemy still continued his fire and my brave, though unfortunate + companions were still falling about me. I directed an opposite gun + to be fired to show them we intended no further resistance but they + did not desist. Four men were killed at my side and others at + different parts of the ship. I now believed he intended to show us + no quarter, that it would be as well to die with my flag flying as + struck, and was on the point of again hoisting it when about ten + minutes after hauling down the colors he ceased firing. + + ... We have been unfortunate but not disgraced--the defense of the + _Essex_ has not been less honorable to her officers and crew than + the capture of an equal force; and I now consider my situation less + unpleasant than that of Captain Hillyar, who in violation of every + principle of honor and generosity, and regardless of the rights of + nations, attacked the _Essex_ in her crippled state within pistol + shot of a neutral shore, when for six weeks I had daily offered him + fair and honorable combat on terms greatly to his advantage. + +The behavior of Captain Hillyar after the surrender, however, was most +humane and courteous, and lapse of time has dispelled somewhat of the +bitterness of the American opinion of him. If he was not as chivalrous +as his Yankee foemen had expected, it must be remembered that there was +a heavy grudge and a long score to pay in the havoc wrought among +British merchantmen and whalers and that in those days the rights of +South American neutrals were rather lightly regarded. + + + + +CHAPTER IX + +VICTORY ON LAKE CHAMPLAIN + + +Spectacular as were the exploits of the American navy on the sea, they +were of far less immediate consequence in deciding the destinies of the +war than were the naval battles fought on fresh water between hastily +improvised squadrons. On Lake Erie Perry's victory had recovered a lost +empire and had made the West secure against invasion. Macdonough's +handful of little vessels on Lake Champlain compelled the retreat of ten +thousand British veterans of Wellington's campaigns who had marched down +from Canada with every promise of crushing American resistance. This was +the last and most formidable attempt on the part of the enemy to conquer +territory and to wrest a decision by means of a sustained offensive. Its +collapse marked the beginning of the end, and such events as the capture +of Washington and the battle of New Orleans were in the nature of +episodes. + +That September day of 1814, when Macdonough won his niche in the naval +hall of fame, was also the climax and the conclusion of the long +struggle of the American armies on the northern frontier, a confused +record of defeat, vacillation, and crumbling forces, which was redeemed +towards the end by troops who had learned how to fight and by new +leaders who restored the honor of the flag at Chippawa and Lundy's Lane. +Although the ambitious attempts against Canada, so often repeated, were +so much wasted effort until the very end, they ceased to be inglorious. +The tide turned in the summer of 1814 with the renewal of the struggle +for the Niagara region where the British had won a foothold upon +American soil. + +In command of a vigorous and disciplined American army was General Jacob +Brown, that stout-hearted volunteer who had proved his worth when the +enemy landed at Sackett's Harbor. He was not a professional soldier but +his troops had been trained and organized by Winfield Scott who was now +a brigadier. After two years of dismal reverses, the United States was +learning how to wage war. Incompetency was no longer the badge of high +military rank. A general was supposed to know something about his trade +and to have a will of his own. + +With thirty-five hundred men, Jacob Brown made a resolute advance to +find and join battle with the British forces of General Riall which +garrisoned the forts of St. George's, Niagara, Erie, Queenston, and +Chippawa. Early in the morning of July 3, 1814, the American troops in +two divisions crossed the river and promptly captured Fort Erie. They +then pushed ahead fifteen miles until they encountered the British +defensive line on the Chippawa River where it flows into the Niagara. + +The field was like a park, with open, grassy spaces and a belt of +woodland which served as a green curtain to screen the movements of both +armies. Riall boldly assumed the offensive, although he was aware that +he had fewer men. His instructions intimated that liberties might be +taken with the Americans which would seem hazardous "to a military man +unacquainted with the character of the enemy he had to contend with, or +with the events of the last two campaigns on that frontier." The +deduction was unflattering but very much after the fact. + +The British attack was unlooked for. It was the Fourth of July and in +celebration Winfield Scott had given his men the best dinner that the +commissary could supply and was marching them into a meadow in the cool +of the summer afternoon for drill and review. The celebration, however, +was interrupted by firing and confusion among the militia who happened +to be in front, and Scott rushed his brigade forward to take the brunt +of the heavy assault. General Jacob Brown rode by at a gallop, waving +his hat and cheerily shouting, "You will have a battle." He was hurrying +to bring up his other forces, but meanwhile Scott's column crossed a +bridge at the double-quick and faced the enemy's batteries. + +Exposed, taken by surprise, and outnumbered, Winfield Scott and his +regiments were nevertheless equal to the occasion. A battalion was sent +to cover one flank in the dense woodland, while the main body drove +straight for the columns of British infantry and then charged with +bayonets at sixty paces. The American ranks were steady and unbroken +although they were pelted with musketry fire, and they smashed a British +counter-charge by three regiments before it gained momentum. Handsomely +fought and won, it was not a decisive battle and might be called no more +than a skirmish but its significance was highly important, for at +Chippawa there was displayed a new spirit in the American army. + +Riall retreated with his red-coated regulars to a stronger line at +Queenston, while Jacob Brown was sending anxious messages to Commodore +Chauncey begging him to use his fleet in cooperation and so break the +power of the enemy in Upper Canada. "For God's sake, let me see you," he +implored. But again the American ships on Lake Ontario failed to seize +an opportunity, and in this instance Chauncey's inactivity dismayed not +only General Brown but also the Government at Washington. The fleet +remained at Sackett's Harbor with excuses which appeared inadequate: +certain changes were being made among the officers and crews, and again +"the squadron had been prevented being earlier fitted for sea in +consequence of the delay in obtaining blocks and iron-work." Chauncey +subsequently fell ill, which may have had something to do with his lapse +of energy. The whole career of this naval commander on Lake Ontario had +disappointed expectations, even though the Secretary had commended his +"zeal, talent, constancy, courage, and prudence of the highest order." +The trouble was that Chauncey let slip one chance after another to win +the control of Lake Ontario in pitched battle. Always too intent on +building more ships instead of fighting with those he had, he is +therefore not remembered in the glorious companionship of Perry and +Macdonough. + +This failure to act at the moment when Jacob Brown was so valiantly +endeavoring to wrest from the British the precious Niagara peninsula was +responsible for the desperate and inconclusive battle of Lundy's Lane. +Winfield Scott frankly blamed the unsuccessful result upon the freedom +with which the British troops and supplies were moved on Lake Ontario. +For ten days Jacob Brown had remained in a painful state of suspense and +perplexity, until finally the word came that nobody knew when the +American fleet would sail. As he had feared, the British command, able +to move its troops unmolested across the lake, planned to attack him in +the rear and to cut his communications on the New York side of the +Niagara River. For this purpose two enemy brigs were filled with troops +and were sent over to Fort Niagara with more to follow. + +It was to parry this threat that Brown moved his forces and brought +about the clash at Lundy's Lane. "As it appeared," he explained, "that +the enemy with his increased strength was about to avail himself of the +hazard under which our baggage and stores were on our side of the +Niagara, I conceived the most effectual method of recalling him from the +object was to put myself in motion towards Queenston. General Scott with +his brigade were accordingly put in march on the road leading thither." + +The action was fought about a mile back from the torrent of the Niagara, +below the Falls, where the by-road known as Lundy's Lane joined the main +road running parallel with the river. Here Scott's column came suddenly +upon a force of British redcoats led by General Drummond. Scott +hesitated to attack, because the odds were against his one brigade, but, +fearing the effect of a retreat on the divisions behind him, he sent +word to Brown that he would hold his ground and try to turn the enemy's +left toward the Niagara. It was late in the day and the sun had almost +set. Gradually Scott forced the British wing back, and Brown threw in +reinforcements until the engagement became general. The fight continued +furious even after darkness fell and never have men employed in the +business of killing each other shown courage more stubborn. Both sides +were equally determined and they fought until exhaustion literally +compelled a halt. + +Later in the evening fresh troops were hurled in on both sides, and +they were at it again with the same impetuosity. A small hill, over +which ran Lundy's Lane, was the goal the Americans fought for. They +finally stormed it, "in so determined a manner," reported the enemy, +"that our artillery men were bayoneted in the act of loading and the +muzzles of the enemy's guns were advanced within a few yards of ours." +Back and forth flowed the tide of battle in bloody waves, until +midnight. Then sullenly and in good order the Americans retired three +miles to camp at Chippawa. Next day the enemy resumed the position and +held it unattacked. + +It is fair to call Lundy's Lane a drawn battle. The casualties were +something more than eight hundred for each side, and the troops engaged +were about twenty-five hundred Americans and a like number of British. +Both the shattered columns soon retired behind strong defenses. General +Drummond led the British troops into camp at Niagara Falls, and General +Ripley, in temporary command of the American brigades, Scott and Brown +having been wounded, occupied the unfinished works of Fort Erie, on the +Canadian side, just where the waters of Lake Erie enter the Niagara +River. + +The British determined to bombard these walls and intrenchments with +heavy guns and then carry them by infantry assault. But this plan failed +disastrously. On the 15th of August the British charged in three columns +the bastions and batteries only to be savagely repulsed at every point +with a loss of nine hundred men killed, wounded, or prisoners, while the +defenders had only eighty-five casualties. Then Drummond settled down to +besiege the place and succeeded in making it so uncomfortable that Jacob +Brown, now recovered from his wound, organized a sortie in force which +was made on the 17th of September. In the action which followed, the +British batteries were overwhelmed and the American militia displayed +magnificent steadiness and valor. Jacob Brown proudly informed the +Governor of New York that "the militia of New York have redeemed their +character--they behaved gallantly. Of those called out by the last +requisition, fifteen