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Title: Good stories for great birthdays - arranged for story-telling and reading aloud and for the - children's own reading
Author: Olcott, Francis Jenkins
Language: English
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GOOD STORIES
FOR GREAT BIRTHDAYS
[Illustration: BREAKFAST WITH THE CHILDREN AT MOUNT VERNON]
GOOD STORIES
FOR GREAT BIRTHDAYS
_ARRANGED FOR STORY-TELLING AND READING
ALOUD AND FOR THE CHILDREN’S
OWN READING_
BY
FRANCES JENKINS OLCOTT
WITH ILLUSTRATIONS
[Illustration: colophon]
BOSTON AND NEW YORK
HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY
The Riverside Press Cambridge
COPYRIGHT, 1922, BY FRANCES JENKINS OLCOTT
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The Riverside Press
CAMBRIDGE · MASSACHUSETTS
PRINTED IN THE U.S.A.
GRATEFULLY DEDICATED
TO
FRANCES MARY JENKINS OLCOTT
_January 25_
_One in whose eyes the smile of kindness made_
_Its haunt, like flowers by sunny brooks in May,_
_Yet at the thought of others’ pain, a shade_
_Of sweeter sadness chased the smile away._
WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT
FOREWORD
Here are over 200 stories celebrating 23 great birthdays of
patriot-founders and upbuilders of the Republics of both North and South
America. In the stories are more than 75 historical characters, men,
women, and children. The arrangement follows the school-year, beginning
in October with Columbus. The book-cover is dressed in George
Washington’s colours, scarlet and white.
TREATMENT OF HISTORY FOR CHILDREN
These tales are not packed full of dry facts and dates, boring to
children. Instead, they treat history in a manner appealing to boys and
girls. For it is the strong personalities that moved in the big events
of the world, it is the forceful lives of the men themselves, their
preparation in boyhood for successful careers, their struggles for
right, their heroism, devotion, and high adventure, as well as the why
and wherefore of things, which make history an intense reality to
children and young folk. American history treated after such a fashion,
may be used educationally to develop a fine, true type of Americanism.
So most of the tales presented here are ones of personality, human and
alive. They are full of action. Many of them relate deeds of courage,
kindness, self-sacrifice, and perseverance. They are of just the right
length to read aloud or tell without fatiguing the children. They deal
scarcely at all with battle, murder, or sudden death. They stress the
intimate, human side of our Patriots, the side not often found in
textbooks.
SOME OF OUR HEROES
Here are stories of Washington, Hamilton, John Adams, and John Marshall
showing them not cold and wooden, but warm and vital; also tales of
great-hearted Lincoln, and of America’s very human hero, Roosevelt.
And exceedingly human, too, are Light Horse Harry, the Sage of
Monticello, Old Hickory, Brother Jonathan, Old Put, and the Great
Commoner, who, with words as powerful as sword-strokes, fought America’s
battles.
Among the women, the mothers and wives helping to win the Wars for
Independence in both North and South America, are Mary and Martha
Washington, Abigail Adams, Andrew Jackson’s mother, the mother of John
Marshall, and the wife of San Martin.
And the children of our foreign born, with how much greater pride may
they say, “We are Americans!” when they read about Lafayette,
Kosciuszko, Steuben, Haym Salomon, Pulaski, De Kalb, and Irish Moll
Pitcher. Then, of course, Columbus the Italian is here, sailing under
the gold and crimson banner of Spain.
Our school children, too, may be surprised to learn, that there are 20
robust American Republics to the south of us, with aspirations like our
own, and having devoted Patriots. Among their national heroes, are
Miranda “the Flaming Son of Liberty,” San Martin the great and good,
Bolivar the brilliant and victorious, O’Higgins the soldier-citizen, and
Brazil’s patriot Emperor, Dom Pedro the magnanimous.
All Spanish accents have been omitted--as is sometimes done in English
books--so that the names of South American Patriots may not seem strange
and foreign to our school children.
NO HISTORICAL FICTION
There is no historical fiction here. The larger number of the stories
are original, written purposely for this volume. Every detail is
historical, and every conversation is based on an authority.
A partial list of the histories and biographies consulted while writing
the stories, may be found on page xiv. When historians have not agreed
as to dates and facts, the most reliable sources have been followed.
Of the stories attributed to authors, some have been recast to meet the
requirements of storytelling; others are given verbatim. This provides a
selection of tales varied both in style and in treatment. Some of the
tales are for children, and some for young people. The book may be
useful in all Grades.
No living Americans are celebrated. Those whose birthdays are kept, have
passed into history. And since one small volume cannot hold stories
about all of our Patriots, a careful selection has been made of tales
about Americans whose contributions to the founding of free Government
are of vital importance. It is deeply regretted that lack of space
precludes the use of other birthdays. Because of copyright restrictions,
the Roosevelt section is somewhat limited.
A number of well-known tales which are omitted, may be found in _Good
Stories for Great Holidays_.
TEACHING AMERICAN SOLIDARITY
In as far as possible, all tales of sectional differences, of political
animosities, and of civil strife, have been avoided. The emphasis in
this book is upon American Solidarity.
Pioneers of progress inevitably arouse bitter antagonists. It would
require a large volume indeed, to treat of the derogatory statements and
written attacks which have been levelled at most of the men whose
birthdays we are celebrating. We know that Columbus suffered severely
from attacks by enemies, that Washington was one of the “most vilified
of men,” and that Lincoln’s detractors were merciless. To-day we may
perceive the process of vilification still going on around us. Happily,
time has shown that much of the detraction of the past was public
slander and clamour, and has consigned it to the rubbish heap of
history. In a book of this kind, detractions have little or no place;
and it is against the good sense of the best educational principles, to
impress the children’s plastic minds with such matters. When the
children are older, they will be better able to judge of them
intelligently.
HELPFUL TO TEACHERS
May it be said right here, with emphasis, that this book is not intended
to take the place of suitable biographies of the men whose birthdays we
are celebrating. Entertaining, lively tales should, on the contrary,
lead boys and girls to want to know more about their favourite heroes.
And the teacher may use these short stories not merely to illustrate
American history textbooks, but to strengthen the children’s love of
Country, to teach them the meaning of American Unity, and to give them a
more intelligent reverence for the Constitution.
To aid the teacher and story-teller there is appended on pages 465-483 a
_Subject Index_, by means of which any story on a given topic may be
quickly found. The Study Programmes, on pages 451-462, are
chronologically arranged to illustrate the day’s lesson.
FOR MOTHERS, ALSO
But above all else, may this book, day by day, help mothers and
educators to bring to the children’s remembrance on these great
birthdays, something of the devotion, the patience, the sufferings, and
the personal sacrifice of the noble men, who, under the good hand of
God, laid the foundations of American Liberty and Self-Government.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Grateful acknowledgments are due the following Publishers and Authors,
for material from their books:--
To Houghton Mifflin Company for material from books by Edward Arber,
Albert J. Beveridge, John Fiske, Henry Cabot Lodge, John T. Morse, James
Parton, James B. Thayer, William Roscoe Thayer, and John Greenleaf
Whittier.
To the _New York Evening Post_ for stories written for its columns by
the author of this book.
To the _New York Times_ for “A Lock of Washington’s Hair,” by T. R.
Ybarra.
To D. Appleton and Company for extracts from the Poems of William Cullen
Bryant, and material from William Spence Robertson’s _Rise of the
Spanish-American Republics_.
To Charles Scribner’s Sons for material from _Theodore Roosevelt: An
Autobiography_.
To Harr Wagner Publishing Company, San Francisco, California, publishers
of the complete works of Joaquin Miller, for permission to use his
_Columbus_.
To J. B. Lippincott Company for material from Charles Morris’s _Heroes
of Progress_.
To Lothrop, Lee, and Shepard Company for “Nellie and Little Washington,”
from Harriet Taylor Upton’s _Our Early Presidents, their Wives and
Children_.
To the Missionary Education Movement for “Dom Pedro,” from Margarette
Daniels’s _Makers of South America_.
To the Macmillan Company for material from James Morgan’s _Theodore
Roosevelt, the Boy and the Man_.
To Dr. Sherman Williams for “The Boy of the Hurricane,” from his _New
York’s Part in History_, published by D. Appleton and Company.
To Mr. Wayne Whipple for “The Little Girl and the Red Coats,” from his
_Story-Life of Washington_, published by John C. Winston Company.
To the Brooklyn Public Library, Montague Branch, for the use of its
remarkably fine collection of volumes on early American history, many of
which are rare and out of print.
To the Staff of the Brooklyn Public Library, Montague Branch, for most
helpful co-operation.
* * * * *
As this book of _Great Birthdays_ was several years in the making, it is
not possible to cite the many authorities, histories, and biographies
which have been consulted. The following titles may give some idea of
the kind of research work done, in order to make _Great Birthdays_ of
value in teaching American History:--
Fiske, _American Revolution_; Garden, _Ancedotes of the Revolutionary
War_; Green, _Short History of the English People_; _Journals of the
Continental Congress_; Lossing, _Pictorial Field-Book of the
Revolution_; Elkanah Watson, _Men and Times of the Revolution_; _Select
Letters of Christopher Columbus, with other Original Documents_ (Hakluyt
Society); _Memorials of Columbus ... translated from the Spanish and
Italian_; Lives of Columbus by Irving, Lamartine, and Winsor; _Story of
the Pilgrim Fathers_ (Arber Reprint); _Mourt’s Relation_; _Old South
Leaflets_; George Washington, _Journal of my Journey over the
Mountains_, also his _Writings_; Ford, _Washington and the Theatre_;
George Washington Parke Custis, _Recollections and Private Memoirs of
Washington_, by his Adopted Son; Headley, _Illustrated Life of George
Washington_; Irving, _Life of Washington_; Lossing, _Mary and Martha,
the Mother and the Wife of George Washington_; Lodge, _George
Washington_, (American Statesmen Series); John Paul Jones’s _Letters_,
also lives of him by De Koven, Headley, and Mackenzie; Lives of William
Penn, by Dixon, Hodges, Janney, Stoughton; Lives of John Marshall, and
addresses in his memory, by Beveridge, Binney, Flanders, Rawle, Sallie
E. Marshal Hardy (in _The Green Bag_), Justice Story, and Chief Justice
Waite; Peters, Haym Salomon; Franklin’s _Autobiography_; Humphreys,
_Life of the Honourable Major General Israel Putnam_ (material obtained
largely from Putnam himself); _Jonathan Trumbull, Governor of
Connecticut_, by his descendant Jonathan Trumbull; correspondence,
diaries, and speeches of John Adams, John Quincy Adams, Abigail Adams,
Patrick Henry, Jefferson, Lafayette, Pitt, Lincoln, and Webster.
In writing the South American stories, the following have been most
useful: Biggs, _History of Don Francisco de Miranda’s Attempt to Effect
a Revolution in South America_; Palacio Fajardo, _Outline of the
Revolution in Spanish America_; _Encyclopedia of Latin America_; Koebel,
_British Exploits in South America_, also his _South America_; Captain
Basil Hall, _Extracts from a Journal_; Larrazábal, _Simón Bolivar_;
Mahoney, _Campaigns and Cruises in Venezuela and New Grenada_; Mehegan,
_O’Higgins of Chile_; General Miller, _Memoirs in the Service of the
Republic of Peru_; Bartolomé Mitre, _Emancipation of South America_;
Pan-American Union, _Bulletin_; Petre, _Simón Bolivar_; Robertson, _Rise
of the Spanish-American Republics_, also his _Francisco de Miranda_
(American Historical Association); Smith, _History of the Adventures and
Sufferings of Moses Smith_; also a number of volumes of travel including
Lord Bryce, _South America_; and Winter, _Argentina_, and _Chile_.
CONTENTS
OCTOBER 12
COLUMBUS AND DISCOVERER’S DAY
COLUMBUS, _Joaquin Miller_ 2
THE SEA OF DARKNESS 3
THE FORTUNATE ISLES 5
THE ABSURD TRUTH 7
CATHAY THE GOLDEN 10
THE EMERALD ISLANDS 12
THE MAGNIFICENT RETURN 13
THE FATAL PEARLS 15
Tierra Firme
The Pearls
The Curse of the Pearls
QUEEN ISABELLA’S PAGE 21
THE TWIN CITIES 24
THE PEARLS AGAIN 26
OCTOBER 14
WILLIAM PENN, THE FOUNDER OF
PENNSYLVANIA
WITHIN THE LAND OF PENN, _John Greenleaf Whittier_ 30
THE BOY OF GREAT TOWER HILL 31
HE WORE IT AS LONG AS HE COULD, _Samuel M. Janney_ 32
THE PEACEMAKER 33
WESTWARD HO, AND AWAY! _John Stoughton_ 34
THE CITY OF BROTHERLY LOVE 36
THE PLACE OF KINGS, _Samuel M. Janney_ 38
ONAS, _W. Hepworth Dixon_ 41
OCTOBER 27
THEODORE ROOSEVELT, AMERICA’S HERO
THE SQUARE DEAL, _Theodore Roosevelt_ 44
THE BOY WHO GREW STRONG, _James Morgan_ 45
Not in a Log Cabin
In the Wide Out-of-Doors
Busting Broncos
SAGAMORE HILL, _Theodore Roosevelt_ 50
THE CHILDREN OF SAGAMORE HILL, _William Roscoe Thayer_ 52
OFF WITH JOHN BURROUGHS, _Theodore Roosevelt_ 53
THE BIG STICK, _William Roscoe Thayer_ 54
A-HUNTING TREES WITH JOHN MUIR, _Theodore Roosevelt_ 55
THE BEAR HUNTERS’ DINNER, _Theodore Roosevelt_ 56
HUNTING IN AFRICA, _Theodore Roosevelt_ 57
THE EVER FAITHFUL ISLAND 59
THE COLONEL OF THE ROUGH RIDERS, _William Roscoe Thayer_ 61
THE RIVER OF DOUBT, _William Roscoe Thayer_ 65
THEODORE ROOSEVELT, _William Roscoe Thayer_ 69
OCTOBER 30
JOHN ADAMS, THE SON OF LIBERTY
INDEPENDENCE DAY, _John Adams_ 74
A SON OF LIBERTY, _Benson J. Lossing_ 75
THE ADAMS FAMILY 76
AID TO THE SISTER COLONY, _James Parton_ 77
A FAMOUS DATE 80
WHAT A GLORIOUS MORNING! 81
JOHN TO SAMUEL 82
A GENTLEMAN FROM VIRGINIA 83
THE BOY WHO BECAME PRESIDENT 85
HOW SHALL THE STARS BE PLACED? 88
THE MYSTERIOUS STRANGER 89
HIS LAST TOAST 91
NOVEMBER 15
WILLIAM PITT, DEFENDER OF AMERICA
HE AT ONCE BREATHED HIS OWN LOFTY SPIRIT, _John Richard Green_ 94
THIS TERRIBLE CORNET OF HORSE 95
THE CHARTER OF LIBERTY 98
AMERICA’S DEFENDER 101
THE SONS OF LIBERTY 103
A LAST SCENE, _John Fiske_ 105
DECEMBER 2
DOM PEDRO THE SECOND, THE MAGNANIMOUS,
THE BEST REPUBLICAN IN BRAZIL
FREEDOM IN BRAZIL, _John Greenleaf Whittier_ 110
THE BRAZILS MAGNIFICENT 111
THE EMPIRE OF THE SOUTHERN CROSS 112
MAKING THE LITTLE EMPEROR, _W. H. Koebel_ 113
THE PATRIOT EMPEROR 115
I. Viva Dom Pedro the Second!
II. My People
III. Emancipating the Slaves, 1888
IV. The Empire of the Southern Cross--No More! _Margarette Daniels_
THE UNITED STATES OF BRAZIL 120
DECEMBER 20
WILLIAM BRADFORD, AND THE LANDING
OF THE PILGRIMS
SO THEY LEFT THAT GOODLY AND PLEASANT CITY, _William Bradford_ 124
THE FATHER OF THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES 125
THE SAVAGE NEW WORLD 128
WELCOME, ENGLISHMEN! 131
LOST! LOST! A BOY! 132
THE RATTLESNAKE CHALLENGE 136
THE GREAT DROUGHT, _Governor Edward Winslow_ 138
JANUARY 7
GENERAL ISRAEL PUTNAM, “OLD PUT”
THERE WAS A GENEROSITY AND BUOYANCY ABOUT THE BRAVE OLD MAN,
_Washington Irving_ 142
SEEING BOSTON 143
THE FIGHT WITH THE WOLF 144
FROM PLOUGH TO CAMP 146
HE MADE WASHINGTON LAUGH 148
A GENEROUS FOE 149
PUTNAM NOT FORGOTTEN! 150
JANUARY 11
ALEXANDER HAMILTON, DEFENDER OF
THE CONSTITUTION
HE GAVE THE WHOLE POWERS OF HIS MIND, _Daniel Webster_ 154
THE BOY OF THE HURRICANE, _Sherman Williams_ 155
CALL COLONEL HAMILTON 157
A STRUGGLE 158
“HE KNOWS EVERYTHING” 159
JANUARY 17
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, THE AMERICAN
SOCRATES
OUR COUNTRY, _Benjamin Franklin_ 164
THE WHISTLE, _Benjamin Franklin_ 165
THE CANDLE-MAKER’S BOY 166
THE BOY OF THE PRINTING PRESS 167
THE THREE ROLLS 168
STANDING BEFORE KINGS 169
THE WONDERFUL KITE EXPERIMENT 170
THE RISING SUN 171
TO MY FRIEND, _Benjamin Franklin_ 172
FEBRUARY 12
ABRAHAM LINCOLN, THE GREAT
EMANCIPATOR
OH, SLOW TO SMITE AND SWIFT TO SPARE, _William Cullen Bryant_ 174
THE CABIN IN THE CLEARING 175
HOW HE LEARNED TO BE JUST 176
OFF TO NEW ORLEANS 177
THE KINDNESS OF LINCOLN 178
The Little Birds
Rescuing the Pig
Opening Their Eyes
LINCOLN AND THE CHILDREN 181
Hurrah for Lincoln!
Only Eight of Us, Sir
He’s Beautiful!
Please Let Your Beard Grow
Three Little Girls
THE PRESIDENT AND THE BIBLE 183
WASHINGTON AND LINCOLN SPEAK 185
GETTYSBURG ADDRESS, _Abraham Lincoln_ 186
FEBRUARY 22
GEORGE WASHINGTON, THE FATHER OF
HIS COUNTRY
LINCOLN ON WASHINGTON’S BIRTHDAY 190
THE BOY IN THE VALLEY 191
WASHINGTON’S MOTHER, _George Washington Parke Custis_ 194
WASHINGTON’S WEDDING DAY, _Henry Cabot Lodge_ 197
WASHINGTON AND THE CHILDREN, _Grace Greenwood_ 197
THE LITTLE GIRL AND THE RED COATS, _Wayne Whipple_ 200
NELLIE AND LITTLE WASHINGTON, _Harriet Taylor Upton_ 200
SEEING THE PRESIDENT, _George Washington Parke Custis_ 203
NELSON THE HERO, _George Washington Parke Custis_ 204
CARING FOR THE GUEST, _Elkanah Watson_ 205
THOUGHTFUL OF OTHERS 206
THE CINCINNATUS OF THE WEST 206
BROTHER JONATHAN 208
THE BLOODY FOOTPRINTS, _George Washington Parke Custis_ 210
AN APPEAL TO GOD, _Benson J. Lossing_ 211
FRIEND GREENE 213
LIGHT HORSE HARRY, _Washington Irving_ 216
CAPTAIN MOLLY, _George Washington Parke Custis_ 218
THE SOLDIER BARON 220
FATHER THADDEUS 223
THE LITTLE FRIEND IN FRONT STREET 228
FAREWELL! MY GENERAL! FAREWELL! _J. T. Headley_ 230
FROM “WASHINGTON’S LEGACY” 232
A KING OF MEN, _John Fiske_ 233
WHEN WASHINGTON DIED 234
FEBRUARY 25
JOSE DE SAN MARTIN OF ARGENTINA,
THE PROTECTOR
SAN MARTIN, THE GREAT LIBERATOR, _Joseph Conrad_ 236
THE BOY SOLDIER 237
THE PATRIOT WHO KEPT FAITH 238
WHEN SAN MARTIN CAME 240
ARGENTINA’S INDEPENDENCE DAY 243
A GREAT IDEA 243
THE MIGHTY ANDES, _Bartolome Mitre_ 245
THE REAL SAN MARTIN 247
THE FIGHTING ENGINEER OF THE ANDES, _Bartolome Mitre_ 248
THE HANNIBAL OF THE ANDES, _General Miller and Bartolome Mitre_ 249
NOT FOR HIMSELF 254
COCHRANE, EL DIABLO 255
OUR BROTHERS, YE SHALL BE FREE 256
THE FALL OF THE CITY OF THE KINGS, _Captain Basil Hall_ 257
SAN MARTIN THE CONQUEROR, _Captain Basil Hall_ 261
A Retreat
The Mother and Her Three Sons
The Little Girl Who Was Bashful
Another Little Girl
The Best Cigar
Duty Before the General
LIMA’S GREATEST DAY 265
HAIL, NEIGHBOUR REPUBLICS! 266
AMERICA FOR THE AMERICANS 268
WHAT ONE AMERICAN DID 271
THE AMAZING MEETING 272
WHAT HAPPENED AFTERWARD 274
THE MYSTERY SOLVED 276
MARCH 15
ANDREW JACKSON, OLD HICKORY
I WANT TO SAY THAT ANDREW JACKSON, _Theodore Roosevelt_ 280
MISCHIEVOUS ANDY, _James Parton_ 281
READING THE DECLARATION 282
OUT AGAINST TARLETON, _James Parton_ 283
AN ORPHAN OF THE REVOLUTION, _James Parton_ 285
THE HOOTING IN THE WILDERNESS, _James Parton_ 286
FORT MIMS 289
DAVY CROCKETT 290
CHIEF WEATHERFORD, _James Parton_ 291
SAM HOUSTON 295
WHY JACKSON WAS NAMED OLD HICKORY, _James Parton_ 297
THE COTTON-BALES 299
AFTER THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS, _James Parton_ 300
APRIL 13
THOMAS JEFFERSON, THE FRAMER OF THE
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE
THE FOURTH OF JULY, _Hezekiah Butterworth_ 304
THE BOY OWNER OF SHADWELL FARM, _James Parton_ 305
A CHRISTMAS GUEST, _James Parton_ 306
THE AUTHOR OF THE DECLARATION 308
PROCLAIM LIBERTY 309
ONLY A REPRIEVE 310
ON THE FOURTH OF JULY 313
MAY 29
PATRICK HENRY, THE ORATOR OF THE
WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE
TO THE READER, _Patrick Henry_ 316
THE ORATOR OF THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE, _Charles Morris_ 317
A Surprise to All
A Failure That Was a Success
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death!
FACING DANGER 322
JUNE 9
FRANCISCO DE MIRANDA OF VENEZUELA,
THE FLAMING SON OF LIBERTY
THE PRINCE OF FILIBUSTERS, _William Spence Robertson_ 326
THE SPANISH GALLEONS 327
THE ROMANCE OF MIRANDA 331
THE MYSTERY SHIP, _James Biggs and Moses Smith_ 335
THE END OF THE MYSTERY SHIP 339
THE GREAT AND GLORIOUS FIFTH 341
A TERRIBLE THING 343
END OF THE ROMANCE 344
JUNE 23-24
ROGER WILLIAMS AND THE FOUNDING
OF PROVIDENCE
GOD MAKES A PATH, _Roger Williams_ 348
ROGER, THE BOY 349
SOUL LIBERTY 350
WHAT CHEER! _Z. A. Mudge_ 352
RISKING HIS LIFE, _Charles Morris_ 354
JULY 6
JOHN PAUL JONES, AMERICA’S IMMORTAL
SEA-FIGHTER
PAUL JONES, _Ballad_ 358
THE BOY OF THE SOLWAY, _J. T. Headley_ 359
DON’T TREAD ON ME! _J. T. Headley_ 360
THE FIRST SALUTE, _Alexander S. Mackenzie_ 361
THE POOR RICHARD 364
MICKLE’S THE MISCHIEF HE HAS DUNE, _J. T. Headley_ 365
PAUL JONES HIMSELF, _J. T. Headley_ 367
SOME OF HIS SAYINGS 369
JULY 24
SIMON BOLIVAR OF VENEZUELA,
THE LIBERATOR
BOLIVAR, _Barry Cornwall_ 372
THE PRECIOUS JEWEL 373
THE FIERY YOUNG PATRIOT 376
SEEING BOLIVAR, _By a Young Englishman_ 378
UNCLE PAEZ--THE LION OF THE APURE 382
ANGOSTURA 384
THE CROSSING, _By One who Accompanied Bolivar_ 385
PERU NEXT 388
THE BREAK 389
BOLIVAR THE MAN, _William Spence Robertson_ 390
AUGUST 20
BERNARDO O’HIGGINS, FIRST SOLDIER,
FIRST CITIZEN OF CHILE
THE NAME OF O’HIGGINS, _W. H. Koebel_ 394
THE SON OF THE BAREFOOT BOY 395
THE SINGLE STAR FLAG 397
THE HERO OF RANCAGUA 398
COMPANIONS-IN-ARMS 400
THE PATRIOT RULER 400
FIRST SOLDIER, FIRST CITIZEN 402
CHILE AS SHE IS 403
ONE OF TWENTY 405
THE BETTER WAY 406
SEPTEMBER 6
THE MARQUIS DE LAFAYETTE, THE
FRIEND OF AMERICA
AFTER THE SACRIFICES I HAVE MADE, _Lafayette_ 412
I WILL JOIN THE AMERICANS! _Edith Sichel_ 413
IN AMERICA 414
ON THE FIELD NEAR CAMDEN 414
THE BANNER OF THE MORAVIAN NUNS 416
LOYAL TO THE CHIEF, _John Fiske_ 418
WE ARE GRATEFUL, LAFAYETTE! 420
SOME OF WASHINGTON’S HAIR, _T. R. Ybarra_ 421
WELCOME! FRIEND OF AMERICA! 422
SEPTEMBER 24
JOHN MARSHALL, THE EXPOUNDER OF
THE CONSTITUTION
HE HAD A DEEP SENSE OF MORAL AND RELIGIOUS OBLIGATION,
_Justice Joseph Story_ 426
THE BOY OF THE FRONTIER, _Albert J. Beveridge_ 427
In a Log Cabin
Off to the Blue Ridge
Making an American
Give Me Liberty!
THE YOUNG LIEUTENANT, _Horace Binney_ 433
SERVING THE CAUSE, _Henry Flanders_ 434
AT VALLEY FORGE, _William Henry Rawle_ 435
SILVER HEELS, _J. B. Thayer_ 436
WITHOUT BREAD, _John Marshall’s Sister_ 437
HIS MOTHER, _Sallie E. Marshall Hardy_ 438
HIS FATHER, _Justice Joseph Story_ 438
THREE STORIES, _James B. Thayer_ 439
What Was in the Saddlebags
Eating Cherries
Learned in the Law of Nations
THE CONSTITUTION 442
EXPOUNDING THE CONSTITUTION, _Chief Justice Waite_ 444
THE GREAT CHIEF JUSTICE, _Horace Binney_ 446
Respected by All
The True Man
WHAT OF THE CONSTITUTION? _Washington_, _Bolivar_,
_Webster_, _Lincoln_ 448
ENVOY 450
APPENDIX
I. Programme of Stories from the History of the United States 453
II. Story Programme of South America’s Struggle for Independence 460
SUBJECT INDEX 465
ILLUSTRATIONS
BREAKFAST WITH THE CHILDREN AT MOUNT VERNON _Frontispiece_
COLUMBUS EXAMINES THE PEARLS 18
ROOSEVELT BREAKING “DEVIL” 50
JOHN BILLINGTON BROUGHT ON THE SHOULDERS OF AN INDIAN 136
FRANKLIN AND THE KITE EXPERIMENT 170
“HE’S BEAUTIFUL” 182
“‘TREASON! TREASON!’ CRIED SOME OF THE EXCITED MEMBERS” 318
PAUL JONES HOISTING THE STARS AND STRIPES 362
_Drawn by Frank T. Merrill_
OCTOBER 12
COLUMBUS AND DISCOVERER’S DAY
_The Very Magnificent Lord Don Cristobal Colon, High Admiral of the
Ocean Sea, Viceroy and Governor of the Islands and Tierra Firma._
COLUMBUS
_“My men grow mutinous day by day;
My men grow ghastly wan and weak.”
The stout Mate thought of home; a spray
Of salt wave washed his swarthy cheek.
“What shall I say, brave Admiral, say,
If we sight naught but seas at dawn?”
“Why you shall say at break of day,
Sail on! Sail on! Sail on! and on!”_
_Then pale and worn, he kept his deck,
And peered through darkness. Ah, that night
Of all dark nights! And then a speck--
A light! A light! A light! A light!
It grew, a starlit Flag unfurled!
It grew to be Time’s burst of dawn.
He gained a World, he gave that World
Its grandest lesson--
“On! Sail on!”_
_From_ JOAQUIN MILLER’S _Columbus_
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS was born in Italy, about 1451
First landed on an island of America, October 12, 1492
Sighted South America, 1498
Was sent in chains to Spain, 1500
Returned from his Fourth Voyage, 1504
He died, May 20, 1506
His name in Spanish is Cristobal Colon.
THE SEA OF DARKNESS
Before America was ever heard of, over four hundred years ago, a boy
lived in Genoa the Proud City.
He was just one of hundreds of boys in that beautiful Italian town,
whose palaces, marble villas, and churches climbed her picturesque
hillsides. The boy’s name was Christopher Columbus.
Whenever he could leave his father’s workshop, where he was learning to
comb wool, for his father was a weaver, how eagerly the boy must have
run down to the wharfs and sat there watching the ships come and go.
They came from all those parts of the world which people knew about
then, from Iceland and England, from European and Asiatic ports, and
from North Africa. Caravels, galleys, and galleons, and sailing craft of
all kinds, came laden with the wealth that made Genoa one of the richest
cities of her time.
The sailors, who lounged on the wharfs, spun wonderful yarns. They told
how beyond the Pillars of Hercules which guarded the straits of
Gibraltar, there rolled a vast, unknown sea, called the Atlantic Ocean
or the Sea of Darkness.
No one, they said, had ever crossed it. No one knew what lay beyond it.
All was mystery. And any mariners, the sailors said, who had ventured
far out on its black waters had never returned.
Fearful things had happened to such mariners, the sailors added, for the
Sea of Darkness swarmed with spectres, devils, and imps. And when night
fell, slimy monsters crawled and swam in its boiling waves. Among these
monsters, was an enormous nautilus large enough to crush a whole ship in
its squirming arms, and a serpent fifty leagues long with flaming eyes
and horse’s mane. Sea-elephants, sea-lions, and sea-tigers, fed in beds
of weeds. Harpies and winged terrors flew over the surface of the water.
And horrible, they said, was the fate which overtook the ship of any
foolhardy mariners who ventured too far out on that gloomy ocean. A
gigantic hand was thrust up through the waves, and grasped the ship. A
polypus, spouting two water-spouts as high as the sky, made such a
whirlpool that the vessel, spinning round and round like a top, was
sucked down into the roaring abyss.
These frightful sea-yarns and many like them, the sailors told about the
Atlantic Ocean, and people believed them. But the eyes of the boy
Columbus, as he sat listening, must have sparkled as he longed to
explore those mysterious waters of the Sea of Darkness, and follow them
to the very edge of the world.
For all that lay to the west of the Azores, was a great and fascinating
mystery, when Columbus was a boy, before America was discovered.
THE FORTUNATE ISLES
Listen now to some of the stories that the Irish sailors who visited
Genoa, told when Columbus was a boy. And people in those days, believed
them to be true.
They told how far, far in the West, where the sun set in crimson
splendour, lay the Terrestrial Paradise from which Adam and Eve were
driven. And other wonder tales the sailors told.
One was the enchanting tale of Maeldune, the Celtic Knight, who seeking
his father’s murderer, sailed over the wide Atlantic in a coracle of
skins lapped threefold, one over the other.
Many were the wonder-islands that Maeldune and his comrades visited--the
Island of the Silvern Column; the Island of the Flaming Rampart; the
Islands of the Monstrous Ants, and the Giant Birds; the Islands of the
Fierce Beasts, the Fiery Swine, and the Little Cat; the Islands of the
Black Mourners, the Glass Bridge, and the Spouting Water; the Islands of
the Red Berries, and the Magic Apples; and the islands of many other
wonders.
Many were the strange adventures that Maeldune had in enchanted castles
with beautiful Queens and lovely damsels, with monstrous birds,
sleep-giving potions, and magic food.
And the Irish sailors told, also, of good St. Brandan who set sail in a
coracle, and discovered the Fortunate Isles. There he dwelt in blessed
happiness, they said:--
“_And his voice was low as from other worlds, and his eyes were sweet;_
_And his white hair sank to his heels, and his white beard
fell to his feet._”
And still another tale the Irish sailors told, a tale of Fairy Land,
called the Land of Youth. Thither once went Usheen the Irish Bard.
It happened on a sweet, misty morning that Usheen saw a slender
snow-white steed come pacing along the shore of Erin. Silver were his
shoes, and a nodding crest of gold was on his head. Upon his back was
seated a Fairy Maiden crowned with gold, and wrapped in a trailing
mantle adorned with stars of red gold.
Weirdly but sweetly she smiled, and sang an Elfin song; while over sea
and shore there fell a dreamy silence. Through the fine mist she urged
on her steed, singing sweeter and ever sweeter as she came nearer and
nearer to Usheen.
She drew rein before him. His friends saw him spring upon the steed, and
fold the Fairy Maiden in his arms. She shook the bridle which rang forth
like a chime of bells, and swiftly they sped over the water and across
the sea, the snow-white steed running lightly over the waves.
They plunged into a golden haze that shrouded them from mortal eyes.
Ghostly towers, castles, and palace-gates loomed dimly before Usheen,
then melted away. A hornless doe bounded near him, chased by a white
hound. They vanished into the haze.
Then a Fairy Damsel rode swiftly past Usheen, holding up a golden apple
to him. Fast behind her, galloped a horseman, his purple cloak streaming
in the still air, a sharp sword glittering in his hand. They, too,
melted mysteriously away.
And soon Usheen himself vanished into the Land of Youth, into Fairy
Land.
These are some of the wonder tales that folk used to tell about the
mysterious Atlantic Ocean, when Columbus was a boy.
THE ABSURD TRUTH
When Columbus was a boy, there was a story told that the Earth was
round. Nearly every one who heard it thought it foolish--absurd.
“The Earth round!” they said; “do we not know that the Earth is flat?
And does not the sun set each night at the edge of the World?”
But young Columbus had a powerful, practical imagination. He believed
there were good reasons to think that the Earth was not flat. He
attended the University of Pavia. He studied astronomy and other
sciences. He learned map-making. He read how the ancient philosophers
thought the Earth to be a sphere and how they had tried to prove their
theory by observing the sun, moon, and stars.
Then, too, there were scholars in Europe, when Columbus was young, who
agreed with the philosophers.
But no scholar or philosopher had ever risked his life in a frail ship
and ventured across the terrible Sea of Darkness to battle with its
horrors, and prove his theory to be fact. The surging billows of the
Atlantic with angry leaping crests of foam, still guarded their mystery.
Young Columbus became a sailor, cruising with his uncle on the
Mediterranean, sometimes chasing pirate ships. When older, he made long
voyages. He learned to navigate a vessel. He visited, so some historians
say, England and Thule. They say, too, that Thule was Iceland. Then if
he visited Iceland, Columbus must have heard the strange tale of how
Leif, son of Erik the Red, the bold Northman, sailed in a single ship
over the Sea of Darkness, and discovered Vinland the Good on the other
side of the Atlantic.
Columbus talked with sailors about their voyages. He heard how the waves
of the Sea of Darkness sometimes cast upon the Islands of the Azores,
gigantic bamboos, queer trees, strange nuts, seeds, carved logs, and
bodies of hideous men with flat faces, the flotsam and jetsam from
unknown lands far to the west.
Columbus’s imagination and spirit of adventure were fired. He became
more eager than ever to explore that vast expanse of water, and learn
what really lay in the mysterious region, where the sun set each night
and from which the sun returned each morning.
“The Earth is not flat,” thought he, “much goes to prove it. India, from
which gold and spices come, is assuredly on the other side. If I can but
cross the Sea of Darkness, I shall reach Tartary and Cathay the Golden
Country of Kublai Khan. I shall have found a Western Passage to Asia. I
will bring back treasure; but more than all else I shall be able to
carry the Gospel of Christ to the heathen.”
For Columbus, you must know, was one of the most devout Christian men of
his time.
And he signed his name to letters, “Christ Bearing.” _Christopher_ in
the Greek language, means Christ-Bearer. Perhaps, he was thinking of
the beautiful legend of St. Christopher, who on his mighty shoulders
bore the Christ Child across the swelling river, even as he, Christopher
Columbus, humbly wished to bear Christ’s Gospel across the raging waters
of the Sea of Darkness.
CATHAY THE GOLDEN
Where was Cathay the Golden?
Who was Kublai Khan?
One of Columbus’s favourite books was written by Marco Polo, the great
Venetian traveller, who served Kublai, Grand Khan of Tartary in Asia.
Cathay was the name which Marco Polo gave to China.
In his book, Marco Polo told of many marvels. In the chief city of
Cathay the Golden, ruled over by Kublai Khan, stood the Grand Khan’s
palace. Its walls were covered with gold and silver, and adorned with
figures of dragons, beasts, and birds. Its lofty roof was coloured
outside with vermilion, yellow, green, blue, and every other hue, all
shining like crystal.
To this city of Cathay, were brought the most costly articles in the
world, gold, silver, precious jewels, spices, and rare silks. The Grand
Khan had so many plates, cups, and ewers of gold and silver, that no one
would believe it without seeing them. He had five thousand elephants in
magnificent trappings, bearing chests on their backs filled with
priceless treasure. He had also, a vast number of camels with rich
housings.
At the New Year Feast, the people made presents to Kublai Khan of gold,
silver, pearls, precious stones, and rich stuffs. They presented him,
also, with many beautiful snow-white horses handsomely caparisoned.
These and other wonderful things, did Marco Polo write about in his
book, and Columbus read them all.
* * * * *
At last the time came, when Columbus was fully determined to discover a
Western Passage, and thus open a path through the Ocean from Europe to
Asia.
The Spanish courtiers laughed at Columbus; they called him a fool and
madman to believe that the Sea of Darkness might be crossed. But as the
years of waiting went by, Columbus grew stronger in his determination.
The story of his many years of patient but determined waiting in Spain,
of his pleadings with King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, for money, men,
and ships with which to cross the Ocean Sea, is told in “Good Stories
for Great Holidays.”
And in “Good Stories for Great Holidays,” it is told how at last
Columbus was befriended by the Friar Juan Perez. There also may be
found the stories of Columbus and the Egg, of his little son Diego at La
Rabida, of Queen Isabella pledging her jewels, of Columbus’s sailing
across the Sea of Darkness, of the mutiny, of his faith, perseverance,
and wisdom, and how at last he sighted a cluster of beautiful green
islands, lying like emeralds in the blue waters of the Atlantic--all
these stories may be read in “Good Stories for Great Holidays.”
THE EMERALD ISLANDS
_Columbus’s Day, October 12, 1492_
It was with songs of praise, that Columbus first landed on one of those
emerald islands of the New World.
And what delightful islands they were, sparkling with streams, and
filled with trees of great height. There were fruits, flowers, and honey
in abundance. Among the large leaves and bright blossoms, flocks of
birds sang and called. There were cultivated fields of Indian corn.
And there were savages, naked dark-skinned folk, who peeped from behind
trees, or ran frightened away. Later they grew bolder, and traded with
Columbus and his men. Some of the savages smoked rolls of dried leaves.
This was the first tobacco that white men had ever seen. Thus Columbus
and his men discovered Indian corn, and tobacco.
As Columbus sailed along the shores of the islands, he watched anxiously
for the crystal-shining domes of Kublai Khan’s Palace to rise among the
trees. But no Cathay the Golden gleamed among the green, no elephants in
trappings of cloth-of-gold, paced the sands.
Instead, all was wild though so beautiful. The only people were the
dark-skinned ones, whom Columbus named _Indians_; for he was sure that
he had come across the Sea of Darkness by the Western Passage to India.
THE MAGNIFICENT RETURN
It was a day of great rejoicing when Columbus returned to Spain. The
whole country rose up to do him honour. Bells were rung, mass was said,
and vast crowds cheered him as he passed along streets and highways.
No one called him a fool and madman then. Had he not crossed the Sea of
Darkness and returned alive? Neither nautilus, gigantic hand, nor
polypus had dared to harm him. The Sea of Darkness was a mysterious
gloomy sea no longer, instead it was the wide Atlantic Ocean, a safe
pathway for brave mariners and good ships, a pathway leading to new
lands of gold and spices far toward the setting sun. And so all Spain
did honour to Columbus.
King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella eagerly awaited him at Barcelona. He
entered that city with pomp and in procession. Balconies, windows, roofs
were thronged. Crowds surged through the streets to gaze in wonder on
that strange procession, so spectacular, so magnificent.
First came the dark-skinned savage men, in paint and gold ornaments;
after them walked men bearing live parrots of every colour; then others
came carrying rich glittering coronets and bracelets, together with
beautiful fruits and strange vegetables and plants, such as the people
of Europe had never dreamed could exist.
Then passed the great discoverer himself, Christopher Columbus,
a-horseback, and surrounded by a cavalcade of the most brilliant
courtiers of Spain.
He dismounted, and entered the saloon where the King and Queen sat
beneath a canopy of brocade. He modestly greeted them on bended knee.
They raised him most graciously, and bade him be seated in their
presence.
After they had heard his tale with wonder, and had examined the
treasures that he had brought with him from beyond the Sea of Darkness,
the King and Queen together with their whole Court knelt in thanksgiving
to God.
To reward Columbus, his Sovereigns bestowed upon him the titles of Don
Christopher Columbus, Our Admiral of the Ocean Sea, and Viceroy and
Governor of the Islands discovered in the Indies. They also promised to
make him ruler over any other islands and mainland he might discover.
Columbus immediately began to prepare for another voyage. With a fleet
of seventeen ships, bearing supplies and colonists, he sailed across the
Sea of Darkness once more to the islands of the New World. He planted a
colony there. He discovered other islands. And he still kept on
searching diligently for Cathay the Golden.
Turbulent adventurers, rapacious gold-hunters, and vicious men, were
among the colonists. And Columbus, in the name of his Sovereigns, with
great difficulty ruled over them all.
THE FATAL PEARLS
_Tierra Firme_
It was in May, 1498. The fleet of Admiral Don Christopher Columbus, in
the name of the Holy Trinity, set sail from Spain for a third voyage
across the Atlantic.
It was no longer a Sea of Darkness to Columbus, but a sure pathway to
golden lands. There he still hoped to find the Earthly Paradise from
which Adam and Eve had been driven. And there too, he still expected to
discover Cathay the Golden in Tartary, and Cipango, the great island of
the western sea, which we call Japan.
His ships sailed on, now plunging through the lifting billows, now lying
becalmed on glassy waters under the fierce rays of the tropic sun, and
now moving through a region of balmy airs and light refreshing breezes.
July arrived, yet he had not sighted land. The fierce heat of the sun
had sprung the seams of the ships. The provisions were rancid. There was
scarcely any sweet water left in the casks. The anxious, watchful
Admiral scanned the horizon.
On the last day of the month, came a shout from the masthead:--“Land!”
And Columbus beheld the peaks of three mountains rising from the sea,
outlined sharply against the sky. Then he and his men, lifting up their
voices, sang anthems of praise and repeated prayers of thanksgiving.
As the ships drew nearer to the three peaks, Columbus perceived that
they rose from an island and were united at their base.
“Three in one,” he said, and named the island after the Holy Trinity in
whose name he had set sail. For he had vowed before leaving Spain, to
name the first new land he saw after the Trinity. That is why that
island, to-day, is called Trinidad.
They filled their casks there. Then onward they sailed, skirting the
coast of Trinidad, hoping to find a harbour to put into while repairing
the ships. Soon, they saw a misty headland opposite the island.
“It is another island,” said Columbus.
It was no island. Wonderful to relate, Columbus had just discovered a
new Country.
It was the coastline of a vast southern continent. It was _Tierra
Firme_. It was South America!
_The Pearls_
Young Indian braves, graceful and handsome, their black hair straight
and long, their heads wrapped in brilliant scarfs, other bright scarfs
wound round their middles, came in a canoe to visit Columbus’s ships.
Soon after this visit, Columbus set sail again, not knowing that he had
just sighted one of the richest and greatest continents on earth.
Sailing past the mouths of the mighty Orinoco River, pouring out their
torrents with angry roar into the Caribbean Sea, Columbus skirted what
is now called Venezuela.
Other friendly Indians came to his ships. It was then that Columbus saw
for the first time the pearls which were to help ruin him, and which
were to work wretchedness and death for so many poor Indian folk.
Among the friendly Indians were some who wore bracelets of lustrous
pearls. The gold and spices got by Columbus on his former voyages were
of slight beauty compared with those strings of magnificent pearls.
Columbus examined them eagerly. He longed for some to send back to Queen
Isabella, in order to prove to her what a rich land he had just
discovered.
He questioned the Indians. Where had they got the pearls? They came from
their own land, and from a country to the north and west, they answered.
Columbus was eager to go thither. But first he sent men ashore to barter
for some of the bracelets. With bright bits of earthenware, with
buttons, scissors, and needles, they bought quantities of the pearls
from the delighted Indians, to whom such articles were worth more than
gold and jewels of which they had plenty.
Then Columbus, hoisting sail, ran farther along the coast purchasing
pearls until he had half a bushel or so of the lustrous sea-jewels, some
of them of very large size.
He named a great gulf, the Gulf of Pearls. He discovered other islands,
among them the island of Margarita, which means a pearl.
After which he turned his ships toward Santo Domingo, not knowing how
tragic a thing was to befall him there, partly on account of the
pearls.
[Illustration: COLUMBUS EXAMINES THE PEARLS]
_The Curse of the Pearls_
Those fatal sea-jewels had already begun their evil work.
While Columbus was tarrying to collect them, a rebellion fomented by bad
men who had taken advantage of his absence, had broken out in the Island
of Santo Domingo. When Columbus reached there, he suppressed it. But his
enemies hastened to send lying reports about him to the Spanish Court.
And the courtiers, who were jealous of his high position, wealth, and
power, urged King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella to have him deposed.
One of their accusations against him was, that he had held back from his
Sovereigns their rightful portion of the rich find of pearls.
So at last, the royal edict went forth that the very magnificent Don
Christopher Columbus, Admiral of the Ocean Sea, Viceroy and Governor of
the Indies, should be tried and, if found guilty, deposed and returned
to Spain.
The man sent to do all this, and govern in Columbus’s stead, was named
Bobadilla.
Bobadilla arrived at Santo Domingo with royal commands for Columbus to
surrender all power to him, and to obey him in everything. He caused him
to be arrested and thrown into prison. He tried and condemned him. He
ordered him put into chains. But no one could be found to rivet the
chains until one of Columbus’s own servants, “a shameless and graceless
cook,” did so with glee.
Then Bobadilla reigned in Columbus’s place over the Indies.
Meanwhile, the grand old Admiral broken in spirit, carped at by his
foes, was placed in manacles aboard a caravel.
Bobadilla had given orders that the chains should not be removed, but
the humane master of the ship offered to break them.
“Nay,” said Columbus with dignity, “my Sovereigns have commanded me to
submit, and Bobadilla has chained me. I will wear these irons until by
royal order they are removed. And I shall keep them as relics and
memorials of the reward of my services.”
But when Queen Isabella learned how he had been brought back to Spain in
shackles, she was greatly angered. Both Sovereigns commanded that he
should be immediately released. And when the venerable Columbus grown
old in her service, entered her presence, Queen Isabella wept bitterly.
Columbus fell at her feet, unable to utter a word, so great was his
sorrow.
Both Sovereigns promised to restore all his titles and the wealth which
had been taken from him by force. But though Bobadilla was finally
deposed from power because of his treatment of Columbus and because of
his evil rule, yet the royal promise was not fulfilled. His titles and
property were never restored to Columbus.
Instead, he was again sent overseas, on a fourth voyage of discovery.
With four miserable caravels manned by only a hundred and fifty men, the
gray-headed, weary Columbus set forth once more still hoping to discover
the country of Kublai Khan, and find the Earthly Paradise. And this time
Columbus took with him his younger son, Ferdinand, who was thirteen
years old.
QUEEN ISABELLA’S PAGE
Off to find Kublai Khan, to drink from his golden cups, to eat from his
silvern plates, to ride his elephants, to visit in his great palace,
and, perhaps, to discover the Earthly Paradise--what more thrilling
adventure could a boy want?
So Ferdinand Columbus, Queen Isabella’s page, eager for adventure, set
sail with his father Columbus, to cross the Sea of Darkness and explore
beyond the emerald islands.
For, while his father, on his former voyage, had been gathering pearls
among the Pearl Islands of the New World, the boy Ferdinand, amid the
splendour of the Spanish Court, had been waiting upon Queen Isabella.
But now, what a change! Ferdinand was off across the heaving, foaming
Sea of Darkness in a small caravel tossed about like a cockleshell on
the billows. A tempest with rain, thunder, and lightning arose. It
struck Columbus’s wretched caravels. They were buffeted by the wind,
their sails were torn, their rigging, cables, and boats were lost. Food
was washed overboard. The sailors were terrified, they ran about making
religious vows and confessing their sins to each other. Even the boldest
was pale with fear.
“But the distress of my son who was with me, grieved me to the soul ...”
wrote Columbus afterward, “for he was but thirteen years old, and he
enduring so much toil for so long a time. Our Lord, however, gave him
strength to enable him to encourage the rest. He worked as if he had
been eighty years at sea.”
But there was more to trouble plucky Ferdinand than the storm at sea.
Columbus, his father, fell sick near to death. There was no one who
could direct the ships’ course, but Columbus himself. So he had a little
cabin rigged up on deck. Lying there, he gave his orders. Presently, to
Ferdinand’s joy, he grew better.
Meanwhile, what was happening to the wicked Bobadilla? That same tempest
was doing great things. It was buffeting, lashing, and wrecking a
caravel which was taking Bobadilla to Spain. The ship, plunging under
the howling, raging, black waters, sank to the bottom of the ocean,
taking Bobadilla with it, and the treasure he had stolen from Columbus.
But Columbus’s own caravels won safely through the storm and across the
Caribbean Sea. They drew near to an unknown shore--the coast of Central
America.
There is not space here in which to tell of the many adventures of
Columbus and his men, nor of all the things that Ferdinand saw. There
were other storms. At one time, the seas ran high and terrific, foaming
like a caldron. The sky burned like a furnace, the lightning played with
such fury that the waves were red like blood.
The coast of Central America was thickly peopled with savages. Some of
them were richly clothed, and wore ornaments of gold and coral, and
carried golden mirrors fastened round their necks. Ferdinand saw other
savages in trees living like wild birds, their huts built on sticks
placed across from bough to bough. He saw strange beasts, beautiful
birds, delicious fruits, brilliant flowers, great apes, and alligators
basking in the rivers.
There were fights with natives, a massacre of some of his father’s men,
there was starvation and misery. Then Columbus, after having sailed down
the coast and back again, turned the ships homeward.
Then came the most terrible adventure of all. The ships were riddled by
worms, their sides were rotten, and the water was pouring through them
like a sieve. Columbus reached the lonely island of Jamaica, just in
time to drive his two remaining ships on the beach, and save them from
sinking.
There for many months Ferdinand was marooned with his father and the
men. There was more starvation, a mutiny, and adventures with savages.
Then came the exciting rescue by two caravels.
Such were the adventures of Queen Isabella’s page. But he went back to
Spain without seeing Cathay the Golden and Kublai Khan’s palace.
THE TWIN CITIES
While Columbus was exploring the coast of Central America, he fell sick
of a fever. He had a dream. He tells us of this dream in his own
letters.
He dreamed that a compassionate Voice spoke to him, bidding him believe
in God, and serve Him who had had him from infancy in His constant and
watchful care, and who had chosen him to unlock the barriers of the
Ocean Sea.
This Voice said many things to Columbus, adding these words, “Even now
He partially shows thee the reward of so many toils and dangers
incurred by thee in the service of others. Fear not but trust.”
And even then, Columbus, though he did not know it, was actually seeing
the land where his hopes were to come true. For to-day, we Americans
know that while Columbus was exploring inlets and river-mouths on the
coast of Central America searching for the Western Passage to Asia, he
entered Limon Bay of Panama. He even sailed part way up the Chagres
River.
And if his melancholy eager eyes might have been opened, what a vision
he would have had of the future! He would have beheld the Caribbean Sea
beating on civilized shores. He would have seen Twin Cities rising,
their pleasant white, palm-shaded houses smiling in the sun, the Twin
Cities of Cristobal and Colon--Christopher and Columbus--proud to bear
his famous name. He would have seen those Twin Cities guarding _a
Western Passage to Asia_.
He would have perceived in his vision ships, greater than any Spanish
caravels, sliding through a Canal the wonder of the world, on their way
to and from Asia the Golden.
* * * * *
But as it was, in a miserable little caravel, tempest-racked, with masts
sprung and sides worm-eaten, the weary disappointed Columbus with the
boy Ferdinand, returned at last to Spain.
And about two years later, in the City of Valladolid, “the Grand Old
Admiral,” who had given a New World to the Old, died almost in poverty.
As he passed away, he murmured, “Into Thy hands, O Lord, I commend my
spirit.”
THE PEARLS AGAIN
The curse of the pearls still held strong after Columbus’s death. News
of the discovery of the Pearl Islands in the New World, spread rapidly
through Europe. Many cruel and greedy pearl-hunters hastened to set out
for the islands.
They pillaged the native villages. They hunted the Indians like wild
beasts. They forced them to work in the mines. But, worst of all, they
made them dive into the deep sea for pearls, under the most horrible
conditions.
Then it was that the compassionate friend of the Indians, the humane
priest Bartolome de Las Casas, took up their cause and pleaded for them
with the Spanish Crown. But Spain was too far away for the Crown to
control Spanish officials in America, and do much to lessen the
sufferings of the natives.
Thus sorrow and desolation followed the finding of the sea-jewels. In
time, they became a rich part of the cargoes of the Treasure Galleons.
And they forged one of the first links in the chain of oppression which
bound all Spanish America for over three hundred years.
For how this chain was broken by the great Liberators, read:--
_Miranda, the Flaming Son of Liberty_, page 325; _San Martin, the
Protector_, page 235; _O’Higgins, First Soldier, First Citizen_,
page 393; _Bolivar, the Liberator_, page 371.
OCTOBER 14
WILLIAM PENN THE FOUNDER OF PENNSYLVANIA
_As Justice is a preserver, so it is a better procurer of Peace,
than War._
WILLIAM PENN
_Within the Land of Penn,
The sectary yielded to the citizen,
And peaceful dwelt the many-creeded men._
_Peace brooded over all. No trumpet stung
The air to madness, and no steeple flung
Alarums down from bells at midnight rung._
_The Land slept well. The Indian from his face
Washed all his war-paint off, and in the place
Of battle-marches, sped the peaceful chase._
* * * * *
_The desert blossomed round him; wheatfields rolled
Beneath the warm wind, waves of green and gold,
The planted ear returned its hundredfold._
JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER
WILLIAM PENN was born in London, October 14, 1644
Received the Charter, granting him Pennsylvania, 1681
Composed the Plan for the Peace of Europe, 1693
He died in England, May 30, 1718.
THE BOY OF GREAT TOWER HILL
In a house on Great Tower Hill near London Wall, was born William Penn,
who was to become the Founder of Pennsylvania.
He was christened William after his ancestor, Penn of Penn’s Lodge. He
was a charming baby, with round face, soft blue eyes, and curling hair.
His father, Captain Penn, who had been called home to see the new baby
on that first birthday of little William Penn, went back to his ship
rejoicing that he had such a handsome son and heir.
When William Penn was ten years old, a strange thing befell him. He was
not like other boys. He was quiet and serious. At that time he was a
schoolboy in an English village.
One day, he was alone in his room. Suddenly he felt a wonderful peace
and an “inner comfort,” while a glory filled the room. He felt that he
was drawn near to God, so that his soul might speak with him. A strange
experience for a boy to have. But it was an experience which helped to
shape William Penn’s life. From that time on, he believed that he had
been called to live a holy life.
When he grew older, his family tried to make him forget this religious
experience, but he never forgot. In time he became a Friend--or Quaker.
In those days, Friends were bitterly persecuted in England. William Penn
suffered imprisonments and persecutions, but always with patient
sweetness and endurance.
At last, the persecutions of the Friends made William Penn turn his
thoughts toward the New World of America.
HE WORE IT AS LONG AS HE COULD
When William Penn became a Friend, he did not immediately leave off his
gay apparel, as other Friends did. He even wore a sword, as was
customary among men of rank and fashion.
One day, being with George Fox the great leader of the Friends, he asked
his advice about wearing the sword, saying that it had once been the
means of saving his life without injuring his antagonist, and that
moreover Christ has said, “He that hath no sword, let him sell his
garment and buy one.”
“I advise thee,” answered George Fox quietly, “to wear it _as long as
thou canst_.”
Shortly after this, they met again. William Penn had no sword.
“William,” said George Fox, “where is thy sword?”
“Oh!” replied William Penn, “I have taken thy advice. I wore it _as long
as I could_!”
_Samuel M. Janney_ (_Retold_)
THE PEACEMAKER
“He must not be a man but a statue of brass or stone, whose bowels do
not melt when he beholds the bloody tragedies of this war in Hungary,
Germany, Flanders, Ireland, and at sea; the mortality of sickly and
languishing camps and navies; and the mighty prey the devouring winds
and waves have made upon ships and men,” wrote William Penn over two
hundred years ago.
It was then that William Penn became the peacemaker.
The world was in the midst of a terrible war. William Penn did not
believe in war. He had cast aside his own sword for principle’s sake,
and had bravely suffered persecutions and imprisonments in the Tower of
London and in Newgate. Fearlessly now he came forward with a plan for
world peace, which he hoped would stop bloody wars, and persuade rulers
to arbitrate their quarrels.
He published a “Plan for the Peace of Europe,” urging the formation of a
league of European countries.
So earnest is this plan and so profoundly thought out, that it has had
much influence on rulers and statesmen, who from time to time have held
peace congresses in Europe. But rivalry of Nations, has prevented the
peace plan from ever being carried out.
“Christians,” argued William Penn, “have embrewed their hands in one
another’s blood, invoking and interesting all they could the good and
merciful God to prosper their arms to their brethren’s destruction. Yet
their Saviour has told them that He came to save and not to destroy the
lives of men, to give and plant peace among men. And, if in any sense,
He may be said to send war, it is the Holy War indeed, for it is against
the Devil, and not the persons of men. Of all His titles, this seems the
most glorious as well as comfortable for us, that He is the _Prince of
Peace_.”
WESTWARD HO, AND AWAY!
The time arrived when William Penn’s peaceful thoughts went sailing over
the Atlantic, westward ho, and away! For he was appointed a trustee of
Jersey in America. There came to him while he was still in England, news
of immense tracts of land lying beyond Jersey, so fertile that under
cultivation they would yield harvests unparalleled in his island home.
He heard of rich minerals, of noble forests, of river-banks offering
splendid sites for towns and cities, of bays where proud navies might
ride at anchor.
Moreover, many Friends, who had fled from persecution in England, were
settled in Jersey. Their industry had already turned the wilderness into
a garden. They were holding their meetings and worshipping God, without
fear of constables and fines, of imprisonments and attacks by mobs. In
Jersey, they had full liberty of conscience.
And William Penn, as his thoughts sailed westward ho, and away! saw,
rising from the sea, bright and fair, a land of refuge not only for
persecuted Friends, but for all oppressed people. He determined to found
a new State in America, where nobody should be persecuted for religion’s
sake, where everybody should be free, and where the people should govern
themselves. “A holy experiment,” he called it.
He presented a petition to Charles the Second, asking for a royal grant
of land near Jersey. “After many waitings, watchings, solicitings,” the
title to a vast tract was confirmed to him under the Great Seal of
England. He was to be its ruler and “Lord Proprietor,” “with large
powers and privileges.” He was to make laws, grant pardons, and appoint
officials as he saw fit, but subject to the approval of the English
Government.
Penn named his land, “Sylvania”; but the King called it Penn-sylvania,
in honour of old Admiral Penn, William Penn’s father.
Almost the first thing that Penn did was to write to the people already
settled in Pennsylvania, “a loving address.”
“My Friends,” he began, “I wish you all happiness, here and hereafter.
These are to let you know that it hath pleased God, in his providence,
to cast you within my lot and care....
“You shall be governed by laws of your own making, and live a free, and,
if you will, a sober and industrious people.”
Thus William Penn promised the People of Pennsylvania, Liberty and the
right to govern themselves. And he kept his promises.
_John Stoughton_ (_Retold_)
THE CITY OF BROTHERLY LOVE
With what delight did William Penn first set foot on the shore of the
Delaware River. It was Autumn. The sweet clear air, the serene skies,
the trees, fruits, and flowers, filled him with a wellnigh unspeakable
joy.
And later, while being rowed up the river in a barge, he saw the ancient
forest trees on either bank, their leaves flaming with red, gold, and
amber. He saw flocks of wild fowl rise up from the water, and fly
screaming overhead. The solitude and grandeur of the wilderness brooded
over all.
Meanwhile, farther up the river, a welcome was awaiting him. In a little
town, shaded by pine-trees and built on the high shore, there were white
men and Indians hurrying to and fro. They were preparing an
entertainment for William Penn, their Governor.
The town was Penn’s capital city. He had named it Philadelphia, which
means Brotherly Love.
