THE FIRST ALARM--CANADIAN VOLUNTEERS PROMPTLY RESPOND TO THE CALL OF
DUTY--THE CAMPO BELLO FIZZLE--FENIANS GATHER ON THE BORDER--OPERATIONS
ON THE NIAGARA FRONTIER.
Early in the month of March, 1866, considerable activity was observable
among the Fenians in both the United States and Ireland, and it became
known to the authorities that a "rising" was contemplated, to occur on
St. Patrick's Day. That a simultaneous raid on Canada had been planned
was evident, and as the Government maintained a force of secret service
agents in the principal American cities to keep watch on the movements
of the Fenians, reliable information was furnished which was regarded
of sufficient importance by the Canadian authorities to warrant prompt
action in putting the country in a state of defence. Accordingly on
the 7th of March a General Order was issued by Col. P. L. Macdougall,
Adjutant-General of the Canadian Militia, calling out 10,000 volunteers
for active service. The summons was flashed across the wires to all
points in the Provinces of Upper and Lower Canada, and fourteen thousand
men promptly responded to the call. By 4 o'clock on the following
day these forces were all assembled at their respective headquarters,
awaiting further orders. So eager were the young men of Canada to
perform their duty in those trying times that a force of 50,000 could
have been raised as easily as the number called for. Most of the
companies and battalions were reported "over strength" when the returns
were received at headquarters, and the Government decided to retain the
whole 14,000 on service pending developments of the enemy's movements.
Lieut.-General Sir John Michel (then commanding Her Majesty's forces
in North America) was placed in supreme command, with Major-Gen. James
Lindsay in command of the troops in Canada East, and Major-Gen. G.
Napier, C.B., in charge of the forces in Canada West.
On the 8th of March, the following companies were ordered to report
for duty to Major Crawford at Brockville for the purpose of forming a
Provisional Battalion:--
Perth Rifle Company--Capt. Edmund Spillman.
Gananoque Rifle Company--Capt. Robert McCrum.
Carleton Place Rifle Company--Capt. James Poole.
Perth Infantry Company--Capt. Thomas Scott.
Almonte Infantry Company--Capt. James D. Gemmill.
Brockville Infantry Company--Capt. Jacob D. Buell.
The above units promptly reported, and the organization of the Battalion
was effected by a mergement of them with the Brockville Rifles, which
was placed on full service and divided, the right half forming a company
of 50 men under Capt. W. H. Cole, and the left half (50 men) placed in
command of Lieut. Windeat. Lieut. Robert Bowie was appointed Adjutant of
the new Battalion thus created.
Thirty Spencer rifles were issued to the Brockville Rifles, and given
to Capt. Cole's company. That officer compiled a drill manual which
instructed the men armed with the repeating rifles to act on the same
words of command issued to those who had the muzzle-loading Enfields,
which was so excellent in practice that he was afterwards highly
complimented by Major-General Lindsay when the Battalion was inspected
by him in the following May. This Battalion remained on duty at
Brockville until about the 16th of May, when they were released from
further service and permitted to return to their homes.
For several weeks the country was kept in a state of feverish,
excitement, as all sorts of rumors of intended raids at different points
were prevalent. Constant drilling and vigilance was maintained, and all
the avenues of approach to the frontier towns and exposed points were
closely guarded. The weather was very severe that winter, especially
during the period the troops were on duty, and many of the survivors
of those eventful days will doubtless remember the frost-bites they
received while pacing their dreary beats on guard duty, and the many
other discomforts which fell to their lot.
The 17th of March passed without the anticipated attacks being made,
however, and the fears of the people were gradually allayed. The Fenians
had evidently reconsidered their plans so far as Canada was concerned,
as the Frost King held sway with rigid severity, and decided to delay
their invasion until early summer. On the 28th of March the force
on active service was reduced from 14,000 to 10,000 (the original
prescribed number), and on the 31st of March all were relieved from
permanent duty with the exception of the advanced frontier posts, but
were required to parade and drill on two days of each week at local
headquarters.
Meanwhile the Fenians kept up their drill and warlike preparations.
Immense quantities of arms and ammunition were purchased and shipped to
various points in the United States contiguous to the Canadian frontier,
where they could quickly be obtained by the invaders when wanted.