hundred have crossed the state border to our +support. This reinforcement has been of immense importance to us; it +doubled our effective strength, and their good conduct cannot but have +the happiest effect upon our nation." + +This bold stroke ended the Niagara campaign. The British fell back, and +the American army was in no condition for pursuit. In ten weeks Jacob +Brown had fought four engagements without defeat and, barring the battle +of New Orleans, his brief campaign was the one operation of the land war +upon which Americans could look back with any degree of satisfaction. + +The scene now shifted to Lake Champlain. The main work was the building +up of an army to resist the menacing preparations for a British invasion +from Montreal. Among the new American generals who had gained promotion +by merit instead of favor was George Izard, trained in the military +schools of England and Prussia, and an aide to Alexander Hamilton during +his command of the army of the United States. Izard had been sent to +Plattsburg in May, 1814, on the very eve of the great British campaign, +and found everything in a deplorable state of unreadiness and +inefficiency. While he was manfully struggling with these difficulties, +Secretary Armstrong directed him to send four thousand of his men to the +assistance of Jacob Brown on the Niagara front. General Izard obediently +and promptly set out, although the defense of Lake Champlain was thereby +deprived of this large body of troops. The expedition was almost barren +of results, however, and at a time when every trained soldier was needed +to oppose the march of the British veterans, Izard was at Fort Erie, +idle, waiting to build winter quarters and writing to the War +Department: "I confess I am greatly embarrassed. At the head of the most +efficient army the United States have possessed during this war, much +must be expected of me; and yet I can discern no object which can be +achieved at this point worthy of the risk which will attend its +attempt." + +Izard had already predicted that the withdrawal of his forces from +Plattsburg would leave northeastern New York at the mercy of the British +and he spoke the truth. No sooner had his divisions started westward +than the British army, ten thousand strong, under General Prevost, +crossed the frontier and marched rapidly toward the Saranac River and +then straight on to Plattsburg. Possession of this trading town the +British particularly desired because through it passed an enormous +amount of illicit traffic with Canada. Both Izard and Prevost agreed in +the statement that the British army was almost entirely fed on supplies +drawn from New York and Vermont by way of Lake Champlain. "Two thirds of +the army in Canada are supplied with beef by American contractors," +wrote Prevost, and there were not enough highways to accommodate the +herds of cattle which were driven across the border. + +To protect this source of supply by conquering the region was the task +assigned the splendid army of British regulars who had fought under +Wellington. The conclusion of the Peninsular campaign had released them +for service in America, and England was now able for the first time to +throw her military strength against the feeble forces of the United +States. It was announced as the intention of the British Government to +take and hold the lakes, from Champlain to Erie, as territorial waters +and a permanent barrier. To oppose the large and seasoned army which was +to effect these projects, there was an American force of only fifteen +hundred men, led by Brigadier General Alexander Macomb. All he could do +was to try to hold the defensive works at Plattsburg and to send forward +small skirmishing parties to annoy the British army which advanced in +solid column, without taking the trouble to deploy. + +On the 6th of September Sir George Prevost with his army reached +Plattsburg and encamped just outside the town. From a ridge the British +leader beheld the redoubts, strong field works, and blockhouses, and at +anchor in the bay the little American fleet of Commodore Thomas +Macdonough. To Prevost it looked like a costly business to attempt to +carry these defenses by assault and he therefore decided to await the +arrival of the British ships of Captain George Downie. A combined attack +by land and sea, he believed, should find no difficulty in wiping out +American resistance. + +Such was the situation and the weighty responsibility which confronted +Macdonough and his sailors. It was the most critical moment of the war. +With a seaman's eye for defense Macdonough met it by stationing his +vessels in a carefully chosen position and prepared with a seaman's +foresight for every contingency. Plattsburg Bay is about two miles wide +and two long and lies open to the southward, with a cape called +Cumberland Head bounding it on the east. It was in this sheltered water +that Macdonough awaited attack, his ships riding about a mile from the +American shore batteries. These guns were to be captured by the British +army and turned against him, according to the plans of General Prevost, +who was urging Captain Downie to hasten with his fleet and undertake a +joint action, for, as he said, "it is of the highest importance that +the ships, vessels, and gunboats of your command should combine a +cooperation with the division of the army under my command. I only wait +for your arrival to proceed against General Macomb's last position on +the south bank of the Saranac." + +These demands became more and more insistent, although the largest +British ship, the _Confiance_, had been launched only a few days before +and the mechanics were still toiling night and day to fit her for +action. She was a formidable frigate, of the size of the American +_Chesapeake_, and was expected to be more than a match for Macdonough's +entire fleet. Captain Downie certainly expected the support of the army, +which he failed to receive, for he clearly stated his position before +the naval battle. "When the batteries are stormed and taken possession +of by the British land forces, which the commander of the land forces +has promised to do at the moment the naval action commences, the enemy +will be obliged to quit their position, whereby we shall obtain decided +advantage over them during the confusion. I would otherwise prefer +fighting them on the lake and would wait until our force is in an +efficient state but I fear they would take shelter up the lake and would +not meet me on equal terms." + +Compelled to seek and offer battle in Plattsburg Bay, the British +vessels rounded Cumberland Head on the morning of the 11th of September +and hove to while Captain Downie went ahead in a boat to observe the +American position. He perceived that Macdonough had anchored his fleet +in line in this order: the brig _Eagle_, twenty guns, the flagship +_Saratoga_, twenty-six guns, the schooner _Ticonderoga_, seven guns, and +the sloop _Preble_, seven guns. There was also a considerable squadron +of little gunboats, or galleys, propelled by oars and mounting one gun. +Opposed to this force was the stately _Confiance_, with her three +hundred men and thirty-seven guns, such a ship as might have dared to +engage the _Constitution_ on blue water, and the _Chub_, _Linnet_, and +_Finch_, much like Macdonough's three smaller vessels, besides a +flotilla of the tiny, impudent gunboats which were like so many hornets. + +Macdonough was a youngster of twenty-eight years to whom was granted +this opportunity denied the officers who had grown gray in the service. +The navy, which was also very young, had set its own stamp upon him, and +his advancement he had won by sheer ability. Self-reliant and +indomitable, like Oliver Hazard Perry, he had wrestled with obstacles +and was ready to meet the enemy in spite of them. His fame among naval +men outshines Perry's, and he is rated as the greatest fighting sailor +who flew the American flag until Farragut surpassed them all. + +The battle of Plattsburg Bay was contested straight from the shoulder +with little chance for such evolutions as seeking the weather gage or +wearing ship. With one fleet at anchor, as Nelson demonstrated at the +Nile, the proper business of the other was to drive ahead and try to +break the line or turn an end of it. This Captain Downie proceeded to +attempt in a brave and highly skillful manner, with the _Confiance_ +leading into the bay and proposing to smash the _Eagle_ with her first +broadsides. The wind failed, however, and the British frigate dropped +anchor within close range of the _Saratoga_, which displayed +Macdonough's pennant, and pounded this vessel so accurately that forty +American seamen, or one-fifth of the crew, were struck down by the first +blast of the British guns. + +Meanwhile the _Linnet_ had reached her assigned berth and fought the +American _Eagle_ so successfully that the latter was disabled and had to +leave the line. To balance this the _Chub_ was so badly damaged that +she drifted helpless among the American ships and was compelled to haul +down her colors. The _Finch_ committed a blunder of seamanship and by +failing to keep close enough to the wind, which soon died away, she +finally went aground and took no part in the battle. The _Preble_ was +driven from her anchorage and ran ashore under the Plattsburg batteries, +and the _Ticonderoga_ played no heavier part than to beat off the little +British galleys. + +The decisive battle was therefore fought by four ships, the American +_Saratoga_ and _Eagle_, and the British _Confiance_ and _Linnet_. It was +then that Macdonough acquitted himself as a man who did not know when he +was beaten. The _Confiance_, which must have towered like a ship of the +line, had so cruelly mauled the _Saratoga_ that she seemed doomed to be +blown out of water. So many of his gunners were killed by the +double-shotted broadsides that Macdonough jumped from the quarter-deck to +take a hand himself and encourage the survivors. He was sighting a gun +when a round shot cut the spanker boom, and a fragment of the heavy spar +knocked him senseless. + +Recovering his wits, however, he returned to his gun. But another shot +tore off the head of the gun captain and flung it in Macdonough's face +with such force that he was hurled across the deck. At length all but +one of the guns along the side exposed to the _Confiance_ had been +smashed or dismounted, and this last gun broke its fastening bolts, +leaped from its carriage with the heavy recoil, and plunged into the +main hatch. Silenced, shot through and through, her decks strewn with +dead, the _Saratoga_ might then have struck her colors with honor. But +Macdonough had not begun to fight. Prepared for such an emergency, he +let go a stern anchor, cut his bow cable, and "winded" or turned his +ship around so that her other side with its uninjured row of guns was +presented to the _Confiance_. Captain Downie had by this time been +killed, and the acting commander of the British flagship endeavored to +execute the same maneuver, but the _Confiance_ was too badly crippled to +be swung about. While she floundered, the Saratoga reduced her to +submission. One of the surviving officers stated that "the ship's +company declared they would no longer stand to their quarters nor could +the officers with their utmost exertions rally them." The ship was +sinking, with more than a hundred ragged holes in her hull and fivescore +men dead or hurt. Fifteen minutes later the plucky _Linnet_ surrendered +after a long and desperate duel with the _Eagle_. The British galleys +escaped from the bay under sail and oar because no American ships were +fit to chase them, but the Royal Navy had ceased to exist on Lake +Champlain. For more than two hours the battle had been fought with a +bulldog endurance not often equaled in the grim pages of naval history. +And more nearly than any other incident of the War of 1812 it could be +called decisive. + +The American