And as his barge drew near the City of Brotherly Love, the white
settlers, Swedish, Dutch, and English Friends, greeted him heartily, for
they already knew how just, gentle, and wise he was.
As for the Indians, so stately in their robes of fur and nodding plumes,
William Penn walked with them, and sat down on the ground to eat with
them. They gave him hominy and roasted acorns. And after the feast, they
entertained him with their sports, jumping and hopping. And William Penn
sprang up gayly like a boy, and joining in their games, beat them all,
young Braves and old.
And so the Red Men learned to love and trust their great White
Father--Onas they called him. For Onas is Indian for a pen, or a quill.
Such was William Penn’s happy welcome to the City of Brotherly Love.
THE PLACE OF KINGS
It was the last of November. The lofty forest trees on the shore of the
Delaware had shed their summer attire. The ground was strewn with
leaves. A Council-fire was burning brightly beneath a huge Elm, not far
from the City of Brotherly Love.
It was an ancient Elm, which for over a hundred years had guarded
Shackamaxon, the Place of Kings. For long before the Pale-faces had
landed on the shore of the Delaware, Indian Sachems, Kings of the Red
Skins, had held their friendly councils in its shade, and smoked many a
Pipe of Peace.
On that November day, the tribes of the Lenni Lenapé under the
wide-spreading branches of the Elm, were gathered around the
Council-fire. They were seated in a half circle, like a half moon. They
were all unarmed.
Among the Chiefs, was the Great Sachem Taminend, revered for his wisdom
and beloved for his goodness. He sat in the middle of the half moon,
with his council, the aged and wise, on either hand.
They waited.
Then, lo! a barge approached. At its masthead flew the broad pennant of
Governor William Penn. The oars were plied with measured strokes,
guiding the barge to land. And near the helm sat William Penn attended
by his council.
He landed with his people, and advanced toward the Council-fire. A
handsome man he was, only thirty-eight years old, athletic, and
graceful. His manners were courteous, his blue eyes were friendly. He
was plainly dressed, with a scarf of sky-blue network bound about his
waist.
Some of his people preceded him. They carried presents for the Indians,
which they laid on the ground before them.
Then William Penn approached the Council-fire.
Thereupon the Great Sachem, Taminend, put on a chaplet surmounted by a
horn, the emblem of his power, and through an interpreter announced that
the Nations were ready to hear William Penn.
Thus being called upon, William Penn began his speech:--
“The Great Spirit,” he said, “who made me and you, who rules the heavens
and the earth, and who knows the innermost thoughts of men, knows that I
and my friends have a hearty desire to live in peace and friendship with
you, and to serve you to the utmost of our power.
“It is not our custom to use hostile weapons against our
fellow-creatures, for which reason we have come unarmed. Our object is
not to do injury, and thus provoke the Great Spirit, but to do good.
“We are met on the broad pathway of good faith and good will, so that no
advantage is to be taken on either side, but all to be openness,
brotherhood, and love.”
Here William Penn unrolled a parchment on which was inscribed an
agreement for trading, and promises of friendship. He explained the
agreement article by article. Then laying the parchment on the ground,
he said that that spot should ever more be common to both
Peoples,--Pale-face and Red Skin.
The Indians listened to his speech in perfect silence, and with deep
gravity. And when he was finished speaking, they deliberated together,
for some time. Then the Great Sachem ordered one of his Chiefs to
address William Penn.
The Chief advanced, and in the Sachem’s name saluted him, and taking
William Penn by the hand, made a speech pledging kindness and
neighbourliness, saying that the English and the Lenni Lenapé should
live together in love, so long as the sun and the moon should endure.
_Samuel M. Janney_ (_Retold_)
ONAS
After the Treaty was made at the Place of Kings, the Lenni Lenapé, for
many years enjoyed the mild and just rule of their “elder brother Onas.”
He met them often around the Council-fire, hearing and rectifying their
wrongs, adjusting trade matters, and smoking with them the Pipe of
Peace.
And William Penn made treaties with the Indians who dwelt on the
Potomac, and with the Five Nations. Thus Pennsylvania had quiet; and the
Red Men were friends of the settlers. Sometimes they brought the white
men venison, beans, and maize, and refused to take pay. Whereas, in the
other Colonies, the Indians were dangerous neighbours, cruel and
delighting in blood. They had been made suspicious and revengeful by the
injustice and wickedness of white men.
So the Red Men of Pennsylvania, trusted William Penn, although he was a
Pale-face. What Pale-face had they ever seen like him? A Pale-face was
to them a trapper, a soldier, a pirate, a man who cheated them in
barter, who gave them fire-water to drink, who hustled them off their
hunting-ground.
But here was one Pale-face, who would not cheat and lie; who would not
fire into their lodge; who would not rob them of their beaver skins;
who would not take a rood of land from them, till they had fixed and he
had paid their price.
Where were they to look for such another lord?
So when they heard that Onas was about to sail for England, Indians from
all parts of Pennsylvania gathered to take sorrowful leave of him.
After he was gone, they preserved with care the memory of their treaties
with him, by means of strings or belts of wampum. Often they gathered
together in the woods, on some shady spot, and laid their wampum belts
on a blanket or a clean piece of bark, and with great satisfaction went
over the whole. So great was their reverence and affection for William
Penn, inspired by his virtues, that they handed on the memory of his
name to their children.
* * * * *
When William Penn died in England, the Indians sent his wife a message,
mourning the loss of their “honoured brother Onas.”
And with the message went a present of beautiful skins for a cloak “to
protect her while passing through the thorny wilderness without her
guide.”
_W. Hepworth Dixon and Other Sources_
OCTOBER 27
THEODORE ROOSEVELT AMERICA’S HERO
_On behalf of all our people, on behalf no less of the honest man of
means, than of the honest man who earns each day’s livelihood by that
day’s sweat of his brow, it is necessary to insist upon honesty in
business and politics alike, in all walks of life, in big things and in
little things; upon just and fair dealing as between man and man._
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
THE SQUARE DEAL
_We of the great modern democracies, must strive unceasingly to make our
several Countries, lands in which a poor man who works hard can live
comfortably and honestly, and in which a rich man cannot live
dishonestly nor in slothful avoidance of duty._
_And yet, we must judge rich man and poor man alike by a standard which
rests on conduct and not on caste. And we must frown with the same stern
severity on the mean and vicious envy which hates and would plunder a
man because he is well off, and on the brutal and selfish arrogance,
which looks down on and exploits the man with whom life has gone hard._
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
COLONEL THEODORE ROOSEVELT was born in New York City, October 27,
1858
Was appointed Police Commissioner of New York City, 1895
Aided in establishing the Independence of Cuba, 1898
Was elected Governor of the State of New York, 1898
Served as President of the United States, 1901-1909
He died, January 6, 1919.
THE BOY WHO GREW STRONG
_Not in a Log Cabin_
Theodore Roosevelt, unlike Abraham Lincoln, was not born in a log cabin.
On the contrary, he was born to wealth and position in the City of New
York.
He was reared in an elegant home and educated in one of the famous
universities of the Country. He read law, but he had no need to practise
a profession. His father had retired from business, and there was no
occasion for the son to take up a business career.
But Theodore Roosevelt preferred for himself a life of toil--the
strenuous life.
Ill-health was the first and greatest of all his disadvantages. “When a
boy,” said he, “I was pig-chested and asthmatic.”
From earliest infancy he was called to battle with asthma. It lowered
his vitality and threatened his growth. His body was frail, but within
was the conquering spirit. He determined to be strong like other boys.
In this, he had the loving help of gentle parents. On the wide back
porch of their home in the City of New York, they fitted up a gymnasium,
where he strove for bodily vigour with all his might. Although at the
start, his pole climbing was very poor, he kept trying until he got to
the top. He would carry his gymnastic exercises to the perilous verge of
the window ledge, more to the alarm of the neighbours than of his own
family.
_In the Wide Out-of-Doors_
Summer was the season of Roosevelt’s delight. Then he ceased to be a
city boy. At his father’s country place on Long Island, he learned to
run and ride, row, and swim. And when the long sleepless nights came,
the father would take his invalid boy in his arms, wrap him up warmly,
and drive with him in the free open air through fifteen or twenty miles
of darkness.
The boy had his father’s love of the woods and the fields. He studied
and classified the birds of the neighbourhood, until he knew their songs
and plumage and nests. He and his young friends could be relied on to
find the spot where the violets bloomed the earliest, and the trees on
which the walnuts were most plentiful, as well as the pools where the
minnows swarmed, and the favourite refuge of the coon.
He was taken to Europe, in the hope that it would benefit his health, “a
tall thin lad with bright eyes and legs like pipestems.”
When at last, he was ready to go to college, he had vanquished his
enemy, ill-health, and was ready to play a man’s part in life.
“I made my health what it is,” he said later, “I determined to be strong
and well, and did everything to make myself so. By the time I entered
Harvard, I was able to take part in whatever sports I liked. I wrestled
and sparred, and I ran a great deal, and, although I never came in
first, I got more out of the exercise than those who did, because I
immensely enjoyed it and never injured myself.
_Busting Broncos_
After leaving college, young Roosevelt entered politics. Finally,
between legislative sessions, he surrendered to his impulses and started
for the Wild West.
He left the train in North Dakota at the little town of Medora. The
young visitor from the East, sought out two hunters and told them that
he wished to go buffalo hunting with them. And he did so, though hunting
the buffalo then was no fancy pastime.
It was, in truth, a rare chance to see the Wild West in the last glow of
its golden age. Soon it was all to vanish and pass into the most
romantic chapter of American history.
Before his first visit was at an end, he had become a ranchman.
The young master of Elkhorn Ranch, brave, outspoken, and always ready to
bear his full share of toil, and hardship, was not long in winning the
respect and hearty good-will of the bluff, honest men of the Bad Lands.
After only a little experience in ranching, he learned to sit in his
saddle and ride his horse like a life-long plainsman.
But he never pretended to any special fondness for a bucking bronco; and
a story is told of a trick played on him by some friendly persons in
Medora.
He was in town, waiting for a train that was to bring a guest from the
East. While he was in a store, the jokers placed his saddle on a
notoriously vicious beast, which they substituted for his mount.
When he came out, in haste to ride around to the railway station, he did
not detect the deception.
Once, he was on the horse’s back, the bronco bucked and whirled to the
amusement of the grinning villagers. But to their amazement, the young
ranchman succeeded in staying on him and spurring him into a run.
Away they flew to the prairies, and soon back they raced in a cloud of
dust and through the town. The friend from the East arrived, and joined
the spectators, who waited to see if the young squire of Elkhorn ever
would return.
In a little while, he was seen coming along the road at a gentle gait.
And when he reached his starting point, he dismounted, with a smile of
quiet mastery, from as meek a creature as ever stood on four legs.
He had no use, however, for a horse whose spirit ran altogether to
ugliness. When he first went West, he doubted the theory of the natives
that any horse was hopelessly bad.
For instance, there was one in the sod-roofed log stable of Elkhorn, who
had been labelled _The Devil_. Roosevelt believed that gentleness would
overcome Devil. The boys thought it might, if he should live to be
seventy-five.
After much patient wooing, Devil actually let Roosevelt lay his hand on
him and pat him. The boys began to think that possibly there was
something in this new plan of bronco busting.
One day, however, when his gentle trainer made bold to saddle and mount
him, Devil quickly drew his four hoofs together, leaped into the air,
and came down with a jerk and a thud. Then he finished with a few fancy
curves, that landed his disillusioned rider a good many yards in front
of him.
Roosevelt sprang to his feet and on to the back of the animal. Four
times he was thrown. Finally, the determined rider manœuvred Devil
out on to a quicksand where bucking is impossible. And, when at last, he
was driven back to solid earth, he was like a lamb.
In this rough life of the range, the young ranchman conquered for ever
the physical weaknesses of his youth, and put on that rude strength
which enabled him to stand before the world, a model of vigorous
manhood.
_James Morgan_ (_Arranged_)
SAGAMORE HILL
_His Home at Oyster Bay_
_From Roosevelt’s Autobiography_
Sagamore Hill takes its name from the old Sagamore Mohannis, who, as
Chief of his little tribe, signed away his rights to the land, two
centuries and a half ago.
The house stands right on the top of the hill, separated by fields and
belts of woodland from all other houses, and looks out over the Bay and
the Sound.
We see the sun go down beyond long reaches of land and of water. Many
birds dwell in the trees round the house or in the pastures and the
woods near by. And, of course, in Winter gulls, loons, and wild fowl
frequent the waters of the Bay and the Sound.
We love all the seasons; the snows and bare
[Illustration: ROOSEVELT BREAKING “DEVIL”]
woods of Winter; the rush of growing things and the blossom-spray of
Spring; the yellow grain, the ripening fruits, and tasseled corn, and
the deep, leafy shades that are heralded by “the green dance of Summer”;
and the sharp fall winds that tear the brilliant banners with which the
trees greet the dying year.
The Sound is always lovely. In the summer nights, we watch it from the
piazza, and see the lights of the tall Fall River boats as they steam
steadily by. Now and then we spend a day on it, the two of us together
in the light rowing skiff, or perhaps with one of the boys to pull an
extra pair of oars. We land for lunch at noon under wind-beaten oaks on
the edge of a low bluff, or among the wild plum bushes on a spit of
white sand; while the sails of the coasting schooners gleam in the
sunlight, and the tolling of the bell-buoy comes landward across the
waters....
Early in April, there is one hillside near us which glows like a tender
flame with the white of the bloodroot. About the same time, we find the
shy mayflower, the trailing arbutus. And although we rarely pick wild
flowers, one member of the household always plucks a little bunch of
mayflowers to send to a friend working in Panama, whose soul hungers for
the northern Spring.
Then there are shadblow and delicate anemones about the time of the
cherry blossoms. The brief glory of the apple orchards follows. And then
the thronging dogwoods fill the forests with their radiance.
And so flowers follow flowers, until the springtime splendour closes
with the laurel and the evanescent honey-sweet locust bloom. The late
summer flowers follow, the flaunting lilies, and cardinal flowers, and
marshmallows, and pale beach rosemary; and the goldenrod and the asters,
when the afternoons shorten and we again begin to think of fires in the
wide fireplaces.
_Theodore Roosevelt_
THE CHILDREN OF SAGAMORE HILL
Mrs. Roosevelt looked after the place itself. She supervised the
farming, and the flower gardens were her especial care.
The children were now growing up, and from the time when they could
toddle, they took their place--a very large place--in the life of the
home. Roosevelt described the intense satisfaction he had in teaching
the boys what his father had taught him.
As soon as they were large enough, they rode their horses, they sailed
on the Cove and out into the Sound. They played boys’ games, and through
him, they learned very young to observe nature.
In his college days, he had intended to be a naturalist, and natural
history remained his strongest avocation. And so he taught his children
to know the birds and animals, the trees, plants, and flowers of Oyster
Bay and its neighbourhood. They had their pets--Kermit, one of the boys,
carried a pet rat in his pocket.
Three things Roosevelt required of them all: obedience, manliness, and
truthfulness.
_William Roscoe Thayer_
OFF WITH JOHN BURROUGHS
_From Roosevelt’s Autobiography_
One April, I went to Yellowstone Park, when the snow was still very
deep, and I took John Burroughs with me. I wished to show him the big
game of the Park, the wild creatures that have become so astonishingly
tame and tolerant of human presence.
In the Yellowstone, the animals seem always to behave as one wishes them
to! It is always possible to see the sheep, and deer, and antelope, and
also the great herds of elk, which are shyer than the smaller beasts.
In April, we found the elk weak after the short commons and hard living
of Winter. Once, without much difficulty, I regularly rounded up a big
band of them so that John Burroughs could look at them. I do not think,
however, that he cared to see them as much as I did.
The birds interested him more, especially a tiny owl, the size of a
robin, which we saw perched on the top of a tree, in mid-afternoon,
entirely uninfluenced by the sun, and making a queer noise like a cork
being pulled from a bottle.
I was rather ashamed to find how much better his eyes were than mine, in
seeing the birds and grasping their differences.
_Theodore Roosevelt_
THE BIG STICK
I saw in Roosevelt a strong man, who had taken early to heart Hamlet’s
maxim, and had steadfastly practised it:--
“_Rightly to be great
Is not to stir without great argument,
But greatly to find quarrel in a straw
When Honour’s at the stake._”
He himself summed up this part of his philosophy in a phrase which has
become a proverb:--
“_Speak softly; but carry a big stick._”
More than once in his later years, he quoted this to me, adding, that it
was precisely because this or that Power knew that he carried a big
stick, that he was enabled to speak softly with effect.
_William Roscoe Thayer_ (_Condensed_)
A-HUNTING TREES WITH JOHN MUIR
_From Roosevelt’s Autobiography_
When I first visited California, it was my good fortune to see the “big
trees,” the Sequoias, and then to travel down into the Yosemite with
John Muir. Of course, of all people in the world, he was the one with
whom it was best worth while thus to see the Yosemite....
John Muir met me with a couple of packers and two mules to carry our
tent, bedding, and food for a three days’ trip.
The first night was clear, and we lay down in the darkening aisles of
the great Sequoia grove. The majestic trunks, beautiful in colour and in
symmetry, rose round us like the pillars of a mightier cathedral than
ever was conceived even by the fervour of the Middle Ages.
Hermit thrushes sang beautifully in the evening, and again with a burst
of wonderful music at dawn. I was interested and a little surprised to
find that, unlike John Burroughs, John Muir cared little for birds or
bird songs, and knew little about them. The hermit thrushes meant
nothing to him, the trees and the flowers and the cliffs, everything.
The only birds he noticed or cared for, were some that were very
conspicuous, such as the water-ousels--always particular favourites of
mine too.
The second night, we camped in a snow-storm on the edge of the cañon
walls, under the spreading limbs of a grove of mighty silver fir. And
next day, we went down into the wonderland of the Valley itself.
I shall always be glad that I was in the Yosemite with John Muir, and in
the Yellowstone with John Burroughs.
_Theodore Roosevelt_ (_Condensed_)
THE BEAR HUNTERS’ DINNER
_From Roosevelt’s Autobiography_
When wolf-hunting in Texas, and when bear-hunting in Louisiana and
Mississippi, I was not only enthralled by the sport but also by the
strange new birds and other creatures, and the trees and flowers I had
not known before.
By the way, there was one feast at the White House, which stands above
all others in my memory, this was “The Bear Hunters’ Dinner.”
I had been treated so kindly by my friends on these hunts, and they were
such fine fellows, men whom I was so proud to think of as Americans,
that I set my heart on having them at a hunters’ dinner at the White
House.
One December, I succeeded. There were twenty or thirty of them, all
told, as good hunters, as daring riders, as first class citizens as
could be found anywhere. No finer set of guests ever sat at meat in the
White House.
And among other game on the table, was a black bear, itself contributed
by one of these same guests.
_Theodore Roosevelt_ (_Condensed_)
HUNTING IN AFRICA
_From Roosevelt’s Autobiography_
The African buffalo is undoubtedly a dangerous beast, but it happened
that the few that I shot did not charge.
A bull elephant, a vicious “rogue” which had been killing people in the
native villages, did charge before being shot at. My son Kermit and I
stopped it at forty yards.
Another bull elephant, also unwounded, which charged, nearly got me, as
I had just fired both cartridges from my heavy double-barreled rifle, in
killing the bull I was after--the first wild elephant I had ever seen.
The second bull came through the thick brush to my left, like a steam
plow through a light snowdrift, everything snapping before his rush, and
was so near that he could have hit me with his trunk. I slipped past him
behind a tree.
People have asked me how I felt on this occasion. My answer has always
been that I suppose I felt as most men of like experience feel on such
occasions. At such a moment, a hunter is so very busy that he has no
time to get frightened. He wants to get in his cartridges and try
another shot.
Rhinoceros are truculent, blustering beasts, much the most stupid of all
the dangerous game I know. Generally their attitude is one of mere
stupidity and bluff. But on occasions they do charge wickedly, both when
wounded and when entirely unprovoked. The first I ever shot, I mortally
wounded at a few rods’ distance, and it charged with the utmost
determination. Whereat I and my companion both fired, and, more by good
luck than anything else, brought it to the ground just thirteen paces
from where we stood.
Another rhinoceros may or may not have been meaning to charge me; I have
never been certain which. It heard us, and came at us through rather
thick brush, snorting and tossing its head. I am by no means sure that
it had fixedly hostile intentions. And indeed, with my present
experience, I think it likely that if I had not fired, it would have
flinched at the last moment, and either retreated or gone by me. But I
am not a rhinoceros mind-reader, and its actions were such as to
warrant my regarding it as a suspicious character. I stopped it with a
couple of bullets, and then followed it up and killed it.
The skins of all these animals which I thus killed are in the National
Museum at Washington.
_Theodore Roosevelt_ (_Condensed_)
THE EVER FAITHFUL ISLAND
Now, let us see what Theodore Roosevelt did to help establish Liberty in
this Hemisphere.
It is a far cry from the Very Magnificent Don Christopher Columbus,
Admiral of the Ocean Sea, and discoverer of the West Indies and South
America, to plain Theodore Roosevelt of Oyster Bay and citizen of the
United States of North America.
Yet it was a very direct cry, a ringing call down through four
centuries, a never ceasing plea for Liberty and safety.
And it was plain Colonel Theodore Roosevelt who, with his Rough Riders,
helped to break the last link of the chain of Spanish domination in
America. Its first link was unwittingly forged by Columbus, when he
discovered the gold and pearls of the New World.
Through the many years, Cuba, the “Ever Faithful Island,” remained loyal
to Spain, while her other American possessions declared their
Independence, slipped from her grasp, and set up Republics.
But instead of taking warning from her American losses, Spain continued
her policy of repression in Cuba.
Then there arose Cuban Patriots, among them, Gomez, Maceo, and Garcia,
who struggled for Cuba’s Freedom. There were rebellions, insurrections,
and war. Great and terrible were the sufferings of the People.
It is not possible here to give an account of the Cuban War for
Independence. But after a terrific struggle, it was finally won in 1898,
with the help of our United States. Thus Spain lost her last foothold in
America, and withdrew from this hemisphere.
To-day, the Island of Cuba the “Ever-Faithful Island,” the “Pearl of the
Antilles,” is a flourishing Republic with a world commerce. And during
the World War, the red, white, and blue, single-bestarred Flag of Cuba,
waved over a brave Cuban Army, the ally of the United States.
But as to Theodore Roosevelt’s part in liberating the Island, while he
was Assistant Secretary of the Navy under President McKinley, we will
let one of his biographers tell about it:--
THE COLONEL OF THE ROUGH RIDERS
_In the name of humanity, in the name of civilization, in behalf of
endangered American interests, which give us the right and the duty
to speak and act, the war in Cuba must stop._
_President_ MCKINLEY
Roosevelt had always felt the danger to the United States of maintaining
a despicable or an inadequate Navy, and from the moment he entered the
Navy Department, he set about pushing the construction of the unfinished
vessels and of improving the quality of the personnel.
He was impelled to do this, not merely by his instinct to bring whatever
he undertook up to the highest standard, but also because he had a
premonition that a crisis was at hand, which might call the Country, at
an instant’s notice, to protect itself with all the power it had.
Roosevelt was impressed by the insurrection in Cuba, which kept that
Island in perpetual disorder. The cruel means, especially
reconcentration and starvation, by which the Spaniards tried to put down
the Cubans, stirred the sympathy of the Americans, and the number of
those who believed that the United States ought to interfere in behalf
of humanity, grew from month to month.
During his first year in office, Assistant Secretary Roosevelt busied
himself with all the details of preparation. And all the while he
watched the horizon towards Cuba, where the signs grew angrier and
angrier.
But the young Secretary had to act with circumspection. President
McKinley, desiring to keep the peace up to the very end, would not
countenance any move which might seem to the Spaniards either a threat
or an insult.
Early in the evening of February 15, 1898, the U. S. battleship _Maine_,
peaceably riding at her moorings in Havana Harbour, was blown up. Two
officers and 264 enlisted men were killed by the explosion and in the
sinking of the ship.
The next morning, the newspapers carried the report to all parts of the
United States, and, indeed, to the whole world. A tidal wave of anger
surged over this Country.
“That means war!” was the common utterance.
I doubt whether Roosevelt ever worked with greater relish than during
the weeks succeeding the blowing-up of the _Maine_. The Navy Department
arranged in hot haste to victual the ships; to provide them with stores
of coal and ammunition; to bring the crews up to their full quota by
enlisting; to lay out a plan of campaign; to see to the naval bases and
the lines of communication; and to coöperate with the War Department in
making ready the land fortifications along the shore.
Having accomplished his duty as Assistant Secretary, Roosevelt resigned.
He thought that he had a right to retire from that post, and to gratify
his long cherished desire to take part in the actual warfare.
General Alger, the Secretary of War, had a great liking for Roosevelt,
offered him a commission in the Army, and even the command of a
regiment.
This he prudently declined, having no technical military knowledge. He
proposed instead that Dr. Leonard Wood should be made Colonel, and that
he should serve under Wood, as Lieutenant Colonel.
While Roosevelt finished his business at the Navy Department, Colonel
Wood hurried to San Antonio, Texas, the rendezvous of the First Regiment
of Volunteer Cavalry--the Rough Riders!
A call for volunteers, issued by Roosevelt and endorsed by Secretary
Alger, spread through the West and Southwest, and it met with a quick
response.
Not even in Garibaldi’s famous Thousand, was such a strange crowd
gathered. It comprised cow-punchers, ranchmen, hunters, professional
gamblers, and rascals of the Border, sportsmen, mingled with the society
sports, former football players and oarsmen, polo players, and lovers
of adventure from the great eastern cities. They all had one quality in
common--courage--and they were all bound together by one common
bond--devotion to Theodore Roosevelt.
Nearly every one of them knew him personally. Some of the western men
had hunted or ranched with him. Some of the eastern had been with him in
college, or had had contact with him in one of the many vicissitudes of
his career.
* * * * *
I shall not attempt to follow in detail the story of the Rough Riders,
but shall touch only on those matters which refer to Roosevelt himself.
Wood having been promoted to Brigadier General, in command of a larger
unit, Theodore Roosevelt became Colonel of the regiment of Rough Riders.
On July 1 and 2, he commanded the Rough Riders in their attack on and
capture of San Juan Hill, in connection with some coloured troops.
In this engagement, their nearest approach to a battle, the Rough
Riders, who had less than five hundred men in action, lost eighty-nine
in killed and wounded.
Then followed a dreary life in the trenches, until Santiago surrendered,
and then a still more terrible experience, while they waited for Spain
to give up the war.
Under a killing tropical sun, receiving irregular and often damaged
food, without tent or other protection from the heat or from the rain,
the Rough Riders endured for weeks the ravages of fever, climate, and
privation.
Finally, because of Roosevelt’s insistence, the Government at
Washington, without loss of time, ordered the Army home.
The sick were transported by thousands to Montauk Point, at the eastern
end of Long Island, where in spite of the best medical care which could
be improvised, large numbers of them died.
But the Army knew, and the American Public knew, that Roosevelt had
saved multitudes of lives. At Montauk Point, he was the most popular man
in America.
This concluded Roosevelt’s career as a soldier. The experience
introduced to the Public those virile qualities of his, with which his
friends were familiar.
_William Roscoe Thayer_ (_Arranged_)
THE RIVER OF DOUBT
Roosevelt decided to make one more trip for hunting and exploration. As
he could not go to the North Pole, he said, because that would be
poaching on Peary’s field, he selected South America.
He had long wished to visit the Southern Continent, and invitations to
speak at Rio Janeiro and at Buenos Aires, gave him an excuse for setting
out.
He started with the distinct purpose of collecting animal and botanical
specimens, this time for the American Museum of Natural History in New
York, which provided two trained naturalists to accompany him. His son
Kermit, toughened by the previous adventure, went also.
Having paid his visits and seen the civilized parts of Brazil, Uruguay,
and Argentina, he ascended the Paraguay River, and then struck across
the plateau which divides its watershed from that of the tributaries of
the Amazon. For he proposed to make his way through an unexplored region
in Central Brazil, and reach the outposts of civilization on the Great
River.
The Brazilian Government had informed him that by the route he had
chosen, he would meet a large river--the River of Doubt--by which he
could descend to the Amazon.
There were some twenty persons, including a dozen or fifteen native
rowers and pack-bearers, in his party. They had canoes and dugouts,
supplies of food for about forty days, and a carefully chosen outfit.
With high hopes, they put their craft into the water and moved down
stream. But on the fourth day, they found rapids ahead. And from that
time on, they were constantly obliged to land and carry their dugouts
and stores round a cataract.
The peril of being swept over the falls, was always imminent, and as the
trail, which constituted their portages, had to be cut through the
matted forest, their labours were increased. In the first eleven days,
they progressed only sixty miles. No one knew the distance they would
have to traverse, nor how long the river would be broken by falls and
cataracts, before it came down into the plain of the Amazon.
Some of their canoes were smashed on the rocks. Two of the natives were
drowned. They watched their provisions shrink. Contrary to their
expectations, the forest had almost no animals. If they could shoot a
monkey or a monster lizard, they rejoiced at having a little fresh meat.
Tropical insects bit them day and night and caused inflammation and even
infection. Man-eating fish lived in the river, making it dangerous for
the men when they tried to cool their inflamed bodies by a swim.
Most of the party had malaria, and could be kept going only by large
doses of quinine. Roosevelt, while in the water, wounded his leg on a
rock; inflammation set in, and prevented him from walking, so that he
had to be carried across the portages.
The physical strength of the party, sapped by sickness and fatigue, was
visibly waning. Still the cataracts continued to impede their progress
and to add terribly to their toil. The supply of food had shrunk so
much, that the rations were restricted, and amounted to little more than
enough to keep the men able to go forward slowly.
Then fever attacked Roosevelt, and they had to wait for a few days,
because he was too weak to be moved. He besought them to leave him and
hurry along to safety, because every day they delayed consumed their
diminishing store of food, and they might all die of starvation.
They refused to leave him, however. A change for the better in his
condition came soon. They moved forward. At last they left the rapids
behind them, and could drift and paddle on the unobstructed river.
Roosevelt lay in the bottom of a dugout, shaded by a bit of canvas put
up over his head, and too weak from sickness even to splash water on his
face; for he was almost fainting from the muggy heat and the tropical
sunshine.
Forty-eight days, after they began their voyage on the River of Doubt,
they saw a peasant, a rubber-gatherer, the first human being they had
met. Thenceforward they journeyed without incident.
The River of Doubt flowed into the larger river, Madeira; where they
found a steamer which took them to Manaos on the Amazon.
During the homeward voyage, Roosevelt slowly recovered his strength, but
he had never again the iron physique with which he had embarked the year
before. The Brazilian Wilderness stole away ten years of his life.
He found on his return home that some geographers and South American
explorers laughed at his story of the River of Doubt. He laughed, too,
at their incredulity; and presently the Brazilian Government, having
established the truth of his exploration and named the river after him,
_Rio Teodoro_, his laughter prevailed. He took real satisfaction in
having placed on the map of Central Brazil, a river six hundred miles
long.
_William Roscoe Thayer_ (_Arranged_)
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
The evil men do lives after them; so does the good. With the passing of
years, a man’s name and fame either drift into oblivion or they are seen
in their lasting proportions.
You must sail fifty miles over the Ionian Sea and look back, before you
can fully measure the magnitude and majesty of Mount Ætna. Not
otherwise, I believe, will it be with Theodore Roosevelt, when the
people of the future look back upon him. The blemishes due to
misunderstanding will have faded away. The transient clouds will have
vanished. The world will see him as he was....
Those of us who knew him, knew him as the most astonishing human
expression of the Creative Spirit we had ever seen. His manifold
talents, his protean interests, his tireless energy, his thunderbolts
which he did not let loose, as well as those he did, his masterful will
sheathed in self-control like a sword in its scabbard, would have
rendered him superhuman, had he not possessed other qualities which made
him the best of playmates for mortals.
He had humour, which raises every one to the same level. He had loyalty,
which bound his friends to him for life. He had sympathy and capacity
for strong, deep love. How tender he was with little children! How
courteous with women! No matter whether you brought to him important
things or trifles, he understood.
I can think of no vicissitude in life in which Roosevelt’s participation
would not have been welcome. If it were danger, there could be no more
valiant comrade than he. If it were sport, he was a sportsman. If it
were mirth, he was a fountain of mirth, crystal pure and sparkling....
But yesterday, he seemed one who embodied Life to the utmost. With the
assured step of one whom nothing can frighten or surprise, he walked our
earth as on granite. Suddenly, the granite grew more unsubstantial than
a bubble, and he dropped beyond sight into the Eternal Silence.
Happy we who had such a friend! Happy the American Republic which bore
such a son!
_William Roscoe Thayer_ (_Condensed_)
OCTOBER 30
JOHN ADAMS
THE SON OF LIBERTY
SECOND PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
_I have passed the Rubicon: swim or sink, live or die, survive or perish
with my Country, is my unalterable determination._
JOHN ADAMS
INDEPENDENCE DAY
_I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding
generations as the great anniversary festival._
_It ought to be commemorated as the Day of Deliverance, by solemn acts
of devotion to God Almighty._
_It ought to be solemnized with pomp, and parade, with shows, games,
sports, guns, bells, bonfires, tend illuminations, from one end of this
continent to the other, from this time forward, for ever more._
JOHN ADAMS
JOHN ADAMS was born in Braintree, or Quincy, Massachusetts, October
30, 1735
Was a member of the Committee that framed the Declaration of
Independence; and he signed the Declaration
Was Commissioner to France, 1778
Was Ambassador to England, 1785
Became Second President of the United States, 1796
He died on the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Signing of the
Declaration of Independence, the Fourth of July, 1826
A SON OF LIBERTY
There was no loftier genius nor purer Patriot during the struggle for
Independence, than John Adams.
He was born at Braintree--now a part of Quincy--Massachusetts. He was
descended from Henry Adams who came to America during the reign of
Charles the First. On his mother’s side, he was descended from John
Alden, the Pilgrim Father who came over in the _Mayflower_. Thus, from
both sides of his house, John Adams inherited staunch, fearless, English
blood and love of Independence.
He went to school in Braintree, and later graduated from Harvard
University. After which he studied law, and was admitted to the bar. He
married Abigail Smith of Weymouth, Massachusetts. They made their home
in Boston.
It is not possible here to tell all that John Adams did for America. He
was an ardent Patriot, a Son of Liberty, serving the country at the risk
of his life. He was a delegate to the Continental Congress. He was a
member of the Committee appointed to frame the Declaration of
Independence. He signed the Declaration. He was sent abroad on foreign
missions. He was elected Vice-President, and afterward called to be
second President of the United States. He lived to see his son, John
Quincy Adams, made sixth President of the United States.
He died on the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Signing of the Declaration of
Independence, at the great age of ninety-one.
_Benson J. Lossing and Other Sources_
THE ADAMS FAMILY
John Adams was not the only great American Patriot in his Family. His
cousin, Samuel Adams, was a popular and fearless leader in the movement
for Independence. His activities were so feared by England, that the
Government issued orders for his arrest and trial for high treason.
Abigail Adams, John Adams’s wife, was one of the noble American women
who helped to win the War for Independence. She kept her husband
informed of the movements of the British around Boston, while he was
attending the Continental Congress. She wrote him many patriotic
letters, which are inspiring reading to-day. She signed some of them
“Portia,” so that if they fell into the hands of the enemy, no one could
tell who wrote them. She sent many of the letters to her husband by
secret messengers.
Their son, John Quincy Adams, became sixth President of the United
States.
His son, Charles Francis Adams, and the latter’s two sons, Charles
Francis and Henry Adams, served the Country in important offices, at
home and abroad. They were historians and statesmen.
John and Abigail Adams, their son and his two sons, kept diaries or
wrote letters, memoirs, and biographies, which form a vivid and intimate
story of many historical events dating from the War for Independence
down nearly to our own time.
Thus America has to thank the Adams Family for historical records of
great importance.
AID TO THE SISTER COLONY
It was a clear and frosty night--that night, when the moonbeams fell on
the tea thrown overboard by the Boston Tea Party. Paul Revere, all
booted and spurred, was ready for a famous ride--not the one to
Lexington, but to Philadelphia this time. Soon he was off and away,
galloping southward, spreading, as he rode along, the astonishing news
that Boston Town had at last defied King George. There were public
rejoicings everywhere, as the news was passed along.
“This,” said John Adams exultingly, “is the most magnificent movement of
all!... This destruction of the tea is so bold, so daring, so firm,
intrepid and inflexible!... What measures will the Ministry take in
consequence of this? Will they resent it?--Will they dare to resent
it?--Will they punish us?--How?”
* * * * *
John Adams did not have to wait long to find out--_how_. For King George
decided to punish the people of brave Boston Town, by starving them into
submission. The Boston Port Bill was passed in England. A British Fleet
blockaded Boston Harbour. No ship could go in or out; all supplies of
food and fuel were cut off. The Boston folk suffered starvation,
disease, and death; but they would not submit. Their misery became
almost unendurable.
Then it was that Massachusetts’ sister Colonies roused themselves.
Samuel Adams of Boston sent a circular letter to each of the Colonies
asking for help. Food, fuel, and money came pouring in.
All that Summer, Boston, suffering, impoverished Boston, lay upon every
loyal American heart. Each province, county, city, town, neighbourhood,
sent its contribution.
Windham, Connecticut, began the work of relief, and sent in, with a
cordial letter of applause and sympathy, “a small flock of sheep.” Two
hundred and fifty-eight sheep was Windham’s notion of a small flock!
New Jersey soon wrote that she would be glad to know which would be more
acceptable to a suffering sister, cash or produce. “Cash,” replied
Boston, “if perfectly convenient.”
Massachusetts farmers supplied grain by the barrel and bushel. The
Marblehead fishermen forwarded “two hundred and twenty-four quintels of
good eating-fish, one barrel and three-quarters of good olive oil”--with
money to boot.
North Carolina promptly sent two sloop-loads of provisions. South
Carolina’s first gift was one hundred casks of rice.
And Baltimore Town contributed three thousand bushels of corn, twenty
barrels of rye-flour, two barrels of pork, and twenty barrels of bread.
Virginia!--there seemed to be no end to Virginia’s gifts!
And as the cool season approached, the farmers could be more liberal.
Flocks of fat sheep and droves of oxen, together with hundreds of cords
of wood, grain, and money in plenty, helped to relieve the suffering
town. From New York they came, and from Maryland, Maine, Connecticut,
Rhode Island, from the three counties on the Delaware, and from every
little mountain-town in New Hampshire and Vermont.
As for Canada, from cold and remote Quebec came some wheat, and from
Montreal a hundred pounds sterling.
The letters that accompanied the gifts, and the grateful answers from
the Boston Committee, would fill a large volume.
“Boston is suffering in the common cause,” said her sister Colonies.
“If need be,” said George Washington of Virginia, “I will raise one
thousand men, subsist them at my own expense, and march myself at their
head, for the relief of Boston.”
_James Parton, and Other Sources_ (_Retold_)
A FAMOUS DATE
September 5, 1774! What a famous date in American history! And in the
history of the whole World!
On that day, met for the first time, the Continental Congress of
America.
From Colony after Colony, the delegates came riding into Philadelphia.
George Washington of Virginia came with fiery Patrick Henry, and Edmund
Pendleton, “one of Virginia’s noblest sons.” There came Cæsar Rodney,
“burley and big, bold and bluff,” with Thomas McKean and George Read,
all from the three counties on the Delaware, and Roger Sherman with
Silas Deane of Connecticut, and John Jay and Livingston of New York.
From Rhode Island, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland,
and South Carolina, the eager delegates came riding into the City of
Brotherly Love. And, of course, John Adams and Samuel Adams,
representing the suffering Colony of Massachusetts Bay, were on hand
when Congress opened.
Among its first acts, the First Continental Congress sent a letter to
General Gage; an address to the People of Great Britain; one to the
People of Quebec; and a Petition to King George, setting forth the
grievances of the American Colonists, the violations of their rights as
free Englishmen, and asking for justice, but strongly urging a renewal
of harmony and union between the Colonies and the Mother Country,
England.
American histories tell how King George disregarded that Petition.
American histories, also, tell how William Pitt and other great English
statesmen, nobly defended America, as you may see if you read the story
of William Pitt, on page 93.
WHAT A GLORIOUS MORNING!
When Paul Revere came galloping into Lexington, after warning the
countryside that the British were coming to seize the powder and shot,
he roused Samuel Adams and John Hancock, who were staying with friends.
Paul Revere was come to warn them also; for the British General Gage had
given orders for their arrest, and intended to send them to England to
be tried for high treason.
The British Government was specially afraid of John Hancock, one of the
most daring and active of the Boston Patriots. “The terrible desperado,”
he was called by that Government.
While he and Samuel Adams were escaping from Lexington and hurrying
across some fields Samuel Adams exclaimed:--
“Oh, what a glorious morning is this!”
It was the morning of the Battle of Lexington, when the shot was fired
that was heard round the world.
After the Second Continental Congress opened, John Hancock was chosen to
preside, while the Congress discussed how to defend the Country.
JOHN TO SAMUEL
New England was in arms. Lexington and Concord had been fought, and
Boston was being besieged by the New England Army.
The Congress was discussing the defense of the whole Country. There were
some members who wished the Congress to take over the New England Army
and appoint a Commander-in-Chief.
It was then that John Adams met his cousin Samuel Adams, in the State
House yard. This is the way John Adams tells it:--
“‘What shall we do to get Congress to adopt our Army?’ said Samuel Adams
to John Adams.
“‘I will tell you what I am determined to do,’ said John to Samuel. ‘I
have taken pains enough to bring you to agree upon something; but you
will not agree upon anything. And now I am determined to take my own
way, let come what will come!’
“‘Well,’ said Samuel, ‘what is your scheme?’
“Said John to Samuel, ‘I will go to Congress this morning, and move that
a day be appointed to take into consideration the adoption of the Army
before Boston, the appointment of a General and officers; and I will
nominate Washington for Commander-in-Chief!’”
A GENTLEMAN FROM VIRGINIA
So it happened, that John Adams rose in his seat, and moved that the
Congress should adopt the Army of New England men, and appoint a
Commander-in-Chief, adding, that he had in mind some one for that high
command, “a gentleman from Virginia, who is among us, and very well
known to all of us; a gentleman whose skill and experience as an
officer, whose independent fortune, great talents and excellent
universal character, would command the approbation of all America, and
unite the cordial exertions of all the Colonies better than any other
person in the Union.”
Every one knew whom John Adams meant. And George Washington, who was
sitting near the door, was so overcome by modesty, that he sprang up and
darted into the library close by.
But his modesty did not prevent his election. He was unanimously chosen
Commander-in-Chief; while the army of New England men was adopted by
Congress and named “the Continental Army.”
Later, when Washington’s appointment was announced in the Congress, he
rose in his place, and said most earnestly:--
“Since the Congress desire, I will enter upon the momentous duty and
exert every power I possess in their service and for the support of the
glorious cause.
“But I beg it may be remembered by every gentleman in the room, that I
this day declare, with the utmost sincerity, I do not think myself equal
to the command I am honoured with.”
But far-sighted John Adams was delighted. He was enthusiastic. “There is
something charming to me in the conduct of Washington,” he wrote to a
friend, “a gentleman of one of the first fortunes upon the continent,
leaving his delicious retirement, his family and friends, sacrificing
his ease, and hazarding all in the cause of his Country.
“His views are noble and disinterested. He declared, when he accepted
the mighty trust, that he would lay before us an exact account of his
expenses, and not accept a shilling pay.”
And to Abigail Adams, his wife, far off in Braintree, guarding her
children from battle, and murder, and from sudden death, John Adams
wrote:--
“I can now inform you, that the Congress have made choice of the modest
and virtuous, the amiable, generous, and brave George Washington,
Esquire, to be General of the American Army.”
He wrote thus joyously on the 17th day of June,--while on that very day,
Abigail Adams and little John Quincy Adams were standing on a hilltop
watching Charlestown burn and fall into ashes.
THE BOY WHO BECAME PRESIDENT
“My head is much too fickle, my thoughts are running after birds’ eggs,
play, and trifles, till I get vexed with myself,” wrote little John
Quincy Adams, nine years old, to his father John Adams.
Those were terrible times. Little John Quincy’s thoughts were running
after other things besides birds’ eggs. He could hear the thunder of
British cannon and the answering roar of American guns. There was
fighting very near him. From a hilltop, he could see the battle raging.
He knew that some of the American boys who were fighting, were from
Braintree.
Sometime before, little John Quincy and his mother, Abigail Adams, had
escaped from their home in Boston, and had taken refuge in Braintree,
which was not far away. Now they were living in constant terror for fear
the British should attack Braintree. His father, John Adams, was not
there to protect him. He was attending the Continental Congress in
Philadelphia.
On the 17th of June, 1775, the British cannonading began in the
direction of Charlestown. John Quincy and his mother climbed the hill,
and watched the battle. With terror-stricken eyes, the boy saw
Charlestown go up in flames and fall in ashes. And as for Abigail Adams,
she trembled with fear lest the British should attack Braintree next;
and then what would become of John Quincy and the other children?
So John Quincy and his mother watched the famous battle of Bunker Hill.
And while they were listening to the cannon and the guns, their beloved
friend, Dr. Joseph Warren, the noble Patriot who had joined the American
forces as volunteer, fell mortally wounded.
And when the news of his death reached Braintree, John Quincy burst into
tears, for Dr. Warren had been the family physician, and had once saved
the boy from having a broken finger amputated.
And through those exciting times, John Quincy was a staunch boy-patriot.
When he was only nine years old, he became his mother’s post-boy, riding
to Boston and back, eleven or more miles each way, to get news for her.
And every morning before he climbed out of bed, he did as his mother had
taught him. After he had said the Lord’s Prayer, he recited:--
_How sleep the Brave, who sink to rest,
By all their Country’s wishes blest!
When Spring, with dewy fingers cold,
Returns to deck their hallowed mould,
She there shall dress a sweeter sod,
Than Fancy’s feet have ever trod._
_By Fairy hands their knell is rung,
By forms unseen their dirge is sung,
There Honour comes, a Pilgrim grey,
To watch the turf that wraps their clay,
And Freedom shall awhile repair
To dwell a weeping Hermit there._[1]
Thus the boy-patriot did what he could. And when he grew up, he served
his Country so well in many important matters, that he was called to
her highest office, and became the sixth President of the United States.
HOW SHALL THE STARS BE PLACED?
On that great day, when the Congress of the United States adopted the
Stars and Stripes as our National Flag, it resolved that the union
should be Thirteen Stars, white in a blue field, representing a new
Constellation.
And a new Constellation it was, Thirteen Stars of the Thirteen States
united as one, a Constellation destined to shine on all the
World--Liberty enlightening the World!
But how should the Stars be grouped upon the Flag?--that was the
question.
John Adams suggested that they should be arranged in the form of the
Constellation Lyra, the beautiful cluster of stars shining in our
northern night.
But the new Constellation of American Stars could not be arranged thus
to look well. So it was decided to place them in a circle, for a circle
has no end. And it was hoped that as the Country grew larger, adding
more States and a new Star for each State, that the circle would widen.
And it has widened and widened, until there is no longer any room for a
circle on our Flag; but spangled like the sky at night, it has become
the Star-Spangled Banner.
THE MYSTERIOUS STRANGER
A mysterious foreign stranger suddenly appeared in New York City, after
John Adams had retired from the presidency. He was handsome, with
beaming hazel eyes and flashing white teeth. He was graceful, with
courtly manners. He called himself George Martin.
But what his real name was, or what his mysterious purpose was, only a
few people knew.
He was dined and toasted by New York officials. He went to the City of
Washington on his secret mission. He was granted private interviews by
the President and Secretary of State. He talked much about his friends
Catherine the Great of Russia and William Pitt of England. He seemed to
know the secret plots and political intrigues of Europe.
Then he vanished as mysteriously as he had come.
A few weeks later, John Adams heard the astounding news. The stranger
was no other than the celebrated South American Patriot, Don Francisco
de Miranda. He had sailed away secretly from New York in a little ship
laden with arms and ammunition. And, what was worse, he had taken with
him a band of young American men, some of them mere boys; and he was
sailing toward the Spanish main with the intention of freeing South
America from Spanish rule.
He had taken with him young William Steuben Smith, John Adams’s
grandson. Young Smith was a college boy, very bright and courageous, and
thirsty for adventure.
“What do you think were my sensations and reflections?” wrote John Adams
to a friend. “I shudder to this moment, at the recollection of them! I
saw the ruin of my only daughter and her good-hearted, enthusiastic
husband, and had no other hope or wish or prayer than that the ship,
with my grandson in it, might be sunk in a storm in the Gulf Stream!”
For young William Steuben Smith’s father was surveyor of the port of New
York, and had allowed Miranda’s ship to clear with arms and ammunition
in its hold, to be used against Spain with whom we were at peace.
Then came to John Adams the terrible news, that Spanish armed vessels
had captured some of the American boys. His grandson had been captured,
and thrown into a dungeon in a dark, filthy fortress in Venezuela. He
was to be tried as a pirate taken on the high seas, and without doubt he
would be hanged.
The Spanish Ambassador, who had known John Adams in Europe, hastened to
offer his services. He would intercede with Spain for the grandson, he
said.
“No,” said John Adams to a friend; “he should share the fate of his
colleagues, comrades, and fellow-prisoners.”
But happily it was all a great mistake. Young Smith was not hanged as a
pirate. He had not been captured at all. Instead, he was sailing gayly
on in Miranda’s Mystery Ship. He had been made aid-de-camp and
lieutenant-colonel, and had donned Miranda’s brilliant uniform.
For the story of what happened further to the Mystery Ship, see page
335.
HIS LAST TOAST
It was the last day of June, 1826. In five days, it would be the Fourth
of July--the Fiftieth Anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of
Independence. John Adams had been one of the committee to frame the
Declaration.
A neighbour was sitting with John Adams in his home in Quincy--that used
to be Braintree. Ninety and one years old was John Adams!
The neighbour was to be orator at the annual banquet on the Fourth of
July. He had called to ask John Adams to compose the toast.
“Independence for ever!” said John Adams.
But would he not wish to add something further to the toast, asked the
neighbour.
“Not a word,” replied John Adams.
The Fourth of July dawned. The great Patriot lay dying. At the setting
of the sun, those who stood beside him heard him whisper:--“Thomas
Jefferson still lives!”
As the sun sank out of sight, a loud cheering came from the village. It
was the shouts of the people at the words of his toast:--“Independence
for ever!”
The cheering echoed through the room where John Adams was. But before
its last sounds could die away, the great Patriot had passed into
history and eternity--on the Fourth of July,--on the Fiftieth
Anniversary of the Signing of the Declaration of Independence!
NOVEMBER 15
WILLIAM PITT, EARL OF CHATHAM DEFENDER OF AMERICA
_The Colonists are ... equally entitled with yourselves to all the
natural rights of mankind, and the peculiar privileges of Englishmen._
WILLIAM PITT
_He at once breathed his own lofty spirit into the Country he served, as
he communicated something of his own grandeur to the men who served
him._
_“No man,” said a soldier of the time, “ever entered Mr. Pitt’s closet,
who did not feel himself braver when he came out, than when he went
in.”_
JOHN RICHARD GREEN
_He stands in the annals of Europe, “an illustrious and venerable name,”
admired by countrymen and strangers, by all to whom loftiness of moral
principle and greatness of talent are objects of regard._
THOMAS CARLYLE
William Pitt was born in England, November 15, 1708
Created Earl of Chatham, 1766
He died May 11, 1778
He was known “as the Great Commoner,” while in the House of
Commons; as “Chatham,” after he entered the House of Lords; and as
“the Elder Pitt,” to distinguish him from his son William Pitt,
called “the Younger,” who likewise was a great statesman.
There are American towns and cities named in honour of William
Pitt, our Defender; among them, Pittsburgh, Penn.; Chatham, N. Y.;
and Pittsfield, Mass.
THIS TERRIBLE CORNET OF HORSE
In the hilt of Napoleon’s ceremonial sword, was set a huge diamond, one
of the largest in the world. It had been brought from India by “Diamond
Pitt” of England, who had sold it to the Regent of France.
“Diamond Pitt,” was Thomas Pitt. An adventurous young sailor, he had
gone to India, and had started in business for himself as a trader.
The British East India Company claimed the monopoly of trade in India.
When the bold young Englishman, without so much as “by your leave,”
started an opposition business, the Company determined to crush him.
It set its powerful legal machinery to work. But it was one thing to try
to crush Thomas Pitt, and quite another thing to do it. He fought
desperately for his rights. Though he was arrested and fined he still
kept on trading, in defiance of the Company. He battled so successfully
and for so many years, that at last for its own protection, the Company
was forced to take him into its service.
He rose to be Governor of Madras. He became known as “Diamond Pitt,”
because he was always in search of large diamonds. Thus he procured the
famous “Pitt Diamond,” which found its way into Napoleon’s sword.
With a part of the fortune which “Diamond Pitt” got from its sale, he
bought an estate in England. Later he became a member of Parliament.
“Diamond Pitt’s” grandson, William Pitt, was not a strong boy. He spent
much time with his books. He liked to read Shakespeare aloud to the
family. He enjoyed reading the _Faëry Queen_, in which the Red Cross
Knight, fearless of harm or evil thing, rides about rescuing the
innocent and helpless.
Though he was not strong in body, William Pitt had an iron will. He had
“Diamond Pitt’s” indomitable courage and the fighting qualities with
which the sailor had matched his strength against that of the powerful
East India Company.
William Pitt attended Oxford University. When he was twenty-three, he
was commissioned Cornet of Horse in the King’s Blues.
The fearless Cornet of Horse was soon elected to the House of Commons.
He started his political career in the House with a fiery, sarcastic
speech supporting the Prince of Wales, who was at enmity with the King
his father.
William Pitt was a born orator. He was tall, elegant, and graceful. His
eyes were bright and piercing. He spoke with dignified gesture. And he
delivered this speech with such strength, magnetism, and irony, that the
Prime Minister exclaimed, “We must muzzle this terrible Cornet of
Horse!”
To muzzle him, he tried, at first with promises of reward. But William
Pitt was incorruptible. He would not sell his honour. Then influence was
brought to bear, and the young Cornet of Horse was dismissed from the
army.
But this very act, by which his enemies planned to muzzle William Pitt,
brought him before the public eye. His fearlessness and remarkable
oratory advanced him daily with both Parliament and People.
In time, William Pitt became a leading power, at first in the House of
Commons, and afterward, when he was created Earl of Chatham, in the
House of Lords. He served twice as Prime Minister of England; and he
laid the solid foundations of the British Colonial Empire.
But more than all else, he was an Englishman defending the unalienable
rights of all Englishmen. He steadfastly combated those political evils
in the British Government, which, at that time, were threatening to
undermine English Liberty as set down in the Magna Carta and safeguarded
by the English Constitution.
THE CHARTER OF LIBERTY
_The Signing of the Magna Carta, 1215_
_O Thou, that sendest out the man
To rule by land and sea,
Strong mother of a Lion-line,
Be proud of those strong sons of thine,
Who wrenched their rights from thee!_
_What wonder if in noble heat,
Those men thine arms withstood,
Retaught the lesson thou hadst taught,
And in thy spirit with thee fought fought--
Who sprang from English blood!_
ALFRED TENNYSON (_Condensed_)
Magna Carta! The Great Charter of the liberties of Englishmen!
At Runnimede, the freemen of England through the action of their Barons,
forced King John to sign and seal the Magna Carta. His tyrannous power
was torn from him. He was forced to pledge himself to violate no longer
the rights and privileges of English freemen.
For, from times remote, human rights and liberties, protecting them from
oppression by rulers, had been theirs by laws and by common consent.
About a hundred years after the signing of the Magna Carta, the great
principle, that English freemen should not be taxed without
representation, was established.
When King Charles the First broke his promises to respect the rights of
his subjects, he was tried and executed. When King James the Second
governed in despotic manner, exercising what he believed to be the
“divine right of Kings,” he lost his throne.
What has this to do with America and William Pitt? Everything!
During the reigns of the Stuart Kings, large sections of America were
explored and settled by English freemen, who came to America to escape
persecution, and to enjoy English Liberty which at that time they could
not possibly have had in England.
The Stuart Kings believed in “divine right,” which means that the King
is the Lord’s annointed, and that neither Parliament nor People may
question any of his acts; and that no matter how cruel or tyrannous a
King may be, the People must submissively obey him.
The Magna Carta and the English Constitution protect the English People
against this doctrine of “divine right.”
So, when during the reign of these Kings, men and women fled from
England to find Liberty and refuge in America, they brought with them
their ancient institutions, the rights and privileges guaranteed them
under the Magna Carta.
There were other Englishmen equally courageous, equally liberty-loving,
who came to seek their fortunes and build homes in the New World. They,
too, brought with them their rights and privileges.
These English pioneers hewed their way through the savage wilderness.
Many of them were massacred by Red Men, while their homes were burned;
some of them were carried into captivity and tortured. Yet the great
body of undaunted English settlers, resolutely kept on pushing their
frontiers westward. They laid out farms and plantations, they built
villages and towns, they founded churches and schools. They obtained
charters from far away England, confirming their rights. And through
God’s blessing they prospered, and became strong and rich.
Other liberty-loving folk, the Dutch, settled in great numbers in what
is now New York and New Jersey; while many settlers from different parts
of Europe, came to the New World to build homes for themselves and their
children.
The very air of America breathed freedom. The magnitude of the country
and the difficulties of pioneer-life helped to invigorate, expand, and
make indomitable those ideals of English Liberty which the first
settlers and frontiersmen had brought with them.
When King George the Third inherited the British Crown, he was unable
to understand the free spirit of Englishmen. And he was far from
realizing its tremendous growth in the New World.
He taxed the Americans without representation. He placed a standing army
in the Colonies, without their consent. He blockaded the Port of Boston
to force her to submit to his unjust laws. In some cases, trial by jury
was abolished. These are some of his tyrannous violations of the rights
and privileges of English freemen.
The People of America, in indignation, petitioned the King for redress.
There was no redress.
So the People of America rose in arms; and, in the true spirit of Magna
Carta, they issued the Declaration of Independence.
Now, we shall see what William Pitt had to do with all this.
AMERICA’S DEFENDER
“_For the defence of Liberty, upon a general principle, upon a
constitutional principle, it is a ground on which I stand firm, on
which I dare meet any man._”
“_This Country had no right under Heaven to tax America! It is
contrary to all the principles of justice and civil policy._”
“_If I were an American,” he exclaimed, “as I am an Englishman,
while a foreign troop was landed in my Country, I never would lay
down my arms--never--never--never!_”
WILLIAM PITT, _Earl of Chatham_
It was natural that an English statesman who sincerely and firmly
believed in the rights of all Englishmen, should become the defender of
America. And her loyal friend and champion was William Pitt. By the
weight of his eloquent speeches, he fought her battles in Parliament.
When the Stamp Act was passed, he was absent from his place in
Parliament, because of illness. But later, he was present. Leaning on
his crutch, for he was still very sick, he indignantly arraigned the
British Ministry which had brought about the passage of the Act.
“When the resolution was taken in this House to tax America,” he
said, “I was ill in bed. If I could have endured to have been
carried in my bed, so great was the agitation of my mind for the
consequences, I would have solicited some kind hand to have laid me
down on this floor, to have borne my testimony against it!
“The Colonists are the subjects of this Kingdom, equally entitled
with yourselves to all the natural rights of mankind and the
peculiar privileges of Englishmen; equally bound by its laws, and
equally participating in the Constitution of this free Country. The
Americans are the sons ... of England!”
And when one of the members made a speech abusing the Americans,
defending the Stamp Act, and accusing Pitt of sowing sedition among the
American Colonists, he rose and answered:--
“The gentleman tells us,” he said, “America is obstinate; America
is almost in open rebellion. I rejoice that America has resisted.
Three millions of people so dead to all the feelings of Liberty, as
voluntarily to let themselves be made slaves, would have been fit
instruments to make slaves of all the rest.
“In a good cause, on a sound bottom, the force of this Country can
crush America to atoms. I know the valour of your troops, I know
the skill of your officers.... But on this ground,--on the Stamp
Act--when so many here will think it a crying injustice, I am one
who will lift up my hands against it!
“In such a cause, even your success would be hazardous. America, if
she fell, would fall like the strong man. She would embrace the
pillars of the State, and pull down the Constitution along with
her.
“Is this your boasted peace? To sheathe the sword, not in its
scabbard, but in the bowels of your Countrymen?
“Upon the whole, I will beg leave to tell the House what is really
my opinion. It is that the Stamp Act _be repealed absolutely,
totally, and immediately_.”[2]
* * * * *
And whether the Stamp Act was repealed “absolutely, totally, and
immediately,” John Fiske tells in his thrilling history, “The American
Revolution.”
THE SONS OF LIBERTY
William Pitt was not the only English statesman who championed America.
There was Lord Rockingham, at one time Prime Minister of England, also
the Earl of Camden, and the celebrated Charles James Fox.
And there was Edmund Burke, “one of the earliest friends of America,”
with his scratch wig, round spectacles, and pockets stuffed with papers.
He pleaded our cause so brilliantly that his hearers were dazzled by his
oratory “with its passionate ardour, its poetic fancy, its amazing
prodigality of resources, the dazzling succession in which irony,
pathos, invective, tenderness, the most brilliant word-pictures, the
coolest arguments, followed each other.”
And among America’s British friends, was Colonel Barré, a member of the
House of Commons. In an indignant speech against the Stamp Act, he
referred to the American Patriots as “Sons of Liberty.”
When his speech reached America, the name “Sons of Liberty” was adopted
by secret societies pledged to resist the Stamp Act.
In Boston, the Sons of Liberty held meetings under the Liberty Tree, a
huge elm; they met also in Faneuil Hall, since called “the Cradle of
American Liberty.” In New York City, the Sons of Liberty erected a tall
Liberty Pole, and defended it against the Red Coats.
