USA > New Hampshire > History of New Hampshire, Volume III > Part 3
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It is related that while British cruisers were off the coast of New Hampshire the people of Portsmouth became alarmed and assembled in town meeting to provide means of defense. Daniel Webster made one of his brilliant speeches. "Talk is not what the crisis demands. The forts near the town want repairs, want men to defend them when repaired. The government of the United States and the State government have been applied to for men to repair and defend these forts; but we know not that either will attend to our application. But one thing we do know, the crisis demands labor, and we can labor, we can repair
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the forts. And then we know another thing, we can defend them. Now, I propose that every man who wants these forts, aye, the town of Portsmouth, defended, appear on parade tomorrow morning with pickaxe, spade, and shovel, and that they go to the islands and repair the forts." The next morning Mr. Webster went with his intrenching implements and joined a crowd of volunteer laborers. In a few days the defences were completed, and forts Washington and Sullivan were repaired.1
The few ships of the American navy were generally vic- torious, and Commodores Perry and McDonough rendered notable service on the lakes. The privateers continually an- noyed British commerce. Fourteen of them were fitted out at Portsmouth during the first year of the war. They were com- missioned by the United States "to take, burn, sink and destroy the enemy wherever he could be found, either on high seas or in British ports." While the American navy were capturing twenty-six war vessels carrying six hundred guns, the privateers, in two years and a half took over fourteen hundred prizes, worth many millions of dollars. Yet American foreign trade was practically destroyed. One privateer took twenty-seven prizes in little over a month; another brought in twenty prizes in thirty days. Vessel for vessel and man for man the seamen of America far eclipsed those of England, and they restored to the American flag the glory lost by the weak and treacherous surrender of Detroit by General Hull and the massacres by England's Indian allies. Into the particulars of naval and military campaigns it is impossible rightly to enter in a history of New Hampshire. She had about two thousand of her citizen soldiery distributed in the regular army and navy, and they did their part well when under competent leadership. Perhaps enough may be said in biographical sketches of a few New Hampshire men who acted an honorable part in the War of 1812.
Major-General Henry Dearborn was born in Hampton, March, 1751. He settled as a physician in Nottingham in 1772, whence, at the call of Lexington he marched with sixty volun- teers and joined General Stark's forces at Cambridge. He fought at the rail fence on Bunker Hill. With Arnold's ill-
1 Mcclintock's Hist. of N. H., p. 496.
GEN. HENRY DEARBORN
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fated expedition he endured the hardships and privations of that winter's march through the wilderness of northern Maine, from Augusta over the Bigalow range of mountains toward Quebec. In the assault upon that city Dearborn was taken prisoner. He was soon exchanged and made a major in Colonel Alexander Scammel's regiment. He fought with commended gallantry at the battles of Stillwater and Saratoga, was with General Sullivan in the expedition against the Indians, and took part in the siege of Yorktown, being present at the sur- render of Cornwallis. On the death of Scammel his regiment was assigned to Colonel Dearborn. After the revolutionary war he settled in Maine, where he was marshal by appoint- ment of Washington. For two terms he was a member of congress and in 1801 entered Jefferson's cabinet as secretary of war. This office he held till 1809, when he was appointed collector of the port of Boston. On the outbreak of the War of 1812 he was appointed senior major-general in the army. Most of the military leaders were over sixty years of age, ap- pointed by reason of some long past service in war or politics. Dearborn's plan of campaign aimed at the capture of Montreal by easy access by way of the Hudson and lake Champlain. He planned also invasions from Sackett's Harbor, Niagara and Detroit. The plan was good enough, if it could have been worked out by competent generals and well trained and hard- ened troops. Dearborn delayed at Albany to allow time for negotiations with the British, with a view to possible peace. Failing in this he marched his militia to the northern frontier of New York, when they refused to go any further, and he was obliged to return to Plattsburg for winter quarters. He was relieved of command in June, 1813. His failure seems to have been due to a lack of proper equipment and support. He needed an army and subordinates of courage, experience and vigor. Nevertheless, he captured York, in Canada, and Fort George, at the mouth of the Niagara.
