USA > New York > Essex County > The military and civil history of the county of Essex, New York : and a general survey of its physical geography, its mines and minerals, and industrial pursuits, embracing an account of the northern wilderness > Part 15
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Carleton had been employed during this short period of repose, with extraordinary energy in constructing a fleet and organizing a powerful land force. The forts at St. Johns and Isle aux Noix were repaired and strengthened, and an army of seven thousand veteran troops, assembled at those points, was ready to advance against the colonies, the moment the ascendancy on the lake should be secured. Towards the middle of October, Carleton left his station with a fleet, which at that epoch, would have been esteemed re- spectable and even formidable in European seas. It con- sisted of the Inflexible, mounting eighteen guns ; the Maria of fourteen guns ; Carleton of twelve guns; heavy radeau ; several gondolas and twenty gun-boats and long-boats armed in the efficient manner we have described. The naval supervision was confided to Captain Pringle, an officer attached to the royal navy and of great experience. Carle- ton accompanied the fleet, and controlled and guided its operations. Arnold, who had occupied with a part of his fleet a position at the lower extremity of the lake, retired on the approach of Carleton, and sought and moored his vessels in a secluded cove on the western shore of Valcour island, situated between the mouths of the Saranac and Au Sable rivers. The fleet collected at this place in- cluded the sloop Enterprise, mounting ten guns ; the schoon- ers Royal Savage, twelve guns, and Revenge, eight guns ; three galleys, carrying each eight guns ; and eight gondolas,
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each mounting eight guns. The fleet consisted of fifteen vessels bearing an armament of eighty-four guns. The disparity between the two fleets in the number of guns and weight of metal was very decided, but less unfavorable to the Americans than the materials that formed the respect- ive crews. While the British vessels were manned by ve- teran seamen and gunners, the crews of Arnold were wholly raw and unpracticed, many of them drafts from the regi- ment at Ticonderoga, and " few of them had ever been wet with salt water."1 Butthe motley crews of Arnold had been drilled during the short period of their naval service, at the guns and in other duties, with the utmost care and as- siduity, and were animated by the loftiest heroism.
The position selected by Arnold afforded almost a per- fect concealment to his fleet, from the observation of vessels passing up the lake by the usual track, which was through the centre of the lake, and east of Valcour. We are left to mere conjecture, as to the motives of Arnold, which prompted this manœuvre. Possibly, he may have designed, when the British vessels had passed up the lake in an illusory pursuit of the American fleet, to strike some audacious blow in their rear, suggested by his bold and fertile mind. The cove in which the American vessels were lying, was directly opposite the dwelling of a settler named Hays, situated on the mainland. With this family, Arnold had formed intimate relations, and ar- ranged with them to present a signal when they dis- cerned the approach of the enemy. Pringle, on the 11th of October, had advanced beyond Valcour to the south, before he became aware of the position of Arnold. His course was immediately changed, in order to reach the American fleet; but the purpose was frustrated by the direction of the wind. The British gun-boats, however, soon after supported by the Carleton, were able to ap- proach so near as to commence an attack. Arnold mean- while had arranged his vessels in a line across the narrow
1 Arnold to Gates.
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strait between Valcour to the mainland. The Royal Savage, with three galleys, advanced in front of the Ame- rican lines, and was engaged for some time in a sharp conflict with a part of the enemy's fleet. The schooner was severely crippled, and in attempting to fall back, grounded upon a point of land near the south end of Valcour, was abandoned by her crew, and during the night burnt by the British. The papers and wardrobe of Arnold were lost on board of this vessel.1
The engagement immediately involved the whole Ame- rican fleet, and commencing a little after meridian was maintained more than four hours with unfaltering ardor and resolution. Arnold was on board the galley Congress, and fought with his characteristic impetuosity, pointing almost every gun himself, and inspiring the conduct of the crew by his example and voice. Waterbury, in the galley Washington, and Wigglesworth on board the Trumbull, emulated the spirit of Arnold. Waterbury, at the close of the action, was the only officer on the Washington capable of duty, and most of the other vessels suffered with equal severity. The gondola, Philadelphia, sank soon after the engagement. A body of Indians was landed on the island, and maintained a constant but ineffective fire upon the American vessels. Another body of the savages lay in ambush on the mainland prepared to seize any of the crews of Arnold's fleet, who might attempt to escape.