All over the Country, the Sons of Liberty were active, sometimes too
violently so, in the cause of American Independence.
A LAST SCENE
In 1778, a dramatic event took place in the House of Lords.
William Pitt, old now and wasted by disease, but the fire of whose
genius still burned bright and clear, was about to speak.
France had acknowledged the Independence of the United States. Germany
was planning to do so; while Spain stood ready to enter into an alliance
with the Americans. England was at war with France. The situation of
England seemed desperate.
And on that dramatic day in the House of Lords, the Duke of Richmond was
about to move that the royal fleets and armies should be instantly
withdrawn from America, and peace be made on whatever terms Congress
might see fit to accept.
But William Pitt would not willingly consent to a step that seemed
certain to wreck the Empire his genius had won for England.
He had got up from his sick bed, and had come into the House of Lords to
argue against the motion.
Wrapped in flannel bandages, and leaning upon crutches, his dark eyes in
their brilliancy enhancing the pallor of his careworn face, as he
entered the House, supported on the one side by his son-in-law, and on
the other by that younger son who was so soon to add fresh glory to the
name of William Pitt, the peers all started to their feet, and remained
standing until he had taken his place.
In broken sentences, with strange flashes of the eloquence which had
once held captive ear and heart, he protested against the hasty adoption
of a measure which simply prostrated the dignity of England before its
ancient enemy, the House of Bourbon.
The Duke of Richmond’s answer, reverently and delicately worded, urged
that while the magic of Chatham’s name could work anything short of
miracles, yet only a miracle could now relieve them from the dire
necessity of abandoning America.
Chatham rose to reply, but his overwrought frame gave way, and he sank
in a swoon upon the floor.
All business was at once adjourned. The peers, with eager sympathy, came
crowding up to offer assistance, and the unconscious statesman was
carried in the arms of his friends to a house near by, whence in a few
days he was removed to his home.
There, after lingering between life and death for several weeks, on the
11th of May, and in the seventieth year of his age, Lord Chatham
breathed his last.
The man thus struck down like a soldier at his post, was one whom
Americans, no less than Englishmen, have delighted to honour.
_John Fiske_ (_Retold_)
DECEMBER 2
DOM PEDRO THE SECOND THE MAGNANIMOUS THE BEST REPUBLICAN IN BRAZIL
TO
H. M. DOM PEDRO II
EMPEROR OF BRAZIL
SCHOLAR AND SCIENTIST, PATRON OF
ARTS AND LETTERS
STERLING STATESMAN AND MODEL MONARCH,
WHOSE REIGN OF HALF A CENTURY HAS BEEN
ZEALOUSLY AND SUCCESSFULLY DEVOTED TO
PUBLIC INSTRUCTION, INDUSTRIAL
ENTERPRISE, AND THE ABOLITION
OF SLAVERY
THROUGHOUT THE VAST AND OPULENT
“EMPIRE OF THE SOUTHERN CROSS”
_Dedication by_ FRANK VINCENT
FREEDOM IN BRAZIL
_With clearer light, Cross of the South shine forth
In blue Brazilian skies:
And thou, O River, cleaving half the earth,
From sunset to sunrise,
From the great mountains to the Atlantic waves,
Thy joy’s long anthem pour,
Yet a few years (God make them less!) and slaves
Shall shame thy pride no more.
No fettered feet thy shaded margins press,
But all men shall walk free.
Where, thou the high-priest of the wilderness,
Hast wedded sea to sea._
_And thou, great-hearted Ruler, through whose mouth
The word of God is said
Once more:--“Let there be light!”--Son of the South,
Lift up thy honoured head,
Wear unashamed a crown by thy desert
More than by birth thy own,
Careless of watch and ward; thou art begirt
By grateful hearts alone.
The moated wall and battleship may fail,
But safe shall Justice prove;
Stronger than greaves of brass or iron mail,
The panoply of Love._
JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER (_Condensed_)
DOM PEDRO was born December 2, 1825
Was made Emperor at five years of age, April 7, 1831
Visited the United States, 1876
His daughter, Princess Isabel, emancipated the slaves, 1888
He abdicated, and Brazil was proclaimed a Republic, 1889
Dom Pedro died, December 5, 1891.
THE BRAZILS MAGNIFICENT
Robinson Crusoe, after escaping from Moorish slavery with the boy Xury,
was rescued by a Portuguese ship bound for South America. He was carried
by the ship’s captain to the Brazils.
There he settled, bought a plantation and made a fortune. Then, away
from those same Brazils, he sailed and was wrecked and cast upon his
Desert Island.
Magnificent and rich were Robinson Crusoe’s Brazils, or the Country of
Brazil, stretching vast and unknown far westward into the interior of
the continent. Near the sea-coast, in the parts inhabited by civilized
men, were plantations of coffee, tobacco, and fruits. Primeval forests
covered the shores of the rivers whose mighty waters rushed far out into
the ocean. Fierce savages roved the forests. There were gold, spices,
and diamonds in Robinson Crusoe’s Brazils, and rare woods, brilliant
birds, butterflies, and flowers.
And so is the country of Brazil to-day--a magnificent land! Only there
are cities there now, and towns and villages. And to-day, Brazil is a
Republic with a Constitution like that of our own United States.
In Robinson Crusoe’s time, Brazil was owned and ruled by the Kingdom of
Portugal, just as other parts of South America were owned and ruled by
the Crown of Spain.
How Brazil won Independence and became a Republic, is a fascinating
story.
THE EMPIRE OF THE SOUTHERN CROSS
Brazil, on which the Southern Cross of four bright stars, looks down,
first became a Kingdom, then an Empire and after that a Republic.
When Napoleon’s Army threatened to invade Portugal, the Royal Family of
Portugal fled in terror of their lives. They escaped from Lisbon,
crossed the Atlantic, and found refuge in the royal Colony of Brazil.
In 1815, Brazil was declared a Kingdom, though still to remain a part of
Portugal. The first and only European Kingdom in America!
When the time arrived, that the Royal Family might safely return to
Portugal, the King left his son, Dom Pedro, to be Regent or Governor of
Brazil.
But the Brazilians had grown used to having their King live among them.
More just laws and greater privileges were theirs, when their ruler
lived in the land. He could understand their needs better than if he
ruled them from Europe. So the Brazilians became dissatisfied, when
their country was reduced once more to the state of a Colony.
Dom Pedro was a patriotic Brazilian, and ruled the Country without much
regard to Portugal’s wishes. Trouble soon arose between the Mother
Country and Brazil. Dom Pedro proclaimed the Independence of Brazil,
September 7, 1822. An Empire was established, and Dom Pedro was made
Emperor under a Constitution.
But as time went on, the Emperor did not uphold the People’s rights; so
he was forced to abdicate in favour of his little son, Dom Pedro, who
was only five years old.
After which, Dom Pedro the First, sailed away to Europe, leaving little
Dom Pedro the Second, to rule in his stead.
MAKING THE LITTLE EMPEROR
“The King is afloat! God save the King!” were the shouts which rang
through the streets of Rio Janeiro, for now that their Emperor Pedro the
First had abdicated and escaped on an English man-o-war, the people were
giving themselves up to rejoicing.
“The King is afloat! God save the King!” was the cry of the townspeople
and the streets, festooned with coffee branches, were made to glow with
coloured silks, while the balconies were thronged with señoritas in all
their finery of brilliant dresses, garlands, fluttering fans, and
feather flowers.
They were witnessing the triumphal entry into his capital of the new
Emperor, Dom Pedro the Second, the little lad of five and a half years
old.
First in the procession of the Child-Emperor, were justices of the peace
bearing green flags. Then came the little Emperor.
And what a figure was this! A tiny infant in a huge state-coach, dragged
by four strings of excited mulattoes! He cried, and at the same time
waved a white handkerchief.
The tender-hearted Brazilians, every man and woman of their number a
child-adorer, were altogether overcome by the sight, and even the choir
that accompanied the procession, was touched. Its triumphant chant died
away in an emotional quiver.
With great pomp, little Pedro was installed as Emperor, the eyes of the
enthusiastic spectators swimming with tears, as he was carried out of
the chapel in the arms of an old chamberlain.
Later, while sitting in a little chair at the window of the palace, he
reviewed the troops of his Empire.
But though little Pedro was now Emperor of all Brazil, he was too young
to rule. A Regent ruled for him for ten years, while Pedro studied and
prepared himself to govern his People.
_W. H. Koebel and Other Sources_
THE PATRIOT EMPEROR
I
_Viva Dom Pedro the Second!_
At last a large political party in the capital grew tired of installing
Regents and electing new ministers, and insistently demanded that the
Emperor himself begin to reign, although legally he was still too young.
According to the Constitution, an Emperor reached his majority at the
age of eighteen, and Dom Pedro was only fifteen. But in spite of his
youth, Dom Pedro the Second was declared constitutional Emperor and
perpetual defender of Brazil. Viva Dom Pedro the Second!
So mature was the young Emperor in mind and appearance, that he was well
fitted to play the part of an eighteen-year-old. His tutors were the
best that could be found in Europe or South America, and he was a
brilliant student. He had a trick of relighting his lamp at night and
studying for a while after every one had gone to bed. Natural history,
mathematics, and astronomy were his favourite subjects at that time.
But in the course of his life he studied almost everything under the
sun, and he could talk fluently on any subject in English, German,
French, Italian or Spanish; he read Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. When he
was sixty he learned Sanskrit. His library was packed with histories,
biographies, encyclopædias, and law-books.
Besides his library the Emperor loved peace, happiness, and prosperity.
These were his gifts to Brazil during his long reign, while surrounding
Nations were struggling with anarchy and civil war.
Before Dom Pedro was eighteen, he signed a contract of marriage with a
Princess whom he had never seen, Theresa Christina Maria, sister of the
King of the two Sicilies. A Brazilian squadron conducted her to Rio, and
the city received her with splendid ceremonies.
II
_My People_
Under Dom Pedro’s guiding influence, Brazil gained steadily in power,
importance, and reputation. Home industries and foreign commerce
doubled. Telegraphic communications were established with the United
States and Europe. Good steamship lines, both coastwise and oceanic,
made Brazil accessible to all the world. Public property was opened to
settlement, and the Government became as hospitable to all foreign
enterprise as it had before this been exclusive.
Above all things, Dom Pedro wanted to stimulate the love of knowledge
among his People, to give the boys and girls of every class an equal
chance. Free public schools were established all over the Empire.
One time, the Emperor learned that 3,000,000 francs had been pledged by
citizens for a fine bronze statue of himself to be given the place of
honour in a city square. Dom Pedro, expressing his deep gratitude, said
that it would please him far more if the money could be used for public
schools instead. The grade and high school buildings of Rio have always
been noted for their beauty, size, and equipment.
While so many of the South American States were lagging far behind the
times, Brazil, under Dom Pedro, caught up with other progressive Nations
of the World. Liberty of speech and religious tolerance were not even
questioned, but taken for granted.
III
_Emancipating the Slaves_
1888
The greatest national event during Dom Pedro’s reign was the Abolition
of Slavery, and no one worked harder to bring it to pass than the
Emperor himself.
The African slave-trade had been abolished in 1850 and from that time on
public opinion grew more and more in favour of Emancipation, in spite of
the strong opposition of planters and wealthy slave owners.
Following Dom Pedro’s example, many high-minded citizens freed their own
slaves. The slave was enabled to free himself in many ways, such as
raising his own purchase money. The incentive to do this was great, for
an ambitious slave had plenty of chance to rise in the world.
Dom Pedro’s dearest wish was that he might live to see every slave in
the country a free man, and this wish came true in the last year of his
reign.
He had gone abroad in poor health, leaving his daughter Isabel as
Regent. When Congress met, the Princess Isabel railroaded the Abolition
Bill through both Houses in eight days, and signed the bill which put
the law into immediate effect.
IV
_The Empire of the Southern Cross--No More!_
Soon after the humane Princess Isabel had freed the slaves, Dom Pedro
came hastening home from Europe. He landed in Rio, and was received with
genuine enthusiasm. But his loved personality could no longer stand
between the throne and the widespread desire for a Republic together
with the popular discontent aroused by the Princess’s acts.
In 1889, a Republican revolt took the whole Empire by surprise. It had
long been brewing beneath the surface, but so great was the Emperor’s
popularity that Republicans had tacitly agreed to postpone the new
Government until his death.
A rumor that Dom Pedro might abdicate in favour of Princess Isabel, and
thus initiate another generation of monarchy, precipitated the
Revolution. The Republican leagues, with the backing of the army and
navy, refused to wait any longer.
Dom Pedro, summoned from Petropolis by telegram, found a Provisional
Government already organized when he reached the capital. In the
Imperial Palace at Rio, surrounded by insurgents, the old Emperor was
told briefly that his long reign was over.
“We are forced to notify you,” said the ultimatum, “that the Provisional
Government expects from your Patriotism the sacrifice of leaving
Brazilian territory with your family in the shortest possible time.”
Dom Pedro the Second replied simply:--
“I resolve to submit to the command of circumstances and will depart
with my family for Europe to-morrow, leaving this beloved Country to
which I have tried to give firm testimony of my love and my dedication
during nearly half a century as chief of the State. I shall always have
kind remembrances of Brazil and hopes for its prosperity.”
The next day the Imperial Family sailed for Lisbon.
In three days’ time a monarchy had been overthrown _without bloodshed_
or opposition. The Emperor, who had sometimes been called the best
Republican in Brazil, was replaced by a military dictator.
The homesick Emperor, living in European hotels or rented villas,
“always remained as one on the point of departure, as if he ever
expected to be recalled by his former subjects, a hope which till the
last moment would not die out of his heart.”
_Margarette Daniels_ (_Arranged_)
THE UNITED STATES OF BRAZIL
Brazil, whose name originally meant the Land of Red Dye Wood, is to-day,
the United States of Brazil with a Constitution like our own. It has a
President, Vice-President, and House of Congress, and an army and navy.
It has railroads, beautiful cities, many towns, and a world commerce.
Brazil exports quantities of rubber, sugar, coffee, and other products.
The milky juice of the caoutchouc or rubber, is gathered largely from
the wild rubber-trees growing in the tropical forests far in the
interior of Brazil, or along the banks of the Amazon. Our United States
receives great shipments of this rubber. The coffee-trees flourish in
the famous red earth of Brazil, producing large crops of the delicious
berry, to make happy the breakfast tables of the world.
There is the friendliest of relations between our United States and
Brazil. It is no uncommon sight to meet Brazilian sailors in their
picturesque uniform, at home on the streets of New York City. And when
the statue of Bolivar, the Liberator of Venezuela, was unveiled in
Central Park in 1921, there was present a detachment of Brazilian
Marines detailed from their battleship anchored in New York Harbour.
They made an imposing appearance, filing down the park-slope of Bolivar
Hill, in the military procession which accompanied President Harding.
The year 1922, the one hundredth anniversary of Brazilian Independence,
has been celebrated by People of the United States. Out of friendship
for Brazil, they have presented her with a statue of Liberty cast in
bronze. Liberty holds aloft two entwined banners, the Brazilian Flag and
the Stars and Stripes. The Brazilian Government has selected one of the
most prominent spots in the city of Rio Janeiro, as a site for the
statue.
DECEMBER 20
WILLIAM BRADFORD
AND
THE LANDING OF THE PILGRIMS
_The word of God to Leyden came,
Dutch town, by Zuyder Zee:
“Rise up, my Children of no name,
My kings and priests to be.
There is an Empire in the West
Which I will soon unfold,
A thousand harvests in her breast,
Rocks ribbed with iron and gold.”_
* * * * *
_They left the towers of Leyden Town,
They left the Zuyder Zee,
And where they cast their anchor down,
Rose Freedom’s realm to be.”_
J. E. RANKIN
THE PILGRIM FATHERS
_So they left that goodly and pleasant city which had been their resting
place near twelve years._
_But they knew they were Pilgrims, and looked not much on these things;
but lift up their eyes to the Heavens, their dearest country, and
quieted their spirits._
_Governor_ WILLIAM BRADFORD
WILLIAM BRADFORD was born about 1590
The _Mayflower_ reached Cape Cod; Mayflower Compact signed,
November 11, 1620
The Pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock, probably December 20, 1620
William Bradford died, May 9, 1657
THE FATHER OF THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES
William Bradford’s birthday, we celebrate on the anniversary of the
landing of the Pilgrims on Plymouth Rock. We do not know the exact date
of his birth.
He was just an ordinary boy living in a small English village. He was
brought up by relatives, for his father and mother had died when he was
a child. They had left him a small fortune, so he was not in want.
When about twelve years old, he began to read the Bible. It interested
him so much, that when older he attended the meetings of some neighbours
who were studying the Bible and worshipping God in their own little
Assembly. Separatists, they were called, for they had separated from the
Established Church of England.
In those days, it was a crime in England for any one to hold or attend
religious meetings of Separatists. The Bible printed in the English
tongue, had long been forbidden reading, but in William Bradford’s days,
it was beginning to be read quite widely, specially by Separatists.
These poor people’s Assemblies were watched by spies and informers.
Separatists were arrested and imprisoned, while some were executed.
Others fled into Holland--brave liberty-loving Holland--where there was
no persecution for religion’s sake.
William Bradford became a Separatist. When about eighteen years old, he,
too, fled into Holland, where he might serve his Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ, in full liberty of conscience.
For ten years or more he lived in Holland. He was a member of an English
Separatist Church in Leyden, under the gentle rule of its beloved
pastor, John Robinson.
The Separatists believed that every man in the church-congregation
should have a voice in its management; thus they elected their pastor.
The time came when a part of Pastor Robinson’s congregation decided to
emigrate and seek a home in the New World. The leaders of this little
band of Pilgrims--the Pilgrim Fathers, we call them--were William
Bradford, John Carver, and Edward Winslow. With them went William
Brewster, who was to be their pastor in the New World. Miles Standish,
also, went with them, and became the Captain of their small army, which
defended them against the Indians.
So the Pilgrim Fathers, together with their wives, little ones, and men
and maid servants, said farewell to Holland’s hospitable shore. Soon
after, they sailed from England in the _Mayflower_, to found a
settlement in the savage New World, under the rule of England.
They took with them the seeds of American Independence. They had left
England so that they might have the freedom which was theirs by rights.
They were come to America so that they might govern themselves, every
man having a voice in the government of the new settlement as well as in
the management of his own congregation. This principle of
self-government, the Pilgrims embodied in the famous Mayflower Compact,
an agreement which they drew up and signed the day they reached New
England.
Meanwhile, far to the South of New England another Colony of Englishmen
had planted and was fostering other seeds of American Independence.[3]
But let us see what became of William Bradford, since we are celebrating
his birthday. We will let Cotton Mather tell it in his own quaint
style:--
“The rest of his days were spent in the services and the temptations of
that American wilderness. Here was Master Bradford, in the year 1621,
unanimously chosen the Governor of the Plantation. The difficulties
whereof were such that if he had not been a person of more than
ordinary piety, wisdom, and courage, he must have sunk under them.” He
served for thirty-seven years, “in every one of which he was chosen
their Governor, except the three years wherein Master Winslow and the
two years wherein Master Prince, at the choice of the people, took a
turn with him.... But the crown of all was his holy, prayerful,
watchful, and fruitful, walk with God.... He died May 9th, 1657, in the
69th year of his age, lamented by all the Colonies of New England as a
common Blessing and Father to them all.”
THE SAVAGE NEW WORLD
It was November, 1620. The ocean swelled angrily. A cold wind was
blowing, as day broke over the gray water. Sea-gulls swooped and wheeled
around the good ship _Mayflower_, which, with tattered sails, was
driving through the billows. For over two months she had been on her way
from Plymouth, England, carrying the Pilgrims. And, now, while the dull
day was breaking, suddenly a cry was heard:--
“Land Ho!”
The Pilgrims came crowding to the deck, fathers, mothers, children, men,
and maid-servants. They looked eagerly toward the west. They saw the
coast of the New World, as the ship rushed nearer, low with a white
line of surf beating against its wooded shore.
It was a very new, strange, savage world awaiting them, full of unknown
horrors and Indians. Yet the Pilgrims were not fearful. Had they not
committed themselves to God’s will? And was not this to be their home,
the land to which He was bringing them? So they fell on their knees, and
blessed Him who had guided them safely through storm and stress.
The wide bay where they first anchored--Cape Cod Bay--was wooded to the
water’s edge, with pines and oaks, with sassafras and juniper, with
birch and holly, ash and walnut. Whales swam spouting around the ship,
while flocks of wild fowl flew screaming overhead.
And when at last the Pilgrims went ashore in that uninhabited spot, how
briskly the mothers and sisters rubbed and scrubbed, as they washed the
Pilgrims’ clothes. For it had been a frightful two months’ voyage, with
so many storms and so much sickness aboard, that little washing had been
done. And the first thing the Pilgrim Mothers did, was to hold a great
wash day.
And while the women washed, the carpenter repaired the ship’s shallop;
for William Bradford and some of the others wished to explore the coast,
in order to find a safe and pleasant spot for their settlement.
While the shallop was being got ready, the Pilgrims decided to send out
a party by land, to see what the country was like.
And many thrilling adventures, the Pilgrim Fathers had before they
discovered a site, and built Plymouth Town.
On their first adventure, they saw Indians in the distance. They walked
through fields of corn-stubble which belonged to Indians. They found a
white man’s kettle and the ruins of a cabin. They dug up a fine, great,
new basket filled with corn, red, yellow, and blue. They took the corn
with them, intending to search out the owner, and pay him well.
On the second adventure, they found empty Indian wigwams, more corn, and
the grave of a man with yellow hair.
On the third adventure, they left their shallop, at night, to camp on
shore. In the gray dusk of morning, a band of fierce Nauset Indians
attacked them. A flight of brass-headed or claw-tipped arrows came
flying across the Pilgrims’ barricade. The Pilgrims fired their guns,
and the Nausets, whooping loudly, bounded away into the dusk. The
Pilgrims pursued them for a short distance.
Though many arrows had fallen around them, none of the Pilgrims were
hurt. They gave thanks to God for their deliverance; and, after naming
the spot The _Place of the First Encounter_, they sailed away in their
shallop to explore the coast near by.
Then, at last, they discovered a beautiful site for their town, situated
on a fine harbour. They returned to the _Mayflower_, with the good news.
And a few days before Christmas, the _Mayflower_ anchored in the
harbour, and the Pilgrim folk landed on Plymouth Rock.
On Christmas day, they began to build Plymouth Town.
WELCOME, ENGLISHMEN!
“Welcome!”
That cry--just one English word--sounded through the street of Plymouth,
and startled the Pilgrims. They caught up their muskets and ran from the
houses.
A tall naked savage, his lank hair clinging to his shoulders, was
stalking along the street, holding a bow and arrows.
“Welcome!” he shouted.
The Pilgrims returned his greeting.
He was Samoset, Chief of Pemaquid, he told them. He had journeyed from
very far off. He had learned English among the Englishmen who sometimes
came to fish off the coast of his country.
The Pilgrims, glad to talk with a friendly Indian, invited him to eat
with them. Then, as the wind was rising, they wrapped a warm coat around
his naked body. They gave him biscuit with butter, and cheese, and a
piece of cooked duck; all of which he seemed to relish hugely.
And in answer to their questions Samoset told them many things about
that country. As for the Nauset Indians, who had attacked them so
fiercely at The Place of the First Encounter, he said that these Nausets
hated all white men because a certain Englishman, one Captain Hunt, a
short time before the Pilgrims landed, had cruelly deceived the Nauset
Indians, kidnapping twenty of them, and selling them to other white men.
All this and much more, Samoset told the Pilgrims. He stayed with them
that night. The next day they sent him away with a gift of a knife, a
ring, and a bracelet. He went off promising that he would come soon
again and bring other Indians to trade with them.
But the Pilgrims were troubled, for they had not found the owners of the
buried corn.
LOST! LOST! A BOY!
There were children on the _Mayflower_--Oceanus Hopkins who was born at
sea, Peregrine White who gave his first baby-cry soon after the
_Mayflower_ reached the New World, Francis Billington who almost blew up
the _Mayflower_, while trying to make fireworks, and John Billington.
John was a mischievous youngster, and so lively that the Pilgrim Fathers
had to keep a stern eye upon him. But in spite of their watching, he got
lost. For one day, soon after the Pilgrims were settled in Plymouth, he
slipped out of the town, and into the woods that stretched farther than
eye could see from the top of the highest tree.
That night when John did not come home, the Plymouth folk were worried.
Where was the boy? they asked. How had he managed to slip from the town
without being seen? Had he strayed into the woods? Had a savage caught
him and carried him off?
Governor Bradford sent a party to look for him. They scoured the woods
about, but there was no John.
Five days went by,--five anxious days for the Plymouth folk. And John
had not returned when a message came from the friendly Indian, King
Massasoit, saying that the Nausets had the lad. The Nauset Indians were
the same fierce savages who had attacked the Pilgrims at The Place of
the First Encounter.
A shallop was launched and victualed; and the next morning ten of the
Pilgrims, with Tisquantum, their Indian interpreter, set sail for
Nauset.
It was a dangerous trip. At first the day was calm and bright, then came
on a storm of wind with thunder and lightning, that lashed the little
ship; while a waterspout almost broke over her. “But GOD be praised!”
says the _Pilgrim Chronicle_, which tells about _the lost boy_, “GOD be
praised! it dured not long, and we put in that night for harbour at a
place called Cummaquid, where we had some hope to find the boy.”
But they didn’t find him there. “The Nausets have got him,” said the
friendly Cummaquid Indians, when they came down the next morning to
catch lobsters. And they invited the Pilgrims to come ashore and eat
with them. So six of them landed, hoping to learn something more about
John.
Iyanough, the handsome young Cummaquid Chief, welcomed them heartily. He
made a feast of venison and maize cakes. And after they had eaten, he
offered to go with them to help rescue John. So the Pilgrims put out to
sea again, taking Iyanough and two of his braves. They made the best
speed possible, for they were anxious to find what had happened to the
boy.
The tide was out when they reached Nauset, and the water was so shallow
that they had to anchor at a distance from land. Iyanough, his braves,
and Tisquantum, went ashore to find Aspinet the Nauset Chief. They hoped
to persuade him to give up John, if he was still alive.
Meanwhile, crowds of Nauset Indians came running down to the beach. They
waded out from shore; and soon they were swarming around the shallop.
The Pilgrims stood guard to keep them from boarding her, for they
remembered all too well, how these same savages had attacked them with
showers of brass-headed arrows.
Finally, they allowed two of the Indians to climb into the shallop. And
what was the Pilgrims’ delight when they found that one of the two was
part owner of the corn dug up at Cornhill. They welcomed him gladly.
They told him that they wished to pay for the corn. They asked him to
come to Plymouth for the payment. He promised that he would.
By this time the sun was setting, but Iyanough had not returned with
news of John. This made the Pilgrims all the more anxious.
After sunset, they saw a long train of Nauset Indians come winding down
to the beach. At their head, walked their haughty Chief Aspinet. He drew
near to the edge of the beach. Some of his warriors stood guard with
their bows and arrows ready to shoot. The others laid down their
weapons and followed Aspinet into the water. They began to wade out
toward the shallop. And whom should the Pilgrims see sitting on the
shoulders of a big Indian, but John himself, covered with strings of
beads! He had been visiting in the Nauset village, where his new friend
the big Indian had feasted and entertained him in his wigwam.
And while the Indian was giving John over to the Pilgrims, Aspinet
announced that he and his people wished to make peace with the white
men. So the Pilgrims made peace with him, and presented him with a
strong English knife. They gave another one to the big Indian in return
for his kindness to John. Aspinet and his warriors then went back
friendly and satisfied, to their village.
So the lost boy was found.
And so the buried corn was paid for at last.
THE RATTLESNAKE CHALLENGE
It was just before Christmas, when a strange Brave came into Plymouth
town, carrying a bundle of new arrows wrapped in a rattlesnake-skin.
He asked for Tisquantum. When they told him that Tisquantum was away, he
smiled and seemed glad. He laid down the skin, and turned to run out of
the town.
[Illustration: JOHN BILLINGTON BROUGHT ON THE SHOULDERS OF AN INDIAN]
But Governor Bradford did not like his looks nor his queer gift, so
ordered Captain Standish to seize him. The Captain laid hold of him, and
locked him up for the night. At first the poor Indian shook so with fear
that he could not speak. Then as they questioned him gently, he grew
calmer. And when they promised to set him free if he would tell who had
sent him, he confessed to being a messenger from Canonicus, the great
Chieftain of the Naragansett Indians, a People powerful and many
thousands strong.
Governor Bradford, in the morning, set him free, bidding him go back to
Canonicus and tell him that if he would not live at peace with the white
men, as their other Indian neighbours did, the white men would show him
their wrath.
The messenger listened quietly. He refused all offers of food, but
thanked the Pilgrims for their kindness. Then he sped away to his
master.
When Tisquantum came back, they asked him what the rattlesnake-skin
meant.
To send a rattlesnake-skin meant an enemy, he said. It was the same as
sending a challenge.
In answer, Governor Bradford stuffed the skin full of powder, and sent
it back by an Indian runner to Canonicus.
The runner delivered it with such terrifying words of defiance, that
Canonicus would not even touch it for fear of the powder and shot, nor
would he let the rattlesnake-skin stay overnight in his village. The
runner refused to take it back to Plymouth. Canonicus then gave it to
one of his own Indians, who had it posted from place to place, until at
last it was returned to Governor Bradford--_unopened_!
THE GREAT DROUGHT
How the Pilgrims’ little farms did flourish! Rye, barley, maize, oats,
beans, and peas grew and thrived; also parsnips, carrots, turnips,
onions, melons, radishes, and beets. In the gardens, were fragrant
herbs. Refreshing watercresses grew wild in the meadows; while fruit
ripened on the trees, which the Pilgrims had found already growing in
the land.
But early during the third Summer, destruction threatened those little
farms. There was a great drought. For many weeks, scarcely a drop of
rain fell.
The corn, oats, rye, and barley, drooped their yellowing blades. The
beans stopped running, and lay parched and shrivelling. The other
vegetables were turning yellow. Unless rain should fall soon, the
Pilgrims knew that they and their little children must starve when
Winter came.
To add to the misery of it all, a ship laden with supplies, which had
been sent from England, was missing. Nothing had been heard of her for
months. And now, during the great drought, the wreck of a ship was cast
on shore.
In sorrow and anxiety, the Pilgrims met together for a day of public
fasting and prayer.
We will let Edward Winslow himself, tell what happened:--
“But, Oh! the mercy of our God! who was as ready to hear as we to
ask!
“For though in the morning when we assembled together, the heavens
were as clear and the drought as like to continue as ever it was,
yet our Exercise (public worship) continuing some eight or nine
hours, before our departure the weather was overcast, the clouds
gathered together on all sides.
“And on the next morning distilled such soft, sweet, and moderate
showers of rain continuing some fourteen days and mixed with such
seasonable weather, as it was hard to say whether our withered corn
or drooping affections were most quickened or revived.
“Such was the bounty and goodness of our God!
“So that having these many signs of God’s favour, and acceptation,
we thought it would be great ingratitude if secretly we should
smoother up the same or content ourselves with private
thanksgiving, for that which by private prayer could not be
obtained.
“And therefore another Solemn Day was set apart and appointed for
that end. Wherein we returned glory, honour, and praise, with all
thankfulness to our good God which dealt so graciously with us.”
_Governor Edward Winslow_ (_Condensed_)
_The story of “The First Harvest Home in Plymouth” may be found in
“Good Stories for Great Holidays.”_
JANUARY 7
GENERAL ISRAEL PUTNAM
“OLD PUT”
The picturesque wolf-slayer, a brave and sterling Patriot.
JOHN FISKE
There was a generosity and buoyancy about the brave old man, that made
him a favourite throughout the Army; especially with the younger
officers, who spoke of him familiarly and fondly as “Old Put.”
WASHINGTON IRVING
General ISRAEL PUTNAM was born in Massachusetts, January 7, 1718
Moved to Connecticut, 1740
Left his plough to fight at Bunker Hill, 1775
He died, May 29, 1790.
SEEING BOSTON
It was before the War for Independence. A country boy in rough homespun
clothes was walking along the streets of Boston. He was staring at the
shop signs and windows. It was his first visit to the big city. He had
never seen such interesting things before. The boy was Israel Putnam,
the son of a farmer.
A city boy, much bigger than Putnam, saw him wandering about staring
curiously at everything. He thought that it would be safe to bully such
a raw-looking boy. Stepping up to Putnam, he began to make fun of his
coarse clothes and his awkward walk.
Putnam stood it as long as he could, for though he was known as a
fighter at home, he never provoked a quarrel. But now, as he saw a crowd
gathering which seemed to enjoy his humiliation, his blood rose. He
turned on the big boy, and gave him such a drubbing that the crowd
cheered with delight. The boy slunk off, and Putnam walked away and had
no more annoyance.
That was the kind of boy--and man too--Israel Putnam was; slow to anger;
but when once roused by injustice, nothing could hold him back.
THE FIGHT WITH THE WOLF
Israel Putnam grew older, married, and went to live in Connecticut. He
had a stock farm.
One winter, wolves began to kill his animals. There was a she-wolf,
particularly fierce and ravenous, who had lost the toes of one foot. She
attacked and devoured animals for miles around.
During a single night Putnam lost seventy fine sheep and goats, besides
having many lambs and kids badly torn. In the morning he found around
the fold the tracks of the she-wolf’s toeless foot.
Putnam and some of his neighbours traced her to a cave about five miles
away. Then they returned home.
The next morning they started out with dogs, guns, and brimstone. The
dogs chased the wolf into her cave, but came running out again torn and
yelping. Putnam and the men built a fire in the cave-entrance. They
threw on brimstone which gave out choking fumes. They threw on straw
which made a thick smoke. But there were no signs of the wolf. All was
quiet in the cave.
It grew to be nearly ten o’clock at night. Putnam tried once more to
make his dog enter the cave, but he would not stir. Putnam, then, asked
his negro man to go in and shoot the beast. But the black man, shivering
with fright, refused to crawl in.
Putnam grew angry. In spite of all that his neighbours could say, he
threw off his coat and lighted a torch. Then, tying a rope around his
legs, he gave the end to his friends, saying when he signaled to pull
him out.
In he went, headfirst, holding the lighted torch before him. Stooping,
he groped his way into the body of the cave. The torch made a dim circle
of light; all the rest of the den was in terrifying darkness. Silence
like death was around him.
He cautiously proceeded onward to an ascent. As he was slowly climbing
it on hands and knees, he discovered the glaring eyeballs of the
she-wolf just in front of him. Startled at the sight of the flaming
torch, she gnashed her teeth and gave a sullen growl.
Putnam kicked the rope, and his friends, who were listening with painful
anxiety and who heard the growling of the beast, pulled him out so
quickly that his shirt was stripped over his head and his body was badly
cut.
After he had adjusted his clothes, he loaded his gun with buckshot. Then
holding the torch in one hand and the gun in the other, he entered
again. This time the wolf assumed a still more fierce and terrible
aspect, howling, rolling her eyes, and snapping her teeth. Then she
dropped her head between her legs making ready to spring.
At this moment Putnam raised his gun and fired.
Stunned by the noise and suffocated with smoke, he felt himself being
jerked backward out of the cave. His friends had heard the shot, and
were pulling the rope.
He rested a few moments in the fresh air, while letting the smoke
dissipate. Then in he went a third time.
The wolf lay stretched on the floor as if asleep. He put the torch to
her nose to make sure that she was dead. Then he took her by the ears
and kicked the rope.
His friends, with loud cheers, drew him out, and the wolf with him.
FROM PLOUGH TO CAMP
Israel Putnam did not stay on his farm. When the French and Indian War
broke out, he enlisted. He served as major. He had many thrilling
escapes from Indians. Once he was captured and tortured by savages, but
was rescued by the French.
After many years’ service, he resigned and went back to his farm. When
the news of the Battle of Lexington reached him, he was ploughing. He
left his plough in the field, and unyoked his team. Then, in his old
farm-clothes, he sprang on a horse and galloped off to Governor Trumbull
for orders.
“Go,” said the Governor, “to the seat of action.”
“But my clothes, Governor!” exclaimed Putnam.
“Oh, never mind your clothes,” answered he, “your military experience
will be of service to your countrymen.”
“But my men, Governor! What shall I do about my men?”
“Oh, never mind your men,” said he, “I’ll send your men after you.”
So without waiting to change his soiled farm-clothes, Putnam put spurs
to his horse and in a single day rode all the way to Cambridge.
He attended a council of war held by the Americans, returned to
Connecticut, raised a regiment, and went back to Cambridge in time to
take part in the Battle of Bunker Hill. There on Prospect Hill he
unfurled the new Banner of Connecticut, which, as a cannon fired a
salute, was seen to rise and unroll itself to the wind.
When Washington, appointed by Congress to be Commander-in-Chief, arrived
at Cambridge, and saw the redoubts that had been cast up by Putnam and
his men, he said to Putnam:--
“You seem, General, to have the faculty of infusing your own spirit into
all the workmen you employ.”
Washington had brought with him a commission from Congress, making
Israel Putnam a Major-General.
HE MADE WASHINGTON LAUGH
General Putnam once had the honour of making Washington laugh heartily.
It was during the Siege of Boston.
There was a traitor in camp. No one knew who he was. A strange woman--a
spy--had delivered a letter, intended for him, to the wrong person. It
was laid before Washington. It was in cipher. Washington ordered the
woman to be arrested, but she was gone.
Not long after, as Washington was standing in the upper window at
Headquarters, he saw the oddest sight.
It was stout “Old Put” himself, in all his regimentals, mounted on his
horse, proudly cantering up to Headquarters. Behind him, seated on his
saddle-bow and hanging on like grim death, was a very fat woman. “Old
Put” had captured the spy.
Washington burst into a hearty laugh. He hurried to the top of the
stairs, just as “Old Put” escorted the fat woman into the hall.
Washington, as gravely as he could, called down, in his severest tones,
that unless she confessed _everything_, a halter was waiting for her.
She confessed immediately, and the traitor in camp was found.
A GENEROUS FOE
Israel Putnam was brave, bluff, and honest, and he was also
compassionate.
During the French and Indian War, the enemy’s wounded lay dying and
neglected on one of the battle-fields.
After the fierce fighting was over, Putnam himself hurried out onto the
field, to tend the poor fellows. He gathered them together into one
place. He gave them what food and drink he could get. He furnished each
with a blanket. Under one badly wounded French sergeant, he placed three
blankets, and laid him in a comfortable position against a tree.
Gratefully, the suffering man squeezed his hand, while Putnam said
reassuringly:--
“Ah! depend upon it, my brave soldier, you shall be brought to the camp
as soon as possible, and the same care shall be taken of you as if you
were my brother.”
At the Battle of Princeton a Scotch Captain of the British Army was
desperately wounded in the lungs and left for dead. Putnam found him in
great pain, with no surgeon, and without any friend to cheer him. He had
him supplied with every comfort and the best of care.
One day, when Putnam was visiting him, the Scotchman said:--
“Pray, sir, what countryman are you?”
“An American,” answered Putnam.
“Not a Yankee!” exclaimed the Scotchman.
“A full-blooded one,” replied Putnam.
“I’m sorry for that!” rejoined the Scotchman with an oath. “I did not
think there could be so much goodness and generosity in an American, or,
indeed, in anybody but a Scotchman!”
Thanks to Putnam’s friendly Yankee care, the Scotchman recovered.
PUTNAM NOT FORGOTTEN!
When General Putnam, full of years and honours, retired from the Army,
Washington wrote him a letter telling him that he was entitled to full
pay till the close of the War, and afterward to half-pay. The letter was
cordial and warm, and in it Washington said:--
“Among the many worthy and meritorious officers, with whom I have
had the happiness to be connected in service through the course of
this War, and from whose cheerful assistance and advice I have
received much support and confidence ... the name of Putnam is not
forgotten, nor will it be but with that stroke of time which shall
obliterate from my mind the remembrance of all those toils and
fatigues through which we have struggled for the preservation and
establishment of the Rights, Liberties, and Independence of our
Country....
“I commend you, my dear sir, my other friends, and with them the
interests and happiness of our dear Country, to the keeping and
protection of Almighty God.
“GEORGE WASHINGTON”
JANUARY 11
ALEXANDER HAMILTON
DEFENDER OF THE CONSTITUTION
THE CONSTITUTION; OR, THE NEW ROOF
1787
_Our roof is now raised, and our song still shall be
A Federal Head o’er a People that’s free!_
_Huzza! my brave boys, our work is complete,
The World shall admire Columbia’s fair seat;_
_Its strength against tempest and time shall be proof;
And thousands shall come to dwell under our roof._
FRANCIS HOPKINSON (_Condensed_)
ALEXANDER HAMILTON
_He gave the whole powers of his mind to the contemplation of the weak
and distracted condition of the Country.... He saw ... the absolute
necessity of some closer bond of Union for the States.... He saw at last
his hopes fulfilled; he saw the Constitution adopted, and the Government
under it established and organized._
_The discerning eye of Washington immediately called him to the post
which was far the most important in the administration of the new
system. He was made Secretary of the Treasury. And how he fulfilled the
duties of such a place, at such a time, the whole Country perceived with
delight and the whole World saw with admiration._
DANIEL WEBSTER
ALEXANDER HAMILTON was born in the West Indies, January 11, 1757
Came to New York City, 1772
Signed the Constitution, 1787
Was appointed first Secretary of the Treasury, 1789
He was killed by Aaron Burr in a duel, 1804
THE BOY OF THE HURRICANE
On the 11th of January, 1757, there was born on the little West Indian
island of Nevis, a boy who was to become one of the foremost citizens of
his adopted Country, and who was to have a large part in determining its
Independence, its form of government, and in working out the details of
its administration. This was Alexander Hamilton.
His mother died when he was very young. His father was not so situated
as properly to care for his son, so he was sent to the adjoining island
of St. Croix, to live with his mother’s relatives, who were people of
means.
He was given a place in their counting-house, where he acquitted himself
with much credit, though the work was not at all to his liking.
When Hamilton was only fifteen years old, a terrible hurricane swept
over the island. The sea was lashed into fury. The storm swept across
the land, uprooting trees, and carrying devastation in its path. Even
the bravest of the inhabitants were greatly frightened, and many were
terror-stricken. But young Hamilton watched the storm with the greatest
interest and without fear.
A few days later, an account of the storm appeared in a paper printed in
a neighbouring island. The account was so vivid, the word-painting so
marvellous, that the people were certain some writer of note must have
been among them without their knowledge. And when they learned that the
account was written by Alexander Hamilton, and he a mere boy, they were
greatly astonished.
They felt that such a lad should have a better chance for education than
St. Croix could afford, and a wider field in which to exercise his
talents. His friends raised a fund for him, and he was sent to America.
He entered a preparatory school at Elizabethtown in the Jerseys. He then
went to New York City, and entered King’s College, now Columbia
University.
At this time, he was disposed to side with the friends of the King of
England in the controversy between the Colonists and the Mother Country;
but after he had been at college for half a year, he made a visit to
Boston where he heard Samuel Adams, James Otis, and other Patriots, and
came back a most earnest Patriot himself.
About the time of the breaking out of the War for Independence, Hamilton
organized a company of the college students who adopted the name
“Hearts of Oak.” Later Hamilton was appointed the Captain of the first
company of artillery raised in the Colony. He so thoroughly drilled and
disciplined it, that the attention of General Greene was attracted. He
sought the acquaintance of Hamilton, and spoke most enthusiastically to
Washington about him, saying that he was a natural master of men, and a
young man worthy the attention of the Commander-in-Chief.
_Sherman Williams_ (_Arranged_)
CALL COLONEL HAMILTON
While young Hamilton was directing his battery during the passage of the
Raritan, Washington, who was anxiously watching the passing of the
troops, observed Hamilton’s skill and courage. He ordered one of his
officers to find out the young man’s name, and tell him to report at
Headquarters.
Therefore, as soon as possible, young Hamilton hurried to Headquarters.
As a result of this interview, Washington made him a member of his own
staff. Hamilton became Washington’s private secretary.
Many a night, after long hours of work together, Washington and Hamilton
would retire to their rooms. Then suddenly a courier with important
despatches would gallop up to Headquarters. Washington would arise,
read the despatches and say:--
“Call Colonel Hamilton.”
And the young secretary would come and take his dictation.
Washington had the greatest confidence in Hamilton’s judgment. So much
did Washington value his advice, that when he wrote his “Farewell
Address,” “acting as every wise man would do under the circumstances,”
he asked Hamilton for his opinion, as he also asked James Madison for
his. Washington desired to get the different points of view of two large
minds, on so important a document.
A STRUGGLE
After the Constitution of the United States had been framed by the
Constitutional Convention, a severe political struggle took place to
bring about its ratification by the States themselves. There were
selfish political interests at work to prevent ratification.
The influence of Alexander Hamilton, through his speeches and writings,
so brilliant and convincing, did much to bring the People of the United
States to understand the absolute necessity for a strong Federal Union
and for a Constitution to safeguard the liberties of the Country.
In the State of New York, the opposition to ratification was most
violent. But Alexander Hamilton, during weeks of furious debate in the
State Convention, spoke again and again in defense of the Constitution.
And when the weary weeks of contention were passed, the vote was taken;
and Alexander Hamilton’s arguments had won votes enough to carry the
ratification of the Constitution. He had saved the day.
“HE KNOWS EVERYTHING”
“He knows everything,” said Robert Morris to President Washington.
Robert Morris, during the War for Independence, had been Superintendent
of Finance. When Congress needed funds, when Washington wished money
with which to pay the soldiers, Robert Morris provided the means since
his private commercial credit was great. Men had confidence in his
business ability and honour.
Once, when Congress was utterly without cash, Robert Morris supplied the
Army with four or five thousand barrels of flour. And when France sent
troops to America to fight for us, Robert Morris personally borrowed
through Count Rochambeau, money for our Country’s use.
When Robert Morris sought to procure for Congress, money from abroad, he
borrowed large sums through the Patriot, Haym Salomon, “the little
friend in Front Street.”
So after Washington was elected President, and while he was making up
his Cabinet, he visited Robert Morris, and said:--
“The Treasury, Morris, will of course be your berth. After your
invaluable services as Financier of the Revolution, no one can pretend
to contest the office of Secretary of the Treasury with you.”
This flattering offer, Robert Morris promptly declined, adding:--
“But, my dear General, you will be no loser by my declining the
Secretaryship of the Treasury, for I can recommend to you a far cleverer
fellow than I am, for your minister of finance, in the person of your
former aide-de-camp, Colonel Hamilton.”
“I always knew Colonel Hamilton to be a man of superior talents,” said
Washington, “but never supposed he had any knowledge of finance.”
To which Robert Morris replied:--
“He knows everything, sir! To a mind like his, nothing comes amiss.”
Washington then appointed Hamilton to be Secretary of the Treasury.
Hamilton took up his duties. The Country and the States were in debt. He
organized the finances of our young and new Nation, putting them upon a
sound basis; he provided funds with which to pay the National debt, so
that the United States of America “might command the respect of the
Nations of the World.”
It was Alexander Hamilton who laid the foundations of the financial
system of our Republic.
JANUARY 17
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN
THE AMERICAN SOCRATES
_We have reason to be thankful he was so long spared, that the most
useful life should be the longest, also that it was protracted so far
beyond the ordinary span allotted to man, as to avail us of his wisdom
in the establishment of our own Freedom._
THOMAS JEFFERSON
OUR COUNTRY
_Dr. Benjamin Franklin to General George Washington_
_I must soon quit the scene, but you may live to see our Country
flourish, as it will amazingly and rapidly after the War is over; like a
field of young Indian Corn, which long fair weather and sunshine had
enfeebled and discoloured, and which in that weak state, by a
thundergust of violent wind, hail, and rain, seemed to be threatened
with absolute destruction; yet the storm being past, it recovers fresh
verdure, shoots up with double vigour, and delights the eye not of its
owner only, but of every observing traveller._
_March 5, 1780_
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN was born in Boston, January 17, 1706
Went to Philadelphia, 1723
Through his diplomacy, France was persuaded to recognize the United
States by treaty, February 6, 1778
He signed the Constitution of the United States, 1787
He died in Philadelphia, April 17, 1790
THE WHISTLE
TOLD BY FRANKLIN HIMSELF
When I was a child of seven years old, my friends on a holiday filled my
pocket with coppers. I went directly to a shop where they sold toys for
children, and being charmed with the sound of a _whistle_ that I met by
the way in the hands of another boy, I voluntarily offered and gave all
my money for one.
I then came home and went whistling all over the house, much pleased
with my _whistle_, but disturbing all the family.
My brothers and sisters and cousins, understanding the bargain I had
made, told me I had given four times as much for it as it was worth; put
me in mind what good things I might have bought with the rest of the
money, and laughed at me so much for my folly, that I cried with
vexation. And the reflection gave me more chagrin than the _whistle_
gave me pleasure.
This, however, was afterwards of use to me, the impression continuing on
my mind, so that often, when I was tempted to buy some unnecessary
thing, I said to myself:--
“_Don’t give too much for the whistle!_”
And I saved my money.
As I grew up, came into the world, and observed the actions of men, I
thought I met with many, very many, _who gave too much for the whistle_.
_From The Whistle_
THE CANDLE-MAKER’S BOY
Benjamin Franklin, when a boy, used to work in his father’s shop at the
Sign of the Blue Ball. His father was a tallow chandler, and made soap
and candles.
The boy got up early, cut wicks for candles, filled moulds with tallow,
ran errands, and tended shop. Though he worked hard and honestly, his
heart was not in his work. He wanted to go to sea. His elder brother, a
sailor, had come home; and he told the most thrilling tales of his
adventures. So Benjamin Franklin could not get the sea out of his mind.
He grew to detest the trade of tallow chandler, and hankered more and
more for the sea. His father, wishing him to give up thoughts of a
roving life, took him to talk with joiners, bricklayers, turners, and
other workmen, and to watch them at work. But none of their trades
appealed to the boy.
His place was at home his father urged, adding:
“Seest thou a man diligent in his calling, he shall stand before Kings;
he shall not stand before mean men.”
THE BOY OF THE PRINTING PRESS
But Benjamin Franklin did not run away to sea. He became a printer’s
boy.
Because he liked books, he was apprenticed to his brother James, who had
set up a printing press in Boston. To James’s house he went, taking with
him his collection of precious volumes.
There he worked hard by day, and read and studied at night. Recollecting
his father’s favourite proverb, “Seest thou a man diligent in his
calling, he shall stand before Kings,” Franklin saved his money, and
worked early and late.
When James began to issue a newspaper, Franklin helped him print it, and
delivered copies to customers. He wrote articles and slipped them under
the printing-house door, and James published them, without knowing who
was their author. Later Franklin wrote clever, audacious, and humorous
articles on the questions of the day, which were widely read and much
talked about.
So things continued until he was seventeen years old, when he ran
away--but not to sea. He and his brother quarrelled often. Benjamin the
apprentice was saucy and provoking, and James the master was
hot-tempered and beat his younger brother severely. After a particularly
bad quarrel, Franklin sold some of his books, and took passage on a
sloop bound for New York.
Arriving at New York, he found no employment there, and went on to
Philadelphia.
THE THREE ROLLS
Early in the morning of an October day, young Benjamin Franklin,
seventeen years old and seeking his fortune, reached Philadelphia. He
was tired and hungry, and had only a dollar of his little fund left.
He stopped at a baker’s, and bought three big puffy rolls. He put a roll
under each arm, and, munching the third, walked along Market Street.
In the doorway of a house, stood a young girl. She saw the awkward,
handsome boy, trudging past hungrily eating a big roll. She laughed to
herself; she thought it funny to see him with his broad-brimmed hat,
knee-breeches, and buckled shoes all shabby and dusty, and his great
pockets stuffed with stockings and shirts.
So she laughed to herself, did Deborah Read. And little she knew that in
a few years, she would become that boy’s wife! But so it happened.
Young Benjamin Franklin found work in a printer’s shop. He came to lodge
at Deborah Read’s home. In a few years, he owned his own printing press.
He married Deborah Read. He became a well-known printer. He issued an
influential newspaper, and published “Poor Richard’s Almanack.” He was
industrious, studious, thrifty, and prosperous. In time, he became the
most famous and learned citizen of Pennsylvania, and a great American
Patriot.
STANDING BEFORE KINGS
When the American Colonies rose against the exactions of England,
Benjamin Franklin was called upon to serve his Country as a diplomat in
France and England.
“My father,” wrote Franklin, “having among his instructions to me when a
boy frequently repeated a proverb of Solomon, ‘Seest thou a man diligent
in his calling, he shall stand before Kings; he shall not stand before
mean men,’ “I from thence considered industry as a means of obtaining
wealth and distinction, which encouraged me, though I did not think that
I should ever literally _stand before Kings_, which, however, has since
happened, for I have stood before _five_, and even had the honour of
sitting down with one, the King of Denmark, to dinner.”
THE WONDERFUL KITE EXPERIMENT
In Benjamin Franklin’s time, there were no electric trains, no
telegraphs, telephones, radiographs, and radiophones. The driving and
lighting power of electricity was not understood. People did not know
that lightning was due to the presence of electricity in nature.
Benjamin Franklin, who was keen and inquisitive, made scientific
experiments with the Leyden jar and with simple machines which produced
electricity by friction. He discovered that in certain ways, the action
of electricity and lightning was the same, and he observed that electric
fluid might be conducted along a pack-string.
So he determined to prove that electricity and lightning were the same,
by drawing lightning down from the clouds along a pack-string. He used a
silk kite, with a sharp-pointed wire fastened to its framework, and a
silk ribbon tied to the end of the kite-string holding a metal key in
place.
He secretly flew the kite during a June thunderstorm. And as he saw the
kite-string stiffen in a strange way, he eagerly laid his hand against
the key. Instantly he felt a shock of electricity pass through him. He
had made one of the most important discoveries of all ages!
[Illustration: FRANKLIN AND THE KITE EXPERIMENT]
His discovery was soon known throughout the world. Men made other
experiments, and in time invented the wonderful electrical machines and
devices which we enjoy to-day.
THE RISING SUN
When the Federal Constitutional Convention met at Philadelphia, General
Washington was unanimously made President of the Convention. He took the
chair with diffidence. He assured the members that he was not used to
such a situation, that he was embarrassed, and he hoped they would
excuse his errors. And in what masterly fashion he conducted the
convention, history shows.
Behind his chair was painted a picture of the sun. After the debates
were over and the Constitution was adopted, Benjamin Franklin, who had
just signed the immortal Document, turned to some of the members. He
drew their attention to the sun behind General Washington’s chair.
“I have often and often,” said Franklin, “in the course of the session
and the vicissitudes of my hopes and fears as to its issue, looked at
that behind the President, without being able to tell whether it was
rising or setting. But now, at length, I have the happiness to know that
it is a rising, and not a setting, sun.”
TO MY FRIEND
_From Franklin’s Will and Testament_
My fine crabtree walking-stick, with a gold head curiously wrought in
the form of the Cap of Liberty, I give to my friend and the friend of
Mankind, General Washington.
If it were a Sceptre, he has merited it, and would become it.
_Benjamin Franklin_
FEBRUARY 12
ABRAHAM LINCOLN
THE GREAT EMANCIPATOR
_With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the
right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the
work we are in; to bind up the Nation’s wounds; to care for him who
shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan--to do
all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among
ourselves, and with all Nations._
ABRAHAM LINCOLN
_March 4, 1865_
_Oh, slow to smite and swift to spare,
Gentle and merciful and just!
Who, in the fear of God, didst bear
The sword of power, a Nation’s trust!_
_In sorrow by thy bier we stand,
Amid the awe that hushes all,
And speak the anguish of a land
That shook with horror at thy fall._
_Thy task is done; the bond are free:
We bear thee to an honoured grave,
Whose proudest monument shall be
The broken fetters of the slave._
_Pure was thy life; its bloody close
Hath placed thee with the sons of light,
Among the noble host of those
Who perished in the cause of Right._
WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT
ABRAHAM LINCOLN was born, February 12, 1809
Was elected President, 1860
Issued the Emancipation Proclamation, New Year’s Day, 1863
Was re-elected, 1864
He was assassinated, 1865
THE CABIN IN THE CLEARING
It was only a small cabin in a forest-clearing in the wilderness of
Indiana. It stood on a knoll overlooking a piece of ground where corn
and vegetables grew. In the woods around the cabin were bear, deer, and
other wild creatures. The furniture was rude, brought from the East, or
made of logs and hickory-sticks, while the bed was a sack of leaves. In
the big fireplace, the logs cut from the forest, burned with a cheerful
blaze.
And there lived little Abe Lincoln, nine years old, with his father and
sister and his mother, Nancy Hanks Lincoln.
Abe was born in Kentucky. When he was seven, his family moved to the
cabin in Indiana. He helped clear the way through the wilderness to the
new home. So with swinging the axe and blazing trails, he was made
unusually large and strong for his age, alert and courageous--a real
backwoods boy.
He could shoot, fish, cut down trees, and work on the farm in the
clearing. In his veins ran the red blood of Kentucky pioneers. His
grandfather, in the days of Daniel Boone, had been killed by an Indian,
while Abe’s father--a child then--had been rescued from this same
Indian by his brother, Mordecai Lincoln, a daring lad, who shot the
savage with his dead father’s rifle, so saving his little brother.
HOW HE LEARNED TO BE JUST
_Let us have faith that Right makes Might, and in that Faith, let
us to the end, dare to do our duty as we understand it._
ABRAHAM LINCOLN, _from his speech at Cooper Institute_
But it was not all work for Abe on the new farm in Indiana. He picked
wild plums and pawpaws in the woods, and ate corn dodgers, fried bacon,
roast wild turkey, and fish caught in the Indiana streams. He went to
school when he could, which was not often, for in those days schools
were few and far between, and teachers were not many.
But little Abe had the best teacher of all, his mother, Nancy Lincoln.
For, though his father could scarcely write his own name, his mother
could read, and she loved books. She taught her little son his letters
and how to read. Often they sat together in the cabin, Abe and his
sister at their mother’s knee, while she read the Bible to them.
“I would rather my son would be able to read the Bible, than to own a
farm, if he can’t have but one,” she said.
She was a beautiful woman, slender, sad, and pale, with dark hair. She
was more refined than most women of those hardy pioneer times, but she
could use a rifle, work on the farm, spin, and do other housework.
Because of her gentle and firm character, she was loved and respected
not only by her husband and children, but by her neighbours.
Above all things she had a deep and tender religious spirit which she
shared with Abe and his sister, Sarah. She taught Abe to love truth and
justice and to revere God. In time he could repeat by heart much of the
Bible, and, when he grew up, he thought and wrote in the simple, clear,
and forceful language of the Bible. And he learned from it his ideas of
right and his scorn of wrong, making him “Honest Abe.”
OFF TO NEW ORLEANS
Young Abe Lincoln went on several flatboat trips carrying produce down
the Mississippi to New Orleans.
One of these trips made a deep and lasting impression upon him. In New
Orleans, he visited the slave-market. There negro men, women, and
children were bought, sold, and flogged. Wives were torn from their
husbands, children from their mothers, and auctioned off like cattle.
The anguish of these scenes wrung Lincoln’s heartstrings. With quivering
lips, he said, “If ever I get a chance to hit that thing, I will hit it
hard.”
John Hanks, a relative who was with him at the slave-market, said in
after years:--
“Lincoln saw it; his heart bled; said nothing much, was silent, looked
bad. I can say it, knowing him, that it was on this trip that he formed
his opinions of slavery. It run its iron into him, then and there.”
THE KINDNESS OF LINCOLN
_The Little Birds_
When Lincoln was a lawyer, one day he was going with a party of lawyers
to attend court. They were riding, two by two, on horseback through a
country lane, Lincoln in the rear. As they passed through a thicket of
wild plum and crab-apple trees, his friends missed him.
“Where is he?” they asked.
Just then Lincoln’s companion came riding up. “Oh,” replied he, “when I
saw him last, he had caught two young birds that the wind had blown out
of their nest, and was hunting for the nest to put them back.”
After a little while, Lincoln rode up, and when his friends rallied him
about his tender heart, he said:--
“I could not have slept, unless I had restored those little birds to
their mother.”
_Rescuing the Pig_
Another time, Lincoln was riding past a deep miry ditch, and saw a pig
struggling in the mud. The animal could not get out, and was squealing
with terror.
Lincoln looked at the pig and the mud, and then at his clothes--clean
ones, that he had just put on. Then he decided in favour of the clean
clothes, and rode along.
But he could not get rid of the thought of the poor animal struggling so
pitifully in its terror. He had not gone far when he turned back.
He reached the ditch, dismounted, and tied his horse. Then he collected
some old wooden rails, and with them made a foot-bridge to the bottom of
the ditch. He carefully walked down the bridge, and caught hold of the
pig. He pulled it out, and setting it on the ground, let it run away.
The screaming, struggling pig, had spattered Lincoln’s clean clothes
with mud. His hands were covered with filth; so he went to the nearest
brook, washed them, and wiped them on the grass.
Later, when telling a friend about his adventure, Lincoln said that he
had rescued the pig for purely selfish reasons, “to take a pain out of
his own mind.”
_Opening Their Eyes_
It was toward the close of the Civil War, the crisis had come, and the
end of the long struggle was in sight. The Union troops were hemming in
Richmond. President Lincoln went himself to City Point, and there he
remained, anxiously waiting.
In his tent lived a pet cat. It had a family of new-born kittens.
Sometimes, the President relieved his mind by playing with them.
Finally Richmond was taken, and Lincoln prepared to visit the city.
Before he left his tent, he picked up one of the kittens, saying:--
“Little kitten, I must perform a last act of kindness for you before I
go. I must open your eyes.”
He passed his hand gently over its closed lids, until the eyes opened;
then he set the kitten on the floor, and said:--
“Oh! that I could open the eyes of my blinded fellow-countrymen as
easily as I have those of that little creature!”
