[Footnote: Faneuil Hall was the rendezvous of the Revolutionary spirits of that time—hence it has been called the "Cradle of Liberty."]

[Footnote: On their way home from the "Boston Tea Party," the men passed a house at which Admiral Montague was spending the evening. The officer raised the window and cried out, "Well, boys, you've had a fine night for your Indian caper. But, mind, you've got to pay the fiddler yet." "Oh, never mind," replied one of the leaders, "never mind, squire! Just come out here, if you please, and we'll settle the bill in two minutes." The admiral thought it best to let the bill stand, and quickly shut the window.]



THE CLIMAX REACHED.—Retaliatory measures were at once adopted by the English government. General Gage was appointed governor of Massachusetts. The port of Boston being closed by act of Parliament, business was stopped and distress ensued. The Virginia assembly protested against this measure, and was dissolved by the governor. Party lines were drawn. Those opposed to royalty were termed Whigs, and those supporting it, Tories. Everywhere were repeated the thrilling words of Patrick Henry, "Give me liberty or give me death." Companies of soldiers, termed "Minute men," were formed. The idea of a continental union became popular. Gage, being alarmed, fortified Boston Neck, and seized powder wherever he could find it. A rumor having been circulated that the British ships were firing on Boston, in two days thirty thousand minute men were on their way to the city. A spark only was needed to kindle the slumbering hatred into the flames of war.

[Footnote: The public feeling in England wan generally against the colonies. "Every man," wrote Dr. Franklin, "seems to consider himself as a piece of a sovereign over America; seems to jostle himself into the throne with the king, and talks of our subjects in the colonies."]

[Footnote: Marblehead and Salem, refusing to profit by the ruin of their rival, offered the use of their wharves to the Boston merchants. Aid and sympathy were received from all sides. Schoharie, N. Y., sent five hundred and twenty-five bushels of wheat.]

THE FIRST CONTINENTAL CONGRESS (Sept. 5, 1774) was held in Philadelphia. It consisted of men of influence, and represented every colony except Georgia. As yet few members had any idea of independence. The Congress simply voted that obedience was not due to any of the recent acts of Parliament, and sustained Massachusetts in her resistance. It issued a protest against standing armies being kept in the colonies without the consent of the people, and agreed to hold no intercourse with Great Britain.



1775.

BATTLE OF LEXINGTON (April 19).—General Gage, learning that the people were gathering military stores at Concord, sent eight hundred men under Col. Smith and Major Pitcairn to destroy them. The patriots of Boston, however, were on the alert, and hurried out messengers to alarm the country.

[Footnote: Paul Revere caused two lights to be hung up in the steeple of Christ Church. They were seen in Charlestown; messengers set out, and he soon followed on his famous midnight ride. (Read Longfellow's poem.)]

When the red-coats, as the British soldiers were called, reached Lexington, they found a company of minute men gathering on the village green. Riding up, Pitcairn shouted, "Disperse, you rebels; lay down your arms!" They hesitated. A skirmish ensued, in which seven Americans—the first martyrs of the Revolution—were killed.



The British pushed on and destroyed the stores. But alarmed by the gathering militia they hastily retreated. It was none too soon. The whole region flew to arms. Every boy old enough to use a rifle hurried to avenge the death of his countrymen, From behind trees, fences, buildings, and rocks, in front, flank and rear, so galling a fire was poured, that but for reinforcements from Boston, none of the British would have reached the city alive. As it was, they lost nearly three hundred men.

Effects of the Battle.—The news that American blood had been spilled flew like wild-fire. Patriots came pouring in from all sides. Putnam left his cattle yoked in the field, and without changing his working clothes, mounted his fastest horse, and hurried to Boston. Soon twenty thousand men were at work building intrenchments to shut up the British in the city. Congresses were formed in all the colonies. Committees of safety were appointed to call out the troops and provide for any emergency. The power of the royal governors was broken from Massachusetts to Georgia.

[Footnote: Israel Putnam, familiarly known as "Old Put," was born in Salem, Mass., 1718. Many stories are told of his great courage and presence of mind. His descent into the wolf's den, shooting the animal by the light of her own glaring eyes, showed his love of bold adventure; his noble generosity was displayed in the rescue of a comrade scout at Crown Point, at the imminent peril of his own life. He came out of one encounter with fourteen bullet-holes in his blanket. In 1756, a party of Indians took him prisoner, bound him to a stake, and made ready to torture him with fire. The flames were already scorching his limbs, and death seemed certain, when a French officer burst through the crowd and saved his life. At Fort Edward, when all others fled, he alone fought back the fire from a magazine in which were stored three hundred barrels of gunpowder, protected only by a thin partition. "His face, his hands, and almost his whole body, were blistered; and in removing the mittens from his hands, the skin was torn off with them." The British offered him money and the rank of major-general if he would desert the American cause; but he could neither be daunted by toil and danger, nor bribed by gold and honors.]

BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL (June 17).—The patriot leader, Gen. Ward, having learned that the British intended to fortify Bunker Hill, determined to anticipate them. A body of men, under Col. Prescott, were accordingly assembled at Cambridge, and, after prayer by the president of Harvard University, marched to Charlestown Neck. Breed's Hill was then chosen as a more commanding site than Bunker Hill. It was bright moonlight, and they were so near Boston that the sentinel's "All's well," was distinctly heard. Yet so quietly did they work that there was no alarm. At daylight the British officers were startled by seeing the redoubt which had been constructed. Resolved to drive the Americans from their position, Howe crossed the river with three thousand men, and formed them at the landing. The roofs and steeples of Boston were crowded with spectators, intently watching the troops as they slowly ascended the hill. The patriot ranks lay quietly behind their earthworks until the red-coats were within ten rods, when Prescott shouted "Fire!" A blaze of light shot from the redoubt, and whole platoons of the British fell. The survivors, unable to endure the terrible slaughter, broke and fled. They were rallied under cover of the smoke of Charlestown, which had been wantonly fired by Gage.



Again they were met by that deadly discharge, and again they fled. Reinforcements being received, the third time they advanced. Only one volley smote them, and then the firing ceased. The American ammunition was exhausted. The British charged over the ramparts with fixed bayonets. The patriots gallantly resisted with clubbed muskets, but were soon driven from the field.

[Footnote: General Warren was among the last to leave. As he was trying to rally the troops, a British officer, who knew him, seized a musket and shot him. Warren had just received his commission as major-general, but had crossed Charlestown Neel in the midst of flying balls, reached the redoubt, and offered himself as a volunteer. He was buried near the spot where he fell. By his death America lost one of her truest sons. Gage is reported to have said that his fall was worth that of five hundred ordinary rebels.]

The effect upon the Americans of this first regular battle was that of a victory. Their untrained farmer soldiers had put to flight the British veterans. All felt encouraged, and the determination to fight for liberty was intensified.

CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA (May 10).—Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold led a small company of volunteers to surprise this fortress. As Allen rushed into the sally-port, a sentinel snapped his gun at him and fled. Making his way to the commander's quarters, Allen, in a voice of thunder, ordered him to surrender. "By whose authority?" exclaimed the frightened officer. "In the name of the Great Jehovah and the Continental Congress!" shouted Allen. No resistance was attempted. Large stores of cannon and ammunition, just then so much needed by the troops at Boston, fell into the hands of the Americans, without the loss of a single man. Crown Point was soon after as easily taken. (Map opp p. 120.)

[Footnote: Ethan Allen was a native of Connecticut. With several of his brothers he emigrated to what is now known as Vermont. At that time a dispute had arisen between the colony of New York, on the one hand, and the colonies of New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, on the other, with reference to the territory. The governor of New Hampshire, regardless of the claims of New York, issued grants of land so extensively that the region became known as the New Hampshire grants. New York having obtained a favorable decision of the courts, endeavored to eject the occupants of the land. Ethan Allen became conspicuous in the resistance that ensued. The "Green Mountain Boys" made him their colonel, and he kept a watchful eye on the officers from New York, who sought by form of law to dispossess the settlers of farms which had been bought and made valuable by their own labor. The Revolutionary War caused a lull in these hostilities, and the Green Mountain Boys turned their arms upon the common enemy. Allen afterward aided Montgomery in his Canadian expedition, but, in a fool-hardy attempt upon Montreal, was taken prisoner and sent to England. After a long captivity he was released, and returned home. Generous and frank, a vigorous writer, loyal to his country and true to his friends, he exerted a powerful influence on the early history of Vermont.]

THE SECOND CONTINENTAL CONGRESS (May 10) met at Philadelphia in the midst of these stirring events. It voted to raise twenty thousand men, and appointed General Washington commander-in-chief. A petition to the king was also prepared, which he refused to receive. This destroyed all hope of reconciliation.



CONDITION OF THE ARMY—On Washington's arrival before Boston, he found the army to number but fourteen thousand men. Few of them were drilled; many were unfit for service; some had left their farms at the first impulse, and were already weary of the hardships of war; all were badly clothed and poorly armed, and there were less than nine cartridges to each soldier. Washington at once made every exertion to relieve their wants, and in the meantime kept Gage penned up in Boston.

EXPEDITION AGAINST CANADA—Late in the summer General Montgomery, leading an army by way of Lake Champlain, captured St. John's and Montreal, and then appeared before Quebec. Here he was joined by Colonel Arnold with a crowd of half-famished men, who had ascended the Kennebec and then struck across the wilderness.