The damages inflicted upon the British vessels engaged were also extremely heavy. Two gondolas were sunk, and another blown up in the engagement, with the loss,
1 This circumstance has proved the prolific source of popular speculation in reference to the contents of the vessel. Forgetting the extreme poverty of the Continental congress at that epoch, innumerable attempts have been made to secure the treasures she was supposed to have been freighted with. Efforts have been made to raise the wreck, and skillful divers have examined her cabin and hold. She was scarcely submerged eight feet in low water, and was distinctly visible. "During the prevalence of remarkably low water in the summer of 1868, Captain George Conn anchored his vessel above the wreck and with grappling irons succeeded in wrenching several large pieces of oak plank from its sides. The wood is as black as ebony
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as Arnold reported, of sixty men.1 Pringle, having been disappointed in his efforts to bring his larger vessels into the action, at 5 o'clock P. M., withdrew those engaged, and formed a close line beyond the range of the American guns, stretching from Garden island towards the western shore of the lake. It was his intention to renew the attack in the morning.2
Although no body of men have ever exhibited in any naval battle higher traits of zeal and resolution, it was evident to the American officers that resistance to the united strength of the British fleet would be hopeless and unavailing. Arnold adopted the prompt and daring deter- mination to attempt an escape, and to seek protection beneath the guns of Crown point. As soon as the darkness secured concealment to the movement, the American fleet commenced its perilous operation. The Trumbull led, followed by the other vessels in a single line. Each vessel carried at her stern a light, to guide the one that followed her. The fleet, silently and unmolested, passed around the north end of Valcour and early in the morning reached Schuyler's island, a distance of nine miles. At this place, the shattered condition of the vessels compelled Arnold to lay to and repair. Two of the gondolas were here abandoned and sunk. With the remnant of the fleet he again sailed in the hope of reaching Crown point, but the wind had veered into the south, and baffled his design.
and almost as heavy .- Plattsburgh Republican. It is represented, that the bottom of the lake in the vicinity is strewn with balls and bullets, the latter white and glistening by the attrition of the sand. Many interesting relics, among them a bursted cannon, have been raised and preserved from this wreck.
1 Arnold to Schuyler, Oct. 15th.
2 This picturesque island lies about one-fourth of a mile south of Valcour, and in the legends of the lake is an object of considerable interest. It is circular in form, with steep rocky shores, which, it is represented, renders it inaccessible except at one point. It embraces half an acre of land, and tradition asserts that its name is derived from the fact that it was cultivated first by the French and afterwards by the English officers stationed upon the lake, as a garden. Until recently, it is stated by those who have visited the spot, that garden-beds and other artificial arrangement might readily be traced on the surface.
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The first dawn of light revealed the escape of the Ame- rican fleet to the vigilant foe, and an instant pursuit ensued. A naked and solitary rock, standing in the midst of the lake, immediately east of Valcour, and then shrouded in the mist of an autumnal morning, it is the general received tradition, was mistaken for an American vessel, and a cannonade directed against it. The rocky islet is still known as Carleton's prize. While the progress of Arnold was re- tarded by a light and contrary wind, a breeze from the north-east which was first felt by the British, aided in the pursuit, by their fresh ships, of the disabled American fleet. The Washington, more shattered than any other of the fleet, was overtaken near Split rock, and, after receiving a few broadsides, surrendered. Four vessels, including a gondola, escaped in safety to Crown point. One galley was blown up by her commander. A single gondola, beside the Washington, was the only trophy secured by the enemy. After the capture of the Washington by the Maria and Inflexible, those ships aided the Carleton in a combined attack upon Arnold's vessel, the galley Congress. He maintained during a running fight of four hours a spirited contest, enveloped by this irresistible superiority of force, and when he could no longer hope for success or escape, with sails and hull of the galley torn and shattered, he ran her, accompanied by four gondolas, ashore on the beach at Panton, Vermont. The crews he ordered to wade or swim to the shore and armed with muskets arrest the approach of the enemy's small boats, while he remained upon the galley the last man, and until the conflagration had advanced too far to be extinguished. The flags were not lowered, but were consumed and the whole flotilla wrapped in flames.1 Their charred and blackened wrecks remained upon the beach at Panton,2 monuments of his gallantry and patriotism, long after other deeds had con-
