Yale University Library 39002002883495 Cb2/| 560b YALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY Mel'Oin ^^ JournaL The Journal 'Pri'Vate Soldier in ^yirnold*4: Rjfcpedition^ ^A.ga,irt^ Quebec In the year 1775. XOitb fioitj and on Inlrcduetion by ^ndrebif A. Mel-vin, ro'k.TLA.^n}. ME. Hubbard tO, Bryant. Tubthhir. MUCCCCIl EDITION LIMITED TO TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY COPIES, NUHBEREDc^OF WHICH THIS IS NU2^ER COPYRIGHTED I902 BY ANDREW A. MKLVIN. VAVE Ct24-. 5'(oO \> Vbe wnwMvell press, tt Eicbangc St., portlant, iBafne. ^ < VI c u fntroductionJ^ NO better rule for the writing of a history has ever been laid down, or one that would be better worth adopting by historians, with their best efforts to strictly follow, than that one which was enunci ated, not very long ago, by our venerated pontiff, Leo XllI, relative to some proposed publication from the Vatican archives. Said he : — "The first law of History is not to dare tell a lie, tlie second not to fear to tell the truth; be sides, let the Historian be beyond all suspicion of favoring or hating anyone whomsoever." Had this excellent rule been always followed in the past, the world might possibly have been spared some volumes long accepted as authority. But with no motives of disparagement, and sensible that many eminent writers have published as much truth as that portion of the world which they addressed was willing to receive, this brief summary of historical research MELVIN'S JOURNAL is offered as a contribution to the literature regarding one event in the Revolutionary war. It introduces and to some extent is woven around the personal nar rative of a brave soldier who took part in it. If the conclusions, arrived at from long study of the period covered by the narrative, differ from those of other writers, they have not, at least, been preconceived or adopted hastily, and are not now addressed to any partisan audience. The expedition to Canada in 1775, under command of Colonel Benedict Arnold, to attempt the capture of Quebec, was one of the most adventurous and roman tic projects in the struggle of the Americ^Ti colonists for political liberty, and the story of that //ndertaking makes one of the most instructive chapters in our country's history. Yet, as a whole, it is only imper fectly known to our people. The daring enterprise of the expedition is appreciated, but the relations which it bore to the events that preceeded and that followed it are not understood, nor are the causes that defeated it; nor is proper value given the results achieved, in their far-reaching consequences. Had it succeeded instead of failed, would the con sequences, as affects American liberties, have been for the better or for the worse? This speculation, we who live at the distance of a century and a quar ter afterwards, wherein historical inquiry has been dilligent, can resolve better than could nearer contem poraries with the event. That its success would have been of ultimate advantage to us seems improbable. INTRODUCTION The expedition might have succeeded in its attempt against Quebec. — It narrowly escaped suceeding, according to veracious historians, no less than seven times — to wit : Quebec would have been captured If the expedition had been undertaken earlier, If Enos had not returned, If Arnold's letters had not been intercepted, If Arnold had attacked the city the same night he crossed the river, when, as they say, the St. John's gate stood open and ungarded all night. If Montgomery had not been killed or Arnold wounded early in the assault, thus leaving the army without a head. If Campbell, who was covering Montgomery's rear and im- medi.itely behind him, had pushed on in the assault after Montgomery fell ; or if Morgan's guide had not been killed, leaving the men bewildered in an unfamiliar place, All of which critical chances may be found detailed at length, with much fine writing, in volumes of ability and very eminent esteem. But not one of them is valid or worth a straw as a reason why the expedition failed. The expedition might have captured Quebec, it is true; but when we consider that the object in view was political union with the Canadian colony, we are driven to inquire what effect it would most probably h. ve had in furtherance of that design, and we are led to the trite reflection that a forced union, even half-willing though it may be, inevitable brings dis ruptive tendencies in its train. And when we consider that religious differences were more sharply marked, racial animosities and ambitions impossible to think of MELVIN'S JOURNAL as quite extinguished, though dying out; that igno rance more abounded, here as well as there, and that bigotry of opinion was more bitter at that time than at the present day, we may well doubt whether the American and Canadian people could have continued, even with the very best intentions, mutually to live together for any considerable length of time uninter rupted by internal discord. Before the expedition started, emissaries had been sent into Canada to ascertain the sentiments of the people. Their favorable reports, together with other intelligence previously received, including letters from persons of standing in Montreal, gave the Americans good reason, they supposed, to expect they would be welcomed by a large part of the Canadian people as deliverers from British tyranny, and that many of them were ready on the show of military force, which the invasion would bring in, to declare their sym pathies and join the Americans in a fight for liberty. General Washington's letters of instruction to Arnold imply no less. Whatever were the beliefs or motives of the great body of the American people, such as made up, for the most part, Arnold's rank and file, the leaders knew that they could base reasonable hopes of suc cess only on the favorable disposition of the Cana dians. It is certain that the liberal sentiment was quite strong, especially among the English speaking Canadians, at first ;* but the event proved, that as * Hazen's letter. Washington's WriUngs, vol. Ui, p. 361. INTRODUCTION time passed away, these liberal inclinations became modified, and a change took place in the sentiments of the people of that colony, approaching toward open , hostility at last, and resulting finally in the expulsion of our army out of their country. Canadian historians, to whom we must naturally look for information upon matters so intimate, are clear and explicit on this point and define the trend of popular opinion as a gradual change operating steadily in one direction from first to last. Says the historian Bell : — "In a short time, those people who had been most zealous in the cause of provincial inde pendence began to cool on the subject. The Canadians who joined the American ranks, or who favored the pretensions of Congress began to perceive that they would have to play a sec ondary, even a subserviant part, as the struggle against British domination progressed. The Americans now among them decided everything without consulting the inhabitants; they nomi nated officials, convoked public meetings, etc., without asking Canadian consent upon any oc casion. Presently, the more thinking of the Canadian republicans began to regret that they had been helpful to let loose upon their country a band of armed adventurers, at whose mercy they were, without any proper means of repress ing their excesses. Reflections naturally and promptly arise on all such occasions ; they were In the present case, not unmixed with a feeling of self-humilatlon." Had the expedition been undertaken earlier the Americans might have gained a temporary advantage MELVIN'S JOURNAL in Canada. Students of the revolutionary period generally agree that if the Americans could have gone into Canada early in 1775, with sufficient force to occupy it effectively, the wavering sentiments of the Canadians at that time would probably have set tled to the side of liberty and union with the colonies south of the lakes. But such a view regards political union chiefly as a military achievement, without re flecting whether it was, on other grounds, impracti cable, or the likelihood that it would soon have been dissolved in the discord it would have carried into our councils. Nor should we fail to reckon on the prob ability of intrigue that the event might have precipi- tated upon us. Responsive to inevitable complaints from the large landed proprietors and nobility of the French regime, who under republican liberty would have been curtailed of privilege in Canada, the sen timent of the French court might easily have been influenced against us. And without the help of France we could not have achieved our independence. That the court of France was not wholly disinter ested in its assistance of the American colonies may be discreetly allowed without the least ingratitude for favors rendered.