Attack upon Quebec.—Their united force was less than one thousand effective men. Having besieged the city for three weeks it was at last decided to hazard an assault. In the midst of a terrible snow-storm they led their forces to the attack. Montgomery advancing along the river, lifting with his own hands at the huge blocks of ice, and struggling through the drifts, cheered on his men. As they rushed forward a rude blockhouse appeared through the blinding snow. Charging upon it, Montgomery fell at the first fire, and his followers, disheartened, fled. Arnold, mean while, approached the opposite side of the city. While bravely fighting he was severely wounded and borne to the rear. Morgan, his successor, pressed on the attack, but at last, unable either to retreat or advance against the tremendous odds, was forced to surrender. The remnant of the army, crouching behind mounds of snow and ice, maintained a blockade of the city until spring. At the approach of British reinforcements the Americans were glad to escape, leaving all Canada in the hands of England.

* * * * *



1776.

EVACUATION OF BOSTON (March 17).—Washington, in order to force the British to fight or run, sent a force to fortify Dorchester Heights by night. In the morning the English were once more astonished by seeing intrenchments which overlooked the city. A storm prevented an immediate attack; a delay which was well improved by the provincials. General Howe, who was then in command, remembering the lesson of Bunker Hill, decided to leave, and accordingly set sail for Halifax with his army, fleet, and many loyalists. The next day Washington entered Boston amid great rejoicing. For eleven months the inhabitants had endured the horrors of a siege and the insolence of the enemy. Their houses had been pillaged, their shops rifled, and their churches profaned.

[Footnote: The boys of Boston were wont to amuse themselves in winter by building snow-houses and by skating on a pond in the Common. The soldiers having disturbed them in their sports, complaints were made to the inferior officers, who only ridiculed their petition. At last a number of the largest boys waited on General Gage. "What!" said Gage, "have your fathers sent you here to exhibit the rebellion they have been teaching you?" "Nobody sent us," answered the leader, with flashing eye; "we have never injured your troops, but they have trampled down our snow-hills and broken the ice of our skating-pond. We complained, and they called us young rebels, and told us to help ourselves if we could. We told the captain, and he laughed at us. Yesterday our works were destroyed for the third time, and we will bear it no longer." The British commander could not restrain his admiration. "The very children," said he, "draw in a love of liberty with the air they breathe. Go, my brave boys, and be assured, if my troops trouble you again, they shall be punished."]

ATTACK ON FORT MOULTRIE (June 28).—Early in the summer an English fleet appeared off Charleston, and opened fire on Fort Moultrie.

[Footnote: This fort was built of palmetto logs, which are so soft that balls sink into them without splitting the wood. Here floated the first republican flag in the South. In the early part of the action the staff was struck by a ball, and the flag fell outside the fort. Sergeant Jasper leaped over the breastwork, caught up the flag, and springing back, tied it to a sponge-staff (an instrument for cleaning cannon after a discharge), and hoisted it again to its place. The next day Governor Rutledge offered him a sword and a lieutenant's commission. He refused, saying, "I am not fit for the company of officers; I am only a sergeant."]

So fearful was the response from Moultrie's guns, that at one time every man but Admiral Parker was swept from the deck of his vessel. General Clinton, who commanded the British land troops, tried to attack the fort in the rear, but the fire of the southern riflemen was too severe. The fleet was at last so badly shattered that it withdrew and sailed for New York. This victory gave the colonists great delight, as it was their first encounter with the boasted "Mistress of the Seas."

The simple-hearted Sergeant Jasper died grasping the banner presented to his regiment at Fort Moultrie. D'Estaing refused to give further aid; thus again deserting the Americans when help was most needed.

DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE (July 4, 1776).—During the session of Congress this summer, Richard Henry Lee, of Virginia, moved that "The United Colonies are, and ought to be, free and independent states." This was passed by a majority of one colony. A committee was appointed to draw up a DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. At two o'clock on the fourth of July, its report was adopted.

[Footnote: Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston, composed this committee.]

[Footnote: During the day the streets of Philadelphia were crowded with people anxious to learn the decision. In the steeple of the old State House was a bell on which, by a happy coincidence, was inscribed, "Proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof." In the morning, when Congress assembled, the bell-ringer went to his post, having placed his boy below to announce when the Declaration was adopted, that his bell might be the first to peal forth the glad tidings. Long he waited, while the deliberations went on. Impatiently the old man shook his head and repeated, "They will never do it! They will never do it!" Suddenly he heard his boy clapping his hands and shouting, "Ring! Ring!" Grasping the iron tongue, he swung it to and fro, proclaiming the glad news of liberty to all the land. The crowded streets caught up the sound. Every steeple re-echoed it. All that night, by shouts, and illuminations, and booming of cannon, the people declared their joy.]

CAMPAIGN NEAR NEW YORK.—General Howe, after evacuating Boston, went to Halifax, but soon set sail for New York. Thither also came Admiral Howe, his brother, with reinforcements from England, and General Clinton from the defeat at Fort Moultrie. The British army was thirty thousand strong. Washington, divining Howe's plans, now gathered all his forces at New York to protect that city. He had, however, only about seven thousand men fit for duty.

[Footnote: Parliament authorized the Howes to treat with the insurgents. By proclamation they offered pardon to all who would return to their allegiance. This document was published by direction of Congress, that the people might see what England demanded. An officer was then sent to the American camp with a letter addressed to "George Washington, Esq." Washington refused to receive it. The address was afterward changed to "George Washington, &c., &c." The messenger endeavored to show that this bore any meaning which might be desired. But Washington understood the sophistry and refused any communication which did not distinctly recognize his position as commander of the American army.]

BATTLE OF LONG ISLAND (Aug. 27).—The British army landed on the southwest shore of Long Island. General Putnam, with about nine thousand men, held a fort at Brooklyn and defences on a range of hills south of the city. The English advanced in three divisions. Two of these attacked the defences in front, while General Clinton, by a circuitous route, gained the rear. The patriots were fighting gallantly, when, to their dismay, they heard firing behind them. They attempted to escape, but it was too late. Out of five thousand Americans engaged, two thousand were lost.

[Footnote: Many of the captives were consigned to the Sugar House on Liberty Street, and the prison-ships in Wallabout Bay. Their hard lot made the fate of those who perished in battle to be envied. During the course of the war, over 11,000 American prisoners died in these loathsome hulks. Their bodies were buried in the beach, whence, for years after, they were washed out from the sand by every tide. In 1808, the remains of these martyrs were interred with suitable ceremonies near the Navy Yard, Brooklyn; and, in 1878, they were finally placed in a vault at Washington Park.]

(Map opposite p. 120.)

Had Howe attacked the fort at Brooklyn immediately, the Americans would have been destroyed. Fortunately he delayed for the fleet to arrive. For two days the patriots lay helpless, awaiting the assault. On the second night after the battle, there was a dense fog on the Brooklyn side, while in New York the weather was clear. At midnight the Americans moved silently down to the shore and crossed the river. In the morning, when the sun scattered the fog, Howe was chagrined to find his prey escaped.

[Footnote: The Americans embarked at a place near the present Fulton Ferry. A woman sent her negro servant to the British to inform them of the movements of the Americans. He was captured by the Hessians, who were Germans from Hesse Cassel, hired to fight by the British government. These, not being able to understand a word of English, detained him until the morning. His message was then too late.]

WASHINGTON'S RETREAT.—The British, crossing to New York, moved to attack Washington, who had taken post on Harlem Heights. Finding the American position too strong, Howe moved up the Sound in order to gain the rear. Washington then withdrew to White Plains. Here Howe came up and defeated a part of his army. Washington next retired into a fortified camp at North Castle. Howe, not daring to attack him, returned to New York and sent the Hessians to take Fort Washington, which they captured after a fierce resistance (Nov. 16).

[Footnote: Washington desiring to gain some knowledge of Howe's movements, sent Captain Nathan Hale to visit the English camps on Long Island. He passed the lines safely, but on his way back was recognized by a tory relative, who arrested him. He was taken to Howe's headquarters, tried, and executed as a spy. No clergyman was allowed to visit him; even a Bible was denied him, and his farewell letters to his mother and sister were destroyed. The brutality of his enemies did not, however, crush his noble spirit, for his last words were, "I regret only that I have but one life to give to my country."]

FLIGHT THROUGH NEW JERSEY.—Washington had now retired into New Jersey in order to prevent the British from marching against Philadelphia. Cornwallis, with six thousand men, hurried after him, and for three weeks pursued the flying Americans. Many of the patriots had no shoes, and left their blood-stained foot-prints on the frozen ground. Oftentimes the van of the pursuing army was in sight of the American rear-guard. At last Washington reached the Delaware, and all the boats having been secured, crossed into Pennsylvania. Howe resolved to wait until the river should freeze over, and then capture Philadelphia, meanwhile quartering his troops in the neighboring villages.

[Footnote: During this retreat, Washington repeatedly sent orders to General Lee, who was then at North Castle, to join him. Lee hesitated, and at last moved very slowly. Five days after this, while quartered in a small tavern at Baskingridge, remote from his troops, he was taken prisoner by the English cavalry. His capture was considered a great misfortune by the Americans, who thought him the best officer in the army. The British were greatly rejoiced, and declared they had taken the "American Palladium."]

CONDITION OF THE COUNTRY.—It was a time of deep despondency. The patriot army was a mere handful of ragged, disheartened fugitives. Many people of wealth and influence went over to the enemy. New York and Newport—the second city in size in New England—were already in the hands of the British, and they were likely soon to seize Philadelphia.

BATTLE OF TRENTON.—Washington thought it time to strike a daring blow. On Christmas night, in a driving storm of sleet, amid drifting ice, that threatened every moment to crush the boats, he crossed the Delaware with twenty-four hundred picked men, fell upon the Hessians at Trenton, in the midst of their festivities, captured one thousand prisoners, slew their leader, and safely escaped back to camp, with the loss of only four men—two killed and two frozen to death. (Map opposite p. 120.)



