Chapter I: The War of 1775 (2)

Occasionally the public would be startled by the daring and bravery of some negro in the American army, and then the true lovers of liberty, North and South, would again urge that negroes be admitted into the ranks of the army. When Lt.-Col. Barton planned for the capture of the British Maj.-Gen. Prescott, who commanded the British army at Newport R. I., and whose capture was necessary in order to effect the release of Gen. Lee, who was then in the hands of the British, and of the same rank as that of Gen. Prescott, Col. Barton's plan was made a success through the aid of Prince, a negro in Col. Barton's command. The daring of the exploit excited the highest patriotic commendations of the Americans, and revived the urgent appeals that had been made for a place in the armed ranks for all men, irrespective of color. The Pennsylvania Evening _Post_ of Aug. 7th, 1777, gives the following account of the capture:

"They landed about five miles from Newport, and three
quarters of a mile from the house, which they approached
cautiously, avoiding the main guard, which was at some
distance. _The Colonel went foremost, with a stout active
negro close behind him, and another at a small distance; the
rest followed so as to be near but not seen._

"A single sentinel at the door saw and hailed the Colonel;
he answered by exclaiming against and inquiring for, rebel
prisoners, but kept slowly advancing. The sentinel again
challenged him and required the countersign. He said he had
not the countersign; but amused the sentry by talking about
rebel prisoners, and still advancing till he came within
reach of the bayonet, which, he presenting, the colonel
struck aside, and seized him. He was immediately secured,
and ordered to be silent, on pain of instant death.
_Meanwhile, the rest of the men surrounding the house, the
negro, with his head, at the second stroke, forced a passage
into it, and then into the landlord's apartment. The
landlord at first refused to give the necessary
intelligence; but, on the prospect of present death, he
pointed to the General's chamber, which being instantly
opened by the negro's head, the Colonel, calling the General
by name, told him he was a prisoner._"

Congress voted Col. Barton a magnificent sword, but the real captor of Gen. Prescott, so far as known, received nothing. A surgeon in the American army, Dr. Thacher, writes, under date of Aug. 3d, 1777, at Albany:

"The pleasing information is received here that Lieut.-Col.
Barton, of the Rhode Island Militia, planned a bold exploit
for the purpose of surprising and taking Maj.-Gen. Prescott,
the commanding officer of the Royal army at Newport. Taking
with him, in the night, about forty men, in two boats, with
oars muffled, he had the address to elude the vigilance of
the ships-of-war and guard boats; and, having arrived
undiscovered at the quarters of Gen. Prescott, they were
taken for the sentinels; and the general was not alarmed
till the captors were at the door of his lodging chamber,
which was fast closed. _A negro man, named Prince, instantly
thrust his beetle head through the panel door, and seized
his victim while in bed._ This event is extremely honorable
to the enterprising spirit of Col. Barton, and is considered
an ample retaliation for the capture of Gen. Lee by Col.
Harcourt. The event occasions great joy and exultation, as
it puts in our possession an officer of equal rank with Gen.
Lee, by which means an exchange may be obtained. Congress
resolved that an elegant sword should be presented to Col.
Barton, for his brave exploit."

To recite here every incident and circumstance illustrating the heroism and the particular services rendered the patriotic army by negroes, who served in regiments and companies with white soldiers, would fill this entire volume. Yet, with the desire of doing justice to the memory of all those negroes who aided in achieving the independence of America, I cannot forbear introducing notices,--gathered from various sources,--of some prominent examples.

Ebenezer Hill, a slave at Stonington, Conn., who served throughout the war, and who took part in the battles of Saratoga and Stillwater, and witnessed the surrender of Burgoyne.

Prince Whipple acted as bodyguard to General Whipple, one of Washington's aids. Prince is the negro seen on horseback in the engraving of Washington crossing the Delaware, and again pulling the stroke oar in the boat which Washington crossed in.

At the storming of Fort Griswold, Maj. Montgomery was lifted upon the walls of the fort by his soldiers, and called upon the Americans to surrender. John Freeman, a negro soldier, with his pike, pinned him dead to the earth. Among the American soldiers who were massacred by the British soldiers, after the surrender of the fort, were two negro soldiers, Lambo Latham and Jordan Freeman.

Quack Matrick, a negro, fought through the Revolutionary war, as a soldier, for which he was pensioned. Also Jonathan Overtin, who was at the battle of Yorktown. The grandfather of the historian Wm. Wells Brown, Simon Lee, was also a soldier "in the times which tried men's souls."

"Samuel Charlton was born in the State of New Jersey, a
slave, in the family of Mr. M., who owned, also, other
members belonging to his family--all residing in the English
neighborhood. During the progress of the war, he was placed
by his master (as a substitute for himself) in the army then
in New Jersey, as a teamster in the baggage train. He was in
active service at the battle of Monmouth, not only
witnessing, but taking a part in, the great struggle of that
day. He was also in several other engagements in different
sections of that part of the State. He was a great admirer
of General Washington, and was, at one time, attached to his
baggage train, and received the General's commendation for
his courage and devotion to the cause of liberty. Mr.
Charlton was about fifteen or seventeen years of age when
placed in the army, for which his master rewarded him with a
silver dollar. At the expiration of his time, he returned to
his master, to serve again in bondage, after having toiled,
fought and bled for liberty, in common with the regular
soldiery. Mr. M., at his death, by will, liberated his
slaves, and provided a pension for Charlton, to be paid
during his lifetime.

