Lafayette in America Vol. II., by A. Levasseur

CHAPTER VII.

Departure from Mobile—Gulf of Mexico—Passage of the Balize—Landing at the entrenchments near New Orleans—Entrance into the city—Entertainments and Public Ceremonies—Battle of New Orleans.

The vessel on board of which we had retired, on leaving the ball, was the Natchez, an excellent and handsome steam-boat, sent by the city of New Orleans to transport the general from Mobile to the shores of the Mississippi. An experienced captain, Mr. Davis, commanded her; she had on board the Louisiania deputation, at the head of which was Mr. Duplantier, an old friend and companion in arms of the general. At the break of day, cannon were heard, at which signal we weighed anchor. The general stationed on the deck, received the farewell of the citizens who pressed in crowds to the shore, and testified their sorrow by expressive gestures and a gloomy silence. In half an hour, the city of Mobile disappeared from the horizon, which enlarged around us, and in a short time the smoke of the artillery, tinged by the rays of the rising sun, also became invisible. When night returned, it found us in the Gulf of Mexico.

To reach New Orleans, we might choose between two routes; either behind Dauphin, Horn, Dog, Ship, or Cat islands, traversing lakes Borgne and Pontchartrain, and disembarking a few miles in the rear of the city, or else boldly cross the gulf to the mouth of the Mississippi, pass the Balize and ascend the river. Our captain, confident of the solidity of his vessel, decided on the latter plan, which was not unattended with danger, but it gained us a whole day. We soon repented of his determination. A storm arose in a short time. The motion of the vessel became so disagreeable that we were obliged to lie down to avoid the sea sickness which attacked almost all of us. During the night, the wind greatly augmented, and the waves became so high, that several of them entering the ports, inundated the cabin and our beds. The noise of the wind, 88waves, and engine, with the creaking of the vessel, were so horrible, that we expected to founder every moment. At break of day I ascended to the deck, from whence I beheld the most imposing and awful spectacle; we arrived at the Balize. We could not avoid feeling a strong emotion at the sight of this magnificent river, whose rapid stream and prodigious breadth announced rather a conqueror than a tributary of the ocean. Its waves repelling, to a great distance, those of the sea, heaped on the low islands at its mouth, thousands of immense trunks of trees, which, after having flourished for ages under the polar circle, were now decaying under the burning sky of Mexico, and feeding a new vegetation with their remains. Enormous alligators of a sinister appearance and sluggish gait, attached to the floating trunks of trees, menaced the navigator, and seemed to dispute the entrance of the river with him. For a long time after we had entered the Mississippi we thought ourselves in another sea, so distant are its shores, and so tumultuous are its waves. It was not until after some hours that it became sufficiently narrow for us to perceive its muddy banks, or that the stream diminished in swiftness.

In the morning we passed fort Plaquemine, from which we were saluted with thirteen guns, and night again surprised us before we could perceive the walls of New Orleans. No variety in the vegetation is perceptible for sixty miles from the Balize. Hitherto nothing was to be seen but cypresses covered with the sombre tillandsia, called by the natives of the country, Spanish beard. This parasitic plant, which forms a long and dense drapery on the trees, has a more melancholy appearance, from its only growing in countries subject to the yellow fever. It is said to afford food to those animals which seek a shelter in the woods during the winter. The inhabitants of Louisiana employ it to stuff matrasses and cushions; for these purposes, after having washed it in an alkaline solution, they beat it till the husk is detached; when it is dry it has the appearance of long black hair. It is so durable as to be considered incorruptible. It is employed with success in building, mixed with mortar or tenacious earth.

About midnight, I went on deck for a short time; the night was dark, the sky charged with thick clouds, and the air filled with a hoarse noise. The batteries at New Orleans 89were then firing a salute of a hundred guns, to announce that the day on which the guest of the nation would arrive, was commencing.

Next morning we awoke near those famous lines where twelve thousand picked English troops were overthrown by a few hundred men, the half of whom bore arms for the first time. Astonished at the cries of Vive la liberté, vive l’ami de l’Amerique! vive Lafayette! in the French language, we hastened on deck. What was our surprise on seeing the shore covered with French uniforms! For an instant we believed that we were transported back to the bosom of our country, once more freed, and our hearts beat with joy. General Lafayette disembarked in the midst of the thunder of artillery, and the acclamations of an immense multitude, who, regardless of the badness of the weather and the distance from the town, crowded the levee. He was received by a numerous escort of cavalry, and by the twelve marshals who had been appointed to direct the procession. Leaning on the arm of his ancient companion in arms, Mr. Duplantier, and of General Villeré, he proceeded to the house of Montgomery, which had been Jackson’s head quarters on the day when he covered himself with glory by his admirable defence of his lines. The governor of the state there waited for him, and received him in the name of the people of Louisiana.

The speech of the governor, depicting Frenchmen enjoying a liberty which is still considered in France as problematical, made a deep impression on the general, and he replied to it with much emotion.

At the conclusion of his reply, every one that could force an entrance into the house were presented to him in turn. There were a great number of the veterans of the revolution, and among others, Colonel Bruian-Bruin, who had served at the siege of Quebec, where the brave General Montgomery perished; Judge Gerrard, who fought at Yorktown, Colonel Grenier, who, after having gloriously assisted in the three revolutions of America, France, and Colombia, still preserved at seventy years of age, all the courage and fire of youth. A great number of ladies also came down to meet the general, and offered him their congratulations through Mr. Marigny, on his safe arrival in Louisiana. After all the presentations had been gone 90through, the procession was formed, and, notwithstanding the violence of the rain, we took up the line of march to the city. We advanced but slowly, from the denseness of the crowd, which, as we approached the city, blocked up both the road and the levee. When we arrived at the outskirts of the town we met with bodies of troops drawn up in two lines, through which we passed to the sound of martial music. Notwithstanding the badness of the weather, the general proceeded along these lines on foot, and before he again entered the carriage returned his thanks to the commanding officers. The procession again moved on, augmented by the troops falling into the rear, and, as it advanced, the crowd became still greater in spite of the continuance of the storm. This immense concourse of people, the view of the triple row of houses adorned with hangings, bordering the river side, the sound of the artillery and bells, and the prolonged acclamations of the whole population, produced a sensation which it is difficult to describe; at last, in the midst of these testimonies of strong affection, the general arrived at the barrier of the public square, and was conducted by the committee of arrangement under a triumphal arch of admirable architecture and excellent design. This monument was sixty feet in height, forty of which were below the springing of the arch, by fifty-eight in breadth; the arcade was twenty feet wide, and twenty-five long; it rested on a socle imitating Sera-Veza marble; the base, forming a pedestal of green Italian marble, was decorated with colossal statues of Justice and Liberty. This allegorical basement supported an arch of the doric order, adorned with four coupled columns on each face. The key-stones were composed of twenty-four stones, each decorated with a gilt star, united by a fillet, on which was engraved the word, Constitution, thus representing the twenty-four states connected by one common tie. The pediment, in imitation of yellow Verona marble, supported two figures of Fame with trumpets, and carrying banners entwined with laurel, having on them the names of Lafayette and Washington; the whole was surmounted by the national eagle. The upper socle supported an entablature of seven feet, on which was inscribed, in English and French, “A grateful republic dedicates this monument to Lafayette.” On the top of the monument was a group representing 91Wisdom resting her hand on a bust of the immortal Franklin, and the four angles were decorated with rich national trophies. The names of the signers of the declaration of independence, and those of officers who had distinguished themselves during the war of the revolution, were inscribed on various parts of the arch. This beautiful edifice, designed by Mr. Pilié, and executed by Mr. Fogliardi, presented a striking appearance, and the reliefs had an admirable effect.

Under this monument the general was received by the municipal body, at the head of whom was the mayor, Mr. Roffignac, who addressed him in the name of the citizens of New Orleans.

In expressing his thanks to Mr. Roffignac, the general did not permit such an occasion to escape him, of paying a tribute of esteem to the memory of the father of this worthy magistrate. “On my entrance into this capital,” said he, “I feel penetrated with gratitude for the reception I have met with from the people of New Orleans and its worthy mayor, whose name recalls to a cotemporary of his father’s, recollections of courage and loyalty.” Mr. Roffignac appeared extremely affected by this testimony of the general’s to the exalted character of his father, and the tears that escaped from his eyes proved the depth of his feelings.

After leaving the triumphal arch, the general was conducted, amidst the acclamations of an immense crowd, to the city hall, where he was complimented by Mr. Prieur in the name of the city council; from here we went to the hotel of the municipality, where our quarters had been prepared, and which the people of New Orleans designated by the name of the “Lafayette house.” After taking a few moments of repose, the general went out on a balcony to review the troops. All the detachments that passed were remarkable for the elegance of their uniform, and the exactness of their discipline. The grenadiers, the voltigeurs, Union guards, chasseurs, New Orleans guards, Lafayette guards, each in turn attracted the attention of the general. But when, in the rear of the riflemen, whose name recalls so many recollections of gallantry, he perceived a file of a hundred Choctaws, marching, according to the Indian custom, in a single line, he was much gratified 92to see, that, by a delicate attention, they had shown him that his name was familiar to the warriors of the most distant nations, and that they had admitted among their troops, these brave Indians, who had been the allies of the Americans in the Seminole war, and, who, for nearly a month past, had been encamped near the city, in order to see the “great warrior,” “the brother of their great father Washington.”

The next day, the general received the visits of the vice president of the house of representatives, and of those members of the legislature who were then in the capital, and immediately afterwards the gentlemen of the bar, headed by Mr. Derbigny, who had been chosen their orator, were presented to him. In a discourse filled with noble thoughts, and pronounced with a touching eloquence, Mr. Derbigny eulogised with delicacy and address, that rectitude of mind, and firmness of character, which, during political tempests, had always guided Lafayette in the path of justice, and preserved him from participating in the excesses of party.

In his reply, the general, carefully avoiding any allusion to the eulogies that had been heaped upon him, confined himself to the consideration of the general interests of Louisiana, and the individual exertions of those who complimented him; he felicitated the citizens of that state, after having been governed by the criminal laws of France and Spain, that they gradually ameliorated them, and were still occupied in perfecting this part of their code, to such a degree, that it might even serve as a guide to the rest of the United States, whose criminal laws are already so superior to those of every other people.

Being strongly urged to visit both the French and American theatres on the same evening, the general decided by lot which he would attend the first; chance was in favour of the American. We went there at seven o’clock, and were received with an enthusiasm that cannot be described; they gave an appropriate piece, of which neither he nor the audience could appreciate the merit, as every eye was attracted by the hero of Yorktown, who completely withdrew all attention from the representation of the Prisoner of Olmutz. He afterwards went to the French theatre, where they were impatiently expecting his 93appearance. When he entered, the violence of the plaudits, and the repeated cries of “Vive Lafayette,” suspended the representation. Every body rose; it was like Themistocles appearing at the Olympic games: at last, calm being re-established, the general took his seat in the box that had been prepared for him, and saw with pleasure the last act of that charming comedy, L’Ecole des Vieillards, which seemed to me to be as much relished by my former countrymen, the Americans of Louisiana, as by the inhabitants of Paris. Before he retired, the general heard an ode which was performed to his honour, all the allusions of which were applauded with enthusiasm.

In the course of Tuesday morning, a deputation of the Spanish emigrants and refugees presented themselves to compliment the general; and, above all, to testify their gratitude for the manner in which he opposed, in the Chamber of Deputies in France, the invasion of Spain, and the destruction of the liberal constitution.

The general, whose principles had led him to oppose, with all his energy, a measure disapproved of by France—a measure which had produced such disastrous results to Spain, and the heroic victims of which were now before him, was deeply affected by the expressions of gratitude now showered upon him; and, in an eloquent and impressive reply, paid his tribute of esteem, admiration, and regret, to the memory of the unfortunate Riego; he had already, on more than one occasion, openly expressed his opinion on the unhappy death of that generous martyr to liberty, and the whole American nation had partaken of the same feelings, for the consistent and courageous defender of the revolution in the peninsula.

On the following day, many other deputations waited on General Lafayette, and expressed to him their attachment, and devotion to his principles. Among them were those of the militia staff, of the medical society, of the clergy, and of the free blacks, who, in 1815, courageously assisted in the defence of the city; and our two last evenings were occupied, the one by a public ball, and the other by a masonic dinner. I will not attempt to describe these entertainments, which, from the beauty, elegance, and amiability of the ladies, the enthusiasm and frank cordiality of the citizens, the sedulous and delicate attentions of 94the magistrates, the richness and profusion of the details, equalled any thing we had ever met with.

Nevertheless, in the midst of the pleasures thus afforded him by the Louisianians, the general experienced moments of inquietude and sorrow. Sinister rumours reached him; he was told of a serious dispute between the staff and the officers of the militia, on the subject of certain prerogatives of the legion, denied by one, and insisted on by the others with equal warmth, which might produce bloody results after the departure of him whose presence was a curb even on the most headstrong. In so serious an affair he did not hesitate on using all his influence to reconcile citizens, whom a moment of error and a false point of honour had temporarily divided; he, therefore, invited all the officers of the different corps to meet at his house. When they arrived, he told them that they were, doubtless, aware of his reasons in thus bringing them together; that he was informed of what had passed, and the evil consequences that would ensue; he observed, that he felt that he was the cause, however unwillingly, and could he have foreseen such unpleasant circumstances, he should have written to decline their invitation. He begged them to consider the injurious reports it would occasion as regarded all parties, and concluded by begging that they would accept of him as a mediator.

One of the superior officers immediately advanced, and with an honourable frankness said to him, “General, I place my honour in your hands, and now agree to whatever you may dictate.” The eldest of the complainants then observed, “General, I also confide my honour, and that of my comrades, who freely agree with me, in your keeping.” The general took a hand of each of these brave men, and having united them, had the satisfaction of seeing the happiest concord established between men, who an instant before had renounced the pleasing title of brothers in arms. This interesting scene had many witnesses, who soon promulgated the details. The news of it was received with astonishing enthusiasm, as it was a sincere reconciliation between all that Louisiana cherished and revered.

General Lafayette had intended to visit the scene of the battle of the 8th of January, but the continuance of stormy weather, and the necessity for his complying in two or three days to all the kind invitations that were heaped upon 95him, obliged him to relinquish the idea. A colonel of the staff, who witnessed the chagrin this sacrifice occasioned me, had the goodness to propose that I should accompany him, whilst the general was paying some private visits. I accepted his invitation with eagerness, and we immediately set out in a carriage he sent for. On the way he informed me that he was born in France; that placed, from his birth, in the privileged class of society, he had, from his infancy, been brought up in the aristocratic prejudices of his caste; and that, although very young at the epoch of the French revolution, he believed it his duty to defend the rights of a few against the natural and sacred rights of the many, and that he had joined the Vendeans. “Then,” said he, “I believed in the legitimacy of an absolute monarchy, and in the hereditary succession of virtue, with all the fervour of ignorance, and I at first fought for them, with all the courage and devotion of fanaticism; but the campaign had not terminated before my reason, bursting the bonds with which education had loaded it, taught me, that instead of combating, as I had believed, for justice and truth, I was merely the instrument of a few men, determined to sacrifice every thing, even their country, to their own private interests, and I sheathed my sword, which I ought never to have drawn in so unjust, so absurd a cause.” He went on to say, that he would have re-entered France, but was deterred by the scenes of bloodshed and confusion then so prevalent in that country. He, therefore, sought in other lands that happiness he was denied at home. After traversing all Europe, and every where finding the same criminal alliance of royalty, nobility, and clergy, against the welfare and interests of the people, he finally settled in the United States. He added, “I had only lived at New Orleans a short time, when, in 1815, the inveterate enemies of the liberty of others in both hemispheres presented themselves before that city. I flew to arms, happy in finding an occasion of proving my gratitude to my new country, and my sincere attachment to the principles which governed it, and I am happy in being able to say, that my presence was not wholly useless on the field of battle we are about to visit.”

My companion had scarcely uttered these words, when our carriage stopped, and we stept out near the extreme 96right of the lines. Before examining them, the colonel had the goodness to explain to me the operations that preceded and brought on the battle of the 8th. I understood, from these details, how difficult it had been for General Jackson, with the handful of men he had at his disposition, to oppose the landing and rapid progress of an army of 15,000 men, or quadruple his own.

The position chosen by the American general to wait for reinforcements, and to arrest the advance of so formidable an enemy, appeared to me to be very judicious. He threw up entrenchments about five miles below the city, along an old canal, the left of which was lost in the depths of a swampy wood, whilst the right rested on the river. The total length of this line was about eight hundred toises, but as three hundred toises of the left were unassailable, the enemy was confined in his attack to a front of about five hundred toises, and obliged to advance in full view over a perfectly level plain. Nevertheless, whether from want of time, or want of reflection, General Jackson committed two serious errors; the first was in erecting his entrenchment in a straight line, and at right angles to the river, so that he not only deprived himself of the advantage of cross fires, but he also exposed himself, if the English, more skilful or fortunate, had sent a few vessels up the river in the rear of his lines; he exposed himself, I say, to the danger of having had his whole line enfiladed by the enemy’s artillery. The other fault was, erecting his second line at so great a distance from the first, that if this had been forced, he would never have been enabled to have gained the other, and his troops would have been cut to pieces in the interval. These two faults would have sufficed, as may readily be supposed, to compromit the safety of an army more numerous and better disciplined than that of General Jackson; but the destiny of American liberty, or rather the supernatural courage of the citizens, who, on that day, fought for the preservation of their independence, and the safety of their families, with the inflexible firmness of Jackson himself, shaded with the laurels of a most brilliant victory those faults which would have destroyed a less patriotic army.

I will record the details, which were given me with great clearness and precision, of all the operations that preceded 97that glorious day. I refer those who wish to study them to the excellent memoir of Mr. Lacarriere Latour, and to the equally distinguished accounts of Messrs. Brackenridge and Mac Fee; but I cannot resist the desire of now retracing some of the most brilliant acts which saved Louisiana, and immortalized its defenders.

Notwithstanding all his exertions, General Jackson was unable to collect for the defence of his entrenchments more than 3,200 men, and fourteen pieces of cannon of different calibers, pressed for time, he had been obliged to form the upper part of his works with bales of cotton, brought down from the city. He remained twenty-four hours in this position, expecting an attack every instant, when, on the 8th of January, at break of day, he perceived the English army, 12,000 strong, advancing on him in three columns, the most formidable of which menaced that part of his left wing, defended by the Tennessee and Kentucky militia. Each soldier, besides his arms, carried fascines or a scaling ladder, and marched in the most profound silence. The Americans permitted them to advance within half cannon shot, and then opened on them a terrible fire of artillery, to which the English replied by three cheers, and the flight of some Congreve rockets, and then hurried their march, closing their ranks as they were mowed down by the shot. This coolness and determination, which seemed as if it would ensure them a speedy victory, did not last long. The moment they arrived within musket shot, the Tennesseans and Kentuckians commenced a fire of small arms, which instantly broke their columns, and forced them to seek for shelter behind some thickets, which covered their right. It is true, that infantry never kept up so constant and destructive a fire, as that of these intrepid American militia. The men, arranged six deep, loaded the arms, and rapidly passed them to the front rank, composed of able marksmen, each of whose balls carried certain death to the enemy.

Whilst the English officers, with a courage worthy of a better cause and of a happier destiny, endeavoured to rally their scattered troops, to lead them to a fresh assault, an American artilleryman, in the battery commanded by Lieutenant Spotts, perceived in the plain, a group of officers, agitated and dismayed, carrying off some one with some difficulty. “It is perhaps the 98commander-in-chief and only wounded,” exclaimed he, “he must not escape so.” He levelled his piece against them, fired, and Packenham the English commander was killed in the arms of his friends. The desire for revenge now rallied the English; officers and soldiers pressed forward in a new column, led on with fury by Kean and Gibbs, the successors of Packenham. But the fire of the Americans redoubled in intensity and precision; Kean and Gibbs successively fell, the one mortally, the other dangerously wounded, and the column again broken, disappeared, leaving only its wreck on the plain.

Whilst in the centre of the line the American troops were thus crushing their adversaries, without the loss of a single man, fortune seemed as if she wished to try them on the right by a reverse. Twelve hundred English, led by a daring chief, rapidly advanced along the river, and unexpectedly fell on a small redoubt, defended by a company of riflemen and one of the 7th regiment. The Americans, surprised at this point, at first retired in some disorder. General Jackson, whose vigilant eye let nothing escape, at this decisive moment perceived an English officer mounted on the entrenchments, brandishing in one hand his sabre, and with the other assisting his soldiers to scale the rampart. Jackson hastened to the spot, met the runaways, arrested their flight, and, in a terrible voice, demanded of their commander who had given him orders to retreat. “The enemy has forced our entrenchments,” replied the captain. “Well,” answered Jackson in a severe voice, “go back and with your bayonets force them out.” This order was immediately executed. In an instant the English, who at first thought themselves victors, fell under the blows of the Americans. Among the slain, was the intrepid Colonel Rennie, an ancient French emigrant who had entered the English service; the same that had been seen so boldly surmounting the rampart, aiding and encouraging his soldiers in the assault.

This battle, which decided the fate of New Orleans, and perhaps even of Louisiana, only lasted three hours, and cost the Americans but seven men killed and six wounded, whilst the English left near three thousand men and fourteen pieces of cannon on the field. General Lambert, the only one of the English generals in a state to command, 99ordered a retreat, and hastened to seek shelter for himself and the wreck of his army, on board Admiral Cochran’s fleet, who, the evening before, had said with his accustomed boasting, that if he were ordered to attack the American lines, he would carry them in less than half an hour, with two thousand sailors, sabre in hand.

Thus, a small army, composed of citizens hastily collected, and commanded by a general whose military career had just commenced, beheld an English army, which passed for one of the bravest and most experienced in Europe, and which boasted it had expelled the French from Spain, fall before its patriotic efforts.

When I returned to the city, I found General Lafayette surrounded by numbers of ladies and citizens of all ranks, who, knowing that he would leave them the next morning, mournfully came to bid him farewell, and once more to take him by the hand. In the crowd I remarked some ecclesiastics, and among them a capuchin, whose dress being new to me had attracted my attention on the day of our arrival. The account I heard of him interested me strongly, and may perhaps be equally so to my readers.