1 Sparks's Life of Arnold.
2 The remains of these wrecks are still visible, and within a few years interesting relics have been recovered. I have in my own possession, bullets which were taken from them.
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signed the name of Arnold to ignominy. Arnold, when he had witnessed the successful destruction of the vessels, led their crews rapidly through the wilderness to Crown point, and by the activity of his movement escaped an Indian force, which was pursuing him.
The killed and wounded of the Americans in both engagements, were about ninety, and the loss of the British, including those involved in the explosion, was nearly the same. The conduct of Arnold and his sub- ordinates, alike in fighting and manœuvering the fleet, and the unsurpassed bravery of the crews, extorted the highest admiration of their conquerors, and although their heroism had been unavailing, aroused the warmest enthu- siasm and exultation of their countrymen. Carleton, after securing the victory, manifested his wonted clemency and conciliation. The wounded Americans received the most tender care of his own surgeons; to the prisoners he expressed the warmest encomiums upon their intrepidity, with regrets that it was expended in an evil and desperate cause; he relieved their wants and dismissed them on parole. This humane and politic deportment impressed and won the regard and gratitude of these men to an extent that rendered their communications with the army unsafe, and without being permittted to land at the forts, they were at once sent into the interior.1
The British forces, immediately after the success of the fleet, had opened the pathway of the lake, commenced
1 I think the version I have given in the text, although not in accordance with the common impression, is warranted by the facts as they appear in documents, and which were corroborated by the information I have person- ally derived from those who were familiar with the occurrences of that era. Mr. Palmer, in his History of Lake Champlain, adopts the same view. 'The circumstances connected with the Hays family were communicated to me by Mrs. Elmore, a daughter of Mr. Hays, who has deceased within a few years at a venerable age. She was an infant in her mother's arms at the time of the engagement. The signal mentioned according to the tradi- tion än her family, was a sheet displayed from a window. While the battle raged, Mrs. Hays carrying her infant, went to a spring in a ravine near the lake, which was then mantled by a dense thicket. To her unutterable.
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their advance. General Gates, who was in the immediate command of the American troops in that department, had augmented, by every expedient, the strength and efficiency of the works at Ticonderoga. The army embraced from eight to ten thousand men. On the approach of Carleton, Crown point was evacuated by the small detachment by which it had been occupied, and the British general, on the 14th of October, took possession of that important post without opposition. He remained in the occupation of the fort, which he diligently fortified, as well as the works at Chimney point, until the 3d of November. The interval was employed in either feigned or real preparation for the attack of Ticonderoga. Cautious and thorough examination revealed so great strength in the lines and fort, and such perfect arrangement to meet an assault, that Carleton was constrained to abandon the design, and retired into Canada for winter quarters. This decision was eminently judicious. The precautions of Washington had caused all the cattle and horses, which might afford food or means of transportation, to be removed from the reach of the enemy; Carleton felt that the vicinity of a formidable American army, animated by extreme ardor, would be eminently hazardous to his exposed and isolated position, while the interrupted or suspended navigation during the winter would virtually cut off all intercourse with Canada. Upon such considerations he adopted the policy of retreating, which subjected him to severe and unjust strictures. When the approach of Carleton was
surprise and terror, she found herself in the midst of a large body of Indians hideous by their war paint and savage costume, and armed with guns and tomahawks. The mother, agitated and alarmed at her helpless condition, and frantically clasping the child to her breast, wept bitterly. An aged chief, she judged from his appearance, approached, and unable to communi- cate consolation or an assurance of safety by language, manifested his pur- pose of protecting her by gently and in a soothing manner wiping away her tears with the skirt of his shirt. Neither the mother nor child was mo- lested. The motive of the ambush was doubtless that assigned in the text ; but I infer from this account, that no attack on the fleet was made by the Indians from the mainland.
