Wilkinson's stock of provisions, and the impossibility, from the difficulty of transportation at this season, of his bringing more than each man could have carried on his back. "When I reflected," says Hampton, "that in throwing myself upon your scanty means, I should be weakening you in your most vulnerable point, I did not hesitate to adopt the opinion, after consulting the general and principal officers, that by throwing myself back on my main depot, when all the means of transportation had gone, and falling upon the enemy's flank, and straining every effort to open a communication from Plattsburg to Coghnawaga, or any other point you may indicate on the St. Lawrence, I should more effectually contribute to your success, than by the junction at St. Regis. The way is in many places blockaded and abatted, and the road impracticable for wheel carriages during winter but by the employment of pack horses, if I am not overpowered, I hope to be able to prevent your starving. I have ascertained and witnessed that the plan of the enemy is to burn and consume every thing in our advance. My troops and other means will be described to you by colonel Atkinson. Besides the rawness and sickness, they have endured fatigues equal to a winter campaign, in the late snows and bad weather, and are sadly dispirited and fallen off; but upon this subject I must refer you to colonel Atkinson. With these means- -what can be accomplished by human exertion, I will attempt-with a mind devoted to the general objects of the campaign."

6. Hampton's letter was immediately submitted to a council of war, composed of the general officers and the colonel commanding the elite, the chief engineer, and the adjutant-general, who unanimously gave it as their opinion, that "the attack on Montreal should be abandoned for the present season, and the army near Cornwall should be immediately crossed to the American shore for taking up winter quarters, and that this place afforded an eligible position for such quarters." This opinion was acquiesced in by Wilkinson, not, he states, from the want of provisions, because they could, in case of extremity, have lived on the enemy, but because the loss of the division under general Hampton weakened his force too sensibly to justify the attempt.

The army remained on the Canada shore until the next day, without seeing the enemy, and then crossed over and went into winter quarters at French Mills, near St. Regis, on the borders of Lower Canada.

7. Meanwhile general Harrison, having embarked at De

troit, with those of his troops whose term of service had not expired, or who were not considered necessary for the defence of the country he had overrun, arrived at Buffaloe towards the end of October, and immediately proceeded to Fort George. General Wilkinson having previously gone down the lake, and the fleet not having arrived for the transportation of Harrison's troops, arrangements were made by him and general M'Clure, whom he found in the command of Fort George, for an expedition against Burlington Heights, at the head of lake Ontario. Before the completion of these arrangements, however, commodore Chauncey arrived with orders immediately to bring down Harrison's troops for the defence of Sackett's Harbour. Commodore Chauncey was extremely pressing for the troops immediately to embark, stating that the navigation with small vessels was very dangerous at this season, and that should the troops not get down before the lake was frozen, the safety of the fleet at the harbour might be seriously endangered. The general therefore reluctantly relinquished the expedition, further delay in proceeding down the lake being considered impracticable. The troops were embarked about the middle of November, and shortly after arrived in safety at Sackett's Harbour.

After the departure of general Harrison, the force at Fort George, under general M'Clure, consisted almost exclusively of militia and volunteers, whose term of service was on the point of expiring. The contemplated expedition against Burlington Heights was once more undertaken, but the roads were found cut up in such a manner, and so obstructed by timber, that it was found impracticable to transport the artillery, and accordingly it was abandoned.

The abandonment of this expedition excited much dissatisfaction at Fort George, especially among the volunteers, many of whom had made considerable sacrifices to join the army, in the hope of being usefully and actively employed. Their term of service now expiring, M'Clure used every effort to engage them to remain for one or two months longer, but in vain. He was left on the 10th of December with not more than sixty effective regulars to garrison Fort George. A council of officers was then held, who were unanimously of opinion that the fort should be immediately evacuated, the advance of the enemy, who by some means had obtained information of the state of the place, being within eight miles. Orders were accordingly given to transport all the arms, ammunition, and public stores of every description across the river, which was principally effect

:

ed, though the enemy approached so rapidly that ten of the soldiers were made prisoners. The fort was blown up, and the town of Newark, a handsome little place of about 200 houses, situated a mile below the fort, was laid in ashes. “This act," general M'Clure declares, "as distressing to the inhabitants as to my feelings, was by an order of the secretary at war." "The inhabitants had twelve hours notice to remove their effects, and such as chose to come across the river were provided with all the necessaries of life." The only reason that we have seen assigned for this outrage is by no means satisfactory: "that the enemy might not have it in their power to quarter with their Indian allies in the village, and maraud and murder our citizens," and we are much pleased to see that the act is almost universally disapproved of.