LINCOLN AND THE CHILDREN
_Hurrah for Lincoln!_
Abraham Lincoln loved children, and even strange children were drawn to
him, as though they had known him all their lives. Here are a few of the
stories told about Lincoln and his child-friends.
Soon after Lincoln was elected President, he went to Chicago, where he
was welcomed with shouts and cheers.
Later, as he sat in a room talking with friends, a little boy was led
in. At the sight of the President-elect, he took off his hat and swung
it, shouting:--
“Hurrah for Lincoln!”
Lincoln rose, and catching the little fellow in his strong hands, tossed
him to the ceiling, shouting:--
“Hurrah for _you_!”
_Only Eight of Us, Sir!_
On this same visit to Chicago, while Lincoln was talking with visitors,
a little German girl, heading a delegation of other girls, walked
timidly up to him.
“What do you want, my little girl? What can I do for you?” he asked
kindly.
“I want your name,” she said.
“But there are many other little girls that want my name, and as I
cannot give it to them all, they will feel hurt if I give it to you.”
She looked around at her companions, and said, “Only _eight_ of us,
sir!”
Lincoln could not resist that, so he sat down immediately, and
forgetting his other visitors, took eight sheets of paper and wrote a
line and his name on each. These he gave to the little girls, and they
went away happy.
_He’s Beautiful!_
Once a little girl’s father took her to call upon Lincoln. She had been
told that he was very homely. But when he lifted her on his knee and
talked to her in his kindly, merry way, she turned to her father, and
exclaimed:--
“O Pa! He isn’t ugly at all! He’s beautiful!”
_Please Let Your Beard Grow_
But there was another little girl who did not think so. She lived in
Westfield, in the State of New York. She had seen Lincoln’s picture, and
did not like it; so after his election she wrote a letter asking him to
let his beard grow, as she thought it would make him better looking.
Lincoln enjoyed the letter very much. It
[Illustration: “HE’S BEAUTIFUL”]
happened later that he was on a train passing through Westfield, and, as
the train stopped for a few minutes, he was asked to address the people
at the station. He told about the letter, and stroking his chin,
added:--
“I intend to follow her advice!”
He then called for the little girl. She came forward, and he greeted her
kindly.
_Three Little Girls_
One day, after Lincoln had gone to Washington, three little girls, the
children of a workingman, went to the White House on a reception day.
They joined the throng, and were pushed along until they came to where
Lincoln was shaking hands with each of his visitors.
When the children reached him, they were so bashful, that they did not
dare to put out their hands. But Lincoln saw them passing by, and
called:--
“Little girls, are you going to pass me without shaking hands?”
Then, stooping over, he kept every one waiting while he shook hands with
each child.
THE PRESIDENT AND THE BIBLE
Lincoln’s love of truth, justice, and mercy, his detestation of
everything ignoble, brutal, or mean, were taught him or strengthened in
him from childhood through his reading of the Bible.
The language of his speeches and writings was forceful and direct like
the English of the Bible, and such a phrase as “A house divided against
itself,” he took from the Bible.
While President, he used to carry a New Testament with him; and he could
quote whole passages. He used often to rise early in the morning to get
time to read and pray before the pressing business of the day began.
He read the Bible aloud to the coloured servants of the White House.
Once, when a Committee of Coloured People waited upon him, to present
him with a fine copy of the Bible, he took it and made a speech to them,
a part of which was:--
“In regard to this great book, I have but to say, it is the best gift
God has given to man. All the good Saviour gave to the World was
communicated through this book. But for it, we could not know right from
wrong. All things most desirable for man’s welfare, here and hereafter,
are to be found portrayed in it.
“To you I return my most sincere thanks for the very elegant copy of the
great Book of God which you present.”
WASHINGTON AND LINCOLN SPEAK
A LINCOLN ORDER
_To the Army and Navy_
The President, Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Navy, desires and
enjoins the orderly observance of the Sabbath by the officers and men in
the military and naval service.
The importance for man and beast of the prescribed weekly rest, the
sacred rights of Christian soldiers and sailors, a becoming deference to
the best sentiment of a Christian people, and a due regard for the
Divine will, demand that Sunday labour in the Army and Navy be reduced
to the measure of strict necessity.
The discipline and character of the national forces should not suffer,
nor the cause they defend be imperilled, by the profanation of the day
or name of the Most High.
“At this time of public distress”--adopting the words of Washington in
1776--“men may find enough to do in the service of God and their Country
without abandoning themselves to vice and immorality.”
The first General Order issued by the Father of his Country after the
Declaration of Independence indicates the spirit in which our
institutions were founded and should ever be defended:--
“The General hopes and trusts that every officer and man will endeavour
to live and act as becomes a Christian soldier, defending the dearest
Rights and Liberties of his Country.”
_November 15, 1862._
ADDRESS DELIVERED AT THE DEDICATION OF THE GETTYSBURG NATIONAL CEMETERY
Fourscore and seven years ago our Fathers brought forth on this
continent a new Nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the
proposition that all men are created equal.
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that Nation, or
any Nation, so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met
on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion
of that field as a final resting-place for those who here gave their
lives that that Nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper
that we should do this.
But, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate--we cannot consecrate--we
cannot hallow--this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who
struggled here, have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or
detract. The World will little note nor long remember what we say here,
but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us, the living,
rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who
fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be
here dedicated to the great task remaining before us--that from these
honoured dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they
gave the last full measure of devotion; that we here highly resolve that
these dead shall not have died in vain; that this Nation, under God,
shall have a new birth of Freedom; and that Government of the People, by
the People, for the People, shall not perish from the earth.
ABRAHAM LINCOLN
_November 19, 1863._
_The following famous stories about Lincoln are in “Good Stories
for Great Holidays”: A Solomon Come to Judgment; The Colonel of the
Zouaves; Courage of his Convictions; George Pickett’s Friend; He
Rescues the Birds; His Springfield Farewell Address; Lincoln and
the Little Girl; Lincoln the Lawyer; Mr. Lincoln and the Bible; A
Stranger at Five-Points; Training for the Presidency; Why Lincoln
was called “Honest Abe”; The Widow and her Three Sons; The Young
Sentinel._
FEBRUARY 22
GEORGE WASHINGTON
THE FATHER OF HIS COUNTRY
_Where may the wearied eye repose,
When gazing on the Great;
Where neither guilty glory glows,
Nor despicable state?
Yes--one--the first--the last--the best--
The Cincinnatus of the West,
Whom Envy dared not hate,
Bequeathed the name of Washington,
To make man blush there was but one!_
LORD BYRON
LINCOLN ON WASHINGTON’S BIRTHDAY
_This is the one hundred and tenth anniversary of the birthday of
Washington. We are met to celebrate this day. Washington is the
mightiest name of earth--long since mightiest in the cause of Civil
Liberty; still mightiest in moral reformation. On that name no eulogy is
expected. It cannot be. To add brightness to the sun or glory to the
name of Washington, is alike impossible. Let none attempt it._
_In solemn awe pronounce the name, and in its naked deathless splendour,
leave it shining on._
ABRAHAM LINCOLN, _February 22, 1849_
WASHINGTON was born, February 22, 1732
Was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the American Army, 1775
Was made President of the Federal Convention for Framing the
Constitution, and signed the Constitution, 1787
Was inaugurated, first President of the United States, 1789
Issued his “Farewell Address,” 1796
He died at Mount Vernon, December 14, 1799
THE BOY IN THE VALLEY
The boy George Washington was magnificently strong and tall, with firm
muscles and powerful body. He could run, leap, wrestle, toss the bar,
and pitch quoits. He rode fiery horses and hunted foxes. He was a
silent, determined lad, truth-telling, with a wonderful grip on his
temper. By the time that he was sixteen he was an excellent surveyor.
And he was a proud and happy boy when, one spring day, he leaped on his
horse, and, with a companion, rode away into the Wilderness on a real
job of surveying.
Lord Fairfax, his close friend, owned a great estate of over five
million acres stretching to the westward. A part of the estate was a
wilderness, and lay on the other side of the Blue Ridge Mountains. It
had never been surveyed. Squatters were stealing the land. So Lord
Fairfax had sent sixteen-year old George Washington to survey it for
him.
As the boy rode over the mountains, and guided his horse down the steep
trail into the beautiful Shenandoah Valley, Spring was busy all around
him. Cascades and torrents of snow-water were rushing from the
mountain-tops to feed the bright Shenandoah River--“The Daughter of the
Stars,” the Indians called the river.
The boy spent the better part of the first day riding through fine
groves of sugar maples, and admiring the trees and the richness of the
land. Here and there showed the little clearings, where the squatters
were preparing their small farms for crops of tobacco, hemp, and corn.
For some days, he surveyed along the banks of the river and in the
valley, roughing it at night. And many were the adventures he had about
which he has written in his diary.
Sometimes he slept before the camp-fire or in a hut, at others in a
tent. Once, he was nearly burnt to death when his straw bed caught fire.
He roasted wild turkeys, and ate off chips for plates. He swam his horse
through swollen streams, and followed the rough roads made by the
squatters.
But his most exciting adventure was with Indians.
On the bank of the Potomac stood a little cabin. Near it was hung a huge
kettle suspended over a place always ready for a fire. The cabin
belonged to Cresap, a frontiersman, and so did the kettle. He kept the
fireplace and everything in readiness for the passing Indians to cook
their meals. The grateful Red Skins called him “Big Spoon.”
Rain and floods drove Washington to the cabin. Big Spoon invited him to
stay until the bad weather was past.
On the third day, Washington looked out and saw a band of Indians
carrying a scalp, come toward the cabin. It was a war-party returning
from a raid.
Big Spoon greeted them heartily, for everybody was welcome at his place.
The Indians built a fire, sat down in a circle, and held a big
celebration. Then they performed a war-dance, while their musicians
played on drums made of pots half full of water, with deerskin stretched
tightly over them.
And as Washington watched their savage antics, he little dreamed how
soon he himself would be fighting with Red Skins.
When his surveying was finished, he returned home to make his report.
Lord Fairfax was delighted with his careful work and fine maps. In fact,
to-day the surveys Washington made when a boy, stand unquestioned; they
are so perfect.
Roughing it in the Shenandoah Valley was not the last of Washington’s
adventures in the Wilderness. He was appointed public surveyor. For the
next three years, he spent a great deal of time in the wilds, with
settlers, frontiersmen, trappers, and Indians.
He grew to be over six feet tall, and remarkably strong and rugged. He
overcame difficulties and faced dangers through pluck and perseverance.
He became a Colonel of a Virginia regiment. He acquired military
training and widened his knowledge of handling all sorts of men.
What he learned about Indian warfare and life in the forests and in the
Wilderness, taught him the caution and knowledge which he showed while
guarding the retreat of what was left of Braddock’s troops.
So his adventures while a boy in the Valley, and his experiences as a
young man roughing it on the frontier, fighting with Indians, carrying
messages through the Wilderness, and serving as a soldier,--all prepared
Washington to become the Liberator of our Country.
WASHINGTON’S MOTHER
Molly Ball of Virginia, Molly Ball with hair like flax and cheeks like
mayblossoms,--as she is described in the fragment of a quaint old
letter,--married Augustine Washington of Virginia, and became the mother
of George Washington.
Washington was like his mother in qualities of character. He had her
strength of will, love of truth, firm purpose, high sense of duty,
dignity, and reverence.
All these noble qualities were strengthened and made practical by her
careful education and discipline.
When he became great, she was quietly proud of him. And when people
spoke warmly of his glory and success, she would say:--
“But, my good sirs, here is too much flattery. Still, George will not
forget the lessons I early taught him. He will not forget himself,
though he is the subject of so much praise.”
When she was informed by special messenger that Cornwallis had
surrendered, she exclaimed:
“Thank God! war will now be ended, and peace, Independence, and
happiness, bless our Country!”
After the surrender of Cornwallis, Washington visited his mother at
Fredericksburg, where she was living in her own little house. She was
about seventy-five years old.
He reached Fredericksburg surrounded by his numerous and brilliant
suite. He dismounted, and sent to inquire when it would be her pleasure
to receive him.
Afoot and alone, he walked to her house. She was by herself, employed in
a household task, when she was told that the victor-chief was waiting at
her door. She bade him welcome by a warm embrace, calling him “George,”
the dear familiar name of his childhood.
She spoke to him of old times and old friends, but of his glory, not one
word.
Meanwhile, in the town of Fredericksburg there was excitement and
rejoicing. The place was crowded with foreign and American officers.
Gentlemen from miles around were hastening into town to congratulate the
conquerors of Yorktown.
The citizens got up a splendid ball in Washington’s honour, to which his
mother was specially invited.
The foreign officers were eager to meet their Chief’s mother. They had
heard of her remarkable character. They expected to see her enter the
ballroom in glittering attire, clad in rich brocades, like the noble
ladies of Europe.
How surprised they were, when, leaning on her son’s arm, she entered
dressed simply. She was dignified and imposing. She received quietly all
the compliments and attentions showered upon her. At an early hour she
wished the company much pleasure, saying that it was time for old folk
to be in bed.
She retired leaning on the arm of her son.
“If such are the matrons in America,” exclaimed the foreign officers,
“well may she boast of illustrious sons!”
_George Washington Parke Custis and Other Sources_
WASHINGTON’S WEDDING DAY
Washington plighted his troth with Martha Dandridge, the charming widow
of Daniel Parke Custis. She was young, pretty, intelligent, and an
heiress.
It was a brilliant wedding party which assembled on a winter day in the
little church near Mrs. Custis’s home. There were gathered the gay,
free-thinking, high-living Governor, gorgeous in scarlet and gold;
British officers, red-coated and gold-laced; and all the neighbouring
gentry in their handsomest clothes.
The bride was attired in silk and satin, laces and brocade, with pearls
on her neck and in her ears. While the bridegroom appeared in blue and
silver trimmed with scarlet, and with gold buckles at his knees and on
his shoes.
After the ceremony, the bride was taken home in a coach and six,
Washington riding beside her, mounted on a splendid horse, and followed
by all the gentlemen of the party.
_Henry Cabot Lodge_ (_Arranged_)
WASHINGTON AND THE CHILDREN
I
There were two joyous little people who went to live with the bride in
her new home at Mount Vernon. They were her two children, Jack Custis,
six years old, and his sister Patsy, just four years old.
Washington gave them little ponies to ride. He bought fashionably
dressed baby dolls for Patsy, silver shoe and knee buckles for Jack, and
for both of them toys, gingerbread-figures, sugar-images, and little
books with coloured pictures in them. He gave them each a Bible bound in
turkey leather with their names printed in gilt letters on the inside
covers.
II
Washington loved all children. He always smiled at them. He was
specially popular with boys.
When he rode in state to Independence Hall in his cream-coloured coach
drawn by six bays, and with postilions and outriders, boys were always
at hand to cheer as he drove by. And when he returned to Mount Vernon,
there were other boys waiting to welcome him. He could always count on
boys, wherever he went, to shout and wave their hats. He used to touch
his own hat to them as politely as if they were veterans on parade.
After his great dinners at Mount Vernon, as soon as the guests were done
eating, he would tell his steward to call in the neighbours’ boys, who
were never far away at such a time. In they would come, crowding around
the table, and make quick work of the cakes, nuts, and raisins the
guests had left.
At twilight, Washington had a habit of pacing up and down the large room
on the first floor with his hands behind him.
One evening, a boy who had never seen him, climbed up to a high open
window to look in at him.
The boy fell and hurt himself. Washington heard him cry, and sent a
servant to see what was the matter.
The servant came back and said, “The boy was trying to get a look at
you, sir.”
“Bring him in,” said Washington.
And when the boy came in, he patted him on the head, saying:--
“You wanted to see General Washington, did you? Well, I am General
Washington.”
But the little fellow shook his head, and replied:--
“No, you are only just a man. I want to see the President.”
Washington laughed, and told him that he was _the President_ and a _man_
for all that. Then he had the servant give him some cakes and nuts, and
sent him away happy.
_Grace Greenwood and Other Sources_ (_Retold_)
THE LITTLE GIRL AND THE RED COATS
When Washington with the Army entered Boston after the British had
evacuated the city, he made the best tavern in town his Headquarters. It
had been the British Headquarters. The tavern-keeper’s little girl was
running about very much interested in all that was going on.
Washington called her to him, and holding her on his knee, asked:--
“Now that you have seen the soldiers on both sides, which do you like
best?”
The little girl hesitated, but like the great Washington himself, she
could not tell a lie, so she said:--
“I like the Red Coats best.”
Washington laughed at her frankness, and said gently:--
“Yes, my dear, the Red Coats do look the best, but it takes the ragged
boys to do the fighting.”
_Wayne Whipple_ (_Retold_)
NELLIE AND LITTLE WASHINGTON
George Washington loved children, and, as he had none of his own, he
adopted two of his wife’s grandchildren, Nellie Custis and George
Washington Parke Custis.
The little boy was known as “Washington.” Nellie was a beautiful child
with smiling black eyes and thick curly brown hair; while her brother
was of very light complexion.
They had good times together at Mount Vernon. There was a delightfully
fearsome pack of hounds in the kennel; French dogs, the gift of
Lafayette, “fierce, big-mouthed, savage.” And there were litters of
beautiful puppies.
The stables were full of horses, fine creatures for pets and
playfellows. Nellie liked to be with the horses, and was constantly
alarming her grandmother as she flashed by the windows or down the
lanes, mounted upon some half-broken colt.
The children loved old Nelson, Washington’s war horse. They used to
climb upon the fence to pat his forehead, as he came racing up to greet
his master.
There were many other animals--gifts to Washington of friends and
admirers.
Among them were Spanish jackasses, Chinese pigs, and Chinese geese.
There was always something going on to interest the children. They might
run down to the river-landing to see what strange fish “Daddy Jack” had
caught; day in and day out, “Daddy Jack” was always fishing there in his
canoe. Or they might go to meet the hunter “carrying his gun and pouch,
his body wrapped with strings of game, his dogs at heel.” They liked to
look at the game, and smooth the thick feathers or soft fur. There were
birds, squirrels, wild turkeys, molly cotton-tails, wily ’possums, and
canvas-back ducks.
Coaches of company, too, were coming and going. State dinners were
cooked and served to nobles and dignitaries.
And when the children ran about the gardens, they saw rare things
growing--“fig-trees, raisins, limes, oranges, large English mulberries,
artichokes.”
Then there were the mills to visit, the smithy, the shops, the fields,
and the negro-quarters, all in company with their dear adopted father,
Washington himself.
But the children and indeed every one looked forward to the evening,
when Washington sat with them. This was the children’s hour, when by the
uncertain twinkle of the home-made candles, they danced and sang their
little songs.
The curled darling of the house was “Master Washington”--George
Washington Parke Custis. Many years later, when Lafayette visited Master
Washington, then grown up, he told how he had first seen him on the
portico of Mount Vernon, a little boy, a very little gentleman, with a
feather in his hat, holding fast to one finger of Washington’s hand,
which finger was so large that the little boy could hardly hold on to
it.
As for Nellie, she wanted to romp and play from morning till night. She
did not like to have her hair dressed with feathers and ribbons. She did
not enjoy her books and music. And she used to cry for hours together,
while her determined grandmother stood guard over her, keeping her at
practice on the beautiful harpsichord, which Washington had given her.
As for Washington, he tried to lighten little Nellie’s tasks, and used
to carry her off for a gallop or brisk outdoor walk.
He was always extremely fond of little girls. He liked other little
girls beside Nellie. He had with him her pretty sister, Elizabeth, when
he sat for one of his portraits. And in the most critical week of his
Presidency, Washington went to the house of one of his cabinet officers,
and played with his little daughters.
_Harriet Taylor Upton_ (_Retold_)
_Many of the stories in this book are from the Life of Washington,
by his adopted son, George Washington Parke Custis._
SEEING THE PRESIDENT
Sometimes, when President Washington went on a journey in his
state-coach, he wanted to travel quietly, without attracting people’s
attention. So he charged his courier, who rode on ahead, to make all
necessary arrangements at inns, but to tell no one but the landlords,
that the President was coming.
Often, however, the news leaked out, and was flashed throughout the
countryside. Trumpets were blown, as the veterans of the War for
Independence gathered to welcome their Chief. Village cannon roared.
Every village and hamlet poured out its folk to greet the man who was
“first in the hearts of his countrymen.”
As for the school children, how eagerly they hurried to get their
lessons, so that as a reward, they might see _General Washington_.
And when at last he did come, how happy the children were to be
presented to him. With delight, they listened to his kind voice, felt
the kindlier touch of his hand, and even climbed on his knee to look up
into his smiling face.
_George Washington Parke Custis_ (_Retold_)
NELSON THE HERO
There was one old horse at Mount Vernon, after the War for Independence,
who was a hero. He was never ridden. He was cared for kindly. He grazed
in a pleasant paddock.
That was Nelson, Washington’s favourite and splendid charger, which he
had ridden on the day of the surrender at Yorktown. He was a light
sorrel, with white face and legs.
Now that he was old, he was petted and cared for. Whenever Washington
made the rounds of his kennels and stables, he stopped at the paddock.
Then the old war-horse would run neighing up to the fence, proud to be
caressed by the hand of his master.
_George Washington Parke Custis_ (_Retold_)
CARING FOR THE GUEST
_Told by the Guest Himself_
I had feasted my imagination, for several days, on the near prospect of
a visit to Mount Vernon, the seat of Washington. No pilgrim ever
approached Mecca with deeper enthusiasm.
The first evening I spent under the wing of his hospitality, we sat a
full hour at table, by ourselves, without the least interruption after
the family had retired.
I was extremely oppressed with a severe cold and excessive coughing,
contracted from the exposure of a harsh winter journey. He pressed me to
use some remedies, but I declined doing so.
As usual, soon after retiring, my cough increased.
When some time had elapsed, the door of my room was gently opened. And,
on drawing back my bed-curtains, to my utter astonishment, I beheld
Washington himself standing at my bedside with a bowl of hot tea in his
hand.
_Elkanah Watson_ (_Condensed_)
THOUGHTFUL OF OTHERS
Once, when Washington was stopping for refreshment at a house in Jersey,
some one told him that a wounded officer was there, who could not bear
the slightest sound.
During the meal, Washington spoke in an undertone, and was careful to
make no noise.
After he had left the table, however, his officers began to talk in loud
voices. Instantly, Washington softly opened the dining-room door,
entered on tip-toe, took a book from the mantelpiece, and stole out of
the room without uttering a word.
His officers took the hint, and were silent.
THE CINCINNATUS OF THE WEST
_A man who’d fought to free the land from woe,
Like me, had left his farm a-soldiering to go;
But having gained his point, he had, like me,
Returned his own potato-ground to see;
But there he couldn’t rest;--with one accord
He’s called to be a kind of--, not a Lord,--
I don’t know what--he’s not a great man, sure,
For poor men love him, just as he was poor!
They love him like a father or a brother!_
_This little verse is from “Darby’s Return,” a play that President
Washington went to see. The moment he entered the theatre the whole
audience rose to its feet and cheered. And when “Darby” said these
lines, the audience stared hard at Washington to see how he would take
them. He looked horribly embarrassed. But when “Darby” quickly added
that he had not seen the “man” at all at all because he was so plainly
dressed that he passed by unnoticed, Washington burst into a hearty
laugh._
In the ancient days of Rome, a terrible enemy threatened the city. There
was no Roman general wise enough to lead the army against the foe. There
was just one plain Roman citizen whom the people trusted. They believed
that he had the wisdom to save them. This was Cincinnatus the
Curly-haired. They sent hasty messengers to bid him come to the aid of
Rome.
The messengers found him tilling his land, for he was a farmer. His feet
were heavy with damp earth and his clothes covered with soil. He
listened to their message, and to the request of the Roman Senate that
he should come at once to the aid of his Country.
He called his wife to bring his toga from their hut. After he had wiped
off the dust and sweat, he put on his toga and went with the messengers.
So he saved Rome.
Thus it was with Washington.
When the call came for him to save his Country, he left his plantation.
So did many farmers and planters; at a moment’s notice they left their
farms and plantations, took up their muskets and answered the call of
their Country. They became officers in Washington’s Army.
After the war, these officers formed a society, called the Society of
the Cincinnati, naming it after the patriotic old Roman farmer.
To it belonged Washington, Hamilton, Lafayette, Kosciuszko, and many
other American and foreign officers, who had served with honour in the
Continental army. To-day their descendants, one representing each
officer, belong to the Society of the Cincinnati.
The French members presented Washington with a magnificent badge of the
Order, studded with about two hundred precious stones--diamonds, rubies,
emeralds, and amethysts.
Washington himself is called:--
“_Yes--one--the first--the last--the best,
The Cincinnatus of the West._”
BROTHER JONATHAN
_I do hereby earnestly recommend it to all ... to meet together for
social prayer to Almighty God ... that He would ... preserve our
precious Rights and Liberties ... and make us a People of his
praise, and blessed of the Lord, as long as the sun and the moon
shall endure._
JONATHAN TRUMBULL,
_to the People of Connecticut, June 18, 1776_
Patriotic and plucky was Connecticut, the State of the Charter Oak. It
had been a liberty-loving Colony from the days when its first settlers,
with their wives, children, household goods, and cattle, came through
the howling Wilderness--literally howling with savage Pequot
Indians--and settled on the banks of the beautiful Connecticut River,
whose name in the Indian language means Long River.
Those brave settlers came into the Wilderness so that they might have
religious and civil Liberty. Almost, their first act was to frame in
1639, a Constitution for their own government. It was the first
Constitution in America to make no mention of allegiance to King or
Great Britain. It breathed the free spirit of American Independence over
a hundred years before the Declaration of Independence.
Is it strange, then, that Jonathan Trumbull, Governor of Connecticut
under King George, should have been a Patriot?
He was more than loyal to American freedom. He was Washington’s friend
and supporter. He supplied Washington with soldiers and ammunition. He
supplied more than half the powder used at Bunker Hill.
There is a tale, that once when Washington was hard put to it for
ammunition, and it looked as though the campaign would fail for lack of
powder and shot, Washington said to his officers, “We must consult
Brother Jonathan.”
Then Washington consulted Governor Trumbull, and got his powder and
shot.
After that, whenever a difficulty arose in the Army, the men would say,
“We must consult Brother Jonathan.” So the saying became a byword.
Later, people nicknamed the United States, “Brother Jonathan,” just as
England is called “John Bull.”
THE BLOODY FOOTPRINTS
It was the terrible winter of 1777. The snow lay thick on the ground,
and the cold was piercing. Through the snow, a detachment of Patriot
troops was wearily plodding toward winter-quarters at Valley Forge.
Half-naked, hungry, and numb with cold, they pushed on.
Presently Washington rode slowly up after them. He was eying the snow
intently through which they had marched. There was something on its
frozen surface, something red that he had tracked for many miles.
Saluting the commanding officer, Washington drew rein.
“How comes it, sir,” he said, “that I have tracked the march of your
troops by the bloodstains of their feet upon the frozen ground? Were
there no shoes in the commissary’s stores, that this sad spectacle is to
be seen along the public highways?”
“Your Excellency may rest assured,” replied the officer, “that this
sight is as painful to my feelings as it can be to yours. But there is
no remedy within our reach. When the shoes were issued, the different
regiments were served in turn. It was our misfortune to be among the
last to be served, and the stores became exhausted before we could
obtain even the smallest supply.”
Washington’s lips compressed, while his chest heaved with the powerful
emotions that were struggling in his bosom. Then turning toward the
troops, with a trembling voice, he exclaimed:--
“Poor fellows!”
Then giving his horse the rein, he rode sadly on.
During this touching interview, every eye had been bent upon him; and as
those two words warm from the heart of their beloved commander and full
of commiseration for their sufferings, reached the soldiers, there burst
gratefully from their lips:--
“God bless your Excellency, your poor soldiers’ friend!”
_George Washington Parke Custis_ (_Arranged_)
AN APPEAL TO GOD
On a cold wintry journey to Valley Forge, Mrs. Washington rode behind
her husband on a pillion. He was on his powerful bay charger, and
accompanied by a single aide-de-camp.
On his arrival at Valley Forge, Washington placed her in the small but
comfortable house of Isaac Potts, a Quaker preacher.
So in all the trials of that Winter at Valley Forge, Washington had the
most earnest sympathies, cheerful spirit, and willing hands of his
loving wife to sustain him and share in his cares.
She provided comforts for the sick soldiers. Every day except Sundays,
the wives of officers, and other women too, assisted her in knitting
socks, patching garments, and making shirts for the poor soldiers.
Every fair day, she might be seen, basket in hand and with a single
attendant, going among the huts and giving comfort to the most needy
sufferers.
On one occasion, she went to the hut of a dying sergeant, whose young
wife was with him. His misery touched the heart of Mrs. Washington, and
after she had given him some food prepared with her own hands, she knelt
down by his straw bed, and prayed earnestly for him and his wife, in her
sweet serious voice.
But it was not only women who prayed in those terrible days at Valley
Forge.
The cold and suffering increased. One day Friend Potts was walking by
the creek not far from his house, when he heard a solemn voice speaking.
He went quietly in its direction, and saw Washington’s horse without a
rider tied to a sapling.
He stole nearer, and saw Washington himself, kneeling in a thicket. He
was on his knees in prayer to God asking Him for help. Tears were on
Washington’s cheeks.
And quietly the Friend stole away. On entering his house, he burst out
weeping. When his wife asked him what was the matter, he said:--
“If there is any one on this earth whom the Lord will listen to, it is
George Washington. And I feel a presentiment that under such a Commander
there can be no doubt of our eventually establishing our Independence,
and that God in His providence has willed it so.”
_Benson J. Lossing_ (_Arranged_)
FRIEND GREENE
_At Eutaw Springs the valiant died;
Their limbs with dust are covered o’er.
Weep on, ye springs, your tearful tide;
How many heroes are no more!_
* * * * *
_Led by thy conquering genius, Greene,
The Britons they compelled to fly;
None distant viewed the fatal plain,
None grieved, in such a cause to die._
_From Eutaw Springs, by_ PHILIP FRENEAU
It was at the Siege of Boston. The troops of the Colonies were raw and
uncouth. They were camping separately. Washington was inspecting their
camps for the first time. He saw that their shelters were made of
anything the soldiers could lay hands on, turf, bricks, sail-cloth,
boards, or brushwood. Each soldier seemed to live and do as he pleased.
But when Washington reached the camp of the Rhode Island troops, he
perceived neat tents pitched, soldiers well drilled and equipped, and
under perfect discipline. He was pausing to look around him with
pleasure and approval, when a young officer, vigorous and finely built,
stepped forward to greet him, his frank manly face beaming with a
cordial welcome.
The young man was Nathanael Greene, Commander of the Rhode Island
troops. It was he who had trained them, after studying the manœuvres
of the British troops in Boston.
Nathanael Greene was born a Friend or Quaker. When a boy, he worked in
his father’s forge, and helped on the farm.
He was eager to read. He got together a little library of his own. He
studied hard. He liked best to read about military heroes. When he grew
older, although he was a Friend, he joined the Rhode Island militia.
Later he was appointed Rhode Island’s Commander, and led her troops to
Bunker Hill and the Siege of Boston.
Washington liked and trusted him at first sight. Later his confidence
became friendship.
At Valley Forge, Nathanael Greene gave up active duty in the field, much
to his sorrow and regret, and became Quartermaster-General. He gave up
his ambitions, in order to help Washington relieve the sufferings of the
troops. As Quartermaster-General, he was soon able to supply them with
some blankets, clothes, and food, all of which Congress had failed to
deliver.
Later Greene’s reward of faithful service came. Washington appointed him
Commander of the Army in the South. It was a post of great danger; but
he conducted his military operations with such courage and sagacity that
they led on to completed victory for the American arms at Yorktown.
This is what John Fiske says of Nathanael Greene:--
“The intellectual qualities which he showed in his southern campaign
were those which have characterized some of the foremost strategists of
modern times.... Nor was Greene less notable for the sweetness and
purity of his character, than for the scope of his intelligence. From
lowly beginnings he had come to be ... the most admired and respected
citizen of Rhode Island.”
LIGHT HORSE HARRY
_The American Congress to Henry Lee, Colonel of Cavalry_:--
“_Notwithstanding rivers and intrenchments, he with a small band
ered the foe by warlike skill and prowess, and firmly bound by his
humanity, those who had been conquered by his arms._”
_In memory of the conflict at Paulus’s Hook,
nineteenth of August, 1779_
I
The most dashing and romantic young soldier of the Continental Army, was
Light Horse Harry. His real name was Henry Lee.
He was a small, alert, young man, mischievous sometimes, but always
brave. He was a cavalry-leader. He commanded the famous Legion of Light
Horse, which took part in so many heroic battles. He was one of
Washington’s most trusted generals.
His charm and dauntlessness delighted Washington, who showed warm
interest in his promotion; perhaps this was because Light Horse Harry’s
mother had been Washington’s young sweetheart in his schoolboy days. “My
lowland beauty,” he had called her. But she had married a Lee, and not
Washington.
Light Horse Harry had many adventures as romantic and daring as himself.
II
Light Horse Harry was a favourite at Mount Vernon. He did not stand in
any reverential awe of the great Washington.
One day, as they sat at table, Washington mentioned that he wanted a
pair of carriage horses, and asked the young man if he knew where they
might be bought.
“I have a fine pair, General,” replied he, “but you cannot get them.”
“Why not?”
“Because you will never pay more than half price for anything; and I
must have full price for my horses.”
This bantering reply set Mrs. Washington laughing; and her parrot,
perched beside her, joined in the laugh.
Washington took this familiar assault upon his dignity with great good
humour.
“Ah, Lee, you are a funny fellow!” said he, “See, that bird is laughing
at you!”
III
When Washington died, it was Light Horse Harry who was chosen by
Congress to deliver the funeral oration before both Houses. It was in
this oration that he said those famous words:--
“He survives in our hearts--in the growing knowledge of our children, in
the affection of the good throughout the World,-- ... first in war,
first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen ... pious,
just, humane, temperate and sincere, uniform, dignified and commanding
... the purity of his private character gave effulgence to his public
virtues.”
_Washington Irving and Other Sources_ (_Retold_)
CAPTAIN MOLLY
_Proudly floats the starry banner; Monmouth’s glorious field is won;
And in triumph Irish Molly stands beside her smoking gun._
Moll Pitcher, twenty-two years old, was dubbed _Captain_ at the Battle
of Monmouth, and very proud she was of the title. Her real name was
Molly Hays. She carried drinking-water on the battle-field, to refresh
the soldiers; so they nicknamed her Moll Pitcher.
At Monmouth, her husband, a Patriot, belonged to Proctor’s artillery.
Moll was with him on the field. Six men, one after another, were killed
or wounded at her husband’s gun.
“It’s an unlucky gun,” grumbled the soldiers, “draw it aside and abandon
it.”
Just at that moment, while Moll was serving water to the soldiers, her
husband received a shot in the head, and fell lifeless under the wheels
of that very gun.
Moll threw down her pail of water; and crying, “Lie there, my darling,
while I revenge ye!” she grasped the ramrod that the lifeless hand of
the poor fellow had let fall, and rammed home the charge.
Then she called to the artillerymen to prime and fire.
It was done. Pushing the sponge into the smoking muzzle of the gun, she
performed the duties of an expert artilleryman, while loud shouts from
the soldiers passed along the line.
The gun was no longer thought unlucky. The fire of the battery became
more vivid than ever.
Moll kept to her post till night closed the action, and the British were
driven back by the Patriots, Washington himself leading them to the
attack.
It was then that General Greene complimented Moll on her courage and
conduct. The next morning he presented her to Washington, who received
her graciously, and gave her a piece of gold, assuring her that her
services should not be forgotten.
Washington conferred upon her the commission of sergeant, and placed her
name on the half-pay list for life.
The French officers, charmed with her bravery, gave her many presents.
She would sometimes pass along the French line with her cocked hat, and
get it almost filled with crowns.
She was always welcome at Headquarters. She wore a cocked hat and
feather, and an artilleryman’s coat over her petticoat.
One day, Washington found her washing clothes, and stopped to chat with
her.
“Well, Captain Molly,” he said, “are you not almost tired of this quiet
way of life; and longing to be once more on the field of battle?”
“Troth, your Excellency,” replied she, “and ye may say that! for I care
not how soon I have another slap at them Red Coats, bad luck to them!”
“But what is to become of your petticoats, in such an event, Captain
Molly?”
“Oh, long life to your Excellency!” said she, “and never de ye mind them
at all at all! Sure, and it is only in the artillery, your Excellency
knows, that I would sarve, and divil a fear but the smoke of the cannon
will hide my petticoats!”
_George Washington Parke Custis, and Other Sources_
THE SOLDIER BARON
_The good Baron found time to prepare a new code of discipline and
tactics ... and this excellent manual held its place, long after
the death of its author, as the Blue Book of our Army._
JOHN FISKE
While the ragged Patriot Army with Washington starved, froze, and
suffered at Valley Forge, there was speeding down from Boston on a fast
saddle-horse, a man who was to help them win the war.
His keen hazel eyes looked pleasantly out from under bushy brows. His
mouth smiled with good cheer; but he held his head in military fashion.
The glittering star of a foreign Order was on his breast, and he
carried a letter of recommendation from Benjamin Franklin to George
Washington, Commander-in-Chief of the American Army.
He was Baron Steuben, a famous soldier and German hero of the Seven
Years’ War. He had offered his services to Washington to train the Army,
explaining that he wished to deserve the title of a citizen of America,
by fighting for her Liberty.
At his side rode his young and waggish French interpreter in scarlet
regimentals faced with blue. His bright eyes were always on the watch
for a glimpse of pretty American maidens. Behind the two came their
servants with the baggage.
It began to snow heavily. Night fell. They drew rein at an inn. It had a
bad name; and it was kept by a Tory.
“I’ve no beds, bread, meat, drink, milk, or eggs for you,” said the
sullen Tory landlord.
And neither Steuben’s remonstrances nor oaths could make him change his
mind.
Steuben’s blood began to boil. “Bring me my pistol!” he cried in German
to his servant.
And the landlord, who was smiling maliciously, suddenly felt a pistol
pressed against his breast.
“Can you give us beds?” shouted Steuben.
“Yes!” cried the affrighted man.
“Bread?”
“Yes!”
“Meat--drink--milk--eggs?”
“Yes!--yes!--yes!--yes!”
And the trembling landlord scurried around. The table was quickly laid,
and food set out. Then after a substantial supper, a comfortable night
and a hearty breakfast, the Baron and his men mounted and were off
again.
To cut the story short, he was soon at Valley Forge, serving with
Washington, and training the troops. They had had little expert military
training before. The Baron drilled the soldiers himself. He took a
musket in hand and showed them how to advance, retreat, or charge
without falling into disorder.
Not only the soldiers, but the generals, colonels, and captains, watched
him eagerly and with enthusiasm. Soon the camp was a bustling military
training school. The men almost forgot their sufferings, so intent they
were on learning. They worked incessantly and with tremendous energy.
But the Baron made it lively for them, for he had a quick temper. He
swore at them in three languages; and, when they did not understand
that, he called his aide to help him out in English.
Some of the men had thrown away their bayonets, and some had used them
for roasting meat. But the Baron soon drilled them to use bayonets with
such good effect that when later a column of them stormed Stony Point
they took it in a bayonet charge.
He--the bluff Steuben--never failed in bravery on the battle-field. At
Monmouth, while the American troops were fleeing in panic, the Baron
kept doggedly on with his face to the foe. Meanwhile, Washington,
furious and fiery, rallied the soldiers and led them back to victory.
“It was now,” says John Fiske, “that the admirable results of Steuben’s
teaching were to be seen. The retreating soldiers immediately wheeled
and formed under fire, with as much coolness and precision as they could
have shown on parade.”
Bluff, generous, kindly, old Steuben still served the Country after
peace and Independence came. Then he settled down on his farm of sixteen
thousand acres, the gift to him from the State of New York, in
recognition of his patriotic services. “Throughout the war,” says John
Fiske, “Steuben proved no less faithful than capable. He came to feel a
genuine love for his adopted Country.”
FATHER THADDEUS
_Hope, for a season, bade the world farewell,
And Freedom shrieked, as Kosciuszko fell!_
THOMAS CAMPBELL
“What do you wish to do?” said Washington.
The young Polish officer with a rugged face, held himself erect.
“I come,” answered he, “to fight as a volunteer for American
Independence.”
“What can you do?” asked Washington.
“Try me!” said the young Pole, his dark eyes flashing pleasantly.
So Washington tried him.
He was Thaddeus Kosciuszko, born in Lithuania, and a Patriot of unhappy
Poland.
Poor Poland! Dismembered, patriotic Poland! Again and again she had been
betrayed, and divided by her greedy neighbours, Russia, Prussia, and
Austria. But always the fires of Patriotism had burned in the hearts of
the Poles, and though they had been forced to bow their necks to their
enemies they had never bowed their hearts.
And it was a romantic story that had sent young Kosciuszko post-haste
from Poland to America. He was poor but of good blood. He had fallen in
love with a beautiful and clever Polish girl. Her father was a haughty,
rich State official. He would not give his consent to their marriage. So
the young lovers eloped. The father pursued them with his men.
Kosciuszko fought like a lion to defend his beloved Ludwika. But her
father’s men wounded him so severely that he fell senseless on the
field. Then her father carried Ludwika home, and married her to another
man.
When Kosciuszko came to his senses, his Love was gone. Her handkerchief
stained with his own blood, lay beside him. He took it up reverently
and placed it in his bosom.
Thus disappointed in love, he had left Poland and come to America to
forget his grief in fighting for Freedom. For Kosciuszko had been a
Patriot and a lover of Liberty for all men, since his early boyhood.
Washington placed him on his own staff. Soon he found that the young man
had talent, and was an experienced army engineer. He commissioned him
Chief Engineer. Kosciuszko rendered great service to America, but his
most important work was on the defenses of West Point.
When our War for Independence was over, he returned to Poland. He became
her leading Patriot, defending her against the invasions of Russia,
Prussia, and Austria. “Father Thaddeus” his men called him, as he led
them into battle.
During his famous defense of Warsaw, he was badly wounded on the
battle-field, and captured by Cossacks. He was thrown into a Russian
prison; and there he was kept until after the death of Catherine the
Great.
He was released by the new Czar, who admired him, and wished to give him
a brilliant commission in the Russian Army. But Kosciuszko refused his
offer, and went into voluntary exile. He still hoped that some day
again he might serve Poland.
His wounds were yet unhealed. There was a sabre-cut across his forehead.
There were three bayonet-thrusts in his back. A part of his thigh had
been torn away by a cannon ball. Around his forehead, he kept a black
band tied over the sabre-cut.
He went into exile, and the people of Poland believed that he was dead.
* * * * *
It was nearly seventy-five years after that red-letter day in Lithuania,
on which Thaddeus Kosciuszko had been born.
It was in 1814, France and Russia were at war. The Russian Army, as it
advanced against Paris, was barbarously pillaging the valley of the
Seine. The soldiers were burning the cottages of the poor peasants over
their heads, and ill-treating the children, women, and aged folk.
Among the Russian troops was a Polish Regiment. And while its soldiers
were savagely burning and looting the little houses, an old man with a
scar across his forehead, rushed suddenly in among them.
Raging like a lion, he shouted in Polish:--
“When I commanded brave soldiers, they never pillaged--I should have
punished them severely! And still more severely would I have punished
officers who allowed such disorders as you are all now engaged in!”
“And who are you, my pretty old man,” cried the officers with sneers and
laughter, “who are you that you dare to speak to us in such a tone, and
with such boldness!”
“I am Kosciuszko,” was the quick reply.
Each man stood fixed to the spot. Each was paralyzed with astonishment.
There, before them with flashing eyes, stood Poland’s hero--the Polish
soldiers’ “Father Thaddeus.”
Then the men threw down their arms to the ground. They cast themselves
at his feet. They sprinkled dust upon their heads as was their wild
custom at home. They crept close to him, hugging his knees and begging
for his forgiveness--for the forgiveness of their “Father Thaddeus.”
* * * * *
When Kosciuszko died in Switzerland, in 1817, there was found in his
bosom next his heart, the blood-stained handkerchief which his lost love
Ludwika had dropped beside him, so long before.
To-day, in a little chapel at the foot of the lime-planted Hill, the
Lindenhof, there is a bronze urn, in which lies the once brave heart of
Thaddeus Kosciuszko.
THE LITTLE FRIEND IN FRONT STREET
_He entitled himself to the gratitude of the entire Country._
_Ex-President_ WILLIAM H. TAFT
He was only a little man in his office on Front Street, Philadelphia.
Only a little man--but how great! Without his help our War for
Independence might have been lost. He helped to save the Country not
with a sword, but by giving all the means that he had and expecting
nothing in return.
This little man--his “little friend in Front Street,” as James Madison
called him--was Haym Salomon, a Polish Jew and a Patriot.
Through Robert Morris, who was Superintendent of Finance, during the War
for Independence, Haym Salomon loaned money to establish the Government
and to pay the soldiers. Without his money, Washington could scarcely
have held the Army together. And all the while, the little friend in
Front Street was refusing any interest on his loans; and some of these
loans were never repaid at all.
And he not only financed the Nation, but generously made personal
advances of money without interest to members of the Government, in
order that they might keep on in their patriotic work. “When any member
was in need, all that was necessary was to call upon Salomon,” said
James Madison.
But it was not only by financing our young Nation, that Haym Salomon
showed his Patriotism.
He was born in Poland of an intelligent educated family. He knew many
languages. He was a friend of Kosciuszko and Pulaski. Because of
oppression, he left Poland and came to New York City. He married and
settled down to business. He soon found, however, that the Americans
were heavily oppressed by England. So he threw himself heart and soul
into the cause for Independence.
He became a Patriot. He was arrested by the British, imprisoned,
tortured, and condemned to death. He managed to escape, and reached
Philadelphia safely. There he opened his broker’s office in Front
Street. He became a great financier. Henceforward he unselfishly devoted
his brains, his energy, and his wealth to help win the War for
Independence and build up our Republic.
FAREWELL! MY GENERAL! FAREWELL!
_December 4, 1783_
The War for Independence was over.
Thursday the 4th of December was fixed upon for the final leave-taking
of Washington with his officers.
This was the most trying event in his whole career, and he summoned all
his self-command to meet it with composure.
Knox and Greene, and Hamilton and Steuben, and others assembled in
Fraunces Tavern,[4] and waited with fast-beating hearts the arrival of
their Chief.
Not a sound broke the silence as he entered, save the clatter of
scabbards as the whole group rose to do him reverence. Casting his eye
around, he saw the sad and mournful countenances of those who had been
his companions-in-arms through the long years of darkness that had
passed. Shoulder to shoulder, they had pressed by his side through the
smoke of the conflict. He had heard their battle-shout answer his call
in the hour of deepest peril, and seen them bear his standard
triumphantly on to victory. Brave hearts were they all and true, on
whom he had leaned and not in vain.
Advancing slowly to the table, Washington lifted the glass to his lips
and said in a voice choked with emotion:--
“With a heart full of gratitude and love, I now take leave of you. I
most devoutly wish that your latter days may be as prosperous and happy
as your former ones have been glorious and honourable.”
A mournful, profound silence followed this short address, when Knox
advanced to say farewell. But neither could utter a word,--Knox reached
forth his hand, while Washington, opening his arms, took him to his
heart.
In silence, that was more eloquent than all language, each advanced in
turn and was clasped in his embrace.
Washington dared not trust himself to speak, and looking a silent
farewell, turned to the door. A corps of light infantry was drawn up on
either side to receive him, and as he passed slowly through the lines, a
gigantic soldier, who had moved beside him in the terrible march on
Trenton, stepped from the ranks, and reaching out his arms, exclaimed:--
“Farewell! my dear General, farewell!”
Washington seized his hand in both of his and wrung it convulsively. In
a moment all discipline was at an end; and the soldiers broke their
order, and rushing around him, seized him by the hands, covering them
with tears.
This was too much for even his strong nature, and as he moved away his
broad chest heaved, and tears rolled unchecked down his face.
Passing on to Whitehall, he entered a barge, and as it moved out into
the bay, he rose and waved a mute adieu to the noble band on shore.
The impressive scene was over.
_J. T. Headley_ (_Condensed_)
FROM “WASHINGTON’S LEGACY”
OR HIS LETTER TO THE GOVERNORS OF ALL THE STATES
I now make it my earnest prayer that God would have you, and the State
over which you preside, in His holy protection; that He would incline
the hearts of the Citizens to cultivate a spirit of subordination and
obedience to government; to entertain a brotherly affection and love for
one another, for their Fellow-citizens of the United States at large,
and particularly for their brethren who have served in the field;--and
finally that He would most graciously be pleased to dispose us all to do
justice, to love mercy, and to demean ourselves with that charity,
humility, and pacific temper of mind, which were the characteristics of
the Divine Author of our blessed Religion, and without an humble
imitation of whose example in these things, we can never hope to be a
happy Nation.
GEORGE WASHINGTON
_8 June, 1783_
A KING OF MEN
Hand in hand with ... rare soundness of judgment there went a
completeness of moral self-control which was all the more impressive
inasmuch as Washington’s was by no means a tame or commonplace nature,
such as ordinary power of will would suffice to guide.
He was a man of intense and fiery passions. His anger when once aroused
had in it something so terrible, that strong men were cowed by it like
frightened children. This prodigious animal nature was habitually curbed
by a will of iron and held in the service of a sweet and tender soul,
into which no mean or unworthy thought had ever entered.
Whole-souled devotion to public duty, an incorruptible integrity, which
no appeal to ambition or vanity could for a moment solicit--these were
attributes of Washington, as well marked as his clearness of mind and
his strength of purpose.
And it was in no unworthy temple, that Nature had enshrined this great
spirit. His lofty stature--exceeding six feet--his grave and handsome
face, his noble bearing, and courtly grace of manner, all proclaimed in
Washington a king of men.
_John Fiske_
WHEN WASHINGTON DIED
Crape enshrouded the Standards of France, and the Flags upon the
victorious ships of England fell fluttering to half-mast at the
tidings of his death.
_Chief Justice Fuller_
Let his countrymen consecrate the memory of the heroic General, the
patriotic Statesman, and the virtuous sage. Let them teach their
children never to forget that the fruits of his labours and his
example, _are their inheritance_.
_The Senate of the United States, 1799_
_The following stories about Washington, and the War for
Independence, may be found in “Good Stories for Great Holidays”:
Three Old Tales (the Cherry-Tree Tale); Young George and the Colt;
Washington the Athlete; Washington’s Modesty; Washington at
Yorktown; Washington and the Cowards; Betsy Ross and the Flag; A
Brave Girl (General Schuyler’s Daughter); A Gunpowder Story
(Elizabeth Zane); The Declaration of Independence; Signing of the
Declaration of Independence._
FEBRUARY 25
JOSE DE SAN MARTIN OF ARGENTINA THE PROTECTOR
_Jose de San Martin, a strong and silent man, whose character and
achievements have been little known or appreciated outside his own
country ... comes nearer than any one else to being the George
Washington of Spanish America._
LORD BRYCE
San Martin, the great Liberator, loved men of audacity and courage.
Besides, he was just and compassionate ... courteous to gentle and
simple alike ... generous and brave San Martin.
JOSEPH CONRAD
_The white-souled San Martin who was without fear and almost
without reproach._
WILLIAM SPENCE ROBERTSON
_The moral grandeur of San Martin consists in this: that nothing is
known of the secret ambitions of his life; that he was in
everything disinterested; that he confined himself strictly to his
mission; and that he died in silence, showing neither weakness,
pride, nor bitterness at seeing his work triumphant and his part in
it forgotten._
BARTOLOME MITRE
SAN MARTIN was born in Spanish America, February 25, 1778
Became the Liberator of Argentina, 1812
Was the Hannibal of the Andes, 1817
He and O’Higgins liberated Chile, 1817-20
San Martin resigned after the meeting with Bolivar, 1822
In voluntary exile, he died at the age of 72, August 17, 1850
His body was brought in state to Argentina, 1880
He is called Protector of Peru
His name is pronounced--Hosay de San Marteen
THE BOY SOLDIER
This boy soldier, who became a great general and American Patriot, was
born in the Indian village of Yapeyu, in the district of Misiones, which
is now a part of Argentina.
Misiones is a land of thousands of bright butterflies and brilliant
flowers, of plantations and wide forests. In it are abandoned groves of
wild oranges and lemons, once belonging to the Jesuit Missions, that
gave the name of Misiones to the region.
Though he was born among Indians, the boy soldier was not an Indian. He
was of pure Spanish blood. His father was an officer of the Spanish
Crown, and was Governor of Misiones. Spain ruled all Spanish America in
those days.
The boy soldier’s name was Jose de San Martin. Jose, is Spanish for
Joseph.
It was an exciting life for Jose, with Indian boys to show him how to
shoot wild game, and how to fish in the Uruguay River. Then, there were
his father’s soldiers to tell him about military life.
Before Jose was eight years old, his father was transferred, and the boy
was sent overseas to Spain to attend school in Madrid.
But such an active American boy, accustomed to Indians and frontier
life, could not stay long contented in a school in old Madrid. Besides,
he had soldiers’ blood in his veins. He grew restless. He was only
eleven; but he petitioned the Spanish Government to be allowed to enlist
in the army.
His petition was granted, and he became a boy soldier.
His uniform was white and blue. His first campaign was in Africa. His
first battle was with the Moors.
During the next few years he served so gallantly, that at sixteen he was
made a lieutenant. So he became a boy officer.
THE PATRIOT WHO KEPT FAITH
In romantic Spain, there was everything to entice young San Martin to
forget his native land so far away, and the little Indian village on the
Uruguay.
The crimson and gold banners of Spain waved over victorious
battle-fields, the drums beat triumphantly, the trumpets sounded to the
charge. There was glamour of combat with Moors and other brave enemies.
There were romances of knights and ladies, and legends of Aragon,
Castile, and the Alhambra. There were serenades, _fandangos_, and
feasts. While in the quaint Spanish towns, maidens with dark witching
eyes half hidden by mantillas, peeped through the latticed casements.
And they must have peeped out joyously whenever the stalwart, handsome,
young San Martin went by.
But he never forgot his native land.
As the years passed, he kept deep in his mind the memories of his
childhood. He heard that some of his countrymen in Argentina had formed
a Patriot Army, and were trying to gain their independence from Spanish
rule. He learned of their unsuccessful attempts and of their sufferings.
San Martin heard, too, that the English Colonies of North America had
cast off the rule of their mother-country, England, and had established
a free government of the People under a Constitution.
Meanwhile, Napoleon Bonaparte was throwing Europe into confusion,
pulling down Kings from their thrones, and setting up whomsoever he
wished in their stead. He forced the King of Spain to abdicate, and
proclaimed his own brother Joseph Bonaparte, King of Spain.
Now the Spanish-American Colonies were the property of the _Kings of
Spain_, “the most precious jewel in their crown.” Some of the Colonists
had remained loyal, but when they heard how their King had weakly
abdicated many of them, in disgust, went over to the Patriots’ side.
It was then that San Martin, although he had opportunities for rising
much higher in the Spanish Army, decided to return to Argentina.
He landed on Argentine soil, March 9, 1812.
As a little boy, he had left Argentina. Now he was returned as a man,
offering her his sword, his life, his all. “Forsaking my fortunes and my
hopes,” said San Martin later, “I desired only to sacrifice everything
to promote the Liberty of my native land. I arrived at Buenos Aires in
the beginning of 1812--thenceforward I consecrated myself to the cause
of Spanish America.”
WHEN SAN MARTIN CAME
To-day, the Republic of Argentina is an immense rich land. It stretches
from the Atlantic Coast westward nearly to the Pacific. Its broad
_pampas_, or plains, roll almost from the very doors of the beautiful
city of Buenos Aires to the foothills of the Andes Mountains. The mighty
frozen peaks of the Andes form a wall between the two sister Republics,
Argentina and Chile.
Though the breadth of Argentina is so great, its length is even more
tremendous. North to South, the Republic stretches from tropic regions
of intense heat to the far distant Patagonian land with its
sheep-ranches, salt-licks, and arid plains, and still farther southward
the Republic stretches toward the Antartic Circle.
The _pampas_ are like our prairies. On them herds of cattle graze; and
the _gauchos_ Argentine cowboys, round up the cattle on the wealthy
_estancias_ or ranches. On many of these ranches, grow wide acres of the
finest wheat and of other grains.
And through the city of Buenos Aires, which has been called the “Paris
of America,” pass shipments of beef and wheat to help feed the world. In
the city’s roadstead, are ships from many countries waiting to carry
away not only beef and grain, but hides, sugar, and other Argentine
produce, as well as Patagonian mutton and wool.
There are flourishing towns and cities in Argentina, and great wealth.
Buenos Aires alone has about two million inhabitants. And to Buenos
Aires come throngs of immigrants from Europe and Asia, seeking their
fortunes in Argentina; just as immigrants land in the City of New York,
to find their fortunes in our country.
An immense and rich land is the Republic of Argentina to-day; and her
native citizens are one hundred per cent American!
* * * * *
But when San Martin stepped upon Argentine soil over a hundred years
ago, there was no great wealthy Republic. There were only some poor
Provinces, struggling with Spain for their Liberty. Buenos Aires was
but a Colonial town on the bank of the River of Silver.
There was no forest of foreign ships in the roadstead; for Spain had
forbidden trading with any land except herself. There were no great
_estancias_ helping to feed the world. The whole country was groaning
under oppression. Colonists, Indians, and _gauchos_, were in arms to
defend her.
The land was swarming with Spanish soldiers and Royalists. The patriot
Army was small, scattered, and poorly equipped, and undisciplined. San
Martin, with all his military knowledge, came as a Liberator to his
Country.
The Patriot Government appointed him to train soldiers and organize the
army. He opened a military school. To it thronged the _gauchos_, those
daring riders of the plains, also Creoles as the Colonists of pure
Spanish blood were called, and Indians, and even slaves, to whom San
Martin had promised their freedom.
The Patriots wore cockades of white and sky-blue, the Argentine colours.
In time, San Martin had mobilized a well-disciplined army of earnest
courageous men.
At San Lorenzo, San Martin won a famous victory. The enemy retreated in
headlong flight, leaving behind banner, guns, and muskets. After the
battle, San Martin sent supplies to the enemy for the wounded, and
exchanged prisoners with them.
This victory put heart into the entire Patriot Army, and assured the
final success of the Patriot cause.
ARGENTINA’S INDEPENDENCE DAY
_July 9, 1816_
The Birthday of the Argentine Republic was really May 25, 1810, before
San Martin came to Argentina. For on that day a group of patriotic
citizens of Buenos Aires braved the anger of Spain, set up a People’s
Government, and convened the first Colonial Assembly in Argentina.
But on July 9, 1816, while San Martin’s soldiers were harassing the
Spaniards, there assembled at the city of Tucuman, delegates from a
number of the Provinces, who declared the “Independence of the United
Provinces of the River of Silver (or Rio de la Plata).” The name
“Argentine Republic” was not given the Argentine Union until some years
later.
Thus, Argentina, while Spain was yet on her soil, bravely declared her
Independence.
A GREAT IDEA
Gold, jewels, spices, and costly woods, in fact much of the stupendous
wealth of Spanish America, flowed yearly into Lima, “the City of the
Kings” in Peru, on the Pacific, the city founded by Pizarro the
gold-hunter.
Triumphantly, Lima lifted the picturesque towers and domes of her
palaces, convents, monasteries, and religious schools, and of her
ancient cathedral, for Lima ruled not only the Pacific coast of Spanish
America, but the whole of Spanish America as well. She was the centre of
Spain’s power, strength, religion, and wealth in the New World. There,
with pomp and pageant, lived the most influential of the Spanish
Viceroys, whose word was law. From Lima went forth Spain’s armies to
crush the Patriots in Argentina and Chile.
So long as Spain should hold Lima, the Patriot cause would be hopeless.
On the other hand, if Lima might be taken by the Patriots, then the
stronghold of Spanish tyranny would be destroyed.
So thought San Martin; and he began to lay plans to capture Lima,
although the city was seemingly inaccessible and lay beyond the Andes
Mountains far to the northwest on the Pacific Coast.
The Argentine Government transferred San Martin to the Province of Cuyo,
and made him its Governor. There in the lovely city of Mendoza, the city
of vineyards, at the very foot of the Andes, he set about raising
revenues, and training and equipping an army--a small but strong army of
devoted men.
But how to reach Lima? questioned San Martin to himself. Any attempt to
lead the army northward to Upper Peru, and over the Andes to Lima, was
sure to bring down upon the small body of Patriots, Spain’s seasoned
troops who held Upper Peru and a part of Argentina.
The only way, thought San Martin, is to cross the Andes, drive the
Spaniards _out of Chile_, then joining our forces with those of the
Chilean Patriots, go by sea to Lima, and take her from Spain. Peru will
yield, and our continent will be free!
THE MIGHTY ANDES
“What spoils my sleep, is not the strength of the enemy, but how to pass
those immense mountains,” said San Martin, as from Mendoza he gazed upon
the snow-clad summits of the mighty Andes, whose giant wall separated
the wide plains of Argentina from the sunny smiling valleys of Chile on
the Pacific.
Terrible seemed the Andes stretching from North to South like an
impassable barrier. Near Mendoza, the barren foothills resembled waves
of a petrified sea. Above them soared the central lofty mountain-ranges
of conical, sharply defined peaks white with everlasting snow. Over the
precipices, wheeled the condors at dizzy height. And down the chasm-rent
sides of the mountains, rushed dark torrents of melted snow.
San Martin knew of the rugged defiles, the narrow paths winding along
the edges of precipices, the ice-choked passages, the gloomy gorges, and
the many unbridged torrents to be crossed, torrents tossing rocks about
like straws.
Nevertheless, he determined to lead his Army across the Andes, rescue
Chile, and go by sea to Lima.
So without haste, he carefully laid his plans in every detail. He spent
two years in raising the Army of the Andes and equipping it. He kept his
project of crossing into Chile, secret, lest the enemy should hear of it
and guard the mountain-passes.