[Footnote: Hunt, a trader with friends and foes, a neutral, had invited Rall, the Hessian commander, to a Christmas supper. Card-playing and wine-drinking were kept up all night long. A messenger came in haste, at early dawn, with a note to the colonel. It was sent by a tory to give warning of the approach of the American forces. The negro servant refused admittance to the bearer. Knowing its importance, he bade the negro to take the note directly to the officer. The servant obeyed, but the colonel, excited by wine and the play, thrust it unopened into his pocket. Soon the roll of drums was heard, and before the pleasure-loving officer could reach his quarters the Americans were in pursuit of his fleeing soldiers.]

[Footnote: Before leaving Trenton, Washington and Greene visited the dying Hessian. It had been a time of splendid triumph to the American commander, but as he stood by the bedside, the soldier was lost in the Christian, and the victorious general showed himself in that hour only a sympathizing friend.]

The effect of this brilliant feat was electrical. The fires of patriotism were kindled afresh. New recruits were received, and the troops whose term of enlistment was expiring, agreed to remain. Howe was alarmed, and ordered Cornwallis, who was just setting sail for England, to return and prepare for a winter's campaign.

* * * * *



1777.

BATTLE OF PRINCETON (Jan. 3).—Washington soon crossed the Delaware again, and took post at Trenton. Just before sunset Cornwallis came up. His first onset being repulsed, he decided to wait till morning. Washington's situation was now most critical. Before him was a powerful army, and behind, a river full of floating ice. That night, leaving his camp-fires burning to deceive the enemy, he swept by country roads around the British, fell upon the troops near Princeton, routed them, took three hundred prisoners, and by rapid marches reached Morristown Heights in safety. Cornwallis heard the firing and hurried to the rescue, but he was too late. The victory was gained, and the victors were beyond pursuit.

These exploits won for Washington universal praise, and he was declared to be the saver of his country.

[Footnote: Washington had forty cannon. At night-fall the ground was so soft that he could not move them; but, while the council was in session, the wind changed, and in two hours the roads were as hard as pavement. Erskine urged Cornwallis to attack the Americans that night, but he said he could "catch the fox in the morning." On the morrow the fires were still burning, but the army was gone. None knew whither the patriots had fled. But at sunrise there was a sound of firing in the direction of Princeton. The report of the cannon through the keen frosty air could be distinctly heard, but Cornwallis believed it to be distant thunder. Erskine, however, exclaimed, "To arms, general! Washington has outgeneraled us. Let us fly to the rescue at Princeton!"]

[Footnote: Frederick the Great of Prussia is said to have declared that the achievements of Washington and his little band, during the six weeks following Christmas, were the most brilliant recorded on the pages of military history.]

CAMPAIGN IN PENNSYLVANIA—Howe, having spent the next summer at New York, where he was closely watched by Washington, finally took the field, and manoeuvred to force the patriot army to a general fight. Finding the "American Fabius" too wary for him, he suddenly embarked eighteen thousand men on his brother's fleet, and set sail. Washington hurried south to meet him. The patriot army numbered only 11,000, but when Washington learned that the British had arrived in the Chesapeake, he resolved to hazard a battle for the defence of Philadelphia.



BATTLE OF BRANDYWINE (Sept. ll).—The Americans took position at Chad's Ford, on the Brandywine. Here they were attacked in front while Cornwallis stole around in the rear, as Clinton did in the battle of Long Island. Sullivan, Sterling, La Fayette, Wayne, and Count Pulaski, in vain performed prodigies of valor. The patriots were routed, Philadelphia was taken, and the British army went into quarters there and at Germantown.

[Footnote: La Fayette's full name was Marie Jean Paul Roch Yves Gilbert Motier, Marquis de la Fayette. At a banquet in honor of the brother of the English king, he first heard the Declaration of Independence. He was won by its arguments, and from that time joined his hopes and sympathies to the American cause. Yet, how was he to aid it? The French nobility, though disliking England, did not endorse the action of her colonies. He was not yet twenty years of age, he had just married a woman whom he tenderly loved, his prospects at home for honor and happiness were bright, to join the patriot army would take him from his native land, his wife, and all his coveted ambitions, and lead him into a struggle that seemed as hopeless as its cause was just. Yet his zeal for America overcame all these obstacles. Other difficulties now arose. His family objected, the British minister protested, the French king withheld his permission. Still undaunted, he purchased a vessel fitted it out at his own expense, and, escaping the officers sent to detain him, crossed the ocean. As soon as he landed at Charleston, he hastened to Philadelphia, and offering himself to Congress asked permission to serve as a volunteer without pay. A few days after, his acquaintance with Washington began, and it soon ripened into a tender and intimate friendship. His valor won for him a commission as major-general before he was twenty-one.]

[Footnote: The British army was sadly demoralized by the festivities of their winter quarters. Franklin wittily said, "Howe has not taken Philadelphia so much as Philadelphia has taken Howe."]

BATTLE OF GERMANTOWN (Oct. 4)—Washington would not let the enemies of his country rest in peace. A few weeks after they had settled down for the winter, he made a night march, and at sunrise fell upon their troops at Germantown. At first the attack was successful, but a few companies of British desperately defending a stone house caused delay. The co-operation of the different divisions was prevented by a dense fog, which also hid the confusion of the enemy, so that the Americans retreated just at the moment of victory.

[Footnote: One thousand of his men were barefoot at this time.]

CONCLUSION OF THE CAMPAIGN IN PENNSYLVANIA.—After these battles, Howe turned his attention to the forts on the Delaware, which prevented his bringing supplies up to Philadelphia. The gallant defenders were soon forced by a severe bombardment to evacuate. Washington now retired to Valley Forge for winter quarters.

CAMPAIGN AT THE NORTH.—While the British had been thus successful in Pennsylvania, their victories were more than counterbalanced by defeats at the North. An attempt to cut off New England from New York by an expedition along the old traveled French and Indian war route up Lake Champlain, ended in disaster.

[Footnote: Besides the capture of Burgoyne's army, of which we shall now speak, several minor events occurred during the year, which, though of little importance in themselves, served to encourage the people.—(1.) Howe sent General Tryon with two thousand men to destroy the American stores at Danbury, Conn. He accomplished his work, and then set fire to the town. The next day he began his retreat, plundering the people and devastating the country on his way. But the militiamen under Wooster, Arnold, and Silliman, handled his forces so roughly that they were glad to reach their boats. General Wooster, who was mortally wounded in the pursuit, was nearly seventy years of age, but fought with the vigor of youth. Two horses were shot under Arnold, and he received the fire of a whole platoon at a distance of thirty yards, yet escaped uninjured.—(2.) Colonel Meigs avenged the burning of Danbury. With about two hundred men he crossed in whale-boats to Long Island, destroyed a great quantity of stores, including twelve ships at Sag Harbor, took ninety prisoners, and escaped without losing a man. —(3.) The Americans were extremely anxious to offset the capture of General Lee, especially as they had no prisoner of equal rank to exchange for him. At this time, General Prescott, who held command in Rhode Island, finding himself surrounded by ships and a superior British force, became very negligent. Accordingly Colonel Barton formed a plan to capture him. Dexterously avoiding the enemy's vessels, he rowed ten miles in whale-boats and with about forty militia landed near Prescott's quarters. Seizing the astonished sentinel who guarded his door, they hurried off the half-dressed general. A soldier escaping from the house gave the alarm, but the laughing guard assured him he had seen a ghost. They soon, however, found it to be no jesting matter, and vainly pursued the exultant Barton. This capture was very annoying to Prescott, as he had just offered a price for Arnold's head, and his tyrannical conduct had made him obnoxious to the people. General Howe readily parted with Lee in exchange for Prescott. ]



BURGOYNE'S INVASION.—In June, Burgoyne marched south from Canada with an army of ten thousand British and Indians. Forts Crown Point, Ticonderoga, and Edward, and the supplies at Whitehall, successively fell into his hands. General Schuyler, with the small force at his command, could only obstruct his path through the wilderness by felling trees across the road, and breaking down bridges. The loss of so many strongholds caused general alarm. Lincoln—with the Massachusetts troops, Arnold—noted for his headlong valor, and Morgan—with his famous riflemen, were sent to check Burgoyne's advance. Militiamen gathered from the neighboring States, and an army was rapidly collected and drilled. So much dissatisfaction, however, arose with Schuyler that he was superseded by Gates just as he was ready to reap the results of his well-laid schemes. With noble-minded patriotism he made known to Gates all his plans, and generously assisted him in their execution. The army was now stationed at Bemis's Heights, where fortifications were thrown up under the direction of Kosciusko (kos-se-us'-ko).

[Footnote: This general was a Pole of noble birth. While in France he formed the acquaintance of Franklin, who recommended him to Washington. He came to America and offered himself "to fight as a volunteer for American independence." "What can you do?" asked the commander. "Try me," was Kosciusko's laconic reply. Washington was greatly pleased with him, and made him his aid. He became a colonel in the engineer corps, and superintended the construction of the works at West Point. After the war he returned home and led the Poles in their struggles for independence. At Cracow is a mound of earth, 150 feet high, raised in his memory. It is composed of earth brought from the battle-fields on which the Poles fought for liberty. In the new world, his name is perpetuated by a monument at West Point.]