* * * *

"James Easton, of Bridgewater, a colored man, participated
in the erection of the fortifications on Dorchester Heights,
under command of Washington, which the next morning so
greatly surprised the British soldiers then encamped in
Boston."

"Among the brave blacks who fought in the battles for
American liberty was Major Jeffrey, a Tennesseean, who,
during the campaign of Major-General Andrew Jackson in
Mobile, filled the place of "regular" among the soldiers. In
the charge made by General Stump against the enemy, the
Americans were repulsed and thrown into disorder,--Major
Stump being forced to retire, in a manner by no means
desirable, under the circumstances. Major Jeffrey, who was
but a common soldier, seeing the condition of his comrades,
and comprehending the disastrous results about to befall
them, rushed forward, mounted a horse, took command of the
troops, and, by an heroic effort, rallied them to the
charge,--completely routing the enemy, who left the
Americans masters of the field. He at once received from the
General the title of "Major," though he could not, according
to the American policy, so commission him. To the day of his
death, he was known by that title in Nashville, where he
resided, and the circumstances which entitled him to it were
constantly the subject of popular conversation.

"Major Jeffrey was highly respected by the whites generally,
and revered, in his own neighborhood, by all the colored
people who knew him.

"A few years ago receiving an indignity from a common
ruffian, he was forced to strike him in self-defense; for
which act, in accordance with the laws of slavery in that,
as well as many other of the slave States, he was compelled
to receive, on his naked person, _nine and thirty lashes
with a raw hide!_ This, at the age of seventy odd, after the
distinguished services rendered his country,--probably when
the white ruffian for whom he was tortured was unable to
raise an arm in its defense,--was more than he could bear;
_it broke his heart_, and he sank to rise no more, till
summoned by the blast of the last trumpet to stand on the
battle-field of the general resurrection."

Jeffrey was not an exception to this kind of treatment. Samuel Lee died on a tobacco plantation after the war.

The re-enslaving of the negroes who fought for American Independence became so general at the South, that the Legislature of Virginia in 1783, in compliance with her honor, passed an act directing the emancipation of certain slaves, who had served as soldiers of the State, and for the emancipation of the slave Aberdeen.

James Armistead during the war acted as a scout and spy for LaFayette during his campaign in Virginia, and at one time gave information of an intended surprise to be made upon the forces of the Marquis, thereby saving probably a rout of the army. Armistead, after the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown, was returned to his master three years after the close of the war. He was manumitted by especial act of the Virginia Legislature, whose attention was called to the worthiness of the service rendered by Armistead.

The opposition to the employment of negroes as soldiers, by the persistency of its advocates and the bravery of those who were then serving in white regiments, was finally overcome, so that their enlistment became general and regulated by law. Companies, battalions and regiments of negro troops soon entered the field and the struggle for independence and liberty, giving to the cause the reality of freedmen's fight. For three years the army had been fighting under the smart of defeats, with an occasional signal victory, but now the tide was about to be turned against the English. The colonists had witnessed the heroism of the negro in Virginia at Great Bridge, and at Norfolk; in Massachusetts at Boston and Bunker Hill, fighting, in the former, for freedom under the British flag, in the latter for liberty, under the banner of the colonies. The echoing shouts of the whites fell heavily upon the ears of the black people; they caught the strain as by martial instinct, and reverberated the appeal, "_Liberty and Independence_."

The negro's ancestors were not slaves, so upon the altar of their hearts the fire of liberty was re-kindled by the utterances of the white colonists. They heard Patrick Henry and Samuel Adams, whose eloquence vehemently aroused their compatriots, and, like them, they too resolved to be free. They held no regular organized meetings; at the North they assembled with their white fellow-citizens; at the South each balmy gale that swept along the banks of the rivers were laden with the negro's ejaculations for freedom, and each breast was resolute and determined. The advocates and friends of the measure for arming all men for freedom, were on the alert, and now the condition of the army was such as to enable them to press the necessity of the measure upon the attention of the American people. Washington needed reinforcements; nay, more, the perilous situation of the army as it lay in camp at Valley Forge, at the conclusion of the campaign of 1777, was indeed distressing. The encampment consisted of huts, and there was danger of a famine. The soldiers were nearly destitute of comfortable clothing. "Many," says the historian, "for want of shoes, walked barefoot on the frozen ground; few, if any, had blankets for the night. Great numbers sickened; near three thousand at a time were incapable of bearing arms."

Within fifteen miles of them lay the city of Philadelphia and the British army. These gloomy circumstances overshadowed the recent victory at Bennington, and the surrender of Burgoyne. Under these circumstances, the difficulty of recruiting the patriot army may be easily imagined. A general enlistment bill had failed to pass the legislature in the spring, because, perhaps, the spirit of the patriots were up at the time; but now they were down, and the advocates of arming negroes sought the opportunity of carrying their plan. It was not attempted in Connecticut, but in the General Assembly of Rhode Island an act was passed for the purpose. Here are some of the principal provisions of this act:

"_It is Voted and Resolved_, That every able-bodied negro,
mulatto, or Indian man slave in this State, may enlist into
either of the said two battalions to serve during the
continuance of the present war with Great Britain; that
every slave so enlisted shall be entitled to receive all the
bounties, wages, encouragements allowed by the Continental
Congress to any soldier enlisted into their service.

