As soon as General Harrison received the news of the triumph on Lake
Erie, he hastened to put his army in motion to meet Proctor. Crossing
the Lake, by means of Perry’s victorious squadron, he reached Malden,
which the British and Indians had abandoned the day before. On the
2d of October, Harrison moved forward in pursuit of the enemy, and
on the 5th, came up with them, at a strong position on the banks of
the Thames. The Indians, under Tecumseh, were placed in a dense wood,
while the British regulars were drawn up in open files, their flanks
protected by the river and a morass. Colonel Johnson, with the mounted
volunteers, was ordered to attack the Indians, while Harrison formed
another battalion of the same troops, and ordered them to charge and
break the line of regulars. This novel manœuvre was executed with
complete success. The British force was compelled to surrender. The
Indians maintained a desperate contest until the great Tecumseh was
slain, when they broke and fled. This victory was decisive. Very few
were killed and wounded on both sides, but the enemy were entirely
captured or dispersed.
[Illustration: CAPTURE OF THE BOXER.]