* But losing Canada early in the war, France was less embarrassed by the circum stances, and therefore, more ready to help us, as she • See "Franklin In France," Franklin's letters and letters of Adams and Arthur Lee. An interesting article, also, In the Penn. Hist. Soc. Magazine, entitled "Count Beaumarch- aise and the Lost Million." INTRODUCTION did, later on ; at first secretly, later by avowed neu trality, and still later by a recognition of our inde pendence. Thus the loss of Canada became a double gain to us, for without acrimonious debate in Congress consequent upon Canadian participation in our coun cils — our Congress already clamoring for the repeal of the Quebec Act,* which the French Canadians would never have consented to repeal — we did not deliberately antagonize French sentiment, and risk the loss of our French allies, nor by such dissensions, risk a sundering of the weak bond that in the begin ning of our national existence held the American colo nies together in a loose confederacy. General Montgomery gave his opinion of the Cana dian situation in a letter written December 28th, four days before the assault upon the city, wherein he lost his life. "We are not to expect a union with Canada," he wrote, "till we have a force in the country sufificient to preserve it against any attempt that may be made for its recovery." This, he said, was not his opinion only but that of "several sensible men well acquainted with this province." Need we look further to find one of the reasons why the Can adian campaign failed? We cannot doubt that pru- • The Continental Congress of 1774 demanded the repeal of the Quebec Act as one of the " statutes impolitic, unjust and cruel, unconstitutional and dangerous and destructive of American rights." At all subsequent meetings of the people as well as In the proceedings of the Congress, this subject la mentioned as one of the grievances of which they had to complain. — [Allen's Hist, of the Am, Rev., p. 312. lO MELVIN'S JOURNAL dent and conservative men of the Canadian colony dreaded to see jtheir country made the theatre of a prolonged and ruinous war; to be overrun by oppos ing armies, perhaps captured and recaptured alter nately, and spoiled by both armies in turn ; and thaj they decided, according to the best wisdom they had, by concluding to remain loyal to the stronger govern ment, the crown. The shifting and uncertain fealty of the Canadians is spoken of by nearly all American writers who treat of Arnold's campaign. In general, the Canadians are spoken of as favoring whichever side, at the moment, seemed most likely to win. But without wider study of the period, we can nowhere arrive at a true con ception of the public state of mind existing on the American side of the line, as well. No one writer has fully depicted it, and we need only say in brief, quoting the words of Mr. Baxter in his volume on the Burgoyne campaign, that the condRion spoken of as regarding Canada was not peculiar to that province alone, and that while a large portion of the American people were ready to make any sacrifices however great for the cause of liberty, another considerable portion was as ready to join the winning side which ever it might be. Lieutenant Digby, in his journal, relates that after the battle of Saratoga, "many of the inhabitants who had come into our lines for pro tection declaring themselves torys, now left us and went over to the Americans. " The diaries of nearly all the British officers contain entries very similar. INTRODUCTION II The uncertain state of mind as indicated, extended even to the men who were serving in the armies. The journals of the Hessian officers record that desert ers from the Continental army came into their camp almost daily ; sometimes in troops of thirty or forty together, bringing their officers along by force. Two hundred and sixty-six came in one day.* When the tide turned, desertions from the British side were as numerous. Burgoyne ordered his Indians to kill every British deserter, and not only kill but scalp. The American army contained thousands of British desert ers, first and last ; men of shifty character, for the most part, whose enlistment was discouraged, after a time. Washington's orders expressing preference for the "American born" had reference to this element. Dr. Senter, in his journal, says that the five men of his boat's crew in the advance up the Kennebec were all deserters, "Three Englishmen, sailors, one old Swiss and one young Scotchman who had deserted from the British army at Boston, as in fact they all had, at one place or another. " Twenty-five tory reg iments recruited in the American colonies, fought against the cause of liberty, while three regiments of Canadians crossed the border and fought to help us win our war for independence. In dispatches from his camp before Quebec, Arnold besought Congress to send into Canada an army of at least five thousand men. Washington would have • "The German Allies," p. 103. 12 MELVIN'S JOURNAL gladly given him the reinforcements he desired had it been in his power, but, as he wrote : — " Since the dissolution of the old army, the progress of raising recruits for the new has been so very slow and Inconsiderable, that five thous and mllltia have been called for the defence of our lines. A great part of these have gone home again, and the rest hpve been Induced to stay with the utmost difficulty and persuasion, though their going would render the holding of the lines truly precarious and hazardous In case of an at tack. In short, I have not a man to spare." Urgent calls were made upon the governments of Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire, and each raised levies of men, but these, when they arrived in Canada eariy in the spring, only served to make good the losses which Arnold's army had sus tained, including those by sickness or expiration of periods of enlistment of his men, and the American force before Quebec never exceeded 1500 effective men. Had we won Canada, we would have exhausted our resources in futile efforts to defend and hold pos session of it, leaving our own countryj meantime, stripped of its natural defenders, an easier prey to the enemy. And we would have lost Canada in the end —and with it all besides. For had we held it even for a time, it is the opinion of historians, the British forces would have been concentrated at New York, to the certain subjugation of the revolted colonies. From the continued occupation of Canada by the INTRODUCTION 13 British, General Burgoyne's campaign in 1777 was a consequence. His campaign terminated in the battle of Saratoga, which Creasey ranks among the "Fif teen Decisive Battles of the World," and says: — " Nor can any military event be said to have exercised more important influence on the future fortunes of mankind than the complete defeat of Burgoyne's expedition in 1777 ; a defeat which rescued the revolted colonies from certain sub jection ; and which by inducing the courts of France and Spain to attack England in their behalf insured the Independence of the