"_It is further Voted and Resolved_, That every slave so
enlisting shall, upon his passing muster before Col.
Christopher Greene, be immediately discharged from the
service of his master or mistress, and be absolutely free,
as though he had never been encumbered with any kind of
servitude or slavery. And in case such slave shall, by
sickness or otherwise, be unable to maintain himself, he
shall not be chargable to his master or mistress, but shall
be supported at the expense of the State.

"And whereas slaves have been by the laws deemed the
property of their owners; and therefore compensation ought
to be made to the owners for the loss of their service,--

"_It is further Voted and Resolved_, That there be allowed,
and paid by this State to the owners, for every such slave
so enlisting, a sum according to his worth at a price not
exceeding one hundred and twenty pounds for the most
valuable slave, and in proportion for a slave of less value;
_Provided_ the owner of said slave shall deliver up to the
officer who shall enlist him the clothes of said slave; or
otherwise he shall not be entitled to said sum."

To speak of the gallantry of the negro soldiers recalls the recollection of some of their daring deeds at Red Bank, where four hundred men met and repulsed, after a terrible, sanguinary struggle, fifteen hundred Hessian troops led by Count Donop.

"The glory of the defence of Red Bank, which has been
pronounced one of the most heroic actions of the war,
belongs in reality to black men; yet who now hears them
spoken of in connection with it? Among the traits which
distinguished the black regiment was devotion to their
officers. In the attack made upon the American lines, near
Croton river, on the 13th of May, 1781, Col. Greene, the
commander of the regiment, was cut down and mortally
wounded; but the sabres of the enemy only reached him
through the bodies of his faithful blacks, who gathered
around him to protect him, _and every one of whom was
killed_."

Now the negro began to take the field; not scattered here and there throughout the army, filling up the shattered ranks of white regiments, but in organizations composed entirely of men of their own race, officered, however, by white officers, men of high social and military character and standing. The success of the measure in Rhode Island, emboldened the effort in Massachusetts, where the advocates of separate negro organizations had been laboring zealously for its accomplishment. Officers of the army in the field, expressed their desire to be placed in command of negro troops, in separate and distinct organizations. Every effort, however, up to this time to induce Massachusetts to consent to the proposition had failed. Rhode Island alone sent her negro regiments to the field, whose gallantry during the war more than met the most sanguine expectations of their warmest friends, and fully merited the trust and confidence of the State and country. As the struggle proceeded, re-enforcements were more frequently in demand; but recruits were scarce, and the question of arming negroes became again prominent in the colonies and the army.

In April, 1778, Thomas Kench, then serving in an artillery regiment, addressed letters to the Massachusetts Legislature urging the enlistment of negroes. He wrote:

"A re-enforcement can quickly be raised of two or three
hundred men. Will your honors grant the liberty, and give me
the command of the party? And what I refer to is negroes.
We have divers of them in our service, mixed with white men.
But I think it would be more proper to raise a body by
themselves, than to have them intermixed with the white men;
and their ambition would entirely be to outdo the white men
in every measure that the fortunes of war calls a soldier to
endure. And I could rely with dependence upon them in the
field of battle or to any post that I was sent to defend
with them; and they would think themselves happy could they
gain their freedom by bearing a part of subduing the enemy
that is invading our land, and clear a peaceful inheritance
for their masters, and posterity yet to come, that they are
now slaves to."

The letter from which this extract was made was duly referred to a joint committee "to consider the same and report." Some days later "a resolution of the General Assembly of Rhode Island for enlisting negroes in the public service" was referred to the same committee. They duly reported the draft of a law, differing little from the Rhode Island Resolution. A separate organization of negro companies, by Kench, does not appear to have been deemed advisable at that time. The usage was continued of "taking," in the words of Kench, "negroes in our service, intermixed with the white men."

The negroes of Boston and their abolition friends, rather insisted upon the intermingling of the races in the army, believing that this course had a greater tendency to destroy slavery, and the inequality of rights among the blacks and whites; though it deprived the negroes, as we now see, of receiving due credit for their valor, save in a few individual cases. It was not in Massachusetts alone, but in many other States that the same idea prevailed; and now the facts connected with the services of the negroes are to be gathered only in fragments, from the histories of villages and towns, or among the archives of the State, in a disconnected and unsatisfactory form.

The legislature of New York, two months after the murder of Col. Greene and his faithful negro troops at Point's Bridge, in that State, by the British, passed an act (March, 1781) looking to the raising of two regiments. The sixth section of the act reads as follows:

"And it is further enacted by the authority aforesaid, that
any person who shall deliver one or more of his able-bodied
male slaves to any warrant officer, as aforesaid, to serve
in either of the above regiments or independent corps, and
produce a certificate thereof, signed by any person
authorized to muster and receive the men to be raised by
virtue of this act, and produce such certificate to the
Surveyor-General, shall, for every male slave so entered and
mustered as aforesaid, be entitled to the location and grant
of one right, in manner as in and by this act is directed;
and shall be, and hereby is discharged from any further
maintenance of such slave, any law to the contrary
notwithstanding. And such slave so entering as aforesaid,
who shall serve for the term of three years or until
regularly discharged, shall, immediately after such service
or discharge, be, and is hereby declared to be, a free man
of this State."

