Chapter VI: Part 6

But, with other noble men, he still labored with all his powers, in Congress and at home, to help America win her independence.

[Sidenote: =Governor of Massachusetts=]

After independence had been won, Samuel Adams still served his state, and was elected governor of Massachusetts only a few years before his death, which occurred in 1803, at the age of eighty-one.

SUGGESTIONS INTENDED TO HELP THE PUPIL

=The Leading Facts.= _1._ The French and Indian War put both
England and her colonies in debt, but the king thought only of
England's debt. _2._ Great opposition to the Stamp Act in all
the colonies. _3._ Patrick Henry made a great speech against the
Virginia parsons, and a second on the Stamp Act. _4._ He went to
the first Continental Congress and made many friends; came home and
made a great speech saying that war would come. _5._ Made governor
of Virginia many times. _6._ Samuel Adams studied hard, failed in
several occupations, and went into politics. _7._ Led the patriots
against the soldiers, the Stamp Act, and planned the Tea Party.
_8._ Samuel Adams sent to Continental Congress, where he made many
friends. _9._ Urged a Declaration of Independence in 1776. _10._
Made governor of Massachusetts.

=Study Questions.= _1._ Why were the colonists happy because
England defeated France? _2._ What was the Stamp Act, and why did
men in America oppose this act? _3._ What did Patrick Henry say
in his resolution and in his speech? _4._ Picture the scene while
Patrick Henry spoke and afterwards. _5._ Why did not the Americans
like the Tea Tax? _6._ Why did not the king like the American "Tea
Parties"? _7._ What is a Congress; and why should Patrick Henry
and Samuel Adams become good friends? _8._ Commit to memory a
part of Henry's famous "liberty or death" speech. _9._ How did
the people trust Patrick Henry? _10._ What did Samuel Adams do
against the Stamp Act? _11._ What was the Circular Letter and why
should the king be angry about it? _12._ Tell how Samuel Adams
drove two regiments out of Boston. _13._ What caused a Congress?
_14._ Tell what Samuel and John Adams saw and did on their way
to Philadelphia. _15._ Why were people glad to see Samuel Adams?
_16._ What made war seem likely to happen at any time? _17._ Read
Longfellow's poem, "The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere." _18._ Give
an account of the Battle of Lexington. _19._ Picture the retreat
from Concord to Boston. _20._ Picture the charge of the British
soldiers at Bunker Hill. _21._ What did Samuel Adams see on his way
to the second Continental Congress? _22._ Who introduced the motion
for independence into the Congress?

=Suggested Readings.= PATRICK HENRY: Cooke, _Stories of the Old
Dominion_, 158-180; Brooks, _Century Book of Famous Americans_,
93-101; Magill, _Stories from Virginia History_, 116-128.

SAMUEL ADAMS: Dawes, _Colonial Massachusetts_, 42-72; Brooks,
_Century Book of Famous Americans_, 10-30; Hart, _Camps and
Firesides of the Revolution_, 162-166; Hawthorne, _Grandfather's
Chair_, 153-189, 205, 206.

THE MEN WHO FOUGHT FOR AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE WITH GUN AND SWORD

NATHAN HALE

[Sidenote: =Hale a leader in class affairs and athletic sports=]

=94. Nathan Hale, the Martyred Patriot.= Nathan Hale was born in Connecticut in 1755. He was brought up by his Puritan parents in the fear of God and in obedience to duty. At the age of sixteen Nathan left his native farm to enter Yale University. Here he soon became well liked for his gentle nature, lively spirit, and studious habits. In spite of his youth he was a leader in the affairs of his class and in all athletic sports. He graduated from college with honor and then taught school for almost two years. These were quiet days for the active young man.

[Sidenote: =Enrolled to fight for liberty=]

At this time the people were talking a great deal about their troubles with Great Britain. In secret, bands of young men were even forming companies of militia. Suddenly the news of the fight at Lexington came to the place where Nathan Hale was teaching. The citizens gathered in meeting and he made a speech, in which he said: "Let us march immediately and never lay down our arms until we obtain our independence." The next day he and many others enrolled to fight for liberty.

_From the statue by William Ordway Partridge_]

Washington was in command of the Continental army at Boston and soon sent for Hale's company. None worked harder than he at drills, or did more to keep the men cheerful in hardships. On New Year's day, 1776, Congress made him captain for his bravery and faithfulness.

[Sidenote: =Captures a British war vessel=]

In the following spring Washington moved his army to New York. One night Nathan Hale and a small band of men slipped out into the harbor where a British sloop lay. They boarded the ship gently, locked the sailors in before they knew what had happened, then they sailed their prize past a British man-of-war and over to the American side. It was a brave feat, well carried out.

[Sidenote: =Offers to find out the British plans=]

Soon after, the American troops were badly defeated in the battle of Long Island. The army was half starved and losing hope. The British general, Howe, was preparing to attack again. If Howe should win, the American cause would be lost. Washington saw that it was necessary to find out the British plans, or he would be caught and his army destroyed. A brave man was needed to go into the British camp to spy out their plans. No one was willing to go. Hale had been sick, but when he heard of his country's need he offered himself. Friends pleaded with him in vain.

[Sidenote: =Passes the British lines safely=]

The young officer took off his uniform and put on the clothes of a schoolmaster. Under cover of night he was rowed to a place near the British camp. This was the last his friends saw of him. He spent several days with the British troops and got the needed information. On his return he passed safely through the whole British army. He went to the spot where the boat was to come for him. There he waited until the boat came into view and then walked down to the water's edge to meet it. A dozen muskets were leveled at him; instead of fellow-soldiers he found himself in the hands of the British!

