A Brief History of the United States
by
Barnes & Co.
Part 2 out of 8
[Illustration: A FORTIFIED HOUSE.]
The colonists fortified their houses with palisades, carried their
arms with them into the fields when at work, and stacked them at
the door when at church. The Narraganset Indians favored Philip,
and seemed on the point of joining his alliance. They had gathered
their winter's provisions, and fortified themselves in the midst of
an almost inaccessible swamp. Fifteen hundred of the colonists
accordingly attacked them in this stronghold. The Indian wigwams
and stores were burned, and one thousand warriors perished. In the
spring the war broke out anew along a frontier of three hundred
miles, and to within twenty miles of Boston. Nowhere fighting in
the open field, but by ambuscade and skulking, the Indians kept the
whole country in terror. Driven to desperation by their atrocities,
the settlers hunted down the savages like wild beasts. Philip was
chased from one hiding-place to another. His family being captured
at last, he fled, broken-hearted, to his old home on Mt. Hope, near
Bristol, E. I., where he was shot by a faithless Indian.
[Illustration: KING PHILIP.]
NEW ENGLAND A ROYAL PROVINCE.--The Navigation Act (p. 51), which we
have seen so unpopular in Virginia, was exceedingly oppressive in
Massachusetts, which possessed a thriving commerce. In spite of the
decree the colony opened a trade with the West Indies. The
royalists in England determined that this bold republican spirit
should be quelled. An English officer who attempted to enforce the
Navigation Act having been compelled to return home, Charles II,
eagerly seized upon the excuse thus offered, and made Massachusetts
a _royal province_. The king died before his plan was completed, but
James II. (1686) declared the charters of all the New England colonies
forfeited, and sent over Sir Edmund Andros, as first royal governor of
New England. He carried things with a high hand. The colonies endured
his oppression for three years, when, learning that his royal master
was dethroned, they rose against their petty tyrant and put him in
jail. With true Puritan sobriety they then quietly resumed their old
form of government. This lasted for three years, when Sir William
Phipps came as royal governor over a province embracing Massachusetts,
Maine, and Nova Scotia. From this time till the Revolution,
Massachusetts remained a royal province.
SALEM WITCHCRAFT (1692).--A strange delusion known as the Salem
witchcraft, produced the most intense excitement. The children of
Mr. Parris, a minister near Salem, performed pranks which could be
explained only by supposing that they were under Satanic influence.
Every effort was made to discover who had bewitched them. An Indian
servant was flogged until she admitted herself to be guilty. Soon
others were affected, and the terrible mania spread rapidly.
Committees of examination were appointed and courts of trial
convened. The most improbable stories were credited. To express a
doubt of witchcraft was to indicate one's own alliance with the
evil spirit. Persons of the highest respectability, clergymen,
magistrates, and even the governor's wife were implicated. At last,
after fifty-five persons had been tortured and twenty hung, the
people awoke to their folly.
[Footnote: A belief in witchcraft was at that time universal. Sir
Matthew Hale, one of the most enlightened judges of England,
repeatedly tried and condemned persons accused of witchcraft.
Blackstone himself, at a later day, declared that to deny
witchcraft was to deny Revelation. Cotton Mather, the most
prominent minister of the colony, was active in the rooting out of
this supposed crime. He published a book full of the most ridiculous
witch stories. One judge, who engaged in this persecution, was
afterward so deeply penitent that he observed a day of fasting in
each year, and on the day of general fast rose in his place in the
Old South Church at Boston, and in the presence of the congregation
handed to the pulpit a written confession acknowledging his error,
and praying for forgiveness.]
* * * * *
MAINE AND NEW HAMPSHIRE.
THESE COLONIES were so intimately united with Massachusetts that
they have almost a common history. Gorges (gor-jez) and Mason,
about two years after the landing of the Pilgrims, obtained from
the Council for New England the grant of a large tract of land
which lay between the Merrimac and Kennebec Rivers. They
established some small fishing stations near Portsmouth and at
Dover. This patent being afterward dissolved, Mason took the
country lying west of the Piscataqua, and named it New Hampshire;
Gorges took that lying east, and termed it the province of Maine.
[Footnote: To distinguish it from the islands along the coast, this
country had been called the Mayne (main) land, which perhaps gave
rise to its present name. New Hampshire was so called from
Hampshire in England, Mason's home. The settlers of New Hampshire
were long vexed with suits brought by the men into whose hands
Mason's grant had fallen.]
Massachusetts, however, claimed this territory, and to secure it
paid six thousand dollars to the heirs of Gorges. Maine was not
separated from Massachusetts till 1820. The feeble settlements of
New Hampshire also placed themselves under the protection of
Massachusetts. "Three times, either by their own consent or by
royal authority, they were joined in one colony, and as often
separated," until 1741, when New Hampshire became a royal province,
and so remained until the Revolution.
* * * * *
CONNECTICUT.
[Footnote: This State is named from its principal river--
(Connecticut being the Indian word for _Long River_).]
SETTLEMENT.--About eleven years after the landing of the Pilgrims,
Lord Say-and-Seal and Lord Brooke obtained from the Earl of Warwick
a transfer of the grant of the Connecticut valley, which he had
secured from the Council for New England. The Dutch claimed the
territory, and before the English could take possession, built a
fort at Hartford, and commenced traffic with the Indians. Some
traders from Plymouth sailing up the river were stopped by the
Dutch, who threatened to fire upon them. But they kept on and
established a post at Windsor (win'-zer). Many people from Boston,
allured by the rich meadow lands, settled near. In the autumn of
1635, John Steele, one of the proprietors of Cambridge, led a
pioneer company "out west," as it was then called, and laid the
foundations of Hartford. The next year the main band, with their
pastor--Thomas Hooker, a most eloquent and estimable man--came,
driving their flocks before them through the wilderness. In the
meantime John Winthrop established a fort at the mouth of the
river, and thus shut out the Dutch. This colony, in honor of the
proprietors, was named Saybrook.
[Footnote: John Winthrop appears in history without blemish. Highly
educated and accomplished, he was no less upright and generous. In
the bloom of life, he left all his brilliant prospects in the old
world to follow the fortunes of the new. When his father had made
himself poor in nurturing the Massachusetts colony, this noble son
gave up voluntarily his own large inheritance to "further the good
work." It was through his personal influence and popularity at
court that the liberal charter was procured from Charles II. which
guaranteed freedom to Connecticut.]
THE PEQUOD WAR.--The colonists had no sooner become settled in
their new home than the Pequod Indians endeavored to persuade the
Narragansets to join them in a general attack upon the whites.
Roger Williams hearing of this, and forgetting all the injuries he
had received, on a stormy night set out in his canoe for the Indian
village. Though the Pequod messengers were present, he prevailed
upon the old Narraganset chief to remain at home. So the Pequods
lost their ally and were forced to fight alone. They commenced by
murdering thirty colonists. Captain Mason, therefore, resolved to
attack their stronghold on the Mystic River. His party approached
the fort at daybreak (June 4, 1637). Aroused by the barking of a
dog, the sleepy sentinel shouted "Owanux! Owanux!" (the Englishmen!
) but it was too late. The troops were already within the
palisades. The Indians, rallying, made a fierce resistance, when
Captain Mason, seizing a firebrand, hurled it among the wigwams.
The flames quickly swept through the encampment. The English
themselves barely escaped. The few Indians who fled to the swamps
were hunted down. The tribe perished in a day.
THE THREE COLONIES.--1. _The New Haven Colony_ was founded (1638) by a
number of wealthy London families. They took the Bible for law, and
only church members could vote. 2. _The Connecticut Colony_, proper,
comprising Hartford, Wethersfield and Windsor, adopted a written
constitution in which it was agreed to give to all freemen the right
to vote. This was the _first instance in history of a written
constitution framed by the people_. 3. _The Saybrook Colony_ was at
first governed by the proprietors, but was afterward sold to the
Connecticut colony. This reduced the three colonies to two.
[Illustration: THE CHARTER OAK.]
A ROYAL CHARTER was obtained (1662) which united both these
colonies and guaranteed to all the rights upon which the
Connecticut colonists had agreed. This was a precious document,
since it gave them almost independence, and was the most favorable
yet granted to any colony. Twenty-four years after, Governor Andros
marching from Boston over the route where the pious Hooker had led
his little flock fifty years before, came "glittering with scarlet
and lace" into the assembly at Hartford, and demanded the charter.
A protracted debate ensued. The people crowded around to take a
last look at this guarantee of their liberties, when suddenly the
lights were extinguished. On being relighted, the charter was gone.
William Wadsworth had seized it, escaped through the crowd and
hidden it in the hollow of a tree, famous ever after as the
_Charter Oak_. However, Andros pronounced the charter government at an
end. "Finis" was written at the close of the minutes of their last
meeting. When the governor was so summarily deposed in Boston the
people brought the charter from its hiding-place, the general court
reassembled, and the "finis" disappeared.
[Footnote: Another attempt to infringe upon charter rights occurred
in 1693. Governor Fletcher ordered the militia placed under his own
command. Having called them out to listen to his royal commission,
he began to read. Immediately Captain Wadsworth ordered the drums
to be beaten. Fletcher commanded silence, and began again. "Drum,
drum!" cried Wadsworth. "Silence!" shouted the governor. "Drum,
drum, I say!" repeated the captain; and then turning to Fletcher,
with a meaning look, he added: "If I am interrupted again, I will
make the sun shine through you." The governor did not press the
matter.--The story of the Charter Oak is denied by some, who claim
that contemporary history does not mention it, and that probably
Andros seized the charter, while the colonists had previously made
a copy.]
RHODE ISLAND.
[Footnote: An island of a reddish appearance was observed lying in
the bay. This was known to the Dutch as Roode or Red Island. Hence
the name of the island and State of Rhode Island.--_Brodhead_.]
