Chapter XX: ――history (12)

In 1801, the Enterprise, of fourteen guns, captain Sterrett, fell in with a Tripolitan ship of war of equal force. The action continued three hours and a half, the corsair fighting with great obstinacy, and even desperation, until she struck, having lost fifty killed and wounded, while the Enterprise had not a man injured. In 1803, commodore Preble assumed the command of the Mediterranean squadron, and after humbling the emperor of Morocco, who had begun a covert war upon American commerce, concentrated most of his force before Tripoli. On arriving off that port, captain Bainbridge, in the frigate Philadelphia, of forty-four guns, was sent into the harbor to reconnoitre. While in eager pursuit of a small vessel, he unfortunately advanced so far that the frigate grounded, and all attempts to remove her were in vain. The sea around her was immediately covered with Tripolitan gun-boats, and captain Bainbridge was compelled to surrender. This misfortune, which threw a number of accomplished officers and a valiant crew into oppressive bondage, and which shed a gloom over the whole nation, as it seemed at once to increase the difficulties of a peace an hundred fold, was soon relieved by one of the most daring and chivalrous exploits that is found in naval annals. Lieutenant Stephen Decatur, then one of commodore Preble’s subalterns, proposed a plan for re-capturing or destroying the Philadelphia. The American squadron was at that time lying at Syracuse. Agreeably to the plan proposed, lieutenant Decatur, in the ketch Intrepid, four guns and seventy-five men, proceeded, under the escort of the Syren, captain Stewart, to the harbor of Tripoli. The Philadelphia lay within half gun-shot of the bashaw’s castle, and several cruisers and gun-boats surrounded her with jealous vigilance.

The Intrepid entered the harbor alone, about eight o’clock in the evening, and succeeded in getting near the Philadelphia, between ten and eleven o’clock, without having awakened suspicion of her hostile designs. This vessel had been captured from the Tripolitans, and, assuming on this occasion her former national appearance, was permitted to warp alongside, under the alleged pretence that she had lost all her anchors. The moment the vessel came in contact, Decatur and his followers leaped on board, and soon overwhelmed a crew which was paralyzed with consternation. Twenty of the Tripolitans were killed. All the surrounding batteries being opened upon the Philadelphia, she was immediately set on fire, and not abandoned until thoroughly wrapped in flames; when, a favoring breeze springing up, the Intrepid extricated herself from her prey, and sailed triumphantly out of the harbor amid the light of the conflagration. Not the slightest loss occurred on the side of the Americans to shade the splendor of the enterprise.

In July, 1804, commodore Preble brought together all his forces before Tripoli, determined to try the effect of a bombardment. The enemy having sent some of his gun-boats and galleys without the reef at the mouth of the harbor, two divisions of American gun-boats were formed for the purpose of attacking them, while the large vessels assailed the batteries and town. On the 3d of August this plan was put in execution. The squadron approached within gun-shot of the town, and opened a tremendous fire of shot and shells, which was as promptly returned by the Tripolitan batteries and shipping. At the same time the two divisions of gun-boats, the first under the command of captain Somers, the second under captain Stephen Decatur, who had been promoted as a reward for his late achievement, advanced against those of the enemy. The squadron was about two hours under the enemy’s batteries, generally within pistol-shot, ranging by them in deliberate succession, alternately silencing their fires, and launching its thunders into the very palace of the bashaw; while a more animated battle was raging in another quarter. Simultaneously with the bombardment the American gun-boats had closed in desperate conflict with the enemy. Captain Decatur, bearing down upon one of superior force, soon carried her by boarding, when, taking his prize in tow, he grappled with another, and in like manner transferred the fight to the enemy’s deck.

In the fierce encounter which followed this second attack, captain Decatur, having broken his sword, closed with the Turkish commander, and, both falling in the struggle, gave him a mortal wound with a pistol-shot, just as the Turk was raising his dirk to plunge it into his breast. Lieutenant Trippe, of captain Decatur’s squadron, had boarded a third large gun-boat, with only one midshipman and nine men, when his boat fell off, and left him to wage the unequal fight of eleven against thirty-six, which was the number of the enemy. Courage and resolution, however, converted this devoted little band into a formidable host, which, after a sanguinary contest, obliged the numerous foe to yield, with the loss of fourteen killed and seven wounded. Lieutenant Trippe received eleven sabre wounds, and had three of his party wounded, but none killed. Several bombardments and attacks succeeded each other at intervals throughout the month. Day after day death and devastation were poured into Tripoli with unsparing perseverance, each attack exhibiting instances of valor and devotedness which will give lustre to history. The eyes of Europe were drawn to the spot where a young nation, scarcely emerged into notice, was signally chastising the despotic and lawless infidel, to whom some of her most powerful governments were then paving tribute.

