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Title: General Scott
Author: Wright, Marcus Joseph, 1831-1922
Language: English
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*** Start of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "General Scott" ***
Great Commanders
Edited by James Grant Wilson
[Illustration: Winfield Scott]
GENERAL SCOTT
by
GENERAL MARCUS J. WRIGHT
New York
D. Appleton and Company
1894
Copyright, 1893,
By D. Appleton and Company.
All rights reserved.
The Great Commanders Series.
Edited by General James Grant Wilson.
Admiral Farragut.
By Captain A.T. MAHAN, U.S.N.
General Taylor.
By General O.O. HOWARD, U.S.A.
General Jackson. By JAMES PARTON.
General Greene.
By Captain FRANCIS V. GREENE, U.S.A.
General J.E. Johnston.
By ROBERT M. HUGHES, of Virginia.
General Thomas.
By HENRY COPPER, LL.D.
General Scott.
By General MARCUS J. WRIGHT.
_IN PREPARATION_
General Washington.
By General BRADLEY T. JOHNSON.
General Sherman.
By General MANNING F. FORCE.
General Grant.
By General JAMES GRANT WILSON.
Admiral Porter.
By JAMES R. SOLEY, late Assist. Sec. of Navy.
General Lee.
By General FITZHUGH LEE.
General Hancock.
By General FRANCIS A. WALKER.
General Sheridan.
By General HENRY E. DAVIES.
Each, 12mo, cloth, with Portrait and Maps, $1.50.
New York: D. APPLETON & CO., 1, 2 & 5 Bond St.
PREFACE.
In the preparation of this volume the author has consulted and used
with freedom the following-named works: History of the Mexican War, by
General Cadmus M. Wilcox; Autobiography of General Scott; Life of
General Scott, by Edward D. Mansfield; Life of General Scott, by David
Hunter Strother; Life of General Scott, by J.T. Headley; History of
the Mexican War, by John S. Jenkins; Anecdotes of the Civil War, by
General E.D. Townsend; Sketches of Illustrious Soldiers, by General
James Grant Wilson; Fifty Years' Observation of Men and Things, by
General E.D. Keyes; Reminiscences of Thurlow Weed, and Historical
Register of the United States Army, by F.B. Heitman.
My thanks are due to Mr. David Fitzgerald, Librarian of the War
Department; Mr. Andrew H. Allen, Librarian of the State Department;
and Colonel John B. Brownlow, for many courtesies. I am specially
indebted to Mr. John N. Oliver, of Washington city, for valuable
assistance rendered me.
M.J.W.
WASHINGTON, _August, 1893_.
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
Parentage and birth of Scott--Precocity--Enters William and Mary
College--Leaves college and commences the study of law with Judge
Robinson--Attends the trial of Burr at Richmond--Impressment of
American seamen and proclamation of President Jefferson--Joins
the Petersburg troop--Leaves for Charleston--Returns to
Petersburg--Appointed captain of artillery--Trial of General
Wilkinson--Scott sends in his resignation, but withdraws it and
returns to Natchez--Is court-martialed--On staff duty at New
Orleans--Declaration of war with Great Britain--General Wade Hampton
and the Secretary of War--Hull's surrender--Storming of
Queenstown--March to Lewiston--Scott's appeal to the officers and
soldiers--Indians fire on a flag of truce--Incident with a
Caledonian priest--Letter in relation to Irish prisoners sent home
to be tried for treason 1
CHAPTER II.
Scott ordered to Philadelphia--Appointed adjutant general with the
rank of colonel--Becomes chief of staff to General Dearborn--Death
of General Pike--Leads the advance on Fort Niagara--Anecdote
of Scott and a British colonel--Commands the expedition to
Burlington Heights--March for Sackett's Harbor--Meets a force at
Cornwall--Retreat of Wilkinson--Scott appointed brigadier
general--Attack on and surrender of Fort Erie--Battle of
Chippewa--Lundy's Lane and wounding of Scott--Retreat 23
CHAPTER III.
Is received and entertained by prominent civilians and military men
in Europe--Marries Miss Mayo--Offspring--Thanks of Congress--Thanks
of the Virginia Legislature voted, and also a sword--Controversy
with General Andrew Jackson and correspondence--Prepares general
regulations for the army and militia--Controversy with General
Gaines and the War Department about rank--In command of the Eastern
Division--War with the Sac and Fox Indians--Black Hawk--Cholera
breaks out among the troops 41
CHAPTER IV.
Troubles in South Carolina growing out of the tariff acts
apprehended, and General Scott sent South--Action of the
nullifiers--Instructions in case of an outbreak--Action of the South
Carolina Legislature 60
CHAPTER V.
Events that led to the war in Florida--Treaty of Camp Moultrie and its
stipulations--Complaints of Indians and whites--Treaty of Payne's
Landing--Objections of the Indians to complying with the latter
treaty--Councils and talks with the Seminoles--Assiola--Murder
of mail carrier Dalton--Murder of Charley Amanthla--Dade's
massacre--Murder of General Thompson and others--General
Clinch--Depredations by the Indians on the whites and by
the latter on the Indians--Volunteers--Military departments
of Gaines and Scott 72
CHAPTER VI.
Review of the army by General Gaines--Arrival of General Gaines at
Fort King--Lieutenant Izard mortally wounded--Correspondence
between General Gaines and Clinch--General Scott ordered to command
in Florida--Disadvantages under which he labored--Preparations for
movements--Commencement of hostilities against the Indians 103
CHAPTER VII.
Scott prefers complaint against General Jesup--Court of inquiry
ordered by the President--Scott fully exonerated by the
court--Complaints of citizens--Difficulties of the campaign--Speech
in Congress of Hon. Richard Biddle--Scott declines an invitation to
a dinner in New York city--Resolutions of the subscribers--Scott is
ordered to take charge of and remove the Cherokee Indians--Orders
issued to troops and address to the Indians--Origin of the Cherokee
Indian troubles--Collision threatened between Maine and
New Brunswick, and Scott sent there--Correspondence with
Lieutenant-Governor Harvey--Seizure of Navy Island by Van
Rensselaer--Governor Marcy 122
CHAPTER VIII.
Annexation of Texas--Causes that led to annexation--Message of the
President--General Scott's letters regarding William Henry
Harrison--Efforts to reduce General Scott's pay--Letter to T.P.
Atkinson on the slavery question--Battle of Palo Alto, and of Resaca
de la Palma, Monterey, and Buena Vista--"The hasty plate of
Soup"--Scott's opinion of General Taylor--Scott ordered to
Mexico--Proposal to revive the grade of lieutenant general,
and to appoint Thomas H. Benton--Scott reaches the Brazos
Santiago--Confidential dispatch from Scott to Taylor--Co-operation
of the navy--Letters to the Secretary of War as to places of
rendezvous--Arrival and landing at Vera Cruz, and its investment,
siege, and capture--Letter to foreign consuls--Terms of
surrender--Orders of General Scott after the surrender 149
CHAPTER IX.
General Santa Anna arrives at Cerro Gordo--Engagement at
Atalaya--General Orders No. 111--Reports from Jalapa--Report of
engagement at Cerro Gordo--Occupation of Perote--Account of a
Mexican historian--General Santa Anna's letter to General
Arroya--Delay of the Government in sending re-enforcements--Danger
of communications with Vera Cruz--Troops intended for Scott ordered
to General Taylor--Colonel Childs appointed governor of
Jalapa--Occupation of Puebla--Arrival of re-enforcements--Number of
Scott's force 175
CHAPTER X.
Movement toward the City of Mexico--The Duke of Wellington's
comments--Movements of Santa Anna--A commission meets General Worth to
treat for terms--Worth enters Puebla--Civil administration of the city
not interfered with--Scott arrives at Puebla--Scott's address to the
Mexicans after the battle of Cerro Gordo--Contreras--Reconnoissance
of the _pedregal_--Defeat of the Mexicans at Contreras--Battle of
Churubusco--Arrival of Nicholas P. Trist, commissioner--General Scott
meets a deputation proposing an armistice--He addresses a
communication to the head of the Mexican Government--Appointment of a
commission to meet Mr. Trist--Major Lally--Meeting of Mr. Trist with
the Mexican commissioners--Failure to agree--Armistice violated by the
Mexicans and notice from General Scott--Santa Anna's insolent
note--The latter calls a meeting of his principal officers--Molino del
Rey--Chapultepec--Losses on both sides 195
CHAPTER XI.
General Quitman's movements to San Antonio and Coyoacan--Movements of
General Pillow--General reconnoissance by Scott--Chapultepec--Scott
announces his line of attack--Surrender of the Mexican General
Bravo--Preparations to move on the capital--Entry of General
Scott into the City of Mexico--General Quitman made Military
Governor--General Scott's orders--Movements of Santa Anna--General
Lane--American and Mexican deserters--Orders as to collection of
duties and civil government 223
CHAPTER XII.
Scott's care for the welfare of his army--Account of the money
levied on Mexico--Last note to the Secretary of War while commander
in chief in Mexico--Army asylums--Treaty of peace--Scott turns over
the army to General William O. Butler--Scott and Worth--Court of
inquiry on Worth--The "Leonidas" and "Tampico" letters--Revised
paragraph 650--Army regulations--General Worth demands a court of
inquiry and prefers charges against Scott--Correspondence--General
belief as to Scott's removal command--The trial--Return home of
General Scott 254
CHAPTER XIII.
General Taylor nominated for the presidency--Thanks of Congress to
Scott, and a gold medal voted--Movement to revive and confer upon
Scott the brevet rank of lieutenant general--Scott's views as to the
annexation of Canada--Candidate for President in 1852 and
defeated--Scott's diplomatic mission to Canada in 1859--Mutterings
of civil war--Letters and notes to President Buchanan--Arrives in
Washington, December 12, 1861--Note to the Secretary of
War--"Wayward sisters" letter--Events preceding inauguration of Mr.
Lincoln--Preparation for the defense of Washington--Scott's
loyalty--Battle of Bull Run--Scott and McClellan--Free navigation
of the Mississippi River--Retirement of General Scott and
affecting incidents connected therewith--Message of President
Lincoln--McClellan on Scott--Mount Vernon--Scott sails for
Europe--Anecdote of the day preceding the battle of Chippewa--The
Confederate cruiser Nashville--Incident between Scott and
Grant--Soldiers' Home--Last days of Scott--His opinion of
noncombatants--General Wilson's tribute 289
INDEX 337
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
FACING PAGE
Portrait of Winfield Scott _Frontispiece_
The Niagara Frontier 12
Battle of Chippewa 32
Siege of Vera Cruz 170
Route from Vera Cruz to Mexico 198
Operations of the American Army in the Valley of Mexico 226
GENERAL SCOTT.
CHAPTER I.
Parentage and birth of Scott--Precocity--Enters William and Mary
College--Leaves college and commences the study of law with Judge
Robinson--Attends the trial of Burr at Richmond--Impressment of
American seamen and proclamation of President Jefferson--Joins
the Petersburg troop--Leaves for Charleston--Returns to
Petersburg--Appointed captain of artillery--Trial of General
Wilkinson--Scott sends in his resignation, but withdraws it and
returns to Natchez--Is court-martialed--On staff duty at New
Orleans--Declaration of war with Great Britain--General Wade Hampton
and the Secretary of War--Hull's surrender--Storming of
Queenstown--March to Lewiston--Scott's appeal to the officers and
soldiers--Indians fire on a flag of truce--Incident with a Caledonian
priest--Letter in relation to Irish prisoners sent home to be tried
for treason.
Winfield Scott was born at Laurel Branch, the estate of his father,
fourteen miles from Petersburg, Dinwiddie County, Virginia, June 13,
1786. His grandfather, James Scott, was a Scotchman of the Clan
Buccleuch, and a follower of the Pretender to the throne of England,
who, escaping from the defeat at Culloden, made his way to Virginia in
1746, where he settled. William, the son of this James, married Ann
Mason, a native of Dinwiddie County and a neighbor of the Scott
family. Winfield Scott was the issue of this marriage. There were an
elder brother and two daughters. James Scott died at an early age,
when Winfield was but six years old. William, the father of Winfield,
was a lieutenant and afterward captain in a Virginia company which
served in the Revolutionary army. Eleven years after the father's
death the mother died, leaving Winfield, at seventeen years old, to
make his own way in the world.
At the death of his father, Winfield, being but six years old, was
left to the charge of his mother, to whom he was devotedly attached.
It is a well-warranted tradition of the county in which the Scott
family resided, that the mother of General Scott was a woman of
superior mind and great force of character. In acknowledging the
inspiration from the lessons of that admirable parent for whatever of
success he achieved, he was not unlike Andrew Jackson and the majority
of the great men of the world. He wrote of her in his mature age as
follows: "And if, in my now protracted career, I have achieved
anything worthy of being written, anything that my countrymen are
likely to honor in the next century, it is from the lessons of that
admirable parent that I derived the inspiration."
In his seventh year he was ordered on a Sunday morning to get ready
for church. Disobeying the order, he ran off and concealed himself,
but was pursued, captured, and returned to his mother, who at once
sent for a switch. The switch was a limb from a Lombardy poplar, and
the precocious little truant, seeing this, quoted a verse from St.
Matthew which was from a lesson he had but recently read to his
mother. The quotation was as follows: "Every tree that bringeth not
forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire." The quotation
was so apt that the punishment was withheld, but the offender was not
spared a very wholesome lesson.
General Scott's mother, Ann, was the daughter of Daniel Mason and
Elizabeth Winfield, his wife, who was the daughter of John Winfield, a
man of high standing and large wealth. From his mother's family he
acquired his baptismal name of Winfield. John Winfield survived his
daughter, and dying intestate, in 1774, Winfield Mason acquired by
descent as the eldest male heir (the law of primogeniture then being
the law of Virginia) the whole of a landed estate and a portion of the
personal property. The principal part of this large inheritance was
devised to Winfield Scott, but, the devisee having married again and
had issue, the will was abrogated. The wife of Winfield Mason was the
daughter of Dr. James Greenway, a near neighbor. He was born in
England, near the borders of Scotland, and inherited his father's
trade, that of a weaver. He was ambitious and studious, and giving all
of his spare time to study, he became familiar with the Greek, Latin,
French, and Italian languages. After his immigration to Virginia he
prepared himself for the practice of medicine, and soon acquired a
large and lucrative practice. He devoted much of his time to botany,
and left a _hortus siccus_ of forty folio volumes, in which he
described the more interesting plants of Virginia and North Carolina.
He was honored by memberships in several of the learned European
societies, and was a correspondent of the celebrated Swedish
naturalist Linnæus. He acquired such a knowledge of music as enabled
him to become teacher to his own children.
James Hargrave, a Quaker, was one of young Scott's earliest teachers.
He found his pupil to be a lad of easy excitement and greatly inclined
to be belligerent. He tried very hard to tone him down and teach him
to govern his temper. On one occasion young Scott, being in Petersburg
and passing on a crowded street, found his Quaker teacher, who was a
non-combatant, engaged in a dispute with a noted bully. Hargrave was
the county surveyor, and this fellow charged him with running a false
dividing line. When Scott heard the charge he felled the bully to the
ground with one blow of his fist. He recovered and advanced on Scott,
when Hargrave placed himself between them and received the blow
intended for Scott; but the bully was again knocked to the ground by
the strong arm of Scott. Many years afterward (in 1816) Scott met his
Quaker friend and former teacher, who said to him: "Friend Winfield, I
always told thee not to fight; but as thou wouldst fight, I am glad
that thou wert not beaten."
His next instructor was James Ogilvie, a Scotchman, who was a man of
extraordinary endowments and culture. Scott spent a year under his
tutelage at Richmond, and entered, in 1805, William and Mary College.
Here he gave special attention to the study of civil and international
law, besides chemistry, natural and experimental philosophy, and
common law. At about the age of nineteen he left William and Mary
College and entered the law office of Judge David Robinson in
Petersburg as a student.
Robinson had emigrated from Scotland to Virginia at the request of
Scott's grandfather, who employed him as a private tutor in his
family. There were two other students in Mr. Robinson's office with
Scott--Thomas Ruffin and John F. May. Ruffin became Chief Justice of
the Supreme Court of North Carolina, and May the leading lawyer in
southern Virginia. After he had received his license to practice he
rode the circuit, and was engaged in a number of causes. He was
present at the celebrated trial of Aaron Burr for treason, and was
greatly impressed with Luther Martin, John Wickham, Benjamin Botts,
and William Wirt, the leading lawyers in the case. Here he also met
Commodore Truxton, General Andrew Jackson, Washington Irving, John
Randolph, Littleton W. Tazewell, William B. Giles, John Taylor of
Caroline, and other distinguished persons.
Aaron Burr was a native of Newark, N.J., and was the grandson of the
celebrated Jonathan Edwards. He graduated at Princeton in September,
1772, and studied law, but in 1775 joined the American army near
Boston. Accompanied Colonel Benedict Arnold in the expedition to
Quebec, and acquired such reputation that he was made a major;
afterward joined General Washington's staff, and subsequently was an
aid to General Putnam. Promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel, he
commanded a detachment which defeated the British at Hackensack, and
distinguished himself at Monmouth. Burr became Vice-President on the
election of Jefferson as President, and was involved in a quarrel with
Alexander Hamilton, and killed him in a duel at Weehawken, N.J., July
7, 1804. This affair was fatal to his future prospects. In 1805 he
floated in a boat from Pittsburg to New Orleans. His purpose was
supposed to be to collect an army and conquer Mexico and Texas, and
establish a government of which he should be the head. He purchased a
large tract of land on the Wachita River, and made other arrangements
looking to the consummation of his object. Colonel Burr was arrested
and tried for treason in Richmond in 1807, but was acquitted. He died
on Staten Island, September 14, 1836.
In May, 1807, the British frigate Leopard boarded the Chesapeake in
Virginia waters and forcibly carried off some of her crew, who were
claimed as British subjects. Mr. Jefferson, President of the United
States, at once issued a proclamation prohibiting all British war
vessels from entering our harbors. Great excitement was produced
throughout the entire country. The day after the issuance of the
President's proclamation the Petersburg (Va.) troop of cavalry
tendered its services to the Government, and young Scott, riding
twenty-five miles distant from Petersburg, enlisted as a member. He
was placed in a detached camp near Lynn Haven Bay, opposite where the
British squadron was at anchor. Sir Thomas Hardy was the ranking
officer in command of several line of battle ships. Learning that an
expedition from the squadron had gone out on an excursion, Scott, in
charge of a small detachment, was sent to intercept them. He succeeded
in capturing two midshipmen and six sailors, and brought them into
camp. The capture was not approved by the authorities, and the
prisoners were ordered to be released, and restored to Admiral Sir
Thomas Hardy.
The prospect of a war with Great Britain had abated, and the affair of
the Chesapeake being in train of settlement, Scott left Virginia in
October, 1807, and proceeded to Charleston, S.C., with a view of
engaging in the practice of law. The law of that State required a
residence of twelve months before admission to the bar. Scott went to
Columbia, where the Legislature was in session, and applied for a
special act permitting him to practice. The application failed for
want of time. He then proceeded to Charleston, with a view of office
practice until he could be qualified for the usual practice in the
courts; but the prospect of war being again imminent, he went to
Washington, and on the application and recommendation of Hon. William
B. Giles, of Virginia, President Jefferson promised him a captain's
commission in the event of hostilities. No act of war occurring, he
returned in March, 1808, to Petersburg, and resumed the practice of
law in that circuit; but his life as a lawyer came suddenly to a close
in the succeeding month of May, when he received from the President
his commission as captain of artillery. He recruited his company in
Petersburg and Richmond, and embarked from Norfolk to New Orleans,
February 4, 1809.
It being thought that on the breaking out of hostilities the British
would at once endeavor to invade Louisiana, a military force was sent
to New Orleans under the command of General James Wilkinson. The
discipline of the army became greatly impaired, and much sickness and
many deaths occurred in this command. General Wilkinson was ordered to
Washington for an investigation into his conduct as commanding
officer, and General Wade Hampton succeeded to the command. The camp
below New Orleans was broken up in June, 1809, and the troops were
transferred to and encamped near Natchez.
General Wilkinson was charged with complicity with Aaron Burr, and
with being in the pay of the Spanish Government, and was tried by
court-martial; and although he was acquitted, there were many persons
who believed him guilty, and among these was Captain Scott, who was
present, as heretofore mentioned, at the trial of Burr, and
participated in the strong feeling which it produced throughout the
country.
The apparent lull in the war feeling having produced the impression
that there would be no hostile movements, Captain Scott forwarded his
resignation and sailed for Virginia, intending to re-engage in the
practice of the law. Before his resignation had been accepted he
received information that grave charges would be preferred against him
should he return to the army at Natchez. This determined him to return
at once to his post and meet the charges. Scott had openly given it as
his opinion that General Wilkinson was equally guilty with Colonel
Burr. Soon after his return he was arrested and tried by a
court-martial at Washington, near Natchez, in January, 1810. The first
charge was for "conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman," and
the specification was "in withholding at sundry times men's money
placed in his possession for their payment for the months of September
and October." Another charge was "ungentlemanly and unofficerlike
conduct," the specification being "In saying, between the 1st of
December and the 1st of January, 1809-'10, at a public table in
Washington, Mississippi Territory, that 'he never saw but two
traitors--General Wilkinson and Burr--and that General Wilkinson was a
liar and a scoundrel.'" This charge was based on the sixth article of
war, which says: "Any officer who shall behave himself with contempt
and disrespect toward his commanding officer shall be punished,
according to the nature of the offense, by the judgment of a
court-martial."
Captain Scott's defense to this charge was that General Wilkinson was
not, at the time the words were charged to have been spoken, his
commanding officer, that place being filled by General Wade Hampton.
General Scott, in his Memoirs, says that some of Wilkinson's partisans
had heard him say in an excited conversation that he knew, soon after
Burr's trial, from his friends Mr. Randolph and Mr. Tazewell and
others, members of the grand jury, who found the bill of indictment
against Burr, that nothing but the influence of Mr. Jefferson had
saved Wilkinson from being included in the same indictment, and that
he believed Wilkinson to have been equally a traitor with Burr. He
admits that the expression of that belief was not only imprudent, but
no doubt at that time blamable. But this was not the declaration on
which he was to be tried. This was uttered in New Orleans, the
headquarters of General Wilkinson. The utterance on which he was
tried, as will be seen, was made in Washington, Mississippi Territory,
when General Wade Hampton was his commanding officer.
The finding of the Court on this charge was guilty, and that his
conduct was unofficerlike. The facts in regard to the charge of
retaining money belonging to the men of his command were, that prior
to his departure for New Orleans he had recruited his company in
Virginia, and, being remote from a paymaster or quartermaster, a sum
of four hundred dollars was placed in his hands to be used in
recruiting. Some of his vouchers were technically irregular, and at
the time of his trial about fifty dollars was not covered by formal
vouchers. This was the finding of the Court, but it expressly
acquitted him of all fraudulent intentions. General Wilkinson nursed
his wrath, and after the close of the war published an attack on
General Scott. His own failure in the campaign of 1813, and especially
his defeat at La Cale Mills, compared with Scott's brilliant campaign
on the Niagara frontier in the following spring, may have induced this
attack.
Captain Scott returned to Virginia after the trial, and under the
advice of his friend, the distinguished lawyer and statesman, Benjamin
Watkins Leigh, he devoted himself to the study of military works and
of English attack. During the time mentioned he wrote a letter to
Lewis Edwards, Esq., at Washington City, of which he following is a
copy:
"PETERSBURG, _June, 1811_.
"DEAR SIR: I believe we have very little village news to
give you, nor do I know what would please you in that way. Of
myself--that person who has so large a space in every man's own
imagination, and so small a one in the imagination of every other--I
can say but little; perhaps less would please you more. Since my
return to Virginia my time has been passed in easy transitions from
pleasure, to study, from study to pleasure; in my gayety forgetting
the student, in the student forgetting my gayety.[A] I have
generally been in the office of my friend Mr. Leigh, though not
unmindful of the studies connected with my present profession; but
you will easily conceive my military ardor has suffered abatement.
Indeed, it is my design, as soon as circumstances will permit, to
throw the feather out of my cap and resume it in my hand. Yet,
should war come at last, my enthusiasm will be rekindled, and then
who knows but that I may yet write my history with my sword?
"Yours truly,
"WINFIELD SCOTT."
[Footnote A: "If idle, be not solitary; if solitary, be not idle." An
apothegm of Burton paraphrased by Johnson, "My Motto."]
Scott rejoined the army at Baton Rouge, La., in 1811, and was soon
appointed Judge Advocate on the trial of a colonel charged with gross
negligence in discipline and administration. By dilatory pleas this
officer had several times escaped justice, but on this trial he was
found guilty and censured. In the winter of 1811-'12 Scott was
frequently on staff duty with General Wade Hampton at New Orleans, and
while there saw the first steam vessel that ever floated on the
Mississippi.
On May 20, 1812, Captain Scott embarked at New Orleans for Washington
_via_ Baltimore, accompanying General Hampton and Lieutenant Charles
K. Gardner. As the vessel on which they had taken passage entered near
the Capes of Virginia it passed a British frigate lying off the bar.
In a short time they met a Hampton pilot boat going out to sea. This
was on June 29th, and this pilot boat bore dispatches to Mr.
Mansfield, the British Minister at Washington, announcing that
Congress had two days before declared war against Great Britain. The
vessel bearing Captain Scott and his companions went aground about
sixteen miles from Baltimore, and he and some others undertook the
remainder of the journey on foot. At the end of the fourth mile they
passed an enthusiastic militia meeting which had just received a copy
of the declaration of war. Scott, having on a uniform, was made the
hero of the occasion, and was chosen to read the declaration to the
meeting. He was here offered a seat in a double gig to Baltimore, but
the driver, who had become intoxicated, overturned the gig twice, when
Scott took the reins and drove the latter part of the journey. On his
arrival at Baltimore he received the pleasing intelligence that he had
been appointed a lieutenant colonel in the United States army. He was
then in his twenty-sixth year.
He went with General Hampton to Washington, where the general asked
him to accompany him on an official visit to the Secretary of War. An
unpleasant correspondence had a short time previously occurred between
the general and the secretary, yet he felt it his duty to make the
call. On General Hampton's name being announced to the secretary the
latter appeared at the door and extended his hand, while General
Hampton simply bowed and crossed his hands behind him. A conversation
on official matters was held, at first formal and cold, but gradually
terminating in one of a friendly character. When General Hampton rose
to leave he extended to the secretary both of his hands; but it was
now the latter's turn, and he bowed and placed his hands behind him.
General Hampton sent a challenge to mortal combat, but mutual friends
settled the matter without bloodshed, by requiring that Hampton should
on the next morning present himself at the secretary's door with both
hands extended in the presence of the same persons who witnessed the
former meeting. Colonel Scott was now ordered to Philadelphia to
mobilize his regiment and organize a camp of instruction. On his own
solicitation, he was soon afterward ordered to report to
Brigadier-General Alexander Smyth, near Buffalo, N.Y.
[Illustration: The
NIAGARA FRONTIER]
The Congress of the United States made formal declaration of war
against Great Britain and its dependencies June 18, 1812. In the month
previous General William Hull had been appointed to the command of the
northwestern army, intended for the invasion of Canada. This army
arrived on the Maumee River on May 30th, and marching northward
subsequently crossed over at Detroit. High hopes were entertained of
the success of this expedition, and the bitterest disappointment and
chagrin were manifested throughout the country when it was learned
that Hull had surrendered his entire command to the British General
Brock on August 14th. The regiment to which Colonel Scott was assigned
was the Second Artillery. Colonel George Izard and he arrived on the
Niagara frontier with the companies of Nathan Towson and James Nelson
Barker. He was posted at Black Rock for the protection of the navy
yard there established.
An expedition had been planned by Lieutenant Elliott, of the navy, for
the capture or destruction of two armed British brigs which were lying
under the guns of Fort Erie. On October 8th Colonel Scott detached
Captain Towson and a portion of his company to report to Elliott. On
the morning of the 9th the Adams was taken by Elliott and Lieutenant
Isaac Roach, and the Caledonia was captured by Captain Towson. In
passing down the river the Adams drifted into the British channel and
ran aground under the British guns. The enemy endeavored to recapture
her, but were successfully resisted by Colonel Scott. This was his
first experience under fire, and he was complimented for his skill and
gallantry. The Caledonia was afterward a part of Commodore Perry's
fleet on Lake Erie. The Adams, having drifted aground, was burned to
prevent recapture.
The northwestern army at this time consisted of about ten thousand
troops. General Henry Dearborn held command near Plattsburg and
Greenbush, and was the commanding officer of all the forces on the
northern frontier. A portion of his army was camped at Lewistown under
the command of General Stephen Van Rensselaer, of New York. General
Alexander Smyth was at Buffalo with some fifteen hundred regular
troops. Besides these, there were small detachments at Ogdensburg,
Sackett's Harbor, and Black Rock.
General Van Rensselaer conceived the plan of making a bold and sudden
move into Canada, with a view of capturing Jamestown, and there
establishing winter quarters. The affair of the capture of the two
English brigs with fifty men had roused great enthusiasm, and the
country was anxious for some success of arms to alleviate the
depression occasioned by Hull's surrender. General Van Rensselaer
confided the immediate command of the expedition to his relative,
Colonel Solomon Van Rensselaer, an officer of coolness and courage,
who, with three hundred militia and three hundred regulars, under
Colonel Chrystie, on October 13th began crossing the river.
The troops were on the river bank ready to embark an hour before
daylight, but from some mismanagement there was not a sufficient
number of boats to transport the whole, and they were compelled to
cross in detachments. Colonel Chrystie's boat was swept down the river
by the current, and he was wounded. On a second attempt he succeeded
in landing. With about a hundred men Colonel Van Rensselaer led them
up the bank, and halted to await the arrival of the remainder. It was
now daylight, and the little command was in full view of the enemy,
who opened a deadly fire. Every commissioned officer was either killed
or wounded. Finding that the river bank afforded but little
protection, Colonel Van Rensselaer determined to storm the Queenstown
heights. He had now received four wounds, and was compelled to
relinquish the command to Captains Peter Ogilvie, Jr., and John Ellis
Wool. In a very short time the fort was taken and the heights occupied
by the Americans. The enemy took refuge in a stone house, from which
they opened a destructive fire and made two unsuccessful attempts to
recapture the lost ground. General Brock rallied his men and led them
on, but while moving at the head of the Forty-ninth Grenadiers he fell
mortally wounded. General Van Rensselaer recrossed the river and
assumed command, but hastening back to urge forward re-enforcements,
the command fell to General Decius Wadsworth, who, however, did not
assume to control the movements. Two light batteries from the Canada
shore played on the boats attempting to cross, and there was no
artillery with which the Americans could resist.
Colonel Scott had volunteered his services for the expedition, but
they were declined, for the reason that arrangements had been made for
detachments under Colonel John R. Fenwick and Lieutenant-Colonel James
Robert Mullaney to sustain the assaulting columns. Permission was,
however, given to Colonel Scott to march his regiment to Lewiston and
act as circumstances might require.
He arrived there at 4 A.M. on the 13th. Finding no boats to
transport his command, he placed his guns on the American shore, under
the direction of Captains Towson and Barker. Seeing that a small
portion of the troops had crossed over, and knowing the peril of Van
Rensselaer's little force, he took one piece of artillery into a boat,
and, accompanied by his adjutant, Lieutenant Isaac Roach, Jr., he
crossedt to the Canada shore. Wadsworth at once relinquished the
command of the troops to him, and he soon animated every one with
courage and resolution.
Six feet five inches in height, clad in a new uniform, he became a
conspicuous mark for the enemy. The re-enforcements which had now
crossed over increased the force to about six hundred, of which more
than half were regulars. These were placed under Colonel Scott's
directions in the most commanding positions, where they awaited
further re-enforcements. About this time a body of five hundred
Indians joined the British troops. The British with their Indian
allies moved forward to the assault, but were speedily driven back. A
second time they moved forward, but with the same result. They kept up
a desultory firing, during which a body of Indians moved suddenly out
and surprised an outpost of militia. Scott, who was at this moment
engaged in unspiking a gun, rushed to the front, and, rallying his
men, sent the dusky warriors rapidly in retreat. The British general
Sheaffe, who held the command at Fort George, having heard the firing,
at once put his troops in motion and marched for the scene of the
conflict. Sheaffe's command consisted of eight hundred and fifty men.
These, added to the garrison which the Americans were attacking, was a
formidable force to be met by three hundred men. In the meantime the
American troops had refused to cross the river and were in a state of
mutiny. No entreaties, orders, or threats of Van Rensselaer could
avail to move them. But the three hundred brave fellows, with only one
piece of artillery, stood their ground. General Van Rensselaer, from
the American shore, sent word to Wadsworth to retreat. Colonels John
Chrystie and Scott, of the regulars, and Captains James Mead, Strahan,
and Allen, of the militia, and Captains Ogilvei, Wool, Joseph Gilbert,
Totten, and McChesney, took council of their desperate situation.
Colonel Scott told them that their condition was desperate, but that
the stain of Hull's surrender must be wiped out. "Let us die," he
said, "arms in hand. Our country demands the sacrifice. The example
will not be lost. The blood of the slain will make heroes of the
living. Those who follow will avenge our fall and our country's
wrongs. Who dare to stand?" he exclaimed. A loud ringing shout "All!"
came from the whole line.
General Sheaffe did not move to immediate attack on his arrival. He
marched his troops slowly the entire length of the American line, and
then countermarched.
As resistance was entirely hopeless, the order was given to retire.
The whole line broke in disorder to the river, but there were no
boats there to transport them. Two flags of truce were sent to the
enemy, but the officer who bore them did not return. Colonel Scott
then fixed a white handkerchief on the end of his sword, and,
accompanied by Captains Totten and Gibson, passed under the river
bluff and started to ascend the heights. They were met by Indians, who
fired on them and rushed with tomahawks to assault them. A British
officer happily arrived and conducted them to the quarters of General
Sheaffe, and Colonel Scott made formal surrender of the whole force.
The number surrendered, except some skulking militia who were
discovered later, was two hundred and ninety-three. The American loss
in killed, wounded, and captured was near one thousand men.
General Van Rensselaer was so mortified at the conduct of the militia
that he tendered his resignation. The British general Brock was next
day buried under one of the bastions of Fort George, and Colonel
Scott, then a prisoner, sent orders to have minute guns fired from
Fort Niagara during the funeral ceremonies, which orders were carried
out--an act of chivalry and courtesy which greatly impressed the
British.
The American officers who had been captured were lodged in a small inn
at the village of Newark and divested of their arms, and a strong
guard was posted at the door. Two Indians, Captain Jacobs and Brant,
sent word that they wished to see the tall American, meaning Colonel
Scott. The alleged object of their visit was to see if Scott had not
been wounded, as he had been fired at several times at close range. On
entering the room, Jacobs seized Scott by the arm and attempted to
turn him around. Scott seized the Indian and threw him against the
wall. Both then drew their knives, and advancing on the prisoner said,
"We kill you now!" The sentinel at the door was not in view, and
Scott, making a spring, seized a sword, which he quickly drew from the
scabbard, and, placing his back against the wall in the narrow hall,
defied his assailants. At this critical moment Captain Coffin, nephew
of General Sheaffe and his aid-de-camp, entered the room and caught
Jacobs by the throat and presented a cocked pistol to his breast. Both
savages now turned on him, and Scott closed in to defend the captain.
At this moment the guard entered, and arrested the two Indians and
conducted them out of the room.
The volunteer officers and men were paroled and sent home, while the
regulars were embarked for Quebec. On the passage to Quebec a priest
of a Caledonian settlement reproached Colonel Scott severely for being
a traitor to George III. Respect for his profession brought out a mild
reply. In 1827, General Scott being at Buffalo on board a Government
steamer, the master of the vessel asked permission to bring into his
cabin a bishop and two priests. The bishop was recognized as the same
prelate who had acted so rudely. General Scott, however, heaped coals
of fire on his head by treating him and his party with the greatest
courtesy.
After a cartel of exchange had been agreed upon, Colonel Scott and the
other regulars, prisoners, were embarked on a vessel for Boston. As
they were about to sail, Colonel Scott's attention was attracted by an
unusual noise on deck. Proceeding from the cabin to the scene of the
disturbance, he found a party of British officers in the act of
separating from the other prisoners such as by confusion or brogue
they judged to be Irishmen. The object was to refuse to parole them,
and send them to England to be tried for high treason. Twenty-three
had been selected and set apart for this purpose.
Colonel Scott learned with indignation that this proceeding was under
the direct orders of Sir George Prevost, the Governor General. He at
once protested, and commanded the remaining men to be silent and
answer no questions. This order was obeyed despite the threats of the
British officers, and none others than the twenty-three were separated
from their comrades. He then addressed the party selected, explaining
the laws of allegiance, and assuring them that the United States
Government would protect them by immediate retaliation, and, if
necessary, by an order to give no quarter hereafter in battle. He was
frequently interrupted by the British officers, but they failed to
silence him. The Irishmen were put in irons, placed on board a
frigate, and sent to England. After Colonel Scott landed in Boston he
proceeded to Washington and was duly exchanged. He at once addressed a
letter to the Secretary of War as follows:
"SIR: I think it my duty to lay before the Department that
on the arrival at Quebec of the American prisoners of war
surrendered at Queenstown they were mustered and examined by British
officers appointed to that duty, and every native-born of the United
Kingdom of Great-Britain and Ireland sequestered and sent on board a
ship of war then in the harbor. The vessel in a few days thereafter
sailed for England with these persons on board. Between fifteen and
twenty persons were thus taken from us, natives of Ireland, several
of whom were known by their platoon officers to be naturalized
citizens of the United States, and others to have been long
residents within the same. One in particular, whose name has escaped
me, besides having complied with all the conditions of our
naturalization laws, was represented by his officers to have left a
wife and five children, all of them born within the State of New
York.
"I distinctly understood, as well from the officers who came on
board the prison ship for the above purposes as from others with
whom I remonstrated on this subject, that it was the determination
of the British Government, as expressed through Sir George Prevost,
to punish every man whom it might subject to its power found in arms
against the British king contrary to his native allegiance. I have
the honor to be, sir,
"Your most obedient servant,
"WINFIELD SCOTT,
"_Lieutenant Colonel, Second U.S. Artillery_."
This report was forwarded by the Secretary of War to both houses of
Congress, and the immediate result was that Congress, on March 3,
1813, passed an act of retaliation. In May, 1813, at the battle of
Fort George, a number of prisoners were captured. Colonel Scott, being
then chief of staff, selected twenty-three to be confined and held as
hostages. He was careful, however, to entirely exclude Irishmen from
the number. Eventually the twenty-three men sent to England were
released, and Scott took great interest in securing their arrearages
of pay and patents for their land bounties.
The doctrine of perpetual allegiance had always been maintained by the
British Government, and examples were numerous of the arrest or
detention of prisoners claimed as British subjects. After this act of
Colonel Scott no other prisoners were set apart by the British to be
tried for treason.
These transactions gave rise to discussion of the question throughout
the country and in both houses of Congress. President Madison, and Mr.
Monroe as Secretary of State, took strong ground against the British
claim. While subsequent treaties were silent on the question, the
right is no longer asserted by Great Britain, and has been recognized
by treaty. Colonel Scott then returned to Washington.
CHAPTER II.
Scott ordered to Philadelphia--Appointed adjutant general with the
rank of colonel--Becomes chief of staff to General Dearborn--Death
of General Pike--Leads the advance on Fort Niagara--Anecdote of
Scott and a British colonel--Commands the expedition to
Burlington Heights--March for Sackett's Harbor--Meets a force at
Cornwall--Retreat of Wilkinson--Scott appointed brigadier
general--Attack on and surrender of Fort Erie--Battle of
Chippewa--Lundy's Lane and wounding of Scott--Retreat of the army to
Black Rock--Fort Erie--Visits Europe.
From Washington Colonel Scott was ordered to Philadelphia to take
command of another battalion of his regiment. In March, 1813, he was
appointed adjutant general with the rank of colonel, and about the
same time promoted to the colonelcy of his regiment. Notwithstanding
his command of the regiment, he continued to perform staff duties. At
this time General Dearborn was in command of the American forces at
Fort Niagara, consisting of about five thousand men. In May, Colonel
Scott, with his regiment, joined General Dearborn, and Scott became
chief of staff. He first organized the service among all the staff
departments, several of which were entirely new, and others disused in
the United States since the Revolutionary War. On the British side of
the Niagara was Fort George, situated on a peninsula and occupied by
British troops. Just previous to Colonel Scott's arrival at Niagara
an expedition was landed from the squadron of Commodore Chauncey,
commanded by General Zebulon Montgomery Pike, for the capture of York,
the capital of Upper Canada. The assault was successful, and the place
was taken with a large number of prisoners and valuable stores.
General Pike was killed by the explosion of a magazine. Animated by
the success of General Pike's expedition, General Dearborn determined
to make an assault on Fort George, having the co-operation of
Commodore Chauncey and his naval force. Arrangements were made for an
attack on May 20th. Colonel Scott asked permission to join the
expedition in command of his own regiment, which was granted.
The fleet weighed anchor at three o'clock in the morning, and by four
the troops were all aboard. The place of embarkation was three miles
east of Fort Niagara, and was made in six divisions of boats. Colonel
Scott led the advance guard, at his special request, composed of his
own regiment and a smaller one under Lieutenant-Colonel George
McFeely. He was followed by General Moses Porter having the field
train, then the brigades of Generals John Parker Boyd, William Henry
Winder, and John Chandler, with the reserve under the able Colonel
Alexander Macomb.
Commodore Isaac Chauncey had directed the anchorage of his schooners
close to the shore in order to protect the troops in landing, and to
open fire at any point on the shore where the enemy were suspected to
be. Lieutenant Oliver Hazard Perry joined Commodore Chauncey on the
evening of the 25th, and volunteered his services in assisting in the
debarkation of the troops. This service required the greatest
coolness and skill, as the wind was blowing strong and the current
running rapidly; the vessels were difficult to manage, especially as
they were under almost constant fire of the British guns. Perry
accompanied Scott through the surf, and rendered valuable service. He
it was who as Commodore Perry soon after became known to the world as
the hero of Lake Erie.
The landing was effected on the British shore at nine o'clock in the
morning a short distance from the village of Newark, now known as
Niagara. The line of battle was promptly formed under cover of a bank
ranging from six to twelve feet in height. The line of the enemy was
formed at the top of the bank, consisting of about fifteen hundred
men. The first attempt to ascend was unsuccessful. Scott, in
attempting to scale the bank, received a severe fall, but recovering
himself and rallying his forces, he advanced up the bank and was met
by the enemy's bayonets. The British fell back and reformed under
cover of a ravine, but a vigorous assault of less than half an hour
put them in a complete rout. These forces were assisted by Porter's
artillery and Boyd with a portion of his command, who had landed soon
after the advance forces. The enemy were pursued to the village, where
the Americans were re-enforced by the command of Colonel James Miller.
It was learned from some prisoners that the British garrison was about
to abandon Fort George and preparing to blow up the works. Two
companies were dispatched toward the fort, but on nearing it one of
the magazines exploded, and a piece of timber striking Colonel Scott,
threw him from his horse, resulting in a broken collar bone.
Recovering himself, he caused the gate to be forced, entered the fort,
and with his own hands pulled down the British flag. The fort had
suffered great damage from the artillery fire directed against it from
the opposite shore. The enemy were pursued for five miles, when an
order from General Morgan Lewis recalled Scott when he was in the
midst of the stragglers from the British forces. The American loss was
seventeen killed and forty-five wounded, and that of the British
ninety killed, one hundred and sixty wounded, and over one hundred
prisoners.
It will be remembered that about a year before Colonel Scott was for a
short time a prisoner at Queenstown. Dining one evening with General
Sheaffe and several other British officers, one of them asked him if
he had ever seen the falls of Niagara. He replied, "Yes, from the
American side." To this the officer replied, "You must have the glory
of a successful fight before you can view the cataract in all its
grandeur." Scott replied, "If it be your purpose to insult me, sir,
honor should have prompted you first to return my sword." General
Sheaffe rebuked the officer, and the matter ended.
This same colonel was severely wounded and captured at Fort George.
Colonel Scott showed him every attention and had his wants promptly
supplied. On visiting him one day the British officer said to him: "I
have long owed you an apology, sir. You have overwhelmed me with
kindness. You now, sir, at your leisure, can view the falls in all
their glory."
Within two days, after the capture of Fort George a body of some nine
hundred British troops under command of Sir George Prevost, Governor
General of Canada, landed at Sackett's Harbor, New York, for the
purpose of destroying the stores and a vessel there on the stocks.
General Jacob Brown, who subsequently came to the command of the
United States army, hastily gathered a body of militia, attacked and
drove the enemy back to their vessels, and saved the stores. On June
6th, General Winder, with about eight hundred men, had been
re-enforced at Stoney Creek by a small force under General Chandler.
They were in pursuit of the British forces who had escaped from Fort
George under command of General Vincent. He determined not to await
the attack of the Americans, but to attack himself. He moved out at
night and attacked the center of the American line, which he succeeded
in breaking, and captured both Generals Winder and Chandler; but the
enemy was at last driven back, and a council of war decided on a
retreat. Coming close on this disaster, Colonel Charles G. Boerstler,
with a command of six hundred men, had been sent forward to capture
the Stone House, seventeen miles from Fort George. The British force
was much larger than Boerstler's, and on June 24th he was completely
surrounded and forced to surrender. For some three months the main
body of the army had remained inactive. Colonel Scott during the
happening of the occurrences just related had been engaged in foraging
expeditions for the supply of the army. These expeditions also
resulted in combats between the opposing forces, in all of which Scott
was successful. In July, 1813, he resigned the office of adjutant
general and was assigned to the command of twenty companies, or what
was known as a double regiment.
Burlington Heights, on Lake Ontario, was supposed to be the depot of
military stores for the British, and in September an expedition was
fitted out under Scott's command to capture it; but no stores being
found there, he marched toward York, now called Toronto, where a large
quantity of stores were taken and the barracks and storehouses burned.
General Wilkinson being now in command of the army, a campaign was
inaugurated for the capture of Kingston and Montreal. Kingston was an
important port, and Montreal the chief commercial town of Lower
Canada.
Wilkinson was ordered to concentrate at Sackett's Harbor early in
October. General Wade Hampton was ordered to join him from northern
New York. Wilkinson embarked on October 2d, and Scott was left in
command of Fort George with some eight hundred regulars and part of a
regiment of militia under Colonel Joseph Gardner Swift. Under
directions of Captain Totten, of the engineers, work was rapidly
advanced in placing the fort in tenable condition; but the work was
not completed before October 9th, when, to Scott's surprise, the enemy
near him moved down toward Wilkinson. As authorized by his orders,
Colonel Scott turned the command of the fort over to Brigadier-General
McLure, of the New York militia. It was arranged that Scott was to
join Wilkinson, and that vessels for his transportation should be sent
up to the mouth of the Genesee River.
On his arrival there he received information that Commodore Chauncey,
commanding the fleet, had been detained by the protest of General
Wilkinson against his leaving him, even for a few days. Scott was
then compelled to undertake the long march for Sackett's Harbor by way
of Rochester, Canandaigua, and Utica. The march was accomplished under
many difficulties and with much suffering, as it rained almost
incessantly, and the roads were in the worst of conditions. On his
arrival in advance of his troops, he was appointed to the command of a
battalion under Colonel Macomb. Being in command of the advance of the
army in the descent of the St. Lawrence, he was not present at the
engagement at Chrysler's Farm on November 11th. At that time, in
conjunction with Colonel Dennis, he was forcing a passage near
Cornwall, under fire of a British force, which he routed, and captured
many prisoners.
The day before the occurrence of the affair just mentioned he landed
at Fort Matilda, commanding a narrow place on the river, where he
gained possession of the fort. The expedition which was announced for
the conquest of Canada was, on November 12th, abandoned by its leader
and projector, General Wilkinson, who commanded a retreat. This
occurred when Scott was fifteen miles in advance of Chrysler's Field,
there being no body of British troops between him and Montreal, and
the garrison at the latter place had only four hundred marines and two
hundred sailors.
Wilkinson's defense for his failure was that General Hampton had
refused to join him at St. Regis for fear of lack of provisions and
forage.
After the events just related, Colonel Scott was engaged in preparing
the new levies of troops for the field and arranging for supplies and
transportation for the next campaign.
On March 9, 1814, he was appointed to the rank of brigadier general,
and ordered to join General Jacob Brown, commanding general of the
United States army, then moving toward the Niagara frontier. On the
24th General Brown marched to Sackett's Harbor, where Scott
established a camp of instruction. On assembling of the army at
Buffalo, Scott was assigned to the command of the Ninth, Eleventh, and
Twenty-fifth Regiments of infantry, with a part of the Twenty-second
Regiment and Captain Towson's company of artillery. In addition to
this command there were at this time at Buffalo the commands of
Generals Porter and Eleazer Wheelock Ripley. The whole force was
placed in camp under General Scott's immediate direction. In the
latter part of June General Brown returned to Buffalo, and on the
morning of July 3d Scott's brigade with the artillery of Major Jacobs
Hindman, crossed the river and landed below Fort Erie, while Ripley's
brigade landed a short distance above. Fort Erie was invested,
attacked, and soon surrendered, and on the morning of the 4th Scott's
brigade moved in advance in the direction of Chippewa. He was engaged
for a distance of sixteen miles in a running fight with the British
forces under the Marquis of Tweedale. Toward night the Marquis of
Tweedale crossed the Chippewa River and joined the main army under
General Sir Phineas Riall. Scott then took position on a creek some
two miles from Chippewa. On the east was the Niagara River and the
road to Chippewa, while an the west was a heavy wood. Between the wood
and the river were two streams--the Chippewa and Street's Creek.
General Riall, the British commander, was posted behind the Chippewa,
flanked on one side with a blockhouse and a heavy battery on the
other.
Both of these streams were bridged on the road to Chippewa, the one
over Street's Creek being nearest to Scott, while that over the
Chippewa was nearest to Riall. On the morning of the 5th General Brown
had determined to make the attack, but the enemy, anticipating it,
made the first forward movement, and there were a number of
skirmishes. General Porter, whose command consisted of volunteers,
militia, and friendly Indians, first engaged the British and drove
them back through the woods. General Riall at this moment was seen
advancing with the main body of his army, and the retreating troops
rallied, attacking Porter furiously, and, despite his own coolness and
gallantry, his troops gave way and fled. This was about four o'clock,
and General Brown, being with Porter, saw the advance of the British
force, and meeting General Scott, said to him, "The enemy is
advancing." General Brown then moved to the rear and ordered the
advance of Ripley's brigade. The British army was composed of the One
Hundredth Regiment, under the Marquis of Tweedale, the First Royal
Scots, under Lieutenant-Colonel Gordon, a portion of the Eighth or
King's Regiment, a detachment of the Royal Artillery, a detachment of
the Royal Nineteenth Light Dragoons, and some Canadian militia and
Indians. These were supported by a heavy battery of nine guns. Scott
crossed the bridge under fire of this battery, losing a number of men.
After crossing, the commands of Majors Henry Leavenworth and John
McNeil, Jr., formed line in front opposite the center and left of the
enemy. Major Thomas Sidney Jesup moved to the left and advanced to
attack the enemy's right. Towson's battery was on the right, on the
Chippewa road. Seeing that the British lines outflanked him, Scott
ordered the movement of Jesup to the left. The battle now opened,
Jesup holding in check the right wing of the enemy, his position in
the wood concealing him from view. General Scott had now advanced to
within eighty paces of the enemy, and ordering the left flank of
McNeil's battalion formed on the right so that it was oblique to the
enemy's charge and flanking him on the right. Scott called to McNeil's
command, which had no recruits in it: "The enemy say we are good at
long shot, but can not stand the cold iron. I call upon the Eleventh
to give the lie to that slander. Charge!" The charge was made at once,
supported by a corresponding charge of Leavenworth and a flank fire
from Towson's battery. The British broke, and fled in great confusion.
In the meantime Major Jesup, commanding on the left, ordered his men
to advance, which they did, driving the enemy into his intrenchments
across the Chippewa. The British forces engaged were about twenty-one
hundred men, and that of the Americans nineteen hundred. The British
lost in killed, one hundred and thirty-eight; wounded, three hundred
and nineteen; and missing, forty-six. The American loss was sixty
killed, two hundred and forty-eight wounded, and nineteen missing.
General Brown in his official report says: "Brigadier General Scott is
entitled to the highest praise our country can bestow; to him more
than to any other man am I indebted for the victory of July 5th. His
brigade covered itself with glory. Every officer and every man of the
Ninth, Twenty-second, Eleventh, and Twenty-fifth Regiments did his
duty with a zeal and energy worthy of the American character." Two
days after the battle of Chippewa General Scott forced a passage
across the Chippewa, driving the enemy.
[Illustration: NOTE.--The accompanying map indicates the
movements of the troops in the battle of Chippewa. A H show the
position of Majors McNeil and Leavenworth when they made the final
charge. _a_, _a_, _a_, the point to which General Porter drove the
British and Indians. _b_, Street's barn.]
A fort called Messasauga was built after the campaign of 1813 by the
British as a defense to Fort George, and being re-enforced by General
Riall, he moved to Burlington Heights on Lake Ontario. It was General
Brown's intention to capture these forts before beginning further or
more extended operations. With this purpose, he ordered some heavy
guns from Sackett's Harbor; but Commodore Chauncey being sick, and the
enemy having a superior fleet on the lake, the attack on these forts
was abandoned. General Brown then made a feint by moving up the
Niagara and recrossing the Chippewa, with a view to draw the enemy
down and to enable him to obtain supplies from Fort Schlosser. Failing
in this, it was his purpose to send General Scott by the road from
Queenstown and thus force Riall to battle.
On the afternoon of the 25th General Brown received a note from a
militia officer who occupied some posts on the American side of the
Niagara, that a thousand British troops had crossed from Queenstown to
Lewiston, a few miles below the Chippewa. It was thought that the
object of this movement was to capture the American magazines at
Schlosser and cut off supplies from Buffalo. General Brown having
determined to threaten the forts at the mouth of the Niagara, General
Scott's command was put in motion for this purpose. It consisted of
four battalions under Colonel Hugh Brady, and the commands of Majors
Jesup, Leavenworth, and McNeil, Captain Towson's artillery, and
Captain Harris's detachment of cavalry, the whole force aggregating
thirteen hundred men. After a march of two miles some mounted British
officers were discovered on a reconnoitering expedition, their forces
being a short distance off and hidden from view.
General Scott's orders were to march on the forts, as information had
been received that Riall had divided his forces, sending a thousand of
them across the river. He, however, determined to move forward and
give battle. Dispatching Adjutant-General Jones to General Brown with
information that the enemy was in his front, he moved on, and was
astonished to see drawn up in line of battle on Lundy's Lane a larger
force than he had fought at Chippewa; but he determined to give battle
and rely upon re-enforcements being rapidly sent to him. Lieutenant
Richard Douglass was now dispatched to inform General Brown of the
situation. On the night of the 23d Lieutenant-General Sir Gordon
Drummond had arrived at the mouth of the river with re-enforcements.
This was not known to General Brown. Riall had marched down the road
which Scott was to have taken on the 26th, coming by Queenstown, and
had not sent any troops across the Niagara. His re-enforcements were
coming up rapidly. The battle opened late in the afternoon. The
British line, eighteen hundred strong, posted on a ridge in Lundy's
Lane running at right angles with the river, was in front of Scott.
The left of this line was on a road parallel to the river, with a
space grown up with small timber, extending some two hundred yards. He
ordered Major Jesup and Colonel Brady to take advantage of this and
turn the enemy's left from the concealed position which the brushwood
afforded. The other infantry forces had been placed in line with
detachments of cavalry on both sides and held as reserves. The
British, outflanking Scott on the left, made a movement to attack in
flank and fear. This was repelled by Major McNeil with heavy loss.
Jesup had succeeded in his movement, while Brady, Leavenworth, and
Towson were engaged in the front. Jesup had captured General Riall and
a number of other officers far in his front, and then resumed his
line. At nine o'clock the British right was driven back from its
assault on Scott's flank, and his left was turned and cut off. The
center posted on the ridge held its place, supported by nine pieces of
artillery. Another battalion of British troops was on its way as a
re-enforcement, and but a short distance away, when General Brown
arrived on the field, in advance of the reserve. He thus describes in
his report what occurred from the time of his arrival:
"Apprehending that these corps were much exhausted, and knowing that
they had suffered severely, I determined to interpose a new line with
the advancing troops, and thus disengage General Scott and hold his
brigade in reserve. Orders were accordingly given to General Ripley.
The enemy's artillery at this moment occupied a hill which gave him
great advantage and was the key to the whole position. It was
supported by a line of infantry. To secure the victory it was
necessary to carry this with artillery and seize the height.
"The duty was assigned to Colonel Miller. He advanced steadily and
gallantly to his object, and carried the height and the cannon.
General Ripley brought up the Twenty-third (which had faltered) to
his support, and the enemy disappeared from before them. The enemy,
rallying his forces, and, as is believed, having received
re-enforcements, now attempted to drive us from our position and
regain his artillery. Our line was unshaken and the enemy repulsed.
Two other attempts having the same object had the same issue. General
Scott was again engaged in repelling the former of these, and the last
I saw of him on the field of battle he was near the head of his column
and giving to its march a direction that would have placed him on the
enemy's right.... Having been for some time wounded and being a good
deal exhausted by loss of blood, it became my wish to devolve the
command on General Scott and retire from the field; but on inquiry I
had the misfortune to learn that he was disabled by wounds. I
therefore kept my post, and had the satisfaction to see the enemy's
last effort repulsed."
General Brown said to General Miller, when he saw that to win the
battle the artillery on the ridge must be captured, "Sir, can you take
that battery?" He replied, "I will try, sir," and at once moved
forward, conducted by Scott, who was familiar with the ground, and
with his gallant command drove the enemy from its stronghold and
captured the guns.
General Scott, though severely wounded, was not disabled at the time
mentioned in General Brown's report. Having two horses killed under
him, he was at this time on foot, but was finally prostrated by his
two wounds--one in the side, the other in the shoulder. The American
loss was one hundred and seventy-one killed, five hundred and
seventy-two wounded, and one hundred and seventeen prisoners; that of
the British was eighty-four killed, five hundred and fifty-nine
wounded, and two hundred and thirty-five prisoners.
Generals Brown and Scott both being disabled, General Ripley was sent
to bring off the wounded and dead. The captured artillery, owing to
want of horses and harness, was left on the field. The army now fell
back to Chippewa and fortified the place.
It being learned that General Drummond was advancing on Chippewa with
a large force, the place was evacuated and the army retreated to the
ferry near Black Rock. A division was ordered to remain at Fort Erie
and repair the fort, and Brigadier-General Gaines was, by General
Brown's orders, placed in command of the army.
Very soon the British General Drummond appeared in front of Fort Erie
and commenced a regular investment. Cannonading was begun on August
13th and continued at intervals, and on the 15th a heavy British
column assaulted Towson's battery, which was stationed at the
northwest angle of the fort. The assault was repelled by Captain
Towson with the aid of Major Wood, commanding the Twenty-fifth
Regiment. The western angle was then attacked, with a like result. The
British eventually succeeded in obtaining possession of the exterior
bastion of the old fort. Just at this time a number of cartridges in a
building near by exploded, killing many of the British and expelling
them from the fort. The losses in these affairs were: British--killed,
fifty-seven; wounded, three hundred and nine; missing, five hundred
and thirty-nine. American--killed, seventeen; wounded, fifty-six;
missing, eleven.