United States." Burgoyne's invasion was the best planned British campaign of the entire war. Its beginning was a veritable march of triumph, and his victorious prog ress taxed the utmost resources of the New England colonies to resist. The author of "Franklin in France" says that under repeated appeals the towns of West ern Massachusetts were stripped of their last men. In the next generation, women told stories of their harvesting such crops as had been planted, and the last veterans of the revolution personally remembered by the grandfathers of the present generation of New Englanders were most probably the boys of fifteen who went out in the last call "agin Burgine." We certainly had no men to spare for garrison duty in the province of Quebec. Arnold's expedition failed for obvious reasons and by operation of causes beyond our power to control or counteract in operation. Dr. Senter, the surgeon M MELVIN'S JOURNAL of the expedition, and tent-mate with Arnold in the wilderness march, says, in the quaint phraseology of his journal, it was "a heterogenical concatenation of the most peculiar and unparalleled rebuffs and suffer ings that are perhaps to be found in the annals of any nation," an "ill success, that in any other cause would have induced us to have renounced the princi ples;" sentences expressive of despair of ever under- .standing why it failed ; but that it ought to have succeeded he firmly believed. A writer of a later day, says, more Judicially, in comment upon the unaccountable events in which the history of our Revolutionary period abounds: — "Long and constant research under the sur face, among the papers and documents of the time, and an almost dally study of the events, has convinced me that God rules the affairs of nations as of men ; that He guided the fathers of the Republic amid all their blunders, errors, mistakes and even bigotry; that He let them show the height of their human wisdom and how Inadequate It was to direct the affairs In their charge; and that His adorable will was manifested In a manner contrary to the judg ment of men. , . . Indeed, did I not otherwise believe there was a God, my study of the Ameri can Revolution would convince ine there was a Power obovc that of man's that directed the affolrs of men."— [M, I.J. Grlllin, We cannot doubt God's overruling providence dis pensed American defeat in Canada, and, studying the event with its time and place in history, and try- INTRODUCTION »5 ing to extract proper historic lessons from the same, we will be led to see in it a signal instance of Divine providence in our favor. The invasion of Canada was not in its origin the deliberate purpose of Congress, but it followed as a natural consequence the capture of Ticonderoga.* From the beginning of the revolutionary agitation, Congress had continued to hope that the Canadians would join with the colonists south of the Lakes in common cause against the crown. But British state craft had eariy seen this danger, and forestalled a movement that were otherwise inevitable. "The justice due to the Canadians would have had no effective recognition but for the dawnings of the American revolts; and it may be said that the revolution which saved the free dom of the United States, obliged Great Britain to leave the Canadians the enjoyment of their Institutions and laws, — in other words, to act justly by them, — in order to be able to retain for herself at least one province in the New World."— [Bell's Hist, of Canada, vol ii, p. 105. In 1774, Parliament passed the Quebec Act. This act enlarged the territory of that province by extend ing its boundaries on the south and west, removed • Bancroft's Hist, of the U. S., vol. Ix, p. 175. Canadian historians generally push this Inquiry beyond the point where our historians leave It, Congress made a formal disclaimer In June of any Intention to Invade, but In September follow ing authorized the expedition. Whether the Invaders were an army of deliverance or an army of conquest depends on the point of view. I6 MELVIN'S JOURNAL political disabilities from the Roman Catholics, who comprised nlnc-tentlis of the entire populotlon of the province, and allowed for the support of the Catholic clergy by the tithing system allowed by the French law prior to the English occupation of Canada in 1759. Its passage in Parliament was strongly contested. It passed the House of Lords, but was defeated in the Commons. A numerously signed petition against the bill was presented by a deputation of London merchants, but the king would not grant them an audience, and signed the bill at the very time they were waiting in attendance. From the royalist point of view, this is the most conspicuously wise thing,— perhaps the only really wise thing — that George III was guilty of throughout his entire reign. He was confident, he said, that " it would have the best ef fects, by calming the inquietudes and promoting the well being of our Canadian subjects." In Montreal, a few weeks later, they daubed his statue with mud, and hung a string of rotten pc.tatoes around its neck to represent a rosary ; a placard, also, with a French inscription : "This is the pope of Canada, the English fool." In reality the Quebec Act was a just and equitable measure. Only a true appreciation of the religious prejudices of the time can help us to understand why it was so bitterly opposed. Beside the extension of territory,— which is but barely mentioned in the formal complaints, and cut small figure in the popular esteem, though, in fact, that was the only real griev- INTRODUCTION 17 ance the American colonies had from it, — the Quebec Act, somewhat tardily, granted .to the catholic colo nists of the Canadian province the rights assured to them by the terms of the French capitulation, and it relieved them from the operation of the British Test act, under which no catholic could have any voice in the government. The jurisprudence established by the act, (greatly complained of by our colonists) was a compromise. French civil procedure was to be restored, but English criminal law retained, and the English law of succession to property was to be substituted for the French. Finally, the bill gave to the province a governing council of 17 to 23 members, part catholic part protestant, in whom were vested, in name of the sovereign, but subject to his veto, all needful regulation of government and police. The passage of the act had the effect intended by the ministry. By making Canada in all but name a French colony though under the English crown, the French inhabitants, directed by their natural leaders, the seigneurs of the old regime, were gained over to support the British rule. It settled the question whether the French Canadians should be swallowed up by their English fellow countrymen, or, retaining their language and individuality, should develope side by side with them. Among the English people of the Canadian province the passage of the act was resented as a measure subversive of the Protestant supremacy and opposed to the spirit of their constitution. England itself, was i8 MELVIN'S JOURNAL in a ferment of agitation over the Quebec Act, and a flood of pamphlets issued from the London press. Lord Lyttleton, Wm. Pitt, the Earl of Chatham and Dr. Samuel Johnson, among others, addressed the English speaking portion of the Canadian public in pamphlets written to one another, all to one purpose : continued loyalty to the crown. But in the first resentment of the English Canadians the Quebec Act rankled deeply, and strongly inclined them to join their political fortunes with the New England colo nists, whose hostility to the Catholic religion was possibly, more bitter, even than their own. Probably the American leaders were deceived as to the extent of this disaffection, by the demonstra tions of those English and Canadian-English people who assumed to represent the sentiment of their respective countries. The "Appeal to the People of Great Britain" which Congress