[Sidenote: =Hale sentenced to death=]

[Sidenote: =Gives his life for his country=]

Hale was sent to New York immediately and placed before General Howe, to whom he said frankly that he was a spy. The British general wrote out his death warrant, "to be hanged to-morrow morning at sunrise." Not even the death of a soldier was to be his. His brutal guard refused to let him send a last letter to his people. Alone he spent the night, without the comfort of friend or minister. At daybreak he was dragged forth to execution. A crowd of strange people had gathered to see him die. It is said that the officer asked him if there was anything he wished to say. Brave to the last, Nathan Hale answered: "I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country." Thus, at the age of twenty-two, died Nathan Hale, who held his country dearer than his own life.

GENERALS GREENE, MORGAN, AND MARION, THE MEN WHO HELPED WIN THE SOUTH FROM THE BRITISH

[Sidenote: =Moultrie repulses attack on Charleston=]

=95. The War in the South.= Early in the Revolutionary War British vessels made an attack on Charleston, South Carolina (1776). But Colonel Moultrie, from his rude fort of palmetto logs, gave them such a welcome that they were glad to get away, and for two years the British gave the southern colonies little trouble.

[Sidenote: =Charleston surrenders to Cornwallis=]

But in 1778 another British army captured Savannah, Georgia. In 1780 the city of Charleston, South Carolina, with General Lincoln's entire army, surrendered to Cornwallis. Congress hastened General Gates to the South to check the British, but Cornwallis surprised Gates and cut his army to pieces near Camden.

_From a painting by Charles Wilson Peale, once owned by Mrs. William Brenton Greene, Jr., Princeton, New Jersey, and now in Independence Hall, Philadelphia_]

[Sidenote: =Greene goes south to watch Cornwallis=]

=96. Nathanael Greene, the Quaker General.= Washington now chose Nathanael Greene, the "Quaker general," to go south, take command of the American army, and to watch Cornwallis, who had just defeated Gates. Greene was born in Roger Williams' old colony, and was ten years younger than Washington. His father was a farmer, a miner, and a blacksmith on week days, and a Quaker preacher on Sundays.

[Sidenote: =The "learned blacksmith"=]

As a boy Nathanael had plenty of hard work to do, and at thirteen could "only read, write, and cipher." But he was hungry for more knowledge, and began to study Latin, mathematics, philosophy, and history. Besides, he made iron toys, and sold them to buy books. His family got into a lawsuit, and Nathanael took up the study of law. He was called the "learned blacksmith."

_Now in the possession of the Rhode Island Historical Association_]

[Sidenote: =He buys a musket=]

When Greene saw that King George was likely to force the Americans to fight, he joined the militia and went to Boston to buy a musket, a very unusual thing for a man in Quaker dress to do. He hid the gun in his wagon. There he watched General Gage drilling British soldiers. He persuaded one of them to go with him to drill his company of minutemen.

[Sidenote: =News from Lexington sends Greene to Boston=]

When the stirring news from Lexington reached him, Greene was among the first to start for Boston, and there Washington found him when he arrived to take command of the army.

Greene was made one of Washington's generals, and followed his great commander till Washington sent him to the South to win back that part of the country from Cornwallis.

He found only a small army in North Carolina, but he knew the southern men would fight if they had a chance, for the backwoodsmen had just killed or captured one thousand British soldiers at Kings Mountain.

[Sidenote: =Men who helped Greene in the South=]

Besides, he had some of the bravest and ablest leaders in America to help him, among them Daniel Morgan, Francis Marion, William Washington (a cousin of General Washington), Henry Lee (called "Light Horse Harry"), and Thomas Sumter.

[Sidenote: =Greene divides his army=]

Greene divided his army into two parts. He took one thousand men and marched into northeastern South Carolina, where Marion and Lee, with small bands of cavalry, stole upon the British outposts. In broad daylight they charged pellmell into Georgetown, captured the officer in command there, and got safely away before the British were over their fright.

[Sidenote: =Morgan goes to northwestern South Carolina=]

Greene sent General Morgan and Colonel William Washington with nine hundred men into northwestern South Carolina to threaten some British posts, and to encourage the patriots in the mountains. Very shortly after this, Washington and his cavalry swooped down on a party of British soldiers and captured two hundred fifty of them.

[Sidenote: =Tarleton sent to capture him=]

Cornwallis was now thoroughly roused, and resolved to put an end to such events. He therefore ordered his favorite cavalry officer, Colonel Tarleton, to take eleven hundred picked soldiers and capture Morgan and his men.

=97. General Morgan.= But Morgan was not the kind of man to be caught napping. When a young man, he had fought the French and Indians on the Virginia frontier.

[Sidenote: =Morgan's training=]

He was at Braddock's defeat. He had once knocked a British officer down for striking him. In an Indian fight he had been shot through the neck and thought himself dying, but, to escape being scalped, locked his arms tightly around his horse's neck, while the horse ran wildly through the woods.

At the head of a company of ninety-six Virginia backwoodsmen, Morgan had marched six hundred miles in twenty-one days, and joined Washington at Boston.

_From a miniature painted by John Trumbull now in the Art Gallery of Yale University_]

[Sidenote: =Burgoyne's compliment=]

Later, Washington sent him to join in the capture of Burgoyne, at Saratoga. His men did such splendid fighting that Burgoyne said to Morgan: "Sir, you command the finest regiment in the world!" Fighting in the woods of America, such a man was likely to be a match for any British officer.

When Morgan heard of Tarleton's approach he retreated to a good place for fighting, called the Cowpens. On the top of a long, rising slope he placed the Continental troops--men trained to fight. In the rear he hid Colonel Washington and his cavalrymen.

[Sidenote: =Morgan places his men=]

Some distance in front of the Continentals he placed the militia with orders not to retreat till they had fired twice. In front of the militia Morgan hid a company of deadly sharpshooters in the woods on the right and another company in the woods on the left.

As soon as Tarleton's men came in sight they charged pellmell, thinking victory an easy matter. The militia and sharpshooters poured in their fire not twice, but several times, and retreated behind the Continentals, who now poured deadly volleys into the ranks of the on-coming British, and then made at them with their bayonets.