General Brown resumed command on September 2d, and determined to
attempt to relieve the siege by a sortie on the enemy's works. The
investment had now lasted fifty days, and the British during that time
had erected two batteries and were engaged on a third. The force was
divided into three brigades, two of which were encamped out of range
of the American cannon. At half past 2 P.M. on the 17th the
American troops marched out and the action began. In less than half an
hour the Americans had captured two of the batteries and two
blockhouses. Very soon a third battery was abandoned, the cannon
spiked and dismounted. General Drummond retired on the night of the
21st, and took post in his intrenchments behind the Chippewa. The
British losses in this investment were, in killed, wounded, and
prisoners, nearly a thousand, while the American loss was five hundred
and eleven. Early in November the American army took up winter
quarters in Buffalo, and this brought to a close the war on the
Niagara.
The following statement of the losses on either side in this memorable
campaign is interesting:
--------------------------------------+---------------+---------------
| British loss. | American loss.
--------------------------------------+---------------+---------------
Battle of Chippewa, July 5, 1814 | 507 | 328
Battle of Niagara, July 25, 1814 | 878 | 860
Battle of Fort Erie, August 15, 1814 | 905 | 84
Sortie from Fort Erie, Sept. 17, 1814 | 800 | 511
+---------------+---------------
Total | 3,090 | 1,783
--------------------------------------+---------------+---------------
General Jacob Brown, the commander of this army, became General in
Chief of the United States army March 10, 1821. He died September 24,
1828. General Brown was born in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, May 9,
1775. He was secretary to Alexander Hamilton, where he acquired
military information and experience, and in 1809 was made a colonel
of militia. In 1810 he was promoted brigadier general, and two years
afterward was assigned to the command of the frontier from Oswego to
Lake St. Francis. In July, 1813, he was appointed a brigadier general
in the United States army and placed in command of the Army of Niagara
with the rank of major general. His subsequent career is briefly
mentioned in this work. He received the thanks of Congress, November
3, 1814, and a gold medal, now in possession of his son, General N.W.
Brown, of Washington City.
General Eleazer W. Ripley became a brevet major general, and resigned
in May, 1820. He was a member of the House of Representatives of the
United States Congress (the Twenty-fourth) from Louisiana, and died
March 2, 1839. Hugh Brady became a brigadier general by brevet.
William McRee resigned as colonel in March, 1819; was afterward
surveyor general of Missouri, and died in 1832. Thomas S. Jesup became
quartermaster general of the army with rank of brevet major general.
Henry Leavenworth died a brigadier general by brevet, July 21, 1834.
John McNeil resigned as brigadier general by brevet; was afterward
surveyor of customs at Boston. Jacob Hindman died a colonel, February
17, 1827. Roger Jones was adjutant general of the army, and brigadier
general by brevet.
General Scott's wounds were so severe and painful that it was a long
time before he was fit for duty. In September, 1814, Philadelphia and
Baltimore were so threatened by the enemy that General Scott took
nominal command for the defense of those cities. Everywhere on his
route he received the highest evidences of the love and esteem of the
people. At Princeton, N.J., he had a distinguished reception, and had
conferred on him by the college the degree of Master of Arts. From
Princeton he proceeded to Baltimore, and on October 16, 1814, assumed
command of the Tenth Military District, with headquarters at
Washington.
The treaty of peace was signed December 24, 1814, and ratified by the
Senate, February 17, 1815. He was tendered the appointment of
Secretary of War, but declined on the ground that he was too young.
When his recommendations for colonel and brigadier general were
presented to the President he expressed in both instances the fear
that he was too young. It was in allusion to this that he gave this
reason. He was then requested to act as Secretary until the arrival of
William H. Crawford, at that period Minister to France, and who had
been appointed Secretary of War. He declined this also, in deference
to Generals Jacob Brown and Andrew Jackson. He was engaged for some
time in reducing the army to a peace establishment, which being
completed he was ordered to Europe for professional purposes. He was
also intrusted with certain important and delicate diplomatic
functions relating to the designs of Great Britain on the island of
Cuba, and the revolutionary struggles between certain Spanish
provinces in America.
CHAPTER III.
Is received and entertained by prominent civilians and military men in
Europe--Marries Miss Mayo--Offspring--Thanks of Congress--Thanks of
the Virginia Legislature voted, and also a sword--Controversy with
General Andrew Jackson and correspondence--Prepares general
regulations for the army and militia--Controversy with General Gaines
and the War Department about rank--In command of the Eastern
Division--War with the Sac and Fox Indians--Black Hawk--Cholera breaks
out among the troops.
General Scott received great attention from prominent military men in
Europe. He was also treated with much respect by men of letters and
science. On his return home, in 1816, he was assigned to the command
of the seaboard, and established his headquarters in the city of New
York. On March 11, 1817, he was married to Miss Maria D. Mayo, of
Richmond, Va., daughter of Colonel John Mayo. She was a lady of many
accomplishments and a belle in Virginia society. The issue of this
marriage who lived to maturity were Virginia, who died unmarried;
Cornelia who was married to Colonel Henry L. Scott, General Scott's
adjutant general for many years, and who, dying, left one son,
Winfield Scott, now a resident of Richmond, Va.; Camilla, who married
Gould Hoyt, of New York, and died leaving children; Ella, who married
Carroll McTavish, and has several daughters. She is now (1893) a
resident of Baltimore. Mrs. Scott died June 10, 1862. Two sons and
two daughters died before reaching maturity. Mrs. Scott's remains were
buried by the side of her illustrious husband at West Point.
In November, 1813, Congress passed a joint resolution complimenting
General Scott for his skill and gallantry in the battles of Chippewa
and Niagara and for his uniform good conduct throughout the war, and
directed the striking and presentation to him of a gold medal. This
was presented to him in a speech of great feeling and high compliment
at the Executive Mansion in the presence of the members of the Cabinet
and many other distinguished persons. On July 4, 1831, General Scott
watched the last moments and closed the eyes of President Monroe in
New York city. In February, 1816, the Legislature of Virginia passed a
resolution unanimously returning thanks to General Scott for his
services to his country, and also voted him a sword. This was followed
by like action by the Legislature of New York. In 1815 he was elected
an honorary member of the Society of the Cincinnati.
In April, 1817, General Andrew Jackson issued from Nashville, Tenn.,
an order reciting that "the commanding general considers it due to the
principles of subordination which might and must exist in an army to
prohibit the obedience of any order emanating from the Department of
War to officers of the division who have reported and been assigned to
duty, unless coming through him as the proper organ of communication."
At a dinner party in New York soon after the publication of this order
Governor Clinton desired to know General Scott's opinion of it. He
expressed views in opposition to General Jackson, and added that its
tendency was mutinous. An anonymous writer published the details of
this conversation in a New York paper called the Columbian, and a copy
of it reached General Jackson, who wrote General Scott as follows:
"HEADQUARTERS DIVISION OF THE SOUTH,
"NASHVILLE, _September 17, 1817_.
"SIR: With that candor due the character you have sustained
as a soldier and a man of honor, and with the fairness of the
latter, I address you. Inclosed is a copy of an anonymous letter
postmarked New York, August 14, 1817, together with a publication
taken from the Columbian, which accompanied the letter. I have not
permitted myself for a moment to believe that the conduct ascribed
to you is correct. Candor, however, induces me to lay them before
you, that you may have it in your power to say how far they be
incorrectly stated. If my order has been the subject of your
animadversions, it is believed you will at once admit it, and the
extent to which you may have gone.
"I am, sir, respectfully,
"Your most obedient servant,
"ANDREW JACKSON.
"_General_ W. SCOTT, _U.S. Army_."
General Scott replied to this letter denying the authorship of the
article, and said: " ... I gave it as my opinion that that paper was,
as it respected the future, mutinous in its character and tendency,
and as it respected the past, a reprimand of the commander in chief,
the President of the United States; for although the latter be not
expressly named, it is a principle well understood that the War
Department, without at least his supposed sanction, can not give a
valid command to an ensign.... Even if I belonged to your division I
should not hesitate to repeat to you all that I have said at any time
on this subject if a proper occasion offered; and what is more, I
should expect your approbation, as in my humble judgment refutation is
impossible."
General Jackson replied to this in a very angry manner, and intimating
that General Scott might, if he chose, call him to the field. Scott
replied, and declined to write the challenge, "as his ambition was not
that of Erostratus," intimating that he ruined his only chance of
acquiring distinction by killing a defender of his country.
For years afterward Scott heard reports that General Jackson had made
threats of personal chastisement whenever they should meet. In 1823,
soon after General Jackson took his seat in the United States Senate,
Scott made frequent visits there, and was entitled to the floor.
Wearied at last with this state of things, he addressed General
Jackson as follows:
"WASHINGTON, _December 11, 1823_.
"SIR: One portion of the American community has long
attributed to you the most distinguished magnanimity, and the other
portion the greatest desperation in your resentments.
"Am I to conclude that both are in error? I allude to circumstances
which have transpired between us and which need not here be
repeated, and to the fact that I have now been six days in your
immediate vicinity without having attracted your notice. As this is
the first time in my life that I have been within a hundred miles of
you, and as it is barely possible that you may be ignorant of my
presence, I beg leave to state that I shall not leave the district
before the morning of the 14th inst.
"I have the honor to be, sir,
"Your most obedient servant,
"WINFIELD SCOTT.
"_The Hon._ GENERAL A. JACKSON, _Senator, etc._"
The following answer was promptly returned:
"MRS. O'NEIL'S, _December 11, 1823_.
"SIR: Your letter of to-day has been received. Whether the
world is correct or in error as regards my 'magnanimity' is for the
world to decide. I am satisfied of one fact: that when you shall
know me better you will not be disposed to harbor the opinion that
anything like desperation in resentment attaches to me.
"Your letter is ambiguous, but, concluding from occurrences
heretofore that it was written with friendly views, I take the
liberty of saying to you that whenever you shall feel disposed to
meet me on friendly terms, that disposition will not be met by any
other than a corresponding feeling on my part.
"I have the honor to be, sir,
"Your most obedient servant,
"ANDREW JACKSON.
"_General_ W. SCOTT."
General Scott was gratified at the reply, and called at once on
General Jackson, who received him kindly and graciously, and the next
day he departed for the West. In mentioning these facts General Scott
adds that "it is painful to reflect that so amicable a settlement only
meant with one of the parties a postponement of revenge to a more
convenient season."
This remark is in allusion to Scott's recall from the Indian War in
1836. General Jackson died the 8th of June, 1845, General Scott being
then at West Point. He was president of the Board of Examiners, which
was in session when the news was received. He at once arose, and,
addressing the board of visitors and academic staff, said:
"Ex-President Jackson died at the Hermitage on the 8th inst. The
information is not official, but sufficiently authentic to prompt the
step I am about to take. An event of much moment to the nation has
occurred. A great man has fallen. General Jackson is dead--a great
general, and a great patriot who had filled the highest political
stations in the gift of his countrymen. He is dead. This is not the
place, nor am I the individual, to pronounce a fit eulogy on the
illustrious deceased. National honors will doubtless be prescribed by
the President of the United States; but in the meantime, and in
harmony with the feelings of all who hear me, and particularly with
those of the authorities of this institution, I deem it proper to
suspend the examination of the cadets for the day, and to await the
orders of the Executive of the United States on the subject."
General Scott in his early training had studied the science of war,
using the works of the greatest and best-known authors. He was in his
early life a close student, and when he entered the army was, better
equipped, in the knowledge of the standard authors on the science of
war than most men in the army. In 1821 he prepared a work entitled
General Regulations for the Army, or Military Institutes. This was
the first book published in the United States which could be accepted
as a manual for both the regular troops of the army and the militia.
He had formerly, in 1814-'15, been president of a board of army
officers which compiled a system of infantry tactics, a copy of the
system which he had used in the camp of instruction at Buffalo in
1814. This was revised by another board, of which he was president,
and was published in 1825.
In 1826 a board of army and militia officers was convened by order of
the Secretary of War, of which he was made president, for the purpose
of reporting a plan for the organization and instruction of the
militia of the United States, a system of tactics for the artillery, a
system of cavalry tactics, and a system of infantry and rifle tactics.
The reports on the plan for the organization and instruction of the
militia and that on the system of infantry and rifle tactics were
written wholly by General Scott, and adopted by the board. Under a
resolution of Congress in 1835 there was published a new edition of
infantry tactics prepared by him.
General Scott was one of the pioneers in what is known as the
temperance reform, and preceded Dr. Lyman Beecher in his celebrated
discourses on this subject. In December, 1821, General Scott published
his "Scheme for restricting the use of ardent spirits in the United
States." It was first published in the National Gazette. He did not
take ground for total abstinence, but against the use ardent of
spirits, brandy, rum, and whisky. He was also a member of the society
formed in New York in 1821 "for the prevention of pauperism, vice, and
immorality."
General Scott, in 1823, took great interest in having the sons of
General Paez, of Colombia, South America, admitted as students at the
military academy at West Point, which drew from General Paez letters
of thanks to General Scott and President Monroe.
A very serious controversy arose in 1828 between General Scott and
General Edmund Pendleton Gaines on a question of rank. General Macomb
had been appointed by President Adams major general of the United
States army. There was at that time but one major general, and Scott
held the rank of brevet major general, with an older date than
Macomb's appointment, and he addressed a memorial to Congress claiming
his superiority in rank to Macomb. He argued that from the beginning
of the Revolutionary War down to the time of his appointment brevet
rank was uniformly held to give rank and command, except only in the
body of a regiment, etc.; that there existed in law or in fact no
higher title or grade in the army than that of major general, there
being no such thing as a commander in chief, except the President.
That he [Scott] held a commission as major general, July 25, 1814, of
older date than that of either Generals Macomb or Gaines. Congress did
not pass an act, however, sustaining his claim, and the result was a
construction by the authorities that a brevet appointment did not
confer additional rank.
General Scott, on this decision of Congress, tendered his resignation,
which was not accepted. When he was informed that the President and
others high in authority sustained the action of Congress, he
addressed a letter to Mr. Eaton, the Secretary of War, as follows:
"NEW YORK, _November 10, 1829_.
"SIR: I have seen the President's order of the 13th of
August last, which gives a construction of the sixty-first and
sixty-second articles of war relative to rank or command.
"Humbly protesting that this order deprives me of rights guaranteed
by these articles, and the uniform practice of the army under them,
from the commencement of the Government down to the year 1828, when
the new construction was first adopted against me, in obedience to
the universal advice of my friends, who deem it incumbent on me to
sacrifice my own connections and feelings to what may, by an apt
error, be considered the repeated decision of the civil authority of
my country, I have brought myself to make that sacrifice, and
therefore withdraw the tender of my resignation now on file in your
department.
"I also ask leave to surrender the remainder of the furlough the
department was kind enough to extend to me in April last, and to
report myself for duty. WINFIELD SCOTT.
"_The Hon._ J.H. EATON, _Secretary of War_."
To this the Secretary of War replied:
"WAR DEPARTMENT, _November 13, 1829_.
"SIR: Your letter of the 10th instant is received, and I
take pleasure in saying to you that it affords the department much
satisfaction to perceive the conclusion to which you have arrived as
to your brevet rights. None will do you the injustice to suppose
that the opinions declared by you upon this subject are not the
result of reflections and convictions; but since the constituted
authorities of the Government have, with the best feelings
entertained, come to conclusions adverse to your own, no other
opinion was cherished or was hoped for but that, on your return to
the United States, you would adopt the course your letter indicates,
and with good feelings resume those duties of which she has so long
had the benefit. Agreeably to your request, the furlough heretofore
granted you is revoked from and after the 20th instant. You will
accordingly report to the commanding general, Alexander Macomb, for
duty. J.H. EATON.
"_To Major-General_ WINFIELD SCOTT."
General Scott, on reporting to General Macomb, was assigned to the
command of the Eastern Department, while General Gaines was assigned
to the Western. From the assignment of General Scott to the command of
the Eastern Department, for a period of nearly three years, his duties
were those of an ordinary department commander, with no incidents
necessary to be ingrafted into his biography.
A treaty had been made by the United States Government in 1804 with
the chiefs of the Sac Indians, in which their lands east of the
Mississippi were ceded to the Government, but with the reservation
that so long as they belonged to the Government of the United States
the Indians should have the privilege of occupying and hunting on
them. The Sacs and Foxes were contiguous and friendly tribes, and
their principal village was on a peninsula between the Rock River and
the Mississippi. Their principal chief was known as Black Hawk. The
United States Government in its treaty acquiring the title to these
Indian lands made a guarantee that the Indians should be free from
intrusion from any white settlers.
Their lands were very fertile, and soon white men in large numbers
began to encroach on them, and no adequate steps were taken by the
Government to protect the Indians in their treaty rights. In 1829 the
Government ordered a public sale of lands which included a part of the
Sac village. It was purchased by an Indian trader. This greatly
disturbed the Chief Black Hawk, but he was assured that if the lands
purchased by this agent had not actually been sold to the Government
that the sale would be canceled and the Indian occupants allowed to
remain. Nothing more was done in the matter until in the spring of
1831, when the corn planted by a number of Indians was plowed up by
white settlers, and many annoying trespasses made by the whites upon
the Indian occupants. The Chief Black Hawk then announced to the white
settlers in the village that they must remove. This resulted in a
memorial from some of the white settlers, in May, 1831, to the
Governor of Illinois, stating that the Indians were committing
depredations on them. The Governor called out seven hundred militia to
remove a band of the Sac Indians, and so notified General Gaines.
General Gaines, on May 29th, replied to the Governor that he had
ordered six companies of troops from Jefferson City to Rock Island,
and four other companies from Prairie du Chien, to assist the
Governor's militia in repelling the Indians. When the United States
troops reached Fort Armstrong a conference was held with some of the
Indian chiefs, but with no practical results. On receiving this
information General Gaines called on the Governor of Illinois for
additional forces, and on June 25th Governor Reynolds and General
Joseph Duncan arrived at Rock River with sixteen hundred mounted
militia. The Indians from the Sac village, being informed of this
movement, deserted their homes with their wives and children and
crossed the Mississippi. The next morning General Gaines occupied the
Sac village without opposition.
A treaty was then made (June 30th) by General Gaines and Governor
Reynolds with the Sacs, by which the Indians agreed to take up their
abode west of the Mississippi River. In April, 1832, Chief Black Hawk
and his tribe recrossed the Mississippi, in violation of the treaty
previously made, for the purpose of joining the Winnebagoes and making
a crop of corn and beans.
General Henry Atkinson at this time was in command of Fort Armstrong.
He notified Black Hawk that he must recross the river or be driven
back. The Indians refused to obey the order. Black Hawk endeavored to
enlist some of the Northwestern tribes to join him, but failing to
gain their assent, resolved to recross the Mississippi. He was
encamped with his tribe at a place which the Indians called
Kish-wa-cokee.
Some of the Illinois mounted militia were at Dixon's Ferry, on Rock
River, not far from the Indian encampment. Major Stillman, commanding
some three hundred volunteers, moved from Dixon's Ferry to Sycamore
Creek on a scouting expedition. Black Hawk, being apprised of their
approach, sent three of his young Indians bearing a white flag to meet
them. One of these young Indians was captured and killed. Another
party of five Indians, following the flag-of-truce bearers to assist
in pacific negotiations, were met by the whites and two of them
killed. The Illinois militia moved on and crossed Sycamore Creek.
Black Hawk, who was exasperated at the killing of his men whom he had
sent under flag of truce, advanced with his warriors on May 14th, met
the Illinois militia, engaged and defeated them, and forced them to
recross the creek.
This success greatly encouraged the Indians, but created great alarm
and excitement with the white people of Illinois. Many small battles
took place after this between the whites and Indians, and the war was
brought to a close by the delivery of Black Hawk to the Indian agent,
General Street, August 27th, by two of his followers who betrayed him.
This war created necessarily great excitement and alarm in Illinois.
It was the general expectation that the Winnebagoes and Pottawattomies
would sympathize with Black Hawk, and the result would be a general
Indian war. At this juncture General Scott was ordered to proceed to
Illinois and take command of the forces to bring the Indians into
subjugation. In July, acting under this order, he left Buffalo with
about one thousand troops, destined for Chicago. The general and his
staff, with about two hundred and twenty men, embarked on the
steamboat Sheldon Thompson, and on July 8th it was announced that
several of the soldiers were attacked with Asiatic cholera. The vessel
arrived at the village of Chicago on the 10th with eighty sick men on
board, one officer and fifty-one soldiers having died during the
passage.
The fate of the troops who were embarked in other vessels was even
worse than those on the Thompson. Of the one thousand men who left
Buffalo only about four hundred survived. General Scott gave every
attention to the sick, exposing himself without fear day and night in
seeing to the wants of his men. Leaving Colonel Abram Eustis in
command, he proceeded to join General Atkinson at Prairie du Chien,
which he reached on the 3d of August. The engagement called the Battle
of Bad Axe had been fought before his arrival. He was here again
confronted with the plague of cholera, which had broken out in
Atkinson's command at Rock Island, and he devoted himself to the care
of the sick and the consolation of the dying.
In this connection an extract from the Richmond Enquirer of August 7,
1832, will be of interest:
"LOUISVILLE, _July 27, 1832_.--The following is the latest
official intelligence from Chicago. We are indebted to a commercial
friend for it.--_Advertiser._
"'HEADQUARTERS NORTHWESTERN ARMY,
"'CHICAGO, _July 15, 1832_.
"'SIR: To prevent or to correct the exaggerations of rumor
in respect to the existence of cholera at this place, I address
myself to your Excellency. Four steamers were engaged at Buffalo to
transport United States troops and supplies to Chicago.
"'In the headmost of these boats, the Sheldon Thompson, I, with my
staff and four companies, a part of Colonel Eustis's command,
arrived here on the 8th. All on board were in high health and
spirits, but the next morning six cases of undoubted cholera
presented themselves. The disease rapidly spread itself for the
next three days. About one hundred and twenty persons have been
affected.
"'Under a late act of Congress six companies of rangers are to be
raised and marched to this place. General Dodge, of Michigan, is
appointed major of the battalion, and I have seen the names of the
captains, but I do not know where to address them. I am afraid that
the report from this place in respect to cholera may seriously
retard the raising of this force.
"'I wish, therefore, that your Excellency would give publicity to
the measures I have adopted to prevent the spread of the disease,
and of my determination not to allow any junction or communication
between uninfected and infected troops.
"'The war is not at an end, and may not be brought to a close for
some time. The rangers may reach the theatre of operations in time
to give the final blow. As they approach this place I shall take
care of their health and general wants.
"'I write in great haste, and may not have time to cause my letter
to be copied. It will be put in some post office to be forthwith
forwarded. I have the honor to be
"'Your Excellency's most obedient servant,
"'WINFIELD SCOTT.
"'_His Excellency_, GOVERNOR REYNOLDS.'"
_From the Richmond Enquirer, October 12, 1832._
"In laying the following article before our readers, our own personal
feelings, as well as a just sense of gratitude to a meritorious
officer, prompts us to add that we have known Winfield Scott long and
have known him intimately, and that the conduct here attributed to
him is precisely such as we should have expected, from his ardent
patriotism, his humane disposition, and his distinguished
intelligence."
_From the Illinois Galenian, September 12, 1832._
"GENERAL SCOTT.--Perhaps on no former occasion has a more
arduous and responsible duty been confided to any officer of our
Government than that with which this gentleman has been clothed, in
prosecuting to final issue the savage war upon our borders. And we
hesitate not to say that in our estimation a better selection could
not have been made.
"It might suffice, in justification of this assertion, to instance the
promptitude of his movements to the scene of action, the ease with
which he overcame space, and the facility with which he surmounted all
obstacles opposed to the accomplishment of his object.
"But he had an enemy to encounter far more terrible than Black Hawk
and his adherents--an enemy that bid defiance to military prowess and
baffled all the skill of the tactician.
"That loathsome epidemic, the direful scourge of the Eastern
hemisphere, the cholera, invaded his camp. Here was a new foe that had
never yet been conquered. Victim after victim fell under its ravages.
The general might have retired to some healthy clime, where he would
have been freed from this pestilence, but not while his officers and
men were falling around him; humanity prompted him to remain and
succor a distressed army. During our stay at Rock Island the cholera
commenced its work of death; and seeing the general almost every day,
we had frequent opportunities of witnessing his untiring perseverance
in and constant personal attention to all those duties appertaining to
his official station, the calls of humanity, and the best interests of
the country.
"On the arrival of the companies from Chicago (among whom the cholera
had been severe) they were stationed on an island in Rock River,
several miles from the fort, and all communication prohibited by
special order. Some of his aids, on their way to Rock Island, having
violated this order (without knowing it was given), were immediately
ordered back to Rock River, while the general was left alone to
perform all their respective duties. When a soldier was attacked with
cholera he was the first to render assistance by the application of
friction to the extremities in order to attract the fluids from the
large internal vessels to the surface of the body. At the bake-house
we found him one day giving instructions how to make the most
wholesome bread, and on the next day we beheld one of his bakers
consigned to the tomb. And if we follow him on, we next find him
instructing those employed in the culinary art, so cautious is he
about everything that his men eat and drink. And in order to insure
temperance among the soldiers, he issued an order requiring every man
found drunk to dig a grave.
"In his orders he was bound to be severe, and in their enforcement he
was equally rigid. His whole soul seemed to be devoted to the benefit
of his army.
"On one occasion he observed that his own honor, the duty he owed his
country and his fellow-men, required his personal attention at his
post, and also the severity of his orders. And if, in attending to
his duties, he should be so unfortunate as to lose his life, the army
could get along as well without him, but he could not get along
without an army. Thus, with Roman firmness and a disinterested
devotion of life to his country, has he remained at his post of duty.
Such conduct deserves the highest praise, and we feel confident that
it will be awarded by a grateful and virtuous community."
The cholera having subsided by the middle of September, negotiations
were opened with the various Indian tribes at Rock Island. General
Scott and Governor Reynolds were the commissioners on the part of the
United States to make treaties with the Sacs, Foxes, Winnebagoes,
Sioux, and Menomonees. The leading man among the Indians was
Ke-o-Kuck, a Sac chief, who was of commanding appearance, eloquent in
speech, and a brave warrior. He was not, however, a hereditary chief,
and for this reason his tribe deposed him; but on General Scott's
request he was again replaced as chief. General Scott conducted the
negotiations in the way of speech-making at the request of his
associate, Governor Reynolds. The speeches of Scott and those of the
Indian chiefs were taken down by Captain Richard Bache, of the army,
and are to be found in the archives of the War Department at
Washington.
The result of the treaties was the cession to the United States by the
Sacs and Foxes of about six million acres of land, the greater part of
which is now included in the State of Iowa; and the United States gave
in consideration of this cession a reservation of nearly four hundred
square miles, on the Iowa River, to Ke-o-Kuck and his band, and agreed
to pay the Indians an annuity of twenty thousand dollars per annum
for thirty years to pay the debts of the tribe, and to employ a
blacksmith and a gunsmith for them. The treaty also provided for ample
space for hunting, and planting-grounds for the Indians and their
posterity. A similar treaty was made with the other Indians. General
Scott, on his return to Washington, was complimented by General Cass,
the Secretary of War, "upon the fortunate consummation of his arduous
duties," and he expressed his entire approbation of the whole course
of his proceedings during a series of difficulties requiring higher
moral courage than the operations of an active campaign under ordinary
circumstances.
CHAPTER IV.
Troubles in South Carolina growing out of the tariff acts apprehended,
and General Scott sent South--Action of the nullifiers--Instructions
in case of an outbreak--Action of the South Carolina Legislature.
On the conclusion of the treaties with the Indian tribes, mentioned in
the preceding chapter, General Scott went to New York, where he
arrived in October, 1832. A few days after his arrival he received an
order to proceed to Washington.
The passage of the tariff act of 1828 had produced great excitement in
several of the Southern States, but especially in South Carolina. By
this act the duties on foreign goods imported into this country were
raised much higher than by any previous tariff. It was passed for the
protection of American manufactures, of which at that time none were
in the South, but all, or nearly all, in the New England States.
The cotton planters of South Carolina opposed and resisted it on the
ground that it was not only in violation of the Constitution of the
United States, but injurious to their interests, and in the interest
of other States as opposed to theirs. They argued, as it is now
argued, that a tariff is a tax, and that this tariff discriminated in
favor of certain portions of the country as against other portions,
and that therefore it unquestionably violated the fundamental law of
the land.
This tariff act was passed on May 15, 1828, and on the 12th of June
following the citizens of Colleton District, South Carolina, met at
the courthouse in Walterborough and adopted an address to the people.
Among other things this address stated: "For it is not enough that
imposts laid for protection of domestic manufactures are oppressive,
and transfer in their operation millions of our property to Northern
capitalists. If we have given our bond, let them take our blood. Those
who resist these imposts must deem them unconstitutional, and the
principle is abandoned by the payment of one cent--as much as ten
millions." The address assumed "open resistance to the laws of the
Union."
Governor Taylor was asked to convene the Legislature. He declined to
take action on the request of the Colleton meeting, on the ground that
"the time of great public excitement is not a time propitious for cool
deliberation or wise determination."
George McDuffie, a member of the House of Representatives in Congress
from South Carolina, and a man of high character and great ability,
was the leading spirit in the opposition to this tariff and resistance
to its enforcement. At a dinner in Columbia, S.C., he recommended that
the State fix a tax on Northern manufactured goods, and proposed as a
toast "Millions for defense, but not a cent for tribute." In the
district of St. Helena, S.C., a public meeting was held at which this
resolution was adopted:
"_Resolved_, That, differing from those of our fellow-citizens who
look to home production, or more consumption of the fabrics of the
tariff States as a relief from our present burdens, we perceive in
these expedients rather an ill-judged wasting of the public energy and
diversion of the public mind than an adequate remedy for the true
evil, the usurping of Congress, which (since that body will never
construe down its own powers) can be checked, in our opinion, only by
the action of States opposed to such usurpation."
The reference to "expedients, rather an ill-judged wasting of the
public energy," was to the action of certain meetings in South
Carolina where it was resolved to wear only their own manufactures,
and abstain wholly from those made north of the Potomac. The
supporters of nullification defended themselves on constitutional
grounds and on the Kentucky and Virginia resolutions of 1798. Congress
revised the tariff in May, 1832, modifying some of the duties imposed
by the act of 1828. In October, 1832, the Legislature of South
Carolina passed an act providing for the calling of a convention of
the people of the State.
The object of the convention was "to take into consideration the
several acts of the Congress of the United States imposing duties on
foreign imports, for the protection of domestic manufactures or for
other unauthorized objects; to determine on the character thereof, and
to devise the means of redress."
The convention authorized under this act assembled on November 19,
1832. An ordinance was passed to provide for arresting the operations
of certain acts of Congress of the United States, purporting to be
taxes laying duties and imposts on the importation of foreign
commodities. On its final passage the word "arresting" was stricken
out and the word "nullifying" substituted in its place.
The substance of this ordinance was to interdict the action of the
courts, and to require all officers to take an oath to obey the
ordinance and the laws passed to give it effect. It also declared that
the tariff acts of 1828 and 1832 were null, void, and not binding on
the State, its officers or citizens. It further declared it to be
unlawful for any of the constituted authorities of the State or of the
United States to enforce the payment of the duties imposed by the act
within the limits of the State of South Carolina. Other provisions
were that no case of law or equity decided in South Carolina, in which
was involved the question of the validity of the ordinance of the
South Carolina convention, or any act of its Legislature to give it
effect, should be appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States,
or be regarded if appealed; and that, if the General Government should
employ force to carry these acts into effect, or endeavor to coerce
the State by closing its ports, South Carolina would consider the
Union dissolved, and would proceed to organize a separate government.
A union convention was called in South Carolina to endeavor to
suppress the movement inaugurated by the ordinance of the recent
convention.
The States of Alabama, Tennessee, and Georgia--the first through its
Governor, Gayle, and the latter by resolutions of their
Legislatures--took strong anti-nullification grounds. On December 10th
President Andrew Jackson issued his famous proclamation exhorting all
persons to obey the laws, and denouncing the South Carolina ordinance.
He said in this proclamation: "I consider, then, the power to annul a
law of the United States, assumed by one State, incompatible with the
existence of the Union, contradicted expressly by the letter of the
Constitution, unauthorized by its spirit, inconsistent with every
principle on which it was founded, and destructive of the great object
for which it was formed."
"This, then, is the position in which we stand. A small majority of
the citizens of one State in the Union have elected delegates to a
State convention. That convention has ordained that all the revenue
laws of the United States must be repealed, or that they are no longer
a member of the Union. The Governor of that State has recommended to
the Legislature the raising of an army to carry the secession into
effect, and that he may be empowered to give clearance to vessels in
the name of the State. No act of violent opposition to the laws has
yet been committed, but such a state of things is hourly apprehended;
and it is the intent of this instrument to proclaim not only that the
duty imposed on me by the Constitution--'to take care that the laws be
faithfully executed'--shall be performed to the extent of the powers
already vested in me by law, or of such other as the wisdom of
Congress shall devise and intrust to me for that purpose, but to warn
the citizens of South Carolina, who have been deluded into an
opposition to the laws, of the danger they will incur by obedience to
the illegal and disorganizing ordinance of the convention; to exhort
those who have refused to support it to persevere in their
determination to uphold the Constitution and laws of their country,
and to point out to all the perilous situation into which the good
people of that State have been led; and that the course they are
urged to pursue is one of ruin and disgrace to the very State whose
rights they affect to support."
This proclamation, of which the foregoing are extracts, was signed on
December 10, 1832. The ordinance adopted by the convention of South
Carolina was passed November 24th; and the Legislature of South
Carolina, which had formulated laws necessary to carry out the
ordinance, adjourned on December 21st.
President Jackson, in anticipation of the troubles likely to arise,
had, as early as October 29th, directed General Macomb to issue an
order to Major Heileman, commanding the United States troops at
Charleston, stating that "it is deemed necessary that the officers in
the harbor of Charleston should be advised of the possibility of
attempts being made to surprise, seize, and occupy the forts committed
to them. You are therefore especially charged to use your utmost
vigilance in counteracting such attempts. You will call personally on
the commanders of Castle Pinckney and Fort Moultrie, and instruct them
to be vigilant to prevent surprise in the night or day on the part of
any set of people whatever who may approach the forts with a view to
seize and occupy them. You will warn the said officers that such an
event is apprehended, and that they will be held responsible for the
defense, to the last extremity, of the forts and garrisons under their
respective commands, against any assault, and also against intrigue
and surprise.
"The attempt to surprise the forts and garrisons, it is expected, will
be made by the militia, and it must be guarded against by constant
vigilance, and repulsed at every hazard. These instructions you will
be careful not to show to any persons other than the commanding
officers of Castle Pinckney and Fort Moultrie."
Two companies of artillery were ordered to Fort Moultrie on November
7th, and on the 12th General Macomb directed Major Julius Frederick
Heileman that a building called "The Citadel," in Charleston, and
which was the property of the State of South Carolina, should, with
its State arms, be delivered up if demanded by the State authorities.
He was further instructed to act in this matter with the greatest
courtesy; but should he be attacked, he must make a stubborn defense.
This was the state of affairs in South Carolina at the time stated. On
November 18th, President Jackson, after a conference with General
Scott, ordered him on a confidential or secret order to Charleston.
The order was, of course, issued from the War Department by direction
of the President, and the main points of it are as follows:
" ... The possibility of such a measure furnishes sufficient reason
for guarding against it, and the President is therefore anxious that
the situation and means of defense of these fortifications should be
inspected by an officer of experience, who could also estimate and
provide for any dangers to which they may be exposed. He has full
confidence in your judgment and discretion, and it is his wish that
you repair immediately to Charleston and examine everything
connected with the fortifications. You are at liberty to take such
measures either by strengthening these defenses or by re-enforcing
these garrisons with troops drawn from any other posts, as you may
think prudence and a just precaution require.
"Your duty will be one of great importance and of great delicacy.
You will consult fully and freely with the collector of the port of
Charleston, and you will take no step, except what relates to the
immediate defense and security of the posts, without their order and
concurrence. The execution of the laws will be enforced through the
civil authority and by the method pointed out by the acts of
Congress. Should, unfortunately, a crisis arise when the ordinary
power in the hands of the civil officers shall not be sufficient for
this purpose, the President shall determine the course to be taken
and the measures adopted. Till, therefore, you are otherwise
instructed, you will act in obedience to the legal requisitions of
the proper civil officers of the United States.
"I will thank you to communicate to me freely and confidentially
upon every topic upon which you may deem it important for the
Government to receive information.
"Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
"LEWIS CASS."
General Scott, acting in obedience to these orders, arrived in
Charleston November 28th, two days after the passage of the ordinance.
He found, on his arrival and after conferring with many of the leading
people, that the sentiment in regard to the action of the convention
was divided, there seeming to be as many persons in opposition as
those who favored it.
His arrival created no special notice, as he had been in the habit of
visiting Charleston about this time of year in discharge of his
duties as inspector. It should be added to what has been said in
regard to his conference with President Jackson before leaving
Washington, that the President announced to him in the most emphatic
terms that "the Union must and shall be preserved." On asking General
Scott for any suggestions he had to make, the general told the
President that Fort Moultrie, Castle Pinckney, and the arsenal at
Augusta should be strongly garrisoned. He also advised that a number
of troops, sloops of war, and revenue cutters would be needed at
Charleston to enforce the collection of duties on foreign
importations. The President said to him: "Proceed at once and execute
those views. You have my _carte blanche_ in respect to troops; the
vessels shall be there, and written instructions will follow you."
The President at this interview invited General Scott to remain and
take supper with him. He declined, on the ground that he desired to
call on his friend ex-President Adams before leaving. To this
President Jackson replied, "That's right; never forget a friend."
On his journey he met with an accident and sprained his ankle. This
turned out a fortunate thing, for it enabled him to delay so as to
spend needed time in Charleston, Savannah, and Augusta without
exciting any suspicion of the real object of his visit. Had it been
known that he was there to make preparations for defense and to
strengthen the garrisons, it would have excited the populace who
sustained the action of the convention, and might have resulted in
open hostilities. He visited Fort Moultrie and Castle Pinckney, and
gave oral confidential orders to enlarge and strengthen both places.
Orders were also sent for re-enforcements in single companies, which
excited no alarm. These important matters being accomplished, he went
to Savannah and posed as a sick man, for the reason that an early
return to Fort Moultrie might have excited alarm. In the latter part
of January he returned by sea to Fort Moultrie, but his presence there
was unknown to all outside of the fort.
In the meantime the leaders of nullification had, at a large meeting,
agreed that no attempt to execute the ordinance should be undertaken
before the adjournment of Congress on March 3d following. The
Legislature of South Carolina, at its meeting in December, had passed
laws for the raising of troops and providing money for the purchase of
arms and ammunition, and many organizations of volunteers had been
formed wearing the palmetto cockade and buttons. A very decided and
unexpected rebuff was given by the Court of Appeals of South Carolina,
which decided, in the case of State _vs._ Hunt (2 Hills, S.C.
Reports), that the ordinance which required the citizens of South
Carolina to take a test oath of exclusive allegiance to the State was
unconstitutional. It is a curious piece of history that the palmetto
buttons worn by the volunteer nullifiers were manufactured in
Connecticut.
There was in Charleston, as in other parts of the State, a very large
number of Unionists. Both parties in Charleston held frequent
meetings, and it was with great difficulty that riots or encounters
between the two were prevented.
The officers of the army and navy at and near Charleston during these
perilous times showed great prudence. Their first public display was
the celebration of Washington's birthday; but the most intense
nullifier could raise no objection to this. During these exciting
times a fire broke out in the city of Charleston, and General Scott,
being one of the first to observe it, called for volunteers and went
to the scene, and, with the assistance of the naval volunteers and men
of the army, succeeded in extinguishing the fire. This act of General
Scott, seconded by army and navy men, had much to do with quieting the
intense political excitement in Charleston.
In the latter part of January, 1833, the General Assembly of Virginia
passed a resolution asking Congress to modify the tariff, and also to
appoint a commissioner to South Carolina and endeavor to conciliate
that State. The commissioner appointed was Benjamin Watkins Leigh. On
his request, Mr. James Hamilton, president of the South Carolina
convention, called it to assemble, when it rescinded the ordinance,
the troops which had been called were disbanded, and the whole State
and country were happily relieved of an impending internecine war.
Congress had passed the compromise act, and the United States troops
and vessels which had been sent to Charleston were withdrawn, and
peace and quiet again dawned on the lately excited city.
Mr. Leigh, the Commissioner of Virginia to South Carolina, says of
General Scott's part of that historic period: ... "General Scott had a
large acquaintance with the people of Charleston; he was their friend;
but his situation was such that many of the people--the great majority
of them--looked upon him as a public enemy.... He thought, as I
thought, that the first drop of blood shed in civil war--in civil war
between the United States and one of the States--would prove an
immedicable wound, which would end in a change of our institutions. He
was resolved, if possible, to prevent a resort to arms, and nothing
could have been more judicious than his conduct. Far from being prone
to take offense, he kept his temper under the strictest guard, and was
most careful to avoid giving occasion for offense; yet he held himself
ready to act if it should become necessary, and he let it be known
that he strictly understood the situation. He sought the society of
the leading nullifiers, and was in their company as much as they would
let him be, but he took care never to say a word to them on the
subject of political differences; he treated them as friends. From the
beginning to the end his conduct was as conciliatory as it was firm
and sincere, evincing that he knew his duty and was resolved to
perform it, and yet his principal object and purpose was peace. He was
perfectly successful, when the least imprudence might have resulted in
a serious collision."
CHAPTER V.
Events that led to the war in Florida--Treaty of Camp Moultrie and its
stipulations--Complaints of Indians and whites--Treaty of Payne's
Landing--Objections of the Indians to complying with the latter
treaty--Councils and talks with the Seminoles--Assiola--Murder
of mail carrier Dalton--Murder of Charley Amathla--Dade's
massacre--Murder of General Thompson and others--General
Clinch--Depredations by the Indians on the whites and by the
latter on the Indians--Volunteers--Military departments of Gaines
and Scott.
It is proper to give as brief a _résumé_ as the subject will permit of
the events that led to the outbreak of hostilities in Florida.
General Jackson, when Governor of Florida in 1821, urged upon the
Government the necessity of adopting measures to send back to their
own reservations the large number of Creek Indians who had left their
nation and settled with other tribes in Florida. He argued that this
was an encroachment by the Creeks, and that an increase of Indians in
this territory would lead to unhappy results. Colonel Joseph M. White,
the delegate from the territory of Florida, fully concurred with
General Jackson in this view, and so informed the Secretary of War.
The Government, disregarding these wise suggestions, entered into a
treaty with the Florida Indians, September 18, 1823, at Camp Moultrie,
stipulating for their continued residence in the territory for twenty
years. They were by this treaty established in the heart of the
country, and their claims to the lands acknowledged and guaranteed.
The treaty provided, among other things, that the Seminole Indians
should relinquish all their claim to lands in Florida except a tract
estimated to contain some five millions of acres, within the limits of
which they agreed to abide.
The Government of the United States agreed to pay to the Indians two
thousand dollars to aid them in removal to the new reservation, to
furnish them with certain articles of husbandry and stock to the
amount of six thousand dollars, to furnish them with corn, meat, and
salt for one year, to pay them forty-five hundred dollars for their
improvements on their surrendered lands, to allow them one thousand
dollars per annum for a blacksmith and one thousand dollars per annum
for a school fund, and these last two allowances to extend during the
term of the treaty. Complaints were made by the whites, and counter
complaints by the Indians, of depredations, but the preponderance of
testimony is that the whites were the principal aggressors. These
Indians were slave-holders, having a number of negroes held in
slavery by the same tenure that slaves were held by the whites in
Florida. The whites commenced and carried on a systematic and
continued robbery of the slaves and cattle belonging to the Indians,
sending them to Mobile for sale. A protest was made by the inhabitants
of ten of the Seminole towns, complaining in substance that the white
people had carried all their cattle off; that the white men first
commenced to steal from them; that within three years six Indians had
been killed by the whites, admitting that the Indians had taken
satisfaction, but were not even on that score by three.
Complaints from whites of Indian depredations and counter complaints
from the Indians became so frequent that the President determined to
endeavor to make a new treaty, abrogating that of Camp Moultrie. For
this purpose Colonel James Gadsden, of Florida, was appointed a
commissioner to carry out this purpose. The Indians, by invitation,
assembled at Payne's Landing, on the Ocklawaha River, on May 8, 1832.
The points agreed upon were that the Seminole Indians relinquish their
claim to the tract of land reserved for them by the second article of
the Camp Moultrie treaty, containing four million thirty-two thousand
six hundred and forty acres, and to remove west of the Mississippi
River and there become a constituent part of the Creeks.
The United States engaged to pay the Seminoles fifteen thousand four
hundred dollars as a consideration for the improvements on the lands
which they abandoned, and a further sum of two hundred dollars each to
two negroes, Abraham and Cudjoe, each Indian to be furnished with a
blanket and homespun frock, and a sufficient quantity of corn, meat,
and salt for one year's support after arriving in the new reservation.
Two blacksmiths, at one thousand dollars a year, were agreed to be
furnished for a period of ten years, and an annuity of three thousand
dollars for fifteen years to be paid after their arrival in the West;
which sum, together with the four thousand dollars stipulated for in
the Camp Moultrie treaty, making seven thousand dollars per annum, was
to be paid to the Creek nation with their annuities.
In order to relieve the Seminoles from vexatious demands on them for
their slaves and other property, the United States stipulated to have
the matter investigated, and to liquidate such as were satisfactory,
provided the amount did not exceed seven thousand dollars. This treaty
was executed on May 9, 1832, and signed by Holata Amathla and fourteen
other chiefs. Seven of the chiefs were deputed to visit and explore
the new country, accompanied by their interpreter and by Major John
Fagan, formerly Indian agent in Florida. The delegation reported their
approval of the country, and the ratification on the part of the
Indians was made by seven of the chiefs at Fort Gibson, La.
This ratification by the seven chiefs was in excess of their
authority, as they were only authorized to examine the country and
report the result of their mission to a general council of the nation,
which was to be convened on their return.
Colonel Gadsden, the commissioner on the part of the United States,
addressed a letter to the Secretary of War, in which he said: "There
is a condition prefixed to the agreement without assenting to which
the Florida Indians most positively refused to negotiate for their
removal west of the Mississippi. Even with the condition annexed,
there was a reluctance, which with some difficulty was overcome, on
the part of the Indians to bind themselves by any stipulations before
a knowledge of the facts and circumstances would enable them to judge
of the advantages or disadvantages of the disposition the Government
of the United States wished to make of them. They were finally
induced, however, to assent to the agreement....
"The payment for property alleged to have been plundered was the
subject most pressed by the Indians, and in yielding to their wishes
on this head a limitation has been fixed in a sum which I think,
however, will probably cover all demands which can be satisfactorily
proved. Many of the claims are for negroes said to have been enticed
away from their owners during the protracted Indian disturbances, of
which Florida has been for years the theater. The Indians allege that
the depredations were mutual, that they have suffered in the same
degree, and that most of the property claimed was taken as reprisal
for property of equal value lost by them. They could not, therefore,
yield to the justice of restitution solely on their part, and probably
there was no better mode of terminating the difficulty than by that
provided for in the treaty now concluded. The final ratification of
the treaty will depend upon the opinion of the seven chiefs selected
to explore the country west of the Mississippi River. If that
corresponds to the description given, or is equal to the expectations
formed of it, there will be no difficulty on the part of the
Seminoles. If the Creeks, however, raise any objections, this will be
a sufficient pretext on the part of some of the Seminole deputation to
oppose the execution of the whole arrangement for removal."
On March 8, 1835, the Hon. John H. Eaton addressed a letter to Lewis
Cass, Secretary of War, raising the question whether the treaty of
Payne's Landing was valid, it not having been ratified until 1834. To
this the Secretary replied that, the question had been referred to the
Attorney General, and that he had decided that the obligation of the
treaty was not affected by the delay, but that the Indians might be
required to move in the years 1835-'37.
The Indian agent called a meeting of the Indians, who assembled in
council on October 23, 1834. The agent stated that he had convened
them by order of the President, who said that he had complied with all
the promises made to them, and that they must prepare to move by the
beginning of cold weather. He further stated that he had a proposition
to them from the Creeks, and exhibited a map of the country allotted
to them west of the Mississippi.
The proposition from the Creeks was that the Seminoles, instead of
settling in the country allotted to them, in a separate body, settle
promiscuously among the Creeks. The agent stated in regard to this
last proposition: "It is left, as it should be, entirely optional with
you, and no persons but yourselves have any right to say you shall or
shall not accede to the proposition." Other questions were submitted,
such as the disposition of their cattle, whether they preferred to
march by land or go by water, and the manner in which they desired the
annuity paid them. The Indians then retired for a private council, and
on their return Holata Amathla said: "My brothers, we have now heard
the talk that our father at Washington has sent us. He says that we
made a treaty at Payne's Landing, and we have no excuse now for not
doing what we promised; we must be honest. Let us go, my brothers, and
talk it over, and don't let us act like fools."
At four o'clock in the afternoon of the same day the Indians met in
private council and were addressed by Assiola, in which he opposed
emigrating from Florida to the Creek country, denouncing the Creeks
as bad Indians. He also denounced the agent for advising them to
remove "from the lands which we live on--our homes and the graves of
our fathers." He announced that when the Great Spirit told him to go
he would go. But he said the Great Spirit had told him not to go. He
also threatened the white people with his rifle, for he still had
that, and some powder and lead. He also said that if any of the
Indians wanted to go West they would not be permitted to do so.
Assiola was followed by Holata Amathla, who strongly urged his
brothers to abide by the treaty of Payne's Landing, and advised them
to "act honest and do as our great father at Washington tells us."
Jumper, the sense-keeper, also urged a compliance with the last-named
treaty, because if they did not comply the white men would make them.
Chief Arpincki proposed that Holata Amathla be selected to represent
to the agent the objections of the nation to removal. This was
declined by Holata Amathla, and Jumper was selected in his stead to
speak the sentiments of the people on the next day.
On October 24, 1834, the Indians again met in council. The agent asked
them if they were ready to reply to the proposals made to them. Holata
Mico and Miconopy made short talks. When Jumper rose he complained
that a treaty had been made or rather forced on the Indians at Payne's
Landing before the twenty years provided in the Camp Moultrie treaty
had expired. He was one of the chiefs who had gone to look at the new
lands and liked them, but did not like the neighbors they would have,
and spoke of these latter Pawnees as savages and horse thieves. He
told the agent that his talk always seemed good, but that the Indians
did not want to go West. Holata Amathla, who was also one of the
chiefs who went West, objected to his people removing there for
substantially the same reason as Jumper. Charley Amathla said that
seven years of the time stipulated in the Camp Moultrie treaty
remained unexpired. He did not say that he would not go, but did not
think he would give an answer until the expiration of the seven years.
He also complained that the distance to the West was so great that
many would die on the way. In these talks the chiefs spoke well of the
agent. The latter, in reply, said: "I have no answer to make to what
you have said to me to-day. My talk to you yesterday must and will
stand, and you must abide by it." He then repeated the question he had
previously submitted, and told them to deliberate further, and let him
know when they were ready to meet him. Another meeting was held on
October 25, 1834. The agent told them he was ready to receive their
answers. The speakers on the part of the Indians said their people
still refused to comply with the treaty of Payne's Landing and leave
their native country. They thought the agent was mad with them.
General Thompson, the agent, told them he was not mad, but was their
friend; that what they said was not an answer to his questions, and
added, "Your father, the President, will compel you to go." He argued
that the treaty of Payne's Landing had been duly signed. This was
denied by Miconopy, when the general told him he lied, and that by the
terms of the treaty the decision of the delegation sent out to view
the country was binding on the Seminoles, and they were compelled
under its provisions to move. He told them that the Payne's Landing
treaty abrogated that made at Camp Moultrie. Replying to Charley
Amathla's assertion that the last treaty had been forced upon them, he
said: "You say that the white people forced you into the treaty of
Payne's Landing. If you were so cowardly as to be forced by anybody to
do what you ought not to do, you are unfit to be chiefs, and your
people ought to hurl you from your stations." He explained to them the
white people's Government; that the Indians living among white people
might be charged with all kinds of offenses under the law, and would
not be permitted to testify themselves; that the Cherokees, Creeks,
Choctaws, and Chickasaws who live in the States were moving beyond the
Mississippi River, because they could not live under the white
people's laws, and the Seminoles were a small handful compared to
their number; that when the jurisdiction of the State government was
extended over them the Indian laws and customs would have to be
abolished; and told them it was this view of the subject that had
induced the President to settle them beyond Florida; and told them
further that the land to which they were to go should be theirs "while
grass grows and water runs," It was for this reason the treaty had
been made with them at Payne's Landing, and for the same reason they
would be compelled to keep it and comply with their bargain. His
speech was a long one, reiterating, elaborating, and emphasizing the
determination of the Government to make them move, whether they
desired to or not. During this speech the agent was interrupted by
Assiola, who urged Miconopy to be firm, and to assure the agent that
he did not care whether any more annuity was paid or not. The agent
closed by hoping that mature reflection would make them act like
honest men, and not compel him to report them to their father, the
President, "as faithless to your engagements." The Indians then,
through Assiola and Miconopy, announced positively and emphatically
that their answer had been made, and that they did not intend to move.
The agent told them that he was satisfied now that they were willfully
and entirely dishonest in regard to their engagements with the
President, and regretted that he had to so report them. He told them
the talk he had given them must and should stand, and directed them to
retire and prepare their stocks to receive their annuity on the
following day.
It will be remembered that by the treaty of Payne's Landing it was
stipulated that seven chiefs should be sent to examine the lands to
which it was proposed to remove the Seminoles. They were to report its
general aspect and fertility to the nation, but were not invested with
power to ratify the treaty. That was the province of the nation in
general council. Jumper, as stated in these pages, was one of the
chiefs selected for the purpose of examining and reporting upon the
new country. General Thompson, the agent, had told the chiefs in
council that "no person has a right to say to you, You shall go, or
that you shall accede to the proposition made to you by the Creeks;
but it is left, as it should be, entirely optional with you." This is
in singular contrast to the words heretofore quoted from the agent,
and altogether different from his assurance to one of the chiefs: "The
President, backed by the Secretary of War" (the Indian Bureau was
then under the jurisdiction of the War Department) "and the whole
Congress, never should compel me to act so dishonorably as to violate
the treaty [of Camp Moultrie] made with your people. If such a thing
were required of me I would spurn the President's commission and
retire to the bosom of my family." General Thompson reported to the
authorities at Washington what had taken place, as just related, and
stated that, in view of the circumstances, no doubt remained that the
Indians intended to resist the execution of the treaty of Payne's
Landing. After giving a full statement of the situation, he felt it
his "imperious duty" to urge the necessity of a strong re-enforcement
at Fort King, and the station of a strong force at Tampa Bay, as early
as possible. "An imposing force, thus marshaled to coerce the
refractory people, would have the effect to crush the hopes of the
chiefs and those who had been tampering with them into a proper
respect for the Government, afford protection to the neighboring white
settlements, and supersede the necessity of Holata Amathla and his
followers fleeing the country." At this time the force at the two
posts mentioned was two hundred and thirty-five men. General Thompson,
sustained by Governor William P. Duval, continued to urge upon the
Government, an increase of the military force. The latter, in a letter
to the Secretary of War, informed that official that even with a
respectable military force stationed at Fort Brooke and Tampa Bay the
agent and superintendents would have much difficulty in carrying the
treaty of Payne's Landing into effect. The necessity for additional
military force was urged by Generals Clinch and Eaton and Lieutenant
Joseph W. Harris, the disbursing agent. These representations went
unheeded. In the whole of Florida there were but two hundred and fifty
men of the United States army, while more than three thousand were
stationed at other convenient points totally inactive.
When the time came for the removal of the Big Swamp Indians they were
so notified. But having been previously informed that they would be
expected to go, they did nothing in the way of planting crops, and
were destitute of food. Corn was distributed by the agents to the most
needy. It was concluded to make another effort to secure their
peaceful removal, and on April 22, 1835, several hundred of them
assembled in council. After the council was opened General Thompson
explained to them the treaty of Payne's Landing, and read a letter
from President Jackson, in which he besought them as his children, to
whom he had always acted honestly and kind, to comply with the treaty
and go to the lands selected for them, telling them they must go; that
they had sold all their land and did not have a piece "as big as a
blanket to sit upon," and had no right to stay. The letter concluded:
"If you listen to the voice of friendship and truth, you will go
quietly and voluntarily; but should you listen to the bad birds that
are always flying about you, and refuse to remove, I have then
directed the commanding officer to remove you by force. This will be
done. I pray the Great Spirit, therefore, to incline you to do what is
right." After the letter had been read through and interpreted, Jumper
rose and opposed the treaty, but deprecated force. Miconopy and others
sustained Jumper's views _as to the treaty_, but were silent on the
question of forcible resistance. General Clinch then addressed them,
and told them the time of expostulation had passed, that persuasion
had been exhausted, and wound up by telling them "it was the question
now whether they would go of their own accord or go by force." On the
next morning the chiefs and warriors sent word to the agent that they
wanted to talk to him. On assembling, Miconopy was absent. Jumper, the
spokesman, announced that he stood firm, but the veteran chief Fueta
Susta Hajo (Black Dirt) spoke passionately and eloquently in favor of
the execution of the treaty. After he had concluded, General Thompson
placed on the table a paper, dated April 23, 1835, which pledged the
Seminole tribe to voluntarily acknowledge the treaty at Payne's
Landing on May 9, 1832, and the treaty concluded at Fort Gibson on
March 28, 1833 (the one signed by the seven chiefs who had gone to
visit the country to which the Seminoles were to remove), and freely
submitting and assenting to said treaties in all their provisions.
This paper received the signatures of eight principal chiefs, among
them Fueta Susta Hajo and eight subchiefs. Five of the principal
chiefs, Jumper among them, stood aloof and would not sign. Miconopy,
who was absent, sent word by Jumper that he would not abide by the
treaty. Upon this the agent said he would no longer regard Miconopy as
a chief, and said his name should be stricken from the council of the
nation. This action on the part of the agent was arbitrary and wholly
unauthorized, and was severely censured by General Cass, Secretary of
War.
On August 11th the mail carrier Dalton was met by a party of Micosukee
Indians six miles from Fort Brooke and killed. The body was found a
few days afterward, and General Clinch immediately sent a demand for
the surrender of the murderers, but they eluded capture by seeking
refuge in the "Old red sticks" in the neighborhood of Ouithlacoochee.
This murder, it was claimed, was in retaliation for the killing of an
Indian in the previous June.
On August 19, 1835, at the request of Holata Amathla and twenty-five
others, a council of the Seminoles was convened. At the request of the
other chiefs Holata Amathla opened the council, saying they had come
to talk about matters of great interest. He referred to the treaty of
Payne's Landing, the visit to the West of the seven chiefs, and the
promises that had been made; stated that the Seminoles wanted their
separate agent, and paid a high compliment to General Thompson, who,
he said, had always told them the truth. The speech was forwarded to
Washington, but no notice was taken of it. This nonaction on the part
of the authorities at Washington served to intensify the distrust and
suspicions of the Indians as to the good faith of the Government, and
caused many of those who had expressed a willingness to move to join
the ranks of those who objected to doing so. Hostilities soon
commenced. The Long Swamp and Big Swamp Indians commenced pillaging.