[Footnote: The outrages of the Indians along the route led many to join the army. None of their bloody acts caused more general execration than the murder of Jane McCrea. This young lady was the betrothed of a Captain Jones of the British army. She lived near Fort Edward in the family of her brother, who, being a whig, started for Albany on Burgoyne's approach. But she, hoping to meet her lover, lingered at the house of a Mrs. McNeil, a staunch loyalist, and a cousin of the British general, Fraser. Early one morning the house was surprised by Indians, who dragged out the inmates and hurried them away toward Burgoyne's camp. Mrs. McNeil arrived there in safety. A short time after, another party came in with fresh scalps, among which she recognized the long glossy hair of her friend. The savages, on being charged with her murder, declared that she had been killed by a chance shot from a pursuing party; whereupon they had scalped her to secure the bounty. The precise truth has never been known. Captain Jones possessed himself of the sad memento of his betrothed, and resigned. The government refusing his resignation, he deserted, and for more than fifty years lived remote from society, a heart-broken man.]

BURGOYNE'S DIFFICULTIES.—In the meantime, before Gates took command, two events occurred which materially deranged the plans of Burgoyne.

1. St. Leger had been sent to take Fort Schuyler, thence to ravage the Mohawk Valley and join Burgoyne's army at Albany. General Arnold being dispatched to relieve that fort, accomplished it by a stratagem. A half-witted tory boy who had been taken prisoner, was promised his freedom, if he would spread the report among St. Leger's troops that a large body of Americans was close at hand. The boy, having cut holes in his clothes, ran breathless into the camp of the besiegers, showing the bullet-holes and describing his narrow escape from the enemy. When asked their number, he mysteriously pointed upward to the leaves on the trees. The Indians and British were so frightened that they fled precipitately, leaving their tents and artillery behind them.

[Footnote: Fort Stanwix, on the site of Rome, N. Y., in 1776 was named after Gen. Schuyler.]



2. Burgoyne sent a detachment under Colonel Baum to seize the supplies the Americans had collected at Bennington, Vt. General Stark with the militia met him there. As Stark saw the British lines forming for the attack, he exclaimed, "There are the red-coats; we must beat them today, or Molly Stark is a widow." His patriotism and bravery so inspired his raw troops that they defeated the British regulars and took about six hundred prisoners.

[Footnote: One old man had five sons in the patriot army at Bennington. A neighbor, just from the field, told him that one had been unfortunate. "Has he proved a coward or a traitor?" asked the father. "Worse than that," was the answer, "he has fallen, but while bravely fighting" "Ah," said the father, "then I am satisfied."]

THE TWO BATTLES OF SARATOGA (Sept. 19 and Oct. 7).—Disappointed in his expectation of supplies and reinforcements from both these directions, Burgoyne now moved southward and attacked Gates's army at Bemis's Heights near Saratoga. The armies surged to and fro through the day, like the ebbing and flowing of the tide. The strife did not cease until darkness closed over the battle-field. For two weeks afterward, both armies lay in camp fortifying their positions, and each watching for an opportunity to take the other at a disadvantage.

[Footnote: The British camp was kept in continual alarm. Officers and soldiers were constantly dressed and ready for action. One night, twenty young farmers residing near the camp, resolved to capture the enemy's advance picket-guard. Armed with fowling-pieces, they marched silently through the woods until they were within a few yards of the picket. They then rushed out from the bushes, the captain blowing an old horse-trumpet and the men yelling. There was no time for the sentinel's hail. "Ground your arms, or you are all dead men!" cried the patriot captain. Thinking that a large force had fallen upon them, the picket obeyed. The young farmers led to the American camp, with all the parade of regulars, over thirty British soldiers.]

Burgoyne, finding that his provisions were low and that he must either fight or fly, again moved out to attack the Americans. Arnold, who had been unjustly deprived of his command since the last battle, maddened by the sight of the conflict, rushed into the thickest of the fight. Gates, fearing that he might win fresh laurels, ordered Major Armstrong to recall him, but he was already out of reach. He had no authority to fight, much less to direct; but, dashing to the head of his old command, where he was received with cheers, he ordered a charge on the British line. Urging on the fight, leading every onset, delivering his orders in person where the bullets flew thickest, he forced the British to their camp. Here the Hessians, dismayed by these terrific attacks, fired one volley and fled. Arnold, having forced an entrance, was wounded in the same leg as at Quebec (p. 112), and borne from the field, but not until he had won a victory while Gates stayed in his tent. . .

[Footnote: So fierce was the battle, that a single cannon was taken and retaken five times. Finally, Colonel Cilly leaped upon it, waved his sword, and "dedicating the gun to the American cause," opened it upon the enemy with their own ammunition.]

[Footnote: General Fraser was the mind and soul of the British army. Morgan soon saw that this brave man alone stood between the Americans and victory. Calling to him some of his best men, he said, "That gallant officer is General Fraser. I admire and honor him; but he must die. Stand among those bushes and do your duty." In five minutes Fraser fell, mortally wounded.]

Effects of these Battles.—Burgoyne now fell back to Saratoga. Hemmed in on all sides, there was no hope of escape. Indians and tories were constantly deserting. Provisions were low and water was scarce, as no one, except the women, dared to go to the river for it. The American batteries commanded the British camp. While a council of war, held in Burgoyne's tent, was considering the question of surrender, an 18-lb. cannon-ball passed over the table around which the officers sat. Under these circumstances the decision was quickly made. The entire army, nearly six thousand strong, laid down their arms, and an American detachment marched into their camp to the tune of Yankee Doodle. General Burgoyne handed his sword to General Gates, who promptly returned it.

A shout of joy went up all over the land at the news of this victory. From the despair caused by the defeats of Brandywine and Germantown, the nation now rose to the highest pitch of confidence.



1778.

WINTER IN VALLEY FORGE.—The winter passed in Valley Forge was the gloomiest period of the war. The continental paper money was so depreciated in value that an officer's pay would not keep him in clothes. Many, having spent their entire fortune in the war, were now compelled to resign, in order to get a living. The men were encamped in cold, comfortless huts, with little food or clothing. Barefooted, they left on the frozen ground their tracks in blood. Few had blankets, and straw could not be obtained. Soldiers, who were enfeebled by hunger and benumbed by cold, slept on the bare earth. Sickness followed. With no change of clothing, no suitable food, and no medicines, death was the only relief. Amid this terrible suffering the fires of patriotism burned brightly. Washington felt that his cause was just, and inspired all around him with his sublime faith.

[Footnote: During this winter Washington was quartered at the house of Isaac Potts. One day, while Potts was on his way up the creek near by, he heard a voice of prayer. Softly following its direction, be soon discovered the General upon his knees, his cheeks wet with tears. Narrating the incident to his wife, he added with much emotion, "If there is any one to whom the Lord will listen, it is George Washington, and under such a commander, our independence is certain."—Besides all the perils of want and famine which he shared with his soldiers, Washington was called upon to suffer from envy and calumny. General Conway, a cunning, restless intriguer, formed a cabal of officers against Washington. Their plan was to wound his feelings so that he would resign. In that event Gates, whose reputation was very high, would succeed to the command. Pennsylvania sent to Congress a remonstrance censuring Washington. The same was done by members from Massachusetts. Fortunately, the army and the best citizens knew the inspiration of the movement to be jealousy, and their indignation was unbounded. Neither Conway nor Adams dared show himself among the soldiers, and the attack recoiled on the heads of its instigators—Soon after this, England sent commissioners with liberal proposals, which, before the war commenced, would have been accepted; but that day was now past. Next bribery was tried. Among those approached was General Reed of Pennsylvania. He was offered ten thousand guineas and distinguished honors if he would exert his influence to effect a reconciliation. "I am not worth purchasing," said the honest patriot, "but such as I am, the king of Great Britain is not rich enough to buy me."]



AID FROM FRANCE.—In the spring the hearts of all were gladdened by the news that, through the efforts of Franklin, France had acknowledged the Independence of the United States, and that a fleet was on its way to help them in their struggle for independence.

[Footnote: Benjamin Franklin was born in Boston, 1706, N S; died in Philadelphia, 1790. His father was a soap and candle maker, with small means, and Benjamin, being the youngest of seventeen children, had little opportunity to gratify his desire for knowledge. By abstaining from meat for two years, he managed to buy a few books, which he diligently studied. At seventeen years of age he landed in Philadelphia with a silver dollar and a shilling in copper. As, with his extra shirts and stockings stuffed in his pockets, he walked along the streets, eating the roll of bread which served for his breakfast, his future wife stood at her father's door and smiled at his awkward appearance, little dreaming of his brilliant future, or of its interest to her. He soon obtained employment as a printer. Being induced by false representations to go to England, he found himself almost penniless in a strange land. With his usual industry he went to work, and soon made friends and a good living. Returning to Philadelphia he established a newspaper, and in 1732 commenced to publish "Poor Richard's Almanac," which for twenty years was quite as popular in Europe as in America. Its common-sense proverbs and useful hints are household words to this day. Retiring from business with a fine fortune, he devoted himself chiefly to science. His discoveries in electricity are world-renowned. (See Steele's New Physics, pp. 228, 251.) Franklin was an unflinching patriot. While in England he defended the cause of liberty with great zeal and ability. He helped to draft the Declaration of Independence, and was one of its signers. Having been appointed ambassador to France, he first invested all his ready money, $15,000, in the continental loan, a practical proof of his patriotism, since its repayment was extremely improbable. His influence at the French court was unbounded. He was revered for his wit, his genius, his dignity, and his charming conversation. He became to the American cause in the old world what Washington was in the new. On his return he was elected president of Pennsylvania for three successive years. He gave the whole of his salary, $30,000, to benevolent objects. In his eighty-second year, he was a member of the Constitutional Convetion. At his death twenty thousand persons assembled to do honor to his memory.]