Father Anthony, for such is his name, is a venerable capuchin friar of the order of St. Francis, and has resided in Louisiana for many years. Animated by an ardent and sincere piety, Father Anthony prays in silence for all the world without asking prayers of any one. Placed in the midst of a population composed of different sects, he does not think it right to trouble their consciences by endeavours to gain proselytes. Sometimes, as being a capuchin, Father Anthony asks alms, but it is only when he has some good action in view, and his slender funds, exhausted by his constant charity, deny him the power of doing it himself. Every year, when the yellow fever, in stretching its murderous hand over New Orleans, drives the terrified inhabitants to the country, to seek an asylum against disease and death, the virtue of Father Anthony shows itself in all its brilliancy and force. During this time of dread and grief, how many unhappy wretches, abandoned by their friends or even by their relations, have owed their recovery and life to his exertions, his care, his piety. Of all those he has saved, (and there are many,) there is not one who can say, “before he lavished his care on me, did 100he ask of what religion I was.” Liberty and charity, such is the moral code of Father Anthony; hence he is not in favour with the bishop. When he came to visit the general, he was dressed, according to the custom of his order, in a long brown robe, tied about his middle with a thick cord. The moment he perceived him, he threw himself into his arms, exclaiming, “O my son, I have found favour before the Lord, since he has thus permitted me to see and hear the worthiest apostle of liberty!” He then conversed a few moments with him in a tone of the most tender affection, complimented him on the glorious and well-merited reception he had met with from the Americans, and modestly retired into a corner of the room, apart from the crowd. I took advantage of this, to approach and salute him. How deeply was I touched by his conversation!—what sweetness! what modesty! and at the same time what enthusiasm! Every time that he spoke of liberty his eyes sparkled with a sacred light, and his looks were fastened on him he termed his hero, on Lafayette. “How happy must he be,” said he, “how pure is the source of all his glory! with what transport he must contemplate the result of his labours and sacrifices! Twelve millions of men happy and free through him! Yes! this man is certainly beloved by God. He has done so much good to others.” He came again to see us the morning before our departure. When the crowd had quitted the room, and he was left alone with the general, he hastened to him, and pressing him with transport to his bosom, “Adieu, my son,” cried he, “adieu, best beloved general! Adieu! may the Lord attend you, and after the termination of your glorious journey, conduct you to the bosom of your beloved family, to enjoy in peace the recollection of your good actions and of the friendship of the American people. O, my son, perhaps you are still reserved for new labours! Perhaps the Lord may make you the instrument of freeing other nations. Then, my son, think of poor Spain! Do not abandon my dear country, my unhappy country!” The tears flowing from his eyes, moistened his long beard, whitened by age; his voice was interrupted by sobs; and the venerable old man, leaning his forehead on the shoulder of Lafayette, remained in 101this attitude a few moments, still murmuring, “My son, my dear son, do something for my unhappy country.” It was not without deep emotion that the general tore himself from the arms of this pious patriot, who, before he retired, also bestowed his benediction on Mr. George Lafayette.

But the 15th being fixed for our departure, from the dawn of day the avenues to the general’s apartment were filled with even a greater assemblage than that of the evening before. There were present a great number of ladies, and particularly crowds of children brought by their parents, that they might contemplate the features of the benefactor of the country, the friend of the great Washington. The general left the house on foot. Cries of Vive Lafayette were heard on every side. In crossing the parade ground, on which were several companies of the legion and troops of the line, lining the avenues, he expressed his gratitude to all the officers whom he met; he again testified to Mr. Gally, the captain of artillery, how much he appreciated the merit of the fine corps he commanded; and, as he understood that this officer intended going to France in a short time, he begged him, in the most pressing manner, to have the goodness to carry news of him to his family at La Grange. He got into a carriage at the extremity of the parade ground, to proceed to the place of embarkation, where the steam-boat that was to take him to Baton-Rouge now waited for him. The levee was crowded by an innumerable concourse of people. The balconies, roofs of the houses, all the shipping and steam-boats which were near this spot, were filled with spectators; and, when he went on board, he was saluted by a prolonged acclamation, but it was not repeated, and more than ten thousand persons remained in a state of profound silence, until the Natchez was out of sight. The artillery only was heard at intervals, giving a solemnity to this separation that was profound and universal.

The governor and his staff, the mayor and municipal body, the committee of arrangement, to whom we owed so many and great obligations, embarked with us to prolong for a few moments the pleasure of being with the general; but at two miles from the city, the most of them 102were obliged to leave us. It was not without profound regret that we separated from these worthy officers, whom we had only known for a few days, it is true, but yet sufficiently long to appreciate them fully.

CHAPTER VIII.

CHAPTER IX.

Changes produced in the navigation of the Mississippi since the introduction of Steam—Arrival at Kaskaskia—The Canadians and Indians—Singular meeting with a young Indian educated among the Whites, and returned to savage life—Indian Ballad—State of Illinois—Departure from Kaskaskia—Separation of General Lafayette and the Louisiana deputation.

Governor Coles, who had embarked with us, requested of General Lafayette and obtained his consent, that he would not leave the river Mississippi without visiting the state of Illinois, along which we were to pass in descending the river. It was decided that we should stop at Kaskaskia, a large village of that state, and, although nearly eighty miles distant, we arrived there a little while before noon, so fortunate and rapid was our navigation. Since the application of steam to navigation, the changes produced in the relations of the towns on the Mississippi is prodigious. Formerly the voyage from New Orleans to St. Louis required three or four months of the most painful toil that can be imagined; the action of the oar was not always sufficient to overcome the resistance of the current. They were often obliged to warp the boat by hand, advancing from time to time with a small boat to tie a rope to a tree or stone on the shore.^[14] This slow and painful operation, the consequent privations and bad diet, caused diseases among the boatmen, which ordinarily destroyed one third of the crew. At present the same passage which is nearly fifteen hundred miles, is made in ten days, without fatigue, without privations, between a good bed and a good table, and often in very good company; the return is commonly made in five days; so that 130New Orleans and St. Louis, separated by so great a distance, are now considered as neighbouring cities, whose inhabitants are better acquainted and visit each other oftener than those of Paris and Bordeaux can do.

General Lafayette was not expected at Kaskaskia, and nothing had been prepared for this unforeseen visit. While we were landing some one ran to the village, which stands a quarter of a mile from the shore, and quickly returned with a carriage for the general, who, an instant after, was surrounded by many citizens, who ran before to receive him. In the escort which formed itself to accompany him, we saw neither military apparel nor the splendid triumphs we had perceived in the rich cities; but the accents of joy and republican gratitude which broke upon his ear, was grateful to his heart, since it proved to him that wherever American liberty had penetrated, there also the love and veneration of the people for its founders were perpetuated.

We followed the general on foot, and arrived almost at the same time at the house of General Edgar, a venerable soldier of the revolution, who received him with affectionate warmth, and ordered all the doors to be kept open, that his fellow citizens might enjoy, as well as himself, the pleasure of shaking hands with the adopted son of America. After a few minutes had been accorded to the rather tumultuous expression of the sentiments which the presence of the general inspired, Governor Coles requested silence, which was accorded with a readiness and deference that proved to me that his authority rested not only on the law, but still more on popular affection. He advanced towards Lafayette, about whom the crowd had increased, and addressed him with emotion in a discourse in which he depicted the transports his presence excited in the population of the state of Illinois, and the happy influence which the remembrance of his visit would produce hereafter on the youthful witnesses of the enthusiasm of their fathers, for one of the most valiant founders of their liberty.

During an instant of profound silence, I cast a glance at the assembly, in the midst of which I found myself, and was struck with astonishment in remarking their variety and fantastic appearance. Beside men whose dignity of countenance, 131the patriotic exaltation of expression, readily indicated them to be Americans, were others whose coarse dresses, vivacity, petulance of movement, and the expansive joy of their visages, strongly recalled to me the peasantry of my own country; behind these, near to the door, and on the piazza which surrounded the house, stood some immovable, impassable, large, red, half naked figures, leaning on a bow or a long rifle: these were the Indians of the neighbourhood.

After a pause of some seconds, the governor resumed his address, which he concluded by presenting, with great eloquence, a faithful picture of the benefits which America had derived from its liberty, and the happy influence which republican institutions would one day exercise on the rest of the world. When the orator had finished, a slight murmur of approbation passed through the assembly, and was prolonged until it was perceived that General Lafayette was about to reply, when an attentive silence was restored.

After these reciprocal felicitations, another scene not less interesting commenced. Some old revolutionary soldiers advanced from the crowd, and came to shake hands with their old general; while he conversed with them, and heard them, with softened feelings, cite the names of those of their ancient companions in arms, who also fought at Brandywine and Yorktown, but for whom it was not ordained to enjoy the fruits of their toils, nor to unite their voices with that of their grateful country. The persons whom I had remarked as having some likeness in dress and manners to our French peasants, went and came with vivacity in all parts of the hall, or sometimes formed little groups, from the midst of which could be heard, in the French language, the most open and animated expressions of joy. Having been introduced to one of these groups by a member of the committee of Kaskaskia, I was received at first with great kindness, and was quickly overwhelmed with a volley of questions, as soon as they found I was a Frenchman, and accompanied general Lafayette. “What! are you also come from France? Give us then some news from that fine, that dear country. Are people happy there? Are they free as they are here? Ah! what pleasure to see our good Frenchmen from grand France!” and the questions 132followed with such rapidity, that I knew not which to understand. I was not long in perceiving that these good men were as ignorant of the things which concerned their mother country, as they were enthusiastic. They are acquainted with France only by tradition from the reign of Louis XIV. and they have no idea of the convulsions which, during the last forty years, have torn the country of their fathers. “Have you not had,” said one of them to me, who had just asked me many questions about General Lafayette, which would not have been asked by an American child ten years of age, “have you not had another famous general, called Napoleon, who has made many glorious wars?” I think if Napoleon had heard such a question asked, his vanity would have been somewhat shocked by it. He, who believed he filled the universe with his name, because he had overturned some old thrones of Europe, and destroyed the liberty of France, was yet hardly known on the banks of the Mississippi; not more than two thousand leagues from the theatre of his glory, his name is pronounced with an expression of doubt! Indeed, there is in this something to damp the most ardent passion for celebrity: I did my best to reply to the question of my Canadian, to make him comprehend, as well as those who surrounded him, who was this famous General Napoleon. At the recital of his exploits, they at first clapped their hands, and assumed an air of superiority, in saying, “These are our brave Frenchmen. It is only among them that men like these are to be found!” But when I came to tell them how this famous general caused himself to be made consul; how he made himself emperor; how he had successively destroyed our liberty, and paralyzed the exercise of our rights; how, finally, he had himself fallen, leaving us, after twenty years of war, nearly at the same point whence we had started at the commencement of our revolution, they all became sad as if about to weep, and exclaimed: “And you have suffered all that! How, in beautiful France, and grand France, are they not free as in the state of Illinois? Good heavens! is it possible? What, can you not write whatever you please? Cannot you go every where without passports? Is it not you who nominate the mayors of your towns and villages? Is it not you who choose your governors, or your prefects of departments or provinces? Have 133you not the right to elect your representatives to the national assembly? Are none of you called to the election of the chief of the government, although you pay the whole of such heavy taxes? Alas! our good Frenchmen of grand France are then more to be pitied than the negro slaves of Louisiana, who are, indeed, miserable enough! for if these exercise none of the rights which we all exercise here, they at least pay no money, and have masters that support them.” During these exclamations, I did not know what to say. The colour mounted to my cheeks, and I confess that my national vanity suffered singularly to hear ignorant Canadians express sentiments of pity for my countrymen, and draw a parallel to their disadvantage between them and miserable slaves; but these sentiments were too well founded to admit of my complaining, and I was silent. I only made a promise to myself to be more discreet for the future, and not to speak with so much freedom of the political situation of my country before freemen.

While I was occupied with the Canadians, the crowd, influenced by a feeling of delicacy and kind attention, insensibly withdrew, to leave General Lafayette time to take a few moments’ repose while waiting for the banquet which the citizens had hastily prepared. Wishing to profit by the short time we had to remain at Kaskaskia, Mr. George Lafayette and myself went out to view the environs of the village, in company with some of the inhabitants, and left the general with our other travelling companions and some old revolutionary soldiers, at Colonel Edgar’s. At the public square we found nearly all the citizens walking about, and joyously conversing upon the event of the day. We found in their groups the same variety of physiognomy that had struck me in the hall. While Mr. George gathered from an American, the details of the origin and present situation of Kaskaskia, I approached a small circle of Indians, in the centre of which was a man of high stature and singular aspect. His face, without being coppery like that of the Indians, was still very swarthy. His short dress, his long belt, to which hung a powder-horn, his long leather leggings, extending above his knees, and all his equipage, announced a hunter of the forest. He was leaning on a long rifle, and appeared to inspire by his discourse a lively interest in his hearers. When he observed me, he 134came to me without forwardness, but with marked kindness. He extended his hand, and I gave him mine, which he shook cordially. I had a moment’s hesitation in addressing him, not knowing whether he understood English or French; but he spoke to me first in French, and I soon found myself quite at ease with him. He informed me that he was of mixed blood, that his mother was of the Kickapoos tribe, and that his father was a Canadian. He lives among the Indians of the neighbourhood, who have a great friendship and respect for him, because, notwithstanding fifty years and fatigue have begun to whiten his head, he yet equals them in hunting and all the exercises of the body, and because he often serves them as a mediator between them and the whites, whose language he perfectly understands, although his common language is Indian. Those who surrounded him were not all similarly clothed, nor similarly painted. It was easy to distinguish some differences in their features and manners. I concluded that they were not all of the same tribe. The hunter confirmed me in this opinion by telling me that at this moment, there were about Kaskaskia three or four camps of Indians, come to sell the furs obtained by their great hunting during the winter. He named the different tribes who occupied the camps; but their names were so barbarous, or so badly pronounced, that I could not comprehend them; I understood distinctly only that of Miami, which, repeated three or four times, roused from his apathy a little man, who until then stood motionless before me, wrapped in a blanket; his face, bloated by intemperance, was painted red, blue, and yellow. At the name of Miami, he raised his head, assumed an air of ridiculous dignity, and said, “I should be the chief of the Miami nation. My grandfather was chief, my father was chief; but the Miami have unjustly decided that I should not succeed my father, and now, instead of having a great quantity of furs to sell, I have none; I shall quit Kaskaskia without being able to buy arms, powder, or tobacco.” While he thus spoke, a man painted in the same way, but of a very lofty stature and athletic form, regarded him with a disdainful air, and said, after tapping him on the shoulder, “Dare you to complain of the justice of the Miami? Thy grandfather was our chief, sayest thou? thy father was also? But hast thou 135then forgotten that thy grandfather was the bravest of our warriors, and that the wisdom of thy father was heard in our councils as the voice of the Great Spirit? But, by what title wouldst thou command among men? Feeble as an old woman, thou hast not even the courage to hunt to satisfy thy wants, and thou wouldst sell us to the whites for a bottle of whiskey.” A contemptuous gesture terminated this rude apostrophe, which was translated into French for me at the time by the stout hunter; and the fallen prince, sadly leaning on a small bow, similar to those with which the Indian boys exercise, kept silence. His fate seemed to me truly deserving of pity; I could not, however, avoid feeling a sentiment of esteem for the Miami nation, who do not believe that legitimacy in a prince can supply the place of all the virtues.

I was still among the Indians, questioning the hunter as to the situation and force of their tribes, which civilization is rapidly diminishing, when I saw the secretary of the governor of Louisiana, Mr. Caire, approach, who came to propose that I should go with him to visit an Indian encampment, at a very short distance from the village. I consented, and we set off immediately, in order to return by the dinner hour. Leaving Kaskaskia, we crossed a river of the same name, on a wooden bridge solidly built and firmly connected. We then marched about twenty minutes on the plain, to the entrance of a forest, which we penetrated by a straight path traced along a rivulet. As we advanced, the ground suddenly elevated itself to the right and left, and we quickly found ourselves in a kind of pass, formed by a succession of small hills, covered with thickets. After about a quarter of an hour’s walk, we arrived at a fence, which we climbed, and behind which two horses attracted our attention by the noise of the bells hung round their necks. A little further on, the pass enlarging, formed a delightful little valley, in the middle of which some huts of bark were raised in a half circle; this was the Indian camp we sought. The openings of these huts were all towards the centre of the circle, and the planks elevated about three feet from the ground, were slightly inclined, like the cover of a field bed. With the exception of a very old woman cooking at a fire in the open air, we found no person in the camp. Either from 136spite, or because she neither comprehended French nor English, this woman would reply to none of our questions, and saw us with the greatest indifference, look at, and even handle, all the objects which attracted our curiosity in the huts. All was arranged with sufficient order, and it was easy to recognize the places occupied by the women, by the little utensils of the toilet, such as looking-glasses, pins, bags of paint, &c. which we remarked there. After a minute examination of this little camp, we were about to leave it, when I was arrested on the border of the streamlet which ran through it, by the sight of a small mill-wheel, which appeared to have been thrown on the bank by the rapidity of the current. I took it up and placed it where I thought it had originally been put by the children, on two stones elevated a little above the water; and the current striking the wings, made it turn rapidly. This puerility, (which probably would have passed from my memory, if, on the same evening, it had not placed me before the Indians, in a situation sufficiently extraordinary,) greatly excited the attention of the old woman, who, by her gestures, expressed to us a lively satisfaction.

On returning to Kaskaskia, we found Mr. de Syon, an amiable young Frenchman of much intelligence, who, on the invitation of General Lafayette, left Washington city with us to visit the southern and western states. Like us he had just made an excursion into the neighbourhood, and appeared quite joyous at the discovery he had made; he had met, in the midst of the forest, at the head of a troop of Indians, a pretty young woman, who spoke French very well, and expressed herself with a grace at which he appeared as much astonished as we were. She had asked him if it was true, that Lafayette was at Kaskaskia, and on his replying affirmatively, she manifested a great desire to see him. “I always carry with me,” said she to Mr. de Syon, “a relique, that is very dear to me; I would wish to show it to him; it will prove to him that his name is not less venerated in the midst of our tribes, than among the white Americans, for whom he fought.” And in speaking thus, she drew from her bosom a little pouch which enclosed a letter carefully wrapped in several pieces of paper. “It is from Lafayette,” said she, “he wrote it to my father a long time since, and my father, when he died, left it to me 137as the most precious thing he possessed.” At the sight of this letter, Mr. de Syon proposed to the Indian girl to go with him to Kaskaskia, assuring her that General Lafayette would be very much pleased to see her; but this proposition seemed to embarrass her, and under various pretexts, she refused to come. “However,” she added, “if you have any thing to say to me this evening, you will find me in my camp, which is close by the village; any one can direct you the way, for I am well known at Kaskaskia. My name is Mary.”

This recital of Mr. de Syon excited my curiosity keenly, and I would have willingly returned with him immediately to search for Mary; but, at this moment, a member of the committee of Kaskaskia came to inform me that they were about to sit down to dinner, and we saw General Lafayette going out of Colonel Edgar’s, escorted by many citizens and crossing to Colonel Sweet’s house where we were to dine. We joined the procession and took our places at table, where the general was seated under a canopy of flowers prepared by the ladies of Kaskaskia, with much skill and taste; and which produced, by the blending of the richest and most lively colours, the effect of a rainbow.

I spoke to General Lafayette of the meeting with the young Indian girl; and from the desire he manifested to see her, I left the table with Mr. de Syon, at the moment when the company began to exchange patriotic toasts, and we sought a guide to Mary’s camp. Chance assisted us wonderfully, in directing us to an Indian of the same tribe that we wished to visit. Conducted by him, we crossed the bridge of Kaskaskia, and notwithstanding the darkness, soon recognized the path and rivulet I had seen in the morning with Mr. Caire. When we were about to enter the enclosure, we were arrested by the fierce barking of two stout dogs which sprang at, and would probably have bitten us, but for the timely interference of our guide. We arrived at the middle of the camp, which was lighted by a large fire, around which a dozen Indians were squatted, preparing their supper; they received us with cordiality, and, as soon as they were informed of the object of our visit, one of them conducted us to Mary’s hut, whom we found sleeping on a bison skin. At the voice of Mr. de Syon, 138which she recognized, she arose, and listened attentively to the invitation from General Lafayette to come to Kaskaskia; she seemed quite flattered by it, but said before deciding to accompany us she wished to mention it to her husband. While she was consulting with him, I heard a piercing cry; and turning round I saw near me the old woman I had found alone in the camp in the morning: she had just recognized me by the light of the fire, and designated me to her companions, who, quitting immediately their occupations, rushed round me in a circle, and began to dance with demonstrations of great joy and gratitude. Their tawny and nearly naked bodies, their faces fantastically painted, their expressive gesticulations, the reflection of the fire, which gave a red tinge to all the surrounding objects, every thing gave to this scene something of an infernal aspect, and I fancied myself for an instant in the midst of demons. Mary, witnessing my embarrassment, put an end to it, by ordering the dance to cease, and then explained to me the honours which they had just rendered me. “When we wish to know if an enterprize we meditate will be happy, we place in a rivulet a small wheel slightly supported on two stones; if the wheel turns during three suns, without being thrown down, the augury is favourable: but if the current carry it away, and throws it upon the bank, it is a certain proof that our project is not approved by the Great Spirit, unless however a stranger comes to replace the little wheel before the end of the third day. You are this stranger who have restored our manitou and our hopes, and this is your title to be thus celebrated among us.” In pronouncing these last words, an ironical smile played on her lips, which caused me to doubt her faith in the manitou. “You do not appear to be very much convinced,” said I to her, “of the efficacy of the service which I have rendered you in raising the manitou?” She silently shook her head; then raising her eyes, “I have been taught,” said she, “to place my confidence higher;—all my hopes are in the God I have been taught to believe in; the God of the Christians.”

I had at first been much astonished to hear an Indian woman speak French so well, and I was not less so in learning that she was a Christian; Mary perceived it, and to put an end to my surprise, she related to me her history, while 139her husband, and those who were to accompany her to Kaskaskia, hastily took their supper, of maize cooked in milk. She informed me that her father, who was a chief of one of the nations who inhabited the shores of the great lakes of the north, had formerly fought with a hundred of his followers under the orders of Lafayette, when the latter commanded an army on the frontiers. That he had acquired much glory, and gained the friendship of the Americans. A long time after, that is, about twenty years ago, he left the shores of the great lakes with some of his warriors, his wife and daughter; and after having marched a long time, he established himself on the shores of the river Illinois. “I was very young, then, but have not yet, however, forgotten the horrible sufferings we endured during this long journey, made in a rigorous winter, across a country peopled by nations with whom we were unacquainted; they were such, that my poor mother, who nearly always carried me on her shoulders, already well loaded with baggage, died under them some days after our arrival; my father placed me under the care of another woman, who also emigrated with us, and occupied himself in securing the tranquil possession of the lands on which we had come to establish ourselves, by forming alliances with our new neighbours. The Kickapoos were those who received us best, and we soon considered ourselves as forming a part of their nation. The year following my father was chosen by them, with some from among themselves, to go and regulate some affairs of the nation with the agent of the United States, residing here at Kaskaskia; he wished that I should be of the company; for, although the Kickapoos had shown themselves very generous and hospitable towards him, he feared that some war might break out in his absence, as he well knew the intrigues of the English to excite the Indians against the Americans. This same apprehension induced him to accede to the request made by the American agent, to leave me in his family, to be educated with his infant daughter. My father had much esteem for the whites of that great nation for whom he had formerly fought; he never had cause to complain of them, and he who offered to take charge of me inspired him with great confidence by the frankness of his manners, and above all, by the fidelity with which he treated the affairs of the Indians; he, therefore, 140left me, promising to return to see me every year after the great winter’s hunt; he came, in fact, several times afterwards; and I, notwithstanding the disagreeableness of a sedentary life, grew up, answering the expectations of my careful benefactor and his wife. I became attached to their daughter, who grew up with me, and the truths of the Christian religion easily supplanted in my mind the superstition of my fathers, whom I had scarcely known; yet, I confess to you, notwithstanding the influence of religion and civilization on my youthful heart, the impressions of infancy were not entirely effaced. If the pleasure of wandering conducted me into the shady forest, I breathed more freely, and it was with reluctance that I returned home; when, in the cool of the evening, seated in the door of my adopted father’s habitation, I heard in the distance, through the silence of the night, the piercing voice of the Indians, rallying to return to camp, I started with a thrill of joy, and my feeble voice imitated the voice of the savage with a facility that affrighted my young companion; and when occasionally some warriors came to consult my benefactor in regard to their treaties, or hunters to offer him a part of the produce of their chase, I was always the first to run to meet and welcome them; I testified my joy to them by every imaginable means, and I could not avoid admiring and wishing for their simple ornaments, which appeared to me far preferable to the brilliant decorations of the whites.

