The Story of American History Part 14

During the discussion there was intense excitement in and around the old State House in Philadelphia, where Congress was in session. Thousands thronged about the building, watching the barred doors and closed window shutters with feverish anxiety. The faces of the crowd are turned upward to the steeple, for there hangs a bell brought from London nearly a quarter of a century before, bearing the prophetic and singularly appropriate words of Scripture, "Proclaim liberty throughout the land unto all the inhabitants thereof."

[Ill.u.s.tration: LIBERTY BELL, INDEPENDENCE HALL, PHILADELPHIA.]

It had been arranged by some one that the bell should be rung the moment the Declaration of Independence was adopted. The old bell-ringer placed a small boy at the hall door to await the signal of the doorkeeper.

When at last the vote for independence was declared, the doorkeeper gave the signal, and the boy ran out shouting, "Ring, ring, ring!"

And the old bell-ringer did ring as he never rang before!

[Ill.u.s.tration: THE PEOPLE WAITING FOR THE FINAL VOTE ON THE DECLARATION.]

=178. How the Declaration was received by the People.=--After it had pa.s.sed Congress, the Declaration was sent to be read to the people throughout the thirteen colonies. It was received everywhere with the greatest joy. Bells were rung, cannon were fired, fireworks were burned, and flags were flung to the breeze. The bands played martial music, and even the smallest towns and villages were in a blaze of excitement.

Washington ordered the Declaration to be read to all the brigades of the patriot army in and around New York City. The occasion was celebrated the same night by pulling down the leaden statue of George III on Bowling Green, and casting it into bullets.

The magic word was INDEPENDENCE.

John Adams truthfully predicted that these demonstrations of joy would be reflected in many a year to come by the people of our free country.

The eloquent words of the Declaration of Independence had been p.r.o.nounced, but it was left for Washington and his little army to make it good.

England at this time was the most powerful nation in the world. Her navy was large, and her army was fully equipped and well drilled. Her resources were vast, and she had now made up her mind to crush the "rebels" in America. To men in foreign lands it seemed madness for the feeble colonies in America to resist the royal power of England.

The Declaration of Independence after a time was signed by fifty-six delegates from all the colonies.

=179. Incidents connected with the Great Event.=--If we look at a facsimile of the signatures to the Declaration, we notice that the name of Stephen Hopkins, of Rhode Island, was written with a tremulous hand.

This was due to a partial paralysis. After he had signed, he smiled at his irregular penmanship and said, "You see my hand trembles, but my heart doesn't!"

John Hanc.o.c.k's signature is noted for its big, bold letters.

"There," said he, "John Bull can read that without 'specs'!"

As they gathered round to sign their names to the doc.u.ment, "pledging their lives, their fortune, and their sacred honor" to maintain and defend their action, every one of them understood very well that, if this revolution failed and, he should be captured, he was liable to be hanged as a traitor.

John Hanc.o.c.k said to a group of the signers, "We must stand by each other; no pulling different ways--we must all hang together in this matter."

"Yes," said Franklin, "we must indeed, or we shall all hang separately!"

The Fourth day of July, marked by the momentous event popularly known as the adoption of the "Declaration of Independence," has properly become our National Holiday. The day has been celebrated, just as our forefathers said it would be, with the firing of cannon, the ringing of bells, parades, and bonfires. From that day to the present, the immortal doc.u.ment has been listened to with reverence by our people.

=180. What the Declaration of Independence should mean to us.=--Thus we have traced the growth of the pa.s.sion for liberty which finally reached its loftiest expression in this n.o.ble Declaration. Read it and let it grow into your memory. Do not forget that lovers of liberty, the world over, regard it as the sublimest state paper ever produced by man, marking the grandest advance in political progress ever made by the human race.

To us of the present day its chief charm lies in its n.o.ble beginning and its no less n.o.ble end. We care little now about the faults and the follies of King George, but the bold a.s.sertions of great truths in the opening sentences of the Declaration appeal as warmly to us to-day as they did to those for whom they were first written.