ill-advisedly issued, was addressed to a sentiment which had its expres sion, across the ocean, in that procession of London merchants. Lord Mayor at its head, to wait upon the king with a protest against the passage of the Quebec Act ; and in Montreal, the king's statue daubed with mud, its potato rosary and its placard, " Voila le pape du Canada, le sot Anglais." But in a province over whelmingly French and catholic, such a sentiment must always have been in a minority. Among the New England colonists the Quebec Act was held to be an added cause for rebellion. Though it would seem at first sight that the operation of this INTRODUCTION 19 act could not possibly affect the interests of the colo nies south of the Lakes, yet it was so managed as to leave a conviction in the minds of all the colonists that the fate of Quebec was but a prelude to their own." Hostility to the Catholic religion, was, without any question, one of the causes of the American Rev olution. Mr. Griffin of Philadelphia, whose. opinion as a student of the period is entitled to some respect, regards it as the cliief cause, and says: "Though there was justifiable resistance to unjust laws about. to be imposed upon the colonies, these did not move the great body of the people. But when the Quebec Act was passed and they were told by their preachers that it 'established Popery' [it certainly did] in Can ada, and tliat it was the design of the ministry to use the Canadians as 'fit instruments',! then the people rushed to their guns and then rushed to Canada." The records of the period, newspaper articles, ser mons, pamphlet and broadside literature are evidence that great disquietude existed throughout New Eng- ? Allen's Hist, of the Am. Rev., p. 206. t In the Detl.-iration of Rights adopted by the American colonists Oct. 4, 1774. the Q^iebec Act was complained of "Kor esl.Tblishing the Catholic religion in the province of Q^iebec, .-ibolishing the equitable system of English laws, nnd erecting n tyranny there to the great danger of the neighbor ing colonies," and In similar terms it was complained of In the Articles of Association adopted Oct. 20. 1774, and again, without naming the net. In the Declaration of Independence, as follows: "For abolishing the free system of English law in a neighboring province, establishing therein an arbitrary government and enlarging its boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these colonies." 20 MELVIN'S JOURNAL land from this cause alone.* Congress formally de clared itself in addressing an "Appeal to the People of Great Britain," inveighing against the French jurisprudence and Roman Catholicism in unmeasured terms. "Nor can we suppress our astonishment," it was added in conclusion, "that a British pariiament should ever consent to establish in that colony a relig ion that often drenched your island in blood, and has disseminated impiety, bigotry, persecution, murder and rebellion through every part of the world." "This strain of language we should designate as fanatical, had it been sincerely conceived, but It was simply insensate as proceeding from men then about to call upon the Canadians to join them in achieving colonial independence. That part of the Philadelphian demonstration became a dead letter in Britain, yet perhaps, was the means of losing Canada to the confederates ; such a declaration against French laws and Cath olicism necessarily armed against the Congress the Canadian people, while it violated those rules of eternal justice on which the Americans professed to base their recognition of the "rights of man." — [Bell's Hist, of Canada. * One of the popular broadsides of the day was a spurious letter addressed to L'Main, French officer. It was considered so important as a manifestation of the hostile spirit of the Canadian catholics animated by French ulterior design, that It was printed as an "extra" to the Boston Post, Sept. 8, 1775, — just one week before Arnold's expedition started. The document is manifestly fraudulent, but was probably unques tioned at the time. What effect Its circulation among the people had In determining the invasion of Canada can only be conjectured.— [Am. Journal of Cath. Research, vol. xvll. INTRODUCTION 21 At the first the Canadian people, both French and English, were lukewarm in their support of the British government. They were reluctant to bear arms, even to resist invasion,* and the most liberal offers of pay had to be made to recruit the ranks of the militia, t The popular sentiment was unmistakably indifference toward the government. Governor Carleton's letters lament the situation. In one he regrets that the pro vince is not again under the old French law by which the people could be compelled to do military service which as English freemen they had liberty to refuse. " Only the gentry of the better sort and the clergy are with us," wrote Governor Carieton early in 1775, and this condition was practically unchanged up to within a few weeks of Arnold's appearance before Quebec. Had he arrived a fortnight earlier, the city • The habitans for the most part were determined to remain neutral. Nevertheless, we may say that to them we owe the Canadas; for without the few hundred French Canadians who did rally to the British flag, and without the neutrality of their countrymen, Qiiebec must have fallen. By refusing to join the rebels the habitans fought England's battle." — [Roberts' Hist, of Canada, p. 187. t The following proclamation was found by Arnold's men posted on. the chapel door at Point Levi. " Conditions to be given to such soldiers as shall engage in the Royal Highland Emigrants. They are to engage during the present troubles in North America only. Each soldier is to have 200 acres of land in any province in North • America he may think proper, the king to pay the patent fees and surveyor-general, besides twenty years free of quit rent. Each married man gets fifty acres for his wife and fifty for each child on the same terms, and as a gratuity besides the aboVe great terms, one guinea levy money. Allan McLean, Lt. Col. Command't." 22 MELVIN'S JOURNAL might have been taken easily, perhaps without the firing of a gun on either side, for he would have found it without adequate defence, the sentiment of the people somewhat wavering, but in the main inclined to favor the Americans, and the entire garrison at that time consisted of only fifty men. Carieton him self with all the Quebec garrison that he dared to spare, had gone forward to the relief of Montreal, beseiged by the Continental army, and the river behind him was guarded by a fleet of captured British war ships that had surrendered to the Americans a few days before. Arnold's approach became known to the Quebec government through an intercepted letter which he dispatched by an Indian messenger from his head quarters on the Dead River. The Indian proved treacherous and delivered it to Lieutenant-Governor Cramahe in Governor Carieton 's absence. Thus Arnold lost the advantage of a surprise, and the lieu tenant-governor, forewarned, prepared to cope with a dangerous situation. His efforts, too, were strangely seconded, assistance coming in the nick of time and unexpected. A ship which arrived from Newfound land brought a company of about one hundred car penters who were put at work at once strengthening the defences of the city, and on the very day of Arnold's arrival at Point Levi, Colonel Allan McLean with his new regiment of Highland Emigrants came to Cramahe's relief. The city was declared under martial law, and Colonel McLean rendered effective INTRODUCTION 23 services at this critical time by dispersing revolution ary meetings of the people, and promptly quelled incipient rebellion among the Quebec citizens. When Arnold, with what remained of his detach ment, the men travel-worn and brokeh down with the hardships of their terrible march through the wilderness, arrived at Point Levi, he found that all means of crossing the river had