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH (June 28).—Howe having returned to England, Clinton succeeded him. The British government, alarmed by the sending of the French fleet, ordered Clinton to concentrate his forces at New York. Washington rapidly followed the English across New Jersey and overtook them at Monmouth. General Lee, who conducted the attack, ordered a retreat. The men, entangled in a swamp, were becoming demoralized as they retired from the field, when Washington, riding up, bitterly rebuked Lee, by his personal presence rallied the men, and sent them back against the enemy. The fight lasted all that long sultry day. In the darkness of night Clinton stole away with his men to New York.

[Footnote: Charles Lee, for his conduct at Monmouth, and his disrespectful letters to Washington, and afterward to Congress, was dismissed from the army. He retired to his estate in Virginia, where he lived in a rude house whose only partitions were chalk marks on the floor—an improvement upon walls on which he prided himself—surrounded by his dogs, his only intimate companions.]

[Footnote: During the day an artilleryman was shot at his post. His wife, Mary Pitcher, while bringing water to her husband from a spring, saw him fall and heard the commander order the piece to be removed from the field. Instantly dropping the pail, she hastened to the cannon, seized the rammer, and with great skill and courage performed her husband's duty. The soldiers gave her the nickname of Major Molly. Congress voted her a sergeant's commission with half-pay through life.]

CAMPAIGN IN RHODE ISLAND.—A combined attack on Newport was arranged to be made by the French fleet under D'Estaing (da-es-tang), and the American army under General Sullivan. Soon after the French entered Narraganset Bay, Howe arrived off the harbor with the English fleet. D'Estaing went out to meet him. A storm came on, which so shattered both fleets that they were compelled to put back for repairs. General Sullivan, being thus deserted, retreated just in time to escape Clinton, who came up from New York with reinforcements. The French gave no further aid during the year.

THE WYOMING MASSACRE.—In July, a band of tories and Indians under Butler, entered the beautiful valley of the Wyoming. Most of the able-bodied men had gone to the war. The old men and the boys armed for the defence. The women and children fled for refuge to a fort near the present site of Wilkesbarre. Taking counsel of their courage, and their helpless mothers, wives, and children, a handful of men sallied out to meet the invaders, but were quickly defeated. All that night the Indians tortured their prisoners in every way that savage cruelty could devise. The fort having been surrendered on promise of safety, Butler did his best to restrain his savage allies, but in vain. By night the whole valley was ablaze with burning dwellings, while the people fled for their lives through the wilderness.

* * * * *



1779.

CAMPAIGN AT THE SOUTH.—At the close of the preceding autumn the scene of conflict was transferred to Georgia. Savannah and Augusta were captured, and soon the entire State was conquered (map opp. p. 121). The British governor being restored, England could once more boast of a royal province among the colonies. Prevost now led the British against Charleston, S.C. He had scarcely summoned the city when he heard that Lincoln, his dreaded foe, was after him with the militia, and he was glad to escape back to Savannah. In September, D'Estaing joined Lincoln in an attack upon that city. After a severe bombardment an unsuccessful assault was made, in which a thousand lives were lost. Count Pulaski was mortally wounded.

[Footnote: Count Pulaski was a Polish patriot who, having lost his father and brothers in the hopeless defence of his country, and being himself outlawed, had come to fight for the freedom of America. At first he served as a volunteer. He fought valiantly at the battle of Brandywine. During the second year he commanded an independent corps of cavalry, lancers, and light infantry, called "Pulaski's Legion," with which he did effectual service. He was buried in the Savannah River. The corner-stone of a monument raised to his memory in Savannah, was laid by La Fayette while visiting that city during his triumphal progress through the United States.]

[Footnote: The British, discouraged by their failure to subdue the eastern and middle States, during the remainder of the war put forth their principal strength at the South.]

CAMPAIGN AT THE NORTH.—Clinton did little except to send out predatory parties. Norwalk, Fairfield, and New Haven, Conn., were either burned or plundered. Tryon, who commanded the Connecticut expedition, boasted of his clemency in leaving a single house standing on the New England coast.

[Footnote: General Putnam was at Horse Neck when Tryon was in the vicinity. Hastily gathering a few militia, he annoyed the British as long as possible, and then, compelled to flee before the enemy's overwhelming force, his men hid themselves in the adjacent swamp, while he, spurring his spirited horse over a precipice, descended a zigzag path, where the British dragoons did not dare to follow.]

THE CAPTURE OF STONY POINT by General Wayne, with only eight hundred men, was one of the most brilliant exploits of the war. The countersign, which, curiously enough, was "The fort is ours," was obtained from a negro who was in the habit of selling strawberries at the fort. He guided them in the darkness to the causeway leading over the flooded marsh around the foot of the hill, on which the fort was situated. The unsuspicious sentinel, having received the countersign, was chatting with the negro, when he was suddenly seized and gagged. Wayne's men passed over the causeway and reached the base of the hill undiscovered. Forming in two divisions, with unloaded muskets and fixed bayonets, they commenced the ascent of the steep and narrow path which led to the top. They had nearly reached the picket before they were discovered. Fire was at once opened upon them. Wayne was wounded, but commanded his aids to carry him that he might die at the head of the column. The rush of his men was irresistible. An instant more, and a deafening shout told that the fort was won. The British lost in killed, wounded, and prisoners, six hundred men.



GENERAL SULLIVAN'S EXPEDITION.—The atrocities of the Indians had kept the inhabitants of the Wyoming and Mohawk valleys in continued terror. In the summer, General Sullivan led an expedition into the Genesee country. Near Elmira, N. Y., he fought a fierce battle with the Indians and their tory allies. The latter being defeated, fled in dismay, while Sullivan marched to and fro through that beautiful region, laying waste their corn-fields, felling their orchards, and burning their houses.

[Footnote: The Indians, in the fertile country of the Cayugas and Senecas, had towns and villages regularly laid out, framed houses, some of them well finished, painted, and having chimneys, and broad and productive fields, with orchards of apple, pear, and peach trees.]

NAVAL EXPLOITS.—No American successes caused more annoyance to the British than those of the navy. In 1775, Washington fitted out several vessels to cruise along the New England coast as privateers. In the same year Congress established a naval department. Swift sailing vessels, manned by bold seamen, infested every avenue of commerce. Within three years they captured five hundred ships. They even cruised among the British isles, and, entering harbors, seized and burned ships lying at English wharves.

Paul Jones is the most famous of these naval heroes. While cruising with a squadron of five vessels off the northeast coast of England, he met the Serapis and the Countess of Scarborough convoying a fleet of merchantmen. At half-past seven in the evening of September 23, he laid his own vessel, the Bon Homme Richard, alongside the Serapis, and a desperate struggle ensued. In the midst of the engagement he lashed the ships together.

[Footnote: Jones had given this name (Goodman Richard) to his ship in honor of Dr. Franklin, whose sayings as "Poor Richard" he warmly admired.]

[Footnote: At this point the contest had been raging an hour, and the ships had twice fallen foul of each other. The first time, the Serapis hailed the Richard, asking if she had "struck her colors." "I have not yet begun to fight," was the reply of Jones.]

The crews then fought hand to hand. The Richard was old and rotten. Water poured into the hold. Three times both vessels were on fire. At ten o'clock the Serapis surrendered. Meanwhile the Pallas, one of his companions, captured the Countess of Scarborough, but the other ships rendered him no aid. Indeed, the Alliance, Captain Landis, repeatedly fired into the Richard, hoping to force Jones to surrender, that Landis might then capture the Serapis and retake the Richard. As Jones's vessel was already in a sinking condition, he transferred his crew to the captured frigate, and sailed for the Texel.



1780.

CAMPAIGN AT THE SOUTH.—Georgia having been subdued, the war was now renewed in South Carolina. Charleston was attacked by land and sea. General Lincoln, after enduring a siege of forty days and a terrible bombardment, was forced to surrender. Marauding expeditions were sent out which soon overran the whole State. Clinton returned to New York, leaving Cornwallis in command.

[Footnote: One of these, under the command of the brutal Tarleton, at Waxhaw Creek, over took a body of four hundred Continental troops and a small party of cavalry under Colonel Buford. The British gave no quarter, and after the Americans surrendered, mercilessly maimed and butchered the larger portion of them.]

BATTLE AT CAMDEN (Aug. 16).—General Gates, "the conqueror of Burgoyne," now taking command of the troops at the South, marched to meet the enemy under Cornwallis near Camden. Singularly, both generals had appointed the same time to make a night attack. While marching for this purpose, the advance guards of the two armies unexpectedly encountered each other in the woods. After some sharp skirmishing, the armies waited for day. At dawn Cornwallis ordered a charge. The militia, demoralized by the fighting in the night, fled at the first fire, but De Kalb, with the continental regulars, stood firm. At last he fell, pierced with eleven wounds. His brave comrades for a time fought desperately over his body, but were overwhelmed by numbers. The army was so scattered that it could not be collected. A few of the officers met Gates eighty miles in the rear with no soldiers. All organized resistance to British rule now ceased in the South.

[Footnote: Lee met Gates on his way to join the southern army. His well-worded caution, "Beware your northern laurels do not turn to southern willows," seems almost prophetic of the Camden disaster.]

PARTISAN CORPS.—The Carolinas were full of tories. Many of them joined the British army; others organized companies that mercilessly robbed and murdered their whig neighbors. On the other hand there were patriot bands which rendezvoused (ren-da-vood) in swamps, and sallied out as occasion offered. These partisan corps kept the country in continual terror. Marion, Sumter, Pickens, and Lee, were noted patriot leaders. Their bands were strong enough to cut off British detachments, and even successfully attack small garrisons. The cruel treatment which the whigs received from the British drove many to this partisan warfare. The issue of the contest at the South was mainly decided by these bold citizen soldiers.