victory made the position of Prevost's army wholly +untenable. With the control of Lake Champlain in Macdonough's hands, the +British line of communication would be continually menaced. For the ten +thousand veterans of Wellington's campaigns there was nothing to do but +retreat, nor did they linger until they had marched across the Canada +border. Though the way had lain open before them, they had not fought a +battle, but were turned out of the United States, evicted, one might +say, by a few small ships manned by several hundred American sailors. As +Perry had regained the vast Northwest for his nation so, more +momentously, did Macdonough avert from New York and New England a tide +of invasion which could not otherwise have been stemmed. + +[Illustration: _THOMAS MACDONOUGH_ + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. Reproduced by courtesy of the Municipal Art Commission of +the City of New York.] + +[Illustration: _JACOB BROWN_ + +Painting by J. W. Jarvis. In the City Hall, New York, owned by the +Corporation. Reproduced by courtesy of the Municipal Art Commission of +the City of New York.] + + + + +CHAPTER X + +PEACE WITH HONOR + + +The raids of the British navy on the American sea-coast through the last +two years of the war were so many efforts to make effective the blockade +which began with the proclamation of December, 1812, closing Chesapeake +and Delaware bays. Successive orders in 1813 closed practically all the +seaports from New London, Connecticut, to the Florida boundary, and the +last sweeping proclamation of May, 1814, placed under strict blockade +"all the ports, harbors, bays, creeks, rivers, inlets, outlets, islands, +and seacoasts of the United States." It was the blockade of ports of the +Middle States which caused such widespread ruin among merchants and +shippers and which finally brought the Government itself to the verge of +bankruptcy. + +The first serious alarm was caused in the spring of 1813 by the +appearance of a British fleet, under command of Admiral Sir John Borlase +Warren and Rear-Admiral George Cockburn, in the Chesapeake and Delaware +bays. Apparently it had not occurred to the people of the seaboard that +the war might make life unpleasant for them, and they had undertaken no +measures of defense. Unmolested, Cockburn cruised up Chesapeake Bay to +the mouth of the Susquehanna in the spring of 1813 and established a +pleasant camp on an island from which five hundred sailors and marines +harried the country at their pleasure, looting and burning such +prosperous little towns as Havre de Grace and Fredericktown. The men of +Maryland and Virginia proceeded to hide their chattels and to move their +families inland. Panic took hold of these proud and powerful +commonwealths. Cockburn had no scruples about setting the torch to +private houses, "to cause the proprietors who had deserted them and +formed part of the militia which had fled to the woods to understand and +feel what they were liable to bring upon themselves by building forts +and acting toward us with so much useless rancor." Though Cockburn was +an officer of the British navy, he was also an unmitigated ruffian in +his behavior toward non-combatants, and his own countrymen could not +regard his career with satisfaction. + +Admiral Warren had more justification in attacking Norfolk, which had a +navy yard and forts and was therefore frankly belligerent. Unluckily for +him the most important battery was manned by a hundred sailors from the +_Constellation_ and fifty marines. Seven hundred British seamen tried to +land in barges, but the battery shattered three of the boats with heavy +loss of life. Somewhat ruffled, Admiral Warren decided to go elsewhere +and made a foray upon the defenseless village of Hampton during which he +permitted his men to indulge in wanton pillage and destruction. Part of +his fleet then sailed up to the Potomac and created a most distressing +hysteria in Washington. The movement was a feint, however, and after +frightening Baltimore and Annapolis, the ships cruised and blockaded the +bay for several months. + +In September of the following year another British division harassed the +coast of Maine, first capturing Eastport and then landing at Belfast, +Bangor, and Castine, and extorting large ransoms in money and supplies. +New England was wildly alarmed. In a few weeks all of Maine east of the +Penobscot had been invaded, conquered, and formally annexed to New +Brunswick, although two counties alone might easily have furnished +twelve thousand fighting men to resist the small parties of British +sailors who operated in leisurely security. The people of the coastwise +towns gave up their sheep and bullocks to these rude trespassers, cut +the corn and dug the potatoes for them, handed over all their powder and +firearms, and agreed to finish and deliver schooners that were on the +stocks. + +Cape Cod was next to suffer, for two men-of-war levied contributions of +thousands of dollars from Wellfleet, Brewster, and Eastham, and robbed +and destroyed other towns. Farther south another fleet entered Long +Island Sound, bombarded Stonington, and laid it in ruins. The pretext +for all this havoc was a raid made by a few American troops who had +crossed to Long Point on Lake Erie, May 15, 1814, and had burned some +Canadian mills and a few dwellings. The expedition was promptly disowned +by the American Government as unauthorized, but in retaliation the +British navy was ordered to lay waste all towns on the Atlantic coast +which were assailable, sparing only the lives of the unarmed citizens. + +Included in the British plan of campaign for 1814 was a coastal attack +important enough to divert American efforts from the Canadian frontier. +This was why an army under General Ross was loaded into transports at +Bermuda and escorted by a fleet to Chesapeake Bay. The raids against +small coastwise ports, though lucrative, had no military value beyond +shaking the morale of the population. The objective of this larger +operation was undecided. Either Baltimore or Washington was tempting. +But first the British had to dispose of the annoying gunboat flotilla of +Commodore Joshua Barney, who had made his name mightily respected as a +seaman of the Revolution and who had never been known to shake in his +shoes at sight of a dozen British ensigns. He had found shelter for his +armed scows, for they were no more than this, in the Patuxent River, but +as he could not hope to defend them against a combined attack by British +ships and troops he wisely blew them up. This turn of affairs left a +fine British army all landed and with nothing else to do than promenade +through a pleasant region with nobody to interfere. The generals and +admirals discussed the matter and decided to saunter on to Washington +instead of to Baltimore. In the heat of August the British regiments +tramped along the highways, frequently halting to rest in the shade, +until they were within ten miles of the capital of the nation. There +they found the American outposts in a strong position on high ground, +but these tarried not, and the invaders sauntered on another mile before +making camp for the night. It is difficult to regard the capture of +Washington with the seriousness which that lamentable episode deserves. +The city was greatly surprised to learn that the enemy actually intended +a discourtesy so gross, and the Government was pained beyond expression. +But beyond this display of emotion nothing was done. The war was now two +years old but no steps whatever had been taken to defend Washington, +although there was no room for doubt that a British naval force could +ascend the river whenever it pleased. + +The disagreeable tidings that fifty of the enemy's ships had anchored +off the Potomac, however, reminded the President and his advisers that +not a single ditch or rampart had been even planned, that no troops were +at hand, that it was rather late for advice which seemed to be the only +ammunition that was plentiful. Quite harmoniously, the soldier in +command was General Winder who could not lose his head, even in this +dire emergency, because he had none to lose. His record for ineptitude +on the fighting front had, no doubt, recommended him for this place. He +ran about Washington, ordering the construction of defenses which there +was no time to build, listening to a million frenzied suggestions, +holding all manner of consultations, and imploring the Governors of +Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia to send militia. + +The British army was less than five thousand strong. To oppose them +General Winder hastily scrambled together between five and six thousand +men, mostly militia with a sprinkling of regulars and four hundred +sailors from Barney's flotilla. During the night before the alleged +battle the camp was a scene of such confusion as may be imagined while +futile councils of war were held. The troops when reviewed by President +Madison realized Jefferson's ideal of a citizen soldiery, unskilled but +strong in their love of home, flying to arms to oppose an invader. +General Jacob Brown and Winfield Scott at Lundy's Lane, which was fought +within the same month, could have pointed out, in language quite +emphatic, that a large difference existed between the raw material and +the finished product. + +On the 24th of August the British army advanced to Bladensburg, five +miles from Washington, where a bridge spanned the eastern branch of the +Potomac. Here the hilly banks offered the Americans an excellent line of +defense. The Cabinet had gone to the Washington Navy Yard, by request +of General Winder, to tell him what he ought to do, but this final +conference was cut short by the news that the enemy was in motion. The +American forces were still mobilizing in helter-skelter fashion, and +there was a wild race to the scene of action by militiamen, volunteers, +unattached regulars, sailors, generals, citizens at large, Cabinet +members, and President Madison himself. + +Some Maryland militia hastily joined the Baltimore troops on the ridge +behind the village of Bladensburg, but part of General Winder's own +forces were still on the march and had not yet been assigned positions +when the advance column of British light infantry were seen to rush down +the slope across the river and charge straight for the bridge. They +bothered not to seek a ford or to turn a flank but made straight for the +American center. It was here that Winder's artillery and his steadiest +regiments were placed and they offered a stiff resistance, ripping up +the British vanguard with grapeshot and mowing men down right and left. +But these hardened British campaigners had seen many worse days than +this on the bloody fields of Spain, and they pushed forward, closing the +gaps in their ranks, until they had crossed the bridge and could find a +brief respite under cover of the trees which lined the stream. Advancing +again, they ingeniously discharged flights of rockets and with these +novel missiles they not only disorganized the militia in front of them +but also stampeded the battery mules. Most of the American army promptly +followed the mules and endeavored to set a new record for a foot race +from Bladensburg to Washington. The Cabinet members and other dignified +spectators were swept along in the rout. + +Commodore Joshua Barney and his four hundred weather-beaten bluejackets +declined to join this speed contest. They were used to rolling decks and +had no aptitude for sprinting, besides which they held the simple-minded +notion that their duty was to fight. Up to this time they had been held +back by orders and now arrived just as the American lines broke in wild +confusion. With them were five guns which they dragged into position +across the main highway and speedily unlimbered. The British were +hastening to overtake the fleeing enemy when they encountered this +awkward obstacle. Three times they charged Barney's battery