been removed ; the boats usually kept on the Point Levi side sent across the river or stove upon the beach. Four days were lost in collecting boats to make the passage across, the little army in full view from the Quebec citadel. Taking advantage of a dark night, five days later. Governor Carieton secretly left Montreal, and with six men rowing in an open boat, ran the blockade of the fleet and made his way down the river to Quebec, passing Arnold's army, which meanwhile had crossed the river and deployed before Quebec, and then, disappointed in the hope of an uprising of the people in their favor, had fallen back to Ash Point, twenty miles up river, to wait for Montgomery's reinforce ment With Carieton's arrival in Quebec, every resource of executive command was put in force to infuse a spirit of loyalty among the people. Persons suspected were warned, and outspoken sympathizers with the Americans were expelled from the city. The governor's proclamation of expulsion, directed against all who refused to enroll themselves, was "done into verse," true to the main facts, by some genius of the American camp, as follows : — 24 MELVIN'S JOURNAL GOD SAVE THE KING. • Whereas I'm chased from place to place. By rebels void of sense and grace ; Crown Point, Montreal, Chamblee, By Arnold and Montgomery, From George and Peter are set free. In spite of Indians, Devil and me ! Inarms before our'walls, they reckon With bombs and shells to fall Qiiebec on, To burn our Saints and hang our Bishop And spoil all business done at his shop : Whereas also, (curse on such catho- Lics as those, they stir my wrath so) Some wont and some who did enlist and carry arms, of late, desist; Of which vile miscreants this city Ridded must be, let who will pity. Within four days, or, by St. Louis! They'l find that what I now say true Is; Before they've counted o'er their beads or paid the Priest or said their creeds, As spies or rebels up I'll string 'em Till to their senses I can bring 'em ; Each one who wont swear he's a tory, I swear shall go to Purgatory, There to reform in limbo palrum, And those who blame me may go a'ter 'em. Let those who go take wife and children, And haste forthwith into the wildern- Ess most savages, God knows, They'l find for cheer frost, ice and snows ; Leaving behind all their provision, Which I long since have had my wish on ; And George Alsop, my Commissary Shall take thereof true inventory. Given at St. Louis Castle, in Quebec, the year of George sixteen. Of Britain, France and Ireland King, (Of Rome) the faith's defender being, And so forth — by me GUY CARLETON, Kennelled and toothless yet I snarl on. Witness, Henry T. Crahame, My Catholic liege Secretary. Thus ends our Bi;ll, and ten to one on't Some Yankee'll get It and make fun on't. INTRODUCTION 25 By such strict measures, the garrison was recruited finally to 1 500 men, the city put in strong defensible condition and provisioned to withstand the expected siege. Arnold, in a letter to Congress, declares : — " I am well assured that more than one-half of the Inhabitants of Quebec would gladly open the gates to us, but are prevented by the strict discipline and watch kept over them ; the com mand of the guards being constantly given to officers of the crown known to be firm in their Interest, The garrison consists of about fifteen hundred men, the greater part of whom Gov ernor Carieton can put no confidence in, or he would not suffer a blockade and every distress of a siege, by seven hundred men, our force consisting of no more at present, including Colonel Livingston's regiment of two hundred Canadians." Prudential considerations operated with increasing force among the Canadians as the campaign pro gressed. Where at the first, as we learn from the journals of British officers in Quebec, the government could rely only upon about 140 men in the whole population of that city to loyally support the efforts of the garrison, there grew up toward the last, after the assault had been attempted and had failed, a practical unanimity of loyal sentiment. Men of all conditions, rich and poor, enrolled themselves and were ready to take up arms, if called upon. The habitans of the country outside the city, however, for the most part, maintained their attitude of stub- 26 MELVIN'S JOURNAL born neutrality. The American cause made no pro gress among them, but on the contrary, lost ground, day by day. Toward spring the Canadians would no longer accept the paper money of Congress, their priests refused to confess those who joined the rebels, and the refusal of priestly sanction continued a pow erful factor In the contest. Moreover, the Americans disheartened at the discouraging outlook became less careful to conciliate the people. "They have thrown off in a measure, " says the journal of a British officer, "that pretence of justice which they at first paraded, and now enforce some pretty harsh commands." By this time it was plainly evident that the Canadians had experienced a change of heart. It has been questioned, discursively perhaps, whether the invasion of Canada was justified by the circumstances. Governor Carieton is reported to have put this question to the prisoners brought before him in a body after the American retreat : "My poor lads," said he, "why have you come to trouble a man in his government who never troubled you?" The noble generosity of Governor Carieton in feeding and clothing these poor prisoners, providing medicine for the sick and finally sending them home free, at his own expense, is creditable to the goodness of his heart. But it has been set up in answer to his ques tion, that emissaries from Canada were busy among the Indians inciting them against the Americans, and that the governor's own proclamation, in which he denounced the colonists south of the Lakes as rebels, INTRODUCTION 27 was a token of belligerency that justified hostile acts against the Canadian government as against the crown itself. But a stronger reason than these will probably be found in the conviction, shared by all the colonists, that the possession of Canada was indispensible to success. It was a deep rooted belief, grown rank in the soil of hard experience ; a tradition of the English settle ments in this country, which for a century and a half before the English conquest had been exposed to and had suffered countless inroads from the French and Indians across the northern boundary, that peace and security were impossible while any rival nation held possession of the St. Lawrence and the Lakes, gate ways to the interior of the country. Hence every effort was made to win the Canadas, but every effort failed. Even after the failure of the campaign and the disastrous repulse of our army were foregone conclusion.s, Congress sent commissioners to negotiate — for neutrality at least. Benjamin Franklin, Samuel Chase and Charies Carroll were the commissioners; three of the most eminent men in the colonies. With Charles Carroll was associated, by a special resolve of Congress, his brother John, the Catholic archbishop of Baltimore. Congress had before this time seen the error of its denunciation of catholics, and rested some hopes' in this embassy. In Canada the commissioners received the courtesy due to them personally as eminent Americans, but they effected nothing. Franklin, then 28 MELVIN'S JOURNAL an old man, and made ill by the fatigues of the jour ney, remained but ten days. In the negotiations which the commissioners attempted, the Catholic bishops of Canada were prominent, and their formal answer to the last proposal closed the proceedings. "Upon the principle that fidelity is due for protec- tion,"said they, "the clergy cannot in conscience decide that recommending neutrality in the case would be compatible with their duty to the estab lished government." The proceedings fully demonstrated what, in fact, has never been denied by anybody, that the Catholic church was chief among the forces that kept Quebec loyal to the crown. Canadian