The enthusiastic and loyal men of Mendoza and of the whole Province of
Cuyo, helped him with money and labour. Many of them enlisted. Even the
children wanted to help; so San Martin, to keep up their Patriotism,
formed them into little regiments and let them drill and carry banners.
Their mothers, led by San Martin’s wife, a lovely Argentine lady, took
off their jewels and sold them. If it had not been for the cheerful
spirit of coöperation among the folk of Cuyo, San Martin could not have
mobilized his men. For this reason, Mendoza is called “The Nest of the
Argentine Eagle.”
_Bartolome Mitre_ (_Retold_)
THE REAL SAN MARTIN
And what was General San Martin like?
Why did the good folk of Mendoza love him and hasten to do all that he
asked?
Why did his troops cheerfully submit to terrible privations, and
willingly plunge into danger and death if San Martin was with them?
Why, to-day, do the boys and girls of Argentina wish to be like their
great and beloved hero--San Martin?
First, because San Martin never thought of himself. The folk of Mendoza
offered him a handsome house to live in. He quietly refused it. He gave
up to the cause half of his salary as Governor. He accepted the rank of
general with the understanding that he might lay it down as soon as
Argentina was free. He steadfastly refused all other promotions from his
Government. He sent his wife back to Buenos Aires, so that he might live
more simply.
He lived frugally, ate little, and worked hard. And what did he look
like, this General so strong yet so simple? He wore the plain uniform of
the Mounted Grenadiers, with the white and sky-blue cockade in his hat.
He was fine-looking, tall, and muscular. His complexion was olive, his
jaw strong, and his lips firm, his black hair thick. His large, jet
black eyes looked out from under bushy eyebrows; eyes now kindly and
humorous, now piercingly observant. But when he met treachery or
cowardice those eyes could frown terribly, and when he faced dangers or
great emergencies, they expressed a fiery determined spirit.
A man nobly unselfish, gentle yet forceful, modest, patient, whimsically
humorous at times, but always of few words was San Martin. Even
strangers who met him were filled with respect and affection for him.
His motto was:--
_Thou shall be what thou oughtest to be,
Or thou shall be nothing._
THE FIGHTING ENGINEER OF THE ANDES
Among the Patriots of Mendoza was a begging Friar, named Luis Beltran.
He had fought in Chile against the Spaniards. He had returned across the
Andes to Mendoza with a kit of tools on his back.
He was a clever fellow, a mathematician, a chemist, an artilleryman, a
maker of watches and fireworks, a carpenter, an architect, a blacksmith,
a draughtsman, a cobbler, and a physician. He was strong and rugged. San
Martin made him chaplain. But on learning of his extraordinary gifts, he
appointed him to establish an arsenal.
Soon Friar Beltran had three hundred workmen under him, all of whom he
taught. He cast cannon, shot, and shell, melting down church-bells when
his metal gave out. He made limbers for the guns, saddles for the
cavalry, knapsacks, shoes, and other equipment for the soldiers. He
forged horseshoes and bayonets and repaired damaged muskets.
If he stopped to rest at all, he drew designs on the walls of his grimy
workshop, for special caissons and wagons to transport army-supplies
over the steep passes of the Andes.
Then, he took off his frock, put on the uniform of a lieutenant of the
artillery, and became the fighting engineer of the Army of the Andes.
_Bartolome Mitre_ (_Retold_)
THE HANNIBAL OF THE ANDES
I
Everything was ready.
Friar Beltran’s forges, blazing night and day, had turned out thirty
thousand horseshoes. His arsenal had produced bullets by the hundreds of
thousands. Friar Beltran’s carriages for artillery, specially designed
for mountain-passes, stood waiting. The guns themselves were to be
carried on the backs of mules. Slings had been prepared to hoist the
mules over dangerous places; also sleds of rawhide in which the guns
might be hauled up inclines too steep for heavily laden mules to climb.
The women of Mendoza, led by Bernardo O’Higgins’s mother and sister who
were exiles from Chile, had prepared a store of bandages and medicines,
and had made uniforms for the soldiers.
All was ready--tents, provisions, herds of cattle, saddles, arms,
clothes, water-bottles, cables and anchors for a portable bridge,
muleteers and artisans. Nothing was overlooked by the vigilant San
Martin.
Silent and reserved, he inspected everything. For he knew too well that
the mountains over which he was about to lead his Army, were more lofty
and dangerous than the famous Alps. He planned to send the Army through
two passes, the highest of which was nearly 13,000 feet above sea-level.
The troops would be long on the way, he knew, and the dangers would be
terrific.
In January 1817--January is summertime in Argentina--the good folk of
Mendoza gathered to say farewell to the Army that they had helped to
mobilize, and to which so many of their own men belonged, some of whom
they should never see again.
The Army broke up its cantonments, and began its march in three
divisions, carrying the new flag of the Republic. The women of Mendoza
had made it. It was white and sky-blue, like San Martin’s first uniform
when he was a boy soldier, while on it was emblazoned the face of the
Rising Sun.
So with provisions for many days, with armament, munitions, baggage, and
great herds of cattle for food, the Army followed the trails that led
through the barren foothills toward the high Andes.
The lofty central ranges of the gloomy mountains frowned down upon the
soldiers, while the dark passes seemed yawning pitilessly to devour
them. But nothing daunted, they courageously continued to climb the
foothills toward the mountains.
Bernardo O’Higgins, the Chilean Patriot, led one of the divisions; for
Chile had now joined forces with Argentina against Spain.
Higher and higher the Army climbed, scouts clearing the way before it,
until it began to enter the passes of the Cordilleras. Then San Martin,
who was still tarrying at Mendoza, wrote to a friend:--
“This afternoon I leave to join the Army. God grant me success in this
great enterprise!”
Then saying good-bye to the folk of Mendoza, by whom he was so much
beloved, he hastened to join one of the divisions.
Day after day, the troops followed the steep ascents and descents,
walking close to roaring torrents, crossing craggy peaks and narrow
chasms, skirting edges of precipices, wading through snow, and hauling
heavy guns and supplies up steep inclines.
Great mountain-ridges, with cañons between, ran north and south, beside
numerous lesser ridges; all these had to be crossed to reach Chile. The
intense cold on the summits, killed many of the soldiers. While the
rarefied air caused numbers to drop down and die from heart failure and
exhaustion. Of the nine thousand two hundred and eighty-one mules and
the sixteen hundred horses Friar Beltran had in charge, over half
perished.
The soldiers, surrounded by the mountain peaks that seemed to touch the
sky with their snow-bound jagged tops, were depressed by the awful
loneliness. Now and then, a condor wheeled above them. Strange noises,
made by gusts of wind in the cañons, sounded like the wails of lost
souls. Every step the soldiers took, convinced them that should they be
attacked, it would be impossible to retreat. Such were some of the
terrible hardships uncomplainingly suffered by the Army of the Andes.
But the soldiers laughed at despair; a spirit of union and comradeship
upheld them. Each corps tried to outdo the others in cheerful endurance.
At last, after more than three weeks, the Army began to defile from the
passes into Chile. Then San Martin and O’Higgins, in the great battle of
Chacabuco and later at Maipu, won the victory and drove the Spanish Army
from Chile.
_General Miller and Bartolome Mitre_ (_Retold_)
II
Thus was accomplished one of the most heroic military feats in history.
“The passage of the Andes by the Army of San Martin,” says Lord Bryce,
“has been pronounced by military historians of authority to have been
one of the most remarkable operations ever accomplished in mountain
warfare. The forces which he led were no doubt small compared ... to
those which Hannibal and Napoleon carried across the Alps. But ... the
passes to be crossed were much higher.”
Lord Bryce also says that San Martin comes nearer than any one else to
being “the George Washington of Spanish America.”
And San Martin has been called, “the Hannibal of the Andes.”
NOT FOR HIMSELF
Honours were showered on San Martin after the battle of Chacabuco. News
of his successful crossing of the Andes and of his victory, reached
Buenos Aires. All day long shouts sounded through the streets. Cannon
roared from the fort and from the squadron in the roadstead. San
Martin’s portrait was hung where all could see it, draped in flags
captured from the enemy.
The Argentine Government decreed a sword and badge for San Martin, and
struck medals for his soldiers. They voted a pension of six hundred
dollars a year for his little daughter, Maria Mercedes. They also sent
him a commission as Brigadier-General, the highest rank in the Argentine
service.
San Martin accepted the pension for his little daughter, and laid the
money aside for her education. But he refused the commission, asking
only for more arms, money, and men, to carry on the campaign.
Meanwhile, the grateful Chilean Government offered to make him ruler of
all Chile. But this honour, too, he declined. So his friend and
companion-at-arms, Bernardo O’Higgins, in his stead, was elected Supreme
Ruler of the country.
COCHRANE, EL DIABLO
“On to Lima! On to Lima!” was now the cry of the Argentine and Chilean
soldiers. “Let us drive out the Spaniards! Let us expel them from
Spanish America for ever!”
“On to Lima by sea,” was San Martin’s decision. Meanwhile, O’Higgins was
busy equipping a fleet to carry the troops to Peru.
There was, at that time, in England a dauntless, dashing naval-officer,
Lord Thomas Cochrane, who was famous for his extraordinary courage and
adventures. He gladly accepted the invitation of San Martin and
O’Higgins, to become Admiral of the Chilean Navy. And because excitement
and danger were as meat and drink to him, he hastened to Chile.
He was welcomed with great rejoicings. His beautiful young wife became
one of the belles of Santiago. English, Irish, and American officers,
drawn by the fame of Lord Cochrane’s daring exploits, arrived in numbers
offering their swords to Chile to help win her Freedom.
Then, with the single-star Flag of Chile nailed to his mastheads,
Admiral Cochrane swept the Pacific clean of Spanish war-vessels. And so
fiery were his attacks, that the Spaniards nicknamed him, “_El Diablo_.”
“For the very Devil himself, he is,” said they.
OUR BROTHERS, YE SHALL BE FREE!
“The Peruvians are our brothers,” proclaimed San Martin to his soldiers.
“Remember that you are come not to conquer but to liberate a People!” he
proclaimed as soon as the Liberating Army was landed in Peru. For Lord
Cochrane had brought them safely thither aboard the Chilean fleet.
Then to the Peruvians, San Martin sent broadcast a proclamation:--
_You shall be free and independent. You shall form your government and
your laws according to the spontaneous wish of your own representatives.
The soldiers of the Army of Liberation, your brothers, will exert no
influences, military or civil, direct or indirect, in your social
system. Whenever it suits you, dismiss the Army which marches to protect
you. A military force should never occupy the territory of a Free
People, unless invited by its legitimate magistrates._
This proclamation aroused the patriotism of many Peruvians, who brought
quantities of food and supplies to the Army. While numbers of them
joined the Army, including six hundred slaves, to whom San Martin
promised their freedom.
Then San Martin prepared to invest Lima, with the help of Lord
Cochrane’s fleet.
THE FALL OF THE CITY OF THE KINGS
Lima, “the City of the Kings,” stands not far from the sea on a plain
near the foot of the Cordilleras.
When San Martin landed in Peru, Lima the proud, the rich, was the seat
of the Spanish Viceroy’s Court with all its pomp and vices. She was shut
in by walls above which rose her turrets and domes. Many of her people
were slaves, Indians, or freedmen; the rest were haughty Spanish
grandees and rich royalists. Lima was the civil, and military, despot of
all Spanish America.
San Martin had now but one thought and aim--to drive the Spaniards from
Lima, and make the city independent. He besieged her by sea and land.
Through proclamations sent far and wide, he urged the Peruvians to rise
up and help gain their own Freedom. Peruvian Colonists, Indians, and
slaves flocked to his standard.
The siege began to tell on Lima. Her pride was humbled to the dust. Her
food was exhausted. Fresh supplies were cut off by the blockade. The
poor suffered dreadful want. The rich were deprived of their luxuries.
Rich and poor alike lived in terror of their lives. To add to the
miseries of the unhappy city, her officials, who should have protected
her, fell to quarrelling among themselves.
On the Fifth of July, universal terror reigned. The Spanish Viceroy had
announced that he was about to abandon the city to her fate. Every one
believed that San Martin’s troops would fall upon her to pillage and
burn. At dawn the Viceroy marched out with his troops.
There was one mad rush to escape to Callao, the port of Lima, several
miles away. All the people who could, hastened to leave. Crowds of
fugitives hurried along the highways, people on foot, in carts, on
horseback; men, women, and children, with bundles and household goods,
with horses and mules, and with slaves bending under heavy burdens of
baggage and treasure.
Inside the city, there was pandemonium. Women were seen fleeing toward
the convents. The narrow streets were choked with loaded wagons and
mounted horsemen.
By midday, scarcely a person was to be seen. Those who had been forced
to remain, had barred their doors and closed their shutters, and were
waiting with fear and trembling for San Martin’s troops to fall upon the
city.
In the midst of this confusion, the few officials who had not fled,
gathered together to consult as to what should be done. They feared an
uprising of the slaves or an attack by a mob. But greater still was
their fear of the multitude of San Martin’s armed Indians, savage and
undisciplined, who were surrounding the city. For though the Indians
were under the command of San Martin’s officers, they seemed likely at
any moment, to break loose from restraint and massacre the helpless
people of Lima. The Indians were so near that they could plainly be
seen, perched on the heights that overhung the city.
The officials, in great terror of mind, wrote a letter to San Martin,
entreating him to enter Lima and protect her. The letter was despatched
by a messenger.
All night long, a profound silence brooded over the city.
The next morning San Martin’s answer came.
It was brief. He would enter the city, he said, only if it was the real
wish of the People of Lima to declare their Independence. He had no
desire to enter as a conqueror, he declared, but would come only if
invited by the People.
And added he, that the People, in the meanwhile, might give whatever
orders they desired to his troops surrounding the city; and the orders
should be obeyed.
His answer stunned the officials. They could not believe that a
conquering general could be so humane to a helpless foe. They thought
that San Martin was mocking them. But to put the matter to the test,
they sent an order to a commanding officer of a regiment stationed near
the city gate, asking him to withdraw his men to a spot a league away.
The officer immediately withdrew them.
The good news flew through the city. People went almost mad with joy.
Confidence was restored; and parties of picked soldiers were invited in
to guard the city.
In a day or two everything was as before. The shops were opened again.
Women were seen stealing from the convents. Men ventured into the square
to smoke their cigars. The streets were lined with refugees returning to
their homes, bringing back bundles, trunks, and treasures. The street
criers were bawling their wares; and the city was restored to its usual
noise and bustle.
Then a deputation of citizens waited upon San Martin to invite him to
enter Lima and proclaim her Independence.
_Captain Basil Hall_ (_Retold_)
SAN MARTIN THE CONQUEROR
_A Retreat_
The people watched eagerly to see San Martin enter in state as a
conquering general should. The day passed, and he did not come. When it
began to grow dark, he rode in through the gate attended by a single
aide-de-camp.
And he would not have come then, if he could have helped it. It was his
plan to slip unobserved into the city early in the morning before people
were up.
But the reason why he had to enter at evening, was this:--
He was tired, and he had just settled down for the night in the corner
of a little cottage outside the walls. He was blessing his stars that he
was well out of the reach of business, when in came two Friars, who had
discovered his hiding place.
Each one made him a long tedious speech; one likened him to Cæsar and
the other to Lucullus.
“Good heavens!” exclaimed San Martin, when the Friars had left. “What
are we to do? This will never answer!”
“O sir,” replied the aide-de-camp, “there are two more of the same stamp
close at hand.”
“Indeed! Then saddle the horses again, and let us be off!” exclaimed San
Martin.
So it happened that the conquering General was forced to retreat, and
enter Lima before people were asleep.
_The Mother and her Three Sons_
When he entered the city, instead of going directly to the palace where
he was to lodge, he stopped to call on the Governor.
In a moment, the news of his arrival sped through the city. People came
thronging into the Governor’s house, and even filled the court and
street.
San Martin was forced to stand in the audience-chamber and receive the
crowds. Old people and young people pressed fast upon him. But though he
was so modest and heartily disliked any show or pretension, he received
their praises patiently and kindly.
A handsome middle-aged woman approached him, and as he leaned forward to
greet her, she threw herself at his feet. There, clinging to his knees,
she looked up into his face, and exclaimed that she had three sons at
his service, who, she hoped, would become useful citizens.
San Martin listened to her with respect. As he gently raised her from
the floor, she flung her arms around his neck and finished her speech.
He replied to her with great earnestness; and the poor woman’s heart
seemed bursting with gratitude for his attention and kindness.
_The Little Girl Who Was Bashful_
San Martin then seeing a little girl about ten or twelve years old, who
was too bashful to come forward, lifted the astonished child and kissed
her cheek. When he set her down again, the little thing was in such
ecstasy that she scarcely knew what to do.
_Another Little Girl_
San Martin established his headquarters a little beyond the city-wall.
There he was completely surrounded by business. But every man coming out
of San Martin’s presence, seemed pleased whether he had succeeded in his
petition or not.
Among others, an old man came into headquarters holding a little girl in
his arms. He had just one request, would the great General please kiss
his child? San Martin good-naturedly kissed her, and the father went
away radiantly happy.
_The Best Cigar_
San Martin lived on the friendliest terms with his officers.
One day, at his own table, he opened his pouch and took out a cigar,
rounder and firmer than the rest. He gave it a look of unconscious
satisfaction. Just then a voice called:--
“My General!”
San Martin started from his revery, and raised his head.
“Who spoke?” he said.
“It was I,” said an officer who had been watching him. “I merely wished
to beg the favour of one cigar from you.”
“Ah ha!” said San Martin smiling good-naturedly with an assumed look of
reproach. And at once he tossed his chosen cigar to the officer.
_Duty Before the General_
At another time, San Martin was entertaining a visitor on board a
schooner. While they were walking up and down, the sailors began to swab
the deck.
“What a plague it is,” said San Martin, “that these fellows will insist
on washing their decks at this rate.” Then turning to one of the men, he
said, “I wish, my friend, you would not wet us here, but go to the other
side.”
The sailor, who had his duty to perform and who was too well accustomed
to the General’s gentle manner, went on with his work, and soundly
splashed him and his guest.
“I am afraid,” cried San Martin, “we must go below, although our cabin
is but a miserable hole! For really there is no persuading these fellows
to go out of their usual way.”
_Captain Basil Hall and Other Sources_ (_Retold_)
LIMA’S GREATEST DAY
_July 28, 1821, Peru’s Independence Day_
It was Lima’s greatest day. It was the 28th of July. It was her
Independence Day.
Flowers and perfumes were being showered down from palace-windows and
balconies. They fell on the heads of San Martin and many officers,
clergy, and officials who were marching through cheering crowds.
They marched to the great square, and mounted a platform. The troops
were drawn up in the square.
The Declaration of Independence of Peru was read aloud.
Then San Martin, standing on the platform, unfurled the new flag of the
Republic of Peru. As he shook out its scarlet and white folds on which
was the face of the Sun rising over the Andes with a tranquil river at
their base, he called in a loud voice:--
“From this moment Peru is free and independent by the common wish of the
People, and by the justice of her cause, which God defend!”
Then waving the flag on high, he shouted:--
“Long live the Fatherland! Long live Liberty! Long live Independence!”
“Long live the Fatherland!” shouted the crowds, as they caught up his
words and passed them along from the square to the streets beyond.
The bells of the city rang out a joyous peal. Cannon were fired. And
such a roar of voices went up as was never heard before in Lima.
Then from the platform silver medals were rained down on the crowds. On
each was inscribed:--
_Lima, being liberated, swore its Independence on the 28th of July,
1821, under the protection of the Liberating Army of Peru,
commanded by San Martin._
San Martin adopted the title of “Protector of Peru.” He took upon
himself the temporary government of the country until its Independence
should be assured.
“I do not want military renown,” said San Martin, “I have no ambition to
be the conqueror of Peru. I want solely to liberate the country from
oppression.”
HAIL! NEIGHBOUR REPUBLICS!
San Martin continued to wage his successful campaign against the
Spaniards. Now, let us leave him and Peru for a moment.
Let us turn to the United States and see what we were doing about all
this.
We recognized our sister Republics for the first time on March 8, 1822.
On that day President Monroe sent a special message to Congress saying,
“the Provinces belonging to this hemisphere are our neighbours.” He
recommended that Congress should recognize as independent Nations,
Colombia, Chile, Peru, Mexico, and Argentina, then called La Plata.
Brazil had already acknowledged them; so the United States was the
second Power to hold out the hand of fellowship to our neighbours.
England followed soon after.
This acknowledgment of a brave People’s struggle for freedom, came after
more than twenty years of terrible warfare.
Our neighbour Republics--recognized in 1822,--have the honour of having
won their own Liberty without the aid of foreign Allies. For though they
had the sympathy of all free Peoples, and the moral support of both the
English and the United States Governments, and though hundreds of
foreign young men--whole legions of them--volunteered in the Patriot
Armies and shed their blood for Spanish-American Independence, yet the
Patriots of the Southern Republics had to stand up alone and unaided by
any Government.
They won their Independence by patient endurance of every conceivable
suffering, by rising above momentary defeats, and by courageously
persisting to the end under the command of their devoted Liberators.
In the language of San Martin, “God granted them success.”
AMERICA FOR THE AMERICANS
So at last, the Spanish-American Republics were recognized. Their
Freedom was practically won.
But the Kings of Continental Europe felt their thrones tottering and
their crowns loosened.
After the wars of Napoleon, the whole of Europe was in political
ferment. So it always happens after long wars.
The Peoples of Continental Europe, who for generations had been
down-trodden by Kings and Emperors, had learned from the United States
and France, of such things as Liberty, Constitutions, and the right of
Peoples to a voice in their own government. Everywhere the Peoples of
Europe were preparing to demand constitutional governments. Then, too, a
wave of infidelity was sweeping through the world, the result of the
terrible French Revolution.
Then, in 1815, the three Kings of Russia, Prussia, and Austria, formed a
league called the Holy Alliance.
Its original purpose was lofty. It was at first, a very pious affair.
The Holy Allies agreed to take under their Christian protection the
Kingdoms of Europe, and to govern their three Peoples as one People by
the dictates of the Holy Religion of Christ. They pledged themselves to
bring about a reign of charity, justice, and peace for Europe. The Holy
Allies claimed to be divinely appointed to do all this. Spain, France,
Naples, and Sardinia joined them. England did not become a member for
though she has a monarch, she has a Constitutional Government.
It was not long before this Holy Alliance became a hotbed of European
intrigue, and developed into a subtle political league to destroy the
awakening liberties of the World.
The Holy Allies conspired to put down all democratic principles, and
stamp out all representative government from Europe. They also conspired
to prevent the formation of any new Republics in other parts of the
World, and to chain the liberty of the Press, which is the Voice of the
People. Thus these Holy Allies joined forces to uphold the divine right
of Kings and the tyranny of absolute monarchies.
Their next move was to promise Spain to help destroy the
Spanish-American Republics, and thus restore to her her lost Colonies.
This was after we had acknowledged the Independence of those Republics.
The Holy Allies planned to _invade America_ with their Army.
When this news reached the United States, there was a furore. And, when
added to this news, it was announced that Russia was laying plans to
colonize the Pacific coast of North America, there was great indignation
in this country.
It was then, that President Monroe, on December 2, 1823, gave to the
World the famous MONROE DOCTRINE, which is this:--
_To the defense of our own [Government], which has been achieved by
the loss of so much blood and treasure ... and under which we have
enjoyed unexampled felicity, this whole Nation is devoted._
_That the American continents, by the free and independent
conditions which they have assumed and maintained, are henceforth
not to be considered as subjects for future colonization by any
European Powers...._
_We should consider any attempt on their part to extend their
system to any portion of this hemisphere, as dangerous to our peace
and safety._ ...
_But with the Governments (the Spanish American Republics) who have
declared their Independence and maintained it, and whose
Independence we have ... acknowledged, we could not view any
interposition for the purpose of oppressing them, or controlling in
any other manner their destiny by any European Power, in any other
light than as the manifestation of an unfriendly disposition toward
the United States._ ...
This is the MONROE DOCTRINE.
AMERICA FOR THE AMERICANS, American Independence, is what it means.
WHAT ONE AMERICAN DID
_October 9, 1820_
Now, to return to South America and its struggle:
“That was bravely and cleverly done!” exclaimed Joseph Villamil.
Villamil was an American, a citizen of the United States, who had cast
in his lot with the Spanish-American Patriots. At his house in Guayaquil
(a city now a part of Ecuador) the local Patriots met to discuss plans.
The Province and city of Guayaquil lay on the northern border of Peru.
They were still under Spanish rule. They were garrisoned by 1500 Spanish
soldiers.
The Patriots decided to capture the garrison. So while San Martin was
preparing to besiege Lima, they set out from Villamil’s house, led by a
Venezuelan officer. Villamil accompanied them with a band of Englishmen
and North Americans, who were eager to help in the attack.
They took the garrison in double-quick time, and with very little
bloodshed at that, for scarcely eight men were killed.
“That was bravely and cleverly done!” said Villamil.
And that he himself had fought bravely and cleverly during the attack,
was soon proven, for the Provisional Government of Guayaquil despatched
him aboard a schooner to carry the good news to Lord Cochrane and San
Martin.
Some time after, there took place at Guayaquil one of the most amazing
meetings the world has ever seen.
THE AMAZING MEETING
This amazing meeting at Guayaquil, was like the dramatic climax of an
exciting story.
There was a mystery in it.
It happened a few months after the freeing of Guayaquil. The people of
the city, dressed in their gayest clothes, were crowding along the
streets, and craning their necks to watch for a procession.
Triumphal arches spanned the streets. On each arch was inscribed:--
BOLIVAR!
And while the people watched eagerly, lo, the new white and blue flag of
independent Guayaquil was hauled down from the gunboats on the river,
and in its place were run up the red, yellow, and blue colours of the
great new Republic of Colombia, which had just been formed to the North
of Guayaquil.
Then there was a sudden burst of military music, and under the
triumphal arches marched a procession of officers in brilliant uniforms
and soldiers with bayonets. And astride his war-horse, cocked hat in
hand, rode Simon Bolivar, the Venezuelan Liberator, small, erect, and
elegant.
He had been leading his conquering Army down from the North, driving out
the Spaniards; while at the same time, San Martin had been freeing the
Republics of Argentina and Chile and convoying his Army up from the
South to the liberation of Peru.
It was General Bolivar who had founded the new and great Republic of
Colombia, and had given it a constitutional government. He was now come
to Guayaquil on his way to liberate Peru.
He rode thus proudly under the arches that bore his name. His alert,
bright, black eyes turned to the right and left as he took in every
detail around him.
Soon after this, the Amazing Meeting took place.
San Martin the Protector arrived at Guayaquil to confer with Bolivar.
Strong Spanish forces were gathering in Peru, concentrating for a
terrible, and final struggle. San Martin’s Army had been weakened by
disease and losses. He was now come to ask Bolivar to join his forces
with the Patriot Army in Peru and so help bring the war to a quick,
decisive end.
Thus the two great Patriots met in the gayly decked tropic city. One had
liberated all the northern part of Spanish America, the other had
brought Independence to two southern Republics: Bolivar small, alert,
sagacious, of vivid personality and iron will impatient of restraint,
elegantly clad in full dress uniform; San Martin, stalwart, earnest,
simple, yet strong, dressed in plain garments.
On the result of their conference, hung the completed Freedom of all
Spanish America.
They were left alone.
They conferred for more than an hour.
No one knew what they discussed. But those who caught glimpses of them,
said that Bolivar seemed agitated, while San Martin was grave and calm.
After the conference, San Martin sent his baggage back to the ship.
The next day, they conferred again.
Again, nobody knew what they discussed.
That night, San Martin went aboard his ship, and sailed for Peru.
WHAT HAPPENED AFTERWARD
Then came the results of that Amazing Meeting.
San Martin returned to Peru, and announced that Bolivar was coming with
his Army to aid the Country. He then resigned his command, refusing all
the honours heaped upon him by the grateful Peruvian Government. But, he
said, that if the Republic of Peru were ever in danger, he would glory
in joining as a citizen in her defense.
Then, to the sorrowing Peruvian People, he issued a farewell address,
assuring them, that since their Independence was secured, he was now
about to fulfil his sacred promise and leave them to govern themselves,
adding:--
“_God grant that success may preside over your destinies, and that
you may reach the summit of felicity and peace._”
That same night, San Martin mounted his horse and rode away into the
darkness. He had left Peru forever.
He passed through Chile and laid down his command; then he crossed the
Andes to rest for a while on his little farm at Mendoza.
There the terrible news reached him that his wife had died in Buenos
Aires. All that she had meant to him, he himself expressed in the simple
words:--
“The wife and friend of General San Martin.”
His trials were not yet over. For on his reaching Buenos Aires, its
officials met him coldly and scornfully. Then San Martin, ill,
sorrowful, and forsaken, took his little daughter in his arms, and
going aboard a ship sailed for Europe. Thus he left Argentina, and went
into voluntary exile.
He never saw Buenos Aires again. Five years later, longing to retire
quietly on his farm at Mendoza, he returned to Argentina. He never left
the ship. He learned that if he did so, old political factions would
rise up again, and civil war might threaten Argentina. So he sailed back
to Europe.
There he looked after his daughter’s education. And in his old age, he
lived comfortably in a small country house on the bank of the Seine. He
cared for his garden, tended his flowers, and read his books, until his
sight began to fail.
At the age of seventy-two, still a voluntary exile for the good of his
Country, he died in his dear daughter’s arms.
“I desire,” said he, “that my heart should rest in Buenos Aires.”
THE MYSTERY SOLVED
What was the mystery, that had made San Martin at the height of his
success, bow his head in silence and go into voluntary exile?
His enemies reviled him. Even some of his friends accused him of
deserting his post in time of need. But he neither complained nor
explained.
A great act of self-abnegation may not be hidden forever. Years passed
by, then San Martin’s noble purpose came to light.
At that Amazing Meeting, after he and Bolivar had exchanged opposing
views as to the best form of government for Spanish America, they began
to discuss the liberation of Peru.
Bolivar refused to enter Peru or to allow his Army to do so without the
consent of the Congress of Colombia. He politely offered to lend San
Martin a few troops, altogether too few to aid in the subjection of the
large Spanish forces gathering in Peru for the final decisive struggle.
San Martin, at a glance, read the Liberator’s purpose. He saw before him
a brilliant General “of a constancy to which difficulties only added
strength,” who by joining his Army to that of Peru, Argentina, and
Chile, could make sure for all time to come, the liberation of the whole
of Spanish America. But it was also plain to San Martin that Bolivar
would never consent to share his command with any other man.
Therefore, San Martin offered to lay down the sword of supreme command
of his forces in Peru, and serve as an ordinary officer under Bolivar.
This Bolivar refused.
San Martin was pushed to the wall. There was left only one of two things
for him to do--either to return to Peru and wage an unequal and
possibly losing warfare against the Spaniards without the help of
Bolivar,--or to withdraw.
He withdrew in silence.
But why in silence? Why did he not explain so that people might
understand and not misjudge him?
In a letter that he wrote from Peru to Bolivar, giving his reasons for
retiring, he told why he was silent:--
“_The sentiments which this letter contains will remain buried in
the most profound silence. If they were to become public, our
enemies might profit by them and injure the cause of Liberty; while
ambitious and intriguing people might use them to foment discord._”
Again he said, “It shall not be San Martin who will give a day’s delight
to the enemy.”
And on leaving Peru, he said in his farewell to the People, “My
countrymen, as in most affairs, will be divided in opinion--their
children will give a true verdict.”
* * * * *
And their children have justified his faith.
To-day, his body rests in the Cathedral of Buenos Aires.
And to-day the school-children of Argentina are taught to love and
reverence the Father of their Country who never thought of himself--Jose
de San Martin.
MARCH 15
ANDREW JACKSON OLD HICKORY
_Our Federal Union: It must and shall be preserved!_
ANDREW JACKSON’S _Toast on Jefferson’s Birthday_
_I want to say that Andrew Jackson was a Tennessean; but Andrew
Jackson was an American, and there is not a State in this Nation
that cannot claim him, that has not the right to claim him as a
national hero...._
_I should not say that Old Hickory was faultless. I do not know
very many strong men that have not got some of the defects of their
qualities. But Andrew Jackson was as upright a Patriot, as honest a
man, as fearless a gentleman, as ever any Nation had in public or
private life._
_President_ THEODORE ROOSEVELT
ANDREW JACKSON was born in the Carolinas, March 15, 1767
Won the Battle of Talladega against the Creeks, 1813
Won the Battle of New Orleans against the British, January 8, 1815
Was made Governor of Florida, 1821
Was elected President, 1828; again, 1832
He died, June 8, 1845
He is sometimes called “Old Hickory”
MISCHIEVOUS ANDY
“Set the case! You are Shauney Kerr’s mare, and me Billy Buck. And I
should mount you, and you should kick, fall, fling, and break your neck,
should I be to blame for that?”
Imagine this gibberish, roared out by a sandy-haired boy, as he came
leaping from the door of a log-schoolhouse, ready to defy all the other
boys to a race, a wrestle, or a jumping match, while he playfully laid
sprawling as many of his friends as he could trip unawares.
There you have Andy Jackson!
Andy, tall, lank, red-headed, blue-eyed, freckled, barefoot, and dressed
in coarse copperas-coloured clothes, was the son of a poor Scotch Irish
widow. He was born and reared in the Carolinas. He lived with his mother
in the Waxhaws Settlement. His home was a log-cabin in a clearing.
His mother earned her living and that of her two youngest boys. She had
great ambitions for Andy. She sent him to school in the little
log-schoolhouse. And, when she had earned enough money, she paid his
tuition at a country academy.
No boy ever lived who liked fun better than Andy. He ran foot-races,
leaped the bar, and high-jumped. To the younger boys, who never
questioned his mastery, he was a generous protector. There was nothing
he would not do to defend them.
But boys of his own age and older, found him self-willed, somewhat
overbearing, easily offended, very irascible, and on the whole difficult
to get along with.
He learned to read, write, and cast accounts--little more.
_James Parton_ (_Retold_)
READING THE DECLARATION
Andy was nine years old when the Declaration of Independence was signed
at Philadelphia.
In August, some one brought a Philadelphia newspaper to the Waxhaws. It
contained a portion of the Declaration. A crowd of Waxhaw Patriots
gathered in front of the country store owned by Andy’s Uncle Crawford.
They were eager to hear the Declaration read aloud. Andy was chosen to
read it.
He did so proudly in a shrill, penetrating voice. He read the whole
thing through without once stopping to spell out the words. And that was
more than many of the grown men of the Waxhaws could do in those pioneer
days, when frontier log-schoolhouses were few and far between.
OUT AGAINST TARLETON
Andrew Jackson was little more than thirteen, when the British Tarleton
with his dragoons, thundered along the red roads of the Waxhaws, and
dyed them a deeper red with the blood of the surprised Patriot Militia.
For Tarleton fell upon the Waxhaws settlement, and killed one hundred
and thirteen of the Militia, and wounded a hundred and fifty more.
The wounded men were abandoned to the care of the settlers, and
quartered in the cabins, and in the old log Waxhaw meeting-house, which
was turned into a hospital.
Andrew’s mother was one of the kind women who nursed the soldiers in the
meeting-house. Andrew and his brother Robert assisted her in waiting
upon them. Andrew, more in rage than pity, though pitiful by nature,
burned to avenge their wounds and his brother’s death. For his eldest
brother, Hugh, had mounted his horse the year before, and ridden
southward to join the Patriot forces. He had fought gallantly, and had
died bravely.
Tarleton’s massacre at the Waxhaws, had kindled the flames of war in all
that region of the Carolinas. The time was now come when Andrew and
Robert were to play men’s parts. Carrying their own weapons, they
mounted their grass ponies--ponies of the South Carolina swamps, rough,
Shetlandish, wild--and rode away to join the patriots.
Andrew and Robert served in a number of actions, and were finally taken
captive.
They were at length rescued by their mother. This heroic woman arrived
at their prison, and by her efforts and entreaties, succeeded in
bringing about an exchange of prisoners.
Andrew and Robert were brought out of prison and handed over to her. She
gazed at them in astonishment and horror,--so worn and wasted the boys
were with hunger, wounds, and disease. They were both ill with the
smallpox. Robert could not stand, nor even sit on horseback without
support.
Two horses were procured. One, Mrs. Jackson rode herself. Robert was
placed on the other, and held in his seat by some of the prisoners to
whom Mrs. Jackson had just given liberty.
Behind the sad procession poor Andrew dragged his weak and weary limbs,
bare-headed, bare-footed, without a jacket, his only two garments torn
and dirty.
The forty miles of lonely wilderness to the Waxhaws were nearly
traversed, and the fevered boys were expecting in two hours more, to
enjoy the comfort of home, when a chilly, drenching rain set in. The
smallpox had reached that stage when a violent chill proves wellnigh
fatal. The boys reached home and went to bed.
In two days Robert Jackson was dead, while Andrew was a raving maniac.
But the mother’s nursing and his own strong constitution brought Andrew
out of his peril, and set him on the way to slow recovery.
_James Parton_ (_Retold_)
AN ORPHAN OF THE REVOLUTION
Andrew Jackson was no sooner out of danger, than his courageous mother
resolved to go to Charleston, a distance of nearly two hundred miles,
and do what she could for the comfort of the prisoners confined on the
reeking, disease-infested prison-ships.
Among the many captives on the ships, suffering hunger, sickness, and
neglect, were Mrs. Jackson’s own nephews and some of her Waxhaw
neighbours. She hoped to obtain their release, as she had that of Andy
and Robert.
She arrived at Charleston, and gained admission to the ships. She
distributed food and medicines, and brought much comfort and joy to the
haggard prisoners.
She had been there but a little time when she was seized by ship-fever.
After a short illness she died. She was buried on the open plain, and
her grave was lost sight of. Her clothes, a sorry bundle, were sent to
her boy at the Waxhaws.
And so Andrew Jackson, before reaching his fifteenth birthday had lost
his father, mother, and two brothers. He was an orphan, a sick and
sorrowful orphan, a homeless orphan, an orphan of the Revolution.
Many years later on his birthday, on the very same day when he disbanded
the Army with which he had won the Battle of New Orleans, he said of his
mother:--
“How I wish _she_ could have lived to see this day! There never was a
woman like her. She was gentle as a dove and brave as a lioness....
“Her last words have been the law of my life. When the tidings of her
death reached me, I at first could not believe it. When I finally
realized the truth, I felt utterly alone.... Yes, I was alone. With that
feeling, I started to make my own way....
“The memory of my Mother and her teachings, were after all the only
capital I had to start in life with, and on that capital I have made my
way.”
_James Parton and Other Sources._
THE HOOTING IN THE WILDERNESS
It was night in the Tennessee Wilderness. A train of settlers from the
Carolinas, with four-wheeled ox-carts and pack-horses, and attended by
an armed guard, was winding its way along the trail through the forest
toward the frontier-town of Nashville. They had marched thirty-six
hours, a night and two days, without stopping to rest. They were keeping
a vigilant outlook for savages.
At length, they reached what they thought was a safe camping-ground. The
tired travellers hastened to encamp. Their little tents were pitched.
Their fires were lighted. The exhausted women and children crept into
the tents, and fell asleep.
The men, except those who were to stand sentinel during the first half
of the night, wrapped their blankets around them and lay down under the
lee of sheltering logs with their feet to the fire.
Silence fell on the camp.
All slept except the sentinels and one young man. He sat with his back
to a tree, smoking a corn-cob pipe. He was not handsome; but the direct
glance of his keen blue eye and his resolute expression, made him seem
so in spite of a long thin face, high forehead somewhat narrow, and
sandy-red hair falling low on his brow.
This young man was Andrew Jackson,--mischievous Andy of the
Waxhaws,--now grown to be a clever, licensed, young lawyer. He was
going with the emigrant train to Nashville in order to hang out his sign
and practise on the frontier.
He sat there in the Wilderness, in the darkness, peacefully smoking. He
listened to the night sounds from the forest. He was falling into a
doze, when he noted the various hoots of owls in the forest around him.
“A remarkable country this, for owls,” he thought, as he closed his eyes
and fell asleep.
Just then an owl, whose hooting had sounded at a distance, suddenly
uttered a peculiar cry close to the camp.
In a moment, young Jackson was the widest awake man in Tennessee.
He grasped his rifle, and crept cautiously to where his friend Searcy
was sleeping, and woke him quietly.
“Searcy,” said he, “raise your head and make no noise.”
“What’s the matter?” asked Searcy.
“The owls--listen--there--there again! Isn’t that a little _too_
natural?”
“Do you think so?” asked Searcy.
“I know it,” replied young Jackson. “There are Indians all around us. I
have heard them in every direction. They mean to attack before
daybreak.”
In a few minutes, the men of the camp were aroused. The experienced
woodsmen among them listened to the hooting, and agreed with young
Jackson, that there were Indians in the forest. Jackson advised that the
camp should be instantly and quietly broken up, and the march resumed.
This was done, and the company heard nothing more of the savages.
But a party of hunters who reached the same camping-ground an hour after
the company had left it, lay down by the fires and slept. Before day
dawned, the Indians were upon them, and killed all except one of the
party.
But the long train of emigrants, men, women and children, were safely
continuing their wearisome journey through the Wilderness. At last, they
reached Nashville to the joy of the settlers there.
And a great piece of news young Andrew Jackson brought with him to
Nashville--the Constitution of the United States had just been ratified
and adopted by a majority of the States of the Union.
_James Parton_ (_Retold_)
FORT MIMS
The War of 1812 was made terrible by an uprising of the Indians. The
Creeks, incited and armed by British officers, attacked Fort Mims in
Alabama, and, with unspeakable atrocities, massacred over five hundred
helpless men, women, and children.
The howling savages at their bloody work made so hideous a scene, that
even their Chief, a half-breed Indian named Weatherford, was filled with
horror. He tried to protect the women and children. But his savage
followers broke all restraint, and nothing could stop their cruel
butchery. The Creeks ended by setting fire to the ruins of the fort.
This Indian massacre at Fort Mims was one of the bloodiest in history.
The news reached Tennessee, arousing the country. Andrew Jackson rose
from a sick-bed, called together an army of volunteers, and led them
against the Creeks.
DAVY CROCKETT
_“Go ahead!” Davy Crockett’s motto_
When Andrew Jackson called for volunteers to punish the Creeks, Davy
Crockett, the famous Tennessee bear-hunter, came hurrying to enlist. He
was a backwoodsman, born and reared in a log cabin in the Wilderness.
Armed with his long rifle and hunting-knife, dressed in a hunting-shirt
and fox-skin cap with the tail hanging down behind, he was a
picturesque figure.
He was merry as well as fearless, and kept the soldiers in a constant
roar of laughter with his jokes and funny stories. He was kind-hearted,
and gave away his money to any soldier who needed it.
“Go ahead!” was his motto whenever facing difficulty or dangers.
Some years after the Creek War, he took part in the struggle for Liberty
in Texas.
With Travis and Bowie, he defended the Alamo.
“Go ahead! Liberty and Independence for ever!” wrote Davy Crockett in
his diary just before the Alamo fell.
CHIEF WEATHERFORD
Andrew Jackson carried forward his Indian campaign with crushing effect.
Blow after blow fell upon the doomed Creeks, and at the Battle of the
Horseshoe, he annihilated their power for ever.
The Creeks were conquered; but their Chief, Weatherford, was still at
large. Andrew Jackson gave orders for his pursuit and capture. He wished
to punish him for his part in the massacre at Fort Mims.
The Creek force under Weatherford had melted away. The warriors who were
left after the battle, had taken flight to a place of safety, leaving
him alone in the forest with a multitude of Indian women and children,
widows and orphans, perishing for want of food.
It was then that Weatherford gave a shining example of humanity and
heroism. He might have fled to safety with the rest of his war-party. He
chose to remain and to attempt, at the sacrifice of his own life, to
save from starvation the women and children who were with him.
He mounted his gray steed, and directed his course to General Jackson’s
camp. When only a few miles from there, a fine deer crossed his path and
stopped within shooting distance. Weatherford shot the deer and placed
it on his horse behind the saddle.
Reloading his rifle with two balls, for the purpose of shooting Big
Warrior, a leading Chief friendly to the Americans, if he gave him any
trouble, Weatherford rode on. He soon reached the outposts of the camp.
He politely inquired of a group of soldiers where General Jackson was.
An old man pointed out the General’s tent, and the fearless Chief rode
up to it.
Before the entrance of the tent sat Big Warrior himself. Seeing
Weatherford, he cried out in an insulting tone:--
“Ah! Bill Weatherford, have we got you at last?”
With a glance of fire at Big Warrior, Weatherford replied with an
oath:--
“Traitor! if you give me any insolence, I will blow a ball through your
cowardly heart!”
General Jackson now came running out of the tent.
“How dare you,” exclaimed the General furiously, “ride up to my tent
after having murdered the women and children at Fort Mims?”
“General Jackson,” replied Weatherford with dignity, “I am not afraid of
you. I fear no man, for I am a Creek warrior.
“I have nothing to request in behalf of myself. You can kill me if you
desire. But I come to beg you to send for the women and children of the
war-party, who are now starving in the woods. Their fields and cribs
have been destroyed by your people, who have driven them to the woods
without an ear of corn. I hope that you will send out parties who will
conduct them safely here, in order that they may be fed.
“I exerted myself in vain to prevent the massacre of the women and
children at Fort Mims. I am now done fighting. The Red Sticks are nearly
all killed. If I could fight you any longer, I would most heartily do
so.
“Send for the women and children. They never did you any harm. But kill
me, if the white people want it done.”
While he was speaking, a crowd of officers and soldiers gathered around
the tent. Associating the name of Weatherford with the oft-told horrors
of the massacre, and not understanding what was going forward, the
soldiers cast upon the Chief glances of hatred and aversion. Many of
them cried out:--
“Kill him! Kill him! Kill him!”
“Silence!” exclaimed Jackson.
And the clamour was hushed.
“Any man,” added the General, with great energy, “who would kill as
brave a man as this, would rob the dead!”
He then requested Weatherford to alight, and enter his tent. Which the
Chief did, bringing in with him the deer he had killed by the way, and
presenting it to the General.
Jackson accepted the gift, and invited Weatherford to drink a glass of
brandy. But Weatherford refused to drink, saying:--
“General, I am one of the few Indians who do not drink liquor. But I
would thank you for a little tobacco.”
Jackson gave him some tobacco, and they then discussed terms of peace.
Weatherford explained that he wished peace, in order that his Nation
might be relieved of their sufferings and the women and children saved.
“If you wish to continue the war,” said General Jackson, “you are at
liberty to depart unharmed; but if you desire peace you may remain, and
you shall be protected.”
And as Weatherford desired peace, General Jackson sent for the women and
children and had them fed and cared for.
When the war was over, Weatherford again became a planter, for he had
been a prosperous one before he led his Nation, the Creeks, on the
war-path.
He lived many years in peace with white men and red, respected by his
neighbours for his bravery, honour, and good native common-sense.
To the day of his death, Weatherford deeply regretted the massacre at
Fort Mims. “My warriors,” said he, “were like famished wolves. And the
first taste of blood made their appetites insatiable.”
_James Parton and Other Stories._
SAM HOUSTON
Years before the fall of the Alamo, during the Creek War, at the Battle
of the Horseshoe, Andrew Jackson had just given the order for a part of
his troops to charge the Indian breastwork. The troops rushed forward
with loud shouts.
The first in that rush was a young Lieutenant, Sam Houston.[5] As he
led the way across the breastwork, a barbed arrow struck deep into his
thigh. He tried to pull it out, but could not. He called to an officer,
and asked him to draw it out.
The officer tugged at its shaft twice, but failed.
“Try again!” shouted Sam Houston, lifting his sword, “and if you fail
this time, I will smite you to the earth!”
The officer, with a desperate effort, pulled out the arrow. A stream of
blood gushed from the wound. Sam Houston recrossed the breastwork to the
rear, to have it dressed.
A surgeon dressed it and staunched the flow of blood. Just then Andrew
Jackson rode up to see who was wounded. Recognizing his daring
lieutenant, he forbade him to return to the fight.
Under any other circumstances, Sam Houston would have obeyed without a
word. But now he begged the General to allow him to go back to his men.
General Jackson ordered him most peremptorily not to cross the
breastwork again.
But Sam Houston was determined to die in that battle or win fame for
ever. And soon after, when General Jackson called for volunteers to
storm a ravine, Sam Houston rushed into the thick of the fight, and the
next minute he was leading on his men. He received two rifle-balls in
his right shoulder, and his left arm fell shattered at his side. At
last, exhausted by the loss of blood he dropped to the ground.
He eventually recovered; and the military prowess and heroism which he
had displayed throughout this battle, secured for him the lasting regard
of Old Hickory.
_Retold from the “Life of Sam Houston”_
WHY JACKSON WAS NAMED OLD HICKORY
When Andrew Jackson, with his Tennessee riflemen, was camping at Natchez
waiting for orders to move on to New Orleans, he received a despatch
from the War Department. It ordered him to dismiss his men at once.
Jackson’s indignation and rage knew no bounds. Dismiss them without pay,
without means of transportation, without provision for the sick! Never!
He himself would march them home again through the savage Wilderness, at
his own expense! Such was his determination.
And when his little Army set out from Natchez for its march of five
hundred miles through the Wilderness, there were a hundred and fifty men
on the sick-list, of whom fifty-six could not raise their heads from the
pillow. There were but eleven wagons to convey them. The most
desperately ill were placed in the wagons. The rest of the sick were
mounted on the horses of the officers.
General Jackson had three fine horses, and gave them up to the sick,
himself briskly trudging on foot. Day after day, he tramped gayly along
the miry roads, never tired, and always ready with a cheering word for
others.
They marched with extraordinary speed, averaging eighteen miles a day,
and performing the whole journey in less than a month. And yet the sick
men rapidly recovered under the reviving influence of a homeward march.
“Where am I?” asked one young fellow who had been lifted to his place in
a wagon, when insensible and apparently dying.
“On your way _home_!” cried the General merrily.
And the young soldier began to improve from that hour, and reached home
in good health.
Many of the volunteers had heard so much of Jackson’s violent and hasty
temper, that they had joined the corps with a certain dread and
hesitation, fearing not the enemy, nor the marches, nor diseases and
wounds, so much as the swift wrath of their Commander. How surprised
were they to find, that though there was a whole volcano of wrath in
their General, yet to the men of his command, so long as they did their
duty and longer, he was the most gentle, patient, considerate, and
generous of friends.
It was on this homeward march that the nickname of Old Hickory was
bestowed upon Andrew Jackson by his men. First of all the remark was
made by a soldier, who was struck with his wonderful pedestrian powers,
that the General was _tough_. Next it was observed of him that he was as
_tough as hickory_. Then he was called _Hickory_. Lastly the
affectionate adjective _old_ was prefixed. And ever after he was known
as Old Hickory.
_James Parton_ (_Retold_)
THE COTTON-BALES
We have all heard tell that Andrew Jackson and his riflemen fought the
Battle of New Orleans from behind cotton-bales.
This is a mistake. Yet it is true that Old Hickory did commandeer a
whole cargo of cotton-bales, and with them built a bastion in front of
his guns. But at the very first bombardment, the balls from the British
batteries knocked the bales in all directions, while wads from the
American guns and spurting flames from the muzzles of the rifles set
some of the bales afire. They fell smouldering into the ditch outside,
and lay there sending up smoke and choking odours.
When the bombardment was over, the American soldiers dragged the unburnt
cotton-bales to the rear. They cut them open and used the layers of
cotton for beds.
AFTER THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS
The British troops had retreated before the savage crackling of the
Tennessee and Kentucky rifles. The American artillery, which had
continued to play upon the British batteries, ceased their fire for the
guns to cool and the dense smoke to roll away.
The whole American Army crowded in triumph to the parapet, and looked
over into the field.
What a scene was gradually disclosed to them! The plain was covered and
heaped with the British dead and wounded. The American soldiers, to
their credit be it repeated, were appalled and silenced at the sight
before them.
Dressed in their gay uniforms, cleanly shaven and attired for the
promised victory and triumphal entry into New Orleans, these stalwart
men lay on the gory field frightful examples of the horrors of war.
Strangely did they contrast with those ragged, begrimed, long-haired
pioneer men who, crowding the American parapet, stood surveying the
destruction their long-rifles had caused.
On the edge of the woods, there were many British soldiers who, being
slightly wounded, had concealed themselves under brush and in the trees.
And it was pitiable to hear the cries for help and water that arose from
every quarter of the field.
As the Americans gazed on this scene of desolation and suffering, a
profound and melancholy silence pervaded the Army. No sounds of
exultation or rejoicing were heard. Pity and sympathy had succeeded to
the boisterous and savage feelings which a few minutes before had
possessed their souls.
Many of the Americans stole without leave from their positions, and with
their canteens gave water to the dying, and assisted the wounded. Those
of their enemy who could walk, the Americans led into the lines, where
they received attention from Jackson’s medical staff. Others, who were
desperately wounded, the Americans carried into camp on their backs.
Jackson sent a message to New Orleans to despatch all the carts and
vehicles to the lines. Late in the day, a long procession of these carts
was seen slowly winding its way along the levee from the field of
battle. They contained the British wounded.
The citizens of New Orleans, men and women, pressed forward to tender
every aid to their suffering enemies. By private subscription, the
citizens supplied mattresses and pillows, lint and old linen; all of
which articles were then exceedingly scarce in the city. Women-nurses
cared for the British, and watched at their bedsides night and day.
Several of the officers, who were grievously wounded, were taken to
private residences and there provided with every comfort.
Such acts as these ennoble humanity, and soften the horrors of war.
_James Parton_ (_Retold_)
APRIL 13
THOMAS JEFFERSON
THE FRAMER OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE
_All honour to Jefferson--to the man, who, in the concrete pressure of a
struggle for National Independence by a single People, had the coolness,
forecast, and capacity to introduce into a merely revolutionary document
an abstract truth applicable to all men and all times; and so to embalm
it there, that to-day and in all coming days, it shall be a rebuke and a
stumbling-block to the very harbingers of reappearing tyranny and
oppression._
ABRAHAM LINCOLN
THE FOURTH OF JULY
1826
_“Is it the Fourth?” “No, not yet,” they answered, “but ’t
will soon be early morn.
We will wake you, if you slumber, when the day begins to dawn.”
Then the statesman left the present, lived again amid the past,
Saw, perhaps, the peopled Future, lived again amid the Past,
Till the flashes of the morning lit the far horizon low,
And the sun’s rays, o’er the forest in the East, began to glow._
* * * * *
_Evening, in majestic shadows, fell upon the fortress’ walls;
Sweetly were the last bells ringing on the James and on the Charles.
’Mid the choruses of Freedom, two departed victors lay,
One beside the blue Rivanna, one by Massachusetts Bay._
HEZEKIAH BUTTERWORTH (_Condensed_)
THOMAS JEFFERSON was born in Virginia, April 13, 1743
Framed the Declaration of Independence, 1776
Was elected Governor of Virginia, 1779
Appointed Secretary of State in Washington’s Cabinet, 1789
Elected third President of the United States, 1800
He died on the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Signing of the
Declaration of Independence, the Fourth of July, 1826
He was called the Sage of Monticello. Monticello was the name of
his fine country estate.
THE BOY OWNER OF SHADWELL FARM
Thomas Jefferson was a boy of seventeen, tall, raw-boned, freckled, and
sandy-haired. He came to Williamsburg from the far west of Virginia, to
enter the College of William and Mary.
With his large feet and hands, his thick wrists, and prominent cheek
bones and chin, he could not have been accounted handsome or graceful.
He is described, however, as a fresh, bright, healthy-looking youth, as
straight as a gun-barrel, sinewy and strong, with that alertness of
movement which comes of early familiarity with saddle, gun, canoe, and
minuet. His teeth, too, were perfect. His eyes, which were of
hazel-gray, were beaming and expressive.
His home, Shadwell Farm, was a hundred and fifty miles to the north-west
of Williamsburg among the mountains of central Virginia. It was a plain,
spacious farmhouse, a story and a half high, with four large rooms and a
wide entry on the ground floor, and many garret chambers above. The farm
was nineteen hundred acres of land, part of it densely wooded, and some
of it so steep and rocky as to be unfit for cultivation. The farm was
tilled by thirty slaves.
And Thomas Jefferson, this student of seventeen, through the death of
his father, was already the head of the family, and under a guardian,
the owner of Shadwell Farm, the best portion of his father’s estate.
His father, Peter Jefferson, had been a wonder of physical force and
stature. He had the strength of three strong men. Two hogsheads of
tobacco, each weighing a thousand pounds, he could raise at once from
their sides, and stand them upright. When surveying in the Wilderness,
he could tire out his assistants, and tire out his mules; then eat his
mules, and still press on, sleeping alone by night in a hollow tree to
the howling of the wolves, till his task was done.
From this natural chief of men, Thomas Jefferson derived his stature,
his erectness, and his bodily strength.
_James Parton_ (_Arranged_)
A CHRISTMAS GUEST
Shadwell Farm was a good farm to grow up on. Thomas Jefferson and his
noisy crowd of schoolfellows hunted on a mountain near by, which
abounded in deer, turkeys, foxes, and other game. Jefferson was a keen
hunter, eager for a fox, swift of foot and sound of wind, coming in
fresh and alert after a long day’s clambering hunt.
He studied hard, for he liked books as much as fox-hunting. Soon he
began to be impatient to enter college. Then, too, he had never seen a
town nor even a village of twenty houses, and he was curious to know
something of the great world. His guardian consenting, he bade farewell
to his mother and sisters, and set off for Williamsburg, a five days’
long ride from his home.
But just before he started for college, he stayed over the holidays at a
merry house in Hanover County, where he met, for the first time, a
jovial blade named Patrick Henry, noted then only for fiddling, dancing,
mimicry, and practical jokes.
Jefferson and Henry became great friends. Jefferson had not a suspicion
of the wonderful talent that lay undeveloped in the prime mover of all
the fun of that merry company. While as little, doubtless, did Patrick
Henry see in this slender sandy-haired lad, a political leader and
associate.
Yet only a few years later, in May 1765, Patrick Henry was elected a
member of the House of Burgesses, and Jefferson was become a brilliant
law student.
In 1775, Jefferson was elected a delegate to the Continental Congress,
that declared the Independence of the United States of America.
_James Parton_ (_Arranged_)
THE AUTHOR OF THE DECLARATION
The English settlers of Virginia, brought with them English rights and
liberties. The settlers and their descendants were “forever to enjoy all
liberties, franchises, and immunities enjoyed by Englishmen in England.”
They received from England the right to make their own laws, if not
contrary to the laws of England.
It was a Governor of Virginia who summoned the first representative
Assembly that ever met in America, the first American Colonial
Legislature. This happened about a year before the Pilgrim Fathers
reached the New World, and drew up the Mayflower Compact.
It was not strange, therefore, that Thomas Jefferson, born and reared in
the atmosphere of Virginia Freedom, should have been a Patriot who
fearlessly defended American Liberty.
He was also a man of unusual intellectual power and a writer of elegant
prose. So when Congress appointed a Committee to draft the Declaration
of Independence, he was made a member of that Committee.
When the Committee met, the other members asked Thomas Jefferson to
compose the draft. He did so. The Committee admired his draft so much,
that with but few changes, they submitted it to Congress.
After a fiery debate, some alterations being made, Congress adopted
Thomas Jefferson’s draft, as the Declaration of Independence of the
United States of America.
PROCLAIM LIBERTY
_July 4, 1776_
The Declaration was signed! America was free!
Joyously the great bell in the steeple of the State House at
Philadelphia, swung its iron tongue and pealed forth the glad news,
proclaiming Liberty throughout all the land.
The tidings spread from city to city, from village to village, from farm
to farm. There was shouting, rejoicing, bonfires, and thanksgiving.
Copies of the Declaration were sent to all the States. Washington had it
proclaimed at the head of his troops; while far away in the Waxhaws,
nine year old Andrew Jackson read it aloud to an eager crowd of
backwoods settlers.
The great bell--the Liberty Bell--that had proclaimed Liberty, was
carefully treasured. To-day, it may be seen in Independence Hall, as the
old State House is now called.
Around the crown of the Liberty Bell are inscribed the words which God
Almighty commanded the Hebrews to proclaim to all the Hebrew People,
every fifty years, so that they should not oppress one another:--
_Proclaim Liberty throughout all the Land,
Unto all the inhabitants thereof._
Twenty-three years before the Declaration of Independence was signed,
these prophetic words from the Bible had been inscribed upon the crown
of that great Bell.
ONLY A REPRIEVE
_Fondly do we hope,--fervently do we pray,--that this mighty
scourge of War may speedily pass away. Yet, if God wills that it
continue until all the wealth piled by the bondsman’s two hundred
and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk, and until every
drop of blood drawn by the lash shall be paid by another drawn with
the sword, as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must
be said, “The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous
altogether.”_
ABRAHAM LINCOLN
There were two statements in the Declaration of Independence, which must
have profoundly disturbed its Signers:--
“All men are created equal,” and have the right “to Life, Liberty, and
the pursuit of Happiness.”
Many of the Signers were slave-holders.
Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, the Framer of the Declaration, was an
Abolitionist, and an active one, throwing the weight of his great
influence against the institution of slavery.
He earnestly believed that all men--white and black alike--are born
equal. So, when he was asked to frame the Declaration of Independence,
he put into it a clause condemning the slave-trade, as an “assemblage of
horrors.” During the debate in the Convention, this clause was stricken
out.
Though Jefferson had his reasons for not freeing his own slaves, he
continued to speak and write against slavery as a violation of human
rights and liberties.
“This abomination must have an end,” he said.
There were other Americans who believed as he did.
George Washington, in his Will, left their freedom to his slaves, to be
given them after his wife’s death. He ordered a fund to be set aside for
the support of all his old and sick slaves, and he bade his heirs see to
it that the young negroes were taught to read and write and to carry on
some useful occupation.