[Sidenote: =A brilliant victory=]

Just at this moment, Colonel Washington's cavalry dashed out and struck the right flank of the redcoats. In another moment the militia, which had reformed and reloaded, rushed out and struck their left flank. Most of Tarleton's men threw down their guns and surrendered on the spot. Only two hundred seventy redcoats got away. Tarleton barely escaped after being wounded in a hand-to-hand sword fight with Colonel Washington.

[Sidenote: =Stories of Tarleton=]

Tarleton was not permitted to forget his defeat. In conversation one day he remarked that he had never seen Colonel Washington. A patriotic lady present replied: "If you had only looked behind you at the battle of Cowpens, you would have had that pleasure."

_Where General Morgan, in one of the most brilliant battles of the war, defeated the brave but overconfident General Tarleton, destroying the famous legion Tarleton boasted could not be defeated_]

On another occasion it is told that Tarleton said to a lady, in a sneering way, that he understood Colonel Washington was so ignorant he could not even write his own name. This lady looked at Tarleton's wounded hand, and said: "You certainly carry proof that he can at least 'make his mark.'"

The defeat of Tarleton at the Cowpens roused Cornwallis. He destroyed all his heavy baggage, and started in hot haste after Morgan. But Morgan knew a thing or two, and marched for the fords of the Catawba River as soon as the battle was over.

[Sidenote: =Greene's great march=]

There Greene joined him, and away the armies went for the Yadkin River. Greene had brought along boats on light wheels, and had no trouble in crossing, but Cornwallis had to march up the river until his army could wade across. Greene was already on his way to the Dan, which he crossed into southern Virginia.

[Sidenote: =General Morgan retires=]

General Morgan, now broken in health by long years of hard fighting, retired to his home, "Soldiers' Rest," in the Shenandoah Valley. After the war was over his neighbors elected him to Congress, where he gave hearty support to President Washington.

[Sidenote: =A touching scene=]

When Daniel Morgan died he was followed to the grave by the largest procession that the valley had yet seen. The people, who had come from near and far, witnessed a touching sight. They saw seven gray-haired veterans, with old rifles in their hands, stand beside the grave of the hero, and fire a military salute. They were the last of that hardy band of ninety-six which had marched with Morgan to Boston to join Washington, nearly thirty years before. This was their last military farewell!

[Sidenote: =Greene's "victory"=]

=98. The Battle of Guilford Court House.= General Greene won a great victory by retreating. He and his army were still among friends, and his army was growing. Cornwallis was hundreds of miles from his supplies and from reënforcements. After a few weeks, Greene crossed back into North Carolina and fiercely attacked Cornwallis at Guilford Court House, and killed or wounded one fourth of his army.

Cornwallis claimed the victory, but instead of attacking Greene he marched his army rapidly to Wilmington, on the seacoast, and from there marched into Virginia, where Washington and Lafayette caught him in a trap at Yorktown.

[Sidenote: =Greene drives the British to Charleston=]

Greene turned back to South Carolina, where the British still held Charleston and a few other towns. The British lost so many men at Hobkirks Hill and at Eutaw Springs, their last important battles in the South, that they were compelled to retreat to Charleston, where they were when the news from Yorktown put an end to serious fighting.

[Sidenote: =Congress, South Carolina, and Georgia honor Greene=]

General Greene's work as a soldier was done. Besides the medal presented to him by Congress for the battle of Eutaw Springs, South Carolina, as a token of affection, gave him a large sum of money, and the state of Georgia a beautiful plantation on the Savannah River, where he died in 1786. Greene's fame as a soldier of the Revolution stands next to that of Washington.

[Sidenote: =The "Swamp Fox"=]

=99. Francis Marion.= Of all the brave men who helped Greene win back the South, none was braver than General Francis Marion, whom the British named the "Swamp Fox." Marion was born in the same year as Washington. He was of French parentage. He was so very small in size that people wondered how he could be so great a soldier.

[Sidenote: =Marion's "Brigade"=]

Marion's "Brigade," as his company was called, was made up of only a handful of men, usually less than one hundred. But they owned and rode the swiftest horses, carried their own guns, and wore their own swords, hammered out of old saws by country blacksmiths.

Marion and his men seldom were two successive nights in the same place. The night was their time for work. At sundown they swung into their saddles, and were soon riding for the enemy's camp. When near, they quietly surrounded the camp, took aim by the light of the fires, fired, and then rushed upon the frightened British or Tories, and cut them down with their terrible broadswords.

[Sidenote: =How they escaped=]

Before daybreak, Marion and his men were hiding safely in some distant swamp or other safe place. If the British chased him too closely his men scattered in different directions, but always made their way to the common hiding place. In a few days they were ready to strike again.

_After the portrait in the painting by T. Stothard, R.A._]

[Sidenote: =One hundred fifty prisoners set free=]

Just after Cornwallis defeated Gates, near Camden, Marion pounced upon a guard of British soldiers that was taking one hundred fifty prisoners to Charleston, captured them all, and set the prisoners free.

[Sidenote: =Tarleton cannot catch Marion=]

At last Cornwallis ordered Colonel Tarleton to get "Mr. Marion," as he called him. But before Tarleton could act Marion had fallen on a large party of Tories going to join Cornwallis, and killed, captured, or scattered the entire party. Tarleton chased Marion for twenty-five miles, only to find a large swamp through which he could see neither road nor path. He gave up the chase in disgust, declaring he would pursue the "Swamp Fox" no farther.

[Sidenote: =Congress gives Marion a vote of thanks=]

When Greene returned to the last campaign in South Carolina he found no better, bolder, or more vigilant helpers than Marion and his "Brigade." Greene gave Marion high praise, and Congress gave him a vote of thanks.