On the 4th of September, commodore Preble, in order to try new experiments of annoyance, determined to send a fireship into the enemy’s harbor. The Intrepid was fitted out for this service, being filled with powder, shells, and other combustible materials. Captain Somers, who had often been the emulous rival of Decatur in the career of glory, was appointed to conduct her in, having for his associates in the hazardous enterprise lieutenants Wadsworth and Israel, all volunteers. The Argus, Vixen, and Nautilus, were to convey the Intrepid as far as the mouth of the harbor. Captain Somers and lieutenant Wadsworth made choice of two of the fleetest boats in the squadron, manned with picked crews, to bring them out. At eight o’clock in the evening she stood into the harbor with a moderate breeze. Several shot were fired at her from the batteries. She had nearly gained her place of destination when she exploded, without having made any of the signals previously concerted to show that the crew was safe. Night hung over the dreadful catastrophe, and left the whole squadron a prey to the most painful anxiety. The convoy hovered about the harbor until sunrise, when no remains could be discovered either of the Intrepid or her boats. Doubt was turned into certainty, that she had prematurely blown up, as one of the enemy’s gun-boats was observed to be missing, and several others much shattered and damaged.

Commodore Preble, in his account, says, that he was led to believe ‘that those boats were detached from the enemy’s flotilla to intercept the ketch, and without suspecting her to be a fireship, the missing boats had suddenly boarded her, when the gallant Somers and the heroes of his party observing the other three boats surrounding them, and no prospect of escape, determined at once to prefer death, and the destruction of the enemy, to captivity and torturing slavery, put a match to the train leading directly to the magazine, which at once blew the whole into the air, and terminated their existence;’ and he adds, that his ‘conjectures respecting this affair are founded on a resolution which captain Somers and lieutenants Wadsworth and Israel had formed, neither to be taken by the enemy, nor suffer him to get possession of the powder on board the Intrepid.’[144] Soon after these events, commodore Preble gave up the command in the Mediterranean to commodore Barron, and returned to the United States. His eminent services were enthusiastically acknowledged by his admiring fellow-citizens, as well as those of his associates in arms, ‘whose names,’ in the expressive language of congress on the occasion, ‘ought to live in the recollection and affection of a grateful country, and whose conduct ought to be regarded as an example to future generations.’

While the squadron remained before Tripoli other deeds of heroism were performed. William Eaton, who had been a captain in the American army, was, at the commencement of this war, consul at Tunis. He there became acquainted with Hamet Caramauly, whom a younger brother had excluded from the throne of Tripoli. With him he concerted an expedition against the reigning sovereign, and repaired to the United States to obtain permission and the means to undertake it. Permission was granted, the co-operation of the squadron recommended, and such pecuniary assistance as could be spared was afforded. To raise an army in Egypt, and lead it to attack the usurper in his dominions, was the project which had been concerted. In the beginning of 1805, Eaton met Hamet at Alexandria, and was appointed general of his forces. On the 6th of March, at the head of a respectable body of mounted Arabs, and about seventy Christians, he set out for Tripoli. His route lay across a desert one thousand miles in extent. On his march, he encountered peril, fatigue, and suffering, the description of which would resemble the exaggerations of romance. On the 25th of April, having been fifty days on the march, he arrived before Derne, a Tripolitan city on the Mediterranean, and found in the harbor a part of the American squadron destined to assist him. He learnt also that the usurper, having received notice of his approach, had raised a considerable army, and was then within a day’s march of the city. No time was therefore to be lost.

The next morning he summoned the governor to surrender, who returned for answer, ‘My head or yours.’ The city was assaulted, and after a contest of two hours and a half, possession was gained. The Christians suffered severely, and the general was slightly wounded. Great exertions were immediately made to fortify the city. On the 8th of May it was attacked by the Tripolitan army. Although ten times more numerous than Eaton’s band, the assailants, after persisting four hours in the attempt, were compelled to retire. On the 10th of June another battle was fought, in which the enemy were defeated. The next day the American frigate Constitution arrived in the harbor, which so terrified the Tripolitans that they fled precipitately to the desert. The frigate came, however, to arrest the operations of Eaton in the midst of his brilliant and successful career. Alarmed at his progress, the reigning bashaw had offered terms of peace, which being much more favorable than had before been offered, were accepted by Mr. Lear, the authorized agent of the government. Sixty thousand dollars were given as a ransom for the unfortunate American prisoners, and an engagement was made to withdraw all support from Hamet. The nation, proud of the exploits of Eaton, regretted this diplomatic interference, but the treaty was subsequently ratified by the president and senate.

During the year 1804, the Delaware Indians relinquished to the United States their title to an extensive tract east of the Mississippi, between the Wabash and Ohio, for which they were to receive annuities in animals and implements for agriculture, and in other necessaries. This was an important acquisition, not only for its extent and fertility, but because, by its commanding the Ohio for three hundred miles, and nearly half that distance the Wabash, the produce of the settled country could be safely conveyed down those rivers, and, with the cession recently made by Kaskaskias, it nearly consolidated the possessions of the United States north of the Ohio, from lake Erie to the Mississippi.

Early in the following year Mr. Jefferson was re-elected to fill the president’s chair by the decided majority of sixty-two votes against sixteen, a circumstance which he viewed as an indication of a great decay in the strength of the federal party.[145] George Clinton was also elected vice-president.

During the year 1806, a circumstance occurred which put to the test the attachment of the inhabitants of the southern and western states, as well as the good faith of the American government in her foreign relations. Colonel Burr, whose character and influence had formerly encouraged him in the hope of filling the highest office of his country, subsequently lost the public confidence and fell into obscurity. While unobserved by his fellow-citizens he was by no means inactive; he was employed in purchasing and building boats on the Ohio, and in engaging men to descend that river. His professed intention was to form a settlement on the banks of the Washita, in Louisiana; but the nature of his preparations, and the incautious disclosures of his associates, led to the suspicion that his real object was of a far different character.