and were +three times repulsed by sailors and marines who fought them with +muskets, cutlasses, and handspikes, and who served those five guns with +an efficiency which would have pleased Isaac Hull or Bainbridge. + +Unwilling to pay the price of direct attack, the British General Ross +wisely ordered his infantry to surround Barney's stubborn contingent. +The American troops who were presumed to support and protect this naval +battery failed to hold their ground and melted into the mob which was +swirling toward Washington. The sailors, though abandoned, continued to +fight until the British were firing into them from the rear and from +both flanks. Barney fell wounded and some of his gunners were bayoneted +with lighted fuses in their hands. Snarling, undaunted, the sailors +broke through the cordon and saved themselves, the last to leave a +battlefield upon which not one American soldier was visible. They had +used their ammunition to the end and they faced five thousand British +veterans; wherefore they had done what the navy expected of them. On a +day so shameful that no self-respecting American can read of it without +blushing they had enacted the one redeeming episode. Commodore Barney +described this action in a manner blunt and unadorned: + + The engagement continued, the enemy advancing and our own army + retreating before them, apparently in much disorder. At length the + enemy made his appearance on the main road, in force, in front of + my battery, and on seeing us made a halt. I reserved our fire. In a + few minutes the enemy again advanced, when I ordered an + eighteen-pounder to be fired, which completely cleared the road; + shortly after, a second and a third attempt was made by the enemy + to come forward but all were destroyed. They then crossed into an + open field and attempted to flank our right. He was met there by + three twelve-pounders, the marines under Captain Miller, and my men + acting as infantry, and again was totally cut up. By this time not + a vestige of the American army remained, except a body of five or + six hundred posted on a height on my right, from which I expected + much support from their fine situation. + +Barney was made a prisoner, although his men stood by him until he +ordered them to retreat. Loss of blood had made him too weak to be +carried from the field. General Ross and Admiral Cockburn saw to it +personally that he was well cared for and paid him the greatest respect +and courtesy. As for the other British officers, they, too, were +sportsmen who admired a brave man, even in the enemy's uniform, and +Barney reported that they treated him "like a brother." + +The American army had scampered to Washington with a total loss of ten +killed and forty wounded among the five thousand men who had been +assembled at Bladensburg to protect and save the capital. The British +tried to pursue but the afternoon heat was blistering and the rapid pace +set by the American forces proved so fatiguing to the invaders that many +of them were bowled over by sunstroke. To permit their men to run +themselves to death did not appear sensible to the British commanders, +and they therefore sat down to gain their breath before the final +promenade to Washington in the cool of the evening. They found a +helpless, almost deserted city from which the Government had fled and +the army had vanished. + +The march had been orderly, with a proper regard for the peaceful +inhabitants, but now Ross and Cockburn carried out their orders to +plunder and burn. At the head of their troops they rode to the Capitol, +fired a volley through the windows, and set fire to the building. Two +hundred men then sought the President's mansion, ransacked the rooms, +and left it in flames. Next day they burned the official buildings and +several dwellings and, content with the mischief thus wrought, abandoned +the forlorn city and returned to camp at Bladensburg. But more vexation +for the Americans was to follow, for a British fleet was working its way +up the Potomac to anchor off Alexandria. Here there was the same +frightened submission, with the people asking for terms and yielding up +a hundred thousand dollars' worth of flour, tobacco, naval stores, and +shipping. + +The British squadron then returned to Chesapeake Bay and joined the main +fleet which was preparing to attack Baltimore. The army of General Ross +was recalled to the transports and was set ashore at the mouth of the +Patapsco River while the ships sailed up to bombard Fort McHenry, where +the star-spangled banner waved. To defend Baltimore by land there had +been assembled more than thirteen thousand troops under command of +General Samuel Smith. The tragical farce of Bladensburg, however, had +taught him no lesson, and to oppose the five thousand toughened regulars +of General Ross he sent out only three thousand green militia most of +whom had never been under fire. They put up a wonderfully good fight and +deserved praise for it, but wretched leadership left them drawn up in an +open field, with both flanks unprotected, and they were soon driven +back. Next morning--the 13th of September--the British advanced but +found the roads so blocked by fallen trees and entanglements that +progress was slow and laborious. The intrenchments which crowned the +hills of Baltimore appeared so formidable that the British decided to +await action by the fleet and attempt a night assault. + +General Ross was killed during the advance, and this loss caused +confusion of council. The heavy ships were unable to lie within +effective range of the forts because of shoal water and a barrier of +sunken hulks, and Fort McHenry was almost undamaged by the bombardment +of the lighter craft. All through the night a determined fire was +returned by the American garrison of a thousand men, and, although the +British fleet suffered little, Vice-Admiral Cochrane concluded that a +sea attack was a hopeless enterprise. He so notified the army, which +thereupon retreated to the transports, and the fleet sailed down +Chesapeake Bay, leaving Baltimore free and unscathed. + +Among those who watched Fort McHenry by the glare of artillery fire +through this anxious night was a young lawyer from Washington, Francis +Scott Key, who had been detained by the British fleet down the bay while +endeavoring to effect an exchange of prisoners. He had a turn for +verse-making. Most of his poems were mediocre, but the sight of the +Stars and Stripes still fluttering in the early morning breeze inspired +him to write certain deathless stanzas which, when fitted to the old +tune of _Anacreon in Heaven_, his country accepted as its national +anthem. In this exalted moment it was vouchsafed him to sound a trumpet +call, clear and far-echoing, as did Rouget de Lisle when, with soul +aflame, he wrote the _Marseillaise_ for France. If it was the destiny of +the War of 1812 to weld the nation as a union, the spirit of the +consummation was expressed for all time in the lines which a hundred +million of free people sing today: + + O! say can you see by the dawn's early light, + What so proudly we hail'd at the twilight's last gleaming + Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight, + O'er the ramparts we watch'd, were so gallantly streaming? + +The luckless endeavor to capture Baltimore by sea and land was the last +British expedition that alarmed the Atlantic coast. The hostile army and +naval forces withdrew to Jamaica, from which base were planned and +undertaken the Louisiana campaign and the battle of New Orleans. + + * * * * * + +The brilliant leadership and operations of Andrew Jackson were so +detached and remote from all other activities that he may be said to +have fought a private war of his own. It had seemed clear to Madison +that, as a military precaution, the control of West Florida should be +wrenched from Spain, whose neutrality was dubious and whose Gulf +territory was the rendezvous of privateers, pirates, and other lawless +gentry, besides offering convenient opportunity for British invasion by +sea. As early as the autumn of 1812 troops were collected to seize and +hold this region for the duration of the war. The people of the +Mississippi Valley welcomed the adventure with enthusiasm. It was to be +aimed against a European power presumably friendly, but the sheer love +of conquest and old grudges to settle were motives which brushed +argument aside. Andrew Jackson was the major general of the Tennessee +militia, and so many hardy volunteers flocked to follow him that he had +to sift them out, mustering in at Nashville two thousand of whom he +said: "They are the choicest of our citizens. They go at our call to do +the will of Government. No constitutional scruples trouble them. Nay, +they will rejoice at the opportunity of placing the American eagle on +the ramparts of Pensacola, Mobile, and Fort St. Augustine." + +Where the fiery Andrew Jackson led, there was neither delay nor +hesitation. At once he sent his backwoods infantry down river in boats, +while the mounted men rode overland. Four weeks later the information +overtook him at Natchez that Congress had refused to sanction the +expedition. When the Secretary of War curtly told him that his corps was +"dismissed from public service," Andrew Jackson in a furious temper +ignored the order and marched his men back to Nashville instead of +disbanding them. He was not long idle, however, for the powerful +confederacy of the Creek Indians had been aroused by a visit of the +great Tecumseh, and the drums of the war dance were sounding in sympathy +with the tribes of the Canadian frontier. In Georgia and Alabama the +painted prophets and medicine men were spreading tales of Indian +victories over the white men at the river Raisin and Detroit. British +officials, moreover, got wind of a threatened uprising in the South and +secretly encouraged it. + +The Alabama settlers took alarm and left their log houses and clearings +to seek shelter in the nearest blockhouses and stockades. One of these +belonged to Samuel Mims, a half-breed farmer, who had prudently +fortified his farm on a bend of the Alabama River. A square stockade +enclosed an acre of ground around his house and to this refuge hastened +several hundred pioneers and their families, with their negro slaves, +and a few officers and soldiers. Here they were surprised and massacred +by a thousand naked Indians who called themselves Red Sticks because of +the wands carried by their fanatical prophets. Two hundred and fifty +scalps were carried away on poles, and when troops arrived they found +nothing but heaps of ashes, mutilated bodies, and buzzards feeding on +the carrion. + +From Fort Mims the Indians overran the country like a frightful scourge, +murdering and burning, until a vast region was emptied of its people. +First to respond to the pitiful calls for help was Tennessee, and within +a few weeks twenty-five hundred infantry and a thousand cavalry were +marching into Alabama, led by Andrew Jackson, who had not yet recovered +from a wound received in a brawl with Thomas H. Benton. Among Jackson's +soldiers were two young men after his own heart, David Crockett and +Samuel Houston. The villages of the fighting Creeks, at the Hickory +Ground, lay beyond a hundred and sixty miles of wilderness, but Jackson +would not wait for supplies. He plunged ahead, living somehow on the +country, until his men, beginning to break under the strain of +starvation and other hardships, declared open mutiny. But Jackson +cursed, threatened, argued them into obedience again and again. When +such persuasions failed, he planted cannon to sweep their lines and told +them they would have to pass over his dead body if they refused to go +on. + +The failure of other bodies of troops to support his movements and a +discouraged Governor of Tennessee could not daunt his purpose. He was +told that the campaign had failed and that the struggle was useless. To +this he replied that he would perish