[Footnote: A British officer sent to negotiate concerning an exchange of prisoners, dined with Marion. The dinner consisted of roasted potatoes. Surprised at this meagre diet, he made some inquiries, when he found that this was their customary fare, and that the patriot general served without pay. This devotion to the cause of liberty so affected the officer that he resigned his commission, thinking it folly to fight such men.]

[Footnote: At Hanging Rock (Aug. 6) Sumter gained a victory over a strong body of British and tories. He began the action with only two rounds of ammunition, but soon supplied himself from the fleeing tories. Frequently, in these contests, a portion of the bands would go into a battle without guns, arming themselves with the muskets of their comrades as they fell. At King's Mountain (Oct. 7) a large body of independent riflemen, each company under its own leader, attacked Ferguson, who had been sent out to rally the tories of the neighborhood. Ferguson and one hundred and fifty of his men were killed, and the rest taken prisoners.]

[Footnote: An event which occurred in Charleston aroused the bitterest resentment. When that city was captured by the British, Colonel Isaac Hayne, with others, was paroled, but was afterwards ordered into the British ranks. At this time his wife and several of his children lay at the point of death with small-pox. The choice was given him to become a British subject or to be placed in close confinement. Agonized by thoughts of his dying family, he signed a pledge of allegiance to England, with the assurance that he should never be required to fight against his countrymen. Being afterward summoned by Lord Rawdon to join the British army, he considered the pledge annulled, and raised a partisan band. He was captured, and without being allowed a trial, was condemned to death. The citizens of Charleston vainly implored pardon for him. Lord Rawdon allowed him forty-eight hours in which to take leave of his orphan children, at the end of which time he was hanged.]



CONTINENTAL MONEY had now been issued by Congress to the amount of $200,000,000. At this time it was so much depreciated that $40 in bills were worth only $1 in specie. A pair of boots cost $600 in continental currency. A soldier's pay for a month would hardly buy him a dinner. To make the matter worse, the British had flooded the country with counterfeits, which could not be told from the genuine. Many persons refused to take continental money. The sufferings of the soldiers and the difficulty of procuring supplies may be readily imagined.

[Footnote: In this crisis, Robert Morris, of Philadelphia, sent three million rations. Soldiers' relief associations were organized by the women of that city. They made twenty-two hundred shirts, each inscribed with the name of the lady who sewed it.]

The Pennsylvania regiments in camp at Morristown, claiming that their time had expired, demanded their discharge. At last, 1,300 strong, they set out for Princeton to secure redress at the point of the bayonet, but a committee of Congress succeeded in satisfying them.

[Footnote: Clinton's agents went among the troops offering large rewards for desertion. The emissaries mistook their men, for the soldiers gave them up as spies.]



ARNOLD'S TREASON.—The English did little at the North, and the condition of Washington's army prevented his making any movement. Meanwhile the cause of liberty suffered a terrible blow from one who had been its gallant defender. General Arnold, whose bravery at Quebec and Saratoga had awakened universal admiration, was stationed at Philadelphia while his wound was healing. He there married a tory lady and lived in great extravagance. By various acts of oppression, he rendered himself so odious that on one occasion he was publicly mobbed. Charges being preferred against him, he was convicted and sentenced to be reprimanded by the commander-in-chief. Washington performed the duty very gently and considerately; but Arnold, stung by the disgrace, and desperate in fortune, resolved to gratify both his revenge and love of money by betraying his country. He accordingly secured from Washington the command of West Point, at that time the most important post in America. He then proposed to Clinton, with whom he had previously corresponded, to surrender it to the British. The offer was accepted, and Major Andre appointed to confer with him. Andre ascended the Hudson, and, on the night of September 21, went ashore from the English ship Vulture to meet the traitor. Morning dawned before they had completed their plans. In the meantime, fire having been opened on the Vulture, she had dropped down the river. Andre, now left within the American lines, was obliged to make his way back to New York by land. He had reached Tarrytown in safety, when, at a sudden turn in the road, his horse's reins were seized, and three men sprang before him. His manner awakening suspicion, they searched him, and finding papers which seemed to prove him a spy, they carried him to the nearest American post. Arnold was at breakfast, when he received a note announcing Andre's capture. He called aside his wife and told her of his peril. Terrified by his words, she fainted. Kissing his boy, who lay asleep in the cradle, Arnold darted out of the house, mounted a horse, by an unfrequented path reached the river, jumped into his boat, and was rowed to the Vulture. He received, as the reward of his treachery, 6,315 pounds, a colonelcy in the English army, and the contempt of everybody. The very name, "Arnold the Traitor," will always declare his infamy. Andre was tried and hung as a spy. Every effort was made to save him, and his fate awakened universal sympathy.

[Footnote: The names of these men were Paulding, Van Wart, and Williams. Andre offered them his horse, watch, purse, and any sum they might name, if they would release him. The incorruptible patriots declared that they would not let him go for ten thousand guineas. Congress voted to each of them a silver medal and a pension for life.]

[Footnote: Arnold was thoroughly despised by the British officers, and often insulted. Many stories are told illustrative of English sentiment toward him. A member of Parliament, about to address the House of Commons, happening, as he rose, to see Arnold in the gallery, said, pointing to the traitor, "Mr. Speaker, I will not speak while that man is in the House." George the Third introduced Arnold to Earl Barcarras, one of Burgoyne's officers at Bemis's Heights. "Sire," said the proud old Earl as he turned from Arnold, refusing his hand, "I know General Arnold, and abominate traitors." When Talleyrand was about to come to America, he sought letters of introduction from Arnold, but received the reply, "I was born in America; I lived there to the prime of my life; but, alas! I can call no man in America my friend."]



1781.

THE WAR AT THE SOUTH.—General Greene, who was appointed to succeed General Gates, found the army to consist of only two thousand half-clothed, half-starved men. A part of his force, under Morgan, was attacked (January 17) at Cowpens by Tarleton. The militia fleeing, the continentals fell back to secure a better position. The British mistook this for a retreat and were rushing on in confusion, when the continentals suddenly faced about, poured in a deadly fire at only thirty yards distance, and drove them in utter rout. Tarleton fled to Cornwallis, who set out in hot haste, eager to punish the victors and recapture the prisoners. Morgan started for Virginia, and crossed the Catawba just before Cornwallis appeared in sight. Night came on, and with it rain, which raised the river so high as to keep the impatient Cornwallis waiting three days.

[Footnote: Colonel William A. Washington, in a personal combat in this battle, wounded Tarleton. Months afterward, the British officer while conversing with Mrs. Jones, a witty American lady, sneeringly said, "That Colonel Washington is very illiterate. I am told that he cannot write his name." "Ah, Colonel," replied she, "you bear evidence that he can make his mark." Tarleton expressing, at another time, his desire to see Colonel Washington, the lady replied, "Had you looked behind you at Cowpens, you might have had that pleasure."]

GREENE'S RETREAT.—General Greene now joined Morgan, and conducted the retreat. At the Yadkin, just as the Americans had reached the other side, it began to rain. When Cornwallis came up, the river was so swollen that he could not cross. He, however, marched up the stream, effected a passage, and was soon in full pursuit again. Now came a race, on parallel roads, thirty miles per day, for the fords of the Dan. Greene reached them first, and Cornwallis gave up the chase. This signal deliverance of Greene's exhausted army awoke every pious feeling of the American heart, and was a cause for general thanksgiving.

[Footnote: During this retreat, General Greene, after a hard day's ride in the rain, alighted at the door of Mrs. Elizabeth Steele, in Salisbury, N. C., announcing himself as, "fatigued, hungry, cold, and penniless." Quickly providing the honored guest with a warm supper before a cheerful fire, this patriotic woman brought forth two small bags of specie, her earnings for years. "Take these," she said; "you will want them, and I can do without them." "Never," says his biographer, "did relief come at a more needy moment; the hero resumed his dangerous journey that night with a lightened heart." Another story illustrative of the patriotism of the Southern women is told of Mrs. Motte. The British had taken possession of her house, fortified and garrisoned it. On Colonel Lee's advance, she furnished him a bow and arrows, by means of which fire was thrown upon the shingled roof. Her mansion was soon in flames. The occupants, to save their lives, surrendered.]

CAMPAIGN CLOSED.—Having rested his men, Greene again took the field, harassing the enemy by a fierce partisan warfare. At Guilford Court-House (March 15) he hazarded a battle. The militia fled again at the first fire, but the continental regulars fought as in the time of De Kalb. The Americans at last retired, but the British had bought their victory so dearly that Cornwallis also retreated. Greene again pursuing, Cornwallis shut himself up in Wilmington. Thereupon Greene turned his course to South Carolina, and with the aid of Marion, Sumter, Lee, and Pickens, nearly delivered this State and Georgia from the English. In the battle of Eutaw Springs (Sept. 8) the forces of the enemy were so crippled that they retired toward Charleston. Cornwallis, refusing to follow Greene into South Carolina, had already gone north into Virginia, and though a fierce partisan warfare still distracted the country, this engagement closed the long and fiercely fought contest at the South.

[Footnote: Congress voted the highest honors to General Greene, who, by his prudence, wisdom, and valor, had, with such insignificant forces and miserable equipments, achieved so much for the cause of liberty. He never gained a decided victory, yet his defeats bad all the effect of successes, and his very retreats strengthened the confidence of his men and weakened that of the enemy.]

[Footnote: At the battle of Eutaw, Manning, a noted soldier of Lee's legion, was in hot pursuit of the flying British, when he suddenly found himself surrounded by the enemy and not an American within forty rods. He did not hesitate, but seizing an officer by the collar, and wresting his sword from him by main force, kept his body as a shield while he rapidly backed off under a heavy fire from the perilous neighborhood. The frightened British officer when thus summarily captured, began immediately to enumerate his titles: "I am Sir Henry Barry, deputy adjutant-general, captain in 52d regiment," &c., &c. "Enough," interrupted his captor; "you are just the man I was looking for."]