During the early part of April a number of Fenians gathered in the towns
of Eastport and Calais, in the State of Maine, with the avowed purpose
of capturing the Island of Campo Bello, a British possession at the
mouth of the St. Croix River, on the boundary line between the Province
of New Brunswick and the United States. This expedition was under the
direction of "General" Dorian, Killian, who was one of the leading
lights of the O'Mahony faction of the Fenian Brotherhood. This move was
made contrary to the fixed policy of the Stephens-O'Mahony wing of
the Fenian organization, but something had to be done to satisfy the
impatient people who were providing the funds to inaugurate the war and
were clamoring for immediate action. So after considerable deliberation
and hesitation, General O'Mahony gave his consent to the proposed
invasion, and preparations were hurriedly made. A vessel was chartered
at New York, and being loaded with arms and ammunition, sailed for
Eastport, Maine. The rank and file of the Fenian force gathered quietly
at Eastport, Calais and adjacent towns, and awaited the arrival of their
armament. In the meantime the Canadian military authorities were getting
ready to meet the filibusters, and strong forces of volunteers were
posted along the New Brunswick frontier to watch events and be prepared
for action as soon as the Fenians attempted to make a landing. Three
British war vessels steamed quietly into the St. Croix River, ready for
instant service, and a couple of American gunboats were also on guard
to prevent a crossing. General Meade, with a battalion of United States
troops, arrived at Eastport, with orders from the American Government to
see that a breach of the Neutrality Act was not committed. On the same
day the vessel with arms for the Fenians sailed into Eastport harbor and
was promptly seized by the United States officials. This was "the last
straw" to break the hopes of the Fenians, and they left for their homes
without accomplishing anything, utterly dejected, hungry and weary,
and bitterly cursing their leaders, and the American authorities
particularly, for preventing them from crossing the line. This fiasco
was a mortifying blow to General O'Mahony and his supporters, and the
cohorts of Roberts and Sweeny gained more confidence and support as the
star of the Stephens faction grew dimmer.
The remainder of April and the month of May passed away quietly, and the
people of Canada had almost dismissed the Fenian "bugaboo" from their
minds, and were enjoying a period of peace and prosperity, when again
the Demon of War loomed up on the border more terrible than ever. This
time it was the Roberts-Sweeny section of the Fenian Brotherhood who
were bent on making trouble for Canada, and if possible carry out their
elaborate plan of campaign for conquering our Provinces. All during the
winter and spring the Fenian leaders had been secretly and sedulously at
work making preparations for simultaneous raids on Canada at different
places, and towards the end of May the Irish Republican Army began
massing on the border for that purpose. At strategic points all along
our extensive frontier the Fenian forces were quietly gathering,
evidently with the purpose of trying to work out the wide scheme of Gen.
Sweeny to capture Canada and hand us over body and bones to the United
States.
At St. Albans, Vermont, and adjacent villages, a large force gathered
for the purpose of making a raid from that quarter, in the possible hope
that with the reinforcements they expected, they might be able to hold
that section of country and operate against the City of Montreal with
some degree of success, in conjunction with two other columns which were
expected to carry the St. Lawrence line.
At Malone, New York, another strong force assembled under the command of
the Fenian Gen. M. J. Heffernan, who announced his intention of making
an attack on Cornwall. Gen. Murphy and Gen. O'Reilly, both veteran
officers of the Union Army in the Civil War, were attached to this
column, and were very assiduous in their efforts to make it an efficient
fighting force.
At Ogdensburg, New York, Gen. Sweeny personally supervised the
mobilization of a large contingent of his warriors. This column was
organized for the purpose of attacking Prescott, Brockville, and other
points along the St. Lawrence, and after taking possession of the
Canadian shore and the Grand Trunk Railway, be available for his plan
of sweeping the whole country east as far as Montreal, and join with
the other columns (which were to start from Malone and St. Albans) in
capturing that city.
Cape Vincent, Oswego, Rochester and other points along the Upper St.
Lawrence and Lake Ontario were places of rendezvous for the Fenian
troops who were steadily arriving from the interior of New York State,
while the Western and Southern contingents gathered at Detroit, Toledo,
Cleveland, Erie and Buffalo.