It is interesting to know that it was signed by men of lofty purpose and exalted character, every one of whom held to his last day a reputation never dishonored. These were the chosen men, worthy to be leaders with Washington of the young nation.

For good or evil this most momentous step was now taken. There was no choice left the colonies but to win by hard fighting or to be crushed by their enemy.

CHAPTER XIV.

THE BURGOYNE CAMPAIGN.

=181. First Campaign for the Control of the Hudson fails.=--It did not require much intelligence on the part of the British government to perceive that it would be wise policy to separate if possible one group of its revolting colonies from the rest. This was practicable only along the line of the Hudson. The two long lakes, Champlain and George, with the navigable river, almost made a great water highway from Canada on the north to the sea on the south.

The plan to cut off New England from the other colonies was acted upon in the summer of 1776. Carleton, a most efficient British general, came down from Canada, captured Crown Point, and got as far as Ticonderoga, when, having heard nothing of Howe, who was to come up from the south, he was forced by the lateness of the season to return. Howe had been delayed and baffled by Washington until it was too late to march north to meet Carleton. Thus the first campaign for the control of the Hudson proved a failure.

=182. The Plan for the Second Campaign.=--The British ministry at once planned for another attempt during the next summer. This time the invasion was to be carried out by three separate armies working towards a common point. The main attack was to be made from the north. The army in Canada was to march south, capture Ticonderoga, and go down the Hudson to Albany. This part of the campaign was entrusted to General Burgoyne.

Meanwhile Sir William Howe was to go up the Hudson and join his forces with those of Burgoyne at Albany. Now, as there were many Tories in central New York, and also powerful Indian tribes friendly to the British cause, a small force under the command of Colonel St. Leger was to sail up the St. Lawrence to Lake Ontario, land at Oswego, and then march down the Mohawk valley to join Burgoyne on the Hudson.

The English government built great hopes upon Burgoyne's expedition. No expense or effort was spared to make it a success. Money and supplies were furnished without stint.

=183. Burgoyne begins Operations with a Great Army and Much Show.=--When Burgoyne opened his campaign in the early summer of 1777, he had command of the best army that had yet taken the field in America. There were about four thousand English veterans, three thousand Germans, or Hessians as they were called, nearly five hundred Indian warriors, and a small force of Canadians. Most of the soldiers, as well as the officers, were veterans. Forty cannon, well served and equipped, made up the artillery train.

It was a splendid and imposing sight when this army in the middle of June sailed into Lake Champlain in a large flotilla with bands playing and banners flying. Burgoyne was a clever, agreeable, and well-bred man, and a brave soldier; but he was vain, headstrong, and self-confident.

The British general served a great feast to his Indian allies on the sh.o.r.e of the lake near Crown Point. He was dressed in showy uniform, and so were all of his chief officers. He made a pompous speech to his savage guests, who were adorned with war paint on their faces and eagles' feathers in their hair. He told them not to scalp the wounded, nor murder aged men, helpless women, or children. These "wild hyenas,"

as Burke called them in one of his great speeches before the English Parliament, promised to obey their "great white father."

The st.u.r.dy settlers knew what an Indian promise meant, and they speedily packed their goods and sent their families across the Green Mountains to the Connecticut Valley. Burgoyne had written poetry, and many poor plays, and so now he wrote in his high-flown style an address to the American people. All were warned against driving off their cattle, hiding their corn, and breaking down the bridges in his way. He threatened to let loose his savages upon them if they disobeyed. He also made a stirring address to his soldiers, in which he gave out the famous watchword, "This army must not retreat."

=184. The Capture of Ticonderoga and what followed.=--Every one supposed that Fort Ticonderoga would be a barrier to Burgoyne. Unfortunately the commander, St. Clair, had failed to secure a neighboring position which commanded the fortress. No one thought it possible to drag cannon up the steep and rugged sides of this mountain; but the British general worked night and day in hewing out a path, and with oxen dragged up his cannon and placed them in position to pour a plunging fire into the fort.