THE WAR AT THE NORTH.—The traitor Arnold, burning with hatred, led an expedition into Virginia. He conducted the war with great brutality, burning private as well as public property. La Fayette was sent to check him, but with his small force could accomplish little. Cornwallis, arriving from the South, now took Arnold's place, and continued this marauding tour through the country. Clinton, however, fearing Washington, who seemed to threaten New York, directed Cornwallis to keep near the sea-coast so as to be ready to help him. Cornwallis, accordingly, after having destroyed ten million dollars worth of property, fortified himself at Yorktown.

[Footnote: Many of La Fayette's men having deserted, he set forth the baseness of such conduct, and then offered to all who desired it, a permit to go home. Not a man accepted, nor was there after this a single case of desertion. One soldier, not being able to walk, hired a cart that he might keep up with his comrades. Shoes, linen, and many other necessaries were provided at La Fayette's expense. The generosity of this general and the devotion of his soldiery seemed to vie with each other.]

SIEGE OF YORKTOWN.—It was arranged to attack Cornwallis at this place by the combined American and French forces. Washington, by a feint on New York, kept Clinton in the dark regarding his plans until he was far on his way south with the continental army.

[Footnote: During the preceding winter Robert Morris sent to the starving army several thousand barrels of flour. He now furnished nearly everything required for this expedition, issuing his own notes to the amount of $1,400,000. It is sad to know that this patriot, so often the resource of Washington, lost his fortune in his old age, and was confined in prison for debt.]

[Footnote: Washington, at this time, visited Mount Vernon which he had not seen since he left it to attend the Continental Congress in 1775. Six years and a half had nearly elapsed, yet he remained only long enough to fulfill a military engagement.]

[Footnote: Clinton sent Arnold on a pillaging tour into Connecticut in order to force Washington to return. He, however, was not to be diverted from his great enterprise, and left New England to take care of herself. New London was pillaged and burned, Arnold watching the fire from a church steeple. At Fort Griswold, the commander and half the garrison were butchered. After this fort had been taken, a British officer entering asked, "Who commands here?" "I did," said Colonel Ledyard, as he advanced to surrender his sword, "but you do now." With fiendish malignity, the officer seized the weapon and thrust it into the bosom of the brave colonel.]

On the 28th of September, the joint forces, twelve thousand strong, took up their position before Yorktown. Batteries were opened upon the city, and the vessels in the harbor fired by red-hot shells. Two redoubts were carried; one by the Americans, the other by the French. The most hearty good-will prevailed. The patriots slept in the open air that their allies might use their tents. Breaches having been made in the walls, Cornwallis saw no hope of escape and capitulated (Oct. 19).

[Footnote: Governor Nelson commanded the battery that fired first upon the British. Cornwallis and his staff were at that time occupying the governor's fine stone mansion. The patriot pointed one of his heaviest guns directly toward his house, and ordered the gunner to fire upon it with vigor. The British could not make even the home of the noble Nelson a shield against his patriotic efforts. The house still bears the scars of the bombardment.]

THE SCENE OF THE SURRENDER was most imposing. The army was drawn up in two lines, extending over a mile—the Americans on one side with General Washington at the head, and the French on the other with Count Rochambeau (ro-shong-bo). The captive army, about seven thousand in number, with slow step, shouldered arms, and cased colors, marched between them. A prodigious crowd, anxious to see Cornwallis, had assembled, but the haughty general, vexed and mortified at his defeat, feigned illness, and sent his sword by General O'Hara.

[Footnote: With a fine delicacy of feeling, Washington directed the sword to be delivered to General Lincoln, who, eighteen months before, had surrendered at Charleston.]



The Effect.—Both parties felt that this surrender virtually ended the war. Joy pervaded every patriot heart. All the hardships of the past were forgotten in the thought that America was free. The news reached Philadelphia at two o'clock A.M. The people were awakened by the watchman's cry, "Past two o'clock and Cornwallis is taken." Lights flashed through the houses, and soon the streets were thronged with crowds eager to learn the glad news. Some were speechless with delight. Many wept, and the old door-keeper of Congress died of joy. Congress met at an early hour, and that afternoon marched in solemn procession to the Lutheran church to return thanks to Almighty God.

All hope of subduing America was now abandoned by the people of England, and they loudly demanded the removal of the ministers who still counselled war. The House of Commons voted that whoever advised the king to continue hostilities should be considered a public enemy.

[Footnote: On Sunday noon, November 25, 1781, the British Cabinet received intelligence of the defeat. When Lord North, the prime minister of Great Britain, heard the disastrous news, he was greatly excited. With looks and actions indicating the deepest distress, he again and again exclaimed, "O God! it is all over."]

DIFFICULTIES OF THE COUNTRY AND ARMY.—The situation of the United States at this time was perilous. Commerce had been destroyed by the war. The currency was worthless. War had been the main business of the country for eight years, and trade, manufactures, and agriculture, had been neglected. Villages had been burned, ships destroyed, and crops laid waste. The British held Charleston over a year, and Savannah and New York about two years after the surrender at Yorktown. George III was obstinate, and war might be resumed. Yet the American army was in almost open rebellion. The soldiers, afraid they should be disbanded and sent home without pay, petitioned Congress, but received no satisfaction. The treasury was empty. At this crisis Washington was invited to become king. The noble patriot was shocked at the proposal, and indignantly spurned it. A paper having been circulated advising violent measures, Washington addressed a meeting of the officers, and besought them not to mar their fair record of patriotic service by any rash proceedings. His influence prevailed, both with the army and with Congress, and the difficulties were amicably settled.

[Footnote: As he rose he took off his spectacles to wipe them, saying, "My eyes have grown dim in the service of my country, but I have never doubted her justice."]

PEACE DECLARED.—A treaty was signed at Paris (September 3, 1783) acknowledging the independence of the United States. Soon after, the army was disbanded. Washington bade his officers an affecting farewell, and retired to Mount Vernon, followed by the thanksgiving of a grateful people.

WEAKNESS OF THE GOVERNMENT.—During the war the thirteen States had agreed upon Articles of Confederation, but they conferred little power on Congress. It could recommend, but not enforce; it could only advise action, leaving the States to do as they pleased. Bitter jealousy existed among the several States, both with regard to one another and to a general government. The popular desire was to let each State remain independent, and haye no national authority. A heavy debt had been incurred by the war. Congress had no money and could not levy taxes. It advised the States to pay, but they were too jealous of Congress to heed its requests. "We are," said Washington, "one nation to-day, and thirteen to-morrow." In New England, large bodies of men assembled, refusing to pay their taxes and openly threatening to overturn the government. This insurrection, known as Shays's Rebellion, from the name of its leader, was put down by the militia under General Lincoln.

CONSTITUTION ADOPTED.—Under these circumstances, many of the best men of the land felt the need of a stronger national government. A convention was called in Philadelphia to revise the Articles of Confederation. Washington was chosen president. After much deliberation.

[Footnote: The new constitution met with the most violent opposition. The people were divided into two parties—the Federalists and the anti-Federalists. The former favored the constitution and sought to increase the powers of the national government, and thus strengthen the Union at home and abroad. The latter wished the authority to rest with the States, opposed the constitution, were jealous of Congress, and feared too much national power lest a monarchy might be established. The nation was agitated by the most earnest and thoughtful as well as the most virulent speeches on both sides. Within the year (1788) nine States had ratified the constitution. This was the number necessary to make it binding. Rhode Inland was not represented in the convention, and did not accept the constitution until 1790.]

During the next Epoch we shall notice the growth of the country under the wise provisions of this constitution.



Summary of the History of the Third Epoch, arranged in Chronological Order.

1765. The Stamp Act passed, March 8, 1766. The Stamp Act repealed by Parliament, March 18, 1767. A tax imposed on tea, &c., June 29, 1768. The British troops arrived at Boston, September 27, 1770. Boston Massacre, March 5, All duties except on tea repealed, April 12, 1773. The tea thrown overboard in Boston Harbor, Dec. 16, 1774. "Boston Port Bill" passed, March 31, First Continental Congress met at Philadelphia, Sept. 5, 1775. Battle of Lexington, April 19, Ticonderoga taken by Allen and Arnold, May 10, Crown Point taken, May 12, Washington elected commander-in-chief, June 15, Battle of Bunker Hill, June 17, Washington took command of the troops before Boston, July 2, Montreal surrendered to Montgomery, November 13, Battle of Quebec—Montgomery killed, December 31, 1776. Boston evacuated by the British troops under Lord Howe, March 17, Attack on Fort Moultrie, June 28, Declaration of Independence, July 4, Battle of Long Island, August 27, Battle of White Plains, October 28, Fort Washington taken, November 16, Washington's retreat through New Jersey, November and December, Battle of Trenton, December 26, 1777. Battle of Princeton, January 3, Murder of Miss McCrea, July 27, Battle of Bennington, August 16, Battle of Brandywine, September 11, First battle of Saratoga, September 19, Philadelphia captured by the British, September 25, Battle of Germantown, October 4, Second battle of Saratoga, October 7, Surrender of Burgoyne, October 17, 1778. American Independence acknowledged by France, Feb. 6 Battle of Monmouth, June 28 Massacre of Wyoming, July 3 French fleet arrived in Narraganset Bay, July 29 British captured Savannah, Ga., December 29 1779. Stony Point captured by General Wayne, July 15 Sullivan defeated the tories and Indians near Elmira, N. Y., August 29 Paul Jones's victory, September 23 Savannah besieged by the Americans and the French, September and October D'Estaing and Lincoln repulsed at Savannah, October 9 1780. Charleston surrendered to the British, May 12 Battle of Hanging Rock, S. C., August 6 Battle of Camden, August 16 Andre executed, October 2 Battle of King's Mountain, October 7 1781. Richmond burned by Arnold, January 5 Battle of the Cowpens, January 17 Greene's celebrated retreat, January and February Battle of Guilford Court House, March 15 Battle of Eutaw Springs, September 8 Surrender of Cornwallis, October 19 1783. Savannah evacuated by the British, July 11 Treaty of Peace signed at Paris, September 3 New York evacuated by the British, November 25 Washington resigned his commission, December 23 1787. Shays's Rebellion in Massachusetts Constitution of the United States adopted in Convention, September 17 1788. Constitution adopted by nine States

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REFERENCES FOR READING.