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apprehended, Gates had made an earnest appeal, through Colonel Warner, to Vermont for support in both men and provisions. This appeal was responded to with great promptness and efficiency. Flour and grain were imme- diately transmitted, while, with equal alacrity, two regi- ments marched to reenforce Ticonderoga. When Carleton retreated, these troops were discharged, with warm acknowledgments for their "spirit and alertness" by Gates, in an official document addressed to their com- manders.
CHAPTER XI.
THE INVASION, 1777 -1782.
The energies of England had been occupied more than a year in the organization of a large and perfectly equipped army in Canada, with the design of hurling an irresistible force upon the insurgent colonies. Burgoyne, who had attained a high European reputation, succeeded Carleton in the command of this army. The wise and generous qualities of the latter had suggested measures, not in ac- cordance with the policy of the administration. The corps destined to this service were assembled at St. Johns and Isle aux Noix, and consisted of various British and German regiments, aggregating more than seven thousand effective troops, besides Canadian irregulars and the hordes of sa- vages, that had been summoned and were expected to join the British standard. A magnificent park of artillery and an ample supply of munitions augmented its efficiency. The officers who led this array under the commander-in- chief, were skillful and experienced, and vast expectations had been formed of the results of the expedition. The Hessians, a general term applied to all the German merce- naries, were at first objects of extreme terror and solicitude to the American people. Clothed in uncommon vestures, speaking a harsh and strange language, with manners rude
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and severe, rumor imputed to them a character the most ferocious and cruel. But grown familiar with these new enemies, the people overcame this dread, and regarding them as the hirelings of tyranny purchased of German despots, to trample down American liberty, they animated hatred and excited disgust, while their presence tended to stimulate enthusiasm and to confirm every purpose of re- sistance. Generals Phillips, Frazer, Powell and Hamilton commanded the British troops, and Riedesel and Specht the German auxiliaries. Early in June, 1777, this brilliant army moved from St. Johns in boats, and arrived on the banks of the Boquet and took position at the deserted settlement of Gilliland, which had been designated by Burgoyne as the place of junction with his Indian allies. He paused here ten days, which were employed in a reconnaissance of Ticonderoga in reorganizing his forces and in drilling the boatmen on the estuary of the river in the evolutions incident to their duties upon the waters of the lake, and possibly in the visions of hope upon those of the Hudson.1
On the 21st, Burgoyne held his celebrated treaty with the Indian tribes. The summons of the Brilish com- mander, was responded to in far greater numbers, than he had either expected or desired. A redoubt which had been erected on an eminence below the village and impending over the river was signalized by this picturesque and im- pressive spectacle. The operations of agriculture have now obliterated all vestiges of this work, although until recently its lines could be distinctly traced. These hordes were addressed by Burgoyne in a speech intended professedly to restrain their ferocity, but calculated by its influence to inflame their savage passions. A war chief of the Iroquois replied with equal vehemence, pledging the tribes to a zealous warfare against the foes of England. A feast was held, a war dance celebrated, and the merciless savages were let loose upon the colonies.
1 0. F. Sheldon's Manuscript.
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The speech of Burgoyne at the Boquet and his subse- quent proclamation from Putnam's creek, which was regarded as an exposition of the actual purpose of this Indian treaty, aroused a wide attention. The formal and recognized employment of the savages, and the direction of the tomahawk and scalping knife against a people, kin- dred in language, in religion and civilization, revolted the moral sentiment of the Christian world, and evoked the severest denunciations in the British parliament. No measure, not even the subsidizing of the Hessian, so fully harmonized the popular heart of America and precipi- tated with such perfect union, the infuriated yeomanry of New England upon the British entrenchments at Saratoga and Bennington. Burgoyne, as the instrument of this ruthless warfare, was in America the object of universal detestation.
