1777

Arnold relieves Fort Schuyler.

157

Schuyler, upon hearing that Gansevoort was so closely pressed, sent a detachment under Arnold to his aid.

57. 66 Conscious of the smallness of his force Arnold resorted to stratagem, sending emissaries ahead to spread exaggerated reports of the number of his troops, so as to work on the fears of the enemy's Indian allies, and in

duce them to desert.

Mohawk River

NEW
Wood Creek

Oneida
Lake

YORK

FSchuyler

Oriskany
Aug6 1777

Arnold's stratagem to relieve Fort Schuyler.

The most important of these emissaries was an eccentric half-witted fellow, known throughout the country as a rank tory. He had been convicted as a spy, and only spared from the halter on condition that he would go into St. Leger's camp, and spread alarming reports among the Indians, by whom he was well known. To insure

a faithful discharge of his mission, Arnold detained his brother as a hostage. All this while St. Leger was pressing the siege, but his Indian allies were growing sullen and intractable. This slow kind of warfare, this war with the spade, they were unaccustomed to, and they by no means relished it. They had been led to expect easy times, little fighting, many scalps, and much plunder.

58. At this juncture, scouts brought word that a force one thousand strong was marching to the relief of the fort. Rumors soon stole into the camp doubling the number of the approaching enemy. Burgoyne's whole army was said to have been defeated. Lastly came the half-witted fellow, with his coat full of bullet holes, giving out that he had escaped from the hands of the Americans, and been fired upon by them. His story was believed, for his wounded coat corroborated it, and he was known to be a royalist. Mingling among his old acquaintances, the Indians, he assured them that the Americans were close at hand, and numerous as the leaves on the trees.' Arnold's stratagem succeeded. The Indians, fickle as the wind, began to desert. In a little while two

hundred decamped, and the rest threatened to do so likewise, unless St. Leger retreated. The unfortunate colonel found too late what little reliance was to be placed upon Indian allies. He was at length obliged to decamp in such hurry and confusion that he left his tents standing; and his artillery, with most of his baggage, ammunition, and stores, fell into the hands of the Americans."

59. When Burgoyne arrived at Fort Edward, finding himself in want of supplies, he sent Colonel Baum (bowm) to seize a quantity which the Americans had collected at

Battle of Bennington. Baum was met by the New HampBennington. shire militia, under General Stark. As Stark saw the enemy's lines forming for battle, he shouted to his soldiers: "Now, my men! There are the red-coats! Before night they must be ours, or Molly Stark will be a widow." He was successful; and, on the same day, with Seth Warner's regiment of Vermonters that had timely come to his aid, he was again victorious, defeating a detachment that had been sent to reinforce Baum (Aug. 16).

60. Every day the Indians brought scalps to Burgoyne's camp. One day they displayed twenty, and their activity was commended." This

The

66

foes of leads us to ask : the patriots. against whom were the patriots, in their heroic struggle for liberty, contending? The answer is not only against the regular troops of

1 The murder of Jane McCrea excited wide-spread horror, This young lady, it appears, had engaged her hand in marriage to a refugee named Jones, who was with Burgoyne. Anxious to possess himself of his bride, he sent a small party of Indians to bring her to him. On her way the Indians quarrelled, when one of them struck her down with his hatchet. "Tradition reports that the Indians divided her scalp, and that each party carried half of it to the agonized lover."

The National Flag. No flag was adopted for the United States before

1777

Surrender of Burgoyne.

159

England, but against more than twenty thousand hired troops from Germany; against thousands of vindictive tories-men of American birth who adhered to the king's cause,-and, what was far worse, against hordes of savages, whose ferocity, said Edmund Burke, "exceeded the ferocity of all barbarians mentioned in history."

61. But the atrocities of the savages aroused into terrible earnestness the men of New Hampshire, Vermont, and the western part of Massachusetts; and they flocked, each with his musket, and with his powder horn slung Burgoyne's around his shoulders, to the American head-quar- situation. ters. Washington, too, though needing every man of his force to watch and thwart Howe, sent, from his best troops, five hundred riflemen under Colonel Morgan; and soon General Gates, who had succeeded Schuyler, found himself at the head of a large army, animated with one purpose.