“In the meanwhile, for five years my father had not appeared at the period of the return from the winter’s hunting; but a warrior, whom I had often seen with him, came and found me one evening at the entrance of the forest, and said to me: ‘Mary, thy father is old and feeble, he has been unable to follow us here; but he wishes to see thee once more before he dies, and he has charged me to conduct thee to him.’ In saying these words he forcibly took my hand, and dragged me with him. I had not even time to reply to him, nor even to take any resolution, before we were at a great distance, and I saw well that there was no part left for me, but to follow him. We marched nearly all night, and at the dawn of day, we arrived at a bark hut, built in the middle of a little valley. Here I saw my father, his eyes turned towards the just rising sun. His face was painted as for battle. His tomahawk ornamented with 141many scalps, was beside him; he was calm and silent as an Indian who awaited death. As soon as he saw me he drew out of a pouch a paper wrapped with care in a very dry skin, and gave it me, requesting that I should preserve it as a most precious thing. ‘I wished to see thee once more before dying,’ said he, ‘and to give thee this paper, which is the most powerful charm (manitou) which thou canst employ with the whites to interest them in thy favour; for all those to whom I have shown it have manifested towards me a particular attachment. I received it from a great French warrior, whom the English dreaded as much as the Americans loved, and with whom I fought in my youth.’ After these words my father was silent, next morning he expired. Sciakape, the name of the warrior who came for me, covered the body of my father with the branches of trees, and took me back to my guardian.”

Here Mary suspended her narrative, and presented to me a letter a little darkened by time, but in good preservation. “Stay,” said she to me, smiling, “you see that I have faithfully complied with the charge of my father; I have taken great care of his manitou.” I opened the letter and recognized the signature and handwriting of General Lafayette. It was dated at head quarters, Albany, June, 1778, after the northern campaign, and addressed to Panisciowa, an Indian chief of one of the Six Nations, to thank him for the courageous manner in which he had served the American cause.

“Well,” said Mary, “now that you know me well enough to introduce me to General Lafayette, shall we go to him that I may also greet him whom my father revered as the courageous warrior and the friend of our nations?” “Willingly,” I replied, “but it seems to me that you have promised to inform us in what manner, after having tasted for some time the sweets of civilization, you came to return to the rude and savage life of the Indians?” At this question, Mary looked downwards and seemed troubled. However, after a slight hesitation, she resumed in a lower tone: “After the death of my father, Sciakape often returned to see me. We soon became attached to each other; he did not find it difficult to determine me to follow him into the forest, where I became his wife. This resolution at first very much afflicted my benefactors; but 142when they saw that I found myself happy, they pardoned me; and each year, during all the time that our encampment is established near Kaskaskia, I rarely pass a day without going to see them; if you wish, we can visit them, for their house is close by our way, and you will see by the reception they will give me, that they retain their esteem and friendship.” Mary pronounced these last words with a degree of pride, which proved to us that she feared that we might have formed a bad opinion of her, on account of her flight from the home of her benefactors with Sciakape. We accepted her proposition, and she gave the signal for departure. At her call, her husband and eight warriors presented themselves to escort us. M. de Syon offered her his arm, and we began our march. We were all very well received by the family of Mr. Mesnard; but Mary above all received the most tender marks of affection from the persons of the household. Mr. Mesnard, Mary’s adopted father, was at Kaskaskia, as one of the committee charged with the reception of Lafayette, and Mrs. Mesnard asked us if we would undertake to conduct her daughter to the ball which she herself was prevented from attending by indisposition. We assented with pleasure; and, while Mary assisted Miss Mesnard to complete her toilet, we seated ourselves round a great fire in the kitchen. Scarcely were we seated, when I saw moving in the corner, a black mass, of which I had at first a difficulty in recognising the nature and form; but, after an attentive examination, I found it was an old negro doubled by age. His face was so much wrinkled and deformed by time, that it was impossible to distinguish in it a single feature, and I guessed the place of his mouth by the little cloud of tobacco-smoke which escaped thence, from time to time. This man appeared to give great attention to the conversation which took place between us and a young man of Mr. Mesnard’s family; when he understood that we travelled with General Lafayette, and that we came from St. Louis, he asked if we had found many Frenchmen there. I replied that we had seen some, and, among others, Mr. Choteau, the founder of the town. “What!” cried he with a loud voice, which seemed not to belong to so decrepid a body—“What! you found the little Choteau? Oh! I know him well, so I do, that little 143Choteau; we have travelled a great deal together on the Mississippi, and that at a time when very few of the whites had come this far.” “But do you know,” said I, “that he whom you call the little Choteau is very old, that he is certainly more than ninety years of age?” “Oh! I believe that well! but what of that? that does not prevent that I should know him well, when a child.” “Of what age are you, then?” “Of that I know nothing, as they never taught me to count. All that I know is, that I left New Orleans with my master, who made part of the expedition sent by the Navigation Company of the Mississippi, under the orders of the young Choteau, to go and build a fort high up the river. Young Choteau was hardly seventeen, but he was commander of the expedition, because his father was, they said, one of the richest proprietors of the company. After having rowed a long time against the current and suffered great fatigue, we arrived at last not far from here, where we set about building Fort Chartres. It seems as if I was now there; I see from here the great stones which bore the great arches we built. Every one of us said, ‘Here is a fort will last longer than us all, and longer than our children.’ I also believed it well, and yet I have seen the last of it; for it is now in ruins, and I am yet living. Do you know, sir, how many years it is since we built Fort Chartres?” “At least eighty years, if I am not deceived.” “Well, count, and you will know very nearly my age. I was then at least thirty years old, for the little Choteau appeared to me a child; I have already served three masters, and I have suffered a great deal.” “According to that account, you are a hundred and ten years old, Daddy Francis.” “Yes, indeed, I believe I am at the least that, for it is a long time that I have laboured and suffered.” “How!” said the young man who was seated near him, “do you suffer now, Francis?” “Oh! pardon me, sir, I speak not of the time I have lived in this house. Since I belonged to Mr. Mesnard it is very different; I am now happy. Instead of serving others, they all serve me. Mr. Mesnard will not even allow me to go and bring in a little wood for the fire; he says I am too old for that. But I must tell the truth, Mr. Mesnard is not a master to me; he is a man—he is a friend.”

This homage of the old slave, rendered to the humanity 144of his master, gave us a high idea of the character of Mr. Mesnard. While we were yet listening to old Francis, Mary and Miss Mesnard came to inform us that they were ready, and asked us if we would be on our way, as it began to grow late. We took leave of Mrs. Mesnard, and found our Indian escort who had waited patiently for us at the door, and who resumed their position near us at some distance in front, to guide and protect our march, as if we had been crossing an enemy’s country. The night was quite dark, but the temperature was mild, and the fire-flies illuminated the atmosphere around us. M. de Syon conducted Miss Mesnard, and I gave my arm to Mary, who, notwithstanding the darkness, walked with a confidence and lightness which only a forest life could produce. The fire-flies attracted and interested me much; for, although this was not the first time I had observed them, I had never before seen them in such numbers. I asked Mary if these insects, which from their appearance seem so likely to astonish the imagination, had never given place among the Indians to popular beliefs or tales. “Not among the nations of these countries, where every year we are familiarised with their great numbers,” said she to me, “but I have heard that among the tribes of the north, they commonly believe that they are the souls of departed friends, who return to console them or demand the performance of some promise. I even know several ballads on this subject. One of them appears to have been made a long time since, in a nation which lives farther north and no longer exists. It is by songs that great events and popular traditions are ordinarily preserved among us, and this ballad, which I have often heard sung by the young girls of our tribe, leaves no doubt as to the belief of some Indians concerning the fire-fly.” I asked her to sing me this song, which she did with much grace. Although I did not comprehend the words, which were Indian, I observed a great harmony in their arrangement, and, in the very simple music in which they were sung, an expression of deep melancholy.

When she had finished the ballad, I asked her if she could not translate it for me into French, so that I might comprehend the sense. “With difficulty,” she said, “for I have always found great obstacles to translating exactly 145the expressions of our Indians into French, when I have served them as interpreter with the whites; but I will try.” And she translated nearly as follows:

“The rude season of the chase was over. Antakaya, the handsomest, the most skilful, and bravest of the Cherokee warriors, came to the banks of the Avolachy, where he was expected by Manahella, the young virgin promised to his love and bravery.

“The first day of the moon of flowers was to witness their union. Already had the two families, assembled round the same fire, given their assent; already had the young men and women prepared and ornamented the new cabin, which was to receive the happy couple, when, at the rising of the sun, a terrible cry, the cry of war, sent forth by the scout who always watches at the summit of the hill, called the old men to the council, and the warriors to arms.

“The whites appeared on the frontier. Murder and robbery accompanied them. The star of fertility had not reached its noontide height, and already Antakaya had departed at the head of his warriors to repel robbery, murder, and the whites.

“Go, said Manahella to him, endeavouring to stifle her grief, go fight the cruel whites, and I will pray to the Great Spirit to wrap thee with a cloud, proof against their blows. I will pray him to bring thee back to the banks of the Avolachy, there to be loved by Manahella.

“I will return to thee, replied Antakaya, I will return to thee. My arrows have never disappointed my aim, my tomahawk shall be bathed in the blood of the whites; I will bring back their scalps to ornament the door of thy cabin; then I shall be worthy of Manahella; then shall we love in peace, then shall we be happy.

“The first day of the moon of flowers had brightly dawned, and many more had passed away, and none had heard from Antakaya and his warriors. Stooping on the shores of the Avolachy, the mournful Manahella every evening raised to the evil spirits little pyramids of polished pebbles, to appease their anger and avert their resistance to her well beloved; but the evil spirits were inflexible, and their violent blasts overthrew the little pyramids.

“One evening of the last moon of flowers, Manahella met on the banks of the river a pale and bloody warrior. ‘Die, 146poor ivy,’ said he to Manahella; ‘die! the noblest oak of the forest, that proud oak under whose shade thou hoped to enjoy repose and happiness, is fallen! It has fallen under the redoubled strokes of the whites. In its fall it has crushed those who felled it, but it is fallen! Die, poor ivy, die! for the oak which was to give thee support is fallen!’—Two days after, Manahella was no more.

“Antakaya, whose courage had been deceived by fate, had fallen covered with wounds into the hands of the whites, who carried him far away. But he escaped; and after wandering long through the forest, he returned to mourn his defeat and meditate vengeance with Manahella. When he arrived, she was no more. Agitated by the most violent despair, he ran in the evening to the banks of the Avolachy, calling Manahella, but the echo alone replied to the accents of his grief.

“O Manahella! he exclaimed, if my arrows have disappointed my skill, if my tomahawk has not spilt the blood of the whites, if I have not brought thee their scalps to ornament the door of thy cabin, forgive me! It is not the fault of my courage, the evil spirits have fought against me. And yet I have suffered no complaint to escape me, not a sigh, when the iron of my enemies tore my breast; I have not abased myself by asking my life! They preserved it against my will, and I am only consoled by the hope of one day avenging myself, and offering thee many of their scalps. O Manahella! come, if but to tell me that thou pardonest me, and that thou permittest me to follow thee into the world of the Great Spirit.

“At the same instant a vivid light, pure and lambent, appeared to the eyes of the unfortunate Antakaya. He saw in it the soul of his beloved, and followed it through the valley during all the night, supplicating it to stay and to pardon him. At the dawn of the day he found himself on the border of a great lake; the light had disappeared, and he believed that it had passed over the water. Immediately, although feeble and fatigued, he made a canoe of the trunk of a tree which he hollowed, and with a branch he made a paddle. At the end of the day his work was achieved. With the darkness the deceptive light returned; and during all the night Antakaya pursued the delusion on the face of the unsteady waters. But it again disappeared 147before the light of the sun, and with it vanished the slight breath of hope and the life of Antakaya.”

Mary ended her ballad, and I expressed to her my thanks as we arrived at the bridge of Kaskaskia. There, Sciakape collected his escort, said a few words to his wife, and left us to enter the village alone. We approached the house of Mr. Morrison, at which the ball was given to General Lafayette. I then felt that Mary trembled; her trouble was so great that she could not conceal it from me. I asked her the cause. If you would spare me a great mortification, she said, you will not conduct me among the ladies of Kaskaskia. They are now without doubt in their most brilliant dresses, and the coarseness of my clothes will inspire them with contempt and pity, two sentiments which will equally affect me. Besides I know that they blame me for having renounced the life of the whites, and I feel little at ease in their presence. I promised what she desired, and she became reassured. Arrived at Mr. Morrison’s, I conducted her into a lower chamber, and went to the hall to inform General Lafayette that the young Indian girl awaited him below. He hastened down, and several of the committee with him. He saw and heard Mary with pleasure, and could not conceal his emotion on recognizing his letter, and observing with what holy veneration it had been preserved during nearly half a century in a savage nation, among whom he had not even supposed his name had ever penetrated. On her part, the daughter of Panisciowa expressed with vivacity the happiness she enjoyed in seeing him, along with whom her father had the honour to fight for the good American cause.

After a half hour’s conversation, in which General Lafayette was pleased to relate the evidences of the fidelity and courageous conduct of some Indian nations towards the Americans, during the revolutionary war, Mary manifested a wish to retire, and I accompanied her to the bridge, where I replaced her under the care of Sciakape and his escort, and bade them farewell.

At midnight, the general received the farewell of the ladies and citizens of Kaskaskia, who were assembled at Mr. Morrison’s, and we returned on board our boat, to continue immediately our navigation towards the mouth of the Ohio. Governor Coles greatly wished that we 148should cross that part of the state of Illinois comprised in the angle formed by the two great rivers, and meet the boat again at Shawneetown, where we should have been able to visit the salt mines, which are said to be very fine; but besides that this would have taken more time than he could devote to this visit, this route did not accord with the plan of ascending the Cumberland river to Nashville, where the envoys from Tennessee were charged to conduct him. Mr. Coles embarked with us to accompany the general to the state of Tennessee, and we felt a real pleasure on account of it, for he is a man of agreeable conversation and extraordinary merit. All persons agree in saying that he fulfils his duties as governor with as much philanthropy as justice. He owes his elevation to the office of governor, to his opinions on the abolition of the slavery of the blacks. He was originally a proprietor in Virginia, where, according to the custom of the country, he cultivated his lands by negro slaves. After having for a long time strongly expressed his aversion for this kind of culture, he thought it his duty to put in practice the principles he had professed, and he decided to give liberty to all his slaves; but knowing that their emancipation in Virginia would be more injurious than useful to them, he took them all with him into the state of Illinois, where he not only gave them their liberty, but also established them at his own expense, in such a manner that they should be able to procure for themselves a happy existence by their labour. This act of justice and humanity considerably diminished his fortune, but occasioned him no regrets. At this period, some men, led astray by ancient prejudices, endeavoured to amend that article of the constitution of the state of Illinois, which prohibits slavery: Mr. Coles opposed these men with all the ardour of his philanthropic soul, and with all the superiority of his enlightened mind. In this honourable struggle, he was sustained by the people of Illinois; justice and humanity triumphed, and soon after Mr. Coles was elected governor, by an immense majority. This was an honourable recompense, and to this there is now joined another which must be very grateful to him; his liberated negroes are perfectly successful, and afford a conclusive argument against the adversaries of emancipation.

Some hours after our departure from Kaskaskia, we 149were at the mouth of the Ohio, which we ascended to the mouth of Cumberland river, where we arrived before night. There we awaited the steam-boat Artizan, to take us to Nashville. When it was necessary for us to quit the Natchez, and our travelling companions from Louisiana, we experienced an oppression of feeling as if we were quitting our family and home. This feeling will be easily comprehended, when it is understood that we had passed nearly a month and travelled nearly eighteen hundred miles on board this boat, in the midst of a society, amiable, intelligent, and obliging, and of which each individual had become for us an amiable friend. On their side, Messieurs Morse, Ducros, Prieur, and Caire, manifested to us regrets not less sincere. Notwithstanding their long absence from New Orleans, they would have voluntarily prolonged their mission, to pass a longer time with their dear Lafayette; and our excellent Captain Davis warmly expressed his regrets at seeing another vessel than his own about to receive the nation’s guest; but on the other hand, the envoys from Tennessee were not disposed to cede to others the right of doing the honours of their state; and even if they had chosen to accept the services of Captain Davis, they were forced to renounce them, because the Natchez was unfit to navigate the shallow waters of the Cumberland. We were, therefore, obliged to take leave of the Louisianian committee, and that of the state of Mississippi, with great regret, and go on board of the Artizan, where we were received and treated in a manner that foretold we would soon experience a renewal of our sorrow in separating from our new companions.

CHAPTER X.

Cumberland River—Arrival at Nashville—Tennessee Militia—Residence of General Jackson—Shipwreck on the Ohio—Louisville—Journey from Louisville to Cincinnati by land—State of Kentucky—Anecdote.

On the 2d of May, at 8 o’clock in the evening, we entered Cumberland river, which we ascended all night, notwithstanding the darkness. This river, which is one of the largest tributaries of the Ohio, rises to the westward of Cumberland mountains, waters the state of Kentucky by its two branches, and Ohio by its main stream, which forms a great bend; it is navigable for about 400 miles. By daylight we were able to judge of the richness of the country it traverses, from the great number of boats, loaded with all kinds of produce, that we passed. As the banks of Cumberland river are flat, and sometimes swampy, from its mouth to the vicinity of Nashville, no town is met with on its shores; all the establishments are situated some distance back, and, therefore, we were unable to visit them; but many of the inhabitants came in boats to salute the general, this retarded our progress, as we were obliged to stop every moment to receive or dismiss the visiters.

Wednesday, May 4th, we remarked that the banks of the river were considerably elevated above our heads, and presented agreeable and healthy situations for cities or villages; at 8 o’clock no houses were, as yet, in sight, but we heard in the distance the sound of bells, announcing our vicinity to population, and preparations for some solemnity; a few moments afterwards we perceived on the horizon the spires of buildings, and on a plain at a short distance from us a dense crowd of men, women, and children, who appeared to be expecting with great solicitude the arrival of something extraordinary, and when our vessel came sufficiently near to be recognized, a joyful shout arose from the shore, and the air resounded with cries of “Welcome, Lafayette;” this was the salutation of the inhabitants of Nashville to the guest of the nation. This welcome was continued without 151interruption until we had arrived beyond the city, at the place for disembarking, where the general was received by the illustrious Jackson, who ascended a carriage with him to conduct him to Nashville, several corps of cavalry preceded them, and the procession formed behind them was composed of all our fellow travellers, joined by a multitude of citizens from the neighbourhood; we entered the city by a wide avenue, lined on each side by militia remarkable for the brilliancy of their uniforms, and their soldier-like appearance under arms; it was easy to recognise by their martial air, that their ranks contained great numbers of those intrepid citizen soldiers, by whom the English were overthrown under the walls of New Orleans. In entering the city, the procession passed under a triumphal arch, on the summit of which were these words, also repeated at every moment by the crowd, “Welcome, Lafayette, the friend of the United States!” Above this floated the American flag, attached to a lance surmounted by a liberty cap. After having traversed the principal streets, we arrived at the public square, which was decorated with thousands of flags, suspended from the windows; it was also ornamented by a triumphal arch, under which was an elevated platform, where the governor of the state waited to salute the guest of the nation. His speech was not only touching from the sentiments of affection and gratitude with which it was filled, but it was also remarkable for the truth and fidelity with which it sketched the actual situation of Tennessee, and the rapidity of its growth under the influence of liberty and wise laws. General Lafayette replied with that heartfelt emotion, and that happy choice of expression, which so often, during his journey, excited the astonishment and admiration of those who heard him. Forty officers and soldiers of the revolution, the most part enfeebled by age, and some mutilated in war, notwithstanding which they had assembled from all parts of the state to assist at the triumph of their old general, now advanced from the two sides of the arch, amidst the acclamations of the people, and showered upon him marks of affection and patriotic recollections; among them was one, remarkable above all the others for his great age, and the vivacity with which he expressed his joy; he threw himself into the general’s arms, weeping and exclaiming, “I have enjoyed two happy days 152in my life, that when I landed with you at Charleston in 1777, and the present, now that I have seen you once again, I have nothing more to wish for, I have lived long enough.” The emotion of this old man was communicated to the whole crowd, and there was a profound silence for some time. Notwithstanding his infirmities he had travelled more than fifty leagues to procure this moment of happiness. We afterwards learnt that his name was Hagy, that he was born in Germany, and that he had come over to America in the vessel with Lafayette, and had been under his orders during the whole war of the revolution. General Lafayette, after devoting a few moments to the affection of his old companions in arms, re-entered the carriage with the governor, and went to the beautiful residence of Dr. M’Nairy, who had prepared accommodations for us, and who, with his whole family, received us with the most amiable hospitality. The general was received at the door by the municipal body and the mayor, who addressed him in the name of the inhabitants of Nashville. After the reply of the general to this speech, the people gave three cheers, and retired in silence, to permit their guest to take a little repose before dinner; but the general profited by this occasion to visit Mrs. Jackson, whom he understood to be in the town, and to Mrs. Littlefield, the daughter of his old fellow soldier and friend, General Greene.

At four o’clock another procession came to conduct us to a public dinner, at which more than two hundred citizens sat down, and which was presided over by General Jackson. Among the guests was a venerable old man, named Timothy Demundrune, the first white man who settled in Tennessee. According to the American custom, the repast was terminated by the frank and energetic expression of each guest’s opinion on the acts of the administration, and the public character of the magistrates, and candidates for the different offices; among these numerous toasts I will only cite the three following, which appeared to me as peculiarly well adapted to demonstrate the predominant sentiments of the people of Tennessee.

“The present age—it encourages the reign of liberal principles. Kings are forced to unite against liberty, and despotism to act on the defensive.”

153“France—republican or monarchical, in glory or misfortune, she always has claims on our gratitude.”

“Lafayette—tyrants have oppressed him, but freemen honour him.”

After this last toast, the general rose, expressed his thanks, and begged permission to give the following: “The State of Tennessee, and Nashville, its capital—may our heritage of revolutionary glory be for ever united to the unfading laurels of the last war, and thus form a perpetual bond of union between all parts of the American confederation.”

The president then gave the signal for departure, and we went to the masonic lodge, where three hundred brothers, in the most brilliant costume, received us with the most affectionate cordiality. We passed a true family evening with them. An eloquent orator, Mr. William Hunt, delivered an excellent discourse, which, in a masonic form, embodied the most noble precepts of patriotism and philanthropy; and the meeting terminated by an elegant collation, at the end of which the general proposed a toast, which was received with the greatest enthusiasm; it was to the memory of our illustrious brother Riego, the martyr of liberty! In retiring to our quarters at Dr. M‘Nairy’s, we found the town brilliantly illuminated, and a great number of houses decorated with transparencies representing General Lafayette, with a variety of ingenious emblems.

The next morning, as soon as we rose, we proceeded to the southward of the city, where we found all the militia of the adjoining counties collected in a camp, which they occupied for some days whilst waiting for the arrival of Lafayette; some of the corps we saw under arms, had come, we were told, more than fifty miles, to add by their presence to the solemnity of the reception given to the guest of the nation. The general, after having seen them manœuvre before him, went through their ranks to express his admiration of their discipline, and his gratitude for the proofs of affection they had shown him. During this time, Mr. George Lafayette and myself conversed with an officer of the staff, who had the goodness to give us some details as to the organization of the military force of Tennessee.