Three of them were caught and subjected to exceedingly cruel treatment
by the white settlers. Many outrages were perpetrated on both sides.
The Indians were notified to bring in all their cattle, ponies, and
hogs to be turned over to a United States agent and appraised, the
owners to be paid on their arrival across the Mississippi. Six of the
principal chiefs and some others surrendered their stock. The sale,
however, was indefinitely postponed. The Big Swamp Indians resolved
to retain possession of the country, and condemned to death all those
Indians who should oppose their views. This caused many of the
friendly Indians to take refuge in the United States forts. About four
hundred and fifty fled to Fort Brooke, and on November 9th they
encamped on the opposite side of Hillsboro River. The hostile Indians,
fearing that the secrets of their councils had become known, made
every effort to win over to their side those who were disposed to
comply with the treaty. Assiola and about four hundred warriors went
to the house of Charley Amathla and demanded that he pledge himself to
oppose removal. He declined, saying he would sacrifice his life before
he would violate the pledge he had given his great father. Assiola
attempted to shoot Charley, but was prevented by Abraham, the
interpreter. Assiola left, but soon returned with a small party to the
house and murdered him in cold blood. A number of the murdered man's
followers at once made their escape to Fort King, while others joined
the hostile party. Charley Amathla was regarded as a brave, resolute,
and upright man. He had saved the life of Assiola, and his murder was
an act of horrible ingratitude. The Indians now abandoned their homes
and took refuge in the impenetrable swamps.
At this time the entire military force in Florida amounted to four
hundred and eighty-nine officers and men, and were distributed as
follows: At St. Augustine, one company, fifty-three men; at Fort
Brooke, on Hillsboro Bay, three companies, one hundred and fifty-three
men; at Fort King, six companies, three hundred and fifty-three men.
The Seminoles were located in the peninsula of Florida, a region of
fens, swamps, and creeks almost inapproachable. They claimed that the
Government had not carried out in good faith the treaties made with
them. Their great leader and chief was Assiola, sometimes called
Powell, and improperly spelled Osceola, whose father was a white man
and his mother a woman of the Creek Indian tribe. Among most of the
tribes of Southern Indians the children took rank from the mother. He
was recognized among the Indians as a Creek. He did not inherit the
title or place of a chief, but won it by his native ability, cruelty,
and courage. In his early days he was insolent in his manners, and
kept apart from the society of his people.
When General Alexander Ramsay Thompson was agent of the United States
for these Indians, on one occasion Assiola appeared before him and
announced that the lands claimed by the Government belonged to the
Indians; that the Indians could take care of themselves, and did not
need General Thompson's services. He was arrested and placed in
confinement, and after being imprisoned some time expressed regret,
signed the treaty, and was released. Subsequently he rendered valuable
service in arresting criminals, and regained the confidence of the
whites. This confidence, however, was of short duration.
War having been declared in the name of the Florida Indians, a
detachment of volunteers with some regulars, under General Duncan L.
Clinch, moved to the Ouithlacoochee, the Indian encampment. Three days
before the event which will be described as occurring at
Ouithlacoochee, Major Francis Langhorne Dade, with a small command,
had moved from Fort Brooke to relieve the post of Fort King. Major
Dade and his command had marched sixty-five miles in five days,
intrenching themselves each night in their encampment. On the sixth
night they were attacked by Indians and negro allies, and out of one
hundred and twelve all were slain except three. The officers killed
were Major Francis Langhorne Dade, Captain George Washington Gardiner,
Captain William Frazier, Lieutenants William E. Basinger, J.L. Keayes,
Robert Richard Mudge, Richard Henderson, and Dr. John Slade Gatlin.
Total killed, officers and men, one hundred and seven; escaped, three.
A handsome monument has been erected to their memory at West Point.
Returning to General Duncan L. Clinch's advance on Ouithlacoochee,
here he was attacked by Assiola and his followers after he had crossed
the river; but the general succeeded in repelling the attack and
driving the Indians. While the battle resulting in the massacre of
Major Dade and his command was being fought, the death of Thompson and
others was effected within a few hundred yards of Fort King, on
February 28th. All of the troops except Thomas W. Lendrum's company of
the Third Artillery, about forty strong, had been withdrawn on the
26th, to re-enforce General Clinch at Lang Syne plantation, with a
view to his striking a blow at the families of the Indians supposed to
be concealed in the swamps and hammocks of the Ouithlacoochee River,
with the hope of drawing the Indian warriors out and bringing on a
general engagement. All those attached to the fort or agency were
directed not to pass beyond the picketing. Thompson slept inside the
defenses and passed the greater part of the day at the agency, about
one hundred yards beyond the works. The sutler, Rogers, had moved his
goods into the fort, but was in the habit of taking his meals at his
residence, six hundred yards away in the skirt of a hammock to the
southwest of the fort.
On the day of the massacre Lieutenant Constantine Smith, of the Second
Artillery, had dined with General Thompson, and after dinner the two
went out for a walk. They had proceeded about three hundred yards
beyond the agency office when they were fired upon by a party of
Indians who were concealed in the hammock on the border of which the
sutler's house stood. The reports of the rifles, and the war-whoop
repeated, were heard within a brief time, other volleys more remote
were fired, when the smoke of the firing was seen at the fort. Captain
Lendrum at once called out his men, who were at that time engaged in
strengthening the pickets. He was not aware of the absence from the
fort of General Thompson and Lieutenant Smith; he supposed the firing
was a ruse to draw him out and cut him off from the fort. Very soon
several whites and negroes came in and informed him that Mr. Rogers,
his clerks, and themselves had been surprised at dinner, and the three
former had fallen into the hands of the Indians. A small command was
at once dispatched to succor and pursue, but the butchery had been as
brief as it was complete, and a last war-whoop had been given as a
signal for retreat. The bodies of General Thompson, Lieutenant Smith,
and Mr. Kitzler were soon found and brought in; those of the others
were not found until the following morning. General Thompson's body
had fourteen bullets in it and a deep knife-wound in the left breast.
Lieutenant Smith and Mr. Kitzler had each received two bullets in the
head. The bodies of Rogers the sutler and Robert Suggs were
shockingly mangled, the skulls of each being broken, and all save
Suggs were scalped. The party was led by Assiola, and consisted of
fifty or sixty Micosukees. Two other Indians were in the party attired
as chiefs, but were not recognized. This information comes from an old
negro woman who was in the house and who concealed herself so as to
elude the Indians, and made her escape to the fort after the massacre.
Information of the butchery was at once dispatched to General Clinch.
General Richard Keith Call, with Colonels Richard C. Parish and Leigh
Read, having arrived on the 29th with about five hundred volunteers
from the adjoining counties, who had previously been ordered to scour
the country on the right and left flank, joined the United States
troops, numbering about two hundred under General Clinch. Orders were
issued for a forward movement at sunrise on December 29th. They
arrived near the Ouithlacoochee on the 30th, and threw up breastworks
around their encampment. On arriving at the river next morning it was
found too deep to be forded. No Indians being in sight, one of the men
swam the river and brought over a canoe. As only seven men could be
taken over at a time, the work of crossing the troops was slow and
tedious. General Clinch and Colonels Samuel Parkhill and Read crossed
over, and, in conjunction with General Call, began the construction of
rafts on which the baggage and stores could be crossed over. The
regulars were all over by twelve o'clock, and Major Alexander C.W.
Fanning marched them into an open field surrounded on all sides either
by a thick swamp or hammock, and there formed them into line,
awaiting the crossing of the volunteers. When about fifty of the
volunteers had crossed, and the officers were engaged in
superintending the construction of the rafts, an alarm was given that
the Indians were upon them. General Call at once put his men in line,
and the Indians opened fire, but the volunteers poured a heavy volley
into the hammock, which silenced the fire of the Indians for a time;
but they soon collected their forces and opened a galling fire on the
regulars. General Clinch ordered a charge, which was gallantly led by
Major Fanning, but the Indians maintained their ground. A second
charge was more successful, driving the Indians some distance back.
The chiefs made every effort to rally them, but without success.
During the battle General Call, Colonel John Warren, and Major James
G. Cooper, with a number of volunteers, crossed the river at imminent
peril, and the two latter immediately engaged and fought with the most
determined bravery. General Call had formed the volunteers that last
crossed into two parallel lines, placing one above and the other below
the crossing place, for the purpose of protecting the troops on the
other side and those who were recrossing with the dead and wounded. He
therefore did not reach the field until the enemy were repulsed,
though his services were eminently useful in directing the crossing.
Clinch at this time was not advised of the disaster to Major Dade's
command.
The term of service of the volunteers having expired, General Clinch
marched them, on January 2d, to Fort Drane and disbanded them. In this
last-named engagement the regulars and volunteers, numbering, all
told, two hundred and twenty-seven men--under the able leadership of
Clinch, Major Campbell Graham, Major Fanning, Colonel John Warren,
General Richard K. Call, Cooper, and Lieutenant George Read--succeeded
in defeating over seven hundred Indians who had chosen their ground
and were protected by the swamps and hammocks. The volunteer officers,
to whom great credit was due, were Major (afterward Brigadier General)
Leigh Read, whose horse was shot under him, Colonel John Warren,
Colonel Parkhill (of Richmond, Va.), Colonel William J. Mills, Major
Cooper, Captain Martin Scott, and Captain William J. Bailey. The
services of General Call and Majors Gamble and Wellford were of great
value. General Clinch makes mention of Major J.S. Little his
aid-de-camp, Captains Gustavus S. Drane, Charles Mellon, and Gates,
Lieutenants George Henry Talcott, Erastus A. Capron, John Graham,
William Seaton Maitland, and Horace Brooks, of the United States army,
and Colonel McIntosh, Lieutenants Youman, Stewart, Nathaniel W.
Hunter, Cuthbert, and Adjutant Joseph A. Phillips, of the Florida
volunteers, of the officers of the medical staff. Special mention was
made of Drs. Richard Weightman, Hamilton, Philip G. Randolph, and
Brandon. The returns of the killed and wounded were as follows:
REGULARS.
Killed, 2 artificers and 2 privates 4
Wounded, 1 captain and 2 lieutenants 3
Two sergeants and 4 corporals 6
Private soldiers 43
--
52
VOLUNTEERS.
Wounded, Colonel Warren, Major Cooper, and Lieutenant Youman 3
Private soldiers 4
--
7 59 = 63
Previous to and immediately after this engagement the Indians divided
themselves into small parties for the purpose of devastating the
country. They made their appearance simultaneously in the southern
part of the peninsula as far north as Picolata and from the extreme
east below St. Augustine to the west, carrying off everything that was
useful to them and destroying the remainder. At New River, on the
southeast side of the peninsula, they murdered the wife, children, and
teacher in the family of Mr. Cooley, carrying off provisions and
horses, and setting fire to the house on their departure.
The settlements in that neighborhood were abandoned, the inhabitants
taking refuge near the lighthouse on Cape Florida; but they had been
there only a short time when, the Indians making their appearance,
they were compelled to seek shelter and protection elsewhere.
The ruthless destruction of property and of lives on the east side of
the peninsula was heartrending. Their principal ravages, however, were
on the east side from St. Augustine to the south. Major Benjamin A.
Putnam, with a small detachment of men, marched into this country with
a view to drive the Indians away. He was met by an overpowering number
of the savages, and forced to retreat. In fact, no part of the State
seemed to be free from these murderous savages.
General Clinch made requisitions on the Governors of Georgia, South
Carolina, and Alabama to aid the Floridians in their unequal warfare
with the savages. It was felt by the citizens of Florida that the
Government at Washington showed great apathy, if not real
indifference, to their condition. A meeting was called in Charleston,
S.C., early in January, for the purpose of aiding the people of
Florida with men and means, but General Eustis informed the meeting
that General Clinch had sufficient force and supplies under his
command to subdue any number of Indians and negroes that could be
brought to oppose him. On January 12th, intelligence having been
received from General Clinch asking for six hundred men, the committee
conferred with General Eustis and requested him to send a company of
United States troops with arms and ammunition for the defense of St.
Augustine. This was granted, and the citizens of Charleston chartered
a steamboat and placed on board one thousand bushels of corn, one
hundred barrels of flour, thirty barrels of beef, twenty barrels of
pork, and ten tierces of rice. On January 20th another meeting was
called to raise volunteers for Florida. The banks of Charleston
subscribed twenty-five thousand dollars as a loan to the Government.
The committee dispatched a schooner, loaded with corn, rice, bread,
beef, pork, and military and hospital stores, and sent a physician to
attend the sick.
Four companies of volunteers were put in motion on the 27th for St.
Augustine--viz., the Washington Light Infantry, Captain Ravenel;
Washington Volunteers, Captain Finley; German Fusileers, Captain
Timrod; and Hamburgh Volunteers, Captain Cunningham. These volunteer
companies arrived at St. Augustine on January 30th, and were at once
sent out to scour the country for hostile Indians; they were, however,
relieved from duty on February 12th, on the arrival of the South
Carolina militia and United States troops under Major Reynold Marvin
Kirby. These troops were placed on the same duty as their
predecessors, but there was no engagement with the hostile Indians
until the latter part of March. An instance of the chivalric spirit of
the South Carolina volunteers is worthy of mention. On requisition of
the Governor for three companies to be furnished for Florida, Colonel
Chesnut, of Camden, called out his regiment. After telling them what
was wanted, he requested those who desired to volunteer in defense of
their suffering neighbors to step forward. The whole regiment marched
forward and tendered their services. At the same time four thousand
dollars were contributed for their equipment.
On receipt of the intelligence of the Dade massacre in Savannah, a
company of Georgia volunteers at once embarked for Picolata. A meeting
of the Richmond Blues and Richmond Hussars, of Augusta, was called for
the purpose of rendering aid. The city council appropriated the
necessary funds to supply arms and ammunition. The ladies of Augusta
volunteered to make the uniforms, and in less than a week these
volunteers were on their way to Picolata. These companies were
composed of the _élite_ of the city. Supplies of all kinds were sent
by Mayor Joseph Beard to Fort Drane and the posts on the St. John's,
which were poorly equipped with ordnance and quartermaster's stores.
He also sent a six-pounder cannon with necessary equipments of grape,
canister, and round shot, ten thousand rounds of musket ball and
buckshot cartridges, and a general supply of needful articles. Further
supplies were drawn on their arrival at Picolata.
This action of Quartermaster Beard was most fortunate, as it was found
that the military posts, by the neglect of the War Department or its
subalterns, had been reduced to such an extremity that in case of
attack they must necessarily have been shorn of the means of defense,
and would have fallen into the hands of the enemy. Nothing but the
timely arrival of supplies saved these posts from destruction.
There were no means of transportation at Picolata, and the
quartermaster procured horses at Jacksonville for the purpose of
forwarding one of the six-pounders to Fort Drane. Four of the horses
on arrival were found unfit for service, but, fortunately, General
John M. Hernandez was able to furnish ten chicken carts, and the
quartermaster was authorized to make impressments for transportation.
The Richmond Blues, one hundred and twelve strong, with the Camden and
Glynn mounted volunteers, numbering twenty-seven, and the Darien
Infantry of about thirty, under command of Captains Robertson, R.
Floyd, and Thomas S. Bryant respectively, took up line of march as an
escort to the two six-pounders, ordnance stores, twenty-five wagons
and carts laden with provisions, and passed through the heart of the
enemy's country, arriving on February 15th, without obstruction, at
the garrison of Fort Drane.
Supplies under the same escort were at once forwarded to Fort King.
Subsequently the following-named companies of Georgia volunteers
arrived in Florida: The Hancock Blues, Captain A.S. Brown; State
Fencibles, Captain J.A. Merriwether; Macon Volunteers, Captain Isaac
Seymour; Morgan Guards, Captain N.G. Foster; Monroe Musketeers,
Captain John Cureton; Washington Cavalry, Captain C.J. Malone; Baldwin
Cavalry, Captain W.F. Scott. Major Ross, with several companies of
mounted men from Georgia, arrived later, but owing to the advanced
season, much to their disappointment, did not enter the field.
Going back to January 15th, General Edmund Pendleton Gaines, who was
on a tour of inspection through the Western Department, first heard of
the troubles in Florida, and at once called on the Governor of
Louisiana and requested him to hold in readiness a body of volunteers
for service in subduing the Seminole Indians.
He also wrote to the adjutant general at Washington, urging that no
time be lost in succoring the troops in Florida, and saying, from his
knowledge of the Seminole character, that at least four thousand men
would be required to subdue them, protected and aided by a strong
naval force.
At that time the United States was divided into two military
departments by a line drawn from the southern part of Florida to the
northwestern extremity of Lake Superior. The Eastern Department was
under the command of General Winfield Scott, and the Western under
that of General Gaines, and by reference to a map it will be seen that
the line passed directly through the theater of hostilities in
Florida. The meeting of these two distinguished generals was purely
accidental. General Scott was in Washington when the news was received
of General Clinch's engagement with the Seminoles. After dispatching
his letter to the adjutant general, General Gaines proceeded to
Pensacola for the purpose of getting the co-operation of the naval
forces at that station. He found, however, that Commodores Dallas and
Bolton and Captain Webb had received orders to direct their attention
to the inlets of Florida, whence they had sailed. He received here the
most alarming intelligence of the state of affairs in Florida. He
proceeded to Mobile on January 18th, and there learned that Fort
Brooke was invested by the Indians and the garrison in great danger of
being cut off and slaughtered. He at once sent an express to General
Clinch, supposed to be at Fort King, stating that he would arrive at
Fort Brooke about February 8th with seven hundred men, and requested
General Clinch to take the field and march southward and form a
junction with him at Fort Brooke.
As the crisis demanded immediate action, and General Scott being
present to receive the instructions of the Government in person, he
was charged with the direction of the campaign without regard to
department boundaries. General Gaines had left his headquarters at
Memphis, Tenn., on a tour of inspection through his department, and it
was very uncertain when or where the orders and instructions of the
Government would reach him; and as the immediate services of an
officer of high rank of mind and discreet judgment were required to
maintain the neutrality of the United States during the war between
the Texans and Mexicans, General Gaines was selected for that
important duty. However, the official dispatches did not reach General
Gaines until he had already taken the field in Florida and marched
from Fort Brooke to Fort King, within ninety-five miles of where
General Scott had established his headquarters.
In pursuance of this plan, Lieutenant-Colonel David E. Twiggs was
ordered to receive into service the eight companies of volunteers
requested of the Governor of Louisiana, adding them to the command of
such regular troops as might be in the vicinity of New Orleans, all
to be held in readiness for a movement to Tampa Bay. The troops were
mustered into service on February 3d. General Gaines having arrived in
New Orleans on January 27th, chartered three steamers to convey the
troops and stores. The Legislature of Louisiana had appropriated
eighty-five thousand dollars for the equipment of her volunteers, and
on February 4th the chartered steamers, with the Louisiana volunteers
and one company of regulars, were under way, and on the same day
another steamer, with Colonel Twiggs and Companies B, E, G, H, I, and
K of the regulars, left New Orleans. The vessels arrived safely at
Hillsboro Bay, four miles distant from the garrison, on February 8th,
9th, and 10th, and the troops were immediately disembarked and camped
just outside of the fort.
The fort was a triangular work formed by pickets with blockhouses at
the apex, the base resting on the bay and flanked on the west by
Hillsboro River. It was found that there were at the fort about two
hundred regular troops, composed of Companies A, B, C, and H of the
Second Artillery, and Company A of the Fourth Infantry, with Majors
Francis S. Belton, Richard Augustus Zantzinger, and John Mountford,
Lieutenants John Breckenridge Grayson, Samuel McKenzie, John Charles
Casey, Thomas C. Legate, Edwin Wright Morgan, Augustus Porter Allen,
and Benjamin Alvord, and Surgeons Henry Lee Heiskell and Reynolds.
Major Belton was the commanding officer of the post.
General Gaines, having received instructions at Pensacola from the
Secretary of War to repair and take charge of the forces which were
assembling on the Mexican frontier, announced the fact to Colonel
Twiggs; but the troops, on hearing this, manifested great
dissatisfaction, and insisted that as they had volunteered to go under
the command of General Gaines, he in good faith should be their
leader. Following is the text of the letter of the Secretary of War to
General Gaines:
"WAR DEPARTMENT, WASHINGTON, _January 23, 1835_.
"SIR: I am instructed by the President to request that you
will repair to some proper position near the western frontier of the
State of Louisiana, and there assume the personal command of all the
troops of the United States which are or may be employed in any part
of the region adjoining the Mexican boundary.
"It is not the intention of this order to change at all the
relations between yourself and the military departments under your
command, to require your personal presence at a point where public
considerations demand the exercise of great discretion and
prudence...."
The pressure not only from the troops in the field but from outside
sources was so great that General Gaines felt it his duty to enter the
field. Besides, that was thought a propitious time to begin active
operations, as the day before the arrival of the Louisiana troops the
friendly Indians had engaged the hostiles in a battle about four miles
from Fort Brooke. Although at this date, as before mentioned, General
Scott in Washington had been ordered to assume command in Florida,
General Gaines was entirely ignorant of such order.
Orders were accordingly issued assigning officers to their respective
duties. Captain Ethan A. Hitchcock, First Infantry, was announced
Assistant Inspector General of the Department, and Lieutenant James
Farley Izard, of the Dragoons, to be Acting Brigade Major. The
artillery and infantry of the United States army, together with the
Louisiana volunteer forces under Adjutant-General Persifor F. Smith,
were to constitute "the light brigade." (Here is an instance of a
staff officer being assigned to command troops.) The whole force to be
under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel David E. Twiggs, Fourth
Infantry.
The Louisiana volunteers were divided into two battalions, the first
composed of the companies of Captains Burt, Lee, Williams, Rogers, and
Thistle, under Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Lawson, Surgeon. (Here is
another case of a staff officer and surgeon ordered to the command of
troops.) The second battalion was composed of the companies of
Captains Samuel F. Marks, William H. Ker, Magee, Smith, Abadie, and
Barr, under Major Marks, the regiment to be commanded by Colonel
Persifor F. Smith. Orders for marching were issued on the 13th, the
troops to be supplied with forty rounds of ammunition and ten days'
rations, five of which were to be carried in haversacks. During the
Florida campaign the only articles drawn by the private volunteer
soldiers were bread or flour, pork or beef, while only a few drew
salt, sugar, and coffee. Major Richard M. Sands, of the Fourth
Infantry, and Captain Barr's company of volunteers, amounting in all
to one hundred and sixty men, were detailed for the protection of the
fort, under command of Major Sands.
The army marched in three columns, equidistant one hundred yards, with
a strong advance and rear guard. The center column was composed of
one company of volunteers as advance guard, under command of Brigade
Major Izard. Seven companies of United States artillery and infantry,
under command of Lieutenant-Colonel William Sewell Foster; the baggage
train, led by Captain Samuel Shannon; six companies of Louisiana
volunteers as rear guard, under command of Lieutenant-Colonel Lawson.
Right column: Four companies of artillery acting as light infantry,
under command of Major Belton. Left column: Four companies of
Louisiana volunteers, under command of Major Marks. The entire command
consisted of nine hundred and eighty effective men, exclusive of the
detachment under Major Sands, which, added to the force, would make it
eleven hundred and forty men.
The Quartermaster's Department at the post was in a very bad
condition, destitute of nearly everything that was necessary for the
comfort of the troops. There was great scarcity of ordnance stores,
but, happily, an abundant supply of subsistence stores.
CHAPTER VI.
Review of the army by General Gaines--Arrival of General Gaines at
Fort King--Lieutenant Izard mortally wounded--Correspondence between
General Gaines and Clinch--General Scott ordered to command in
Florida--Disadvantages under which he labored--Preparations for
movements--Commencement of hostilities against the Indians.
General Gaines reviewed the army on February 13th, and, accompanied by
seventy-seven friendly Indians, took up line of march toward the
Alafia River, to which point he learned that the hostile Indians had
gone. The march was made under many difficulties, the horses of the
baggage train breaking down and necessitating the loss of valuable
articles of camp equipage. Near dark they encamped six miles from Fort
Brooke. The next day they arrived at Warren, on the Alafia River,
eighteen miles from the fort, and received two days' rations, which
General Gaines had ordered sent around from Fort Brooke by water.
Discovering no traces of Indians, he directed the march toward the
grounds where Major Dade and his party were massacred. The boats
having arrived at Fort Brooke with the sick and disabled and all
superfluous baggage, the army moved in the direction of a deserted
Indian village, passing the ruins of many fine plantations, and struck
the military road near the Hillsboro River.
On the 17th they arrived at the river and halted. On the 18th, after
burning two deserted Indian villages near the Big Ouithlacoochee
River, the friendly Indians accompanying the expedition requested
permission to return to Fort Brooke. General Gaines assured them that
there was no danger to be apprehended; that he only required them to
act as scouts and guides, and that they were not expected to go into
battle.
The Ouithlacoochee was forded on the 19th, and that night a breastwork
was thrown up on the ground which had been occupied by the ill-fated
party of Major Dade. At daybreak of the 20th they resumed their march,
and buried on their way the remains of Major Dade and Captain Frazier
and eight other officers, and ninety-eight noncommissioned officers
and privates.
It now became a question of importance whether to continue the march
to Fort King, which post was thought to be besieged by the enemy, or
to return to Fort Brooke. To Fort Brooke it was sixty-five miles, and
to Fort King forty miles north. A large number of the volunteers were
destitute of provisions. It would require five days to reach Fort
Brooke, and but two to reach Fort King.
It having been reported at Fort Brooke that Fort King was assailed by
the Indians and in danger of being cut off, and this opinion being
strengthened by the noncompliance of General Clinch with the request
of General Gaines to co-operate with him, it became General Gaines's
duty to ascertain the cause. A large number of General Gaines's troops
were in a destitute condition, and the senior assistant quartermaster,
Captain Shannon, had a letter from the Quartermaster General at
Washington, dated January 19th, which stated that large supplies of
provisions had been ordered from New York to Fort King. With these
facts before him, General Gaines determined to move to Fort King,
where he could ascertain the position of the enemy and at the same
time strengthen the garrison.
The army under General Gaines arrived at Fort King on February 22d.
Finding the post poorly supplied with subsistence, he dispatched
Lieutenant-Colonel Foster, with an escort of the Fourth Infantry, to
proceed to Fort Drane, twenty-two miles distant, where General Clinch
was stationed with four companies of artillery and one of infantry and
two companies of volunteers, and endeavored to get a supply of
provisions. The detachment returned on the 24th with seven days'
supplies. Here for the first time General Gaines was informed that
General Scott was in command in Florida, and that he was then at
Picolata organizing forces and gathering supplies.
General Gaines then determined that he could not remain at Fort King,
as supplies were being exhausted as fast as they came in, and that to
remain there would necessarily embarrass the operations of General
Scott. It was also evident that the enemy would not be found by
retracing his march to Fort Brooke, but that by moving by the battle
ground of General Clinch, even should he not succeed in meeting the
enemy, the mere presence of a large force would perhaps tend to
concentrate him, and thus give security to the frontier and enable the
inhabitants to give attention to planting their crops. Besides, he
would find supplies at Fort Brooke, and on his arrival the command of
Colonel Lindsay would be strengthened.
The army, being provided with two days' rations, moved out on the
27th, and arriving at the river, a halt was called, the baggage train
being under protection of the rear guard, while General Gaines, with
the main column and artillery, moved forward for the purpose of making
a reconnoissance preparatory to crossing. Finding the river too deep
to ford at the point reached, General Gaines and Colonel Smith made an
attempt to cross about two hundred and fifty yards higher up. Reaching
a small island in the middle of the river, a sharp fire was opened
upon them, accompanied by the Indian war-whoop.
The troops returned the fire, and the field piece under Lieutenant
Grayson was brought into action, which quickly silenced the war-whoop.
The engagement lasted about three quarters of an hour, during which
one volunteer was killed and seven wounded. General Clinch's old
breastwork was enlarged and occupied by the troops during the night.
On the morning of the 28th the line was again formed, and after a
circuitous march the army arrived at the crossing place. James Farley
Izard, a first lieutenant of dragoons, being on leave of absence,
volunteered his services to General Gaines, was assigned to duty as
brigade major, and was about forming the guard when the sharp crack of
a rifle and the war-whoop gave notice of the presence of the enemy.
His horse had received a bullet in his neck. When he dismounted he
proceeded to the bank of the river, when a ball from the enemy entered
his left eye. He said to the men, "Keep your positions and lie close."
He died in a few days from the effect of the wound. A desultory fight
was kept up from nine in the morning until one o'clock in the
afternoon, when the enemy withdrew. The troops threw up breastworks,
inside of which they encamped for the night. Captain William G.
Sanders, commanding the friendly Indians, was severely wounded.
Captain Armstrong, of the United States transport schooner Motto, was
wounded, and a soldier of Captain Croghan Ker's company of Louisiana
volunteers was killed. General Gaines sent an express to General
Clinch asking his co-operation by crossing the river eight or ten
miles above and coming down on the enemy's rear. He notified General
Clinch that he would not move from his position until he heard from
him, and requested to be furnished with needed subsistence. The
dispatch arrived on the following morning, and General Clinch sent it
forward to General Scott at Picolata.
On the 29th, orders were issued for one third of the command to remain
on duty inside of the encampment, while another third was engaged in
strengthening the defenses. A detachment of two hundred Louisiana
volunteers under command of Captain Thistle, an expert marksman, was
detailed for the erection of a blockhouse near the river, while others
were engaged in preparing canoes and rafts. Everything was quiet until
ten o'clock, when a fire was opened by the Indians on the working
parties and on three sides of the camp. The Indians were concealed in
the palmettoes, about two hundred yards distant. They set fire to the
grass and palmettoes, but a sudden shift of the wind carried the fire
in their direction. The firing lasted about two hours, when the
Indians retired. Captain Thistle and party returned to camp without
having sustained any loss. The firing was renewed by the Indians about
four o'clock in the afternoon, but soon subsided. The loss in General
Gaines's camp was one noncommissioned officer of artillery killed, and
thirty-two officers, noncommissioned officers, and privates wounded.
General Gaines received a painful wound in the mouth. Lieutenant James
Duncan, Second Artillery, Mr. W. Potter, secretary to General Gaines,
and Lieutenant Ephraim Smith, of the Louisiana volunteers, were
wounded.
General Gaines now sent another dispatch by some friendly Indians to
General Clinch asking him to march his forces direct to Camp Izard
instead of crossing above. He also asked for some mounted men and one
or two field pieces with a sufficient supply of ammunition. General
Gaines regarded this as a most favorable opportunity to attack the
Indians while they were concentrated, and he thought that with such
re-enforcements as he asked, and a supply of provisions, he could end
the war in ten days. He had notified General Clinch, on February 28th,
that he would make no sortie nor would he move from his position until
he heard from General Clinch. In his second letter to General Clinch
he wrote: "Being fully satisfied that I am in the neighborhood of the
principal body of Indians, and that they are now concentrated, I must
suggest to you the expediency of an immediate co-operation with the
forces under your command. I have only to repeat my determination not
to move from my position or make a sortie until I hear from you, as it
would only tend to disperse the enemy, and we should then have
difficulty in finding them."
If General Gaines had made an attack he would certainly have lost one
or two hundred men. He had no transportation to convey the wounded,
and was short of supplies, as his whole train consisted of one wagon
and two carts. Had he made an attack and routed the enemy, he had no
means of following them, and his victory would have been barren of
results. The Indians made another attack on March 1st, and renewed it
on the next day. These attacks were repeated daily until the 5th, when
they sent forward their interpreter, who wanted to know if Colonel
Twiggs was in command, and saying they did not want to continue the
war, but to shake hands and be friends. He was told to come at nine
o'clock the next morning with a white flag. On Sunday morning, March
6th, Assiola and Colonel Hago, with others, appeared for a talk. Major
Barron, Captain Marks, and others met them. They said they wanted to
stop fighting; that they had taken up arms against the whites because
they had been badly treated; that the whites had killed many of their
men; that they would stop the war if the whites were withdrawn, and
would not cross the river.
Major Barron replied that he would communicate what they said to
General Gaines. Jumper asked if Colonel Twiggs was in camp. He was
answered in the affirmative, but was told that General Gaines was in
command. General Gaines directed Captain Hitchcock, of his staff,
accompanied by Captain Marks, Dr. Harrall, and others, to confer with
Jumper. On meeting Jumper he expressed a desire to see General Gaines,
and said they would like to consult their governor, Miconopy, who was
then some distance off. The Indians insisted on seeing General Gaines,
and they were informed that he was ready to meet Miconopy, their
governor. Nothing definite having been settled, they retired. At a
subsequent meeting the Seminoles agreed to give up their arms and
cease hostilities, and meet the commissioners again for a general
treaty.
In the meantime General Gaines was re-enforced by Georgia troops,
under command of Captains Edward B. Robinson and Bones, the Florida
mounted militia, under command of Captain McLemore, and some regulars,
under Captains Charles Myron Thruston and Graham, the whole under the
command of General Clinch. They also brought beef cattle and other
much-needed supplies. The Indians appeared again with a white flag and
asked to confer with General Gaines, but were told that they must
bring their governor, Miconopy, with whom General Gaines would confer.
General Gaines now turned over the command of the army to General
Clinch, and on Thursday, the 10th, the army moved in the direction of
Fort Drane. General Gaines left for Tallahassee and Mobile, and was
the recipient of great attention by the citizens of those places.
Such was the situation when, on January 20, 1836, General Scott was
ordered to take command of the army in Florida, which had been
increased to twelve hundred regulars, besides volunteers, by the time
he arrived there. He left Washington the day after receiving his
orders and arrived at Picolata, on the St. John's River, and on
February 22d issued orders forming the army into three divisions. The
troops on the west bank of the St. John's River were placed under
command of General Clinch, and constituted the right wing of the
army. Those on the east bank of the St. John's River, under
Brigadier-General Abram Eustis, constituted the left wing, and those
at Tampa Bay, under Colonel William Lindsay, constituted the center.
General Scott had been authorized to ask for volunteers from the
States of Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina, and the Territory of
Florida. Among other instructions given the general was the following:
In consequence of representations from Florida that measures would
probably be taken to transmit the slaves captured by the Indians to
the Havana, orders were given the navy to prevent such proceedings,
and General Scott was directed "to allow no pacification with the
Indians while a slave belonging to a white man remained in their
possession." There were a great many negroes among the Indians. In the
band that massacred Major Dade and his command there were sixty-three
of them mounted in one company. The negroes and Indians of mixed
African and Indian blood were the most cruel members of the tribe.
Re-enforcements of militia were soon added to the army. The great
disadvantages under which Scott labored necessarily delayed his
movements until a late period. He found the quartermaster's department
very deficient, and had the greatest difficulty in transporting
supplies to Fort Drane. His supplies of ordnance were very limited,
and the greater part of those on hand were unfit for use. To penetrate
a country like Florida, filled with swamps, morasses, and almost
impenetrable hammocks, required much preparation and labor. There was
no chain of posts or settlements through the country, and the army was
compelled to carry a heavy load of provisions and ordnance. To
increase the difficulties, heavy rains had fallen which made the roads
almost impassable. General Scott arrived at Fort Drane on March 13,
1836, with a very small force. Believing the enemy to be concentrated
at or near the forks of Ouithlacoochee River, he adopted the following
plan of operations:
The Florida army to constitute three divisions, to be known as the
right, center, and left wings; the center being composed of Alabama
volunteers, three companies of Louisiana volunteers, and two companies
of United States artillery, amounting to twelve hundred and fifty men,
to be commanded by Colonel William Lindsay. To move from Fort Brooke
and take position at or near Chicuchatty, on March 25th. Signal
guns to be fired each day thereafter at 9 A.M. to announce
position. The right wing, composed of a battalion of Augusta
volunteers under Acting Major Robertson; a battalion of Georgia
volunteers under Major Mark A. Cooper; Major John M. Douglass, Georgia
Cavalry; eleven companies of Louisiana volunteers, under Colonel
Persifor F. Smith; Florida Rangers, under Major McLemore; the
regulars, under Colonel James Bankhead; and Captain Clifton Wharton's
company of Dragoons--in all amounting to about two thousand men, to be
commanded by General Clinch. This wing to move from Fort Drane and be
in position near Camp Izard, on the Ouithlacoochee River, between
March 26th and 28th. Signal guns to be fired at 11 A.M. The
left wing, composed of the South Carolina volunteers, under Colonel
Abbott H. Brisbane; mounted volunteers, under Colonels Goodwyn and
Butler--amounting to about fourteen hundred men--to be commanded by
General Abram Eustis. This wing to move from Volusia and take position
at or near Pilaklakaha on March 27th. Signal guns to be fired at ten
o'clock each day.
Each wing to be composed of three columns, a center protected by a
strong van and rear guard. The baggage train to be placed in the rear
of the main column. The center and left wings, on assuming their
respective positions, will fire signal guns, which will be responded
to by the right wing. The right wing will then move up the cove or
great swamp of the Ouithlacoochee in a southeast direction and drive
the Indians south, while the center will advance to the north and the
left to the west, by which united movement the Indians will be
surrounded and left no avenue of escape. The operations of the army
will be supported by the naval forces under Commodore Alfred J.
Dallas, protecting the western coast of the peninsula, to cut off
retreat and supplies.
Colonel Lindsay, commanding the center wing, arrived at Fort Brooke
with eight companies of Alabama volunteers on March 6th, where he
found a battalion of Florida troops, commanded by Major Read, and on
the 10th was joined by one company of Louisiana volunteers, under
command of Captain George H. Marks.
On the 12th he discovered fires to the southeast, and it was soon
reported that a large body of Indians was encamped a few miles
distant. Colonel Lindsay directed Major Leigh Read with his battalion
to make a reconnoissance in the direction of the Indians. Major Read
moved during the night, and coming upon the Indians at daylight,
surprised them and put them to flight with a loss of three killed and
six taken prisoners. He also secured a quantity of camp equipage and
some beef cattle.
Colonel Lindsay, not hearing from headquarters, determined to proceed
as far as Hillsboro River and erect a stockade so as to place his
supplies nearer to the scene of operations. This object having been
effected, he left Major Read in charge of the fort, which he had named
Fort Alabama, and returned to Fort Brooke on the 21st. During his
absence dispatches were received from General Scott announcing the
plan of campaign, and requesting Colonel Lindsay to be in position at
Chicuchatty on March 25th. Major Read having been relieved, the line
of march was taken up. The column being fired on by the Indians and
several soldiers killed and wounded, Colonel Lindsay ordered a charge,
which was executed by Captains Benham and Blount, commanding Alabama
volunteers, and the Indians were driven from their covert into a pine
woods.
On March 28th, three days after the time mentioned in the orders, this
command was in position at Camp Broadnax, near Chicuchatty, in
pursuance of General Scott's orders. The country over which they had
marched was hilly, and in many places there were dense forests which
retarded their movements, though the late period at which Colonel
Lindsay received his orders would have prevented his arrival at the
time specified in them. No censure can be attributed to General Scott
for the delay, as it was impossible under the circumstances for him to
have matured his plans earlier.
General Eustis, commanding the left wing, arrived at St. Augustine on
February 15th, and at once established a chain of posts at intervals
of from ten to twenty miles, extending along the Atlantic coast as
far south as the Mosquito Inlet, in order to drive off the bands of
depredators and to give protection to the plantations. Colonel
Goodwyn's mounted South Carolina volunteers having arrived on March
9th, the several detachments of the left wing, with the exception of
Colonel Pierce M. Butler's battalion and two companies of artillery
under Major Reynold M. Kirby, were put in motion for Volusia, where
they arrived on March 21st after encountering great difficulties,
being compelled to cut the road nearly the whole distance. On the 22d
they began crossing the St. John's River. When the vanguard,
consisting of two companies under Captains Adams and T.S. Tripp, had
reached the opposite shore they were attacked by about fifty Indians
who were concealed in a hammock. Being re-enforced by George Henry and
Hibler's companies, they charged the enemy and drove him. Two
companies of mounted men were crossed above with a view of cutting off
the retreat of the Indians, but they were too late. The loss in this
battle was three killed and nine wounded. On the 24th, Lieutenant
Ripley A. Arnold, with twenty-seven mounted men, was sent in quest of
Colonel Butler and his command, who had not joined the main command,
he having marched in the direction of New Smyrna. This detachment fell
in with a party of twelve or fifteen Indians who gave battle. Two of
the Indians were killed, and Lieutenant Arnold, having his horse shot,
ordered a retreat, for which he was severely censured. The whole force
of General Eustis's command being now concentrated on the west side of
the St. John's River, opposite to Volusia, orders were issued to
distribute thirteen days' rations, and the line of march to be taken
up for Pilaklakaha, leaving the sick and wounded with two companies of
Colonel Brisbane's regiment at Volusia, under command of Major William
Gates, United States army. The roads being bad, they were unable to
march more than seven miles in two days. On the 29th they reached the
Ocklawaha, and, constructing a bridge, crossed over after sundown and
discovered fires on the margin of Lake Eustis, which they supposed to
be signals of the Indians. Colonel Butler, with a small command,
accompanied by General Joseph Shelton, who was serving as a private
soldier, moved in the direction of the fires and discovered four
Indians, who at once retreated. One of these Indians, Chief Yaha Hayo,
was killed, while the others made their escape. On the 30th Colonel
Goodwyn was sent forward to reconnoiter, and when near Pilaklakaha was
attacked by Indians, having three men and several horses wounded.
Colonel Robert H. Goodwyn was soon re-enforced by General Eustis, and
a battle ensued lasting nearly an hour. The Indians were driven into
the swamp. On March 31st an express was sent to Scott for information
and for the purpose of obtaining forage. A signal gun was fired on the
following morning after their arrival, but not answered.
The right wing having assembled at Fort Drane, General Scott ordered
General Clinch to put his troops in motion on March 25th and take
position on the Ouithlacoochee; but a heavy rain prevented the
movement until the morning of March 26th. General Clinch sent forward
two flatboats drawn on wagons to await the arrival of the troops at
the river. The movement was begun by Major Douglass with his mounted
Georgians. The order of march was in three columns: the center, with
the baggage train, headed by General Clinch, the right consisting of
the Louisiana volunteers, under command of Colonel Persifor F. Smith,
joined the line at Camp Smith, and the left, commanded by Colonel
Bankhert, joined by Lieutenant Colonel William S. Foster's battalion
of United States troops at Camp Twiggs, General Scott and staff with
an escort of dragoons taking position in the center. Colonel Gadsden
was appointed quartermaster general for Florida, and acting inspector
general. When nine miles from Fort Drane information reached the army
that some volunteers left in charge of a broken-down team had been
attacked by the Indians and one man killed. On March 28th the column
reached the Ouithlacoochee and encamped near Fort Izard. The river
bank was occupied by sharpshooters and two pieces of artillery to
protect the crossing. Foster Blodget, of the Richmond Blues of
Augusta, Ga., swam the river and attached a rope to a tree on the
opposite shore and planted the flag of his command. The whole command
was passed over, but the rear division was fired upon by the Indians,
who were quickly repulsed by the six-pounders. On the morning of March
30th a party of Indians was encountered, charged upon, and routed, and
the same party were next day met and driven into the swamp. The column
proceeded on its march and arrived at Tampa Bay on April 5th. They
here learned that Colonel Lindsay had preceded them one day, being
obliged to return for necessary subsistence.
It will be remembered that the center, being under Colonel Lindsay,
took position at Camp Broadnax, near Chicuchatty, on March 28th. They
were fired on by the Indians, but succeeded in driving them off. As
his supplies had run short and the original plan of the campaign had
been defeated, Colonel Lindsay returned with his command to Fort
Brooke, arriving there April 4th. When Colonel Lindsay reached Fort
Alabama, near the Hillsboro River, he learned that the post had been
attacked on the morning of March 27th by three or four hundred
Indians, who surrounded the breastwork and continued the attack for
two hours, when they were repulsed with a loss of fifteen. The
garrison lost one man killed and two wounded. General Eustis, for the
same reasons which moved Colonel Lindsay, marched on April 2d from
Pilaklakaha and encamped about sixteen miles from Fort Brooke,
reporting to General Scott.
The whole army being now concentrated at or near Fort Brooke, the plan
for a new campaign was discussed. They had found but small parties of
the Indians in the cove or swamp region, and it was thought that they
had gone to the southern part of the Florida peninsula and concealed
themselves in the Everglades.
General Scott ordered Colonel Smith, of the Louisiana volunteers, to
proceed by water to Charlotte Harbor and move north, while Colonel
Goodwyn, with the South Carolina mounted men, was ordered to the lake
at the head of Pease's Creek for the purpose of driving the Indians
down. Having destroyed a large unoccupied Indian village on the left
bank of that stream, and finding no Indians, the command returned to
Hillsboro River and joined the left wing.
The Louisiana troops left Fort Brooke on April 10th and arrived at
Pease's Creek on the 17th. They moved forward at once, but the weather
was oppressive and the men were broken down by previous marches; many
of them being destitute of shoes and other clothing, it was found
necessary to return to camp. Out of over seven hundred Louisiana
troops who had volunteered in January and entered the field the
beginning of the next month, but one hundred and thirty were now left
fit for duty. With these, however, and a small detachment of marines
from the United States vessels in that vicinity, Colonel Smith
determined to proceed. He embarked with one half of his command in
canoes, the others proceeding by land. Meeting no Indians, he returned
to Fort Brooke on April 27th, when the Louisiana troops were ordered
to New Orleans to be mustered out of service. Colonel Smith proceeded
to St. Mark's and reported to General Scott.
The right wing having remained at Tampa Bay from April 5th to the
13th, General Scott issued orders to General Clinch to move toward
Fort Drane, and, after relieving Major Cooper, to co-operate with
Colonel Lindsay, who had left Fort Brooke about the same time, for the
purpose of penetrating the cove in a different direction from that
pursued by the right wing on its march to Tampa, and to penetrate the
forks of the Ouithlacoochee.
While Colonel Lindsay was engaged in constructing a defensive work on
the military road near Big Ouithlacoochee, General Clinch encamped
near Fort Cooper and dispatched some cavalry under Captain Malone to
relieve the garrison, with instructions that should he meet the enemy,
he was to advise General Clinch at once. When about three miles
distant from the main body the Indians opened fire and at once
retreated. The hammock was penetrated and searched, but no Indians
were found.
Major Cooper was attacked by a large body of Indians and besieged for
thirteen days. His loss was one man killed and twenty wounded. The
Indians not having been found in any large numbers, the two wings
separated, the center returning to Fort Brooke and the right to Fort
King, where they arrived April 25th.
After the arrival of Colonel Goodwyn's mounted regiment, the left
wing, accompanied by General Scott, took up line of march on the 18th
for Volusia. A small party of Indians was encountered, but they fled
and secreted themselves in a hammock. General Eustis's command arrived
at Volusia on the evening of the 25th, and on the 28th all the
volunteers from South Carolina marched to St. Augustine and were
mustered out. On the arrival of Colonel Lindsay at Fort Brooke he was
directed by General Scott to relieve the garrison at Fort Alabama, and
disband the Alabama volunteers, leaving only regulars there.
They were attacked by the Indians with a loss of four killed and
nineteen wounded. General Scott, accompanied by Colonel Gadsden,
Captain Augustus Canfield, and Lieutenant Johnson, with a detachment
of seventeen men, embarked in a steamboat at Volusia for the purpose
of penetrating by the St. John's River the south part of the peninsula
and selecting a site nearer to the seat of war as a depot for
supplies. They proceeded to the head of Lake Monroe, but the boat was
unable to pass the bar and they were compelled to return.
In his report of April 30th General Scott says: "To end this war, I
am now persuaded that not less than three thousand troops are
indispensable--two thousand four hundred infantry and six hundred
horse, the country to be occupied and scoured requiring that number."
He further recommended that two or three steamers with a light draught
of water, and fifty or sixty barges capable of carrying from ten to
fifteen men each, be employed, but did not ask for the control of the
operations he recommended, saying it was an honor he would neither
solicit nor decline.
CHAPTER VII.
Scott prefers complaint against General Jesup--Court of inquiry
ordered by the President--Scott fully exonerated by the
court--Complaints of citizens--Difficulties of the campaign--Speech in
Congress of Hon. Richard Biddle--Scott declines an invitation to a
dinner in New York city--Resolutions of the subscribers--Scott is
ordered to take charge of and remove the Cherokee Indians--Orders
issued to troops and address to the Indians--Origin of the Cherokee
Indian troubles--Collision threatened between Maine and New Brunswick,
and Scott sent there--Correspondence with Lieutenant-Governor
Harvey--Seizure of Navy Island by Van Rensselaer--Governor Marcy.
General Scott had, a short time previous to the events just narrated,
complained to the War Department of disobedience of orders on the part
of General Jesup, who had written a letter to the Globe newspaper in
Washington charging that Scott's conduct had been destructive of the
best interests of the country. Mr. Francis P. Blair, the editor to
whom the letter was addressed, showed it to President Jackson, who
indorsed on it an order to the Secretary of War to recall General
Scott to Washington, and that an inquiry be held as to his delay in
prosecuting the Creek War and the failure of the Florida campaign. On
Scott's arrival in Washington he asked for a court of inquiry, which
was ordered on October 3d, composed of Major-General Alexander Macomb
and Brigadier-Generals Henry Atkinson and Hugh Brady, with Colonel
Cooper, General Macomb's aid-de-camp, as judge advocate. The court
assembled at Frederick, Md., and was delayed some time by the absence
of witnesses. General Scott addressed the court in his own defense.
The finding was unanimous that the plan of the Seminole campaign was
well devised, and prosecuted with energy, steadiness, and ability; and
as to the Creek campaign, the court decided that the plan of the
campaign as adopted by General Scott was well calculated to lead to
successful results, and that it was prosecuted by him, as far as
practicable, with zeal and ability until he was recalled from the
command. This was not only a full vindication, but a compliment to him
expressed in the broadest sense.
He now addressed a letter to Secretary of War Joel R. Poinsett, asking
the immediate direction of affairs in Florida, as this was a part of
the geographical division to which he had been assigned, and a large
number of the troops of his command had been ordered there; and that
he was senior in rank to General Jesup, then commanding there. The
members of Congress from his native State made a unanimous appeal to
the Secretary of War seconding his application, but the application
was denied.
Some citizens of Florida made complaints of the nonsuccess of the
army, and severely censured General Scott. In fact, complaints of this
nature were made against every officer who commanded in Florida,
except General Zachary Taylor. It has been seen that the court of
inquiry fully vindicated General Scott's course in the management of
the war in Florida. The campaign, however, vindicated itself.
Considering the scarcity of all the means at hand, it is remarkable
how much was accomplished with so little loss of life.
When General Scott undertook this campaign Florida was a _terra
incognita_. The greater part of it had scarcely been visited by the
whites, and very little was known of the settlements of the Seminoles.
They were known by their approaches to the white settlements, and when
the war broke out by their plunders and devastations. It was not known
where their hiding places were, and this could only be determined by
pursuing them. At the time of General Scott's assignment to the
command all the information tended to locating them on the waters of
the Ouithlacoochee and the St. John's Rivers; and accordingly against
this portion of the country the movement of the army was directed.
It was not only the want of ordnance, clothing, and subsistence, but
the geographical peculiarity of Florida--with its marshes, thickets,
hammocks, everglades, and impenetrable swamps--that made this campaign
almost fruitless, and which for years baffled all efforts of the
Government to subdue this small but brave and desperate tribe of
Indians.
In Congress General Scott's campaign in Florida was defended by some
of the ablest men in the country. Richard Biddle, of Pennsylvania, in
1837, when the House of Representatives was engaged in a debate on
appropriations for carrying on the war in Florida, said: "It would be
recollected by all that after the war in Florida had assumed a
formidable aspect Major-General Scott was called to the command. An
officer of his rank and standing was not likely to seek a service in
which, amid infinite toil and vexation, there would be no opportunity
for the display of military talent on a scale at all commensurate with
that in which his past fame had been acquired. Yet he entered on it
with the alacrity, zeal, and devotion to duty by which he had ever
been distinguished....
"When the late General Brown, writing from the field of Chippewa, said
that General Scott merited the highest praises which a grateful
country could bestow, was there a single bosom throughout the wide
republic that did not respond to the sentiment? I, for one at least,
can never forget the thrill of enthusiasm, boy as I then was, which
mingled with my own devout thankfulness to God that the cloud which
seemed to have settled on our arms was at length dispelled. On that
plain it was established that Americans could be trained to meet and
to beat in the open field, without breastworks, the regulars of
Britain....
"Sir, the result of that day was due not merely to the gallantry of
General Scott upon the field. It must in part be ascribed to the
patient, anxious, and indefatigable drudgery, the consummate skill as
a tactician, with which he labored night and day, at the camp near
Buffalo, to prepare his brigade for the career on which it was about
to enter. After a brief interval he again led that brigade to the
glorious victory of Bridgewater. He bears now upon his body the wounds
of that day. It had ever been the characteristic of this officer to
seek the post of danger--not to have it thrust upon him. In the years
preceding that to which I have specially referred--in 1812 and
1813--the eminent services he rendered were in the positions which
properly belonged to others, but into which he was led by
irrepressible ardor and jealousy of honor.
"Since the peace with Great Britain the talents of General Scott have
ever been at the command of his country. His pen and his sword have
alike been put in requisition to meet the varied exigencies of the
service. When the difficulties with the Western Indians swelled into
importance, General Scott was dispatched to the scene of hostility.
There rose up before him then, in the ravages of a frightful
pestilence, a form of danger infinitely more appalling than the perils
of the field. How he bore himself in this emergency, how faithfully he
became the nurse and the physician of those from whom terror and
loathing had driven all other aid, can not be forgotten by a just and
grateful country....
"Mr. Chairman, I believe that a signal atonement to General Scott will
one day be extorted from the justice of the House. We owe it to him;
but we owe it still more to the country. What officer can feel secure
in the face of that great example of triumphant injustice? Who can
place before himself the anticipation of establishing higher claims
upon the gratitude of the country than General Scott? Yet he was
sacrificed. His past services went for nothing. Sir, you may raise new
regiments and issue new commissions, but you can not without such
atonement restore the high moral tone which befits the depositories of
the national honor. I fondly wish that the highest and lowest in the
country's service might be taught to regard this House as the jealous
guardian of his rights, against caprice, or fanaticism, or outrage
from whatever quarter. I would have him know that in running up the
national flag at the very moment our daily labors commence, we do not
go through an idle form. On whatever distant service he may be
sent--whether urging his way amid tumbling icebergs toward the pole,
or fainting in the unwholesome heat of Florida--I would enable him as
he looks up to that flag to gather hope and strength. It should impart
to him a proud feeling of confidence and security. He should know that
the same emblem of majesty and justice floats over the council of the
nation, and that in its untarnished luster we have all a common
interest and a common sympathy. Then, sir, and not before, will you
have an army or a navy worthy to sustain and to perpetuate the glory
of former days."
Soon after the decision of the court of inquiry exonerating him from
blame or censure General Scott was tendered a public dinner in New
York from leading members of both political parties. He accepted the
invitation, but it was subsequently postponed until about the middle
of May, and before that time it was altogether declined, for reasons
expressed in a note of which a copy follows:
"GENTLEMEN: Early last month I accepted the invitation to a
public dinner which you and other friends did me the honor to tender
me. In a few days the embarrassments of this great emporium became
such that I begged the compliment might be indefinitely postponed.
You, however, were so kind as to hold me to my engagement, and to
appoint a day for the meeting, which is now near at hand. In the
meantime the difficulties in the commercial world have gone on
augmenting, and many of my friends, here and elsewhere, have been
whelmed under the general calamity of the times. Feeling deeply for
the losses and anxieties of all, no public honor could now be
enjoyed by me. I must therefore, under the circumstances, positively
but most respectfully withdraw my acceptance of your invitation.
"I have the honor to remain, gentlemen, with the greatest esteem,
your friend and servant,
"WINFIELD SCOTT."
The subscribers to the dinner, on receipt of General Scott's letter,
called a meeting, Cornelius W. Lawrence in the chair, and unanimously
adopted the resolutions which follow:
"_Resolved_, That in the decision of General Scott to withdraw, for
the reasons assigned, his acceptance of the public dinner designed to
testify to him our high appreciation both of his private and public
character, we find new evidence of his sympathy with all that regards
the public welfare, and of his habitual oblivion of self where the
feelings and interests of others are concerned.
"_Resolved_, That we rejoice with the joy of friends in the result, so
honorable to General Scott, of the recent court of inquiry instituted
to investigate his military conduct as commander in chief in Alabama
and Florida, and that the President of the United States (Mr. Van
Buren), in approving its proceedings, acted in gratifying unison with
the general sentiments of the nation."
General Scott also received invitations from Richmond, Va., and
Elizabeth, N.J., both of which places had been his former homes.
The Florida War was brought to a close by the defeat of the Indians by
Colonel Zachary Taylor, in the decisive battle of Okechobee, for
which he received the brevet of Brigadier General, and in 1838 was
appointed to the chief command in Florida. Taylor was succeeded by
Brigadier-General Armistead, and in 1842 General Worth succeeded to
the command and made a treaty with Sam Jones and Billy Bowlegs,
allowing them to remain and possess a large tract of land.
In the spring of 1836 General Scott was ordered to take charge of and
superintend the removal of the Cherokee Indians to the reservation
which had been set apart for them by treaty west of the Mississippi
River. Great opposition to removal was expected from the Indians, and
much fear felt by the inhabitants contiguous to their settlements.
General Scott, however, by his kindness and generosity, won the
confidence of the Indians, and was not compelled to resort to any act
of violence. Twenty-four thousand five hundred and ninety-four were
removed, two hundred and thirty-six having lost their lives on the
steamboat Monmouth. Only seven hundred and forty-four remained east of
the Mississippi River. The Cherokees occupied territory in the States
of Georgia, North Carolina, Alabama, and Tennessee. Many of their
leaders were well educated and were men of ability, and some of them
were wealthy, owning fine farms and negro slaves. General Scott in his
Memoirs says: "The North Carolinians and Tennesseeans were kindly
disposed toward their red brethren. The Alabamians much less so. The
great difficulty was with the Georgians (more than half the army),
between whom and the Cherokees there had been feuds and wars for many
generations. The reciprocal hatred of the two races was probably never
surpassed. Almost every Georgian on leaving home, as well as after
arrival at New Echota--the center of the most populous district of the
Indian Territory--vowed never to return without having killed at least
one Indian."
General Scott arrived at the Cherokee agency, a small village on the
Hiawassee River in Tennessee, in the early part of May, 1838. He
published and circulated two addresses--one to the troops and the
other to the Indians--but had them circulated together.
Following is the address to the troops:
"HEADQUARTERS, EASTERN DIVISION,
"CHEROKEE AGENCY, _May 17, 1838_.
"Considering the number and temper of the mass to be removed,
together with the extent and fastnesses of the country occupied, it
will readily occur that simple indiscretions, acts of harshness, and
cruelty on the part of our troops may lead, step by step, to delays,
to impatience, and exasperation, and in the end to a general war and
carnage--a result in the case of these particular Indians, utterly
abhorrent to the generous sympathies of the whole American people.