writers have recorded this for fact. Catholic prelates admit it. No longer ago than January 1900, Archbishop Begin of Quebec, writing an open letter to Monseignor P. Bruchasi, archbishop of Montreal, published in "La Verite" of Quebec, said : — " Need I recall here Mgr. Briand, who occupy ing the See of Quebec at the turning point in the history of New France, living alternately under the banner of the Fleur de lis and again under the British standard, loyal at first to the former until, when on the plains of Abraham, all save honor was lost, and then generously transferring to the latter the homage of entire loyalty, used all his sacred influence during the terrible days of 1775 to keep Canada faithful to her new masters. And nevertheless, God knows how hard the temptation must be to the children of France In America to unite their fate to the INTRODUCTION 29 children of Albion less scrupulous, less loyal and more easily pardoned for a revolt real and effica cious than we are to-day for a fanciful disloyalty. If the Catholic emissaries of the United States, if the impassioned appeal of the French officers who served the cause of American independence could not triumph over the last revolt of the Canadian people, It is because the voice of the head of the Church in Quebec invokes the sacred principles of respect due to the ruling authority, and stigmatizing with the name of 'rebels' those who allowed themselves to be allured, opposed to the revolution an Insuperable barrier. And England, despoiled of the richest portion of her heritage in America, owed to a French Bishop the conservation of the country of Canada." We need not go beyond this word to find the fin ally decisive reason why Arnold's expedition failed. Other reasons have been offered by writers who have studied the Canadian campaign from a military point of view, — Enos' defection, the loss of provisions and consequent privations of the march, the betrayal of Arnold's plans in his intercepted letters, etc., — these and many other accidents were contributoiy to and hastened the end, but the real reasons for the failure of the liberal cause in Canada, were social and politi cal ones, to be sought for in the political relations of the period rather than in the military records of the campaign. We know that the Canadians were well disposed toward liberty at first, and that their senti ments changed as they came to see the incompati bility of our plans with theirs. They sympathized 30 MELVIN'S JOURNAL with us to some extent, but in fact, ihey had less cause for a revolt than we. And they decided to continue as they had been before ; and after the patience of both sides had been severely tried by the invasion, they expressed few regrets at our departure when the English reinforcements arrived and drove us home. "The ereat joy expressed by the Inhabitants on our In forming tnem what a large body of troops we had coming to their relief Is not to be described." — [Lieut. Digby's Journal. " 6th of May, 1776. God be praised that we are at liberty again to breathe tlie air of the country. The rebels stole In upon us through the woods ; a dreadful panic seized them and they left us precipitately," — [Journal of an Officer of the Ramparts. Jame^ Met'Vin. Patriotism is the tove of home and family, translated and made large. It is that feeling of the heart •which makes us lo'be the "oery spot of ground our infant feet first trod; •where •we first drew in the breath of air. It is of Go^s implanting f a part of the 1>fvine plan for the . L^^ r '" [ir^..,.,^,f. r CA^ILl:OF i>T. Lol'iS, yUEBEC. Journals* Cambridge, September 13, 1775. This day being Wednesday, marched from Cam bridge in Capt. Dearborn's company, destined for Quebec, and were to embark at Newburyport for Kennebec river. We lodged in Medford. It is doubtful if Melvin marched from Cambridge in Dear born's company, but more probable in one of the Massachu setts companies in the same battalion. He became attached to Dearborn's company, however, early in the march, at Fort Western probably, where the boatmen were selected for each company without much regard as to what company they belonged to. Dearborn's men were most of them from the New Hampshire farms and he probably had few boatmen among them. Melvin's journal begins to agree with Dear born's at Fort Western and continues. As would be natural, when he wrote his journal he made it correspond with the main part of his service. Sept. 14. Received one month's pay, and marched to Lynn ; lodged at Porter's tavern. " 15. Marched to Ipswich. 42 MELVIN'S JOURNAL Sept i6. Marched to Newburyport ; the company were quartered in a rope walk. " 17. Sunday — The detachment went to meet ing, f " 18. P. M. — Embarked on board a schooner of seventy-five tons ; the whole were embarked in eleven vessels. 19. About 10 o'clock sailed out of thft harbor. and stood on and off, waiting for one of t\._ vessels which got aground, and not getting off, the men were put on board the other vessels, and we sailed in the afternoon, with a fair wind and pleasant weather ; at night it grew thick and foggy, with rain, thunder and lightning and blowed fresh. "The sloop Swallow struck a rock, where she stuck, on board of which was Capt. Scott's company who were distrib uted among the fleet, and Capt. Hendrick's company of rifle men, together with mine which were on board the Broad Bay." — [Capt. Thayer's Journal. " 20. In the morning, foggy and wet; lay too part of the night ; at daybreak two of our fleet were in sight and we made sail and stood in for the shore. Blowed fresh — we made Seguin. They entered the mouth of the river and waited for the other vessels of the fleet, all of which except the sloops Con way and Abigail arrived during the forenoon. Proceeded up the river. Major Meigs, made the voyage on board the sloop Britan nia. In his journal he says, that when they entered the mouth of the river, on the morning of the 20th, they were hailed from the shore by a number of men under arms sta tioned there belonging to the Continental army. On re quest for a pilot, they immediately sent one on board. THE JOURNAL 43 Sept. 21. Saw two of our vessels coming out of Sheepsgut river into Kennebeck. We proceeded up the river as far as the tide would permit, and came to anchor within six miles of Fort Western. The sloops Conway and Abigail had run past the mouth of the river in the night and entered it through the Sheepscot entrance. Thayer says the sight of these missing vessels gave him great satisfaction "on board of which were Capt. Topham's and my companies." The fleet anchored opposite the present town of Dresden, where at Agry's Point the batteaux for the use of the ex pedition were in process of building. Arnold's flag-ship, a topsail schooner named the Broad Bay went on up to the head of tide about six miles above, and came to anchor a little way below Fort Western. In the course of the day and day following, most of the other vessels moved a little further up. Dr. Senter left the Broad Bay at Gardiner and went up to Fort Western by land ; "the distance five miles though most of the way was destitute of any road." This gives a good idea of the Kennebec settlement at that time. From the mouth of the river to Norridgewalk there were not over five hundred settlers, about half this number being at Pownal- boro, where was a block house, a court house, jail, etc. " 23. Arrived at Fort Western. One James McCormick shot Sergeant Bishop. " 25. McCormick was found guilty. " 26. He was brought to the gallows and re prieved. McCormick was a North Yarmouth man, drafted from Col. Scamman's regiment. He was an ignorant and simple person and bore in the company to which he belonged the character of a peacable man. His crime was the result of a quarrel In which he was put out of a house where some soldiers were quartered for the night. He fired his gun through the door of the house and killed a man lying by the fireside. The evidence against McCormick was circumstantial only, and he persisted in declaring his Innocence until he was brought under the gallows when he confessed. He was reprlved and sent back to Cambridge, where he died In prison. 