We have mentioned that Major-General Brock had in the spring provided

for the protection of Fort St. Joseph, a small British post, distant by

water nearly 700 hundred miles from York, and situate about 40 miles,

also by water, to the north-east of the American island and fort of

Michilimakinack, or Makinack, which island is in latitude 45° 35' north,

and longitude 84° 30' west; and one of his first cares, on hearing of

the declaration of the war, was to send, on the 26th of June, a

notification of it to Captain Roberts, who was stationed at St. Joseph

with a detachment of the 10th Royal Veteran Battalion, accompanied by

orders to make an immediate attack upon Michilimakinack, if practicable;

or, in the event of an attack by the Americans upon St. Joseph, to

defend it to the utmost. Captain Roberts received at the same time

another letter from Major-General Brock, dated the 27th June, suspending

the orders for the attack from the uncertainty he was under of the

declaration of war. In a third letter, dated Fort George, the 28th June,

Major-General Brock, being sufficiently informed of such a declaration,

directed Captain Roberts to adopt the most prompt and effectual

measures to possess himself of Michilimakinack, and for this purpose to

summon to his assistance the Indians within his influence, as well as

the gentlemen and dependants of the British fur companies near his post.

On the day that Captain Roberts received this letter, another reached

him from Sir George Prevost, dated Quebec, 25th of June, by which he was

directed to take every precaution to secure his post against any attempt

by the enemy, and, in case of necessity, to effect his retreat.[58] This

contrariety of instructions from the two general officers did not fail

to perplex Captain Roberts, who, however, with great promptitude and

decision made preparations for the attack. By another dispatch of the

4th of July, from Major-General Brock, Captain Roberts was left at his

own discretion to adopt either offensive or defensive measures, as

circumstances might dictate. On the 16th July, he accordingly set out

with a flotilla of boats and canoes, in which were embarked 45 officers

and men of the 10th Royal Veteran Battalion, about 180 Canadians, and

nearly 400 Indians, the whole convoyed by the Caledonia brig, belonging

to the North-West company; and on the ensuing morning, the British force

effected a landing before Michilimakinack,[59] the garrison of which,

consisting only of 61 officers and men, immediately surrendered by

capitulation. A quantity of military stores and seven hundred packs of

furs were found in the fort, and its surrender had a very favorable

effect upon the Indians, a large number of whom now joined in open

hostility against the Americans. It will be found by a letter of the

12th August, from Sir George Prevost, who appears to have seen no safety

but in defensive measures, that he would _not_ have approved of the

attack on Michilimakinack if it had occurred prior to Hull's invasion!

And yet that officer, in his official dispatch relative to the capture

of his army and the surrender of Detroit, attributed his disasters

partly to the fall of Michilimakinack, which he said opened the northern

hive of Indians against him!

_Major-General Brock to Sir George Prevost_.

YORK, July 29, 1812.

I have the honor to transmit herewith a dispatch this instant

received from Captain Roberts, announcing the surrender by

capitulation, on the 17th instant, of Fort Michilimakinack.

The conduct of this officer since his appointment to the

command of that distant post, has been distinguished by much

zeal and judgment, and his recent eminent display of those

qualities your excellency will find has been attended with the

most happy effect.

The militia stationed here volunteered this morning their

services to any part of the province without the least

hesitation. I have selected 100, whom I have directed to

proceed without delay to Long Point, where I purpose

collecting a force for the relief of Amherstburg. This

example, I hope, will be followed by as many as may be

required. By the militia law, a mail refusing to march may be

fined £5, or confined three months; and although I have

assembled the legislature for the express purpose of amending

the act, I much fear nothing material will be done. Your

excellency will scarcely believe, that this infatuated house

of assembly have refused, by a majority of two, to suspend for

a limited time the habeas corpus.

The capture of Michilimakinack may produce great changes to

the westward. The actual invasion of the province justifies

every act of hostility on the American territory.

It was not till this morning that I was honored with your

excellency's dispatches, dated the 7th and 10th instant. Their

contents, I beg to assure your excellency, have relieved my

mind considerably. I doubt whether General Hull had

instructions to cross to this side of the river; I rather

suspect he was compelled by a want of provisions. I embark

immediately in the Prince Regent for Fort George. I return

here the day after to-morrow, and shall probably dissolve the

legislature.

_Sir George Prevost to Major-General Brock._

QUEBEC, July 31, 1812.

I have received your letter of the 20th instant, accompanied

by the copy of two letters from Lieut.-Colonel St. George, who

is in command at Amherstburg, and some interesting documents

found on board a schooner, which had been taken by the boats

of the Hunter.

In consequence of your having desired Colonel Proctor to

proceed to Amherstburg, and of your presence being necessary

at the seat of government to meet the legislature of Upper

Canada, I have taken upon myself to place Major-General

Sheaffe on the staff, to enable me to send him to assist you

in the arduous task you have to perform, in the able execution

of which I have great confidence. He has been accordingly

directed to proceed without delay to Upper Canada, there to

place himself under your command.

I believe you are authorized by the commission under which you

administer the government of Upper Canada, to declare martial

law in the event of invasion or insurrection; it is therefore

for you to consider whether you can obtain any thing

equivalent to that power from your legislature. I have not

succeeded in obtaining a modification of it in Lower Canada,

and must therefore, upon the occurrence of either of those

calamities, declare the law martial unqualified, and of course

shut the doors of the courts of civil law.

The report transmitted by Captain Dixon, of the Royal

Engineers, to Lieut.-Colonel Bruyeres, of the state of defence

in which he had placed Fort Amherstburg, together with the

description of the troops allotted for its defence, give me a

foreboding that the result of General Hull's attempt upon that

fort will terminate honorably to our arms.

If Lieut.-Colonel St. George be possessed of the talents and

resources required to form a soldier, he is fortunate in the

opportunity of displaying them. Should General Hull be

compelled to relinquish his operations against Amherstburg, it

will be proper his future movements should be most carefully

observed, as his late march exhibits a more than ordinary

character of enterprize.

Your supposition of my slender means is but too correct;

notwithstanding, you may rely upon every exertion being made

to preserve uninterrupted the communication between Kingston

and Montreal, and that I will also give all possible support

to your endeavours to overcome every difficulty.

The possession of Malden, which I consider means Amherstburg,

appears a favorite object with the government of the United

States. I sincerely hope you will disappoint them.

Should the intelligence, which arrived yesterday by the way of

Newfoundland, prove correct, a remarkable coincidence will

exist in the revocation of our orders in council as regards

America, and the declaration of war by congress against

England, both having taken place on the same day in London and

at Washington, the 17th June.

_Colonel Baynes to Major-General Brock_.

QUEBEC, August 1, 1812.

Sir George yesterday received your letter of the 20th with its

several enclosures, which are, I assure you, highly

interesting to all, and doubly so to those who feel warmly and

sincerely attached to you; and few, I believe, possess more

friends and well wishers than yourself. 100 effective of the

Newfoundland, and 50 picked men of the Veterans, left this in

boats on Thursday, and, as it has blown a gale of east wind

ever since, have I trust made great progress: they were

intended to reinforce the garrison of Kingston, and to relieve

the company of the 49th that escorted stores to that place.

Sir George regrets extremely his inability to render you a

more efficient aid, but, under existing circumstances, he does

not feel himself warranted to do more. I regret to find your

militia at Sandwich so lukewarm, to call it by no harsher

name; but I fear that little can be expected from those

recently settled, or of American extraction, and with our

Canadians we have found a very reluctant compliance. I trust

we may still look to considerable reinforcements from home

this year. We are led to expect the 1st battalion of the

Royals from the West Indies immediately, destined indeed to

relieve the 41st. I hope we shall not be disappointed, as our

militia will feel bold if well backed; and I am sure Sir

George will rejoice in receiving the means of rendering you

further assistance. It appears to be credited that the orders

in council were rescinded, in as far as regarded America, on

the 17th June, the day the war vote was carried: this will

strengthen the oppositionists in the States, and the timid

will feel alarmed, not without reason, when they read the

glorious and judicious exploit of Captain Hotham, in the

Northumberland, 74, in destroying, under circumstances of

great difficulty and peril, two French 44-gun frigates and a

sloop, which received a superior degree of protection from

batteries on the shore than can be afforded to Commodore

Rodgers in any harbour of the States.

The Americans are forming depôts in the neighbourhood of the

Montreal frontier and building batteries on the lake, but they

have not brought forward any considerable shew of

strength;--on this appearance of weakness we cannot rely, as

it would answer no good end making a parade before they

intended to attack. If they be serious in their views on this

province, the attempt will be probably backed by predatory

incursions on various points. A corps of militia is kept on

the Point Levi side.

Our legislature meet this day to terminate the session. One

great object has been accomplished in the house, adding the

provincial security to the army money note bill; the province

pays the interest accruing upon the notes and the expense of

the establishment, and they are constituted a legal tender.

Without this step we were completely at a stand, for we could

not obtain money to pay the last month's subsistence to the

troops: great benefit is expected to accrue from the operation

of the bill. The clergy have engaged to promote the

circulation of the notes, all of which above twenty-five

dollars bear interest, and all under are payable on demand.

Adieu, my dear generals--may every success and good fortune

attend you in the arduous task before you: we cannot command

success, but I am sure you will not fail to merit it.

_Lieut.-Colonel Bruyeres, Royal Engineers, to Major-General Brock._

QUEBEC, August 1, 1812.

I take the favorable advantage of this being delivered to you

by General Sheaffe, to assure you of the sincere interest I

feel in the very arduous and important position you are now

placed in to protect and defend a chain of posts, and a

country that has been so long neglected. This difficult task

placed in any other hands, I should consider very

discouraging; but I acknowledge that I look with a certain

degree of confidence to your abilities and perseverance in

surmounting every difficulty that must unavoidably occur in a

service of this nature. I most fervently and earnestly hope

that every possible success may attend all your proceedings. I

trust that you will always meet with zeal and activity in the

officers of my department, to perform every part of the duty

allotted to their charge. It is very difficult at this

distance to suggest any ideas that might be useful, as every

operation in which you are engaged must depend so entirely

upon local circumstances, and the conduct which the enemy may

pursue towards attaining the object he has in view. I am glad

to find that the new arrival of the Royals, expected at Quebec

to-morrow, will give you the reinforcement of the 49th

regiment, which, with the detachments of the Newfoundland and

Veterans, and gun-boat No. 7, will add something to your

present strength.

_Sir George Prevost to Major-General Brock._

QUEBEC, August 2, 1812.

Last evening an officer of the 98th regiment arrived here

express from Halifax, the bearer of dispatches to me, dated on

the 22d ultimo, from Mr. Foster, who was then in Nova Scotia.