Every possible kindness compatible with the necessity of removal
must therefore be shown by the troops; and if in the ranks a
despicable individual should be found capable of inflicting a wanton
injury or insult on any Cherokee man, woman, or child, it is hereby
made the special duty of the nearest good officer or man instantly
to interpose, and to seize and consign the guilty wretch to the
severest penalty of the laws. The major general is fully persuaded
that this injunction will not be neglected by the brave men under
his command, who can not be otherwise than jealous of their own
honor and that of their country.
"By early and persevering acts of kindness and humanity, it is
impossible to doubt that the Indians will soon be induced to confide
in the army, and, instead of fleeing to the mountains and forests,
flock to us for food and clothing. If, however, through false
apprehensions, individuals or a party here and there should seek to
hide themselves, they must be pursued and invited to surrender, but
not fired upon, unless they should make a stand to resist. Even in
such cases mild remedies may sometimes better succeed than violence;
and it can not be doubted, if we get possession of the women and
children first, or first capture the men, that in either case the
outstanding members of the same families will readily come in on the
assurance of forgiveness and kind treatment.
"Every captured man, as well as those who surrender themselves, must
be disarmed, with the assurance that their weapons will be carefully
preserved and restored at or beyond the Mississippi. In either case
the men will be guarded and escorted, except it may be where their
women and children are safely secured as hostages; but in general,
families in our possession will not be separated, unless it be to
send men as runners to invite others to come in.
"It may happen that Indians will be found too sick, in the opinion
of the nearest surgeon, to be removed to one of the depots indicated
above. In every such case one or more of the family or the friends
of the sick person will be left in attendance, with ample
subsistence and remedies, and the remainder of the family removed
by the troops. Infants, superannuated persons, lunatics, and women
in helpless condition, will all, in the removal, require peculiar
attention, which the brave and humane will seek to adapt to the
necessities of the several cases."
Following is the address to the Indians:
"_Major-General Scott, of the United States Army, sends to the
Cherokee people remaining in North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, and
Alabama this_
"ADDRESS.
"CHEROKEES: The President of the United States has sent me
with a powerful army to cause you, in obedience of the treaty of
1835, to join that part of your people who are already established
in prosperity on the other side of the Mississippi. Unhappily, the
two years which were allowed for the purpose you have suffered to
pass away without following and without making any preparation to
follow, and now, or by the time that this solemn address shall reach
your distant settlements, the emigration must be commenced in haste,
but, I hope, without disorder. I have no power by granting a further
delay to correct the error that you have committed. The full moon of
May is already on the wane, and before another shall have passed
away every Cherokee man, woman, and child in those States must be in
motion to join their brethren in the far West.
"My friends, this is no sudden determination on the part of the
President, whom you and I must now obey. By the treaty the
emigration was to have been completed on or before the 23d of this
month, and the President has constantly kept you warned during the
two years allowed, through all his officers and agents in this
country, that the treaty would be enforced.
"I am come to carry out that determination. My troops already occupy
many positions in the country that you are to abandon, and thousands
and thousands are approaching from every quarter to render
assistance and escape alike hopeless. All those troops, regular and
militia, are your friends. Receive them, and confide in them as
such. Obey them when they tell you that you can remain no longer in
this country. Soldiers are as kind-hearted as brave, and the desire
of every one of us is to execute our painful duty in mercy. We are
commanded by the President to act toward you in that spirit, and
such is also the wish of the whole people of America.
"Chiefs, headmen, and warriors, will you then by resistance compel
us to resort to arms? God forbid! Or will you by flight seek to hide
yourselves in mountains and forests, and thus oblige us to hunt you
down? Remember, that in pursuit it may be impossible to avoid
conflicts. The blood of the white man or the blood of the red man
may be spilt, and if spilt, however accidentally, if may be
impossible for the discreet and humane among you or among us to
prevent a general war and carnage. Think of this, my Cherokee
brethren! I am an old warrior, and have been present at many a scene
of slaughter; but spare me, I beseech you, the horror of witnessing
the destruction of the Cherokees.
"Do not, I invite you, even wait for the close approach of the
troops; but make such preparations for emigration as you can, and
hasten to this place, to Ross's Landing, or to Gunter's Landing,
where you will be received in kindness by officers selected for the
purpose. You will find food for all, and clothing for the destitute,
at either of those places, and thence at your ease and in comfort be
transported to your new homes according to the terms of the treaty.
"This is the address of a warrior to warriors. May his entreaties be
kindly received, and may the God of both prosper the Americans and
Cherokees, and preserve them long in peace and friendship with each
other. WINFIELD SCOTT."
There was some delay in bringing in the mountain Indians of North
Carolina, but the Indians of Tennessee and Alabama were readily
collected for emigration. General Scott remained with the Georgians,
and followed up his printed addresses by suggestions which proved to
be invaluable.
In a short time the Indians, excepting a few parties, were collected
at the place of rendezvous. The camp selected was twelve miles in
length, with a breadth of four miles. It was well shaded by large
forest trees, and had a large number of springs furnishing an
abundance of the best of water.
The sick were placed in hospitals, and attended by good physicians and
furnished with everything necessary for their comfort. General Scott
rode through the camps daily, and saw that every attention was given
to the Indians which they required, and he made inquiries and gave
special attention to the care of the sick and to the women and
children. At length he placed the matter of the emigration of the
Indians in the hands of the Cherokee authorities, having won the
entire confidence and regard of the Indians, and he ordered all of the
volunteers to their homes, except one company which he retained as a
police force, and one regiment of regulars which it was thought
necessary to retain to meet any unforeseen contingencies that might
arise. Two other regular regiments were ordered off, one to Florida
and the other to the Canada frontier. The company of volunteers
retained was from Tennessee, and of it General Scott said: "The
company of volunteers (Tennesseeans) were a body of respectable
citizens, and under their judicious commander, Captain Robertson, of
great value as a police force." The Cherokees were at this time
receiving large sums of money from the Government in the way of
damages and indemnities, and a number of gamblers and confidence men
sought to enter their camps. They were, however, kept out by the
vigilance of the Tennessee company.
In October the movement west began. General Scott accompanied them to
the junction of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. General Scott gives
credit for services and aid rendered him to his acting inspector
general, Major Matthew Mountjoy Payne; Captain Robert Anderson, acting
adjutant general (later the commander of Fort Sumter, and a brigadier
general); Lieutenant Erastus Darwin Keyes, aid-de-camp, afterward
major general, United States volunteers; Lieutenant Francis Taylor,
commissary; Captains Page and Abner Reviere Hetzel, quartermasters;
Lieutenant Henry L. Scott, Fourth Infantry, then aid-de-camp and
inspector general; Major H.B. Shaw, aid-de-camp, Tennessee volunteers;
Colonel William Lindsay, Second Artillery; Colonel William S. Foster,
Fourth Infantry; and Colonel Ichabod Bennett Crane, First Artillery.
Generals Worth and Floyd rendered important service in this campaign,
and their names should not be omitted.
It may be necessary, for a better understanding of the Cherokee Indian
difficulties, to add something more to what has been written. The
chief troubles which had arisen were in Georgia, and many
complications arose between the Indians and the whites. In a case
decided by the Supreme Court of the United States, the opinion being
rendered by Chief-Justice John Marshall, the status of these Indians
was thus defined: "Their relation is that of a nation claiming and
receiving the protection of one more powerful; not that of individuals
abandoning their national character and submitting as subjects to the
laws of a master."
Regarding the acts of Congress to regulate trade with the Indians the
Chief Justice said: "All these acts, and especially that of 1802,
which is still in force, manifestly consider the several Indian
nations as distinct political communities, having territorial
boundaries, within which their authority is exclusive, and having a
right to all the lands within those boundaries, which is not only
acknowledged but guaranteed by the United States." By one of the
treaties made by the United States Government with this tribe of
Indians, it was enacted and agreed that "the United States solemnly
guarantee to the Cherokee nation all their lands not hereby ceded,"
and, "that the Cherokee nation may be led to a greater degree of
civilization, and to become herdsmen and cultivators, instead of
remaining in a state of hunting, the United States will from time to
time furnish gratuitously the said nation with useful instruments of
husbandry." Acting under this treaty, a greater portion of the
Cherokees had become both cultivators and herdsmen, and rivaled their
white neighbors in both.
The trouble which arose in Georgia was from the fact that she claimed
the right to extend her criminal jurisdiction over these Indians, and
that the United States was bound to extinguish the Indian titles
within her borders. This claim of Georgia, persistently pressed,
caused the United States Government in 1802 to agree to purchase the
Indian lands, and remove them to some other territory. The Indians
resisted this action on the faith of treaties. Eventually a treaty was
made with a portion of the Cherokees by which they were to relinquish
their lands and accept lands across the Mississippi River. Many of the
Indians resisted and never ratified this treaty, yet the Government
insisted upon carrying out the treaty. General Scott received his
orders on April 10, 1838, and first established his headquarters at a
small village called Calhoun, on the Hiawassee River, in East
Tennessee. Colonel Lindsay, an officer of merit and who enjoyed the
full confidence of General Scott, was in immediate command of that
territory, had established posts in many of the settlements, and had
arranged to have the mountain passes well guarded.
Referring to these matters, the National Intelligencer of September
27, 1838, said: "The manner in which this gallant officer [Scott] has
acquitted himself within the last year upon the Canada frontier, and
lately among the Cherokees, has excited the universal admiration and
gratitude of the whole nation. Owing to his great popularity in the
North, his thorough knowledge of the laws of his own country, as well
as of those which govern nations, united to his discretion, his great
tact and experience, he has saved the country from a ruinous war with
Great Britain. And by his masterly skill and energy among the
Cherokees, united to his noble generosity and humanity, he has not
only effected what everybody supposed could not be done without the
most heartrending scenes of butchery and bloodshed, but he has
effected it by obtaining the esteem and confidence of the poor
Cherokees themselves. They look upon him as a benefactor and friend,
and one who has saved them from entire destruction. All the Cherokees
were collected for emigration without bloodshed or violence, and all
would have been on their way to the West before the middle of July,
had not humanity induced General Scott to stop the movement until the
1st of September. Three thousand had been sent off in the first half
of June by the superintendent, before the general took upon himself
the responsibility of stopping the emigration, from feelings which
must do everlasting honor to his heart. An approval of his course had
been sent on by the War Department, before his report giving
information that he had stopped the emigration had reached the seat of
Government. In the early part of January last the President had asked
Congress for enlarged powers, to enable him to maintain our neutral
obligations to England--that is, to tranquilize the Canadian
frontiers. Before the bill passed Congress, General Scott had finished
the work and effected all its objects. These, too, he effected by
flying from one end of the frontier to the other in the dead of
winter, and during the severest and coldest period of it. He returns
to Washington, and is immediately ordered to the Cherokee nation, to
take charge of the very difficult and hazardous task to his own fame
of removing those savages from their native land. Some of his best
friends regretted most sincerely that he had been ordered on this
service, and, knowing the disposition of the world to cavil and
complain without cause, had great apprehension that he would lose a
portion of the popularity he had acquired by his distinguished success
on the Canadian frontier. But behold the manner in which this last
work has been performed! There is so much of noble generosity of
character about Scott, independent of his skill and bravery as a
soldier, that his life has really been one of romantic beauty and
interest."
It was General Scott's intention to accompany the Indian emigration
farther west, but receiving information that the Canadian insurgents
were making renewed attempts on the Canadas, he was directed to
proceed at once to that frontier.
Passing through the States of Kentucky and Ohio, accompanied by
Captain Robert Anderson, he called upon their respective governors and
arranged for the calling out of volunteers should they be needed, and
also gave proper instructions to the United States marshals and
district attorneys for such duties as they might be called upon to
perform. He passed on rapidly to Cleveland, Sandusky, and Detroit, and
met great assemblages of excited citizens, and, by his appeals and
reasoning with them, prevailed upon them to desist from any acts in
violation of the neutrality with Great Britain. Pending these
important services, he learned of the trouble which had arisen between
the State of Maine and the British colony or province of New
Brunswick, and at once made haste for Washington. On his arrival at
the capital, after reporting to the President, he was called before
the committees on foreign affairs of both Houses of Congress, before
whom he urged and succeeded in securing the passage of two bills--one
authorizing the President to call out the militia for six months and
to accept the service of fifty thousand volunteers, and the other to
place to his credit ten millions of dollars. On taking leave of the
President he said to him: "Mr. President, if you want war, I need only
look on in silence. The Maine people will make it for you fast and hot
enough. I know them. But if peace be your wish, I can give no
assurance of success. The difficulties in its way will be formidable."
The President replied, "Peace with honor"; and the general, who fully
reciprocated the President's feeling, took his leave, accompanied by
Captain Robert Anderson and Lieutenant E.D. Keyes, his aid-de-camp. He
left with general instructions, but in certain events he was to act on
his own judgment without restriction. Arriving in Boston, he met
Governor Edward Everett, and arranged for calling out the militia and
accepting volunteers if needed.
Governor Everett introduced him to his executive council with the
following address: "General, I take great pleasure in introducing you
to the members of the Executive Council of Massachusetts. I need not
say that you are already known to them by reputation. They are
familiar with your fame as it is recorded in some of the arduous and
honorable fields of the country's struggles. We rejoice in meeting you
on this occasion. Charged as you are with a most momentous mission by
the President of the United States, we are sure you are intrusted
with a duty most grateful to your feelings--that of averting an appeal
to arms. We place unlimited reliance on your spirit, energy, and
discretion. Should you unhappily fail in your efforts, under the
instructions of the President, to restore harmony, we know that you
are equally prepared for a still more responsible duty. Should that
unhappy event occur, I beg you to depend on the firm support of
Massachusetts." He was then given a reception by the Legislature, and
received on its behalf by Robert C. Winthrop.
From Boston he proceeded at once to Portland, where he found the
people greatly excited, and demanding the immediate seizure and
occupation of the disputed territory. At the capital, Augusta, where
he next proceeded, he found the same excitement with the same demands.
The Legislature was in session, and a large majority of its members
were for war. The strip of disputed land was valuable chiefly for ship
timber. Some British subjects had entered the territory and cut some
of the timber, and the Governor of Maine sent an agent with a posse to
drive them off. The British seized and imprisoned the agent, and much
angry correspondence followed between the authorities of both sides.
General Scott soon determined that the only mode of settlement was to
prohibit or have an agreement on both sides to leave the territory
unoccupied by either party until the matters in dispute could be
arranged between the governments of the United States and Great
Britain, taking the matter out of the jurisdiction of the State of
Maine and the province of New Brunswick. Previous to Scott's arrival
in Maine the Legislature of that State had passed an act placing
eight hundred thousand dollars at the disposal of the Governor and
authorizing the calling out of eight thousand troops. Some of these
troops had been organized and moved near the disputed territory, and
others were held ready to move when ordered. British troops, both
regulars and militia, had also been moved forward. Everything
indicated a war. On February 27, 1839, President Van Buren had sent a
message to Congress transmitting various documents received from the
Governor of Maine, and a copy of a memorandum signed by the Secretary
of State of the United States and the British Minister to the United
States, which, it was hoped, would prevent a collision of arms. Mr.
H.B. Fox, the British Minister, had acted without specific authority
from his Government, and the memorandum therefore had only the force
of a recommendation. All correspondence had for some time ceased
between the governors of Maine and New Brunswick.
The Governor of New Brunswick, John Harvey, had been an adjutant
general of one of the armies of Canada in the campaign of 1813, and
was well known to General Scott. Scott, it will be remembered, was an
adjutant general in this campaign, and he and Colonel Harvey had
frequent correspondence, and it was so conducted as to create a
feeling of respect on both sides. At one time in the campaign
mentioned, when Scott was on a reconnoitering expedition, his party
came upon Harvey, and a gun in the hands of a soldier near Scott was
leveled on him. Scott caught the gun, and said, "Hold! he is our
prisoner," but Colonel Harvey made a rapid turn and escaped.
On General Scott's arrival in Maine he had with him a private letter
from Sir John Harvey, the Colonel Harvey just mentioned, then Governor
General of New Brunswick. It is proper to mention here, as additional
reason for good feeling between General Scott and Sir John Harvey,
that at one time in the War of 1813 an American soldier under Scott's
command had come into possession of the uniform coat of a British
staff officer, and in one of the pockets was found the miniature of a
young lady. The portmanteau from which the coat and miniature were
taken was marked "Lieutenant-Colonel Harvey." Scott purchased these
articles from the soldier and sent them to Colonel Harvey. The picture
was that of his young bride, then in England.
Governor Fairfield, of Maine, had on March 12th sent a message to the
Legislature objecting to the terms of the memorandum, but recommending
that, when fully satisfied that the Lieutenant Governor of New
Brunswick had abandoned all idea of occupying the disputed territory
with a military force, or of attempting the expulsion of citizens of
Maine, he [the Governor] be authorized to withdraw the military force,
leaving the land agent with a posse of armed or unarmed men, as the
case might require, sufficient to drive out or arrest trespassers. The
Legislature on March 20th passed resolutions in accordance with these
recommendations. The message of the Governor of Maine and the
resolutions of the Legislature required the lieutenant governor to
make the advance.
General Scott, after the action of the Legislature above mentioned,
sent a reply to Harvey's private letter, which he had held unanswered
so long. This elicited a friendly reply, and other letters of the
same character quickly followed on either side. A line of couriers
was established between them to facilitate correspondence. Governor
Harvey took the first step, and made the concessions which were
necessary to appease the authorities of Maine, but the Governor did
not feel authorized to withdraw the troops from the disputed territory
unless authorized by the Legislature. General Scott mingled freely
with members of the Legislature, urging pacific measures, and on March
20th resolutions were passed; and Scott having his memorandum with Sir
John Harvey with all concessions to restore tranquillity, the Governor
of Maine added his approval, and the question was transferred to the
authorities of the United States and Great Britain, which resulted in
a satisfactory settlement to both nations of this unhappy affair.
An uprising, confined chiefly to the French inhabitants of Upper
Canada, occurred in 1837, in which they demanded a separation from the
British Government, and they enlisted many sympathizers among citizens
of the United States, especially among those living on the Canadian
boundary. Organizations of sympathizers with the Canadians were
secretly formed by American citizens to such an extent that the
President of the United States issued a proclamation enjoining its
citizens to observe neutrality. This did not quiet the excitement, but
rather tended to increase it. Matters were brought to a crisis by the
action of a certain Van Rensselaer, who had been dismissed from the
Military Academy at West Point, and who styled himself "Colonel" Van
Rensselaer. He organized a party of Americans reckless like himself,
and took forcible possession of a small British island opposite to
Fort Schlosser, on the American side, and known as Navy Island. This
island was a short distance above the falls of Niagara. Young Van
Rensselaer engaged a small steamboat called the Caroline to ferry
parties from Navy Island, which he occupied, to Schlosser on the
American shore.
The first night on which the Caroline began her voyages the British
fitted out an expedition to capture her. Instead of making a descent
on Navy Island within British territory, they boarded the steamer at
Schlosser, on the American side, and thus violated our territory. The
boat at the time of this invasion was filled with people, many of whom
were there for idle curiosity, including a number of boys. In the
_mêlée_ of capture one American citizen was killed and several others
wounded. They cut the boat from its moorings, set it on fire, and it
drifted down the cataract. It was reported and generally believed that
when the vessel went over the cataract it had a small number of
wounded Americans on board.
The publication of this affair created the greatest excitement from
one end of the country to the other. This occurred on December 29,
1837, but the news did not reach Washington until January 4th. On the
evening of that day General Scott was to dine with President Van Buren
and a number of other distinguished gentlemen. The entire party had
arrived, but the President failed to appear. After a time he came in
and spoke inaudibly to Henry Clay, one of the guests, and then said to
General Scott: "Blood has been shed; you must go with all speed to the
Niagara frontier. The Secretary of War is now engaged in making out
your instructions." General Scott left at once, and passing through
Albany, met William L. Marcy, the Governor of New York, who with his
adjutant general (McDonald) accompanied him to the scene of the
troubles. The United States troops at this time were all either in
Florida or on the Western frontiers. General Scott, in passing through
New York, had ordered some small detachments of army recruits to
follow him. Governor Marcy was with him ready to answer his
requisitions for militia, and he had the aid of the officers
commanding on Lake Erie and the Detroit frontier and on the Niagara,
Lake Ontario, and St. Lawrence. All United States marshals and other
civil officers of the Government were ordered to support and aid him.
He passed from one place to another, going where his services could be
needed, exhorting the people to observe the neutrality proclamation of
the President; and where he found them obstinate and determined, he
notified them in terms which could not be mistaken that any attempt to
violate this proclamation would be met by resistance from the
Government, which would promptly overpower them.
Pending these troubles, a steamer called the Barcelona was taken from
the harbor of Buffalo in January, 1838, and passed down the river,
with a view to aid the insurgents on Navy Island. Scott, on learning
of this, sent an agent who made terms to employ the Barcelona for the
service of the Government. The vessel then proceeded back to Buffalo,
where it was intended to use her on Lake Erie; but the Canadian
authorities had determined to destroy her. As the vessel passed near
Grand Island, within the jurisdiction of the United States, some
armed British schooners had taken position, aided by land batteries,
to open fire on her. This was on January 16th. General Scott and
Governor Marcy stood on the river bank watching events. Batteries on
the American side were put in preparation to return the fire of the
British.
The day before the event just mentioned, Scott had written and
dispatched a note "To the Commanding Officer of the Armed British
Vessels in the Niagara":
"HEADQUARTERS, EASTERN DIVISION, U.S. ARMY,
"TWO MILES BELOW BLACK ROCK, _January 15, 1838_.
"SIR: With his Excellency, Governor Marcy, of New York, who
has troops at hand, we are here to enforce the neutrality of the
United States and to protect our own soil or waters from violation.
The proper civil officers are also present to arrest, if
practicable, the leaders of the expedition on foot against Upper
Canada. Under these circumstances, it gives me pain to perceive the
armed vessels mentioned, anchored in our waters, with the probable
intention to fire upon that expedition moving in the same waters.
Unless the expedition should first attack--in which case we shall
interfere--we shall be obliged to consider a discharge of shot or
shell from or into our waters, from the armed schooners of her
Majesty, as an act seriously compromising the neutrality of the two
nations. I hope, therefore, that no such unpleasant incident may
occur.
"I have the honor to remain, etc.
"WINFIELD SCOTT."
The next morning, January 16th, the same information was given by
General Scott to a British officer who called on him at his quarters.
The Barcelona moved up the river, and Scott had his cannon pointed and
his matches in readiness for firing. Scott stood on the highest point
in full uniform and in view of the other shore. The vessel passed up
unmolested, and doubtless by this act of Scott a war was averted.
In the meantime Van Rensselaer with his adherents had evacuated Navy
Island and landed some miles below, where they were arrested by
General Scott's orders. Thus ended a disturbance which might have
resulted in war, and it can not be gainsaid that its peaceful
settlement was due to the wisdom, firmness, and prudence of General
Scott.
CHAPTER VIII.
Annexation of Texas--Causes that led to annexation--Message of the
President--General Scott's letters regarding William Henry
Harrison--Efforts to reduce General Scott's pay--Letter to T.P.
Atkinson on the slavery question--Battle of Palo Alto, and of Resaca
de la Palma, Monterey, and Buena Vista--"The hasty plate of
soup"--Scott's opinion of General Taylor--Scott ordered to
Mexico--Proposal to revive the grade of lieutenant general,
and to appoint Thomas H. Benton--Scott reaches the Brazos
Santiago--Confidential dispatch from Scott to Taylor--Co-operation of
the navy--Letters to the Secretary of War as to places of
rendezvous--Arrival and landing at Vera Cruz, and its investment,
siege, and capture--Letter to foreign consuls--Terms of
surrender--Orders of General Scott after the surrender.
The Congress of the United States, on February 27, 1845, passed joint
resolutions providing for the annexation of Texas, and they were
approved by President Tyler on the 1st of March. A convention was
called by President Jones, of Texas, to meet on the 4th of the
succeeding July, to consider the matter of annexation to the United
States. The convention ratified the proposal, and prepared a
constitution for Texas as a State in the American Union. The question
of annexation was submitted to a vote of the people of Texas and
ratified by a large majority. On December 29th following, a joint
resolution of the Congress of the United States was passed, which
declared Texas admitted as a State into the Union.
It may be interesting to take a retrospective view of the causes, or
rather the means, by which this important measure was brought about.
In the winter of 1842-'43 there appeared in a newspaper published at
Baltimore a letter of Mr. Thomas W. Gilmer, a member of Congress from
Virginia, urging the annexation of Texas. He argued among other things
that the British Government had designs on Texas; that it proposed a
political and military domination of the country, with a view to the
abolition of slavery. At this time Texas and Mexico were at war. It
was at once charged by the opponents of the scheme of annexation that
Mr. Gilmer, who was known as the close political friend of Mr. John C.
Calhoun, was simply acting as the mouthpiece of the latter. It will
be remembered by those who are conversant with the proceedings of
Congress that Mr. Calhoun, in the Senate in 1836, had offered some
resolutions looking to the annexation of Texas. Mr. Webster, who was
known as opposed to the measure, was the only member of President
Harrison's Cabinet who remained with President Tyler. He resigned his
portfolio as Secretary of State, and was succeeded by Mr. Hugh S.
Legaré, of South Carolina, who, dying very soon after his appointment,
was succeeded by Mr. Abel P. Upshur, of Virginia. Both of the latter
named were known friends of the annexation scheme. There appeared not
long after the publication of the Gilmer letter, in the Richmond
Enquirer, a letter from General Andrew Jackson to Mr. Brown, in reply
to a letter of Mr. Brown, in which he indorsed a copy of Mr. Gilmer's
letter and asking General Jackson's views on the subject. General
Jackson's reply was a thorough and hearty approval of the proposed
immediate annexation of Texas. General Jackson's letter was dated from
the Hermitage, his residence near Nashville, Tenn., March 12, 1843.
The letter of General Jackson produced a profound effect throughout
the country. Although out of office, old, and in the retirement of
private life, he exercised more influence than any man living in the
United States.
Mr. Calhoun succeeded Mr. Upshur as Secretary of State, and he was
known as a friend of annexation. Mr. Van Buren, replying to a letter
from Mr. William T. Hammett, a representative in Congress from
Mississippi, announced his opposition to the immediate annexation of
Texas, because it would produce a war with Mexico. He expressed
himself in favor of the measure when it could be done peaceably and
honorably. Mr. Clay announced his opposition to the measure. In
December, 1843, the British Premier, Lord Aberdeen, in a dispatch to
Sir Richard Packenham, British Minister at Washington, denied that
Great Britain had any design on Texas, but announced (which was
superfluous, and not germane to the charge which he felt called upon
to deny) that "Great Britain desires and is constantly exerting
herself to procure the general abolition of slavery throughout the
world." This provoked a correspondence between Mr. Calhoun and the
British Minister. In his annual message to Congress at the
commencement of the session of 1843-'44 the President expressed
himself very strongly in regard to war being waged by Mexico against
Texas. The proposed treaty for annexation was rejected by the Senate
June 8, 1844, by a vote of thirty-five to sixteen. Mr. Benton
presented a plan for the peaceful acquisition of Texas, but the Senate
refused to adopt it.
President Tyler in his last message again referred to the war between
Mexico and Texas, and said: "I repeat now what I then said, that after
eight years of feeble and ineffectual efforts to recover Texas, it was
time that the war should have ceased."
When the convention of the Whig party met at Harrisburg, Pa., December
4, 1839, to nominate a candidate for the presidency, General Scott's
name was presented. He had addressed a number of letters to members of
the convention urging that, if there appeared any prospect of success,
Mr. Clay should be selected, and if not, that the choice should fall
on General William Henry Harrison. The total number of votes in the
convention was two hundred and fifty-four. Of these, General Scott
received the votes of New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Vermont, and
Michigan--in all, sixty-two. The States which had voted for General
Scott gave their votes eventually to General Harrison, who received
the nomination. General Scott said of General Harrison, "But the
nomination and success of General Harrison," if his life had been
spared some four years longer, would have been no detriment to the
country. With excellent intentions and objects, and the good sense to
appoint able counselors, the country would not have been retarded in
its prosperity nor disgraced by corruption in high places. No one can,
of course, be held responsible for sudden deaths among men. A single
month in office ended President Harrison's life, when the plaint of
Burke occurred to all, "What shadows we are, what shadows we pursue!"
In June, 1841, Major-General Macomb having died, General Scott was
called to take up his residence in Washington as general in chief of
the army. Among his first orders was one which put a stop to arbitrary
and illegal punishments in the army.
An effort was made in the House of Representatives of the next
Congress in 1844 to reduce his pay, but being resisted by Charles J.
Ingersoll, of Philadelphia, and ex-President John Quincy Adams, it was
voted down by a large majority. Mr. Adams, in the course of his
remarks in opposition to the resolution, said that he "felt bound to
declare that he did think it a very ill reward for the great and
eminent services of General Scott during a period of thirty odd years,
in which there were some as gallant exploits as our history could
show, and in which he had not spared to shed his blood, as well as for
more recent services of great importance in time of peace--services of
great difficulty and great delicacy--now to turn him adrift at his
advanced age.... That he could not for a moment harbor in his heart
the thought that General Scott, if he had received from the Government
thousands of dollars more than he had, would have received one dollar
which he did not richly deserve at the hands of his country."
On February 9, 1843, he wrote from Washington to T.P. Atkinson, of
Danville, Va., in reply to a letter from that gentleman, asking his
opinions on the question of slavery. Mr. Atkinson was the son of an
old friend of General Scott, and the letter was written to him as a
probable candidate for the presidency. He took the position in this
letter that Congress had no power under the Constitution to interfere
with or legislate on the question of slavery within the States. He
argued that it was the duty of Congress, however, to receive, refer,
and report upon petitions which might be presented to it on the
question of slavery, as on all other questions. He did not blame
masters for not liberating their slaves, as he thought it would
benefit neither the masters nor the slaves. He, however, held it to be
the duty of slave owners to employ all means not incompatible with the
safety of both master and slave to meliorate slavery even to
extermination. He held that, with the consent of owners or payment of
just compensation, Congress might legislate in the District of
Columbia, although it would be dangerous to contiguous States.
He also, in March, 1845, in reply to a letter from J.C. Beckwith,
corresponding secretary of a peace convention, wrote that he always
maintained the moral right to wage a just and necessary war.
In March, 1845, as stated, Congress passed a joint resolution for the
annexation of the republic of Texas, and in July of that year
Brigadier-General Zachary Taylor, then commanding the first department
of the United States army in the Southwest, was ordered to Texas. He
embarked at New Orleans with fifteen hundred troops, and in August
established his camp at Corpus Christi. Re-enforcements were
dispatched to him rapidly, and in November his command amounted to
about four thousand men.
On March 8, 1846, General Taylor, under orders from Washington, moved
his army toward the Rio Grande, and on the 28th of that month encamped
on that river opposite the Mexican city of Matamoros. He here erected
a fort called Fort Brown, which commanded the city of Matamoros. The
Mexican troops near Matamoros were at the same time busily engaged in
fortifying the city. General Pedro de Ampudia, who commanded the
Mexican forces at Matamoros, on April 12, 1846, addressed General
Taylor a note requiring that within twenty-four hours he should retire
from his position at Fort Brown and march beyond the Neuces, stating
that the governments of Mexico and the United States were engaged in
negotiations regarding the annexation of Texas, and that a failure or
refusal of General Taylor to comply with this demand would be regarded
by his Government as a declaration of war on the part of the United
States. General Taylor replied in substance that he was there with his
army under orders of his Government, that he declined to retire beyond
the Neuces, and that he stood ready to repel any attack which might be
made upon him. Soon after this correspondence General Mariano Arista
was placed in the command formerly held by General Ampudia, and in
May, with an army of six thousand men, he crossed the Rio Grande and
attacked General Taylor at Palo Alto, and was signally defeated.
General Arista retreated on the next day to Resaca de la Palma, where
he was again defeated and his army routed, and he retired across the
Rio Grande. General Taylor was now promoted to the rank of major
general, and on May 18th took possession of Matamoros without
opposition.
On September 9th he arrived at Monterey with about six thousand seven
hundred men, chiefly volunteers. General Ampudia held the command here
with ten thousand regular Mexican troops. General Taylor assaulted his
position on September 19th, and after five days of almost continual
fighting General Ampudia surrendered. General Taylor then transferred
his headquarters to Monterey, but guarded the city of Saltillo with a
strong force. He was about making an advance on San Luis Potosi, when
a large portion of his force was ordered to join General Scott at Vera
Cruz.
Concentrating his forces, some five thousand in number, he learned
that General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna was concentrating a force of
twenty thousand men at San Luis Potosi, with a view to attack him. On
February 21, 1847, he took position at a mountain pass called Buena
Vista, a few miles from Saltillo, where, being attacked the next day
by the Mexican army under General Santa Anna, he defeated them, and
Santa Anna retreated to San Luis Potosi. This brief statement of the
magnificent and almost unprecedented campaign of General Taylor is
necessary to understand the part taken by General Scott in the war
with Mexico.
General Scott was notified early in May, 1846, that he might be
ordered to assume the command on the Mexican frontier. He expressed
his disinclination to this duty, because it was, as he expressed it,
"harsh and unusual for a senior, without re-enforcements, to supersede
a meritorious junior, and that he doubted whether that was the right
season, or the Rio Grande the right basis, for offensive operations
against Mexico," and suggested a plan to conquer a peace, which he
afterward planned and executed. Political reasons to some extent
delayed action in sending General Scott to Mexico, and his views on
the proper campaign in Mexico were not approved by President Polk.
General Scott thought that unless his plan met the full approval and
support of the Government, it might result disastrously, and
expressed the sentiment, which became afterward a byword, that
"soldiers had a far greater dread of a fire upon the rear than of the
most formidable enemy in the front." The President declined to order
him to the command.
Pending these affairs, the Secretary of War one day called at General
Scott's office and found that he was absent. General Scott, on
returning, learning that the secretary had called, wrote him a note in
explanation of his absence, saying that "he had only stepped out for
the moment to take a hasty plate of soup." This was also made a
byword, and was used with a view to injure General Scott, or rather to
ridicule him by his political opponents when he was a candidate of the
Whig party for President in 1852. The successes of General Taylor had
endeared him to the whole country, and his praises were in every one's
mouth. Congress passed a resolution of thanks, with a promise to
present him with a sword in recognition of his services. General Scott
wrote to the Kentucky senators, to Hon. Jefferson Davis, and others in
Congress, suggesting that instead of a sword the higher honor of a
gold medal should be voted him, and this suggestion was adopted.
General Scott made an indorsement on the resolution of Congress voting
this medal, recommending that it be made in the highest style of art.
About this time he was called upon by some Whig members of Congress to
inquire if General Taylor was a Whig, and if he would not be a proper
person for the Whigs to nominate as their candidate for the
presidency.
General Scott spoke of him to these inquirers as a man who had the
true basis of a great character--pure, uncorrupted morals combined
with indomitable courage. Kind-hearted, sincere, and hospitable in a
plain way, he had no vice but prejudice, many friends, and no enemies.
He also related an anecdote showing General Taylor's unscrupulous
honesty and high sense of honor.
General Scott made repeated requests during the summer and autumn of
1846 to be ordered to Mexico. On November 23d he received the
following order:
"WAR DEPARTMENT, WASHINGTON, _November 23, 1846_.
"SIR: The President several days since communicated in
person to you his orders to repair to Mexico to take command of the
forces there assembled, and particularly to organize and set on foot
an expedition to operate on the Gulf coast, if, on arriving at the
theater of action, you shall deem it to be practicable. It is not
proposed to control your operations by definite and positive
instructions, but you are left to prosecute them as your judgment,
under a full view of all the circumstances, shall dictate. The work
is before you, and the means provided or to be provided for
accomplishing it are committed to you, in the full confidence that
you will use them to the best advantage.
"The objects which it is desirable to obtain have been indicated,
and it is hoped that you will have the requisite force to accomplish
them. Of this you must be the judge when preparations are made and
the time for action arrived. Very respectfully,
"Your obedient servant,
"W.L. MARCY, _Secretary of War_.
"_General_ WINFIELD SCOTT."
General Scott was impressed with the belief that Mr. Marcy, the
Secretary of War, and Hon. Robert J. Walker, of Mississippi, the
Secretary of the Treasury, had the fullest confidence in his ability,
and favored giving him the substantial direction of the war. He was
also impressed with the kindness and confidence extended to him by
President Polk, but on his arrival in New Orleans he was shown a
letter from Alexander Barrow, then a Senator in Congress from
Louisiana and a personal friend of General Scott, informing him that
the President had asked that the grade of lieutenant general be
established in the army, and that on the passage of such an act by
Congress it was the intention of the President to confer this rank,
and consequently the command of the army, upon Thomas H. Benton, then
a Senator from Missouri. This was a great shock to General Scott, and
he attributed it to political motives. He reasoned this way: "Scott is
a Whig; therefore the Democracy is not bound to observe good faith
with him. His successes may be turned to the prejudice of the
Democratic party. We must, however, profit by his military experience,
and if successful, by force of patronage and other helps, continue to
crown Benton with the victory, and thus triumph both in the field and
at the polls."
He reached the Brazos Santiago, near the mouth of the Rio Grande, in
Christmas week, and proceeded from there to Camargo, where he expected
to meet General Taylor, but, by some mismanagement or delay, his
notification to General Taylor did not reach the latter.
A confidential dispatch from General Scott to General Taylor was
opened, read, and freely discussed at headquarters at Monterey. A
duplicate was sent forward, but the party in charge of it was killed
at Villa Gran and the dispatch delivered to General Santa Anna. Taylor
had made a movement toward Tampico, and hence did not receive the
first dispatch delivered at Tampico. In the later dispatch General
Scott had written him that he might have his choice of two
armies--either remain as the commander of Northern Mexico, or
accompany General Scott in command of a division toward the City of
Mexico, with every assurance in either case of confidence and support.
General Scott anticipated the difficulty of timely concentration of
forces off the Brazos large enough to give hope of success. He thought
it necessary to have fifteen thousand troops, of which five thousand
were to be regulars, and to have the co-operation of the navy. The
time named for the concentration was the middle of January, so that
the army might reach Vera Cruz by February 1st. He had requested the
advice of General Taylor on these matters and all others in regard to
the proposed campaign. He had intimated, in a letter of November 15th,
that it would be necessary to withdraw a large number of troops from
General Taylor, and thus reduce him to the defensive, while he thought
it absolutely necessary for success that General Taylor should have a
force sufficient to act offensively in the direction of San Luis
Potosi. In addition to the volunteers and regulars at Tampico and
those moving there, he desired that Worth's division of regulars,
Duncan and Taylor's field batteries, a thousand mounted men, and all
the volunteer infantry that could be spared be sent to General Taylor,
only retaining a force sufficient to hold Monterey and protect his
communications to Point Isabel. From New Orleans General Scott had
written the Secretary of War that he approved of the rendezvous at
Pensacola rather than at Brazos for the ordnance and ordnance stores.
He also urged that volunteers be forwarded rapidly to Brazos.
Subsequently he wrote the Secretary of War asking that ships with
troops and supplies be ordered to Lobos Island. He addressed a letter
to General George M. Brooke, commanding at New Orleans, giving
detailed orders of what he required of him. He also wrote to Commodore
Conner, and made suggestions about joint operations.
Failing to meet General Taylor, as he hoped and endeavored to do, with
a view of a full and free conference, he felt compelled to issue
orders detaching from the army of the Rio Grande such regular troops
as were deemed necessary to lead the volunteers for the capture of
Vera Cruz and the move on the capital, leaving General Taylor with a
force sufficient to maintain himself at Monterey. He intended, had he
seen General Taylor, to advise him to contract his line to the Rio
Grande. General Taylor, supported by the authorities in Washington,
favored the movement on the City of Mexico from Monterey and _via_ San
Luis Potosi, but General Scott had already formulated and determined
on the movement which he made with such brilliant success. Orders were
accordingly issued from Camargo, January 3, 1847, for the movement of
troops from Monterey, and General Scott returned to Brazos Santiago.
The embarkation for Vera Cruz was delayed by the non-arrival of the
troops from Monterey and want of transportation. The Lobos Islands was
selected as the place of rendezvous. This point is one hundred and
twenty miles from Vera Cruz. When the greater part of the troops had
arrived, they sailed past Vera Cruz and anchored, on March 7th, at
Anton Lizardo, from which point it was determined to make the
necessary reconnoissances.
General Scott was at this time ignorant of the movement of General
Santa Anna toward Monterey, and expected, on landing or attempting to
land, to be met by a formidable force of the enemy. On March 9th, the
weather proving good, the fleet, consisting of some eighty vessels,
including transports, moved up the coast with the naval steamers and
five gunboats. General Scott was on board of the Massachusetts, and as
she moved up, the troops from the decks of the vessels cheered him
with great enthusiasm. The anchorage was made outside the range of the
enemy's guns. General Scott had provided sixty-seven surf boats, and
in these and some cutters fifty-five hundred men--the boats being
steered by sailors furnished by Commodore David Conner--passed the
Massachusetts and repeated their cheers to the commanding general. The
whole force was landed at half past five in the afternoon, without the
loss of a man or a boat and without serious opposition from the enemy.
The remainder of the force was soon landed, amounting in all to
something less than twelve thousand men.
The following appeared in the New Orleans Bulletin of March 27, 1847:
"The landing of the American army at Vera Cruz has been accomplished
in a manner that reflects the highest credit on all concerned; and the
regularity, precision, and promptness with which it was effected has
probably never been surpassed, if it has been equaled, in modern
warfare. The removal of a large body of troops from numerous
transports into boats in an open sea, their subsequent disembarkation
on the sea beach, on an enemy's coast, through a surf, with all their
arms and accouterments, without a single error or accident, requires
great exertion, skill, and sound judgment.
"The French expedition against Algiers in 1830 was said to be the most
complete armament in every respect that ever left Europe; it had been
prepared with labor, attention, experience, and nothing had been
omitted to insure success, and particularly in the means and
facilities for landing the troops. This disembarkation took place in a
wide bay, which was more favorable than an open beach directly on the
ocean, and (as in the present instance) without any resistance on the
part of the enemy; yet only nine thousand men were landed the first
day, and from thirty to forty lives were lost by accidents or
upsetting of boats; whereas on the present occasion twelve thousand
men were landed in one day, without, so far as we have heard, the
slightest accident or loss of life."
Both the city and the castle of San Juan de Ulloa were strongly
garrisoned and well provisioned. It was General Santa Anna's opinion
that the garrison at Vera Cruz and the castle could successfully
resist a siege until the annual breaking out of the yellow fever, upon
which he depended to cause the withdrawal of the American troops;
hence he devoted himself to the collection of troops to advance on
General Taylor. General Scott says: "The walls and forts of Vera Cruz
in 1847 were in good condition. Subsequent to its capture by the
French, under Admiral Baudin and the Prince de Joinville, in 1838,
the castle had been greatly extended, almost rebuilt, and its armament
about doubled. Besides, the French were allowed to reconnoiter the
city and castle and choose their positions of attack without the least
resistance, the Mexicans deprecating the war with that nation, and
hence ordered not to fire the first gun. Of that injunction the French
were aware. When we approached, in 1847, the castle had the capacity
to sink the entire American navy." Soon after the landing was
effected, General Scott, accompanied by Colonel Joseph G. Totten and
other officers of his staff, reconnoitered the land side of the city,
the reconnoissance of the water front having been previously made.
The city was now completely invested, and all communication with the
interior cut off. A complete blockade had been established by
Commodore Conner. Several officers applied to General Scott for the
privilege of leading storming parties. They were thanked, but no
orders were given. In a meeting with his staff--Colonel Totten, chief
engineer; Lieutenant-Colonel Ethan A. Hitchcock, acting inspector
general; Captain Robert E. Lee, engineer; and Lieutenant Henry L.
Scott, acting adjutant general--General Scott spoke as follows: "We,
of course, gentlemen, must take the city and castle before the return
of the _vomito_--if not by head-work, by the slow scientific process
of storming, and then escape by pushing the conquest into the healthy
interior. I am strongly inclined to attempt the former, unless you can
convince me that the other is preferable. Since our thorough
reconnaissance, I think the suggestion practicable with a very
moderate loss on our part. The second method would no doubt be
equally successful, but with the cost of an immense slaughter to both
sides, including noncombatants, Mexican men, women, and children,
because assaults must be made in the dark, and the assailants dare not
lose time in taking and guarding prisoners without incurring the
certainty of becoming captives themselves, till all the strongholds of
the place are occupied. The horrors of such slaughter as that, with
the usual terrible accompaniment, are most revolting. Besides these
objections, it is necessary to take into account the probable loss of
some two thousand, perhaps three thousand, of our best men in an
assault, and I have received but half the number promised me. How,
then, could we hope to penetrate in the interior?... For these
reasons," I added, quoting literally, "although I know our countrymen
will hardly acknowledge a victory unaccompanied by a long butcher's
bill (report of dead and wounded), I am strongly inclined--policy
concurring with humanity--to forego their loud applause and 'aves
vehement' and take the city with the least possible loss of life...."
General Scott's views were fully concurred in by Colonel Totten and
others of his staff, and orders were issued for digging the trenches
and the establishment of batteries. Very soon all outposts and
sentries of the enemy were driven in. General Scott had warned the
foreign consuls in the city of his proposed attack and had furnished
them safe conducts out of the city, but they had not taken advantage
of it. The marines of Commodore Conner's squadron, at his request,
were now allowed to join the army, and, under command of Captain Alvin
Edson, they were attached to the Third Artillery.
On the morning of the 10th the guns from the castle opened fire, but
did very little damage. General Robert Patterson now joined Worth on
his left, and extended the line of investment. Small parties of
Mexicans were in sight in a valley, and a detachment under command of
Colonel Cenovio approached the American camp and opened fire. The only
damage done was the wounding of one soldier. General Gideon J. Pillow,
with a part of his command and a six-pounder, opened fire on a large
stone building occupied by the enemy and known as the magazine. They
were soon driven off, and General Pillow advanced and attacked a small
force in his front, driving them and occupying the magazine.
Colonels William T. Haskell's and Francis M. Wynkoop's regiments of
Tennessee and Pennsylvania volunteers were moved on a small force on
the road to Medelin, which retired, and two companies--one of
artillery under command of Captain John R. Vinton, and one of infantry
under command of Lieutenant A.P. Rogers--seized a point known as the
limekiln, where it was proposed to plant a battery. General Twiggs
moved on the 11th to extend the line of investment, which was now
complete. General Scott then addressed a letter to the commanding
officer of the city as follows:
"HEADQUARTERS OF THE ARMY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
CAMP WASHINGTON, BEFORE VERA CRUZ,
"_March, 23, 1847_.
"The undersigned, Major-General Scott, general in chief of the
armies of the United States of America, in addition to the close
blockade of the coast and port of Vera Cruz previously established
by the squadrons under Commodore Conner, of the navy of said
States, having more fully invested the said city with an
overwhelming army, so as to render it impossible that it should
receive from without succor or re-enforcements of any kind, and
having caused to be established batteries competent to the speedy
destruction of said city, he, the undersigned, deems it due to the
courtesies of war in like cases, as well as to the rights of
humanity, to summon his Excellency the governor or commander in
chief of the city of Vera Cruz to surrender the same to the army of
the United States of America, present before the place. The
undersigned, anxious to spare the beautiful city of Vera Cruz from
the imminent hazard of demolition, its gallant defenders from a
useless effusion of blood, and its peaceful inhabitants--women and
children inclusive--from the inevitable horrors of a triumphant
assault, addresses this summons to the intelligence, the gallantry,
the patriotism, no less than the humanity, of his Excellency the
governor and commander in chief of Vera Cruz. The undersigned is not
accurately informed whether both the city and the castle of San Juan
de Ulloa be under the command of his Excellency, or whether each
place has its own independent commander; but the undersigned, moved
by the considerations adverted to above, may be willing to stipulate
that if the city should by capitulation be garrisoned by a part of
his troops no missile shall be fired from within the city or from
its bastions or walls upon the castle, unless the castle should
previously fire upon the city. The undersigned has the honor to
tender his distinguished opponent, his Excellency the general and
commander in chief of Vera Cruz, the assurance of the high respect
and consideration of the undersigned, WINFIELD SCOTT."
To which he received the following reply:
"GOD AND LIBERTY!"
"VERA CRUZ, _March 22, 1847_.
"TO MAJOR-GENERAL SCOTT: The undersigned, commanding
general of the free and sovereign State of Vera Cruz, has informed
himself of the contents of the note which Major-General Scott,
general in chief of the forces of the United States, has addressed
to him under date of to-day, demanding the surrender of this place
and castle of San Juan de Ulloa, and in answer has to say that the
above-named fortress as well as the city depends on his authority;
and it being his principal duty, in order to prove worthy of the
confidence placed in him by the Government of the nation, to defend
both points at all cost, to which he counts upon necessary elements,
and will make it good to the last, therefore his Excellency can
commence his operations of war in a manner which he may consider
most advantageous. The undersigned has the honor to return to the
general in chief of the forces of the United States the
demonstrations of esteem he may be pleased to honor him with.
"JUAN MORALES."
The city was garrisoned by a force of three thousand three hundred and
sixty officers and men, and the castle had a force of one thousand and
thirty, making a total of four thousand three hundred and ninety. It
was certainly a brave determination of the Mexicans with this force to
resist the formidable foe who had invested them and were ready to
attack.
On March 22d, at 4.15 P.M., the mortar batteries opened fire,
and from that time the firing was continued without ceasing until the
23d, when it was suspended for a few hours. The fire was returned from
the batteries. Fire was also opened on the city from the vessels.
Heavy guns having arrived, preparations were made for getting them
ashore, but it was prevented by a heavy norther. The norther having
subsided on the 23d, six heavy guns and a detachment from the navy
were landed. On Commodore Matthew C. Perry's request a place in the
trenches was assigned to the navy. On the 24th, Colonel Persifor F.
Smith moved out to a small stream called the San Pedro and attacked
and drove off a force of the enemy.
On the night of the 24th General Scott received a communication,
signed by the British, French, Spanish, and Prussian consuls in Vera
Cruz, asking time to permit the neutrals and women and children to
withdraw from the city; to which he replied that up to the 23d the
communication between the neutrals in Vera Cruz and the neutral ships
of war lying off Sacrificios was left open to allow them an exit, and
that he had given notice to the consuls. He therefore declined to
grant the request unless it was made by the governor and commander in
chief of Vera Cruz, accompanied with a proposition to surrender. On
the 25th, the six heavy guns, the navy battery, and all the mortars
opened fire. General Scott had determined that, if no proposition for
surrender was made by the 26th, he would assault the works.
The command of the city having been turned over by General Morales to
General Landero, the latter, on the 26th, addressed General Scott as
follows:
"I have the honor of transmitting to your Excellency the exposition
which has this moment been made to me by the señores consuls of
England, France, Spain, and Prussia, in which they solicit that
hostilities may be suspended while the innocent families in this
place who are suffering the ravages of war be enabled to leave the
city, which solicitude claims my support; and considering it in
accordance with the rights of afflicted humanity, I have not
hesitated to invite your Excellency to enter into an honorable
accommodation with the garrison, in which case you will please name
three commissioners who may meet at some intermediate point to treat
with those of this place upon the terms of the accommodation. With
this motive I renew to your Excellency my attentive consideration.
"God reward your Excellency, etc., etc., etc. (on account of the
sickness of the commanding general).
"JOSÉ JUAN DE LANDERO."
General Scott notified General Landero that he had appointed Brevet
Major-General Worth, of the regular army, Major-General Pillow, of the
volunteers, and Colonel Totten, chief of the engineer corps of the
army, commissioners on his part to meet a like number to be appointed
by General Landero. The latter announced the appointment on his part
of Colonels Herrera, Gutierrez de Villa Nueva, and Lieutenant-Colonel
Robles. The commissioners met at the Punta de Hornos, and on the 27th
agreed upon terms.
[Illustration: Siege of
VERA CRUZ]
The terms of capitulation were in substance that the Mexican troops
should march out of the city with the honors of war, should stack
their arms and be paroled; that their colors, when lowered, should be
saluted. Absolute protection was guaranteed to persons and property in
the city. No private building was to be taken or used by the United
States forces without previous arrangement and fair compensation. A
Mexican historian says: "The sacrifice was consummated, but the
soldiers of Vera Cruz received the honor due to their valor and
misfortunes--the respect of the conqueror. Not even a look was given
them by the enemy's soldiers which could be interpreted into an
insult." Five thousand prisoners and four hundred guns were captured,
and with a loss of only sixty-seven killed and wounded.
There is scarcely anything in history equal to this achievement of
General Scott. Throughout the siege he shared all the dangers and
hardships of his troops. He examined in person, aided by his very able
staff officers, every detail of works of defense, and gave orders for
the firing of the batteries.
One day during the siege General Scott was walking the trenches where
a heavy fire of the enemy was directed. Seeing some of the soldiers
standing up, General Scott ordered them not to expose themselves.
"But, General," said one, "you are exposing yourself." "Oh!" said he,
"generals nowadays can be made out of anybody, but men can not be
had." The point of this reply is easy to understand. General Worth was
appointed commandant and governor of Vera Cruz, with instructions to
establish and enforce police regulations, but not to interfere with
the functions of the civil magistrates in affairs between Mexicans.
He was authorized and instructed, after conferring with Commodore
Perry, to establish a tariff of duties on articles imported, to be
applied to the necessities of the sick and wounded of the army and
navy and indigent inhabitants of the city of Vera Cruz; this to
continue in force until instructions were received from Washington.
General Worth, on assuming command, immediately issued an order to the
alcalde as follows:
"Arms in possession of citizens to be given into the alcalde's
possession and to be reported to headquarters. Drinking saloons to be
closed, and not to be reopened hereafter except under special
permission. Mexican laws as between Mexicans to be enforced, and
justice administered by regular Mexican tribunals. Cases arising
between American citizens of the army, or authorized followers of the
same, will be investigated by military commissions."
To cover all cases arising by the military occupation of the country,
General Scott had issued at Tampico his Martial-Law Order No. 40, and
republished it at Vera Cruz. General Worth gave permission to the
residents of the city to leave and enter the city freely between
daylight and sunset. No duties were imposed on any of the necessaries
of life.
On March 30th a combined military and naval expedition was organized
to move to Alvarado, Commodore Perry in command of the naval
contingent. The army detachment, under General John A. Quitman,
consisted of the Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina infantry, and a
squadron of the Second Dragoons under command of Major Benjamin Lloyd
Beall, and a section of the Third Artillery under Lieutenant Henry
Bethel Judd.
The object of this expedition was to conciliate the inhabitants, and
for the purchase of horses, mules, and cattle. Commodore Perry landed
there on the 1st of April, followed by the arrival of General Quitman
very soon afterward. Many citizens fled on the approach of the troops,
and the town was surrendered to the American forces. Twenty-two cannon
and some ammunition were captured, and five hundred horses secured by
purchase. The troops returned to Vera Cruz, April 6th. A similar
expedition for like purposes was undertaken by General Harvey, April
2d, for Antigua. A lieutenant and eight soldiers were captured, and
some horses and cattle purchased. On April 3d, Brevet Colonel Henry
Wilson, with the First United States Infantry and two companies of
volunteers, was assigned to the command of Vera Cruz and the castle of
San Juan de Ulloa.
Orders were now issued for an advance of the army on Jalapa, General
David E. Twiggs, with the Second Division of regulars, to lead the
movement on the 8th, two brigades of volunteers to follow. On the 9th
Patterson's division moved, but, for want of transportation, Quitman's
brigade, Colonel James H. Thomas, Tennessee mounted regiment, Worth's
division, and the siege train were left at Vera Cruz. General Twiggs
was notified by General Scott that he had information that General
Santa Anna had arrived at Jalapa with six thousand troops, though he
[General Scott] regarded the numbers as exaggerated. General Twiggs,
on receipt of General Scott's notice, replied that the Mexicans would
doubtless endeavor to hold the pass of Cerro Gordo between the
National Bridge and Jalapa. Through Mexican sources he had information
rating Santa Anna's force at from two thousand to thirteen thousand,
and that he expected to arrive on the evening of the 11th at Plan del
Rio, the point where the Mexican advance was posted.
General Scott had received information that Generals Patterson and
Twiggs had met a strong force of the enemy at Plan del Rio. Worth's
division was ordered forward, and Quitman directed to follow in
twenty-four hours. General Scott himself now moved out under a cavalry
escort.
CHAPTER IX.
General Santa Anna arrives at Cerro Gordo--Engagement at
Atalay--General Orders No. 111--Reports from Jalapa--Report of
engagement at Cerro Gordo--Occupation of Perote--Account of a Mexican
historian--General Santa Anna's letter to General Arroya--Delay of the
Government in sending re-enforcements--Danger of communications with
Vera Cruz--Troops intended for Scott ordered to General
Taylor--Colonel Childs appointed governor of Jalapa--Occupation of
Puebla--Arrival of re-enforcements--Number of Scott's force.
General Santa Anna had arrived at Cerro Gordo on April 9th. General
Scott, on his arrival, ordered (on the morning of the 11th)
reconnoissances to be made on the Mexican left by Captain Robert E.
Lee, which were resumed on the 16th. These reconnoissances determined
the order of attack, which was to make a demonstration with the
commands of Generals Pillow and Shields on the Mexican right, and
press the mass of the army on their right. This movement being
successful, the enemy's communications would be cut off. In the
meantime the Mexicans were busily engaged in greatly strengthening
their positions.
General Scott had not intended to attack the enemy in the absence of
Worth's division, which had not yet arrived. A movement of Lieutenant
Franklin Gardner, re-enforced later by the mounted rifles under Major
Edwin Vose Sumner and a battalion of the First Artillery under
Lieutenant-Colonel Childs, to occupy a position near the base of the
Atalaya, provoked a sharp conflict. General Santa Anna, being at the
front, ordered re-enforcements. Colonel Thomas Childs withdrew, having
advanced under a misapprehension. The American loss was ninety-seven,
killed and wounded. General Scott returned to Plan del Rio and issued
the following order:
"HEADQUARTERS OF THE ARMY,
"PLAN DEL RIO, _April 17, 1847_.
"GENERAL ORDERS NO. 111.
"The enemy's whole line of intrenchments and batteries will be
attacked in front, and at the same time turned, early in the day
to-morrow, probably before ten o'clock A.M. The second (Twiggs's)
division of regulars is already advanced within easy turning
distance toward the enemy's line. That division has instructions to
move forward before daylight to-morrow and take up position across
the national road, in the enemy's rear, so as to cut off a retreat
toward Jalapa. It may be re-enforced to-day, if unexpectedly
attacked in force, by regiments--one or two--taken from Shields's
brigade of volunteers. If not, the two volunteer regiments will
march for that purpose at daylight to-morrow morning under
Brigadier-General Shields, who will report to Brigadier-General
Twiggs in getting up with him, or to the general in chief if he be
in advance. The remaining regiments of that volunteer brigade will
receive instructions in the course of this day. The first division
of regulars (Worth's) will follow the movement against the enemy's
left at sunrise to-morrow morning. As already arranged,
Brigadier-General Pillow's brigade will march at six o'clock
to-morrow morning along the route he has carefully reconnoitered,
and stand ready, as soon as he hears the report of arms on our
right, or sooner, if circumstances should favor him, to pierce the
enemy's line of batteries at such point--the nearer the river the
better--as he may select. Once in the rear of that line, he will
turn to the right or left, or both, and attack the batteries in
reverse; or, if abandoned, he will pursue the enemy with vigor until
further orders. Wall's field battery and cavalry will be held in
reserve on the national road, a little out of view and range of the
enemy's batteries. They will take up that position at nine o'clock
in the morning. The enemy's batteries being carried or abandoned,
all our divisions and corps will pursue with vigor. This pursuit may
be continued many miles toward Jalapa until stopped by darkness or
fortified positions; consequently the body of the army will not
return to this encampment, but be followed to-morrow afternoon, or
early the next morning, by the baggage trains of the several corps.