8. On the 19th of December, about 4 in the morning, the British crossed the river, a few miles above Fort Niagara, and succeeded in taking the place by storm about an hour before daybreak. The fort appears to have been completely surprised. The men were nearly all asleep in their tents, when the enemy rushed in, and commenced a dreadful slaughter. Such as escaped the fury of the first onset, retired to the old mess-house, where they kept up a fire on the enemy, until a want of ammunition compelled them to surrender. The disaster is attributed, and with but too much appearance of probability, to gross neglect or treasonable connivance on the part of the commanding officer of the fort, who is stated to have been absent at the time it took place, notwithstanding the attack was expected, as appears from the general orders issued by M'Clure a few days previous.

9. After the capture of the fort, the British, with a large body of Indians, proceeded up the river as far as Lewistown, and, having driven off a detachment of militia stationed at Lewistown Heights, burnt that village and those of Youngstown and Manchester, and the Indian Tuscarora village. A number of the inoffensive inhabitants are said to have been butchered by the savages. On the 30th another detachment of the British and Indians crossed the Niagara, near Black Rock. They were met by the militia under general Hall; but, overpowered by numbers, and the discipline of the enemy, the militia soon gave way and fled on every side, and every attempt to rally them was ineffectual. The enemy then set fire to Black Rock, when they proceeded to Buffaloe, which they likewise laid in ashes, thus completing the desolation of the whole of the Niagara frontier, as a retaliation for the burning of Newark.

Serious apprehensions were entertained for the safety of the fleet at Erie; the enemy, however, did not attempt to penetrate further at the moment, and a sufficient force was soon collected for its defence, which will remain during the winter.

CHAPTER IX.

§ 1. Events on the southern frontier. § 2. Seizure of Mobile. 3. War with the Creek Indians. § 4. Capture of Fort Mims. § 5. Battle of Tallushatches. § 6. Battle of Talledega. §7. Destruction of the Hillibee towns. 8. Battle of Autossee. § 9. Expedition to the Tallapoosie river. § 10. Prospects of peace. 11. Retaliation. § 12. Correspondence on the employment of the Indians.

1. WHILE active operations were thus carried on, on the north and north-western frontier of the United States, the calamities of war began to extend to the southern portion. In the summer of 1813 the Creek nation commenced hostilities by an attack on Fort Mims, a post upon the Tensaw river. Before we enter on a narrative of the events of this war, however, it will be proper to notice another important event which took place in this quarter, in the month of April; namely, the surrender of Mobile to the arms of the United States.

2. By the treaty of St. Ildefonso, concluded on the 1st of October, 1800, between France and Spain, the latter, in consideration of certain stipulations in favour of the duke of Parma, ceded to the French republic "the colony or province of Louisiana, with the same extent that it now has in the hands of Spain, and that it had when France possessed it; and such as it should be after the treaties subsequently entered into between Spain and other states." By a treaty concluded at Paris, on the 30th of April, 1803, France ceded to the United States, the territory she had acquired by the treaty of St. Ildefonso, "as fully and in the same manner as they have been acquired by the French republic. In virtue of the above-mentioned treaties, the United States claimed, as the southern portion of Louisiana, all the country lying between the Sabine and Perdido rivers. The Spanish government, however, resisted this claim, and contended that its eastern boundary was the river Mississippi, and the lakes Maurepas and Pontchartrain. This country has accordingly been the subject of negociation for several years, between the American and Spanish governments, the latter still holding possession of the country. This negociation was put an end to by the troubles which took place in old Spain, in 1807; and a revolution breaking out in Florida,