Surrender of

62. On the 19th of September the great conflict between the two armies began. In the struggle of that day, known as the first battle of Stillwater, Arnold did brave service. The contest was severe, and was only ended when darkness ended it. Both parties claimed the victory; but, though the British remained on the Burgoyne. field of battle, their progress towards Albany had received a fatal check. For two weeks the armies confronted each other, Burgoyne hoping all the time to receive aid from Clinton, who was in command at New York. Finding, at last, that he must either fight or surrender, he made an effort to cut his way through the American lines. This brought on the second battle of Stillwater, sometimes called the battle. of Saratoga, in which Burgoyne, after the most determined exertions, was compelled to fall back (Oct. 7). Ten days after, finding himself completely surrounded by the patriots,

June, 1777, consequently, up to that time the Americans had not been fighting under a common banner. During the first months of the war, each colony or state had its own flag. At first, thirteen stars were ar ranged in a circle to express the union of the states. The flag has now (1879) thirty-eight stars and thirteen stripes. Why?

and being without provisions for his half-starved army, he was compelled to surrender. (Oct. 17, 1777).'

63. Such a decided victory inspired the patriots with the conviction that their cause would ultimately triumph. When the news reached France, "the effect was thrilling, electric. All Paris was thrown into transports of joy." The government of that country decided openly to take the part of the struggling patriots. Treaties,

Effects of the surrender.

which had previously been considered, were soon made, by which France acknowledged the independence of the United States, and agreed to aid them in their war with Great Britain (Feb. 1778). This important event was brought about, mainly, through the efforts and address of an old man, who, with white stockings, spectacles on his nose, a round white hat under his arm, and thin gray hair," had again and again appeared at the French court, and who was affectionately known by all the French people by the simple title of Dr. Franklin.

DR. FRANKLIN.

64. "Free from the illusions of poetic natures, Franklin loved truth for its own sake, and looked upon things just as they were. As a consequence, he had no eloquence but that of clearness. He computed that the inheritor of a noble title in the ninth generation represents at "most but the five hundred and twelfth part of the ancestor. In regard to money he was frugal that he might be independent, and that he might be generous. He owed good

Franklin at the

French court.,

1 In this second battle of Stillwater, Arnold, though holding no command, again distinguished himself, and was severely wounded. The number of men, not including the sick and wounded, of Burgoyne's army that surrendered was five thousand seven hundred and ninety-one The Americans also acquired a large number of cannon and muskets. While Burgoyne was expecting aid from Clinton, that officer captured forts Clinton and Montgomery, on the Hudson river, and Kingston was burnt.

1778

Evacuation of Philadelphia.

161

health to his exemplary temperance. Habitually gay, employment was his resource against weariness and sorrow; and contentment came from his superiority to ambition, interest, or vanity. There was about him more of moral greatness than appeared on the surface; and while he made no boast of unselfish benevolence, there never lived a man who would have met martyrdom in the course of duty more surely or more unmoved.

manners.

65. The official conduct of Franklin and his intercourse with persons of highest rank were marked by the most delicate propriety, as well as by perfect self-respect. His charm was simplicity, which gave grace to his style and ease to his No life-long courtier could have been more free from vulgarity; no diplomatist more true to his position as minister of a republic; no laborer more consistent with his former life as a working-man; and thus he won respect and love from all. When a celebrated cause was to be heard before the Parliament of Paris, the throng which filled the house and its approaches opened a way on his appearance, and he passed through to the seat reserved for him amidst the acclamations of the people. At the opera, at the theatres, similar honors were paid him. At the Academy he was addressed by its president as the man who had wrenched the thunderbolt from the cloud, the sceptre from tyrants; and both these ideas were of a nature to pass easily into the common mind. Whatever favor Franklin met in society, whatever honor he received from the Academy, whatever respect he gained as a man of science, whatever distinction came to him through the good-will of the people, whatever fame he acquired throughout Europe, he turned all to account for the good of his country."

of

66. The loss of Burgoyne's army and America's alliance with France, alarmed the British government. Evacuation Bills were passed by Parliament, having for their object the winning back to royalty" the revolted colonies;" and Howe's army,-in danger of being entrapped

Philadelphia.