‘His conspiracy,’ says president Jefferson, in a letter to the marquis de la Fayette, ‘has been one of the most flagitious of which history will ever furnish an example. He meant to separate the western states from us, to add Mexico to them, place himself at their head, establish what he would deem an energetic government, and thus provide an example and an instrument for the subversion of our freedom. The man who could expect to affect this with American materials must be a fit subject for Bedlam. Nothing has ever so strongly proved the innate force of our form of government as this conspiracy. Burr had probably engaged one thousand men to follow his fortunes, without letting them know his projects, otherwise than by assuring them the government approved of them. The moment a proclamation was issued, undeceiving them, he found himself left with about thirty desperadoes only. The people rose in a mass wherever he was, or was suspected to be, and by their own energy the thing was crushed in one instant, without its having been necessary to employ a man of the military but to take care of their respective stations. His first enterprise was to have been to seize New Orleans, which he supposed would powerfully bridle the upper country, and place him at the door of Mexico. It is with pleasure I inform you that not a single native Creole, and but one American, of those settled there before we received the place, took any part with him. His partisans were the new emigrants from the United States and elsewhere, fugitives from justice or debt, and adventurers and speculators of all descriptions.’ In August, 1807, he was tried before chief-justice Marshall, and the evidence of his guilt not being deemed sufficient he was acquitted. The people, however, very generally believed him guilty.

The American government at this period began to be seriously affected by the contest which was raging in Europe. Under the guidance of the splendid talents of Napoleon the military prowess of France had brought most of the European nations to her feet. America profited from the destruction of the ships and commerce of other nations; being neutral, her vessels carried from port to port the productions of France and the dependent kingdoms; and also to the ports of those kingdoms the manufactures of England: indeed, few ships were found on the ocean except those of the United States and Great Britain. These advantages were, however, too great to be long enjoyed unmolested. American ships carrying to Europe the produce of French colonies were, in the early stage of the war, captured by British cruisers, and condemned by their courts as lawful prizes; and now several European ports under the control of France were by British orders in council, dated in May, 1806, declared in a state of blockade, although not invested with a British fleet; and American vessels attempting to enter those ports were also captured and condemned. France and her allies suffered, as well as the United States, from these proceedings; but her vengeance fell not so much upon the belligerent as upon the neutral party. By a decree, used at Berlin in November, 1806, the French emperor declared the British islands in a state of blockade, and of course authorized the capture of all neutral vessels attempting to trade with those islands. From these measures of both nations the commerce of the United States severely suffered, and their merchants loudly demanded of the government redress and protection.

This was not the only grievance to which the contest between the European powers gave rise. Great Britain claimed a right to search for and seize English sailors, even on board neutral vessels while traversing the ocean. In the exercise of this pretended right, citizens of the United States were seized, dragged from their friends, transported to distant parts of the world, compelled to perform the duty of British sailors, and to fight with nations at peace with their own. Against this outrage upon personal liberty and the rights of American citizens, Washington, Adams, and Jefferson had remonstrated in vain. The abuse continued, and every year added to its aggravation. In June, 1807, a circumstance occurred which highly and justly incensed the Americans. The frigate Chesapeake, being ordered on a cruise in the Mediterranean sea, under the command of commodore Barron, sailing from Hampton roads, was come up with by the British ship of war Leopard, one of a squadron then at anchor within the limits of the United States. An officer was sent from the Leopard to the Chesapeake, with a note from the captain respecting some deserters from some of his Britannic majesty’s ships, supposed to be serving as part of the crew of the Chesapeake, and inclosing a copy of an order from vice-admiral Berkeley, requiring and directing the commanders of ships and vessels under his command, in case of meeting with the American frigate at sea, and without the limits of the United States, to show the order to her captain, and to require to search his ship for the deserters from certain ships therein named, and to proceed and search for them; and if a similar demand should be made by the American, he was permitted to search for deserters from their service, according to the customs and usage of civilized nations on terms of amity with each other.

Commodore Barron gave an answer, purporting that he knew of no such men as were described; that the recruiting officers for the Chesapeake had been particularly instructed by the government, through him, not to enter any deserters from his Britannic majesty’s ships; that he knew of none such being in her; that he was instructed never to permit the crew of any ship under his command to be mustered by any officers but her own; that he was disposed to preserve harmony, and hoped his answer would prove satisfactory. The Leopard, shortly after this answer was received by her commander, ranged along side of the Chesapeake, and commenced a heavy fire upon her. The Chesapeake, unprepared for action, made no resistance, but having suffered much damage, and lost three men killed, and eighteen wounded, commodore Barron ordered his colors to be struck, and sent a lieutenant on board the Leopard, to inform her commander that he considered the Chesapeake her prize. The commander of the Leopard sent an officer on board, who took possession of the Chesapeake, mustered her crew, and, carrying off four of her men, abandoned the ship. Commodore Barron, finding that the Chesapeake was very much injured, returned, with the advice of his officers, to Hampton roads. On receiving information of this outrage, the president, by proclamation, interdicted the harbors and waters of the United States to all armed British vessels, forbade intercourse with them, and ordered a sufficient force for the protection of Norfolk, and such other preparations as the occasion appeared to require. An armed vessel of the United States was despatched with instructions to the American minister at London, to call on the British government for the satisfaction and security which this outrage required.