Forgetting the character of his auditors, Burgoyne, in well chosen and sonorous periods, expatiated on mercy and forbearance; explained the nice distinctions between enemies in the field, and the unarmed and inoffensive citizen; and between political friends and armed foes; but at the same time stimulated the ardor and activity of his savage allies, in the prosecution of a sanguinary war- fare. He severely denounced the practice of cruelty against any class; offered rewards for prisoners, and sternly forbade the taking of scalps from the living, or even the dying, but by a strange infatuation, allowed them to be torn from the dead on the field of battle. As if the subtle Indians would hesitate to bring the prisoner, the wounded and dying, within the scope of this provision. Could these admonitions of mercy follow the fierce savage raging amid an hostile people ; or would these metaphysi- cal distinctions be regarded in the heat and tumult of the battle ? Subsequent events revealed the fallacy of these humane professions, and the proclamation of the 29th of June, exhibits in its barbarous and bloody threats of In- dian atrocities, the insincerity of the admonitions, and the convictions of Burgoyne of the futility of the restraints
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he professed to impose, and the hollowness of the Indian assurances of obedience. While the arrogance and in- flated grandiloquence of this manifesto amused the intelli- gence and disgusted the taste of the colonists, it aroused an unconquerable hostility to England, that was never extinguished. Europe was everywhere shocked by its monstrous spirit, and afterwards, when arraigned at the tribunal of popular sentiment, in England, for the dishonor it had attached to the British name, Burgoyne was able to offer no other apology or extenuation, than that its language was intended only for intimidation and effect.
The command of the northern department of the repub- lican army was held by General Schuyler, while the direct charge of Ticonderoga and the works of defense connected with that fortress were confided to Arthur St. Clair, a major- general in the service of congress, an officer of great ex- perience and marked ability, but singularly unfortunate in his military enterprises. These fortifications, while they should be maintained by the Americans, formed an insuperable barrier to the progress of Burgoyne. The infinite importance of preserving them was felt by the congress, but unhappily its resources were inadequate to the exigency of the occasion. The extent and magnitude of these works demanded a garrison of ten thousand effec- tive men with sufficient armament and supplies for their appropriate occupation, and yet when the British army appeared at Crown point, Schuyler had succeeded with all the energies and efforts he was able to exert, in collecting a force in the whole department of only five thousand troops, of which about three thousandwere scattered through ths defenses entrusted to St. Clair. One-third of this feeble force was composed of militia imperfectly equipped and armed, and nearly destitute of bayonets to their insufficient muskets.
In another page we have already described the peninsula at Ticonderoga; but twenty years had produced important changes in the arrangement of the works, their capacity and extent. The old French lines, which were so success-
12
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fully defended by Montcalm, had been strengthened by additional erections and by a block-house. The landing at Lake George, and the saw mills, where new works had been constructed, were occupied by feeble detachments. A small fort erected on Mt. Hope, a commanding emi- nence in this vicinity, guarded the left of the American lines. The new works, the most effective and upon which the Americans placed the greatest reliance, were erected on Mt. Independence, a high circular hill situated on the eastern shore of the lake and directly opposite Fort Caril- lon. On the summit of this elevation, a star fort had been constructed, enclosing a large square barrack. This fort was heavily fortified and well supplied with artillery. The base of the hill and its precipitous sides, were care- fully entrenched and lined with artillery. The distance between Ticonderoga and Mt. Independence was about fifteen hundred yards. These two positions were con- nected by a floating bridge, which had been erected by enormous labor and expenditure. The structure was supported by twenty-two sunken piers of immense size, and placed at intervals. These spaces were filled with separate floats, each about fifty feet long and twelve feet wide. The whole was firmly united by heavy chains which were closely rivetted. To protect this work, which was of the last importance to the safety of the whole position, from the attacks of the enemy's naval force, a boom, formed of enormous timbers, connected by chains and bolts of im- mense size, was constructed on the northern or lake side of the bridge.1
Another point still, had engaged the attention of the American engineers. This was Mt. Defiance, which rises to an altitude of seven hundred and fifty feet, and forms a bold, rocky promontory at the confluence of Lake Champlain and the outlet of Lake George, and is laved by both waters. This eminence is about one thousand
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