This officer might perhaps be thought to have been enthusiastic 154in his praises, and to have shown much national vanity, but I am persuaded he only spoke as he felt. He extolled the military qualities of his fellow citizens, from conviction, and as he would have praised, in strangers, any points he thought worthy of commendation. I have often remarked that the Americans, in general, are little given to the species of hypocrisy we term modesty, and with which we think we should always veil ourselves when we are speaking of our own virtues. They believe, and I am of their opinion, that true modesty does not consist in depreciating ourselves, but in not speaking with exaggeration or without cause of our own merits.

A frugal repast, prepared and served by the military, under a tent, terminated this visit to the camp of the Tennessee militia, after which we returned to the city, where we successively visited an academy of young ladies of Nashville, and Cumberland college. In both these establishments, the general was received as a beloved father, and he left them with the sweet and consoling certainty, that the careful and excellent manner in which they inculcated learning and a love of liberty, would greatly augment the glory and perpetuate the happiness of his adopted country. The committee of instruction of Cumberland college, presented to him and to General Jackson, a resolution of the trustees, by which two new chairs, under the names of Lafayette and Jackson, for teaching the languages and philosophy, were about to be established by a voluntary subscription of the citizens of Tennessee. They both accepted this honour with great satisfaction, and subscribed their names at the bottom of the resolution before leaving the establishment, which, although recently formed, already promises the most satisfactory results.

At one o’clock, we embarked with a numerous company, to proceed to dine with General Jackson, whose residence is a few miles up the river. We there found numbers of ladies and farmers from the neighbourhood, whom Mrs. Jackson had invited to partake of the entertainment she had prepared for General Lafayette. The first thing that struck me on arriving at the general’s, was the simplicity of his house. Still somewhat influenced by my European habits, I asked myself if this could really be the dwelling of the most popular man in the United States, of him whom 155the country proclaimed one of her most illustrious defenders; of him, finally, who by the will of the people was on the point of becoming her chief magistrate. One of our fellow passengers, a citizen of Nashville, witnessing my astonishment, asked me, whether in France, our public men, that is to say, the servants of the public, lived very differently from other citizens? “Certainly,” said I; “thus, for example, the majority of our generals, all our ministers, and even the greater part of our subaltern administrators, would think themselves dishonoured, and would not dare to receive any one at their houses, if they only possessed such a residence as this of Jackson’s; and the modest dwellings of your illustrious chiefs of the revolution, Washington, John Adams, Jefferson, &c. would only inspire them with contempt and disgust. They must first have in the city an immense and vast edifice, called a hotel, in which two large families could live with ease, but which they fill with a crowd of servants strangely and ridiculously dressed, and whose only employment, for the most part, is to insult those honest citizens who come on foot to visit their master. They must also have another large establishment in the country, which they call a chateau, and in which they accumulate all the luxuries of furniture, decorations, entertainments, and dress, in fact, every thing that can make them forget the country. Then they must have, to enable them to go from one to the other of these habitations, a great number of carriages, horses, and servants.” “Very well,” interrupted the Tennessean, shaking his head as if in doubt, “but who provides these public officers with all the money thus swallowed up in luxury, and how do the affairs of the people go on?” “If you ask them, they will tell you that it is the king who pays them, although I can assure you that it is the nation, which is borne down by taxes for the purpose; as to business, it is both well and badly attended to, but generally the latter.” “And why do you submit to such a state of things?” “Because we cannot remedy it.” “What! you cannot remedy it? A nation so great, so enlightened as the French, cannot prevent its officers, magistrates, and servants, from enjoying, at their expense, a scandalous and immoral luxuriousness, and at the same time not attending to their duties! whilst we, who have just assumed our name among 156nations, are enjoying the immense advantage of only having for magistrates, men who are plain, honest, laborious, and more jealous of our esteem than solicitous for wealth. Permit me to believe that what you have told is only pleasantry, and that you wished to amuse yourself for a moment with a poor Tennessean who has never visited Europe. But rest assured, that however ignorant we may be of what passes on the other side of the water, it is not easy to make us credit things which militate so strongly against good sense and the dignity of man.” Do what I could, I could never make this good citizen of Nashville believe that I was not jesting, and was obliged to leave him in the belief that we were not worse governed in France than in the United States.

General Jackson successively showed us his garden and farm, which appeared to be well cultivated. We every where remarked the greatest order, and most perfect neatness; and we might have believed ourselves on the property of one of the richest and most skilful of the German farmers, if, at every step, our eyes had not been afflicted by the sad spectacle of slavery. Every body told us that General Jackson’s slaves were treated with the greatest humanity, and several persons assured us, that it would not surprise them, if, in a short time, their master, who already had so many claims on the gratitude of his fellow citizens, should attempt to augment it still more, by giving an example of gradual emancipation to Tennessee, which would be the more easily accomplished, as there are in this state but 79,000 slaves in a population of 423,000, and from the public mind becoming more inclined than formerly to the abolition of slavery.

On returning to the house, some friends of General Jackson, who probably had not seen him for some time, begged him to show them the arms presented to him in honour of his achievements during the last war; he acceded to their request with great politeness, and placed on a table, a sword, a sabre, and a pair of pistols. The sword was presented to him by congress; the sabre, I believe, by the army which fought under his command at New Orleans. These two weapons, of American manufacture, were remarkable for their finish, and still more so for the honourable inscriptions, with which they were covered. But it 157was to the pistols, that General Jackson wished more particularly to draw our attention; he handed them to General Lafayette, and asked him if he recognized them. The latter, after examining them attentively for a few minutes, replied that he fully recollected them, to be a pair he had presented in 1778 to his paternal friend Washington, and that he experienced a real satisfaction in finding them in the hands of one so worthy of possessing them. At these words the face of old Hickory was covered with a modest blush, and his eye sparkled as in a day of victory. “Yes! I believe myself worthy of them,” exclaimed he, in pressing the pistols and Lafayette’s hands to his breast; “if not from what I have done, at least for what I wished to do for my country.” All the bystanders applauded this noble confidence of the patriot hero, and were convinced that the weapons of Washington could not be in better hands than those of Jackson.

After dinner we took leave of General Jackson’s family, and returned to Nashville to attend a public ball which was very brilliant; and afterwards went on board the Artisan to continue our journey. Governor Carroll of Tennessee and two of his aides-de-camp accompanied us. We rapidly descended the Cumberland, and on the 7th of May again entered the Ohio, otherwise called “la belle rivière,” for it was thus the first French who discovered its shores designated this majestic body of water, which for eleven hundred miles waters the most smiling and fertile country on the globe. The Ohio is formed by the junction of the Monongahela and Alleghany at Pittsburgh, and empties itself into the Mississippi about the 37° of latitude. Its current is usually about a mile and a half per hour, but when the waters are high, it often equals that of the Mississippi, whose ordinary swiftness is four miles per hour. The water of the Ohio is said by the Americans to possess great prolific powers, and when you demand on what ground they found this opinion, they proudly point out the numerous dwellings which are infinitely multiplied on its banks, and the prodigious number of children who issue forth every morning, with a little basket of provision on their arms, to spend the day at school, to return in the evening to the paternal roof, singing the benefits of liberty.

158On the 8th at break of day, we arrived opposite Shawneetown, where we landed with Governor Coles and the other members of the committee from the state of Illinois, and who, to our great regret, could not accompany us any farther. General Lafayette accepted a dinner provided for him by the inhabitants of that town. We continued our voyage, urging the speed of our small vessel with the whole power of the engine. Notwithstanding the departure of Governor Coles and his companions, we still had a numerous company on board. All the beds in the great cabin, were occupied by the deputations from Missouri, Tennessee, Kentucky, and by other persons who had asked permission to accompany General Lafayette to Louisville. The general, his son, Mr. de Syon, and the author of this journal, shared in common, what is called the ladies’ cabin, situated in the stern of the vessel, and which could only be reached by descending about a dozen steps.

During the whole of the 8th we worked hard. The general replied to a great number of letters, which were addressed to him every day from all parts of the Union, and dictated to me some directions to the superintendant at La Grange; indicating what changes and improvements he wished made before his return to France. Being somewhat fatigued by this labour, he retired early to bed, and was already asleep, when at 10 o’clock, Mr. George Lafayette, coming below from the deck where he had been walking, expressed his astonishment that in so dark a night, our captain did not come to, or at least abate the speed of the vessel. We fully agreed in the justice of this remark, but being accustomed for some months to permit no difficulty to arrest us, and to travel at all times, we soon began to speak of other things, and Mr. George Lafayette also laid down and slept with every feeling of safety. I remained conversing with Mr. de Syon and correcting some notes. With the exception of the pilot and two men, every body was asleep around us, and at 11 o’clock the profound silence that reigned on board, was only broken by the deep grating of the engine and the dashing of the water against the sides of the vessel. Twelve o’clock struck, and sleep was beginning to invite us to repose, when our vessel suddenly received a horrible shock, and stopped short. At this extraordinary concussion, the general awoke with a 159start, his son sprung from his bed, half dressed, and I ran on deck to learn what was the matter. I there found two of our fellow passengers, whom anxiety had brought up, but who were returning, saying we had probably struck on a sand bank, and that there was no danger. Not trusting this opinion, I went into the great cabin; all the passengers were in a state of great agitation, but still in doubt as to the nature of the accident; some had not even quitted their beds. Decided on not going below without positively ascertaining the real state of things, I seized a light and ran forward, the captain arrived there about the same time, we opened the hatches, and ran forward; the hold was already half filled with water, which rushed in torrents through a large opening. “A snag! a snag!” cried the captain, “hasten Lafayette to my boat! bring Lafayette to my boat.” This cry of distress had reached the great cabin, and every mouth repeated it with dismay, but it had not been heard in our cabin, where I found the general, who had, by the advice of his son, permitted himself to be partly dressed by his faithful Bastien. “What news?” said he, on seeing me enter. “That we shall go to the bottom, general, if we cannot extricate ourselves, and we have not a moment to spare.” And I immediately began to collect my papers, which I threw pell-mell into my port-folio; George Lafayette on his part, hastily collected those objects he thought most necessary to his father, and begged him to follow us, but his toilet not being yet made, he wished us to go first and provide means of escape. “What!” cried his son, “do you think that in such circumstances we will leave you for a moment?” and immediately we each seized a hand and dragged him towards the door. He followed us, smiling at our haste, and began to ascend with us, but had scarcely reached the middle of the stairs, when he perceived that he had forgotten his snuff-box, ornamented with a picture of Washington, and wished to return for it; I went to the end of the cabin, found it and brought it to him. At this time the rolling of the vessel was so violent and irregular, and the tumult over our heads augmented to such a degree, that I believed we should not have time to escape before she sunk. At last, we reached the deck, where all the passengers were in the greatest confusion, some bringing their trunks, others looking for the boat, 160and crying out for Lafayette. He was already in the midst of them, but owing to the darkness of the night, no one recognised him; the boat heeled so much to starboard, that it was with difficulty we could keep our footing on deck. The captain assisted by two sailors, had brought his boat to this side, and I heard his sonorous voice crying out, Lafayette! Lafayette! but we could not reach him on account of the confusion around us. Nevertheless the vessel heeled more and more, each moment augmented the danger, we felt that it was time to make a last effort, and pushed into the middle of the crowd, where I cried, “here is General Lafayette!” This exclamation produced the effect I anticipated. The most profound silence succeeded to the confusion, a free passage was opened for us, and all those who were ready to spring into the boat, spontaneously checked themselves, not wishing to think of their own safety before that of Lafayette was ascertained. The difficulty was now to determine the general himself to depart before all his fellow passengers, and almost alone, for the boat would only hold a few persons, but he was soon obliged to yield to the will of all, energetically expressed by each; the irregular concussions of the vessel, and the rocking of the boat which was more than four feet lower than our deck, rendered a passage from one to the other extremely difficult, especially in the dark. The most active young man would not have hazarded a leap, for from the darkness he would have risked plunging in the water; great precautions were therefore to be adopted, as regarded the general. I went first into the boat, and whilst the captain kept her as near as possible to the vessel, two persons descended with the general, holding him under the shoulders. I received him in my arms, but his weight added to my own on the side of the boat, nearly capsized it, and losing my equilibrium, I should probably have fallen into the water with him, if Mr. Thibeaudot, formerly president of the senate of Louisiana, had not given me his support, and thus saved us both. As soon as we were assured that the general was safely on board, we pushed off as rapidly as possible, to prevent the other passengers from overloading our slight batteau. Although the greatest difficulties were overcome, all danger was not passed. The land was to be made; but at what distance was it from us? towards what 161shore should we direct our course? This the darkness of the night prevented us from ascertaining with certainty. Our captain soon made up his mind with decision. Holding the rudder with a firm grasp, he directed us to the left bank, and ordered his two sailors to row gently. In less than three minutes we happily reached a bank covered with a thick wood.

In landing, our first care was to count and recognise each other; we were nine: the captain, two sailors, General Lafayette, Mr. Thibeaudot, Doctor Shelly, carrying in his arms a child of about seven years of age, a daughter of a presbyterian clergyman, the father of the child and myself. It was then only that the general perceived that his son was not with him, and immediately his habitual coolness in the presence of danger abandoned him. He was filled with anxiety, and in a state of the most violent agitation. He began to call, George! George! with all his strength, but his voice was drowned by the cries which arose from the vessel, and by the terrible noise made by the steam escaping from the engine, and received no answer. In vain, to re-assure him, I represented to him that his son was a good swimmer, and that he doubtless had remained on board voluntarily, and with his coolness he would escape all danger. Nothing had any effect; he continued to traverse the shore calling on George. I then threw myself into the boat with the captain to go to the succour of those who so much needed it. The vessel still floated, but almost on her beam ends. The captain mounted on board, and I received in his place a dozen persons, who precipitated themselves into the boat, and whom I carried to land, without having been able to speak to George, Mr. de Syon, or Bastien. I dared not give an account of this first attempt to the general, and therefore made preparations for another trip, when a horrible crash and cries of despair announced to me that the vessel was sinking. At the same instant, I heard the water agitated in several directions by the efforts of those who were saving themselves by swimming. Mr. Thibeaudot, who had advanced into the water in order to judge better of what was passing, and to afford assistance to those who needed it, perceived a man, exhausted with fatigue, drowning a few paces from the shore, in a spot where the water was only 162three feet in depth. He drew him out with such ease, that a child might have rendered him the same service, and laid him on the grass. But the unfortunate man was so agitated by fear, that he continued to make on land all the movements of swimming, and would perhaps have killed himself by these useless efforts, if Mr. Thibeaudot had not succeeded in calming him. At every instant, other persons arrived on shore, and among them I always expected to recognise Mr. George Lafayette; and the general demanded news of his son from all, but in vain. I now myself began to fear for him. Another arrival of the boat informed us that the vessel had not entirely sunk; that the starboard side was under water, but that the larboard and gangway were still above it; and that a great number of passengers had taken refuge there. Thinking that there was an urgent necessity for succouring those who remained in this critical situation, I again entered the boat, and aided by a sailor approached the vessel. I first arrived at the prow; I called George with all my strength, but there was no answer. I then dropped along her side to the stern. In passing, I heard a voice over head cry out, “Is that you, Mr. Levasseur?” I listened and examined attentively; it was our poor Bastien, who was holding with difficulty to the roof of the upper cabin, the pitch of which was very great from the oversetting of the vessel. As soon as I came near him, he slid down and fortunately fell into the boat. When I arrived at the stern, I again called George; he instantly answered me. His voice appeared to be perfectly calm. “Are you in safety?” said I. “I could not be better,” replied he gaily. This reply gave me much relief, for my fears were really becoming serious. At the same instant, Mr. Walsh of Missouri, who was near him, gave me every thing that could be saved of our baggage. This was a small portmanteau of Mr. George Lafayette’s, a bag of his father’s, my own port-folio, which I had thrown on the deck when I was aiding the general to descend, and about sixty out of the two hundred letters we had prepared for the post, on the preceding days; all the others were lost. I now returned to land with Bastien and two other persons I had received in the boat, and hastened to assure the general of the safety of his son.

As I had satisfied myself that the vessel, having found 163support, could not sink any deeper, and consequently that there was no farther danger to those on board, I thought that I might dispense with making other voyages, and occupy myself a little with the general, for whom we established a good bivouac around a large fire of dry branches. In the midst of this occupation, Mr. George and Mr. de Syon, with the remainder of the passengers, arrived. We then learnt that at the moment of the wreck, Mr. George, seeing that I was in the boat to watch over his father, had returned to the cabin, into which the water had already penetrated, and had made Bastien and Mr. de Syon, who were imprudently endeavouring to save their effects, leave it. Then, only yielding ground as the water forced him, he had indefatigably occupied himself with the care of those around him. At one moment, the water reached to the middle of his body. But his coolness and presence of mind reassured some persons, who, without him, would perhaps have been dismayed and exposed to the greatest danger. Finally, we were told, he would not leave the vessel, until he was satisfied, that all who remained on board belonged to her and could dispense with his assistance. “Mr. George Lafayette must often have been shipwrecked,” said the captain, “for he has behaved tonight as if he was accustomed to such adventures.”

From other accounts, it appears that almost immediately after the departure of the general, the water entered our cabin with a violence which would not have permitted us to leave it, if we had remained there a few minutes longer.

When we were well assured that no person had perished, we lighted several large fires as well for the purpose of drying ourselves, as to discover our situation. The general slept for some moments on a mattrass which had been found floating, and was nearly dry on one side. The rest waited impatiently for day, and occupied ourselves in cutting wood to keep up the fires. A tolerably heavy rain added to our troubles, but fortunately it was not of long continuance.

At day break, they recommenced their trips to the vessel, to endeavour to save some of the baggage and to procure food. The captain, Governor Carrol of Tennessee, and a young Virginian, Mr. Crawford, directed these researches 164with great activity. It was a singular and touching event, to see a governor of a state, that is to say, a first magistrate of a republic, without shoes, stockings or hat, doing the duty of a boatman as if it had been his real occupation, and that much more for the benefit of others than for himself, for he had very little on board to lose by the shipwreck. Those different searches obtained us a trunk belonging to the general, in which were his most valuable papers, and a small part of the passengers’ baggage. They also brought a leg of smoked venison, some biscuits, a case of claret and a keg of Madeira. With these provisions, about fifty men, for such was our number, repaired their strength, exhausted by a night of labour and anxiety.

The day, on its return, shone on an interesting picture. The shore was covered with wrecks of all kinds, in the midst of which each eagerly searched for their own property; some mournfully recounted the extent of their losses, others could not avoid laughing at the nakedness or costume in which they found themselves; this gaiety soon became prevalent, and pleasantries circulated around the fires of our bivouac, and at last smoothed the visages of the most sorrowful, and almost transformed our shipwreck into a party of pleasure.

At nine o’clock we induced the general to cross the river, and go to a house we perceived on the other bank, to shelter himself from the storm which threatened us. Mr. Thibeaudot and Bastien accompanied him. He had scarcely left us, when one of the party, who was on the look out on the shore, pointed out to us a steam-boat descending the river, and immediately afterwards another. This double news filled us with joy and hope. Soon these two vessels arrived opposite to us and stopped. One of them, a vessel of large size and remarkable beauty, was the Paragon; she came from Louisville and was going to New Orleans, with a heavy cargo of whiskey and tobacco. By a very lucky circumstance for us, one of our companions in misfortune, Mr. Neilson, was one of the owners of this vessel, and hastened to put it at the disposal of the Tennessee committee to transport General Lafayette, generously taking on himself all the chances of another misfortune and the loss of insurance. Immediately our whole party, abandoning our bivouac, repaired on board 165of the Paragon. Before leaving the captain of the Artisan, who remained with his vessel to endeavour to save something, we offered him our services, which he peremptorily refused, assuring us that he had hands enough for this work. But the poor man was very much depressed, not from the loss of the vessel, nor that of 1200 dollars he had on board, or even from any fear of not finding employment; his grief arose from having shipwrecked the guest of the nation. “Never,” said he, “will my fellow citizens pardon me for the perils to which Lafayette was exposed last night.” To endeavour to calm him, we drew up and all signed a declaration, in which we attested that the loss of the Artisan could not be attributed either to the unskilfulness or imprudence of Captain Hall, whose courage and disinterestedness had been experienced by us all during the accident. This declaration, which was sincere on the part of all the signers, appeared to give him great pleasure, but did not entirely console him. As soon as the Paragon got under way, I went with Mr. George Lafayette in search of his father. After half an hour’s rowing, we re-joined our new vessel, which in two days, and without accident, conducted us to Louisville, where we remained twenty-four hours. It was about 125 miles from that place, near the mouth of Deer Creek, that we met with our misfortune.

The entertainments given to General Lafayette at Louisville were marred by the stormy weather; but the expression of public feeling was not the less pleasing to him. The idea of the danger he had incurred, excited in all breasts a tender solicitude, which every one testified with that simplicity and truth of expression only appertaining to freemen. In the midst of the joy occasioned by the arrival of Lafayette, the citizens of Louisville did not forget the noble disinterestedness of Mr. Neilson, to whom they presented the strongest proofs of gratitude. His name was coupled with that of the general, in the toasts they gave at the public dinner. The insurance company declared that the Paragon should remain insured without an additional charge, and the city presented him a magnificent piece of plate, on which was engraved the thanks of the Tennesseans and Kentuckians for the generous manner in which he had risked the greater part of his fortune that the 166national guest should receive no delay nor inconvenience in his journey.

The day after our arrival, notwithstanding the badness of the weather, the general crossed the Ohio to accept the invitation that was sent him by the citizens of Jeffersonville in the state of Indiana. He remained there some hours, and returned in the evening to Louisville to attend a dinner, ball, and various spectacles that had been prepared for him. On Friday morning, the 12th of May, after having presented a standard to a corps of volunteer cavalry that had been expressly formed some days previous, to escort him on his arrival, he began his journey by land to Cincinnati, passing through the state of Kentucky, as he wished to visit its principal towns, Frankfort, Lexington, &c. Governor Carrol, who, after having fulfilled his mission, in placing the guest of the nation under the care of the Kentucky committee, wished to return home, with his staff, yielded to the pressing invitations which were given him by the committee to accompany General Lafayette yet farther. On the day of our departure, all the militia were under arms. We found, by their excellent discipline, armament and uniforms, that they strongly resembled those of Tennessee, with whom they are united in brotherly feeling, to which the events of the last war gave a new force.

At the end of our first day’s journey, we arrived at Shelbyville, a large and flourishing village, situated in the midst of a most fertile and diversified country; the next day, at four o’clock in the afternoon, the general made his entrance into Frankfort, the seat of government of Kentucky. The entertainments given on this occasion by the inhabitants of the town, to which were joined those of the neighbouring counties, were very brilliant, and strongly impressed with that ardent and patriotic character which distinguishes all the states of the Union, but which, among the Kentuckians, is more manifest, and expressed with all the energy of a young people, enthusiastic in the cause of liberty.

After having traversed the principal streets of Frankfort, we arrived in the centre of the town, where we stopped in front of a triumphal arch, under which the governor waited for the guest of the nation; the sound of a cannon, discharged from a neighbouring hill which overlooked all the neighbourhood, 167arrested the acclamations of the people, when the governor advanced in the midst of a profoundly silent and attentive crowd, and delivered an eloquent and appropriate address. This discourse was loudly applauded by the multitude, and I heard it asserted every where around me that it was impossible to express the sentiments of the people of Kentucky with greater exactness.