Buonaparte having declared his purpose of enforcing with rigor the Berlin decree; the British government having solemnly asserted the right of search and impressment, and having intimated their intention to adopt measures in retaliation of the French decree, the president recommended to congress that the seamen, ships, and merchandise of the United States should be detained in port to preserve them from the dangers which threatened them on the ocean; and a law laying an indefinite embargo was in consequence enacted. A few days only had elapsed when information was received that Great Britain had prohibited neutrals, except upon most injurious conditions, from trading with France or her allies, comprising nearly every maritime nation of Europe. This was followed in a few weeks by a decree issued by Buonaparte, at Milan, declaring that every neutral vessel which should submit to be visited by a British ship, or comply with the terms demanded, should be confiscated, if afterwards found in his ports, or taken by his cruisers. Thus, at the date of the embargo, were orders and decrees in existence rendering liable to capture almost every American vessel sailing on the ocean. In the New England states, the embargo, withholding the merchant from a career in which he had been highly prosperous, and in which he imagined that he might still be favored by fortune, occasioned discontent and clamor. The federalists, more numerous there than in any other part of the Union, pronounced it a measure unwise and oppressive. These representations, and the distress which the people endured, induced a zealous opposition to the measures of the government.

The president, in his message on the opening of the tenth congress, stated the continued disregard shown by the belligerent nations to neutral rights, so destructive to the American commerce; and referred it to the wisdom of congress to decide on the course best adapted to such a state of things. ‘With the Barbary powers,’ he said, ‘we continue in harmony, with the exception of an unjustifiable proceeding of the dey of Algiers towards our consul to that regency,’ the character and circumstances of which he laid before congress. ‘With our Indian neighbors the public peace has been steadily maintained. From a conviction that we consider them as a part of ourselves, and cherish with sincerity their rights and interests, the attachment of the Indian tribes is gaining strength daily, is extending from the nearer to the more remote, and will amply requite us for the justice and friendship practised towards them. Husbandry and household manufacture are advancing among them, more rapidly with the southern than northern tribes, from circumstances of soil and climate; and one of the two great divisions of the Cherokee nation has now under consideration to solicit the friendship of the United States, and to be identified with us in laws and government in such progressive manner as we shall think best.’

Mr. Jefferson, following and confirming the example of Washington, determined not to continue in office for a longer term than eight years. ‘Never did a prisoner,’ says the president of the American republic, ‘released from his chains, feel such relief as I shall on shaking off the shackles of power. Nature intended me for the tranquil pursuits of science, by rendering them my supreme delight. But the enormities of the times in which I have lived have forced me to take a part in resisting them, and to commit myself on the boisterous ocean of political passions. I thank God for the opportunity of retiring from them without censure, and carrying with me the most consoling proofs of public approbation. I leave every thing in the hands of men so able to take care of them, that if we are destined to meet misfortunes it will be because no human wisdom could avert them.’

ADMINISTRATION OF MR. MADISON.

Mr. Jefferson was succeeded in the presidency by Mr. Madison. One of the first acts of congress under the new president was to repeal the embargo; but at the same time to prohibit all intercourse with France and England.

In the non-intercourse law a provision was inserted, that if either nation should revoke her hostile edicts, and the president should announce that fact by proclamation, then the law should cease to be in force in regard to the nation so revoking. On the 23d of April, Mr. Erskine, minister plenipotentiary from his Britannic majesty to the United States, pledged his court to repeal its anti-neutral decrees by the 10th of June; and, in consequence of an arrangement now made with the British minister, the president proclaimed that commercial intercourse would be renewed on that day; but this arrangement was disavowed by the ministry; and, in October, Mr. Erskine was replaced by Mr. Jackson, who soon giving offence to the American government, all farther intercourse with him was refused, and he was recalled.

The Rambouillet decree, alleged to be designed to retaliate the act of congress which forbade French vessels to enter the ports of the United States, was issued by Buonaparte on the 23d of March. By this decree, all American vessels and cargoes, arriving in any of the ports of France, or of countries occupied by French troops, were ordered to be seized and condemned.

On the 1st of May congress passed an act, excluding British and French armed vessels from the waters of the United States; but providing, that if either of the above nations should modify its edicts before the 3d of March, 1811, so that they should cease to violate neutral commerce, of which fact the president was to give notice by proclamation, and the other nation should not, within three months after, pursue a similar course, commercial intercourse with the first might be renewed, but not with the other.

In August the French government assured Mr. Armstrong, the American envoy at Paris, that the Berlin and Milan decrees were revoked, the revocation to take effect on the first day of November ensuing. Confiding in this assurance, the president, on the second day of November, issued his proclamation, declaring that unrestrained commerce with France was allowed, but that all intercourse with Great Britain was prohibited.