Lossing's Field Book of the Revolution.—Spencer's History of the United States—Garden's Anecdotes of the Revolution.—Grace Greenwood's Forest Tragedy.—Campbell's Gertrude of Wyoming (Poem). —Halleck's Wyoming (Poem).—Simms's Life of Marion; also his Series of Historical Tales.—Bryant's Song of Marion's Men and Seventy-Six (Poems).—Magoon's Orators of American Revolution. —Headley's Washington and his Generals.—Wirt's Life of Patrick Henry.—G. W. Greene's Historical View of American Revolution and Life of General Greene.—Parton's Life of Benjamin Franklin—Longfellow's Paul Revere's Ride and Pulaski's Banner (Poems).—Headley's Life of La Fayette—Hawthorne's Ticonderoga (Twice Told Tales)—Mrs Ellet's Women of the American Revolution—Watson's Camp Fires of the Revolution—Raymonds Women of the South—Sabine's Loyalists of the American Revolution—Lee's War in the Southern Department—Drake's American Flag (Poem)—Streets Concord, Bennington, and American Independence (Poems)—Dwight's Columbia (Poem)—Washington's Farewell Address—The Declaration of Independence (see Appendix)—Sears's History of the American Revolution—Freneau's Poems—Life of General Joseph Reed, by Wm. B. Reed—Cooper's novels (The Spy, The Pilot and Lionel Lincoln)—Motley's Horton's Hope and Paulding's Old Continental (novel)—Winthrop Sargent's Life of Andre and Loyalist Poetry of the Revolution—Moore's Songs and Ballads and Diary of the Revolution—Whittier's Rangers (Poem)—Hawthorne's Septimius Felton (Fiction)—Winthrop's Edwin Brothertoft (fiction)—Barnes's Brief History of France—Barnes's Popular History of United States—Harper's Magazine, vol 50, p 777, Art The Concord Fight, vol 51, p 230, Art, Echoes of Bunker Hill vol 53 p 1, Art, Virginia in the Revolution vol 55, 511 Art, Battle of Benmngton—Atlantic Monthly, vol 37, p. 466, Art, The Siege of Boston—Martin's Civil Government

TERRITORIAL DEVELOPMENT OF THE UNITED STATES (see Map of VIth Epoch)—The Treaty with Great Britain (Sept 3, 1783) fixed the boundaries of the United States as the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico the Mississippi River, and the Great Lakes From this however, was to be excluded Florida, which belonged to Spain and the part of Louisiana east of the Mississippi. The Thirteen Colonies occupied only a narrow strip along the Atlantic sea-board. Pennsylvania was a frontier State, with Pittsburg as an advanced military post. The interior of the continent as far as the Mississippi was called the Wilderness. These broad lands belonged to the States individually, since the original English grants extended from the Atlantic to the Pacific (See second note, p 40) They were finally generously given up to the general government of the young confederacy (See second note, p 194, and article on Public Lands, Harper's Magazine vol 42, p 219) In 1787, the great legion north of the Ohio was organized into the Northwestern Territory (See notes, p 201) This was slowly settled. As late as 1819 even the Terntory of Michigan was thought to be a "worthless waste" The Province of Louisiana was purchased of France in 1803 (p 156) Little was known of the country thus acquired, and that same year it was said "The Missouri has been navigated for 2500 miles, there appears a probability of a communication by this channel with the Western Ocean" The famous expedition under the command of Captains Lewis and Clarke (see Barnes's Popular History of United States, p 360) in 1804-5 gave the first accurate information concerning this vast territory. Florida was purchased of Spain (p 173) by a treaty proposed Feb 22, 1819 though not signed by the King of Spam until Oct 20,1820, while the United States did not obtain full possession before July 17,1821. (These facts account for the different dates assigned to this purchase in the various histories.) The treaty with Spain which secured Florida, also relinquished all Spanish authority over the region west of the Rocky Mountain, claimed by the United States as belonging to the Louisiana purchase, but not previously acknowledged by Spain. This is of special importance since many maps giving the Spanish version, extend Louisiana only to the Rocky Mountains (the map of the VIth Epoch is based on the one in the United States Census of 1870). In the beginning of the war of 1812, a strip of coast about fifty miles wide lying between Florida and Louisiana, considered by Spain as a part of Florida had been taken by the United States under the claim that it also belonged to the Louisiana purchase. Texas was annexed in 1845 (p 205, and also Scribner's Magazine, vol 16 p 868). The Mexican cession of 1848 gave the United States California and several other States (p 206-8). Alaska, the latest acquisition, was purchased in 1867.



EPOCH IV.



DEVELOPMENT OF THE STATES.

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From 1787—the Adoption of the Constitution, To 1861—the Breaking Out of the Civil War.

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WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. (FIRST PRESIDENT—TWO TERMS 1789-1797)

WASHINGTON'S INAUGURATION (April 30, 1789).—In the choice of the first President of the United States, all hearts turned instinctively to Washington. With deep regret, he left his quiet home at Mount Vernon for the tumults of political life. His journey to New York was a continual ovation. Crowds of gayly-dressed people bearing baskets and garlands of flowers, and hailing his appearance with shouts of joy, met him at every village. On the balcony of old Federal Hall, New York City, he took the oath to support the Constitution of the United States. Difficulties beset the new government on every hand. The treasury was empty, and the United States had no credit. The Indians were hostile. Pirates from the Barbary States attacked our ships, and American citizens were languishing in Algerine dungeons. Spain refused us the navigation of the Mississippi. England had not yet condescended to send a minister to our government, and had made no treaty of commerce with us. We shall see how wisely Washington and his cabinet met these difficulties.

[Footnote: New York was only temporarily the capital. At the second session of Congress the seat of government was transferred to Philadelphia, where it was to remain for ten years, and then (1800) be removed to the District of Columbia, a tract of land ten miles square ceded for this purpose by Maryland and Virginia. Here a city was laid out in the midst of a wilderness, containing only here and there a small cottage. In 1800 it had eight thousand inhahitants. The "Father of his country" laid the cornerstone of the capitol (1793). The part of this District on the Virginia side of the Potomac was (1846) ceded hack to that State.]

[Footnote: George Washington was born February 22, 1732; died December 14, 1799. Left fatherless at eleven years of age, his education was directed by his mother, a woman of strong character, who kindly, but firmly, exacted the most implicit obedience. Of her, Washington learned his first lessons in self-command. Although bashful and hesitating in his speech, his language was clear and manly. Having compiled a code of morals and good manners for his own use, he rigidly observed all its quaint and formal rules. Before his thirteenth year he had copied forms for all kinds of legal and mercantile papers. His manuscript school-books, which still exist, are models of neatness and accuracy. His favorite amusements were of a military character; he made soldiers of his playmates, and officered all the mock parades. Grave, diffident, thoughtful, methodical, and strictly honorable, such was Washington in his youth. He inherited great wealth, and the antiquity of his family gave him high social rank. On his Potomac farms he had hundreds of slaves, and at his Mount Vernon home he was like the prince of a wide domain, free from dependence or restraint. He was fond of equipage and the appurtenances of high life, and although he always rode on horseback, his family had a "chariot and four," with "black postilions in scarlet and white livery." This generous style of living, added perhaps to his native reserve, exposed him to the charge of aristocratic feeling. While at his home, he spent much of his time in riding and hunting. He rose early, ate his breakfast of corn-cake, honey, and tea, and then rode about his estates; his evenings he passed with his family around the blazing hearth, retiring between nine and ten. He loved to linger at the table, cracking nuts and relating his adventures. In personal appearance, Washington was over six feet in height, robust, graceful, and perfectly erect. His manner was formal and dignified. He was more solid than brilliant, and had more judgment than genius. He had great dread of public life, cared little for books, and possessed no library. A consistent Christian, he was a regular attendant and communicant of the Episcopal Church. A firm advocate of free institutions, he still believed in a strong government and strictly enforced laws. As President, he carefully weighed his decisions, but, his policy once settled, pursued it with steadiness and dignity, however great the opposition. As an officer, he was brave, enterprising, and cautious. His campaigns were rarely startling, but always judicious. He was capable of great endurance. Calm in defeat, sober in victory, commanding at all times, and irresistible when aroused, he exercised equal authority over himself and his army. His last illness was brief, and his closing hours were marked by his usual calmness and dignity. "I die hard," said he, "but I am not afraid to go." Europe and America vied in tributes to his memory. Said Lord Brougham, "Until time shall be no more, a test of the progress which our race has made in wisdom and virtue will be derived from the veneration paid to the immortal name of Washington." Washington left no children. It has been beautifully said, "Providence left him childless that his country might call him Father."]



[Footnote: Three executive departments were now established—the Department of Foreign Affairs (now the Department of State), the Department of War, and the Department of the Treasury. The heads of these departments were called Secretaries, and, with the Attorney-General, formed the President's cabinet.]