I lose no time in making you acquainted with the substance of

this gentleman's communication. He informs me that he had just

received dispatches from England, referring to a declaration

of ministers in parliament, relative to a proposed repeal of

the orders in council, provided the United States government

would return to relations of amity with us, the contents of

which may possibly induce the American government to agree to

a suspension of hostilities as a preliminary to negotiations

for peace;--that he proposed sending his majesty's hired armed

ketch Gleaner to New York, with letters to Mr. Baker, whom he

had left at Washington in a demi-official capacity, with

directions to communicate with the American minister and to

write to me the result of his interview. Should the president

of the United States think proper to signify that hostile

operations should cease on the American side, Mr. Foster

suggests the expediency of my being prepared to make a similar

signification on our part.

As I propose sending Colonel Baynes immediately into the

United States, with a proposal for a cessation of hostile

operations, I enclose for your information the copy of my

letter to General Dearborn, or the commander-in-chief of the

American forces.

Mr. Foster also submits the propriety of our abstaining from

an invasion of the United States territory, as only in such an

event could the American government be empowered to order the

militia out of the States. I am led to believe from this, that

General Hull, in possessing himself of Sandwich, has exceeded

his instructions; particularly as Mr. Foster informs me that

Mr. Monroe had told him Fort Maiden (Amherstburg) would not be

attacked, but that General Hull had stated to a friend of his,

some time ago, that he would attempt it.

A report has been made to me that a frigate and six

transports, with the Royal Scots (1st battalion) on board,

from the West Indies, are just below Bic;--in consequence of

this reinforcement, I have ordered the company of the 49th

regiment, sent to Kingston, to remain there; and in addition

to the Royal Newfoundland Regiment, and a detachment of an

officer and 50 Veterans most fit for service, now on their

route to that station, I shall order Major Ormsby, with three

companies of the 49th regiment, to proceed from Montreal to

the same post, to be disposed of as you may find it necessary.

Lieut.-General Sir J.C. Sherbrooke has informed me that one of

the transports, with part of the Royals on board, has been

captured by the United States frigate the Essex; that she has

been ransomed and the officers and troops allowed to proceed,

upon condition that they are not to serve against America

until regularly exchanged. The vessel and troops had arrived

at Halifax, and will shortly be sent hither.

_Major-General Brock to Sir George Prevost._

YORK, August 4, 1812.

I have the honor to enclose a statement made by me yesterday

to his majesty's executive council, which will fully apprize

your excellency of my situation. The council adjourned for

deliberation, and I have no doubt will recommend the

prorogation of the assembly and proclamation declaring martial

law, but doubts occurred in contemplation of such an event,

which I take the liberty to submit to your excellency, and

request the aid of your experience and superior judgment.

1.--In the event of declaring martial law, can I, without the

sign manual, approve and carry into effect the sentence of a

general court martial?

2.--Can I put upon a general court martial, after martial law

is proclaimed, any person not a commissioned officer in his

majesty's regular forces? In other words, can officers of

militia sit in conjunction with those of the line?

_Sir George Prevost to Major-General Brock_.

MONTREAL, August 12, 1812.

Your letter of the 4th instant, enclosing the proceedings of

the executive council of the 3d.; Captain Glegg's letter of

the 5th instant, transmitting copies of letters from Colonel

Proctor to you of 26th and 30th July, with the correspondence

between Brigadier-General Hull and Lieut.-Colonel St. George,

and the intercepted correspondence of the former, together

with your letter to Colonel Baynes, of the 4th instant, were

all delivered to me on my arrival at this place yesterday. The

information they contain is highly interesting, and I lose no

time in dispatching to you Brigade Major Shekleton, as the

bearer of this letter, and for the purpose of receiving

whatever communication you may have to make in return. Being

fully aware of the necessity of affording you such

reinforcements as the exigencies of the service in other parts

of the two provinces would permit, I had, previous to the

receipt of your letter, made arrangements for that purpose.

Major Ormsby, with three companies of the 49th regiment,

protecting a considerable supply of ordnance and ordnance

stores, left La Chine on the 6th instant for Kingston and Fort

George, taking with him £2,500 for the payment of the regular

and militia forces. Major Heathcote, with one company of the

49th regiment, about 110 men of the Newfoundland regiment, and

50 picked Veterans, are to leave La Chine on the 13th instant.

With this detachment, an additional supply of ordnance stores

and camp equipage for 500 men will be forwarded for Upper

Canada; and as soon as a sufficiency of bateaux can again be

collected at La Chine, Colonel Vincent is under orders to

proceed to Kingston with the remainder of the 49th regiment,

and a subaltern of the royal artillery and ten gunners, with

two 3-pounders.

When these reinforcements reach you, they will, I trust,

enable you successfully to resist the internal, as well as

external, enemies opposed to you, and materially aid the able

measures you have adopted for the defence of Upper Canada.

With regard to the queries you have submitted to me on the

subject of martial law, I have to observe, that it has not

fallen within my experience to see martial law proclaimed,

except in those places where it has been declared under the

authority of a provincial legislature, which of course

regulated the mode in which it was to be executed. As the

martial law which you purpose declaring is founded on the

king's commission, and upon the extreme case of invasion

alluded to in it, I am inclined to think that whatever power

is necessary for carrying the measure into effect, must have

been intended to be given you by the commission, and

consequently, that the power of assembling courts martial and

of carrying their sentence into execution, is included in the

authority for declaring martial law. The officers of militia

becoming themselves subject to martial law when it is

declared, I conceive they may sit upon courts martial with

officers of his majesty's regular forces; but upon both these

points I desire not to be understood as speaking

decisively--extreme cases must be met by measures which, on

ordinary occasions, would not perhaps be justified. Your

situation is such as to warrant your resorting to any step

which, in your judgment, the public safety may require. I

should therefore think, that after taking the best opinions

you can obtain from the first law characters you have about

you respecting the doubts you entertain on this subject, you

need not hesitate to determine upon that line of conduct which

you shall think will best promote the good of the service,

trusting, if you do err, to the absolute necessity of the

measures you may adopt, as your justification for them to his

majesty's government.

Your letters of the 26th, 28th and 29th July, with the several

enclosures and papers accompanying them, were received by me

shortly previous to my leaving Quebec; the last containing

Captain Roberts' official account of the capture of Fort

Michilimakinack. Great credit is certainly due to that

officer for the zeal and promptitude with which he has

performed this service; at the same time I must confess, my

mind has been very much relieved by finding that the capture

took place at a period subsequent to Brigadier-General Hull's

invasion of the province, as, had it been prior to it, it

would not only have been in violation of Captain Roberts'

orders, but have afforded a just ground for the subsequent

conduct of the enemy, which, I now plainly perceive, no

forbearance on your part would have prevented. The capture of

this place will, I hope, enable the Indian tribes in that

quarter to co-operate with you in your present movements

against the enemy, by threatening his flanks, a diversion

which would greatly alarm him, and probably have the effect of

compelling him to retreat across the river.

I send you enclosed a copy of the official repeal of the

orders in council, which I received last night by express from

Quebec. Although I much doubt whether this step on the part of

our government will have any effect upon that of the United

States, the circulation of the paper evincing their

conciliatory disposition may tend to increase and strengthen

the divisions which subsist amongst the people upon the

subject of the war. I therefore recommend to you to have a

number of copies struck off and distributed.

Colonel Baynes is still absent upon his mission to the enemy's

camp. Your letter to him of the 29th ultimo was received at

the same time with those I have last acknowledged. Colonel

Lethbridge I have directed to return to Montreal.

The issue of army bills has taken place at Quebec, and I hope

to be able shortly to send you a supply of them.

* * * * *

We have previously alluded (page 206) to that part of the preceding

letter which relates to the capture of Michilimakinack. This capture

appears to have been effected _contrary_ to Sir George Prevost's orders,

as Fort St. Joseph being nearly 350 miles from Detroit and Sandwich, and

as the expedition left the fort only four days after Hull's invasion, it

was scarcely possible that Captain Roberts was then aware of that

circumstance. Neither in his letter to the adjutant-general, announcing

the capture, does he excuse himself by stating that he had heard of the

invasion. In his dispatch to Earl Bathurst, written exactly a fortnight

after the preceding letter, and dated Montreal, August 26, Sir George

Prevost, in communicating the surrender of Detroit, expressed himself in

very altered language, as he said:

"In these measures he[60] was most opportunely aided by the

fortunate surrender of Fort Michilimakinack, which, giving

spirit and confidence to the Indian tribes in its

neighbourhood, part of whom assisted in its capture,

determined them to advance upon the rear and flanks of the

American army, as soon as they heard that it had entered the

province."

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 58: This order strikes us as an unmilitary interference on the

part of Sir George Prevost with Major-General Brock's authority, Captain

Roberts being under the immediate command of the latter general.]

[Footnote 59: See Captain Roberts' Dispatch, Appendix A, Sec. 1, No. 2.]

[Footnote 60: Major-General Brock.]

CHAPTER XI.

Whilst Major-General Brock impatiently lingered on the Niagara frontier,

so as to give time to the legislature to assemble at York, he dispatched

Colonel Proctor, of the 41st regiment, with such reinforcements as could

be spared, to assume the command at Amherstburg. General Hull, after

crossing to Sandwich, remained for some time inactive, under pretext of

making preparations for the reduction of Amherstburg, or Malden, as the

Americans called it, which lay but eighteen miles below him, and was not

in a condition to withstand a regular siege. During the delay, three

detachments of his army were on three successive days beaten back by a

small number of the 41st regiment and a few Indians. Michilimakinack had

fallen since the invasion, and the Indians from that quarter were

flocking to the British standard. Our naval force being superior on the

lake, Colonel Proctor pushed over to Brownstown, an American village,

about 25 miles from Detroit, and nearly opposite to Amherstburg, a small

detachment of the 41st regiment, and some Indians under the celebrated

Tecumseh, who, with 70 of the latter, awaited in ambush near that

village a party of 200 Americans, under Major Van Home, on their

march[61] from Detroit to the River Raisin, (40 miles south of Detroit,)

to meet a detachment of volunteers from Ohio, with a convoy of

provisions for Hull's army. The Indians, firing suddenly, killed 20,

including 5 officers, and wounded about the same number of the

Americans, who hastily retreated, and were pursued seven miles by the

warriors alone, not a British soldier being engaged. In this affair,

General Hull's dispatches and the correspondence of his troops fell into

the hands of Tecumseh, and it was partly the desponding nature of their

contents which afterwards induced Major-General Brock to attempt the

capture of the American army. Foiled in the reduction of Fort

Amherstburg; disappointed in his hope of a general insurrection of the

Canadians; and, "above all, dismayed at the report of General Brock's

resolution to advance against him,"[62] Hull's schemes of conquest

vanished; and he who, less than a month before, had landed in Canada

boastful of his strength and with threats of extermination, now saw no

other alternative than a hasty return to Detroit, under the pretence of

concentrating his forces; and after re-opening his communication with

the rivers Raisin and Miami, through which he received his supplies, of

resuming offensive operations. Accordingly, on the 7th and 8th of August

the American army re-crossed the river, with the exception of a garrison

of 250 men left in charge of a small fortification they had thrown up on

the British side, a little below Detroit, and which they evacuated and

destroyed before the arrival of Major-General Brock.[63] On the 9th of

August, a body of 600 Americans, sent to dislodge the British from

Brownstown and to open a communication with the Rivers Raisin and Miami,

was met by the white troops and Indians under Captain Muir, of the 41st,

at Maguaga, between Brownstown and Detroit, but, after a severe

conflict, Captain Muir was compelled to retreat.

