no officer left to give her up.

She was boarded, and the flag

which had never yet been struck to anything like an equal foe, was hauled down by a lieutenant of the Shannon (June 1, 1813).

70.The capture of a single ship of war probably never produced a greater effect upon the contending parties than this victory of the Shannon over the Chesapeake. The almost uninterrupted success of the little navy of the United States had made the Americans believe that it was invincible, and a similar idea was taking hold of the British mind." The spell was now broken. The Americans moderated their opinion the English were jubilant. In England bells were rung, guns were fired, and honors were lavished upon the Shannon's captain and crew. The prowess of the American navy never received a greater compliment.

Victory

on

Lake Erie.

71. That prowess was about to deserve a compliment not so agreeable to British feeling. The recovery of Michigan still being in view (§ 66), a fleet of nine vessels was fitted out on Lake Erie, and the command given. to Captain, afterward Commodore, Perry. This fleet was to cope with the enemy's fleet commanded by Commodore Barclay (see table p. 256). The American vessels were lying in Put-in-Bay, among the islands in the western part of the lake (map p. 250), when the cry of "Sail ho!" rang out from the mast-head of the Lawrence, Perry's flagship (September 10, 1813).

72. Perry's battle flag was brought out. On it was painted in large letters, "Don't give up the ship." Mounting a gun slide, he addressed his crew: "My brave lads," said he,

70. What was the effect produced by the result of the battle?

71. Where is Lake Erie? Put-in-Bay? Who commanded the American fleet on the lake? How many vessels and guns were in the two fleets (p. 257) ?

72. How did Perry address his men on the eve of the battle? Give an account of the battle. State what is said of Perry's message. Where is the battle held in special remembrance? Ans. In Cleveland, Ohio, where a beautiful statue of Perry was erected in 1860. How is Cleveland situated (map p. 250) ?

"this flag contains the last words of Captain Lawrence. "Ay, ay, sir!" they all shouted. Up

Shall I hoist it?"

it went, amid cheer

after cheer, at first from

the flag-ship, and then, as the words were read, from the rest of the fleet. It was the signal for battle. The combat lasted about three hours, and ended in a complete victory to the Americans. Not one of the enemy's ships escaped. Taking off his cap, and using it for a writing desk, Perry wrote with a pencil on the back of an old letter his famous dis

patch to Harrison: "We have met the enemy and they are ours." Does not this message fairly rank in brevity with the renowned one, “I came, I saw, I conquered," sent by the great Roman general, Julius Cæsar, after a victory he had just gained?

Events Following

73. The consequences of this victory were near and of great importance. All that Hull had lost was now recovered. The British troops and their savage allies in alarm blew up their fort on the Detroit River, in Perry's Victory Canada, and fled along the Thames River. Harrison's army, transported by Perry's fleet across the lake, overtook the fleeing foes and attacked them with great fury. Resistance was useless. The British regulars threw down their

73. What did the British do in consequence of their defeat? Into what water does the Thames River flow? Give an account of the battle. What is said of Tecum seh ? Give the previous history of Tecumseh (§ 55).

arms and surrendered, but the Indians, two thousand in number, held out till their great leader, Tecumseh, was slain. Then they suddenly fled (October 5).*

74. The death of this remarkable chief broke up the combination among the Indian tribes. Tecumseh had been for years a most determined foe of the United States. He had gone from tribe to tribe, even to those far away in Alabama, and incited them to war against the whites. Expeditions were sent to subdue these Southern

Indians, called Creeks,

War with

and several battles were fought, in every one of which they were routed. Not, however, till General Andrew Jackson defeated a thousand warriors, with terrible slaughter, in the battle of To-ho-pe'-ka, could the white man sit with safety at his cabin door (March,

the Creeks.

"Who killed Tecumseh?" When Richard M. Johnson, in 1836, was a candidate for Vice-President, his partisans asserted that he was the slayer of Tecumseh. His Whig opponents denied this. In the battle of the Thames, he led a body of horsemen. "The riders plunged with a yell on the British line. Their five hundred rifles cracked at once, strewing the ground with men. It was a single blow, and the battle was over in that part of the field. ** * Tecumseh led his men gallantly forward, and for a few minutes the contest was sharp and bloody. At length he fell, when the savages, with a loud whoop, turned and fled."-Headly's Second War with England.

74. How had Tecumseh shown his enmity against the United States? Who were the Creeks? How did the Creek War begin? Ans. In August, 1813, fifteen hundred warriors surprised Fort Mims, and massacred nearly three hundred men, women, and chil dren. Where was that fort (map p. 251)? Give an account of the closing event of the war

1814). Then, Tecumseh being dead, the tribes of the South as well as those of the North were ready to smoke the pipe of peace.

Operations on the Niagara Frontier.

75. We now come to the third year of the war. Some operations against Canada, conducted in a faint-hearted manner from New York, accomplished nothing. Others, under Generals Brown and Scott, being prosecuted with skill, vigor, and courage, were among the most illustrious of the war. Brown and Scott crossed the Niagara River, their first achievement being the capture of Fort Erie. General Ri'-all, commanding a

force of British regulars, was on his way to the fort, when, hearing of its surrender, he halted at Chippewa, and there Scott attacked him. After a series of attacks and counter attacks the British treated across Chippewa Creek, destroying the bridge behind them (July 5, 1814).

re

76. Twenty days later the British were again met, this time at Lundy's Lane, within hear

ing of the roar of Niagara Falls, and though they were to the Americans as three to one, Scott resolved to fight. At

75. Where was Fort Erie (map p. 252)? Chippewa? State what took place at both places. What had Brown previously done (§ 67) ? Into what water does the Niagara River flow (map p. 252) ?

76. Give an account of the battle of Lundy's Lane. By what other name is the battle also known? Ans. Bridgewater or Niagara. Where is Lundy's Lane (map p. 252) ?

sundown the battle was not half over. A battery on a hill gave the British a decided advantage. If not captured, the victory would certainly be theirs. "Can you take that battery?" asked General Brown, who had recently arrived on the battle ground and taken the command. The question was put to the gallant Colonel Miller, and his prompt reply was, "I'll try, sir." With three hundred men as brave as himself, he charged up the hill, and, despite grapeshot and musketry, gained the coveted battery. Quickly the British, with fixed bayonets, advanced to regain it. They were repulsed. Again they advanced. It was a hand-to-hand contest. A second and a third time the British were repulsed. At midnight the conflict was over (July 25).

77. Brown and Scott, having been severely wounded in the battle, retired with their victorious soldiers to Fort Erie. In vain did the British try to recover the fort. It was held against siege and assault, and only abandoned when its brave defenders decided to find more comfortable quarters for the winter on their own soil.

Victory on Lake Champlain.

In this bay

78. While the Americans were in possession of Fort Erie, a large British force, comprising an army and a fleet, left the northern end of Lake Champlain. Its object was to capture or destroy the fleet on the lake, commanded by Captain MacDonough; and to occupy Plattsburg, situated on a bay of the lake. a desperate battle took place between the two fleets. It lasted more than two hours, and ended in a complete victory for MacDonough. While the fight on the water was in progress, the British troops tried to enter the town, but being met with spirited resistance from a force of volunteers under General

77. Give a further account of the operations at Fort Erie.

78. What invasion took place by way of Lake Champlain? Who commanded the American fleet? How long did it take to create that fleet? Ans. The largest and best vessel in it, the Saratoga, was launched on the fortieth day after the first tree used in its frame was taken from the forest. Give an account of the battle. What is the name of Lake Champlain's outlet? Into what river does it flow?