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!