From the moment that Major-General Brock heard of the invasion of the

western district, he determined on proceeding thither in person after he

had met the legislature and dispatched the public business. Having

expressed a wish of being accompanied by such of the militia as might

voluntarily offer their services, 500, principally the sons of veteran

soldiers who had settled in the province, cheerfully came forward for

that purpose. The threatening attitude, however, of the enemy on the

Niagara frontier, obliged the general to content himself with half this

number; and he left York on the 6th of August for Burlington Bay, whence

he proceeded by land for Long Point, on Lake Erie. In passing the

Mohawks' village, on the Grand River, or Ouse, he desired the Indians

there to tell him who were, and who were not, his friends; and at a

council held on the 7th of August, they promised that about 60 of their

number should follow him on the ensuing Monday, the 10th. At Long Point,

a few regulars and nearly 300 militia embarked with him on the 8th of

the same month in boats of every description, collected among the

neighbouring farmers, who usually employed them for transporting their

corn and flour. The distance from Long Point to Amherstburg is about 200

miles along the shore, which in many parts is a high precipitous bank of

red clay, with scarcely a creek for shelter. The little flotilla

encountered heavy rain and tempestuous weather, but nothing could for a

moment retard its progress, or diminish the confidence of the men in

their indefatigable leader. Among his general orders from the

commencement of hostilities, the only one relating to this voyage is the

following, which, from the singularity of the circumstances attending

it, is thought worthy of being preserved:

G.O. Head Quarters, Pointe au Prince, Aug. 12, 1812.

It is Major-General Brock's intention, should the wind

continue fair, to proceed during the night; officers

commanding boats will therefore pay attention to the order of

sailing, as directed yesterday; the greatest care and

attention will be required to prevent the boats from

separating or falling behind. A great part of the banks of

the lake, where the boats will this day pass, is much more

dangerous and difficult of access than any we have passed; the

boats will, therefore, not land except in the most extreme

necessity, and then great care must be taken to choose the

best place for beaching.

The troops being now in the neighbourhood of the enemy, every

precaution must be taken to guard against surprise. By Order.

J.B. GLEGG, Aide-de-Camp.

After five days and nights of incessant exertion, the little squadron

reached Amherstburg[64] shortly before midnight on the 13th, and in a

rough sketch in the handwriting of Major-General Brock, he observed: "In

no instance have I seen troops who would have endured the fatigues of a

long journey in boats, during extremely bad weather, with greater

cheerfulness and constancy; and it is but justice to this little band to

add, that their conduct throughout excited my admiration."

Soon after their landing at Amherstburg, the attention of the troops was

suddenly roused by a straggling fire of musketry, which in a few minutes

became general, and appeared to proceed from an island in the Detroit

river. Colonel Elliott, the superintendent of the Indians, quickly

explained that the firing arose from the Indians attached to the

British cause, who thus expressed their joy at the arrival of the

reinforcement under their white father. Major-General Brock, aware of

his scarcity of the munitions of war, sent Colonel Elliott to stop this

waste of powder, saying: "Do, pray, Elliott, fully explain my wishes and

motives, and tell the Indians that I will speak to them to-morrow on

this subject." His request was promptly attended to, and Colonel Elliott

returned in about half an hour with the Shawanee chief, Tecumseh, or

Tecumpthé, already mentioned. Captain Glegg,[65] the aide-de-camp, being

present, had an opportunity of closely observing the traits of that

extraordinary man, and we are indebted to him for the following graphic

particulars: "Tecumseh's appearance was very prepossessing; his figure

light and finely proportioned; his age I imagined to be about five and

thirty;[66] in height, five feet nine or ten inches; his complexion,

light copper; countenance, oval, with bright hazle eyes, beaming

cheerfulness, energy, and decision. Three small silver crowns, or

coronets, were suspended from the lower cartilage of his aquiline nose;

and a large silver medallion of George the Third, which I believe his

ancestor had received from Lord Dorchester, when governor-general of

Canada, was attached to a mixed coloured wampum string, and hung round

his neck. His dress consisted of a plain, neat uniform, tanned deer

skin jacket, with long trousers of the same material, the seams of both

being covered with neatly cut fringe; and he had on his feet leather

mocassins, much ornamented with work made from the dyed quills of the

porcupine.

"The first and usual salutation of shaking hands being over, an allusion

was made to the late firing of musketry, and Tecumseh at once approved

of the reason given by Major-General Brock for its discontinuance. It

being late, the parties soon separated, with an understanding that a

council would be held the following morning. This accordingly took

place, and was attended by about a thousand Indians, whose equipment

generally might be considered very imposing. The council was opened by

General Brock, who informed the Indians that he was ordered by their

great father to come to their assistance, and, with their aid, to drive

the Americans from Fort Detroit. His speech was highly applauded, and

Tecumseh was unanimously called upon to speak in reply. He commenced

with expressions of joy, that their father beyond the great salt lake

(meaning the king of England) had at length awoke from his long sleep,

and permitted his warriors to come to the assistance of his red

children, who had never ceased to remain steady in their friendship, and

were now all ready to shed their last drop of blood in their great

father's service. After some speeches from other chiefs, and replies

thereto, the council broke up. General Brock, having quickly discovered

the superior sagacity and intrepidity of Tecumseh, and his influence

over the Indians, and not deeming it prudent to develop before so mixed

an assemblage the views which were at that moment uppermost in his

thoughts, and intended to be carried so quickly into execution, directed

Colonel Elliott to inform this Shawanee chief that he wished to see him,

accompanied by a few of the oldest chiefs, at Colonel Elliott's

quarters. There the general, through the medium of interpreters,

communicated his views, and explained the manner in which he intended to

carry into execution his operations against Fort Detroit. The chiefs

listened with the most apparent eagerness, and expressed their unanimous

assent to the proposed plan, assuring General Brock that their

co-operation, as pointed out, might be depended on. On General Brock

asking whether the Shawanee Indians could be induced to refrain from

drinking spirits, Tecumseh assured him that his warriors might be relied

on, adding, that before leaving their country on the Wabash river, they

had promised him not to taste that pernicious liquor until they had

humbled the "big knives," meaning the Americans. In reply to this

assurance, General Brock briefly said: 'If this resolution be persevered

in, you must conquer.'"

In a general order on the 14th of August, at Amherstburg, in announcing

his arrival in the western district, Major-General Brock observed: "The

major-general cannot avoid expressing his surprise at the numerous

desertions which have occurred from the ranks of the militia, to which

circumstance the long stay of the enemy on this side of the river must

in a great measure be ascribed. He is willing to believe that their

conduct proceeded from an anxiety to get in their harvest, and not from

any predeliction for the principles or government of the United States."

The next day, the American commander was startled by a summons to

surrender; and so resolute a demand seems to have struck him with

dismay, as at the worst he had never contemplated a pursuit into his own

territory.

Head Quarters, Sandwich, Aug. 15, 1812.

The force at my disposal authorizes me to require of you the

immediate surrender of Fort Detroit.[67] It is far from my

inclination to join in a war of extermination; but you must be

aware, that the numerous body of Indians who have attached

themselves to my troops, will be beyond my control the moment

the contest commences. You will find me disposed to enter into

such conditions as will satisfy the most scrupulous sense of

honor. Lieut.-Colonel M'Donell and Major Glegg are fully

authorized to conclude any arrangement that may lead to

prevent the unnecessary effusion of blood.

ISAAC BROCK, Major-General.

Brigadier-General Hull.

Hull refused to see Captain Glegg, who carried the summons, and, after

detaining him upwards of two hours, returned the following answer:

Head Quarters, Detroit, Aug. 15, 1812.

I have received your letter of this date. I have no other

reply to make than to inform you, that I am prepared to meet

any force which may be at your disposal, and any consequences

which may result from any exertion of it you may think proper

to make.

W. HULL, Brigadier-General,

Commanding the N.W. Army of the U.S.

Nothing daunted, and contrary to the advice of some of his officers,

Major-General Brock at once determined on crossing the river, with the

view of attempting, by a sudden and resolute attack, the annihilation of

the enemy's power in that quarter. In the afternoon, a fire was opened

from a battery of five guns, erected opposite to Detroit, under the

direction of Captain Dixon, of the Royal Engineers: this cannonade was

returned from seven 24-pounders, but the British general, perceiving

that little effect was produced by either fire, gave orders that his

should cease. The troops retired to their bivouac and lay on their arms,

with orders to cross the strait, or river, which is here about

three-fourths of a mile in width, on the following morning. Accordingly,

at the first blush of dawn, on Sunday, the 16th of August, when the fire

from the British battery was resumed, 330 regulars and 400 militia were

embarked, with five pieces of light artillery, in boats and canoes of

every description, and soon effected a landing without opposition, near

Springwell, four or five miles below Detroit. About 600 Indians, under

Colonel Elliott, had crossed the river during the night, and were

ordered to be so placed as to take the enemy in flank and rear, should

he attempt to oppose the landing. The white troops marched towards the

fort, while the Indians moved through the woods, and covered the left

flank, the right resting upon the river, and protected by the Queen

Charlotte, colonial vessel of war. The enemy's effective force was

estimated at nearly 2,500 men, and, supported as they were by a

neighbouring fortress, it required no little daring to pursue them on

their own ground with such unequal numbers. Contrary to Major-General

Brock's expectation, the Americans abandoned a favorable position,

strengthened by pickets and two 24-pounders, and retreated into the fort

on the advance of the British, who halted in a ravine within a mile,

and, discovering the weakness of the works on the land side, prepared

for its assault. While the various columns were forming for that

purpose, a flag of truce, borne by Captain Hull, was unexpectedly seen

emerging from the fort,--Lieut.-Colonel M'Donell and Captain Glegg

accompanied him back; and shortly after the British troops marched in

with Major-General Brock at their head, the American general having

assented to a capitulation, by which the Michigan territory, Fort

Detroit, with thirty-three pieces of cannon,[68] the Adams vessel of

war,[69] and about 2,500 troops, including one company of artillery,

some cavalry, and the entire 4th U.S. regiment of infantry, with a stand

of colours, were surrendered to the British arms. An immense quantity of

stores and the military chest were also taken; and as there was a great

deficiency of arms in the Upper Province wherewith to equip the militia,

the 2,500 stand of American became a valuable acquisition. To this

surrender the after preservation of Upper Canada, at least, may in a

great measure be ascribed, as it caused a delay of nearly a whole year

in the meditated invasion,[70] and secured the support of some of the

Indian tribes, who were hesitating as to the side they should espouse.