Kosciuszko was Jefferson’s intimate friend, and like him a believer in
Freedom for all men, without regard to race or colour. Before he left
America, Kosciuszko made a will turning over his American property to
Jefferson, for the purchase of slaves from their owners and for their
education, so that when free, they might earn their living and become
worthy citizens.
From the time of Jefferson until the Civil War, slavery to be or not to
be, was the burning question. Men and women, specially those belonging
to the Society of Friends, devoted their lives to the abolition of
slavery.
Many of these Abolitionists were mobbed, and otherwise persecuted,
because of their humane efforts. William Lloyd Garrison was the great
leader of the Abolitionists. “The Quaker Poet” Whittier was also a
leader in the agitation against slavery.
But to go back to Thomas Jefferson: When the Missouri Compromise went
into effect, and “the house was divided against itself,” Jefferson was
deeply and terribly stirred. He looked far into the future.
“This momentous question,” he wrote, “like a fire-bell in the night,
awakened and filled me with terror. I considered it at once as the knell
of the Union. It is hushed, indeed, for the moment. But this is a
_reprieve_ only--not a final sentence.”
And again he said:--
“I tremble for my Country, when I reflect that God is just; that His
justice cannot sleep for ever.”
First the reprieve! Then as the crime was continued, the execution of
the sentence! Nearly a hundred years of slavery passed after the framing
of the Declaration, then on North and South fell the terrible
retributive punishment of the Civil War.
ON THE FOURTH OF JULY
1826
It was the Fourth of July, the fiftieth anniversary of the Signing of
the Declaration of Independence.
In his home at Monticello, Thomas Jefferson had closed his eyes for ever
on the Fourth of July, the fiftieth anniversary of the Signing of the
Declaration of Independence.
MAY 29
PATRICK HENRY
THE ORATOR OF THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE
_I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me
Liberty or give me Death!_
PATRICK HENRY
TO THE READER
_Whether (Independence) will prove a blessing or a curse will
depend upon the use our People make of the blessings which a
gracious God hath bestowed on us._
_If they are wise, they will be great and happy. If they are of a
contrary character, they will be miserable. Righteoutness alone can
exalt them at a Nation._
_Reader!--whoever thou art, remember this; and in thy sphere
practice virtue thyself, and encourage it in others._
PATRICK HENRY
PATRICK HENRY was born in Virginia, May 29, 1736
He was elected Governor of Virginia, 1776
He died June 6, 1799
THE ORATOR OF THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE
_A Surprise to All_
In 1765, there was an important meeting of the House of Burgesses of
Virginia, as the lawmaking body of that Colony was called. They had come
together to debate upon a great question, that of the Stamp Act passed
by the British Parliament for the taxation of the Colonies.
Most of the members were opposed to it, but they were timid and
doubtful, and dreadfully afraid of saying or doing something that might
offend the King. They talked all round the subject, but were as afraid
to come close to it as if it had been a chained wolf.
They were almost ready to adjourn, with nothing done, when a tall and
slender young man, a new and insignificant member whom few knew, rose in
his seat, and began to speak upon the subject.
Some of the rich and aristocratic members looked upon him with
indignation. What did this nobody mean in meddling with so weighty a
subject as that before them, and which they had already fully debated?
But their indignation did not trouble the young man.
He began by offering a series of resolutions, in which he maintained
that only the Burgesses and the Governor had the right to tax the
People, and that the Stamp Act was contrary to the Constitution of the
Colony, and therefore was void.
This was a bold resolution. No one else had dared to go so far. It
scared many of the members, and a great storm of opposition arose, but
the young man would not yield.
He began to speak, and soon there was flowing from his lips a stream of
eloquence that took every one by surprise. Never had such glowing words
been heard in that old hall. His force and enthusiasm shook the whole
Assembly.
Finally wrought up to the highest pitch of indignant Patriotism, he
thundered out the memorable words:--
“Cæsar had his Brutus, Charles the First his Cromwell, and George the
Third--”
“Treason! Treason!” cried some of the excited members.
But the orator went on:
“--_may profit by their example_. If _this_ be Treason, make the most of
it!”
His boldness carried the day. His words were irresistible. The
resolutions were adopted. Virginia took a decided stand.
And Patrick Henry, the orator, from that time was of first rank among
American speakers.
[Illustration: “‘TREASON! TREASON!’ CRIED SOME OF THE EXCITED
MEMBERS”]
A zealous and daring Patriot, he had made himself a power among the
People.
_A Failure that was a Success_
Who was this man that had dared hurl defiance at the King?
A few years before he had been looked upon as one of the most
insignificant of men, a failure in everything he undertook, an awkward,
ill-dressed, slovenly, lazy fellow, who could not even speak the king’s
English correctly. He was little better than a tavern lounger, most of
his time being spent in hunting and fishing, in playing the flute and
violin, and in telling amusing stories.
He had tried farming and failed. He had made a pretense of studying law,
and gained admittance to the bar, though his legal knowledge was very
slight. Having almost nothing to do in the law, he spent most of his
time helping about the tavern at Hanover Court House, kept by his
father-in-law, who supported him and his family, for he had married
early.
One day there came up a case in court which all of the leading lawyers
had refused. What was the surprise of the people, when the story went
around that Patrick Henry had offered himself on the defendants’ side.
His taking up the case was a joke to most of them, and a general burst
of laughter followed the news. Yet Patrick Henry won the case!
He was a made man. He no longer had to lounge in his office waiting for
business. Plenty of it came to him. He set himself for the first time to
an earnest study of the law. He improved his command of language, the
dormant powers of his mind rapidly unfolded. Two years after pleading
his first case, he was elected a member of the House of Burgesses.
We have seen how, in this body, he “set the ball of the Revolution
rolling.”
_Give me Liberty or Give me Death!_
Patrick Henry, in his spirit-stirring oration before the House of
Burgesses, had put himself on record for all time. His defiance of the
King stamped him as a warrior who had thrown his shield away and
thenceforward would fight only with the sword.
The Patriot leaders welcomed him. He worked with Thomas Jefferson and
others upon the Committee of Correspondence, which sought to spread the
story of political events through the Colonies. He was sent to
Philadelphia as a member of the first Continental Congress. In fact, he
became one of the most active and ardent of American Patriots.
It was in 1775 that Patrick Henry, in a convention, presented
resolutions in favour of an open appeal to arms. To this the more timid
spirits made strong opposition. The fight at Lexington had not yet taken
place, but Henry’s prophetic gaze saw it coming. In a burst of flaming
eloquence, he laid bare the tyranny of Parliament and King, declared
that there was nothing left but to fight, and ended with an outburst
thrilling in its force and intensity:--
“There is no retreat but in submission and slavery! Our chains are
forged! Their clanking may be heard on the plains of Boston! The war is
inevitable--and let it come!
“I repeat it, sir, let it come! It is in vain, sir, to extenuate the
matter! Gentlemen may cry Peace, peace! but there is no peace. The war
is actually begun. The next gale that sweeps from the North, will bring
to our ears the clash of resounding arms. Our brethren are already in
the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What
would they have? Is life so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at
the price of chains and slavery?
“Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as
for me, give me Liberty or give me Death!”
_Charles Morris_ (_Condensed_)
FACING DANGER
It was the last day of August, 1774. The Potomac was flowing lazily past
Mount Vernon. The door of the large mansion on the high river-bank stood
open. Before it were three horses saddled and bridled. Three men came
out of the house.
One was George Washington, large, handsome, resolute, dressed for a long
journey. With him, was a tall, angular, raw-boned man, slightly
stooping, carelessly dressed, whose dark, deep-set eyes flashed with
peculiar brilliance. The third man was equally striking in appearance,
well-proportioned and graceful, his face serene and thoughtful.
The tall raw-boned man with deep glowing eyes, was Patrick Henry; the
elegant stranger, Edmund Pendleton. They were two of Virginia’s most
devoted Patriots.
As the three vaulted into their saddles, Washington’s wife stood in the
open doorway, trying to conceal her anxiety for him under a cheerful
manner. Her heart was very heavy. But as the three gave spurs to their
horses, she called out:--
“God be with you, Gentlemen!”
And so they rode away. It was dangerous business on which they were
bent, as Martha Washington well knew. They were going to attend the
First Continental Congress at Philadelphia. They were about to defy
England.
But the three rode away from Mount Vernon fearlessly, with her words
ringing in their ears:--
“God be with you, Gentlemen!”
JUNE 9
FRANCISCO DE MIRANDA OF VENEZUELA
THE FLAMING SON OF LIBERTY
_He took part in three great political movements of his age:--the
Independence of the United States of North America; the French
Revolution; and the Independence of South America._
_From an inscription to Miranda, by the
Venezuelan Government_
_The Prince of Filibusters, the Chief of the Apostles of
Spanish-American Independence, and one of the founders of the
Republic of Venezuela, Francisco de Miranda will long live in song
and story._ ...
_The career of this Knight-Errant of Venezuela has fired the
imagination of many filibusters and revolutionists._
WILLIAM SPENCE ROBERTSON
MIRANDA was born in Venezuela, June 9, 1756
Flew Venezuela’s first flag of Freedom, the Red, Yellow, and Blue,
March 12, 1806
Signed the Declaration of Independence of Venezuela, July 5, 1811
He died in Spanish chains, July 14, 1816
THE SPANISH GALLEONS
I
Have you ever read the voyages and adventures of the handsome young
Amyas Leigh, who sailed the Spanish Main with the Seawolf, Sir Francis
Drake? Have you read of Ayacanora the Indian Princess with the blowgun,
of Salvation Yeo, of the lost Rose of Devon, of the old _Mono_ of
Panama, and how Amyas and his fellows seized a gold pack-train and
captured a Spanish Treasure-Galleon?
One of the most thrilling tales of adventure, of Spanish Gold and
Spanish Galleons, is “Westward Ho!” the story of Amyas Leigh. But before
the days of Amyas, Knight of Devon, and of the English Seawolves, the
Spanish Treasure Ships began to sail upon the Spanish Main.
These Galleons were like huge floating castles, and were manned by armed
Spaniards. They were filled with bars of glittering gold and silver and
with other treasure of the New World.
For after Columbus’s discovery, there had come to the New World, greedy
pearl-seekers and even greedier gold-hunters and slave-traders. They
exploited the mines and pearl-fisheries, and, capturing thousands of
helpless Indians, sold them to Spanish masters, to do all kinds of hard
labour.
Thus Spanish America became a vast treasure-house for the Spanish Crown.
Pack-trains of Indian and negro slaves and mules under guard, carrying
bullion, gems, fragrant spices, and costly woods, toiled along the steep
and narrow trails of the Andes, or threaded the dangerous
mountain-passes. These miserable slaves, groaning under their heavy
burdens, cringed beneath the lashes of their drivers’ whips. They
shivered in the piercing cold of the high mountains, and panted from
tropic heat, as the pack-trains wound their way across the Isthmus of
Panama to the Atlantic side.
There the great Galleons took aboard the gold, silver, emeralds, pearls,
spices, and woods, as well as cargoes of slaves, then sailed away with
them across the Spanish Main.
But gold breeds robbers. And along the coast and on the Caribbean Sea,
swarmed pirate ships waiting to swoop down upon the Galleons.
Oftentimes, buccaneers grappled with the Treasure-Ships, putting the
Spaniards to the knife, and carrying off the booty to their
pirate-islands. So not every Galleon came safely to its Spanish port.
II
And in order that this stupendous wealth of the West Indies and of
_Tierra Firme_, as South America was then called, should belong to no
country but herself, Spain sent out Governors to rule with iron hand her
Spanish-American Colonies. For the Spanish Crown had Colonies in South
America, just as England had in North America. In South America were
many important cities and towns.
These Governors were, for the most part, gold-grasping officials. They
oppressed the Creoles, as the native-born Americans of pure Spanish
blood were called. And besides the Creoles, there were in Spanish
America, Indians, negro-slaves, and people of mixed blood, all subjects
of the Crown.
Laws were enforced taxing the People heavily, closing their ports to
foreign trade, and forbidding them to manufacture commodities which
Spain herself wished to make and sell to the Colonists at exorbitant
prices.
Not even the rich Creoles were allowed to travel abroad without
permission from the Crown. When in Spain they were treated with
contempt. Their education was limited, higher education is not for
Americans, decreed the Spanish King. And they might not read books
forbidden by Spain. And at that time, the Roman Catholic Church was
exercising its power in Spanish America, in much the same fashion as the
Established Church of England was misusing its function at the time of
the Pilgrim Fathers, Roger Williams, and William Penn.
If any of the Colonists raised their voices in protest, their property
was confiscated, and they were arrested. The slightest rebellion was
mercilessly punished. Many of the captured rebels were either flung into
filthy dungeons to die or were executed.
Large numbers of Indians, negroes and people of mixed blood, perished
miserably in the mines and on the plantations, or while deep-sea diving
for pearls,--all this to fill the Spanish Galleons with treasure.
III
Then came the _Liberators_, facing death or cruel imprisonment. But they
were strengthened by the justice of their cause, and by the fact that
the United States of America had succeeded in separating from her Mother
Country, and had established a Republic in which the citizens, rich and
poor alike, had a voice in their own government.
It is the story of some of these _Liberators_ that is told here, the
Washingtons and Lincolns of their native lands, who freed their
countrymen from the curse of the Spanish Treasure-Ships, and who
established the Latin American Republics.
THE ROMANCE OF MIRANDA
This is the romance of Francisco de Miranda of Venezuela, the Flaming
Son of Liberty, the Knight-Errant of Freedom, who made Spain tremble.
Romance was in his blood, for Alvaro, his great Spanish ancestor, had
won the family coat-of-arms, by rescuing five Christian maidens from
pagan Moors. And Miranda’s father, an adventurous, bold Spaniard, had
crossed the Atlantic in those dangerous days of pirates to seek his
fortune in Venezuela.
So the boy, who was to make Spain tremble, was born in Venezuela, and
grew up in the City of Caracas. He liked to read and study. He was given
a classical education. But the call of romance and adventure was too
loud for him to remain quietly at home. When he was sixteen, he sailed
for Spain to try his own fortune.
His father was wealthy, and the boy bought a captain’s commission in the
Regiment of the Princess. He studied military science and fought
valiantly against Spain’s enemies. He collected books. In fact, he spent
a great deal of money bringing books from many countries; only to have
some of his precious volumes burned by the Spanish Inquisition, because
they taught of _Equality, Fraternity, and Liberty_.
Then came our American War for Independence. While Washington and the
Continental Army were fighting for our Liberty, Miranda’s romantic
career as a Knight-Errant of Liberty, began.
For Spain and France were both at war with England. They sent troops to
the West Indies to form an expedition to take away from England,
Pensacola, in Florida. Miranda, a high-spirited, executive young officer
was chosen to accompany the Spanish troops. So for two years he took
part in our struggle for Independence.
But he made enemies among the Spanish officials stationed in the West
Indies. They accused him of disloyalty to Spain. He was tried, and
banished for ten years. Probably he had aroused their suspicion because,
while fighting for our Freedom, he had begun to plan for the
Independence of Venezuela.
Thus Miranda became an exile from all of Spain’s dominions. Filled with
his great idea of Freedom for his Country, he went wandering about
Europe armed with papers, maps, and information about Spanish America.
He went from Court to Court, from Country to Country--he even visited
the United States--trying to persuade some Government to take up the
cause of Independence for Spanish America, and to lend him money, men,
and arms.
But he found time in the midst of all this roving to become a soldier of
France, and to fight for her Freedom during the French Revolution. He
had many thrilling adventures, and was imprisoned and escaped. Then he
once more took up his wanderings and petitionings.
He was a handsome man. His courtly manners, charm, and eloquence, his
burning words of Patriotism, everywhere aroused sympathy. He told of the
sufferings of his countrymen, and of the great commercial opportunities
which Spanish America offered to whatever friendly Nation would help to
gain her Freedom.
Everywhere he was received with attention. The Empress Catherine the
Great of Russia became his friend. William Pitt gave him many assurances
that England would aid him if possible; while our own Alexander Hamilton
wrote him, that he hoped the United States might soon come forward
openly to the support of Spanish-American Independence.
Time and again, it seemed as though Miranda were succeeding. But on each
occasion international politics interfered, and the Governments withdrew
their encouragement.
Spain feared Miranda. She pronounced him a fugitive from justice. Her
spies followed him. They searched his papers; and would have seized him
and carried him back to Spain, had they not been afraid of his powerful
friends in Russia and England.
In Miranda’s London home, many Spanish-American Patriots met together,
and joined a secret society founded by him. They planned to free Spanish
America; and they swore to give their lives and their all to the aid of
their Country.
Many years passed by. Miranda was over fifty. Yet he had not struck a
single blow for Venezuela. He determined to wait no longer for foreign
aid. He believed that the time was ripe to declare the Independence of
Spanish America. He believed that the people there were waiting eagerly
for him to raise Liberty’s standard against Spain.
He had no funds, so he pledged his precious library, which, during so
many years, he had collected with such pains, industry, and affection.
Then, with the money thus raised, he sailed for the City of New York.
THE MYSTERY SHIP
Hail! the Red, Yellow, and Blue!
The Tri-Colour that flew
On the winds of the Spanish Main,
Striking the heart of Spain,
Breaking the Tyrant-chain,
With its message of Freedom true!
The Red, the Yellow, the Blue!
It was early in the year 1806. Near a wharf in Staten Island rode the
good ship _Leander_ tugging at her anchor.
A crowd of young men, some of them from New York and Long Island, came
hurrying onto the wharf. Many were college men, others were working
boys. Some were dressed in fashionable clothes; while others, who
shouldered their way huskily through the crowd, wore plain homespun and
carried kits of tools or bundles of clothes. Among these young men was
William Steuben Smith, the grandson of John Adams, ex-President of the
United States. With his father’s permission he had left college to sail
on the _Leander_; but he had not consulted his grandfather.
He and the other young men had signed ship’s papers to sail in the
_Leander_, yet few of them knew where they were going. It was to be a
mysterious voyage. A number of the men had been told that they would get
much gold, and at the same time help to free an unknown suffering
people from slavery. Others had been persuaded to join the expedition by
being assured that they were going south to guard the Washington mail.
Few, if any, had seen their new employer and commander, George Martin.
The ship’s boats filled rapidly and rowed out to the _Leander_. All the
men were set on board. Then she weighed anchor, and, with sails spread,
was soon briskly cutting her way through the waves of the outer bay. And
when Sandy Hook was passed, she stood out to sea.
Then, there appeared on deck a most romantic figure, in a red robe and
slippers. The word went round:--
“It’s our Commander, George Martin.”
And George Martin, though the young men did not know it, was Francisco
de Miranda.
The red robe flapped in the wind around his well-built form. His gray
hair, powdered and combed back from his high forehead, was tied behind
with a ribbon. While from either ear stood out large, wiry, gray
side-whiskers. As he strolled across the deck, examining the young men
with his piercing, eager, hazel eyes, he smiled pleasantly, showing
handsome white teeth.
They crowded around him, hoping to hear where they were going. Some even
asked the question. But he, ignoring it, shook hands with each one, and
conversed in a delightful manner, now asking the college men about
their studies, and now speaking to the others about their work. Still
the mystery remained--whither was the ship going?
Day after day went by, and the mystery deepened. The _Leander_ took her
course southward. George Martin, mingling with the men, chatted affably.
He related his adventures, he told of his sufferings, escapes, and many
perils, and of his friendships at Court and of all the romance of his
life. Then he waxed warmer, and spoke of his great idea--of _Equality,
Fraternity, and Liberty_ for all men. Thus he aimed to sow seeds of
heroic deeds and Freedom, in the minds of the young men.
Meanwhile, he began to drill the men on deck, assigning officers to
duties. He fixed the regimental uniforms; the infantry dress in blue and
yellow, the artillery in blue and red; the engineers in blue and black
velvet; the riflemen in green; the dragoons in yellow and blue.
From sunrise to sunset there was hustle and bustle on deck. A printing
press was set up. At an armourer’s bench a man was repairing old
muskets, sharpening bayonets, and cleaning rusty swords. Tailors,
sitting cross-legged on the deck, were cutting out and stitching
uniforms. A body of raw recruits were drilling under a drill-master who
looked as bold as a lion and roared nearly as loud.
There was buzz everywhere, and excitement too, for no one yet knew to
what land the ship was going. And George Martin, looking mightily
pleased, stood watching everybody and everything, and saying, “We shall
soon be ready for the Main.”
Then a day arrived when several hundred proclamations were run off the
printing press. They were addressed to the People of South America,
painting strongly their hardships and woes, and promising them
deliverance from Spain. They were signed, “Don Francisco de Miranda,
Commander-in-Chief of the Colombian Army.”
Thereupon George Martin--who was Miranda--announced that he expected
soon to land on the coast of Venezuela and strike the first blow against
Spain.
Some of the young Americans, who were eager to fight anywhere or
anybody, and who longed for the glint of Spanish Gold, cheered loudly.
But their mates kept quiet, with heavy hearts, for they had begun to
wonder whether after all they were not a band of mere filibusters
instead of a noble army, since they were sailing under no protecting
flag.
Then, too, rumours were going the round, that if any of the men were
captured by the enemy, they would be given short shrift and hanged as
pirates.
A few days later General Miranda hoisted for the first time the new
Colombian flag of Freedom--a tri-colour, the Red, Yellow, and Blue. And
as it floated wide on the southern wind, a gun was fired and toasts
drunk to the banner that was long to wave--and is waving to-day--over
the Republic of Venezuela.
It was the first Flag of Spanish-American Independence.
After the flag-raising the _Leander_ sped merrily on her way, carrying
the raw army of about two hundred men to fight the whole of Spain. While
many of them in the gloomy bottoms of their hearts, were heartily
wishing that they were safe at home again in the good old City of New
York.
_Retold from accounts by_
_James Biggs, and Moses Smith of Long Island, two Americans who
sailed with Miranda, 1806_
THE END OF THE MYSTERY SHIP
And what became of the young Americans who had been persuaded to ship in
the _Leander_?
Two English schooners, the _Bacchus_ and the _Bee_, had joined the
_Leander_ at one of the West Indies. As the latter was overcrowded, some
of the Americans were transferred to the schooners.
Then, while this small fleet of three small vessels was approaching
Venezuela, two Spanish revenue-cutters swooped down upon them. The
_Leander_ engaged the enemy bravely, firing her guns; but the _Bacchus_
and _Bee_ tried to escape and became separated from the _Leander_. The
revenue-cutters turned, and, pursuing the little ships, captured them
and all on board.
Our young Americans fought bravely, but they were badly wounded with
knives and swords. They were captured, and plundered by the Spaniards.
They were stripped, and tied back to back. In this humiliating condition
they were carried to the Fortress of Puerto Cabello, and thrown into a
dungeon; where they were chained together, two and two, and loaded with
irons.
The dungeon was a living sepulchre, a mere cavity in the moss-grown
mouldy fortress-wall, and below ground at that. The rain soaked through
the foundations and the poor fellows lay wallowing in filth and mire.
They were tried by a Spanish Court and condemned. Fourteen of them were
hanged as pirates.
As for the rest, those who were flung back alive into their dungeon, how
gladly now would they have fought to liberate the Spanish-American
People! They no longer blamed Miranda, but wished to aid him with all
their might.
Like a spluttering candle whose flame suddenly goes out, so ended the
ill-fated career of the Mystery Ship.
Miranda landed on the coast of Venezuela. He and his men fought well.
But the people did not rise up to join his standard as he had expected.
Instead they fled from him. They were afraid. Spain was too strong in
Venezuela, and the Patriot cause too weak.
So Miranda was driven from the country. His expedition failed. He was,
finally, forced to disband what was left of his little “Colombian Army,”
after which he took refuge again in England.
As for the poor captive American lads, those who had not been hanged as
pirates, our United States Government could do little to assist them,
for we were not at war with Spain, and the young men had been taken as
pirates on the high seas. Some of them continued to languish in Spanish
dungeons, others were put to hard labour in the mines, and few of them
were ever heard of again.
THE GREAT AND GLORIOUS FIFTH
Meanwhile, a great change was taking place. In Europe, Napoleon had
forced the King of Spain to abdicate. In Venezuela the people felt no
longer bound in loyalty to the Spanish Crown. Miranda’s teachings had
made an impression. The seeds of Patriotism which he had sown were
taking root.
The Patriot Party in Venezuela grew strong. Young Simon Bolivar, a fiery
Patriot, was sent on a mission to England. While there, he sought out
Miranda. He invited him to return to Venezuela and help the Patriot
cause.
So Miranda returned.
On the Fifth of July, 1811, a Congress representing the Venezuelan
People, assembled and voted in the name “of the all-powerful God” a
Declaration of Independence of the United Provinces of Venezuela, which
by right and act became a free, sovereign, and independent State.
Miranda was one of the signers.
It was a great and glorious _Fifth_--like our _Fourth_--when Liberty
enlightened that land. For it was the first Declaration of Independence
in all Spanish America. And the brave delegates, who put their names to
it, did so at the greatest risk of their lives; for Spain was still
strong in Venezuela.
On that same day, the Venezuelan Congress adopted a flag for the
Republic--the tri-colour, the Red, Yellow, and Blue, which Miranda had
flown from the _Leander_.
Miranda was made Commander-in-Chief of the Patriot Army of Venezuela,
and led it against the Spanish forces.
A TERRIBLE THING
But the struggle against Spain was only just begun. Her armies were
large. Her General, Monteverde, was treacherous, crafty, and cruel. Much
of Venezuela yet groaned beneath the heel of Spain.
Miranda and his soldiers fought valiantly, now defeated, now victorious.
It began to seem as though the Patriot cause might triumph in the end.
Then a terrible thing happened.
An earthquake--frightful, tremendous--shook the land. The earth heaved
like the sea in all directions. Churches, houses, and barracks swayed,
and fell with a roar. Men, women, and children were crushed and killed.
The Patriot arms and supplies were buried under mountains of débris.
In the City of Caracas, the ruins were awful. The frantic people ran
screaming into the great square. The hearts of the bravest were frozen
with terror.
But the earthquake had scarcely passed away, before Friars, who were
loyal to Spain, were mounted on a table in the midst of the frightened
multitude.
“The earthquake is the judgment of God,” they cried, “and his curse on
all who are trying to cast off their virtuous King, the Lord’s
Anointed!”
The people listened in horror. A religious panic spread from Caracas
throughout Venezuela. People forgot that earthquakes had often happened
before in many parts of the world, casting cities into ruins. They
believed that God Almighty had condemned their struggle for
Independence.
Many soldiers of the Patriot Army refused to fight any more against
Spain. They deserted in numbers to Monteverde. In vain Miranda tried to
rally his troops, he could no longer persuade them to believe in the
justice of their cause. Superstitious terror had made cowards of them
all.
Monteverde continued to advance rapidly. Miranda saw not only his ranks
thinning daily, but the country that supplied food and cattle for his
army, falling into the hands of the enemy.
Then came a final crushing blow:--
The strong Fortress of Puerto Cabello fell into the hands of Monteverde.
END OF THE ROMANCE
“Venezuela is wounded in the heart!” exclaimed Miranda in a deep voice
as he read the despatch telling of the loss of Puerto Cabello.
It was Simon Bolivar, the fiery, impetuous, young Patriot, who had lost
this important fortress and city to Monteverde. He was in despair,
Bolivar said, because his own body had not been left under the ruins of
that city.
But the fortress was irretrievably lost, and the tide of Fortune was
turned against Independence. The cause of Venezuela seemed hopeless.
Miranda was worn and weary. So he capitulated.
He capitulated to Monteverde, with the agreement that none of the
Patriots should be made to suffer for their rebellion; and that any of
them who so wished, might leave the country.
After signing the capitulation, Miranda prepared to leave on an English
vessel and seek refuge in the West Indies. He sent his servants with his
money and precious papers aboard. He then decided to sleep that night on
land, and embark the next morning.
But he never embarked. Bolivar, with some of Miranda’s officers,
indignant it is said because Miranda had capitulated, seized him while
he was asleep, and threw him into a dungeon.
After which they surrendered him to Monteverde, who had him transferred
in chains to Puerto Cabello, the same Fortress in which our young
Americans from the Mystery Ship had suffered so terribly.
Meanwhile, Simon Bolivar obtained a passport from Monteverde and fled to
the West Indies.
As for Miranda, he continued to languish in Spanish-American prisons
for some time. Then he was carried to Spain and cast into a dungeon.
Though Miranda’s existence was miserable, he received comfort from his
books, for he delighted to read. In his cell after his death, were found
Horace, Virgil, Cicero, Don Quixote,--and even a copy of the New
Testament.
Early on the morning of July 14, 1816, he “gave his soul to God, his
name to history, and his body to the earth.” Whether he died by poison,
execution, or natural death, no one knows.
Thus perished the Flaming Son of Liberty, the Knight-Errant of Freedom,
the Chief of the Apostles of Spanish-American Independence.
So his romance was ended. But his work was only begun; it lived on for
others to finish.
_For how his work lived on, read Simon Bolivar the Liberator, page
371._
JUNE 23-24
ROGER WILLIAMS AND THE FOUNDING OF PROVIDENCE
_He has been rightly called “The First American,” because he was
the first to actualize in a commonwealth, the distinctively
American principle of Freedom for mind and body and soul._
ARTHUR B. STRICKLAND
GOD MAKES A PATH
_God makes a path, provides a guide,
And feeds in Wilderness;
His glorious Name, while breath remains,
Oh, that I may confess!_
_Lost many a time, I have had no guide,
No house, but hollow tree!
In stormy winter night, no fire,
No food, no company:_
_In Him, I found a house, a bed,
A table, company:
No cup so bitter, but ’s made sweet,
When God shall sweet’ning be._
ROGER WILLIAMS
The date of ROGER WILLIAMS’S birth is unknown, probably about 1604
or 1607
He founded Providence, about June 23-24, 1636
He died, 1684
He has been called “The Apostle of Soul Liberty.”
ROGER, THE BOY
The exact date of Roger Williams’s birth is unknown. Nor are his
historians agreed on the place where he was born. It is generally
thought that he was born in London, where his father was a tailor. He is
also said to have been distantly related to Oliver Cromwell.
When Roger Williams was a boy, a new system of writing had been devised,
called shorthand. He learned it, and, going to the Star Chamber, took
down some of the sermons and speeches. The Judge, Sir Edward Coke, was
so pleased with his work, that he became Roger Williams’s friend and
patron, and even gained him admission to one of the famous English
schools. Later, young Roger Williams attended Cambridge University.
After leaving Cambridge, he is said to have studied law under his friend
Sir Edward Coke. Then, not being satisfied with law, he studied to
become a minister.
Like William Penn, Roger Williams was a thoughtful boy, and like William
Penn, he had a sweet experience in childhood. For Roger Williams himself
when old, said, “From my childhood, now about three score years, the
Father of lights and mercies touched my soul with a love for Himself, to
his Only Begotten, the true Lord Jesus, and to his holy Scriptures.”
SOUL LIBERTY
In those days in England, many members of the Established Church
believed that the Church needed reforming, or _purifying_. These members
were called _Puritans_.
They were severely persecuted. A number of them emigrated from England
to Massachusetts Bay. One body of these colonists settled in Salem, and
another founded Charlestown and Boston.
About a year after the settlement of Boston, a young man came thither
from England. He, too, had left home because of religious persecution.
He was known to be a godly man, and thought to be a Puritan. He was
warmly welcomed by the Boston folk. He was Roger Williams.
But soon the good folk of Boston were scandalized.
The Puritans of Boston had not actually separated from the Established
Church, as had their neighbours, the Separatists of Plymouth; they had
merely purified their mode of worship. They had, moreover, decreed that
the Government of their Colony should be directed by their church. They
did not permit any man not in good church-standing to have a vote in
public affairs. They even persecuted folk who did not believe as they
did, and who would not attend their church.
Roger Williams soon electrified them by urging not only separation from
the Established Church, but asserting that no Government had a right to
interfere with the religious faith of any one. The place of the
Government, he said, was to prevent crime, not to enforce any form of
religion. Every man had the right to “soul liberty” he asserted.
He also insisted that the King of England had no right whatsoever to
give away the lands belonging to the Indians, without their consent.
The Puritans bitterly opposed him. After a few years, since he continued
to preach and teach his beliefs, they tried him in their court and
banished him from the Colony.
In the middle of a New England Winter, he was forced to leave his wife,
child, and many sorrowing friends, and flee through the snow to safety.
He had with him to direct his way, only a sun-dial and compass.
His sufferings were terrible. He never got over the effects of the cold
and hunger which he endured on that flight through the Wilderness.
He had made friends among the Indians, with Massasoit and Canonicus. He
had most lovingly carried the Gospel to them and their peoples. He had
passed many a night with them in their lodges.
And now that he was in want and distress, it was his Indian friends who
succoured him.
In the Spring, he had begun to build and plant at Seekonk, when Governor
Winslow of Plymouth, in the kindest of spirits, sent him word that
Seekonk was within the bounds of Plymouth Colony; and in order that
there might be no trouble with the Massachusetts Bay Colony, he advised
him to move across the water, where he would be as free as the Plymouth
folk themselves, adding that then Roger Williams and the Plymouth Folk
might be loving neighbours together.
WHAT CHEER!
_Providence_
_Founded 1636_
Without bitterness or complaint, Roger Williams prepared immediately to
abandon the cabin he had built at Seekonk, and the fields which he had
so industriously sown and cultivated.
With five companions who had joined him there, he entered his canoe and
dropped down the river, watching the bank for an inviting landing.
On approaching a little cove, friendly voices saluted him. On Slate
Rock, Indians were waiting to welcome him.
“What cheer, Netop!” they exclaimed.
It was a salutation, meaning, “How do you do, friend!”
Roger Williams and his companions landed, but were more pleased with the
welcome than the place.
Getting into their canoe again, they rounded Indian Point and Fox Point,
and sailed up a beautiful sheet of water, skirting a dense forest, to a
spot near the mouth of the Mooshausick River.
A spring of fresh water was no doubt one of its attractions. Here Roger
Williams commenced to build again, and to prepare for future planting.
He gave the place the name of _Providence_, “in grateful remembrance of
God’s merciful providence to me in my distress.”
_Z. A. Mudge_ (_Arranged_)
RISKING HIS LIFE
I
No one can say that Roger Williams was not a good Christian, a better
one than those who drove him from his home, for he soon risked his own
life to save them from danger.
The fierce and warlike Indians of the Pequot tribe had made an attack on
the settlers, and were trying to get the large and powerful tribe of the
Narragansetts to join them. They wished to kill all the white people of
the Plymouth Colony, and drive the pale faces from the country.
The people of Plymouth and of Boston, too, were in a great fright when
they heard of this. They knew that Roger Williams was the only white man
in that region who had any influence with the Indians, and they sent to
him, begging him to go to the Narragansett camp and ask the
Narragansetts not to join the Pequots.
Many men would have refused to go into a horde of raging savages, to
procure the safety of their enemies. But Roger Williams was too noble to
refuse; though he knew that his life would be in the utmost danger, for
some of the bloodthirsty Pequots were then with the Narragansetts.
He promptly went to the Indian camp, and spent three days in the
wigwams of the Sachems, though he expected every night to have the
treacherous Pequots “put their bloody knives to his throat.”
But the Narragansetts were strong friends of the honest pastor. They
listened to his counsel. And in the end, they and another tribe, the
Mohicans, joined the English against the Pequots.
Thus it was chiefly due to Roger Williams, that the Colonists were saved
from the scalping knives of the Indians.
II
Years of peace and prosperity existed in Providence plantations. The
Colony grew. No man interfered with another man’s religion. Those in the
other New England Colonies, who did not want to be forced to accept the
creed of the Puritans, came to the Colony of Roger Williams.
He was their principal pastor. He was so kind, gentle, and good, that
everybody respected and loved him. His people were his children. He had
brought them together, and spent his time working for their good; and
they looked on him as their best friend.
_Charles Morris_ (_Arranged_)
JULY 6
JOHN PAUL JONES
AMERICA’S IMMORTAL SEA-FIGHTER
_I have not yet begun to fight!_
PAUL JONES
PAUL JONES
_A song unto Liberty’s brave Buccaneer,
Ever bright be the fame of the Patriot Rover.
For our rights he first fought in his “black privateer,”
And faced the proud foe, ere our sea they crossed over
In their channel and coast,
He scattered their host._
* * * * *
_’Twas his hand that raised
The first Flag that blazed,
And his deeds ’neath the “Pine Tree” all ocean amazed._
_Ballad_ (_Condensed_)
JOHN PAUL JONES was born in Scotland, July 6, 1747
Was the first American Naval officer to receive a foreign salute
for the Stars and Stripes, 1778
Won the victory over the _Serapis_, 1779
He died in Paris, July 18, 1792
His body was brought to America in 1905 and interred with honours
at the U. S. Naval Academy, Annapolis.
THE BOY OF THE SOLWAY
Born by the seashore of Scotland where the tide heaves up the Solway,
living on a promontory surrounded by romantic scenery, and with the
words of seafaring men constantly ringing in his ears, the boy, John
Paul, longed to be a sailor.
He was the son of a poor gardener. But he was of that poetic romantic
temperament, which always builds gorgeous structures in the future; and
no boy, with a fancy like that of John Pul could be content to live the
humdrum life of a gardener’s son. So he launched forth with a strong arm
and resolute spirit to hew his way among his fellows.
John Paul was only twelve or fourteen years of age, when he became a
sailor on board a ship bound to Virginia.
Thus early were his footsteps directed to America, by which his whole
future career was shaped.
After reaching America, he took the name of Jones. He rendered his new
name immortal, and the real name John Paul is sunk in that of Paul
Jones.
_J. T. Headley_ (_Arranged_)
DON’T TREAD ON ME!
In 1775, when our War for Independence broke out, Paul Jones commenced
his brilliant career.
Some men regard him as a sort of freebooter turned Patriot--an
adventurer to whom the American War was a God-send, in that it kept him
from being a pirate. But nothing could be farther from the truth.
When the War broke out, he offered to serve in the Navy. Congress
accepted his offer, and appointed him first lieutenant in the _Alfred_.
As the commander-in-chief of the squadron came on board the _Alfred_,
Paul Jones unfurled our National Flag--the first time its folds were
ever given to the breeze.
What that Flag was, strange as it may seem, no record tells us. It was
not the Stars and Stripes, for they were not adopted till two years
after.
The generally received opinion is, that it was a Pine Tree with a
rattlesnake coiled at the roots as if about to spring, and underneath
the motto:
DON’T TREAD ON ME!
If the Flag bore such a symbol, it was most appropriate to Paul Jones,
for no serpent was ever more ready to strike than he.
At all events, it unrolled to the breeze, and waved over as gallant a
young officer as ever trod a quarterdeck.
Fairly afloat--twenty-nine years of age--healthy, well-knit, though of
light and slender frame--a commissioned officer in the American Navy the
young gardener saw with joy, the shores receding as the fleet steered
for the Bahama Isles.
The result of this expedition was the capture of New Providence with a
hundred cannon and abundance of military stores.
And the capture was brought about by the perseverance and daring of
young Paul Jones.
_J. T. Headley_ (_Arranged_)
THE FIRST SALUTE
_That Flag and I are twins, born at the same hour.... We cannot be
parted in life or death. So long as we shall float, we shall float
together. If we sink, we shall go down as one._
PAUL JONES
June 14, 1777, was a great day for the United States and for Paul Jones.
On that self-same day, Congress passed two famous Resolutions;--and
_Commander_ Paul Jones and the Flag of the Nation were “born at the same
hour”:--
_Resolved_: that the Flag of the Thirteen United States be thirteen
Stripes, alternate red and white; that the Union be thirteen Stars,
white in a blue field, representing a new Constellation.
_Resolved_: that Captain John Paul Jones be appointed to command the
ship _Ranger_.
Thus it came to pass that the gallant young Scotchman, eager to fight
for Liberty, hastened to make the _Ranger_ ready for sea. Then he sailed
away under orders for France.
From the harbour of Nantes, he convoyed some American ships to place
them under the protection of the French fleet in Quiberon Bay. The
commander of the French fleet was Admiral La Motte Picquet, who had been
ordered by his Government to keep the coast of France free from British
cruisers.
And it was there in Quiberon Bay, that John Paul Jones received the
first salute ever given by a foreign Nation to our Stars and Stripes--a
salute that recognized the Independence of the United States.
It was on Washington’s Birthday, 1778, that Paul Jones wrote to our
Government describing this great event:--
“I am happy in having it in my power to congratulate you,” he said,
“on my having seen the American Flag, for the first time,
recognized in the fullest and completest manner by the Flag of
France.
“I was off their bay, the 18th, and sent my boat in the next day,
to know if the Admiral would return my salute.
“He answered that he would return to me, as the senior American
Continental officer in Europe, the
[Illustration: PAUL JONES HOISTING THE STARS AND STRIPES]
same salute which he was authorized by his Court to return to an
Admiral of Holland, or of any other Republic; which was four guns
less than the salute given.
“I hesitated at this; for I had demanded gun for gun.
“Therefore, I anchored in the entrance of the bay, at a distance
from the French Fleet. But after a very particular inquiry, on the
14th, finding that he had really told the truth, I was induced to
accept of his offer; the more so as it was in fact an
acknowledgment of American Independence.
“The wind being contrary and blowing hard, it was after sunset
before the Ranger got near enough to salute La Motte Picquet with
_thirteen_ guns, which he returned with nine.
“However, to put the matter beyond a doubt, I did not suffer the
_Independence_ (an American brig that was with Paul Jones) to
salute till next morning, when I sent the Admiral word, that I
should sail through his Fleet in the brig, and would salute him in
open day.
“He was exceedingly pleased, and returned the compliment also with
nine guns.”
Paul Jones thus had the singular honor of being the first to hoist the
original Flag of Liberty on board the _Alfred_; first probably to hoist
the Stars and Stripes, which still wave in pride as our national emblem;
and first to claim for our Flag the courtesy from foreigners due to a
Sovereign State.
_Alexander S. Mackenzie_ (_Retold_)
THE POOR RICHARD
Paul Jones gave up the command of the _Ranger_ in order to take command
of a larger ship, promised him by the French Government. But he had a
long discouraging period of waiting for the new ship.
It was then that he wrote to a French official, those famous words:--
“I will not have anything to do with ships which do not sail fast, for I
intend to go in harm’s way.”
After months of desperate waiting and after writing many letters, Paul
Jones chanced to be reading a copy of Franklin’s “Poor Richard’s
Almanack.” These words caught his eye:--
_If you would have your business done, go--if not, send._
So he stopped sending letters, and hastened to Paris to plead his own
cause.
With the help of Franklin himself, Paul Jones got his ship at last. He
named it _Bon Homme Richard_, or _The Poor Richard_.
It was while commanding _The Poor Richard_, that Paul Jones gained his
famous victory over the British ship, the _Serapis_.
MICKLE’S THE MISCHIEF HE HAS DUNE
With seven ships in all--a snug little squadron for Jones, had the
different commanders been subordinate--he set sail in the _Richard_ from
France, and steered for the coast of Ireland. The want of proper
subordination was soon made manifest, for in a week’s time the vessels,
one after another, parted company, to cruise by themselves, till Paul
Jones had with him but the _Alliance_, _Pallas_, and _Vengeance_.
In a tremendous storm he bore away, and after several days of gales and
heavy seas, approached the shore of Scotland.
Taking several prizes near the Firth of Forth, he ascertained that a
twenty-four-gun ship and two cutters were in the roads. These he
determined to cut out, and, landing at Leith, lay the town under
contribution.
The inhabitants supposed his little fleet to be English vessels in
pursuit of _Paul Jones_; and a member of Parliament, a wealthy man in
the place, sent off a boat requesting powder and balls to defend
himself, as he said, against “the pirate Paul Jones.”
Jones very politely sent back the bearer with a barrel of powder
expressing his regrets that he had no shot to spare.
Soon after this, he summoned the town to surrender, but the wind
blowing steadily off the land, he could not approach with his vessel.
At length, however, the wind changed and the _Richard_ stood boldly in
for the shore. The inhabitants, as they saw her bearing steadily up
towards the place, were filled with terror, and ran hither and thither
in affright; but the good minister, Rev. Mr. Shirra, assembled his flock
on the beach, to pray the Lord to deliver them from their enemies. He
was an eccentric man, one of the quaintest of the quaint old Scot
divines, so that his prayers, even in those days, were often quoted for
their oddity and roughness.
Having gathered his congregation on the beach in full sight of the
vessel, which under a press of canvas, was making a long tack that
brought her close to the town, he knelt down on the sand and thus
began:--
“Now, dear Lord, dinna ye think it a shame for ye to send this vile
pirate to rob our folk o’ Kirkaldy; for ye ken they’re puir enow already
and hae naething to spare.
“The wa the wind blaws he’ll be here in a jiffie, and wha kens what he
may do! He’s nae too good for ony thing. Mickle’s the mischief he has
dune already. He’ll burn their hooses, tak their very claes, and tirl
them to the sark. And waes me! wha kens but the bluidy villain might tak
their lives? The puir weemen are maist frightened out o’ their wits,
and the bairns skirling after them.
“I canna think of it! I canna think of it! I hae been lang a faithful
servant to ye, Lord; but gin ye dinna turn the wind about and blaw the
scoundrel out of our gate, I’ll nae stir a foot. But will just sit here
till the tide comes. Sae tak ye’r will o’t.”
Now, to the no little astonishment of the good people, a fierce gale at
that moment began to blow, which sent one of Jones’s prizes ashore and
forced him to stand out to sea.
This fixed for ever the reputation of good Mr. Shirra. And he did not
himself wholly deny that he believed his intercessions brought on the
gale, for whenever his parishioners spoke of it to him, he always
replied:--
“I prayed, but the Lord sent the wind.”
_J. T. Headley_ (_Arranged_)
PAUL JONES HIMSELF
Paul Jones was slight, being only five feet and a half high. A stoop in
his shoulders diminished still more his stature. But he was firmly knit,
and capable of enduring great fatigue.
He had dark eyes and a thoughtful, pensive look when not engaged in
conversation; but his countenance lighted up in moments of excitement,
and in battle became terribly determined. His lips closed like a vice,
while his brow contracted with the rigidity of iron. The tones of his
voice were then haughty in the extreme, and his words had an emphasis in
them, which those who heard never forgot.
He seemed unconscious of fear, and moved amid the storm of battle, and
trod the deck of his shattered and wrecked vessel, like one who rules
his own destiny. He would cruise without fear in a single sloop, right
before the harbours of England, and sail amid ships double the size of
his own.
But with all his fierceness in the hour of battle, he had as kind a
heart as ever beat.
To see him in a hot engagement, covered with the smoke of cannon,
himself working the guns, while the timbers around him were constantly
ripping with the enemy’s shot; or watch him on the deck of his dismasted
vessel, over which the hurricane swept and the sea rolled, one would
think him destitute of emotion. But his reports of these scenes
afterwards, resembled the descriptions of an excited spectator. He was
an old Roman soldier in danger, but a poet in his after accounts of it.
Jones had great defects of character; but most of them sprang from his
want of early education. He was not a mere adventurer--owing his
elevation to headlong daring--he was a hard student as well as a hard
fighter, and had a strong intellect as well as strong arm. He wrote with
astonishing fluency considering the neglect of his early education. He
even wrote eloquently at times, and always with force. His verses were
as good as the general run of poetry of that kind.
Paul Jones was an irregular character, but his good qualities
predominated over his bad ones. And as the man who first hoisted the
American Flag at sea, and received the first salute ever offered it by a
foreign Nation, and the first who carried it victoriously through the
fight on the waves, he deserves our highest praise and most grateful
remembrance.
With such a Commander to lead the American Navy, and stand before it as
the model of a brave man, no wonder our Navy has covered itself with
glory.
_J. T. Headley_ (_Condensed_)
SOME OF HIS SAYINGS
I will not have anything to do with ships which do not sail fast, for I
intend to go in harm’s way.
(_During the fight with the Serapis_) Don’t swear, Mr. Stacy, we may at
the next moment be in Eternity; but let us do our duty.
I have not yet begun to fight!
I have ever looked out for the honour of the American Flag.
I can never renounce the glorious title of a Citizen of the United
States.
I can accept of no honour that will call in question my devotion to
America.
JULY 24
SIMON BOLIVAR OF VENEZUELA
THE LIBERATOR
_Colombians! All your beauteous Fatherland is now free.... From the
banks of the Orinoco River to the Peruvian Andes, the Army of
Liberation, marching triumphantly, has covered all the territory of
Colombia with its protecting arms._ ...
_Colombians of the South! the blood of your brothers has redeemed
you from the horrors of War!_
BOLIVAR
BOLIVAR
_Build up a Column to Bolivar!
Build it under a tropic star!
Build it high as his mounting fame!
Crown its head with his noble name!
Let the letters tell like a light afar,
“This is the Column of Bolivar!”_
_Raise the Column to Bolivar!
Firm in peace, and fierce in war!
Shout forth his noble, noble name!
Shout till his enemies die in shame!
Shout till Colombia’s woods awaken,
Like seas by a mighty tempest shaken,--
Till pity, and praise, and great disdain
Sound like an Indian hurricane!
Shout as ye shout in conquering war,
While ye build the Column to Bolivar!_
BARRY CORNWALL (_Condensed_)
BOLIVAR was born in Venezuela, July 24, 1783
Formed the Republic of Great Colombia, 1819
He died in exile, December 17, 1830
His full name was Simon Jose Antonio de la Santisima Trinidad de
Bolivar y Palacios. But he was known as the citizen, Simon Bolivar
Bolivar’s name is pronounced, Seemon Boleevar
The old-fashioned English way was to pronounce it Bollevaar, as in
the poem above.
THE PRECIOUS JEWEL
Two boys were playing a royal game of tennis in the royal tennis court
at Madrid in Spain. The rich American boy, Simon de Bolivar, from
Venezuela, was serving swift ball after swift ball to Ferdinand, Prince
of the Asturias and heir to the Spanish throne. The Queen-mother was
looking on.
The Prince saw that he was losing, and grew angry. Bolivar, small,
alert, with dark eyes flashing, played on, still winning until the
Prince refused to play any longer.
But the Queen-mother sternly bade her son finish the game.
So the Prince had to play on, and he lost.
“Some day,” exclaimed Bolivar in triumph, “I will deprive Prince
Ferdinand of the most precious jewel in his Crown!”
* * * * *
Years before this tennis-game, a great thing had happened in Venezuela.
On July 24, 1783, a baby boy was born to a rich, noble citizen of the
city of Caracas--a baby destined to deprive Prince Ferdinand of the most
precious jewel in his Crown.
He was christened Simon Jose Antonio de la Santisima Trinidad de
Bolivar, and with his mother’s name added as they do in Spanish America,
y Palacios.
A long name for a baby.
Little Bolivar had everything money could buy, and slaves to wait upon
him whenever he called. Before he was ten years old, his father and
mother died and he was left heir to several large fortunes. He owned
many hundreds of slaves and a rich plantation called San Mateo.
He was a restless, adventurous, self-willed boy, small but very alert
and bright. He did not like to study much; but he was always ready to
sit and listen to his tutor Rodriguez, whom he adored. His black eyes
sparkled as his tutor told him of lands where people governed
themselves. Sometimes Rodriguez explained the meaning of _Equality,
Fraternity, and Liberty_. And the little boy began to dream of Liberty
and Independence for his own Venezuela.
But Bolivar did not spend all his time dreaming, he was far too
passionately fond of outdoor sports for that. He fished, swam, and
learned to shoot. He joined the White Militia of the Valleys of Aragua.
When he was sixteen, his guardian sent him to Spain. There he went to
school and lived with his uncle, who was a favourite at Court.
And there, he beat the sulky Prince Ferdinand at tennis.
And there, he met and loved a noble, little Spanish maid, Maria del
Toro, just fifteen years old. So Bolivar forgot for a while his threat
to deprive Prince Ferdinand of his most precious jewel.
Bolivar and Maria were married, and went on their honeymoon to
Venezuela. They reached the lovely plantation of San Mateo, where they
lived and were very happy. But, alas! in a few months the girl-bride
sickened and died of a fever.
Then the passionate heart of young Bolivar almost broke. He vowed in his
grief never to marry again. Soon after Maria’s death, he went back to
Europe to try to forget his sorrow in travel and study.
In France he endeavoured to drown his sad memories in gay living, but he
could not forget Maria. Then he met Rodriguez, his old tutor, who had
been banished from Venezuela.
This Rodriguez was a strange, rough fellow, with many wild ideas and
some good ones too. From childhood, Bolivar had confided all his sorrows
and joys to him. And, now, as a young man, he was led by his advice.
Rodriguez saw that Bolivar was wasted and consumptive. He persuaded him
to go on a walking trip. Knapsack on shoulder, the two set off for
their tramp. In Milan, they saw Napoleon crowned King of Italy. They
visited many historical spots to which Rodriguez took Bolivar on purpose
to arouse again his eager interest in _Equality, Fraternity, and
Liberty_.
Together they climbed Mount Sacro in Rome. And there Bolivar remembered
his threat to deprive Prince Ferdinand of the most precious jewel in his
Crown. He seized Rodriguez’s hand and swore a solemn oath to wrest
Venezuela from the Crown of Spain.[6]
For Venezuela--in fact all Spanish America--was the vast treasure-house
of Spain, the most precious jewel in her Crown.
THE FIERY YOUNG PATRIOT
Young Bolivar returned to his estates in Venezuela. But he stayed there
only for a little while. He soon gave up the easy indulgent life of
wealth to serve the Patriot cause.
He was sent on a mission to England. In London he met Miranda, the
Flaming Son of Liberty, whose burning, persuasive words blew into a
flame, the sparks of Liberty which Rodriguez had kindled in Bolivar’s
bosom.
Bolivar joined Miranda’s secret society. He urged Miranda to return at
once to Venezuela and strengthen the Patriot cause.
And thus it came about that the Flaming Son of Liberty went back to his
native land, and was made Commander-in-Chief of the Venezuelan forces.
Then it was, that the struggle for Venezuela’s Independence began to
make Spain tremble for the most precious jewel in her Crown.
How the fiery young Bolivar betrayed General Miranda, has already been
told in _The End of the Romance_, on page 344. After which Bolivar fled
into exile; and Spain confiscated his estates.
But Bolivar never gave up his determination to free Venezuela. And when
opportunity offered, he returned and became the head of the Patriot
Army.
It is not possible here to tell of all which he and his valiant troops
accomplished. They fought against the Spanish forces, they suffered
defeats, and they won victories. English, Irish, Scotch, and American
men, were volunteers in Bolivar’s Army, and many of them fighting
bravely, shed their blood for Venezuela’s Freedom.
It was a terrific war! Nowhere else in all Spanish America was there
waged a more ferocious campaign. The wake of the Spanish Generals,
Monteverde and Boves, was strewn with the corpses of innocent
non-combatants and with the ruins of pillaged towns and burned
villages.
“It is war to the death!” exclaimed Bolivar fiercely, in answer to these
atrocities.
And war to the death it was, on both sides--a war of ruthless
retaliation on prisoners and neutrals.
So the struggle went on. All the sufferings that accompany warfare were
the portion of the miserable people, ruined homes, weeping wives and
mothers, sick and dying children, crippled men, starvation, disease, and
sorrow-stricken hearts.
SEEING BOLIVAR
High adventure and spicy dangers were awaiting the first corps of
hot-headed young Englishmen who volunteered to fight for Venezuela.
They shipped from England. And after thrilling escapes on the coast of
Spanish Florida and among the West Indies, after many feasts of venison,
wild turkey, turtle, parrots, “tree-oysters,” and lizard, they reached
Venezuela.
There, higher adventures and spicier dangers were waiting.
They were convoyed by brig and launches up the swift river Orinoco. They
were marched through tropic forest and across _llanos_ or plains, to
join Bolivar.
As their boats were rowed through the deep water or poled through the
shallows of the Orinoco, they saw most wonderful sights.
Lining the banks, the giant mangrove trees shooting their gnarled
banyan-like roots into the water, were linked together by living chains
of vines, festooned with brilliant flowers as big as saucers or
teaplates. Herds of red monkeys with little ones clinging to their
shoulders, chattered, howled, and leaped from tree to tree, following
the boats along. Pink flamingoes, gigantic cranes, pelicans, and
spoonbills were wading about fishing. Overhead, flocks of red, blue,
green, and yellow parrots and macaws flashed to and fro filling the air
with screams; while the metallic note of the bellbird, sounded now close
to the ear and now far away.
From island to island in the river, glided evil-looking, light-green
snakes, lifting their heads and part of their bodies out of the water.
And under the roots of trees and in the stream, basked man-eating
alligators watching for their prey, only their eyes and nostrils showing
above the water.
And waiting to drop upon the young Englishmen if their boats came too
near, were venomous snakes glittering like jewels, coiled on the
mangrove limbs or hanging from the branches like shining tinsel ribbons.
Mosquitoes, too, were lively, piercing through the young men’s blankets
and cloaks, so thirsty were the insects for a taste of fresh, red
English blood.
And the young men were forced to keep a careful lookout at night for
fear of a visit from a python, jaguar, alligator, or electric eel. When
the sun set, night instantly fell like a black curtain, for there is no
twilight in the tropics. Then the howling of wild beasts made the place
hideous.
Finally, after passing Indian villages and towns pillaged and burned by
the Spanish soldiers, after water-trip and march, the young Englishmen
caught up with Bolivar on a plain near the Apure River.
The young men had long been eager to see that remarkable General whose
extraordinary energy and perseverance had already liberated a large
portion of Venezuela. And it was a picturesque scene that now burst on
their sight--a band of tropic warriors in a tropic setting.
Bolivar was surrounded by his officers, many of them mounted. A
magnificent wild-looking band they were in shirts of brilliant colours
worn over white drawers which reached below the knee. Bright bandanas
were tied about their heads to keep off the sun. Over these
handkerchiefs were set wide sombreros or hats made of split palm-leaves,
decorated with plumes of variegated feathers. One of the officers wore
a silver helmet instead of a sombrero, and another had on a casque of
beaten gold. Some had silver scabbards, and heavy silver ornaments on
their bridles. Almost all wore huge silver or brass spurs fastened to
their bare feet.
As soon as they saw the young Englishmen approaching, these wild-looking
chiefs spurred their horses forward uttering shrill shouts of welcome.
They embraced the young men, like long absent friends, and examined
their weapons and uniforms.
Bolivar, reigning in his horse, stood looking on in silence. He was a
small man, with a thin and careworn face, which had upon it an
expression of patient endurance. He appeared refined and elegant
although simply dressed. He wore a dragoon’s helmet. His uniform was a
blue jacket with red cuffs and gilt sugar-loaf buttons; coarse blue
trousers; and sandals of split aloe-fibre. As the young men came up, he
returned their salute with a peculiar melancholy smile, and then rode
on.
He carried in his hand a lance from which fluttered a small black
banner, embroidered with a white skull and cross-bones, and the motto:--
_Death or Liberty_
When they halted for the night, the young men were presented to Bolivar
as he sat in his hammock under the trees. He expressed great joy at
seeing Englishmen in his army, who might train and discipline his
troops. After asking questions about the condition of affairs in Europe,
he dismissed them in the charge of his officers. These gave the young
men lances and fine horses.
Thus the English lads became a part of Bolivar’s Army. They and their
countrymen, forming the English Legion, performed such brave deeds and
made such gallant charges on the battle-fields, that without them
Bolivar could not so soon have won Venezuela’s Independence. _Retold
from the account by one of the young Englishmen._
UNCLE PAEZ--THE LION OF THE APURE
Paez was one of Bolivar’s most daring and picturesque generals. It would
take a whole book to tell of his romantic adventures and how he was
exiled and came to live in New York. There is a painting of him and his
dashing cowboys in the Municipal Building of the City of New York.
At first he was a _llanero_ or cowboy of the plains. He was of mighty
strength, and was a magnificent horseman. He knew well how to use the
_llanero’s_ lance with all its cunning tricks. His men were cowboys,
horsemen, and fighters by instinct. They followed him into battle with
wild _llanero_ shouts. _Uncle Paez_, they called him, When Bolivar with
his troops reached the Apure River, he could not cross for there were no
boats. A few canoes were drawn up on the opposite bank, guarded by six
enemy gunboats.
As Bolivar paced up and down impatiently, he exclaimed:--
“Have I no brave man near me, who can take those gunboats?”
“They shall be yours in an hour,” said Paez coolly, who was standing by.
“Impossible!” said Bolivar.
“Leave that to me,” said Paez, and off he galloped. He soon returned
with a body of cowboys picked for their bravery.
“To the water, lads!” he cried, which was what he always said when they
went swimming.
The men immediately unsaddled their horses, stripped themselves to their
drawers, hung their swords about their necks, and stood ready.
“Let those follow Uncle, who please,” cried Paez, and urged his horse
into the river.
The men rode in after him straight toward the gunboats.
When the Spanish saw the dreaded cowboys approaching, who never gave
quarter, they fired hurriedly and missed. Then seized with panic, some
cast themselves into the water, and others escaped in canoes.
Only one prisoner was taken, a woman who fired the last gun at the
cowboys, but who could not stop them from boarding the gunboats.
Thus Bolivar gained possession of the region on both sides of the Apure.
Paez is sometimes called the “Lion of the Apure.”
ANGOSTURA
_February 15, 1819_
Down the upper Orinoco River, Bolivar’s canoe was slipping quietly past
wide savannahs, palm-tufted isles, and overhanging trees.
While reclining in the boat, he dictated to his secretary. During the
heat of the day they both landed, and Bolivar, lolling in a hammock
under the shadow of the giant trees, one hand playing with the lapel of
his coat and a forefinger on his upper lip, kept on dictating as the
mood seized him.
He was composing a new Constitution for the Republic of Venezuela, which
was to be presented at the Congress meeting in the city of Angostura on
the Orinoco.
And it was the adoption of this Constitution, that made Angostura
famous.