In 1821, in the convention which revised the constitution of New York, Mr. Clark, speaking in favor of allowing negroes to vote, said in the course of his remarks:

"My honorable colleague has told us, that, as the colored
people are not required to contribute to the protection or
defence of the State, they are not entitled to an equal
participation in the privileges of its citizens. But, Sir,
whose fault is this? Have they ever refused to do military
duty when called upon? It is haughtily asked, Who will stand
in the ranks shoulder to shoulder with a negro? I answer, No
one, in time of peace; no one, when your musters and
trainings are looked upon as mere pastimes; no one, when
your militia will shoulder their muskets and march to their
trainings with as much unconcern as they would go to a
sumptuous entertainment or a splendid ball. But, Sir, when
the hour of danger approaches, your white 'militia' are just
as willing that the man of color should be set up as a mark
to be shot at by the enemy, as to be set up themselves. In
the War of the Revolution, these people helped to fight your
battles by land and by sea. Some of your States were glad to
turn out corps of colored men, and to stand 'shoulder to
shoulder' with them.

"In your late war, they contributed largely towards some of
your most splendid victories. On Lakes Erie and Champlain,
where your fleets triumphed over a foe superior in numbers
and engines of death, they were manned, in a large
proportion, with men of color. And, in this very house, in
the fall of 1814, a bill passed, receiving the approbation
of all the branches of your government, authorizing the
Governor to accept the services of a corps of two thousand
free people of color. Sir, these were times which tried
men's souls. In these times it was no sporting matter to
bear arms. These were times, when a man who shouldered his
musket did not know but he bared his bosom to receive a
death wound from the enemy ere he laid it aside; and in
these times, these people were found as ready and as willing
to volunteer in your service as any other. They were not
compelled to go; they were not drafted. No, your pride had
placed them beyond your compulsory power. But there was no
necessity for its exercise; they were volunteers; yes, Sir,
volunteers to defend that very country from the inroads and
ravages of a ruthless and vindictive foe, which had treated
them with insult, degradation and slavery.

"Volunteers are the best of soldiers. Give me the men,
whatever be their complexion, that willingly volunteer, and
not those who are compelled to turn out. Such men do not
fight from necessity, nor from mercenary motives, but from
principle."

Hon. Mr. Martindale, who represented a District of the State of New York, in Congress in 1828, thus speaks of the negro soldiers:

"Slaves, or negroes who have been slaves, were enlisted as
soldiers in the War of the Revolution; and I myself saw a
battalion of them, as fine martial-looking men as I ever
saw, attached to the Northern army."

Up to this time the East had been the theatre of the war, with now and then a battle in some one of the Middle Colonies, but the British discovering that the people of the South acted indifferently in maintaining and recruiting the army, transferred their operations to that section. Maryland then stood as a middle State or Colony. Her statesmen, seeing the threatened danger of the invasion of Pennsylvania, endeavored to prepare to meet it, and taking council from her sister States at the East, accepted the negro as a soldier. In June, 1781, John Cadwater, writing from Annapolis, Md., to Gen. Washington, says:

"We have resolved to raise, immediately, seven hundred and
fifty negroes, to be incorporated with the other troops; and
a bill is now almost completed."

It does not appear that the negroes were formed into separate organizations in this State, but filled the depleted ranks of the Continental regiments, where their energy and daring was not less than that displayed by their white comrades, with whom they fought, shoulder to shoulder. The advocates of arming the negroes were not confined to the Eastern and Middle sections; some of the best men of the South favored and advocated the enlistment of free negroes, and made many, though for a long time unsuccessful, efforts to obtain legal sanction for such enlistment throughout the South. But their advice was not listened to, even in the face of certain invasion, and then the whites would not, and could not be induced to rally to the defence of their own particular section and homes.

For fear that I may be accused of too highly coloring the picture of the Southern laxity of fervor and patriotism, I quote from the valuable essay which accompanies the history of the American Loyalists:

"The whole number of regulars enlisted for the Continental
service, from the beginning to the close of the struggle,
was 231,959. Of these, I have once remarked, 67,907 were
from Massachusetts; and I may now add, that every State
south of Pennsylvania provided but 59,493, or 8,414 _less_
than this single State."

The men of Massachusetts did not more firmly adhere to their policy of mixed troops as against separate organizations, based upon color, than did the men of the South to their peculiar institution, and against the arming of negroes, free or slave. The war having fairly set in upon Southern soil, and so urgent the necessity for recruiting the army, that Congress again took up the subject of enrolling negroes as soldiers. It was decided that the general Government had no control over the States in the matter, but a series of resolutions were adopted recommending to the States of Georgia and South Carolina, the arming of three thousand able-bodied negroes.

Now began an earnest battle for the carrying out of the policy, as recommended by Congress. Its friends were among the bravest and truest to the cause of freedom in the States. Hon. Henry Laurens lead in the effort. Even before the matter was brought to the attention of Congress, he wrote to Gen. Washington, as follows:

"Our affairs in the Southern department are more favorable
than we had considered them a few days ago; nevertheless,
the country is greatly distressed, and will be so unless
further re-inforcements are sent to its relief. Had we arms
for three thousand such black men as I could select in
Carolina, I should have no doubt of success in driving the
British out of Georgia, and subduing East Florida before the
end of July."