It was the more fortunate that Major-General Brock acted with so much

promptitude and vigour, because large reinforcements were on their way

to General Hull; and not only would that officer's reverse otherwise

have been spared, but the western districts of Upper Canada would

probably have fallen before the overwhelming numbers which would soon

have been brought against them.

The surrender of Detroit was so unexpected, that it produced an almost

electrical effect throughout the Canadas: it was the first enterprize in

which the militia had been engaged, and its success not only imparted

confidence to that body, but it inspired the timid, fixed the wavering,

and awed the disaffected. Major-General Brock from this moment became

the idol of the great mass of those whom he governed; and when he

returned to York, whither he arrived on the 27th of August, he was

received amidst the heartfelt acclamations of a grateful people, rescued

by his promptitude from the ignominy of submitting to a conqueror. They

remembered that in the short space of nineteen days he had, not only met

the legislature and settled the public business of the province under

the most trying circumstances that a commander could encounter, but,

with means incredibly limited, he had gone nearly 300 miles in pursuit

of an invading enemy of almost double his own force and compelled him to

surrender, thus extending the British dominion without bloodshed over an

extent of country almost equal to Upper Canada.[71]

The conduct of the American general in so tamely surrendering is

inexplicable, as Detroit contained an ample supply of ammunition and

provisions for nearly a month, besides an abundance of wheat in the

territory, with mills to grind any quantity into flour. One of his

officers, Colonel Cass, in a long letter to the Honorable William

Eustis, the secretary of war at Washington, said: "I have been informed

by Colonel Findley, who saw the return of the quartermaster-general the

day after the surrender, that their whole force, of every description,

white, red, and black, was 1,030.[72] They had twenty-nine platoons,

twelve in a platoon, of men dressed in uniform. Many of these were

evidently Canadian militia. The rest of their militia increased their

white force to about 700. The number of Indians could not be ascertained

with any degree of precision--not many were visible. And in the event of

an attack upon the town and fort, it was a species of force which could

have afforded no material advantage to the enemy.... That we were far

superior to the enemy, that upon any ordinary principles of calculation

we would have defeated them, the wounded and indignant feelings of every

man there will testify.... I was informed by General Hull, the morning

after the capitulation, that the British forces consisted of 1,800

regulars, and that he surrendered to prevent the effusion of human

blood. That he magnified their regular force nearly five-fold, there can

be no doubt. Whether the philanthropic reason assigned by him is a

sufficient justification for surrendering a fortified town, an army, and

a territory, is for the government to determine. Confident I am, that

had the courage and conduct of the general been equal to the spirit and

zeal of the troops, the event would have been brilliant and successful

as it is now disastrous and dishonorable." Hull's behaviour, then, can

only be accounted for by the supposition that the boldness of his

adversary's movements led him to believe he had to contend with far

greater numbers; or, that having threatened to refuse quarter to the

white man found fighting by the side of the Indian, he was

apprehensive, in the event of defeat, that this threat would be visited

with severe retaliation, particularly by the Indians, whose fury, in a

successful assault, it might have been very difficult to restrain. To

their honor, however, be it said, that although they took a few

prisoners on the advance, the enemy sustained no loss of life beyond

that caused by the British batteries; and in general orders, at Detroit,

they were told, that in nothing could they testify more strongly their

love to the king, their great father, than in following the dictates of

honor and humanity by which they had hitherto been actuated.

"The news of the surrender of Detroit," says the American historian,

Brown, "was so unexpected, that it came like a clap of thunder to the

ears of the American people. No one would believe the first report. The

disastrous event blasted the prospects of the first campaign, and opened

the northern and western frontiers of Ohio to savage incursions.

"Previous to the surrender of Detroit, the governors of Ohio and

Kentucky, in obedience to the directions of the war department, had

detached powerful reinforcements to the aid of General Hull. Had he

deferred the capitulation but a few days longer, his army, Detroit, and

the Michigan territory, would have been saved.

"The forces advancing to his support consisted of 2,000 militia, under

Brigadier-General Payne, and a battalion of mounted riflemen, under

Colonel R.M. Johnson, from Kentucky; a brigade of Ohio militia, under

the orders of Brigadier-General Tupper;[73] and nearly 1,000 regulars,

under the command of General Winchester. They had reached the St. Mary's

River when the news of the capture of Detroit was received. But for the

well-timed arrival of the above force a wide scene of flight and misery,

of blood and desolation, must have ensued. Nearly half of the territory

of Ohio must have been depopulated, or its inhabitants fallen victims to

the scalping knife."

"The chagrin felt at Washington," observes James in his Military

Occurrences, "when news arrived of the total failure of this the first

attempt at invasion, was in proportion to the sanguine hopes entertained

of its success. To what a pitch of extravagance those hopes had been

carried, cannot better appear than in two speeches delivered upon the

floor of congress, in the summer of 1812. Dr. Eustis, the secretary at

war of the United States, said: 'We can take the Canadas without

soldiers; we have only to send officers into the provinces, and the

people, disaffected towards their own government, will rally round our

standard.' The honorable Henry Clay seconded his friend, thus: 'It is

absurd to suppose we shall not succeed in our enterprize against the

enemy's provinces. We have the Canadas as much under our command as she

(Great Britain) has the ocean; and the way to conquer her on the ocean

is to drive her from the land. I am not for stopping at Quebec, or any

where else; but I would take the whole continent from them, and ask them

no favors. Her fleets cannot then rendezvous at Halifax, as now; and,

having no place of resort in the north, cannot infest our coast as they

have lately done. It is as easy to conquer them on the land, as their

whole navy would conquer ours on the ocean. We must take the continent

from them. _I wish never to see a peace till we do._ God has given us

the power and the means: we are to blame if we do not use them. If we

get the continent, she must allow us the freedom of the sea.' This is

the gentleman who, afterwards, in the character of a commissioner--and

it stands as a record of his unblushing apostacy--signed the treaty of

peace."

Tecumseh, who was slain the year following, headed a party of his

warriors on this occasion, and in the rough sketch already mentioned,

Major-General Brock remarked: "Among the Indians whom I found at

Amherstburg, and who had arrived from distant parts of the country,

there were some extraordinary characters. He who most attracted my

attention was a Shawanee chief, Tecumseh, the brother of the prophet,

who for the two last years has carried on, contrary to our

remonstrances, an active war against the United States. A more sagacious

or a more gallant warrior does not, I believe, exist. He was the

admiration of every one who conversed with him. From a life of

dissipation he has not only become in every respect abstemious, but he

has likewise prevailed on all his nation, and many of the other tribes,

to follow his example." Previously to crossing over to Detroit,

Major-General Brock inquired of Tecumseh what sort of a country he

should have to pass through in the event of his proceeding further.

Tecumseh, taking a roll of elm bark, and extending it on the ground,

drew forth his scalping knife, and with the point presently edged upon

the back a plan of the country, its hills, woods, rivers, morasses, and

roads--a plan which, if not as neat, was fully as intelligible as if a

surveyor had prepared it. Pleased with this unexpected talent in

Tecumseh, with his defeat of the Americans near Brownstown, and with his

having, by his characteristic boldness, induced the Indians, not of his

own tribe, to cross the river prior to the embarkation of the white

troops, Major-General Brock, soon after Detroit was surrendered, took

off his sash and publicly placed it round the body of the chief.

Tecumseh received the honor with evident gratification, but was the next

day seen without the sash. The British general, fearing that something

had displeased the Indian, sent his interpreter for an explanation.

Tecumseh told him, that not wishing to wear such a mark of distinction

when an older, and, as he said, an abler warrior than himself was

present, he had transferred the sash to the Wyandot chief,

Roundhead.[74]

The unfortunate General Hull, on his return to the United States, was

tried by a court martial and condemned to death; but the sentence was

remitted by the president, in consideration of his age and services

during the war of independence.[75] His name was, however, struck off

the rolls of the army. His son, and aide-de-camp at Detroit, Captain

Hull, was killed in July, 1814, in the hard-fought battle near the Falls

of Niagara.

Major-General Brock's services throughout this short campaign, closed by

an achievement which his energy and decision crowned with such

unqualified success, were highly appreciated by the government at home,

and were immediately rewarded with the order of the bath, which was then

confined to one degree of knighthood only. He was gazetted to this mark

of his country's approbation, so gratifying to the feelings of a

soldier, on the 10th of October; but he lived not long enough to learn

that he had obtained so honorable a distinction, the knowledge of which

would have cheered him in his last moments. Singularly enough his

dispatches, accompanied by the colours of the U.S. 4th regiment, reached

London early on the morning of the 6th of October, the anniversary of

his birth. His brother William, who was residing in the vicinity, was

asked by his wife why the park and tower guns were saluting. "For

Isaac, of course," he replied; "do you not know that this is his

birth-day?" And when he came to town he learnt, with emotions which may

be easily conceived, that what he had just said in jest was true in

reality; little thinking, however, that all his dreams, all his

anticipations of a beloved brother's increasing fame and prosperity

would that day week, one short week, be entombed

"Where Niagara stuns with thundering sound."

* * * * *

In one of his letters to his brothers, (page 63,) Major-General Brock

said that he had visited Detroit, the neighbourhood of which was a

delightful country, far exceeding any thing he had seen on that

continent, and a cursory description of it, as it appeared in 1812, may

prove interesting.

The Detroit river, which connects Lake St. Clair and Lake Erie, extends

from about latitude 41° 48' to 42° 18' north, and divides that part of

Canada from the United States. Possessing a salubrious climate, a

productive soil, and a water communication with the upper and lower

lakes and the river St. Lawrence, we can scarcely conceive any thing

more favorable than the geographical position of the adjacent country.