first and that energy and decision, +together with the fresh troops promised him, would solve the crisis. +Months passed, and the militia whose enlistments had expired went home, +while the other broke out in renewed and more serious mutinies. The few +regulars sent to Jackson he used as police to keep the militia in order. +The court-martialing and shooting of a private had a beneficial effect. + +With this disgruntled, unreliable, weary force, Jackson came, at +length, to a great war camp of the Creek Indians at a loop of the +Tallapoosa River called Horseshoe Bend. Here some ten hundred picked +warriors had built defensive works which were worthy of the talent of a +trained engineer. They also had as effective firearms as the white +troops who assaulted the stronghold. Andrew Jackson bombarded them with +two light guns, sent his men over the breastworks, and captured the +breastworks in hand-to-hand fighting in which quarter was neither asked +nor given. No more than a hundred Indians escaped alive, and dead among +the logs and brushwood were the three famous prophets, gorgeous in war +paint and feathers, who had preached the doctrine of exterminating the +paleface. + +The name of Andrew Jackson spread far and wide among the hostile Indian +tribes, and the fiercest chiefs dreaded it like a tempest. Some made +submission, and others joined in signing a treaty of peace which Jackson +dictated to them with terms as harsh as the temper of the man who had +conquered them. + +For his distinguished services Jackson was made a major general of the +regular army. He was then ordered to Mobile, where his impetuous anger +was aroused by the news that the British had landed at Pensacola and +had pulled down the Spanish flag. The splendor of this ancient seaport +had passed away, and with it the fleets of galleons whose sailors heard +the mission bells and saw the brass guns gleam from the stout fortresses +which in those earlier days guarded the rich commerce of the overland +trade route to St. Augustine. + +Aforetime one of the storied and romantic ports of the Spanish Main, +Pensacola now slumbered in unlovely decay and was no more than a village +to which resorted the smugglers of the Caribbean, the pirates of the +Gulf, and rascally men of all races and colors. The Spanish Governor +still lived in the palace with a few slovenly troops, but he could no +more than protest when a hundred royal marines came ashore from two +British sloops-of-war, and the commander, Major Nicholls, issued a +thunderous proclamation to the oppressed people of the American States +adjoining, letting them know that he was ready to assist them in +liberating their paternal soil from a faithless, imbecile Government. +They were not to be alarmed at his approach. They were to range +themselves under the standard of their forefathers or be neutral. + +Having fired this verbal blunderbuss, Major Nicholls sent a sloop-of-war +to enlist the support of Jean and Pierre Lafitte, enterprising brothers +who maintained on Barataria Bay in the Gulf, some forty miles south of +New Orleans, a most lucrative resort for pirates and slave traders. +There they defied the law and the devil, trafficking in spoils filched +from honest merchantmen whose crews had walked the plank. Pierre Lafitte +was a very proper figure of a pirate himself, true to the best +traditions of his calling. But withal he displayed certain gallantry to +atone for his villainies, for he spurned British gold and persuasions +and offered his sword and his men to defend New Orleans as one faithful +to the American cause. + +If it was the purpose of Nicholls to divert Jackson's attention from New +Orleans which was to be the objective of the British expedition +preparing at Jamaica, he succeeded admirably; but in deciding to attack +Jackson's forces at Mobile, he committed a grievous error. The worthy +Nicholls failed to realize that he had caught a Tartar in General +Jackson--"Old Hickory," the sinewy backwoodsman who would sooner fight +than eat and who was feared more than the enemy by his own men. As might +have been expected, the garrison of one hundred and sixty soldiers who +held Fort Bowyer, which dominated the harbor of Mobile, solemnly swore +among themselves that they would never surrender until the ramparts were +demolished over their heads and no more than a corporal's guard +survived. This was Andrew Jackson's way. + +Four British ships, with a total strength of seventy-eight guns, sailed +into Mobile Bay on the 15th of September and formed in line of battle, +easily confident of smashing Fort Bowyer with its twenty guns, while the +landing force of marines and Indians took position behind the sand dunes +and awaited the signal. The affair lasted no more than an hour. The +American gunnery overwhelmed the British squadron. The _Hermes_ +sloop-of-war was forced to cut her cable and drifted under a raking fire +until she ran aground and was blown up. The _Sophie_ withdrew after +losing many of her seamen, and the two other ships followed her to sea +after delaying to pick up the marines and Indians who merely looked on. +Daybreak saw the squadron spreading topsails to return to Pensacola. + +Andrew Jackson was eager to return the compliment but, not having troops +enough at hand to march on Pensacola, he had to wait and fret until his +force was increased to four thousand men. Then he hurled them at the +objective with an energy that was fairly astounding. On the 3d of +November he left Mobile and three days later was demanding the surrender +of Pensacola. The next morning he carried the town by storm, waited +another day until the British had evacuated and blown up Fort Barrancas, +six miles below the city, and then returned to Mobile. Sickness laid him +low but, enfeebled as he was, he made the journey to New Orleans by easy +stages and took command of such American troops as he could hastily +assemble to ward off the mightiest assault launched by Great Britain +during the War of 1812. It was known, and the warning had been repeated +from Washington, that the enemy intended sending a formidable expedition +against Louisiana, but when Jackson arrived early in December the +Legislature had voted no money, raised no regiments, devised no plan of +defense, and was unprepared to make any resistance whatever. + +A British fleet of about fifty sail, carrying perhaps a thousand guns, +had gathered for the task in hand. The decks were crowded with trained +and toughened troops, the divisions which had scattered the Americans at +Bladensburg with a volley and a shout, kilted Highlanders, famous +regiments which had earned the praise of the Iron Duke in the Spanish +Peninsula, and brawny negro detachments recruited in the West Indies. It +was such an army as would have been considered fit to withstand the +finest troops in Europe. In command was one of England's most brilliant +soldiers, General Sir Edward Pakenham, of whom Wellington had said, "my +partiality for him does not lead me astray when I tell you that he is +one of the best we have." He was the idol of his officers, who agreed +that they had never served under a man whose good opinion they were so +desirous of having, "and to fall in his estimation would have been worse +than death." In brief, he was a high-minded and knightly leader who had +seen twenty years of active service in the most important campaigns of +Europe. + +It was Pakenham's misfortune to be unacquainted with the highly +irregular and unconventional methods of warfare as practiced in America, +where troops preferred to take shelter instead of being shot down while +parading across open ground in solid columns. Improvised breastworks +were to him a novelty, and the lesson of Bunker Hill had been forgotten. +These splendidly organized and seasoned battalions of his were confident +of walking through the Americans at New Orleans as they had done at +Washington, or as Pakenham himself had smashed the finest French +infantry at Salamanca when Wellington told him, "Ned, d'ye see those +fellows on the hill? Throw your division into column; at them, and drive +them to the devil." + +Stranger than fiction was the contrast between the leaders and between +the armies that fought this extraordinary battle of New Orleans when, +after the declaration of peace, the United States won its one famous but +belated victory on land. On the northern frontier such a man as Andrew +Jackson might have changed the whole aspect of the war. He was a great +general with the rare attribute of reading correctly the mind of an +opponent and divining his course of action, endowed with an unyielding +temper and an iron hand, a relentless purpose, and the faculty of +inspiring troops to follow, obey, and trust him in the last extremity. +He was one of them, typifying their passions and prejudices, their +faults and their virtues, sharing their hardships as if he were a common +private, never grudging them the credit in success. + +In the light of previous events it is probable that any other American +general would have felt justified in abandoning New Orleans without a +contest. In the city itself were only eight hundred regulars newly +recruited and a thousand volunteers. But Jackson counted on the arrival +of the hard-bitted, Indian-fighting regiments of Tennessee who were +toiling through the swamps with their brigadiers, Coffee and Carroll. +The foremost of them reached New Orleans on the very day that the +British were landing on the river bank. Gaunt, unshorn, untamed were +these rough-and-tumble warriors who feared neither God nor man but were +glad to fight and die with Andrew Jackson. In coonskin caps, buckskin +shirts, fringed leggings, they swaggered into New Orleans, defiant of +discipline and impatient of restraint, hunting knives in their belts, +long rifles upon their shoulders. There they drank with seamen as wild +as themselves who served in the ships of Jackson's small naval force or +had offered to lend a hand behind the stockades, and with lean, +long-legged Yankees from down East, swarthy outlaws who sailed for +Pierre Lafitte, Portuguese and Norwegian wanderers who had deserted +their merchant vessels, and even Spanish adventurers from the West +Indies. + +The British fleet disembarked its army late in December after the most +laborious difficulties because of the many miles of shallow bayou and +toilsome marsh which delayed the advance. A week was required to carry +seven thousand men in small boats from the ships to the Isle aux Poix +on Lake Borgne chosen as a landing base. Thence a brigade passed in +boats up the bayou and on the 23d of December disembarked at a point +some three miles from the Mississippi and then by land and canal pushed +on to the river's edge. Here they were attacked at night by Jackson with +about two thousand troops, while a war schooner shelled the British left +from the river. It was a weird fight. Squads of Grenadiers, Highlanders, +Creoles, and Tennessee backwoodsmen blindly fought each other in the fog +with knives, fists, bayonets, and musket butts. Jackson then fell back +while the British brigade waited for more troops and artillery. + +On Christmas Day Pakenham took command of the forces at the front now +augmented to about six thousand, but hesitated to attack. And well he +might hesitate, in spite of his superior numbers, for Jackson had +employed his time well and now lay entrenched behind a parapet, +protected by a canal or ditch ten feet wide. With infinite exertion more +guns were dragged and floated to the front until eight heavy batteries +were in position. On the morning of the 1st of January the British +gunners opened fire and felt serenely certain of destroying the rude +defenses of cotton bales and cypress logs. To their amazement the +American artillery was served with far greater precision and effect by +the sailors and regulars who had been trained under Jackson's direction. +By noon most of the British guns had been silenced or dismounted