For this purpose the feeble men of each corps will be left to guard
its camp and effects, and to load up the latter in the wagons of the
corps. A commander of the present encampment will be designated in
the course of this day.
"As soon as it shall be known that the enemy's works have been
carried, or that the general pursuit has been commenced, one wagon
for each regiment and battery and one for the cavalry will follow
the movement, to receive, under the direction of medical officers,
the wounded and disabled, who will be brought back to this place for
treatment in general hospital. The surgeon general will organize
this important service, and designate that hospital, as well as the
medical officers to be left at it.
"Every man who marches out to attack or pursue the enemy will take
the usual allowance of ammunition and subsistence for at least two
days.
"By command of Major-General Scott.
"H.L. SCOTT, _Acting Adjutant General_".
The engineer train and troops under Lieutenant George Brinton
McClellan having arrived, additional batteries were placed in
position. General Santa Anna, believing that the Americans would
attack his right, made his dispositions accordingly. Following are
General Scott's reports of the battle made to the Secretary of War:
"HEADQUARTERS OF THE ARMY, PLAN DEL RIO,
"FIFTY MILES FROM VERA CRUZ, _April 19, 1847_.
"SIR: The plan of the attack, sketched in General Orders
No. 111 herewith, was finely executed by this gallant army before
two o'clock P.M. yesterday. We are quite embarrassed with
the results of victory--prisoners of war, heavy ordnance, field
batteries, small arms, and accouterments. About three thousand men
laid down their arms, with the usual proportion of field and company
officers, besides five generals, several of them of great
distinction--Pinson Jarrero, La Vega, Noryuga, and Obando. A sixth
general, Vasque, was killed in defending the battery (tower) in the
rear of the line of defense, the capture of which gave us those
glorious results.
"Our loss, though comparatively small in number, has been serious.
Brigadier-General Shields, a commander of activity, zeal, and
talent, is, I fear, if not dead, mortally wounded. He is some five
miles from me at this moment. The field of operations covers many
miles, broken by mountains and deep chasms, and I have not a report
as yet from any division or brigade. Twiggs's division, followed by
Shields's (now Colonel Baker's) brigade, are now near Jalapa, and
Worth's division is _en route_ thither, all pursuing with good
results, as I learn, that part of the Mexican army--perhaps six or
seven thousand men--that fled before our right had carried the
tower, and gained the Jalapa road. Pillow's brigade alone is near me
at this depot of wounded, sick, and prisoners, and I have time only
to give from him the names of First-Lieutenant F.B. Nelson and
Second-Lieutenant C.G. Gill, both of the Second Tennessee Foot
(Haskell's regiment), among the killed, and in the brigade one
hundred and six of all ranks killed or wounded. Among the latter the
gallant brigadier general himself has a smart wound in his arm, but
not disabled; and Major R. Farqueson, Second Tennessee, H.F. Murray,
second lieutenant, G.T. Southerland, first lieutenant, W.P. Hale,
adjutant, all of the same regiment, severely, and First-Lieutenant
W. Yearwood mortally wounded. And I know, from personal observation
on the ground, that First-Lieutenant Ewell, of the Rifles, if not
now dead, was mortally wounded in entering, sword in hand, the
intrenchments around the captured tower. Second-Lieutenant Derby,
Topographical Engineers, I saw also at the same place, severely
wounded, and Captain Patten, Second United States Infantry, lost his
right hand. Major Sumner, Second United States Dragoons, was
slightly wounded the day before, and Captain Johnson, Topographical
Engineers (now lieutenant colonel of infantry), was very severely
wounded in reconnoitering some days earlier. I must not omit to add
that Captain Mason and Second-Lieutenant Davis, both of the Rifles,
were among the very severely wounded in storming the same tower. I
estimate our total loss in killed and wounded may be about two
hundred and fifty, and that of the enemy three hundred and fifty. In
the pursuit toward Jalapa (twenty-five miles hence) I learn we have
added much to the enemy's loss in prisoners, killed, and wounded. In
fact, I suppose this retreating army to be nearly disorganized, and
hence my haste to follow in an hour or two to profit by events. In
this hurried and imperfect report I must not omit to say that
Brigadier-General Twiggs, in passing the mountain range beyond Cerro
Gordo crowned with the tower, detached from his division, as I
suggested the day before, a strong force to carry that height which
commanded the Jalapa road at the foot, and could not fail, if
carried, to cut off the whole or any part of the enemy's forces from
a retreat in any direction. A portion of the First Artillery under
the often-distinguished Brevet-Colonel Childs, the Third Infantry
under Captain Alexander, the Seventh Infantry under
Lieutenant-Colonel Plympton, and the Rifles under Major Loring, all
under the temporary command of Colonel Harvey, Second Dragoons,
during the confinement to his bed of Brevet Brigadier-General P.F.
Smith, composed that detachment. The style of execution, which I had
the pleasure to witness, was most brilliant and decisive. The
brigade ascended the long and difficult slope of Cerro Gordo,
without shelter and under the tremendous fire of artillery and
musketry, with the utmost steadiness, reached the breastworks,
drove the enemy from them, planted the colors of the First
Artillery, Third and Seventh Infantry, the enemy's flag still
flying, and after some minutes of sharp firing finished the conquest
with the bayonet. It is a most pleasing duty to say that the highest
praise is due to Harvey, Childs, Plympton, Loring, Alexander, their
gallant officers and men, for this brilliant service, independent of
the great results which soon followed.
"Worth's division of regulars coming up at this time, he detached
Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel C.F. Smith with his light battalion to
support the assault, but not in time. The general, reaching the
tower a few minutes before me and observing a white flag displayed
from the nearest portion of the enemy's lines toward the batteries
below, sent out Colonels Harvey and Childs to hold a parley. The
surrender followed in an hour or two.
"Major-General Patterson left a sick-bed to share in the dangers and
fatigues of the day, and after the surrender went forward to command
the advanced forces toward Jalapa. Brigadier-General Pillow and his
brigade twice assaulted with great daring the enemy's lines of
batteries on our left; and, though without success, they contributed
much to distract and dismay their immediate opponents.
"President Santa Anna, with Generals Canalizo and Ampudia, and some
six or eight thousand men, escaped toward Jalapa just before Cerro
Gordo was carried and before Twiggs's division could reach the
national road above. I have determined to parole the
prisoners--officers and men--as I have not the means of feeding them
here beyond to-day, and can not afford to detach a heavy body of
horse and foot, with wagons, to accompany them to Vera Cruz. Our
baggage train, though increasing, is not yet half large enough to
give an assured progress to this army. Besides, a greater number of
prisoners would probably escape from the escort in the long and deep
sandy road, with subsistence, ten to one, than we shall find again
out of the same body of men in ranks opposed to us. Not one of the
Vera Cruz prisoners is believed to have been in the lines at Cerro
Gordo. Some six of the officers highest in rank refused to give
their paroles, except to go to Vera Cruz, and hence, perhaps, to the
United States.
"The small arms and their accouterments being of no value to our
army here or at home, I have ordered them to be destroyed, for we
have not the means of transporting them. I am also somewhat
embarrassed with the many pieces of artillery--all bronze--which we
have captured. It would take a brigade and half the mules of this
army to transport them fifty miles. A field battery I shall take for
service for the army, but the heavy metal must be collected and left
here for the present. We have our own siege train and the proper
carriages with us.
"Being occupied with the prisoners and all the details of a forward
movement, besides looking to the supplies which are to follow from
Vera Cruz, I have time to add no more, intending to be at Jalapa
early to-morrow. We shall not probably meet with serious opposition
this side of Perote, certainly not unless delayed by the want of the
means of transportation.
"I have the honor to remain, sir, with high respect, your most
obedient servant,
"WINFIELD SCOTT.
"P.S.--I invite attention to the accompanying letters to President
Santa Anna, taken in his carriage yesterday; also to his
proclamation issued on hearing that we had captured Vera Cruz, etc.,
in which he says: 'If the enemy advance one step more, the national
independence will be buried in the abyss of the past.' We have taken
that step.
"W.S.
"I make a second postscript, to say that there is some hope, I am
happy to learn, that General Shields may survive his wounds. One of
the principal motives for paroling the prisoners of war is to
diminish the resistance of other garrisons in our march.
"HEADQUARTERS OF THE ARMY, JALAPA, _April 23, 1847_.
"SIR: In forwarding the reports of commanders which detail
the operations of their several corps against the Mexican lines at
Cerro Gordo, I shall present, in continuation of my former report,
but an outline of the affair; and while adopting heartily their
commendations of the ardor and efficiency of individuals, I shall
mention by name only those who figure prominently, or, from
position, could not be included in those subreports. The field
sketch herewith indicates the position of the two armies. The
_tierra caliente_, or low level, terminates at Plan del Rio, the
site of the American camp, from which the road ascends immediately
in a long circle among the lofty hills, whose commanding points had
all been fortified and garrisoned by the enemy. His right,
intrenched, rested on a precipice overhanging an impassable ravine
that forms the bed of the stream; and his intrenchments extended
continuously to the road, in which was placed a formidable battery.
On the other side the lofty and difficult heights of Cerro Gordo
commanded the approaches in all directions. The main body of the
Mexican army was encamped on level ground, with a battery of five
pieces, half a mile in rear of that height toward Jalapa. Resolving,
if possible, to turn the enemy's left and attack in rear while
menacing or engaging his front, I caused daily reconnoissances to be
pushed, with the view of finding a route for a force to debouch on
the Jalapa road and cut off retreat. The reconnoissance, begun by
Lieutenant Beauregard, was continued by Captain Lee, engineers, and
a road made along difficult slopes and over chasms out of the
enemy's view; though reached by his fire when discovered, until,
arriving at the Mexican lines, further reconnoissance became
impossible without action. The desired point of debouchure, the
Jalapa road, was not therefore reached, though believed to be within
easy distance; and to gain that point it now became necessary to
carry the heights of Cerro Gordo. The disposition in my plan of
battle--General Orders No. 111, heretofore inclosed--were
accordingly made. Twiggs's division, re-enforced by Shields's
brigade of volunteers, was thrown into position on the 17th, and was
of necessity drawn into action in taking up the ground for its
bivouac, and the opposing height for our heavy battery. It will be
seen that many of our officers and men were killed or wounded in
this sharp combat, handsomely commenced by a company of the Seventh
Infantry under Brevet First-Lieutenant Gardner, who is highly
praised by all his commanders for signal services. Colonel Harvey,
coming up with the Rifle Regiment and First Artillery (also parts of
his brigade), brushed away the enemy and occupied the height, on
which, in the night, was placed a battery of one twenty-four pounder
and two twenty-four-pound howitzers, under the supervision of
Captain Lee, engineers, and Lieutenant Hagner, ordnance. These guns
opened next morning, and were served with effect by Captain Steptoe
and Lieutenant Brown, Third Artillery, Lieutenant Hagner (ordnance),
and Lieutenant Seymore, First Artillery. The same night, with
extreme toil and difficulty, under the superintendence of Lieutenant
Tower, engineer, and Lieutenant Laidley, ordnance, an eight-inch
howitzer was put in position across the river and opposite to the
enemy's right battery. A detachment of four companies under Major
Burnham, New York volunteers, performed this creditable service,
which enabled Lieutenant Ripley, Second Artillery, in charge of the
piece, to open a timely fire in that quarter.
"Early on the 18th the columns moved to the general attack, and our
success was speedy and decisive. Pillow's brigade assaulting the
right of the intrenchments, although compelled to retire, had the
effect I have heretofore stated. Twiggs's division, storming the
strong and vital point of Cerro Gordo, pierced the center, gained
command of all the intrenchments, and cut them off from support. As
our infantry (Colonel Riley's brigade) pushed on against the main
body of the enemy, the guns of their own fort were rapidly turned to
play on that force (under the immediate command of General Santa
Anna), who fled in confusion. Shields's brigade, bravely assaulting
the left, carried the rear battery (five guns) on the Jalapa road
and aided materially in completing the rout of the enemy. The part
taken by the remainder of our forces held in reserve to support and
pursue has already been noticed. The moment the fate of the day was
decided, the cavalry and Taylor's and Wall's field batteries were
pushed on toward Jalapa in advance of the pursuing columns of
infantry. Twiggs's division and the brigade of Shields (now under
Colonel Baker) and Major-General Patterson were sent to take command
of them. In the hot pursuit many Mexicans were captured or slain
before our men and horses were exhausted by the heat and distance.
"The rout proved to have been complete, the retreating army, except
a small body of cavalry, being dispersed and utterly disorganized.
The immediate consequences have been our possession of this
important city, the abandonment of the works and artillery at La
Hoya, the next formidable pass between Vera Cruz and the capital,
and the prompt occupation by Worth's division of the fortress of
Perote (second only to San Juan de Ulloa), with its extensive
armament of sixty-six guns and mortars and its large supply of
material. To General Worth's report, annexed, I refer for details.
"I have heretofore endeavored to do justice to the skill and courage
with which the heights of Cerro Gordo were attacked, naming the
regiments most distinguished, and their-commanders, under the lead
of Colonel Harney. Lieutenant G.W. Smith led the engineer company as
part of the storming force, and is noticed with distinction. The
reports of this assault make favorable mention of many in which I
can well concur, having, witnessed the daring advance and perfect
steadiness of the whole. Besides those already named, Lieutenant
Brooks, Third Infantry, Lieutenant Macdonald, Second Dragoons,
Lieutenant Vandorn, Seventh Infantry (all acting staff officers),
Captain Magruder, First Artillery, and Lieutenant Gardner, Seventh
Infantry, seem to have won special praise. Colonel Riley's brigade
and Talcott's rocket and howitzer battery were engaged in and about
the heights and bore an active part. The brigade so gallantly led by
General Shields, and after his fall by Colonel Baker, deserves high
commendation for its fine behavior and success. Colonels Foreman,
Burnett, and Major Harris commanded the regiments. Lieutenant
Hammond, Third Artillery, and Lieutenant Davis, Illinois volunteers,
constituted the brigade staff. These operations, hid from my view by
intervening hills, were not fully known when my first report was
hastily written. Brigadier-General Twiggs, who was in immediate
command of all advanced forces, has earned high credit by his
judgment, skill, and energy. The conduct of Colonels Campbell,
Haskell, and Wynkoop, commanding the regiments of Pillow's brigade,
is reported in terms of strong approbation by Major-General
Patterson. I recommend for a commission Quartermaster-Sergeant
Henry, of the Seventh Infantry (already known to the army for
intrepidity on former occasions), who hauled down the national
standard of the Mexican fort. In expressing my indebtedness for able
assistance--to Lieutenant-Colonel Hitchcock, acting inspector
general; to Majors Smith and Turnbull, and respective chiefs of
engineers and topographical engineers; to their assistant
lieutenants, Lieutenants Mason, Beauregard, Stevens, Tower, G.W.
Smith, McClellan, engineers, and Lieutenants Derby and Hardcastle,
topographical engineers; to Captain Allen, chief quartermaster, and
Lieutenant Blair, chief commissary, and to Lieutenants Hagner and
Laidley, ordnance, all actively employed--I am compelled to make
special mention of the services of Captain R.E. Lee, engineers. This
officer greatly distinguished himself at the siege of Vera Cruz, was
again indefatigable during these operations, in reconnoissance as
daring as laborious, and of the utmost value. Nor was he less
conspicuous in planting batteries and in conducting columns to their
stations under the heavy fire of the enemy. My personal
staff--Lieutenants Scott, Williams, and Lay, and Major Van Buren,
who volunteered for the occasion--gave me zealous and efficient
assistance. Our whole force present in action and in reserve was
eight thousand five hundred. The enemy is estimated at twelve
thousand or more. About three thousand prisoners, four or five
thousand stands of arms, and forty-three pieces of artillery are
taken. By the accompanying return I regret to find our loss more
severe than at first supposed, amounting in the two days to
thirty-three officers and three hundred and ninety-eight men--in
all, four hundred and thirty-one, of whom sixty-three were killed.
The enemy's loss is computed to be from one thousand to one thousand
two hundred. I am happy in communicating strong hopes of the
recovery of the gallant General Shields, who is so much improved as
to have been brought to this place.
"Appended to this report are the following papers:
"(A) General return by name of killed and wounded.
"(B) Copies of report of Lieutenant-Colonel Hitchcock, acting
inspector general (of prisoners taken), and accompanying papers.
"(C) Report of Brigadier-General Twiggs, and subreports.
"(D) Report of Major-General Patterson and report of brigade
commanders.
"(E) Copy of report of Brigadier-General Worth announcing the
occupation by his division of the castle and town of Perote without
opposition, with an inventory of ordnance there found.
"I have the honor to remain, sir, with high respect, your most
obedient servant,
"WINFIELD SCOTT."
A Mexican historian gives the following account of the close of the
battle: "General Santa Anna, accompanied by some of his adjutants, was
passing along the road to the left of the battery, when the enemy's
column, now out of the woods, appeared on his line of retreat and
fired upon him, forcing him back. The carriage in which he had left
Jalapa was riddled with shot, the mules killed and taken by the enemy,
as well as a wagon containing sixteen thousand dollars received the
day before for the pay of the soldiers. Every tie of command and
obedience now being broken among our troops, safety alone being the
object, and all being involved in a frightful whirl, they rushed
desperately to the narrow pass of the defile that descended to the
Plan del Rio, where the general in chief had preceded, with the chiefs
and officers accompanying him. Horrid indeed was the descent by that
narrow and rocky path, where thousands rushed, disputing the passage,
with desperation, and leaving a track of blood upon the road. All
classes being confounded, military distinction and respect were lost;
and badges of rank became marks of sarcasm that were only meted out
according to their grade and humiliation. The enemy, now masters of
our camp, turned their guns upon the fugitives, thus augmenting the
terror of the multitude that crowded through the defile and pressed
forward every instant by a new impulse, which increased the confusion
and disgrace of the ill-fated day."
General Scott reports the strength of his army at Cerro Gordo at eight
thousand five hundred, the killed and wounded four hundred and
thirty-one, of which thirty-three were officers and three hundred and
ninety-eight enlisted men. His estimate of the Mexican force was
twelve thousand. The prisoners captured were about three thousand, and
the killed and wounded between one thousand and twelve hundred.
Forty-three cannon and three thousand five hundred small arms were
captured. On the morning of the 22d the army moved to and occupied the
town and castle of Perote without resistance.
General Santa Anna now retired to Orizaba, where he was met by many
distinguished citizens. He addressed a letter to the _ad interim_
President, General Arroya, as follows:
"ORIZABA, _April 22, 1847_.
"MY ESTEEMED FRIEND: The dispatch which I have forwarded to
the Minister of War will already have informed you of the events
which occurred on the 18th inst. The enemy made an extraordinary
effort to force the pass, and, exasperated by the repulse he had
experienced the day before, and because he knew his ruin was
inevitable unless he succeeded, attacked me with his entire army,
which was not less than twelve thousand men. He put everything on
the hazard of the die, and the cast was favorable to him. I do not
regard the cause of the nation as hopeless, if it will defend its
honor and independence as circumstances may require. I presume you
have taken all proper measures for the public safety, and first of
all for that of the capital. I shall be able to aid it very soon if
it will defend itself. At present I have with me five hundred men
and four guns, and there is no doubt but I shall collect in a few
days a force equal to that I rallied at Cerro Gordo. I only require
that you send me some money through the medium of bills of exchange,
as I find it impossible to raise a dollar. We must, my friend, not
give up ourselves as lost, and, before God, you shall see that I
will make no treaty with the enemy which will dishonor us or put us
in worse condition. Write to me when convenient, and reckon always
on the poor services of your most affectionate friend, who wishes
you every happiness. A.L. DE SANTA ANNA."
The prisoners were all paroled, and the sick and wounded sent to
Jalapa, where they were comfortably provided for.
General Scott was impatient at the delay of the Government in sending
him re-enforcements. He feared that his communications with Vera Cruz
might be cut off. The time of enlistment of the twelve months'
volunteers would soon expire, and he desired to discharge them in time
to leave the coast before the prevalence of the yellow fever.
He received information on April 27th that some one to two thousand
recruits of the ten regiments recently provided for by Congress had
been ordered to Brazos, and that every effort would be made to
re-enforce General Taylor. The Secretary of War had ordered troops
originally designed for General Scott to the relief of General Taylor,
without notice to General Scott.
On May 4, 1847, he issued an order to the volunteer troops whose term
of enlistment was about to expire, complimenting them for their
services, but announcing his intention to discharge them. He then
addressed the Secretary of War, saying: "To part with so large and so
respectable a portion of the army in the middle of a country which,
though broken in its power, is not yet disposed to sue for peace; to
provide for the return home of seven regiments from this interior
position at a time when I find it difficult to provide transportation
and supplies for the operating forces which remain, and all this
without any prospect of succor or re-enforcements in perhaps the next
seven months, beyond some three hundred army recruits, presents
novelties utterly unknown to an invading army before. With the
addition of ten or twelve thousand new levies in April and May, asked
for, and until very recently expected, or even with the addition of
two or three thousand new troops destined for this army, but suddenly,
by the orders of the War Department, directed to the Rio Grande
frontier, I might, notwithstanding the unavoidable discharge of the
old volunteers--seven regiments and two independent companies--advance
with confidence upon the enemy's capital. I shall nevertheless
advance, but whether beyond Puebla will depend upon intervening
information and reflection."
The army, having received supplies of medicines, ammunition, clothing,
salt, etc., made preparations to move. Colonel Childs was appointed
governor of Jalapa, and a sufficient garrison left with him. General
Twiggs was ordered to march to Perote. General Worth had occupied
Perote on April 22d. The army then occupied Puebla, where during their
prolonged stay the troops were daily drilled, but were given
permission to visit the ancient city of Cholula and the adjacent
country. This city in the time of Cortez had a population of one
hundred and fifty thousand, but was now a hamlet containing a small
population and the ruins of its ancient glory. General Scott relates
that while in this region, "coming up with a brigade marching at ease,
all intoxicated with the fine air and scenery, he was, as usual,
received with hearty and protracted cheers. The group of officers who
surrounded him differed widely in the objects of their admiration,
some preferring this or that snow-capped mountain, others the city,
and several the pyramid of Cholula that was now opening upon the view.
An appeal from all was made to the general in chief. He promptly and
emphatically replied, 'I differ from you all. My greatest delight is
in this fine body of troops, without whom we can never sleep in the
halls of the Montezumas, or in our own homes.'"
The first re-enforcements to arrive were eight hundred men, under
Lieutenant-Colonel James Simmons McIntosh, escorting a train. They
were delayed by an attack of the enemy near Jalapa, but, being joined
by Brigadier-General George Cadwallader with a portion of his brigade
and a field battery, the enemy was soon driven. Major-General Gideon
J. Pillow arrived next with a thousand men, and on August 6th
Brigadier-General Franklin Pierce joined with two thousand five
hundred men.
General Scott felt compelled, on account of his reduced numbers, to
order the garrison, under Colonel Childs at Jalapa, to join him. His
force now was (including late re-enforcements) about fourteen thousand
men, including two thousand five hundred sick in hospitals, and six
hundred convalescents too feeble for duty. These convalescents and the
same number of effective troops were left as a garrison under Colonel
Childs, who was appointed commandant of the city of Puebla. This
necessitated the almost total abandonment of the protection of his
lines to his base at Vera Cruz, and communications to his Government.
As Scott expressed it, "we had to throw away the scabbard and to
advance with the naked blade in hand."
CHAPTER X.
Movement toward the City of Mexico--The Duke of Wellington's
comments--Movements of Santa Anna--A commission meets General Worth to
treat for terms--Worth enters Puebla--Civil administration of the city
not interfered with--Scott arrives at Puebla--Scott's address to the
Mexicans after the battle of Cerro Gordo--Contreras--Reconnoissance of
the _pedregal_--Defeat of the Mexicans at Contreras--Battle of
Churubusco--Arrival of Nicholas P. Trist, commissioner--General Scott
meets a deputation proposing an armistice--He addresses a
communication to the head of the Mexican Government--Appointment of a
commission to meet Mr. Trist--Major Lally--Meeting of Mr. Trist with
the Mexican commissioners--Failure to agree--Armistice violated by the
Mexicans and notice from General Scott--Santa Anna's insolent
note--The latter calls a meeting of his principal officers--Molino del
Rey--Chapultepecec--Losses on both sides.
The army began its movement from Puebla toward the City of Mexico on
August 6, 1847. Twiggs's division was in the advance, General William
Selby Harney's cavalry leading and the siege train bringing up the
rear. The other three divisions followed successively on the 8th, 9th,
and 10th. No division was at any time more than seven or eight miles
from support. It was expected that the army of Santa Anna would be met
at Rio Frio, and hence General Scott's great caution in his movement
to keep his divisions in supporting distance.
The Duke of Wellington was so interested in this march of the army
from Vera Cruz to the Mexican capital that he caused its movements to
be marked on a map daily, as information was received. Admiring its
triumphs up to the basin of Mexico, he now said: "Scott is lost. He
has been carried away by successes. He can't take the city, and he
can't fall back upon his base."
General Santa Anna, finding himself without money and with but a small
following of troops at Orizaba, marched by way of Aculcingo and
Amasoque to Puebla. In the meantime he was using all efforts to gather
re-enforcements for his army. There was but one day's interval between
the troops of General Worth and the Mexican brigades of Leonard Perez
and the cavalry under General Alcorta, the whole of which was
commanded by General Santa Anna when he passed Amasoque. Finding that
he could not successfully defend Puebla, the Mexican general withdrew
to San Martin and Amasoque. Soon afterward he moved on the road toward
the City of Mexico.
Two or three miles from Puebla a commission met General Worth to treat
for terms. A halt of a few hours was made, when the march was resumed,
and the American forces without opposition marched into the Grand
Plaza between the palace of the Governor and the cathedral.
A Mexican historian thus describes the first appearance and occupation
of Puebla by the American troops: "The singular appearance of some of
the soldiers, their trains, their artillery, their large horses, all
attracted the curiosity of the multitude, and at the corners and
squares an immense crowd surrounded the new conquerors. The
latter--extremely fatigued, confiding in the mutual guarantees
stipulated by the Ayuntamientimo and General Worth, or perhaps
despising a people who easily permitted the occupation of their
territory--stacked arms in the plaza while waiting for quarters, while
some wandered into neighboring streets to drink pulque and embrace the
leperos, with whom they seemed old acquaintances. [The leperos were
the vagabonds of the city and country.] There is no doubt that more
than ten thousand persons occupied the plazas and corners. One cry,
one effort, the spirit of one determined man would have sufficed; and
if once this multitude had pressed in on the enemy, they would have
inevitably perished. Nothing was done. General Worth took quarters in
the Governor's palace, east of the Grand Plaza, and upon its flagstaff
hoisted the Stars and Stripes."
General Worth took possession of Puebla on May 15th, and, acting under
orders of General Scott, he issued orders which gave assurance to the
inhabitants that they would not be disturbed either in person or
property, and that they could continue without molestation their
ordinary business. The markets were kept open, and no officer or
soldier was permitted to take anything without paying the regular
market price.
The civil administration of the city was not interfered with. The
police of the city was continued under the regulations of the city
government. The churches, of which there were a large number, were
opened, and continued their usual functions, and the attendance was
largely augmented by the American officers and men. In fact, the city,
except for the presence of the United States troops, was in all other
respects governed and conducted as before its occupation.
General Scott left Jalapa on May 23d for Puebla. He arrived there on
the 28th, and was met and escorted into the city by a number of
officers. Along the streets of the city through which he passed the
balconies were filled with Mexican ladies and the avenues crowded with
men. The populace cheered him heartily and escorted him to the palace.
The soldiers, volunteers and regulars, gave him the heartiest welcome,
showing that he had the respect and confidence of the army, and the
demonstrations of the Mexicans evidenced that they regarded him as a
humane and Christian conqueror.
In this connection it is well to produce the address of General Scott
to the Mexican people after the battle of Cerro Gordo:
[Illustration: Route From
VERA CRUZ TO MEXICO]
"MEXICANS! The late events of the war and the measures
adopted in consequence by our Government make it my duty to address
you, in order to lay before you truths of which you are ignorant,
because they have been criminally concealed from you. I do not ask
you to believe me simply on my word--though he who has not been
found false has a claim to be believed--but to judge for yourselves
of these truths from facts within the view and scrutiny of you all.
Whatever may have been the origin of this war, which the United
States was forced to undertake by insurmountable causes, we regard
it as an evil. War is ever such to both belligerents, and the reason
and justice of the case, if not known on both sides, are in dispute
and claimed by each. You have proof of this truth as well as we, for
in Mexico, as in the United States, there have existed and do exist
two opposite parties, one desiring peace and the other war.
Governments have, however, sacred duties to perform from which they
can not swerve; and these duties frequently impose, from national
considerations, a silence and reserve that displeases at all times
the majority of those who, from views purely personal or private,
are formed in opposition, to which Governments can pay little
attention, expecting the nation to repose in them the confidence due
to a magistracy of its own selection--considerations of high policy
and of continental American interests precipitated even in spite of
circumspection of the Cabinet at Washington. This Cabinet, ardently
desiring to terminate all differences with Mexico, spared no effort
compatible with honor and dignity. It cherished the most flattering
hopes of attaining this end by frank explanations and reasonings
addressed to the judgment and prudence of the virtuous and patriotic
government of General Herrera. An unexpected misfortune dispelled
these hopes and closed every avenue of an honorable adjustment. Your
new Government disregarded your national interests, as well as those
of continental America, and yielded, moreover, to foreign influences
the most opposed to these interests, the most fatal to the future of
Mexican liberty and of that republican system which the United
States holds it a duty to preserve and protect. Duty, honor, and
dignity placed us under the necessity of not losing a season of
which the monarchical party was fast taking advantage. As not a
moment was to be lost, we acted with a promptness and decision
suited to the urgency of the case, in order to avoid a complication
of interests which might render our relations more difficult and
involved. Again, in the course of civil war, the Government of
General Paredes was overthrown. We could not but look upon this as a
fortunate event, believing that any other administration
representing Mexico would be less deluded, more patriotic, and more
prudent, looking to the common good, weighing probabilities,
strength, resources, and, above all, the general opinion as to the
inevitable results of a national war. We were deceived, and perhaps
you Mexicans were also deceived, in judging of the real intentions
of General Santa Anna when you recalled and when your Government
permitted him to return. Under this state of things the Mexican
nation has seen the results lamented by all, and by us most
sincerely, for we appreciate as is due the valor and noble decision
of those unfortunate men who go to battle ill-conducted, worse cared
for, and almost always enforced by violence, deceit, or perfidy. We
are witnesses, and we shall not be taxed with partiality as a party
interested when we lament with surprise that the heroic behavior of
the garrison at Vera Cruz in its valiant defense has been aspersed
by the general who has just been routed and put to shameful flight
at Buena Vista by a force far inferior to his own. The same general
rewarded the insurgents of the capital, promoters of civil war, and
heaped outrage upon those who had just acquired for themselves
singular distinction by a resistance beyond expectation and of
admirable decision. Finally, the bloody events of Cerro Gordo have
plainly shown the Mexican nation what it may reasonably expect if it
is no longer blind to its real situation--a situation to which it
has been brought by some of its generals whom it has most
distinguished and in whom it has most confidence. The hardest heart
would have been moved to grief in contemplating any battlefield in
Mexico a moment after the last struggle. Those generals whom the
nation has paid without service rendered for so many years, have, in
the day of need, with some honorable exceptions, but served to
injure her by their bad example or unskillfulness. The dead and
wounded on those battlefields received no marks of military
distinction, sharing alike the sad fate which has been the same from
Palo Alto to Cerro Gordo; the dead remained unburied and the wounded
abandoned to the clemency and charity of the victor. Soldiers who go
to battle knowing they have such reward to look for deserve to be
classed with the most heroic, for they are stimulated by no hope of
glory, nor remembrance, nor a sigh, nor even a grave! Again,
contemplate, honorable Mexicans, the lot of peaceful and industrious
citizens in all classes of your country. The possessions of the
Church menaced and presented as an allurement to revolution and
anarchy; the fortunes of rich proprietors pointed out for plunder of
armed ruffians; and merchants and the mechanic, the husbandman and
the manufacturer, burdened with contributions, excises, monopolies,
duties on consumption, surrounded by officers and collectors of
these odious internal customs; the man of letters and the
legislator, the freeman of knowledge who dares to speak, persecuted
without trial by some faction or by the very rulers who abuse their
power; and criminals unpunished are set at liberty, as were those of
Perote. What, then, Mexicans, is the liberty of which you boast? I
do not believe that Mexicans at the present day want the courage to
confess errors which do not dishonor them, or to adopt a system of
true liberty--one of peace and union with their brethren and
neighbors of the North. Neither can I believe the Mexicans ignorant
of the infamy of the calumnies put forth by the press in order to
excite hostility against us. No, public spirit can not be created or
animated by falsehood. We have not profaned your temples, nor abused
your women, nor seized your property, as they could have you
believe. We say it with pride, and we confirm it by an appeal to
your bishops and the curates of Tampico, Tuzpan, Matamoros,
Monterey, Vera Cruz, and Jalapa; to all clergy, civil authorities,
and inhabitants of all places we have occupied. We adore the same
God, and a large portion of our army, as well as of the people of
the United States, are Catholics, like yourselves. We punish crime
wherever we find it, and reward merit and virtue. The army of the
United States respects, and will ever respect, private property of
every class, and the property of the Mexican Church. Woe to him who
does not where we are! Mexicans, the past is beyond remedy, but the
future may yet be controlled. I have repeatedly declared to you that
the Government and the people of the United States desire peace,
desire your sincere friendship. Abandon, then, state prejudices;
cease to be the sport of private ambition, and conduct yourselves
like a great American nation. Abandon at once these old colonial
habits, and learn to be truly free, truly republican. You may then
soon attain prosperity and happiness, of which you possess all the
elements; _but remember that you are Americans_, and that your
happiness is not to come from Europe. I desire, in conclusion, to
say to you with equal frankness that, were it necessary, an army of
one hundred thousand Americans would soon be among you, and that the
United States, if forced to terminate by arms their differences with
you, would not do it in an uncertain or precarious, or, still less,
in a dishonorable manner. It would be an insult to the intelligent
people of their country to doubt their knowledge of your power. The
system of forming guerrilla parties to annoy us will, I assure you,
produce only evil to this country and none to our army, which knows
how to protect itself and how to proceed against such cut-throats;
and if, so far from calming resentments and passion, you try to
irritate, you will but force upon us the hard necessity of
retaliation. In that event, you can not blame us for the
consequences which will fall upon yourselves. I shall march with
this army upon Puebla and Mexico. I do not conceal this from you.
From those capitals I may again address you. We desire peace,
friendship, and union; it is for you to choose whether you prefer
continued hostilities. In either case, be assured, I will keep my
word. WINFIELD SCOTT."
Worth's division, now preceded by Harney's cavalry, moved from San
Augustin on the main road toward the City of Mexico. These were
followed by the other divisions of the army. On this route was
situated the _pedregal_, which is a field of volcanic rock of very
uneven surface. It is between the roads leading to the capital from
San Augustin and Padierna. A reconnoissance of the _pedregal_ was made
by Lieutenants Robert E. Lee and Pierre G.T. Beauregard, who reported
that there was a passage for wagons of only a mile, and the remainder
might be crossed by infantry, carefully picking the way. The enemy
were in position beyond the _pedregal_ with considerable artillery.
General Scott, on the night of the 18th, ordered a movement in the
direction of Padierna. Worth was ordered to cover San Antonio, Quitman
to hold San Augustin, and Pillow to march over the _pedregal_, while
Twiggs was to cover and support Pillow's movement. On the morning of
this movement the Mexican General Blanco was ordered to construct
batteries, and General Mejia to take position on the Pelon Cuauhtitlan
to command the expected movements of the American army. General Santa
Anna wrote from San Antonio through the Minister of War to General
Valencia, at San Angel: "The general in chief directs me to say to
your Excellency that the enemy having now [August 18th, 3
P.M.] taken up a position on our left in front of San Antonio
with a part of his forces, it is clear that to-morrow at the latest he
will undertake the attack of this fortification, although it appears
there is a movement going on at the same time on our right. His
Excellency therefore directs you at daylight to-morrow morning to fall
back with your forces to Coyoacan, and send forward your artillery to
the fort and the _tête-de-pont_ at Churubusco."
General Valencia declined to obey this order, giving his reason as
follows: "I should like much to be able to obey this order, but, in
view of present circumstances, my conscience as a military man and my
patriotism will not permit me. I believe the national cause will be
lost if I should abandon these positions and the road leading from San
Augustin through Padierna to these points. To me it is as clear as
the light of day that the enemy will undertake his attack, if not
to-morrow, the day after, and that he desires to make two attacks at
the same time, the one true and the other false, and that, should he
find at the commencement of his movements one of the points of attack
abandoned, as this, for instance, he will pass by this route with all
his forces, and thus be enabled to assail our flank and turn our rear;
or, if he prefer it, he may pass on without obstruction to the City of
Mexico."
General Valencia, however, ordered a thorough reconnoissance by
General Mendoza, an engineer officer, who reported "that Padierna was
absolutely indefensible, and that it was believed best to retire for
reasons expressed in his note." General Valencia ordered Colonel
Barreiro to Zacatepetl to watch and report the movements of the enemy.
He further ordered Colonel Mendoza to occupy with his regiment the
edge of the _pedregal_, having in his front a detachment of infantry
under Captain Solos, and beyond him a detachment of cavalry. To the
left of Padierna was posted the corps of San Luis Potosi, to the right
the brigade of Lieutenant-Colonel Cabrera, and on the ridge were the
batteries and brigade of General Mejia. The supporting line were three
battalions. The reserve at Anzaldo, a mixed company of infantry and
cavalry, was the command of General Solos, supported on the right by
two regiments of infantry.
Pillow's and Twiggs's divisions were observed by Colonel Barreiro to
be moving over the mountain of Zacatepetl and the _pedregal_. On an
open ridge commanding the _pedregal_ General Valencia had planted
guns which commanded the _pedregal_ in the direction of San Augustin.
On the morning of August 19th General Santa Anna ordered two
battalions to move from Churubusco to San Antonio, Pillow's division
of the American army having moved out from San Augustin on the road to
Padierna, which was to be covered by Twiggs's division. Twiggs moved,
following Quitman, and passed beyond San Augustin. General Alvarez
closed on his rear. A working party of five hundred men under engineer
officers was detailed from Pillow's division to make the road to
Padierna practicable for artillery. While work was progressing on this
road General Scott notified General Pillow that Valencia was placing
heavy guns in position, and ordered that the work be pushed forward as
rapidly as possible. Before the road was finished half the distance
Twiggs's division passed Pillow's command, and its advance was fired
upon by the Mexicans. General Persifor F. Smith ordered the mounted
rifle regiment under Major William Wing Loring, aided by a section of
Magruder's battery, to drive in the Mexican pickets. Lieutenant George
B. McClellan placed the artillery in position, but before it was ready
for action it received a fire from the guns on the elevated ridge
beyond Padierna. The remainder of Smith's brigade and the other
section of Lieutenant John Bankhead Magruder's battery were ordered
forward, and the Mexicans were driven back. General Bennet Riley's
brigade was ordered to the right, and to pass over the _pedregal_ and
take possession in the enemy's rear. General Cadwallader's brigade was
ordered to support Riley's movement. General Scott, perceiving that
re-enforcements were approaching Valencia from the City of Mexico,
ordered a regiment of General Franklin Pierce's brigade to move
forward and occupy San Geronimo, and General James Shields with two
regiments (New York, and Palmetto, South Carolina) was ordered forward
as a support. General Persifor F. Smith now moved to the front across
the _pedregal_, having left detachments as supports to the artillery
of Magruder and Callender, which were ordered to open fire on the
beginning of General Smith's movement. This movement of General
Persifor F. Smith was led and conducted by Lieutenant Gustavus W.
Smith. When this force reached the village or town of San Geronimo a
large force of the enemy came in sight. Pierce's brigade was at once
ordered to the front, and was met by a heavy fire. General Pierce
having been disabled, Colonel Robert Ransom, of the Ninth Infantry,
was in command of the forces, which were conducted by Lieutenant Isaac
Ingles Stevens, and moved to the right and front of Magruder's
battery. Ransom, uniting with the detachment left by General Smith,
took possession of Padierna, driving the Mexican General Mendoza.
Riley's command was the first to pass the _pedregal_, when it occupied
the road on the opposite side with Captain Simon Henry Drum's company
of the Fourth Artillery. A detachment of Mexican lancers escorting a
train was encountered and captured.
Riley's command continued its advance, when a company of Mexican
lancers was met and repulsed by Captain Silas Casey's company. A
mounted force, under the Mexican General Frontera, consisting of two
regiments, was met and repulsed by the Second Infantry under Captain
Charles T. Morris and the Seventh Infantry under Lieutenant-Colonel
Joseph Plympton. General Frontera was killed while leading a charge.
Riley now withdrew to San Geronimo, which he found occupied by
Cadwallader's and Smith's brigades, and a regiment of Pierce's brigade
under command of Colonel George Washington Morgan. When General
Valencia's advanced forces were driven in by Twiggs's division on the
_pedregal_, Valencia announced (August 19th, 2 P.M.) to
General Santa Anna at San Antonio that the enemy were approaching
Padierna, the artillery had opened fire, and the battle had begun.
General Santa Anna at once, on receipt of this information, sent an
officer to Coyoacan with orders to General Perez to move at once to
Padierna, and himself with two regiments and five pieces of artillery
proceeded to join him. He arrived at Coyoacan just at the time when
the command of Perez was moving, and he ordered it to move rapidly.
On the evening of August 19th General P.F. Smith was in San Geronimo
with three brigades of infantry, but without cavalry or artillery. His
communications with the main army were cut off except through the
_pedregal_. He determined to attack, however, the next morning at
daylight, carry the enemy's works, and establish his communications
with the main army. His disposition of troops was as follows for the
night: Cadwallader's command in the outer edge of the village of San
Geronimo, Riley's brigade parallel to it, the Rifles on the right, and
the Third Infantry in the churchyard. In the night Captain R.E. Lee
arrived, bearing a letter from General Scott asking to be informed of
affairs beyond the _pedregal_. The information sought for was given,
and Captain Lee was requested to inform General Scott of General
Smith's intention to attack Valencia next morning, and asking that a
diversion be made on Valencia's front. General Shields arrived at
midnight, and was left to hold the village and cut off the enemy's
retreat. In the meantime Colonel Ransom abandoned Padierna, which was
soon afterward occupied by General Valencia's forces, but not without
stout resistance by the small detachment left there.
At nightfall General Santa Anna fell back to San Angel, but failed
to give notice of the movement to General Valencia. Mexican
history states that at 9 P.M. Ramero and Del Rio arrived at
Valencia's headquarters and delivered an order from Santa Anna to
Valencia to retire. General Solos, however, who was present, denies
this, saying that the order was qualified by one to spike the guns,
destroy the ammunition, and saving only what could be safely
transported. General Valencia declined to obey the order. At 2.30
P.M. of August 20th Smith's troops moved to reach Valencia's
rear. Riley's brigade and Cadwallader's followed this movement.
General Shields with the New York regiment of Colonel Ward B. Burnett
and the South Carolina regiment under Colonel Pierce M. Butler
remained at the village, to intercept and cut off the enemy's retreat
and to prevent re-enforcements from reaching the Mexicans.
The night was intensely dark, and the streets of the village were very
narrow, cut into gullies and very muddy. A heavy rain was pouring
down, and the march was made under difficulties and necessarily slow.
General Smith's position was on an eminence about one thousand yards
from the enemy's works, from which point he made the attack. Riley
moved up the ravine to a slope leading to a high point of the ridge
and attacked the enemy some eight hundred yards distant. Cadwallader
followed Riley, and the Mounted Rifles and Engineer Company moved to a
position in rear of the force confronting Riley. The Third Infantry
and First Artillery were held in reserve. The attack was made as
ordered by General Smith, and the enemy fled, pursued by Riley, the
Mounted Rifles, and Engineers.
The Third Infantry and First Artillery, held in reserve, were attacked
by a force of cavalry, which was driven off, and Valencia was
completely routed. General Shields, who held the village, seized the
main road and cut off retreat in that direction. The enemy fled in the
greatest confusion. The battle of Contreras was one of the most
brilliant victories of the war. It opened the road to the City of
Mexico. Seven hundred of the enemy were killed, eight hundred and
thirteen prisoners were captured, including eighty-eight officers, of
whom four were generals; many standards, twenty-two pieces of brass
cannon, a large number of stands of small arms, seven hundred pack
mules, many horses, and large quantities of ordnance stores were added
to the outfit of the American army.
General Scott had planned to open up the way for the march of his army
to the City of Mexico by the way of Padierna. Knowing or believing
that a stubborn defense would be made by the Mexicans, he had ordered
General Worth to march from San Antonio on the morning of August 20th,
with Garland's brigade, by way of San Augustin to Padierna, to be
followed by General Quitman, who was ordered to leave a cavalry force
to hold San Antonio. But General Persifor F. Smith had won the battle
before these troops arrived.
A sufficient guard having been left with the prisoners, General
Persifor F. Smith was ordered with his brigade, the Mounted Rifles and
Engineers, in pursuit of the fleeing enemy. They were attacked at San
Angel, but the attacking party were soon driven off. General Pillow
joined these forces at San Angel, and General Scott came up with them
at Coyoacan, where he had ordered the army to halt.
From this point in the direction of the capital, Churubusco was one
mile; two miles to the southeast was San Antonio. Churubusco is about
six miles south of the City of Mexico, on a river of the same name,
and on the road from San Angel and San Antonio from San Augustin.
General Scott on his arrival ordered Captain Lee, with Captain Phil
Kearney's company of the First Dragoons and a company of the Mounted
Rifles, to make a reconnoissance. In the meantime Pillow and
Cadwallader were to attack San Antonio in the rear, General Worth
assailing it in front. A reconnoissance having been made of the
convent of San Pablo, in the town of Churubusco, a brigade from
Twiggs's division, a part of Smith's brigade, Riley's brigade, and
Taylor's battery were ordered to attack. After the defeat of General
Valencia at Contreras, General Worth returned with Garland's brigade
in front of San Antonio. His orders were to attack as soon as Pillow
and Twiggs, moving from Contreras, approached in the rear. Worth
ordered Clarke's brigade to move over the _pedregal_ and turn the
right flank of the fortifications at San Antonio and cut the enemy's
line of communication. Henry Francis Clarke's brigade was attacked on
its march, but dispersed the attacking force, and soon encountered the
rear of the Mexicans from San Antonio and engaged them. Pillow with
Cadwallader's brigade, joined Worth in pursuit of the fleeing Mexican
troops and both attacked the _tête-de-pont_ in their front. Riley's
brigade having been ordered forward, General Scott ordered Pierce's
brigade to move by the road leading north from Coyoacan across the
Churubusco River by a bridge, turn to the right, and seize the
causeway in the rear of the _tête-de-pont_. General Scott, learning
that General Shields, in the rear of the Mexican lines, was in danger
of being cut off and captured, ordered Major E.V. Sumner with the
Mounted Rifles under Major W.W. Loring, and the Second Dragoons under
Captain Henry Hastings Sibley, to his support. The attack of the
Americans being persistently pressed on all sides, the Mexicans gave
way and made a precipitous retreat, pursued by the victorious
Americans.
There remained yet to be captured the convent of San Pablo. This
building, having very thick walls, was impervious to the attack of
field pieces. It was defended by a well-constructed bastion, with
flooded ditches, and guns placed in the embrasure. The attack was made
by the First Artillery, followed by the Third Infantry. During the
attack the enemy made several sallies from the convent, which were
repulsed. The troops in the convent consisted of the Independencia and
Bravo battalions, about six hundred and fifty each, with the necessary
cannoneers for six guns, and in the _tête-de-pont_ cannoneers for five
guns, the San Patricio companies, and the battalion of Tlapa. Along
the Rio Churubusco, on the north side, was the brigade of General
Perez, some twenty-five hundred strong. The Mexicans made a brave and
gallant defense, but were compelled to succumb. The battles of
Contreras and Churubusco were fought on the same day, and were really
one battle. In both actions the American loss was one hundred and
thirty-nine killed and nine hundred and twenty-six wounded. The
Mexican loss was near four thousand killed and wounded, with the loss
of three hundred prisoners, thirty-seven cannon, and a large number of
small arms with ammunition.
General Scott could easily have occupied the Mexican capital on the
same day, but meanwhile Mr. Nicholas P. Trist had arrived from
Washington with instructions from the President to endeavor to make a
treaty of peace, and both he and General Scott thought it best to
await the turn of events looking to that end. On the next morning,
August 27, 1847, General Scott set out on the San Antonio road, and
was met near Churubusco by a deputation bearing a white flag from the
Mexican Government, proposing an armistice of thirty hours for burying
the dead and collecting the wounded, which he at once rejected. The
deputation accompanying the flag consisted of Señores Basadre, Mora y
Villamil and Aranjos, who had been sent by Pacheco, Minister of
Foreign Affairs. General Santa Anna expressed great dissatisfaction at
the action of the Minister, on which he resigned. General Scott
addressed a communication to the head of the Mexican Government and
general in chief, in which he said that too much blood had already
been spilled, and suggested that it was time the differences between
the two republics should be settled. He mentioned (what was known to
the Mexican authorities) that a commissioner on the part of the United
States, clothed with full power to that end, was with his army. He
expressed his willingness on reasonable terms to agree to a short
armistice. While he proposed to wait until the next morning for a
reply, he announced his intention "in the meantime to seize and occupy
such positions outside of the capital as I may deem necessary to the
shelter and comfort of this army."
The Mexican authorities, through Alcorta, Secretary of War and of the
Navy, named two brigadier generals of the Mexican army, Mora y
Villamil and Benito Quijano, to act as commissioners.
General Scott appointed as commissioners Major General John
A. Quitman, Brigadier-General Franklin Pierce, and Brevet
Brigadier-General Persifor F. Smith. The convention concluded its work
on the 24th of August. It was agreed that hostilities should cease at
once within thirty leagues of the Mexican capital. No work of a
military character was to be done, and any re-enforcements or
munitions of war except that now on its way to either army was to be
stopped at a distance of twenty-eight leagues from the capital. The
American army was not to obstruct the passage from the surrounding
country into the capital of the ordinary supplies of food necessary
for the subsistence of the Mexican army and the inhabitants within the
city, nor were the Mexican authorities to obstruct the passage of
supplies of subsistence from the city or country necessary for the
supply of the American army. The armistice was to continue pending
negotiations or until the commander of either army should give notice
to the other of its cessation; and forty-eight hours after such
notice General Worth, on the night of the 21st, moved his division to
Tacubaya, where he was preceded by General Scott, and established his
headquarters in the Bishop's Palace. General Quitman remained at San
Augustin, to which point General Shields returned with his command.
General Twiggs was at San Angel, and General Pillow at Mexcoac.
Previous to the occurrences just narrated, Major Folliot Thornton
Lally had on August 6th marched with a force of about one thousand men
from Vera Cruz. He was joined _en route_ by a company of mounted
Georgia volunteers, one of Louisiana mounted men, and two
six-pounders, under command of Lieutenant Henry B. Sears, of the
Second Artillery. General Don Juan Soto, Governor of the State of Vera
Cruz, organized a force between one thousand and two thousand strong,
a part of which were paroled prisoners, with the purpose of attacking
Major Lally and capturing his wagon train, which was supposed to carry
a large amount of silver coin. An attack was made by this force on
Major Lally at the pass of Ovejas, the engagement lasting an hour and
a half. Captains James Nelson Caldwell, of the Voltigeurs, and Arthur
C. Cummings, Eleventh Infantry, were severely wounded. Nine enlisted
men were wounded, one mortally. The Mexican loss is not known. On
August 12th the command reached Puente Nacional and found the Mexicans
in considerable force, strongly barricaded. An artillery fire was
opened on them and they were driven back. The American loss in this
affair was sixty killed and wounded. On approaching the battlefield of
Cerro Gordo they were again attacked, and sustained a loss of one
killed and eight wounded. Several other attacks of a similar
character were made, but without success. Major Lally, with his troops
and wagon train, arrived at Jalapa thirteen days out from Vera Cruz,
when without interruption five days would have been sufficient for the
march. Mr. Trist notified the Mexican Minister of Foreign Affairs,
August 25th, of the object of his mission, and requested a meeting. He
was advised that commissioners would meet him on the 27th at
Azapotzalco, which was between the two armies. General Santa Anna,
after appointing several persons who declined, named General Herrera,
Señor Conto, General Mora y Villamil, Señor Atristain, and Secretary
Miguel Arroyo. On the morning of the 27th, before the meeting of the
commissioners, a train of wagons sent into the city to obtain supplies
for the American army was met by a mob, stoned and driven away.
Subsequently an apology was offered for this gross infraction of the
armistice, and the wagons returned and secured their stores.
On meeting the commissioners, Mr. Trist exhibited his powers, which
were ample, but that of the Mexicans was simply confined to hearing
propositions from Mr. Trist. Mr. Trist objected to this limitation,
but was assured that when it became necessary to sign the treaty they
would exhibit full powers. The American commissioners presented the
project of a treaty the leading feature of which related to the
boundary line between the two countries. It was also a part of the
project that Mexico was to concede to the United States the right of
transport across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec free from tolls. These and
all else asked by Mr. Trist were refused. The Mexican commissioners
asked for further instructions from their Government, which were
given--that they should neither exceed nor modify the former
instructions given them. They asked to be relieved, as these
instructions placed them in an embarrassing position. A council of
ministers was called, and their former instructions were changed so as
to authorize them "to approximate to them as much as possible,
agreeing to some modifications which the circumstances of the country
may exact, as well as to things of minor importance which may arise
during the discussion."
On September 1st, when the third meeting was held, the Mexican
commissioners exhibited plenary powers. No agreement being reached, it
was proposed to extend the armistice for forty-five days. But on
September 5th the Mexican commissioners were informed that the
Government would not consent to the extension or to the cession of New
Mexico, which Mr. Trist had insisted on. The Mexican commissioners
then submitted a counter project on the 6th, which in effect refused
all of the more important concessions asked by the United States. With
this the diplomatic conferences terminated. General Scott at once
called a conference with his general officers. He stated to them the
bad faith of the enemy, who commenced the work of repair on their
fortifications. He recited the incident of the mobbing of teamsters.
He closed by saying: "I have therefore called you to headquarters to
advise upon the propriety of dissolving the armistice, or [after a
pause] to inform you that I have dissolved it, and to read to you my
letter to General Santa Anna notifying him of the fact." Looking for
the letter, he said, "I have torn it up." He at once wrote a note and
dispatched it to General Santa Anna, as follows:
"HEADQUARTERS, ARMY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
"TACUBAYA, _September 6, 1847_.
"_To his Excellency the President and General in Chief of the
Mexican Republic._
"SIR: The seventh article, as also the twelfth, that
stipulates _that trade_ shall _remain unmolested_--of the armistice
or military convention which I had the honor to ratify and to
exchange with your Excellency the 24th ultimo--has been repeatedly
violated, beginning soon after date, on the part of Mexico; and I
now have good reasons to believe that within the last forty-eight
hours, if not earlier, the third article of that convention has been
equally violated by the same party. These direct breaches of faith
give to this army the most perfect right to resume hostilities
against Mexico, without any notice whatever; but, to allow time for
possible apology or reparation, I now give formal notice that,
unless full satisfaction on these allegations should be received by
me by 12 o'clock meridian to-morrow, I shall consider the said
armistice at an end from and after that hour.
"I have the honor to be your Excellency's most obedient servant,
"WINFIELD SCOTT."
General Santa Anna replied in an insolent note, denying General
Scott's charges and making counter charges.
Many newspapers throughout the United States criticised General Scott
in the severest terms for being duped by General Santa Anna into an
armistice which the latter only desired to recruit his army. There is
the strongest evidence--that of Mr. Trist and the Mexican
commissioners--that Santa Anna was really desirous to make peace. The
manifesto which he issued to the nation is itself sufficient proof on
this score; and certainly it reflects the highest credit on General
Scott, that when he was at the very gates of the capital, which he
could have entered in a few hours, he was willing to spare not only
the lives of his own gallant army, but those of the enemy. Santa Anna
now called a meeting of the principal officers and governmental
civilians to meet him in the palace, and it was agreed to continue
resistance.
A force was at once sent out under cover of the guns of Chapultepec to
strengthen the position and resist the advance of the Americans. At
this point was a number of very large buildings known as Molino del
Rey, which had formerly been used for the manufacture of ordnance
stores. Chapultepec was a strong, well-fortified and well-armed fort.
Molino del Rey was occupied by a brigade of the National Guards, under
General Leon. These were re-enforced on the morning of the 7th by a
brigade under General Rangel. The Casta Mata, a large storehouse
surrounded by a wide ditch and inclosed by a bastioned fort, was
occupied by the brigade of General Perez, and between these two
positions was posted General Ramirez's brigade with six pieces of
artillery. In the rear occupying some woods were the reserves.
The Mexican cavalry, about two thousand strong, under command of
General Alvarez, was two miles west from Chapultepec on the right of
the line. After a thorough reconnoissance by the American engineer,
General Scott on the afternoon of the 7th issued the necessary orders
for massing and disposing his army. The general depot was established
at Mexcoac. One brigade of Twiggs's division under Colonel Plympton
was ordered to move and threaten the city by way of the Niño Perdido
road, moving at 6 P.M. Quitman marched from San Augustin on
the 8th to Coyoacan. Pillow was to advance with one brigade and take
command of the advanced position which was held by Twiggs's division
and a part of his own, while Cadwallader was to join Worth. At Molino
del Rey was supposed to be a cannon foundry, and it was thought by
General Scott that a large quantity of powder was stored there.
General Worth was ordered to make the attack, carry the enemy's lines,
and destroy the ordnance works and return to his former position. To
carry out this order General Worth directed General John Garland's
brigade to be posted on the right with two pieces of Simon H. Drum's
battery, so as to prevent re-enforcements from Chapultepec, and to be
in position to support, if necessary, the assaulting forces; the guns
of Captain Benjamin Hugér to be placed on the eminence to Garland's
right and rear; a storming party of some five hundred picked men under
Brevet Major George Wright, Eighth Infantry, to take post near and to
the right of Hugér's battering guns, to attack the battery in the
center of the enemy's lines; Clarke's brigade under Colonel James S.
McIntosh and Captain James Duncan's battery opposite the enemy's right
to support the assaulting column; Cadwallader to be held in reserve;
and Major Edwin V. Sumner with his cavalry to be posted on the extreme
left. Some changes were made in the disposition of the Mexican forces.