After passing several hours in receiving visits and marks of friendship from the whole population, the general went to a dinner that had been prepared for him in the public square. The table was of a semi-circular form, and contained places for eight hundred persons, in order that all the detachments of militia that had escorted General Lafayette from Louisville might be accommodated, as well as a great number of officers from Tennessee and Kentucky, who had particularly distinguished themselves during the last war, as General Adair, Colonel M‘Affee, &c.

Notwithstanding his desire to avoid transgressing any of the established customs of the United States, the general was obliged to travel on Sunday, for his time was rigorously appropriated until his arrival at Boston, where he was obliged to be on the 17th of June. We therefore set out on Saturday, the 14th of May, from Frankfort, and travelling almost without stopping, till we reached Lexington, which we entered on Monday, about the middle of the day. On the way, we visited the pretty little town of Versailles, where we remained some hours, to attend a public dinner, given by the citizens of the town and the surrounding country; and we slept on Sunday night about three miles from Lexington, where, on Monday morning, a large body of militia cavalry, conducted by a deputation from Lafayette county, arrived to escort the general. The procession was formed on an eminence from whence we could discover Louisville in the distance, with the fertile fields that surrounded it. We took up the line of march about eight o’clock. The rain fell in torrents, and the sky covered with thick clouds, presaged a bad day; but at the moment we began to enter the town, a discharge of artillery from a neighbouring hill announced the arrival of the procession; and at this signal the rain ceased, as if by enchantment, the clouds dispersed, and the returning sun discovered to us the neighbouring country, covered with 168crowds of people anxiously expecting the arrival of the national guest. This almost magic scene added still more to the enthusiasm of the multitude, and their joyful acclamations were mingled with the continued roar of artillery which surrounded us. The entertainments at Lexington were extremely brilliant; but of the proofs of public felicity, that which most attracted the general’s attention, was the developement and rapid progress of instruction among all classes of people. In fact, is it not an admirable and astonishing circumstance, to find in a country, which not forty years ago was covered with immense forests, inhabited by savages, a handsome town of six thousand inhabitants, and containing two establishments for public instruction, which, by the number of their pupils, and the variety and nature of the branches taught, may rival the most celebrated colleges and universities in the principal towns of Europe? We first visited the college for young men, superintended by President Holly, who received the general at the door of the establishment, and addressed him in an eloquent speech, in which, after having described what Lafayette had accomplished in his youth, for the liberation of North America, he expressed a regret that his efforts had not been equally successful in the regeneration of France. Then reverting to a more consoling topic, he rapidly sketched a picture of American prosperity and the happy influence his visit would produce on the rising generation.

The general replied to the various points of President Holly’s speech with his accustomed felicity of expression, and afterwards took his place, in a large hall, prepared for the exercises of the young men; where, in the presence of the public, he was addressed in Latin, English and French, by three of the pupils, whose compositions, as eloquently written as well delivered, merited the plaudits of the auditors. He replied to each of the young orators in a manner that proved that the three languages they had used were equally familiar to him, and that his heart was deeply moved by the expression of their youthful patriotism. He was not less pleased with his visit to the academy of young ladies, directed by Mrs. Dunham, and instituted under the name of the Lafayette academy; one hundred and fifty pupils received him with the harmonious sound of a patriotic 169song composed by Mrs. Holly, and accompanied on the piano by Miss Hammond; several young ladies afterwards complimented him; some in prose, and others in verse, of their own composition. The discourse of Miss M’Intosh and the beautiful ode of Miss Nephew, produced a great effect on the audience, and drew tears from eyes little accustomed to such emotions.

From so many and touching proofs of esteem and veneration for his character, General Lafayette experienced feelings it was impossible for him adequately to express. Surrounded and caressed by these tender and innocent creatures, he abandoned himself to those sweet emotions, to which, in spite of age, his heart has not become insensible; and he could not avoid repeating how much he felt his happiness in having combated during his youth, for a people whose descendants testified such affection for him; and the profound knowledge, even the youngest of the children appeared to possess of every action of his life, penetrated him with the liveliest gratitude. At last, he tore himself from a scene of emotion, too violent to be supported for any length of time, assuring the directress of the academy, that he was proud of the honour of seeing his name attached to an establishment so beneficial in its aim, and happy in its results.

In the midst of entertainments of all kinds, the description of which would be impossible, General Lafayette did not forget what he owed to the memory and former friendship of his old companions; having ascertained that the widow of General Scott lived at Lexington, he went to her house to pay his respects. This visit was highly gratifying, not only to Mrs. Scott and her family, but also to all who had known General Scott, whose noble character and patriotic conduct during the revolutionary war will always be cited with pride by his fellow-citizens.

General Lafayette did not overlook another friendship, which, although more recent, was not less sincere. After this visit he went a mile from Lexington, to Ashland, the charming seat of Mr. Clay; the honourable secretary of state was absent, but Mrs. Clay and her children performed all the honours of the house with the most amiable cordiality. This step of the general’s was very pleasing to the citizens of Lexington, which was a proof to me, that the 170popularity of Mr. Clay, which rests on his talents and services, has not been diminished among his fellow citizens by the gross and perhaps unwarrantable attacks made on him by some party journals at the time of the presidential election.

After forty-eight hours of uninterrupted entertainments, we left Lexington, where we parted with Governor Carrol and almost all our companions from Tennessee, Louisiana, Frankfort, &c. and only accompanied by a detachment of volunteer cavalry from Georgetown, we turned suddenly to the left, and in thirty-six hours arrived at that point in the Ohio, on which is situated the handsome city of Cincinnati, in which General Lafayette was expected with the greatest impatience. This journey, from Louisville to Cincinnati, gave us the advantage of seeing the prodigies of art effected by liberty, in a country which civilization has scarcely snatched from savage nature.

In 1775, Kentucky was only known from the reports of some bold hunters, who had dared to establish themselves among the ferocious tribes who inhabited that country. Its name alone, formed of the Indian word Kentucke, signifying river of blood, always recalled to the dismayed whites the numerous murders committed on the first among them who had attempted to enter it, and appeared as if it would deter them from ever establishing themselves there; but the courage, activity, and perseverance of a Carolinian, named Boon, succeeded, after many unsuccessful attempts, in forming a settlement of sufficient size to resist the reiterated attacks of the Indians. Soon after, the revolutionary war, which gave liberty and independence to the English colonies, having terminated, the activity of the inhabitants of the northern states, urging them perpetually to new enterprises, the tide of emigration flowed towards Kentucky, and in the year 1790, the population of this country already amounted to near 74,000. Until this time Kentucky had always been looked upon as a part of Virginia, but then, by consent of that state, it was separated, and formed into a distinct state, which was admitted into the Union in 1782; its population is now 560,000. The Indians, either destroyed, or driven back to distant parts, by civilization, have left the field open to the industry of the whites; in the place of the ancient forests that served 171them for an asylum, are now found populous cities, abundant harvests, and active and prosperous manufactures; finally, Kentucky, in spite of its ominous name, has become a hospitable land, and is now one of the most brilliant stars in the new constellation of the west. The courage displayed by the inhabitants of Kentucky during the last war is well known, and in what manner they expressed their patriotic sentiments in the presence of Lafayette. Nevertheless, I will relate the following anecdote, which proves how deeply the hatred of despotism is imparted in the breasts of every class among these happy people.

During a pleasant day of our journey, I ascended a steep hill on foot, on the summit of which I stopped near an isolated cabin, in order to wait for the carriages, which slowly followed me, and were still far in the rear, for I had walked rapidly. A man, who was smoking his segar at the door of the house, asked me to walk in and rest myself. I accepted, with gratitude, this polite invitation. The difficulty with which I expressed my thanks in English marked me for a stranger, and induced a number of questions, as to the place whence I came, where I was going, and the motives of my journey. As these questions appeared to be dictated rather from a feeling of kindness, than from indiscreet curiosity, I hastened to answer with all possible politeness. “Well!” exclaimed my host in a joyful tone, “since you have the happiness of living with Lafayette, you will not refuse to drink a glass of whiskey with me to his health,” and segars and whiskey were immediately presented to me, and we began to converse on what appeared most to interest my Kentucky entertainer, the guest of the nation. After exhausting this subject, he spoke of my country, and the extraordinary man who had bestowed upon it fifteen years of glory and despotism. He seemed enthusiastic on the military exploits of Napoleon, and deeply afflicted at his unhappy end. “Why,” said he, “had he the folly to give himself up, in his misfortunes, to his most cruel enemy, to the English government, whose perfidy he had so often experienced? why did he not rather seek an asylum on our hospitable shores? Here he would have found admirers, and what is better, sincere friends, in the midst of whom, freed from all inquietude, he might have peacefully enjoyed the recollection of his great actions.” 172“I suspect,” answered I, “that you know little of Napoleon’s character; his soul was not formed for the mild enjoyments of peace; he constantly required new food for the prodigious activity of his genius; and who knows, that if seduced by new dreams of ambition, at the view of the resources of a new country, he would not have attempted to substitute, as he did with us, his own will for your wise institutions?” “We should have considered such an attempt as an act of madness,” replied my host with a smile of disdain, “but if, against all probabilities, we had submitted for a moment to his tyrannous ascendency, his success would have been fatal to him. Look at that rifle,” added he, pointing to one in a corner of the room, “with that I never miss a pheasant in our woods at a hundred yards; a tyrant is larger than a pheasant, and there is not a Kentuckian who is not as patriotic and skilful as myself.”

CHAPTER XI.

CHAPTER XII.

Route from Pittsburg to Erie—Commodore Perry’s Victory—Night Scene at Fredonia—The Indian Chief at Buffalo—Falls of Niagara—Visit to Fort Niagara—Appearance of Lockport—Passage from Lockport to Rochester—Aqueduct over the Genessee River—Route by land from Rochester to Syracuse—Passage from Syracuse to Schenectady, Rome, and Utica—Grand Canal.

On leaving Pittsburg, the general was obliged to part from his old friends of the state of Ohio, represented by Governor Morrow, who had accompanied him with his staff. Conducted by a committee of the city of Pittsburg, and escorted by a company of militia, we took the route by way of Franklin, Meadville, Waterford, and Erie, to gain the shores of the great lake which bears this name. All this western portion of Pennsylvania, watered by French Creek, is remarkable for the beauty and variety of its scenery. In each of the villages through which we passed, the general was detained several hours in receiving the honours which had been prepared for him by the citizens and public officers.

The trophies suspended over our heads, the name of Perry and the view of lake Erie, necessarily directed the thoughts of the guests to the events of the last war; and in a short time the gallant deeds of the American navy became the subject of general conversation. As it was perceived that Lafayette took great pleasure in hearing a narration of the glory of the descendants of his former companions in arms, all the details of that memorable day were given him, in which, after a combat of three hours, an American squadron entirely captured a British fleet far superior in the number of guns.

In hearing the recital of those noble actions, Lafayette cast his eyes alternately on the numerous English flags that floated over his head, on the lake, the theatre of such glorious events, and on the seamen who surrounded him; and his heart was filled with pride, on perceiving that the Americans of 1813 had shown themselves worthy sons of his 185old fellow soldiers, the immortal heroes of the revolution of 1776.

On leaving the table, the general took leave of the inhabitants of Erie, and departed from this town at three o’clock in the afternoon, with the committee of Chatauque county, who had come to announce to him that a steam-boat was waiting at Dunkirk to take him to Buffalo. Before sunset, we left the territory of Pennsylvania and entered on that of New York. As we had fifty miles to accomplish, and as the general did not wish to detain the vessel too long, we travelled until daybreak without stopping. In this rapid journey, we passed through many large villages, the population of which, assembled in the public places around large fires, waited patiently for the arrival of the national guest to salute him with patriotic acclamations. These nocturnal scenes have left a strong impression on my mind. I shall never forget the magical effect that was produced at Fredonia. On leaving Portland, yielding to the fatigue of the preceding days, we were sleeping in the carriage notwithstanding the violent jolting occasioned by the trunks of the trees forming the road over which we were rapidly passing; on a sudden the startling explosion of a piece of artillery awoke us, and our eyes were immediately dazzled by the glare of a thousand lights, suspended to the houses and trees that surrounded us. We were solicited to alight, and we found ourselves in the middle of an avenue, formed on one side by men and boys, and on the other by young girls and women holding their infants in their arms. At the sight of Lafayette, the air resounded with joyful cries, all arms were stretched out towards him, the mothers presented their infants to him and begged his benediction on them, and warlike music uniting its sound to the din of artillery and bells gladdened all hearts. Struck by so touching a reception, the general was unable for some time to subdue his emotions; at last, he advanced slowly through the crowd, at every step shaking affectionately the hands that were stretched out to him, and replying with tenderness to the sweet salutation of the children who accompanied his progress with cries of “Welcome, Lafayette.”

On a stage built in the centre of a large place, lighted by barrels of burning rosin, an orator was waiting to address him in the name of the people of Fredonia, who afterwards 186defiled before him in order to salute him once more. Notwithstanding the striking character of this scene, the general felt himself obliged to abridge it, that he might not expose to the cold, for a longer time, the women and young girls, who, slightly clad, had passed all the night in the open air, waiting for him. It was three o’clock in the morning, when, after having partaken of a collation, we left Fredonia. The sun already began to gild the summits of the forests we left to the right, when we arrived at Dunkirk, a small port on Lake Erie, when the boat that was to convey us to Buffalo, was waiting for us. A committee from that town, and a great number of ladies, had come to meet the general, and received him on board to the sound of music, the delightful harmony of which accorded deliciously with the beauty of the morning, and the romantic aspect of the bay in which we were.

At twelve o’clock we were within sight of the shores of Buffalo; but retarded in our progress by violent and contrary wind, we were unable to enter the port for two hours. Although the town of Buffalo was almost entirely destroyed by the English, who burnt it during the last war, we were nevertheless struck with its air of prosperity, and the bustle in its port. We landed near one of the extremities of that grand canal, whose other extremity we had visited five hundred miles from this, near Albany, and which serves as a link between Lake Erie and the Atlantic. After the first ceremonies of the reception of the national guest by the magistrates and citizens of Buffalo, we went to snatch a few moments of repose at the Eagle tavern, where our lodgings had been prepared. There, the general received a great number of persons who desired to be particularly presented to him; among them we had the pleasure of seeing an old Indian chief of the Senecas, who had acquired a great reputation for courage and eloquence, not only among his own people, but also among the whites, who call him Red Jacket. This extraordinary man, although much broken by time and intemperance, still preserved, to a surprising degree, the exercise of all his faculties; he immediately recognised General Lafayette, and recalled to his recollection that they had been together in 1784 at Fort Schuyler, where a great council had been held, in which the interests of all the Indian nations, whether 187friendly or otherwise, who could have any relation to the United States, were settled. The general replied to him that he had not forgotten this circumstance, and demanded of him if he knew what had become of the young Indian who had so eloquently opposed “the burying of the tomahawk.” “He is before you,” replied the son of the forest, with all the brevity of his expressive language. “Time has much changed us,” said the general to him, “for then we were young and active.” “Ah,” exclaimed Red Jacket, “time has been less severe on you than on me; he has left you a fresh countenance, and a head well covered with hair; whilst as for me—look!” and untying the handkerchief that covered his head, he showed us, with a melancholy air, that his head was entirely bald. The bystanders could not help smiling at the simplicity of the Indian, who appeared to be ignorant of the means of repairing the injuries of time; but were cautious not to explain his error; and perhaps did right, for he might have confounded a wig with a scalp, and wished to have regarnished his head at the expense of that of one of his neighbours. Like all the Indians, who have preserved their primitive haughtiness, Red Jacket obstinately adheres to his native language, and entertains a great contempt for all others. Although it was easy to see that he understood English perfectly, he nevertheless refused to reply to the questions of General Lafayette, before they were translated into Seneca by his interpreter. The general, having remembered a few Indian words which he had learned during his youth, pronounced them before him; he appeared sensible of this politeness, which singularly augmented the high opinion he already entertained of Lafayette.

The Seneca tribe is one of the six nations known formerly by the name of Iroquois, and now inhabiting the northern part of the state of New York, under the protection of the government of that state. These six nations are the Tuscaroras, Onondagas, Oneidas, Cayugas, Mohawks, and Senecas. I wished much to have visited a large village inhabited by the latter, a short distance from Buffalo, but the little time we spent at that place, was so completely and agreeably taken up by entertainments prepared by the inhabitants for their guest, that it was impossible for me to spare the time.

188We passed the night at Buffalo, and the next day, at an early hour, we set out in a carriage for the Falls of Niagara: on our way we breakfasted with the family of General Porter, at Black Rock, a small but handsome port which rivals that of Buffalo in bustle; and a few hours afterwards, a hollow rambling which seemed to shake the earth, and a thick column of vapour which we saw at a distance rising towards the clouds, announced to us, that we were about to enjoy the sight of one of the greatest wonders of nature.

At two o’clock we arrived with our fellow passengers from Buffalo and Black Rock at Manchester, a small village situated on the right bank of the Niagara, near the falls, where the general was received and complimented by a large deputation from the county of Niagara. Full of an impatience that may readily be conceived, we abridged as much as possible, the duration of a public dinner, of which we were obliged to partake on arriving, and at half past three we went over to the island that divides the Niagara into two unequal parts, at the point where the waters form the cataracts and precipitate themselves in a gulf of 150 feet in depth. The sight of the bridge which leads to this island, called Goat Island, admirably prepares the mind for the contemplation of the imposing scene that presents itself, and gives a nigh idea of the boldness and skill of those who constructed it. Built on a bed of rocks, whose numerous points are elevated above the water, and by opposing the current only increase its violence, its wooden pillars are agitated by a continued vibration, which seems to announce that the moment approaches when it will give way and be precipitated in the abyss; some minutes after having passed the bridge we found ourselves in presence of the great fall. It is a sublime spectacle, but it must not be expected I should attempt to describe the sensations that I experienced at the sight of the gigantic phenomena; they were of a nature that cannot be expressed: I therefore willingly relinquish the trial, in which, in my opinion, the most skilful writers have greatly failed. We remained near half an hour on the edge of the gulf, silently contemplating the rapid fall of the water, and almost stunned by the noise of its terrible roaring. We should, in all probability, have remained plunged in a reverie much longer, had we not been roused 189by the voice of one of our companions, doubtless more familiar than us with this fearful sport of nature, anxious to give us some details, interesting perhaps, but which we certainly should never have demanded.

Mr. A. Porter, the brother of General Porter, with whom we had breakfasted at Black Rock, is the owner of Goat Island; he had the kindness to conduct the general to all the most picturesque points of this singular property, which is, as it were, suspended above the abyss. From the upper extremity of the island, we saw a spectacle less terrible than from the lower point, but which is nevertheless not without majesty. Our view, extending to a great distance, agreeably reposed on the beautiful river Niagara, which rolls its waters as smooth as a mirror, over a large bed unincumbered with obstacles, and between low and fertile banks: it is only in approaching the superior point of the island, that the rapidity of the course is accelerated and it prepares for the terrible fall, whose noise, during the stillness of the night, is heard, it is said, for more than twenty miles around. Woe to the animal or man that has the imprudence to enter this irresistible current, no human power can save him from the insatiable avidity of the gulf. It is only a few years since a young Indian furnished a lamentable example. He was sleeping in the bottom of his canoe which he had fastened to the shore near the small town of Chippewa, when a young girl who had replied to his love, but whom he had deserted for another, passed and saw him. At the sight of him the furies of jealousy kindled in her bosom the desire for revenge. She approached, unfastened the canoe, and gently pushed it from the shore, the current soon acted on it, and carried it down the stream with great rapidity. The noise of the waves soon woke the young Indian, who, on opening his eyes, saw the imminent danger to which he was exposed; his first movement, inspired by a desire of preservation, was to seize his paddle to strive against the current; but he soon perceived the inutility of his efforts, which were derided by his wicked mistress by cries of cruel joy: then having nothing to oppose to his fate but a courageous resignation, he enveloped himself in his blanket, seated himself in the middle of the canoe, and coolly fixed his looks on the gates of eternity soon to 190be opened to him, and in a few seconds disappeared in the profound abyss.

The name of Chippewa, pronounced in the recital of the fate of the young Indian, awoke our recollection of the glorious deeds of the American troops, during the last war, on the frontiers of Canada, from which we were only separated at this time by an arm of the Niagara. With this recollection were naturally mingled the names of Brown, Van Ransellaer, Ripley, Scott, Porter, Harrison, Pike, Jessup, Miller, and many others who rendered themselves illustrious in these spots, by their talents, their courage, and their ardent love of country.

After two hours of delightful excursion, we left Goat Island, and cast a farewell look on it from the bridge which unites it to the main land. From this it appeared to us like a garden in the air, supported by the clouds, and surrounded by thunder. The general could not tear himself from this imposing scene, and I believe that when he learnt that Goat Island and its charming dependencies were for sale for 1000 dollars, he strongly regretted that the distance from France would not permit him to purchase it. It would be, in fact, a delicious habitation; the surface of the soil, of about seventy-five acres, is covered with a vigorous vegetation, whose verdure constantly kept up by the freshness of the pure and light vapour that arises from the cataract, presents an agreeable shelter from the heat of summer. The current of water which surrounds it offers an incalculable power which may be applied to mills of all kinds. I do not think that Mr. Porter will wait long before he disposes of a property which offers so many advantages.

On leaving Manchester and the Falls of Niagara, we went to Lewistown to sleep: this is a pretty village situated a few miles below the falls; and the next day, at five o’clock in the morning, we rode to Fort Niagara, where General Lafayette had been invited to breakfast by Major Thomson, the commandant of the garrison. We found the major at the head of his officers, a short distance in advance of the fort, waiting to receive the general, who was saluted by twenty-four guns as soon as he entered the works. Some ladies, wives of the officers of the garrison, assisted their husbands in doing the honours of the entertainment, 191and contributed not a little by their politeness, in making the time we passed at Niagara appear very short.

This fort is built precisely at the point where the river enters into Lake Ontario, on which Commodore Chauncey reaped laurels, like those gathered by Perry on Lake Erie. Almost opposite, on the other bank, is fort George, occupied by the English. Hostilities were frequent between these two posts in the campaigns of 1813 and 1814, but the fortifications of both have since been repaired, and it would now be difficult to trace the ravages of war.

The general shortened his visit to Fort Niagara, in order to arrive early at Lockport, where we were to embark on the grand canal, to descend to Albany. On a height near Lockport we met a troop of from seventy to eighty citizens on horseback, and under this escort entered the village, where the general was saluted by an extraordinary kind of artillery. Hundreds of small blasts, charged with powder by the workmen engaged in quarrying the bed of the rock to form the canal, exploded almost at the same moment, and hurled fragments of rock into the air, which fell amidst the acclamations of the crowd. The appearance of Lockport filled us with astonishment and admiration. No where have I ever seen the activity and industry of man conquering nature so completely as in this growing village. In every part may be heard the sound of the hatchet and hammer. Here, trees are felled, fashioned under the hands of the carpenter, and raised on the same spot in the form of a house; there, on a large public square, which exists as yet only in project, an immense hotel already opens its doors to new settlers, who have not any other habitation. Scarcely is there to be found in the whole town a sufficiency of the necessaries of life, and yet, by the side of a school, in which the children are instructed whilst their fathers are building the houses that are to shelter them, is to be seen a printing press, which every morning issues a journal, teaching the labourers, in their hours of repose, how the magistrates of the people fulfil the confidence reposed in them. In streets traced through the forest, and yet encumbered with trunks of trees and scattered branches, luxury already appears in the light wagons drawn by splendid horses; finally, in the midst of these encroachments of 192civilization on savage nature, there is going on, with a rapidity that appears miraculous, that gigantic work, that grand canal, which, in tightening the bonds of the American Union, spreads comfort and abundance in the wilds through which it passes.