Great Britain, having previously expressed a willingness to repeal her orders whenever France should repeal her decrees, was now called upon by the American envoy to fulfil that engagement. The British ministry objected, however, that the French decrees could not be considered as repealed, a letter from the minister of state not being, for that purpose, a document of sufficient authority; and still persisted to enforce the orders in council. For this purpose British ships of war were stationed before the principal harbors of the United States. All American merchantmen, departing or returning, were boarded, searched, and many of them sent to British ports as legal prizes. The contempt in which the British officers held the republican navy, in one instance, led to an action. Commodore Rogers, in the President frigate, met in the evening a vessel on the coast of Virginia; he hailed; but, instead of receiving an answer, was hailed in turn, and a shot was fired, which struck the main-mast of the President. The fire was instantly returned by the commodore, and continued for a few minutes, when, finding his antagonist was of inferior force, and that her guns were almost silenced, he desisted. On hailing again, an answer was given, that the ship was the British sloop of war Little Belt, of eighteen guns. Thirty-two of her men were killed and wounded, and the ship was much disabled.

For several years the Indian tribes residing near the sources of the Mississippi had occupied themselves in murdering and robbing the white settlers in their vicinity. At length, the frontier inhabitants being seriously alarmed by their hostile indications, in the autumn of 1811 governor Harrison resolved to move towards the Prophet’s town, on the Wabash, with a body of Kentucky and Indiana militia, and the fourth United States regiment, under colonel Boyd, to demand satisfaction of the Indians, and to put a stop to their threatened hostilities. His expedition was made early in November. On his approach within a few miles of the Prophet’s town, the principal chiefs came out with offers of peace and submission, and requested the governor to encamp for the night; but this was only a treacherous artifice. At four in the morning the camp was furiously assailed, and a bloody contest ensued; the Indians were however repulsed. The loss on the part of the Americans was sixty-two killed, and one hundred and twenty-six wounded, and a still greater number on the side of the Indians. Governor Harrison, having destroyed the Prophet’s town, and established forts, returned to Vincennes.

In November reparation was made by the British for the attack on the Chesapeake. Mr. Foster, the British envoy, informed the secretary of the United States, that he was instructed to repeat to the American government the prompt disavowal made by his majesty, on being apprized of the unauthorized act of the officer in command of his naval forces on the coast of America, whose recall from a highly important and honorable command immediately ensued, as a mark of his majesty’s disapprobation; that he was authorized to offer, in addition to that disavowal on the part of his royal highness, the immediate restoration, as far as circumstances would admit, of the men who, in consequence of admiral Berkeley’s orders, were forcibly taken out of the Chesapeake, to the vessel from which they were taken; or, if that ship were no longer in commission, to such seaport of the United States as the American government may name for the purpose: and that he was also authorized to offer to the American government a suitable pecuniary provision for the sufferers, in consequence of the attack on the Chesapeake, including the families of those seamen who fell in the action, and of the wounded survivors. The president acceded to these propositions; and the officer commanding the Chesapeake, then lying in the harbor of Boston, was instructed to receive the men who were to be restored to that ship. The British envoy, however, could give no assurance that his government was disposed to make a satisfactory arrangement of the subject of impressment, or to repeal the orders in council. These orders, on the contrary, continued to be enforced with rigor; and, on the restoration of a free commerce with France, a large number of American vessels, laden with rich cargoes, and destined to her ports, fell into the power of British cruisers, which, since 1803, had captured nine hundred American vessels.

Early in November, 1811, president Madison summoned the congress. His message indicating an apprehension of hostilities with Great Britain, the committee of foreign relations in the house of representatives reported resolutions for filling up the ranks of the army; for raising an additional force of ten thousand men; for authorizing the president to accept the services of fifty thousand volunteers, and for ordering out the militia when he should judge it necessary; for repairing the navy; and for authorizing the arming of merchantmen in self-defence. A bill from the senate, for raising twenty-five thousand men, after much discussion, was also agreed to by the house.

The American congress, although continuing the preparations for war, still cherished the hope that a change of policy in Europe would render unnecessary an appeal to arms till May in the following year. Towards the close of that season, the Hornet arrived from London, bringing information that no prospect existed of a favorable change. On the 1st of June, the president sent a message to congress, recounting the wrongs received from Great Britain, and submitting the question, whether the United States should continue to endure them, or resort to war. The message was considered with closed doors. On the 18th, an act was passed, declaring war against Great Britain; and the next day a proclamation was issued. Against this declaration, however, the representatives belonging to the federal party presented a solemn protest, which was written with great ability.

At the time of the declaration of war, general Hull was also governor of the Michigan territory, of which Detroit is the capital. On the 12th of July, with two thousand regulars and volunteers, he crossed the river dividing the United States from Canada, apparently intending to attack Malden, and thence to proceed to Montreal. Information was, however, received, that Mackinaw, an American post above Detroit, had surrendered to a large body of British and Indians, who were rushing down the river in numbers sufficient to overwhelm the American forces. Panic-struck, general Hull hastened back to Detroit. General Brock, the commander at Malden, pursued him, and erected batteries opposite Detroit. The next day, meeting with no resistance, general Brock resolved to march directly forward and assault the fort. The American troops awaited the approach of the enemy, and anticipated victory; but, to their dismay, general Hull opened a correspondence, which ended in the surrender of the army, and of the territory of Michigan. An event so disgraceful, occurring in a quarter where success was confidently anticipated, caused the greatest mortification and amazement throughout the Union.

General Van Rensselaer, of the New York militia, had the command of the troops which were called the army of the centre. His head-quarters were at Lewistown, on the river Niagara, and on the opposite side was Queenstown, a fortified British post. The militia displaying great eagerness to be led against the enemy, the general determined to cross the river at the head of about one thousand men; though successful at first, he was compelled, after a long and obstinate engagement, to surrender. General Brock, the British commander, fell in rallying his troops.