The next morning the top of the crag, now named Mount Defiance, was swarming with British troops. St. Clair saw with amazement the trap in which he was caught. The next night the far-famed fortress was abandoned, and the Continental army retreated southward. At daybreak the British and the Hessians sprang to arms, ready to follow sharply both by land and water the retreating army. So hot was the pursuit that the Americans were forced to destroy their boats. All the wagon-loads of arms, stores, and baggage fell into British hands.

There was a sharp fight a few days afterwards in the woods at a place called Hubbardton, where the rear guard of the Americans, under Warner, was surprised early in the morning, while the men were cooking breakfast. They made a gallant and stubborn resistance against the picked veterans of Burgoyne's army. Warner was outnumbered and defeated, but the pursuit was so checked that St. Clair was able to bring what was left of his army safely to Fort Edward, where he joined Schuyler.

=185. Burgoyne, elated by Success, begins to make Blunders.=--The curtain now falls upon the first act of this great war drama. Burgoyne had been highly favored. Ticonderoga had fallen in a night. Everybody was astounded. The news fell like a sound of doom over the land. Washington wrote to Schuyler: "The evacuation of Ticonderoga is an event of chagrin and surprise not apprehended, nor within the compa.s.s of my reasoning."

Burgoyne now began to boast that victory would certainly crown his future movements, and even predicted the speedy end of the war and the submission of the colonies. He hurried off a special messenger to King George, telling the king that everything was going just as he wished it.

The king rushed into the queen's apartments, says Walpole, clapping his hands and shouting, "I have beat them! I have beat all the Americans."

In reality, Burgoyne's troubles were just beginning.

In his haste to crush the Americans before they could combine against him, Burgoyne began to make serious blunders. For instance, it was a fatal mistake when he decided on marching to Fort Edward through the wilderness, instead of going back to Ticonderoga and proceeding thence up Lake George and on to Fort Edward and the Hudson. Time, that all-important factor in military campaigns, was lost sight of by this over-confident British general. Again, Burgoyne made another serious mistake in underestimating the fighting qualities of his enemy.

=186. General Schuyler carries out a Masterly Policy.=--Fortunately for the Americans, Schuyler was an able and experienced general, and Washington knew it. He had less than five thousand poorly armed men, but he faced the situation bravely. He knew that if he could delay the British invaders for a time, men enough would rally for the defense of their homes to meet his foe in open battle. He did at once the best thing possible. He put every obstacle in Burgoyne's way that ingenuity could devise or experience suggest. He made the axe and the crowbar help him.

Hundreds of trees were felled across the road. All the cattle were driven out of reach. The country was stripped of all provisions. The bridges were burnt, the creeks choked with stumps and stones, and the wood-roads were destroyed. The aspect of things began to change.

Schuyler did his work well. He abandoned Fort Edward and fell back to Stillwater, where he entrenched himself and waited.

[Ill.u.s.tration: {Map of Adirondack Mountain area.}]

It is only about twenty-six miles from Skenesboro to Fort Edward, but it took Burgoyne twenty-four days to march this distance, and even then he had to wait two weeks longer for the arrival of his artillery. New roads had to be made, forty bridges built, and supplies and heavy ammunition carried through an almost impa.s.sable wilderness.

=187. The St.u.r.dy Pioneers of the North rise in Defense of their Homes.=--Meanwhile, what were the stout-hearted pioneers of the north doing? The time for prompt action had come. The frontiersmen rose n.o.bly to the demands of the situation. Burgoyne's Indians, ever since they left the Canadian border, had been ravaging and scalping. Never was a British general more mistaken than when he thought such b.l.o.o.d.y work would frighten the American people. It aroused the fierce spirit of revenge in them as no other act could have done.