Our carriages stopped opposite to an arch of green branches, and General Lafayette was conducted to a platform, where he had the satisfaction of being welcomed by one of his old fellow soldiers, the venerable Stephen Van Rensellaer, now president of the board of canal commissioners. After having been officially presented to the deputation from Monroe county, as well as to a great number of citizens, we sat down to a public dinner, presided over by Colonel Asher Saxton, at the end of which the general, induced by the feelings awakened in him by the sight of so many wonders, gave the following toast: “To Lockport and the county of Niagara—they contain the greatest wonders of art and nature, prodigies only to be surpassed by those of liberty and equal rights.”

The free masons of Lockport, not wishing to permit the general to depart without rendering him the honours due to his high masonic rank, begged him to keep in remembrance of their lodge, the rich ornaments with which he had been adorned when he entered the temple. They afterwards accompanied us to the basin, where the boat was waiting to convey us to Rochester. Before we embarked, we had great pleasure in viewing the handsome locks, cut out of the solid rock, to the depth of twenty-five feet. The moment the general stepped on board the barge, a multitude of small blasts, dug in the rock, exploded above our heads, and their deafening detonations added to the solemnity of the farewells of the citizens of Lockport. Before leaving the basin, we received from Dr. —— a box containing specimens of the different species of rocks through which the canal passed; we accepted this interesting collection with gratitude. Although navigation by steam is not applicable to a canal, whose banks are not of stone, yet, as the horses and the tow-path were, excellent, we travelled rapidly and comfortably; for the boat (the Rochester) that carried us, was much more convenient and better provided with the comforts of life than could have been supposed.

193We left Lockport at 7 o’clock in the evening, and traversed during the night the sixty-five miles that separate that village from Rochester, where we arrived at an early hour in the morning. We had not yet quitted our cabin, when suddenly the name of Lafayette, pronounced amidst violent acclamations, induced the general to ascend on deck; we followed him, and what was our astonishment and admiration at the scene that presented itself! We were apparently suspended in the air, in the centre of an immense crowd which lined both sides of the canal; several cataracts fell rumbling around us, the river Genessee rolled below our feet at a distance of fifty feet; we were some moments without comprehending our situation, which appeared the effect of magic: at last we found, that the part of the canal on which we were, was carried with an inconceivable boldness across the Genessee river, by means of an aqueduct of upwards of four hundred yards in length, supported by arches of hewn stone. Our fellow passengers, witnesses of our astonishment, informed us that, in its long course, the canal passed several times, in a similar manner, over wide and deep rivers; that above Irondiguot, for example, it pursued an aerial route for more than a quarter of a mile, at an elevation of 70 feet. This kind of construction appears familiar to the Americans. The bridges are usually of an elegance and boldness of execution that is inconceivable. Not far from Rochester may be seen the ruins of a bridge that had been thrown over the river Genessee in a single arch of 320 feet span, and 180 feet elevation above the water; it gave way a few years since whilst two children were crossing it. It was said to have been a masterpiece of art, but the want of size and strength in the timbers prevented its lasting long.

The general left the canal at Rochester, passed a few hours with the inhabitants of that town, who gave him a reception, which, in affection and elegance, fully equalled any that I have hitherto witnessed, and continued his journey by land, passing through the villages of Canandaigua, Geneva, Auburn, Skeneateles, Marcellus, &c. and re-joined the canal at Syracuse. This journey confirmed us in the opinion, that no part of America, or, perhaps, of the whole world, contains so many wonders of nature as the state of New York. The lakes of Canandaigua, Seneca and Cayuga, 194appeared delightful to us from the purity of their waters, the form of their basins, and the richness of their banks. The sight of all these beauties, and still more the kindness and urbanity of the population through which we travelled, often made General Lafayette regret the rapidity with which he travelled. During this journey of upwards of one hundred and thirty miles by land, we travelled night and day, only stopping for a few moments at each village, to enjoy the entertainments, prepared by the inhabitants in honour of their beloved guest, who, said they, by the simplicity, the amenity and uniformity of his manners, towards all classes of citizens, completed the conquest of all hearts, already devoted to him from his adherence to the cause of America in particular, and that of liberty in general.

From Rochester to Syracuse, we were constantly struck with the marked beauty of the horses that formed our relays; and learned that they had been gratuitously furnished by individuals, whose patriotic disinterestedness was fully appreciated by the different committees charged with the care of the general’s journey, and who returned them public thanks. Among these generous citizens, I heard particularly cited, Mr. de Zeng, of Geneva, and Mr. Sherwood, proprietor of the stage-coaches at Auburn.

On arriving at Syracuse at six o’clock in the morning, by the fading light of the illuminations, and the crowd that filled the streets, we learned that the people of the village had expected the national guest all night. The splendid supper that had been prepared for the evening before, made us an excellent breakfast, and the general passed three hours amidst the kind congratulations of the citizens, who eagerly pressed around him. At nine o’clock he took leave of his friends at Syracuse, and embarked on board the canal-boat, amid the thunder of artillery, and loud wishes for the happy termination of his voyage.

We resumed this mode of travelling with the more pleasure, as we had lately suffered much from the heat and dust on our last day’s journey by land. Always incited by a wish to fulfil the promise he had given to the citizens of Boston, the general determined to travel day and night as long as he was on the canal, and only to halt in the towns on his route a sufficient time to return his thanks to the 195inhabitants, all of whom had made preparations for his reception. We often regretted this necessary haste, especially on seeing the handsome towns of Rome, Utica, Schenectady, &c. and hearing the patriotic acclamations of their inhabitants. At Rome, which we passed through in the night by the light of an illumination, we met with the deputation from Utica, at the head of which the general had the satisfaction of recognising one of his fellow soldiers, Colonel Lansing, who fought by his side at Yorktown.

Twenty discharges of artillery announced his arrival in Utica, and at this signal all the population gathered round him to hear the eloquent discourse addressed to him by Judge Williams, in the name of the people. His astonishment was extreme, when the orator informed him that the part of the country he had traversed in so rapid and commodious a manner, was that through which he had passed with so much difficulty and danger during the war of the revolution, to save the garrison of Fort Stanwix from the tomahawks of the Indian allies of Great Britain. He could scarcely believe in so great a change, and was unable to express the happiness he felt. We only spent four hours at Utica; but that time would not suffice to detail all the marks of attachment that were heaped upon him. Obliged to divide his time between his old fellow soldiers and the children of the different schools; between the magistrates and the ladies; and, finally, between strangers and Indians, collected from several miles around to pay their respects to him, he still found means to reply to the enthusiasm of all, and every one that approached him returned satisfied and persuaded that he was an object of particular attention. Three chiefs of Oneidas, Taniatakaya, Sangouxyonta, and Doxtator, asked for a private interview, and recalled to his recollection some circumstances of the campaigns of 1777 and 1778, in which they had rendered him some services. He recognized them again, but was greatly astonished to find, that two of them already advanced in years at the time of which they spoke, were still living; notwithstanding their great age, their features still preserved an energetic expression; they spoke with warmth of the situation of their tribe. “The chase is no longer productive,” said they; “it does not supply our wants, and we 196are obliged to provide for our subsistence by agriculture, which renders us very unhappy; but it is not owing to our white brothers of the state of New York; they act generously towards us; they permit us to live in peace near the bones of our fathers, which they have not obliged us to transport to a strange land; and the government often succours us when our harvests fail; hence we sincerely love our white brothers, the Americans. We formerly fought for them against the English, and we are still ready to raise the tomahawk in their favour, whenever occasion requires it.” The general praised them for the sentiments they expressed; he told them he had not forgotten their former valuable services; and begged them always to regard the Americans as good brothers; he then made them some presents of money, and they returned well satisfied. A deputation from the county of Oneida, waited on the general to beg him to assist in laying the first stone of a monument, which the citizens of that county were about erecting to the memory of Baron de Steuben, whose remains had reposed since 1795, at Steubenville, without any mark of distinction. But the time fixed for this ceremony, not according with the public engagements entered into by the general with the citizens of Boston, he was under the necessity of refusing this invitation. “If I could associate with you,” replied he to the deputation, “in rendering to the memory of my fellow soldier and friend Baron de Steuben, those honours you intend bestowing and of which no one is more worthy, without my missing the celebration at Bunker’s Hill, it would not be the fatigues of a long and rapid journey that would deter me, you may be fully persuaded; but a single day of delay may occasion my breaking a sacred promise; you must be aware of this, be good enough therefore to be the bearers of my regrets to the citizens of Steubenville, and assure them that my heart will be with them at this melancholy ceremony, which I am obliged to forego attending in spite of my wishes.”

The regrets of General Lafayette were the more acute and sincere, as he could, better perhaps than any other, appreciate the rare qualities and noble character of Baron de Steuben, who had shared with him the toils and dangers of the Virginia campaign.

197Frederic William Steuben was born in Prussia, in 1735. Destined for a career of arms, his education was entirely military, and he early entered the service. His knowledge, his well tried courage, and his zeal in the performance of his duties, did not escape the penetration of Frederic the Great, who promoted him rapidly, and attached him particularly to his own person. The young Steuben did not fail to profit by the lessons of his illustrious master, and obtained a brilliant reputation among the best generals of the age. But neither the glory he had acquired, nor the favours of the greatest king of the time, could counterbalance his love for liberty. As soon as he learned that the American colonies, shaking off the despotism of England, were ready to maintain their independence by an appeal to arms, he crossed the ocean and offered them his services, declaring that he was ambitious of no other honour than that of acting as a volunteer in a good cause, and that he would accept neither rank nor pay before he had given proofs of his valour. This noble disinterestedness, and the services he rendered the American army, merited him the friendship of Washington, and the confidence of congress, who elevated him to the rank of major-general. His candour and moderation equalled his skill and bravery. After the peace, wishing to enjoy the fruits of that liberty to which he had contributed so gloriously, he retired to Oneida county, to lands given him by congress, and there, cultivating in solitude his mind and his fields, he philosophically waited for death; which suddenly made him its prey in 1795. He was then about sixty years of age. According to his wish, expressed in his last will, he was wrapped in his cloak, placed in a simple wooden coffin, and committed to the earth without a stone or an inscription to mark the place of his sepulchre. He laid for a long time in a thick wood near his house, when his remains were menaced with profanation by the opening of a public road through his property. Colonel Walker, his former friend, hastened to collect them, and the inhabitants of Steubenville, and of the county of Oneida, resolved to enclose them in a durable monument, as an expression of their gratitude and esteem for the German warrior.

A cannon, the signal of the departure of the guest of the nation, had already been heard twenty-four times. The 198boat that was to take him to Schenectady was ready, and the people assembled on the quays and the bridges that cross the canal, waited in silence for his departure. When he embarked, and our light vessel, drawn by superb white horses, had begun to glide through the water, three cheers expressed to him the last farewell of the inhabitants of Utica, whilst children placed on the bridges, showered down flowers upon him as the boat passed beneath. Standing on the prow of the vessel with his head uncovered, General Lafayette replied by signs of gratitude to those testimonies of popular esteem. His son and myself, witnesses of this touching scene, remained near him, partaking both of the enthusiasm of the people, and the happiness of him that was the object of it, when our attention was suddenly attracted by the cries of a man who followed the boat, by running along the bank, and making signs to us to stop. His copper colour, half naked body, and grotesque ornaments, marked him for an Indian. Although his intention to board us was manifest, our captain, Major Swartwout, did not think it advisable to stop. The Indian, therefore, exerting all his strength, hastened his pace so much, as to pass us considerably, and at last waited on the last bridge near the town. At the moment he passed beneath it, he sprung on the deck, and fell on his feet in the midst of us, admirably erect. “Where is Kayewla? I wish to see Kayewla,” cried he with agitation. The general was pointed out to him. His countenance expressed the greatest satisfaction “I am the son of Wekchekaeta,” said he, stretching out his hand; “of him who loved you so well, that he followed you to your country when you returned there after the great war; my father has often spoken to me of you, and I am happy to see you.” The general had already learned that Wekchekaeta had died some years since, and was glad to meet with his son, who appeared to be about twenty-four years of age. He made him sit down, and conversed several minutes with him, and rendered him happy by presenting him with several dollars, when he left us. The young Indian was as little embarrassed to find a mode of leaving the boat as he had been to enter it. We were separated from the bank of the canal by about ten feet; he sprung over this space with the lightness of a deer, and disappeared in an instant. 199This singular visit greatly excited the curiosity of our fellow passengers, and the general hastened to satisfy it by relating the history of Wekchekaeta, whom he carried to Europe with him in 1778, and who, soon disgusted with civilization, joyfully returned to his native wilds.

To describe our voyage from Utica to Schenectady, a distance of about eighty miles, would be to repeat what has already been said when speaking of that in the upper part of the canal. We arrived in the latter town next day, 11th June, about dinner time. We remained there only a few hours, which the inhabitants rendered very pleasant to the general, and in the evening set out in carriages for Albany, which is about sixteen miles distant from it. We lost much, we were told, in not continuing our route by the canal, which, during the whole of that route, runs along the river Mohawk, over which it twice passes by aqueducts of 1800 feet in length, but pressed for time, we were obliged to choose the shortest road; besides, we had travelled, since leaving Lockport, for near three hundred miles on the canal, and we had been able to judge of the beauty and utility of this great channel of communication, executed in eight years by the state of New York alone, unassisted by any foreign aid. There are still some few parts to be finished, before the navigation will be open the whole length of the canal; but these will be accomplished in a few months, when the boats passing from Lake Erie to Albany will traverse a length of three hundred and sixty miles, and descend a height of five hundred and fifty feet, by means of eighty-three locks built of hewn stone, and whose basin of thirty feet long by fifteen broad, will admit boats of upwards of one hundred tons burthen. The total expenses for the construction of this canal are estimated at ten millions of dollars. This sum appears enormous at first view, but nevertheless it is trifling, when the immense advantages that will accrue to the state of New York are taken into consideration. The tolls demanded for the right of navigation, although very low, have already produced, during the year 1824, the sum of 350,761 dollars; and it is believed that the receipts will amount this year to 500,000 dollars, and that in the nine succeeding years it will increase at the rate of 75,000 dollars per annum, so that at the end of ten years, the debt incurred 200in the accomplishment of this great work will be liquidated, and also, after deducting 100,000 dollars annually for repairs, &c., the state of New York will receive from its canal, a nett revenue of a million of dollars, which is four times more than the expenses of its government.^[16]

The state of New York will then present the new spectacle of a community of more than two millions of men, not only supporting its government without taxes, but also having money arising from its own property. The citizens of that state will always, it is true, have to pay the duties the general government thinks right to impose on the importation of foreign products; but the independent farmer, who produces on his farm all the necessaries of life, may live without paying any tax either direct or indirect, to the state or the general government.

I present this picture of the public prosperity of the state of New York, for the consideration of our European politicians and economists.

CHAPTER XIII.

CHAPTER XIV.

Rapid and hasty visit to the states of New Hampshire, Maine, and Vermont—Return to New York—Celebration of the Anniversary of American Independence—American vessels of war—Patriotism and disinterestedness of the Seamen of New York.

In commencing this journal, I had determined to record each day, all the events of this extraordinary journey, but their multiplicity, and above all, the rapidity of our movements, often obliged me to forego the rigorous fulfilment of this plan; and it was in traversing the states of Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont, more especially, that I felt the utter impossibility of noting all the interesting occurrences, all the honourable and interesting circumstances that characterised the visit of General Lafayette to that part of the Union. We travelled through these states at a speed of eleven miles per hour. We often passed through so many villages and towns on the same day, that my memory could not retain their names. I could not therefore find the necessary time to record all the historic or statistical details, which I had amply gleaned in a majority of the other states, and shall only be able, in this chapter, to retrace some of the entertainments given by the Green Mountain boys, and their neighbours, to the guest of the nation.

I have said that General Lafayette left Boston on the 22d May, early in the morning. A few hours after his departure, he arrived at Pembroke on the borders of New Hampshire, where he was received by a deputation from that state at the head of which was Mr. Webster, brother to the orator of Bunker’s hill, who complimented him in the name of his fellow citizens. From Pembroke to Concord, the capital of the state, his triumphal progress was attended by a large escort of citizens collected even from distant places. On arriving in that town, he was immediately 209conducted to the capitol, where the house of representatives and the senate, presided over by the governor of the state, were assembled to receive him. The address delivered by Governor Morrill, was remarkable for the vivid expression of the feelings of gratitude and attachment entertained towards him by the people of New Hampshire. He replied to this speech with great emotion.

After this reception the general was led into another room in the capitol, where General Pierce was in attendance, and who presented to him a great number of his old fellow soldiers, who, notwithstanding age and fatigue, had not hesitated to leave their distant fire-sides to shake hands and recall with him for a moment, scenes long passed. They, as well as the senators and members of the house of representatives, were individually introduced to him; the people joyfully prepared a dinner in the public square for six hundred guests, to which we were invited on leaving the capitol. The general had the pleasure of finding himself seated in the midst of two hundred officers and soldiers of the revolution, who could scarcely restrain their joy at the presence of their old friend.

Before leaving the table, several expressed in their toasts their feelings of philanthropic liberty. One drank “to the holy alliance between Lafayette and liberty—may it overthrow all plots against the rights of man.” Another gave “North America as she is, France as she ought to be.” The general replied to these wishes by the following toast: “The state of New Hampshire and its representatives, and this town, the residence of the constituted authorities of the state. May the citizens of New Hampshire always enjoy civil and religious liberty, benefits which the elevated souls of their ancestors led them to seek in a distant land, and which their fathers have founded on the solid basis of the sovereignty of the people, and the rights of men.” A discharge of artillery, and the unanimous plaudits of the crowd that surrounded the tables, attended this toast, and we left the table to proceed to the capitol square, where the militia were drawn up, waiting until the general reviewed them.

Our evening was divided between the musical society, who performed an excellent oratorio, and a party at Governor Morrill’s, at which were crowds of ladies, wishing to take leave of the national guest, who the next day left 210Concord with an escort of a corps of cavalry, and took the road to Dover, where he arrived before evening, and was received with an enthusiasm I shall not pretend to describe.

After having quitted Dover, we arrived on the frontiers of Maine, where General Lafayette was received by a deputation, with which we directed our course to Portland, the seat of government of that state. On the way we visited Kennebunk, a small town of about 2,500 inhabitants, remarkable for the commercial activity of its port. The sound of bells and artillery announced to the general with what pleasure he was expected by the people, with whom he resolved to spend some hours. When he entered the town-house, where the authorities of the state waited for him, he was received by Dr. Emmerson, who addressed him in the name of his fellow citizens.

Although the general had but a short time to devote to the citizens of Kennebunk, he yet accepted the public dinner they had prepared for him, and took his seat on a chair elegantly decorated with flowers by the ladies of the town: at the end of the repast each citizen expressed the feelings he experienced at this patriotic reunion, and Dr. Emmerson gave the following toast: “Our national guest, General Lafayette—he left Europe to give liberty to America; he returned to teach his country the manner of achieving happiness. To-day he comes among us to enjoy the result of his glorious deeds.”

The general replied to this toast by the following: “The village of Kennebunk, on the site of which the first tree was felled on the day in which the first gun was fired at Lexington, the signal of American and universal liberty! May that glorious date always be a pledge of the republican prosperity and increasing happiness of Kennebunk.”

On leaving the table, and before departing from the town, the general repaired to the house of one of the principal citizens, Mr. Storer, where all the ladies were assembled to be introduced to him. He thanked them affectionately for the delicate attentions which they had paid him during his stay at Kennebunk, and at 4 o’clock, P. M. he commenced his journey to Saco, where he slept.

On the 25th we arrived at Portland, a pretty town on the sea-shore, between the rivers Saco and Penobscot. It had been for a long time the seat of government of Maine, and 211its population, almost entirely commercial, is about nine thousand souls. The citizens of Portland and their magistrates had prepared a reception worthy of their love for Lafayette, and it may be said not to have yielded in magnificence to that accorded him by the largest cities of the Union; the militia, assembled from every part of the state, presented an imposing body in front of the town. The children of the different schools occupied the streets through which the general was to pass, and strewed flowers upon his path. The triumphal arches under which he passed, were remarkable for their good taste, and the delicacy of the inscriptions with which they were decorated. Upon one of them was a small model of a ship, under which was written, “I will purchase and equip a vessel at my own expense!” Words which Lafayette addressed, as is known, to the American commissioners at Paris, in 1777, when the latter acknowledged the inability of their country to provide the means of transporting him to the United States. Upon others were the names of the battles in which the young companion in arms of Washington had fought. Having slowly traversed the town amidst the acclamations of the crowd, the general arrived at the state house, where Governor Parris received and addressed him on behalf of the citizens of Maine, and in the presence of the representatives and magistrates of the people. The governor, in his address, recalled with enthusiasm the glorious epoch which commenced the reputation of Lafayette, and offered a merited tribute of eulogy and admiration to the soldiers of the revolution.

Replete with a vivid emotion in which all his auditors participated, General Lafayette briefly replied, but with that aptness and vigour, for which he was uniformly conspicuous.

From the senate chamber the general went to the house of Mr. Daniel Cobb, which had been prepared for him. He was there waited upon by a great number of deputations, who offered him the greetings of the neighbouring towns and villages. The grand officers of the masonic lodge of Portland were also there, and the president of the academy, who, in presence of the professors and students, conferred upon him the title of LL.D. As soon as he could disengage himself for a moment from the crowd, he 212visited Mrs. Thatcher, the daughter of his illustrious companion in arms, James Knox, with whom he remained until he was informed that the public authorities waited to accompany him to the dinner prepared by the citizens.

From Portland, the general would have been well pleased to continue his route to the extremity of the state of Maine, but time was wanting; he therefore retraced his steps towards Burlington, passing through Windsor, Woodstock, Montpelier, &c. Although Vermont is very mountainous, which rendered the road more difficult, we travelled with extreme rapidity, advancing almost all the time more than nine miles an hour, relays of horses having been well disposed by the inhabitants, in order that the general might not be retarded in his progress to New York. On the morning of the 28th, we arrived at Burlington, the beautiful situation of which, on the delightful shores of Lake Champlain, excited our admiration. Whilst we were viewing, with pleasure and astonishment, the beauties of nature spread before us, we heard the thunder of artillery, and an instant afterwards saw advancing towards us a body of militia, preceded by a crowd of citizens, who hastened in front of the national hotel. The good order of this body of troops, the bold and firm step of the men who composed it, answered perfectly to the reputation for bravery and patriotism which the inhabitants of Vermont had acquired in the revolutionary war, and in that of 1814. Every one knows, that it was the Vermonters who, in 1777, completed, by their presence, the embarrassment of the English General Burgoyne, who, at sight of their intrepid bands, presented his capitulation. Some days before his surrender, he wrote to the British minister: “The inhabitants of the New Hampshire^[17] grants, a territory uninhabited and almost unknown during the last war, flock together by thousands, and accumulate upon my left like dense clouds” This letter had not yet been received in England when already the thunderbolts which these clouds enveloped had struck him. It was also the soldiers of Vermont, to the number of 800 only, who, led by General Starke, engaged, 213on the same day, two English detachments, took from them seven hundred prisoners, four pieces of artillery, and all their camp equipage. Finally, it was these intrepid Green Mountain boys who formed the troops which preserved Plattsburg from pillage by the English, on the 11th of September, 1814; and the raw crews, who, with vessels built in eighteen days, forced an enemy superior in number, to strike a flag which claimed the absolute empire of the sea.