SETTLEMENT. Roger Williams settled Providence Plantation in 1636,
the year in which Hooker came to Hartford. Other exiles from
Massachusetts followed, among them the celebrated Mrs. Hutchinson.
A party of these purchased the island of Aquiday and established
the Rhode Island Plantation. Roger Williams stamped upon these
colonies his favorite idea of religious toleration, i.e., that the
civil power has no right to interfere with the religious opinions
of men.
[Footnote: William Blackstone, being as dissatisfied with the yoke
of the "lords brethren" in Boston as with that of the "lord
bishops" in England, some time before this removed to the banks of
what is now called the Blackstone, near Providence. He, however,
acknowledged the jurisdiction of Massachusetts.]
[Footnote: Persecuted refugees from all quarters flocked to
Providence; and Williams shared equally with all the lands he had
obtained, reserving to himself only two small fields which, on his
first arrival, he had planted with his own hands.]
A CHARTER.--The colonists wished to join the New England Union, but
were refused on the ostensible plea that they had no charter.
Williams accordingly visited England and obtained a charter uniting
the two plantations. On his return the people met, elected their
officers, and (1647) agreed on a set of laws guaranteeing freedom
of faith and worship to all,--"the first legal declaration of
liberty of conscience ever adopted in Europe or America."
NEW YORK.
SETTLEMENT.--Soon after the discovery of the Hudson, as previously
described (p. 39), Dutch ships began to visit the river to traffic
in furs with the Indians. Afterward the West India Company obtained
a grant of New Netherland, and under its patronage permanent
settlements were made at New Amsterdam and also at Fort Orange
(Albany). The company allowed persons who should plant a colony of
fifty settlers to select and buy land of the Indians, which it was
agreed should descend to their heirs forever. These persons were
called "patroons" (patrons) of the manor.
[Footnote: Some huts were built by the Dutch traders on Manhattan
Island in 1613. and a trading-post was established a year or two
after. A fort was completed, in 1615, south of the present site of
Albany. Eight or nine years later, a party of Walloons or
Protestants from Belgian provinces were brought over by the
company. About the same time, Fort Orange was erected, and eighteen
families built their bark huts under its protection. In 1626,
Minuit, the first governor, arrived in New Amsterdam, and purchased
Manhattan Island of the Indians for about $24, nearly 1 mill per
acre.--Some of the old Dutch manors remain to this day. The famous
anti-rent difficulties (p. 182) grew out of such titles.]
EPOCH II.
The history of New York for twenty years is only an account of
Indian butcheries., varied by difficulties with the Swedes on the
Delaware, and the English on the Connecticut.
[Footnote: These disputes arose from the fact that the Dutch
claimed the territory lying between the Delaware and the
Connecticut.]
THE FOUR DUTCH GOVERNORS
These disturbances are monotonous enough in the recital, but
doubtless thrilled the blood of the early Knickerbockers. Peter
Stuyvesant was the last and ablest of the four Dutch governors. He
agreed with Connecticut upon the boundary line, and taking an armed
force, marched upon the Swedes, who at once submitted to him. But
the old Governor hated democratic institutions, and was terribly
vexed in this wise. There were some English in the colony, and they
longed for the rights of self-government which the Connecticut
people enjoyed. They kept demanding these privileges and talking of
them to their Dutch neighbors. At this juncture an English fleet
came to anchor in the harbor, and demanded the surrender of the
town in the name of the Duke of York. Stout-hearted old Peter
pleaded with his council to fight. But in vain. They rather liked
the idea of English rule. The surrender was signed, and at last the
reluctant governor attached his name. In September, 1664, the
English flag floated over Manhattan Island. The colony was named
New York in honor of the proprietor.
[Illustration: THE ENGLISH LANDING AT NEW YORK, 1664]
THE ENGLISH GOVERNORS disappointed the people by not granting them
their coveted rights. A remonstrance against being taxed without
representation was burned by the hangman. So that when, after nine
years of English rule, a Dutch fleet appeared in the harbor, the
people went back quietly under their old rulers. But the next year
peace being restored between England and Holland, New Amsterdam
became New York again. Thus ended the Dutch rule in the colonies.
Andros, who twelve years after played the tyrant in New England,
was the next governor, but he ruled so arbitrarily that he was
called home. Under his successor, Dongan, an assembly of the
representatives of the people was called, by permission of the Duke
of York. This was but a transient gleam of civil freedom, for two
years alter, when the Duke of York became James II., king of
England, he forgot all his promises, forbade legislative
assemblies, prohibited printing-presses, and annexed the colony to
New England. When, however, Andros was driven from Boston,
Nicholson, his lieutenant and apt tool of tyranny in New York, fled
at once. Captain Leisler, supported by the democracy but bitterly
opposed by the aristocracy, thereupon administered affairs very
prudently until the arrival of Governor Sloughter (slaw-ter) who
arrested him on the absurd charge of treason. Sloughter was
unwilling to execute him, but Leisler's enemies, at a dinner party,
made the governor drunk, obtained his signature, and before he
became sober enough to repent, Leisler was no more.
[Footnote: For many years the Atlantic Ocean was infested by
pirates. A little after the events narrated above, William Kidd, a
New York shipmaster, was sent out to cruise against these
sea-robbers. He turned pirate himself and became the most noted of
them all. Returning from his cruise, he was at length captured
while boldly walking in the streets of Boston. He was carried to
England, tried, and hung. His name and deeds have been woven into
popular romance, and the song "My name is Captain Kidd, as I
sailed, as I sailed," is well known. He is believed to have buried
his ill-gotten riches on the coast of Long Island or the banks of
the Hudson, and these localities have been oftentimes searched by
credulous persons seeking for Kidd's treasure.]
From this time till the Revolution, the struggles of the people
with the royal governors for their rights, developed the spirit of
liberty and paved the way for that eventful crisis.
* * * * *
NEW JERSEY.
SETTLEMENT.--The present State of New Jersey was embraced in the
territory of New Netherland, and the Dutch made settlements at
several places near New York. Soon after New Netherland passed into
the hands of the Duke of York, he gave the land between the Hudson
and the Delaware to Lord Berkeley and Sir George Carteret. In 1664,
a company from Long Island and New England settled at
Elizabethtown, which they named after Carteret's wife. This was the
first permanent English settlement in the State.
[Footnote: This tract was called New Jersey in honor of Carteret,
who had been governor of Jersey island in the English Channel.]
EAST AND WEST JERSEY.--Lord Berkeley sold his share to some English
Quakers. This part was called _West Jersey_. A company of Quakers soon
settled at Burlington. Others followed, and thus West Jersey became a
Quaker colony. Sir George Carteret's portion was called _East Jersey_.
After his death it was sold to William Penn and eleven other Quakers.
[Footnote: It was settled, however, largely by Puritans and Scotch
Presbyterians. The latter having refused to accept the English form
of religion, had been bitterly persecuted. Fleming their native
country they found an asylum in this favored land.]
NEW JERSEY UNITED.--Constant disputes arose out of the land titles.
Among so many proprietors the tenants hardly knew from whom to
obtain their titles for land. The proprietors finally (1702)
surrendered their rights of government to the English crown, and
the whole of New Jersey was united with New York under one
governor, but with a separate assembly. Thirty-six years after, at
the earnest request of the people, New Jersey was set apart as a
distinct royal province.
PENNSYLVANIA AND DELAWARE.
SETTLEMENT.--The first permanent settlement in Delaware was made
(1638) by the Swedes, on a tract which they called New Sweden,
lying near Wilmington. They also made the first settlement in
Pennsylvania, a few miles below Philadelphia. The Dutch
subsequently conquered these settlements, but they continued to
prosper long after the Swedish and Dutch rule had yielded to the
constantly growing English power.
_William Penn_, the founder of Pennsylvania, was a celebrated
English Quaker, He obtained from Charles II. a grant of the land
lying west of the Delaware.
[Footnote: The Quakers, avoiding unmeaning forms, aim to lead
purely spiritual lives. Their usual worship is conducted in solemn
silence, each soul for itself. They take no oath, make no
compliments, remove not the hat to king or ruler, and "thee" and
"thou" both friend and foe. Every day is to them a holy day, and
the Sabbath simply a day of rest. We can readily see how this must
have scandalized the Puritans. William Penn became a Quaker while
in college at Oxford. Refusing to wear the customary student's
surplice, he with others violently assaulted some fellow-students
and stripped them of their robes. For this he was expelled. His
father would not allow him to return home. Afterward relenting, he
sent him to Paris, Cork, and other cities, to soften his Quaker
peculiarities. After several unhappy quarrels, his father proposed
to overlook all else if he would only consent to doff his hat to
the king, the Duke of York, and himself. Penn still refusing, he
was again turned out of doors. He was several times imprisoned for
his religious extremes. On the death of his father, to whom he had
once more been reconciled, he became heir to quite a fortune. He
took the territory which forms Pennsylvania in payment of a debt of
16,000 pounds due his father from the crown.]
This tract Penn named Sylvania, but the king insisted upon calling
it Pennsylvania
[Footenote: Penn offered the secretary who drew up the charter
twenty guineas to leave off the prefix "Penn" This request being
denied, the king was appealed to, who commanded the tract to be
called Pennsylvania] (Penn's woods) in honor of William Penn's
father.
The Duke of York added to this grant the present State of Delaware,
which soon came to be termed the "Three lower counties on the
Delaware." Penn wished to form a refuge for his Quaker brethren,
who were bitterly persecuted in England. He at once sent over large
numbers, as many as two thousand in a single year. The next year he
came himself, and was received by the settlers with the greatest
cordiality and respect.
PHILADELPHIA FOUNDED.--The year following (1683) Penn purchased
land of the Swedes and laid out a city which he named Philadelphia,
signifying _brotherly love_. It was in the midst of the forest, and
the startled deer bounded past the settler who came to survey his new
home. Yet within a year it contained one hundred houses; in two years
numbered over two thousand inhabitants; and in three years gained more
than New York had in half a century.