The army of the north, which was under the immediate command of general Dearborn, was stationed at Greenbush, near Albany, and at Plattsburgh, on lake Champlain. From the latter post, a detachment marched a short distance into Canada, surprised a small body of British and Indians, and destroyed a considerable quantity of public stores. Other movements were anxiously expected by the people; but, after the misfortunes of Detroit and Niagara, the general deemed it inexpedient to engage in any important enterprise.

While, on land, defeat attended the arms of the republic, on the ocean we gained victories, which compensated our loss, and gained us immortal glory. On the 19th of August, captain Hull, commanding the Constitution, of forty-four guns, fell in with the British frigate Le Guerriere. She advanced towards the Constitution, firing broadsides at intervals; the American reserved her fire till she had approached within half pistol-shot, when a tremendous cannonade was directed upon her, and in thirty minutes, every mast and nearly every spar being shot away, captain Dacres struck his flag. Of the crew, fifty were killed and sixty-four wounded; while the Constitution had only seven killed and seven wounded. The Guerriere received so much injury, that it was thought to be impossible to get her into port, and she was burned. Captain Hull, on his return to the United States, was welcomed with enthusiasm by his grateful and admiring countrymen. The vast difference in the number of killed and wounded certainly evinced great skill, as well as bravery, on the part of the American seamen. But this was the first only of a series of naval victories. On the 18th of October, captain Jones, in the Wasp, of eighteen guns, captured the Frolic, of twenty-two, after a bloody conflict of three-quarters of an hour. In this action the Americans obtained a victory over a superior force; and, on their part, but eight were killed and wounded, while on that of the enemy about eighty. The Wasp was unfortunately captured, soon after her victory, by a British ship of the line. On the 25th, the frigate United States, commanded by captain Decatur, captured the British frigate Macedonian. In this instance, also, the disparity of loss was astonishingly great: on the part of the enemy, a hundred and four were killed and wounded; on that of the Americans, but eleven. The United States brought her prize safely to New York. A most desperate action was fought on the 29th of December, between the Constitution, of forty-four guns, then commanded by captain Bainbridge, and the British frigate Java, of thirty-eight. The combat continued more than three hours; nor did the Java strike till she was reduced to a mere wreck. Of her crew, a hundred and sixty-one were killed and wounded, while of that of the Constitution there were only thirty-four.

These naval victories were peculiarly gratifying to the feelings of the Americans; they were gained in the midst of disasters on land, and by that class of citizens whose rights had been violated; they were gained over a nation whom long continued success had taught to consider themselves lords of the sea, and who had confidently affirmed that the whole American navy would soon be swept from the ocean. Many British merchantmen were also captured, both by the American navy and by privateers, which issued from almost every port, and were remarkably successful. The number of prizes made during the first seven months of the war exceeded five hundred.

At the commencement of the session of congress held in the autumn of 1812, the president, in his message, stated that immediately after the declaration of war, he communicated to the British government the terms on which its progress might be arrested; that these terms were, the repeal of the orders in council, the discharge of American seamen, and the abandonment of the practice of impressment; and that the ministry had declined to accede to his offers. He also stated that, at an early period of the war, he had received official information of the repeal of the orders in council; that two propositions for an armistice had been made to him, both of which he had rejected, as they could not have been accepted without conceding to Great Britain the right of impressment. The rejection of these propositions was approved by the national representatives, who, far from abandoning the ground they had taken, adopted more vigorous measures for the prosecution of the war.

While the war was proceeding in America, a friendly power abroad interposed for its termination. Soon after the spring session of congress, an offer was communicated from the emperor of Russia of his mediation, as the common friend of the United States and Great Britain, for the purpose of facilitating a peace between them. The offer was immediately accepted by the American government, and provision made for the contemplated negotiation. Albert Gallatin, James A. Bayard, and John Quincy Adams, were appointed commissioners, and invested with the requisite powers to conclude a treaty of peace with persons clothed with like powers on the part of Great Britain. They were also authorized to enter into such conventional regulations of the commerce between the two countries as might be mutually advantageous. The two first-named envoys proceeded to join their colleague at St. Petersburgh, where he then was as resident minister from the United States. A commission was also given to the envoys, authorizing them to conclude a treaty of commerce with Russia, with a view to strengthen the amicable relations, and improve the beneficial intercourse, between the two countries.

On the 24th of May, congress was convened by proclamation of the president. Laws were enacted, imposing a direct tax of three millions of dollars; authorizing the collection of various internal duties; providing for a loan of seven and a half millions of dollars; and prohibiting the merchant vessels of the United States from sailing under British licenses. Near the close of the session, a committee appointed to inquire into the subject made a long report upon the spirit and manner in which the war had been conducted by the British.