In 1822 General Dearborn was appointed minister plenipo- tentiary to Portugal, whence he was recalled, at his own request, after an absence of two years. He settled at Boston and spent the rest of his life in attending to his farm in Maine and in private affairs. His retirement from the army was con- sidered by many as a great mistake, and he retained his pop-
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ularity. He died at Roxbury, Massachusetts, June 6, 1829, after a long and honorable public career. He was greater than the policy of his government.
Colonel James Miller was a native of Peterborough, born April 25, 1776, son of James Miller, of Scotch-Irish descent. He was educated at Amherst Academy and the college of Mid- dlebury, Vermont. Having been admitted to the bar in 1803 he settled in the practice of law at Greenfield, where he soon became captain of an artillery company and showed such aptitude for command and in military affairs that at the earnest recommendation of General Benjamin Pierce he was commis- sioned major in the fourth regiment of United States Infantry, stationed at Fort Independence, in the harbor of Boston. This was in 1808. His regiment contained many officers and privates from New Hampshire, some being induced, by Major Miller's appointment, to enlist therein. In the War of 1812 this regi- ment took an active part in the western campaign, serving in the battles of Brownstown, Chippewa, Niagara and the sortie on Erie. As lieutenant-colonel Miller led his regiment to the thickest of the fight. After the battle of Niagara he was made a brigadier. When Canada was first invaded from Detroit, Colonel Miller, with the assistance of Colonel Lewis Cass of Ohio, another native of New Hampshire, had the honor of hoisting the first American flag in the enemy's territory. A citation from Potter's Military History of New Hampshire presents a vivid description of some part taken by New Hamp- shire men in the battle that followed this invasion, begun with high hopes and finished with disastrous retreat and surrender :
"At 12 m. our troops halted in an Indian clearing, its huts deserted, for refreshment. In an hour they resumed their march and had proceeded but little way when Capt. Snelling, of the advanced guard, found the enemy and commenced the attack, firing a volley and receiving a heavy fire in return. Snelling maintained his ground till the American force came up in line of battle, though within pistol shol of the British works and the bullets were falling like hail around him and his little company. As our first line advanced, it received the fire from most of the front ranks of the enemy, which was returned with spirit. The British troops with their brother savages then set up a yell,
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rushed from behind their works, and the fight became severe and general. In a moment silence prevailed in our ranks, broken by the discharge of a six pounder. This carried dismay among the savages; but nearly became disastrous to us, as frightened by the noise Col. Miller's horse began to rear and plunge and finally threw his rider. All thought him killed, and the Indians ran forward to take his scalp, but were repulsed. The colonel soon remounted and continued to cheer on his men to the encounter. A second discharge of grape from the six-pounder broke the line of the enemy and the troops fled in disorder. Tecumseh and his Indians were so sure of victory, that they were in advance of the British lines and were driven back only at the point of the bayonet. Seeing the British troops fleeing down the river in disorder, Tecumseh and his Indians fled westerly into the wilderness. The retreating and routed enemy were hotly pursued, Tecumseh till he was lost sight of in the dense woods, and Muer to the shore of Lake Erie, where he took to his boats and returned to Malden with the greatest precipitation. Thus ended the battle of Brownstown, giving confidence to the Americans and disheartening the British and their savage allies. Caring for the dead and wounded the little army returned to Detroit. General Harrison observed in his report, "that the detachment led by that brave officer, Colonel Miller, did not exceed three hundred and fifty men; and, it is very certain, that they defeated two hundred British regulars, one hundred and fifty militia men and four or five hundred Indians."
Gen. Hull thinking his position on the Canada shore unten- able, hastily retreated across the Detroit River, soon followed by the British General Brock, with a force superior in number, but composed mainly of militia and Indians.