THE GREAT LAW was a code agreed upon by the legislative body which
Penn called from among the settlers soon after his arrival. It made
faith in Christ a necessary qualification for voting and
office-holding; but also provided that no one believing in
"Almighty God" should be molested in his religious views. The
Quakers, having been persecuted themselves, did not celebrate their
liberty by persecuting others. Penn, himself, surrendered the most
of his power to the people. His highest ambition seemed to be to
advance their interests. He often declared that if he knew anything
more that could make them happier, he would freely grant it.
PENN'S TREATY WITH THE INDIANS possesses a romantic interest. He
met them under a large elm tree near Philadelphia.
[Footnote: "We meet," said Penn, "on the broad pathway of good
faith and good will; no advantage shall be taken on either side,
but all shall be openness and love. The friendship between you and
me I will not compare to a chain; for that the rains might rust or
the falling tree might break. We are the same as if one man's body
were to be divided into two parts; we are all one flesh and blood."]
The savages were touched by his gentle words and kindly bearing.
"We will live in love with William Penn and his children," said
they, "as long as the sun and moon shall shine."
[Footnote: This tree was carefully preserved until 1810, when it
was blown down. A monument now marks the spot.]
[Footnote: The simple-minded natives kept the history of this
treaty by means of strings of wampum, and they would often count
over the shells on a clean piece of bark and rehearse its
provisions. "It was the only treaty never sworn to, and the only
one never broken." On every hand the Indians waged relentless war
with the colonies, but they never shed a drop of Quaker blood.]
PENN'S RETURN.--Penn returned to England (1684) leaving the colony
fairly established. His benevolent spirit shone forth in his
parting words, "Dear friends, my love salutes you all."
[Illustration: STATUE OF PENN IN PHILADELPHIA.]
DELAWARE.--The three lower counties on the Delaware being greatly
offended by the action of the council which Penn had left to govern
in his absence, set up for themselves. Penn "sorrowfully" consented
to their action, appointed a deputy governor over them, and
afterward granted them an assembly. Pennsylvania and Delaware,
however, remained under one governor until the Revolution.
PENN'S HEIRS after his death (1718) became proprietors of the
flourishing colony he had established. It was ruled by deputies
whom they appointed, until (1779) the State of Pennsylvania bought
out their claims by the payment of about half a million of dollars.
MARYLAND.
SETTLEMENT.--Lord Baltimore (Cecil Calvert), a Catholic, was
anxious to secure for the friends of his church a refuge from the
persecutions which they were then suffering in England.
[Footnote: His father, George Calvert, the first Lord Baltimore,
with this same design had attempted to plant a colony in
Newfoundland. But having failed on account of the severity of the
climate, he visited Virginia. When he found that the Catholics were
there treated with great harshness, he returned to England, took
out a grant of land, and bestowed upon it, in honor of the queen,
Henrietta Maria, the name Maryland. Ere the patent had received the
great seal of the king, Lord Baltimore died. His son, inheriting
the father's noble and benevolent views, secured the grant himself,
and carried out the philanthropic scheme.]
[Footnote: It is curious to observe how largely this country was
peopled in its earlier days by refugees for religious faith. The
Huguenots, the Puritans, the Quakers, the Presbyterians, the
Catholics, the persecuted of every sect and creed, all flocked to
this "home of the free."]
He accordingly obtained from King Charles a grant of land lying
north of the Potomac. The first settlement was made (1634) by his
brother at an Indian village which he called St. Mary's, near the
mouth of the Potomac.
THE CHARTER was very different from that granted to Virginia, since
it gave to all freemen a voice in making the laws. An Assembly,
called in accordance with this provision, passed (1649) the
celebrated _Toleration Act_, which secured to all Christians
liberty to worship God according to the dictates of their own
conscience. Maryland, like Rhode Island, became an asylum for the
persecuted.
[Footnote: Two years before, Rhode Island had passed an act
protecting every kind of religious faith and worship. Maryland
extended protection to all forms of Christianity alone.]
CIVIL WARS.
1. _Clayborne's Rebellion_ (1635).--The Virginia colony claimed that
Lord Baltimore's grant covered territory belonging to them. Clayborne,
a member of the Jamestown council, was especially obstinate in the
matter. He had already established two trading posts in Maryland,
which he prepared to defend by force of arms. A bloody skirmish
ensued, in which his party was beaten. He, himself, had fled to
Virginia, on the eve of battle, but being accused of treason, was sent
to England for trial. He was, however, acquitted of this charge. Ten
years afterward he came back, raised a rebellion, and drove Calvert,
then governor of Maryland, out of the colony. The governor returned at
last with a strong force, and Clayborne fled. This ended the contest.
2. _The Protestants and the Catholics_.--The Protestants,
having obtained a majority in the Assembly, made a most ungrateful
use of their power. They refused to acknowledge the hereditary
rights of the proprietor, assailed his religion, excluded Catholics
from the Assembly, and even declared them outside the protection of
the law. Civil war ensued. For years the victory alternated. At one
time two governments, one Protestant, the other Catholic, were
sustained. In 1691, Lord Baltimore was entirely deprived of his
rights as proprietor, and Maryland became a royal province. The
Church of England was established, and the Catholics were again
disfranchised in the very province they had planted. In 1715, the
fourth Lord Baltimore recovered the government, and religious
toleration was again restored. Maryland remained under this
administration until the Revolution.
* * * * *
THE CAROLINAS.
SETTLEMENT.--Lord Clarendon and several other noblemen obtained
(1663) from Charles II. a grant of a vast tract south of Virginia,
which was termed in honor of the king, Carolina. Two permanent
settlements were soon made.
[Footnote: This in Latin is Carolus II.]
[Footnote: Both colonies were named after prominent proprietors of
the grant.]
1. The _Albemarle__Colony_. This was a name given to a plantation
which was already settled by people who had pushed through the
wilderness from Virginia. A governor from their own number was
appointed over them. They were then left in quiet to enjoy their
liberties and forget the world.
[Footnote: Except when rent day came. Then they were called upon to
pay to the English proprietors a half-penny per acre.]
2. The _Carteret Colony_ was established (1670) by English
emigrants. They first sailed into the well-known waters where
Ribaut anchored and the fort of Carolina was erected so long
before. Landing, they began a settlement on the banks of the
Ashley, but afterward removed to the "ancient groves covered with
yellow jessamine" which marked the site of the present city of
Charleston. The growth of this colony was rapid from the first.
Thither came shiploads of Dutch from New York, dissatisfied with
the English rule and attracted by the genial climate. The Huguenots
(French Protestants), hunted from their homes, here found a
southern welcome.
[Footnote: In Charleston alone there were at one time as many as
16,000 Huguenots. They added whole streets to the city. Their
severe morality, marked charity, elegant manners and thrifty
habits, made them a most desirable acquisition. They brought the
mulberry and olive, and established magnificent plantations on the
banks of the Cooper. They also introduced many choice varieties of
pears, which still bear illustrious Huguenot names. Their
descendants are eminently honorable, and have borne a proud part in
the establishment of our Republic. Of seven presidents who were at
the head of the Congress of Philadelphia during the Revolution,
three were of Huguenot parentage.]
THE GRAND MODEL was a form of government for the colonies prepared
by Lord Shaftesbury and the celebrated philosopher, John Locke. It
was a magnificent scheme. The wilderness was to be divided into
vast estates, with which hereditary titles were to be granted. But
the model was aristocratic, while the people were democratic. It
granted no rights of self-government, while the settlers came into
the wilderness for the love of liberty. This was not the soil on
which vain titles and empty pomp could flourish. To make the Grand
Model a success, it would have been necessary to transform the
log-cabin into a baronial castle, and the independent settlers into
armed retainers. The attempt to introduce it arousing violent
opposition, it was at length abandoned.
NORTH AND SOUTH CAROLINA SEPARATED.--The two colonies,--the
northern, or Albemarle, and the southern, or Carteret,--being so
remote from each other, had from the beginning separate governors,
though they remained one province. There was constant friction
between the settlers and the proprietors. The people were jealous.
The proprietors were arbitrary. Rents, taxes, and rights were
plentiful sources of irritation. Things kept on in this unsettled
way until (1729) the discouraged proprietors ceded to the crown
their right of government and seven-eighths of the soil. The two
colonies were separated and they remained royal provinces until the
Revolution.
GEORGIA.
SETTLEMENT.--The same year in which Washington was born (1732),
this last colony of the famous thirteen which were to fight for
independence under him was planned. James Oglethorpe, a
warm-hearted English officer, having conceived the idea of founding
a refuge for debtors burdened by the severe laws of that time,
naturally turned to America, even then the home of the oppressed.
George II. granted him "in trust for the poor" a tract of land
which, in honor of the king, was called Georgia. Oglethorpe settled
at Savannah in 1733.
[Footnote: He made peace with the Indians, conciliating them by
presents and by his kindly disposition. One of the chiefs gave him
in return a buffalo's skin with the head and feathers of an eagle
painted on the inside of it "The eagle," said the chief, "signifies
swiftness; and the buffalo strength. The English are swift as a
bird to fly over the vast seas, and as strong as a beast before
their enemies. The eagle's feathers are soft and signify love; the
buffalo's skin is warm and means protection; therefore love and
protect our families."]
A general interest was excited in England, and many charitable
people gave liberally to promote the enterprise. More emigrants
followed, including, as in the other colonies, many who sought
religious or civil liberty.
[Footnote: The gentle Moravians and sturdy Scotch Highlanders were
among the number, and proved a valuable acquisition to the colony.
The former had fled hither from Austria, for "conscience' sake."
Having founded a little colony among the pine forests of Georgia,
they named it Ebenezer,-taking as their motto "Hitherto hath the
Lord helped us." When John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, came
to America as a missionary with his brother Charles, they were
greatly charmed with the fervent piety of this simple people. The
celebrated George Whitfield afterward founded at Savannah an orphan
asylum, which he supported by contributions from the immense
audiences which his wonderful eloquence attracted. On one occasion
sixty thousand were gathered to hear him, and his open-air meetings
were often attended by from twenty thousand to forty thousand
people.]