The scene of the campaign of 1813 was principally in the north, towards Canada. Brigadier-general Winchester, of the United States army, and nearly five hundred men, officers and soldiers, were made prisoners at Frenchtown, by a division of the British army from Detroit, with their Indian allies, under colonel Proctor. Colonel Proctor leaving the wounded Americans without a guard, the Indians returned, and deeds of horror followed. The wounded officers were dragged from the houses, killed, and scalped in the streets. The buildings were set on fire. Some who attempted to escape were forced back into the flames, while others were put to death by the tomahawk, and left shockingly mangled in the highway. The infamy of this butchery does not fall upon the perpetrators alone, but extends to those who were able, and were bound by a solemn engagement, to restrain them. The battle and massacre at Frenchtown clothed Kentucky and Ohio in mourning. Other volunteers, indignant at the treachery and cruelty of their foes, hastened to the aid of Harrison. He marched to the rapids of the Miami, where he erected a fort, which he called fort Meigs, in honor of the governor of Ohio. On the 1st of May it was invested by a large number of Indians, and by a party of British troops from Malden, the whole commanded by colonel Proctor. An unsuccessful attempt to raise the siege was made by general Clay, at the head of twelve hundred Kentuckians; but the fort continued to be defended with bravery and skill. The Indians, unaccustomed to sieges, became weary and discontented; and, on the 8th of May, they deserted their allies. The British, despairing of success, then made a precipitate retreat.

On the northern frontier a body of troops had been assembled, under the command of general Dearborn, at Sackett’s Harbor, and great exertions were made by commodore Chauncey to build and equip a squadron on lake Ontario, sufficiently powerful to contend with that of the British. By the 25th of April the naval preparations were so far completed, that the general and seventeen thousand troops were conveyed across the lake to the attack of York, the capital of Upper Canada. On the 27th, an advanced party, commanded by brigadier-general Pike, who was born in a camp, and bred a soldier from his birth, landed, although opposed at the water’s edge by a superior force. After a short but severe conflict, the British were driven to their fortifications. The rest of the troops having landed, the whole party pressed forward, carried the first battery by assault, and were moving towards the main works, when the English magazine blew up, with a tremendous explosion, hurling upon the advancing troops immense quantities of stone and timber. Numbers were killed; the gallant Pike received a mortal wound; the troops halted for a moment, but, recovering from the shock, again pressed forward, and soon gained possession of the town. Of the British troops, one hundred were killed, nearly three hundred were wounded, and the same number made prisoners.

The object of the expedition attained, the squadron and troops returned to Sackett’s Harbor, and subsequently sailed to fort George, situated at the head of the lake. After a warm engagement, the British abandoned the fort, and retired to the heights at the head of Burlington bay.

While the greater part of the American army was thus employed, the British made an attack upon the important post of Sackett’s Harbor. On the 27th of May, their squadron appeared before the town. Alarm guns instantly assembled the citizens of the neighborhood. General Brown’s force amounted to about one thousand men; a slight breastwork was hastily thrown up at the only place where the British could land, and behind this he placed the militia, the regulars, under colonel Backus, forming a second line. On the morning of the 29th, one thousand British troops landed from the squadron, and advanced towards the breastwork; the militia gave way, but by the bravery of the regulars, under the skilful arrangement of general Brown, the British were repulsed, and re-embarked so hastily as to leave behind most of their wounded.

The sea-coast was harassed by predatory warfare, carried on by large detachments from the powerful navy of Great Britain. One squadron, stationed in Delaware bay, captured and burnt every merchant vessel which came within its reach, while a more powerful squadron, commanded by admiral Cockburn, destroyed the farm-houses and gentlemen’s seats along the shore of Chesapeake bay. Frenchtown, Havre-de-Grace, Fredericktown, and Georgetown were sacked and burnt. Norfolk was saved from a similar fate by the determined bravery of a small force stationed on Craney island, in the harbor. A furious attack was made upon Hampton, which, notwithstanding the gallant resistance of its small garrison, was captured.

The ocean was the theatre of sanguinary conflicts. Captain Lawrence, in the sloop of war Hornet, on the 23d of February, met the British brig Peacock, and a fierce combat ensued. In less than fifteen minutes the Peacock struck her colors, displaying at the same time a signal of distress. The victors hastened to the relief of the vanquished; the same strength which had been exerted to conquer was equally ready to save; but the Peacock sunk before all her crew could be removed, carrying down nine British seamen, and three brave and generous Americans. On his return to the United States, captain Lawrence was promoted to the command of the frigate Chesapeake, then in the harbor of Boston. For several weeks the British frigate Shannon, of superior force, had been cruising before the port; and captain Broke, her commander, had announced his wish to meet, in single combat, an American frigate. Inflamed by this challenge, captain Lawrence, although his crew was just enlisted, set sail on the 1st of June to seek the Shannon. Towards evening of the same day they met, and instantly engaged, with unexampled fury. In a very few minutes, and in quick succession, the sailing master of the Chesapeake was killed, captain Lawrence and three lieutenants were severely wounded, her rigging was so cut to pieces that she fell on board the Shannon, captain Lawrence received a second and mortal wound, and was carried below; at this instant, captain Broke, at the head of his marines, gallantly boarded the Chesapeake, when resistance ceased, and the American flag was struck by the British. Of the crew of the Shannon twenty-four were killed and fifty-six wounded. Of that of the Chesapeake, forty-eight were killed and nearly one hundred wounded. The youthful and intrepid Lawrence was lamented, with sorrow deep, sincere, and lasting.[146]

The next encounter at sea was between the American brig Argus and the British brig Pelican, in which the latter was victorious. Soon after, the American brig Enterprise, commanded by lieutenant Burrows, captured the British brig Boxer, commanded by captain Blyth. Both commanders were killed in the action, and were buried, each by the other’s side, in Portland.