Marion was the true soldier of liberty. He cared nothing for display, only for the success of the patriot cause. Marion thought of his men before himself. He was watchful, patient, and silent. He always struck his foes where and when they did not look for him. If they were too strong for him he vanished like smoke in a brisk breeze.

[Sidenote: =After the war=]

Marion was as true and gentle as he was bold and brave. He was never cruel to prisoners, and was greatly opposed to punishing the Tories after the war was over. Marion's neighbors often elected him to high office and in many other ways showed that they admired him, even if some did not agree with him.

_Dashing out of the swamp, Marion fell upon the guard of a band of patriot prisoners, killed or captured the British, then set the prisoners to guarding the redcoats_]

[Sidenote: =A potato feast=]

During the war a British officer was invited to take dinner with Marion. What was his surprise to see only sweet potatoes, baked in the ashes, set before him. After this feast the officer resigned, saying it was useless trying to defeat such soldiers.

SUGGESTIONS INTENDED TO HELP THE PUPIL

=The Leading Facts.= _1._ When Hale heard the news of the fight at
Lexington he hastened to the front. _2._ He went inside the British
lines to learn their plans, was caught, and executed. _3._ Greene
went to Boston, saw the British army, returned home and prepared
his minutemen. _4._ Washington sent him to the Carolinas after the
defeat of Gates. _5._ In the retreat of the American army after the
battle of Cowpens, Greene turned and fought the battles of Guilford
Court House, Hobkirks Hill, and Eutaw Springs. _6._ Daniel Morgan
with ninety-six men marched from the Shenandoah Valley to Boston to
join Washington. _7._ He won the battle of Cowpens against Colonel
Tarleton. _8._ Francis Marion's "Brigade" was made up of a small
number, mounted on their own horses, and armed with their own
guns and swords. _9._ He was called the "Swamp Fox," because his
men, attacking after nightfall, usually escaped to a swamp before
daylight.

=Study Questions.= _1._ What was Hale doing when war broke out?
_2._ Why did he go within the British lines? _3._ Where was Greene
born, and why was he called "the learned blacksmith"? _4._ How
did he get his company of minutemen drilled? _5._ What leaders
did Greene have to help him? _6._ Who was General Morgan? _7._
What did Burgoyne say to Morgan? _8._ Explain how Morgan prepared
for the battle of Cowpens. _9._ Picture the battle. _10._ What
anecdotes are told of Tarleton? _11._ Picture the scene at General
Morgan's burial. _12._ How did Greene win a victory by retreating?
_13._ What became of Cornwallis after the battle of Guilford Court
House? _14._ What other battles did Greene fight? _15._ What proofs
of affection did South Carolina and Georgia give? _16._ What is
the rank of Greene as a general? _17._ How many were in Marion's
"Brigade," how were they armed, and how did they fight? _18._ Why
did Tarleton call Marion the "Swamp Fox"? _19._ Who praised General
Marion? _20._ Read _The Song of Marion's Men_, by William Cullen
Bryant.

=Suggested Readings.= NATHAN HALE: Brown, _Nathan Hale, the Martyr
Spy_.

NATHANAEL GREENE: Fiske, Irving's _Washington_, 430-456; Francis V.
Greene, _General Greene_, 1-22, 94-105, 160-262; Frost, _Heroes of
the Revolution_, 27-75.

DANIEL MORGAN: Blaisdell and Ball, _Hero Stories from American
History_, 105-122; Brooks, _Century Book of the American
Revolution_, 168-173; Frost, _Heroes of the Revolution_, 76-89.

FRANCIS MARION: McCrady, _South Carolina in the Revolution_,
568-572, 577-652, 660-672, 748-752, 816-881.

THE MEN WHO HELPED WIN INDEPENDENCE BY FIGHTING ENGLAND ON THE SEA

JOHN PAUL JONES, A SCOTCHMAN, WHO WON THE GREAT VICTORY IN THE FRENCH SHIP, "BON HOMME RICHARD"

[Sidenote: =John Paul born in Scotland=]

=100. John Paul.= In 1747, in far-away Scotland, on the arm of the sea called Solway Firth, a great sailor was born. John Paul played along the seashore, saw tall ships, and heard wonderful stories of a new land called America, whose ships filled with tobacco came into the firth.

[Sidenote: =Sails on the "Friendship" to America=]

John Paul did not get much schooling, and at the age of thirteen he went as a sailor lad on the _Friendship_ to America. The ship sailed into Chesapeake Bay and up the Rappahannock River to the town of Fredericksburg, where he found his brother William living on a plantation. In the very same town where George Washington had just been to school, John Paul also went to school. He studied hard to make up for lost time, and left a great name among the boys.

[Sidenote: =Returns and sails for Africa=]

He afterward returned to Scotland, and at the age of nineteen sailed as an officer on a slave-trading ship to Africa, and carried a load of negroes away from their native land. Many people did not then think it wrong to do this, but John Paul hated the cruel business, and left the slave ship as soon as he reached Jamaica.

[Sidenote: =Made captain=]

On his way back to Scotland the officers of the ship died, and John Paul, although but twenty years old, had to take charge. The owners of the vessel were so pleased with the way he handled it that they made him captain, and he went on many voyages to different countries.

[Sidenote: =In Virginia again=]

After a time John Paul went to Virginia to take care of his dead brother's plantation. While he was living in Virginia he watched the quarrel between England and her colonies break out in open war.

[Sidenote: =Offers his services to Congress=]

=101. John Paul Jones Enters the American Navy.= He hastened to Philadelphia and offered his services to Congress. He knew England would send thousands of soldiers to America; and that she would send her war ships along our seacoasts and up and down our bays and rivers, to capture and burn our towns. He also knew that the Congress did not own a single war ship when the war began.

_From a painting by Charles Wilson Peale in Independence Hall, Philadelphia_]

Congress ordered war ships to be built. While these were being made, Congress ordered trading vessels to be fitted with cannon and sent out to capture British ships.