The trustees limited the size of a man's farm, did not allow women
to inherit land, and forbade the importation of rum, or of slaves.
These restrictions were irksome, and great discontent prevailed. At
last the trustees, wearied by the complaints of the colonists,
surrendered their charter to the crown. Georgia remained a royal
province till the Revolution.
[Footnote: Rum was obtained in exchange for lumber in the West
Indies. Hence this law prevented that trade and cut off a valuable
source of profit.]
* * * * *
INTER-COLONIAL WARS.
I. KING WILLIAM'S WAR. (1689-1697.)
CAUSE.--War having broken out in Europe between England and France,
their colonies in America took up the quarrel. The Indians of
Canada and Maine aided the French, and the Iroquois (Five Nations
of New York) assisted the English.
ATTACKS UPON THE COLONISTS.--War parties of the French and Indians
coming down on their snow-shoes from Canada through the forest in
the depth of winter, fell upon the exposed settlements of New York
and New England, and committed the most horrible barbarities.
Schenectady, unsuspecting and defenceless, was attacked at
midnight. Men, women, and children were dragged from their beds and
tomahawked. The few who escaped, half-naked, made their way through
the snow of that fearful night to Albany.
[Footnote: The histories of the time abound in thrilling stories of
Indian adventure. One day in March, 1697, Haverhill, Mass., was
attacked. Mr. Dustin was at work in the field. Hurrying to his
house, he brought out his seven children, and bidding them "run
ahead," slowly retreated, keeping the Indians back with his gun. He
thus brought off his little flock in safety. His wife, who was
unable to escape with him, was dragged into captivity. The party
who had captured Mrs. Dustin marched many days through the forest,
and at length reached an island in the Merrimac. Here she resolved
to escape. A white boy, who had been taken prisoner before, found
out from his master, at Mrs. Dustin's request, how to strike a blow
that would produce instant death, and how to take off a scalp.
Having learned these facts, in the night she awoke the boy and her
nurse, and arranged their parts The task was soon done Seizing each
a tomahawk, they killed ten of the sleeping Indians; only one
escaped She then scalped the dead bodies, in order to prove her
story when she should reach home, and hastened to the bank, where,
finding a canoe, they descended the river and soon rejoined her
family]
[Illustration: THE INDIAN ATTACK ON SCHENECTADY.]
ATTACKS BY THE COLONISTS.--Aroused by these scenes of savage
ferocity, the colonists organized two expeditions, one under
Governor Phipps of Massachusetts, against Port Royal, Acadia, and
the other a combined land and naval attack on Canada. The former
was successful, and secured, it is said, plunder enough to pay the
expenses of the expedition. The latter was a disastrous failure.
PEACE.--The war lasted eight years. It was ended by the treaty of
Ryswick (riz'-wik), according to which each party held the
territory it had at the beginning of the struggle.
II. QUEEN ANNE'S WAR. (1702-1713.)
CAUSE.--England having declared war against France and Spain,
hostilities broke out between their colonies. The Five Nations had
made a treaty with the French, and so took no part in the contest.
Their neutrality protected New York from invasion. Consequently,
the brunt of the war fell on New England.
ATTACKS ON THE COLONISTS.--The New England frontier was again
desolated. Remote settlements were abandoned. The people betook
themselves to palisaded houses, and worked their farms with their
guns always at hand.
[Footnote: On the last night of February, 1704, while the snow was
four feet deep, a party of about three hundred and fifty French and
Indians reached a pine forest near Deerfield, Mass. They skulked
about till the unfaithful sentinels deserted the morning watch,
when they rushed upon the defenceless slumberers, who awoke from
their dreams to death or captivity. Leaving the blazing village
with forty-seven dead bodies to be consumed amid the wreck, they
then started back with their train of one hundred and twelve
captives. The horrors of that march through the wilderness can
never be told. The groan of helpless exhaustion, or the wail of
suffering childhood, was instantly stilled by the pitiless
tomahawk. Mrs. Williams, the feeble wife of the minister, had
remembered her Bible in the midst of surprise, and comforted
herself with its promises, till, her strength failing, she
commended her five captive children to God and bent to the savage
blow of the war-axe. One of her daughters grew up in captivity,
embraced the Catholic faith, and became the wife of a chief. Years
after she visited her friends in Deerfield. The whole village
joined in a fast for her deliverance, but her heart loved best her
own Mohawk children, and she went back to the fires of her Indian
wigwam.]
ATTACKS BY THE COLONISTS.
1. _At the South_.--South Carolina made a fruitless expedition
against her old enemies at St. Augustine (1702).
[Footnote: Four years after, the French and Spanish in Havana sent
a fleet against Charleston. The people, however, valiantly defended
themselves, and soon drove off their assailants.]
2. _At the North_.--Port Royal was again wrested from the French by a
combined force of English and colonial troops. In honor of the queen,
the name was changed to Annapolis. Another expedition sailed against
Quebec, but many of the ships were dashed upon the rocks in the St.
Lawrence, and nearly one thousand men perished. Thus ended the second
attempt to conquer Canada.
PEACE.-The war lasted eleven years. It was ended by the treaty of
Utrecht (oo-trekt), according to which Acadia was ceded to England.
III. KING GEORGE'S WAR.
[Footnote: This war was immediately preceded by what is known as
the "SPANISH WAR," which grew out of the difficulties then existing
between England and Spain. It was marked by no important event in
the colonies. Governor Oglethorpe invested (1740) St. Augustine
with a force of two thousand men, but the strength of the Spanish
garrison, and the loss by sickness, caused the attempt to be
abandoned. The Spaniards, in their turn, sent (1742) an expedition
against Georgia. By means of a letter which Governor Oglethorpe
caused to fall into the hands of the Spaniards, they were made to
believe that he expected large reinforcements. Being frightened,
they burned the fort they had captured, and fled in haste. The
colonies, also, furnished about four thousand men for an expedition
against the Spanish settlements in the West Indies; but only a few
hundred ever returned from this disastrous enterprise.]
(1744-1748.)
CAPTURE OF LOUISBURG.--War having again broken out between England
and France, the flame was soon kindled in the new world. The only
event of importance was the capture of Louisburg on the island of
Cape Breton, by a combined force of English and colonial troops.
The latter did most of the fighting, but the former took the glory
and the booty. Peace being made in 1748 by the treaty of
Aix-la-Chapelle (akes-la-sha-pel), England gave back Louisburg to
the French. The boundaries between the French and English colonies
were left undecided, and so the germ of a new war remained.
[Footnote: Louisburg was called the "Gibraltar of America." Its
fortifications were extensive, and cost upward of $5,000,000. The
siege was conducted in the most unscientific way, the colonial
troops laughing at military terms and discipline. When the place
was captured, they were themselves astonished at what they had
done. The achievement called forth great rejoicing over the
country, especially in New England, and had an influence on the
Revolutionary War, thirty years after. Colonel Gridley, who planned
General Pepperell's batteries in this siege, laid out the American
intrenchments on Bunker Hill. The same old drums that beat the
triumphal entrance of the New Englanders into Louisburg, June 17,
1745, beat at Bunker Hill, June 17, 1775. "When General Gage was
erecting intrenchments on Boston Neck, the provincials sneeringly
remarked that his mud walls were nothing compared to the stone
walls of old Louisburg."]
IV. FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. (1754-1763)
CAUSE.--The English occupied at this time a narrow strip along the
coast one thousand miles in length. It was like a string to the
great bow of the French territory which reached around from Quebec
to New Orleans. Both nations claimed the region west of the
Alleghany Mountains, along the Ohio River. The three previous
inter-colonial wars had engendered bitter hatred, and occasions of
quarrel were abundant. The French had over sixty military posts
guarding the long line of their possessions. They seized the
English surveyors along the Ohio. They broke up a British post on
the Miami.
[Footnote: The claims of the real proprietors, the Indians, were
overlooked by both the English and the French. The Indians, feeling
this, sent to the agent of the Ohio Company the pertinent query,
"Where is the Indian's land? The English claim all on one side of
the river, the French all on the other. Where does our land lie?"]
[Footnote: The Indian allies of the French having captured the
Miami chief who defended his English friends, killed and ate him,
in true savage style.]
They built a fort at Presque Isle (pres-keel) near the present town
of Erie, Penn.; another, Fort le Boeuf (le boof), at the present
town of Waterford; and a third, Fort Venango, about twelve miles
south, on French Creek. These encroachments awakened the liveliest
solicitude on the part of the colonists.
WASHINGTON'S JOURNEY.--Din-wid'-die, lieutenant-governor of
Virginia, accordingly sent a message by George Washington, then a
young man of twenty-one, to the French commander of these forts,
asking their removal. Washington, the very day he received his
credentials, set out on his perilous journey through the wilderness
from Williamsburg to Lake Erie. He found the French officer at Fort
Venango loud and boastful. At Fort le Boeuf the commandant, St.
Pierre (sang-pe-are), treated him with great respect; but, like a
true soldier, refused to discuss theories, and declared himself
under orders which he should obey. It was clear that France was
determined to hold the territory explored by the heroic La Salle
and Marquette. The shore in front of the fort was even then lined
with canoes ready for an intended expedition down the river.
Washington's return through the wilderness, a distance of four
hundred miles, was full of peril. At last he reached home unharmed,
and delivered St. Pierre's reply.
[Illustration: AN INCIDENT OF WASHINGTON'S RETURN.]
[Footnote: The streams were swollen. The snow was falling and
freezing as it fell. The horses gave out, and he was forced to
proceed on foot. With only one companion, he quitted the usual
path, and, with the compass as his guide, struck boldly out through
the forest. An Indian, lying in wait, fired at him only a few paces
off, but missing, was captured. Attempting to cross the Alleghany
on a rude raft, they were caught between large masses of ice
floating down the rapid current of the mid-channel. Washington
thrust out his pole to check the speed, but was jerked into the
foaming water. Swimming to an island, he barely saved his life.
