terms." Hamilton replied, "You shall have the honor of war." Helm thereupon surrendered the fort, and the whole garrison, consisting of the two already named, marched out and received the customary marks of respect for their brave defense. Hamilton was soon after made to surrender this place to Gen. George Rogers Clark, the ablest American defender in the West. The British soldiers were allowed to return to Detroit; but their commander, who was known to have been active in instigating Indian barbarities, was put in irons and sent to Virginia as a prisoner of war.

The events just related are specimens of what occurred at and in connection with Detroit from the close of Pontiac's war until a number of years after the establishment of American Independence. When the treaty of peace was signed in Versailles in 1783, the British on the frontier reduced their aggressive policy somewhat, but they continued to occupy the lake posts until 1796, on the claim that the lake region was not designed to be included in the treaty by the commissioners, probably on account of their ignorance of the geography of the region. Meanwhile the Indians extensively organized for depredation upon the Americans, and continued to harass them at every point. During this period Alexander McKenzie, an agent of the British Government, visited Detroit, painted like an Indian, and said that he was just from the upper lakes, and that the tribes in that region were all in arms against any further immigration of Americans, and were ready to attack the infant settlements in Ohio. His statement had the desired effect, and encouraged also by an agent from the Spanish settlements on the Mississippi, the Indians organized a great confederacy against the United States. To put this down Gen. Harmar was first sent out by the Government with 1,400 men; but he imprudently divided his army, and he was taken by surprise and defeated by a body of Indians under "Little Turtle." Gen. Arthur St. Clair was next sent out, with 2,000 men, and he suffered a like fate. Then Gen. Anthony Wayne was sent West with a still larger army, and on the Maumee he gained an easy victory over the Indians, within a few miles of a British post. He finally concluded a treaty with the Indians at Greenville, which broke up the whole confederacy. The British soon afterwards gave up Detroit and Mackinaw.

It was a considerable time before the Territory of Michigan now in possession of the United States, was improved or altered by the increase of settlements. The Canadian French continued to form the principal part of its population. The interior of the country was but little known, except by the Indians and the fur traders. The Indian title not being fully extinguished, no lands were brought into market, and consequently the settlements increased but slowly. The State of Michigan at this time constituted simply the county of Wayne in Northwest Territory. It sent one representative to the legislature of that Territory, which was

held at Chillicothe. A court of Common Pleas was organized for the county, and the General Court of the whole Territory sometimes met at Detroit. No roads had as yet been constructed through the interior, nor were there any settlements except on the frontiers. The habits of the people were essentially military, and but little attention was paid to agriculture except by the French peasantry. A representative was sent to the General Assembly of the Northwest Territory at Chillicothe until 1800, when Indiana was erected into a separate Territory. Two years later Michigan was annexed to Indiana Territory, but in 1805 Michigan separated and William Hull was appointed its first Governor.

The British revived the old prejudices that the Americans intended to drive the Indians out of the country, and the latter, under the lead of Tecumseh and his brother Elkswatawa, the "prophet," organized again on an extensive scale to make war upon the Americans. The great idea of Tecumseh's life was a universal confederacy of all the Indian tribes North and South to resist the invasion of the whites; and his plan was to surprise them at all their posts throughout the country and capture them by the first assault. At this time the entire white population of Michigan was about 4,800, four-fifths of whom were French and the remainder Americans. The settlements were situated on the rivers Miami and Raisin, on the Huron of Lake Erie, on the Ecorse Range, and Detroit Rivers, on the Huron of St. Clair, on the St. Clair River and Mackinaw Island. Besides, there were here and there a group of huts belonging to the French fur traders. The villages on the Maumee, the Raisin and the Huron of Lake Erie contained a population of about 1,300; the settlements at Detroit and northward had about 2,200; Mackinaw about 1,000. Detroit was garrisoned by ninety-four men, and Mackinaw by seventy-nine.

HULL'S SURRENDER.