Washington knew the temper of the Southerners. He was well aware that slaves could not be entrusted with arms within sight of the enemy's camp, and within hearing of his proclamation of freedom to all who would join his Majesty's standard, unless equal inducements were offered them by the colonists, and to this he knew the Southern colonist would not consent. In his reply to Mr. Laurens, he said:

"The policy of our arming slaves, is, in my opinion a moot
point, unless the enemy set the example. For, should we
begin to form battallions of them, I have not the smallest
doubt, if the war is to be prosecuted, of their following us
in it, and justifying the measure upon our own ground. The
contest then must be, who can arm fastest. And where are our
arms? Besides, I am not clear that a discrimination will not
render slavery more irksome to those who remain in it. Most
of the good and evil things in this life are judged of by
comparison; and I fear a comparison in this case will be
productive of much discontent in those who are held in
servitude. But, as this is a subject that has never employed
much of my thoughts, these are no more than the first crude
ideas that have struck me upon the occasion."

Washington certainly had no doubts as to the value of the negro as a soldier, but for the reasons stated, did not give the weight of his influence, at this important juncture, to the policy of their enlistment, while so many of the leading men of the colonies were favorable to the action.

Among those who advocated the raising of negro troops was Col. John Laurens, a native of South Carolina and a brave patriot, who had acted as aide-de-camp to the commander-in-chief, and had seen service in Rhode Island and elsewhere. He was the son of Hon. Henry Laurens, at one time President of Congress, and was noted for his high qualities of character. A commission of lieutenant-colonel was granted to him by Congress, and he proceeded to South Carolina to use his personal influence to induce the Legislature to authorize the enlistment of negroes. His services in Rhode Island had given him an opportunity to witness the conduct and worth of the negro soldier.

Alexander Hamilton in the course of a long letter to John Jay, relating to the mission of Col. Laurens to South Carolina, says:

"I foresee that this project will have to combat much
opposition from prejudice and self-interest. The contempt we
have been taught to entertain for the blacks makes us fancy
many things that are founded neither in reason nor
experience; and an unwillingness to part company with
property of so valuable a kind will furnish a thousand
arguments to show the impracticability or pernicious
tendency of a scheme which requires such a sacrifice. But it
should be considered, that, if we do not make use of them in
this way, the enemy probably will; and that the best way to
counteract the temptations they will hold out will be to
offer them ourselves. An essential part of the plan is to
give them their freedom with their muskets. This will secure
their fidelity, animate their courage, and, I believe, will
have a good influence upon those who remain, by opening a
door to their emancipation. This circumstance, I confess has
no small weight in inducing me to wish the success of the
project; for the dictates of humanity and true policy,
equally interest me in favor of this unfortunate class of
men."

The patriotic zeal of Col. Laurens for the accomplishment of his design was earnest and conscientious. He wrote to his friend Hamilton in these words:

"Ternant will relate to you how many violent struggles I
have had between duty and inclination--how much my heart was
with you, while I appeared to be most actively employed
here. But it appears to me, that I should be inexcusable in
the light of a citizen, if I did not continue my utmost
efforts for carrying the plan of the black levies into
execution, while there remains the smallest hope of
success."

The condition of the colonies and the Continental army at that time was critical in the extreme. The campaign of 1779 had closed gloomily for the Americans. The British had not only been active in raiding in Virginia and destroying property, but in organizing negro troops. Lord Dunmore, as we have seen, as early as November, 1775, had issued a proclamation, inviting the negroes to join the Royal forces, to which a great many slaves responded, and were organized into companies. A regiment had been organized by the British on Long Island in 1776, and now, Sir Henry Clinton invited them by the following proclamation:

"By his Excellency Sir Henry Clinton, K. B., General and
Commander-in-Chief of all his Majesty's Forces, within the
Colonies lying on the Atlantic Ocean, from Nova Scotia to
West Florida, inclusive, &c., &c.

PROCLAMATION.

"Whereas the enemy have adopted a practice of enrolling
_Negroes_ among their _Troops_, I do hereby give notice
_That_ all Negroes taken in arms, or upon any military
_Duty_, shall be purchased for _the public service_ at a
stated _Price_; the money to be paid to the _Captors_.

"But I do most strictly forbid any _Person_ to sell or claim
_Right_ over any Negro, the property of a Rebel, who may
take refuge in any part of this _Army_: And I do promise to
every negro who shall desert the _Rebel Standard_, full
security to follow within these _Lines_, any Occupation
which he shall think proper.

"Given under my Hand at Head-Quarters, Philipsburg, the 30th day
of June, 1779. H. CLINTON.

"By his Excellency's command, John Smith, Secretary."

It is highly probable that many negroes made their way to the British camp. Col. Laurens wrote to General Washington, under date of February, 1780, six months after the issuing of Sir Henry Clinton's proclamation, as follows:

"Private accounts say that General Provost is left to
command at Savannah; that his troops consist of Hessians and
Loyalists that were there before, _re-inforced by a corps of
blacks and a detachment of savages_. It is generally
reported that Sir. Henry Clinton commands the present
expedition."