Fortunately, in the morning the river was frozen over, and he
escaped on the ice.]
WAR OPENS.--Early the next spring, the French, at the fork of the
Monongahela and Alleghany, drove off a party of English traders and
erected a fort, which was called Du Quesne (doo-kane). Soon, among
the blackened stumps, corn and barley were growing on the present
site of Pittsburg. In the meantime, a regiment of Virginia troops,
under Colonel Frye, Washington being second in command, had been
sent out to occupy this important point. Learning that the French
had anticipated them, Washington hastened forward with a
reconnoitering party. Jumonville (zhoo-mong-veel), who was hiding
among the rocks with a company of French troops, waiting an
opportunity to attack him, was himself surprised and defeated.
[Footnote: Washington's word of command to "fire!" upon that
skulking foe, on the night of May 28, 1754, was the opening of the
campaign. Washington himself, it is said, fired the first gun of
that long and bloody war.]
On the death of Colonel Frye, soon after, Washington assumed
command. Collecting the troops at the Great Meadows, he erected a
stockade, which he aptly named _Fort Necessity_. Here he was
attacked by a large force of French and Indians, and after a severe
conflict was compelled to capitulate.
THE FIVE OBJECTIVE POINTS OF THE WAR.
1. Fort du Quesne was the key to the region west of the
Alleghanies, and as long as the French held it, Virginia and
Pennsylvania were exposed to Indian attacks.
2. The possession of Louisburg and Acadia threatened New England,
while it gave control over the Newfoundland fisheries. French
privateers harbored there, darted out and captured English ships,
and then returned where they were safe from pursuit.
3. Crown Point and Ticonderoga controlled the route to Canada by
the way of Lake George and Lake Champlain, and also offered a safe
starting-point for French expeditions against New York and New
England.
4. Niagara lay on the portage between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario,
and thus protected the great fur trade of the upper lakes and the
West.
5. Quebec being the strongest fortification in Canada, gave control
of the St. Lawrence, and largely decided the possession of that
province.
We thus see why these points were so persistently attacked by the
English, and so obstinately defended by the French. We shall speak
of them in order.
1. FORT DU QUESNE.
_The First Expedition_ (1755) was commanded by General Braddock,
Washington acting as aide-de-camp. The general was a regular British
officer, proud and conceited. Washington warned him of the dangers of
savage warfare, but his suggestions were received with contempt.
[Footnote: "The Indians," said Braddock, "may frighten continental
troops, but they can make no impression on the king's regulars!"]
The column came within ten miles of the fort, marching along the
Monongahela in regular array, drums beating and colors flying.
Suddenly, in ascending a little slope, with a deep ravine and thick
underbrush on either side, they encountered the Indians lying in
ambush. The terrible war-whoop resounded on every hand. The British
regulars huddled together, and, frightened, fired by platoons, at
random, against rocks and trees. The Virginia troops alone sprang
into the forest and fought the savages in Indian style. Washington
seemed everywhere present. An Indian chief with his braves
especially singled him out.
[Footnote: Fifteen years after, this old Indian chief came "a long
way" to see the Virginia officer at whom he fired a rifle fifteen
times without hitting him, during the Monongahela fight. Washington
never received a wound in battle.]
Four balls passed through his clothes. Two horses were shot under
him. Braddock was mortally wounded and borne from the field. At
last, when the continental troops were nearly all killed, the
regulars turned and fled disgracefully, abandoning everything to
the foe. Washington covered their flight and saved the wreck of the
army from pursuit.
_Second Expedition_ (1758).--General Forbes led the second expedition,
Washington commanding tho Virginia troops. The general lost so much
time in building roads that, in November, he was fifty miles from the
fort. A council of war decided to give up the attempt. But Washington
receiving news of the weakness of the French garrison, urged a forward
movement. He himself led the advance guard, and by his vigilance
dispelled all danger of Indian surprise. The French fired the fort,
and fled at his approach. As the flag of England floated out over the
ruined ramparts, this gateway of the west was named Pittsburg.
[Footnote: This was in honor of William Pitt, prime minister of
England, whose true friendship for the colonies was warmly
appreciated in America. He came into power in 1758, and from that
time the war took on a different aspect.]
2. ACADIA AND LOUISBURG.
1. _Acadia_.--Scarcely had the war commenced, when an attack
was made on Acadia. The French forts at the head of the Bay of
Fundy were quickly taken, and the entire region east of the
Penobscot fell into the hands of the English.
[Footnote: This victory was disgraced by an act of heartless
cruelty. The Acadians were a simple-minded, rural people. They
readily gave up their arms and meekly submitted to their
conquerors. But the English authorities, knowing their sympathy
with the French and coveting their rich farms, drove old and young
on board the ships at the point of the bayonet, and distributed
them among the colonies. Families were broken up, their homes
burned, and, poor exiles, the broken-hearted Acadians met
everywhere only insult and abuse. Longfellow, in his beautiful poem
"Evangeline," has revived in the present generation a warm sympathy
for these people, whose misfortunes he has so pathetically
recorded.]
2. _Louisburg_ (1757).--General Loudoun collected an army at
Halifax for an attack on Louisburg. After spending all summer in
drilling his troops, "he gave up the attempt on learning that the
French fleet contained one more ship than his own!" The next year
Generals Amherst and Wolfe captured the city after a severe
bombardment, and took possession of the entire island.
[Footnote: Abandoning Louisburg, the English made Halifax, as it is
to-day, their rendezvous in that region.]
3. CROWN POINT AND TICONDEROGA.
1. _Battle of Lake George_.--About the time of Braddock's
expedition, another was undertaken against Crown Point. The French
under Dieskau (de-es-ko) were met near the head of Lake George.
[Footnote: The brave Dieskau was severely wounded. In the pursuit,
a soldier found him leaning against a stump. As he fumbled for his
watch to propitiate his enemy, the soldier thinking him to be
searching for his pistol, shot him.]
[Footnote: Johnson, the English commander, received word of the
approach of the enemy, and sent out Colonel Williams with twelve
hundred men to stop them. In the skirmish Williams was killed. He
was the real founder of Williams College, having by his will, made
while on his way to battle, bequeathed a sum to found a free school
for Western Massachusetts.]
Fortunately, General Johnson, being slightly wounded, early in the
action retired to his tent, whereupon General Lyman, with his
provincial troops, regained the battle then nearly lost. This
victory following closely on the heels of Braddock's disaster,
excited great joy. Johnson was voted knighthood and $25,000; Lyman,
the real victor, received nothing. This battle ended the attempt to
take Crown Point. Johnson loitered away the summer in building a
fort near by, which he called William Henry.
[Footnote: Two years after, Montcalm, the new French general, swept
down from Canada and captured this fort with its garrison, although
Webb was at Fort Edward, fourteen miles below, with six thousand
men lying idly in camp. The victory is noted for an illustration of
savage treachery. The English had been guaranteed a safe escort to
Fort Edward. But they had scarcely left the fort when the Indians
fell upon them to plunder and to slaughter. In vain did the French
officers peril their lives to save their captives from the lawless
tomahawk. "Kill me," cried Montcalm, in desperation, "but spare the
English, who are under my protection." The Indian fury, however,
was implacable, and the march of the prisoners to Fort Edward
became a flight for life.]
In the fall he returned to Albany and disbanded his troops.
2. _Attack on Ticonderoga_.--On a calm Sunday morning, about
four months before the fall of Fort du Quesne, a thousand boats
full of soldiers, with waving flags and strains of martial music,
swept down Lake George to attack Ticonderoga. General Abercrombie
ordered an assault before his artillery came up, and while the
battle raged lay hid away in the rear. A disastrous repulse was the
result.
[Footnote: While the main army was delaying after this failure,
Colonel Bradstreet obtained permission to go against Fort
Frontenac, on the present site of Kingston. Crossing the lake, he
captured the fort and a large quantity of stores intended for Fort
Du Quesne. The loss disheartened the garrison of the latter place,
frightened off their Indian allies, and did much to cause its
evacuation on the approach of the English.]
3. _Capture of both Forts_.--The next year (1759), at the
approach of General Amherst with a large army, both Ticonderoga and
Crown Point were evacuated.
4. NIAGARA.
1. About the time of Braddock's expedition, General Shirley marched
to capture Niagara. But reaching Oswego and learning of that
disastrous defeat, he was discouraged. He simply built a fort and
came home.
[Footnote: The next year that indefatigable general, Montcalm,
crossed the lake from Canada and captured this fort with its
garrison and a large amount of public stores.]
2. Nothing further was done toward the capture of this important
post for four years, when it was invested by General Prideaux
(pre-do). In spite of desperate attempts made to relieve the
garrison, it was at last compelled to surrender (1759). New York
was thus extended to Niagara River, and the West was secured to the
English.
[Footnote: Prideaux was accidentally killed during the siege, but
his successor, Johnson, satisfactorily carried out his plans.]
5. QUEBEC (1759).--The same summer in which Niagara, Crown Point,
and Ticonderoga were occupied by the English, General Wolfe
anchored with a large fleet and eight thousand land troops in front
of Quebec. Opposed to him was the vigilant French general,
Montcalm, with a command equal to his own. The English cannon
easily destroyed the lower city next the river, but the citadel
being on higher ground, was far out of their reach. The bank of the
river, for miles a high craggy wall, bristled with cannon at every
landing-place. For months Wolfe lingered before the city, vainly
seeking some feasible point of attack. Carefully reconnoitering the
precipitous bluff above the city, his sharp eyes at length
discovered a narrow path winding among the rocks to the top, and he
determined to lead his army up this ascent.
[Footnote: It was expected that the two armies engaged in the
capture of these forts would join Wolfe in the attack on Quebec;
but for various reasons they made no attempt to do so, and Wolfe
was left to perform his task alone.]