On the 14th of August General Brock erected his batteries opposite Detroit and the next day commenced cannonading the town. The following day his army crossed the river, and meeting with no resistance marched directly forward to assault the fort. The Americans, in high spirits and confident of suc- cess, were prepared to meet him. What was their disappoint- ment and chargin to see a white flag run out from the wall, in token of submission. The army, and with it the territory of Michigan, was surrendered to the British. The officers and
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soldiers were filled with indignation, and in fact the whole people of the country, at this cowardly or traitorous surrender. Upon the surrender of Detroit, Colonel Miller, under date of August 27, 1812, thus wrote: "When I last wrote you my feelings were very, different from what they are now. I thought things appeared prosperous and flattering; I considered we had a sufficient force to break down all opposition, and I still think had we done as we ought, we could have carried conquest to a very considerable extent. But, alas, times are now changed. We are now all prisoners of war. * Only one week since I, with six hundred men, completely conquered almost the whole force which they then had, but now they came and took Fort Detroit and made nearly two thousand prisoners, on Sun- da the 16th instant. There being no operations going on against them below us, gave them an opportunity to reenforce. The number they brought against us is unknown, but my humble opinion is, we could have defeated them without a doubt, had we attempted it, but Gen. Hull thought differently and sur- rendered."
Gen. Hull, in his report of the surrender, says: "Before I close this dispatch it is a duty I owe to my respectable associ- ates in command, Colonel McArthur, Findlay and Cass, and Lieutenant Colonel Miller, to express my obligations to them for the prompt and judicious manner they have performed their respective duties. If aught has taken place during the campaign which is honorable to the army, those officers are entitled to a large share of it. If the last act should be disapproved, no part of the censure belongs to them."
A more voluminous but substantially similar account of the battle of Brownstown was written by Major James Dalliba and published under the inspection of Colonel Miller. It is cited at length by Major John Richardson of the British forces and offset by different testimony. It is sometimes well to read the enemy's account of a battle. Major Richardson regarded the affair as only "a sharp skirmish," in which the Americans lost eighteen killed and sixty-three wounded, while the British loss, exclusive of the Indians, was one private killed and twenty-three officers and men wounded. It is evident that the British let the Indians do their fighting for them.2
2 See Richardson's War of 1812, pp. 36-46.
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Gen. Hull, in his report of the surrender of Detroit said that his entire force was not more than eight hundred and some of them were incapacitated by wounds and sickness, while Gen. Brock of the British Army reported that he captured twenty- five hundred prisoners. Hull said that the fort was filled with women and children and he feared to expose them to the ferocity of the Indians. Thus the reports conflict. Who can satisfactorily excuse a defeat and surrender ?
Most readers will prefer to turn to the account of the battle of Bridgewater, or Lundy's Lane, as sketched artistically by Mr. Barstow, in his History of New Hampshire, where Colonel James Miller again appears and greatly to his credit. His conduct on this occasion has been often told :
The British artillery, posted on a commanding height, had annoyed our troops during the earlier part of the battle. "Can you storm that battery?" said General Ripley to Miller. "I'll try, sir," replied the warrior ; then turned to his men, and, in a deep tone, issued a few brief words of command. "Twenty-fist, attention. Form into a column. You will advance up the hill to the storm of the battery. At the word, Halt, you will deliver your fire at the port-light of the artillerymen, and immediately carry their guns at the point of the bayonet. Support arms-forward-march." Machinery could not have moved with more compactness than that gallant regiment. Followed by the twenty-third, the dark mass moved up the hill like one body-the lurid light flickering on their bayonets, as the combined force of the enemy's artillery and infantry opened murderously upon them. They flinched not- faltered not. The stern deep voice of the officers, as the deadly cannon-shot cut yawning chasms through them, alone was heard-"Close up-steady, men- steady." Within a hundred yards of the summit the loud Halt was followed by a volley, sharp and instantaneous as a clap of thunder. Another moment, rushing under the white smoke, a short furious struggle with the bayonet, and the battle was won. The enemy's line was driven down the hill, and their own cannon mowed them down by platoons. This brilliant success de- cided the fate of the conflict, and the American flag waved in triumph on that hill, scorched and blackened as it was by the flame of artillery, purpled with human gore and encumbered by the bodies of the slain.