Clinton left New York in the latter part of 1779, for the reduction of Charleston, which he completed in May, three months after the date of Col. Laurens' letter. Gen. Lincoln, who commanded the American forces at Charleston, joined in the effort to arm the negroes. In a letter to Gov. Rutledge, dated Charleston, March 13th, 1780, he says:

"Give me leave to add once more, that I think the measure of
raising a black corps a necessary one; that I have great
reason to believe, if permission is given for it, that many
men would soon be obtained. I have repeatedly urged this
matter, not only because Congress has recommended it, and
because it thereby becomes my duty to attempt to have it
executed, but because my own mind suggests the utility and
importance of the measure, as the safety of the town makes
it necessary."

The project of raising negro troops gained some friends in all sections, and Statesmen, both South and North, as they talked about it, became more free to express their approbation of the measure. They had witnessed the militia from Virginia and North Carolina, at the battle of Camden, throw down their arms before the enemy;[4] they had seen black and white troops under command of Gen. Provost occupy Savannah; the surrender of Charlestown had become necessary; and these evils were all brought about by the apathy of the white inhabitants.

Among those who spoke out in favor of Col. Laurens' and Gen. Lincoln's plan, was Hon. James Madison, who, on the 20th of November, 1780, wrote to Joseph Jones:

"I am glad to find the Legislature persisting in their
resolution to recruit their line of the army for the war;
though, without deciding on the expediency of the mode under
their consideration, would it not be as well to liberate and
make soldiers at once of the blacks themselves, as to make
them instruments for enlisting white soldiers? It would
certainly be more consonant with the principles of liberty:
and, with white officers and a majority of white soldiers,
no imaginable danger could be feared from themselves; as
there certainly could be none from the effect of the example
on those who should remain in bondage; experience having
shown that a freedman immediately loses all attachment and
sympathy with his former fellow slaves."

No circumstances under which the South was placed, could induce either their legislators or the people to adopt the recommendations of Congress or the advice of the patriots and statesmen of their section. The opposition to the arming of the negroes was much stronger than the love for independence. The British, however, adopted the plan, and left no stone unturned to augment the strength of their army. Thousands of negroes flocked to the Royal standard at every opportunity, just as in the war of the Rebellion in 1861-'65, they sought freedom under the national banner.

It has ever been the rule among American historians to omit giving credit to those negroes who sought to gain their freedom by joining the British. They have generally also failed to acknowledge the valor of those who swelled the ranks of the Continental army. Enough, however, can be gathered, mostly from private correspondence, to show that the hope of success for the Americans rested either in the docility of the negroes at the South, or in their loyalty to the cause of Independence. At all events, upon the action of the blacks more than upon the bravery and valor of the American troops, depended the future status of the Colonies; hence the solicitude of officers and of the leading citizens; and it was not the love of universal freedom, which prompted their efforts for arming negroes; not at all, but their keen appreciation of the value of a neutral power, which could be utilized for the benefit of America's Independence. Nor do I attribute other than the same motive to the British, who did arm and did free a great many of the negroes, who joined their service, especially at the South, where they must have organized quite a large force,--not less than 5,000. Early in 1781, (Feb'y) Gen. Greene, then in command in North Carolina, writing to General Washington about the doings of the enemy in South Carolina, where he formally commanded, says:

"The enemy have ordered two regiments of negroes to be
immediately embodied, and are drafting a great portion of
the young men of that State [South Carolina], to serve
during the war."

A few days after writing this letter, Gen. Greene met the British at Guilford Court House, and again witnessed the cowardice of the Southern militia,[5] whose conduct gave victory to the British, under Cornwallis.

The persistency of Col. Laurens in his effort to organize negro troops, was still noteworthy. Having returned from France, whither he went on important business, connected with the welfare of the States, he resumed his "favorite pursuit." Under date of May, 19, 1782, in a letter addressed to Washington, he says:

"The plan which brought me to this country was urged with
all the zeal which the subject inspired, both in our Privy
Council and Assembly; but the single voice of reason was
drowned by the howling of a triple-headed monster, in which
prejudice, avarice, and pusillanimity were united. It was
some degree of consolation to me, however, to perceive that
the truth and philosophy had gained some ground; the
suffrages in favor of the measure being twice as numerous as
on a former occasion. Some hopes have been lately given me
from Georgia; but I fear, when the question is put, we
shall be out-voted there with as much disparity as we have
been in this country.

* * * *

"I earnestly desire to be where any active plans are likely
to be executed, and to be near your Excellency on all
occasions in which my services can be acceptable. The
pursuit of an object which, I confess, is a favorite one
with me, because I always regarded the interests of this
country and those of the Union as intimately connected with
it, has detached me more than once from your family, but
those sentiments of veneration and attachments with which
your Excellency has inspired me, keep me always near you,
with the sincerest and most zealous wishes for a continuance
of your happiness and glory."

Here ended the project of arming negroes in South Carolina, and before an earnest effort could be made in Georgia, the brave man laid his life upon the altar of American liberty.

But to show the state of public opinion at the South, as understood by the Commander-in-Chief of the American army, we have but to read Washington's reply to Col. Laurens' last letter, in which he speaks of "making a last effort" in Georgia. Gen. Washington uses this emphatic language:

"I must confess that I am not at all astonished at the
failure of your plan. That spirit of freedom, which, at the
commencement of this contest, would have gladly sacrificed
everything to the attainment of its object, has long since
subsided, and every selfish passion has taken its place. It
is not the public but private interest which influences the
generality of mankind; nor can the Americans any longer
boast an exception. Under the circumstances, it would rather
have been surprising if you had succeeded; nor will you, I
fear, have better success in Georgia."

