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CH. X.]

WILKINSON'S ADVANCE INTO CANADA.

General Armstrong, the new secretary of war, (p. 179,) had effected some changes in the military arrangements for carrying forward hostilities against the enemy. General Dearborn, as we have noted, (p. 190,) retired from the service, and General Wilkinson was placed at the head of the army of the centre. This officer, respecting whose character considerable difference of opinion existed, was entrusted by the secretary of war with the important duty of following up the brilliant successes of Perry and Harrison, and though the season was far advanced, it was confidently expected that he would be able to march at once to Montreal, and establish his winter quarters there. The force under his command on the Niagara, amounted to eight thousand regulars, beside the troops under Harrison, which joined him at the close of October. General Hampton was in command of the army of the north, then encamped at Plattsburg, on Lake Champlain, and amounting to about four thousand men. As the season for military operations was rapidly drawing to a close, it was important that no

time should be lost, and meas1813. ures were immediately taken for carrying into effect the projected invasion of Lower Canada. The outline of the plan which had been adopted, was; to descend the St. Lawrence, passing the British posts without attempting their capture; to form a junction with General Hampton, at some designated point on the river; and then, with the united forces to proceed to the Island of Montreal. After which, to use Wilkinson's flowery language, "their artil

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lery, bayonets, and swords, must secure them a triumph, or provide for them. honorable graves."

Such, however, were the difficulties attending the concentration of the troops, such the want of preparation, notwithstanding all that had been said on the subject, that, not till the beginning of November, could Wilkinson get the flotilla, in which his troops were embarked, under way. French Creek was made the general rendezvous for the troops after their entrance into the St. Lawrence, and General Brown was sent forward to take the chief command. On the 2d of November, Commodore Chauncey took position in the St. Lawrence, near French Creek, so as to command the north and south channels. The enemy, who were vigilant and active, attacked the detachment under General Brown; but to no great effect. On the 6th, the army was embarked on the river, and in the evening landed a few miles above the British Fort Prescott. An attempt was made the same night, under cover of the fog and the darkness, to pass the fort with the flotilla unobserved; but a change in the weather exposed General Brown's movement to the enemy. A severe cannonade of three hours was kept up; nevertheless, out of three hundred boats, not one suffered the slightest injury; and before ten o'clock of the next day, they had all safely arrived at the place of destination. A messenger was now dispatched to General Hampton, informing him of the movements of the army, and requiring his co-operation.

The British commander, anticipating

1813.

the designs of the Americans, had ordered a corps of observation, from Kingston, to follow the movements of Wilkinson's army. At every every convenient point, parties of the enemy were stationed along the Canadian shore to annoy and hinder the progress of the invading force. On the 7th of November, Colonel Macomb was dispatched with twelve hundred men to remove obstructions to the descent of the army, and disperse the militia of the enemy; and on the 8th, General Brown, with his brigade, reinforced Macomb, and took command of the advance corps. On the 10th, having arrived at a dangerous rapid, called the Longue Sault, General Brown continued the advance with caution and vigilance, while General Boyd was sent against the British and Indians, who were harassing the rear of the expedition. General Wilkinson was confined to his boat by severe indisposition.*

The next morning, when the flotilla was about to proceed down the rapid from Williamsburg, alarm was given that the British were advancing in col

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first regiment, passed the wood which skirts the open ground called Chryst ler's Field, and drove in several of the enemy's parties. General Covington had, before this, advanced upon the right, where the enemy's artillery was posted; and at the moment that Colonel Ripley had assailed the left flank, he forced the right by a determined onset. Success appeared scarcely doubtful, when, unfortunately, General Covington, whose activity had rendered him conspicuous, became a mark for the sharpshooters which the enemy had stationed in Chrystler's house, and was shot from his horse. Notwithstanding his fall, the action was sustained with great bravery for more than two hours, when, by a movement of the British, the American infantry, who had been left to cover their retreat, were dislodged, and both parties retired from the field, the enemy to their camp, and the Americans to their boats.