This is the language of oratory and poetry and is quite pleasing to those who do not care to know the exact facts. Other historians say that it was General Jacob Brown who gave the order to Miller to charge the British battery. They say also that other troops engaged the attention and fire of the British, while Miller's three hundred crept up behind a screen of wall and bushes, and that when sharpshooters had picked
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off the British gunners the capture of the guns was made with little effort and loss. Moreover, the same guns were recaptured by the British forces a few hours later, and the American army withdrew to Fort Erie. The losses on both sides in the battle of Lundy's Lane were about equal, over eight hundred, or one- third of the troops engaged. Both sides claimed the victory. It was proved that the Americans had learned to shoot and to stand their ground and face fire with unflinching courage. Gen- erals Scott and Brown were not of the same fibre as General Hull.
James Miller was brevetted brigadier-general and given a gold medal by congress for his gallantry. He was governor of Arkansas from 1819 to 1825, and was collector of the port of Salem, Massachusetts from 1825 to 1849. He died at Temple, New Hampshire, July 7, 1851.
Other New Hampshire men rendered good service at Lundy's Lane. One was General Eleazer Wheelock Ripley, born at Hanover, April 15, 1752, grandson of the first president of Dartmouth College. For a time he practised law at Port- land, Maine, and was sent as a member to the General Court of Massachusetts, where he was chosen speaker. He was colonel of the 21st Infantry and was promoted to brigadier-general in 1814. After Generals Scott and Brown had been wounded in the battle General Ripley took command, but his forces were so depleted and exhausted that he could do but little. He, too, had a gold medal from congress and was brevetted major-general. After the war he practised law in Louisiana and was a member of the United States congress from 1834 till his death, March 2, 1839. He was twice wounded in battle, once being shot through the neck.
John McNeil was one of the twenty men of Hillsborough who fought in the War of 1812. He, too, was at the battles of Chippewa and Lundy's Lane. Entering the army as captain he became major and brevet colonel. Though wounded severely in the knee at Lundy's Lane he retained command till he was exhausted. He clung to the mane of his horse till he had fainted several times from loss of blood. A man of gigantic frame and powerful voice, his presence gave courage to his troops. He remained in the army till 1830, when he was ap- pointed by President Jackson surveyor of the port of Boston.
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He died in Washington, D. C., February 28, 1850, at the age of sixty-four. His wife was half sister to President Pierce.
Another New Hampshire man of distinction in this war was Timothy Upham, son of the Rev. Timothy Upham of Deerfield, where he was born in 1783. His mother was Hannah, daughter of the Rev. Nathaniel Gookin of Hampton. For several years he was a merchant in Portsmouth, and in 1811 served on the staff of Governor John Langdon as lieutenant-colonel. In 1812 he was commissioned major in the service of the United States, and was appointed to the command of the garrison at Fort McClary. In 1813 he was ordered to Portland to superintend recruiting in Maine. Having been commissioned lieutenant- colonel, he commanded his regiment, the 21st, at the sortie of Fort Erie and did gallant service. At the close of the war he resigned his commission and in 1816 was appointed collector of customs at Portsmouth, in which office he continued thirteen years. In the militia of New Hampshire he was made brigadier- general in 1819 and the following year was major-general. He was appointed navy agent at Portsmouth by President Harrison. Removing to Charlestown, Massachusetts in 1845 he engaged in business so long as health permitted. Here he died Novem- ber 2, 1855.
Captain John W. Weeks of Lancaster commanded a com- pany in the IIth United States Infantry and fought in the battle of Chippewa. He was brevetted for gallant service and at the close of the war was commissioned as major. He was one of the commissioners to run the boundary line between Maine and New Hampshire and was treasurer and sheriff of Coos county. He was State senator in 1827 and again in 1828, and in 1829 he was elected to serve two years as representative to the United States congress. He "was a man of marked char- acter and great influence in his county." He died in 1853, aged 74 years.
