the lustre which they had thrown upon the northwestern army. In the destruction of the first town the American loss was one killed, and one wounded; in the action of the following morning, eight killed, and 25 wounded; the Indian loss in killed was known to be forty, the number of wounded could not be ascertained. The prisoners were brought away by the detachment. It has been thought to be unaccountable that the Indians did not attack the detachment in its retrograde movement, but this circumstance may be attributed to the loss of their prophet, who, it is supposed by many, was killed in the second engagement.

HOUGH the season was already so far advanced, and the difficulties in marching against the enemy were every day increasing, General Harrison was too steadily determined on the recovery of Michigan, and the subjugation of Malden and the country surrounding it, to be put aside from his views by any such obstacles. Every implement was provided which might possibly be necessary, the military stores and trains of artillery were already at the different depôts, and the troops from Pennsylvania being at Mansfield, those from Virginia at Delaware, and those from Ohio at Fort M'Arthur, the purposed concentration could be almost immediately effected. General Winchester, with the left wing, moved from Fort Winchester to the Rapids, in conformity with the previous order of General Harrison, who was now commissioned a major-general in the army of the United States, and appointed to the command of the northwestern army. A line of posts was to be established, and strong fortifications erected as intermediate places of rendezvous, at equal distances between Defiance and Detroit; and that he might with more convenience superintend the building of these, the commander-in-chief fixed his head-quarters at Upper Sandusky.

A brigade of Kentuckians had been sent into the Indiana territory, under General Samuel Hopkins, with instructions to attack every settlement on the Wabash, and then to fall on the Illinois. On the 11th of November they marched from Fort Harrison with a view to the destruction of the Prophet's Town. Seven boats, with provisions, forage, and military stores, commanded by Colonel Barbour, accompanied the expedition, and the troops marched on the east side of the Wabash to protect them, until the 19th, when they reached the town, and were engaged three days in the destruction of it and a large Kickapoo village adjoining, while General Butler, with 300 men, surrounded and destroyed the

Winnebago town on the Ponce-passu creek: each of these towns had been abandoned by the Indian warriors, and a small party was sent out to reconnoitre the surrounding woods and to seek out their hiding-places. Several Indians showed themselves, fired on the party, killed. one man and compelled the others to retire. This occurrence was no sooner made known to the troops than 60 horsemen offered to proceed to the ground to bury their companion and to encounter the enemy. When they attained the point, near the Indian encampment, they were fired upon from an ambuscade and eighteen of the party were killed and wounded, among them several promising young officers. The enemy had taken possession of a strong defensive position, in which there was no hope of effectually assailing him, having a deep rapid creek in its rear in the form of a semicircle, and being fronted by a high and almost perpendicular bluff of 100 feet, which could only be penetrated by three steep ravines. The death of these gallant young men excited a spirit of revenge among the troops, and they moved forward under a heavy fall of snow, determined to attack the enemy in his stronghold at every risk. But on arriving at the place, they found that the Indians had evacuated it and crossed over Ponce-passu on their retreat. There being now no certain point to which the operations of the troops could be directed, General Hopkins gave orders for their return to Fort Harrison, where they arrived after an absence of sixteen days, having in that time traversed 100 miles of a county of which, to use the words of their commander, they had no cognizance.

Meantime, the opposition to the measures of the government made by the federal party, found violent expression in New England. They criticised and protested against the war with England, and maintained that it was unconstitutional and illegal to employ the militia of the states in offensive warfare. Massachusetts and Connecticut refused to furnish their contingent of troops for the invasion of Canada. The presidential election took place in the autumn of this year. Mr. Madison was reelected without difficulty, whilst Mr. Gerry became vice-president. The friends of the administration were in a great majority.

Congress met in November. The president, in his message, frankly stated the ill success of the operations on the northern frontier, but mentioned with just pride the victories of the American cruisers. His request for a more efficient organization of the army was granted. The pay the troops was increased, and twenty additional regiments of infantry were ordered to be raised.

of

EVENTS OF 1813.

HE news of another naval triumph was the first cause of rejoicing in the Union, at the opening of 1813. On the 27th of December, the frigate Constitution, Captain Bainbridge, fell in with the British frigate Java, of 49 guns, Captain Lambert, off the northern coast of Brazil. At fifty minutes past one P. M. the enemy bore down with an intention of raking the Constitution, which she avoided by wearing. Much, manoeuvring took place on both sides, the object of the enemy being to rake, and of the Constitution to avoid being raked, and to draw the enemy from the neutral coast. At two P. M., the enemy was within half a mile of the Constitution, and to windward, having hauled down his colors, except the union jack, which was at the mizzen-masthead. A gun was then fired ahead of him, to make him show his colors; but this gun was answered by a whole broadside. The enemy's colors were then hoisted, and the action began with round and grape; but he kept at so great a distance that the grape had little effect, and to bring him nearer would expose the Constitution to

severe raking. At thirty minutes past two, both ships were within good. canister distance, when the Constitution's wheel was shot away. At forty minutes past two, the fore and mainsail were set, and Commodore Bainbridge being now determined to close with him, luffed up for that purpose, and in ten minutes after, the enemy's jibboom got foul of the Constitution's mizzen rigging, and in another ten minutes, his bowsprit and jibboom were shot away. At five minutes past three, his main-topmast was shot away just above the cap. This was followed by the loss of his gaff and spanker boom, and soon after, his mainmast went nearly by the board. At five minutes past four, the enemy was completely silenced, and his colors at the main being down, it was thought he had surrendered. The Constitution therefore shot ahead to repair damages, which being done, and the enemy's flag being discovered to be still flying, she wore, stood for the enemy in handsome style, and got close athwart his bows in an effectual position for raking, when his mainmast having also gone by the board, and seeing that further resistance would be useless whilst he lay so unmanageable a wreck, he struck his colors. The Constitution had 9 men killed and 25 wounded. The Java 60 killed and 170 wounded.

In the west and northwest the American arms were unfortunate. The