Michigan afforded a rich field for "fowling" and fishing, and its

forests were plentifully supplied with various kinds of game. It was the

opinion of a former governor of Upper Canada, Simcoe, that the

peninsula of that province formed by Lakes Huron, St. Clair, Erie,

Ontario, Rice, and Simcoe, would alone furnish a surplus of wheat

sufficient for the wants of Great Britain. The banks of the Detroit were

in many places thickly peopled and in a fair state of cultivation. The

inhabitants on the Canadian side were chiefly of French origin, who

began to occupy the country when Canada was still under the dominion of

France. They still retained that urbanity of manners which distinguishes

them from the peasantry of most countries. Further back, the country was

settled principally by Americans, partial to the United States. Three or

four years after the war, the houses were so numerous and so close

together upon the banks of the Detroit, that there was an appearance of

a succession of villages for more than ten miles. The farms were very

narrow in front, extending a long way back, and were allotted in this

awkward and inconvenient form, that their respective occupants might be

able to render each other assistance when attacked by the Indians, who

were at one time very numerous and troublesome in this vicinity.

The banks of the river Detroit are the Eden of Upper Canada, in so far

as regards the production of fruit. Apples, pears, plums, peaches,

grapes, and nectarines, attain the highest degree of perfection, and

exceed in size, beauty, and flavour, those raised in any other part of

the province. Cider abounds at the table of the meanest peasant, and

there is scarcely a farm that has not a fruitful orchard attached to it.

This fineness of the fruit is one consequence of the amelioration of

climate, which takes place in the vicinity of the Detroit river and Lake

St. Clair. The seasons there are much milder and more serene than they

are a few hundred miles below, and the weather is likewise drier and

less variable. Comparatively little snow falls during the winter,

although the cold is often sufficiently intense to freeze over the

Detroit river so strongly, that persons, horses, and even loaded

sleighs, cross it with ease and safety. In summer, the country presents

a forest of blossoms, which exhale the most delicious odours; a cloud

seldom obscures the sky; while the lakes and rivers, which extend in

every direction, communicate a reviving freshness to the air, and

moderate the warmth of a dazzling sun; and the clearness and elasticity

of the atmosphere render it equally healthy and exhilarating.[76]

The fort of Detroit was originally constructed to overawe the

neighbouring Indian nations, and its military importance as the key of

the upper lakes appears to have been well known to them. But, neither

possessing battering cannon nor understanding the art of attacking

fortified places, they could only reduce them by stratagem or famine,

and Detroit could always be supplied with provisions by water. In the

year 1763, the Indian chief, Pontiac, whose name has already appeared,

(page 164), formed a powerful confederacy of the different tribes, for

the purpose of revenging their past wrongs and of preventing their total

extirpation, which they were erroneously led to believe was

contemplated. In a sudden, general, and simultaneous irruption on the

British frontier, they obtained possession, chiefly by stratagem, of

Michilimakinack,[77] Presqu'île, and several smaller posts; but there

still remained three fortresses formidable alike by their strength and

position, which it was necessary the Indians should subdue before they

could reap any permanent advantage from their successes. These were

Detroit, Niagara, and Pittsburg; and the first and last, although so

remote from each other, were invested almost at the same moment. The

consummate address, which the Indians displayed in this alarming war,

was supported by a proportionate degree of courage, determination, and

perseverance; nor ever did they approve themselves a more stubborn and

formidable enemy than in this final stand against the encroachments of

European dominion and civilization in North America. General Amherst,

sensible of the danger, sent immediate succours to those two western

garrisons, and thus prevented their fall. Captain Dalzell, after

conducting, in July, a strong reinforcement to Detroit, was induced to

think that he could surprise the Indian force encamped about three miles

from the fort, and he sat out at night with 270 men, adopting the most

judicious precautions for the secrecy and good order of his march. But

the Indians, apprized of his design, were prepared to defeat it, and

every step from the fort only conducted the English troops further into

the jaws of destruction. Their advance was suddenly arrested by a sharp

fire on their front, which was presently followed by a similar discharge

on their rear, and then succeeded by destructive vollies from every

side. In the darkness neither the position nor the numbers of the

Indians could be ascertained. Dalzell was slain early, and his whole

detachment was on the brink of irretrievable confusion and ruin when

Captain Grant, the next in command, perceiving that a retreat, now the

only resource, could only be accomplished by a resolute attack, promptly

rallied the survivors, who, steadily obeying his orders, charged the

Indians with so much spirit and success as to repulse them on all sides

to some distance. Having thus extricated themselves from immediate

peril, the British hastily regained the shelter of the fort, with the

loss of 70 killed and 40 wounded; and the Indians, unable to reduce the

fort by a regular siege, and pausing long enough to ascertain that the

garrison was completely on its guard against stratagem and surprise,

broke up their camp and abandoned the vicinity of Detroit.

The Indians, thus grievously disappointed in their designs on Detroit

and Pittsburg, now closely beleaguered Niagara, which they justly

considered as not less important. They hoped to reduce it by famine, and

on the 14th of September, surrounding a convoy of provisions which had

nearly reached its destination, they succeeded in making it their prey

by a sudden attack, in which 70 of the British soldiers were slain.

Shortly after, as a schooner was crossing Lake Erie with supplies for

Detroit, she was attacked by a numerous fleet of canoes, in which were

nearly 400 Indians. But this attempt was less successful, and, after a

warm engagement, the Indian flotilla was repulsed with considerable

loss, as, in a conflict with an armed vessel, they were exposed to the

same disadvantages which attended their operations against fortified

places. Niagara having at length been powerfully reinforced and well

supplied, the Indians abandoned all hope of reducing it, and thenceforth

confined themselves to their wonted predatory hostility. In the spring

and summer of the following year, the British troops attacked them with

such vigour and success, that they were compelled to propose, in Indian

phrase, to _bury the hatchet_; and in September a treaty of peace was

concluded, the conditions of which were dictated by the English.[78]

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 61: The captain of the spies was killed and scalped on the

march. "Thus fell the brave, generous, and patriotic McCulloch, captain

of the spies,"--and in a foot note a few pages before--"Captain

McCulloch, of the spies, scalped an Indian, whom he killed in the

engagement," in Upper Canada! We quote from Brown's-American History, so

it appears that at least one patriotic American could _scalp_ as well as

the Indians!]

[Footnote 62: Christie's Memoirs.]

[Footnote 63: Christie's Memoirs.]

[Footnote 64: The American historian, Brown, observes: "In the

meanwhile, Michilimakinack surrendered to the British without

resistance. The indefatigable Brock, with a reinforcement of 400

regulars, arrived at Maiden; and several Indian tribes, before

hesitating in the choice of sides, began to take their ground and array

themselves under the British standard." Vol. i, page 64.--100 regulars!]

[Footnote 65: Now Colonel Glegg, of Thursteston Hall, Cheshire.]

[Footnote 66: His age was then about forty.]

[Footnote 67: The American historian, Thomson, in his "Sketches of the

War," says that General Hull surrendered "to a body of troops inferior

in _quality_ as well as number!" and he adds: "When General Brock said

that the force at his disposal authorized him to require the surrender,

he must have had a very exalted opinion of the prowess of his own

soldiers, or a very mistaken one of those who were commanded by the

American general."]

[Footnote 68: Including four brass field pieces, captured with General

Burgoyne, at Saratoga, in 1777, and which were retaken by the Americans,

at the battle of the Thames, in October, 1813.]

[Footnote 69: Afterwards named the Detroit.]

[Footnote 70: Appendix A, Section 2, No. 1. Jefferson's Correspondence.]

[Footnote 71: Christie's Memoirs.]

[Footnote 72: Doubtless an error for 1330, the entire British force.]

[Footnote 73: There is a tradition in the editor's family, that one of

its members removed from Guernsey to England early in the seventeenth

century, and that a son of his, a clergyman, settled in the island of

Barbadoes, whence he or his family emigrated to the then British

provinces of North America, now the United States.]

[Footnote 74: James' Military Occurrences.]

[Footnote 75: For his revolutionary services, see Appendix A, Section 2,

No. 2.]

[Footnote 76: Howison's Upper Canada. London, 1821.]

[Footnote 77: The British garrison was surprised, not being aware of the

war, and the Indians butchered nearly all the whites, in number about

100. An English trader, concealed in the house of one of the French

inhabitants, beheld the massacre from an aperture which afforded him a

view of the area of the fort. He describes it as follows: "I beheld, in

shapes the foulest and most terrible, the ferocious triumphs of

barbarian conquerors. The dead were scalped and mangled; the dying were

writhing and shrieking under the insatiated knife and tomahawk, and from

the bodies of some, ripped open, their butchers were drinking the blood

scooped up in the hollows of joined hands, and quaffed amid shouts of

rage and victory."]

[Footnote 78: Grahame's History of the United States.]

CHAPTER XII.

The following letters[79] relate chiefly to the enterprize against

Detroit, and, although not in the chronological order we have hitherto

observed, will form the subject of this chapter.

_Major-General Brock to Sir George Prevost_.

Head Quarters, Detroit, Aug. 16, 1812.

I hasten to apprize your excellency of the capture of this

very important post: 2,500 troops have this day surrendered

prisoners of war, and about 25 pieces of ordnance have been

taken without the sacrifice of a drop of British blood. I had

not more than 700 troops, including militia, and about 600

Indians, to accomplish this service. When I detail my good

fortune, your excellency will be astonished. I have been

admirably supported by Colonel Proctor, the whole of my staff,

and I may justly say, every individual under my command.

_Major-General Brock to Sir George Prevost_.

Head Quarters, Detroit, Aug. 17, 1812.[80]

I have had the honor of informing your excellency, that the

enemy effected his passage across the Detroit river, on the

12th ultimo, without opposition; and that, after establishing

himself at Sandwich, he had ravaged the country as far as the

Moravian town. Some skirmishes occurred between the troops

under Lieut.-Colonel St. George and the enemy, upon the river

Canard, which uniformly terminated in his being repulsed with

loss. I judged it proper to detach a force down the river

Thames, capable of acting in conjunction with the garrison of

Amherstburg offensively, but Captain Chambers, whom I had

appointed to direct this detachment, experienced difficulties

that frustrated my intentions. The intelligence received from

that quarter admitting of no delay, Colonel Proctor was

directed to assume the command, and his force was soon after

increased with 60 rank and file of the 41st regiment.

In the mean time, the most strenuous measures were adopted to

counteract the machinations of the evil-disposed, and I soon

experienced the gratification of receiving voluntary offers of

service from that portion of the embodied militia the most

easily collected. In the attainment of this important point,

gentlemen of the first character and influence shewed an

example highly creditable to them; and I cannot, on this

occasion, avoid mentioning the essential assistance I derived

from John M'Donell, Esq., his majesty's attorney-general, who,

from the beginning of the war, has honored me with his

services as my provincial aide-de-camp. A sufficiency of boats

being collected at Long Point for the conveyance of 300 men,

the embarkation took place on the 8th instant, and in five

days we arrived in safety at Amherstburg.