and the +men killed or driven away. "Never was any failure more remarkable or +unlooked for than this," said one of the British artillery officers. +General Pakenham, in dismay, held a council of war. It is stated that +his own judgment was swayed by the autocratic Vice-Admiral Cochrane who +tauntingly remarked that "if the army could not take those mud-banks, +defended by ragged militia, he would undertake to do it with two +thousand sailors armed only with cutlases and pistols." + +Made cautious by this overwhelming artillery reverse, the British army +remained a week in camp, a respite of which every hour was priceless to +Andrew Jackson, for his mud-stained, haggard men were toiling with pick +and shovel to complete the ditches and log barricades. They could hear +the British drums and bugles echo in the gloomy cypress woods while the +cannon grumbled incessantly. The red-coated sentries were stalked and +the pickets were ambushed by the Indian fighters who spread alarm and +uneasiness. Meanwhile Pakenham was making ready with every resource +known to picked troops, who had charged unshaken through the slaughter +of Ciudad Rodrigo, Badajoz, and San Sebastian, and who were about to +justify once more the tribute to the British soldier: "Give him a plain, +unconditional order--go and do _that_--and he will do it with a cool, +self-forgetting pertinacity that can scarcely be too much admired." + +It was Pakenham's plan to hurl a flank attack against the right bank of +the Mississippi while he directed the grand assault on the east side of +the river where Jackson's strength was massed. To protect the flank, +Commodore Patterson of the American naval force had built a water +battery of nine guns and was supported by eight hundred militia. Early +in the morning of the 8th of January twelve hundred men in boats, under +the British Colonel Thornton, set out to take this west bank as the +opening maneuver of the battle. Their errand was delayed, although later +in the day they succeeded in defeating the militia and capturing the +naval guns. This minor victory, however, was too late to save Pakenham's +army which had been cut to pieces in the frontal assault. + +Jackson had arranged his main body of troops along the inner edge of +the small canal extending from a levee to a tangled swamp. The legendary +cotton bales had been blown up or set on fire during the artillery +bombardment and protection was furnished only by a raw, unfinished +parapet of earth and a double row of log breastworks with red clay +tamped between them. It was a motley army that Jackson led. Next to the +levee were posted a small regiment of regular infantry, a company of New +Orleans Rifles, a squad of dragoons who were handling a howitzer, and a +battalion of Creoles in bright uniforms. The line was extended by the +freebooters of Pierre Lafitte, their heads bound with crimson kerchiefs, +a group of American bluejackets, a battalion of blacks from San Domingo, +a few grizzled old French soldiers serving a brass gun, long rows of +tanned, saturnine Tennesseans, more regulars with a culverin, and rank +upon rank of homespun hunting shirts and long rifles, John Adair and his +savage Kentuckians, and, knee-deep in the swamp, the frontiersmen who +followed General Coffee to death or glory. + +A spirit of reckless elation pervaded this bizarre and terrible little +army, although it was well aware that during two and a half years almost +every other American force had been defeated by an enemy far less +formidable. The anxious faces were those of the men of Louisiana who +fought for hearth and home, with their backs to the wall. Many a brutal +tale had they heard of these war-hardened British veterans whose +excesses in Portugal were notorious and who had laid waste the harmless +hamlets of Maryland. All night Andrew Jackson's defenders stood on the +_qui vive_ until the morning mist of the 8th of January was dispelled +and the sunlight flashed on the solid ranks of British bayonets not more +than four hundred yards away. + +At the signal rocket the enemy swept forward toward the canal, with +companies of British sappers bearing scaling ladders and fascines of +sugar cane. They moved with stolid unconcern, but the American cannon +burst forth and slew them until the ditch ran red with blood. With +cheers the invincible British infantry tossed aside its heavy knapsacks, +scrambled over the ditch, and broke into a run to reach the earthworks +along which flamed the sparse line of American rifles. Against such +marksmen as these there was to be no work with the bayonet, for the +assaulting column literally fell as falls the grass under the keen +scythe. The survivors retired, however, only to join a fresh attack +which was rallied and led by Pakenham himself. + +He died with his men, but once more British pluck attempted the +impossible, and the Highland brigade was chosen to lead this forlorn +hope. That night the pipers wailed _Lochaber no more_ for the mangled +dead of the MacGregors, the MacLeans, and the MacDonalds who lay in +windrows with their faces to the foe. This was no Bladensburg holiday, +and the despised Americans were paying off many an old score. Two +thousand of the flower of Britain's armies were killed or wounded in the +few minutes during which the two assaults were so rashly attempted in +parade formation. Coolly, as though at a prize turkey shoot on a tavern +green, the American riflemen fired into these masses of doomed men, and +every bullet found its billet. + +On the right of the line a gallant British onslaught led by Colonel +Rennie swept over a redoubt and the American defenders died to a man. +But the British wave was halted and rolled back by a tempest of bullets +from the line beyond, and the broken remnant joined the general retreat +which was sounded by the British trumpeters. An armistice was granted +next day and in shallow trenches the dead were buried, row on row, while +the muffled drums rolled in honor of three generals, seven colonels, +and seventy-five other officers who had died with their men. Behind the +log walls and earthworks loafed the unkempt, hilarious heroes of whom +only seventy-one had been killed or hurt, and no more than thirteen of +these in the grand assault which Pakenham had led. "Old Hickory" had +told them that they could lick their weight in wildcats, and they were +ready to agree with him. + +Magnificent but useless, after all, excepting as a proud heritage for +later generations and a vindication of American valor against odds, was +this battle of New Orleans which was fought while the Salem ship, +_Astrea_, Captain John Derby, was driving home to the westward with the +news that a treaty of peace had been signed at Ghent. With a sense of +mutual relief the United States and England had concluded a war in which +neither nation had definitely achieved its aims. The treaty failed to +mention such vital issues as the impressment of seamen and the injury to +commerce by means of paper blockades, while on the other hand England +relinquished its conquest of the Maine coast and its claim to military +domination of the Great Lakes. English statesmen were heartily tired of +a war in which they could see neither profit nor glory, and even the +Duke of Wellington had announced it as his opinion "that no military +advantage can be expected if the war goes on, and I would have great +reluctance in undertaking the command unless we made a serious effort +first to obtain peace without insisting upon keeping any part of our +conquests." The reverses of first-class British armies at Plattsburg, +Baltimore, and New Orleans had been a bitter blow to English pride. +Moreover, British commerce on the seas had been largely destroyed by a +host of Yankee privateers, and the common people in England were +suffering from scarcity of food and raw materials and from high prices +to a degree comparable with the distress inflicted by the German +submarine campaign a century later. And although the terms of peace were +unsatisfactory to many Americans, it was implied and understood that the +flag and the nation had won a respect and recognition which should +prevent a recurrence of such wrongs as had caused the War of 1812. One +of the Peace Commissioners, Albert Gallatin, a man of large experience, +unquestioned patriotism, and lucid intelligence, set it down as his +deliberate verdict: + + The war has been productive of evil and of good, but I think the + good preponderates. Independent of the loss of lives, and of the + property of individuals, the war has laid the foundation of + permanent taxes and military establishments which the Republicans + had deemed unfavorable to the happiness and free institutions of + our country. But under our former system we were becoming too + selfish, too much attached exclusively to the acquisition of + wealth, above all, too much confined in our political feelings to + local and state objects. The war has renewed and reinstated the + national feeling and character which the Revolution had given, and + which were daily lessening. The people have now more general + objects of attachment, with which their pride and political + opinions are connected. They are more Americans; they feel and act + more as a nation; and I hope that the permanency of the Union is + thereby better secured. + +After a hundred years, during which this peace was unbroken, a commander +of the American navy, speaking at a banquet in the ancient Guildhall of +London, was bold enough to predict: "If the time ever comes when the +British Empire is seriously menaced by an external enemy, it is my +opinion that you may count upon every man, every dollar, and every drop +of blood of your kindred across the sea." + +The prediction came true in 1917, and traditional enmities were +extinguished in the crusade against a mutual and detestable foe. The +candid naval officer became Vice-Admiral William S. Sims, commanding +all the American ships and sailors in European waters, where the Stars +and Stripes and the British ensign flew side by side, and the squadrons +toiled and dared together in the finest spirit of admiration and +respect. Out from Queenstown sailed an American destroyer flotilla +operated by a stern, inflexible British admiral who was never known to +waste a compliment. At the end of the first year's service he said to +the officers of these hard-driven vessels: + + I wish to express my deep gratitude to the United States officers + and ratings for the skill, energy, and unfailing good nature which + they have all so consistently shown and which qualities have so + materially assisted in the war by enabling ships of the Allied + Powers to cross the ocean in comparative freedom. + + _To command you is an honor, to work with you is a pleasure, to + know you is to know the finest traits of the Anglo-Saxon race._ + +The United States waged a just war in 1812 and vindicated the principles +for which she fought, but as long as the poppies blow in Flanders fields +it is the clear duty, and it should be the abiding pleasure, of her +people to remember, not those far-off days as foemen, but these latter +days as comrades in arms. + + + + +BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE + + +Of the scores of books that have been written about the War of 1812, +many deal with particular phases, events, or personalities, and most of +them are biased by partisan feeling. This has been unfortunately true of +the textbooks written for American schools, which, by ignoring defeats +and blunders, have missed the opportunity to teach the lessons of +experience. By all odds the best, the fairest, and the most complete +narrative of the war as written by an American historian is the +monumental work of Henry Adams, _History of the United States of +America_, 9 vols. (1889-91). The result of years of scholarly research, +it is also most excellent reading. + +Captain Mahan's _Sea Power in its Relation to the War of 1812_, 2 vols. +(1905), is, of