This letter settles forever any boast of the Southerners, that to them is due the credit of gaining the independence of the United States. It is true Cornwallis' surrender at Yorktown, Va., was the last of the series of battles fought for independence.[6] But we must remember that the French were at Yorktown. It cannot be doubted but that from Charleston to Yorktown the Americans met negro troops more than once fighting under the Royal flag; while at the east, in every important engagement between the two enemies,--British and American,--the negro was found fighting with the Americans. This division of the negroes can easily be accounted for, since at the North and East the object of the war was acknowledged to be set forth in the Declaration of Independence; at the South only so much of the Declaration was accepted as demanded Independence from Great Britain. Therefore, though in separate and opposing armies, the object of the negro was the same--liberty. It is to be regretted that the historians of the Revolutionary period did not more particularly chronicle the part taken by negroes at the South, though enough is known to put their employment beyond doubt.

Johnson, the author of the life of Gen. Greene, speaking of Greene's recommendation to the Legislature of South Carolina to enroll negroes, says:

"There is a sovereign, who, at this time, draws his soldiery
from the same class of people; and finds a facility in
forming and disciplining an army, which no other power
enjoys. Nor does his immense military force, formed from
that class of his subjects, excite the least apprehension;
for the soldier's will is subdued to that of his officer,
and his improved condition takes away the habit of
identifying himself with the class from which he has been
separated. Military men know what mere machines men become
under discipline, and believe that any men, who may be
obedient, may be made soldiers; and that increasing their
numbers increases the means of their own subjection and
government."

Cornwallis doubtless had gathered within his lines a large number of negroes, to whose energy and labor, the erection of his breastworks were mainly due. Lafayette feeling satisfied that the position of his army before Yorktown would confine the British, and make the escape of Cornwallis impossible without battle, wrote to Gen. Washington in September:

"I hope you will find we have taken the best precautions to
lessen his Lordship's escape. I hardly believe he will make
the attempt. If he does, he must give up ships, artillery,
baggage, part of his horses, and all the negroes."

All this time in some of the Northern States an opposition as strong as at the South had existed against organizing negro troops, and in some instances even against employing them as soldiers. The effort for separate organizations had been going on, but with only the little success that has been already noticed. In a biographical sketch of Col. David Humphreys, in the "National Portrait Gallery of Distinguished Americans," is the following:

"In November, 1782, he was, by resolution of Congress,
commissioned as a Lieutenant-Colonel, with order that his
commission should bear date from the 23rd of June, 1780,
when he received his appointment as aid-de-camp to the
Commander-in-Chief. He had, when in active service, given
the sanction of his name and influence in the establishment
of a company of colored infantry, attached to Meigs',
afterwards Butler's, regiment, in the Connecticut line. He
continued to be the nominal captain of that company until
the establishment of peace."

Though the Legislature of Connecticut had taken up the subject of arming negroes generally, as early as 1777, and a bill, as we have seen, was presented to that Legislature, for their enrollment, the advocates of the measure, in every attempt to pass it, had been beaten. Nevertheless, as appears by the record given above, Col. Humphrey took charge and organized a company, with which he served until the close of the war. But this company of fifty odd men were not all that did service in the army from Connecticut, for in many of her white regiments, negroes, bond and free, stood in the ranks with the whites. And, notwithstanding the unsuccessful attempts of Col. Laurens and the advocates of negro soldiery at the South, the negro was an attache of the Southern army, and rendered efficient aid during the struggle, in building breastworks, driving teams and piloting the army through dense woods, swamps, and across rivers. Not a few were spies and drummers. To select or point out a particular battle or siege, in which they rendered active service to the British, would not be a difficult task, though the information at hand is too limited for a detailed account of the part which they bore in these struggles. The true patriots of the Revolution were not slow in according to their black compatriots that meed of praise which was their due. In almost every locality, either North or South, after the war, there lived one or two privileged negroes, who, on great occasions,--days of muster, 4th of July, Washington's birthday, and the like,--were treated with more than ordinary courtesy by the other people. That a great and dastardly wrong was committed upon many, in like manner in which Simon Lee[7] was treated, is true. Many negroes at the South, who fought for American independence were re-enslaved, and this is so far beyond a doubt that no one denies it. The re-enslaving of these soldiers,--not by those who took part in the conflict, but the _stay-at-home's_,--was so flagrant an outrage that the Legislature of Virginia, in 1783, in order to give freedom to those who had been re-enslaved, and to rebuke the injustice of the treatment, passed the following act:

_An Act directing the Emancipation of certain Slaves who had
served as Soldiers in this State, and for the Emancipation
of the Slave, Aberdeen._

"I. Whereas, it hath been represented to the present General
Assembly, that, during the course of the war, many persons
in this State had caused their slaves to enlist in certain
regiments or corps, raised within the same, having tendered
such slaves to the officers appointed to recruit forces
within the State, as substitutes for free persons whose lot
or duty it was to serve in such regiments or corps, at the
same time representing to such recruiting officers that the
slaves, so enlisted by their direction and concurrence, were
freemen; and it appearing further to this Assembly, that on
the expiration of the term of enlistment of such slaves,
that the former owners have attempted again to force them to
return to a state of servitude, contrary to the principles
of justice, and to their own solemn promise;

"II. And whereas it appears just and reasonable that all
persons enlisted as aforesaid, who have faithfully served
agreeable to the terms of their enlistment, and have hereby
of course contributed towards the establishment of American
liberty and independence, should enjoy the blessings of
freedom as a reward for their toils and labors.