The governor, who had met the general at Windsor, and who had travelled with him from that city, introduced him to the citizens and magistrates of Burlington, who received him with the most affectionate addresses. I shall not insert here, notwithstanding their eloquence, the numerous speeches addressed to him by the representatives of the different branches of the administration and government, nor his answers, in which he congratulated the state of Vermont on their enjoying so nobly the benefits of the new American social order, so superior to the least vicious institutions of Europe, and at having replaced European tolerance by religious liberty; privilege by right; a shadow of representation and an unequal compromise between the aristocratic families and the people, by a true representation by the principle of the sovereignty of the nation, and its self-government. But I cannot refrain from relating some of the patriotic remarks of these veterans, glorious and living monuments of the revolutionary war, who crowded around their old chief, the companion of former dangers, privations, and glory, and repeating with enthusiasm the names of the battles, in which he had aided them in achieving the independence of their country. Formed in column in the public square, to the number of more than a hundred, they listened at first in silence to the discourse addressed to the general by Mr. Griswold, president of the council; afterwards they advanced in their turn, conducted by one of their comrades, David Russel, whom they had chosen to be the organ of their sentiments, and who performed the office with that eloquence of heart which is inspired by love of country and of liberty. When the general had answered to the professions of attachment of his old companions in arms, they all in turn approached to shake hands with him, reminding him more particularly of the circumstances under which each had known 214him, or had fought by his side. One of them, Sergeant Day, showed him a sword, saying, “It is nearly half a century since I received this from your hands, general.” And I heard it said in the crowd, that notwithstanding his great age, Sergeant Day had not found this sword too heavy for his arm in 1814.

After the public dinner, which was concluded before night, the general visited the university, where he was invited to lay the corner stone of a new building intended to be added to the establishment, which an incendiary had destroyed a year before, and which the zeal of the inhabitants of Vermont for the diffusion of knowledge had entirely rebuilt in a few months. In the solidity and elegance of these buildings it was easy to see the hand of the people. The ceremony of laying the corner stone took place in presence of the pupils of the university, their professors, the magistrates of the city, and a great concourse of citizens, who saw with joy the restoration and enlargement of an institution destined to render more permanent the support of their wise institutions, by instructing and enlightening the rising generations. Mr. Willard Preston, president of the university, thanked General Lafayette for the evidence he had given of his interest in the education of the youth of Vermont, and we proceeded to the residence of Governor Van Ness, whose delightful dwelling and gardens arranged with exquisite taste, were still more charmingly embellished by an assemblage of ladies and gentlemen, who, during the whole evening, contended for the pleasure of approaching the nation’s guest, to express their sentiments of affection and gratitude for the services he had rendered to their country and forefathers; for, in the state of Vermont, as in all the rest of the Union, the females are not strangers either to the principles of government, or to the obligations of patriotism; their education, more liberal than in any part of Europe, places them in a condition more worthy the rank of thinking beings, as it is well known that in all the great events which have agitated the United States at different periods, the enthusiasm of the women powerfully seconded the energy of the magistrates, and the devotion of the warriors. One of the circumstances which contributed most to augment my attachment to the Americans during my stay among them, 215is the profound respect that they pay to females of every rank, and the tender care with which they protect this sex.

About midnight General Lafayette quitted the town of Burlington, carrying with him the good wishes and benedictions of the inhabitants, who accompanied him to the shore, where there were two steam-boats, the Phœnix and Congress, both having awnings, illuminated and ornamented with designs and transparencies. He went on board the Phœnix, which saluted him with thirteen guns on his embarkation, when the anchor was quickly weighed, amidst the loud farewells of the crowd who lined the shores. The Congress having on board a deputation from Vermont, and a large number of citizens, followed the Phœnix, and during the whole night we ploughed the waters, upon which Commodore M’Donough and his intrepid sailors covered themselves with glory on the 11th Sept. 1814. We should have been pleased, before leaving these places, to visit Plattsburg, where on the same day General M’Comb merited the gratitude of his country, by repulsing the veteran troops of Britain, with a handful of raw volunteers, who, at the first rumour of the invasion of their territory, had flocked around him; but the 4th of July was approaching, and rendered it necessary for us to hasten our progress.

The following day, June 30, about noon, we arrived at Whitehall, where General Lafayette disembarked under a canopy formed of two hundred flags of all nations, to the thunder of artillery, and between two lines of girls who scattered flowers over him as he passed. Whitehall is celebrated in the history of the revolutionary war. General Burgoyne boasted in parliament, at London, that those whom he called the rebels of America, were so incapable of resisting, that with five thousand regular troops he would march from Canada to Boston, where he would take up his winter quarters. He embarked in fact with his army on Lake Champlain, disembarked at Whitehall, and not far from the latter place, at Saratoga, he was compelled to capitulate, and passed, it is true, the winter at Boston, but as a prisoner of war. At the conclusion of the public dinner which the citizens of Whitehall gave to General Lafayette, he referred to this remarkable fact, by giving the following toast:—“Whitehall! May this town for ever enjoy 216the advantages resulting to her from the manner in which the English general’s prophecy was accomplished!”

We could remain but a short time with the inhabitants of Whitehall, who having furnished good carriages, and excellent horses, enabled us to pass rapidly over the eighty miles that separated us from Albany, where we were to embark for New York. After sunset we crossed Fish Creek, and stopped some minutes at the house of Mr. Schuyler, which is built on the precise spot where General Burgoyne delivered his sword to General Gates. At Whitehall we were told of the boast of the English general, and we now found ourselves on the field of battle which humbled his pride; we should have been exceedingly pleased to visit this theatre of one of the most glorious events of the revolution; but the night was too far advanced, and we were compelled to forego this pleasure. To make amends, as far as he could, Mr. Schuyler had the goodness to give us a very detailed account of the battle of Saratoga. “The ground,” he told us “has not undergone any change; the entrenchments, though considerably effaced by time, are nevertheless easy to be recognised.” In fact, the old patriots of that period can still show their children the path which the aid of General Gates took, when he carried the ultimatum to the English general, and the road by which the English army left their entrenchments to lay down their arms before rebels, who, almost without arms, and destitute of equipments, commenced so gloriously the acquisition of their independence. But these traces will one day disappear. Why not erect in the midst of them, a more durable monument, which shall remind future generations of the courage and patriotism of this glorious generation, which time will soon render extinct?

After a short time passed with the family of Mr. Schuyler, we left them, to sleep at a neighbouring town, and the next morning we continued our journey by a road which winds along the Hudson, sometimes to the right, at others on the left of the northern canal, which latter is constructed parallel to the river, and a short distance from its right shore; in crossing Fish Creek we re-entered the state of New York. We crossed the Hudson at Waterford; this spot is rendered remarkable by the junction of the northern with the western or great canal, which is just at the 217confluence of the rivers Mohawk and Hudson. On the 2d of July, we visited Lansinburgh, and returned to Troy, but without stopping any time. A steam-boat had been prepared for us at Albany; on board of which we went that evening, and at daylight we arrived at New York, where we disembarked almost unexpectedly.

Nevertheless, there was a great bustle, and a great number of strangers were observed in the streets; every moment vessels and carriages were arriving, followed by others which seemed to come from a greater distance. Detachments of militia from the neighbouring towns, inhabitants of the surrounding country, were constantly swelling the population of New York. Night did not interrupt these movements, the precursors of a great event. Accordingly at midnight, a discharge of artillery announced the commencement of a day ever glorious in the records of the history of the New World, and some hours afterwards the sun of the Fourth of July rose radiantly to illumine the 49th anniversary of the declaration of independence of a republic, whose great lessons will not be lost to the human race.

In the morning the militia were under arms, the streets, the public places, and the entrances to the churches, were thronged with people, and the air resounded with thanksgiving. At eight o’clock the officers and magistrates of New York and Brooklyn, with a number of citizens, visited General Lafayette, and invited him to lay the corner stone of a building for a mechanics’ library at Brooklyn. The general acceded with pleasure to the wishes of the magistrates, and proceeded to Brooklyn, where, assisted by some free masons of Long Island, he laid the corner stone of the edifice, in presence of a great concourse of citizens, arranged in front of whom the young mechanics loudly expressed their joy and gratitude; finally, he returned to New York, followed by companies of journeymen tailors, shoemakers, bakers, stone-masons, cutlers, coopers, riggers, &c., who, preceded by their banners, accompanied him to church, where he attended divine worship. The sermon, the subject of which was the solemnity of the day, was followed by the reading of the declaration of independence, which was listened to with profound attention. This declaration, a monument of fearlessness and wisdom, whose 218magic influence saved the colonies at a moment when, without money, munitions of war, or arms, they engaged in a formidable contest with the colossal power of Great Britain, affected the Americans even at the present day, after half a century, as if it were the moment when it was first proclaimed. Not only is it read every year on the fourth of July, in public, but also in many families. It is not uncommon to find the houses of the Americans ornamented with the declaration of independence, beautifully engraved with facsimiles of the signatures of the immortal signers attached to it, and splendidly framed. Even children know it by heart; it is commonly the first object upon which the youthful memory is exercised; it is their pleasing task to translate it into the different languages which they study; and when they recite it in the midst of a circle of their relations or friends, it is easy to perceive that they are penetrated, as were their fathers, with the incontestible truth of the principle, that “when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security.”

I have often heard children of from ten to twelve years of age recite this extract in English and French, and it was never without deep emotion that they enumerated the oppressions and vexations exercised towards the American colonies by the mother country. It was easy to perceive that patriotism and liberty had taken deep roots in their young hearts, when they pronounced the pledge which terminates the concluding paragraph.

“We, therefore, the representatives of the United States of America, in general congress assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world, for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name and by the authority of the good people of these colonies, solemnly publish and declare, that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British crown, and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved; and that, as free and independent states, they have full power to levy 219war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and to do all other acts and things which independent states may of right do. And for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honour.”

After leaving church, General Lafayette went to the Park, where all the militia and firemen were assembled, who manœuvred and defiled before him with great precision. One of these companies had a splendid flag, on which was represented an equestrian portrait of the nation’s guest. After this review he entered the city hall, where the governor presented him to the senate; by whom he was received with honours never before bestowed upon any one. On his entrance the members arose and uncovered themselves; the president of the senate advanced towards him, and felicitated him on his return, and expressed to him the gratification of the citizens of New York, at his uniting with them in the celebration of the anniversary of the glorious fourth of July.

From the council chamber we passed into that of the governor, where the general was attended by the members of the society of Cincinnatus, the European consuls, and a great number of distinguished persons, whom the municipal body had invited to a banquet, the arrangement of which had been given to a committee, who performed the duty in excellent taste. Memorials of glory, of patriotism, and of liberty, were assembled in astonishing numbers in the superb saloon of the city hall, where the tables were arranged. The busts of Washington and Lafayette, the portraits of Bolivar and of De Witt Clinton, were arranged in the midst of trophies, above which always floated united the American and French flags. The arm chair used by Washington when president, was placed in the centre, and covered with branches of laurel and evergreens.

The company having seated themselves at table, we observed, amidst the happy soldiers of 1776, proscribed persons from almost every country of Europe, to whom places had been assigned by the republican hospitality of the new world. Among these exiles were members of the Spanish cortes, driven from their country by despotism; some learned Germans flying from punishments 220as singular, as atrocious and unjust;^[18] French officers,^[19] compelled to seek, in a foreign land, a repose which they have had so often sacrificed for their native country, and all, notwithstanding the miseries they had suffered, appeared consoled, and their spirits revived by the prospect of the happiness enjoyed by the freemen among whom they reside.

According to the American custom, after dinner a number of appropriate toasts were drank. The general, after having received the felicitations and good wishes of all the company, went to the Park theatre, where the audience saluted him on his entrance and his departure with three cheers.

After the exertions of such a day, the general required rest, and the citizens, always attentive to his wishes, allowed him, during some days, freely to enjoy the calmer and not less pleasant attentions of his private friends. It was with delight that he consecrated this period to the society of his old companions in arms, among whom were Colonel Platt, Colonel Willett, Colonel Varick, General Van Cortland, and many others, whose names, though they dwell in the memory of the general, have escaped mine.

He did not again leave the sweets of private life except to cross the river to New Jersey, to pass a short time with his friend, Col. Varick, who had invited him to dine with some of the principal citizens of New York. The corporation of boatmen claimed the honour of conveying him across the Hudson in a boat whose name was rendered popular by a recent occurrence, which still occupied public attention.

The captain of the English frigate Hussar, which arrived at New York in December, 1824, had a gig of remarkably light construction, with which he had won several races in different European ports, especially in England. Proud of his success, and full of confidence in the speed of his gig, 221he challenged the boatmen of New York, and proposed a race for $1000; this was accepted, the money made up on their side by subscription, and a beautiful new boat called the American Star, chosen for the contest. The day, hour, and place were fixed. The English captain selected four of the most expert oarsmen of his crew, and acted as cockswain himself. The Whitehallers took four of their number without much choice, and a youth of fifteen for cockswain. The distance to be rowed was about three miles, between Castle Garden and the point of Long Island. The English sailors, stooping violently to their thwarts, and bending their oars at every stroke, launched forward with impetuosity, leaving in their wake large whirls of sparkling foam. The Whitehallers, seated perpendicularly on their thwarts, with motionless bodies, and their arms also nearly fixed, scarce skimmed the waves with their slight oars, but pressing and multiplying their pulls, were under way as soon as their adversaries, scarce disturbing the transparent water around them. A few minutes decided the victory, sometimes so long uncertain. Though started at the same time, the two boats were soon separated. The Englishmen, quickly exhausted by their violent exertions, could not equal the rapid flight of their rivals, whose prompt arrival at the goal was announced by the joyful acclamations of the spectators, whom curiosity had drawn from all points of the city and vicinity to the shores. Astonished at his defeat, but unable to contest its completeness, the English captain eagerly acknowledged the superiority of the American boat to his own, and offered to purchase her for $3,000. But the Whitehallers refused to sell her. “We wish to keep her,” said they, “as a monument of the victory we have had the honour of gaining over you; but to lessen the regrets caused by our refusal, we will run you another race, for double the stake, in which you shall man our boat against us, and we will man yours.” But, however the English captain was surprised, fearing a new defeat, or the loss of his money, he declined the proposal. In the evening, the victorious boat was drawn on a triumphal car through the city, and carried to the theatre, where it was crowned, along with its four oarsmen and young cockswain. The next day it was placed as a monument on the wharf, with the names of the crew inscribed on the thwarts, 222and this legend on her gunwale: American Star, Victorious, 4th December, 1824.

It was in this boat, and with the same oarsmen who had gained the victory, that the Whitehallers wished to convey General Lafayette to Sandy Hook, on the other side of the North river. In this passage we could judge of their dexterity and skill; the numerous boats which carried the other guests were compelled to follow at a distance. On his return, as soon as the general had disembarked, the boatmen in a body, under the flag of their association, and led by the victors, presented themselves, to thank him for the services which he had formerly rendered their country, and the testimonies of esteem accorded them. Then, after briefly relating the history of the boat in which he had crossed the river, they begged him to accept, and take it with him to La Grange, that it might continually recall to him the remembrance of his New York friends, the perfection of the mechanic arts in America, and the great motto of American seamen: “Free trade and sailors’ rights.”^[20]

The nature of the present and the delicacy with which it was offered, did not permit the general to refuse it.

Meanwhile the period which was to separate us from the citizens of New York arrived, and our hearts were oppressed with sadness. On the 14th of July we left that city, to which we should not return previous to quitting America. The magistrates and the people attended the nation’s guest. A deep melancholy was evinced in every countenance; and although the wharves were covered with an immense multitude, a solemn silence was observed during our embarkation, interrupted only by the last farewell.

CHAPTER XV.

Letter of Mr. Keratry on the anniversary of Bunker’s hill—Fair Mount Water Works at Philadelphia—Germantown—Mr. Watson’s Historical Box—Field of the Battle of Brandywine—Invocation of the Rev. William Latta—Clergy of Lancaster—Return to Baltimore, lighted by a fire.

Whilst the citizens of the United States were exhausting every means to prove their grateful recollections of the ancient friend of their fathers, of their country, and of their institutions, France was not indifferent to the honours rendered to one of her sons on a distant shore. By means of her writers, her poets and her orators, she united her voice to that of republican America, to celebrate the principal circumstances of this triumph, honourable alike to the two nations. It was by means of one of the public journals,^[21] printed at Paris and transmitted to the United States, that Mr. Keratry, inspired by the solemnity of Bunker’s hill, expressed the aspirations and sentiments of every friend of liberty in France:—

“Nations acquit themselves of a sacred debt in honouring the memories of their great citizens; but even by that they perform also an act of personal preservation, since nothing can better excite a generous patriotic devotion than the certainty secured to its author, of escaping oblivion.

“There is in fact, in the acclamations of public gratitude, something inspiring and almost contagious, which snatches man from himself, and the interests of daily life. We sacrifice this life to assure ourselves of another more brilliant and enduring. If told that these plaudits should be decreed to frigid ashes, one would feel himself revived to participate in this futurity of glory; and by a miracle of patriotism, the 224general safety of a country results from all the sacrifices of individuals.

“Nations capable of these sacrifices, even while endeavouring to throw off a yoke of oppression, the inevitable tendency of which is to degrade our species, wherever it is submitted to, were never without virtue. We are entirely convinced, that as God judges men individually, by their earthly conduct, in a future state, he pronounces also collectively on nations here below according to their sum of merit, and this is the providential justice of the present economy. According as he weighs them, they prosper or they perish! Thus have colonies become empires—thus have empires been swept away.

“Inhabitants of North America! citizens of an enfranchised world! behold what has permitted you to become embodied and constitute a nation; see what has guaranteed to you a perpetuity of ennobled existence! Your nobility is produced by your habits of laborious exertion, and by your domestic virtues. These virtues exist amongst you: where women are chaste, men are brave; where religion is the free and spontaneous motion of the creature toward the Creator, and is not transformed into a political lever of worldly interests, salutary faith presides over social order, and nerves the soul. You have had a Franklin, a Washington, a Samuel Adams, a Jefferson: if needed, you will find others. The tree abounds in sap, why then shall it not produce new fruits? Your prosperity no longer excites my astonishment; it is in the nature of things both human and divine.

“You do well, however, in enhancing the renown of these supporters of your liberty; and in raising monuments worthy of those who died in insuring it. The great citizen, who in 1765 was one of the founders of the noble conspiracy in Boston, so influential on your destinies; he who was on two memorable occasions commissioned by that city, to console, by his eloquence, the shades of your illustrious compatriots, massacred the 2d of March, 1770; he who in 1775 assisted you to win the brilliant auguries of the battle of Lexington, and who fell by a mortal blow at Breed’s Hill, in the second engagement of your struggle for independence, Dr. Warren, merited 225from yourselves and from your children, a peculiar distinction.

“It was perhaps sufficient for the glory of this gallant patriot, whose virtue was attested by the sorrow of his most decided enemies, and to whose courage the entrenched earth yet bears witness, which received with his blood his last drawn sigh: it was sufficient I say, that his collected remains should have found an honourable sepulture in the bosom of that city whose liberty he was so desirous to behold accomplished. You have decreed more than this for his heroic companions in arms. Men of North America, I congratulate you that the services of the brave remain vivid in your memories: for it were the extreme of rashness, to expect aught for the future of nations that forget the past, by which they were established and by which they exist. There are in you the elements of vigour, and you well know how to cherish them. You have desired that the hand of one of the earliest defenders of your liberty might assist you to complete the pious duty. Already have our imaginations and our eyes followed to the tomb of Washington, this aged soldier celebrated in the annals of two nations; nor can I believe that the sun ever shone on a more noble spectacle on this earth. Let us accompany, him yet farther, when on the 17th of the next month, he united with you in founding the monument built by the citizens of Boston to the memory of the brave of Bunker’s hill: fully worthy, indeed, to solemnize with you this great obligation, his views no doubt were directed toward his own country, whilst assisting you in the discharge of your country’s debt. He shall intercede by his prayers for us, and perhaps without envying the happy situation you owe to the civil and military talents of your citizens, he will humbly ask of Providence why those happy days seem to have been withdrawn from France, the dawn of which she once beheld. No! in his grief he will be silent, lest the tombstone, and the sacred bones which it protects, should render him a reply too severe for us, inhabitants of ancient Europe, where, pretensions to liberty are made without sacrifices, and to happiness without virtue!

“Happy nation! in thy calendars are found no victories but those which established thy independence. Nor dost 226thou desire others, unless a noble sentiment should dictate to thee to be interested in the cause of men oppressed by one of the hemispheres; for thou hast been oppressed, and has received succour.

“Permit no one of thy citizens to become great with a greatness which would be too personal to him, or which would disparage his compeers: for a nation should not become a pedestal.

“Grant no distinctions to the living which they have not merited by their achievements; nor to the dead, such as would retard the excellence about to arise in competition with the past; for the transmission of hereditary glory is the act of an unwise people, who alienate their posterity to the advantage of strangers.

“Simple citizens of another state! I feel encouraged to send you this address across the sea, whose waves separate us; but my spirit has wished to commune with yours, and I have believed that the counsel of a native son of France who rejoices in your fortunes, would not find a haughty and disdainful reception, even at the moment when one of his own countrymen is receiving the honours of your gratitude. That man to whom is accorded the privilege of beholding himself honoured as posterity will honour similarly great men, is preparing for a return to his native shore: you know his heart went in search of the great and the happy of the age, but that to him the cause of the just will ever be the good cause, whether in triumph or defeat. Blow auspicious, then, ye winds. Laden with gifts as in ancient days, crowned with flowers gathered by the hands of your beauteous virgins and of their virtuous mothers, may he speedily regain his fire-side! Soon may he be restored to expectant, welcome embrace! Detain no longer the noble visitant on your shores! You are rich enough in citizens. I shall not assent that they yet enrol themselves amongst us, for it is permitted to no one to speak evil of his country; but when the weak feel their own weaknesses and fears, the presence of the strong is the more important.”

Governed by the feeling of his duties as a citizen, and by his affections as the head of a numerous family, General Lafayette required not the expression of these emanations of friendship to insure his speedy return to 227France: nevertheless it was not without the kindest emotions that they penetrated his bosom. This demonstration of his countrymen’s continued affection contributed to mitigate the sacrifice he felt himself bound in duty to make, in rejecting the entreaties of the citizens of the United States, who universally and simultaneously begged he would fix his residence amongst them.

The intention of the general was, to re-embark previous to the return of the inclement season, but before quitting the American soil, he wished to fulfil some engagements which he had made in different places; to pass some time at the seat of the general government of the Union, and to make a final visit to the ex-presidents, in their retirement in Virginia. We were now in the middle of July, and there remained less than two months for the execution of these designs, and he hastened immediately to reach Pennsylvania. He passed rapidly through New Jersey, surrounded by the customary demonstrations of the veneration of the people. I shall not speak of the entertainments offered him by the inhabitants of the towns he passed through, nor of his second visit to Joseph Bonaparte, on his journey to Bordentown, where we had the pleasure of meeting again, Colonel Achille Murat, who had just returned from an interview with his brother, recently arrived from Spain. But we shall pause an instant longer in Philadelphia, to visit the Water Works, and attend the celebration festival with which the citizens particularly engaged in these works desired to honour the nation’s guest.