I found that the judicious arrangements which had been adopted

immediately upon the arrival of Colonel Proctor, had compelled

the enemy to retreat, and take shelter under the guns of his

fort: that officer commenced operations by sending strong

detachments across the river, with a view of cutting off the

enemy's communication with his reserve. This produced two

smart skirmishes on the 5th and 9th instant, in which the

enemy's loss was considerable, whilst ours amounted to 3

killed and 13 wounded; amongst the latter, I have particularly

to regret Captain Muir and Lieutenant Sutherland, of the 41st

regiment; the former an officer of great experience, and both

ardent in his majesty's service. Batteries had likewise been

commenced opposite Fort Detroit, for one 18-pounder, two 12,

and two 5-1/2-inch mortars, all of which opened on the evening

of the 15th; (having previously summoned Brigadier-General

Hull to surrender;) and although opposed by a well-directed

fire from seven 24-pounders, such was their construction,

under the able direction of Captain Dixon, of the Royal

Engineers, that no injury was sustained from its effect.

The force at my disposal being collected in the course of the

15th, in the neighbourhood of Sandwich, the embarkation took

place a little after daylight on the following morning; and by

the able arrangements of Lieutenant Dewar, of the

quartermaster-general's department, the whole was in a short

time landed without the smallest confusion at Spring Well, a

good position, three miles west of Detroit. The Indians, who

had in the mean time effected their landing two miles below,

moved forward and occupied the woods, about a mile and a half

on our left.

The force, which I instantly directed to march against the

enemy, consisted of 30 artillery, 250 41st regiment, 50 royal

Newfoundland regiment, 400 militia, and about 600 Indians, to

which were attached three 6-pounders and two 3-pounders. The

services of Lieutenant Troughton, commanding the royal

artillery, an active and intelligent officer, being required

in the field, the direction of the batteries was entrusted to

Captain Hall and the marine department, and I cannot withhold

my entire approbation of their conduct on this occasion.

I crossed the river, with an intention of waiting in a strong

position the effect of our force upon the enemy's camp, and in

the hope of compelling him to meet us in the field; but

receiving information upon landing, that Colonel M'Arthur, an

officer of high reputation, had left the garrison three days

before with a detachment of 500 men, and hearing, soon

afterwards, that his cavalry had been seen that morning three

miles in our rear, I decided on an immediate attack.

Accordingly, the troops advanced to within one mile of the

fort, and having ascertained that the enemy had taken little

or no precaution towards the land side, I resolved on an

assault, whilst the Indians penetrated his camp.

Brigadier-General Hull, however, prevented this movement, by

proposing a cessation of hostilities, for the purpose of

preparing terms of capitulation. Lieut.-Colonel J. M'cDonell

and Captain Glegg were accordingly deputed by me on this

mission, and returned within an hour with the conditions,

which I have the honor herewith to transmit. Certain

considerations afterwards induced me to agree to the two

supplementary articles.

The force thus surrendered to his majesty's arms cannot be

estimated at less than 2,500 men. In this estimate, Colonel

M'cArthur's detachment is included, as he surrendered,

agreeably to the terms of capitulation, in the course of the

evening, with the exception of 200 men, whom he left escorting

a valuable convoy at some little distance in his rear; but

there can be no doubt the officer commanding will consider

himself equally bound by the capitulation.

The enemy's aggregate force was divided into two troops of

cavalry; one company of artillery, regulars; the 4th United

States' regiment; detachments of the 1st and 3d United States'

regiments, volunteers; three regiments of the Ohio militia;

one regiment of the Michigan territory.

Thirty-three pieces of brass and iron ordnance have already

been secured.

When this contest commenced, many of the Indian nations were

engaged in active warfare with the United States,

notwithstanding the constant endeavours of this government to

dissuade them from it. Some of the principal chiefs happened

to be at Amherstburg, trying to procure a supply of arms and

ammunition, which for years had been withheld, agreeably to

the instructions received from Sir James Craig, and since

repeated by your excellency.

From that moment they took a most active part, and appeared

foremost on every occasion; they were led yesterday by Colonel

Elliott and Captain M'Kee, and nothing could exceed their

order and steadiness. A few prisoners were taken by them

during the advance, whom they treated with every humanity; and

it affords me much pleasure in assuring your excellency, that

such was their forbearance and attention to what was required

of them, that the enemy sustained no other loss in men than

what was occasioned by the fire of our batteries.

The high sense I entertain of the abilities and judgment of

Lieut-Colonel Myers, induced me to appoint him to the

important command at Niagara; it was with reluctance I

deprived myself of his assistance, but I had no other

expedient; his duties, as head of the quartermaster-general's

department, were performed to my satisfaction by

Lieut.-Colonel Nichol, quartermaster-general of the militia.

Captain Glegg, my aide-de-camp, will have the honor of

delivering this dispatch to your excellency; he is charged

with the colours taken at the capture of Fort Detroit, and

those of the 4th United States' regiment.

Captain Glegg is capable of giving your excellency every

information respecting the state of this province, and I shall

esteem myself highly indebted to your excellency, to afford

him that protection to which his merit and length of service

give him a powerful claim.[81] I have the honor to be, &c.

P.S.--I have the honor to enclose a copy of a proclamation

which I issued immediately on taking possession of this

country.

I should have mentioned in the body of my dispatch, the

capture of the Adams; she is a fine vessel, and recently

repaired, but without arms.

_Sir George Prevost to Major-General Brock._

Head Quarters, Montreal, Aug. 30, 1812.

I received on the 25th, whilst at St. John's, your dispatch,

by express from Detroit, of the 16th instant. I do most

sincerely congratulate you upon the complete success which has

attended your measures for the preservation of Amherstburg.

The surrender of Detroit, the capture of General Hull's army

with so large a proportion of ordnance, are circumstances of

high importance to our country, and which have evinced your

talents as an officer in command, and reflect honor upon you,

and upon Lieut.-Colonel St. George and Colonel Proctor.

I propose sending an aide-de-camp to England with your short

dispatch, together with such details as I am in possession of,

respecting Brigadier-General Hull's previous invasion of Upper

Canada and of his foiled attempts to invest Amherstburg; but I

shall delay his departure from hence until the 1st of

September, in hopes of obtaining from you before that time

further particulars of the operations which led to General

Hull's disgrace.

Well aware of the difficulties you have surmounted Tor the

preservation of your government entire, I shall endeavour to

do justice to your merit in my report to his majesty's

minister upon the success which has crowned your energy and

zeal.

A warrant, giving to you more extensive power over the

sentence of such general courts martial as you may be called

on to assemble, was signed by me ten days since, and has I

hope reached you.

I am in hourly expectation of receiving from General Dearborn

intelligence respecting the reception of the proposed

suspension of hostilities, in consequence of the revocation of

the orders in council, which are the plea for war in the

American cabinet; and also whether Mr. Baker has been allowed

to assume, _pro tempore_, the character of a chargé d'affaires

at Washington, where Mr. Foster had left him in a

demi-official capacity. I consider the arrangement entered

into by General Dearborn with Colonel Baynes, requiring the

confirmation of the president, to establish its sacredness.

The king's government having most unequivocally expressed to

me their desire to preserve peace with the United States, that

they might, uninterrupted, pursue, with the whole disposable

force of the country, the great interest committed in Europe,

I have endeavoured to be instrumental in the accomplishment of

their views; but I consider it most fortunate to have been

enabled to do so without interfering with your operations on

the Detroit.

I have sent you men, money, and stores of every kind.

_Sir George Prevost to Major-General Brock._

Head Quarters, Montreal, Aug. 31, 1812.

I had scarcely closed the letters I addressed to you

yesterday, when an aide-de-camp from Major-General Dearborn

made his appearance, and delivered to me the dispatch herewith

transmitted. It will expose to your view the disposition of

the president of the United States on the provisional measure

temporarily agreed upon between the American

commander-in-chief and myself, in consequence of an earnest

desire not to widen the breach existing between the two

countries, the revocation of the orders in council having

removed the plea used in congress for a declaration of war

against Great Britain.

I am much disappointed that the particulars of the surrender

of Detroit have not as yet reached me, particularly as my

aide-de-camp, Captain Coore, is to leave Montreal this evening

for Quebec, where a ship of war is on the point of sailing for

Halifax, from whence I expect the admiral will give him a

conveyance for England.

Being unacquainted with the conditions attached to the

surrender of Brigadier-General Hull's army, and giving scope

to your expression of prisoners of war, I have made

arrangements for increasing their security against any attempt

to rescue them, by ordering Captain Gray to proceed with two

flank companies to Prescot.

[The dispatch from General Dearborn, dated Greenbush, August 26, was to

announce the discontinuance of the temporary armistice agreed to between

him and Colonel Baynes, in four days after the receipt of the

communication at the frontier posts in Canada. The American general

added: "If a suspension of offensive operations shall have been mutually

consented to between General Hull and the commanding officer of the

British forces at and near Detroit, as proposed, they will respectively

be authorized, at the expiration of four days subsequent to their

receiving copies of this communication, to consider themselves released

from any agreement thus entered into."]

* * * * *

As we have already commented on Sir George Prevost's management of the

war, and shall have occasionally to do so again, we gladly give him

credit for the very handsome manner in which he spoke of Major-General

Brock, in his dispatch to Earl Bathurst, one of his majesty's principal

secretaries of state, announcing the surrender of Detroit, and dated

Montreal, 26th August, 1812.

"It was under these circumstances at this critical period, and

when the enemy were beginning to consult their security by

entrenching themselves, that General Brock entered

Amherstburg with a reinforcement, which he was fortunately

enabled to do on the 13th instant, without the smallest

molestation, in consequence of our decided naval superiority

on the lakes. To his active and intelligent mind, the

advantages which his enemy's situation afforded him over them,

even with his very inferior force, became immediately

apparent; and that he has not failed most effectually to avail

himself of those favorable circumstances, your lordship will,

I trust, be satisfied, from the letter which I have the honor

of transmitting.

"Having thus brought to your lordship's view the different

circumstances which have led to the successful termination of

the campaign on the western frontier of Upper Canada, I cannot

withhold from Major-General Brock the tribute of applause so

justly due to him for his distinguished conduct on this

occasion; or omit to recommend him, through your lordship, to

the favorable consideration of his royal highness the prince

regent, for the great ability and judgment with which he

planned, and the promptitude, energy, and fortitude with which

he has effected, the preservation of Upper Canada, with the

sacrifice of so little British blood in accomplishing so

important a service.

"My aide-de-camp, Captain Coore, will have the honor of

delivering to your lordship this dispatch; and as he is well

qualified to give your lordship information respecting the

military resources of this command, I shall beg leave to

refer your lordship to him for farther particulars."