Early on the morning of the 8th Hugér with two 24-pounders opened
fire, and the assaulting column under Major Wright advanced under a
heavy fire of grapeshot from the Mexican center and left. Undismayed,
they pushed forward now under fire of musketry, captured a battery,
and turned it upon the enemy, who fled in confusion. They were soon
re-enforced, and rallied and reopened fire not only from their lines
but from the housetops and walls. The storming party was driven back,
but Duncan's battery opening fire at this time checked the Mexican
advance. The light battalion of Colonel Charles F. Smith, now under
command of Captain Edmund Kirby Smith, Fifth Infantry, moved forward,
supported by a part of Cadwallader's brigade, and this was followed by
a forward movement of Garland's brigade and Drum's battery. This
movement was irresistible, and the Mexicans fell back, bravely
contesting every inch of ground. Pending the fire of Duncan's battery,
one section of the battery, under Lieutenant Henry J. Hunt, opened
fire on the enemy's lines between the Casta Mata and Molino del Rey.
McIntosh fought in close quarters, and charged and drove the enemy in
his front, but received three wounds, one of which proved mortal.
General Alvarez, commanding the Mexican cavalry, was held in check by
the voltigeur regiment under command of Major E.V. Sumner, and
Duncan's battery. The fight was continued obstinately and bravely by
the Mexicans from the roofs of houses. The main force of the enemy,
having been driven toward Chapultepec, were rallied by General Peña Y.
Barragan, and made an advance. Captain Drum was ordered forward, and
with a captured six-pounder cleared the road. The battle lasted for
more than two hours and was hotly contested by the Mexicans. Those
who escaped death or capture retreated to Chapultepec, leaving General
Worth in full possession of their lines. Worth's loss was one hundred
and sixteen killed and six hundred and seventy-one wounded, a total of
seven hundred and eighty-seven. His estimate of the Mexican strength
was fourteen thousand.
CHAPTER XI.
General Quitman's movements to San Antonio and Coyoacan--Movements of
General Pillow--General reconnoissance by Scott--Chapultepec--Scott
announces his line of attack--Surrender of the Mexican General
Bravo--Preparations to move on the capital--Entry of General
Scott into the City of Mexico--General Quitman made Military
Governor--General Scott's orders--Movements of Santa Anna--General
Lane--American and Mexican deserters--Orders as to collection of
duties and civil government.
General Quitman, who, it will be remembered, was to march from San
Augustin to Coyoacan on the 8th, having heard firing in the direction
of Tacubaya, moved, early on September 8th, to San Antonio, and from
thence on to Coyoacan. A reconnoissance was made in the afternoon by
General Pillow as far as the town of Piedad and the Niño Perdido
roads, one of which leads to the Belen gate of the city and the other
through a gate of the same name. These roads run parallel to each
other, about three fourths of a mile apart. On the 9th, General Scott,
accompanied by Captain R.E. Lee, made an examination of the works near
the San Antonio gate, where they discovered Mexican soldiers busily at
work. On the 9th Riley took position to the right of Piedad, and was
joined on the 11th by Smith's brigade and Francis Taylor's and Edward
James Steptoe's batteries.
An advanced post of the enemy was evacuated on the approach of the
Americans on the night of the 9th and occupied; this force was
strengthened by both infantry and artillery, and a bridge was thrown
over a ditch in front of it for the passage of cannon. Colonel Harvey,
on the night of the 10th, occupied Mexcoac with the Second Dragoons
for the purpose of protecting the hospitals and stores there. General
Scott called a meeting of his general officers and informed them of
his plan of attack. He had determined to attack either the San Antonio
Garita or Chapultepec and the western gates. After hearing the
opinions of his officers, who differed on the place of attack, General
Scott determined to make the movement on Chapultepec and the western
gate, and he so announced.
A reconnoissance was made on the morning of the 11th, with a view to
the location of the batteries. The locations selected by Captain
Hugér, who was sent for the purpose, were adopted. The division of
Quitman was ordered to unite with Pillow near Piedad in the evening,
and after nightfall both divisions were to move to Tacubaya. Twiggs
was ordered to remain in front of the southern gates and divert the
enemy's attention.
Major Sumner with seven companies was to march at daylight and join
Pillow. Chapultepec is a natural fortification, rising one hundred and
fifty feet above the valley. A large building, the Military School, is
on its summit, and it is bounded on the west by the Molino del Rey.
The grounds are surrounded by a thick wall some fifteen feet in
height. It is situated two miles from the Belen gate, and was regarded
as the key to the city. The officer in command was General D.
Nicholas Bravo, an officer of skill, distinction, and courage. Second
in command was General D. Mariano Monterde. The chief of engineers was
D. Juan Cano, and D. Manuel Gamboa commandant of artillery. Generals
Noriega and Perez were afterward attached to the command. The orders
of the 11th to Quitman and Pillow were to march to Tacubaya, where
they awaited further orders.
The attack was begun by the batteries of Drum and Peter Valentine
Hagner, and the fire proved to be well directed. The guns at the
castle answered promptly and kept up a vigorous cannonade. When there
was some cessation of firing from the castle, Captain Lee, under
direction of General Scott, using the wall of the aqueduct as a
parapet, placed two pieces of artillery under Captain Horace Brooks,
which opened fire. Steptoe's battery kept up a continuous firing.
Santa Anna, who was deceived at the point of attack, on hearing the
guns of Steptoe, moved at once to Candelaria and San Antonio Garita,
where he expected the attack. At noon he repaired to Chapultepec, and,
taking charge of a battalion, moved to re-enforce a work which was
being attacked. The Americans opened fire on this force and compelled
it to withdraw. General Bravo, expecting an assault, asked for
re-enforcements, which General Santa Anna promised should be furnished
in time. In the meantime the Governor of the State of Mexico had
arrived with seven hundred men, having reached a point near Tacubaya
on the 11th, and his arrival greatly increased the Mexicans' hopes.
Not being joined by cavalry as he expected, the Governor remained
inactive on the 11th, 12th, and 13th. Quitman's division, with United
States Marines and a company of New York volunteers, remained in the
rear near the Tacubaya road during the 12th.
It was now determined by General Scott to resume the bombardment early
next morning, and to attack with the columns under Quitman and Pillow.
In aid of this a storming party was detailed from Worth's division of
ten officers and two hundred and sixty men, under command of Captain
Samuel McKenzie, Second Artillery, and a like detail from Twiggs's
division under Captain Silas Casey, Second Infantry, in support of
Pillow's movement, and General P.F. Smith's brigade of Twiggs's
division was ordered to the support of Quitman. The bombardment was
renewed early on the morning of the 13th. Four companies of the
voltigeur regiment, under Lieutenant-Colonel Joseph E. Johnston, were
instructed, on the cessation of firing, to move rapidly under cover of
the wall and enter the inclosure at its opening. Four companies under
Colonel Timothy P. Andrews were ordered to unite with Johnston, deploy
as skirmishers, and drive the enemy from his shelter. McKenzie was
ordered to move in the rear of Johnston, with orders to follow the
latter through the breach and advance rapidly and carry the main work
by assault. A force of men carrying scaling ladders were placed with
Johnston. Colonel William Trousdale, with the Eleventh and Fourteenth
Regiments, and one section of Magruder's battery, under command of
Lieutenant Thomas Jonathan Jackson, was placed in position in the road
leading on the left of Chapultepec to the city, and ordered to advance
and prevent an advance of the enemy in that direction. General
Cadwallader was directed by General Pillow to execute the orders.
General Smith's brigade had orders to move on the right of the column
of attack and cut off the retreat of the enemy in that direction.
General Scott now notified the commanding officers of the attacking
forces to be ready to move when the signal was given. The troops moved
forward promptly at the signal, and after a brave and desperate
struggle its gallant defender, General Bravo, surrendered. With the
exception of Riley's brigade, Steptoe's battery, and the garrison at
Mexcoac, all of the American army were engaged. General Scott's forces
engaged amounted to about seven thousand five hundred men. The Mexican
authorities state that eight hundred men were in Chapultepec. The
brigades of Rangel and Peña were stationed near. The Mexicans engaged
did not probably exceed four thousand men.
[Illustration: OPERATIONS OF THE AMERICAN ARMY
IN THE
VALLEY OF MEXICO
in August and September
1847.]
Among the prisoners captured were Generals Monterde, Saldana, and
Norriega, the former superintendent of the military school, and forty
of his pupils. On the commencement of the engagement these youths
deserted their schoolrooms, and, arming themselves, joined in the
defense of Chapultepec and fought with great bravery.
Preparations were now made for an advance and the capture of the
capital. The pursuit of the retreating enemy was followed on two roads
leading to the city, and there was considerable desultory fighting. At
1 o'clock A.M. on the 14th a deputation of citizens arrived at General
Worth's headquarters, who were sent by him, under charge of Major
William W. Mackall, to General Scott's headquarters. They reported
that General Santa Anna had fled from the city, leaving it with the
civil authorities, and they came to ask favorable terms of surrender.
General Scott declined to make any terms with them, telling them that
the city had practically been in his possession from the day before;
that he would levy a moderate tax, and would be governed by no terms
except his own and such only as the honor and dignity of the United
States would require. Early on the morning of the 14th a white flag
was displayed at the Garita de Belen, and General Quitman was
requested to take possession, as the city had been evacuated by the
Mexican army. Leaving a guard at the Belen gate, General Quitman
marched his command and took possession of the citadel. Leaving the
Second Pennsylvania Regiment at the citadel, he marched to the Grand
Plaza, followed by Steptoe's battery. The Marine Battalion was placed
in the National Palace, and the American flag was hoisted from its
summit. Lieutenant G.T. Beauregard was dispatched to notify General
Scott. About eight o'clock the general in chief, accompanied by his
staff, with an escort of cavalry, all in full dress, passed through
the northwestern angle into the Grand Plaza. The line of soldiers
presented arms, lowered colors, and gave the drum beat. General Scott
uncovered in acknowledgment of the salute, dismounted, and passed into
the _porte-cochère_ of the palace, followed by Generals Quitman and
Smith and officers of the staff. He said, "Gentlemen, we must not be
too elated with our success." Then turning, he said: "Let me present
to you the Civil and Military Governor of the City of Mexico,
Major-General John A. Quitman. I appoint him at this instant. He has
earned the distinction, and he shall have it." The general then
ascended the stairway and at once wrote General Order No. 284, as
follows:
"HEADQUARTERS OF THE ARMY,
"MEXICO, _September 14, 1847_.
"1. Under the favor of God, the valor of this army, after many
glorious victories, has hoisted the colors of our country in the
capital of Mexico and on the palace of its Government.
"2. But the war is not yet ended. The Mexican army and Government
have fled, only to watch an opportunity to turn upon us with
vengeance. We must, then, be upon our guard.
"3. Companies and regiments will be kept together, and all stand on
the alert. Our safety is in military discipline.
"4. Let there be no drunkenness, no disorders, no straggling.
Stragglers will be in great danger of assassination, and marauders
shall be punished by courts-martial.
"5. All the rules so honorably observed by this glorious army in
Puebla must be observed here. The honor of the army and the honor of
our country call for the best behavior on the part of all. To win
the approbation of their country, the valiant must be sober,
orderly, and merciful. His noble brethren in arms will not be deaf
to this hearty appeal from their commander and friend.
"6. Major-General Quitman is appointed Civil and Military Governor
of Mexico.
"By command of Major-General Scott.
"H.L. SCOTT,
"_Acting Assistant Adjutant General_."
Firing having been heard in the street, General Scott said to an
officer: "Will you have the kindness to go and say to our volunteer
friends that it is unsoldierlike, bad manners, and dangerous to
discharge arms in a city, and to say to their officers that it must
not occur again. None of us desire, I am sure, to hear more musketry."
When the officer returned he informed the general that it was not the
volunteers, but Mexicans, who were firing from the roofs of houses.
Orders were at once issued to place soldiers in the steeples of
churches and on the roofs of houses as sharpshooters, to sweep the
streets with artillery if necessary, and to break open and enter all
houses from which the troops were fired upon. The prompt execution of
this order soon had the effect of putting a stop to the firing and
restoring order in the city.
The retreating Mexican infantry on its arrival at Guadalupe received
orders from General Santa Anna to move to Tlalnepantla. One of the
Mexican battalions having discharged its guns without orders and the
sound being heard, Santa Anna, believing it to have proceeded from the
American army, gave orders to countermarch. On learning the truth, the
order was countermanded and the march resumed. General Herrera was
then ordered with artillery and infantry to march to Queretaro, while
Santa Anna would move on Puebla and surprise and capture the small
garrison left there by General Scott.
General Santa Anna, learning of the street firing in the city,
supposed that the Mexicans had rallied and were contesting the
possession of the capital by the Americans. He received this
information from Prospero Terez, one of the leaders of the mob, who
urged him to return. He at once dispatched a staff officer to General
Herrera, ordering his return, and took up the line of march for the
capital. Learning on his approach that the Mexicans under Alvarez in
their attempt on the city were unsuccessful, he revoked his order to
Herrera and ordered him to proceed to Queretaro. Very soon he again
sent orders to countermarch and move to the capital. Again he ordered
Herrera to move on Queretaro, when he marched to Guadalupe and issued
a call for a junta to meet on the 16th.
From General Scott's report we learn that the loss in his army in the
various engagements around and in the City of Mexico amounted to two
thousand seven hundred and three. The whole force engaged in the
capture of the capital was less than six thousand. The Mexicans admit
that their force for the defense of the capital was about twenty
thousand, with one hundred and four cannon. The Mexican army
encountered by General Scott on his move to the capital was not less
than thirty thousand. In nearly if not quite all of the engagements
they were intrenched, and occupied their own chosen positions. Of
these, the American army killed or wounded not less than seven
thousand officers and men, captured three thousand seven hundred and
thirty prisoners, more than twenty colors and standards, seventy-five
pieces of ordnance, besides fifty-seven wall pieces, twenty thousand
stand of small arms, and a large quantity of ammunition.
Following are orders issued by General Scott after the occupation of
the capital:
"HEADQUARTERS OF THE ARMY, NATIONAL PALACE OF MEXICO,
"_September 16, 1847_.
"GENERAL ORDERS NO. 286.
"The general in chief calls upon his brethren in arms to return,
both in private and public worship, thanks and gratitude to God for
the signal triumph which they have recently achieved for their
country. Beginning with August 10th and ending the 14th inst., this
army has gallantly fought its way through the fields and forts of
Contreras, San Antonio, Churubusco, Molino del Rey, Chapultepec, and
the gates of San Cosme and Tacubaya, into the capital of Mexico.
When the very limited number who have performed these brilliant
deeds shall have become known, the world will be astonished and our
own countrymen filled with joy and admiration. But all is not yet
done. The enemy, though scattered and dismayed, has still many
fragments of his late army hovering about us, and, aided by an
exasperated population, he may again unite in treble our numbers and
fall upon us to advantage if we rest inactive in the security of
past victories. Compactness, vigilance, and discipline are therefore
our only securities. Let every good officer and man look to these
cautions and enjoin them on all others.
"By command of Major-General Scott.
"H.L. SCOTT,
"_Acting Assistant Adjutant General_."
"HEADQUARTERS OF THE ARMY, NATIONAL PALACE OF MEXICO,
"_September 17, 1847_.
"GENERAL ORDERS NO. 287.
"The general in chief republishes, with important additions, his
General Order No. 20, of February 19, 1847, declaring martial law to
govern all who may be concerned. There are nineteen paragraphs in
the order. (See Ex. Doc. No. 1, Thirtieth Congress, first session,
Senate.) The last seven will be copied.
"13. The administration of justice, both in civil and criminal
matters, through the ordinary courts of the country, shall nowhere
and in no degree be interrupted by any officer or soldier of the
American forces except, first, in case where an officer or soldier,
agent, servant, or follower of the army may be a party; and second,
in political cases--that is, prosecutions against other individuals
on the allegation that they have given friendly information, aid, or
assistance to the American forces.
"14. For the care and safety of both parties in all cities and towns
occupied by the American army, a Mexican police shall be established
and duly harmonized with the military police of said forces.
"15. This splendid capital, its churches and religious worship, its
convents and monasteries, its inhabitants and property, are,
moreover, placed under the special safeguard of the faith and honor
of the American army.
"16. In consideration of the foregoing protection, a contribution of
one hundred and fifty thousand dollars is imposed on this capital,
to be paid in four weekly installments of thirty-seven thousand five
hundred dollars each, beginning on Monday next, the 20th inst., and
terminating on Monday, October 11th.
"17. The Ayuntamiento, or corporate authority of the city, is
specially charged with the collection and payment of the several
installments.
"18. Of the whole contribution to be paid over to this army, twenty
thousand dollars shall be appropriated to the purchase of extra
comforts for the wounded and sick in hospital, ninety thousand
dollars to the purchase of blankets and shoes for gratuitous
distribution among the rank and file of the army, and forty
thousand dollars reserved for other necessary military purposes.
"19. This order shall be read at the head of every company of the
United States forces serving in Mexico, and translated into Spanish
for the information of the Mexicans.
"By command of Major-General Scott.
"H.L. SCOTT,
"_Acting Assistant Adjutant General_."
"HEADQUARTERS OF THE ARMY, NATIONAL PALACE OF MEXICO,
"_September 18, 1847_.
"GENERAL ORDERS NO. 289.
"1. The army by degrees, and beginning as soon as practicable, will
be distributed and quartered over the city as follows:
"2. The first division (Worth's) in or near the direct route from
the San Cosme toward the cathedral and extending a little beyond the
east end of the Alameda. This division will keep a competent guard
with two guns of medium caliber at that gate.
"3. The second division (Twiggs's) about the Grand Plaza and
extending toward the gate of San Lazaro, or the Penon, at which it
will keep a guard and two pieces of artillery, as above.
"4. The third division (Pillow's) on or near the direct route from
the gate of Peralvillo, or Guadalupe, toward the cathedral, but not
south of the convent of San Domingo, and will keep a guard of two
pieces of artillery at that gate.
"5. The volunteer division (Quitman's) on or near the direct route
from the gate of San Antonio toward the cathedral, but not north of
the Hospital of Jesus, and will keep a guard with two pieces of
artillery, as above, at that gate.
"6. The brigade of cavalry (Colonel Harney's) will be quartered in
the cavalry barracks near the National Palace (marked on the plan of
the city small m). This brigade will furnish daily a detachment of a
corporal and six men to the respective gates of division, to serve
as couriers between the gates and the commanders of the respective
divisions, and for no other purposes.
"7. No private house shall be occupied by any corps or officers
until all suitable public buildings within the above ranges shall be
first fully occupied, and all officers attached to troops shall be
quartered with or near their troops.
"8. No rent shall be paid by the United States for any buildings
occupied by troops or officers without a special direction from
general headquarters; nor shall any private house be occupied or
quartered without the free consent of the owner or orders from
general headquarters. No deviations from these injunctions will be
tolerated.
"9. The collection of customs or duties at the several gates of the
city by the civil authorities of the same will be continued as
heretofore until modified by the Civil and Military Governor,
Major-General Quitman, according to the views of the general in
chief; but supplies belonging to the quartermaster and commissary
departments will at once be exempted from all duties.
"By command of Major-General Scott.
"H.L. SCOTT,
"_Acting Assistant Adjutant General_."
The effect of the strict enforcement of these admirable orders was to
bring the American army under a discipline which won for them the
confidence of the people of the city, and to revive and restore trade,
open up the churches, and, as near as could be done under the
circumstances, to place matters in the city _in statu quo ante
bellum_. At the meeting of the junta called by General Santa Anna he
tendered his resignation as President of the Republic and of the
command of the army. Under the Constitution of Mexico the office
devolved upon Manuel de la Peña y Peña, who at once assumed it, and
Santa Anna set out with a view to the capture of Puebla and the
occupation of the road leading to the coast.
Instead of marching on Puebla, Santa Anna turned his forces toward
Queretaro, but in a few days countermarched. After two or three
maneuvers of this kind, he finally invested Puebla with about fifteen
hundred cavalry and four field pieces. He summoned Colonel Childs, who
was in command, to surrender on the score of humanity. Santa Anna
represented his force at eight thousand men, and threatened assault.
Colonel Childs declined to surrender, and made preparations to resist
the assault by strengthening his position. The threatened assault was
not made. On October 1st Santa Anna raised the siege of Puebla and
marched toward El Pinal to intercept a train of wagons with supplies
and re-enforcements, leaving General Rea with sufficient force to
continue operations against the Americans. The Americans were so
annoyed by continuous firing from the housetops that Captain William
F. Small, First Pennsylvania Infantry, was ordered to dig through the
walls of the houses until he had gained a point which would command a
barricade that had been thrown up by the Mexicans. The enemy was
driven off, leaving seventeen dead on the ground; the barricade was
then burned. Hostile parties were constantly annoying the garrison,
until two companies of the First Pennsylvania regiment were sent out
and dispersed them. Many skirmishes took place, which invariably
resulted disastrously to the enemy.
General Joseph Lane's efforts to exterminate the roving bands of
_guerillos_ and _rancheros_ involved great rapidity of movement, and
he had officers and men under his command eminently fit for such
service. One of the most pestiferous of the _guerillo_ leaders was a
Catholic priest called Padre Juarata. He seemed to be everywhere at
once, and notwithstanding his party was frequently met by the
Americans, sometimes surrounded and always beaten, yet the Padre
adroitly managed to get out of every trap and escape. Being a priest,
he was always ready and willing to administer the last rites of the
Church to friend or foe.
While the army was at Puebla, General Scott organized a company of
Mexicans under command of one Dominguez, which was regularly mustered
into the service of the United States. A battalion of deserters from
the American army, known as the San Patricio Battalion, composed
almost wholly of Europeans, was organized under the command of one
O'Riley. These two commands met in battle in the convent of
Churubusco, and fought each other with great desperation. The Mexicans
under Dominguez entered Churubusco with the American army, and met the
execration of their countrymen, who denounced them as traitors. The
American deserters (the San Patricio Battalion) were captured at
Churubusco, tried by court-martial, and all but sixteen sentenced to
death and executed. Some were pardoned, and O'Riley, their leader, was
branded with the letter D on his cheek and released. This clemency was
shown him because he deserted before hostilities commenced.
The number of American troops engaged at Churubusco on August 19th and
20th was four thousand five hundred. The entire force engaged at
Churubusco was about seven thousand four hundred. General Scott's
estimate of the Mexican force on August 20th, including Contreras,
Churubusco, and the road between San Antonio and Churubusco, the
Portales, and the road to the Capitol, was thirty-two thousand.
In these battles three thousand prisoners were captured, including
eight general officers and two hundred and five other officers. The
killed and wounded amounted to over four thousand. Thirty pieces of
cannon were taken. The loss to the American army was one hundred and
thirty-nine officers, including sixteen killed, and one thousand and
fifty-three enlisted men; sixty officers and eight hundred and
seventy-six men wounded.
Commodore William B. Shubrick having captured Mazatlan and Guaymas,
General Scott wrote him, December 2, 1847: "I have been waiting here
for two and a half months to learn the views of the Government at
home, or at least for re-enforcements, before undertaking any new and
distant operations. The forces I have under my orders in the whole of
this republic, except the troops immediately under Major-General
Taylor, only give me means of holding Tampico, Vera Cruz, Puebla,
Chapultepec, and this capital."
General Scott had made a careful study of the statistics of Mexican
finances, and previous to ordering the occupation of several important
districts near the capital, to be followed by a like disposition in
more remote departments, issued General Orders No. 376, December 15,
1847:
"(1) This army is about to spread itself over and to occupy the
Republic of Mexico until the latter shall sue for peace on terms
acceptable to the Government of the United States. (2) On the
occupation of the principal point or points in any State the payment
to the Federal Government of this republic of all taxes or dues of
whatever manner or kind heretofore, say in 1844, payable or collected
by that Government, is absolutely prohibited, as all such taxes, dues,
etc., will be demanded of the proper civil authorities for the support
of the army of occupation. (3) The State and Federal districts being
already so occupied, as well as the States of Vera Cruz, Puebla, and
Tamaulipas, the usual taxes or dues heretofore contributed by the same
to the Federal Government will be considered as due and payable to
this army from the beginning of the present month, and will early be
demanded of the civil authorities of said States and districts under
rules and penalties which shall be duly announced and enforced. (4)
Other States of this republic, as the Californias, New Mexico,
Chihuahua, Coahuila, New Leon, etc., already occupied by the forces of
the United States, though not under the immediate orders of the
general in chief, will conform to the prescriptions of this order,
except in such State or States where a different system has been
adopted with the sanction of the Government at Washington. (5) The
internal taxes or dues referred to are: 1, District taxes; 2, Dues on
the production of gold and silver; 3, Melting and assaying duties; 4,
The tobacco rent; 5, Rent of stamped paper; 6, The rent on the
manufacture of playing cards; and, 7, The rent of post offices. (6)
The rent of national lotteries is abolished, lotteries being hereby
prohibited. (7) Import and export duties at ports of the republic will
remain as fixed by the Government of the United States, except that
the exportation of gold and silver in bars or ingot--_plata y oro en
pasta_--is prohibited until the further instructions of the Government
on the subjects. (8) All imported articles, goods, or commodities
which have once paid or given sufficient security for the payment of
duties to the United States at any port of entry of the republic shall
not again be burdened with any tax or duty in any port of this
republic occupied by the forces of the United States. (9) The levying
of duties on the transit of animals, goods, or commodities, whether of
foreign or domestic growth, from one State of this republic to
another, or on entering or leaving the gate of any city within the
republic, will, from and after the beginning of the ensuing year, be
prohibited, as far as the United States forces may have power to
enforce the prohibition. Other and equitable means, to a moderate
extent, must be resorted to by the several State and city authorities
for the necessary support of their respective governments. (10) The
tobacco, playing cards, and stamped paper rents will be placed for
three, six, or twelve months under the contract with the highest
bidders respectively, for the several States, the State and Federal
district of Mexico being considered one. Accordingly, offers or bids
for those rents within each State, or any of them, are invited. They
will be sent in as early as possible, sealed, to the headquarters of
departments, except for the Federal District and State of Mexico. For
this latter the offers or bids will be addressed to the general in
chief. (11) Further details for the execution of the foregoing system
of government and revenue will soon be given in general orders."
General Scott forwarded the above order to Washington, together with a
memoir of the precious metals, showing that he had carefully studied
and had thorough knowledge of the subject. In his letter forwarding
the order he said:
"The Government of the United States proposes that their forces shall
occupy the Mexican Republic, and raise in said country the means to
meet the expenses of occupation. To obtain this object, it appears
convenient that said resources should be raised so as to interfere as
little as possible with the existing interests of foreign as well as
of native residents; for if any measure calculated to involve the ruin
of a part or the whole of said interests was taken, there is little or
no doubt that the results would be as injurious to the interest of the
United States as to those of this country, for the destiny of both
interests in the case of occupation is linked together. It appears
that this recommendation, besides being fully justified by a sound
policy, will also be the means of facilitating the organization of a
financial system, and ultimately lead to increase of revenue.
* * * * *
"The tariff given by the United States for the Mexican ports occupied
allows the free exportation of gold and silver either in bars or
coined. Although it has been done, perhaps, with a liberal view, it
would seem that the measure was taken to hostilize the Mexican
Government, preventing thus any advance from being made to said
Government on future export duties on silver or gold, and depriving it
of that resource. However, who would benefit by the free export of
gold or silver? It is well known that nothing finds its level,
respecting prices, as soon as the precious metals, and therefore as
soon as the exportation should be carried into effect there would have
been exchange on England, France, and the United States, a difference
equivalent to the duties taken off on the precious metals. The free
exportation would apparently have been advantageous to none but the
miners; apparently is the word, for it is evident that the higher
prices obtained by them at first would have gradually come down until
they were on a level with those obtained in Europe, and ultimately
would have become lower than they are to-day, for it is not to be
doubted that the free exportation of bars partially or totally
occasioning the ruin of the mints, coined specie would have
disappeared from circulation, and that miners would have been for the
sale of their product entirely at the mercy of the speculators, while,
the exportation being prohibited, the mints are obliged to pay to them
at any time a fixed price for their gold and silver which can not be
altered.
* * * * *
"The exportation of gold and silver in bars has been prohibited in
this country by all the tariffs that have existed either under the
Spanish or Mexican Government; and though licenses of exportation to a
small amount have now and then been granted, the prohibition has been
the rule and the exportation has been the exception, until the Mexican
Government, having rented all their mines but two to foreign
companies, has taken the solemn engagement not to give any more
licenses of exportation. As it may easily be supposed, the engagement
of giving no more licenses of exportation has been the principal basis
on which the companies have relied to make their contracts, and the
principal inducement for them to advance the rent as they have done.
It is not known what policy will be adopted by the United States
respecting neutral interests in Mexico in case the country should be
occupied by their armies, but too high an opinion is entertained of
the justice of their Government to admit for a moment the possibility
of such interests being sacrificed or ruined when no direct benefit
could be derived from such a measure for the United States, and when,
on the contrary, it might be injurious to them, as may be explained."
On December 17th he again wrote to the Secretary calling his attention
to General Orders No. 376, the seventh paragraph of which contained
the duties on exported bars of gold and silver, which had been made
free by order of the United States Government. Since the publication
of the order he had seen a slip cut from a Vera Cruz paper of the
17th, from the Department to him on the subject, which said: "I have
taken great pains to obtain correct information in respect to the
production and exportation of the precious metals in and from this
country. The Mexican policy has been uniform against the exportation
of bars and ingots, though, from want or cupidity, special licenses
have been given in violation of that sound policy and in gross
violation of the rights purchased by the renters of the mints. This
army is also interested in some prohibition, for if we permit the
exportation of bars and ingots there will be but little domestic
coinage, our drafts would soon be under par, and the Mexicans, from
want of sufficient circulating medium, be less able to pay the
contributions which we propose to levy upon them through their civil
authorities."
General Scott, knowing the President's great desire to have the war
terminated, embraced every opportunity to keep him advised as to the
prospects, more or less remote, of peace, and wrote, December 14th,
that he "had received no communication from the Mexican Government,
and did not expect any before the Congress and President had been
installed, about March 10th. It is believed that both will be inclined
to peace." Congress, however, did not meet until May.
General William O. Butler arrived at the capital December 18th with
thirty-six hundred men, and the train dispatched November 1st, under
Colonel Harney, returned, under command of Lieutenant-Colonel Joseph
E. Johnston, of the voltigeurs, with thirteen hundred men in addition
to the escort that accompanied it on the trip down. These
re-enforcements, with those that recently arrived, made a total of
eight or nine thousand for duty.
General Scott was anxious to occupy the mining districts of San Luis
and Zacatecas, maintain communication with the capital, and open one
with Tampico, and for that purpose needed two columns of five thousand
men each, and to garrison the State capitals within reach of the two
columns. It was represented that great embarrassment would result
from the movement on Zacatecas, as that column would have to march
through Queretaro to reach its destination. It was represented that it
would cause the dispersion of the Mexican Government and make its
assembling at any other point doubtful. The Department, however,
directed the double movement to be made when the re-enforcements known
to have left Vera Cruz would arrive, unless in the meantime otherwise
instructed.
The commanding general was greatly disappointed when the first train
returned from Vera Cruz without bringing a jacket, blanket, or a pair
of shoes for the army. That small depot had been exhausted by the
troops of Patterson, Butler, and Marshall, who were fresh from home,
or the Brazos, and others that arrived without clothing since June;
and on December 25th he wrote of his great disappointments, and stated
that this want might delay distant expeditions for many weeks, as some
of the new volunteers were in want of essential articles of wear. He
called attention to the fact that requisitions for clothing made by
the regular regiments over a year previous had not been sent, or at
any rate had not reached the regiments. No general ever paid more
attention or displayed greater interest in the comfort of his men than
General Scott. The quartermaster's and commissary departments were his
never-ceasing care, and he gave constant personal attention to both.
On the matter of assessments he says: "You perceive I do not propose
to seize the ordinary State or city revenue, as that, in my judgment,
would be to make war on civilization, as no community can escape
absolute anarchy without civil government. I shall take care, however,
to see that the means collected within any particular State or city
for that purpose are moderate and reasonable."
Order No. 395 was issued December 31st, specifying the States by name
and the several sums they would be annually taxed. The duties paid at
the gates of the cities, and in passing from one State to another, as
well as the tobacco monopoly and lotteries, were abolished. Governors
and members of the Legislature of the different States, and all
collecting officers then in commission and charged with the collection
of Federal duties of any, were held individually responsible in their
persons and property for the collection and payment of the assessment.
The order, which was a long one and carefully prepared, gave many
details. The last two paragraphs say: "The American troops, in
spreading themselves over this republic, will take care to observe the
strictest discipline and morals in respect to the persons and property
of the country, purchasing and paying for all necessaries and comforts
they may require, and treating the unoffending inhabitants with
forbearance and kindness. The higher honor of the country, as well as
the particular honor of the army, must and shall be maintained against
the few miscreants in our ranks. The laws of war will also be strictly
observed toward all Mexicans who respect those laws. For the treatment
of those atrocious bands of _guerillos_ and armed _rancheros_, General
Order No. 392 of the 12th instant will be rigidly enforced."
To prevent frauds in the payment of dues as assessed, General Orders
No. 8, of January 9, 1848, were issued. The orders referred to and
quoted in part show that General Scott was eminently qualified to
fulfill a position in civil as well as military life. The orders he
promulgated were laws to the Mexicans, and show that his
administration of the civil affairs of the conquered country was wise,
merciful, and judicious. It was here that General Scott's early legal
training manifested itself. These orders had anticipated the message
of the President which reached him on the 14th in a communication from
the War Department, and in which the President's views were given in
regard to the future prosecution of the war. He was urged to endeavor
to lessen expenses by compelling Mexico to contribute, and see the
necessity of making a peace honorable alike to both countries. Says
the Secretary: "Our object being to obtain acceptable terms, which it
is apprehended can not be speedily obtained without making the enemy
feel he is to bear a considerable part of the burden of war.
"Should there not be at this time a government in Mexico of sufficient
stability to make peace, or should the authority which there exists be
adverse to it, and yet a large and influential portion of the people
be really disposed to put an end to hostilities, it is desirable to
know what prospect there is that the latter could, with countenance
and protection of our arms, organize a government willing to make
peace and sustain relations of peace with us. It is presumed that your
opportunities of knowing the disposition of the people of Mexico will
enable you to furnish your Government with correct information on the
subject, and the President desires to be furnished with your views."
On January 6, 1848, General Scott reported to the Department that his
total force in the Valley of Mexico was fourteen thousand nine hundred
and sixty-four, with only eleven thousand one hundred and sixty-two
fit for duty, measles prevailing mainly among the volunteers. Half of
General Marshall's force at Jalapa was sick, and he reported, December
22d, that he had sent his wagons back to Vera Cruz for medicines and
other supplies. Pachuca was occupied without opposition by Colonel
Jones M. Withers, Ninth Infantry, and General Cadwallader marched,
December 22d, for Lerma and Toluca, the latter the State capital and
thirty-eight miles from the City of Mexico.
On January 13th General Scott reported the unsuccessful efforts of
Colonel Wynkoop's First Pennsylvania Volunteers to capture the Padre
Jaruata, but the same colonel, learning of General Valencia's
whereabouts, made a night march, surprised and captured him and a
colonel of his staff. Colonel Jack Hays made efforts to capture
Jaruata, but also failed. He had an engagement with the band, killing
and wounding many of them.
On January 12, 1848, a letter was dispatched by the Secretary of War
to General Scott informing him that he had been relieved from the
command of the army by order of the President of the United States,
and was to be brought before a court of inquiry to be convened in the
Castle of Perote, Mexico, on the 18th of February.
On February 2, 1848, General Scott acknowledged receipt of the
Secretary's letters of November 8th and 17th and December 14th. The
system of finance--prohibiting the export duties on coins and the
prohibition of export in bars, inaugurated by the general--differed
materially from the instructions in the Secretary's letter of November
17th, and the general hoped, for the reasons suggested in his letter
of December 17th, that the President would consent to adopt his views
in respect to the precious metals. He informed the Secretary that the
ayuntamiento of the capital had charged itself with the payment on
account of the Federal district of four hundred thousand dollars of
the six hundred and sixty-eight thousand three hundred and thirty-two
dollars imposed per year on the State of Mexico; that General
Cadwallader would soon begin to collect through the ayuntamiento of
Toluca a large part of the remainder. Colonel Clarke, of the Sixth
Infantry, had been ordered into the Cuernavaca Valley, forty-three
miles south, with a force amply sufficient to enforce a thorough
collection.
General Scott says: "The _war of masses_ ended with the capture of the
enemy's capital; the _war of detail_, including the occupation of the
country and the collection of revenue, requires a large additional
force, as before suggested." Referring to the fact that he had learned
it was thought in Washington that "he had thirty thousand men under
his command, while in truth, including the forces at Tampico, Vera
Cruz, on the line from that port, and in the valley and vicinity, he
had a total of twenty-four thousand eight hundred and sixteen; the
sick, necessary, and indispensable garrisons deducted would leave an
available force for distant service of only four thousand five
hundred, and he did not know of the approach of any considerable
re-enforcements. Seven thousand he deemed a minimum number with which
the important line from Durango through Zacatecas and San Luis to
Tampico could be opened and maintained. Many of the volunteers were
sick with measles, mumps, and erysipelas, common among all classes of
soldiers."
A treaty of peace had been agreed upon and signed and was to be
forwarded at once. Referring to the fact, he says: "In about forty
days I may receive an acknowledgment of this report, and by that time,
if the treaty of peace be not accepted, I hope to be sufficiently
re-enforced to open the commercial line between Zacatecas and Tampico.
The occupation of Queretaro, Guanajuato, and Guadalajara would be the
next in importance, and some of the ports of the Pacific third.
Meanwhile the collection of internal revenue dues on the precious
metals and direct assessments shall be continued."
* * * * *
The following is the organization of the army in its march from Puebla
to the City of Mexico:
GENERAL STAFF.
Lieutenant-Colonel Ethan Allen Hitchcock, Assistant Inspector General.
Captain Henry Lee Scott, Acting Adjutant General.
First-Lieutenant T. Williams, Aid-de-camp.
Brevet First-Lieutenant George William Lay, Aid-de-camp.
Second-Lieutenant Schuyler Hamilton, Aid-de-camp.
Major J.P. Gaines, Volunteer Aid-de-camp.
ENGINEER CORPS.
Major John Lind Smith, Chief; Captain Robert Edward Lee;
Lieutenants Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard, Isaac I. Stevens,
Zealous Bates Tower, Gustavus Woodson Smith, George B. McClellan,
John Gray Foster.
ORDNANCE DEPARTMENT.
Captain Benjamin Hugér, Chief, with siege train.
First-Lieutenant Peter Valentine Hugner.
Second-Lieutenant George Thom.
Brevet Second-Lieutenant E.L.F. Hardcastle.
QUARTERMASTER'S DEPARTMENT.
Captains James R. Irwin, Chief; Abraham C. Myers, Robert
Allen, Henry Constantine Wayne, Justus McKinstry, George W.F.
Wood, J. Daniels, O'Hara, Samuel McGowan.
SUBSISTENCE DEPARTMENT.
Captain John Breckinridge Grayson, Chief.
Captain Thomas P. Randle.
PAY DEPARTMENT.
Major Edmund Kirby, Chief.
" Abraham Van Buren.
" Albert Gallatin Bennett.
MEDICAL DEPARTMENT.
Surgeon-General Thomas Lawson; Surgeons Benjamin Franklin Harney,
Richard Smith Satterlee, Charles Stuart Tripler, Burton Randall, James
Meck Cuyler; Assistant Surgeons Alexander F. Suter, Josiah Simpson,
David Camben De Leon, Henry H. Steiner, James Simons, Joseph K. Barnes,
Levi H. Holden, Charles Carter Keeney, James Frazier Head, John Fox
Hammond, Josephus M. Steiner, Charles P. Deyerle, Ebenezer Swift.
Surgeons J.M. Tyler, volunteer; McMillan, volunteer; Courtney J. Clark,
volunteer; W.B. Halstead, volunteer. Assistant Surgeons R. Hagan,
volunteer; H.L. Wheaton, volunteer. Surgeons R. Ritchie, First
Volunteers; J. Barry, First Volunteers; Edwards, First Volunteers; L.W.
Jordan, First Volunteers; R. McSherry, First Volunteers; Roberts, First
Volunteers.
CORPS.
Colonel Harney's Brigade.
Detachment of First Light Dragoons, Captain James Kearny.
Detachment of Second Light Dragoons, Major Edwin Vose Sumner.
Detachment of Third Light Dragoons under Major Andrew Thomas McReynolds.
I. BREVET MAJOR-GENERAL WORTH'S DIVISION.
1. Colonel John Garland's Brigade.
Second Regiment of Artillery, serving as infantry.
Third " " " " "
Fourth " " Infantry.
Duncan's Field Battery.
2. Colonel Andrew Clark's Brigade.
Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Regiments of Infantry.
A Light Battery.
II. BREVET MAJOR-GENERAL TWIGGS'S DIVISION.
1. Brevet Brigadier-General Persifor F. Smith's Brigade.
Rifle Regiment.
First Regiment of Artillery, serving as infantry.
Third Regiment of Infantry.
Taylor's Light Battery.
2. Colonel Bennet Riley's Brigade.
Fourth Regiment of Artillery, serving as infantry.
First Regiment of Infantry.
Seventh Regiment of Infantry.
III. MAJOR-GENERAL GIDEON J. PILLOW'S DIVISION.
1. Brigadier-General G. Cadwallader's Brigade.
Voltigeurs.
Eleventh and Fourteenth Infantry.
A Light Battery.
2. Brigadier-General Franklin Pierce's Brigade.
Ninth, Twelfth, and Fifteenth Infantry.
IV. MAJOR-GENERAL JOHN A. QUITMAN'S DIVISION.
1. Brigadier-General Shields's Brigade.
New York Volunteers.
South Carolina Volunteers.
2. Lieutenant-Colonel Watson's Brigade.
A detachment of Second Pennsylvania Volunteers.
A detachment of United States Marines.
_List of Officers of the Battalion of Marines under Command of
Lieutenant-Colonel Watson._
Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Samuel E. Watson, Major Levi Twiggs, Major
William Dulany.
_Staff._--First Lieutenant and Adjutant D.D. Baker, First Lieutenant
and Acting Quartermaster John S. Devlin.
_Captains._--John G. Reynolds, George H. Terrett, and William Lang.
_First Lieutenants._--Jabez C. Rich, Robert C. Caldwell, William L.
Young, Thomas A. Brady, John D. Simms, and Daniel J. Sutherland.
_Second Lieutenants._--George Adams, E. McD. Reynolds, Thomas Y.
Field, Charles G. McCawley, Freeman Norvell, Charles A. Henderson,
John S. Nicholson, Augustus S. Nicholson, and Henry Welsh.
CHAPTER XII.
Scott's care for the welfare of his army--Account of the money levied
on Mexico--Last note to the Secretary of War while commander in chief
in Mexico--Army asylums--Treaty of peace--Scott turns over the army to
General William O. Butler--Scott and Worth--Court of inquiry on
Worth--The "Leonidas" and "Tampico" letters--Revised paragraph
650--Army regulations--General Worth demands a court of inquiry and
prefers charges against Scott--Correspondence--General belief as to
Scott's removal command--The trial--Return home of General Scott.
As an army commander General Scott had frequent occasion to use money
for which vouchers or even ordinary receipts could not be taken and
the nature of the service could not be specified; he styled them
"secret disbursements." In a letter to the War Department of February
6, 1848, he stated that he "had made no report of such disbursements
since leaving Jalapa, (1) because of the uncertainty of our
communications with Vera Cruz, and (2) the necessity of certain
explanations which, on account of others, ought not to be reduced to
writing," and added, "I have never tempted the honor or patriotism of
any man, but have held it as lawful in morals as in war to purchase
valuable information or services voluntarily tendered me."
He charged himself with the money he received in Washington for
"secret disbursements," the one hundred and fifty thousand dollars
levied upon the City of Mexico for the immediate benefit of the army,
and of the captured tobacco taken from the Mexican Government, with
other small sums, all of which were accounted for. He then charged
himself with sixty-three thousand seven hundred and forty-five dollars
and fifty-seven cents expended in the purchase of blankets and shoes
distributed gratuitously to enlisted men, for ten thousand dollars
extra supplies for the hospitals, ten dollars each to every crippled
man discharged or furloughed, some sixty thousand dollars for secret
services, including the native spy company of Dominguez, whose pay
commenced in July, and which he did not wish to bring into account
with the Treasury. There remained a balance of one hundred thousand
dollars, a draft for which he inclosed, saying: "I hope you will allow
the draft to go to the credit of the army asylum, and make the subject
known in the way you may deem best to the military committees of
Congress. The sum is, in small part, the price of American blood so
gallantly shed in this vicinity; and considering that the army
receives no prize money, I repeat the hope that its proposed
destination may be approved and carried into effect.... The remainder
of the money in my hands, as well as that expended, I shall be ready
to account for at the proper time and in the proper manner, merely
offering this imperfect report to explain, in the meantime, the
character of the one hundred thousand dollars draft."
On February 9, 1848, General Scott addressed what seems to have been
his last note to the War Department as commander in chief of the army
of Mexico. It is brief. He adverted to the fact of his not receiving
any communication from the War Department or adjutant general's
office, and says: "But slips from newspapers and letters from
Washington have come to interested parties here, representing, I
learn, that the President has determined to place me before a court
for daring to enforce necessary discipline in this army against
certain of its high officers. I make only a passing comment upon these
unofficial announcements, learning with pleasure, through the same
sources, that I am to be superseded by Major-General William O.
Butler." The admirable recommendation in regard to the draft was
adopted and carried out, and the money applied to the purchase of
asylums for soldiers.
There was not any general engagement of the armies after the capture
of the City of Mexico. General Lane, always vigilant, kept his force
in constant motion, pursuing, engaging, when possible, and dispersing
the numerous predatory bands that infested his flanks and rear.
The first efforts to agree upon a treaty of peace failed. Active
operations were resumed, and so weakened Mexico that she was left no
alternative but to make "peace such as her powerful and successful
enemy might dictate." By the Constitution of Mexico the office of
President in case of a vacancy devolved upon the president of the
Supreme Court provisionally; but there was no president of the Supreme
Court in September, 1847, the last incumbent having died, and no
successor having been elected when Santa Anna resigned. Congress,
whose duty it was to elect this officer, could only be convened by
proclamation of the President, but, as is seen, there was no
President. In this unfortunate state of affairs, the most influential
of the _Moderado_ party, with the hope of preventing anarchy, then
greatly threatened, if it had not already raised its head, and
conclude terms of peace, prevailed upon Peña y Peña, an able and
enlightened jurist, statesman, and patriot, and senior judge of the
Supreme Court, to assume the provisional presidency. He was recognized
by the State authorities, and pledges were given that they would
uphold and defend it against all intriguers opposed to peace, through
the non-existence of a government competent to make it. It was known
that Peña was not averse to peace.
Mr. Nicholas P. Trist, the commissioner on the part of the United
States, upon the formation of the new Government, made propositions
for a conference of representatives. Owing to the fact that the
Mexican Congress had to be called together to elect a President _ad
interim_ to serve until January 8, 1848, the overtures of Mr. Trist
could not be entertained. By a combination between the Puro party and
the adherents of Santa Anna and other factions, the _Moderado_ party
came very near being defeated, but the latter were successful and
elected General Don Pedro Maria Anaya _ad interim_ President; and Peña
y Peña and General Mora y Villamil, both in favor of peace, were made
respectively Minister of Foreign Relations and Minister of War.
Negotiations were now again formally undertaken. The Mexican
Government was represented by Señores Conto, Atristain, and Cuevas.
The commissioners of the respective countries met at Guadalupe
Hidalgo, three miles from the City of Mexico. After many meetings,
long conferences, and discussions, a treaty of peace, friendships, and
limits between Mexico and the United States was concluded and signed
February 2, 1848.
A synopsis of the treaty is given. Some of the articles are given in
full, as the fifth, which secured to the United States the great State
of California with its incalculable wealth in mineral and agriculture
resources, and the territory of New Mexico, also rich in all that
Nature can yield.
_Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, concluded February 2, 1848.
Ratifications exchanged at Queretaro, May 30, 1848. Proclaimed July
4, 1848_.
The United States was represented by Nicholas P. Trist, and the
Republic of Mexico was represented by Don Louis Gonzaga Cuevas, Don
Bernardo Conto, and Don Miguel Atristain.
"ARTICLE I. There shall be firm and universal peace between
the United States of America and the Mexican Republic, and between
respective countries, territories, cities, towns, and people,
without exception of places or persons.
"ART. II provides that, immediately upon the signature to
this treaty, commissioners shall be appointed by the commander in
chief of the American forces and the Mexican Government for the
provisional suspension of hostilities and the re-establishment of
the political, administrative, and judicial branches so far as this
shall be permitted by the circumstances of the case.
"ART. III. Immediately upon the ratification of this treaty
by the United States orders shall be issued to the commanders of the
land and naval forces, requiring the latter (provided this treaty
has been ratified by Mexico and ratifications exchanged) to
immediately desist from blockading any Mexican ports, and requiring
the former (under the same conditions) to withdraw all troops of the
United States then in the interior of the Mexican Republic to a
distance from the seaport not exceeding thirty leagues--this to be
done with the least possible delay; and to deliver up all
customhouses at all ports occupied by the forces of the United
States to persons authorized by the Mexican Government to receive
it, with all bonds and evidences of debt for duties on importations
and exportations. An exact account to be rendered of all duties on
imports and exports, after the ratification of this treaty by
Mexico, deducting only the cost of collection. The City of Mexico to
be evacuated within one month after the orders there stipulated
shall be received by the commander of said troops.
"ART. IV. Immediately after the ratifications of the
present treaty all castles, forts, territories, places, and
possessions shall be definitely restored to Mexico; the final
evacuation of the territory of Mexico shall be completed within
three months, or sooner if possible, the Mexican Government engaging
to use all means in its power to facilitate the same. All prisoners
of war taken on sea or land to be restored, and all Mexicans held by
savage tribes within the United States to be exacted from such
tribes and restored to their country.
"ART. V is given in full:
"The boundary line between the two republics shall commence in the
Gulf of Mexico, three leagues from land, opposite the mouth of the
Rio Grande, otherwise called Rio Bravo del Norte, or opposite the
mouth of its deepest branch, if it should have more than one branch
emptying directly into the sea; from thence up the middle of that
river, following the deepest channel, where it has more than one, to
the point where it strikes the southern boundary of New Mexico;
thence westwardly along the southern boundary of New Mexico (which
runs north of the town called Paso) to its western termination;
thence northward along the western line of New Mexico until it
intersects the first branch of the Rio Gila (or if it should not
intersect any branch of that river, then to a point on said line
nearest to said branch, and thence in a direct line to the same);
thence down the middle of the said branch of said river until it
empties into the Rio Colorado; thence across the Rio Colorado,
following the division line between Upper and Lower California to
the Pacific Ocean. The southern and western limits of New Mexico
mentioned in this article are those laid down in the map entitled
'_Map of the United Mexican States, as organized and defined by
various acts of Congress of said republic, and constructed according
to the best authorities. Revised edition. Published in New York, in
1847, by J. Disturnell_'; of which map a copy is added to this
treaty, bearing the signatures and seals of the undersigned
plenipotentiaries. And in order to preclude all difficulty in
tracing upon the ground limit separating Upper from Lower
California, it is agreed that the said limit shall consist of a
straight line drawn from the middle of the Rio Gila, where it unites
with the Colorado, to a point on the coast of the Pacific Ocean
distant one marine league due south of the southernmost point of the
port of San Diego, according to the plan of said port made in 1782
by Don Juan Pantoja, second sailing master of the Spanish fleet,
and published at Madrid in the year 1802, in the atlas to the voyage
of said schooners Sutil and Mexicana; of which plan a copy is
hereunto added, signed and sealed by the respective
plenipotentiaries.
"In order to designate the boundary line with due precision upon
authoritative maps, and to establish upon the ground landmarks which
shall show the limits of both republics, as described in the present
article, the two governments shall each appoint a commissioner and
surveyor, who, before the expiration of one year from the date of
the exchange of ratifications of this treaty, shall meet at the port
of San Diego and proceed to run and mark the said boundary in its
whole course to the mouth of the Rio Bravo del Norte. They shall
keep journals and make out plans of their operations; and the result
agreed upon by them shall be deemed a part of this treaty, and shall
have the same force and effect as if inserted therein. The two
governments will amicably agree regarding what may be necessary to
these persons, and also as to their respective escorts, should such
be necessary.
"The boundary line established by this article shall be religiously
respected by each of the two republics, and no change shall ever be
made therein, except by the express and free consent of both nations
lawfully given by the General Government of each in conformity with
its own constitution.
"ART. 6 gives citizens of the United States free navigation
of the Gulf of California and the Rio Colorado below its confluence
with the Gila.
"ART. 7. The Rio Gila and the part of the Rio Bravo del
Norte are made free for the navigation of vessels of both countries
without tax.
"ART. 8. Mexicans to remain in the ceded territory if they
choose to do so, or to remove at any time to the Mexican republic,
retaining the property they possess in said territories, or
disposing of the same and removing the same wherever they please.
Those who remain in said territories may either retain the title and
rights of Mexican citizens or acquire those of citizens of the
United States; but they shall be under the obligation to make their
election within one year from the date of the exchange of
ratifications of this treaty; and those who shall remain in said
territories after the expiration of that year, without having
declared their intention to retain the character of Mexicans, shall
be considered to have elected to become citizens of the United
States. Property in those territories belonging to Mexicans shall be
inviolably respected, and the present owners and their heirs and
those who have acquired the same shall enjoy the same, as if it
belonged to citizens of the United States.
"ART. 9. Mexicans who do not declare themselves citizens of
Mexico shall be incorporated in and become citizens of the United
States under such regulations as shall be provided by law.
"ART. 10 of the treaty was stricken out.
"ART. 11. The United States undertakes to deliver up, if
possible, any Mexicans that may be captured by any of the savage
tribes within the ceded territory; and to prevent purchasing any
property from any Mexican while in capture by the Indians; nor to
purchase any property of any kind stolen within Mexican territory by
such Indians.
"ART. 12. In consideration of the extension acquired by the
boundaries of the United States, as defined by the fifth article of
the present treaty, the Government of the United States engages to
pay to that of the Mexican republic the sum of fifteen millions of
dollars, and prescribes the manner and times of payment.
"ART. 13. The United States assumes the payment of all
claims now due and those hereafter to become due by reason of claims
already liquidated against Mexico under the treaties of April 11,
1839, and January 30, 1843.
"ART. 14. The United States discharges Mexico from all
claims of citizens of the United States against said republic.
"ART. 15 provides for the appointment of a board of
commissioners to adjudicate all claims against Mexico, the United
States assuming the payment of such as may be allowed; the Mexican
Government agreeing to furnish such books, papers, etc., as may be
deemed necessary as evidence.
"ART. 16. The right of both parties to fortify any point in
its territory it may deem proper.
"ART. 17. The treaty of April 5, 1831, and its provisions
not inconsistent with this treaty, revived.
"ART. 18. All supplies for troops of the United States
shall be exempt from duties or charges of any kind; the United
States engaging to prevent merchandise and goods from being landed,
under cover of this article, not intended for the army.
"ART. 19. General provisions in regard to merchandise
imported into Mexico during hostilities.
"ART. 20 provides what disposition shall be made of
merchandise arriving in Mexico, if the customhouses shall be
delivered up less than sixty days from the signatures to this
treaty.
"ART. 21. If disagreements should arise between the two
countries, every effort will be made to adjust the same peaceably;
and failing in that, the subject-matter of dispute shall be referred
to arbitration.
"ART. 22 provides what shall be done with the citizens of
either country residing in the other, should war unhappily break out
between the two republics."
The treaty was given to a trusty messenger, dispatched to Vera Cruz,
and the general commanding at that point was ordered to forward it
immediately by the swiftest steamer in the harbor. The general
requested, in case the treaty was accepted and ratified, that he be
instructed as early as practicable in regard to evacuating Mexico, and
the disposition to be made of the wagons, artillery, and cavalry
horses, and the points in the United States to which the troops should
be ordered, and hoped the troops could leave Mexico before the return
of the _vomito_, which would probably be in May.
It had been rumored in the army for several weeks that General Scott
was to be superseded in command, and he announced the fact in the
following order:
"HEADQUARTERS OF THE ARMY,
"MEXICO, _February 18, 1848_.
"GENERAL ORDERS NO. 59.
"By instruction from the President of the United States just
received, Major-General Scott turns over the command of the army to
Major-General Butler, who will immediately enter upon duty
accordingly. In taking leave of the troops he has so long had the
command of in an arduous campaign, a small part of whose glory has
been from position reflected on the senior officer, Major-General
Scott is happy to be relieved by a general of established merit and
distinction in the service of his country.
"By command of General Scott.
"H.L. SCOTT,
"_Acting Assistant Adjutant General_."
There was nothing for General Butler to do but wait the action of the
United States on the treaty that had been forwarded, and then evacuate
the Mexican territory. As has been seen, ratifications of the treaty
were exchanged at Queretaro May 30, 1848, and proclaimed July 4, 1848.
Although General Worth had served with General Scott as his aid, and
the most friendly relations had heretofore existed between them,
circumstances occurred in May and June, 1847, that caused an
estrangement between them which was never healed. On June 16, 1847,
General Worth issued a circular at Peublo of the following purport:
"Intelligence has come to the headquarters of this division, in a form
and from sources entitled to consideration, that food exhibited, and,
in tempting form, for sale to the soldiers, is purposely prepared to
cause sickness and ultimately death"; and he appealed to every soldier
to forbear the procurement or use of such food, as ample rations were
issued, and added: "Doubtless there are among those with whom we are
situated many who will not hesitate, as is the habit of cowards, to
poison those from whom they habitually fly in battle--a resource
familiar in Spanish history, legitimately inherited and willingly
practiced in Mexico."
General Scott had animadverted upon the terms granted by Worth to the
functionaries of the city of Puebla, about May 15, 1847, and strongly
censured the circular referred to. These reproofs induced General
Worth to call for a court of inquiry, which was ordered to convene
June 17, 1847, at 10 o'clock A.M. The court met, and General
Worth submitted a statement of the matters in which he deemed himself
wronged by the general in chief, and to which he invited
investigation. The court gave the matters before it careful
consideration on the evidence adduced and the documents submitted, and
pronounced their opinions. The court found nothing in the remarks of
the general in chief in regard to General Worth's terms to the
functionaries of Puebla to which he [Worth] could take exception;
"that the terms or stipulations granted by Brevet Major-General Worth
to the functionaries of the city of Puebla upon his entrance with his
advance of the army on the 15th of May last were unnecessarily
yielded, improvident, and in effect detrimental to the public
service," and continues: "The court, as required, further declares its
opinion that the 'circular' published by Brevet Major-General Worth to
his division, dated Puebla, June 16, 1847, was highly improper and
extremely objectionable in many respects, especially as it might tend,
by exasperating the whole Mexican nation, to thwart the well-known
pacific policy of the United States, and, in view of the high source
from which it emanated, to disturb the friendly relations of our
Government with Spain, or at least give occasion to that power to call
for explanations or apologies. The barbarous offense against which
that 'circular' warned the soldiers of the First Division, if it
exists at all, equally affected the whole army. The information
obtained by General Worth, if worthy of notice, should therefore have
been communicated to the general in chief, that he might have
exercised his discretion on the means to be adopted for correcting the
evil. With these views of the 'circular' alluded to the court is of
the opinion that it called for the 'emphatic admonition' and rebuke of
the general in chief."