According to Wilkinson's official report, the force engaged amounted to about seventeen hundred; the British probably numbered nearly the same, and had the immense advantage of being regular, disciplined troops. The American loss was over a hundred killed, and more than two hundred wounded. The loss on the part of the enemy was probably not much if any less.

The following day, the army proceeded on its route, and joined the advance under General Brown, at the foot of the rapid, near Barnhart. It was here that Wilkinson received, to his "unspeakable

1813.

CH. X.]

GENERAL HAMPTON'S PROCEEDINGS.

mortification and surprise," as he states, information from General Hampton, that he should not effect the junction which had been ordered to take place at St. Regis. The reason which he gave was, the scantiness of Wilkinson's provisions, and the bad condition of the roads to St. Regis. He intimated, however, that he had determined to open a communication with the St. Lawrence at Caghnawaga, and would join Wilkinson lower down the river.

General Hampton, between whom and General Wilkinson very cordial dislike and perpetual jealousy existed, seems to have thought it best to proceed in his own way, with reference to the contemplated attempt on Montreal. Accordingly, he marched to Chateaugay at the close of September, where he waited for several weeks for

1813.

further news from Wilkinson, and to the discouragement of the troops under his command. The British general had collected all his force to oppose Hampton's advance. Leaving his encampment on the 20th of October, Hampton crossed the line and proceeded down the Chateaugay River to Ormstown. Here he ascertained that the British, about six hundred strong, occupied a position six miles below him, on his route to Montreal. For the purpose of dispersing the enemy, who had obstructed the road by fallen timbers, and ambuscades of militia and Indians, Colonel Purdy, on the 25th of October, was ordered to cross the river and march down on the opposite side, until he should have passed the enemy, when he was to re-cross and attack him in his rear; whilst the

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brigade under General Izard was to assail him in front. Purdy accordingly crossed the river, bat misled by the guides, he had not marched far, when his orders were countermanded. On his return, he was attacked by the enemy's infantry and Indians, and repelled them, after a short contest, in which they threw his column, for a time, into great confusion. At the same moment they came out of their works in front, and attacked General Izard, but soon after retired behind their defences. General Hampton, now receiving information that the enemy were obtaining accessions continually, resolved, by the advice of his officers, to retreat to the position which he had occupied some days before, at Chateaugay Four Corners, at which place he arrived on the last day of the month.

Some days later, Hampton, in reply to Wilkinson's call for a junction with him at St. Regis, (which was about twenty-five miles distant,) sent the answer which we have stated above. On the receipt of this communication, a council of the principal officers was called by General Wilkinson, at which it was determined, that the objects of the campaign were no longer attainable. It was therefore resolved, that the army should quit the Canadian side of the St. Lawrence, and retire into winter quarters at French Mills, on Salmon River. General Hampton, with his troops, soon after retired to Plattsburg for the same purpose. He was loudly censured by the popular voice for his share in the failure of the attempt on Montreal, and soon after, on

the plea of indisposition, resigned his commission, General Izard being his

successor at Plattsburg. As 1813. for Wilkinson, he fared little better in public estimation, and his course was sharply criticised and condemned.* He was afterwards brought to trial, but acquitted by the court. Probably, had he been in better health, and not so dilatory and slow in his movements; had General Armstrong not interfered by being personally present at Sackett's Harbor, to oversee the operations of the campaign; and had General Hampton promptly obeyed the orders he received; the result of the expedition would have been quite different; and the opponents of the war opponents of the war would not have been able to triumph in pointing to so great a preparation resulting in so disgraceful a conclusion.

The ill consequences of Wilkinson's leaving a large force in the rear, and withdrawing the troops from the Niagara, soon began to be felt. General Harrison reached Buffalo in October, some days after the departure of Wilkinson; and, although directed to follow immediately, he was compelled to wait until some time in November, in consequence of the deficiency of transports. It was not until General Wilkinson had gone into winter quarters that Harrison embarked; orders having previously been sent for him to remain at Buffalo, which unfortunately did not arrive until after his departure. Colonel Scott remained in command at

* See Armstrong's "Notices of the War of 1812," vol. ii., pp. 1-44. See also Ingersoll's "History of the Second War," vol. i., pp. 289–310.