To-day the town is called the City of Bolivar.
And while the Congress was meeting, Bolivar and his chief officers held
a council of war, sitting on bleached skulls of cattle slaughtered for
army food. They discussed the dangerous plan of crossing the Andes into
New Granada, and of helping the Patriots there to drive out the Spanish
Army.
They decided to attempt the crossing. And what that terrible march was
like, one of the young Englishmen who went with Bolivar, will tell in
our next story.
THE CROSSING
This crossing of the Andes was terrible. The hardships which Bolivar’s
troops endured are indescribable.
At that time of year, the plains were flooded. The infantry were obliged
to march for hours together up to their middle in water. Sometimes the
men fell into holes, or stuck fast in the marshes.
Many of the soldiers were bitten in their legs and thighs by little
goldfish, brilliant orange in colour and exceedingly voracious. Whole
swarms of these little fish came rushing through the water, with their
mouths open, showing their broad, sharp teeth like sharks’ teeth.
Wherever they bit, they tore away a piece of flesh. They attacked the
poor men most savagely.
As the troops approached the mountains, the cold winds began to be felt
blowing down from the snowy ridges of the Cordilleras. Soon, violent
mountain torrents swept across the Army’s path; and the men on horseback
were forced to carry across stream all the arms and baggage of the
foot-soldiers. Even Bolivar himself rode again and again through the
rushing current, carrying over sick and weak soldiers and even women who
had followed their husbands. As the trail began to ascend, the horses
used to the level plain, could scarcely keep their footing on the rocky
way, and began to flag and fall lame.
The snowy peaks of the Andes were now seen to stretch like an impassable
barrier between Venezuela and New Granada. The narrow paths wound their
way up among wild crags, and through ancient forests that clothed the
mountain-sides with trees so vast and thick that the light of day was
almost excluded. At that high altitude, the trees caught and held the
passing clouds in their branches. From the clouds distilled an almost
incessant rain, making the steep trails slippery and dangerous. The few
tired mules that had not perished on the line of march, patiently
clambered on. Now and then, one would slip and go plunging over a
precipice; its fall could be traced by the crashing of shrubs and trees
until its mangled body rolled into a foaming stream far below.
Although the Army was drenched by rain night and day, it did not
experience severe cold until it emerged from the forests into the bleak
unsheltered passes between the mountain peaks. Then the piercing cold
bit through the soldiers’ thin garments. Many who had worn shoes when
they left the plains, were now barefooted. Even some of the officers
were in rags, so that they were glad to wrap themselves in blankets.
The view of the Andes at this great height was wildly magnificent.
Incessant gusts of wind swept the passes, and whirled the snow in drifts
from the summits of the ridges. The whole range appeared to be encrusted
with ice, cracked in many places, from which cascades of water were
constantly rushing. Huge pinnacles of granite overhung the passes,
apparently tottering and about to fall. There was no longer any beaten
path; the ground was rocky and broken. Terrific chasms yawned on every
hand, appalling to the sight.
A sense of great loneliness seized the men. Dead silence prevailed
except for the scream of the condor or the noise of distant waterfalls.
The air was so rarefied that many of the soldiers, overcome by
drowsiness, lay down and died.
But at last the crest of the Andes was passed, and the Army began to
descend on the other side into the valleys of New Granada. The descent
was not so difficult because the mountain-side was less rugged than the
side they had ascended.
As soon as the Army reached the lowlands, Bolivar lost no time in
preparing for battle. With his men, he took his stand at the Bridge of
Boyaca.
Never was there a more complete victory. The whole of the Spanish Army
with baggage, powder, and military stores, fell into the hands of
Bolivar.
The Battle of Boyaca liberated New Granada from Spain, for ever.
Then Venezuela and New Granada united, and became the Republic of
Colombia--or Great Colombia.
_Retold from the account of a
soldier who accompanied Bolivar_
PERU NEXT
Now was Bolivar at the height of his power.
He had liberated Venezuela and New Granada. He had founded the Great
Republic of Colombia, and had given it a Constitution. He was
practically Dictator of the Republic.
He had sent his favourite General, the heroic Antonio de Sucre, to
liberate Quito.
Bolivar now turned his eyes toward Peru. In his ambition he dreamed of a
Greater Colombia which should include that country.
But there was an obstacle in his way.
Peru had already declared her Independence. The foundations of her
Liberty had been laid by another General and another Army. For Jose de
San Martin of Argentina, was Peru’s acknowledged Protector.
Then came the Amazing Meeting, as told on page 272.
After that meeting, Bolivar with his Army entered Peru. He combined his
forces with those of the Liberating Army of Peru, and with the aid of
the valiant Sucre, completed what San Martin had so well begun, and
swept away the last vestiges of Spanish power from South America.
So the great struggle for Independence, which had lasted over twenty
years, was finished.
But Bolivar was not allowed to enjoy long the fruits of his victories.
We shall see why.
THE BREAK
Exiled from Venezuela, consumptive, wellnigh penniless, insulted by his
own people, was Bolivar only a few years later.
The creation of his genius, the Great Colombia, was rent with
revolutions. His own General Paez had abandoned him. His friend Antonio
Sucre had been assassinated.
Bitterness filled Bolivar’s soul, his pride was broken, but he still
loved Colombia.
His dying words to her people, were:--
_Colombians! My last wishes are for the happiness of my native
Land. If my death helps to check the growth of factions and to
consolidate the Union, I shall rest tranquilly in the tomb._
So passed away the Liberator of Venezuela, the founder of the Republic
of Colombia.
Twelve years later Paez, who was ruling in Venezuela, brought Bolivar’s
body to Caracas and interred it with honours. But he left the hero’s
heart in an urn in the Cathedral of Santa Marta, the city where he had
died.
* * * * *
Great Colombia, or the Great Republic of Colombia, founded by Bolivar,
was a Union consisting of Venezuela, New Granada, and Ecuador. Great
Colombia fell; its Union was dissolved. To-day, instead, there exist
three independent Republics--Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador.
As for Bolivia, it was a part of Upper Peru. It was liberated by the
help of Antonio Sucre. It declared its Independence, and took the name
of Bolivar. To-day it is the Republic of Bolivia, “rich in all the
natural products of the world.”
BOLIVAR THE MAN
I
Simon de Bolivar was about five feet six inches in height, lean of limb
and body. His cheek bones stood out prominently in an oval-shaped face,
which tapered sharply towards the chin.
His countenance was vivacious; but his skin was furrowed with wrinkles
and tanned by exposure to a tropical sun. The curly black hair that once
covered Bolivar’s head in luxuriant profusion, began to turn white about
1821. Thenceforth, he was accustomed to wear his hair short.
His nose was long and aquiline. Flexible, sensual lips were often shaded
by a thick mustache; while whiskers covered a part of his face. In 1822,
Bolivar’s large, black, penetrating eyes, “with the glance of an eagle,”
were losing their remarkable brilliancy. At that time, Bolivar had also
lost some of the animation, energy, and extraordinary agility which had
distinguished him in youth and early manhood. Even the casual observer
judged him to be many years older than he really was, so sick and weary
did he appear....
A man of many moods, jovial, talkative, taciturn, gloomy, he changed
swiftly from sunshine to storm.
_William Spence Robertson_ (_Condensed_)
II
“Simon de Bolivar has been characterized as the Napoleon of the South
American Revolution, ...” writes William Spence Robertson, who has been
decorated with Bolivar’s Order of the Liberators. “‘Defeat left Bolivar
undismayed,’ said O’Leary, who served for a time as an aide-de-camp of
the Liberator. ‘Always great, he was greatest in adversity. His enemies
had a saying that “when vanquished Bolivar is more terrible than when he
conquers.”’”
“There is one point on which all are agreed,” writes F. Loraine Petre,
“the generosity of Bolivar, his carelessness of money and his financial
uprightness. Few men ever had greater opportunities of enriching
themselves; still fewer more honestly refused to take advantage of their
opportunities. He commenced life as a rich man, he died almost a
pauper....
“The figure of the worn-out Liberator, suffering in mind and body,
deserted by all but a few, reviled by the majority of those who owed
everything to him, is one of the most pathetic in history.”
AUGUST 20
BERNARDO O’HIGGINS
FIRST SOLDIER, FIRST CITIZEN OF CHILE
_Since my childhood I have loved Chile; and I have shed my blood on
the battle-fields which secured her liberties. If it has not been
my privilege to perfect her institutions, I have the satisfaction
of knowing that I am leaving her free and independent, respected
abroad, and glorious in her victories._
_I thank God for the favours He has granted my Government, and pray
that He may protect and guide those who will follow me._
BERNARDO O’HIGGINS, _to the Chilean Assembly_
O’HIGGINS
_The name of O’Higgins ... has a double lustre; because it was
borne by two generations with an almost equal brilliancy. It is
seldom that a genius such as Ambrose O’Higgins the father, the
greatest Viceroy of royalist Spanish America, bears a man such as
Bernardo O’Higgins the son, first chief of the new Republic which
sprang up from the ashes of his dead father’s Government._
W. H. KOEBEL
_Bernardo O’Higgins alone was able to accomplish and establish the
semblance of decent dignified government in his Country after the
great upheaval, a fact mostly due to his own transparent honesty,
utter unselfishness, and pure Patriotism, as much as to his
political acumen, diplomacy, and powers of organization._
JOHN J. MEHEGAN
BERNARDO O’HIGGINS was born August 20, 1778 Became the Hero of
Rancagua, 1814
He and San Martin won the Battle of Chacabuco, February 12, 1817
First Independence Day in Chile, February 12, 1818
O’Higgins went into exile, 1823
He died in Peru, October 24, 1842
THE SON OF THE BAREFOOT BOY
Ambrose O’Higgins was like the bright lad in the fairy tale, who started
out to seek his fortune with a knapsack on his back. Ambrose was only a
servant-boy in Ireland, barefoot some say, running errands for the Lady
of Castle Dangan in County Meath. Then one day he set out to seek his
fortune in Spain where he had an uncle.
He did not find it there. So he bought a stock of merchandise, and took
ship for South America, the wonderful country, where, so people said,
one could get treasure and emeralds a-plenty.
He landed at Buenos Aires, and sold some of his goods. Then he crossed
the _pampas_, or prairie, and packed his goods by mule-train over the
high Andes into Chile.
Still his treasure did not appear, and, being a venturesome lad, he made
his way north to Lima in Peru. There he kept a small stall and peddled
his wares under the shadow of Pizarro’s ancient Cathedral. As he looked
up at its weather-beaten walls and down at his old clothes, little he
dreamed that one day he should enter the door of that very Cathedral
clad in a Vice-King’s garments and surrounded by a brilliant retinue of
officers and retainers.
Not knowing that all this wonderful thing was to happen, he grew
restless and set off on his travels through Venezuela and New Granada,
and finally went back to Chile.
There his fortune was awaiting him. As the years passed, he studied and
worked industriously, until he became a famous civil engineer and built
roads and did great things for Chile. He devoted himself to Chile’s
interest until the King of Spain, learning of his genius and of all the
improvements he had brought about in the country, appointed him its
Governor.
He served with such wisdom that, in time, he was made Viceroy, or
Vice-King, of Peru, the highest and most coveted office in all Spanish
America.
So with pomp and procession, in a Vice-King’s garments, he entered the
Cathedral doors of the very city where once as a poor homeless boy he
had peddled his wares.
He died at a great age, full of honours, and left his estate to Bernardo
his son.
Now, Bernardo his son was anything but a Royalist. He was a Patriot. He
felt no deep loyalty to the Crown of Spain. He had been sent to London
to study while he was only a boy. There he had met Miranda the Flaming
Son of Liberty. Miranda had become his friend. Bernardo had joined his
secret society to which Bolivar and San Martin belonged. Thus the boy,
Bernardo O’Higgins, had enthusiastically pledged himself to help Spanish
America gain her Freedom.
When his father died, he returned to Chile. He lived for a while on his
farm with his mother and sister Rosa. But he was not content to stay
there long. So leaving the farm, he gave himself completely to the
service of his Country.
And while San Martin, the Argentine General, was mobilizing his Army at
Mendoza on the other side of the Andes, O’Higgins and many Chilean
Patriots were endeavouring to drive the Spaniards out of their country
northward and back to Lima.
THE SINGLE STAR FLAG
It was the Fourth of July. The United States Consulate in Chile was
celebrating _our_ Independence Day. Over the Consulate floated the Stars
and Stripes, and with it was entwined, for the first time, a
tri-coloured flag, red, white, and blue, with a single five-pointed
silver star in its upper left hand corner.
It was the new Republican Flag of Chile.
Soon one saw the Patriots of Santiago on the streets, wearing red,
white, and blue cockades.
And shortly after this the Single Star Flag was adopted as the Chilean
national emblem.
THE HERO OF RANCAGUA
But Spain was not going to permit Chile to hoist a Flag of Independence.
She despatched armed frigates and war vessels along the Pacific coast,
for she was determined to crush the Patriot uprising once and for all.
From her stronghold, Lima, she sent out fresh troops seasoned in
European wars. This strong Spanish force marched down through Chile upon
helpless Santiago City. The Patriot Army, very small and badly equipped,
took its stand bravely near the town of Rancagua hoping to keep the
Spanish from passing.
Unfortunately, there were political quarrels among the Patriots. The
Carreras--three brothers--were trying to gain control of the Government
and Army. Their personal ambition was greater than their love of
Country.
The Patriot forces at Rancagua were in part commanded by two of the
Carreras, and in part by O’Higgins of whom they were jealous.
The Spanish attacked. A stiff battle took place. Neither Army would give
quarter. Each side hoisted a black flag as a signal of war to the death.
Suddenly, without warning, the Carreras fell back and abandoned
O’Higgins and his troop to their fate, leaving them trapped as it were.
But O’Higgins and his men retreated into the town and defended
themselves courageously. For hours, without cessation, the Spanish
attacked. Finally, O’Higgins withdrew his men to the plaza, and fought
from behind hastily thrown-up barricades built of carts, bricks,
furniture, and parts of houses.
Then a Chilean magazine exploded. The Patriots’ ammunition began to give
out. The buildings around them went up in flames. O’Higgins was shot in
the leg. But he and all of his little band, of whom scarcely two hundred
men were left, tortured by fatigue, thirst, and heat, still gallantly
fought on.
Destruction seemed certain. But O’Higgins was not a man to yield to
despair. He ordered his men to collect all the horses, mules, and cattle
they could lay hands on. He placed himself at the head of his men, and
driving the herd before him, plunged through the Spanish lines, cutting
fiercely on every side as he went.
So he and his soldiers retreated in safety to Santiago.
But that city was doomed. The Spanish marched upon it and took it. All
was terror. Many people fled from the city. Patriots who remained were
seized by the Spanish, and imprisoned or murdered. A number
of men, some quite old, were banished to the lonely island of Juan
Fernandez--Robinson Crusoe’s desert island.
As for Bernardo O’Higgins, he barely escaped with his life. He led a
party of miserable shivering refugees, men and women, across the Andes
into Argentina. After terrible sufferings from cold in the high mountain
passes, they reached Mendoza. There they were welcomed and sheltered by
San Martin, the General whom God had called to carry Liberty into Chile.
COMPANIONS-IN-ARMS
Then Argentina and Chile joined forces against Spain. O’Higgins and San
Martin became companions-in-arms.
About all that they accomplished, about the Hannibal of the Andes,
Chacabuco, Maipu, and the strong fleet which O’Higgins assembled to
carry San Martin and his Army to Peru, you may read in the story of San
Martin on page 235. There, also, it is told how O’Higgins became the
Supreme Dictator of Chile, the land where his father the barefoot boy,
had found a fortune.
THE PATRIOT RULER
So while San Martin with his army sailed away to liberate Peru, the
unselfish Supreme Dictator stayed at home to care for his people.
Now that the Spanish were driven out, the Country was in a chaotic
condition, its laws and Government in confusion. With wisdom, patience,
and tact, O’Higgins began the work of reconstruction. And how well he
succeeded Captain Basil Hall, an English naval officer, tells in his
journal.
“We left Valparaiso harbour filled with shipping; its customhouse
wharfs piled high with goods too numerous and bulky for the old
warehouses. The road between the port and the capital was always
crowded with convoys of mules loaded with every kind of foreign
manufacture. While numerous ships were busy taking in cargoes of
the wines, corn, and other articles, the growth of the country.
“And large sums of treasures were daily embarked for Europe, in
return for goods already distributed over the interior.
“A spirit of inquiry and intelligence animated the whole society.
Schools were multiplied in every town; libraries established; and
every encouragement given to literature and the arts. And as
travelling was free, passports were unnecessary.
“In the manners and even in the gait of every man, might be traced
the air of conscious freedom and independence.”
And all this was largely due to the energetic and peaceful rule of
Bernardo O’Higgins.
But political enemies soon began to press the Supreme Dictator hard.
There were conspiracies of the Carrera party. Diplomatic
misunderstandings arose between Chile and both the United States and
England.
Meanwhile, a more serious situation was developing which was to bring
misery to Chile. The aristocrats, who had been Royalists, began to work
secretly against O’Higgins and the Republic. Government officials, who
were jealous of O’Higgins’s power and success, plotted against him.
These conspirators succeeded in getting control of the Assembly.
The Assembly demanded his resignation. O’Higgins knew that if he should
refuse to resign, his act would plunge Chile into civil war. Rather than
harm his Country, he laid down his power.
The People of Chile, who loved and revered him, wept with sorrow at his
abdication. And his enemies would not have dared to attack him, had they
not known that he would never shed one drop of Chilean blood in his own
defense.
FIRST SOLDIER, FIRST CITIZEN
The rest is soon told.
Bernardo O’Higgins, with his mother and his sister Rosa, went into
exile.
He sought refuge in Peru. He reached there after the Amazing Meeting.
San Martin was gone. The Peruvians welcomed him with sincere
hospitality. They gladly offered to shelter him in his exile. They
gratefully acknowledged all that he had done to help equip the
Liberating Army which had freed Peru. They gave him a fine sugar
plantation, and honoured him in every way they could.
So he lived quietly among them for many years.
But things were not going well in the Republic of Chile. Her first
place, which she had held among other southern Republics because of her
well-organized Government and her fine civic reconstruction, the work of
O’Higgins, this her first place, was lost. She stood no longer at the
head of her sister Republics.
She was become a prey to political quarrels. The Holy Alliance in Europe
was threatening her. It was then that Chile received gladly the Monroe
Doctrine of the United States, which protected her against Spain.
Then Chile, in her trouble, recalled O’Higgins and voted to restore him
to all his titles and honours.
Though he loved Chile, he knew it was not best to return, so he refused.
Soon after which, he died in Peru.
He is, to-day, the beloved National Hero of the Chilean People.
CHILE AS SHE IS
Sunny, happy, smiling Chile, stretches like a broad ribbon unrolling
itself along the Pacific coast of South America. To-day she is a
Republic with a Constitution and a President.
Chile is a prosperous Republic; for after civil war and political
struggles, she has found herself, and is even stronger and more vigorous
than when under the rule of Bernardo O’Higgins.
High in her background loom the Andes, their jagged summits covered with
eternal snows; while in their hearts are valleys, lakes, and rushing
torrents, rich copper mines, and grazing grounds.
Chile’s immensely long and narrow land reaches from the hot and arid
deserts of Peru, to the cold and rainy country of Cape Horn. But the
beautiful, sunny, happy Chile lies between these two extremes. In that
delightful part, grow barley, wheat, grapes; and herds of cattle and
horses feed on the rich grass. Each year, Chile sends quantities of
grain as well as of iodine, nitrates, and wool, to the markets of our
United States, and to those of other countries as well.
In Chile, thousands of school children in the cities, towns, and
villages are taught to honour the name of Bernardo O’Higgins, who
founded their Government, Chile’s “first Soldier, first Citizen.”
The children of Chile keep their Independence Day on February 12, while
our children in the United States are celebrating Lincoln’s Birthday.
ONE OF TWENTY
Chile is only one of twenty flourishing Latin American Republics. They
are called Latin American, because they were settled by Latin Races,
Spanish, French, or Portuguese.
There are eighteen Spanish-American ones; one French, Haiti; and one
Portuguese, Brazil. In these twenty Republics there are more than
75,000,000 people.
This book is too short a one in which to tell about all the Liberators
of these Republics.
There was Toussaint l’Ouverture, the extraordinary coloured man, an
ex-slave, who liberated Haiti. Haiti was the first Latin American
Republic to declare its Independence.
In Peru, there was Tupac Amaru, the brave young Indian Cacique, a
descendant of the “Child of the Sun” whom Pizarro conquered. He tried to
liberate his people from Spain, but was captured with all his family,
and put to death.
In Paraguay there was the tyrant-liberator Francia, about whom that
fascinating romance in English, _El Supremo_, tells. While _La Banda
Oriental_, as Uruguay used to be called, had for a Liberator, the bold
bandit-like Artigas. In Mexico, it was the priest Hidalgo who roused the
Mexican People to revolt against Spain.
The Peoples of the eighteen Spanish-American Republics, are not _one_
People like those of our United States, living at peace under _one_
Government and governed by _one_ Constitution.
They are not a Union. Instead, each is a separate Republic. Each may do
as it pleases without consulting the welfare of the others. This at
times, brings about bad feeling, and even war.
But to prevent war and bloodshed, some of these Republics have adopted
_a better way_.
THE BETTER WAY
To-day, high on a ridge of the Andes Mountains, high, high above the
level of the sea, stands a gigantic bronze monument. It is a figure
raised on a pedestal. In one hand it holds a cross, while it extends the
other hand in blessing.
The winter winds sweep against it with driving storms of snow. The
summer winds whirl drifts of sand around its base. But with peaceful
look, the figure gazes far beyond the black rocks, frozen peaks, and
rushing torrents of the Andes, toward the busy world of men.
On its base is inscribed:--
_Sooner shall these mountains crumble into dust, than Chileans and
Argentines shall break the peace to which they have pledged
themselves at the feet of Christ the Redeemer._
It is the figure of _El Cristo_[7] of the Andes. It is a monument
standing close to a lonely trail, once the highway from Argentina into
Chile. It was erected a few years ago by the Republics of Chile and
Argentina.
It happened this way:--
The two Republics had disputed for years over the boundary line which
passed along the crest of the Andes. Each claimed a large share of
valuable territory. Neither would allow the other to settle the boundary
line.
Sometimes, the Argentine soldiers, patrolling the frontier, would find
the Chilean patrol camping on the disputed ground. The two patrols would
have angry words and nearly come to blows. So the bad feeling grew worse
until both Republics were ready for war.
Then the Chileans and Argentines remembered that their grandfathers and
great-grandfathers, under San Martin and O’Higgins, had fought side by
side, and had shed their blood together in the cause of Independence.
They could not bring themselves to slaughter each other, for they were
brothers.
They agreed to arbitrate. They appealed to England to decide the
boundary line for them. King Edward the Seventh sent a commission to the
Andes, which surveyed the region to as far south as Cape Horn. The King
gave his decision. Thus the boundary question was settled without
bloodshed. Though Chile was not quite satisfied, she loyally stood by
the King’s decision.
So the conflict was stopped, good feeling returned, and the Republics
were saved from the horrors of war.
To commemorate this great event,--the better way of settling a Nation’s
quarrel by Arbitration,--the Argentines and Chileans erected _El
Cristo_.
The figure was cast from the metal of old cannon left by the Spanish
soldiers when they were driven from the land by O’Higgins and San
Martin. It is twenty-six feet high, and is mounted on a huge pedestal.
Near it is set up a boundary-marker inscribed on one side _Chile_, and
on the other, _Argentina_.
_El Cristo_ of the Andes was dedicated. Several thousand people were
present. The vast solitudes of the Andes were broken. Cannon roared and
bands played. Then the Bishop of Ancud spoke:
“Not only to Argentina and Chile,” he said, “do we dedicate this
monument, but to the World, that from this it may learn the lesson of
Universal Peace.”
Years have gone by since then. To-day a railroad takes travellers over
the mountains by another route. They no longer pass the bronze figure
that pleads for Peace.
“The peon with a mail-bag strapped on his back has tramped his way for
the last time down the rocky trail in the winter-snows,” writes Mr.
Nevin O. Winter, who has seen _El Cristo_. “_El Cristo_ stands among the
lonely crags deserted, isolated, and storm-swept; but ever with a noble
dignity befitting the character.”
But Chile and Argentina have not yet forgotten their pledge. They are
still showing the World the Better Way--the way of Arbitration and
Peace.
SEPTEMBER 6
THE MARQUIS DE LAFAYETTE
THE FRIEND OF AMERICA
_As soon as I heard of American Independence, my heart was
enlisted!_
LAFAYETTE
LAFAYETTE SAID WHEN OFFERING HIS SERVICES TO CONGRESS
_After the sacrifices I have made, I have the right to exact two
favours. One is to serve at my own expense--the other is, to serve
at first as volunteer._
JOHN QUINCY ADAMS, TO LAFAYETTE
_On Bidding Him Farewell, in 1825_
_Our children, in life and after death, shall claim you for our
own. You are ours by that more than patriotic devotion with which
you flew to the aid of our Fathers at the crisis of their fate....
Ours by that tie of love, stronger than death, which has linked
your name, for endless ages to come, with the name of_ WASHINGTON.
LAFAYETTE was born in France, September 6, 1757
He came to the rescue of America, 1777
He made his triumphal tour, 1824-25
He died in France, May 20, 1834
His full name was Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert Du Motier
Marquis de Lafayette. He preferred to be called plain “Citizen
Gilbert Motier.”
I WILL JOIN THE AMERICANS!
One night, in 1776, the old Marshal, Commander of the French forces at
Strasburg, was giving a dinner party in honour of the Duke of
Gloucester.
This light-hearted English Duke was in disgrace with his royal brother
King George the Third of England; so he was taking a little trip abroad.
At the Marshal’s dinner he was maliciously regaling the guests with a
humorous account of how the Americans had flouted King George and had
flung his chests of tea into Boston Harbour, and had declared their
Independence.
The Duke’s sympathies were all with the Americans, and he dwelt on their
need of volunteers. Amongst the guests--officers in blue and silver,
Strasburg grandees in gold-lace and velvet, all exclaiming, laughing,
and gesticulating--was one silent, solemn-faced young officer.
He was lean, red-haired, and hook-nosed, and very awkward. He kept his
eager eyes fixed on the Duke’s face. Nobody noticed him.
After dinner, he strode across the room to the Duke, and opened his lips
for the first time.
“I will join the Americans--I will help them fight for Freedom!” he
cried; and as he spoke his face was illuminated. “Tell me how to set
about it!”
The young man was the Marquis de Lafayette, nineteen years old, a rich
French noble, the adoring husband of a sweet young wife, and the father
of one little child.
_Edith Sichel_ (_Retold_)
IN AMERICA
Accompanied by Baron de Kalb, Lafayette safely reached America, and
presented his credentials to Congress.
Washington met him first at a dinner in Philadelphia. He was so pleased
with Lafayette’s eager, brave spirit, and with his unselfish offer of
sword and fortune for the American cause, that he invited him to become
a member of his family, and to make Headquarters his home.
Lafayette was delighted, and immediately had his luggage taken to the
camp. And from that time on, he was always a welcome guest both at camp
and at Mount Vernon.
ON THE FIELD NEAR CAMDEN
What became of Lafayette’s companion, the Baron de Kalb?
He served his adopted country, the United States, until at the battle
near Camden, he fell, still fighting though pierced by eleven wounds.
“The rebel General! the rebel General!” shouted the British soldiers who
saw him fall. And they rushed forward to transfix him with their
bayonets.
But his faithful adjutant tried to throw himself on the Baron’s body to
shield it, crying out at the same time, “Spare the Baron de Kalb!”
The rough soldiers raised the wounded Baron to his feet, and, leaning
him against a wagon, began to strip him.
Just then the British General, Lord Cornwallis, rode up. He saw his
valiant enemy stripped to his shirt, the blood pouring from his eleven
wounds. Immediately, he gave orders that the Baron should be treated
with respect and care.
“I regret to see you so badly wounded,” he said, “but am glad to have
defeated you.”
The Baron was carried to a bed. He was given every care. His devoted
adjutant watched by his bedside, and the British officers came to
express their sympathy and regret. But the brave Baron lingered three
days only, then he died. Almost his last thoughts were with the men of
his command. He charged his adjutant to thank them for their valour, and
to bid them an affectionate farewell from him.
The people of Camden erected a monument in memory of the Baron de Kalb.
THE BANNER OF THE MORAVIAN NUNS
“_Take thy Banner; and beneath
The war-cloud’s encircling wreath
Guard it--till our homes are free--
Guard it--God will prosper thee!_
* * * * *
“_Take thy Banner; and if e’er
Thou shouldst press the soldier’s bier
And the muffled drum should beat
To the tread of mournful feet,
Then this Crimson Flag shall be
Martial cloak and shroud for thee!_”
_And the Warrior took that Banner proud,
And it was his martial cloak and shroud._
_From The Hymn of the Moravian Nuns_,
HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW
It was the young and gallant Marquis de Lafayette, who during the
terrible rout on the field of Brandywine, leaped from his horse, and
sword in hand tried to rally the fleeing American soldiers. But a musket
ball passing through his leg, he fell wounded to the ground.
His brave aide-de-camp placed Lafayette on his own horse, thus saving
his life. Lafayette then tried to rejoin Washington, but his wound bled
so badly that he had to stop and have his leg bandaged.
Meanwhile, it was growing dark. All was fear and confusion around him.
The American soldiers were fleeing from every direction toward the
village of Chester. They were rushing on in headlong flight, with cannon
and baggage-wagons. The thunder of the enemy’s guns, the clouds of dust,
the shouts and cries, the general panic, were terrific.
Lafayette was forced to retreat with the Army, but in spite of his
wound, he retained presence of mind enough to station a guard at the
bridge before Chester, with commands to keep all retreating soldiers
from crossing it. So, when Washington and General Greene rode up, they
were able to rally the soldiers and restore something like order.
As for Lafayette, he was soon after carried to the town of Bethlehem in
Pennsylvania, and left with the Moravian Nuns.
These good women nursed him, and bestowed every kindly care upon him,
until his wound was healed and he was able to rejoin the Army. He had
been serving without a command, but after his gallant action at
Brandywine, he was made head of a division.
It was while Lafayette was still at Bethlehem, that a brilliant officer
from the American Army came to see him. He was the Lithuanian-Polish
Patriot, Count Casimir Pulaski.
All the Nuns, and in fact every one in Bethlehem, knew Count Pulaski’s
romantic history, how while in Poland he had fought for the
Independence of his Country, and had been sent into exile. He was now
fighting for America’s Liberty.
And when the Nuns learned that Count Pulaski was raising a corps in
Baltimore, they were eager to honour him. With their own hands they made
a banner of crimson silk, embroidering it beautifully. This they sent to
him with their blessing.
He carried the crimson banner through battle and danger, until at last
he fell so badly wounded that he died.
The crimson banner was rescued, and carried back to Baltimore.
LOYAL TO THE CHIEF
It was during that terrible Winter at Valley Forge, that Generals Gates
and Conway “with malice and duplicity,” were plotting against
Washington.
They wanted to win the young and influential Marquis de Lafayette to
their conspiracy. They planned to do so by separating him from
Washington. So they used their influence to have him appointed to an
independent command, with Conway as his chief lieutenant. And this they
did without consulting Washington.
But they reckoned without their host. The gallant young Frenchman was
loyal. He was incapable of a dastardly act. Though scarcely twenty
years old, he had a mind of his own. He refused to take command without
Washington’s consent; and insisted on having Baron de Kalb, not Conway,
for his lieutenant.
Then he set out for York, to get his papers.
He had left Washington with the soldiers, starving and shivering at
Valley Forge; he found General Gates and his officers in York,
comfortably seated at dinner, the table laden with food and drink. They
were flushed and noisy with wine, and greeted Lafayette with shouts of
welcome.
They fawned upon him; they complimented and toasted him. He listened to
them quietly; and, as soon as he received his papers, rose as if to make
a speech.
There was a breathless silence. All eyes were fixed upon him.
In politest tones, he reminded them there was one toast that they had
forgotten, and which he now proposed:--
_The health of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armies of the United
States._
There was silence. There was consternation and embarrassment. No one
dared refuse to drink. Some merely touched the glasses to their lips,
others set them down scarcely tasted.
Then, bowing with mock politeness and shrugging his shoulders,
Lafayette left the dining-hall, and mounting his horse rode away.
_John Fiske and Other Sources_ (_Retold_)
WE ARE GRATEFUL, LAFAYETTE!
During the War for Independence, Lafayette served without pay. He also
cheerfully expended one hundred and forty thousand dollars out of his
own fortune, purchasing a ship to bring him to America, and raising,
equipping, arming, and clothing a regiment. And when he landed in
America, he brought with him munitions of war, which he presented to our
Army. He gave shoes, clothes, and food to our naked suffering American
soldiers.
After the War was over, some small recognition was offered him by our
Government. But while on his visit here in 1825, to show appreciation of
his unselfish aid to us in time of need, and in compensation for his
expenditures, Congress passed a bill presenting him with two hundred
thousand dollars and a grant of land.
There were, however, a few members of Congress who violently opposed the
bill, much to the shame of all grateful citizens. And one member of
Congress, humiliated at this opposition, tried to apologize delicately
to Lafayette.
“I, Sir, _am one of the opposition_!” exclaimed Lafayette. “The gift is
so munificent, so far exceeding the services of the individual, that,
had I been a member of Congress, I must have voted against it!”
And to Congress itself, Lafayette, deeply touched said:--
“The immense and unexpected gift which in addition to former and
considerable bounties, it has pleased Congress to confer upon me, calls
for the warmest acknowledgments of an old American soldier, an adopted
son of the United States--two titles dearer to my heart than all the
treasures in the world.”
SOME OF WASHINGTON’S HAIR
Cordial ties bound the land of Washington to the land of Bolivar one
hundred years ago.
Then the South American Liberator was held in such high esteem here,
that after the death of Washington his family sent Bolivar several
relics of the national hero of the United States, including locks of
Washington’s hair.
The gift was transmitted through Lafayette, who had it presented to
Bolivar by a French officer. And the latter bore back to the noble
French comrade of Washington, an eloquent letter of thanks from Bolivar.
The South American Liberator professed throughout his life ardent
admiration for the United States, and once in conversation with an
American officer in Peru, prophesied that within one hundred years, the
land of Washington would stand first in the world.
_T. R. Ybarra_
WELCOME! FRIEND OF AMERICA!
1824-25
It was twenty-five years after the death of Washington. It was 1824. In
New York City, joy bells were ringing, bands playing, cannon saluting,
flags waving, and two hundred thousand people wildly cheering.
The Marquis de Lafayette was visiting America. He was landing at the
Battery. He was no longer the slender, debonair, young French officer
who, afire with ardent courage, had served under Washington, but a man
of sixty-seven, large, massive, almost six feet tall, his rugged face
expressing a strong noble character, his fine hazel eyes beaming with
pleasure and affection. But his manner was the same courtly, gracious
one of the young man of nineteen who so long ago had exclaimed, “I will
join the Americans--I will help them fight for Freedom!”
Since the American War for Independence, Lafayette had been through the
terrible French Revolution, and had spent five years in an Austrian
prison. Now, as he landed once more on American soil, he was the
honoured and idolized guest of millions of grateful citizens of the
United States.
As he stepped from a gayly decorated boat, and stood among the throngs
of cheering New York folk, his eyes filled with tears. He had expected
only a little welcome; instead he found the whole Nation waiting
expectant and eager to do him honour.
His tour of the country in a barouche drawn by four white horses, was
one continuous procession. Enormous crowds gathered everywhere to greet
him as he went from city to city, town to town, and village to village.
He passed beneath arches of flowers and arbours of evergreens. Children
and young girls welcomed him with songs, and officials with addresses.
He was banqueted and fêted. “Lafayette! Lafayette!” was the roar that
went up from millions of throats.
At Fort McHenry, he was conducted into the tent that had been
Washington’s during the War for Independence. There, some of Lafayette’s
old comrades-in-arms, veteran members of the Society of the Cincinnati,
were awaiting him.
Lafayette embraced them with tears of joy. Then looking around the tent,
and seeing some of Washington’s equipment, he exclaimed in a subdued
voice:--
“I remember! I remember!”
Later in the day, a procession was formed, which as it passed through
the streets of Baltimore, displayed in a place of honour the crimson
silk banner of Count Pulaski, embroidered for him by the Moravian Nuns
of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
In Boston, Lafayette in a barouche drawn by four beautiful white horses,
was escorted by a brilliant procession through the streets. At the
Common, he passed between two lines of school-children, girls in white,
and boys in blue and white; and a lovely little girl crowned him with a
wreath of blossoms.
Across Washington Street, were thrown two arches decorated with flags,
and inscribed with the words:--
WELCOME, LAFAYETTE!
_The Fathers in glory shall sleep,
That gathered with thee to the fight,
But the Sons will eternally keep
The Tablet of Gratitude bright.
We bow not the neck, and we bend not the knee,
But our hearts, Lafayette, we surrender to thee._
And when he entered Lexington, he passed beneath an arch on which was
written in flowers:
_Welcome! Friend of America!
To the Birthplace of American Liberty._
SEPTEMBER 24
JOHN MARSHALL
THE EXPOUNDER OF THE CONSTITUTION
_I had grown up at a time ... when the maxim, “United we stand,
divided we fall,” was the maxim of every orthodox American; and I
had imbibed these sentiments so thoroughly that they constituted a
part of my being._
JOHN MARSHALL.
_He had a deep sense of moral and religious obligation, and a love
of truth, constant, enduring, unflinching. It naturally gave rise
to a sincerity of thought, purpose, expression and conduct, which,
though never severe, was always open, manly, and straightforward._
_Yet it was combined with such a gentle and bland demeanour, that
it never gave offense. But it was, on the contrary, most persuasive
in its appeals to the understanding._
_Justice_ JOSEPH STORY
JOHN MARSHALL was born in Virginia, September 24, 1755
Became an officer in a Company of Minute Men, 1775
Was Envoy to France, 1797
Was appointed Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United
States, 1801
He died, July 6, 1835
THE BOY OF THE FRONTIER
_In a Log Cabin_
Through the ancient and unbroken forests, toward the Monongahela River,
Braddock made his slow and painful way. Weeks passed, then months. But
the Colonists felt no impatience because everybody knew what would
happen when his scarlet columns should finally meet and throw themselves
upon the enemy.
Yet this meeting when it came, proved to be one of the lesser tragedies
of history, and had a deep and fateful effect upon American public
opinion, and upon the life and future of the American People.
Time has not dulled the vivid picture of that disaster. The golden
sunshine of that July day; the pleasant murmur of the waters of the
Monongahela; the silent and sombre forests; the steady tramp, tramp of
the British to the inspiriting music of their regimental bands, playing
the martial airs of England; the bright uniforms of the advancing
columns giving to the background of stream and forest a touch of
splendour;--and then the ambush and surprise; the war-whoops of savage
foes that could not be seen; the hail of invisible death, no pellet of
which went astray; the pathetic volleys which the doomed British troops
fired at hidden antagonists; the panic; the rout; the pursuit; the
slaughter; the crushing, humiliating defeat!
Most of the British officers were killed or wounded, as they vainly
tried to halt the stampede. Braddock himself received a mortal hurt.
Furious at what he felt was the stupidity and cowardice of the British
regulars, the youthful Washington rode among the fear-frenzied
Englishmen striving to save the day. Two horses were shot under him.
Four bullets rent his uniform. But crazed with fright, the Royal
soldiers were beyond human control.
Only the Virginia Rangers kept their heads and their courage. Obeying
the shouted orders of their young Commander, they threw themselves
between the terror-stricken British and the savage victors, and,
fighting behind trees and rocks, were an ever-moving rampart of fire
that saved the flying remnants of the English troops.
But for Washington and his Rangers, Braddock’s whole force would have
been annihilated.
So everywhere went up the cry, “The British are beaten!”
At first, rumour had it, that the whole force was destroyed, and that
Washington had been killed in action. But soon another word followed
hard upon this error--the word that the boyish Virginia Captain and his
Rangers had fought with coolness, skill, and courage; that they alone
had prevented the extinction of the British Regulars.
Thus it was that the American Colonists suddenly came to think, that
they themselves must be their own defenders. It was a revelation, all
the more impressive because it was so abrupt, unexpected, and dramatic,
that the red-coated professional soldiers were not the unconquerable
warriors, the Colonists had been told that they were. From colonial
mansion to log cabin, from the provincial capitals to the mean and
exposed frontier settlements, Braddock’s defeat sowed the seed of the
idea that Americans must depend upon themselves.
Close upon the heels of this epoch-making event, John Marshall came into
the world.
He was born in a little log cabin in what is now a part of Virginia,
eleven weeks after Braddock’s defeat. The Marshall cabin stood about a
mile and a half from a cluster of a dozen similar log structures, a
little settlement practically on the frontier.
_Off to the Blue Ridge_
Some ten years after Braddock’s defeat, we can picture a strong rude
wagon drawn by two horses, crawling along the stumpy, rock-roughened,
and mud-mired road through the dense woods that led to a valley in the
Blue Ridge Mountains.
In the wagon sat a young woman. By her side a sturdy red-cheeked boy
looked out with alert but quiet interest showing from his brilliant
black eyes. And three other children cried their delight or vexation as
the hours wore on.
The red-cheeked boy was John Marshall.
In this wagon, too, were piled the little family’s household goods. By
the side of the wagon, strode a young man dressed in the costume of the
frontier. Tall, broad-shouldered, lithe-hipped, erect, he was a very oak
of a man. His splendid head was carried with a peculiar dignity. And the
grave but kindly command that shone from his face, together with the
brooding thoughtfulness and fearless light of his striking eyes, would
have singled him out in any assemblage, as a man to be respected and
trusted.
A negro drove the team, and a negro girl walked behind. So went little
John Marshall with his father and mother, from the log cabin to their
new Blue Ridge home, which was not a log cabin, but a frame house built
of whipsawed uprights and boards.
_Making an American_
John Marshall lived near the frontier, until he was nineteen, when as
Lieutenant of the famous Culpeper Minute Men, he marched away to
battle.
And during those nineteen years he had been growing up to be _an
American_.
The earliest stories told little John Marshall must have been frontier
ones of daring and sacrifice.
Almost from the home-made cradle, he was taught the idea of American
solidarity. Braddock’s defeat was the theme of fireside talk of the
Colonists, and from this grew in time the conviction that Americans, if
united, could not only protect their homes from the savages and the
French, but could defeat, if need be, the British themselves.
So thought John Marshall’s father and mother, and so they taught their
children.
For the most part, the boy’s days were spent studying and reading, or
rifle in hand, in the surrounding mountains and by the pleasant waters
that flowed through the valley of his forest home. He helped his mother,
of course, did the innumerable chores which the day’s work required, and
looked after the younger children. He ate game from the forest and fish
from the stream. Bear meat was plentiful.
Whether at home with his mother, or on surveying trips with his father,
the boy continually was under the influence and direction of hardy,
clear-minded unusual parents.
Their lofty and simple ideals, their rational thinking, their unbending
uprightness, their religious convictions--these were the intellectual
companions of John Marshall’s childhood and youth.
_Give Me Liberty!_
Thomas Marshall, John’s father, served in the Virginia House of
Burgesses of which Patrick Henry was a member.
When Thomas Marshall returned to his Blue Ridge home, he described, of
course, the scenes he had witnessed and taken part in. The heart of his
son thrilled, we may be sure, as he listened to his father reciting
Patrick Henry’s words of fire.
And again, when Patrick Henry became the voice of America, and offered
the “Resolutions for Arming and Defense,” and carried them with that
amazing speech ending with:--
_Give me Liberty or give me Death!_
Thomas Marshall sat beneath its spell.
And John Marshall, now nineteen years old, heard those words from his
father’s lips, as the family clustered around the fireside of Oak Hill,
their Blue Ridge home.
The effect on John Marshall’s mind and spirit was heroic and profound.
_Albert J. Beveridge_ (_Arranged_)
THE YOUNG LIEUTENANT
When John Marshall was nineteen, he was about six feet high, straight,
and rather slender, and of dark complexion. His eyes were dark to
blackness, strong and penetrating, beaming with intelligence and good
nature. His raven black hair was of unusual thickness.
He was Lieutenant of a Company, and wore a purple or pale blue hunting
shirt, and trousers of the same material fringed with white. A round
black hat, with a buck-tail for a cockade, crowned his figure.
The news of the Battle of Lexington reached him, and he was soon on the
muster-field training his Company.
First, he made his men a speech, telling them that he had come to meet
them as fellow soldiers, who were likely to be called on to defend their
Country and their own rights and liberties--that there had been a battle
at Lexington in which the Americans were victorious, but that more
fighting was expected--that soldiers were called for--and that it was
time to brighten their firearms, and learn to use them in the field--and
that, if they would fall into a single line, he would show them the new
manual exercise, for which purpose he had brought his own gun.
Then before he required the men to imitate him, he went through the
manual exercise by word and motion, deliberately pronounced and
performed. He then proceeded to exercise them with the most perfect
temper. Never did man possess a temper more happy, or one more subdued
or better disciplined.
After a few lessons, he dismissed the Company, saying that if they
wished to hear more about the war, he would tell them what he understood
about it. The men formed a circle about him, and he talked to them for
about an hour.
After that he challenged an acquaintance to a game of quoits. And they
closed the day with foot-races and other athletic exercises.
_Horace Binney_ (_Retold_)
SERVING THE CAUSE
Young John Marshall became a Lieutenant in the first regiment of Minute
Men raised in Virginia. These were the citizen soldiery of the Colonies,
who “were raised in a minute; armed in a minute; marched in a minute;
fought in a minute; and vanquished in a minute.”
His father Thomas Marshall was Major of this Virginia regiment of Minute
Men. Their appearance was calculated to strike terror into the hearts
of an enemy. They were dressed in green hunting-shirts, home-spun,
home-woven, and home-made, with the words,
_Liberty or Death!_
in large white letters on their bosoms.
They wore in their hats, buck-tails, and in their belts, tomahawks and
scalping knives. Their savage, warlike appearance excited the terror of
the inhabitants as they marched through the country.
Lord Dunmore told his troops, before the action at the Great Bridge,
that if they fell into the hands of the “shirt-men,” they would be
scalped.
To the honour of the “shirt-men,” it should be observed, that they
treated the British prisoners with great kindness--a kindness which was
felt and gratefully acknowledged.
_Henry Flanders_ (_Arranged_)
AT VALLEY FORGE
Through the battles of Iron Hill, of Brandywine, of Germantown, and of
Monmouth, John Marshall bore himself bravely. And through the dreary
privations, the hunger, and the nakedness of that ghastly Winter at
Valley Forge, his patient endurance and his cheeriness bespoke the very
sweetest temper that ever man was blessed with.
So long as any lived to speak, men would tell how he was loved by the
soldiers and by his brother officers; how he was the arbiter of their
differences and the composer of their disputes. And when called to act,
as he often was, as Judge Advocate, he exercised that peculiar and
delicate judgment required of him, who is not only the prosecutor but
the protector of the accused.
It was in the duties of this office that he first met and came to know
well the two men, whom of all others on earth he most admired and loved,
and whose impress he bore through his life--Washington and Hamilton.
_William Henry Rawle_ (_Arranged_)
SILVER HEELS
Young John Marshall surpassed in athletics, any man in the Army. When
the soldiers were idle at their quarters, it was usual for the officers
to engage in a game of quoits or in jumping and racing. Then he would
throw a quoit farther, and beat at a race any other. He was the only
man, who with a running jump, could clear a stick laid on the heads of
two men as tall as himself.
On one occasion, he ran a race in his stocking feet with a comrade. His
mother, in knitting his stockings, had knit the legs of blue yarn and
the heels of white. Because of this and because he always won the races,
the soldiers called him:--
“Silver Heels.”
_J. B. Thayer_ (_Arranged_)
WITHOUT BREAD
_Told by John Marshall’s Sister_
He was then an officer in the American Army, and he came home for a
visit, accompanied by some of his brother officers, some young French
gentlemen.
When supper time arrived, Mother had the meal prepared for them, and had
made into bread a little flour, the last she had, which had been saved
for such an occasion.
The little ones cried for some, and Brother John inquired into matters.
He would eat no more of the bread, which could not be shared with us.
He was greatly distressed at the straits to which the fortunes of war
had reduced us. And Mother had not intended him to know our condition.
_From the Green Bag_
HIS MOTHER
John Marshall’s mother, Mary Isham Keith, was a woman of great force of
character and strong religious faith. She was pleasing in mind, person,
and manners. And her son loved her with that chivalrous tender devotion,
which made him gentle with all women throughout his life.
A few weeks before his death, John Marshall told his friend, Judge
Story, that he had never failed to repeat each night, through his long
life, the little prayer which begins:--
_Now I lay me down to sleep_,
that he had learned, when a baby, at his mother’s knee.
_Sallie E. Marshall Hardy_ (_Arranged_)
HIS FATHER
His father, Thomas Marshall, served with great distinction during the
War for Independence. He was a man of uncommon capacity and vigour of
intellect.
John Marshall, after he became Chief Justice, used often to speak of him
in terms of the deepest affection and reverence. Indeed, he never named
his father, without dwelling on his character with a fond and winning
enthusiasm.
“My father,” he would say with kindled feelings and emphasis, “my father
was a far abler man than any of his sons. To him I owe the solid
foundation of all my own success in life.”
_Justice Joseph Story_ (_Condensed_)
THREE STORIES
_What was in the Saddlebags_
One Autumn, John Marshall was invited to visit Mount Vernon, in company
with Washington’s nephew.
On their way to Mount Vernon, the two travellers met with a
misadventure, which gave great amusement to Washington, and of which he
enjoyed telling his friends.
They came on horseback, and carried but one pair of saddlebags, each
using one side. Arriving thoroughly drenched by rain, they were shown to
a chamber to change their garments.
One opened his side of the bags, and drew forth _a black bottle of
whiskey_. He insisted that he had opened his companion’s repository.
Unlocking the other side, they found _a big twist of tobacco, some corn
bread, and the equipment of a pack-saddle_.
They had exchanged saddlebags with some traveller, and now had to appear
in a ludicrous misfit of borrowed clothes!
_Eating Cherries_
After the war, John Marshall studied law, and began practice in Virginia
courts. He served in many important offices both of his State and of the
Nation.
Here is a little story told of him when he first began his practice. At
that time, he was very simple though neat, in his dress.
He was one morning strolling, we are told, through the streets of
Richmond, attired in a plain linen roundabout and shorts, with his hat
under his arm, from which he was eating cherries, when he stopped in the
porch of the Eagle Hotel, indulged in a little pleasantry with the
landlord, and then passed on.
A gentleman from the country was present, who had a case coming on
before the Court of Appeals, and was referred by the landlord to
Marshall as the best lawyer to employ. But “the careless languid air” of
Marshall, had so prejudiced the man that he refused to employ him.
The clerk, when this client entered the courtroom, also recommended
Marshall, but the other would have none of him.
A venerable-looking lawyer, with powdered wig and in black cloth, soon
entered, and the gentleman engaged him.
In the first case that came up, this man and Marshall spoke on opposite
sides. The gentleman listened, saw his mistake, and secured Marshall at
once, frankly telling him the whole story, and adding, that while he had
come with one hundred dollars to pay his lawyer, he had but five dollars
left.
Marshall good-naturedly took this, and helped in the case.
_Learned in the Law of Nations_
In time, John Marshall became a great lawyer. He declined the office of
District Attorney of the United States at Richmond, that of Attorney
General of the United States, and that of Minister to France, all
offered him by Washington.
When President Adams persuaded him to go as envoy to France, he wrote to
another envoy of “General Marshall,” as he was then called, from his
rank of Brigadier-General in the Virginia Militia:--
“He is a plain man, very sensible, cautious, guarded, and learned in the
Law of Nations.”
_James B. Thayer_ (_Arranged_)
THE CONSTITUTION
_As the British Constitution is the most subtile organism, which
has proceeded from progressive history; so the American
Constitution is the most wonderful work ever struck off at a given
time, by the brain and purpose of man._
WILLIAM EWART GLADSTONE
“A Constitution,” says the dictionary, is “the fundamental organic law
or principles of Government of a Nation, State, Society, or other
organized body of men.
“Also a written instrument embodying such law.”
This is not so hard to understand:--
The first statement may be applied to the English Constitution, which is
not a written Document like ours. It is, instead, a vast body of laws
and judicial decisions, which, accumulating through the centuries, and
beginning long before the time of the Magna Carta, have been handed down
from one generation to another.
On the other hand, the second statement in the dictionary, may be
applied to the Constitution of the United States, which is a Document, a
written instrument, framed and adopted for our protection by those able
and noble Patriots who met in the Federal Convention, over which George
Washington himself presided. They were wise men, learned in the Law, and
far-sighted. They planned a Government for the great future of a very
great Free People.
Since its adoption, other Republics of the world have used our
Constitution as a model for their own.
Our Constitution guarantees self-government, and regulates just
government. It is the foundation of our national life. Without it, we
should be threatened with anarchy. Anarchy means universal confusion,
terror, bloodshed, lawlessness of every description, and the destruction
of religion, education, business, and of everything which makes life and
home beautiful and safe.
After we had declared our Independence and won our Liberty, this Country
was threatened with anarchy because we had as yet no Constitution to
regulate Government, and each State did much as it pleased.
But after the Constitution was adopted, and the States were united and
had became One People under One Government, order, peace, and prosperity
resulted.
Thus the amazingly rapid growth of “Our Beloved Country,” as Washington
called it, is due to the safeguards of that most precious Document, the
Constitution of the United States. For which reason every boy and girl
should read it carefully, should regard it with reverence, and should
surround it with every protection, as being, with the blessing of God,
the source of the life and welfare of our Nation.
As for John Marshall, he did not help to frame the Constitution; but it
was largely through his efforts and those of James Madison, that the
Virginia State Legislature ratified it. In another way, also, he had a
great part in its making.
After the Constitution was adopted, being a new Document there existed
no body of judicial decisions interpreting its meanings, like the
decisions of England which guided English judges. A body of American
decisions had to be made to interpret our Constitution in order to guide
American judges. This was John Marshall’s great work.
In 1801, President John Adams called the profound lawyer, John Marshall,
to be Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.
It was a most wise appointment, as we shall now see.
EXPOUNDING THE CONSTITUTION
Chief Justice Marshall took his place at the head of the National
Judiciary. The Government under the Constitution, was only organized
twelve years before, and in the interval eleven amendments of the
Constitution had been regularly proposed and adopted.
Comparatively nothing had been done judicially to define the powers or
develop the resources of the Constitution. In short, the Nation, the
Constitution, and the Laws were in their infancy.
Under these circumstances, it was most fortunate for the Country, that
the great Chief Justice retained his high position for thirty-four
years, and that during all that time, with scarcely any interruption, he
kept on with the work he showed himself so competent to perform.
As year after year went by and new occasion required, with his
irresistible logic, enforced by his cogent English, he developed the
hidden treasures of the Constitution, demonstrated its capacities, and
showed beyond all possibility of doubt, that a Government rightfully
administered under its authority, could protect itself against itself
and against the world.
Hardly a day now passes in the Court he so dignified and adorned,
without reference to some decision of his time, as establishing a
principle which, from that day to this, has been accepted as undoubted
law.
In all the various questions of constitutional, international, and
general law, the Chief Justice was at home; and when, at the end of his
long and eminent career, he laid down his life, he and those who had so
ably assisted him in his great work, had the right to say, that the
judicial power of the United States had been carefully preserved and
wisely administered.
The Nation can never honour him or them, too much for the work they
accomplished.
_Chief Justice Waite_ (_Arranged_)
THE GREAT CHIEF JUSTICE
_I have always thought from my earliest youth till now, that the
greatest scourge an angry Heaven ever inflicted upon an ungrateful
and a sinning People, was an ignorant, a corrupt, or a dependent
Judiciary._
JOHN MARSHALL
_Respected by All_
When the venerable life of the Chief Justice was near its close, he was
called to give his parting counsel to his native State, in the revision
of her Constitution.
A spectacle of greater dignity than the Convention of Virginia in the
year 1829, has been rarely exhibited. At its head was James Monroe,
conducted to the chair by James Madison and John Marshall, and
surrounded by the strength of Virginia, including many of the greatest
names of the Union.
The reverence manifested for Chief Justice Marshall, was one of the most
beautiful features of the scene. The gentleness of his temper, the
purity of his motives, the sincerity of his convictions and his wisdom,
were confessed by all.
He stood in the centre of his native State, in his very home of fifty
years, surrounded by men who had known him as long as they had known
anything, and there was no one to rise up even to question his opinions,
without a tribute to his personal excellence.
_The True Man_
This admirable man, extraordinary in the powers of his mind, illustrious
by his services, exalted by his public station, was one of the most
warm-hearted, unassuming, and excellent of men.
His life from youth to old age was one unbroken harmony of mind,
affections, principles, and manners.
His kinsman says of him, “He had no frays in boyhood. He had no quarrels
or outbreakings in manhood. He was the composer of strifes. He spoke ill
of no man. He meddled not with their affairs. He viewed their worst
deeds through the medium of charity.”
Another of his intimate personal friends has said of him, “In private
life he was upright and scrupulously just in all his transactions. His
friendships were ardent, sincere, and constant, his charity and
benevolence unbounded. Magnanimous and forgiving, he never bore malice.
Religious from sentiment and reflection, he was a Christian, believed in
the Gospel, and practiced its tenets.”
_Horace Binney_ (_Condensed_)
WHAT OF THE CONSTITUTION?
_The Unity of Government, which constitutes you One People, is also
now dear to you._
_It is justly so; for it is a main pillar in the edifice of your
real Independence, the support of your tranquility at home, your
peace abroad; of your safety; of your prosperity; of that very
Liberty, which you so highly prize._ ...
_To the efficacy and permanency of your Union, a Government for the
whole is indispensable._
WASHINGTON, _from his Farewell Address_
To me it is a marvel that the Constitution of the United States has
operated so successfully.... But the United States is a singular
example of political virtue and moral rectitude.
That Nation has been cradled in Liberty, has been nurtured in
Liberty, and has been maintained by pure Liberty. I will add that
the People of the United States are unique in the history of the
human race.
SIMON BOLIVAR, _the Liberator_
Let us make our generation one of the strongest and brightest links
in that golden chain which is destined, I fondly believe, to
grapple the People of all the States to this Constitution for Ages
to come.
We have a great, popular constitutional Government ... defended by
the affections of the whole People. No monarchical throne presses
these States together. No iron chain of military power encircles
them. They live and stand under a Government popular in its form,
representative in its character, founded upon principles of
equality, and so constructed, we hope, as to last for ever.... Its
daily respiration is Liberty and Patriotism. Its yet youthful veins
are full of enterprise, courage, and honourable love of glory and
renown.
DANIEL WEBSTER
May our children and our children’s children for a thousand
generations continue to enjoy the benefits conferred upon us by a
United Country, and have cause yet to rejoice under those glorious
institutions bequeathed us by Washington and his compeers! Now, my
friends--soldiers and citizens--I can only say once more, Farewell.
ABRAHAM LINCOLN
ENVOY
God of our Fathers, whose almighty hand
Leads forth in beauty, all the starry band
Of shining worlds, in splendour thro’ the skies,
Our grateful songs, before Thy throne arise.
Thy love divine, hath led us in the past;
In this Free Land, by Thee our lot is cast;
Be Thou our ruler, guardian, guide, and stay,
Thy Word our law, Thy paths our chosen way.
From war’s alarms, from deadly pestilence,
Be Thy strong arm our ever sure defence;
Thy true religion in our hearts increase,
Thy bounteous goodness nourish us in Peace.
Refresh Thy people on their toilsome way;
Lead us from night to never-ending day;
Fill all our lives with love and grace divine;
And glory, laud, and praise be ever Thine!