We had visited, during our first stay in Philadelphia, the fine machinery established on the Schuylkill, for the supplying of water to a population of one hundred and twenty thousand persons, and we had been struck with the simplicity of its mechanism, its admirable force, the elegance and good taste of the building prepared for its protection; however, being then pressed with other engagements, we but slightly glanced at its general aspect, without entering into the examination of details, and it was to supply this defect of our information that we returned hither a second time with the committee entrusted with the superintendence of the expenses of the establishment.

The tide in the Delaware extending far above Philadelphia, it followed that its inhabitants could not employ the 228water of that stream for culinary purposes, and heretofore they had no supply of potable water but that which was furnished by some cisterns, which became exhausted during the great dryness of the summer, or furnishing but an unwholesome beverage, a great number of diseases ensued. The rapid growth of the population soon rendered indispensable the supply of water of a better quality, and in larger quantity. One pump wrought by steam power was established on the border of the Schuylkill. The expense of maintaining this pump in operation was very great, and its power insufficient, being the only resource for the supply of a population of more than eighty thousand souls at the end of the year 1818, at which time the watering committee, composed of citizens distinguished for their skill and their zeal in the public service, began to devise means for substituting, in place of the old machinery, other works at once more suited to the increasing demands of the city, more economical in their structure and in the cost of continuing them in operation. Fair Mount, on the left bank of the Schuylkill, seemed the point most favourable for the execution of the views of the committee. The Schuylkill Navigation Company having permitted the damming of the river to obtain a fall of water, on condition that a canal with locks should be constructed at the expense of the city, on the right bank of the river, in order that the navigation should not be interrupted; and Messrs. White and Gillingham having consented to yield, for one hundred and fifty thousand dollars, their rights in the water courses, the committee, freed from every obstacle, submitted their plans to the city councils, who approved them, and voted the sum of three hundred and fifty thousand dollars for the commencement of their execution.

The labour was commenced the 19th of April, 1819, under the direction of Ariel Cooley, engineer, and was completed in four years. At the sight of the canals it was found necessary to open, the immense piers and embankments that had to be raised, the reservoirs which must be excavated to a great depth in the solid rocks, it is almost inconceivable that so many things could be achieved in so short a time. Money, it is true, was not withheld, but money is not always sufficient, we well know amongst us, for the accomplishment of great affairs; to act well and 229promptly, we must have agents of promptness and ability, and at the same time animated with honest zeal for the public welfare: such was Cooley, who unfortunately forfeited his life in consequence of his activity in the accomplishment of his duties. Incessantly exposed either to the heat of the sun or to the freshness of the nights, he contracted a fatal disease, which did not permit him to enjoy the fruits of his labour. Philadelphia, to this day, regrets in him a good citizen, an accomplished and disinterested artist.

As we have now seen them, the Water works at Fairmount can abundantly supply the demands of the city, and afford to the friends of the useful arts a monument worthy of their attention. The building that encloses the machinery, is constructed of stone of a brilliant whiteness. It is two hundred feet in length and fifty in breadth, and built in the Doric order of architecture. The interior section is divided into twelve solid vaulted apartments, designed for the reception of eight forcing pumps, to be put in operation by wheels of fourteen feet in diameter, and fourteen feet in length. Each extremity of the building is terminated by a pavilion of the same order of architecture, the one serving for the meetings of the watering committee, the other appropriated to the superintendent of the establishment. Of the eight pumps there are yet but three in operation, and by these alone there are carried into the reservoir of distribution, which is more than a hundred feet above the level of the river, nearly five millions of gallons of water in twenty-four hours. Each wheel performs thirteen revolutions per minute; they are formed with buckets perpendicular to the circumference, and revolve with surprising regularity. Their construction is due to the talents of Mr. Drury Bromley, who in this circumstance has forfeited no part of his reputation as an able mechanician.

The pumps are from the establishment of Messrs. Rush and Muhlenburg; they are castings of sixteen inches diameter, and are placed horizontally after the plan of Mr. Graff. Their play is so simple and so easy, that when they are in motion neither the smallest noise nor friction can be observed. Throughout all the parts of this admirable monument of American industry have been executed with the 230same care, and it is impossible to visit it without a strong excitement of admiration for all the individuals who have contributed to its design and completion. Mr. John Moore, mason, and Mr. Frederick Erdman, carpenter, have an equal share of honour with their collaborators; nor does any one omit a just tribute of praise to the precision in the calculations of Mr. Thomas Oaks, respecting the estimate and the application of the forces requisite to obtain, with the least possible expense, the most advantageous results. The total sum of expenditure, made in the construction of this establishment, amounts to four hundred and twenty-six thousand three hundred and thirty dollars, the interest of which at five per cent, is twenty-one thousand three hundred and sixteen dollars. The annual expense for salaries of workmen, repairs of machinery, fuel, oil, &c. is only fifteen hundred dollars, which added to the interest makes a total sum of only twenty-two thousand eight hundred and sixteen dollars, for distributing in the city of Philadelphia, almost five millions of gallons of water every twenty-four hours. The original steam engine could not supply more than one million six hundred thousand gallons of water, in twenty-four hours, and cost annually thirty-thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight dollars: and in order to obtain, by steam power, a daily supply of five millions of gallons, it would have required an annual expense of at least sixty-one thousand seven hundred and sixteen dollars. Thence there has been secured, by the introduction of the new machinery, an annual saving of thirty-eight thousand nine hundred dollars. To this great improvement must likewise be added many other equally important advantages, such as the healthfulness of the city, its great security against the ravages of fire, the embellishment of public places by abundant fountains, the opportunity afforded to every inhabitant of supplying his residence with water, at the moderate price of five dollars a year, and the facility of establishing in the city various factories, &c. by the aid of water power.

All these details were received with a lively interest by General Lafayette, who expressed his satisfaction and admiration, saying that the water works at Fair Mount appeared to him the perfect representation of the American government, in which were combined simplicity, power and 231economy. Just as we were leaving this interesting spot, Mr. Lewis, as president, and in behalf of the committee, presented the general a mode of the machinery, and a vertical section of the building perfectly executed in mahogany. He received it thankfully, and assured Mr. Lewis that he would have sincere pleasure in exhibiting to his friends in Europe, this evidence of the perfection of mechanic arts in the United States.

Although, during the whole period of our second visit to Philadelphia, the heat was excessive, so that Fahrenheit’s thermometer was generally at the 98th degree, and rose sometimes to 104°, General Lafayette was not the less assiduous in employing every day either in uniting with his friends in the festivities to which he was invited, or in visiting the environs of the city, nor did his health sustain one moment’s unfavourable impression.

It was the 20th of June that we went to visit the field of battle at Germantown and the mansion of Mr. Chew, on the walls of which may yet be discovered traces of the cannon and musket balls, proving the prominence of its situation in the battle that raged around it. After having breakfasted with Mr. Benjamin Chew, the proprietor of this historic mansion, the general continued his route to Chesnut Hill, in sight of Barren Hill, where on the 20th of May, 1778, he effected so happily and so successfully the famous retreat which laid the foundation of his fame in military tactics: thence he returned to Germantown, to pass a short time with the inhabitants, who anxiously requested he would visit their academy, at which he was received by the students with enthusiasm. We found amongst them the young Fernando Bolivar, adopted son of the Liberator. General Lafayette spoke to him with pleasure of the hopes which the friends of liberty and humanity repose in the character of his uncle, who, until the present moment, had advanced with a firm pace in the career pursued by Washington; the young man seemed penetrated with grateful emotions, and expressed himself in such a manner as to excite a hope, that his having been sent to the United States to study her political institutions would not be without permanent benefit.

As we were leaving Germantown, Mr. John F. Watson offered for the acceptance of the general a present of great 232value, on account of the recollections it awakened. It was a box formed of many pieces of different kinds of wood, the origin and history of which he thus recited:

“The body of the box is made of a piece of black walnut, an ancient son of the forest, that once occupied the spot where Philadelphia now stands. Cotemporary with the trees which lent their shade to William Penn and his companions, it continued till 1818, spreading its noble branches in view of the hall in which our declaration of independence was ratified.

“The cover is composed of four different pieces.

“The first is of a branch of a forest tree, the last surviving of those which were removed in order to dig the first foundations of Philadelphia.

“The vigour that yet animates the vegetation of this ancient tree, is an evidence of the rapid growth of the city, which has risen and become great whilst the tree is still flourishing.

“The second is a piece of oak, broken off the first bridge built in 1683, over the little river Canard. This piece was found in 1823 at about six feet below the surface of the earth.

“The third is a piece of the famous elm under which Penn’s first treaty with Shackamaxum was made. It fell from old age in 1810, but a branch from it is now growing, and in a flourishing state, in the garden of the hospital, and our fellow citizens delight to recount the story of its origin whilst protected by its shade.

“The fourth awakens recollections of yet more olden time. It is a fragment of the first house raised by European hands upon the American shores! It is a piece of mahogany of the habitation constructed and occupied in 1496, by the immortal Columbus. Honour to the Haytien government, which still watches with care for the preservation of this precious monument.

“I offer you these reliques with confidence,” continued Mr. Watson, “persuaded, as I am, that it is with interest you receive every thing connected with the remembrance of the first movements of a nation that has received so many proofs of your friendship.”

General Lafayette was, indeed, highly flattered by Mr. Watson’s present. He received it with gratitude, and 233a pledge that it should find a place amongst the most precious memorials of his tour. To this first present Mr. Watson added also another not less valuable; a piece of the American frigate “Alliance,” in which Lafayette had twice crossed the ocean during the revolutionary war.

On the 21st, we went to spend the day in the state of Schuylkill. But before speaking of the honours conferred there on the voyager, a few words of explanation of this “state,” will be requisite. “In 1731 some citizens of Philadelphia united themselves into an association having both pleasure and beneficence for its design. They purchased a large tract of land near the falls of the Schuylkill, built a house for the accommodation of their meetings, elected a governor, council, secretary of state, treasurer, and judge, established a seal, and constituted themselves the ‘Colony of the Schuylkill.’ More than half a century passed away without the slightest circumstance transpiring to give occasion of trouble to the colony: every day was marked by its benefactions, and delight and mutual confidence presided at all the periodical festivals, at which the members were assembled at a common table. But subject to the destiny of states, all of which have their vicissitudes, the colony of Schuylkill was also to experience a revolution. In 1783, at the conclusion of a dinner of more than fifty covers, the colony rose and declared independence: resolved to revise their constitution, and the Colony of the Schuylkill became, in the course of a few hours, the ‘republic of the State of Schuylkill,’ and no attempt was made on the part of the mother country to oppose it. Since that time the new republic has gone on advancing in strength and riches; its pleasures and its acts of benevolence followed at an equal rate. Possessed now of an enlarged estate acquired by a treaty with a farmer, she has transferred her seat of government, that is, her nets, her kitchen and cellar, three miles farther down the stream, under the cool shades on the banks of the river.”

Here it was that General Lafayette was received by the citizens and magistrates, who in the costume of fishermen, awaited his arrival on the frontier of their state. In a short and eloquent address, the secretary of state recounted to him the history of the republic, from its establishment to the present time, and concluded by announcing to him that the title and all the rights of citizen had been granted 234to him by a unanimous vote. As soon as the general had expressed his acceptance of the honour and his gratitude, he was invested with the national costume, and, his head being protected with the large straw hat, he entered into the occupations of the community. Mr. George Lafayette, Mr. de Syon, and myself, were also admitted to partake of the duties of the day; people and magistrates, all with one accord, assisted without distinction in the work. We embarked in the batteaux belonging to the republic, and obtained an abundant supply of fish, and in four hours we were seated at the banquet prepared by our own hands. Never was a repast attended with greater gaiety, nor cheered by better wine, and long shall we have the pleasure of remembering the delight and good cheer we found in the state of Schuylkill.

The week we had just spent in Philadelphia, as it were in his own family, had entirely composed the fatigue of the general; and although the heat continued excessive, he undertook, on the 25th, his journey to Wilmington, where a great number of Pennsylvanians and Virginians were in waiting to conduct him to the field of the battle of Brandywine. This field was not rendered illustrious by a victory, as has been said, but its remembrance is not less dear to Americans, who gratefully recollect the blood spilled there by their fathers, and by young Lafayette, in the defence of their rights, and to secure their independence. Happy that country in which events are appreciated more by their influence on its destinies than by the eclat of the moment! The men who took the first steps in procuring the liberties of the United States in the battles of Bunker’s hill and on the banks of the Brandywine, are at this day not less honoured in the eyes of the nation than those who sealed it last, at the battle of Yorktown.

In the beginning of September, 1777, General Howe, at the head of eighteen thousand men of the British army, embarked on board the fleet commanded by his brother, and left New York without the possibility of the Americans ascertaining precisely the object of his expedition. A few days after it was ascertained that he had entered the Chesapeake, and had landed at the Head of Elk, for the purpose of marching to attack Philadelphia, Washington immediately marched through this city, where 235the congress were then in session, and advanced to meet the enemy, annoying him with several attacks between the point of his debarkation and a small stream, the Brandywine, behind which the American army, greatly inferior in number, and composed almost wholly of militia, had just taken their position. Chads-Ford was in front of their encampment, where it was contemplated to give them battle, but General Howe leaving a body of troops on the opposite side of the stream, in order to cover his manœuvre, marched forward to pass another ford on the right of the Americans. This movement was so much the more difficult to reconnoitre, as the banks of the stream were densely grown with wood, and, by a singular fatality, the two parallel roads leading to the two fords were called by the same name, so that the reports received by Washington from his scouts, though apparently contradictory, were nevertheless true. This confusion of names threw the American general into a most painful anxiety; he hesitated too long on the course he was to pursue, and lost a most precious moment which might have given him the victory. Had he been able to procure definite intelligence of the movements of the enemy, he would have passed the ford before him, and most certainly would have defeated the British division which remained at Chads-Ford, commanded by Knyphauzen, and then falling suddenly on the body under General Howe, surprising him by an attack in flank, would almost inevitably have succeeded in a complete defeat of the English army; but the occasion passed rapidly, and the firing of muskets on his right soon apprized Washington of the danger of his situation. Happily he had established a position behind the second ford, of three brigades, commanded by Sullivan and Sterling. These three brigades sustained the attack with vigour, and for a short time arrested the British by a deadly fire: but their line being attacked both right and left, by superior forces, the wings gave way. The centre continued its position firmly, in defiance of the shower of broken brass that was poured in upon them. But this centre itself at last began to yield, and was about to beat a retreat, when young Lafayette, notwithstanding his rank of brevet-major, was yet serving as a simple volunteer near the commander-in-chief, dismounted from his horse, and went, sword in hand, to place 236himself at the head of a company of grenadiers, who, reanimated by this noble effort, maintained themselves firmly for a few moments. Soon, however, Lafayette received a shot below the knee, and was obliged to retire with his grenadiers; but he had already reaped the reward of his devotedness, for he had procured the opportunity for Washington to join the division of General Greene, and of recommencing the action in a second line. Here the fight raged on either side with obstinate perseverance, and the astonishing spectacle was exhibited of militia rallying after a first check, and fronting with firm step an enemy superior in numbers and in discipline. The event of this second contest was yet doubtful, when suddenly Washington learned that the pass of Chads-Ford was forced, and that Knyphauzen was about to fall on his left flank; he immediately resolved to secure a retreat to Chester, where he arrived with his army the same evening.

The battle was lost, but the British had paid dear for their victory, and the moral force of the Americans was augmented even by their defeat. In this day’s engagement Lafayette had sealed with his blood his alliance with the principles for which he had crossed the ocean, and forever secured to himself the gratitude of a nation amongst whom generous and noble sentiments outlive the ravages of time.

It was once more to evince their gratitude for their long tried friend, that the revolutionary soldiers of Pennsylvania and Virginia had now assembled with their sons to conduct Lafayette to the field of the battle of Brandywine. We left Chester on the 26th of July, with a retinue, at the head of which appeared the two oldest revolutionary officers of the neighbouring counties, Colonel M’Lean and Captain Anderson. Numerous bodies of militia had preceded us, and were already gone to take their position at the ancient encampment of the American army, where may yet be discovered traces of one of the redoubts. It was about noon when we arrived on the borders of the Brandywine, along which we were to travel to the point at which, as we had been informed, the army had passed. But on approaching the stream, General Lafayette cast a glance on the surrounding country and said, “It cannot be here that we passed in 1777, it must be a little higher up the stream.” It was 237in fact ascertained that the passage had been effected just above the spot we occupied. This accuracy of observation and vivid recollection excited in a high degree the admiration of the numerous witnesses.

At Chads-Ford the general learned that one of his companions in arms, Gideon Gilpin, under whose roof he had passed the night before the battle, was now confined to bed by age and infirmity, and despaired of being able to join his fellow citizens in their testimony of respect to the general: he went to visit the aged soldier, whom he found surrounded by his family. Gideon Gilpin, notwithstanding his extreme weakness, recognized him on his entrance, and proved by tears of grateful and tender recollection how much this visit tended to the comfort and soothing of his last moments.

On arriving at the field of battle, General Lafayette recognised successively, and pointed out to us himself, all the principal points on which the two armies had manœuvred and fought on the 11th of September 1777; nor did his recollection wander a single moment. Being arrived at the spot where the first attack was made, and where he had been wounded, he paused a moment; his ancient companions pressed around his carriage, and the militia passed before him, amid the loudest acclamations and the cry a thousand times re-echoed, “long live Lafayette.” During the whole of this scene, of profound emotion on his part, and which his modesty induced him frequently to attempt to abridge, he spoke to those around him of nothing but the presence of mind evinced by Washington on the fatal day of the 11th September, and of the courage manifested by the officers and soldiers in supporting him. But in vain he recalled the names of the most illustrious chiefs, and attributed to them all the glory of having saved the army: the reply he received was by pointing him to the soil on which he had spilled his blood, and the sight of this indestructible monument exalted to the highest degree the gratitude of the crowd of spectators who accompanied him. In prolonging our excursion along the route by which the British had conducted their first attack, we arrived at the house of Mr. Samuel Jones. It had been for a short time occupied by General Howe during the battle, and yet retains traces of the well directed fire of the American artillery. 238After the elegant collation with which we were entertained by Mrs. Jones, we had presented to us various implements and remains of arms found on the field of battle; and we returned with these precious reliques to West Chester, where we concluded the day in the enjoyment of festivities prepared by the inhabitants.

In the multiplied recitals I have made of the public rejoicings at which I assisted, during my stay in the United States, it was impossible not to be struck with the constant association of religious ideas and patriotic sentiments which so strongly characterise the citizens of this republic: but what is not less remarkable is, that their religion, free of practical minutiæ, seems as much an uniform sentiment as their love of liberty resembles an uniform faith. With them a political orator never terminates a prepared address without an invocation, or grateful recognition of divine power; and a minister of the gospel on taking the pulpit commences, by recalling to the notice of his auditors their duties as citizens, and their peculiar privileges in living under the wise institutions of their country. It may also be remarked, that this union of political morals and theology influences all the actions of the Americans with a gravity and deep conviction, the charm and tendency of which are wholly inexpressible. How could any one listen to these simple and touching invocations without being deeply affected, and without uniting in their humble and pious acknowledgements? We were about being seated at the hospitable board prepared by the citizens of West Chester at the National Hotel, when the president of the day remarked that a minister of the church was in the company, and invited him to ask a blessing on the assemblage, which was done in the most affecting manner by the Rev. William Latta.

A committee of the citizens of Lancaster having been deputed to escort General Lafayette from West Chester, he committed himself to their care on the 27th, after taking leave of a great number of the soldiers of 1776, who could not receive the last adieu of the aged general without testifying their emotion with tears.

I have already, I believe, mentioned the remarkable fact, that at the south, as at the north, and from the east to the west of the United States, we had met with men of 239different manners and languages, submitting for the general good to the same democratic government; living in harmony, in the enjoyment of domestic happiness and of public prosperity, under the shield of the same institutions. Having made this observation, we naturally concluded that neither great wealth nor diverse habits of the people of this country, are obstacles to the establishment and the administration of republican government, which is founded on an equal appreciation of the interests and rights of all. Nothing perhaps more strongly confirmed General Lafayette in this opinion, than a view of the city and county of Lancaster, where are found men from all parts of America and Europe, and of almost every diversity of religious faith, yet all attached to the wise and excellent institutions by which they are governed.

I shall not describe the festivities with which the citizens of Lancaster entertained the man, who, whilst they received him as a guest, they most warmly claimed as their friend, though they were not inferior either in elegance or cordiality to those of the largest cities of the Union. I shall not, however, pass over in silence, events which by their nature serve to explain the unity of sentiments and principles which characterise all classes of the American people. I shall, therefore, relate the proceedings of the clergy of every denomination in the city and vicinity, who, at the intelligence of the arrival of the general, spontaneously collected to unite their patriotic felicitations with those of the other citizens. Their congratulations were conveyed by the dean on their behalf, without distinction of sect. If the address were to be given at length, it would give additional weight to the opinion I have already advanced respecting the American clergy: but it will suffice, I trust, to relate a portion of the general’s reply, in which this opinion is expressed with a strength and precision which leave no doubt of his convictions.

“I accept,” replied he, “with sincere gratitude the proofs of kindness and regard which the clergy of this city and vicinity have voluntarily accorded to me, and which you, sir, have expressed in so impressive a manner. In my happy sojourn in this country, I have often had occasion to remark the veneration which the clergy of every denomination inspire, whose individual members, apostles of 240the rights of man, are the immediate functionaries of a religion founded on the principles of liberty and equality, and on the principle of elections by the people of evangelical ministers.”

On quitting Lancaster, we travelled to Port Deposit, on the shore of the Susquehanna, where we were met by a deputation from Baltimore, with whom we embarked, destined for this latter city. On our way we visited Havre-de-Grace, a small town situated on the Susquehanna, at its entrance into the Chesapeake. Here we remained several hours, and then continued our voyage favoured by fine weather, our way being beguiled also by the pleasures we enjoyed on board. From the deck of our vessel, we beheld expanded to our view the delightful vallies and the rich hills of Maryland: the companions of our voyage, pressing around Lafayette, and designating to him the fields in which, during their struggle for liberty, he had fought to obtain it: and at short distances on the shores, groups of the inhabitants attracted by the sounds of national airs which echoed from our deck, testified, by incessant acclamations, the delight occasioned by the presence of the adopted son and benefactor of their country.

The sun had left the horizon some time ere we arrived at the mouth of the Patapsco, and it was not till midnight that we touched the wharf at Baltimore. Though at that advanced and unseasonable hour, a large number of persons were in waiting for the appearance of our vessel, and on disembarking General Lafayette found himself surrounded by a crowd of friends. At the moment of placing his foot on shore, an immense burst of light suddenly illuminated the port, and looking to the southern quarter of the city we saw volumes of flame rising almost to the clouds. Instantly the hollow cry of “fire, fire,” resounded in every street. Anxious to offer the first assistance, we left the general in care of two members of the committee, who conducted him directly to the hotel provided for him, and we ran at our utmost speed toward the scene of conflagration, but we discovered that we had been outstripped by four engines, which on our arrival were already in full operation. Other engines arrived from all quarters, directed by young men, volunteers in this patriotic employment, and commenced their operations with such promptness 241and activity, that, although the fire had originated in a frame building occupied as a store, the flames were very soon subdued, and indeed wholly extinguished. We found ourselves involuntarily amidst the inactive crowd of spectators, and returned to our lodgings at two o’clock in the morning, filled with admiration of the spontaneous exertions as well as the zeal and ability of the young firemen of Baltimore.

CHAPTER XVI.