[Illustration: QUEBEC IN EARLY TIMES]
[Footnote: General Wolfe was a great admirer of the poet Gray. As
he went the rounds for final inspection on the beautiful starlight
evening before the attack, he remarked to those in the boat with
him. "'I would rather be the author of The Elegy in a Country
Churchyard' than to have the glory of beating the French to
morrow," and amid the rippling of the water and the dashing of the
oars he repeated
"The boast of heraldry, the pomp of power
And all that beauty, all that wealth e'er gave,
Await alike the inevitable hour
The paths of glory lead but to the grave"]
To distract the enemy's attention, he took his men several miles up
the river. Thence dropping down silently by night with the
ebb-tide, they landed, clambered up the steep cliff, quickly
dispersed the guard, and at day-break stood arrayed in order of
battle on the Plains of Abraham.
[Footnote: Although Wolfe rose from a sick-bed to lead his troops,
he was the first man to land. The shore was lined with French
sentinels. A captain who understood French and had been assigned
this duty, answered the challenge of the sentinel near the landing,
and thus warded off the first danger of alarm.]
Montcalm, astonished at the audacity of the attempt, could scarcely
believe it possible. When convinced of its truth he at once made an
impetuous attack. Wolfe's veterans held their fire until the French
were close at hand, then poured upon them rapid, steady volleys.
The enemy soon wavered. Wolfe, placing himself at the head, now
ordered a bayonet charge. Already twice wounded, he still pushed
forward. A third ball struck him. He was carried to the rear. "They
run! They run!" exclaimed the officer on whom he leaned. "Who run?"
he faintly gasped. "The French," was the reply. "Now God be
praised, I die happy," murmured the expiring hero. Montcalm, too,
was fatally wounded as he was vainly trying to rally the fugitives.
On being told by the surgeon that he could not live more than
twelve hours, he answered, "So much the better. I shall not see the
surrender of Quebec."
Five days afterward (September 18, 1759,) the city and garrison
capitulated.
CLOSE OF THE WAR.
[Footnote: The five points which were especially sought by the
English were now all captured. Canada itself, worn out,
impoverished, and almost in famine, because of the long war, was
ready for peace.]
PEACE.--The next year an attempt was made to re-capture Quebec. But
a powerful fleet arrived from England in time to raise the siege. A
large army marched upon Montreal, and Canada soon submitted. The
English flag now waved over the continent, from the Arctic Ocean to
the Mississippi. Peace was made at Paris in 1763. Spain ceded
Florida to England. France gave up to England all her territory
east of the Mississippi, except two small islands south of
Newfoundland, retained as fishing stations; while, to Spain she
ceded New Orleans, and all her territory west of the Mississippi.
PONTIAC'S WAR.--The French traders and missionaries had won the
hearts of the Indians. When the more haughty English came to take
possession of the western forts, great discontent was roused.
Pontiac, a chief of the Ottawas, Philip-like, formed a
confederation of the tribes against the common foe. It was secretly
agreed to fall at once upon all the British posts. Eight forts were
thus surprised and captured.
[Footnote: Various stratagems were employed to accomplish their
designs. At Maumee, a squaw lured forth the commander by imploring
aid for an Indian woman dying outside the fort. Once without, he
was at the mercy of the ambushed savages. At Mackinaw, hundreds of
Indians had gathered. Commencing a game at ball, one party drove
the other, as if by accident, toward the fort. The soldiers were
attracted to watch the game. At length the ball was thrown over the
pickets, and the Indians jumping after it, began the terrible
butchery. The commander, Major Henry, writing in his room, heard
the war-cry and the shrieks of the victims, and rushing to his
window beheld the savage work of the tomahawk and the
scalping-knife. Amid untold perils he himself escaped. At Detroit,
the plot was betrayed by a squaw, and when the chiefs were admitted
to their proposed council for "brightening the chain of
friendship," they found themselves surrounded by an armed garrison.
Pontiac was allowed to escape. Two days after he commenced a siege
which lasted several months. In payment of the supplies for his
army, he issued birch-bark notes signed with the figure of an
otter. These primitive "government bonds" were promptly paid when
due.]
Thousands of persons fled from their homes to avoid the
scalping-knife. At last the Indians, disagreeing among themselves,
deserted the alliance, and a treaty was signed. Pontiac, still
revengeful, fled to the hunting-grounds of the Illinois. There he
was murdered by a Peorian Indian, while endeavoring to incite
another attack.
EFFECTS OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR.--In this war the colonists
spent $16,000,000, and England repaid only $5,000,000. The
Americans lost thirty thousand men, and suffered the untold horrors
of Indian barbarity. The taxes sometimes equaled two-thirds the
income of the tax-payer; yet they were levied by their own
representatives, and they did not murmur. The men of different
colonies and diverse ideas fought shoulder to shoulder, and many
sectional jealousies were allayed. They learned to think and act
independently of the mother country, and thus came to know their
strength. Democratic ideas had taken root, legislative bodies had
been called, troops raised and supplies voted, not by England, but
by themselves. They had become fond of liberty. They knew their
rights and dared maintain them. When they voted money they kept the
purse in their own hands.
The treatment of the British officers helped also to unite the
colonists. They made sport of the awkward provincial soldiers. The
best American officers were often thrust aside to make place for
young British subalterns. But, in spite of sneers, Washington,
Gates, Montgomery, Stark, Arnold, Morgan, Putnam, all received
their training, and learned how, when the time came, to fight even
British regulars.
* * * * *
CONDITION OF THE COLONIES.
[Footnote: Read Dames's Popular History of the United States, Chap
4, Colonial Life.]
There were now thirteen colonies. They numbered about 2,000,000
people. The largest cities were Boston and Philadelphia, each
containing about eighteen thousand inhabitants Three forms of
government existed--charter, proprietary, and royal. Massachusetts,
Rhode Island, and Connecticut, had charter governments. Maryland
and Pennsylvania (with Delaware) were proprietary--that is, their
proprietors governed them. Georgia, Virginia, New Hampshire, New
York, New Jersey, and the Carolinas were directly subject to the
crown, the last three being at first proprietary, but afterward
becoming royal. The colonies were all Protestant. The intolerant
religious spirit of early days had moderated, and there had been a
gradual assimilation of manners and customs. They had, in a word,
become Americans. In accordance with the customs of the age, the
laws were still severe. Thus in New England, at one time, twelve
offences were punishable by death, while in Virginia there were
seventeen capital crimes. The affairs of private life were
regulated by law in a manner that would not now be endured. At
Hartford, for example, the ringing of the watchman's bell in the
morning was the signal for every one to rise and in Massachusetts a
scold was sometimes gagged and placed near her door, while for
other minor offences the stocks and pillory were used. The social
prejudices brought over from England still survived in a measure.
Even in New England official positions were monopolized by a few
leading families, and often descended from father to son. The
catalogues of Harvard and Yale were long arranged according to the
rank of the students.
[Illustration: THE STOCKS.]
[Illustration: A SCOLD GAGGED.]
Nine colleges had already been established. These were Harvard,
William and Mary, Yale, Princeton, Columbia (originally called
King's), Brown, Rutger's (then Queen's), Dartmouth, and Hampden
Sidney. Educational interests were not fostered by the English
government. Only one donation was given to found a college in the
colonies--that of William and Mary, an institution named in honor
of these sovereigns.
[Illustration: The pillory.]
Agriculture was the main dependence of the people, though
manufactures, even at this early period, received much attention at
the north. Hats, paper shoes, household furniture, farming
utensils, and the coarser kinds of cutlery were made to some
extent. Cloth weaving had been introduced. Most thrifty people,
however, dressed in homespun. It is said of Mrs. Washington that
she kept running sixteen spinning-wheels. Commerce had steadily
increased--principally, however, as coast trade, in consequence of
the oppressive laws of Great Britain. The daring fishermen of New
England already pushed their whaling crafts far into the icy
regions of the north. Money was for many years very scarce. In 1635
musket-bullets were made to pass in place of farthings, the law
providing that not more than twelve should be given in one payment.
[Illustration: THE WOOLEN SPINNING-WHEEL.]
The first printing press was set up at Cambridge, in 1639. Most of
the books of that day were collections of sermons. The first
permanent newspaper, The Boston News Letter, was published in 1704.
In 1750 there were only seven newspapers. The Federal Orrery, the
first daily paper, was not issued till 1792. There was a public
library in New York, from which books were loaned at four and a
half pence per week.
The usual mode of travel was on foot or horseback. People journeyed
largely by means of coasting sloops. The trip from New York to
Philadelphia occupied three days if the wind was fair. There was a
wagon running bi-weekly from New York across New Jersey.
Conveyances were put on in 1766, which made the unprecedented time
of two days from New York to Philadelphia. They were, therefore,
termed "flying machines."
The first stage route was between Providence and Boston, taking two
days for the trip. A post-office system had been effected by the
combination of the colonies, which united the whole country.
Benjamin Franklin was one of the early postmasters-general. He made
a grand tour of the country in his chaise, perfecting and maturing
the plan. His daughter Sally accompanied him, riding sometimes by
his side in the chaise, and sometimes on the extra horse which he
had with him. It took five months to make the rounds which could
now be performed in as many days. A mail was started in 1672,
between New York and Boston, by way of Hartford; according to the
contract the round trip being made monthly.
[Illustration: OLD-FASHIONED "STAGE WAGON."]
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS
1. _The New England_ people were strict in morals. Governor
Winthrop prohibited cards and gaming tables. A man was whipped for
shooting fowl on Sunday. No man was allowed to keep tavern who did
not bear an excellent character and possess property. The names of
drunkards were posted up in the ale houses, and the keepers
forbidden to sell them liquor. By order of the colony of
Connecticut, no person under twenty years of age could use any
tobacco without a physician's order; and no one was allowed to use
it oftener than once a day, and then not within ten miles of any
house.