[Sidenote: =Changes his name=]

When John Paul went to Philadelphia he gave his name as Paul Jones, probably in honor of Willie Jones, a friend who lived in North Carolina. Some have thought that he did not want the British to know him, if they should capture him in a sea fight.

[Sidenote: =Really wants to fight=]

[Sidenote: =What he could do=]

Although Paul Jones really knew more about war ships than most of the men in Philadelphia, Congress gave him a very low office. But that made no difference to him, for he really wanted to get into a sea fight. In 1775 he was made a lieutenant, and joined an expedition to capture cannon and powder from the British in the West Indies. He did so well that Congress made him captain and gave him a ship. He then went on a cruise to the West Indies, where in six weeks he captured sixteen prizes and destroyed a number of small vessels.

_This, the first flag to float above an American man-of-war, was raised by John Paul Jones_]

[Sidenote: =Sent to France=]

Congress afterward gave him command of the ship _Ranger_, and sent him to carry letters to Benjamin Franklin, who was in France trying to get the king to take sides with the Americans.

[Sidenote: =With the "Ranger" at Whitehaven=]

Franklin planned for Jones to take the _Ranger_ to the coast of England, and show that American as well as English ships could burn, destroy, and fight. He captured two vessels, made straight for his old town of Whitehaven, "spiked" the cannon in the fort, set some ships on fire, and escaped without harm.

Near by this place, his sailors took all the silver from the home of a rich lady. This robbery troubled him so much that, afterward, at great expense to himself, he returned the silver to its owner.

[Sidenote: ="Paul, the Pirate"=]

"Look out for Paul Jones, the pirate!" the people said; and the _Drake_, carrying two more cannon than the _Ranger_, was sent to capture her. Five boatloads of people went to see the pirate captured. The fight lasted more than an hour. When the _Drake_ surrendered, her captain and forty-two men had been killed. The _Ranger_ had lost only two men. After this fight the English towns were still more afraid of Paul Jones.

[Sidenote: =The "Good Man Richard"=]

There was great joy in France when Paul Jones sailed into port. The king, who was now making war on England, promised him a larger fleet of war vessels. So, in 1779, he found himself captain of a large ship armed with fifty cannon. He called the ship the _Bon Homme Richard_ in honor of Franklin's Almanac, the "Poor Richard." Three smaller vessels joined him, and he again set sail for the English coast. The news of his coming caused great alarm.

_From man-of-war "Constitution"_]

[Sidenote: =The "Richard" and the "Serapis"=]

=102. A Great Sea Fight and a Great Victory.= As Paul Jones sailed along the British coasts he captured many trading ships and frightened the people. At last he came upon two British war ships. Just at dark the _Richard_ attacked a larger English ship, the _Serapis_. At the first fire two of Jones' cannon burst, tearing up the deck and killing a dozen of his own men.

[Sidenote: =The great sea fight=]

The fight went on for an hour, when the _Serapis_ came near, and Jones ran the _Richard_ into her. "Have you struck your colors?" called out the English captain. "I have not yet begun to fight!" replied Captain Jones. When the ships came together again Paul Jones himself seized a great rope and tied them together. Now the fighting was terrific. The cannon tore huge holes in the sides of the ships.

_This was made in commemoration of the American Navy, 1795_]

A great explosion on the _Serapis_ killed twenty of her men. Both ships were on fire, and the _Richard_ began to fill with water. The men on each ship had to fight fire. It was ten o'clock at night.

_Because of this victory three nations, France, Russia, and Denmark, bestowed special honors upon John Paul Jones as "the valiant assertor of the freedom of the sea"_]

The British prisoners on the _Richard_ had to help pump out water to keep the ship from sinking.

[Sidenote: =A great victory=]

Only a few cannon on each ship could be fired. The decks of both ships were covered with dead and wounded, but neither captain would give up. Finally Paul Jones, with his own hands, pointed two cannon at the great mast of the _Serapis_. Just as it was about to fall, the English captain surrendered.

[Sidenote: =A great naval hero=]

All night Jones and his men were kept busy fighting fire and pumping water, while the wounded were removed to the _Serapis_. The _Good Man Richard_ sank the next day at ten o'clock. Paul Jones sailed to France with his two English ships, where he was praised and rewarded by the King of France. He was a great hero in the eyes of the French people, and in the eyes of the Americans, too.

[Sidenote: =Finally buried in America=]

After the war Paul Jones was an officer in the Russian navy. He died in France in 1792. His grave was forgotten for many years, but was discovered in 1905, and his bones were brought to America with great honor, and buried at Annapolis, Maryland.

JOHN BARRY, WHO WON MORE SEA FIGHTS IN THE REVOLUTION THAN ANY OTHER CAPTAIN

[Sidenote: =Barry visits America=]

=103. John Barry.= Although born on a farm in Ireland (1745), John Barry wanted to be a sailor lad. While still young he was put to service on board a merchant ship. Here young Barry learned more than being a mere sailor. Between voyages he studied hard, and soon gained a useful education. At the age of fifteen he came to Philadelphia, and was so pleased with the country and the people that he resolved to make America his home.

[Sidenote: =Offers his services to Congress=]

He rose rapidly as a sailor and, when the news of the first bloodshed between England and her colonies came, he offered his services to Congress.

[Sidenote: =Made captain of the "Lexington"=]

In 1776 Congress made him captain of the ship _Lexington_, the first Continental vessel to sail from William Penn's old city. Barry immediately put to sea, and met and captured the _Edward_ after a fierce fight. Thus the _Lexington_ was the first ship to bear the American flag to victory.

Congress, pleased with the result, put him in charge of a larger ship, called the _Effingham_. The British, however, bottled up the _Effingham_ in the Delaware.

_From the portrait painted by Colin Campbell Cooper after the Stuart painting, now in Independence Hall, Philadelphia_]

But Barry was not idle. Arming four boatloads of men, with muffled oars he rowed down the Delaware at night.