At the same time, truth compels us to add, that Sir George Prevost took

credit to himself, to which he was not entitled, when he wrote to Lord

Bathurst: "General Brock, relying upon the strong assurances I had given

him of a reinforcement as prompt and as effectual as the circumstances

by which I was placed by this new war would permit me to send, adopted

the most vigorous measures for the safety of that part of the frontier

which had been attacked." And again: "The certainty of the expected

reinforcements, and the weakness of the enemy on the Niagara frontier,

had in the mean time induced General Brock," &c. The last dispatch

which, we believe, Major-General Brock had received from Sir George

Prevost, when on the 6th of August he left York for Detroit, was dated

the 10th and received on the 29th July; and in that dispatch (see page

178) no reinforcements were promised, and indeed offensive operations

were deprecated. The first reinforcement which left Lower for Upper

Canada, appears to have consisted of about 100 men of the Newfoundland

regiment and 50 of the Veterans, which left Quebec on the 30th of July

for Kingston, to strengthen that post; and the adjutant-general, on the

1st of August, (page 211), wrote that Sir George Prevost regretted

extremely his inability to render Major-General Brock more efficient

aid. It was only on the 2d of August that Sir George Prevost promised

an additional reinforcement of four companies of the 49th regiment,

(page 215,) and on the 12th of the same month the remainder of the

regiment (page 218). Mr. Powell confirms this view of the subject in his

admirable letter, page 261. It will be seen in the sequel that, on the

13th of August, the adjutant-general wrote that he had strongly urged

Sir George Prevost to send further reinforcements, as he was sure they

could be spared. As to the remark relative to the weakness of the enemy

on the Niagara frontier, we shall only mention that Major-General Brock

states, in a MS. before us, that it was the strong American force on

that frontier which compelled him to take with him to Detroit only half

of the militia, who volunteered.

_Sir George Prevost to Earl Bathurst._

Head Quarters, Montreal, Sept. 1, 1812.

Since I had the honor of transmitting to your lordship my

letter of the 26th ultimo, in charge of my aide-de-camp,

Captain Coore, I have received from Major-General Brock a

dispatch, of which the enclosed is a copy, containing the

particulars of Brigadier-General Hull's invasion of Upper

Canada, which has terminated most gloriously to his majesty's

arms, in that officer's defeat and surrender, as a prisoner of

war, with the whole of the north-western army, together with

the fort Detroit, and thirty-three pieces of ordnance.

I forward this dispatch express, in the expectation of its

reaching Captain Coore previously to his leaving Canada,

which, with the colours of the 4th United States' regiment

accompanying it, I trust that officer will have the honor of

delivering to your lordship.

_Earl Bathurst to Sir George Prevost._

DOWNING STREET, October 10, 1812.

I have had the honor of receiving your dispatch, dated the

26th August, together with its enclosures, from Major-General

Brock, and I lost no time in laying intelligence so important

and satisfactory before his royal highness the prince regent.

I am commanded by his royal highness to desire you to take the

earliest opportunity of conveying his royal highness'

approbation of the able, judicious, and decisive conduct of

Major-General Brock, of the zeal and spirit manifested by

Colonel Proctor and the other officers, as well as of the

intrepidity of the troops under the command of Major-General

Brock.

By the united exertions of this little army, the enterprize of

the American army has been defeated; the territories of his

majesty in Upper Canada have been secured; and on the enemy's

fort of Detroit, important to that security, the British

standard has been happily placed.

You will inform Major-General Brock that his royal highness,

taking into consideration all the difficulties by which

Major-General Brock was surrounded from the time of the

invasion of the province by the American army, under the

command of General Hull, and the singular judgment, firmness,

skill, and courage, with which he was enabled to surmount them

so effectually--has been pleased to appoint him an extra

knight of the most honorable order of the bath.

* * * * *

The following letter strikes us as singularly appropriate and pleasing,

and as creditable to him who wrote it as it must have been gratifying to

him who received it. Mr. Powell, who, we believe, was then one of the

puisné judges, was chief justice of Upper Canada in the year 1817.

_William Dummer Powell, Esq., to Major-General Brock_.

KINGSTON, August 27, 1812.

I cannot persuade myself to offer my hearty congratulations

through the medium of a third person, and hope you will

believe that no one sympathizes more cordially than myself in

your feelings on the late happy event. I shall never again

regret little disappointments, when I consider to what they

may lead: had your early representations been attended to and

produced their proper effect, you would probably not have to

boast of the most brilliant success, with the most inadequate

means, which history records. There is something so fabulous

in the report of a handful of troops, supported by a few raw

militia, leaving their strong post to invade an enemy of

double numbers in his own fortress, and making them all

prisoners without the loss of a man, that, although your

report may be sanctioned by Sir George Prevost, it seems to me

that the people of England will be incredulous until they see

the exterminating boaster a prisoner in London. We find in a

cover by General Sheaffe, that the first report of the cannon

taken was one-third short of the real number. I shall hardly

sleep until I have the satisfaction of hearing particulars of

the wonderful excursion, for it must not be called a campaign.

The _veni, vidi, vici_, is again the faithful report. Your

good fortune in one instance is singular, for if your zeal had

been thwarted by such adverse winds as frequently occur on the

lake, the armistice might have intercepted your career. That

it did not I heartily thank God, and pray that nothing may

occur to damp the entire satisfaction of yourself and family

in the glory so well earned. I am impatient to hear from

Colonel M'Donell, but have no doubt that he justified your

warmest expectations in every trial. May I beg to be presented

to Glegg, and that you, Sir, will believe me, &c.

_Chief Justice of Lower Canada, Sewell, to Major-General Brock._

QUEBEC, Sept. 3, 1812.

In your present situation, I am perfectly sensible of your

occupations, and know that your time is precious. Yet I take

the liberty to intrude upon you with my congratulations upon

the brilliant success which has attended the measures which

you have pursued with so much judgment in Upper Canada, and

the thanks of an individual who feels the benefits which he,

in common with every other subject of his majesty in British

America, derives from your exertions.

* * * * *

The next letter is from General Maitland,[82] who was colonel of the

49th foot from the 25th May, 1768, to the period of his death, in

February, 1820, or nearly fifty-two years! Major-General Brock held this

gallant veteran in high estimation, having received from him much

attention and kindness, which were continued to some of his relatives

after his fall, and it will be seen that the feeling was mutual.

Although General Maitland was so many years colonel of the 49th, yet we

find that the Marquis of Drogheda held a similar appointment for a

longer period, being colonel of the 18th Hussars from the 3d August,

1762, to October, 1821, when that regiment was disbanded, or above

fifty-nine years!

_General the Honorable Alexander Maitland to Major-General Brock_.

TOTTERIDGE, October 8, 1812.

Yesterday being mail day for America, I dispatched my usual

monthly letter to the regiment, and in which, as I always do,

I desired to be remembered to you with my best and warmest

wishes for your health, happiness, and success. I had not then

heard, but did a few hours after, of your _glorious victory_

over our most unnatural enemies, (such an one as can hardly be

equalled in the annals of history,) that of not only beating,

but taking prisoners, more than double your numbers; and now

that you have conquered them in the field, I trust that their

wrong-headed government will be brought to reason and peace,

for it will prove to them, if they persevere, that they will

be forced to it, and terms dictated to them. Therefore allow

me, Sir, with the warmest feelings of an old friend to

congratulate you, as I do the public, on the essential service

you have done the country on the present occasion; as I do my

friend, your aide-de-camp, Captain Glegg, as far as the sphere

of his duty could assist in the great work; and _I glory to

say you are both 49-thers_. I could write sheets on the

subject, but, not to take up your valuable time longer than I

have done to express my pleasure and feelings, I will stop by

adding the sincere congratulations of all related to me here

as well as elsewhere. But I cannot help now observing how

prophetic I was in what I wrote to Colonel Vincent yesterday

concerning you, which was, _that if you mere properly

supported, I thought the enemy would never cross the line of

your command_, a proof of which I had a few hours afterwards.

When you see any of our friends of the 49th, pray remember me

in the kindest manner to them, and I am sure they will thank

you that they are safe and warm in their quarters in place of

having a winter campaign in so severe a climate. And now I

will only add my warmest wishes for your health and happiness,

and that the same good fortune that has hitherto attended you

may continue; and I beg that you will be so good as to convey

the same to my friend, your aide-de-camp. Believe me to be, my

dear general, &c.

P.S.--I send this after the mail, which left London last

night, in hope it may overtake it at Falmouth, as I know the

packet seldom sails for some days after her time.

_Major-General John Burnet to Sir Isaac Brock, K.B._[83]

STRABERRY, Ireland, Oct. 11, 1812.

There has existed too long and too sincere a friendship

between us for me not to feel the most lively interest in the

event which has added such _éclat_ to your achievement at my

old quarter, Detroit.

To evince to you how much I regard you, and how much I have

talked of you, a friend of mine at the Horse Guards enclosed

me the Extraordinary Gazette, saying he knew how much I should

be gratified: judge then, my friend, of my feelings that you

had acquitted yourself with such address; and I feel some

degree of pride that my opinion was so justly formed of your

conduct, whenever you should have an opportunity to display

your talents. Accept, then, the very sincere congratulations

of an old friend on this occasion, and be assured of the

happiness it gives me, as well as Mrs. Burnet, who is with me,

and sends her love to you.

With respect to my situation, I offered my services to go to

the Peninsula as soon as our promotion took place, and at one

time flattered myself I should have gone there; but superior

interest prevailed, and I was placed on the staff of Ireland.

I first went to Londonderry, but have been here six months, as

more central to the brigade under my command.

I have my hands full of business, and little time for private

correspondence; but I could not resist the impulse on an

occasion so highly to the honor of an old friend. Believe me,

my dear Brock, &c.

P.S.--If Commodore Grant be still alive, pray remember me

warmly to him and Mrs. Grant.

_Major-General Brock to his Brothers_.

Head Quarters, Detroit, Aug. 16, 1812.

Rejoice at my good fortune, and join me in prayers to Heaven.

I send you a copy of my hasty note to Sir George.

[Here follows his short dispatch of that day. See page 247.]

Let me hear that you are all united and happy.

_Major-General Brock to his Brothers._

LAKE ONTARIO, September 3, 1812.

You will have heard of the complete success which attended the

efforts I directed against Detroit. I have received so many

letters from people whose opinion I value, expressive of their

admiration of the exploit, that I begin to attach to it more

importance than I was at first inclined. Should the affair be

viewed in England in the light it is here, I cannot fail of

meeting reward, and escaping the horror of being placed high

on a shelf, never to be taken down.