Articles of dress were also limited or regulated by law. No person
whose estate did not exceed 200 pounds, could wear "gold or silver
lace, or any lace above 2 shillings per yard." The "selectmen" were
required to take note of the "apparel" of the people, especially
their "ribbands and great boots." Only the gentility, including
ministers and their wives, received the prefix _Mr._ and _Mrs._ to
their names. Others, above servitude, were called _Goodman_ and
_Goodwife._
Conduct was shaped by a literal interpretation of the Scriptures.
Simplicity of manners and living was carefully inculcated. At first
the ministers had almost entire control. A church reproof was the
heaviest punishment, and knotty points in theology caused the
bitterest discussion. A pillion was the grandest equipage, and a
plain blue and white gown, with primly starched apron, was the
common attire of the New England dames.
2. _The Middle Colonies_.--The manners of the New York people
were essentially Dutch. Many customs then inaugurated still remain
in vogue. Among these is that of New Year's Day visiting, of which
General Washington said, "New York will in process of years
gradually change its ancient customs and manners, but whatever
changes take place, never forget the cordial observance of New
Year's Day." So, also, to the Dutch we owe our Christmas visit of
Santa Claus, colored eggs at Easter, doughnuts, crullers, and New
Year's cookies. Laws of morality were rigidly enforced, as in New
England. Furniture and equipages were extremely simple. Carpets
were hardly known before 1750, and each housekeeper prided herself
on the purity of her white-sanded floor.
[Illustration: DUTCH MANSION AND COTTAGE IN NEW AMSTERDAM.]
3. _The Southern Colonists_ differed widely from the northern
in habits and style of living. In place of thickly-settled towns
and villages, they had large plantations, and were surrounded by a
numerous household of servants. An estate in those days was a
little empire. The planter had among his slaves men of every trade.
The mansion-house was large, and fitted to the free-hearted, open
handed hospitality of its owner. The negro quarters formed a hamlet
apart, with its gardens and poultry yards. There were large sheds
for curing tobacco, and mills for grinding corn and wheat.
Everything necessary for ordinary use was produced on the
plantation. Their tobacco was put up by their own negroes, and
consigned direct to England. The flour of the Mount Vernon estate
was packed under the eye of Washington himself, and we are told
that barrels of flour bearing his brand, passed in the West India
market without inspection. A style of luxury and refinement already
prevailed. Services of plate, elegant equipages, and liveried
servants were not uncommon. Rich planters vied with one another in
the possession of the finest horses.
[Illustration: FIELD-SPORTS OF THE SOUTH--FOX-HUNTING]
EDUCATION.
1 _The Eastern Colonies_--Next to their religion, the Puritans
prized education. When Boston was but six years old, $2,000 were
appropriated to the seminary at Cambridge, now known as Harvard
University. Some years after, each family gave a peck of corn or a
shilling in cash for its support. Common schools had already been
provided, and in 1647 every town was ordered to have a free school,
and, if it contained over one hundred families, a grammar school.
In Connecticut, any town that did not keep a school for three
months in the year was liable to a fine. In 1700, ten ministers,
having previously so agreed, brought together a number of books,
each saying as he laid down his gift, "I give these books for
founding a college in Connecticut." This was the beginning of Yale
College. It was first established at Saybrook, but in 1716 was
removed to New Haven. It was named from Governor Yale, who
befriended it most generously.
[Illustration: A WEDDING JOURNEY.]
The "town meetings," as they were styled, were of inestimable value
in cultivating democratic ideas. The young and old, rich and poor,
here met on a perfect equality for the discussion of all local
questions. In Hartford, every freeman who neglected to attend the
town meeting was fined sixpence, unless he had a good excuse.
2. _The Middle Colonies_ already had many schools scattered
through the towns. In New York, during the Dutch period, it was
customary for the schoolmaster, in order to increase his earnings,
to ring the church-bell, dig graves, and act as chorister and town
clerk. In the English period, some of the schools were kept by
Dutch masters, who taught English as an accomplishment. As early as
1702, an act was passed for the "Encouragement of a Grammar Free
School in the City of New York." In 1795, George Clinton laid the
foundation of the common-school system of the State, and within
three years nearly 60,000 children were receiving instruction. At
Lewiston, Del, is said to have been established the first girls'
school in the colonies. The first school in Pennsylvania was
started about 1683, where "reading, writing, and casting accounts"
were taught, for eight English shillings per annum. The Orrery
invented by Dr. Rittenhouse, in 1768, is still preserved in
Princeton College. No European institution had its equal.
Churches were established by the various denominations. The Swedes
had a meeting house erected even before the landing of Penn.
Ministers' salaries were met in different ways. In New York the
Dutch dominie was paid sometimes in wampum. The dominie of Albany
on one occasion received one hundred and fifty beaver skins.
3. _The Southern Colonies_ met with great difficulties in
their efforts to establish schools. Though Virginia boasts of the
second oldest college, yet her English governors bitterly opposed
the progress of education. Governor Berkeley, of whose haughty
spirit we have already heard, said, "I thank God there are no free
schools nor printing-presses here, and I hope we shall not have
them these hundred years." The restrictions upon the press were so
great that no newspaper was published in Virginia until 1736, and
that was controlled by the government. Free schools were
established in Maryland in 1696, and a free school in Charleston,
S. C., in 1712. Private schools were early established by the
colonists in every neighborhood.
A farm of one hundred acres was set apart by law for each
clergyman, and also a portion of the "best and first gathered corn"
and tobacco. Absence from church was fined. In Georgia, masters
were compelled to send their slaves to church, under a penalty of 5
pounds.
Summary of the History of the Second Epoch, arranged in
Chronological Order.
1607. Jamestown founded by the London Company. First permanent
English settlement in America, May 23
1609. Virginia received its second charter, June 2
1610. "Starving Time" in Virginia
1612. Virginia received its third charter, March 22
1613. Pocahontas married Rolfe, April
Settlement of New York by the Dutch
1614. Smith explored the New England Coast
1615. Culture of tobacco commenced in Virginia
1619. First Colonial Assembly, June 28
Slavery introduced in the English colony at Jamestown
1620. Pilgrims landed at Plymouth. First permanent English
settlement in New England, December 21
1622. Indian massacre in Virginia, March 22
New Hampshire granted to Gorges and Mason, Aug. 10
1623. New Hampshire settled at Dover and Portsmouth
1628. Charter granted to Massachusetts Bay Colony, March 4
1629. New patent for New Hampshire granted to Mason,
November 7
1630. First house built in Boston, under Governor Winthrop,
July
1632. Maryland granted to Lord Baltimore, June 20
1634. Maryland settled at St. Mary's;
1633-6. Connecticut settled at Windsor, Hartford, and
Wethersfield,
1635. Clayborne's rebellion in Virginia and Maryland,
1636. Rhode Island settled at Providence, June,
1637. Pequod War,
1638. New Haven colony founded, April 18,
Delaware settled near Wilmington by the Swedes, April
1641. New Hampshire united to Massachusetts,
1643. Union of the New England colonies, May 29,
1644. Second Indian massacre in Virginia, April 18,
Charter granted to Rhode Island.--Providence and Rhode
Island plantations united, March 14,
1655. Civil war in Maryland,
New Sweden conquered by the Dutch, October,
1660. Navigation Act, passed in 1651, now enforced,
1662. Charter granted to Connecticut, April 20,
1663. Albemarle Colony formed, March 24,
1664. New Netherland conquered by the English and called New
York, September,
New Jersey settled at Elizabethtown,
1670. South Carolina settled on the Ashley River,
1675. King Philip's War,
1676. Bacon's rebellion, April
1679. New Hampshire made a royal province
1680. Charleston, S. C., founded
1682. Pennsylvania settled
Delaware granted to William Penn by the Duke of York,
August 31,
1683. Philadelphia founded by William Penn, February,
1686. Andros arrived in Boston as governor of New England,
December 20,
1689. King William's war,
Andros seized and sent to England
1690. Schenectady burned by the Indians and the French
1692. Salem witchcraft
Massachusetts received a new charter, under Phipps, Gov.
1697. Peace of Ryswick terminated King William's war
1702. Queen Anne's war commenced,
Delaware secured a separate legislative assembly,
1710. Port Royal, N. S., captured by the English and named
Annapolis,
1713. Queen Anne's war closed by the treaty of Utrecht
1732. Washington born, February 22,
1733. Georgia settled by Oglethorpe at Savannah, February 12,
1739. The Spanish War began,
1744. King George's war began,
1745. Louisburg captured by the English, June 17,
1748. King George's war ended by the treaty of Aix la Chapelle
1753. Washington sent with a letter by Dinwiddie to St. Pierre,
October 31,
1754. Battle at Gt. Meadows-Ft. Necessity captured by French,
1755. The French driven from Acadia, June,
Braddock defeated in the Battle of Monongahela, July 9,
The British defeated Dieskau at Lake George. September 8,
1756. War first formally declared between the English
and the French, May 17,
French under Montcalm captured Fort Oswego, Aug. 14,
1757. Fort William Henry surrendered to Montcalm, Aug. 9,
1758. Abercrombie repulsed at Fort Ticonderoga, July 8,
Louisburg taken by Amherst and Wolfe, July 26,
Fort Frontenac captured by the colonists, August 27,
Fort du Quesne taken by the English, November 25,
1759. Ticonderoga and Crown Point abandoned by the French,
Niagara surrendered to England, July 25,
Battle of Plains of Abraham--Quebec surrendered,
1760. Montreal surrendered to the English, September 8,
Pontiac's war,
1763. Peace of Paris,
REFERENCES FOR READING.
Palfrey's History of New England.--Parkman's Conspiracy of Pontiac.
--Neal's History of the Puritans.--Holmes's Robinson of Leyden
(Poem).-Mrs. Hemans's Landing of the Pilgriris (Poem).--Martyn's
Pilgrim Fathers of New England.--Elliott's History of New England.