As the Niagara frontier possesses many attractions for an invading force
(as in the days of 1812 and 1814), it was decided to again make that
historic territory one of the arenas for hostile operations. Gen. Sweeny
fondly nursed the hope that while our forces were busily engaged there,
that he would be able to make crossings at two or three other points
along the border. As the scene of the first active operations was
presented on the Niagara Peninsula, I will relate those events first,
and then return to a description of what was occurring on the St.
Lawrence and Vermont borders.
For some days previous to the 31st of May large numbers of mysterious
strangers were noticed to be gathering in some of the towns and
cities adjacent to the Niagara frontier. In Buffalo particularly this
mobilization of men with a purpose was observable, but so reticent were
they, and so careful of their movements causing comment, that suspicions
were partially disarmed. Yet these strangers were all Fenian soldiers,
who were silently and quickly gathering from various States of the Union
with a determined intention to make a quick dash on Canada, which
they hoped to capture, and set up their standards upon our soil. All
preparations for the _coup_ had been made, and yet the people of Canada
seemed to dream not of their peril.
Towards midnight on the 31st of May those strangers in Buffalo were
noticed to be assembling in groups, squads and companies, and moving as
if by a pre-arranged programme in the direction of Black Rock, two or
three miles north of the city, on the Niagara River. Suspicious-looking
waggons and furniture vans were also moving in the same direction.
These were loaded with arms and ammunition for the use of "the Army of
Conquest," but no attempt was made by the United States authorities to
stop the expedition, although it was a clear breach of the Neutrality
Act then in force between the two countries. At the hour of midnight,
when the peaceful citizens on the Canadian side of the Niagara River
were slumbering in their beds, the Fenian hordes were steadily gathering
on the other side of the shimmering stream and making preparations to
effect a crossing. Two powerful tugs and several canal boats had been
chartered to convey the Fenians across to Canada, and these were quickly
and quietly loaded with men and munitions of war, As the grey dawn
of day was breaking on the morning of the 1st of June, the Fenian
transports started across the river. The troops consisted of one brigade
of the Irish Republican Army, under command of Gen. John O'Neil, a
veteran soldier who had seen much active service and hard fighting in
the American Civil War. This brigade was composed of the 13th Regiment
(Col. O'Neill), from Tennessee; 17th Regiment (Col. Owen Starr), from
Kentucky; 18th Regiment (Lieut.-Col. John Grace), from Ohio; the 7th
Regiment (Col. John Hoye), from Buffalo, N.Y., and a detachment of
troops from Indiana. The whole number was estimated to be about 1,500
men, who were principally veteran soldiers of the Northern and Southern
armies.
This was the "forlorn hope" who were expected to make the first landing
and hold the country until sufficient reinforcements could be rushed
across the border to enable them to make a success of the campaign.
Buffalo was full of Fenians and their sympathizers at that time, and
thousands were coming into the city every day to take part in the
invasion.
It was an opportune time for such a movement, as the popular feeling
of the American people was not altogether amicable or friendly to the
British nation, and it was the hope of the promoters of the raid that
something might occur which would give them the countenance and support
of the United States. It is a well-known fact that under the political
system of America the Irish vote is a dominant factor in elections, and
all classes of citizens who aspire to public office are more or less
controlled by that element. Consequently the vigilance of many of
Uncle Sam's officials was relaxed, and they winked the other eye as the
invaders marched towards Canada, instead of endeavoring to stop them
from committing a breach of the law of nations in regard to neutrality.
It was asserted in the public press of the United States and proclaimed
by the Fenians themselves at that time, that Andrew Johnson (who was
then President of the United States) and Secretary of State Seward
openly encouraged the invasion for the purpose of turning it to
political account in the settlement of the Alabama Claims with Great
Britain. In view of the fact that he held back the issuance of his
proclamation forbidding a breach of the Neutrality Act for _five
full days after_ the Raid had been made, there was manifestly some
understanding between President Johnson and the Fenian leaders, as the
American authorities were perfectly cognizant of what was intended long
before Gen. O'Neil crossed the boundary, and might have been prevented
from doing so, had the United States officials at Buffalo exercised such
due vigilance as Gen. Meade did in the Campo Bello affair.