[Sidenote: =He captures a British vessel and four transports=]

Just as the sun was rising Barry saw a British vessel of ten guns. With this ship were four transports loaded with forage for the British army. Barry's boats made for the British ship. His men climbed on board with guns and swords in hand. The British soldiers threw down their arms and ran below. Barry fastened down the hatchways, and then turned his attention to the four transports, which quickly surrendered. Barry then took his five prizes across the river to an American fort.

[Sidenote: =He takes command of the "Raleigh"=]

In 1778 Congress promoted John Barry to the command of the _Raleigh_. He set sail for Boston, and on his way met a British ship carrying thirty-two guns. His sailors had taken an oath never to surrender. They fought bravely, and had every hope of winning, when a British 64-gun ship came in sight. To keep their oaths, they ran the _Raleigh_ ashore, and set her on fire. The British put out the fire and saved the ship.

[Sidenote: =Wounded, but forces the British to strike their colors=]

=104. Barry Given Command of the "Alliance."= In 1781 Barry was placed in command of the _Alliance_, a ship whose name was given in honor of France's helping America in this war. In May the _Alliance_ met two British ships, and a hard battle followed. Barry was badly wounded, but would not surrender. He fought on and forced the British ships to strike their colors.

In 1783 Barry, in the _Alliance_, sailed on his last voyage of the Revolution. His companion ship was the _Luzerne_. Three British ships discovered the Americans and quickly gave chase. The _Luzerne_ was slow and threw her guns overboard.

[Sidenote: =On his last voyage of the Revolution=]

Another vessel came into view; it was a French ship of fifty guns. With her aid Barry immediately decided to fight. He made a speech urging the men not to fire until ordered. A terrific battle with the foremost British ship followed. After fifty minutes' fighting, the British showed signals of distress. The remaining British ships now came up to rescue her, and the _Alliance_ sailed away. The French ships took no part in the battle.

[Sidenote: =Named first commander of a navy=]

After the war was over, Congress provided for a navy, and General Knox, Washington's Secretary of War and of the Navy, named John Barry as first commodore. He served as the senior commander of the American navy until his death, in 1803. The people of Philadelphia have erected a monument to his memory (1907).

SUGGESTIONS INTENDED TO HELP THE PUPIL

=The Leading Facts.= _1._ John Paul was born a sailor in Scotland
and went to America. _2._ He was in America when war broke out;
offered his service and was made lieutenant. _3._ Congress sent
him to France, and Franklin sent him to prey on English commerce.
_4._ Paul Jones won the great sea fight in the _Bon Homme Richard_.
_5._ John Barry was born in Ireland, and went to sea early. _6._
Congress made him captain in 1776, in charge of the _Lexington_.
_7._ Barry set the country talking by capturing a war vessel and
four transports. _8._ John Barry won more naval victories in the
Revolutionary War than any other office. _9._ Named first commodore
in 1794 by the Secretary of the Navy.

=Study Questions.= _1._ Give an account of John Paul's boyhood.
_2._ What of his first visit to America? _3._ How did Paul happen,
at so early an age, to have full charge of a vessel? _4._ Why did
he go to Virginia a second time? _5._ Why did he hasten to Congress
as soon as war began? _6._ How did Paul Jones prove his right to
be captain? _7._ Tell the story of the battle between the _Drake_
and the _Ranger_. _8._ Picture the battle between the _Bon Homme
Richard_ and the _Serapis_. _9._ What rewards came to Paul Jones?
_10._ Where is he buried? _11._ Give an account of John Barry's
youth. _12._ When the war came, what was Barry's action? _13._ What
was the first victory on the part of the navy? _14._ What was the
outcome of the battle on the _Raleigh_? _15._ What were Barry's
experiences in the _Alliance_? Picture Barry's last battle.

=Suggested Readings.= PAUL JONES: Beebe, _Four American Naval
Heroes_, 17-68; Abbot, _Blue Jackets of '76_, 83-154; Frothingham,
_Sea Fighters_, 226-266; Hart, _Camps and Firesides of the American
Revolution_, 285-289; Hart, _How Our Grandfathers Lived_, 217-219;
Seawell, _Paul Jones_.

JOHN BARRY: Griffin, _Commodore John Barry_, 1-96.

THE MEN WHO CROSSED THE MOUNTAINS, DEFEATED THE INDIANS AND BRITISH, AND MADE THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER THE FIRST WESTERN BOUNDARY OF THE UNITED STATES

DANIEL BOONE, THE HUNTER AND PIONEER OF KENTUCKY

[Sidenote: =Boone born in Pennsylvania=]

=105. A Famous Frontier Hero.= Daniel Boone was born in Pennsylvania in 1735. He was only three years younger than Washington. While yet a boy he loved the woods, and often spent days deep in the forest with no companion but his rifle and dog.

[Sidenote: =Moved to the Yadkin=]

Boone's parents moved to North Carolina, and settled on the Yadkin River. There he married at the early age of twenty, and, pioneer-like, moved farther into the forest, where people were scarcer and game more plentiful. He built a log cabin for his bride, and made a "clearing" for raising corn and vegetables. But his trusty rifle furnished their table with all kinds of wild meat, such as bear, deer, squirrel, and turkey.

[Sidenote: =Crossed the mountains in 1760=]

In 1760 Boone with a friend crossed the mountains to the Watauga in east Tennessee, on a hunting expedition, where he killed a bear, and cut the date of the event on a beech tree, which still stands on Boone's Creek in east Tennessee.

[Sidenote: =News from across the Cumberland=]

One of Boone's hunter friends came back from a journey across the Cumberland Mountains and told of the beauty of the land beyond--its hills and valleys, its forests and canebrakes, full of game. Boone was anxious to go. Too many people were settling near him. But Kentucky was a dangerous country, even if beautiful. It was called "No-man's-land," because not even Indians lived there, and also the "dark and bloody ground," because the tribes from the north and from the south met there in deadly conflict.