44 MELVIN'S JOURNAL Sept. 27. Got our provision into batteaux, and went atrout four miles. The detachment remained four days at Fort Western trans ferring their equipment to batteaux, for the advance through the wilderness. "The battalion formation was broken up, and the troops were divided Into four divisions. On the 24th, a scouting party of ten men under command of Lieut. Steele, which Included two local guides acquainted with the river up as far as the twelve mile carry, were sent forward In birch bark canoes to find and mark the route beyond that carry to the Chaudiere river. Twenty-four hours later, the companies of riflemen went forward: their camp equippage, etc., in batteaux, with a few men in each boat to handle it, the other, larger part of the men marching on the river bank. Follow ing them one day later, and in the same order, went the main body of three companies. Colonel Arnold, Lieut. Col. Green, Surgeon Senter, Chaplain Spring and several unattached volunteers being in this division; and the next day follow ing, the third division, four companies, under command of Major Meigs. The fourth division of three companies under Lieut. Col. Enos, started the next day, carrying the bulk of the supplies, and brought up the rear. On the march, this order was not always preserved ; the divisions sometimes overtaking and passing each other on the route. The advance and main divisions made good pro gress, but Enos' division always lagged. Days were lost In waiting for him to come up, messengers were sent back to hurry him to bring up supplies, but his division, as a whole, never rejoined the advance above the twelve mile carry. At the Dead River they abandoned the expedition and inglo rious ly returned. " 28. Proceeded up the river and found the water shoal which caused a rapid current, and we were obliged often to get out and wade, pulling the boat after us. " 30. Arrived at Fort Halifax, where was the first carrying place ; the land here is better than that nearer the sea. We carried over our batteaux and provisions ; the carrying place is opposite the fort. THE JOURNAL 45 Oct'r I. Proceeded up the river; encamped in the " 2. woods ; went about ten miles. Cold and rainy. " 3. Came to Scowhegan falls; the carrying place is about forty rods over a little island. " 4. Went up to Bumazees Ripples and came to Norridgewalk. The carrying place is about a mile in length. We had oxen to haul over our provision. Our batteaux were caulked. We were now to take our leave of houses and settlements, of which we saw no more, except one Indian wigwam, 'till we came among the French in Canada. The Indian wigwam spoken of was on the Dead river and belonged to Natanis, an Indian whom Arnold was informed wrongly was a British spy, and accordingly had instructed the advance scouting party to capture or kill. He was too wary for them, however, and later, proved a friend. " 6. Left Norridgewalk ; went about five miles. At Norridgewalk we saw the vestiges of an Indian fort and chapel and a priests grave. There appears to have been some Intrenchments, and a covered way through the bank of the river for the convenience of getting water. This must have been a considerable seat of the nation, as there are large Indian fields cleared.— [Major Meigs' Journal. The grave, now marked by a monument, Is that of Rev. Fr. Sebastian Rasles, who was killed In the surprlsal of that place in 1724. See Mass. Colonial Records, vol. viil, p. 71. " 7. Went about twelve miles and encamped. The land here is level and good ; the river rapid. " 8. Proceeded up the river and encamped about five miles below the falls. " 9. Arrived at the great carrying place, where was a log house built for the sick. 46 MELVIN'S JOURNAL Oct. 10. Mr. Spring, our chaplain, went to pray- ers ; we went to the first pond, four miles from the river ; it blowed hard, and one of the men was killed by the falling of a tree. " II. Crossed the first pond about three-quar ters of a mile over ; here is plenty of fine trout. " 12. There was a log house built on the first carrying-place, between the first and second ponds. For five days Major Meigs, with a detail of ten men from each of his companies, superintended the passage of troops across the twelve mile carry and the building of a block house between the first and second ponds for the reception of the sick, who had now Increased to a very formidable number. Another blockhouse had been already erected on the Kenne bec side of the first portage. The first blockhouse became known as Fort Meigs and the second as "Arnold's Hospital," and was no sooner finished than filled. — [Codman, " 13. Crossed the carrying-place from this pond to another ; the carrying-place is about one mile over. " 14. Crossed the pond about half a mile over, and got over the carrying-place about one and a half miles in length ; the woods are cedai and hemlock. " 16. Crossed the third pond, about one and a half miles over. We got over the fourth carrying- place, four and a half miles in length ; part of the way over a boggy swamp, overgrown with white moss and bushes, which seemed half withered ; found it difficult getting over our batteaux and barrels, sink- ing knee deep in moss and mud. We launched our batteaux into a small creek which enters Dead river. " 17. Went eighteen miles up the Dead river. THE JOURNAL 47 Oct. 1 8. Overtook Colonel Green and his party about twenty-five miles up Dead river ; had orders to put ourselves in a defensive condition. Green's division had arrived three days before, and being already short of provisions, were waiting tor Enos to come up with supplies. To keep the men out of idleness they were set at work making cartridges, filling powder horns, etc. Arnold himself had gone forward with Morgan in advance. Green's division waited six days here. On the morning of the i6th they had but six pounds of flour to each company. Four batteaux and thirty-two men from each company (12 batteaux and 96 men) were detached the next day to go back to the rear and fetch up provisions, and on the afternoon of the 2ist came back with two barrels of flour only; all they could get. Captain Thayer, whose company was in Green's division, made the following entry In his journal under this date : — "Now we found ourselves In a distressed and famished situation, without provisions and no hopes of getting any till we reached Sartlgan. Having no other view now but to proceed to Canada (or retreat) we concluded to send back such as were not able to do duty." " 19. Had orders to march, and went about five miles. Meigs' division went forward leaving Green's at the en campment. " 20. Rained all last night and this day. " 21. Marched through hideous woods and moun tains for the most part, but sometimes on the banks of the river, which is very rapid. During the morning of the 2i8t, the rain Increased In violence and the river rose. . next morning the encampment become flooded and untenantable. The river had risen three feet . . . Barrels of powder, pork and other supplies had been washed ofi the bank and carried down stream. The storm abated, but the river continued to swell In volume. It finally rose the unparalleled height of nine feet overflowed Its banks and spread through the forest intervales in low places for a mile or more on either side. Smith's company or rifle- 48 MELVIN'S JOURNAL men were encamped on a bank eight or ten feet above the river. The water rose so suddenly In the darkness, that the first notice of their danger was toward morning, when the water swept under their shelters and carried away most of their provisions and camp equipment. — [Codman. Oct 23. Captain Handshill and sixty men went forward with ten days provisions; about forty sick and weak men went back with only two or three days' provisions. The