About two months after the occupation of the City of Mexico by the
United States forces a mail arrived from the States. It was found that
two letters written from the valley a few days after the battles of
Contreras and Churubusco had been published in the newspapers. One of
them, published in the New Orleans Delta, was known as the "Leonidas
letter," and gave to General Pillow nearly all the credit for winning
these important battles, and placed him on a plane of military genius
far above the facts, as was understood by parties present. Among other
things the letter said: "He [Pillow] evinced on this, as he had on
other occasions, that masterly military genius and profound knowledge
of the science of war which has astonished _the mere martinets of the
profession_. His plan was very similar to that by which Napoleon
effected the reduction of the fortress of Ulm, and General Scott was
so perfectly well satisfied with it that he could not interfere with
any part of it, but left it to the gallant projector to carry into
glorious and successful execution."
The "Tampico letter," as the other letter was called, is given in
full:
"TACUBAYA, MEXICO, _August 27, 1847_.
"The whole force which moved from Puebla, amounting to ten thousand,
more or less, marched in four columns on successive days, in the
following order, viz.: Twiggs, Quitman, Worth, and Pillow. In
approaching the City of Mexico by the main highway you go directly
on to Penon, which is a strong position, exceedingly well fortified.
Before leaving Puebla, it had been considered whether the main road
can not be avoided and El Penon turned by passing around to the
south and left of Lakes Chalco and Xochimilco. The engineer officers
serving immediately at general headquarters had questioned a number
of persons, including spies and agents sent expressly to examine the
route, and the mass of testimony was entire to the boggy, mucky, and
perfectly impracticable character for wagons and artillery of the
road leading in that direction. It was therefore in contemplation to
turn Penon by forcing Mexicalcinzo, although the ground was
difficult and the batteries known to be numerous. This route, you
will observe, is to the north and right of the lakes. The
reconnoissances of the engineers were consequently directed to this
end. In the meantime General Worth, whose division had been left at
Chalco, while General Scott, with Twiggs, had gone to Ayotla, sent
Colonel Duncan with a large party to examine the denounced route.
"Colonel Duncan found it just the reverse of what it had been
pronounced to be; it was firm, rocky, and quite practicable,
requiring, to be sure, a little labor here and there. General Worth
instantly sent Colonel Duncan with this information to General
Scott, and urged the movement of the whole army to the left of Lake
Chalco. The direct attack was abandoned, and on the morning the
whole army was in motion."
Owing to a letter written by General Taylor to General Gaines, which
was intended to be private and confidential, finding its way into the
New York Morning Express, the Secretary of War issued the following:
"WAR DEPARTMENT, WASHINGTON, _January 28, 1847_.
"The President of the United States directs that paragraph 650 of
the General Regulations of the Army, established the 1st of March,
1825, and not included among those published January 25, 1841, be
now published, and its observance, as a part of the general
regulations, be strictly enjoined upon the army.
"By order of the President.
"W.L. MARCY, _Secretary of War_."
The following is the paragraph referred to and ordered to be
"published":
"Private letters or reports relative to military movements and
operations are frequently mischievous in design, and always
disgraceful to the army. They are therefore strictly forbidden, and
any officer found guilty of making such report for publication,
without special permission, or of placing the writing beyond his
control, so that it finds its way to the press within one month after
the termination of the campaign to which it relates, shall be
dismissed from the service."
Upon the appearance in print of the two letters referred to, the
commanding general issued the following:
"HEADQUARTERS OF THE ARMY,
"MEXICO, _November 12, 1847_.
"GENERAL ORDERS No. 349.
"The attention of certain officers of this army is recalled to the
foregoing--650th paragraph, 1,825 regulations--a regulation
prohibiting officers of the army from detailing in private letters
or reports the movements of the army, which the general in chief is
resolved to enforce so far as it may be in his power. As yet but two
echoes from home of the brilliant operations of our army in this
basin have reached us--the first in a New Orleans and the second
through a Tampico newspaper.
"It requires not a little charity to believe that the principal
heroes of the scandalous letters alluded to did not write them, or
especially procure them to be written; and the intelligent can be at
no loss in conjecturing the authors, chiefs, partisans, and pet
familiars. To the honor of the service, the disease--pruriency of
fame not earned--can not have seized upon half a dozen officers
present, all of whom, it is believed, belonged to the same two
coteries.
"False credit may no doubt be attained at hand by such despicable
self-puffings and malignant exclusion of others, but at the expense
of the just esteem and consideration of all honorable officers who
love their country, their profession, and the truth of history. The
indignation of the great number of the latter class can not fail in
the end to bring down the conceited and envious to their proper
level."
The day after the publication of the above General Orders General
Worth forwarded to army headquarters a communication in which he
said:
"I learn with much astonishment that the prevailing opinion in this
army points the imputation of 'scandalous' contained in the third, and
the invocation of the 'indignation of the great number' in the fourth
paragraph of Orders No. 349, printed and issued yesterday, to myself
as one of the officers alluded to. Although I can not suppose those
opinions to be correctly formed, nevertheless, regarding the high
source from which such imputations flow, so seriously affecting the
qualities of a gentleman, the character and usefulness of him at whom
they may be aimed, I feel it incumbent on me to ask, as I do now most
respectfully, of the frankness and justice of the commander in chief,
whether in any sense or degree he condescended to apply, or designed
to have applied, the epithets contained in that order to myself, and
consequently whether the general military opinion or sentiment in that
matter has taken a right or intended direction. I trust I shall be
pardoned for pressing with urgency an early reply to this
communication."
On the day General Worth addressed his communication to General Scott,
Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel James Duncan wrote to the editor of the
North American (a newspaper published in the City of Mexico in
English), in which he avowed that the substance of the "Tampico
letter" was communicated by him to a friend in Pittsburg from Tacubaya
soon after the battles, and added: "The statements in the letter are
known by very many officers of this army to be true, and I can not but
think that the publication of the truth is less likely to do violence
to individuals or to the service than the suppression of it." He
states that justice to General Worth, who was evidently one of the
persons pointed at in Orders No. 349, requires him [Duncan] to state
that he [General Worth] knew nothing of the writer's purpose in
writing the letter in question; that General Worth never saw it, and
did not know, directly or indirectly, even the purport of one line,
word, or syllable of it until he saw it in print; that this letter was
not inspired by General Worth, but that both the "Tampico letter"--or
rather the private letter to his friend which formed the basis of that
letter--and this were written on his own responsibility.
On November 14, 1847, General Scott acknowledged General Worth's
letter of the 13th, and said: "The General Order No. 349 was, as is
pretty clearly expressed on its face, meant to apply to the letter
signed 'Leonidas' in a New Orleans paper, and to the summary of two
letters given in the Washington Union and copied into a Tampico paper,
to the authors, aiders, and abettors of those letters, be they who
they may."
It may be well questioned if an officer has a right to demand of his
superior in command whether or not certain expressions used in written
orders apply to him. If one officer could claim this privilege another
also could, until every officer in the command had interrogated the
commanding officer as to the intention of words used in general
orders. To comment upon and disapprove or censure the official acts of
his subordinates is not only a privilege of the commanding general,
but an obligation, for the maintenance of discipline and the _morale_
of the army.
But any officer aggrieved by any censure or disapproval may demand a
court of inquiry, which General Worth did in a letter dated November
14, 1847, addressed to General Scott, in which he says: "I have the
honor to receive your letter in reply, but not in answer to mine of
yesterday, handed in this morning. The General Order is too clearly
expressed on its face to admit of any doubt in regard to papers, and,
in public military opinion, in regard to persons. The object of my
letter, as I endeavored clearly to express, was to seek to know
distinctly, and with a view to further measures to protect myself, if,
as is supposed, I was one of the persons referred to. Regretting the
necessity for intrusion, I am compelled again respectfully to solicit
an answer to that question. I ask it as an act of simple justice,
which it is hoped will not be denied."
To this General Scott replied through his assistant adjutant general
[H.L. Scott], November 14, 1847, "that he [General Scott] can not be
more explicit than in his reply through me already given; that he has
nothing to do with the suspicions of others, and has no positive
information as to the authorship of the letters alluded to in General
Orders No. 349. If he had valid information he would immediately
prosecute the parties before a general court-martial."
The correspondence on this subject was terminated by General Worth in
the following letter:
"HEADQUARTERS FIRST DIVISION,
"MEXICO, _November 14, 1847_.
"SIR: It is due to official courtesy and propriety that I
acknowledge your letter No. 2, in answer to mine of this date; and
in doing so, and in closing this correspondence with the
headquarters of the army, I beg permission to say, and with regret,
that I have received no satisfactory answer to the just and
rightful inquiries which I have addressed to the general in chief;
but inasmuch as I know myself to be deeply aggrieved and wronged, it
only remains to go by appeal, as I shall do through the prescribed
channels, to the constitutional commander in chief.
"The general in chief is pleased to say through you that he has
nothing to do with the suspicion of others, and that he has no
positive information as to authorship, etc., granted. But has not
the manner in which the general in chief has been pleased to treat
the case established--whether designedly or not remains to be
seen--an equivocal public sentiment on the subject? There are always
enough of that peculiar pestilential species who exist upon the
breath of authority to catch up the whisperings of fancy and infect
a whole military community. I do not design to be stifled under the
miasma of such, nor stricken down in my advanced age, without an
effort to convince my friends that I scorn to wear 'honor not
earned.' Your obedient servant,
"W.J. WORTH, _Brevet Major General_."
Following this, General Worth prepared the following communication,
and sent it to army headquarters:
"HEADQUARTERS FIRST DIVISION, _November 16, 1847_.
"_To the Honorable Secretary of War, Washington_:
"SIR: From the arbitrary and illegal conduct, the malice
and gross injustice, practiced by the general officer, commanding in
chief, this army, Major-General Winfield Scott, I appeal (as is my
right and privilege) to the constitutional commander in chief, the
President of the United States. I accuse Major-General Winfield
Scott of having acted in a manner unbecoming an officer and a
gentleman. He has availed himself of his position to publish by
authority to the army which he commands, and of the influence of his
station to give the highest effect to an order bearing date November
12, 1847, and numbered 349--official printed copy
herewith--calculated and designed to cast odium and disgrace upon
Brevet Major-General Worth; to bring that general officer into
disrepute with the army, to lessen, if not destroy, his just
influence and proper authority with those officers over whom he is
placed in command; that he has, without inquiry or investigation, in
the said order published to the army and the world, falsely charged
Brevet Major-General Worth with having written, or connived at the
writing, a certain letter published in the United States, and to
which he has been pleased to apply the epithet of 'scandalous,'
'malignant,' etc.; that he has made these statements to the world,
giving to them the sanction of his high authority and the influence
of his position, while he has had no information as to the
authorship of the letters in question; and when respectfully and
properly addressed upon the subject by the undersigned appellant, he
has declined to reply whether or not he intended to impute to Brevet
Major-General Worth conduct which he had characterized as
'scandalous,' 'malignant,' etc.; be pleased to refer to
correspondence herewith marked from A to E. I do not urge present
action on these accusations, because of their inconvenience to the
service in withdrawing many officers from their duties, but I do
humbly and respectfully invoke the President's examination into the
case, and such notice thereof and protection from arbitrary conduct
of said Major-General Scott as he may deem suitable.
"I have the honor to be, etc.,
"W.J. WORTH,
"_Brevet Major General, United States Army_."
Upon receipt of the above communication at General Scott's
headquarters, General Worth was placed under arrest and charged "with
behaving with contempt and disrespect toward his commanding officer,"
or words to that effect; and the specification to the charge was to
the following effect: "Under pretext of appeal he charged his
commanding officer to be actuated by malice toward him [Worth] and
conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman."
It must have been under a painful stress of duty that General Scott
preferred charges against General Worth; they had been friends for
over thirty years, and the latter had been aid-de-camp to the former.
Worth was the first general officer ordered from General Taylor's army
to report to General Scott on his arrival in Mexico.
It was shown that General Pillow had given a written account of the
battles of Contreras and Churubusco to the correspondent of a
newspaper about August 25th, expressing a desire that it should go off
with first impressions and form a part of the correspondent's letter.
The general told the correspondent he had prepared it for him. The
latter examined the paper submitted by the general, found it incorrect
in many details, and did not send it as requested. When, however, the
mail from New Orleans brought the newspaper with the "Leonidas
letter," the correspondent compared the letter with the memorandum or
statement given him by Pillow and pronounced them almost identical.
The arrest of General Pillow was ordered. He was charged: 1. With a
violation of a general regulation or standing order of the army. 2.
With conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman.
The specification to the first charge was, that he [Pillow] wrote or
caused to be written an account of military operations between the
United States forces and those of the Republic of Mexico, August 19,
1847, in and about Contreras and Churubusco, in which operations said
Pillow bore a part, and which account was designed by said Pillow and
in due time, over the signature of "Leonidas," partially printed and
published in the New Orleans Delta of September 10, 1847, and
reprinted entire in the Bulletin and the Daily Picayune of the 15th
and 16th of the same month, all this pending the campaign between the
forces before mentioned. There were eight different specifications to
the second charge, and under the first there were eight different
items or headings. The specifications cover eleven printed pages.
Their substance and effect was that General Pillow's account was not
correct in the very many particulars specified.[B]
Colonel Duncan was charged: 1. With violation of the 650th paragraph
(revised), General Regulations of the Army; and the specification
cited the "Tampico letter," which he confessed to have written. The
second charge had relation solely to matters of fact set forth in the
"Tampico letter."
On January 13, 1848, the Secretary of War addressed a communication
to General Scott in which he said: "The President has determined to
relieve you from further duty as commanding general in Mexico. You are
therefore ordered by him to turn over the command of the army to
Major-General Butler, or, in his absence, to the officer highest in
rank with the column under you, together with all instructions you
have received in relation to your operations and duties as general in
chief command, and all records and papers properly belonging or
appertaining to general headquarters.
[Footnote B: See Ex. Doc. No. 65, Thirtieth Congress, first session.]
"Desirous to secure a full examination into all matters embraced in
the several charges which you have presented against Major-General
Pillow and Brevet Colonel Duncan, as well as the charges or grounds of
complaint presented against you by Brevet Major-General Worth, and
deeming your presence before the court of inquiry which has been
organized to investigate these matters indispensably necessary for
this purpose, you are directed by the President to attend the said
court of inquiry wherever it may hold its sittings; and when your
presence before or attendance upon the court shall no longer be
required, and you are notified of that fact by the court, you will
report in person at this department for further orders."
General Scott while in Puebla had asked to be relieved from command of
the army because of the want of sympathy and support of the home
Government. He thought active operations would cease in November, and
the passage through Vera Cruz would be safe by that date. The
Secretary, in reply to this request of General Scott, said:
"Regarding the inducement you have assigned for begging to be
recalled as deserving to have very little influence on the question,
it will be decided by the President with exclusive reference to the
public good. When that shall render it proper in his opinion to
withdraw you from your present command, his determination to do so
will be made known to you."
And further:
"The perusal of these communications by the President has forced upon
his mind the painful conviction that there exists a state of things at
the headquarters of the army which is exceedingly detrimental to the
public service, and imperiously calls upon him to interfere in such a
way as will, he sincerely hopes, arrest and put an end to the
dissensions and feuds which there prevail.... The documents show that
General Worth felt deeply aggrieved by your General Order No. 349....
With this view of the import and object of the order, his attempt by
all proper means to remove from himself the ignominy of these
imputations can not be regarded as an exceptionable course on his
part. If he was actually aggrieved in this matter, or believed himself
to be so, he had an unquestionable right to have the subject brought
to the consideration of his and your common superior--the President.
He prepared charges against you, for his letter of November 16th to
the Secretary of War can be viewed in no other character, and
endeavored to send them through you, the only channel he could use
without violating established regulations to his common superior....
General Worth having preferred charges against General Scott before
the latter preferred charges against him, both law and natural justice
require that the order of events should be pursued in such cases. The
charges which he prefers against you should be first disposed of
before proceedings can be instituted against him for malice in
preferring charges, or for presenting such as he did know or believe
to be well founded."
The President was evidently laboring under a misapprehension in regard
to the condition of affairs at the headquarters of the army.
Everything was quiet, industry prevailed, and constant watchfulness
for the comfort of the men of his command was being observed by the
general in chief. The public interests under his charge received his
constant care. No feuds were known to the army, and it was expected
that if there was anything done by the President it would be to
sustain the commanding general. At the time the order was issued
relieving General Scott, both Generals Quitman and Shields were in
Washington, but they were not consulted by the President or Secretary
of War. General Quitman wrote from Washington to his aid, Lieutenant
Christopher S. Lovell: "You are long since informed of the course the
War Department has thought fit to pursue in relation to the
difficulties between some of the generals. Though General Shields and
myself were at Washington when the information came, we were not
consulted."
It was believed by a large number of persons both in and out of the
army that considerations of public good had not in themselves caused
the President to relieve General Scott from command of the army. It
was well known that his political opinions were not in harmony with
the Administration, while those of his successor were. There had been
anything but that amenity which should exist between a commissioner
to negotiate a treaty of peace and the commanding general. General
Scott did not think that Mr. Trist treated him with the consideration
his position required--rejecting all overtures on the part of the
general. General Scott ascribes Trist's conduct to sickness, which is
throwing the mantle of charity over a series of slights amounting
almost to insults, which a general less solicitous for the cause he
was engaged in, and less regardful of his country's good, would have
resented in a manner that would have produced a crisis detrimental to
the interests of the Government.
General Scott, commander in chief, being the accuser, and Pillow,
Worth, and Duncan the defendants, the duty devolved upon the President
to appoint the court, which he did, composed of Brigadier-General
Nathan Towson, paymaster general, Brigadier-General Caleb Cushing, and
Brevet Colonel William G. Belknap, with Captain S.C. Ridgely, judge
advocate and recorder.
The court organized and adjourned to the City of Mexico, where it met
March 16, 1848, all the members present, the judge advocate and
recorder. General Pillow was also in attendance. No objection being
made to any member of the court, they were duly sworn. General Scott
then read a paper, from which the following extracts are made:
"Having, in the maintenance of what I deemed necessary discipline,
drawn up charges and specifications against three officers then under
my command, I transmitted the papers November 28, 1847, to the
Secretary of War, with a request in each case that the President,
under the act of May 29, 1830, would appoint a general court-martial
for the trial of the same. This court of inquiry is the result. I am
stricken down from high command; one of the arrested generals is
pre-acquitted and rewarded, and of the other parties, the judge and
his prisoners, the accuser and the accused, the innocent and the
guilty, with that strange exception, all thrown before you to scramble
for justice as we may.
"In the case of Major-General Pillow I preferred two charges: the
first with one specification, respecting a prohibited publication in
the newspapers of the United States, and the second embracing a great
number of specifications.
"Considering, Mr. President, that I asked for a general court-martial
to try and definitely determine cases specifically defined and set
out, and that this preliminary court has no power beyond the mere
collection of facts and giving an inoperative opinion thereon;
considering that, if we now proceed, the whole labor must be gone over
again at least by the parties and witnesses; considering that the
court will be obliged to adjourn to the United States in order to have
the least hope of obtaining the testimony of these important
witnesses, now retired to civil life, and therefore not compellable to
attend a military court even at home, or to testify before a
commission duly appointed by such courts, and the parties will not be
able to leave this country for home without peril of life. Considering
that there is a near prospect of peace between the United States and
Mexico, which may be consummated in time to enable this whole army to
return home at once in safety; considering immediately, on such
consummation, that Major-General Pillow would, by express terms of the
law under which he holds his commission, be out of the army, and
therefore no longer amenable for his acts to any military tribunal;
considering that, in preferring the charges against that officer, I
was moved solely by the desire to preserve the discipline and honor of
the army, not having even had the slightest personal quarrel or
difficulty with him, and that the time had probably gone by for
benefiting the service by a conviction and punishment--in view of
these circumstances, I shall, Mr. President, decline prosecuting the
charges and specifications against Major-General Pillow before this
preliminary court, without its special orders, or further orders from
the President of the United States."
In total disregard of the charges preferred against General Worth by
the commanding general, the President ordered him to be released from
arrest and restored to his command. General Worth, considering that
the President had done him "full and ample justice," withdrew his
charges against General Scott; to which the latter said that he "felt
strong in conscious rectitude, strong in all the means of defense,
defied his accusers, and would not plead the letter withdrawing the
accusations against him in bar of trial; that he challenged the writer
of that letter to come forward and do his worst."
Colonel Duncan having admitted that he had written the "Tampico
letter," thus pleading guilty to violating the army regulations, and
the President having ordered a court of inquiry and not a
court-martial, General Scott declined to prosecute him before this
court or a court-martial without express orders from the President.
General Scott considered that it was not for him to attempt to uphold
a regulation which the President had revived and then disregarded.
While Colonel Duncan no doubt believed all he had written to be true,
the evidence of Colonel H.L. Scott, assistant adjutant general of the
army, Colonel Hitchcock, and Captain Lee shows that the direct attack,
or that by Mexicalcingo, was never decided upon.
General Scott was informed that the court of inquiry would probably
adjourn to await further orders from the Government. To prevent this
delay, he [Scott] consented to prosecute the case of General Pillow.
With a probability of peace and the disbanding of the army, it was
almost certain that there never would be a trial by court-martial
should such a court be recommended.
On March 21st the investigation before the court of inquiry commenced
in the City of Mexico and continued until April 21st, when the court,
as General Scott had predicted, adjourned to the United States for the
purpose of obtaining further testimony, and reassembled in Frederick,
Md., May 29, 1848. General Pillow did not appear until June 5th, when
General Scott was also present. The latter had been detained by
sickness, and General Pillow had stopped in Tennessee to visit his
family.
On July 1st General Scott submitted the following paper to the court,
and withdrew the charges against Colonel Duncan:
"The reason given for withdrawing the first charge was, that the
President seemed indisposed to enforce the revised paragraph 650,
which he had ordered to be published, and enjoined all to obey and
enforce.
"In regard to the second charge and specification, relating to
matters of fact set forth in the 'Tampico letter,' and which Colonel
Duncan had acknowledged over his own signature he had written, General
Scott, believing that Colonel Duncan had fallen undesignedly into
erroneous statements of fact in the letter, sent an officer to ask him
if he was not ignorant, at the time of writing the letter,
"1. That before the army left Pueblo for the valley his [Scott's] bias
and expectation were that the army would be obliged to reach the
enemy's capital by the left or south around Lakes Chalco and
Xochimilco.
"2. That after his headquarters were established at Ayotla, August
11th, he [Scott] had shown equal solicitude to get additional
information of that route, as well as that of Penon or Mexicalcingo.
"3. That besides sending from Ayotla, August 12th, oral instructions
to Brevet Major-General Worth to push further inquiries from Chalco as
to the character of the southernmost route around the two lakes, he
[Scott] had sent written instructions to General Worth to the same
effect from his quarters at Ayotla.[C]
[Footnote C: General Worth wrote to Colonel Duncan from Tacubaya,
March 31, 1848: "General Scott evinced a disposition to gather
information as respected this route (Chalco) on the 12th.... As I have
said, General Scott directed me to send and examine the Chalco route,"
etc.]
"4. That while at Ayotla, from the 11th to the 15th of August, he
[Scott] sent a Mexican from Ayotla, independent of General Worth, all
around the village of Xochimilco to report to him [Scott] whether
there had been any recent change in the route, either in the matter
of fortifications or from overflowing of the lakes.
"5. That in the evening of the 13th he [Scott] had ordered Captain
Mason, of the engineers, to report to General Worth the next morning,
to be employed in reconnoitering that same southern route, in which
service he had already been anticipated by the reconnoitering party
under himself--Colonel Duncan."
The officer was authorized to say that if Colonel Duncan would state
that he was ignorant of these facts, he would withdraw and abandon,
upon his word, the second charge and specification.
To this Colonel Duncan replied that he "believed the facts therein
('Tampico letter') set forth to be substantially true, and still
believed so; had no desire to detract directly or indirectly from the
merits of any officer, and no one could regret more than himself if he
had done so. If the statements of General Scott were facts, he learned
them for the first time, and was ignorant of them when he wrote the
'Tampico letter.'" General Scott's reply was that "ample evidence,
both oral and written, was at hand to substantiate his averments in
respect to the route around Lakes Chalco and Xochimilco." He then
withdrew the second charge against Colonel Duncan.
Following is the opinion of the court of inquiry in General Pillow's
case:
"On reviewing the whole case, it will be seen that the points on which
the conduct of General Pillow has been disapproved by the court are
his claiming in certain passages of the paper No. 1" (the letter he
gave Mr. Freuner, correspondent of the New Orleans Delta, and which
had been pronounced a twin brother to the "Leonidas letter"), "and in
his official report of the battles of Contreras and Churubusco, a
larger degree of participation in the merit of the movements
appertaining to the battle of Contreras than is substantiated by the
evidence, or he is entitled to, and also the language above quoted, in
which that claim is referred to in the letter to General Scott.
"But as the movements actually ordered by General Pillow at Contreras
on the 19th were emphatically approved by General Scott at the time,
and as the conduct of General Pillow in the brilliant series of
military operations carried on to such triumphant issue by General
Scott in the Valley of Mexico appears by the several official reports
of the latter, and otherwise, to have been highly meritorious, from
these and other considerations the court is of the opinion that no
further proceedings against General Pillow in this case are called for
by the interests of the public."
On July 7, 1848, the President, through the Secretary of War, issued
an order approving the findings of the court of inquiry, and adds:
"The President, finding, on a careful review of the whole evidence,
that there is nothing established to sustain the charge of 'a
violation of the general regulation or standing order of the army,'
nothing in the conduct of General Pillow, nor in his correspondence
with the general in chief of the army, 'unbecoming an officer and a
gentleman,' concurs with the court in their conclusion that 'no
further proceedings against General Pillow in the case are called for
by the interests of the public service,' and he accordingly directs
that no further proceedings be had in the case."
As has been seen, General Scott had defied his enemies, whoever they
were, to do their worst. The charges against him were withdrawn, and
the court only investigated the charges against General Pillow, with
the result as given above. The court was then dissolved. It is
probably fortunate for all the parties against whom General Scott had
brought charges that a peace had been consummated, after a campaign in
which all participants from the highest in rank to the private had
borne such a brilliant part.
* * * * *
When General Scott arrived at Vera Cruz on his journey home he found
several fast steamers in port, any one of which he could have taken
passage in, but, with a consideration for the comfort of his men,
which throughout his career he never failed to evince, he left them
for the troops soon to embark, and taking a small sailing brig, loaded
down with guns, mortars, and ordnance stores, started on his voyage to
New York. On Sunday morning, May 20th, at daylight, the health officer
boarded the brig, and the general landed and proceeded to Elizabeth,
N.J., to join his family. He had the Mexican disease (diarrhoea)
upon him, and required rest and good nursing. He was not long
permitted to enjoy his much-needed repose, for deputations from New
York tendered him one of the most magnificent civic and military
receptions ever extended to any hero in this country up to that time.
CHAPTER XIII.
General Taylor nominated for the presidency--Thanks of Congress to
Scott, and a gold medal voted--Movement to revive and confer upon
Scott the brevet rank of lieutenant general--Scott's views as to the
annexation of Canada--Candidate for President in 1852 and
defeated--Scott's diplomatic mission to Canada in 1859--Mutterings of
civil war--Letters and notes to President Buchanan--Arrives
in Washington, December 12, 1861--Note to the Secretary of
War--"Wayward sisters" letter--Events preceding inauguration of Mr.
Lincoln--Preparation for the defense of Washington--Scott's
loyalty--Battle of Bull Run--Scott and McClellan--Free navigation of
the Mississippi River--Retirement of General Scott and affecting
incidents connected therewith--Message of President Lincoln--McClellan
on Scott--Mount Vernon--Scott sails for Europe--Anecdote of the day
preceding the battle of Chippewa--The Confederate cruiser
Nashville--Incident between Scott and Grant--Soldiers' Home--Last days
of Scott--His opinion of noncombatants.
General Taylor had been nominated by the Whigs as their candidate for
President, and at the instance of General Scott he [Scott] was put in
command of the Eastern Department and the former the Western
Department. This was considered a compliment to General Taylor. March
9, 1848, the following joint resolution, unanimously passed by
Congress, was approved by the President:
"1. That the thanks of Congress be and they are hereby presented to
Winfield Scott, major general commanding in chief the army in Mexico,
and through him to the officers and men of the regular and volunteer
corps under him, for their uniform gallantry and good conduct,
conspicuously displayed at the siege and capture of the city of Vera
Cruz and castle of San Juan de Ulloa, March 29, 1847; and in the
successive battles of Cerro Gordo, April 18th; Contreras, San Antonio,
and Churubusco, August 19th and 20th; and for the victories achieved
in front of the City of Mexico, September 8th, 11th, 12th, and 13th,
and the capture of the metropolis, September 14, 1847, in which the
Mexican troops, greatly superior in numbers and with every advantage
of position, were in every conflict signally defeated by the American
arms.
"2. That the President of the United States be and he is hereby
requested to cause to be struck a gold medal with devices emblematical
of the series of brilliant victories achieved by the army, and
presented to Major-General Winfield Scott, as a testimony of the high
sense entertained by Congress of his valor, skill, and judicious
conduct in the memorable campaign of 1847.
"3. That the President of the United States be requested to cause the
foregoing resolutions to be communicated to Major-General Scott in
such terms as he may deem best calculated to give effect to the
objects thereof."
On February 24, 1849, a joint resolution was offered in the United
States Senate to confer upon General Scott the brevet rank of
lieutenant general, which went only to its second reading, an
objection being interposed to a third reading and passage of the
resolution. On July 29, 1850, Mr. Jere Clemens, of Alabama, submitted
a resolution instructing the Committee on Military Affairs to inquire
into the expediency of conferring by law the brevet rank of lieutenant
general on Major-General Scott, "with such additional pay and
allowances as might be deemed proper, in consideration of the
distinguished services rendered to the republic by that officer during
the late war with Mexico." The resolution was eight days after
referred to the Committee on Military Affairs.
On September 30, 1850, Senator Jefferson Davis, of Mississippi,
Chairman of the Military Committee, reported a resolution requesting
the President to refer to a board of officers, to be designated by
him, the following questions:
"Is it expedient or necessary to provide for additional grades of
commissioned officers in the army of the United States; and, if so,
what grades, in addition to the present organization, should be
created?"
Mr. Davis's opposition to conferring the brevet rank of lieutenant
general upon General Scott was well known at the time. In pursuance of
this request by the Senate, the following officers were appointed on
the board: Generals Jesup, president, Wool, Gibson, Totten, Talcott,
Hitchcock, and Colonel Crane. The unanimous report was:
"Under the first inquiry referred to it, the board is of opinion that
it is expedient to create by law for the army the additional grade of
lieutenant general, and that when, in the opinion of the President and
Senate, it shall be deemed proper to acknowledge eminent services of
officers of the army, and in the mode already provided for in
subordinate grades, it is expedient and proper that the grade of
lieutenant general may be conferred by brevet."
Several efforts were subsequently made to pass joint resolutions
similar in purport to those quoted and referred to, but it was not
until 1852 that the joint resolution was passed creating the brevet
rank of lieutenant general, and General Scott succeeded to that
dignity in the army. The law did not in terms carry with it the pay
and emoluments of the brevet rank, and Mr. Davis, who had become
Secretary of War under President Pierce, referred the question to the
Attorney-General, Mr. Caleb Cushing; but before that officer rendered
an opinion Congress inserted a declaratory provision in the military
appropriation bill, which, becoming a law, gave the pay proper and all
that went with it to a veteran who had by his services well earned it.
General Scott was thenceforward until he died the second officer of
the American army (General Washington being the first) who held the
office of lieutenant general.
After the inauguration of General Taylor as President, General Scott,
between whom and the President there was no very good feeling,
continued his headquarters in New York; but when President Fillmore
succeeded, in 1850, he removed to Washington, and continued to reside
in the latter city until the accession of President Pierce, when, by
General Scott's request, there was another change back to New York,
where until 1861--with the exception of ten months of hard duty--he
remained and maintained headquarters of the army.
In 1849 there were evidences of discontent which almost assumed the
attitude of threats in the Canadas growing out of political agitation,
and General Scott was interrogated on the question of the advisability
of annexation by John C. Hamilton, Esq., of New York. General Scott
replied from West Point, June 29, 1849, in which he expressed the
opinion that the news from the British Parliament would increase the
discontent of the Canadas, and that those discontents might in a few
years lead to a separation of the Canadas, New Brunswick, etc., from
England. He thought that, instead of those provinces forming
themselves into an independent nation, they would seek a connection
with our Union, and that thereby the interests of both sides would be
promoted, the provinces coming into the Union on equal terms with the
States. This would secure the free navigation of the St. Lawrence
River, which would be of immense importance to at least one third of
our population, and of great value to the remainder. Although opposed
to incorporating with us any district densely populated with the
_Mexican_ race, he would be most happy to fraternize with our Northern
and Northeastern neighbors.
In 1852 General Scott became a candidate a second time for the
presidency, having been nominated by the Whig Convention that met at
Baltimore in June of that year, his competitors being Mr. Webster, and
Mr. Fillmore, who succeeded President Taylor. William A. Graham, Mr.
Fillmore's Secretary of the Navy, was put on the ticket for
Vice-President. General Franklin Pierce and William R. King, a Senator
from Alabama, were respectively put forward for President and
Vice-President by the Democrats. The campaign was a heated one. The
Democratic orators, however, on all occasions accorded to the Whig
candidate that meed of praise for his gallantry as an army officer and
commander to which his services to the country had entitled him, and
accorded with the universal sentiment that his services to the
country had been of inestimable benefit and shed ineffaceable luster
on the American arms in the wars since 1800; but still, being in all
essentials but a military man, it was contended he was not fit to be
intrusted with the exalted office of President. These speakers had
doubtless never read, or had forgotten, the orders published by
General Scott upon his capturing the City of Mexico, which show a
wonderful insight into civil as well as military command. It was left
to the lower portion of the opposition to indulge in caricature, and
garbled and distorted paragraphs in reports and published letters,
such as a "hasty plate of soup" already mentioned, and his reference
to "a fire in the rear," which had reference to the weak sympathy and
support he had experienced from the Administration during the war with
Mexico. The Democratic candidate was overwhelmingly elected, only four
States--Massachusetts, Vermont, Kentucky, and Tennessee--casting their
votes for Scott. In his autobiography General Scott thanks God for his
political defeats. It detracted none from his reputation that the
people chose some one else for the chief Executive.
The expedition set on foot in 1857 to bring the hostile Mormons to
terms met with General Scott's censure, and he made no concealment of
his belief that it was a scheme got up for the benefit of army
contractors, whose peculations would involve the country in great
expense. It is true the cost in hardship and privation to the army, as
well as the money involved, was very great, but the results were very
beneficial. During the late civil war the inhabitants of Utah had it
in their power to greatly embarrass the Federal Government, but they
did not, as a people, commit one disloyal act. At the time of the
expedition they had put themselves in such defiance of the Federal
Government that it was necessary that strong measures should be
resorted to, and the result was as has been stated.
In 1859 General Scott was again called upon to exercise his powers as
a diplomat. Commissioners were at that time engaged in running the
boundary line between the British possessions and the United States.
Differences sprang up as to which of the two countries the San Juan
Island in Puget Sound belonged to. This question should have been
referred to the two Governments for amicable settlement. General
Harvey, an impetuous officer then in command of the United States
forces in that country, took forcible possession of the island,
endangering the friendly relations between the two countries. The
situation was critical, but President Buchanan requested General Scott
to go to the scene of operations and settle the matter without
conflict, if possible. The general had recently been crippled from a
fall, but, suffering as he was, he sailed September 20, 1859, from New
York in the Star of the West for Panama, and thence to his
destination. The British governor was at Victoria. The few friendly
notes that passed between General Scott and the governor restored the
island to its former condition, the joint possession of both parties,
and thus averting what might have led to great and serious
complications.
Nothing of particular public importance attracted the attention of the
general until the mutterings of civil war gave utterance to sound.
That he knew the feeling and determination of the Southern people
better than those in high authority is shown by his suggestions to
prevent, if possible, the secession of the Southern States. He was a
native of Virginia, and every effort was made by persuasion to induce
him to link his fortunes with his State, but without avail. Even his
old friends--the friends of his early youth and manhood, to say
nothing of those of maturer years--brought to bear upon him every
argument to swerve him, but to no purpose. He remained true to the
Government he had served and that had honored him, and if his
suggestion had been carried out, the war would not perhaps have
attained the proportions it did.
On October 29, 1860, General Scott addressed the following note to the
President [Buchanan]: "The excitement that threatens secession is
caused by the near approach of a Republican's election to the
presidency. From a sense of propriety as a soldier, I have taken no
part in the pending canvass, and, as always heretofore, mean to stay
away from the polls. My sympathies, however, are with the Bell and
Everett ticket. With Mr. Lincoln I have no communication whatever,
direct or indirect, and have no recollection of ever having seen his
person; but can not believe any unconstitutional violence or breach of
law is to be apprehended from his administration of the Federal
Government.
"From a knowledge of our Southern population, it is my solemn
conviction that there is some danger of an early act of secession,
viz.: The seizure of some or all of the following posts: Forts Jackson
and St. Philip, on the Mississippi below New Orleans, both without
garrisons; Fort Morgan, below Mobile, without garrison; Forts Pickens
and McKee, Pensacola Harbor, with an insufficient garrison for one;
Fort Pulaski, below Savannah, without a garrison; Forts Moultrie and
Sumter, Charleston Harbor, the former with an insufficient garrison
and the latter without any; and Fort Monroe, Hampton Roads, without a
sufficient garrison. In my opinion, all these works should be
immediately so garrisoned as to make any attempt to take any one of
them by surprise or _coup de main_ ridiculous.
"With the army faithful to its allegiance and the navy probably
equally so, and a Federal Executive for the next twelve months of
firmness and moderation, which the whole country has a right to
expect--_moderation_ being an element of power not less than
_firmness_--there is good reason to hope that the danger of secession
may be made to pass away without one conflict of arms, one execution,
or one arrest for treason. In the meantime it is suggested that
exports might be left perfectly free, and, to avoid conflicts, all
duties on imports be collected outside of the cities in forts or ships
of war."
Again, October 31st, the general suggested to the Secretary of War
that a circular should be sent at once to such of those forts as had
garrisons to be on the alert against surprises and sudden assaults;
but no notice seems to have been taken of the judicious and wise
suggestion.
On December 12th General Scott arrived in Washington. He had been
confined to his bed for a long time and was physically very much
depleted. He again personally urged upon the Secretary of War the
views expressed in his note from West Point of October 29th as to
strengthening the forts in Charleston Harbor, Pensacola, Mobile, and
the Mississippi River below New Orleans. The Secretary did not concur
in these views. Finally General Scott called on the President, on
December 15th, in company with the Secretary, and urged upon the chief
Executive the importance of re-enforcing the forts mentioned; but no
action was taken. After the Secretary of War [Floyd] had resigned his
position in the Cabinet he was given a reception in Richmond, which
called out the remark from the Examiner, of that city, that if the
plan invented by General Scott to stop secession had been carried out,
and the arsenals and forts put in the condition he wanted them to be,
"the Southern Confederacy would not now exist."
On December 28th he wrote a note to the Secretary expressing the hope:
1. That orders may not be given for the evacuation of Fort Sumter
[this was after Major Anderson had withdrawn his forces from Fort
Moultrie and concentrated at Sumter]. 2. That one hundred and fifty
recruits may be instantly sent from Governor's Island to re-enforce
that garrison, with ample supplies of ammunition and subsistence,
including fresh vegetables, as potatoes, onions, turnips, etc. 3. That
one or two armed vessels be sent to support the said fort. In the same
communication he calls the Secretary's attention to Forts Jefferson
(Tortugas) and Taylor (Key West). On December 30th he addressed the
President and asked permission, "without reference to the War
Department, and otherwise as secretly as possible, to send two hundred
and fifty recruits from New York Harbor to re-enforce Fort Sumter,
together with some extra muskets or rifles, ammunition, and
subsistence," and asked that a sloop of war and cutter might be
ordered for the same purpose as early as the next day. The documents
show that from General Scott's first note, referred to and quoted
herein, down to the inauguration of Mr. Lincoln, he was persistent in
his efforts to have the Southern forts, or as many of them as the
means at hand would permit, re-enforced and garrisoned against
surprise and capture; but little heed was paid to his importunities.
On the day before the inauguration of Mr. Lincoln General Scott
addressed William H. Seward, who, it was known, would become Secretary
of State in Lincoln's Cabinet, what is called the "Wayward sisters"
letter, and which is quoted in full:
"WASHINGTON, _March 3, 1861_.
"DEAR SIR: Hoping that in a day or two the new President
will have happily passed through all personal dangers and find
himself installed an honored successor of the great Washington, with
you as the chief of his Cabinet, I beg leave to repeat in writing
what I have before said to you orally, this supplement to my printed
'Views' (dated in October last) on the highly disordered condition
of our (so late) happy and glorious Union.
"To meet the extraordinary exigencies of the times, it seems to me
that I am guilty of no arrogance in limiting the President's field
of selection to one of the four plans of procedure subjoined:
"I. Throw off the old and assume the new designation, the Union
party; adopt the conciliatory measures proposed by Mr. Crittenden or
the Peace Convention, and my life upon it, we shall have no new case
of secession; but, on the contrary, an early return of many, if not
of all, the States which have already broken off from the Union.
Without some equally benign measure the remaining slaveholding
States will probably join the Montgomery Confederacy in less than
sixty days, when this city, being included in a foreign country,
would require a permanent garrison of at least thirty-five thousand
troops to protect the Government within it.
"II. Collect the duties on foreign goods outside the ports of which
the Government has lost the command, or close such ports by act of
Congress and blockade them.
"III. Conquer the seceded States by invading armies. No doubt this
might be done in two or three years by a young and able general--a
Wolfe, a Desaix, a Hoche--with three hundred thousand disciplined
men, estimating a third for garrisons and the loss of a yet greater
number by skirmishes, sieges, battles, and Southern fevers. The
destruction of life and property on the other side would be
frightful, however perfect the moral discipline of the invaders.
"The conquest completed at the enormous waste of human life to the
North and Northwest, with at least $250,000,000 added thereto, and
_cui bono_? Fifteen devastated provinces! not to be brought into
harmony with their conquerors, but to be held for generations by
heavy garrisons at an expense quadruple the net duties or taxes,
which it would be possible to extort from them, followed by a
protector or emperor.
"IV. Say to the seceded States: 'Wayward sisters, depart in peace.'
"In haste, I remain very truly yours,
"WINFIELD SCOTT."
The two months preceding the inauguration of Mr. Lincoln were fraught
with great responsibility to General Scott. He had moved his
headquarters to Washington, as he thought, temporarily; but from the
threatening aspect of the political troubles it soon became apparent
that his stay there would be, if not permanent, prolonged a greater
length of time than was at first expected. As March 4th approached,
rumors thick and fast filled the atmosphere of attempts to resist Mr.
Lincoln's taking the oath. It was said that bodies of men were
drilling in Maryland, Virginia, and even in the District of Columbia,
for that purpose. There is no doubt men were being put through
military exercise within a few miles of the capital, which was known
at the War Department; but if the object was violence of any kind it
never developed. Great apprehension was felt, and not without reason,
for the general's daily mail contained letters--mostly anonymous, a
few signed doubtless with fictitious names--threatening him and Mr.
Lincoln with assassination if the latter should attempt to be
inaugurated. Some idea of the difficulty may be gathered when it is
known that the militia of the District was but poorly equipped either
in officers or otherwise to cope successfully with the situation
should an outbreak or invasion of armed men from Maryland or Virginia
be attempted. The military force of the District showed large _on
paper_, but the actual force consisted of two or three companies
tolerably well drilled. In this emergency Captain (afterward
Brigadier-General) Charles P. Stone, a graduate from West Point,
offered his services, which were accepted, and about January 1, 1861,
he was mustered into the United States service as colonel and
inspector general of the militia of the District of Columbia, and
assigned to the command of the District, with authority to organize
volunteers. Some members of the companies already in existence left
the ranks, but Colonel Stone soon succeeded in organizing a small
compact force with those that remained loyal, and a number of
recruits, which did good service. In addition to these, a light
battery, under Captain John B. Magruder, First Artillery; Captain
(afterward General) William Farquhar, Barry's Battery of the Second
Artillery; and a battery made up at West Point and commanded by
Captain (afterward General) Charles Griffin, arrived. With these, some
infantry ordered from distant points, and the District militia, which
had been very much increased in numbers, General Scott had about three
thousand men under his command for the defense of Washington, the
preservation of order, and to guard the approaches to the city. It is
but due to the citizens of Washington to state that, when trouble was
apprehended and an intimation went out that there was a possibility of
trouble, they came in great numbers to offer their services in defense
of their city and the Government. Companies were organized, and
persons in all positions and callings, from the highest in social life
to the humblest resident, were not backward in asserting their
allegiance and giving proof of it by entering the ranks. By marching
and maneuvering the men on the streets frequently they made the
impression that a greater force was present than really was.
Many efforts were made to induce General Scott to resign, but he never
once wavered in his devotion to the Union. On one occasion Judge
Robertson, a small, thin, but venerable-looking man, who had filled
the office of chancellor in Virginia and was a man of high character
and standing, came to Washington with two other Virginia gentlemen to
offer Scott the command of the Army of Virginia if he would abandon
the United States service and go with his State. The general listened
in silence as Robertson feelingly recalled the days when they were
schoolboys together, and then spoke of the warm attachment
Virginians always cherished for their State, and of their boasted
allegiance to it above all other political ties. But when he began to
unfold his offer of a commission, General Scott stopped him,
exclaiming: "Friend Robertson, go no further. It is best that we part
here before you compel me to resent a mortal insult!" It is needless
to say that this ended the interview, and Judge Robertson and his
companions departed, looking and doubtless feeling very much
discomfited. No man stood higher in the esteem of the people of
Virginia than Judge Robertson, and it is not probable that he and his
friends would have taken it upon themselves to make the offer they did
upon a contingency. If, however, they had any authority to act on the
part of the Commonwealth of Virginia, no act of the Convention to that
effect can be discovered.
Hon. Stephen A. Douglas, a Senator from Illinois and one of the
unsuccessful candidates for the presidency in 1860, made a speech in
Ohio early in 1861, in which, in alluding to a question that had been
asked, or rather suggested, as to General Scott's loyalty to the
Government, said: "Why, it is almost profanity to ask such a question.
I saw him only last Saturday. He was at his desk, pen in hand,
writing his orders for the defense and safety of the American
capital."
On April 30, 1861, Alexander Henry, Horace Binney, William M.
Meredith, a former Secretary of the Treasury, and others of
Philadelphia, addressed a letter to General Scott, in which they said:
"At a time like this, when Americans distinguished by the favor of
their country, intrenched in power, and otherwise high in influence
and station, civil and military, are renouncing their allegiance to
the flag they have sworn to support, it is an inexpressible source of
consolation and pride to us to know that the general in chief of the
army remains like an impregnable fortress at the post of duty and
glory, and that he will continue to the last to uphold that flag, and
defend it, if necessary, with his sword, even if his native State
should assail it."
The Charleston (South Carolina) Mercury of April 22, 1861, contained
the following statement: "A positive announcement was made at
Montgomery, Ala." (then the capital of the Southern Confederacy),
"that General Scott had resigned his position in the army of the
United States and tendered his sword to his native State--Virginia. At
Mobile one hundred guns were fired in honor of his resignation." This
shows in some measure the high estimation in which General Scott's
influence was held throughout the South.
The ceremonies of the inauguration passed off without incident. There
was no attempt to prevent it, or any show of violence. Apprehension
was shown in every countenance. General Scott rode in front of the
President's carriage with the company of Sappers and Miners from West
Point, commanded by Captain (afterward General) James Chatham Duane,
of the engineers. During the ceremonies the general, in order to be
more free in case of emergency, remained outside the Capitol square
(which was at that time surrounded by a strong iron fence) with the
batteries. The precautions thus taken were, like all of General
Scott's plans, wise, and possibly saved the city from one of those
scenes incident to the French Revolution, and, it may be, saved the
country. At the conclusion of the ceremonies the march back to the
White House was made, and Mr. Lincoln was President of the United
States.
From long association in military and private life a warm personal
friendship had existed between General Scott and General Robert E.
Lee. At the outbreak of the war the latter, then a colonel in the
army, was at his residence, Arlington, near Washington, in Virginia,
on leave of absence. General Scott sent for him, and after an
interview Lee tendered his resignation, which was accepted, and he
entered the service of his own State as major general of State troops,
and subsequently became commanding general of the armies of the
Confederate States.
Soon after this, and when it was apparent that war would come, General
Scott's first care was to provide for the safety of the city, the
Capitol, and public buildings. He caused large quantities of army
supplies, flour, provisions, etc., to be stored in the Capitol
building, and quartered companies in the public buildings with stores
and ammunition. A signal was agreed upon at sound of which the troops
could assemble. These companies were all put under command of regular
officers. There was a company of citizens from different States
organized, and quartered at night at the President's house, under
command of General Cassius M. Clay, of Kentucky. By the action of the
seceded States the war was commenced by firing on the steamer Star of
the West, January 13, 1861, in an effort to re-enforce Fort Sumter,
Charleston Harbor, and subsequently bombarding that fort April 12,
1861. On April 15th the President issued his proclamation calling on
the governors of the States for seventy-five thousand volunteers for
three months. Troops soon began to assemble at the national capital.
The first to arrive was the famous New York Seventh Regiment. There
was also a Massachusetts and Rhode Island regiment present, when, on
April 26th, General Orders No. 4 were issued from Headquarters of the
army at Washington. It was as follows:
"I. From the known assemblage near this city of numerous hostile
bodies of troops, it is evident that an attack upon it may be soon
expected. In such an event, to meet and repel the enemy, it is
necessary that some plan of harmonious co-operation should be adopted
on the part of all the forces, regular and volunteer, present for the
defense of the capital--that is, for the defense of the Government,
the peaceable inhabitants of the city, their property, the public
buildings and public archives.
"II. At the first moment of attack every regiment, battalion,
squadron, and independent company will promptly assemble at its
established rendezvous (in or out of the public buildings), ready for
battle and wait for orders.
"III. The pickets (or advance guards) will stand fast until driven in
by overwhelming forces; but it is expected that those stationed to
defend the bridges, having every advantage of position, will not give
way till actually pushed by the bayonet. Such obstinacy on the part of
pickets so stationed is absolutely necessary, to give time for the
troops in the rear to assemble at their places of rendezvous.
"IV. All advance guards and pickets driven in will fall back slowly,
to delay the advance of the enemy as much as possible, before
repairing to their proper rendezvous.
"V. On the happening of an attack, the troops lodged in the public
buildings and in the navy yard will remain for their defense
respectively, unless specially ordered elsewhere, with the exception
that the Seventh New York Regiment and Massachusetts regiment will
march rapidly toward the President's Square for its defense; and the
Rhode Island regiment (in the Department of the Interior), when full,
will make a diversion by detachment, to assist in the defense of the
General Post-Office Building, if necessary."
From this time on General Scott, old and infirm, suffering from wounds
received in early service and from accidents which befell him in
maturer life, continued, from his bed or couch on which he was
compelled often to recline, to direct the movements and disposition of
the troops and provide for the defense of the city. The pressure for
an onward movement of the army was such that it could not be
withstood. Brigadier-General Irvin McDowell, who had served several
years on General Scott's staff, was assigned to command the forward
movement. He prepared his plans carefully, under the advice and
direction of General Scott, which involved a possible battle. These
plans were frequently gone over with General Scott, and finally
submitted to and approved by the President at the White House, his
Cabinet, General Scott and staffs, and others, of whom General John C.
Fremont was one. The result of the advance is well known. The Union
troops were driven back in great disorder; confusion reigned in
Washington, and grave apprehensions were felt as to the safety of the
city if the Confederates should follow up their advantage. The battle
of Bull Run was fought July 21, 1861. On the day following a telegram
was sent to General George B. McClellan, then at Beverly, Virginia,
directing him to turn over his command to General William S. Rosecrans
and come to Washington. In the meantime, however, General Scott had
taken measures to gather the straggling officers and men from the
streets and place them in quarters, that discipline might be again
asserted and maintained. Upon the arrival of McClellan the work of
reorganizing the army was intrusted to him, and he was put in command
of the Army of the Potomac. He was not General Scott's first choice
for that command, the latter preferring General Henry W. Halleck, then
on his way from California to Washington, for that responsible
position. When McClellan took command he at once commenced making his
reports directly to the Secretary of War, instead of through the
lieutenant general. This was resented by the commander in chief, who,
September 16, 1861, issued General Orders No. 17 by way of admonition,
in which he said: "It is highly important that junior officers on duty
be not permitted to correspond with the general in chief, or other
commander, on current official business, except through intermediate
commanders; and the same rule applies to correspondence with the
President direct, or with him through the Secretary of War, unless it
be by special invitation or request of the President." This gentle
reminder of his duty to his superior officer did not have the desired
effect, and so, on October 4th, General Scott addressed a letter to
Hon. Simon Cameron, wherein he quotes his General Orders No. 17, in
which he says: "I hailed the arrival here of Major-General McClellan
as an event of happy consequence to the country and to the army.
Indeed, if I did not call for him, I heartily approved of the
suggestion, and gave it the most cordial support. He, however, had
hardly entered upon his new duties when, encouraged to communicate
directly with the President and certain members of the Cabinet, he in
a few days forgot that he had any intermediate commander, and has now
long prided himself in treating me with uniform neglect, running into
disobedience of orders of the smaller matters--neglects, though in
themselves grave military offenses." He complains that General
McClellan, with the General Orders No. 17 fresh in his mind, had
addressed several orders to the President and Secretary of War over
his [Scott's] head. On the same day of the issuance of General Orders
No. 17 General Scott addressed a letter to McClellan directing that
officer to report to the commanding general the position, state, and
number of troops under him by divisions, brigades, and independent
regiments or detachments, which general report should be followed by
reports of new troops as they arrived, with all the material changes
which might take place in the Army of the Potomac. Eighteen days had
elapsed between his letter to McClellan and his communication to the
Secretary of War, and no response had been received. He says:
"Perhaps he will say in respect to the latter that it has been
difficult for him to procure the exact returns of divisions and
brigades. But why not have given me the proximate returns, such as he
so eagerly furnished the President and certain secretaries? Has, then,
a senior no corrective power over a junior officer in case of such
persistent neglect and disobedience?" He remarks that arrest and trial
by court-martial would soon cure the evil, but feared a conflict of
authority over the head of the army would be highly encouraging to the
enemies and depressing to the friends of the Union, and concludes:
"Hence my long forbearance; and continuing, though but nominally, on
duty, I shall try to hold out till the arrival of Major-General
Halleck, when, as his presence will give me increased confidence in
the safety of the Union, and being, as I am, unable to ride in the
saddle, or to walk, by reason of dropsy in my feet and legs and
paralysis in the small of my back, I shall definitely retire from the
command of the army." Thus the crippled, illustrious old hero asserted
his power and authority to command the respect of his subordinates to
the last. Owing, as has been seen, to his physical condition, it was
not possible for General Scott to take active command of the army. In
fact, but comparatively few of the army assembled here had ever seen
him, and they only when they were passing in review.
The defense of Washington and the organization of the army for that
purpose and aggressive movements from that point did not alone command
the attention of General Scott. He was solicitous about the free and
uninterrupted navigation of the Mississippi River, and to prevent
obstructions by the Confederates, or to remove any that might have
been placed on shore or in the water, he addressed a confidential
letter to General McClellan, then commanding in the West, dated May 3,
1861, in which he informed that general that the Government was to
call for twenty-five thousand additional regulars, and sixty thousand
volunteers to serve for two years.
An act of Congress approved March 3, 1861, provided:
SECTION 15. "That any commissioned officer of the army, or of
the marine corps, who shall have served as such for forty consecutive
years, may, upon his own application to the President of the United
States, be placed upon the list of retired officers, with the pay and
allowances allowed by this act.
SECTION 16.... "_Provided_, That should the lieutenant
general be retired under this act, it shall be without reduction in
his current pay, subsistence, and allowances."
On October 31, 1861, General Scott addressed Hon. Simon Cameron,
Secretary of War, the following communication:
"SIR: For more than three years I have been unable, from a
hurt, to mount a horse or to walk more than a few paces at a time,
and that with much pain. Other and new infirmities--dropsy and
vertigo--admonish me that repose of mind and body, with the
appliances of surgery and medicine, are necessary to add a little
more to a life already protracted much beyond the usual space of
man. It is under such circumstances, made doubly painful by the
unnatural and unjust rebellion now raging in the Southern States of
our lately prosperous and happy Union, that I am compelled to
request that my name be placed on the list of army officers retired
from active service. As this request is founded on an absolute
right, granted by a recent act of Congress, I am at liberty to say
that it is with deep regret that I withdraw myself in these
momentous times from the orders of a President who has treated me
with much distinguished kindness and courtesy, whom I know upon much
personal intercourse to be patriotic, without sectional prejudices;
to be highly conscientious in the performance of every duty, and of
unrivaled activity and perseverance; and to you, Mr. Secretary, whom
I now officially address for the last time, I beg to acknowledge my
many obligations for the uniform high consideration I have received
at your hands, and I have the honor to remain, sir, with the highest
respect, etc."
The following day, November 1st, a special meeting of the Cabinet was
convened, and it was decided that the request, under the circumstances
set forth in the letter, should be complied with. At four o'clock of
that day the President and his Cabinet proceeded to the residence of
General Scott. The scene is well described by General Edward Davis
Townsend, a member of the general's staff, who was an eye-witness, and
who says: "Being seated, the President read to the general the
following order:
"'On the 1st day of November, A.D. 1861, upon his own
application to the President of the United States, Brevet
Lieutenant-General Winfield Scott is ordered to be placed upon the
list of retired officers of the Army of the United States, without
reduction in his current pay, subsistence, or allowance. The
American people will hear with sadness and deep emotion that General
Scott has withdrawn from the active control of the army, while the
President and unanimous Cabinet express their own and the nation's
sympathy in his personal affliction, and their profound sense of the
important public services rendered by him to his country during his
long and brilliant career, among which will be gratefully
distinguished his faithful devotion to the Constitution, the Union,
and the flag when assailed by parricidal rebellion.
"ABRAHAM LINCOLN.'
"General Scott thereupon arose and addressed the Cabinet, who had also
risen, as follows:
"'President, this honor overwhelms me. It overpays all the services I
have attempted to render my country. If I had any claims before, they
are all obliterated by this expression of approval by the President,
with the remaining support of the Cabinet. I know the President and
his Cabinet well. I know that the country has placed its interests in
this trying crisis in safe keeping. Their counsels are wise, their
labors as untiring as they are loyal, and their course is the right
one.
"'President, you must excuse me. I am unable to stand longer to give
utterance to the feelings of gratitude which oppress me. In my
retirement I shall offer up my prayers to God for this Administration
and for my country. I shall pray for it with confidence in its success
over all enemies, and that speedily.'
"The President then took leave of General Scott, giving him his hand,
and saying that he hoped soon to write him a private letter expressive
of his gratitude and affection.... Each member of the Administration
then gave his hand to the veteran and retired in profound silence."
The Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of War accompanied
General Scott to New York the next morning. On the same day (November
1st) Secretary Cameron addressed the lieutenant general the following
letter in response to the latter's of the day previous:
"GENERAL: It was my duty to lay before the President your
letter of yesterday, asking to be relieved on the recent act of
Congress. In separating from you, I can not refrain from expressing
my deep regret that your health, shattered by long service and
repeated wounds received in your country's defense, should render it
necessary for you to retire from your high position at this
momentous period of our history. Although you are not to remain in
active service, I yet hope that while I continue in charge of the
department over which I now preside I shall at all times be
permitted to avail myself of the benefits of your wise counsels and
sage experience. It has been my good fortune to enjoy a personal
acquaintance with you for over thirty years, and the pleasant
relations of that long time have been greatly strengthened by your
cordial and entire co-operation in all the great questions which
have occupied the department and convulsed the country for the last
six months. In parting from you I can only express the hope that a
merciful Providence that has protected you amid so many trials will
improve your health and continue your life long after the people of
the country shall have been restored to their former happiness and
prosperity. I am, general, very sincerely,
"Your friend and servant."
In his first annual message to Congress, Mr. Lincoln deplores the
physical necessity that compelled the retirement of Scott in the
following language:
"Since your last adjournment Lieutenant-General Scott has retired from
the head of the army. During his long life the nation has not been
unmindful of his merits; yet, in calling to mind how faithfully and
ably and brilliantly he has served his country, from a time far back
in our history, when few now living had been born, and thenceforward
continually, I can not but think we are still his debtors. I submit,
therefore, for your consideration what further mark of consideration
is due to him and to ourselves as a grateful people."
In virtue of this act and in pursuance of the foregoing request on
November 1, 1861, the lieutenant general having been retired from
active service, General Orders No. 94 announced that "the President is
pleased to direct that Major-General George B. McClellan assume
command of the Army of the United States." On assuming the important
command to which he had been designated, General McClellan on the same
day issued his General Orders No. 19, in which he gracefully and
feelingly alludes to the retiring commander:
"The army will unite with me in the feeling of regret that the weight
of many years and the effect of increasing infirmities, contracted and
intensified in his country's service, should just now remove from our
head the great soldier of our nation--the hero who in his youth raised
high the reputation of his country on the fields of Canada, which he
hallowed with his blood; who in more mature years proved to the world
that American skill and valor could repeat, if not eclipse, the
exploits of Cortez in the land of the Montezumas; whose life has been
devoted to the service of his country; whose whole efforts have been
directed to uphold our honor at the smallest sacrifice of life; a
warrior who scorned the selfish glories of the battlefield when his
great abilities as a statesman could be employed more profitably to
his country; a citizen who in his declining years has given to the
world the most shining instances of loyalty in disregarding all ties
of birth and clinging to the cause of truth and honor--such has been
the career, such the character, of WINFIELD SCOTT, whom it
has long been the delight of the nation to honor, both as a man and a
soldier. While we regret his loss, there is one thing we can not
regret--the bright example he has left for our emulation. Let us all
hope and pray that his declining years may be passed in peace and
happiness, and that they may be cheered by the success of the country
and the cause he has fought for and loved so well. Beyond all that,
let us do nothing that can cause him to blush for us; let no defeat of
the army he has so long commanded embitter his last years, but let our
victories illuminate the close of a life so grand." General Scott
lived to see the fulfillment of this devout prayer in a restoration of
the union of the States.
General Scott held in great reverence the fame and memory of the
Father of his Country, and was desirous that Mount Vernon should be
left undisturbed during the trouble arising from the civil war. A
report was sent abroad that the bones of Washington had been removed.
This report was wholly without foundation, but it created a great deal
of excitement in both sections of the country. Through the efforts of
the lady regent who resided there, an understanding was arrived at by
which it should be regarded by both sides as neutral ground. The
general, however, issued General Orders No. 13, July 31, 1861, from
which is quoted: "Should the operations of the war take the United
States troops in that direction, the general in chief does not doubt
that each and every man will approach with due reverence and leave
uninjured not only the tombs, but also the house, the groves, and
walks which were so loved by the best and greatest of men." It is true
that neither party ever invaded the sacred precincts where repose the
remains of the illustrious Washington, but they were found when the
war closed to be in as fair a state of preservation as was possible
under the circumstances, and of partial suspension of husbandry. No
act of vandalism was attempted.
In the fall of 1861 Brigadier-General Charles P. Stone obtained
permission from General Scott to take a brigade and make a
demonstration along the line of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal toward
Harper's Ferry in order to afford an outlet for the fine wheat that
had been harvested about Leesburg, Virginia, to the large flouring
mills at Georgetown, adjoining Washington. This led to the battle of
Ball's Bluff, or Leesburg, October 21st, the death of Colonel Edward
D. Baker, of the Seventy-first Pennsylvania Infantry, and at the time
a senator in Congress from the State of Oregon, and the subsequent
arrest and close confinement of the unfortunate commander for several
months without charges of any nature having been preferred against
him.[D]
[Footnote D: General Stone (1824-1887) was arrested by order of the
Secretary of War and confined in Fort Lafayette, New York Harbor, from
February 9 to August, 16, 1862. The general impression that it was
done through the influence of Senator Sumner is denied by his
biographer, Mr. Henry L. Pierce. _Vide_ Life of Sumner, vol. iv, pp.
67, 68: Boston, 1893. Generals Grant and Sherman both stated to the
editor of this series, that it was an exceedingly arbitrary and unjust
act.]
On November 9, 1861, General Scott sailed for Europe in the steamer
Arago for Havre to join his wife, who was in Paris. Mr. Thurlow Weed,
a thorough loyalist and prominent politician, was a passenger on the
same ship. He and General Scott had been on terms of intimacy for over
thirty years. During the passage over the general gave Mr. Weed the
true version of how he came near being made a prisoner in 1814. After
apologizing in advance for the question about to be put and receiving
permission to propound it, Mr. Weed said: "General, did anything
remarkable happen to you on the morning of the battle of Chippewa?"
The general answered: "Yes, something did happen to me--something very
remarkable. I will now for the third time in my life repeat the story:
"The fourth day of July, 1814, was one of extreme heat. On that day my
brigade skirmished with a British force commanded by General Riall
from an early hour in the morning till late in the afternoon. We had
driven the enemy down the river some twelve miles to Street's Creek,
near Chippewa, where we encamped for the night, our army occupying
the west, while that of the enemy was encamped on the east side of the
creek. After our tents had been pitched I noticed a flag borne by a
man in a peasant's dress approaching my marquee. He brought a letter
from a lady who occupied a large mansion on the opposite side of the
creek, informing me that she was the wife of a member of Parliament
who was then in Quebec; that her children, servants, and a young lady
friend were alone with her in the house; that General Riall had placed
a sentinel before her door; and that she ventured, with great doubts
of the propriety of the request, to ask that I would place a sentinel
upon the bridge to protect her against stragglers from our camp. I
assured the messenger that the lady's request should be complied with.
Early the next morning the same messenger, bearing a white flag,
reappeared with a note from the same lady, thanking me for the
protection she had enjoyed, adding that, in acknowledgment for my
civilities, she begged that I would, with such members of my staff as
I chose to bring with me, accept the hospitalities of her house at a
breakfast which had been prepared with considerable attention and was
quite ready. Acting upon an impulse which I never have been able to
analyze or comprehend, I called my two aids, Lieutenants Worth and
Watts, and returned with the messenger.
"We met our hostess at the door, who ushered us into the dining room,
where breakfast awaited us and where the young lady previously
referred to was already seated by the coffee urn, our hostess asking
to be excused for a few minutes, and the young lady immediately served
our coffee. Before we had broken our fast, Lieutenant Watts rose from
the table to get his bandanna (that being before the days of
napkins), which he had left in his cap on a side table by the window,
glancing through which he saw Indians approaching the house on one
side and redcoats approaching it on the other, with an evident purpose
of surrounding it and us, and instantly exclaimed, 'General, we are
betrayed!' Springing from the table and clearing the house, I saw our
danger, and, remembering Lord Chesterfield had said, 'Whatever it is
proper to do it is proper to do well,' and as we had to run and as my
legs were longer than those of my companions, I soon outstripped them.
As we made our escape we were fired at, but got across the bridge in
safety."
After the battle of Chippewa the mansion described, being the largest
near by, was used as a hospital for the wounded officers of both
armies. The general went there to visit his officers, whom he found on
the second floor. On going there he met the hostess, who, by her
flurried and embarrassed manner, impressed the general with the belief
that she had endeavored to entrap him. But years after General Scott
was inclined to give her the benefit of the doubt and think that the
presence at the house of himself and staff was accidentally discovered
by the Indians and British.
The Arago touched at Southampton to discharge the English mail and
passengers, and here an exciting incident occurred. When the anchor
had been cast, a vessel steamed up, flying the Confederate colors,
which proved to be the cruiser Nashville. All was astir on the Arago,
as an attack was expected as soon as that vessel had cleared port and
got into neutral waters. The general asked the captain of the vessel
what means of defense he had. It was found that thirty muskets and two
cannon were available. The crew and those of the passengers who were
fit for duty were formed upon the forward deck and the business of
drilling was commenced, the general advising and in great measure
directing the preparations for defense. It turned out, however, that
the Nashville had put into Southampton for repairs, and the Arago
proceeded on her voyage in safety. After remaining one day at Havre
General Scott proceeded to Paris. The steamer that followed the Arago
brought news of the "Trent affair." On November 8, 1861, Commodore
Charles Wilkes, in command of the United States steamer San Jacinto,
on his return from the coast of Africa, put into Havana. On the same
day the British mail steamer Trent sailed from that port, having on
board as passengers James M. Mason, of Virginia, and John Slidell, of
Louisiana, Confederate plenipotentiaries to France and England. The
San Jacinto overhauled the Trent in the Bahama Straits, brought her to
by a shot across the bow, arrested and removed the Confederate
commissioners and their secretaries from the mail steamer, and brought
them to Fortress Monroe, where Commodore Wilkes awaited instructions
from Washington. They were subsequently removed to Fort Warren, in
Boston Harbor. The arrest and removal of these Confederate diplomats
created great excitement in England, and for a time it was feared that
hostilities between the countries would ensue. The affair was
commented upon severely by the press, and the subjects of Her
Britannic Majesty were at fever heat. Eight thousand British soldiers
were immediately dispatched to Canada, and the shipyards were put to
their utmost capacity. When the news and the excitement reached the
old hero, who had hoped that he would find some rest in Paris after
his long and eventful career, he determined at once to return to his
native country and be on the spot should his counsel and advice be
needed. He took the same steamer that he had gone out on and returned
home. The Trent affair was settled by surrendering the Confederate
commissioners, and war was happily averted.
During the years that followed, his advice was frequently sought by
the President and others high in authority. It was at West Point that
the general received the Prince of Wales when he visited this country,
and at the same place the interview occurred between Scott and Grant
when the former presented the latter a gift "from the oldest to the
greatest general." In December, 1865, General Scott went to Key West,
Fla., and remained there a portion of the winter. On returning, he
spent a few weeks in New York city, and then went to West Point. It
was then the incident mentioned took place between him and General
Grant.
As early as February 27, 1829, a report was made to Congress by the
Committee on Military Affairs upon the subject of establishing an
"army asylum fund," and letters were submitted from the major general
commanding and other officers of the army expressive of their views on
the subject. In February, 1840, General Robert Anderson (then a
captain in the adjutant general's department) addressed a letter to
Hon. John Reynolds, giving his views upon the benefits and advantages
which would result from establishing such an institution, with
suggestions for a plan for one. This letter formed the basis of a
report, January 7, 1841, by the Committee on Military Affairs,
submitting a bill in which the measures suggested therein were
embraced, and urging the necessary legislation as commending itself
"by every attribute and motive of patriotism, benevolence, national
gratitude, and economy." General Scott was deeply interested in the
subject, and in 1844 gave it special prominence in his annual report,
which led to a report as theretofore from the military committee. On
March 5, 1846, a report was also made on a memorial of the officers of
the army stationed at Fort Moultrie and the petition of officers of
the Second United States Infantry, and later (on January 19, 1848)
upon the memorial of the officers of the army then in Mexico. The
committee in each case approved and recommended the passage of the
bill reported January 7, 1841. The plan, however, did not assume
practical shape until the transmission by General Scott of the draft
for one hundred thousand dollars, a part of the tribute levied on the
City of Mexico for the benefit of the army, requesting that it might
be allowed to go to the credit of the asylum fund. He says in a letter
dated November, 1849, referring to the same matter: "The draft was
payable to me, and, in order to place the deposit beyond the control
of any individual functionary whatever, I indorsed it. The Bank of
America will place the within amount to the credit of the army asylum,
subject to the order of Congress." This fund, together with a balance
of eighteen thousand seven hundred and ninety-one dollars and nineteen
cents remaining from the same levy, was subsequently appropriated to
found the asylum. By the act those who are entitled to the benefits
of the asylum were soldiers of twenty years' service and men, whether
pensioners or not, who have been disabled by wounds or disease in the
service in the line of duty. An honorable discharge is a preliminary
requisite to admission. The inmates are all thus civilians. At first
the general in chief, the generals commanding the Eastern and Western
military divisions, the chiefs of the quartermaster's, commissary,
pay, and medical departments, and the adjutant general of the army
composed the board of commissioners _ex officio_ to administer the
affairs of the institution. An unexpended balance of fifty-four
thousand three hundred and nineteen dollars and twenty-three cents was
appropriated "for the benefit of discharged soldiers disabled by
wounds." A perpetual revenue was provided from "stoppages and fines
imposed by court-martial," "forfeitures on account of desertion," a
certain portion of the hospital and post fund of each station, moneys
belonging to the estates of deceased soldiers not claimed for three
years; also a deduction of twenty-five cents per month with his
consent from the pay of each enlisted man. The act of Congress of
March 3, 1859, changed the provisions of the original act and reduced
the number of commissioners to three--the commissary general of
subsistence, the surgeon general, and the adjutant general of the
army, substituted the name of "Soldiers' Home" for "Military Asylum,"
and extended the benefits of the Home to the soldiers of the War of
1812. The act of Congress of March 3, 1883, added the general in chief
commanding the army, the quartermaster general, the judge advocate
general, and the governor of the Home to the board of commissioners;
these officers, together with those already named, compose the board.
By the same act pensioners who are inmates of the Home may assign
their pension and have the same or any portion thereof paid to a wife,
child, or parent if living; otherwise the pension is paid to the
treasurer of the Home and held by him in trust for the pensioner, who
may, while an inmate, draw upon it for necessary purposes, and receive
whatever balance may remain upon his discharge.
In 1851 temporary asylums were established at New Orleans, La.,
Greenwoods Island, Miss., and Washington, D.C. The one at New Orleans
continued about one year. A tract of land was purchased in Mississippi
comprising one hundred and ten acres in 1853, and was occupied until
1855. At this date the inmates were removed to a branch asylum near
Harrodsburg, Mercer County, Ky. This latter asylum was discontinued in
1858 under the act of March 3, 1857, and the inmates transferred to
the Home near Washington, which was established in 1851-'52. This Home
is situated about three miles due north of the Capitol of the nation.
At first it comprised two hundred and fifty-six acres of land.
Subsequent acquisitions by purchases have been added, so that now the
grounds comprise five hundred acres and three quarters. The largest
part of the grounds are woodland, a portion being cultivated for the
benefit of the Home, and through it nearly ten miles of graded,
macadamized roads have been constructed, winding through the groves of
native and foreign selected trees. The park is open to the public at
proper hours, and forms a favorite drive and walk for the residents of
and visitors to Washington. The principal building for the inmates is
of white marble, the south part being called the Scott Building, after
the founder of the institution, and the addition on the north is
called the Sherman Building, after General W.T. Sherman. The old
homestead building to the west of and not far from the Scott Building
is called the Robert Anderson Building, in commemoration of the early
advocacy of and interest in the establishment of the Home by that
officer. This building was the home of the first inmates, and has
frequently been used as the summer residence of the Presidents. It has
been occupied by Presidents Buchanan, Lincoln, Hayes, and Arthur.
There is a building to the east called the King Building, after
Benjamin King, U.S.A., who was the surgeon in charge for thirteen
years. Brick quarters were erected to the northeast of the Sherman
Building in 1883, and, in honor of General Philip H. Sheridan, is
named the Sheridan Building. There is a neat chapel built of red
sandstone, which was completed in 1871, where religious services, both
Protestant and Roman Catholic, are regularly held. The officers in
immediate charge of the Home are a governor, a deputy governor, a
secretary and treasurer, and a medical officer detailed from the army.
The inmates who are not pensioned receive one dollar a month pocket
money, and twenty-five cents a day for such labor as they are detailed
for and willing to perform. Some beneficiaries who have families
receive a small monthly stipend and reside elsewhere than at the Home.
The whole number of permanent inmates admitted up to September 30,
1892, was 8,086. The number on the rolls January 31, 1893, was 1,196;
of these, 824 were present at the Home, some receiving outside
assistance, and some being absent on furlough.
A heroic statue in bronze of Lieutenant-General Winfield Scott, by
Launt Thompson, was erected in 1874 on the most commanding point of
the grounds. Aside from the artistic finish of the statue, it is a
wonderful likeness of the subject. There is also a perfectly designed
hospital for the sick and an infirmary for the aged and helpless,
which was completed in 1876. No grander or more lasting monument could
be erected to perpetuate the memory of the illustrious general than
the Soldiers' Home near Washington.
General Scott, in his later years, was very impatient of
contradiction, but when convinced that he was in error was always
ready to acknowledge it. In a diary of Colonel (now General) James
Grant Wilson, who was at that time aid-de-camp to General Banks,
occurs the following:
"On the morning of the 19th of February, 1864, I spent an hour with
Scott at his quarters, Delmonico's, corner Fourteenth Street and Fifth
Avenue. During our conversation he mentioned that he was engaged in
writing his Memoirs, and that he experienced a great deal of annoyance
from his difficulty in obtaining dates relating to events in the
southwest. He expressed regret that Gayarre, whom he knew and had met
before the war, had not published the third volume of the History of
Louisiana, which he [Scott] knew was in manuscript. I remarked that I
thought I had seen the work in three octavo volumes. 'No, you have not
seen three volumes. There are only two published, and the first is a
small 18mo volume,' was the old gentleman's answer. I further added
that it was my impression that I had seen three, when the old soldier
settled the matter by saying, 'Your impressions are entirely wrong,
colonel.' An hour later I purchased the third volume at a Broadway
bookseller's, and sent it to him with the following note:
"'FIFTH AVENUE HOTEL, _February 19, 1864_.
"'MY DEAR GENERAL: I have much pleasure in sending you the
third volume of Gayarre's History of Louisiana, which I trust may
contain the desired information. Should you wish to refer to the
first volume of his work, you will find it at the Astor Library. It
is an octavo volume of about five hundred pages, published by Harper
& Brothers, of this city. I have the honor to be, general, very
truly yours,
(Signed) "'JAS GRANT WILSON,
"'_Col., A.D.C._
"'_Lieutenant-General_ WINFIELD SCOTT.'
"Called on Scott soon after my arrival from New Orleans (early in
October, 1864), and had a very pleasant interview. Almost the first
thing he said was thanking me most kindly for the third volume of
Gayarre's History, and apologizing for his mistake. Told me his
Memoirs were completed and in press; that he had closed them abruptly,
as he was fearful that his end was near, during the early part of the
summer--about June, I think he said."
General Scott's health continuing bad, he was conveyed in a
quartermaster's boat from New York to West Point by General Stewart
Van Vliet, accompanied by several personal friends. He died at the
West Point Hotel a few minutes after eleven o'clock, May 29, 1866.
The last words which he spoke were to his coachman: "Peter, take good
care of my horse." He was buried, in accordance with his oft-expressed
wish, in the West Point Cemetery; on June 1st, his remains being
accompanied to the grave by some of the most illustrious men of the
country, including General Grant and Admiral Farragut. The horse
mentioned above was a splendid animal, seventeen hands high and finely
formed. The last time that General Scott mounted him was in the latter
part of 1859, which he did with the aid of a stepladder, for the
purpose of having an equestrian portrait painted for the State of
Virginia. The war coming on, the picture passed into possession of the
Mercantile Library of New York.
The author received a letter from the late Rutherford B. Hayes in
January, 1892, in which he said: "On my Southern tour in 1877 I
repeated two or three times something like this, purporting to be
quoted from General Scott: 'When the war is over and peace restored,
there will be no difficulty in restoring harmonious and friendly
relations between the soldiers of the sections. The great trouble will
be to restore and keep the peace between the non-belligerent
combatants of the war.' I did not hear the remark of General Scott. My
recollection is that I heard it from General Rosecrans." ...
On submitting President Hayes's letter to General Rosecrans, he made
the following statement: "I heard that story about General Scott from
General Charles P. Stone. General Stone was on the staff of General
Scott. At the beginning of the war, in the spring of 1861, he was
directed to organize the militia of the District of Columbia, and was
present when the following occurred, as he told me personally.
Shortly after the fall of Sumter and the President's call for troops,
Secretaries Seward, Chase, and Cameron came to General Scott's
residence in Washington one evening and found him at the dinner table.
One of them said: 'General, our duties as members of the Cabinet make
it very desirable for us to have some idea of what the probable range
and course of the war will be, that we may guide ourselves
accordingly. We have therefore come to you to get your judgment on the
situation.' On the general's invitation, they sat down at his dinner
table, and he went on to explain his idea of how the war would
progress from year to year. While he was talking, Mr. Seward seemed to
be somewhat impatient, and put in several little interruptions, but
finally subsided and allowed General Scott to proceed. The general
gave an outline of a war probably lasting from three and one half to
four years, but resulting in favor of the Union.
"On the general's announcement of his opinion that the Union would
triumph, Mr. Seward, rubbing his hands, inquired, 'Well, general, then
the troubles of the Federal Government will be at an end.' To which
General Scott replied, 'No, gentlemen, for a long time thereafter it
will require the exercise of the full powers of the Federal Government
to restrain the fury of the noncombatants.'"
To a young army officer he gave the following advice: "You are now
beginning life; you are ignorant of society and of yourself. You
appear to be industrious and studious enough to fit yourself for high
exploits in your profession, and your next object should be to make
yourself a perfect man of the world. To do that you must carefully
observe well-bred men. You must also learn to converse and to express
your thoughts in proper language. You must make acquaintances among
the best people, and take care always to be respectful to old persons
and to ladies." General Scott was always extremely gallant and
courteous to ladies and greatly enjoyed the society of intelligent and
refined women. As stated in the early part of this work, General Scott
had been an industrious student of the law, and the knowledge thus
acquired was of great service to him throughout his eventful career.
He was well read in the standard English authors--Shakespeare, Milton,
Addison, Pope, Johnson, Goldsmith, Dryden, Hume, Gibbon, and the early
English novelists. He was a constant reader of the best foreign and
American periodicals and the leading newspapers of the day. He was of
the opinion that wars would never cease, and therefore took little
interest in peace societies.
He held the opinion that the study of the higher mathematics had a
tendency to lessen the ability to move armies in the field, yet
expressed regret that he had not in his youth given more study to the
subject. He was very fond of whist, but was quite irritated when he
was beaten and generally had a ready excuse for his defeat. On one
occasion he was playing a very close game, in the midst of which he
left the table to expectorate in the fireplace. He lost the game and
said to one of the party, "Young gentleman, do you know why I lost
that game?" "No, sir," was the response. "It was because I got up to
spit." Scott was also a good chess player.
He used tobacco somewhat excessively until the close of the Mexican
War, after which time he renounced its use entirely. He was
exceedingly vain of his accomplishments as a cook and specially prided
himself on the knowledge of how to make good bread. He spent several
days in instructing the cook at Cozzens' Hotel, West Point, in this
art, and did not desist until the bread was made according to his
standard. He had a great aversion to dining alone, and rather than do
so would cheerfully pay for the meal of any pleasant friend whom he
would invite to dine with him. General Scott openly professed himself
a Christian and was a regular attendant at the services of the
Episcopal Church. He was broad and liberal in his views and condemned
no man who differed with him in religious opinion. He usually carried
a large, stout, gold-headed cane, and after entering his pew would
rest both hands on its head and bow his head, praying in silence. It
was difficult for him to kneel on account of his size. He scrupulously
joined with the greatest decorum and seriousness in all the services
of the church, responding in a distinct, loud voice.
He was impatient with persons who could not recollect or did not know
of dates and events which were conspicuous in his life. He was asked
at one time the date of the battle of Chippewa. He answered blandly,
"July 5, 1814." Turning to a friend, he remarked, "There is fame for
you." The same party inquired in what State he was born. He answered,
"Virginia." "Ah," said the questioner, "I thought you were a native of
Connecticut." This left him in a bad humor for the remainder of the
evening. The editor of this series has said of him: "General Scott was
a man of true courage--personally, morally, and religiously brave. He
was in manner, association, and feeling courtly and chivalrous. He
was always equal to the danger--great on great occasions. His
unswerving loyalty and patriotism were always conspicuous, and of such
a lofty character that had circumstances rendered the sacrifice
necessary he would have unhesitatingly followed the glorious example
of the Swiss hero of Sempach, who gave his life to his country six
hundred years ago.... He was too stately in his manners and too
exacting in his discipline--that power which Carnot calls 'the glory
of the soldier and the strength of armies.' A brief anecdote will
illustrate the strictness of his discipline. While on duty he always
required officers to be dressed according to their rank in the
minutest particular. The general's headquarters in Mexico comprised
two rooms, one opening into the other. In the rear room General Scott
slept. One night after the general had retired a member of his staff
wanted some water. The evening was warm and the hour late, being past
midnight. The officer rose to go in his shirt sleeves. He was
cautioned against the experiment as a dangerous one, for if Scott
caught him in his quarters with his coat off he would punish him. The
officer said he would risk it--that the general was asleep, and he
would make no noise. He opened the door softly and went on tiptoe to
the water pitcher. He had no time to drink before he heard the tinkle
of the bell, and the sentinel outside the door entered. 'Take this man
to the guardhouse,' was the brief order, and the coatless captain
spent the night on a hard plank under guard."[E] He did not conceal
his opinions of men or measures, and hence he very often gave
offense. It should be borne in mind that the public men of the age
when General Scott came on the stage, both military and civil, were as
a rule dignified, formal, and to some extent dogmatic. They held
themselves with great dignity, and their magnetism was the result of
their commanding abilities and high character, and they did not rely
for popularity upon the methods of modern times.
[Footnote E: Wilson's Sketches of Illustrious Soldiers: New York,
1874.]
General Grant, in mentioning General Scott's Mexican campaign, says:
"Both the strategy and tactics displayed by General Scott in the
various engagements of August 20, 1847, were faultless, as I look upon
them now after the lapse of so many years." And further: "General
Scott enjoys the rare distinction of having held high and successful
command in two wars, which were a full generation apart. In 1847 he
commanded, in Mexico, the sons of those officers who aided in his
brilliantly successful campaign against the British on the borders of
Canada in 1814." Daniel Webster, in a speech delivered in the United
States Senate February 20, 1848, said: "I understand, sir, that, there
is a report from General Scott, a man who has performed the most
brilliant campaign on recent military record, a man who has warred
against the enemy, warred against the climate, warred against a
thousand unpropitious circumstances, and has carried the flag of his
country to the capital of the enemy--honorably, proudly, humanely--to
his own permanent honor and the great military credit of his country.
And where is he? At Pueblo--at Pueblo, undergoing an inquiry before
his inferiors in rank, and other persons without military rank, while
the high powers he has exercised and executed with so much
distinction are transferred to another--I do not say to one unworthy
of them, but to one inferior in rank, station, and experience to
himself." No more fitting close to this sketch of his life can be
given than to quote the words of his friend, General Wilson: "He has
bequeathed to his country a name pure and unspotted--a name than which
the republic has few indeed that shine with a brighter luster, and a
name that will go down to future generations with those of the
greatest captains of the nineteenth century."
INDEX.
Abadie, Captain, Louisiana volunteers, 101.
Aberdeen, Lord, British Minister, 151.
Abraham, negro, Indian interpreter, 74.
Adams, George, Lieutenant, 253.
Adams, John Quincy, ex-President, 153.
Adams, the British vessel, captured, 13.
Allen, Captain, 17.
Alvarez, Mexican General, 219, 221, 231.
Amatha, Charley, 79.
American forces surrender to General Sheaffe, 18.
Ampudia, Pedro de, Mexican General, surrenders, 155, 156.
Anaya, Don Pedro Maria, General, elected President of Mexico, 257.
Andrews, Timothy P., Colonel, 226.
Anderson, Robert, General, 135, 322, 326.
Anecdote of Colonel Scott and a Roman Catholic priest, 19.
Armistice violated; General Scott's letter to President of Mexican
Republic, 218.
Arnold, Ripley A., Lieutenant, attacked by Indians, 115.
Arista, Mariano, Mexican General, 155.
Arthur, President, 326.
Assiola, Indian Chief, 88.
Atkinson, T.P., letter from General Scott to, 153.
Atristain, Señor, 216, 257.
Azapotzalco, the place of meeting of the commissioners, 216.
Baker, D.D., Lieutenant, 253.
Baker, Edward D., Colonel, killed at Ball's Bluff, 317.
Bankhead, James, Colonel, 112.
Barcelona, the steamer, 146.
Barker, Captain, 16.
Barr, Captain, Louisiana volunteers, 101.
Barragan, Peña y, 221.
Barren, Major, 109.
Basinger, William E., Lieutenant, 88.
Battle on the Ouithlacoochee, 90-92.
Beall, Benjamin Lloyd, Major, 172.
Beard, Joseph, Major, 95.
Beauregard, P.T., Lieutenant, 203.
Beckwith, J.C., letter to, from General Scott, 154.
Belknap, William G., 281.
Benton, Thomas H., 159.
Biddle, Richard, speech in Congress, 124-127.
Binney, Horace, letter to General Scott, 304.
Black Hawk War, the, 52, 55.
Blockade of Southern ports, 296, 297.
Board of Army Officers, 47.
Boerstler, Charles G., Colonel, 27.
Bolton, Commodore, 97.
Bones, George, Captain, 110.
Botts, Benjamin, 5.
Boyd, John Parker, General, attack on Fort Niagara, 24.
Brady, Hugh, Major, 33;
sketch of, 39.
Brady, Thomas A., First-Lieutenant, 253.
Brant, Indian, attacks Colonel Scott, 18, 19.
Bravo, D. Nicholas, Mexican General, 225, 227.
Brazos Santiago, 159.
Brisbane, Abbott H, Colonel, 112.
Brooks, Horace, Captain, 225.
Brown, Jacob, General, 27, 38-40.
Bryant, Thomas S., Captain, 96.
Buchanan, James, President, 296, 326.
Bull Run, 308.
Burlington Heights, 28.
Burnett, Ward B., Colonel, 209.
Burnham, Major, 185.
Burr, Aaron, 5-8.
Burt, Captain, Louisiana volunteers, 101.
Butler, Pierce M., Colonel, 112, 115, 209.
Butler, William O., General, 244, 245, 256, 264.
Cadwallader, George, General, 193, 206, 209, 210, 221, 226, 249.
Caldwell, James N., Captain, 215.
Caldwell, Robert C., First-Lieutenant, 253.
Caledonia, British brig, 13.
Calhoun, John C., 151.
Call, Richard Keith, General, 89.
Cameron, Simon, 309, 314, 315, 330.
Canada political agitation, 272.
Cano, D. Juan, Mexican General, 225.
Caroline, the steamboat, 145.
Casey, Silas, Captain, 207, 226.
Cass, Lewis, 59, 66, 67, 76, 77.
Cerro Gortlo, the battle of, 176, 190.
Chandler, John, Colonel, attack on Fort George, 24.
Chapultepec, battle of, 223, 228.
Charleston, S.C., furnishes troops and supplies, 94.
Chase, Secretary, 330.
Chauncey, Isaac, Commodore, 24, 28.
Cherokee Indians, removal of, from Georgia, 129.
Chesapeake, the, boarded by the Leopard, 6.
Chesnut, Colonel, 95.
Childs, Thomas, Lieutenant-Colonel, 176, 194, 236.
Chippewa, battle of, 32.
Cholera among troops at Chicago, 56, 57.
Chrysler's Farm, engagement at, 29.
Chrystie, John, Colonel, 14, 17.
Cincinnati, Society of the, 42.
City of Mexico, 195, 228.
Civil war, beginning of, 295, 296.
Clarke, Henry Francis, Colonel, 212, 249.
Clay, Cassius M., 306.
Clay, Henry, 145, 151.
Clinch, Duncan L., General, 82, 88, 93.
Clinton, Governor, 42.
Clifton, Captain, 112.
Coffin, Captain, 19.
Congress declares war against Great Britain, 13.
Congress votes a medal to General Scott, 42.
Conner, Commodore, 165.
Conto, Señor, 216, 257.
Cooper, Mark A., Major, 112, 119.
Coto, Señor, 216.
Crane, Ichabod B., Colonel, 136.
Crawford, William H., 40.
Cuevas, Señor, 257.
Cummings, Arthur C., Captain, 215.
Cunningham, Captain, 94.
Cushing, Caleb, General, 281.
Dade, Francis Langhorne, Major, killed, 88.
Dallas, Commodore, 97.
Davis, Edward, General, 312.
Davis, Jefferson, 291.
Dearborn, Henry, General, 14, 23, 24.
Dennis, Colonel, 29.
Devlin, John S., acting quartermaster, 253.
Dominguez commands Mexicans in American army, 237.
Douglas, Stephen A., 303.
Douglass, John M., Major, 112.
Drum, Simon H., Captain, 220, 225.
Drummond, Lieutenant-General Sir Gordon, 34.
Duane, James Chatham, General, 305.
Duel between Burr and Hamilton, 5.
Dulaney, William, Major, 253.
Duncan, James, Lieutenant-Colonel, 108, 221, 271, 277, 283, 286.
Duval, William P., Governor, 82.
Eaton, J.H., Secretary of War, 49, 50, 76, 82.
Edson, Alvin, Captain, 165.
Elliott, Lieutenant, plans destruction of British brigs, 13.
Eustis, Abram, Brigadier-General, 111, 113, 114.
Expedition of Aaron Burr, 5, 6.
Fagan, John, Major, 75.
Fanning, Alexander C.W., Major, 88.
Farquhar, William, Captain, 302.
Farragut, Admiral D.G., 329.
Fenwick, John R., Colonel, 16.
Field, Thomas Y., Lieutenant, 253.
Fillmore, Millard, President, 293.
Finances of Mexico, 239.
Finlay, Captain, 94.
Florida War, 72, 87, 97-99, 112.
Florida, army of, 115.
Floyd, John B., 136, 298.
Floyd, Robertson R., Captain, 96.
Fort Brooke, the army concentrate there, 118.
Fort Brown occupied by General Taylor, 154.
Fort Erie surrenders, 30;
invested, 37.
Fort George, attack on, 16, 17;
storming of, 24.
Fort Niagara, defeat of the British at, 26.
Foster, William Sewell, Lieutenant-Colonel, 102.
Frazer, William, Captain, 88.
Freeman, Norvell, Lieutenant, 253.
Fremont, John C., General, 308.
Frontera, Mexican General, 207, 208.
Gadsden, James, Colonel, 75.
Gaines, Edmund, General, 48, 103.
Gaines, J.P., Major, 250.
Gamboa, D. Manuel, Mexican General, 225.
Gardiner, George, 88.
Gardner, Charles K., Lieutenant, 11.
Gardner, Franklin, 175.
Garland, John, General, 220, 221.
Gatlin, John Slade, Dr., 88.
Georgia troops, 95, 96, 110.
Gibson, Captain, 18.
Giles, William B., 5-7.
Goodwyn, Robert H., Colonel, 112-116.
Graham, Captain, 110.
Graham, William A., Secretary of the Navy, 293.
Grant, Ulysses S., General, 322, 329, 334.
Great Britain, war declared against, 11.
Greenway, James, Dr., 3.
Griffin, Charles, Captain, 302.
Guadalupe Hidalgo, text of treaty of, 257, 264.
Hagner, Peter V., Captain, 225.
Halleck, Henry W., General, 308.
Hamilton, Alexander, 5.
Hamilton, John C., 292.
Hamilton, Schuyler, Lieutenant, 250.
Hampton, Wade, General, 7, 9-12, 28.
Hardy, Sir Thomas, 6.
Hargrave, James, 4.
Harney, John, Governor, 142-144.
Harney, William S., Colonel, 186, 224.
Harris, Captain, 33.
Harris, Joseph W., Lieutenant, 83.
Harrison, William Henry, General, 152.
Haskell, William T., Colonel, 166.
Hayes, Rutherford B., President, 326, 329.
Heileman, Julius Frederick, Major, 65, 66.
Henderson, Charles A., Lieutenant, 253.
Henderson, Richard, Lieutenant, 88.
Henry, Alexander, letter to General Scott, 304.
Henry, George, Captain, 115.
Hernandez, John M., General, 96.
Herrera, General, 216.
Hetzel, Abner R., Captain, 135.
Hindman, Jacob, Major, 30, 39.
Hitchcock, Ethan A., Captain, 100, 164, 284.
Holata, Amathla, 75, 77, 78, 79.
Hugér, Benjamin, Captain, 220, 224.
Hull, William, General, 13.
Hunt, Henry J., Lieutenant, 221.
Ingersoll, Charles J., 153.
Irish prisoners, 20.
Irving, Washington, 5.
Izard, George, Colonel, 13.
Izard, James Farley, Lieutenant, 101, 102.
Jackson, Andrew, General, 5, 40, 42, 46, 63, 151.
Jackson, Thomas J., Lieutenant, 226.
Jacobs, Captain (Indian), attacks General Scott, 18, 19.
Jefferson, Thomas, President, 7.
Jesup, Thomas S., General, 31, 33, 39, 122, 123.
Johnston, Joseph E., Colonel, 226.
Juarata, Padre, leader of guerrillas, 237.
Judd, Henry, Jr., Lieutenant, 172.
Kearney, Philip, Captain, 211.
Keayes, J.S., Lieutenant, 88.
Ke-o-Kuck, Indian chief, 58.
Ker, Croghan, Captain, Louisiana volunteers, 107.
Ker, William H., Captain, 101.
Keyes, Erastus D., Lieutenant, 135.
King, William R., 293.
Kirby, Reynold M., Major, 94, 115.
Lally, Folliot T., Major, 215, 216.
Landero, José Juan de, Mexican General, 169, 170.
Lane, Joseph, General, 237, 256.
Lang, William, Captain, 253.
Lawson, Thomas, Lieutenant-Colonel, 101.
Leavenworth, Henry, Major, 31, 33
Lee, Robert E., Captain, 101, 164, 175, 203, 208, 223, 225, 284, 305.
Leigh, Benjamin Watkins, 10, 70.
Lendrum, Thomas W., 88.
Leon, Mexican General, 219.
"Leonidas letter," the, 267, 287.
Leopard, British frigate, 6.
Lewis, Morgan, General, 26.
Lincoln, Abraham, President, 296, 301, 312, 313, 315, 316, 326.
Lindsay, William, Colonel, 111, 135.
Lobas Island, 161.
Loring, William W., Major, 206, 212.
Louisiana troops, 119.
Lovell, Christopher H., Lieutenant, 280.
Lundy's Lane, battle of, 34-36.
McCauley, Charles G., Lieutenant, 253.
McClellan, George B., General, 178, 206, 308.
McClure, Brigadier-General, New York militia, 28.
McComb, Alexander, Colonel, 24, 29, 50, 153.
McDonald, Adjutant, 146.
McDowell, Irwin, General, 307.
McDuffie, George, 61-63.
McFeely, George, Lieutenant-Colonel, 24.
McIntosh, James S., Colonel, 193, 220.
McKenzie, Colonel, 226.
McLemore, Captain, 110, 112.
McNeill, John, Jr., General, 31, 33, 39.
McRee, William, Colonel, 39.
McTavish, Carroll, 41.
Mackall, William W., Major, 227.
Madison, James, President, 22.
Magee, Captain, Louisiana volunteers, 101.
Magruder, John B., Lieutenant, 206, 226, 302.
Malone, Captain, 119.
Mansfield, Mr., British Minister, 11.
Marcy, William L., 146, 158, 159, 269.
Marks, George H., Captain, 113.
Marks, Samuel F., Captain, 101.
Marshall, General, 245-248.
Marshall, John, Chief-Justice, 136.
Martin Luther, 5.
Mason, Captain, 286.
Mason, Daniel, 3.
Mason, James M., 321.
Mason, Winfield, 3.
Massacre of General Thompson and others, 89.
May, James F., 5.
Mayo, John, Colonel, 41.
Mendoza, Mexican General, 205, 207.
Mico, Indian chief, 78.
Miconopy, Indian chief, 78.
Miller, James, Colonel, 25.
Mississippi River, free navigation of, 310.
Molino del Rey, battle of, 219-222.
Monroe, James, President, 22.
Monterde, D. Mariano, Mexican General, 225.
Morales, Mexican General, 168, 169.
Morgan, George W., Colonel, 208.
Mormon expedition, 294.
Morris, Charles T., Captain, 207.
Mount Vernon, 316, 317.
Mudge, Robert Richard, Lieutenant, 88.
Mullaney, James Robert, Lieutenant-Colonel, 16.
Nashville, Confederate steamer, 320.
Negroes engaged in Dade massacre, 111.
Nicholson, Augustus S., Lieutenant, 253.
Nicholson, John S., Lieutenant, 253.
Nueva de Villa Gutierrez, Colonel, 170.
Nullification in South Carolina, 61-64.
Ogilvie, James, Captain, 4-17.
O'Riley, commander of deserters, captured, 237, 238.
Pachuca occupied, 248.
Packenham, Sir Richard, 151.
Paez, General, 48.
Page, Captain, 135.
Palo Alto, battle of, 155.
Parish, Richard C., Colonel, 90.
Patterson, Robert, General, 245.
Payne, Matthew M., Major, 135.
Payne's Landing, treaty of, 74.
Peña y Peña, 236, 257.
Perez, Mexican General, 208-219.
Perry, Matthew C., Commodore, 169.
Perry, Oliver Hazard, Captain, 14, 24.
Pierce, Franklin, General, 207, 214, 292, 293.
Pike, Zebulon, General, 24.
Pillow, Gideon J., General, 170, 176, 193, 211, 224, 226, 276, 281.
Plympton, Joseph, Lieutenant-Colonel, 208, 220.
Porter, Captain, 25.
Porter, Moses, General, 24, 30.
Porter, W., Secretary to General Gaines, 108.
Prevost, Sir George, 26, 27.
Puebla, occupation of, 197.
Putnam, Benjamin A., Major, 93.
Putnam, General, 5.
Queenstown Heights, storming of, 15.
Quijano, Benito, Mexican commissioner, 214.
Quitman, John A., General, 172, 204, 206, 224, 226, 228, 280.
Randolph, John, 5.
Rangel, Mexican General, 219.
Rea, Mexican General, 236.
Read, Leigh, Colonel, 90, 113.
Resaca de la Palma, battle of, 155.
Ravenel, Captain, 94.
Reynolds, E. McD., Lieutenant, 253.
Reynolds, John G., Captain, 253.
Riall, General, moves to Burlington Heights, 33.
Rich, Jabez L., Lieutenant, 253.
Ridgely, S.C., Captain, 281.
Riley, Bennet, General, 206, 208, 209.
Ripley, Eleazer W., 39.
Ripley, R.S., Lieutenant, 185.
Roach, Isaac, Jr., Lieutenant, 13, 16.
Robertson, Judge, 302, 303.
Robinson, David, Judge, 4.
Robinson, Edward B., Captain, 110.
Robles, Mexican Lieutenant-Colonel, 170.
Rogers, A.P., Lieutenant, 166.
Rogers, Captain Louisiana volunteers, 101.
Rosecrans, William S., General, 308, 329.
Ruffin, Thomas, 5.
Sacs and Fox Indians, treaty with, 58.
Sackett's Harbor, landing of the British, 27.
Sanders, William G., Captain, 107.
Sands, Richard M., Major, 101.
San Jacinto, steamer, 321.
San Pablo, convent of, 212.
San Patricio Battalion, 237.
Santa Anna, Antonio Lopez, General, 156, 173, 175, 190, 206, 209, 225,
230, 231, 236, 256, 257.
Scott, Ann, 3.
Scott, Camilla, 41.
Scott, Cornelia, 41.
Scott, Henry L., Colonel, 135, 164, 178, 284.
Scott, James, death of, 1, 2.
Scott, Winfield, birth and parentage, 1; runs away from Sunday
school, 2; defends his teacher; at William and Mary College, 4;
enters on the practice of law; present at the trial of Aaron Burr,
5; attacks British camp at Lynn Haven Bay; goes to South Carolina to
practice law; returns to Petersburg, Va., to practice law; joins
Petersburg cavalry company, 6; receives commission as Captain in the
U.S. army; recruits his company and embarks for New Orleans, 7;
arrested and tried by court-martial for words spoken of General
Wilkinson, 8; tenders his resignation, 8; finding of the court, 9;
letter to Lewis Edwards, 10; rejoins the army at Baton Rouge, La.;
embarks for Washington; vessel gets aground, 11; appointed Colonel;
visits the Secretary of War with General Hampton; an unpleasant
incident, 12; war with Great Britain; ordered to the Niagara
frontier, 13; volunteers to cross the Niagara; marches to Lewiston,
16; the attack on Fort George, 17; a flag of truce, 18; a prisoner,
and attacked by Indians; embarks for Boston, 19; addresses Irish
prisoners; letter to Secretary of War, 20; selects hostages in
retaliation for Irish prisoners, 21; returns to Washington, 22;
ordered to Philadelphia; appointed Adjutant General; promoted
Colonel of his regiment; joins General Dearborn, and appointed chief
of staff, 23; assault on Fort George; Scott leads the advance, 24;
struck by a piece of timber and collar bone broken, 25; anecdote of
a British officer, 26; resigns the office of Adjutant General, 27;
joins General Wilkinson, 28; marches for Sackett's Harbor; appointed
to command of a battalion; preparing new levies of troops, 29;
appointed Brigadier General; ordered to join General Jacob Brown;
establishes camp of instruction at Sackett's Harbor; assigned to a
new command; moves toward Chippewa, 30; wins the battle of Chippewa;
report of General Brown, 32; moves to mouth of the Niagara, 33;
battle of Lundy's Lane, 34, 35; General Scott disabled, 37-39; in
command for defense of Philadelphia and Baltimore, 39; reception at
Princeton; declined to act as Secretary of War; ordered to Europe,
40; receives attention in Europe; return home; headquarters in New
York; married to Miss Mayo, of Richmond; names of his children, 41;
Congress passes resolutions complimenting him; present at the death
of President Monroe; thanked by Legislatures of Virginia and New
York; honorary member of the Society of the Cincinnati; order of
General Jackson, 42; letter of General Jackson to General Scott; his
reply, 43; letter to General Jackson, 44; General Jackson's reply;
Scott calls on General Jackson, 45; tribute to General Jackson; his
work on general regulations for the army, 46; president of board of
army and militia officers; publication of his work on infantry
tactics; the temperance reform; his views on, 47; controversy with
General Gaines; tenders his resignation; not accepted, 48; letter to
Secretary of War; the Secretary's reply, 49; assigned to command of
Eastern Department; treaty with Sac Indians, 50; ordered to
Illinois; Asiatic cholera, 53; letter to Governor Reynolds, 54;
newspaper extracts in regard to General Scott's action in the
cholera epidemic, 55-57; commissioner to treat with Indians; result
of the treaty, 58; arrives in New York, and ordered to Washington;
the tariff act of 1828 and excitement in South Carolina, 60; ordered
to South Carolina, 66; letter of instruction from Secretary of War;
arrival in Charleston, 66, 67; detained by accident, 68; success of
his mission, 71; ordered to immediate command in Florida, 98;
disposition of troops, 110-112; movement of troops, 114; the army
arrives at Tampa Bay, 117; arrival at Fort Brooke, 118; embarks on
St. John's River, 120; complaint against General Jesup; court of
inquiry on Florida campaign, 122; finding of the court; letter to
Secretary of War, 123; defense in Congress, 124; tendered dinner in
New York; declines, 127; ordered to remove the Creek Indians, 129;
addresses to troops and Indians, 130, 132, 133; the Indians move
West, 135; ordered to look after Canada insurgents, 139; ordered to
Maine, 140; meets Governor Everett; proceeds to Portland, 141;
settlement of the troubles, 143, 144; uprising in Upper Canada;
affair of the Caroline, 144, 145; ordered to the scene of the
troubles; meets Governor Marcy, 146; letter to commanding officer of
British vessels, 147; the affair settled, 147, 148; his name
presented to Whig Convention as candidate for the presidency, 152;
effort in Congress to reduce his pay; letter to T.P. Atkinson on
slavery, 153; letter to peace convention, 154; the War with Mexico;
the "hasty plate of soup," 157; his opinion of General Taylor;
ordered to Mexico; goes _via_ New Orleans, 158; arrives at Brazos
Santiago, 159; fails to meet General Taylor, 161; landing of the
troops at Vera Cruz, 162; investment and surrender of Vera Cruz,
164-170; advances on Jalapa, 173; Cerro Gordo, 178, 179, 187;
occupation of Puebla, 193; movement toward the City of Mexico;
criticism by the Duke of Wellington, 195, 196; address to Mexican
people, 198; movement on and capture of Padierna, 204-207;
Churubusco, 211; arrival of Nicholas P. Trist, U.S. Commissioner,
213; cessation of hostilities by armistice, 214; the armistice
ended, 218; Molino del Rey, 219-222; attack on and capture of
Chapultepec, 226, 227; occupation of the capital; orders for
government of the city, 229; additional orders, 231-234; orders for
obtaining revenue in Mexico, 240-242; letter to Secretary of War,
243; his civil administration of Mexico, 246, 247; reports his total
force, January 6, 1848; ordered before a court of inquiry; relieved
from command of the army, 248; money levied on City of Mexico, 255;
turns over command of the army, 264; General Orders No. 349, 270;
letter to General Worth, 272; relieved from duty, 277, 278; reads a
paper before the court of inquiry, 281, 282; submits paper to court
of inquiry, 284; embarks at Vera Cruz for home, 288; receives thanks
of Congress, 289; discontent in Canada, 293; candidate for the
presidency (1852), 293; on commission to settle boundary line with
Great Britain, 295; letter to President Buchanan, 296, 297; letter
to Secretary of War, 297, 298; letter to Secretary of War, December
28, 1861, 298; letter to Secretary Seward, March 3, 1861, 299;
firing of guns at Mobile on announcement that he had resigned, 304;
order of April 26, 1861, at Washington, D.C., 306; issues General
Orders No. 17, 308; complains of General McClellan, 309; request to
be placed on retired list, 311, 312; addresses the President and
Cabinet on his retirement, 313; sails for Europe, November 9, 1861,
318; army asylum fund, 323; statue of, at Soldiers' Home, 327; his
death and last words, 329; his acquaintance with English authors,
331; advice to young army officer, 330, 331; anecdote of battle of
Chippewa, 332; vain of his accomplishments; regular attendant at the
Episcopal Church, 332; goes to West Point, 328; his loyalty, his
strict ideas of discipline; anecdote, 333.
Sears, Henry B., Lieutenant, 215.
Secretary of War to General Gaines, 100.
Seminole council, 85.
Seward, Secretary, anecdote of General Scott, 330.
Shannon, Samuel, Captain, 102.
Shaw, H.B., Major, 135.
Sheaffe, General Sir Roger Hale, 17-19.
Shelton, Joseph, General, 116.
Sheridan, Philip H., General, 326.
Sherman, William T., General, 326.
Shields, James, General, 176, 207, 209, 280.
Shubrick, William B., Commodore, 238.
Sibley, Henry H., Captain, 212.
Simms, John D., Lieutenant, 253.
Slidell, John, 321.
Small, William F., Captain, 236.
Smith, Charles F., Captain, 221.
Smith, Colonel, Louisiana volunteers, 101, 118.
Smith, Constantine, Lieutenant, 89.
Smith, E. Kirby, Captain, 221.
Smith, Gustavus W., Lieutenant, 207.
Smith, Persifor F., Colonel, 101, 112, 206, 208, 209, 211, 214, 227.
Smyth, Alexander, General, 14.
Soldiers' Home at Washington, 323, 324, 326.
Soto, Don Juan, Vera Cruz, 215.
Steptoe, Edward J., Captain, 223.
Stone, Charles P., General, 301, 318.
Strahan, Captain, 17.
Sumner, Edwin V., Major, 175, 211, 220, 221, 224.
Sutherland, David J., Lieutenant, 253.
Swift, Joseph G., Colonel, 28.
Tampico letter, the, 267, 268.
Tariff of 1828 and trouble In South Carolina, 60.
Taylor, Francis, Captain, 135, 223.
Taylor, Governor, Carolina, 61.
Taylor, Zachary, General, 154, 289.
Tazewell, Littleton W., 5.
Temperance reform, 47.
Terrett, George H., Captain, 253.
Texas, causes which led to annexation, 149, 154.
Thistle, Captain, Louisiana volunteers, 101.
Thomas, James H., Colonel, 173.
Thompson, General, Indian agent, 79.
Thompson, Launt, 327.
Thurston, Charles Myron, Captain, 110.
Timrod, Captain, 94.
Totten, Joseph G., Colonel, 17, 18, 28, 164.
Towson, Captain, ordered to report to St. Elliott, 13, 16, 33, 37.
Towson, Nathan, General, 281.
Trent, affair of the, 321.
Tripp, T.S., Captain, 115.
Trist, Nicholas P., commissioner, 213, 216, 257, 281.
Trousdale, William, Colonel, 226.
Truxton, Commodore, 5.
Tweedale, Marquis of, crosses the Chippewa, 30.
Twiggs, David E., General, 101, 173, 176, 193, 200, 220.
Twiggs, Levi, Major, 253.
Tyler, John, President, 152.
Upshur, Abel P., Secretary of State, 151.
Valencia, Mexican General, 204, 211, 248.
Van Buren, Martin, President, 145.
Van Rensselaer, Colonel, 144.
Van Rensselaer, Solomon, General, 14, 17.
Van Rensselaer, Stephen, General, 14, 16, 18.
Van Vliet, Stewart, General, 328.
Vera Cruz, 161, 162, 167, 171.
Villamil, Mora y., General, 214, 216, 257.
Vincent, General, 27.
Vinton, John R., Colonel, 166.
Volunteer American officers paroled, 19.
Wadsworth, Decius, General, 15.
Walker, Robert J., 159.
Washington, George, General, 5.
Watson, Samuel E., Lieutenant-Colonel, 253.
"Wayward Sisters" letter, 299, 300.
Webb, Captain, U.S.N., 97.
Webster, Daniel, 293.
Weed, Thurlow, 318.
Wellington, Duke of, 195.
Welsh, Henry, Lieutenant, 253.
Wheelock, Eleazer, General, 30.
Wilkes, Charles, Commodore, 321.
Wilkinson, James, General, 7, 8, 28.
William and Mary College, 4.
Williams, Captain, Louisiana volunteers, 101.
Williams, T., A.-D.-C., 250.
Wilson, Henry, Colonel, 173.
Wilson, James Grant, General, 327, 328, 335.
Winder, William Henry, General, 24, 27.
Winfield, Elizabeth, 3.
Winfield, John, 3.
Wirt, William, 5.
Withers, Jones M., 248.
Wood, Major, 37.
Wool, John E., Captain, 15-17.
Worth, W.J., General, 136, 170, 174, 193, 265-267, 270, 271, 273,
274-276, 285.
Wright, George, Major, 220.
Wynkoop, Francis M., Colonel, 166, 248.
Young, William L., Lieutenant, 253.
Zacatepetl, Barreiro, Colonel, 205.
THE END.
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American history or literature, the Cyclopædia will be
indispensable."--_From the_ Hon. JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL.
"The selection of names seems to be liberal and just. The portraits,
so far as I can judge, are faithful, and the biographies
trustworthy."--_From_ NOAH PORTER, D.D., LL.D.,
_ex-President of Yale College_.
"A most valuable and interesting work."--_From the_ Hon. WM. E.
GLADSTONE.
"I have examined it with great interest and great gratification. It
is a noble work, and does enviable credit to its editors and
publishers."--_From the_ Hon. ROBERT C. WINTHROP.
"I have carefully examined 'Appletons' Cyclopædia of American
Biography,' and do not hesitate to commend it to favor. It is
admirably adapted to use in the family and the schools, and is so
cheap as to come within the reach of all classes of readers and
students."--_From_ J.B. FORAKER, _ex-Governor of Ohio_.
"This book of American biography has come to me with a most unusual
charm. It sets before us the faces of great Americans, both men and
women, and gives us a perspective view of their lives. Where so many
noble and great have lived and wrought, one is encouraged to believe
the soil from which they sprang, the air they breathed, and the sky
over their heads, to be the best this world affords, and one says,
'Thank God, I also am an American!' We have many books of biography,
but I have seen none so ample, so clear-cut, and breathing so
strongly the best spirit of our native land. No young man or woman
can fail to find among these ample pages some model worthy of
imitation."--_From_ FRANCES E. WILLARD, _President
N.W.C.T.U._
"I congratulate you on the beauty of the volume, and the
thoroughness of the work."--_From_ Bishop PHILLIPS BROOKS.
"Every day's use of this admirable work confirms me in regard to its
comprehensiveness and accuracy."--_From_ CHARLES DUDLEY
WARNER.
_Price, per volume, cloth or buckram, $5.00; sheep, $6.00; half calf
or half morocco, $7.00. Sold only by subscription. Descriptive
circular, with specimen pages, sent on application. Agents wanted for
districts not yet assigned._
"This work marks an epoch in the history-writing of this
country."--_St. Louis Post-Dispatch._
[Illustration: COLONIAL COURT-HOUSE PHILADELPHIA, 1707.]
_THE HOUSEHOLD HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES AND ITS PEOPLE._ FOR YOUNG
AMERICANS. By EDWARD EGGLESTON. Richly illustrated with 350 Drawings,
75 Maps, etc. Square 8vo. Cloth, $2.50.
_FROM THE PREFACE._
The present work is meant, in the first instance, for the young--not
alone for boys and girls, but for young men and women who have yet to
make themselves familiar with the more important features of their
country's history. By a book for the young is meant one in which the
author studies to make his statements clear and explicit, in which
curious and picturesque details are inserted, and in which the writer
does not neglect such anecdotes as lend the charm of a human and
personal interest to the broader facts of the nation's story. That
history is often tiresome to the young is not so much the fault of
history as of a false method of writing by which one contrives to
relate events without sympathy or imagination, without narrative
connection or animation. The attempt to master vague and general
records of kiln-dried facts is certain to beget in the ordinary reader
a repulsion from the study of history--one of the very most important
of all studies for its widening influence on general culture.
[Illustration: INDIAN'S TRAP.]
"Fills a decided gap which has existed for the past twenty years in
American historical literature. The work is admirably planned and
executed, and will at once take its place as a standard record of
the life, growth, and development of the nation. It is profusely and
beautifully illustrated."--_Boston Transcript._
"The book in its new dress makes a much finer appearance than
before, and will be welcomed by older readers as gladly as its
predecessor was greeted by girls and boys. The lavish use the
publishers have made of colored plates, woodcuts, and photographic
reproductions, gives an unwonted piquancy to the printed page,
catching the eye as surely as the text engages the mind."--_New York
Critic._
[Illustration: GENERAL PUTNAM.]
"The author writes history as a story. It can never be less than
that. The book will enlist the interest of young people, enlighten
their understanding, and by the glow of its statements fix the great
events of the country firmly in the mind."--_San Francisco
Bulletin._
*** End of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "General Scott" ***
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