Now we have to record an unexplained mystery, which no historian of Michigan can omit, namely, the surrender of Detroit to the British by Gen. Hull, when his forces were not in action and were far more powerful than the enemy. He was either a coward or a traitor, or both. The commander of the British forces. Gen. Brock, triumphantly took possession of the fort, left a small garrison under Col. Proctor, and returned to the seat of his government. In twelve days he had moved with a small army 250 miles against the enemy, effected the surrender of a strong fort and well-equipped army of 2,300 effective men, and one of the Territories of the United States. Hull and the regular troops were taken to Montreal, and the militia were sent to their homes.

In the capitulation, Gen. Hull also surrendered Fort Dearborn, at Chicago, commanding Captain Heald of that place to evacuate and retreat to Fort Wayne. In obedience to this order, the Captain started from the fort with his forces; but

no sooner were they outside the walls than they were attacked by a large force of Indians, who took them prisoners and then proceeded to massacre them, killing thirtv-eight out of the sixty-six soldiers, even some of the women and children, two of the former and twelve of the latter. Captain Wells, a white man who had been brought up among the Indians, but espoused the white man's cause, was killed in the massacre.

January 3, 1814, Gen. Hull appeared before a court-martial at Albany, N. Y., where Gen. Dearborn was president. The accused made no objection to the constitution and jurisdiction of this court; its sessions were protracted and every facility was given the accused to make his defense. The three charges against

him were treason, cowardice and neglect of duty. Hull was finally acquitted of the high crime of treason, but he was found guilty of the other charges, and sentenced to be shot; but by reason of his services in the Revolution and his advanced age the court recommended him to the mercy of the President, who approved the sentence and dismissed Hull from the service. The accused wrote a long defense, in which he enumerates many things too tedious to relate here.

Even before he was sent to Detroit he was rather opposed to the policy of the Government toward the British of Canada; and, besides, he had been kindly treated by British officers, who helped him across the frontier. Again, the General Government was unreasonably slow to inform the General of the declaration of war which had been made against Great Britain, and very slow to forward troops and supplies. Many things can be said on both sides; but historians generally approve the judgment of the court in his case, as well as of the executive clemency of the President.

Perry's Victory.

The lake communication of Michigan with the East, having been in the hands of the British since Hull's surrender, was cut off by Com. Perry, who obtained a signal naval victory over the British on Lake Erie, September 10, 1813. The Commodore put his fleet at Erie, Pa., under great disadvantages. The bar at the mouth of the harbor would not permit the vessels to pass out with their armament on board. For some time after the fleet was ready to sail, the British commodore continued to hover off the harbor, well knowing it must either remain there inactive or venture out with almost a certainty of defeat. During this blockade, Com. Perry had no alternative, but to ride at anchor at Erie; but early in September the enemy relaxed his vigilance and withdrew to the upper end of the lake. Perry then slipped out beyond the bar and fitted his vessels for action. The British fleet opposed to Com. Perry consisted of the ships "Detroit," carrying nineteen guns; the " Queen Charlotte," seventeen guns; the schooner "Lady Prevost," thirteen guns; the brig "Hunter," ten guns; the sloop "Little Belt," three guns, and the

schooner "Chippewa," one gun and two swivels; and this fleet was commanded by a veteran officer of tried skill and valor.

At sunrise, September 10, while at anchor in Put-in-Bay, the Commodore espied the enemy toward the head of the lake, and he immediately sailed up and commenced action. His flag vessel, the Lawrence, was engaged with the full force of the enemy for nearly two hours before the wind permitted the other vessels to come in proper position to help. The crew of this vessel continued the fight until every one of them was either killed or wounded, all the rigging torn to pieces and every gun dismantled. Now comes the daring feat of the engagement which makes Perry a hero. He caused his boat to be lowered, in which he rowed to the Niagara amid the storm of shot and shell raging around him. This vessel he sailed through the enemy's fleet with swelling breeze, pouring in her broadsides upon their ships and forcing them to surrender in rapid succession, until all were taken. The smaller vessels of his fleet helped in this action, among which was one commanded by the brave and faithful Capt. Elliott. This victory was one of the most decisive in all the annals of American history. It opened the lake to Gen. Wm. H. Harrison, who had been operating in Indiana and Ohio, and who now crossed with his army to Canada, where he had a short campaign, terminated by the battle of the Moravian towns, by which the enemy were driven from the northwestern frontier. A detachment of his army occupied Detroit, September 20, 1813, and October 18, an armistice was concluded with the Indians, then restoring tranquility to the Territory of Michigan. Soon afterward Gen. Harrison left Gen. Cass in command at Detroit and moved with the main body of his army down to the Niagara frontier.