[Sidenote: =Boone and companions go to Kentucky=]

=106. Boone Goes to the Land of Canebrakes and Blue Grass.= While the people along the seacoast were disputing with the king, Boone and five companions, after climbing over mountains, fording rivers, and making their way through pathless forests, reached Kentucky, the land of salt springs, canebrakes, and blue grass.

[Sidenote: =Danger from animals=]

They built a log camp and spent several months enjoying the wild life so dear to the hunter. But it was full of danger. Sometimes it was a battle with a father and a mother bear fighting for their little ones. The sneaking panther or the lurking wildcat threatened their lives. Now and then, hundreds of buffaloes came rushing through the canebrakes.

[Sidenote: =Danger from Indians ever present=]

But danger from the Indians was present every moment. Day and night, sleeping in their camp or tramping through the woods, the hunters had to be ready for the death grapple. One day Boone and a companion named Stewart were off their guard. The Indians rushed upon them and captured them.

[Sidenote: =Captured but escapes=]

Boone and his companion understood the ways of the Indians, and won their confidence. One night, as the savages slept around the camp fire, Boone arose and quietly awoke Stewart. They stole silently from the camp and hastened by night and day back to their old camp, only to find it destroyed and their comrades gone.

[Sidenote: =News from the old home=]

One day Daniel Boone saw his brother coming through the woods. What a happy meeting five hundred miles from home! The brother brought good news from kindred and friends.

[Sidenote: =His brother returns home for supplies=]

Stewart was shot by the Indians, but Boone and his brother remained all winter in Kentucky. Powder, lead, and salt were growing scarce. What should be done? Boone's brother returned home for supplies, but Daniel remained without even a dog for a companion. He very seldom slept twice in the same place for fear of the Indians.

He wandered to the banks of the Ohio, and was charmed with all he saw. He then decided that some day he would make Kentucky his home.

[Sidenote: =Brings supplies and both go home=]

Boone's brother returned in the spring, bringing supplies on two pack horses. After further explorations the two brothers returned to their home on the Yadkin and told their neighbors of the wonders of the new land.

[Sidenote: =An Indian attack=]

In the fall of 1773 several families, with cattle and horses, bade farewell to their friends and started for Kentucky, a "second Paradise," as Boone called it. Before they reached the new land Indians fell upon them and killed six. Among the killed was Boone's eldest son. The party returned for a time to a settlement in Virginia.

[Sidenote: =Making the "Wilderness Road"=]

Richard Henderson, a rich planter, claimed a great tract of land in Kentucky, and put Boone at the head of thirty brave men to cut and blaze a road from the Holston River over the mountains, through Cumberland Gap to the Kentucky River. The result was the famous "Wilderness Road," the first road across the mountains, and over which hundreds of pack horses and thousands of settlers made their way.

_After the plan by Colonel Henderson in Collins' "Historical Collections of Kentucky"_]

[Sidenote: =Fort Boonesboro=]

When the road was finished to the banks of the Kentucky River, Daniel Boone built Fort Boonesboro. The fort was about two hundred sixty feet long, and one hundred fifty feet wide. At each corner of it stood a two-story blockhouse with loopholes, through which the settlers could shoot at Indians. Cabins with loopholes were built along the sides of the fort. Between the cabins a high fence was made by sinking log posts into the ground. Two heavy gates were built on opposite sides of the fort. Every night the horses and cattle were driven inside the fort.

[Sidenote: =His family in the "second Paradise"=]

=107. Boone Takes His Family to Kentucky.= When the fort was finished Boone brought his family, and several others, over the mountains to his "second Paradise." Other settlers came, and Boonesboro began to grow. Some of the bolder settlers built cabins outside of the fort, where they cut away and burned the trees to raise corn and vegetables.

[Sidenote: =Three girl prisoners=]

To the Indian all this seemed to threaten his hunting ground. The red men were anxious, therefore, to kill and scalp these brave pioneers. One day Boone's daughter and two girl friends were out late in a boat near the shore opposite the fort when the Indians suddenly seized the girls and hastened away with them. The people heard their screams for help, but too late to risk crossing the river.

[Sidenote: =The chase and the capture=]

What sorrow in the fort that night! Had the Indians scalped the girls, or were they hastening to cross the Ohio with them? The next day Boone with eight men seized their guns, found the Indian trail, and marched with all speed. What if the Indians should see the white men first! On the second day Boone's party came upon the Indians building a fire, and fired before they were seen. Two of the Indians fell, and the others ran away, leaving the girls behind, unharmed, but badly frightened.

[Sidenote: =Kentucky in the War of the Revolution=]

The War of the Revolution was already raging east of the mountains, and the Indians were taking the side of the British. In April, 1777, a small army of Indians crossed the Ohio and attacked Boonesboro. The little fort made a bold fight. The Indians retreated, but returned on the Fourth of July in large numbers, to destroy the fort and scalp the settlers. For two days and nights the battle went on. The fierce war cry of the Indians filled the woods around the fort. The white men took deadly aim. The women aided by melting lead into bullets. The Indians again failed, and finally retreated.

[Sidenote: =The prize prisoner=]

While making salt at the "Blue Licks," Boone and twenty-seven of his men were captured by the Indians and marched all the way to Detroit, the headquarters of the British army in the Northwest. The British offered the Indians five hundred dollars for Boone, but the savages were too proud of their great prisoner, and marched him back to their towns in what is now Ohio.

[Sidenote: =Adopted by an Indian family=]

Here he was adopted by an Indian chief. They plucked out all of Boone's hair except a "scalp lock," which they ornamented with feathers. They painted and dressed him like an Indian. His new parents were quite proud of their son. Sometimes he went hunting alone, but the Indians counted his bullets and measured his powder. But Boone was too shrewd for them. He cut the bullets in two, and used half charges of powder.