"_Be it therefore enacted_, That each and every slave, who,
by the appointment and direction of his owner, hath enlisted
in any regiment or corps raised within this State, either on
Continental or State establishment, and hath been received
as a substitute for any free person whose duty or lot it was
to serve in such regiment or corps, and hath served
faithfully during the term of such enlistment, or hath been
discharged from such service by some officer duly authorized
to grant such discharge, shall, from and after the passing
of this act, be fully and completely emancipated, and shall
be held and deemed free, in as full and ample a manner as if
each and every one of them were specially named in this act;
and the Attorney-general for the Commonwealth is hereby
required to bring an action, _in forma pauperis_, in behalf
of any of the persons above described who shall, after the
passage of this act, be detained in servitude by any person
whatsoever; and if, upon such prosecution, it shall appear
that the pauper is entitled to his freedom in consequence of
this act, a jury shall be empaneled to assess the damages
for his detention.

"III. And whereas it has been represented to this General
Assembly, that Aberdeen, a negro man slave, hath labored a
number of years in the public service at the lead mines, and
for his meritorious services is entitled to freedom;

"_Be it therefore enacted_, That the said slave Aberdeen,
shall be, and he is hereby, emancipated and declared free in
as full and ample a manner as if he had been born free."

In 1786 an act was passed to emancipate a negro slave who had acted as a spy for Lafayette. This practice was not perhaps wholly confined to the South. Although Massachusetts abolished slavery in 1783, her territory was, it seems, still subject to slave hunts, and her negro soldiers to the insult of an attempt to re-enslave them. But Gen. Washington, though himself a slave-holder, regarded the rights of those who fought for liberty and national independence, with too much sacredness and the honor of the country with too much esteem, to permit them to be set aside, merely to accommodate those who had rendered the nation's cause no help or assistance. Gen. Putnam received the following letter, which needs no explanation:

"HEADQUARTERS, Feb. 2, 1783.

"SIR:--Mr. Hobby having claimed as his property a negro man
now serving in the Massachusetts Regiment, you will please
to order a court of inquiry, consisting of five as
respectable officers as can be found in your brigade, to
examine the validity of the claim and the manner in which
the person in question came into service. Having inquired
into the matter, with all the attending circumstances, they
will report to you their opinion thereon; which you will
report to me as soon as conveniently may be.

"I am, Sir, with great respect, your most obedient servant,

"GEORGE WASHINGTON.

"P. S.--All concerned should be notified to attend.

"Brig.-Gen. Putnam."

Not only did some of the negro soldiers who fought in the American Army receive unjust treatment at the close of the war, but those who served under the Royal standard, also shared a fate quite different from what they supposed it would be when the proclamations of Lord Dunmore, Clinton and Cornwallis, were inviting them to cast their lot with the British.

The high character of Thomas Jefferson induces me to reproduce his letter to Dr. Gordon, or rather that portion of it which refers to the treatment of the negroes who went with the British army. Mr. Jefferson says:

"From an estimate I made at that time, on the best
information I could collect, I supposed the State of
Virginia lost, under Lord Cornwallis' hand, that year, about
thirty thousand slaves; and that, of these, twenty-seven
thousand died of the small-pox and camp fever; the rest were
partly sent to the West Indies, and exchanged for rum,
sugar, coffee and fruit; and partly sent to New York, from
whence they went, at the peace, either to Nova Scotia or to
England. From this last place, I believe they have lately
been sent to Africa. History will never relate the horrors
committed by the British army in the Southern States of
America."

The heroism of the negro soldier has ever been eulogized by the true statesmen of our country, whenever the question of the American patriots was the theme. And I find no better eulogy to pronounce upon them than that Hon. Charles Pinckney, of South Carolina, delivered in the United States House of Representatives in 1820, and that of Hon. Wm. Eustis, of Massachusetts, during the same debate. Mr. Pinckney said:

"It is a remarkable fact, that notwithstanding, in the
course of the Revolution, the Southern States were
continually overrun by the British, and that every negro in
them had an opportunity of leaving their owners, few did;
proving thereby not only a most remarkable attachment to
their owners, but the mildness of the treatment, from whence
their affection sprang. They then were, as they still are,
as valuable a part of our population to the union as any
other equal number of inhabitants. They were in numerous
instances the pioneers, and in all the laborers, of your
armies. To their hands were owing the erection of the
greatest part of the fortifications raised for the
protection of our country; some of which, particularly Fort
Moultrie, gave, at the early period of the inexperience and
untried valor of our citizens, immortality to American arms;
and, in the Northern States, numerous bodies of them were
enrolled into, and fought, by the side of the whites, the
battles of the Revolution."--_Annals of Congress._

And said Mr. Eustis:

"At the commencement of the Revolutionary war, there were
found in the Middle and Northern States, many blacks, and
other people of color, capable of bearing arms; a part of
them free, the greater part slaves. The freemen entered our
ranks with the whites. The time of those who were slaves was
purchased by the States; and they were induced to enter the
service in consequence of a law by which, on condition of
their serving in the ranks during the war, they were made
freemen.