Perry's brilliant success gave to the Americans the uncontrolled command of the lake, and September 23, their fleet landed 1,200 men near Maiden. Col. Proctor, however, had previously evacuated that post, after setting lire to the fort and public storehouses. Commodore Perry in the meantime, passed up to Detroit with the "Ariel," to assist in the occupation of that town, while Capt. Elliott, with the "Lady Prevost," the "Scorpion," and the "Tigress," advanced into Lake St. Glair to intercept the enemy's stores. Thus Gen. Harrison, on his arrival at Detroit and Maiden, found both places abandoned by the enemy, and was met by the Canadians asking for his protection. Tecumseh proposed to the British commander that they should hazard an engagement at Maiden; but the latter foresaw that he should be exposed to the fire of the American fleet in that position, and therefore resolved to march to the Moravian towns upon the Thames, near St. Clair Lake, above Detroit, and there try the chance of a battle. His force at this time consisted of about 900 regular troops and 1,500 Indians, commanded by Tecumseh. The American army amounted to about 2,700 men, of whom 120 were regulars, a considerable number of militia, about thirty Indians, and the remainder Kentucky riflemen, well mount

ed, and mainly young men, full of ardor, and burning with a desire to revenge the massacre of their friends and relatives at the River Raisin. During the following Winter, there were no military movements, except an incursion into the interior of the upper province, by Major Holmes, who was attacked near Stony Creek, and maintained his ground with bravery.

CLOSE OF THE WAR.

The war with Great Britain was now (November, 1813), practically closed, so far as the Northwest was concerned, the post at Mackinaw yet remained in the hands of the enemy, but active steps were taken to dispossess the English of this point and drive them wholly from the domain of the United States. The first effort to start an expedition failed; but in the Summer of 1814, a well-equipped force of two sloops 01 war, several schooners, and 750 land militia, under the command of Commodore St. Clair and Lieut. Colonel Croghan, started for the north. Contrary, however, to the advice of experienced men, the commanders concluded to visit St. Joseph first, and the British, of Mackinaw, heard of their coming, and prepared themselves. The consequence was a failure to take the place. Major Holmes was killed, and the Winnebago Indians, from Green Bay, allies of the British, actually cut out the hearts and liver from the American slain, and cooked and ate them! Com. St. Clair afterward made some arrangements to starve out the post, but his vessels were captured, and the British then remained secure in the possession of the place until the treaty of peace the following Winter.

The war with England formally closed on December 24, 1814, when a treaty of peace was signed at Ghent. The ninth article of the treaty required the United States to put an end to hostilities with all tribes or nations of Indians with whom they had been at war; to restore to such tribes or nations respectively all the rights and possessions to which they were entitled in 1811, before the war, on condition that such Indians should agree to desist from all hostilities against the United States. But in February, just before the treaty was sanctioned by our Government there were signs of Indians accumulating arms and ammunition, and a cautionary order was therefore issued to have all the white forces in readiness for an attack by the Indians, but the attack was not made. During the ensuing Summer and Fall, the United States Government acquainted the Indians with the provisions of the treaty and entered into subordinate treaties of peace with the principal tribes. Just before the treaty of Spring Wells (near Detroit) was signed, the Shawanee Prophet retired to Canada, declaring his resolution to abide by any treaty which the chiefs might sign. Some time afterward he returned to the Shawanee settlement in Ohio, and lastly to the west of the Mississippi, where he died in 1834. The British Government allowed him a pension from 1813 until his death.