Some say that nothing could be more desperate than the

measure; but I answer, that the state of the province admitted

of nothing but desperate remedies. I got possession of the

letters my antagonist addressed to the secretary at war, and

also of the sentiments which hundreds of his army uttered to

their friends. Confidence in the general was gone, and evident

despondency prevailed throughout. I have succeeded beyond

expectation. I crossed the river, contrary to the opinion of

Colonel Proctor,----, &c.; it is, therefore, no wonder that

envy should attribute to good fortune what, in justice to my

own discernment, I must say, proceeded from a cool calculation

of the _pours_ and _contres_.

They say that the value of the articles captured will amount

to 30 or £40,000; in that case, my proportion will be

something considerable. If it enable me to contribute to your

comfort and happiness, I shall esteem it my highest reward.

When I returned Heaven thanks for my amazing success, I

thought of you all; you appeared to me happy--your late

sorrows forgotten; and I felt as if you acknowledged that the

many benefits, which for a series of years I received from

you, were not unworthily bestowed. Let me know, my dearest

brothers, that you are all again united. The want of union was

nearly losing this province without even a struggle, and be

assured it operates in the same degree in regard to families.

A cessation of hostilities has taken place along this

frontier. Should peace follow, the measure will be well; if

hostilities recommence, nothing could be more unfortunate than

this pause. I cannot give you freely an account of my

situation--it is, however, of late much improved. The militia

have been inspired, by the recent success, with

confidence--the disaffected are silenced. The 49th have come

to my aid, besides other troops. I shall see Vincent, I hope,

this evening at Kingston. He is appointed to the command of

that post--a most important one. I have withdrawn Plenderleath

from Niagara to assist him. P---- is sitting opposite to me,

and desires to be remembered. James Brock is likewise at

Kingston. I believe he considers it more his interest to

remain with the 49th than to act as my private secretary;

indeed, the salary is a mere pittance. Poor Leggatt is dead,

and has left his family in the most distressing

circumstances. His wife died last year.

Major Smelt and Captain Brown have sent me your letters, for

which I thank you. Let Richard Potenger be assured that his

letter afforded me the highest gratification. I trust in

Heaven that the whole of his thoughts will be directed to

study, and to qualify himself for the holy profession he has

chosen. Ignorance is despised in most men, but more

particularly in the clergyman educated at one of the

universities, who must have neglected so many opportunities of

acquiring knowledge.

I received the other day a long letter from Sir Thomas

Saumarez, from Halifax. I regret the death of the two Harry

Brocks.[84] I have likewise been particularly unfortunate in

the loss of two valuable military friends. I begin to be too

old to form new friendships, and those of my youth are

dropping off fast.

General Sheaffe has lately been sent to me. There never was an

individual so miserably off for the necessary assistance. Sir

George Prevost has kindly hearkened to my remonstrances, and

in some measure supplied the deficiency. The 41st is an

uncommonly fine regiment, but, with few exceptions, badly

officered. You mention John Tupper[85] in a manner as to leave

hope that he may still be living. God grant it! He is a great

favorite of mine, and I should lament any disaster happening

to him. Perhaps Glegg may be sent home by Sir George, and in

that case I hope he will allow you to see the colours taken

from the 4th U.S. regiment. The generality of the English will

esteem them very little: nothing is prized that is not

acquired with blood.

KINGSTON, September 4.

I this instant receive your letters by Mr. Todd, So honest

John Tupper is gone! I could not have loved a son of my own

more ardently. Hostilities I this instant understand are to be

renewed in four days; and though landed only two hours, I must

return immediately to Niagara, whence I shall write fully.

_Lieut.-Colonel Nichol, Quartermaster-General of Militia, to

Major-General Brock._

DETROIT, August 25, 1812.

I have just been informed by Colonel Proctor that he intends

sending an express to-morrow to Fort George, which gives me an

opportunity to forward a few printed copies of your

proclamation, and to inform you that in order to carry it into

effect, it has been found absolutely necessary to organize the

civil government. Under existing circumstances, I have advised

Colonel Proctor to assume the administration until your

pleasure is known, to which he has agreed, and the necessary

arrangements consequent thereto have been adopted and

promulgated. In Judge Woodward, who has been appointed

secretary _pro tem_, he will find an able coadjutor; and as

your object undoubtedly was to tranquillize the public mind

and to give the inhabitants a proof of the moderation and

benevolence of his majesty's government, as well as to ensure

the due administration of the laws, I do not think a more

judicious choice could have been made. In all the discussions

which took place on this subject, Colonel Proctor did me the

honor to consult me; and I have no hesitation in saying, that

I urged him to the step he has taken, of which I hope you

will, as it is only temporary, approve. We have had much

difficulty in collecting the public cattle and horses, and

have suffered greatly from the predatory spirit of the

Indians; indeed, their conduct has been infamous. There is

hardly a house on either side of the river that has not been

robbed by them; they have taken away the greater part of the

captured horses and cattle, and without our being able to

prevent it. It has not been in my power as yet to send a

statement of all that we have captured, as the property is so

scattered, but I hope to finish this week. We got upwards of

£1,200 in money, and have sent down a hundred packs worth, I

suppose £1,500 more. I have reason to think the captured

property will not be much under £40,000.

We have still 350 prisoners to ship off, but I hope to get

rid of them in a few days. Public confidence seems to be

partially restored; business is again going on, and I hope

that the country will become perfectly quiet.

It is impossible for me to say when I shall get done here. I

hope, however, it will not be long. I regret that we are not

able to send you complete returns of every thing; but the

captured property is in so many different places, and so

scattered, that it cannot be done.

* * * * *

_Extract from a Canadian Newspaper._

MONTREAL, September 12.

Last Sunday evening the inhabitants of this city were

gratified with an exhibition equally novel and interesting.

That General Hull should have entered into our city so soon,

at the head of his troops, rather exceeded our expectations.

We were, however, very happy to see him, and received him with

all the honors due to his high rank and importance as a public

character. The following particulars, relative to his journey

and reception at Montreal, may not be uninteresting to our

readers:

It appears that General Hull and suite, accompanied by about

25 officers and 350 soldiers, left Kingston, under an escort

of 130 men, commanded by Major Heathcote, of the Newfoundland

regiment. At Cornwall, the escort was met by Captain Gray, of

the quartermaster-general's department, who took charge of the

prisoners of war, and from thence proceeded with them to La

Chine, where they arrived about two o'clock on Sunday

afternoon. At La Chine, Captains Richardson and Ogilvie, with

their companies of Montreal militia, and a company of the

king's from Lower Chine, commanded by Captain Blackmore,

formed the escort till they were met by Colonel Auldjo, with

the remainder of the flank companies of the militia, upon

which Captain Blackmore's company fell out and presented arms

as the general and line passed, and then returned to La Chine,

leaving the prisoners of war to be guarded by the militia

alone. The line of march then proceeded to the town in the

following order, viz:

1. Band of the king's regiment.

2. The first division of the escort.

3. General Hull in a carriage, accompanied by Captain Gray.

Captain Hull and Major Shekleton followed in the second, and

some wounded officers occupied four others.

4. The American officers.

5. The non-commissioned officers and soldiers.

6. The second division of the escort.

It unfortunately proved rather late in the evening for the

vast concourse of spectators assembled to experience that

gratification they so anxiously looked for. This inconvenience

was, however, in a great measure remedied by the illuminations

of the streets through which the line of march passed. When

they arrived at the general's house, the general was conducted

in, and presented to his excellency Sir George Prevost, and

was received with the greatest politeness, and invited to take

up his residence there during his stay at Montreal. The other

officers were accommodated at Holmes' hotel, and the soldiers

lodged in the Quebec barracks. The general appears to be about

sixty years of age, and is a good looking man, and we are

informed by those who have had frequent opportunities of

conversing with him, that he is a man of general information.

He is communicative, and seems to bear his misfortunes with a

degree of philosophical resignation that but few men in

similar circumstances are gifted with. On Thursday last

General Hull, with eight American officers, left this city for

the United States, on their parole.

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 79: We can discover none from Colonel Baynes on the subject.]

[Footnote 80: This dispatch was published in a Gazette Extraordinary, in

London, on the 6th of October. See page 240.]

[Footnote 81: Captain Glegg was made a brevet-major for the capture of

Detroit. Sir George Prevost's aide-de-camp, Captain Coore, was also made

a brevet-major for taking the dispatches to England.]

[Footnote 82: Created a baronet on the 30th November, 1818.]

[Footnote 83: This letter is apparently written with the left hand, as

if the writer had lost his right.]

[Footnote 84: Henry Frederick Brock, Esq., jurat of the Royal Court of

Guernsey; and Lieutenant Henry Brock, R.N. In his letter, (see page

194,) Sir Thomas Saumarez, speaking of the latter, says: "He was a most

promising young officer, and, had the poor fellow lived, my brother

James would probably have made him a commander this summer."]

[Footnote 85: His nephew, John E. Tupper, Esq., aged twenty, perished at

sea in January, 1812, in the Mediterranean, the vessel in which he was a

passenger from Catalonia to Gibraltar having never been heard of after

sailing. He was educated at Harrow at the same time as Lord Byron, Sir

Robert Peel, &c.]

CHAPTER XIII.

After issuing a proclamation to the inhabitants of the Michigan

territory, by which their private property was secured and their laws

and religion confirmed, and leaving as large a force under Colonel

Proctor as could be spared at Detroit, Major-General Brock hastened to

return to the Niagara frontier; and while on his voyage across Lake

Erie, in the schooner Chippewa, he was met on the 23d of August by the

provincial schooner Lady Prevost, of 14 guns, the commander of which,

after saluting the general with seventeen guns, came on board and gave

him the first intelligence of the armistice which Sir George Prevost had

unfortunately concluded with the American general, Dearborn.

Major-General Brock could not conceal his deep regret and mortification

at the intelligence, which he feared would prevent his contemplated

attack on Sackett's Harbour. Sir George Prevost, early in August, on

hearing of the repeal of the British orders in council, which were the

principal among the alleged causes of the war, had proposed a suspension

of hostilities until the sentiments of the American government were

received on the subject; and to this suspension General Dearborn

readily agreed, with the exception of the forces under General Hull,

who, he said, acted under the immediate orders of the secretary at war.

But, by the terms of the truce, General Hull had the option of availing

himself of its provisions if he thought fit, and that he would gladly

have done so there can be no doubt. Happily, however, owing to the

rapidity of Major-General Brock's movements, the news of the armistice

did not reach the belligerent commanders in time to prevent the

surrender of the one, or to snatch well-earned laurels from the brow of

the other.[86] This armistice was attended with very prejudicial

consequences, as it not only marred the attempt on Sackett's Harbour,

but it rendered unavailing the command of the lakes, which was then held

by the British.[87]