While each nation was busily employed in equipping a squadron on lake Erie, general Clay remained inactive at fort Meigs. About the last of July, a large number of British and Indians appeared before the fort, hoping to entice the garrison to a general action in the field. After waiting a few days without succeeding, they decamped, and proceeded to fort Stephenson, on the river Sandusky. This fort was little more than a picketing, surrounded by a ditch, and the garrison consisted of but one hundred and sixty men, who were commanded by major Croghan, a youth of twenty-one. The force of the assailants was estimated at about four hundred in uniform, and as many Indians; they were repulsed, and their loss in killed, wounded, and prisoners, is supposed to have exceeded one hundred and fifty; those of the remainder who were not able to escape were taken off during the night by the Indians. The whole loss of major Croghan during the siege was one killed and seven slightly wounded. About three the next morning the British sailed down the river, leaving behind them a boat containing clothing and considerable military stores.

By the exertions of commodore Perry, an American squadron had been fitted out on lake Erie early in September. It consisted of nine small vessels, in all carrying fifty-four guns. A British squadron had also been built and equipped, under the superintendence of commodore Barclay. It consisted of six vessels, mounting sixty-three guns. Commodore Perry, immediately sailing, offered battle to his adversary, and on the 10th of September the British commander left the harbor of Malden to accept the offer. In a few hours the wind shifted, giving the Americans the advantage. Perry, forming the line of battle, hoisted his flag, on which were inscribed the words of the dying Lawrence, ‘Don’t give up the ship.’ Loud huzzas from all the vessels proclaimed the animation which this motto inspired. About noon the firing commenced; and after a short action two of the British vessels surrendered, and the rest of the American squadron now joining in the battle, the victory was rendered decisive and complete. The British loss was forty-one killed, and ninety-four wounded. The American loss was twenty-seven killed, and ninety-six wounded, of which number twenty-one were killed and sixty-two wounded on board the flagship Lawrence, whose whole complement of able-bodied men before the action was about one hundred. The commodore gave intelligence of the victory to general Harrison in these words: ‘We have met the enemy, and they are ours. Two ships, two brigs, one schooner, and one sloop.’

The Americans were now masters of the lake; but the territory of Michigan was still in the possession of colonel Proctor. The next movements were against the British and Indians at Detroit and Malden. General Harrison had previously assembled a portion of the Ohio militia on the Sandusky river; and on the 7th of September four thousand from Kentucky, the flower of the state, with governor Shelby at their head, arrived at his camp. With the co-operation of the fleet, it was determined to proceed at once to Malden. On the 27th the troops were received on board, and reached Malden on the same day; but the British had, in the mean time, destroyed the fort and public stores, and had retreated along the Thames towards the Moravian villages, together with Tecumseh’s Indians, amounting to twelve or fifteen hundred. It was now resolved to proceed in pursuit of Proctor. On the 5th of October a severe battle was fought between the two armies at the river Thames, and the British army was taken by the Americans. In this battle Tecumseh was killed, and the Indians fled. The British loss was nineteen regulars killed, and fifty wounded, and about six hundred prisoners. The American loss, in killed and wounded, amounted to upwards of fifty. Proctor made his escape down the Thames.

On the 29th of September the Americans took possession of Detroit, which, on the approach of Harrison’s army, had been abandoned by the British. Preparations were now made for subduing Upper Canada, and taking Montreal; but owing to the difficulties attending the concentration of the troops, and perhaps also to the want of vigor in the commanders, that project was abandoned, and the army under Wilkinson, marching to French Mills, there encamped for the winter. This abortive issue of the campaign occasioned murmurs throughout the nation, and the causes which led to it have never been fully developed. The severest censure fell upon general Armstrong, who was secretary of war, and upon general Hampton. The latter soon after resigned his commission in the army, and general Izard was selected to command the post at Plattsburgh.

Major-general Harrison, commander-in-chief of the eighth military district in the United States, issued a proclamation, stating, that the enemy having been driven from the territory of Michigan, and a part of the army under his command having taken possession of it, it became necessary that the civil government of the territory should be re-established, and the former officers resume the exercise of their authority. He therefore proclaimed, that all appointments and commissions which have been derived from British officers were at an end; that the citizens were restored to all the rights and privileges which they enjoyed previously to the capitulation made by general Hull on the 15th of August, 1812; and, until the will of the government should be known, directed that all persons having civil offices in the territory of Michigan, at the period of the capitulation of Detroit, should resume the exercise of the powers appertaining to their offices respectively.

The United States squadron, chased by commodore Hardy with a superior naval force, had taken refuge in the harbor of New London, where the decayed and feeble state of the fortifications afforded a precarious defence. The menacing appearance of the British squadron at the entrance of the harbor, and the strong probability that the town would be destroyed in the conflict, which had been long expected, produced among the inhabitants the greatest consternation. In this moment of alarm, the major-general of the third division, and the brigadier-general of the third brigade, considered themselves justified, at the earnest entreaty of the citizens, in summoning the militia to their assistance. Governor Smith, of Connecticut, approved this proceeding, and immediately forwarded supplies, and adopted measures of defence. ‘On this occasion,’ said the governor to the legislature, ‘I could not hesitate as to the course which it became my duty to pursue. The government of Connecticut, the last to invite hostilities, should be the first to repel aggression.’