[Sidenote: =Steals away to Boonesboro=]

One day he saw four hundred fifty painted warriors getting ready to march against Boonesboro. He went hunting that day, but he did not come back. What excitement in that Indian town! Soon the woods were full of Indians hunting for Boone. In five days--with but one meal--he reached Boonesboro.

All hands fell to repairing the fort. The horses, cattle, and provisions were brought inside the fort, and water was brought from the river.

The Indians came, and Boone's Indian "father" called on him to surrender. Boone asked for two days to think about it, but he used this time in getting ready to fight. At the end of the two days Boone told him that his men would fight to the last.

[Sidenote: =An Indian trick spoiled=]

The Indians then proposed that twelve from each side meet to make a treaty of peace. Boone took his strongest men. While parleying, each Indian suddenly seized a white man. The white men broke away, and ran for the fort. Boone's riflemen were ready, and poured a hot fire into the Indians.

[Sidenote: =The Indians cannot capture Boone's fort=]

The Indians climbed into trees to shoot down into the fort. They tried to set the fort on fire, but failed. They then tried to dig a tunnel under the fort, but failed in that also.

_From a portrait made in 1819 when Boone was 85 years old, painted by Chester Harding, and now in possession of the Massachusetts Historical Society, Boston, Massachusetts_]

After nine days of failure, and after losing many warriors, the Indians gave up the fight and recrossed the Ohio. Although the settlers had to keep a daily watch for Indians, and had to fight them in other parts of Kentucky, they never attacked Boonesboro again.

[Sidenote: =Boone's reason for again moving west=]

During the Revolutionary War other brave men came as pioneers into Kentucky, and built forts, and defended their settlements against the Indians. As the settlements grew thicker, game grew scarcer. Boone resolved once more to move farther west. When asked why, he replied: "Too much crowded. I want more elbow room."

[Sidenote: =Moves to Missouri=]

At the age of sixty, while Washington was still president, and after he had seen Kentucky become a state, Daniel Boone and his faithful wife made the long journey to the region beyond the Mississippi, into what is now Missouri. There he lived and hunted. He saw this region pass from Spain to France, and from France to the United States (1803). He was still a hunter at eighty-two, and saw Missouri preparing to enter the Union as the twenty-fourth state.

[Sidenote: =Died in 1820=]

He died in 1820 at the age of eighty-six. Years afterward, remembering the noble deeds of the great pioneer, Kentucky brought his body to the capital city and buried it with great honors.

[Sidenote: =The Louisiana country and the French=]

=108. Life in the Mississippi Valley.= When Boone led his brave men into Kentucky, white men had been living for years in the Mississippi Valley, farther west. These were the French of Louisiana, as they called their country. Their chief settlement was St. Louis.

These people came at first to dig lead from the old Indian mines of southern Missouri and to trade for furs. They were a quiet people who knew little and cared less about the rest of the world. They did not work hard, and they loved good times. A traveler who visited them says they were "the happiest people on the globe."

JOHN SEVIER, "NOLICHUCKY JACK"

[Sidenote: =Sevier born in Virginia=]

[Sidenote: =Early life in the Shenandoah=]

=109. A Famous Indian Fighter.= John Sevier was born in the Shenandoah Valley in 1745. His mother taught him to read, but he obtained most of his schooling in Washington's old school town, Fredericksburg. He quit school at sixteen. He built a storehouse on the Shenandoah and called it Newmarket. He lived there, selling goods and fighting Indians, until, at the early age of twenty-six, he was a wealthy man. He had already made such a name as an Indian fighter that the governor made him captain in the militia of which George Washington was then colonel.

[Sidenote: =Fine looking=]

Sevier was a fine-looking man. He was tall, slender, erect, graceful in action, fair skinned, blue eyed, and had pleasing manners, which had come to him from his French parents. He charmed everybody who met him, from backwoodsmen up to the king's governor at Williamsburg.

[Sidenote: =He goes to the Watauga=]

A most promising future opened before him in Virginia. But hearing of a band of pioneers on the Watauga, he rode over one day to see them and resolved to cast in his lot with them.

[Sidenote: =Tennessee in the Revolution=]

During the Revolutionary War, British agents went among the Cherokee Indians and gave them guns and ammunition. Indian-like, they planned to take Fort Watauga by surprise. They came creeping up to the fort one morning just at daybreak. Forty deadly rifles suddenly blazed from portholes and drove them back to the woods. During the siege of three weeks, food grew scarce at the fort, and the men became tired of being cooped up so long. Some of them ventured out and were shot or had very narrow escapes from death.

_After an engraving from a miniature now in possession of one of his descendants at New York_]

[Sidenote: =The story of Jack Sevier and Kate Sherrill=]

The story is told that Sevier, during the siege, fell in love with the beautiful, tall, brown-haired Kate Sherrill. One day she ventured out of the fort. It was a daring act, for four men had lost their lives in this way. The Indians tried to catch the girl, for they did not want to kill her. But she could run like a deer, and almost flew to the fort. Sevier was watching, and shot the Indian nearest her. The gate was closed, but she jumped with all her might, seized the top of the stockade, drew herself up, and sprang over into the arms of Sevier. Not long after she became his wife.

[Sidenote: =Sevier acts quickly=]

In 1778 Sevier heard that the Indians were coming again. He quickly called his men together, took boats, and paddled rapidly down the Tennessee to the Indian towns. He burned the towns, captured their store of hides, and marched home on foot. How surprised the Indians were when they returned!

[Sidenote: =Moves to the Nolichucky=]

=110. Nolichucky Jack.= The Watauga Settlement was growing in numbers, and Sevier went to live on the Nolichucky, a branch of the French Broad River. There he built a large log house, or rather two houses, and joined them by a covered porch. Outside were large verandas, while inside were great stone fireplaces.

[Sidenote: =Welcomes rich and poor=]