course, the final word concerning the naval events, but +he also describes with keen analysis the progress of the operations on +land and fills in the political background of cause and effect. Theodore +Roosevelt's _The Naval War of 1812_ (1882) is spirited and accurate but +makes no pretensions to a general survey. Akin to such a briny book as +this but more restricted in scope is _The Frigate Constitution_ (1900) +by Ira N. Hollis, or Rodney Macdonough's _Life of Commodore Thomas +Macdonough_ (1909). Edgar Stanton Maclay in _The History of the Navy_, 3 +vols. (1902), has written a most satisfactory account, which contains +some capital chapters describing the immortal actions of the Yankee +frigates. + +Benson J. Lossing's _The Pictorial Field Book of the War of 1812_ (1868) +has enjoyed wide popularity because of his gossipy, entertaining +quality. The author gathered much of his material at first hand and had +the knack of telling a story; but he is not very trustworthy. + +As a solemn warning, the disasters of the American armies have been +employed by several military experts. The ablest of these was Bvt. Major +General Emory Upton, whose invaluable treatise, _The Military Policy of +the United States_ (1904), was pigeonholed in manuscript by the War +Department and allowed to gather dust for many years. He discusses in +detail the misfortunes of 1812 as conclusive proof that the national +defense cannot be entrusted to raw militia and untrained officers. Of a +similar trend but much more recent are Frederic L. Huidekoper's _The +Military Unpreparedness of the United States_ (1915) and Major General +Leonard Wood's _Our Military History; Its Facts and Fallacies_ (1916). + +Of the British historians, William James undertook the most diligent +account of them all, calling it _A Full and Correct Account of the +Military Occurrences of the Late War between Great Britain and the +United States of America_, 2 vols. (1818). It is irritating reading for +an American because of an enmity so bitter that facts are willfully +distorted and glaring inaccuracies are accepted as truth. As a naval +historian James undertook to explain away the American victories in +single-ship actions, a difficult task in which he acquitted himself with +poor grace. Theodore Roosevelt is at his best when he chastises James +for his venomous hatred of all things American. + +To the English mind the War of 1812 was only an episode in the mighty +and prolonged struggle against Napoleon, and therefore it finds but +cursory treatment in the standard English histories. To Canada, however, +the conflict was intimate and vital, and the narratives written from +this point of view are sounder and of more moment than those produced +across the water. _The Canadian War of 1812_ (1906), published almost a +century after the event, is the work of an Englishman, Sir Charles P. +Lucas, whose lifelong service in the Colonial Office and whose thorough +acquaintance with Canadian history have both been turned to the best +account. Among the Canadian authors in this field are Colonel Ernest A. +Cruikshank and James Hannay. To Colonel Cruikshank falls the greater +credit as a pioneer with his _Documentary History of the Campaign upon +the Niagara Frontier_, 8 vols. (1896-). Hannay's _How Canada Was Held +for the Empire; The Story of the War of 1812_ (1905) displays careful +study but is marred by the controversial and one-sided attitude which +this war inspired on both sides of the border. + +Colonel William Wood has avoided this flaw in his _War with the United +States_ (1915) which was published as a volume of the _Chronicles of +Canada_ series. As a compact and scholarly survey, this little book is +recommended to Americans who comprehend that there are two sides to +every question. The Canadians fought stubbornly and successfully to +defend their country against invasion in a war whose slogan "Free Trade +and Sailors' Rights" was no direct concern of theirs. + + + + +INDEX + +Adair, John, 215 +Adams, Henry, quoted, 20, 117 +_Adams_ (ship), 141 +Alabama, Indians aroused in, 201 +_Alabama_ raids compared with those of _Essex_, 154 +Albany, militia at Sackett's Harbor from, 77 +Alexandria, British fleet at, 197 +Allen, Captain W. H., 142, 143 +Amherstburg, Canadian post, 11; + Hull plans assault, 11, 14, 16; + Brock at, 17; + defeat of British, 21, 42; + Harrison against, 24, 25; + Procter commands, 26; + British advance from, 27 +Anderson, James, of the _Essex_, 162 +Annapolis, British fleet at, 187 +_Argus_ (brig), 94; + and the _Pelican_, 142-44 +_Ariel_ (brig), 57, 62 +Armstrong, John, Secretary of War, 37, 175; + plans offensive, 72, 80, 84; + and Wilkinson, 81-82; + orders winter quarters, 82 +Army, in 1812, 5-8; + state control, 6-8; + incapable officers, 10-11; + at Niagara, 14-15; + Hull's forces, 15; + mutiny, 17; + failure to supply, 24; + forces under Winchester, 25; + at New Orleans, 210-11 +_Astrea_ (ship), 218 +_Avon_ (British brig), fight with _Wasp_, 146-47 +Bainbridge, Captain William, 90, 95, 117, 121, 127, 136-137, 138 +Baltimore, British fleet at, 187; + attack on, 197-99, 219 +Bangor (Me.), British land at, 187 +Barclay, Captain R. H., British officer, 52, 53, 54, 56, 60, 61 +Barney, Commodore Joshua, 92, 189, 193, 194; + account of battle of Bladensburg, 195 +Barrancas, Fort, 208 +Barron, Commodore James, 91 +Belfast (Me.), British at, 187 +_Belvidera_ (British frigate), 96; + fight with _President_, 94-95 +Benton, T. H., and Jackson, 202 +_Betsy_ (brig), 104 +Biddle, Lieutenant James, on the _Wasp_, 111-12 +Biddle, Captain Nicholas, 92 +Black Rock, navy yard at, 39, 48; + Elliott at, 49; + invasion of Canada from, 70; + Indians against, 88 +Bladensburg, battle, 191-96 +Blakely, Captain Johnston, 137, 144, 145, 146, 147 +Blockade, 124-25, 148, 185 +Blyth, Captain Samuel, 140 +Boerstler, Colonel, 76 +_Bonne Citoyenne_ (British sloop-of-war), 126 +Bowyer, Fort, 206, 207 +_Boxer_, duel with _Enterprise_, 189-40 +Boyd, General J. P., 74, 76, 83 +Brewster (Mass.), war levy, 188 +Brock, Major General Isaac, British commander, 12-13, 14; + against Hull, 15, 17; + Hull surrenders Detroit to, 18-19; + on Elliott's victory, 40; + on Niagara River, 65; + killed, 66 +Broke, Captain P. V., of the _Shannon_, 96, 128-29, 130, 134, 138-39 +Brown, General Jacob, at Sackett's Harbor, 77, 78, 79; + at Chrystler's Farm, 82-83; + Niagara campaign, 167, 168, 169, 170; + at Lundy's Lane, 171-72, 191 +Budd, George, second lieutenant on _Chesapeake_, 134 +Buffalo, Elliott at, 38; + difficulty of taking supplies to, 47; + American regulars sent to, 65; + base of operations, 70, 72; + Indians against, 88 +Burrows, Captain William, of the _Enterprise_, 139 + +Cabinet advises General Winder, 192 + +_Caledonia_ (British brig), 38-39; + Elliott captures, 39; + in American squadron, 49-50, 56 +Canada, "On to Canada!" slogan of frontiersmen, 4; + vulnerable point in War of 1812, 9, 10; + population and extent, 10; + plans for invasion of, 13-14; + Hull abandons invasion of, 16; + Niagara campaign, 64 _et seq._, 167-77 +Canning, George, British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, 92 +Carden, Captain J. S., of the _Macedonian_, 114, 115, 116 +Cass, Colonel Lewis, 18 +Castine, British land at, 187 +Champlain, Lake, Dearborn on, 71; + Hampton in command, 80, 81; + Macdonough's victory, 166 _et seq._ +Chandler, General John, 74, 75 +Chateauguay River, Hampton on, 84, 85 +Chauncey, Captain Isaac, leads sailors from New York to Buffalo, 39; + in command of naval forces on Lakes Erie and Ontario, 47, 48; + extreme caution, 49, 55, 56, 170-71; + on Lake Ontario, 49, 50, 63; + and Perry, 50-51, 55, 56; + and Niagara campaign, 72, 73, 74, 77, 82, 170-71 +_Cherub_ (British sloop-of-war), 157, 159, 160, 161 +_Chesapeake_ (frigate), and _Leopard_, 91; + Lawrence on, 96, 127-28; + defeated by _Shannon_, 128-39; + Allen on, 142 +Chesapeake Bay, blockade of 185; + Cockburn in, 186; + British army comes to, 189; + British fleet in, 197 +Chippawa, Brock's forces at 65, 67; + battle, 168-70 +Chrystler's Farm, battle, 83 +_Chub_ (British schooner), 180 +Clay, Brigadier General Green, 31 +Clay, Henry, on conquest of Canada, 9 +Cleveland, Harrison's headquarters at, 33 +Cochrane, Vice Admiral Alexander, 198, 218 +Cockburn, Rear Admiral George, 186, 195, 196 +Cod, Cape, British raids on, 188 +Coffee, General John, 211, 215 +_Confiance_ (British frigate), 179, 180 +Congress, declares war on Great Britain (1812), 4; + and the navy, 90; + votes prize money for _Constitution_, 107; + prize money for _Wasp_, 113; + and maritime trouble with France, 152; + refuses to sanction Jackson's expedition, 201 +_Congress_ (frigate), 94, 141 +Connecticut, attitude toward War of 1812, 7 +_Constellation_ (frigate), 92, 141, 187 +_Constitution_ (frigate), 2, 125; + Hull and, 95, 116, 128; + now in Boston Navy Yard, 95-96; + encounter with British squadron, 96-99; + and _Guerriere_, 100-07, 108, 122-23; + "Old Ironsides," 101; + under Bainbridge, 116-17; + health conditions on, 117-18; + encounter with _Java_, 118-21, 123-24, 154; + Lawrence and, 126; + influence, 139; + in 1813, 141; + gains open sea in 1814, 147 +Creek Indians, 201 +Creighton, Captain J. O., 137 +Crockett, David, 202 +Croghan, Major George, at Fort Stephenson, 34-35, 36, 38, 46 +Crowninshield, Captain George, 136 +_Cyane_ (British frigate), 147 + +Dacres, Captain John, of the _Guerriere_, 100, 101, 102, 103, 104 +Dayton (O.), Hull takes command at, 12 +Dearborn, Major General Henry, plans invasion of Canada, 13, 73; + commander-in-chief of American forces, 14; + incompetency, 14; + and Niagara campaign, 64, 65, 74-75, 76; + campaign against Montreal, 71-72; + wishes to retire, 72, 75; + Armstrong and, 72; + Brown reports battle of Sackett's Harbor to, 78-79; + retired, 80; + age, 117 +Dearborn, Fort (Chicago), burned, 19; + massacre, 20 +Decatur, Captain Stephen, 138; + and the _Philadelphia_ (1804), 92; + squadron commander, 94; + on the _United States_, 114, 115; + on the _President_, 148, 149; +Defiance, Fort, 24 +Delaware Bay, blockade of, 185 +Derby, Captain John, 218 +Detroit, 64; + first campaign from, 11, 14; + Hull at, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16; + mutiny at, 15; + surrender of, 17-18, 19, 20, 22, 106-07; + in British hands, 31; + Procter abandons, 42; + Harrison returns to, 45 +_Detroit_ (brig), taken from Hull, 38; + Elliott captures, 39-40 +_Detroit_ (British ship), 54, 56, 57, 60 +Downes, Lieutenant John, 155, 156 +Downie, Captain George, British officer, 178, 183 +Drummond, General Sir George Gordon, 172 + +_Eagle_ (brig), 180 +Eastham (Mass.), war levy, 188 +Eastport (Me.), captured, 187 +Elliott, Lieutenant J. D., builds fleet on Lake Erie, 38, 48; + captures _Caledonia_ and _Detroit_, 39-40; + with Perry, 54, 58 +_Endymion_ (British frigate), 150 +_Enterprise_ (brig), encounter with _Boxer_, 139-40 +_Epervier_ (British brig), fight with _Peacock_, 144 +Erie, Barclay off, 52; + _see also_ Presqu' Isle +Erie, Fort, Elliott captures ships near, 39; + Brock at, 65; + Americans capture, 168; + Scott and Brown occupy, 173 +Erie, Lake, Hull's schooner captured on, 12; + Perry on, 21, 40 _et seq._; + Harrison on shores of, 24, 30; + Chauncey in command on, 47, 48 +_Essex_ (frigate), 141, 147; + last cruise, 151 _et seq._; + building of, 153; + capture by Hillyar, 161-65 +_Essex, Junior_ (cruiser), 156, 159 +Eustis, William, Secretary of War, 24 + +Faneuil Hall, banquet for Hull at, 106 +Farragut, Admiral D. G., 181; + motto, 46; + cited, _59_; + midshipman on _Essex_, 161-62 +_Finch_ (British schooner), 180 +Florida, West, Jackson and, 200 +France, American feeling toward, 3; + as maritime enemy, 151-52, 154 +Fredericktown burned, 186 +"Free Trade and Sailors' Rights," 3, 91, 137 +Frenchtown, _see_ Raisin River +_Frolic_ (British brig), encounter with _Wasp_, 108-13 + +Galapagos Islands, _Essex_ at, 155 +Gallatin, Albert, quoted, 219-220 +George, Fort, British fort, 67; + evacuated by British, 