_D. C. Roberts_ (1876)
APPENDIX
FOR TEACHERS AND STORY-TELLERS
I
PROGRAMME OF STORIES FROM THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES
II
STORY PROGRAMME OF SOUTH AMERICA’S STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE
APPENDIX
I
PROGRAMME OF STORIES FROM THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES
FOR TEACHERS AND STORY-TELLERS
_This Programme may be used, day by day, in teaching the history of the
United States. The stories are not intended to take the place of the
textbook; but they may be utilized in many delightful ways to illustrate
it. If they are told, or read aloud, or dramatized by the children, they
will make historic events and characters stand out so vividly, that the
boys and girls will never forget their American history._
_The stories are arranged by dates of leading events, so that the
teacher may easily illustrate the day’s lesson in the textbook._
1451 (about) BIRTH OF COLUMBUS, AND HIS BOYHOOD
The Sea of Darkness, p. 3
The Fortunate Isles, p. 5
The Absurd Truth, p. 7
1492 DISCOVERY OF AMERICA
Cathay the Golden, p. 10
The Emerald Islands, p. 12
1493 COLUMBUS’S RETURN TO SPAIN
The Magnificent Return, p. 13
1498 DISCOVERY OF SOUTH AMERICA (COLUMBUS’S THIRD VOYAGE)
The Fatal Pearls, p. 15
1502 DISCOVERY OF PANAMA (COLUMBUS’S FOURTH VOYAGE)
Queen Isabella’s Page, p. 21
The Twin Cities, p. 24
The Pearls Again, p. 26
1619 THE FIRST REPRESENTATIVE ASSEMBLY IN AMERICA (_in Virginia_)
The Author of the Declaration, p. 308
1620 SIGNING OF THE MAYFLOWER COMPACT
The Father of the New England Colonies, p. 125
1620 LANDING OF THE PILGRIMS
The Savage New World, p. 128
1620-23 SETTLEMENT OF PLYMOUTH COLONY
Welcome, Englishmen! p. 131
Lost! Lost! a Boy! p. 132
The Rattlesnake Challenge, p. 136
The Great Drought, p. 138
1636-37 ROGER WILLIAMS AND THE FOUNDING OF PROVIDENCE
Roger, the Boy, p. 349
Soul Liberty, p. 350
What Cheer! p. 352
Risking his Life, p. 354
1639 CONNECTICUT’S INDEPENDENT CONSTITUTION
Brother Jonathan, p. 208
1681 WILLIAM PENN AND THE FOUNDING OF PENNSYLVANIA
The Boy of Great Tower Hill, p. 31
Westward Ho, and Away! p. 34
The City of Brotherly Love, p. 36
The Place of Kings, p. 38
1693-1718 WILLIAM PENN AND WORLD PEACE
He Wore it as Long as he Could, p. 32
The Peacemaker, p. 33
Onas, p. 41
1755 BRADDOCK’S DEFEAT AND THE BOYHOOD OF WASHINGTON
The Boy in the Valley, p. 191
The Boy of the Frontier, p. 427
1759 GEORGE WASHINGTON AT HOME (BEFORE AND AFTER THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE)
Washington’s Wedding Day (January 6, 1759), p. 197
Washington and the Children, p. 197
Nellie and Little Washington, p. 200
Nelson, the Hero, p. 204
Caring for the Guest, p. 205
Light Horse Harry, p. 216
1764-66 STAMP ACT
The Orator of the War for Independence (Patrick Henry), p. 317
This Terrible Cornet of Horse (William Pitt), p. 95
America’s Defender, p. 101
The Sons of Liberty, p. 103
1773-74 BOSTON TEA PARTY AND BOSTON PORT BILL
Aid to the Sister Colony, p. 77
1774 FIRST CONTINENTAL CONGRESS
Facing Danger, p. 322
A Famous Date, p. 80
1775 LEXINGTON AND THE BEGINNING OF THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE
What a Glorious Morning! p. 81
A Son of Liberty, p. 75
The Adams Family, p. 76
The Young Lieutenant, p. 433
Serving the Cause, p. 434
Silver Heels, p. 436
Without Bread, p. 437
1775 SECOND CONTINENTAL CONGRESS AND APPOINTMENT OF WASHINGTON
John to Samuel, p. 82
A Gentleman from Virginia, p. 83
1775 BUNKER HILL
The Boy Who Became President, p. 85
Brother Jonathan, p. 208
1775 ISRAEL PUTNAM AND BUNKER HILL
Seeing Boston, p. 143
The Fight with the Wolf, p. 144
From Plough to Camp, p. 146
A Generous Foe, p. 149
1775-76 SIEGE OF BOSTON
He made Washington Laugh, p. 148
Friend Greene, p. 213
1776 EVACUATION OF BOSTON BY THE BRITISH
The Little Girl and the Red Coats, p. 200
1776 DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE AND ITS FRAMER (JEFFERSON)
The Charter of Liberty, p. 98
The Boy Owner of Shadwell Farm, p. 305
A Christmas Guest, p. 306
The Author of the Declaration, p. 308
Proclaim Liberty, p. 309
Reading the Declaration (Andrew Jackson), p. 282
1776 FINANCING THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE
The Little Friend in Front Street (Haym Salomon), p. 228
He Knows Everything (Robert Morris), p. 159
1777 THE STARS AND STRIPES, AND PAUL JONES
How Shall the Stars be Placed? p. 88
The Boy of the Solway, p. 359
Don’t Tread on Me! p. 360
The First Salute, p. 361
_The Poor Richard_, p. 364
Mickle’s the Mischief he has Dune, p. 365
Paul Jones Himself, p. 367
Some of His Sayings, p. 369
1777 THE COMING OF LAFAYETTE
I Will Join the Americans, p. 413
In America, p. 414
1777 BRANDYWINE
The Banner of the Moravian Nuns (Count Pulaski), p. 416
1777-78 VALLEY FORGE
The Bloody Footprints, p. 210
At Valley Forge (John Marshall), p. 435
An Appeal to God (Washington), p. 211
The Soldier Baron (Steuben), p. 220
Friend Greene, p. 213
Loyal to the Chief (Lafayette), p. 418
1778 MONMOUTH
Captain Molly, p. 218
The Soldier Baron, p. 220
1778 OUR GREAT COMMISSIONER AND THE TREATY WITH FRANCE (BENJAMIN FRANKLIN)
The Whistle, p. 165
The Candle-Maker’s Boy, p. 166
The Boy of the Printing Press, p. 167
The Three Rolls, p. 168
Standing Before Kings, p. 169
The Wonderful Kite Experiment, p, 170
The Rising Sun, p. 171
To My Friend, p. 172
1778 WEST POINT FORTIFIED
Father Thaddeus (Kosciuszko), p. 223
1780 CAMDEN
On the Field Near Camden (De Kalb), p. 414
1780-81 TWO PATRIOTS OF THE CAROLINAS (ANDREW JACKSON AND HIS MOTHER)
Mischievous Andy, p. 281
Out Against Tarleton, p. 283
An Orphan of the Revolution, p. 285
1781 SURRENDER OF CORNWALLIS
Washington’s Mother, p. 194
Nelson, the Hero, p. 204
1778-89 CLOSE OF WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE
A Last Scene (William Pitt), p. 105
Putnam not Forgotten! p. 150
Farewell! My General, Farewell! p. 230
The Cincinnatus of the West, p. 206
Seeing the President, p. 203
1787 BUILDING THE NATION--THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES
The Constitution, p. 442
The Boy of the Hurricane (Hamilton), p. 155
Call Colonel Hamilton, p. 157
A Struggle, p. 158
The Rising Sun, p. 171
The Hooting in the Wilderness, p. 286
From “Washington’s Legacy,” p. 232
1789 BUILDING THE NATION, THE TREASURY DEPARTMENT
He Knows Everything, p. 159
1796 WASHINGTON’S “FAREWELL ADDRESS”
Call Colonel Hamilton, p. 157
_The teacher or story-teller is advised to read the whole or parts of
the “Farewell Address” aloud to the boys and girls. They may memorize
selected passages. A reliable text of the address may be found in “Old
South Leaflets,” No. 4; also in the Riverside Literature Series, No.
190._
1799 WASHINGTON’S DEATH
Light Horse Harry (famous funeral oration before Congress), p. 217
A King of Men, p. 233
When Washington Died, p. 234
1801-1835 EXPOUNDING THE CONSTITUTION (JOHN MARSHALL)
The Boy of the Frontier, p. 427
The Young Lieutenant, p. 433
Serving the Cause, p. 434
At Valley Forge, p. 435
Silver Heels, p. 436
Without Bread, p. 437
His Father, p. 438
His Mother, p. 438
Three Stories, p. 439
The Constitution, p. 442
Expounding the Constitution, p. 444
The Great Chief Justice, p. 446
What of the Constitution, p. 448
1812-15 ANDREW JACKSON IN THE WAR OF 1812 AND THE CREEK WAR
Fort Mims, p. 289
Davy Crockett, p. 290
Chief Weatherford, p. 291
Sam Houston, p. 295
Why Jackson was Named Old Hickory, p. 297
The Cotton-Bales, p. 299
After the Battle of New Orleans, p. 300
1820 MISSOURI COMPROMISE
Only a Reprieve, p. 310
1823 MONROE DOCTRINE
Hail! Neighbour Republics! p. 266
America for the Americans, p. 268
1824-25 LAFAYETTE VISITS AMERICA
We are Grateful, Lafayette! p. 420
Welcome! Friend of America! p. 422
1826 FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF THE SIGNING OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE
His Last Toast (John Adams), p. 91
On the Fourth of July (Jefferson), p. 313
1861-65 WAR FOR THE UNION, AND ABRAHAM LINCOLN
Only a Reprieve, p. 310
The Cabin in the Clearing, p. 175
How He Learned to be Just, p. 176
Off to New Orleans, p. 177
The Kindness of Lincoln, p. 178
Lincoln and the Children, p. 181
The President and the Bible, p. 183
Washington and Lincoln, Speak! p. 185
Gettysburg Address, p. 186
1858-1919 THEODORE ROOSEVELT AND THE LIBERATION OF CUBA
The Boy Who Grew Strong, p. 45
Sagamore Hill, p. 50
The Children of Sagamore Hill, p. 52
Off with John Burroughs, p. 53
The Big Stick, p. 54
A-Hunting Trees with John Muir, p. 55
The Bear Hunters’ Dinner, p. 56
Hunting in Africa, p. 57
The Ever Faithful Island, p. 59
The Colonel of the Rough Riders, p. 61
The River of Doubt, p. 65
Theodore Roosevelt (a Tribute), p. 69
II
STORY PROGRAMME OF SOUTH AMERICA’S STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE
_The reader, teacher, or story-teller, who follows this outline, will
find that it covers a short consecutive history of one of the most
important and courageous world-struggles for Freedom._
_Portuguese America--Brazil--holds the honour of having declared its
Republic with practically no shedding of blood._
_The struggle of the Spanish-American Colonies was conducted for long
years against fearful odds. And their winning of the victory helped to
make permanent the independence if both North and South America.
Therefore, every school child in the United States should know something
of the heroic history of our neighbour Republics._
SPANISH AMERICA
DISCOVERY
The Sea of Darkness, p. 3
The Fortunate Isles, p. 5
The Absurd Truth, p. 7
Cathay the Golden, p. 10
The Emerald Islands, p. 12
The Magnificent Return, p. 13
The Fatal Pearls, p. 15
Queen Isabella’s Page, p. 21
The Twin Cities, p. 24
The Pearls Again, p. 26
SPANISH AMERICA UNDER SPAIN’S RULE
The Spanish Galleons, p. 327
VENEZUELA’S STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE (MIRANDA)
The Romance of Miranda, p. 331
The Mysterious Stranger, p. 89
The Mystery Ship, p. 335
The End of the Mystery Ship, p. 339
The Great and Glorious Fifth, p. 341
A Terrible Thing, p. 343
End of the Romance, p. 344
VENEZUELA’S STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE (BOLIVAR)
The Precious Jewel, p. 373
The Fiery Young Patriot, p. 376
Seeing Bolivar, p. 378
Uncle Paez, the Lion of the Apure, p. 382
Angostura, p. 384
GREAT COLOMBIA (FORMED BY BOLIVAR)
The Crossing, p. 385
Peru Next, p. 388
ARGENTINA’S STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE (SAN MARTIN)
The Boy Soldier, p. 237
The Patriot Who Kept Faith, p. 238
When San Martin Came, p. 240
Argentina’s Independence Day, p. 243
A Great Idea, p. 243
The Mighty Andes, p. 245
The Real San Martin, p. 247
The Fighting Engineer of the Andes, p. 248
CHILE’S STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE (SAN MARTIN AND O’HIGGINS)
The Son of the Barefoot Boy, p. 395
The Single Star Flag, p. 397
The Hero of Rancagua, p. 398
The Hannibal of the Andes, p. 249
Not for Himself, p. 254
Cochrane, El Diablo, p. 255
PERU’S STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE (SAN MARTIN)
Our Brothers, Ye Shall be Free! p. 256
The Fall of the City of the Kings, p. 257
San Martin the Conqueror, p. 261
Lima’s Greatest Day, p. 265
Hail! Neighbour Republics! p. 266
America for the Americans, p. 268
GUAYAQUIL (NOW IN ECUADOR); ITS STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE
What One American Did, p. 271
The Amazing Meeting, p. 272
END OF THE STRUGGLE OF PERU AND CHILE FOR INDEPENDENCE
(BOLIVAR AND O’HIGGINS)
What Happened Afterward, p. 274
The Mystery Solved, p. 276
The Patriot Ruler, p. 400
First Soldier, First Citizen, p. 402
Chile as She is, p. 403
The Break, p. 389
Bolivar, the Man, p. 390
OTHER SPANISH-AMERICAN REPUBLICS
The Break, p. 389
One of Twenty, p. 405
SPAIN’S LAST STAND, CUBA
The Ever Faithful Island, p. 59
The Colonel of the Rough Riders, p. 61
ARBITRATION AND PEACE
The Better Way, p. 406
PORTUGUESE AMERICA
BRAZIL (DON PEDRO)
The Brazils Magnificent, p. 111
The Empire of the Southern Cross, p. 112
Making the Little Emperor, p. 113
The Patriot Emperor, p. 115
The United States of Brazil, p. 120
SUBJECT INDEX
ADAMS, ABIGAIL, marries John Adams, 75;
sees Battle of Bunker Hill, 86;
teaches John Quincy, Patriotism, 87.
ADAMS, CHARLES FRANCIS, 77.
ADAMS, CHARLES FRANCIS, 2d, 77.
ADAMS, HENRY, 77.
ADAMS, JOHN, some important dates in his life, 74;
Son of Liberty, 75;
signs Declaration, 75, 76;
exults because of Boston Tea Party, 78;
attends First Continental Congress, 81;
nominates Washington to be Commander-in-Chief, 83;
his design for the Stars and Stripes, 88;
his grandson sails with Miranda, 90, 335;
his Fourth of July Toast, 92;
dies on anniversary of signing of Declaration, 92.
ADAMS, JOHN QUINCY, son of John Adams, 77;
boyhood, 85;
watches Battle of Bunker Hill, 85, 86;
his mother’s post-boy, 87;
becomes Sixth President of the United States, 88.
ADAMS, SAMUEL, John Adams’s cousin, 76;
aids blockaded Boston, 78;
at First Continental Congress, 81;
at Lexington, 82;
at the Second Continental Congress, 83.
ALAMO, THE, 291, 295.
ALFRED, THE, Paul Jones’s ship, 360, 363.
AMAZON RIVER, 66, 67, 69.
“AMERICA FOR THE AMERICANS” motto of the Monroe Doctrine, p. 270.
AMERICAN INDIANS, named by Columbus, 13;
cruel treatment of, in North America, 41, 132;
in Spanish America, 26, 328, 330.
ANDES, description of, 245, 252, 386;
crossed by San Martin, 251;
crossed by Bolivar, 385;
_El Cristo_ of the Andes, 406.
ANGOSTURA, CITY OF, renamed after Bolivar, 384.
ANGOSTURA, CONSTITUTION OF, composed by Bolivar, 384.
APOSTLE OF SOUL LIBERTY, soubriquet of Roger Williams, 348.
APURE RIVER, Bolivar at the Apure, 380;
Paez, the Lion of the Apure, 383.
ARBITRATION AND PEACE, Penn’s plan, 33;
Penn keeps peace with the Indians, 30, 38, 41;
settlement of boundary line between Argentina and Chile, 407;
object lesson for the World, 403, 409.
ARGENTINA, geographical description, 240;
natural products, 241;
struggle for Liberty, 239, 241;
National Birthday, 243;
National Colours, 242;
Declaration of Independence, 243;
National Flag, 251;
Independence recognized by the United States, 267;
Chilean boundary line settled by Arbitration, 407.
_See also_, BUENOS AIRES; SAN MARTIN.
ARTIGAS, Liberator of Uruguay, 405.
ASIA, WESTERN PASSAGE, _see_ WESTERN PASSAGE TO ASIA.
ATLANTIC OCEAN, called the Sea of Darkness, 4;
legends of horrors in its waters, 4;
legend of Maeldune, 5;
Fortunate Isles, 6;
Land of Youth, 7;
ocean first crossed by Columbus, 12, 13.
AZORES, limit of known world in Columbus’s day, 5, 9.
BALL, MOLLY, _see_ WASHINGTON, MARY.
BALTIMORE, aids blockaded Boston, 79.
BANNERS, Connecticut’s banner at Bunker Hill, 147;
banner made by Moravian Nuns, 418, 424.
_See also_ FLAGS.
BARRÉ, COLONEL, defender of America, 104.
BEAR HUNTER’S DINNER, at the White House, 56.
BELTRAN, FRIAR LUIS, engineer of the Army of the Andes, 248, 250, 252.
BETHLEHEM (PA.), Lafayette cared for by Moravian Nuns, 417.
BIBLE, _see_ HOLY BIBLE.
BIG STICK, THE, Roosevelt’s policy, 54.
BILLINGTON, JOHN, lost from Plymouth Colony, 133.
BOBADILLA, throws Columbus
into chains, 19;
is drowned in storm, 22.
BOLIVAR, SIMON, some important dates in his life, 372;
his full name, 372, 374;
pronunciation of his name, 372;
boyhood, 373;
takes oath in Rome to free Venezuela, 376;
brings Miranda from London, 342;
gives up Miranda to Monteverde, 345;
becomes Commander-in-Chief of Venezuelan forces, 377;
is seen by young Englishmen, 380;
composes Constitution of Angostura, 384;
crosses Andes, and liberates New Granada, 388;
forms Great Colombia, 388;
plans to liberate Peru, 388;
interview with San Martin and its results, 273, 274, 277;
receives relics of Washington, 421;
dies in exile, 390;
tributes to him, 391, 392;
is called the Napoleon of the South American Revolution, 392;
unveiling of his statue in Central Park, New York City, 121.
BOLIVAR, CITY OF, 384.
BOLIVIA, liberated, 390;
declares its Independence, 390;
named after Bolivar, 390.
BONAPARTE, NAPOLEON, _see_ NAPOLEON.
BOSTON, Boston Tea Party, 77;
Port Bill, 78;
relief of Boston by sister Colonies, 78;
besieged by New England Army, 82, 148, 213;
Washington and the little Boston girl, 200;
the City welcomes Lafayette, 424.
BOVES, GENERAL, Venezuela devastated by, 377.
BOYACA, BATTLE OF, 388.
BRADDOCK’S DEFEAT, Washington covers retreat of Braddock’s army, 194, 428.
BRADFORD, WILLIAM, some important dates in his life, 124;
boyhood, 125;
influence of Bible on, 125;
becomes a Separatist, 126;
flees into Holland, 126;
in Plymouth Colony, 127;
the Rattlesnake Challenge, 136;
his death, and tribute to him by Cotton Mather, 127.
BRAINTREE (Quincy, Mass.), 75, 86, 91.
BRANDAN, ST., legend of, 6.
BRAZIL, Kingdom, 110, 112;
Declaration of Independence, 113;
Empire, 112, 113, 115, 116;
Republic, 119;
United States of Brazil, to-day, 120;
native products, 121;
Roosevelt and the River of Doubt, 66, 69;
Statue of Liberty presented by the People of the United
States to Brazil, 121.
BREWSTER, WILLIAM, Pastor of Plymouth Colony, 126.
BROTHER JONATHAN, soubriquet of Governor Jonathan Trumbull, 210.
BROTHERLY LOVE, CITY OF, soubriquet of Philadelphia, 36.
BUENOS AIRES, Paris of America, 241;
Argentina’s first Colonial Assembly, 243;
celebrates victory of Chacabuco, 254;
San Martin exiles himself from, 276;
visit of Roosevelt, 66.
BUNKER HILL BATTLE, watched by John Quincy Adams, 86;
Putnam at, 147.
BURKE, EDMUND, defender of America, 104.
BURROUGHS, JOHN, with Roosevelt in the Yellowstone, 53.
CAMBRIDGE (MASS.), Washington at, 147.
CAMDEN, EARL OF, defender of America, 104.
CAMDEN, BATTLE OF, de Kalb rescued by Cornwallis, 415.
CANADA, aids blockaded Boston, 80.
CANONICUS, CHIEF, sends Rattlesnake Challenge, 137;
succours Roger Williams, 352.
CAPE COD BAY, the _Mayflower_ anchors in, 129.
CARACAS, Miranda born in, 331;
destroyed by earthquake, 343;
Bolivar born in, 373;
Bolivar interred in, 390.
CARIBBEAN SEA, explored by Columbus, 17, 23.
CARRERAS BROTHERS, at Rancagua, 398.
CARVER, JOHN, leaves Holland for the New World, 126.
CASAS, _see_ LAS CASAS.
CATHAY, Columbus’s search for, 9, 10, 13, 15, 16, 24.
CHACABUCO, victory of, 253, 254.
CHAGRES RIVER, discovered by Columbus, 25.
CHARLESTOWN (MASS.), burned by the British, 86.
CHATHAM, EARL OF, _see_ PITT, WILLIAM.
CHATHAM (N.Y.), named for William Pitt, 94.
CHESTER (PA.), Lafayette at the bridge of, 417.
CHILE, San Martin’s Army
crosses the Andes, 251;
battles of Chacabuco and Maipu, 253;
honours San Martin, 254;
National Flag, 255, 397;
Independence recognized by the United States, 267;
reconstruction under O’Higgins, 401;
threatened by Holy Alliance, 403;
welcomes Monroe Doctrine, 403;
Independence Day, 404;
native products, 404;
Argentine boundary line settled, 407;
the Republic to-day, 403.
CHRIST JESUS, Columbus’s devotion to, 9, 10;
quoted by Penn, 32;
as Prince of Peace, 34, 406;
Lincoln’s testimony to the Saviour, 184;
Washington’s testimony to His precepts, 232;
The Holy Alliance fails to carry out His precepts, 269.
CHRISTOPHER, ST., legend of, 9.
CINCINNATI, SOCIETY OF, founded, 208;
members welcome Lafayette, 423.
CINCINNATUS OF THE WEST, soubriquet of Washington, 206.
CINCINNATUS THE ROMAN, story of, 207.
CIPANGO (JAPAN), Columbus searches for, 16.
CITY OF BOLIVAR, Angostura renamed, 384.
CITY OF BROTHERLY LOVE, soubriquet of Philadelphia, 36, 81.
CITY OF THE KINGS, soubriquet of Lima, Peru, 244.
COCHRANE, LORD THOMAS, admiral of Chilean Navy, 255, 256.
COLOMBIA, REPUBLIC OF, established, 390.
_See also_ GREAT COLOMBIA.
COLON, CITY OF, named for Columbus, 25.
COLUMBUS, CHRISTOPHER, some important dates in his life, 2;
boyhood, 3;
theories about shape of earth, 8;
search for Kublai Khan, 10, 13, 21, 24;
the mutiny, 2, 12;
discovers West Indies, 12;
discovers corn and tobacco, 12;
names Indians, 13;
returns to Spain, 13;
honours conferred on him by sovereigns of Spain, 15;
discovers Trinidad, 16;
discovers South America, 17;
discovers Gulf of Pearls, 18;
is deposed from Governorship, 19, 20;
starts on Fourth Voyage, 21;
wrecked off Jamaica, 24;
dream of Panama, 24;
sails up the Chagres River, 25;
dies in Spain, 26.
COLUMBUS, DIEGO, at La Rabida, 12.
COLUMBUS, FERDINAND, page to Queen Isabella, 21;
sails with his father, 22;
encourages the sailors, 22;
returns to Spain, 24, 26.
CONNECTICUT, aids blockaded Boston, 79;
banner at Bunker Hill, 147;
supplies Washington with powder, 209;
independent Constitution, 209.
CONNECTICUT RIVER, meaning of name, 209.
CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES, verses by Francis Hopkinson, 153;
defended by Hamilton, 158;
the foundations of, 98, 442;
necessity for
expounding, 444;
expounded by John Marshall, 444;
tribute from Gladstone, 442;
from Bolivar, Webster, and Lincoln, 448, 449.
_See also_ FEDERAL CONVENTION; HAMILTON; REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT.
CONSTITUTIONS OF OTHER COUNTRIES, Brazil, 120;
Venezuela, 384;
Chile, 404;
England, 99, 269, 442.
CONSTITUTIONS, definitions of, 442.
CONTINENTAL CONGRESS, FIRST, meeting of, 80;
Petitions of, 81.
CONTINENTAL CONGRESS, SECOND, appoints George Washington
Commander-in-Chief, 83, 84, 85.
CONWAY CABAL, 418.
CORN, INDIAN, discovery of, 12.
CORNHILL, Pilgrims find corn at, 135.
CORNWALLIS, GENERAL, rescues de Kalb, 415.
COTTON-BALES, at New Orleans, 299.
COUNCIL ELM, of William Penn, 38.
CRADLE OF AMERICAN LIBERTY, Faneuil Hall, 104.
CREEK INDIAN WAR, Massacre at Fort Mims, 289.
CRESAP, COLONEL, nicknamed Big Spoon, 192.
CRISTOBAL, CITY OF, named after Columbus, 25.
CROCKETT, DAVY, joins Andrew Jackson, 290.
CUBA, Liberation of, 59, 61.
CUSTIS, GEORGE WASHINGTON PARKE, 200, 203.
CUSTIS, JACK, 198.
CUSTIS, NELLIE, 200.
CUSTIS, PATSY, 198.
DEANE, SILAS, attends First Continental Congress, 80.
DE KALB, BARON, accompanies Lafayette to America, 414;
chosen by Lafayette to be lieutenant, 419;
mortally wounded at Camden, 415.
DE LAS CASAS, _see_ LAS CASAS.
DE MIRANDA, _see_ MIRANDA.
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE OF THE UNITED STATES,
in the spirit of Magna Carta, 98;
framed by Jefferson, 308;
clause on slavery stricken out, 311;
Fiftieth anniversary of signing, 91, 304, 313.
_See also_ FOURTH OF JULY; JEFFERSON; LIBERTY BELL.
DECLARATIONS OF INDEPENDENCE OF OTHER COUNTRIES, Argentina, 243;
Bolivia, 390;
Brazil, 113;
Chile, 404;
Haiti, 405;
Peru, 265;
Venezuela, 342.
DELAWARE, aids blockaded Boston, 79;
sends delegates to First Continental Congress, 80.
EARTH, old theories about its shape, 7.
EARTHLY PARADISE, Columbus’s search for, 5, 15, 21.
ECUADOR, Guayaquil now a part of, 271;
formation of Republic, 390.
EDWARD VII OF ENGLAND, decides Argentine-Chilean boundary line, 407.
EL CRISTO OF THE ANDES, 406.
ELDER PITT, soubriquet of William Pitt, 94.
ELKHORN RANCH, Roosevelt at, 48.
EMPIRE OF THE SOUTHERN CROSS, _see_ BRAZIL.
ENGLISH CONSTITUTION, _see_ CONSTITUTIONS OF OTHER COUNTRIES.
ESTABLISHED CHURCH OF ENGLAND, 125, 330, 350.
EVER FAITHFUL ISLE, soubriquet of Cuba, 59.
FAIRFAX, LORD, Washington surveys his estate, 191, 193.
FANEUIL HALL, cradle of American Liberty, 104.
FAREWELL ADDRESS, Washington consults Madison and Hamilton, 158.
FATHER OF HIS COUNTRY, soubriquet of Washington, 189.
FATHER THADDEUS, soubriquet of Kosciuszko, 225.
FEDERAL CONSTITUTION, _see_ CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES.
FEDERAL CONVENTION, Washington presides at, 171;
Franklin and the rising sun, 171;
wisdom of its members, 442.
_See also_ CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES.
FEDERAL UNION, _see_ UNION, THE.
FIRST AMERICAN, soubriquet of Roger Williams, 347.
FIRST SOLDIER, FIRST CITIZEN, soubriquet of Bernardo O’Higgins, 404.
FLAGS OF THE UNITED STATES, Pine Tree, 358, 360;
adoption
of Stars and Stripes, 361;
design for Stars on Flag, 88;
first foreign salute to, 362.
_See also_ BANNERS.
FLAGS OF OTHER REPUBLICS, Argentina, 251;
Chile, 255, 397;
Cuba, 60;
Peru, 265;
Venezuela, 339, 342.
FLAMING SON OF LIBERTY, soubriquet of Miranda, 331, 346.
FORT MCHENRY, visited by Lafayette, 423.
FORT MIMS, massacre at, 289, 291, 293, 295.
FORTUNATE ISLES, legend, 6.
FOURTH OF JULY, celebration recommended by John Adams, 74;
fiftieth anniversary of, 91, 304, 313;
Jackson reads it aloud, 282.
_See also_ DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE; INDEPENDENCE DAYS; LIBERTY BELL.
FOX, CHARLES JAMES, defender of America, 104.
FOX, GEORGE, advice to Penn about his sword, 32.
FRANCIA, Tyrant-liberator of Paraguay, 405.
FRANKLIN, BENJAMIN, some important dates in his life, 164;
the whistle, 165;
his boyhood, 166, 167;
anecdote of the rolls, 168;
standing before Kings, 169;
draws lightning from the clouds, 170;
at the Federal Convention, 171;
recommends Steuben, 221;
aids Paul Jones, 364;
bequeaths walking-stick to Washington, 172.
FRAUNCES TAVERN, Washington’s farewell to his officers at, 230.
FREDERICKSBURG, Washington visits his mother at, 195.
FRIENDS (QUAKERS), William Penn becomes a Friend, 32;
William Penn and George Fox, 32;
Isaac Potts, 212;
Nathanael Greene, 214;
John Greenleaf Whittier, 312.
_See also_ NEW JERSEY.
GALLEONS, _see_ SPANISH GALLEONS.
GARCIA, GENERAL, Cuban Patriot, 60.
GARRISON, WILLIAM LLOYD, Abolitionist, 312.
GATES, GENERAL, his conspiracy against Washington, 418.
GAUCHOS, Argentine cowboys or plainsmen, 241, 242.
GENOA, birthplace of Columbus, 3.
GEORGE III, KING OF ENGLAND, Petitioned by First Continental Congress, 81.
GEORGE WASHINGTON OF SPANISH AMERICA, soubriquet of Jose de San Martin, 254.
GETTYSBURG ADDRESS, text of, 186.
GOD, PRAYERS TO HIM FOR OUR COUNTRY, Washington’s
Prayer at Valley Forge, 213;
in his “Legacy,” 232;
in his letter to Putnam, 151;
poem by D. C. Roberts, 450.
GOD MAKES A PATH, poem by Roger Williams, 348.
GOMEZ, GENERAL, Cuban Patriot, 60.
GOSPEL, THE, Columbus’s desire to preach it, 9, 10.
GRAND KHAN OF TARTARY, _see_ KUBLAI KHAN.
GRAND OLD ADMIRAL, soubriquet of Columbus, 20, 26.
GREAT COLOMBIA, formed, 272, 388;
Independence recognized by the United States, 267;
dissolved, 390.
GREAT COMMONER, soubriquet of William Pitt, 94.
GREAT DROUGHT, in Plymouth Colony, 138.
GREAT EMANCIPATOR, soubriquet of Lincoln, 173.
GREENE, NATHANIEL, at the Siege of Boston, 213;
recommends Hamilton to Washington, 157;
presents Moll Pitcher to Washington, 219;
bids Washington farewell at Fraunces Tavern, 230;
tribute to him, 215.
GUAYAQUIL (NOW A PART OF ECUADOR), liberation of, 271;
San Martin and Bolivar meet at, 273.
GULF OF PEARLS, discovered by Columbus, 18.
HAITI, liberation of, 405.
HAMILTON, ALEXANDER, some important dates in his life, 154;
boyhood, 155;
meets Washington, 157;
becomes Washington’s private secretary, 157;
defends the Constitution, 158;
bids Washington farewell at Fraunces Tavern, 230;
becomes Secretary of the Treasury, 160;
member of the Cincinnati, 208;
tribute to him, by Daniel Webster, 154.
HANCOCK, JOHN, at Lexington, 82;
presides over Second Continental Congress, 82.
HANNIBAL OF THE ANDES, soubriquet of San Martin, 254.
HARDING, WARREN G., at the unveiling of statue of Bolivar, 121.
HAVANA HARBOUR, battleship, Maine destroyed in, 62.
HAYS, MOLLY, _see_ PITCHER MOLLY.
HEARTS OF OAK, Hamilton’s company, 157.
HENRY, PATRICK, some important dates in his life, 316;
meets Jefferson, 307;
elected to House of Burgesses, 307;
speaks against Stamp Act, 317;
“Give me Liberty, or give me Death!” 321;
influence on John Marshall, 432;
delegate to First Continental Congress, 80, 320, 322.
HIDALGO, Liberator of Mexico, 405.
HOLY ALLIANCE, formation, 268;
plan to invade America, 269;
cause of declaring Monroe Doctrine, 270;
Chile threatened by, 403.
HOLY BIBLE, influence on William Bradford, 125;
Lincoln’s mother reads it to her children, 176;
influence on Lincoln, 184;
Lincoln reads it to White House servants, 184;
Lincoln’s tribute to, 184;
text from, used by Lincoln, 184;
text from, on Liberty Bell, 310.
HOPKINS, OCEANUS, Pilgrim child, born at sea, 132.
HOUSE DIVIDED AGAINST ITSELF, text from Bible used by Lincoln, 184.
HOUSTON, SAM, serves under Jackson, 295.
ICELAND, known as Thule, 8.
INDEPENDENCE, Growth of Idea, 98, 99, 100, 308, 316, 429.
_See also_ DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE; LIBERTY;
MAGNA CARTA; REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT.
INDEPENDENCE DAYS, in Argentina, 243;
Chile, 404.
_See also_ DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE; FOURTH OF JULY.
INDIANS, _see_ AMERICAN INDIANS.
ISABELLA, PRINCESS OF BRAZIL, frees Brazilian slaves, 118.
ISABELLA, QUEEN OF SPAIN, aids Columbus, 11, 12;
honours him on return from Indies, 14;
permits him to be deposed, 19;
is grieved at his ill-treatment, 20.
JACKSON, ANDREW, some important dates in his life, 280;
boyhood, 281;
reads the Declaration, 282;
fights in War for Independence, 283;
tribute to his mother, 286;
emigrates to Tennessee, 286;
why called Old Hickory, 298;
meets Chief Weatherford, 293;
his regard for Sam Houston, 296, 297;
story of the cotton-bales, 299;
kind treatment of enemy at Battle of New Orleans, 301;
his toast on Jefferson’s birthday, 279;
tribute to him, by Roosevelt, 280.
JACKSON, MRS. ELIZABETH, nurses the wounded soldiers, 283;
rescues her sons from prison, 284;
dies while rescuing other Patriots, 285.
JACKSON, HUGH, Andrew’s brother, a Patriot, 283.
JACKSON, ROBERT, helps nurse soldiers, 283;
captured by the British, 284;
dies after release from prison, 285.
JAMAICA, ISLAND OF, Columbus stranded on, 24.
JAPAN (CIPANGO), Columbus’s search for, 16.
JAY, JOHN, attends First Continental Congress, 81.
JEFFERSON, PETER, strength and force of character, 306.
JEFFERSON, THOMAS, some important dates in his life, 304;
boyhood, 305;
meets Patrick Henry, 307;
delegate to Continental Congress, 308;
frames Declaration of Independence, 308;
ardent Abolitionist, 310;
God’s judgment on Slavery, 312;
dies on Fiftieth Anniversary of signing of Declaration, 304, 313;
tribute to him, by Lincoln, 303.
JESUS CHRIST, _see_ CHRIST JESUS.
JONES, JOHN PAUL, some important dates in his life, 358;
boyhood, 359;
hoists flag on the _Alfred_, 360;
appointed Commander, 361;
first foreign salute offered to Stars and Stripes, 362;
commands the _Poor Richard_, 364;
appearance and character, 367;
his famous sayings, 369.
KNOX, GENERAL, bids Washington farewell at Fraunces Tavern, 231.
KOSCIUSZKO, THADDEUS, meets Washington, 223;
romance of, 224, 227;
fortifies West Point, 225;
leaves American property to free slaves, 311;
member of the Cincinnati, 208;
incident of Polish soldiers, 226.
KUBLAI KHAN, Columbus’s search for, 9, 10, 13, 21, 24.
LA BANDA ORIENTAL, _see_ URUGUAY.
LA PLATA, _see_ ARGENTINA.
LA RABIDA, Columbus at, 12.
LAFAYETTE, MARQUIS DE, some important dates in his life, 412;
arrival in America, 411, 412, 413, 414;
befriended by Washington, 414;
gifts to suffering America, 420;
wounded at Brandywine, 416;
loyal to Washington, 418;
his toast to Washington, 419;
gifts to Washington, 201;
member of the Cincinnati, 208;
revisits America, 422;
is honoured by Congress, 420;
transmits relics of Washington, to Bolivar, 421.
LAND OF YOUTH, legend of the Atlantic, 6.
LAS CASAS, BARTOLOME DE, succours the Indians, 26.
LATIN AMERICAN REPUBLICS, their number, 405;
their Colonial nationality, 405.
_See also_ BOLIVAR; MIRANDA; O’HIGGINS; PEDRO; SAN MARTIN.
LE BON HOMME RICHARD, Paul Jones’s ship, 364.
LEANDER, THE, Miranda’s ship, 335;
John Adams’s grandson sails in, 90 335;
cruise to the Spanish Maine, 336;
fate of, 339.
LEE, HENRY, protégé of Washington, 216;
at Mount Vernon, 217;
delivers Washington’s official funeral oration, 217.
LEIF, discovery of Vinland, 8.
LEXINGTON, BATTLE OF, Paul Revere warns the town, 81;
news of, arouses Putnam, 146;
arouses Marshall, 433.
LIBERATORS, _see_ BOLIVAR; CUBA; MIRANDA; O’HIGGINS; SAN MARTIN.
LIBERTY, William Penn’s ideas on, 35, 36;
liberty of conscience, 32, 35, 125, 209, 350.
_See also_ INDEPENDENCE, GROWTH OF IDEA.
LIBERTY BELL, announces signing of Declaration of Independence, 309.
LIBERTY POLE, in New York, 104.
LIBERTY TREE, in Boston, 104.
LIGHT HORSE HARRY, soubriquet of Henry Lee, 216.
LIMA, Colonial power of, 244, 257;
siege and fall of, 257;
celebrates its first Independence Day, 265.
LIMON BAY, discovered by Columbus, 25.
LINCOLN, ABRAHAM, some important dates in his life, 174;
poem to, by Bryant, 174;
boyhood, 175, 176;
at New Orleans, 177;
his honesty, 177;
story of the little birds, 178;
rescues a pig, 179;
opens the kittens’ eyes, 180;
his kindness to children, 181;
influence of the Bible on Lincoln, 177, 183;
thanks Coloured Delegation for gift of Bible, 184;
Order against Sunday-work in the Army and Navy, 185;
Gettysburg Address, 186;
tribute to Washington, 190;
God’s judgment on slavery, 310.
LINCOLN, NANCY HANKS, makes a home in the wilderness, 175;
teaches her children, 176;
reads them the Bible, 176;
her influence on Lincoln, 177.
LION OF THE APURE, soubriquet of General Paez, 382.
LITTLE FRIEND IN FRONT STREET, soubriquet of Haym Salomon, 228.
LLANEROS, Venezuelan cowboys or plainsmen, 382.
MACEO, GENERAL, Cuban Patriot, 60.
MADISON, JAMES, consulted by Washington, 158;
tribute to Haym Salomon, 228;
in the Virginia Convention, 446.
MAELDUNE, legend of, 5.
MAGNA CARTA, a foundation of English Liberty, 97, 98, 442.
MAINE, aids blockaded Boston, 79.
MAINE, BATTLESHIP, destruction of, 62.
MAIPU, victory of, 253.
MAIZE (INDIAN CORN), discovery of, 12.
MARBLEHEAD, aids blockaded Boston, 79.
MARCO POLO, _see_ POLO, MARCO.
MARGARITA, ISLAND OF, discovered by Columbus, 18.
MARSHALL, JOHN, some important dates in his life, 426;
boyhood,
427;
brought up an American, 425, 431;
lieutenant in the War for Independence, 433, 434, 437;
at Valley Forge, 435;
nicknamed Silver Heels, 436;
saddlebags story, 439;
cherry story, 440;
public career, 441;
appointed Chief Justice, 444;
expounder of the Constitution, 444, 445;
his tribute to his mother, 438;
to his father, 439;
reverence for him in Virginia, 446;
expresses himself on solidarity of the Union, 425;
on the integrity of the Judiciary, 446;
his religious faith, 438, 448;
tributes to him, 426, 447.
MARTIN, GEORGE, alias of Francisco de Miranda, 89, 336.
MARYLAND, aids blockaded Boston, 79.
MASSACHUSETTS BAY COLONY, settled by Puritans, 350;
sends delegates to First Continental Congress, 81.
_See also_ ADAMS; BOSTON; WILLIAMS.
MASSASOIT, KING, helps Pilgrims find lost boy, 133;
aids Roger Williams, 352.
MAYFLOWER, SHIP, leaves England, 128;
anchors in Cape Cod Bay, 129;
anchors in Plymouth Harbour, 131.
MAYFLOWER COMPACT, signed, 127.
MCKEAN, THOMAS, delegate to First Continental Congress, 80.
MCKINLEY, WILLIAM, on the Cuban situation, 61;
reluctant to go to war, 62;
forced into war by destruction of the _Maine_, 62.
MEDORA, Roosevelt at, 48.
MENDOZA, at the foot of the Andes, 244;
patriotism of citizens, 246, 250, 251;
honour San Martin, 247;
called “the Nest of the Argentine Eagle,” 247.
MEXICO, War of Liberation, 405;
Independence recognized by the United States, 267.
MIRANDA, FRANCISCO DE, some important dates in his life, 326;
boyhood, 331;
propaganda for South American Independence, 332;
fights for the United States, 332;
fights for French Freedom, 333;
founds secret society, 334, 376, 396;
in New York, 89, 334, 335;
cruises in the _Leander_, 335;
vain attempt to free South America, 339, 341;
returns to Venezuela, 342, 376;
signs Venezuelan Declaration of Independence, 342;
made Commander-in-Chief of Venezuelan forces, 342;
betrayed to Monteverde, 345;
captivity and death, 346;
tribute to him, by the Venezuelan Government, 325;
tribute by William Spence Robertson, 326.
MISIONES, San Martin born in, 237.
MISSOURI COMPROMISE, Jefferson’s opinion on, 312.
MONMOUTH, BATTLE OF, Moll Pitcher, 218;
Steuben’s tactics win, 223;
Washington at, 223.
MONROE, JAMES, recognizes Independence of Spanish America, 267;
promulgates the Monroe Doctrine, 270.
MONROE DOCTRINE, announced, 270;
welcomed by Chile, 403.
MONTEVERDE, GENERAL, his campaign in Venezuela, 343, 344, 377;
imprisons Miranda, 345;
gives passport to Bolivar, 345.
MONTICELLO, the country estate of Jefferson, 304.
MONTREAL, aids blockaded Boston, 80.
MORAVIAN NUNS, nurse Lafayette, 417;
present banner to Pulaski, 418, 424.
MORRIS, ROBERT, Financier of the War for Independence, 159;
recommends Hamilton for Secretary of Treasury, 160;
procures money through Haym Salomon, 228.
MOUNT VERNON, children of, 197, 198, 201;
stables and horses of, 201, 204;
guests at, 205, 216, 322.
MUIR, JOHN, with Roosevelt in the Yosemite, 55.
MYSTERY SHIP, _see_ LEANDER, THE.
NAPOLEON, effect of his wars on South America, 112, 239, 268, 341.
NAPOLEON OF THE SOUTH AMERICAN REVOLUTION, soubriquet of Simon Bolivar, 392.
NASHVILLE, Jackson emigrates to, 287, 289.
NELSON, Washington’s famous charger, 201, 204.
NEST OF THE ARGENTINE EAGLE, soubriquet of the city of Mendoza, 247.
NEVIS, ISLAND OF, birthplace of Hamilton, 155.
NEW ENGLAND ARMY, besieges Boston, 82;
adopted by Congress, 83, 84.
NEW GRANADA, liberated by Bolivar, 388;
absorbed into Great Colombia, 388;
modern Republic of Colombia, 390.
NEW HAMPSHIRE, aids blockaded Boston, 79.
NEW JERSEY, refuge of persecuted Friends, 35;
aids blockaded Boston, 79.
NEW ORLEANS, Lincoln attends slave-market at, 177;
story of the cotton-bales, 299;
its citizens nurse wounded enemies, 301;
Jackson’s tribute to his mother, 286.
NEW YORK, aids blockaded Boston, 79;
Hamilton in, 156;
Washington in, 230;
Miranda in, 89, 334, 335;
Haym Salomon in, 229;
Paez in, 382;
Lafayette in, 422;
opposition to ratification in, 159.
_See also_ STEUBEN.
NORTH CAROLINA, aids blockaded Boston, 79.
O’HIGGINS, AMBROSE, boyhood, 395;
made Spanish Viceroy of Lima, 396.
O’HIGGINS, BERNARDO, some important dates in his life, 394;
boyhood, 396;
joins the Patriots, 397;
heroic action at Rancagua, 398;
escapes to Argentina, 400;
crosses the Andes with San Martin, 251, 253;
is made Supreme Dictator of Chile, 255, 400;
equips navy to liberate Peru, 255;
his work of civic reconstruction, 401;
exiled from Chile, 402;
welcomed by Peru, 402;
recalled to Chile, 403;
dies in Peru, 403;
National Hero of Chile, 404.
OLD HICKORY, soubriquet of Andrew Jackson, 297.
OLD PUT, soubriquet of Israel Putnam, 142.
ONAS, soubriquet of William Penn, 37, 41.
ORINOCO RIVER, description of, 378, 384.
OYSTER BAY, home-town of Roosevelt, 50, 53.
PAEZ, GENERAL, his strength and courage, 382;
seizes gunboats on the Apure, 383;
revolts against Bolivar, 389;
President of Venezuela, 390;
in exile, 382.
PAMPAS, Argentine prairie or plain, 240, 241.
PANAMA, discovered by Columbus, 25.
PARAGUAY, Tyrant-liberator of, 405.
PARIS OF AMERICA, soubriquet of Buenos Aires, 241.
PAUL, JOHN, _see_ JONES, JOHN PAUL.
PEACE, _see_ ARBITRATION AND PEACE.
PEARL ISLANDS, discovered by Columbus, 21, 26.
PEARL OF THE ANTILLES, soubriquet of Cuba, 60.
PEARLS, found by Columbus, 17, 19, 21, 26.
PEDRO I, EMPEROR OF BRAZIL, declares Independence of Brazil, 113;
abdicates, 113.
PEDRO II, EMPEROR OF BRAZIL, some important dates in his life, 110;
boy-emperor, 113, 115;
patriot, 116;
opposes slavery, 117;
abdicates, 119;
poem to him by Whittier, 110.
_See also_ BRAZIL.
PENDLETON, EDMUND, attends First Continental Congress, 80;
at Mount Vernon, 322.
PENN, WILLIAM, some important dates in his life, 30;
vision in boyhood, 31;
becomes a Friend, 32;
story of sword, 32;
persecution of, 33;
his principles of Peace, 30, 33;
in America, 36;
friendly and just treatment of Indians, 38, 41;
Indians’ sorrow at his death, 42.
PENNSYLVANIA, how named, 35;
charter granted William Penn, 35.
_See also_ PHILADELPHIA.
PENSACOLA, Miranda helps to attack, 332.
PEREZ, FRIAR JUAN, aids Columbus, 12.
PERU, under Spanish rule, 244, 257;
patriotic reception of San Martin, 256;
declares its Independence, 265;
National Flag, 265;
Independence recognized by the United States, 267;
gratitude to San Martin, 275;
Bolivar’s plans for liberation of, 273, 388;
its early Patriot, Tupac Amaru, 405;
gratitude to O’Higgins, 402.
_See also_ LIMA; PIZARRO.
PHILADELPHIA, naming of, 37;
William Penn’s first visit to, 37;
meeting place of Continental Congress, 80;
Independence
of the United States declared in, 309.
PILGRIM FATHERS, leave Leyden, 123, 124, 126;
land in America, 129;
attacked by Nauset Indians, 130;
hunt for lost boy, 134;
pray for rain, 138;
friendly to Roger Williams, 352.
_See also_ SEPARATISTS.
PITCHER, MOLL, at Monmouth, 218;
rewarded by Washington, 219.
PITT, THOMAS, why called “Diamond Pitt,” 95;
transmits his strong will to William Pitt, 96.
PITT, WILLIAM, some important dates in his life, 94;
boyhood, 96;
defender of America, 93, 101;
supports Francisco de Miranda, 89, 333;
his dramatic last appearance, 105;
tributes to, 94.
PITTSBURGH, (PA.), named for William Pitt, 94.
PITTSFIELD, MASS., named for William Pitt, 94.
PIZARRO, founder of Lima, 244.
PLYMOUTH, MASS., settled, 131;
Canonicus sends Rattlesnake Challenge to, 136;
saved by Roger Williams, 354.
_See also_, PILGRIM FATHERS.
POLO, MARCO, his travels read by Columbus, 10.
POOR RICHARD, THE (LE BON HOMME RICHARD), Paul Jones’s ship, 364, 365.
POOR RICHARD’S ALMANACK, published by Franklin, 169;
Paul Jones, names ship after, 364.
PORTIA, pen-name of Abigail Adams, 76.
POTTS, ISAAC, overhears Washington praying at Valley Forge, 212.
PRINCE OF PEACE, Penn in his Peace Plan, refers to Christ as, 34;
pledge of Argentina and Chile to, 406.
PROCLAIM LIBERTY THROUGHOUT ALL THE LAND, Bible text on Liberty Bell, 310.
PROTECTOR OF PERU, soubriquet of Jose de San Martin, 266.
PROVIDENCE, founded by Roger Williams, 352;
under peaceful rule of Roger Williams, 355.
PUERTO CABELLO, imprisonment of Americans in, 340;
fall of, 344;
Miranda imprisoned in, 345.
PULASKI, COUNT, visits Lafayette, 417;
receives banner from Moravian Nuns, 418;
banner in Lafayette’s procession, 424.
PURITANS, meaning of name, 350;
Puritans in Boston, 350.
PUTNAM, ISRAEL, some important dates in his life, 142;
boyhood, 143;
fight with the wolf, 144;
at Bunker Hill, 147;
makes Washington laugh, 148;
praise from Washington, 150;
tribute from Washington Irving, 142.
QUAKERS, _see_ FRIENDS.
QUEBEC, aids blockaded Boston, 80;
Petitions of First Continental Congress, 81.
QUINCY, MASS., _see_ BRAINTREE.
RANCAGUA, battle of, 398.
RANGER, THE, Paul Jones’s ship, 362.
RARITAN, Hamilton at, the passage of, 157.
READ, GEORGE, delegate to First Continental Congress, 80.
REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT, Lincoln on, 187;
in early Virginia, 308.
_See also_ CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES; INDEPENDENCE, GROWTH OF IDEA.
REPUBLICS, see names of Republics.
REVERE, PAUL, ride to Philadelphia, 77;
ride to Lexington, 81.
RHODE ISLAND, aids blockaded Boston, 79;
sends troops to Bunker Hill and Siege of Boston, 214.
_See also_ WILLIAMS.
RIO DE JANEIRO, Pedro II crowned in, 113;
visited by Roosevelt, 66;
statue, gift of American people, placed in, 122.
RIO DE LA PLATA, River of Silver, 242, 243.
RIO TEODORO, River of Doubt, named after Roosevelt, 69.
RIVER OF DOUBT, explored by Roosevelt, 65.
RIVER OF SILVER, Rio de la Plata, 242, 243.
RIVERS, _see_ names of rivers.
ROBERTSON, WILLIAM SPENCE, characterization of San Martin, 236;
of Miranda, 326;
of Bolivar, 391, 392;
decorated with Order of Liberators of Venezuela, 392.
ROBINSON, PASTOR JOHN, in Leyden, 126.
ROCKINGHAM, LORD, defender of America, 103.
RODNEY, CÆSAR, delegate to
First Continental Congress, 80.
RODRIQUEZ, SIMON, Bolivar’s tutor, 374;
arouses his patriotism, 376.
ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH, in Spanish America, 330.
_See also_ BELTRAN; LAS CASAS; PEREZ.
ROOSEVELT, KERMIT, at Sagamore Hill, 53;
hunts in Africa, 57;
explores the River of Doubt, 66.
ROOSEVELT, THEODORE, some important dates in his life, 44;
boyhood, 45;
love of Nature, 46, 51;
busting broncos, 47;
ranching, 47;
square deal, 43, 44;
with John Burroughs in the Yellowstone, 53;
Big Stick, 54;
with John Muir in the Yosemite, 55;
Bear Hunters’ dinner, 56;
hunting in Africa, 57;
Rough Riders, 59, 61;
at San Juan Hill, 64;
at Montauk Point, 65;
explores the River of Doubt, 65;
tribute to him, 69.
ST. BRANDAN, legend of, 6.
ST. CHRISTOPHER, legend of, 9.
SAGAMORE HILL, Roosevelt’s Long Island home, 50, 52.
SAGE OF MONTICELLO, soubriquet of Thomas Jefferson, 304.
SALOMON, HAYM, finances the War for Independence, 228;
tribute to, by James Madison 228.
SAMOSET, welcomes the Pilgrims, 131.
SAN JUAN HILL, Rough Riders at, 64.
SAN LORENZO, victory of, 242.
SAN MARTIN, JOSE DE, some important dates in his life, 236;
boyhood, 237;
serves as officer in Spain, 238;
returns to Argentina, 240;
wins battle of San Lorenzo, 242;
made Governor of Cuyo, 244;
his noble character, 247;
mobilizes Army to cross the Andes, 243, 248, 250;
crosses the Andes, 249;
refuses honours, 254;
proclamation to Peruvians, 256;
takes Lima, 257;
his modesty, 261;
his kindness, 262;
his love of children, 263;
his graciousness, 263;
his gentleness, 264;
becomes Protector of Peru, 266;
interview with Bolivar, 272;
lays down his command, 275;
his wife, 246, 247, 275;
goes into voluntary exile, 276;
his self-abnegation, 277;
his death, 276;
interment at Buenos Aires, 278;
tributes to him by Lord Bryce, Joseph Conrad,
William Spence Robertson, and Bartolome Mitre, 235, 236.
_See also_ ARGENTINA; BOLIVAR; O’HIGGINS.
SAN MATEO, country estate of Bolivar, 374, 375.
SANTIAGO, CHILE, taken by the Spaniards, 398, 399.
SANTO DOMINGO, ruled by Columbus, 18, 19.
SEA OF DARKNESS, _see_ ATLANTIC OCEAN.
SEPARATISTS, not Puritans, 350.
_See also_ BRADFORD; PILGRIM FATHERS.
SEQUOIAS, visited by Roosevelt John Muir, 55.
SHACKAMAXON, Place of Kings, 38.
SHADWELL FARM, property of Thomas Jefferson, 305.
SHENANDOAH RIVER, meaning of name, 192;
Washington surveys in its valley, 192.
SHERMAN, ROGER, delegate to First Continental Congress, 80.
SHIRRA, REV. MR., prays God to save Leith from Paul Jones, 366;
strong wind blows Jones’s ship away, 367.
SILVER HEELS, soubriquet of John Marshall, 436.
SLATE ROCK, Indians greet Roger Williams from, 353.
SLAVERY IN BRAZIL, emancipation of slaves, 117, 118.
SLAVERY IN SPANISH AMERICA, Indian slaves, 26, 329, 330;
slaves defended by Bartolome de Las Casas, 26;
patriot slaves freed by San Martin, 242, 257.
SLAVERY IN THE UNITED STATES, Lincoln at the slave-market, 177;
slave clause stricken from Declaration of Independence, 311;
Abolitionists, 312;
God’s judgment on slavery, pronounced by Lincoln, 310;
by Jefferson, 312.
SMITH, WILLIAM STEUBEN, sails with Miranda, 90, 335.
SONS OF LIBERTY, origin of name, 104;
active in the Colonies, 104.
SOUL LIBERTY, preached by Roger Williams, 347, 348, 351.
SOUTH CAROLINA, aids blockaded Boston, 79.
SPAIN, rule of, in Spanish America, 237, 242, 329.
_See also_ BOLIVAR; MIRANDA; O’HIGGINS; SAN MARTIN.
SPANISH GALLEONS, treasure ships, 26, 327.
SPANISH MAIN, 327, 338.
STAMP ACT, William Pitt’s speech against, 102;
Patrick Henry’s speech against, 317.
STANDISH, CAPTAIN MILES, sails for the New World, 126;
arrests Canonicus’s messenger, 137.
STARS AND STRIPES, _see_ FLAGS OF THE UNITED STATES.
STEUBEN, BARON, at Valley Forge, 222;
at Monmouth, 223;
bids Washington farewell at Fraunces Tavern, 230;
his services recognized by the State of New York, 223.
SUCRE, ANTONIO DE, Bolivar’s general and friend, 389;
liberates Bolivia, 390.
TARLETON, GENERAL, massacres militia of the Waxhaws, 283.
TARTARY, Columbus’s search for, 9, 16.
TERRESTRIAL PARADISE, Columbus’s search for, 5, 15, 21.
TERRIBLE CORNET OF HORSE, soubriquet of William Pitt, 97.
THULE, visited by Columbus, 8;
supposed to be Iceland, 8.
TIERRA FIRME, old Spanish name for the South American continent, 17.
TISQUANTUM, the Pilgrim’s Indian interpreter, 134, 135, 136.
TOBACCO, discovered by Columbus, 12.
TOUSSAINT L’OUVERTURE, Liberator of Haiti, 405.
TRINIDAD, named by Columbus, 16.
TRUMBULL, GOVERNOR JONATHAN, sends Putnam to Bunker Hill, 147;
supplies powder for Battle, 209;
nicknamed Brother Jonathan, 210.
TUPAC AMARU, early Peruvian Patriot, 405.
TWIN CITIES, Cristobal and Colon, named after Columbus, 25.
UNION, THE, Hamilton’s faith in, 154;
Andrew Jackson’s toast, 279;
John Marshall and the solidarity of the Union, 425, 431;
the Constitution necessary to protect the Union, 158, 443;
Washington on the Unity of our Government, 448.
URUGUAY, called La Banda Oriental, 405;
Artigas, Liberator of, 405;
Roosevelt visits, 66.
USHEEN, legend of the Atlantic, 6.
VALLEY FORGE, winter of suffering, 210, 211, 418;
Martha Washington nurses the sick, 212;
Washington prays God for aid, 213;
Nathanael Greene procures army supplies, 215;
Steuben trains the Army, 222;
John Marshall keeps up the soldiers’ courage, 436.
VENEZUELA, discovered by Columbus, 17;
Miranda’s attempt to liberate, 335, 339;
Declaration of Independence, 342;
National Flag, 339, 342;
Constitution
of Bolivar, 384.
_See also_ BOLIVAR; MIRANDA.
VERMONT, aids blockaded Boston, 79.
VILLAMIL, JOSEPH, helps to liberate Guayaquil, 271.
VINLAND THE GOOD, Columbus may have heard of, 9.
VIRGINIA, aids blockaded Boston, 79;
summons first representative assembly in America, 308.
_See also_ HENRY; JEFFERSON; MADISON; MARSHALL; PENDLETON; WASHINGTON.
VIRGINIA RANGERS, cover Braddock’s Retreat, 428.
WARREN, DR. JOSEPH, at Bunker Hill, 87.
WASHINGTON, GEORGE, some important dates in his life, 190;
Lincoln’s tribute on his birthday, 190;
boyhood, 191;
offers to aid blockaded Boston, 80;
delegate to First Continental Congress, 80, 322;
nominated Commander-in-Chief, 83;
his modesty, 84, 171;
arrives at Cambridge, 147;
the spy in camp, 148;
letter to Putnam, 150;
meets Hamilton, 157;
on Sunday work in the Army and Navy, 185;
Cincinnatus of the West, 189, 206;
love of children, 198, 200, 204;
story of the little Boston Girl, 200;
his favourite horse, 204;
anecdote of the bowl of tea, 206;
his tact and kindness, 206;
friendship with Governor Trumbull, 209;
at Valley Forge, 210;
compassion for suffering soldiers, 210;
in prayer
to God for help, 213;
befriends Light Horse Harry, 216;
sends Kosciuszko to fortify West Point, 225;
pays the troops with the aid of Haym Salomon, 228;
bids farewell to his officers, 230;
presides over Federal Convention, 171;
bequest from Franklin, 172;
Farewell Address, 158, 418;
bequeaths their Freedom to his slaves, 311;
tributes to him, 233, 234.
_See also_ GREENE; LAFAYETTE; LEE.
WASHINGTON, MARTHA, wedding day of, 197;
at Valley Forge, 211;
laughing parrot of, 217;
anxiety for Washington, 322.
WASHINGTON, MARY, education of her son, 195;
Washington visits her at Fredericksburg, 195.
WASHINGTON OF SOUTH AMERICA, soubriquet of Jose de San Martin, 254.
WAXHAWS, home-place of Andrew Jackson, 281, 283.
WEATHERFORD, CHIEF, 290, 291.
WESTERN PASSAGE TO ASIA, Columbus’s search for, 9, 11, 13, 25.
WEST INDIES, discovered by Columbus, 12.
WEST POINT, fortified by Kosciuszko, 225.
WHAT CHEER, NETOP, Indian greeting to Roger Williams, 353.
WHITE, PEREGRINE, Pilgrim boy born on the _Mayflower_, 133.
WHITTIER, JOHN GREENLEAF, as Abolitionist, 312.
WILLIAMS, ROGER, some important
dates in his life, 348;
boyhood, 349;
preaches Soul Liberty, 347, 348, 351;
his other teachings, 351;
exiled from Massachusetts Bay Colony, 351;
founds Providence, 353;
saves Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay Colonies, 354;
peaceful and liberal rule of, 355.
WINDHAM, (CONN.), aids blockaded Boston, 78.
WINSLOW, GOVERNOR EDWARD, sails for New World, 126;
tells of the Great Drought, 139;
befriends Roger Williams, 352.
WINTER, N. O., describes _El Cristo_ of the Andes, 409.
WOOD, GENERAL LEONARD, Colonel of the Rough Riders, 63;
made Brigadier-General, 64.
YAPEYU, birthplace of Jose de San Martin, 237.
YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Roosevelt’s visit to, 53.
YOSEMITE, THE, Roosevelt’s visit to, 55.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Ode by William Collins.
[2] These are merely extracts from Pitt’s speeches.
[3] See page 308.
[4] Fraunces Tavern is still standing on the corner of Pearl and
Broad Streets, New York City. It has been restored by the Sons of the
Revolution.
[5] Pronounced Hewston.
[6] Read the story of the _Spanish Galleons_, on page 327.
[7] The Christ of the Andes.
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