Fort George until the 12th of October, when he left with the regular troops for Sackett's Harbor. General M'Clure then took command, his force consisting entirely of militia, whose term of service had nearly expired. Receiving intelligence that the enemy was ap proaching him, M'Clure, on the 10th of December, removed his stores, destroyed the fort, and, acting upon the views of the council of war, set fire to the village of Newark, "leaving the wretched inhabitants," says Ingersoll, "including more than four hundred women and children, to the accumu lated horrors of famine and a Canadian winter.* Nor was that all. After M'Clure retreated over the river, and took shelter in Fort Niagara, perceiv ing the enemy in considerable force on the opposite side deprived of a shelter at Fort George, and therefore seeking it at Queenstown, M'Clure had red hot shot fired at that place, to deprive them of shelter there also."

Availing himself of the indignation excited by the destruction of Newark, Colonel Murray, at daylight, on the 19th of December, carried Fort Niag

ara by surprise; his force con- 1813.

sisted of about four hundred regulars, militia, and Indians; and the garrison, nearly three hundred in number, and principally on the sick list, was put to the sword. Not more than twenty effected their escape. The com

*This act was promptly disavowed by the government; but the British not only did not wait a moment, when retaliation was in their reach, but also made the burning of Newark a pretext for subsequent outrage on our towns and cities in every part of the country.

CH. X.]

CLOSE OF THE CAMPAIGN.

manding officer, Captain Leonard, appears to have been shamefully negligent, so much so as to have been charged with having been bought by the enemy. He was absent at the time, and had used no precautions against an assault. Having possessed themselves of this post, the British soon after increased their force, and began to lay waste the Niagara frontier with fire and sword. Major Bennet made a spirited attempt to defend Lewistown, which was attacked by the British under General Riall; but after maintaining his ground for some time, was at last compelled to retreat. Major Mallory, from Schlosser, with forty Canadian volunteers, made a gallant resistance. But the exertions of a few scattered troops were ineffectual against a large body of British regulars and seven hundred Indians. They laid waste Lewistown, Manchester, and the Tuscarora villages. General Hall advanced from Batavia with all the forces which he could collect, for the defence of the frontier. On the night of the 29th of December, the British, under General Riall, crossed at Black Rock. Owing to the darkness of the night, the militia were unable to repulse their attacks. General Hall arrived from Buffalo early on the morning of the 30th; at the same time a large division of British and Indians were crossing the river. The Americans poured a destructive fire upon them in their boats, but they repulsed them and effected a landing. They commenced a spirited attack upon the Americans under General Hall, who was driven from his bat

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teries and pursued to Buffalo, a distance of two miles. Here Hall attempted again to face them; when, of two thousand militia, only six hundred could be prevailed upon to stand their ground. They fled to the woods, and many of them were cut off in the pursuit. The villages of Buffalo and Black Rock were set on fire the same day, and the whole frontier, for many miles, exhibited a scene of ruin and devastation.

And thus the year 1813 ended, with some consolations, but more disappointments. Harrison, Perry, Jackson, these had done well for their country's interests; but the failure and disgrace of the attempts on Canada were mortifying in the extreme. Great Britain was angered and almost furious, and the war henceforth promised to be one of savage inroads and ruthless destruction. She was rich, powerful, haughty; the United States were harassed and perplexed in respect to finances, carrying on the contest at a ruinous rate of expense, and learning only by bitter experience how to make head against their overbearing enemy. Yet, our countrymen had no thought of yielding on any but honorable terms, and the spirit of the executive and the legislature was displayed to this effect, when Congress met early in December. But we must defer to our next chapter an account of the doings of Congress at this important juncture in our country's history.*

*Among those who were removed by death during the present year, we may note, Dr. Benjamin Rush, aged sixty-eight, and Robert R. Livingston, aged sixty. six

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