--Hopkins's Youth of the Old Dominion.--Simms's Smith and
Pocahontas.--Mrs. Sigourney's Pocahontas (Poem).--Longfellow's
Courtship of Miles Standish, and Evangeline (Poems).--Holland's Bay
Path.--Barber's New England.--Irving's Knickerbocker's History of
New York, and King Philip's War (Sketch Book).--Cooper's Last of
the Mohicans--James's Ticonderoga.--Hubbard's History of Indian
Wars in New England.--Hall's Puritans and their Principles.
--Randall's School History of New York--Barber's American
Scenes--Tracy's American Historical Reader--Paulding's Ode to
Jamestown (Poem), and his Dutchman's Fire-Side (a novel)--Street's
Frontenac (a romance)--Mrs Childs's Hobomok (a novel).--Margaret
Smith's Journal (by Whittier).--Harper's Magazine, Vol. 52, p t,
art, Up the Ashley and Cooper (Life in Colony of S. C.)--Sanborn's
History of New Hampshire--Holland's History of Western
Massachusetts.--Greene's History of Rhode Island.
EPOCH III.
THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR.
From 1775--the Breaking out of the War,
To 1787--the Adoption of the Constitution.
CAUSES OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION.
[Illustration]
REMOTE CAUSES.--England treated the settlers as an inferior class
of people. Her intention was to make and keep the colonies
dependent. The laws were framed to favor the English manufacturer
and merchant at the expense of the colonist. The Navigation Acts
compelled the American farmer to send his products across the ocean
to England, and to buy his goods in British markets. American
manufactures were prohibited.
[Footnote: _Questions on The Geography of The Third Epoch_.
Locate Boston. Portsmouth. Newport. Philadelphia. Salem.
Concord. Lexington. Whitehall. Cambridge. New London.
Charleston. Charlestown. Brooklyn. New York. White Plains.
North Castle. Cherry Valley. Elizabethtown. Trenton. Princeton.
Germantown. Albany. Oriskany. Bennington. Yorktown. Monmouth C. H.
Quebec. Danbury. Savannah. Augusta. Norfolk. Norwalk. Fairfield.
New Haven. Elmira. Camden. Hanging Rock. Cowpeus. Guilford C. H.
Wilmington. Eutaw Springs.
Locate Crown Point. Fort Ticonderoga. Fort Edward. Fort Griswold.
Fort Moultrie. Fort Washington. West Point. Fort Schuyler (Fort
Stanwix was named after Gen. Schuyler in 1776, and so in history
is called by either name). Stony Point. Fort Lee. Fort Mifflin.
Fort Creek. Catawba River. Yadkin River. Dan River.
Delaware River.
Locate Valley Forge. Ninety Six. Dorchester Heights. Morristown.
King's Mountain. Bemis's Heights. Wyoming.]
Iron works were denounced as "common nuisances." William Pitt, the
friend of America, declared that "she had no right to manufacture
even a nail for a horseshoe."
[Footnote: The exportation of hats from one colony to another was
prohibited, and no hatter was allowed to have more than two
apprentices at a time. The importation of sugar, rum, and molasses,
was burdened with exorbitant duties; and the Carolinians were
forbidden to cut down the pine-trees of their vast forests, in
order to convert the wood into staves, or the juice into turpentine
and tar for commercial purposes. Read Barnes's Popular History of
the United States, p. 134.]
THE DIRECT CAUSE was an attempt to tax the colonies in order to
raise money to defray the expenses of the recent war. As the
colonists were not represented in Parliament they resisted this
measure, declaring that TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION IS TYRANNY.
The British government, however, was obstinate, and began first to
enforce the odious laws against trade. Smuggling had become very
common, and the English officers were granted
WRITS OF ASSISTANCE, as they were called, or warrants authorizing
them to search for smuggled goods. Under this pretext any petty
custom-house official could enter a man's house or store at his
pleasure. The colonists believed that "every man's house is his
castle," and resisted such power as a violation of their rights.
[Footnote: The matter was brought before a general court, held in
Boston, where James Otis, advocate-general, coming out boldly on
the side of the people, exclaimed, "To my dying day I will oppose,
with all the powers and faculties God has given me, all such
instruments of slavery on the one hand and villainy on the other."
"Then and there," said John Adams, who was present, "the trumpet of
the Revolution was sounded."]
THE STAMP ACT (1765), which ordered that stamps bought of the
British government, should be put on all legal documents,
newspapers, pamphlets, &c., thoroughly aroused the colonists.
[Footnote: The assembly of Virginia was the first to make public
opposition to this odious law. Patrick Henry, a brilliant young
lawyer, introduced a resolution denying the right of Parliament to
tax America. He boldly asserted that the king had played the
tyrant; and, alluding to the fate of other tyrants, exclaimed,
"Caesar had his Brutus, Charles I. his Cromwell, and George III."
--here pausing till the cry of "Treason! Treason!" from several
parts of the house had ended, he deliberately added--"may profit by
their examples. If this be treason, make the most of it."--John
Ashe, speaker of the North Carolina Assembly, declared to Governor
Tryon, "This law will be resisted to blood and to death."]
The houses of British officials were mobbed. Prominent loyalists
were hung in effigy. Stamps were seized. The agents were forced to
resign. People agreed not to use any article of British
manufacture.
[Footnote: The newspapers of the day mention many wealthy people
who conformed to this agreement. On one occasion forty or fifty
young ladies, who called themselves "Daughters of Liberty," brought
their spinning-wheels to the house of Rev. Mr. Morehead, in Boston,
and during the day spun two hundred and thirty-two skeins of yarn,
which they presented to their pastor. "Within eighteen months,"
wrote a gentleman at Newport, R.I., "four hundred and eighty-seven
yards of cloth and thirty-six pairs of stockings have been spun and
knit in the family of James Nixon of this town." In Newport and
Boston the ladies, at their tea-drinkings, used, instead of
imported tea, the dried leaves of the raspberry. They called this
substitute Hyperion. The class of 1770, at Cambridge, took their
diplomas in homespun suits.]
Associations, called the "Sons of Liberty," were formed to resist
the law. Delegates from nine of the colonies met at New York and
framed a Declaration of Rights, and a petition to the king and
Parliament. The 1st of November, appointed for the law to go into
effect, was observed as a day of mourning. Bells were tolled, flags
raised at half-mast, and business was suspended,
[Footnote: The name was assumed from the celebrated speech of Barre
on the Stamp Act, in which he spoke of the colonists as "sons of
liberty."]
[Footnote: At Portsmouth, N. H., a coffin inscribed "LIBERTY, aged
CXLV years," was borne to an open grave. With muffled drums and
solemn tread, the procession moved from the State House. Minute
guns were fired till the grave was reached, when a funeral oration
was pronounced and the coffin lowered. Suddenly it was proclaimed
that there were signs of life. The coffin was raised, and the
inscription "Liberty Revived" added. Bells rang, trumpets sounded,
men shouted, and a jubilee ensued.]
Samuel and John Adams, Patrick Henry, and James Otis, by their
stirring and patriotic speeches, aroused the people over the whole
land.
Alarmed by these demonstrations, the English government repealed
the Stamp Act (1766), but still declared its right to tax the
colonies. Soon, new duties were laid upon tea, glass, paper, &c.,
and a Board of Trade was established at Boston, to act
independently of the colonial assemblies.
MUTINY ACT.--Anticipating bitter opposition, troops were sent to
enforce the laws. The "Mutiny Act," as it was called, ordered that
the colonies should provide these soldiers with quarters and
necessary supplies. This evident attempt to enslave the Americans
aroused burning indignation. To be taxed was bad enough, but to
shelter and feed their oppressors was unendurable. The New York
assembly, having refused to comply, was forbidden to pass any
legislative acts. The Massachusetts assembly sent a circular to the
other colonies urging a union for redress of grievances.
Parliament, in the name of the king, ordered the assembly to
rescind its action; but it almost unanimously refused. In the
meantime the assemblies of nearly all the colonies had declared
that Parliament had no right to tax them without their consent.
Thereupon they were warned not to imitate the disobedient conduct
of Massachusetts.
BOSTON MASSACRE.--Boston being considered the hot-bed of the
rebellion, General Gage was sent thither with two regiments of
troops. They entered on a quiet Sabbath morning, and marched as
through a conquered city, with drums beating and flags flying.
Quarters being refused, they took possession of the State House.
The Common was soon crowded with tents. Cannon were planted,
sentries posted, and citizens challenged. Frequent quarrels took
place between the people and the soldiers. One day (March 5, 1770)
a crowd of men and boys, maddened by its presence, insulted the
city guard. A fight ensued, in which two citizens were wounded and
three killed. The bells were rung; the country people rushed in to
the help of the city; and it was with great difficulty that quiet
was at last restored.
[Footnote: The soldiers were tried for murder. John Adams and
Josiah Quincy, who stood foremost in opposition to British
aggression, defended them. All were acquitted except two, who were
found guilty of manslaughter.]
BOSTON TEA PARTY (Dec. 16, 1773).--The government, alarmed by the
turn events had taken, rescinded the taxes, except that on
tea--which was left to maintain the principle. An arrangement was
made whereby tea was furnished at so low a price that with the tax
included it was cheaper in America than in England. This subterfuge
exasperated the patriots. They were fighting for a great principle,
not a paltry tax. At Charleston the tea was stored in damp cellars
where it soon spoiled. The tea-ships at New York and Philadelphia
were sent home. The British authorities refused to let the
tea-ships at Boston return. Upon this an immense public meeting was
held at Faneuil Hall, and it was decided that the tea should never
be brought ashore. A party of men, disguised as Indians, boarded
the vessels and emptied three hundred and forty-two chests of tea
into the water.
[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.]
[Illustration: FANEUIL HALL]
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.
[Illustration: PUTNAM SUMMONED TO WAR.]
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.
[Illustration: THE PRAYER BEFORE THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL.]
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
Back to Full Books
|