In the election of 1813 the Federalists triumphed and sent John Taylor Gilman again to the gubernatorial chair. In his first message he voiced the discontent of his party with the conduct and motive of the war:
The consequences of the war in which our country is engaged cannot be foreseen; and there are divers opinions respecting the necessity of the war, as well as the causes which induced our Govrnment to make the declara-
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tion. Under such circumstances it may be considered not only as the right, but the duty, of the Representatives of the people, to inquire into the causes which have brought so great a calamity on our country.
We are bound to support our system of National Government, and the laws emanating therefrom; but this by no means hinders the right of free inquiry, or the full expression of sentiments upon the measures of Govern- ment. Indeed, such inquiry may be a duty, not only as we are a member of the Union, but as it respects rights exclusively appertaining to the State.
It is not doubted but we have had great causes of complaint against both Great Britain and France; and perhaps at some former periods much greater against one or both of those governments, than existed against the British
at the time of the declaration of war. . While we demand redress for injuries received from others, we should suitably regard their just expecta- tions from us; and may we not, without being liable to the charge of justi- fying the conduct of Great Britain, inquire whether they have no just cause of complaint against our Government ?- Whether our professions of strict and impartial neutrality, in the important contest between Great Britain and France, has been constantly maintained ?- And whether there had not been a manifest difference in our resentments, and in the language and manner of seeking redress for wrongs, exhibiting an unwarrantable partiality for France? Whatever inquiries may be made, or opinions given, let us exercise candor and moderation, and constantly bear in mind, that those who differ from us in opinion possess equal rights.
The statement here made and advice given are so pertinent to the times in which we are now living, indeed, pertinent to all times, that the words of the wise governor are cited at some length. They were intended to draw out from the State senate a more pronounced expression of opinion and they had this effect. The senate voted, eight to four, to send a reply to the governor, which contained the following:
We are compelled to believe that war was prematurely declared, and that it is now prosecuted without sufficient justification; more especially, as the most powerful reason assigned in its favor hath long ago ceased to exist. We feel indispensably obligated to exert every constitutional effort to bring this unhappy war to an honorable and speedy termination.
Although it is not doubted but we have great causes of complaint against both England and France; neither is it doubted but that they may have had causes of complaint against us; yet we are firm in the belief, that no cause of complaint existed between this country and Great Britain, prior to the declaration of war, which could not have been adjusted by candid, ingenious negociation; and thus this solemn appeal "to the last resort of injured nations" have been avoided.
If the President of the United States, after our country had remained at peace for such a series of years, had considered, that to put the courage
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and physical force of the nation to the test of experiment was an object of sufficient importance to justify the sacrifice, we are altogether at a loss for the reasons why Great Britain was selected for the adversary; fully believ- ing that the injuries and indignities reecived from that nation have been ex- ceeded by those which have been inflicted by France.
We are not prepared to indulge the idea, that our Cabinet, in imitation of royal and imperial Governments, would compel the subjects of our Fed- eral Republic to draw the sword against their peaceable neighbors, for the only purpose of enlarging our territory, when the best informed of our citi- zens admit, that the attempt at the conquest of Canada would probably be attended with immense expense of blood and treasure and with a very un- certain result; and that the attainment of that object would operate as an injury to the nation. In thus freely expressing our opinion respecting this subject of so much importance we by no means denounce those of our fellow citizens who appear to have formed different opinions.
The words above cited express quite well the minds of the Federalists in New England throughout the War of 1812. They had no heart in it and were longing to see its end. It called for no such expression of patriotism as did the war of the Revolution. Its defeats by land were discouraging. Its drafts upon men and money were grudgingly met. The great body of the militia preferred to stay within their own State. Fears of invasion distressed the people. Commerce was almost ruined, and there was financial distress. It looked to many as though we had everything to lose and nothing to gain. The conquest of Canada grew hopeless, and it was undesired by the majority. The country was ready to make great concessions to obtain peace. A small minority talked about the secession of New England and an independent alliance of the same with England, and English agents were said to be here for the pur- pose of ascertaining and increasing such sentiment. Massachu- setts organized a State army of ten thousand men for her own defense. Her legislature authorized a convention to be held at Hartford, Connecticut, to consider the political and military situation, in consultation with delegates from other New Eng- land States.
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