74-75; + retaken, 87 +Georgia, Indians aroused in, 201 +_Georgiana_ (British whaling ship), _Essex_ captures, 155; + renamed _Essex, Junior_, 156 +Great Britain, and free sea, 2-3; + Indian wars, 4; + war declared on (1812), 4; + and Indians, 10; + and Napoleon, 124; + blockading measures, 124-25 +Great Lakes, British on, 38 +_Guerriere_ (British frigate), 2, 96; + encounter with _Constitution_, 100-07, 108, 122-23; + celebration of capture, 116 + +Hamilton, Alexander, Izard aide to, 175 +Hampton, General Wade, in campaign against Montreal, 80, 81, 83-84, 86; + and Wilkinson, 80-81; + cause of failure, 86; + age, 117 +Hampton, British foray on village of, 187 +Haraden, Captain Jonathan, 153 +Harrison, General W. H., campaign, 22 _et seq._; + report to Secretary of War, 29-30; + Croghan and, 35; + Armstrong on, 37-38; + and Perry's victory, 41, 63; + resumes campaign, 42; + becomes President of United States, 45 +Havre de Grace burned, 186 +Hazen, Benjamin, of the _Essex,_ 162 +_Henry_ (brig), 186, 187 +_Hermes_ (British sloop-of-war), 207 +Hillyar, Captain James, British officer, 157, 158, 159-60, 161, 164-65 +_Hornet_ (sloop-of-war), 48, 94; + Lawrence on, 126; + and _Peacock_, 127; + in South American waters, 154 +Horseshoe Bend, battle, 204 +Houston, Samuel, 202 +Hull, Captain Isaac, of the _Constitution_, 95, 128, 138; + and British squadron, 96, 97, 98, 99; + and _Guerriere_, 101, 102, 103, 106; + and Dacres, 104; + victory celebrated, 106, 107, 108; + gives up command of _Constitution_, 116-17; + at Lawrence's funeral, 136 +Hull, General William, 34, 68, 71, 88, 98; + Detroit campaign, 11 _et seq._; + troops, 15, 17; + surrender, 19; + court-martial, 19-20; + Harrison and, 22; + age, 117 + +Impressment of seamen, 90 +Indian wars, enmity toward Great Britain because of, 4 +Indians, British and, 10, 55; + against Americans, 16, 67, 76; + in Canadian army, 17; + Procter and, 26; + abandon British cause, 44; + ravage frontier, 88; + massacre at Fort Mims, 202 +Izard, General George, 175, 176 + +Jackson, Andrew, at New Orleans, 17-18, 208 _et seq._; + and Florida expedition, 200-03; + at Horseshoe Bend, 204; + at Pensacola, 207-08 +_Jacob Jones_ (destroyer), 109 +_Java_ (British frigate), encounter with _Constitution_, 118-20, 154 +Jefferson, Thomas, and gunboats, 8-9; + on conquest of Canada, 9-10 +Johnson, Allen, _Jefferson and his Colleagues_, cited, 2 +Johnson, Colonel R. M., 41, 43, 44, 46; +Jones, Captain, Jacob, of the _Wasp_, 109, 110, 111, 113; +Jones, John Paul, cited, 59; + American naval officers serve with, 92; + on the _Ranger_, 141 + +Kentucky, defends western border, 22; + militia, 24, 31 +Key, F. S., _Star-Spangled Banner_, 198-99 +Kingston, plan to capture, 72, 73; + Prevost embarks at, 77 + +_Lady Prevost_ (British schooner), 56 +Lafitte, Jean, 206 +Lafitte, Pierre, 206, 211, 215 +Lambert, Captain Henry, of the _Java_, 118 +Lang, Jack, sailor on the _Wasp_, 111 +_La Vengeance_ (French ship) and _Constellation_, 93 +Lawrence, Captain James, of the _Chesapeake_, 96, 127-28, 129-30; + on the _Hornet_, 126, 127; + fights _Shannon_, 130-136; + death, 131, 133, 135; + account of funeral, 136-37 +_Lawrence_ (brig), 49, 53, 55, 56, 57, 58 +_Leopard_ and _Chesapeake_, 91, 142 +_Levant_ (British sloop-of-war), fight with _Constitution_, 147 +Lewis, General Morgan, 75-76, 83 +_Linnet_ (British brig), 180 +_L'Insurgente_ (French ship) and _Constellation_, 92 +Long Island Sound, British fleet in, 188 +Ludlow, Lieutenant A. C, of the _Chesapeake_, 133,136, 137 +Lundy's Lane, battle, 2, 171-173 + +McArthur, Colonel, 18 +Macdonough, Commodore Thomas, on Lake Champlain, 166, 167, 171, 178, 179-84 +_Macedonian_ (British frigate), Decatur captures, 114-16, 142; + as American frigate, 141 +McHenry, Fort, 197, 198 +Mackinac, fall of, 19, 20 +Mackinaw, _see_ Mackinac +M'Knight, Lieutenant, S. D., of the _Essex_, 163 +Macomb, Brigadier General Alexander, 177 +Madison, James, and Hull, 12, 19; + reviews troops, 191; + at battle of Bladensburg, 192; + policy as to West Florida, 200 +Mahan, Captain A. T., quoted, 128 +Maine, British raids, 187 +Malden (Amherstburg), 43; + _see also_ Amherstburg +Massachusetts, attitude toward War of 1812, 7, 91 +Maumee Rapids, Harrison at, 30 +Maumee River, Hull at, 12 +Meigs, Fort, massacre at, 20, 32; + built, 30; + Procter besieges, 31-32, 36; + Harrison again at, 33 +Merchant marine, 93 +Miller, Captain, at battle of Bladensburg, 195 +Miller, Colonel John, 17, 33 +Mims, Samuel, 202 +Mims, Fort, massacre, 202 +Mississippi Valley and invasion of Florida, 200 +Mobile, Jackson at, 204, 206-207, 208 +Montreal, plan of attack, 14; + campaign against, 71, 82-87 +Moraviantown, Procter goes to, 42 +Morris, Lieutenant Charles, on the _Constitution_, 101, 107 +Mulcaster, Captain W. H., 83 +Murray, Colonel, British officer, 87 + +Napoleon, Great Britain and, 2; + offenses against American commerce, 8 +Navy, 8-9,38; + on Lake Erie, 46 _et seq._; + on the sea, 89 _et seq._; + augmented by private subscriptions, 152; + victory on Lake Champlain, 166 _et seq._ +Nelson, Horatio, Viscount, quoted, 141 +New England, attitude toward War of 1812, 7-8; + British raids in, 187-88 +New Orleans, battle of, 166, 175, 208-18, 219 +New York, apprehension in, 148 +Niagara, campaign planned, 13-14; + American forces at, 14-15; + campaign, 64 _et seq._; + renewal of struggle for region of (1814), 167-77 +_Niagara_ (brig), 49, 53, 54, 56, 58, 59 +Niagara, Fort, 87 +Nicholls, Major Edward, 205 +Norfolk, Warren attacks, 187 +Northwest Territory regained for United States, 44, 63 + +Ohio, Hull sends troops to, 16; + defends western border, 22; + militia, 31 +"Old Ironsides," 101, see also _Constitution_ +Ontario, Lake, Chauncey in command on, 47, 48, 49, 50; + battle at Sackett's Harbor, 77-79 +Orne, Captain W. B., 104 + +Paine, R. D., _The Old Merchant Marine_, cited, 93 (note) +Pakenham, General Sir Edward, at New Orleans, 209-210, 212, 213, 214, 216-17 +Patterson, Commodore D. T., at New Orleans, 214 +_Peacock_ (British brig) and _Hornet_, 127 +_Peacock_ (sloop-of-war), 144 +_Pelican_ (British brig), 142 +Pennsylvania, brigade in Western campaign from, 23; + militia at Erie, 52-53 +Pensacola, British pull down Spanish flag at, 204-05; + Jackson at, 207-08 +Perry, O. H., 180-81; + victory on Lake Erie, 21, 46 _et seq._, 166; + and Harrison, 41, 63; + famous message, 41, 62 +_Philadelphia_ (frigate), 92 +_Phoebe_ (British frigate) and _Essex_, 157-65 +_Pilot_, The, on destruction of the _Java_, 123-24 +Plattsburg, Dearborn at, 71; + troops moved from, 74, 80; + Izard at, 175, 176; + Prevost at, 176, 177,178 +Plattsburg Bay, battle of, 177-184, 219 +_Poictiers_ (British ship), 113 +_Pomone_ (British frigate), 150 +Porter, Captain David, of the _Essex_, 151; + raids on British whaling fleet, 154-56; + _Phoebe_ and _Cherub_ seek, 157-64; + account of surrender of _Essex_, 163-64 +_President_ (frigate), 141, 147, 148, 149; + encounters _Belvidera_, 94-95; + Rodgers in command of, 101; + captured, 150 +Presqu' Isle (Erie), navy yard at, 48; + _see also_ Erie +Prevost, Sir George, Governor General of Canada, 54; + crosses Lake Ontario, 77; + defends Montreal, 84-85; + goes to Plattsburg, 176, 177; + quoted, 176-77, 178-79 +Privateers, 93 +Procter, Colonel Henry, battle of the Raisin, 26; + character, 26; + and Harrison, 30, 34, 37-38; + at Fort Meigs, 31-32, 33; + at Fort Stephenson, 36; + blames Indians for defeat, 36-37; + Brock reports to, 40-41; + and Tecumseh, 42; + official disgrace, 45 +Put-in Bay, Perry at, 54 + +_Queen Charlotte_ (British ship), 56, 58, 60 +Queenston, attack on, 65-67; + British at, 168, 170 +Quincy, Josiah, 91 + +Raisin River, massacre at, 20, 26-30, 36; + Winchester at Frenchtown, 25 +_Ranger_ (frigate), 141 +_Rattlesnake_ (brig), 137 +_Reindeer_ (British brig), 145 +Rennie, Colonel, British officer, 217 +Riall, General Phineas, 168,170 +Ripley, General E. W., 173 +Ripley, John, seaman on _Essex_, 162 +Rodgers, Commodore John, 94, 95, 101, 113-14 +Ross, General Robert, 188, 194; + and Barney, 195; + in Washington, 196; + against Baltimore, 197; + killed, 198 +Rush, Richard, quoted, 132 + +Sackett's Harbor, Lake Ontario, invasion of Canada planned from, 13-14; + Chauncey, at, 47, 48; + in Niagara campaign, 72, 74, 76-77; + battle at, 77-79; + campaign against Montreal, 80, 81; + Brown at, 167; + fleet at, 170 +St. Lawrence River, plan to gain control of, 72; + Wilkinson's army descends, 80; + Wilkinson abandons voyage down, 83-84 +Salaberry, Colonel de, 85, 86 +Salem contributes _Essex_ to navy, 152 +Salem Marine Society, 136 +_Saratoga_ (flagship), 180 +_Scorpion_ (brig), 57, 62 +Scott, Michael, _Tom Cringle's Log_, quoted, 145 +Scott, Winfield, quoted, 5; + at Queenston, 66; + at Chippawa, 68, 168-69; + taken prisoner, 68; + in control of army, 73; + at Fort George, 74; + on Wilkinson, 80; + trains Brown's troops, 167; + at Lundy's Lane, 171, 172,191; + wounded, 173 +Seneca, Harrison at, 37, 38, 41 +_Shannon_ (British frigate), encounter with _Constitution_, 96-99; + defeats _Chesapeake_, 128-39 +Shipbuilding on Lake Erie, 50 +Sims, Vice-Admiral W. S., 220-21 +Smith, General Samuel, 197 +Smyth, Brigadier General Alexander, 65, 66, 68-69, 70-71 +_Sophie_ (British ship), 207 +Spain and West Florida, 200 +Squaw Island, Elliott at, 38 +Stephenson, Fort, Harrison at, 34; + Croghan at, 36, 46; + Procter's defeat, 36, 37-38 +Stewart, Captain Charles, 136, 147 +Stonington, British bombard, 188 +Stony Creek, battle, 75 + +Tecumseh, 16, 18, 31, 32, 34, 42; + death, 44; + and Creek Indians, 201 +_Tenedos_ (British frigate), 150 +Thames River, Procter's defeat at, 43-44 +Thornton, Colonel Sir William, British officer, 214 +_Ticonderoga_ (schooner), 180 +_Times_, London, account of fight of _Guerriere_, 122-23 +Tippecanoe campaign, 20 +Toronto, _see_ York +Transportation, effect of blockade on, 148 + +_United States_ (frigate), 94, 139; + captures _Macedonian_, 114-116, 142; + and blockade, 141 +Upper Sandusky, Harrison's headquarters, 33, 34 + +Valparaiso, _Essex_ at, 155, 156, 157; + _Essex_ and _Phoebe_ at, 158 _et seq._ +Van Rensselaer, Major General Stephen, 64, 65, 66, 68, 71 +Vincent, General John, British officer, 74, 75 +Virginia, brigades from, 23 + +War of 1812, a victory, 1; + causes, 2-4; + army, 5-8; + "Mr. Madison's War," 8; + navy, 8-9, 89 _et seq._; + campaign in West, 11 _et seq._; + Perry and Lake Erie, 46 _et seq._; + the Northern Front, 64 _et seq._; + victory on Lake Champlain, 166 _et seq._; + peace with honor, 185 _et seq._; + bibliography, 223-25 +Warren, Admiral Sir J. B., 138, 185, 187 +Warrington, Captain Lewis, of the _Peacock_, 144 +Washington, George, on need of regular army, 6-7; + and Hull, 11 +Washington, Capitol burned, 73, 196; + naval ball to celebrate capture of _Guerriere_, 116; + British fleet causes consternation in, 187; + British decide to attack, 189; + capture of, 166, 190-96 +_Wasp_ (sloop-of-war), 48; + encounter with _Frolic_, 108-13; + last cruise, 144-47; + disappearance, 147 +Wellfleet (Mass.), war levy, 188 +Whinyates, Captain Thomas, of the _Frolic_, 109, 112 +Wilkinson, James, succeeds Dearborn, 80; + character, 80; + Hampton and, 81, 84; + and Armstrong, 81; + campaign, 82, 83, 84, 86, 87; + age, 117 +Winchester, General James, as a leader, 24-25; + at Raisin River, 25, 26-27, 28 +Winder, General W. H., in Niagara campaign, 74, 75; + at Washington, 190-91, 192 +Wool, Captain J. E., at Queenston, 66 + +Yeo, Sir James, 49, 77 +York (Toronto), plans to capture, 72, 73 + capture, 73 + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Fight for a Free Sea: A Chronicle +of the War of 1812, by Ralph D. Paine + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FIGHT FOR A FREE SEA: A *** + +***** This file should be named 18941.txt or 18941.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/1/8/9/4/18941/ + +Produced by Steven desJardins and Distributed Proofreaders + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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