river here is narrow and excessive rapid. A council was called and Capt. Hanchett with sixty men was sent forward to purchase provisions of the Canadians if possible. The sick and weak men were sent back. Hanchett, with his detail, mistook the course and got into a swamp where they wandered around, waist-deep in water, until Arnold sent batteaux for their relief. The advance companies arrived at Sartlgan ahead of them. " 24. Continued our march though slowly. " 25. Hear that Colonel Innis' division are gone back. The desertion of Enos was known by a portion of the army as early as the 23d, Morgan's division did not hear of It until the 27th. Either through a false construction of his order, or wilful disobedience, he returned to Cambridge with his whole division. His appearance excited the greatest Indigna tion in the Continental camp, and Enos wasTooked upon as a traitor for thus deserting his companions, and endangering the whole expedition — [Lossing]. e was tried by a court martial and made an ingenious defense, his witnesses being his own officers all of whom were in favor of returning. By their testimony, it being proved that he was short of provision and that had he gone on the whole detiichment would most likely have perished, he was acquitted; but he was never restored in public estimation. Enos and most of his officers continued in the service. Arnold's letter to Washington, Feb. 27, speaks of "uneasiness among the officers, who think themselves neglected in the new arrangement, while those who deserted the cause and went home last fall have been promoted." Senter, Thayer, Meigs, Dearborn and Henry in THE JOURNAL 49 their journals, load Enos ^vith the bitterest reproaches. Enos retorted fiercely upon his critics through the public press, and obtained endorsement of his course from many otf.crrs of the army. There was something to be said on both sides of the question, no doubt. Enos' return march was by land route from Fort Western, there being no transports in waiting there. He marched through Brunswick, Yarmouth, Falmouth, across Stroud- water bridge and through towns along the route to Cam bridge, everywhere questioned, suspected and treated with disdain, Oct 26. Oossed the fifth carr\ing-place, which brought us to the first pond leading to Chadeur river. " 27. Crossed the second carrying-place, three- quarters of a mile, then crossed second pond, then third carrying-place and third pond, then fourth carry ing place and fourth pond, and encamped. " 28. Came down Chadeur ri\er in a birch canoe, and v-ent to fetch back a batteau to carry the men aaoss a river, but could not overtake them. The company were ten miles, wading knee-deep among alders, etc, the greatest part of the way, and came to a river which had overflown the land. We stopped some time not knowing what to do, and at last were obliged to wade through it, the ground giv ing way under us at every step. We got on a little knoll of land and went ten miles, where we were obliged to stay, night coming on, and we were all cold and wet; one man fainted in the water with fatigue and cold, but was helped along. We had to wade into the water and chop down trees, fetch the wood out of the water after dark to make a fire to dry ourselves; however, at last we got a fire, and after 50 MELVIN'S JOURNAL eating a mouthful of pork, laid ourselves down to sleep round the fire, the water surrounding us close to our heads; if it had rained hard it would have overflown the place we were in. Capt. Goodrich's company had only three-quarters of a pound of pork, each man, and a barrel of flour among the whole. They ordered the batteaux to proceed down the river with the flour, and when they came to the place above mentioned, waded through. They came to the knoll of land be fore mentioned, and made a fire to dry themselves, being almost perished. After some time they marched and found the difficulty increasing, being informed they must return the way they came, being night, they camped on the dryest spot they could find. " 29. Being Sunday: crossed a river after much fatigue and loss of time, in a birch canoe, and then waded to another river, about forty rods from the first which we crossed last night. 1 lay at a bark house, and this morning went in the canoe to ferry over the people over the two rivers above-mentioned, leaving my provisions behind, as did Captain Dearborn and the three other officers. After we got over these rivers. Captain Dearborn, steering by a bad compass, went wrong about two miles, the company following, and we went back again, then went two or three miles to a little bark house, where I had left my pro- The passage across these rivers occupied nearly the entire day as there were but two boats, one of them a bark canoe, and more than two hundred men to cross. Melvin probably took his turn with the other men in ferrying his comrades across. THE JOURNAL 51 vision, and on coming there found that our provisions was stolen by Captain Morgan's company. Good rich's company came to the lower end of Chadeur ¦pond expecting to find their batteau with the flour, but were disappointed. " 30. ! set out in a birch bark canoe with Capt. Dearborn and Capt. Ayres. We proceeded to t,he lower end of the pond, where Captain Dearborn left the canoe, and Captain Ayres and 1 proceeded down Chadeur river, about three miles, and came to a rip- ley place, which was very dangerous, the rocks' standing up all over the river. Here a boat was stove, with four men, and one man drowned, named George Inriis. I got safe down this plaCe, and from bad to worse ; proceeded till night, and encamped with the company. Goodrich's company set out eariy, though on empty stomachs, and marched about ten miles in hopes to overtake their batteau with the flour, but coming "to a small creek; they found an advertisement set up, informing them that their bat teau was stove and the flour lost, and the men with difficulty having saved their lives. This was melan choly news to them, having eaten scarcely anything for several days, and having waded through ice and Ayres was captain of the pioneer corps, not a commissioned officer. All the boats that had attempted to come down had overset except Colo. Arnold's and mine. The number of boats that was overset here was ten, one man was drown'd and a great quantity of baggage and guns were lost. — [Capt. Dearborn's Journal. 52 MELVIN'S JOURNAL water, and were a great way from any inhabitants, and knew not how far it was. They agreed to part, and the heartiest to push forward as fast as they could. At the head of the Chaudiere it was given out by the offi cers that order would not be required from the soldiery in the march; each man must "put his best foot foremost." Yet the companies, being in the most part either fellow towns men, or from the same county, adhered together, bound by that affectionate attachment which is engendered by the locality of birth or the habitudes of long and severe services, in a communion and endurance of hardships and desperate adventures. We had no path, the river was our guide. One day either the second or third of this march, a mountain jut ting in a most precipitate form into the river compelled us to pass the margin of the stream upon a long log, which had been brought thither by someformer freshet. The bark and limbs of the tree had been worn aw.iy by the rubbings of the ice, and the trunk lay lengthwise along the narrow passage, smooth and slippery, and gorged the pass. This difficulty had collected here a heterogeneous mass of troops, who claimed the right of passage according to the order of coming to it. The log was to be footed, or the water, of the depth of three or four feet was to be waded. There was no alternative. An eastern man, bare-footed, and thinly clad, lean and wretched from abstinence, with his musket in hand, passed the log im mediately before me. His foot slipped and he fell several feet into the water. We passed "n regardless of his fate. Even his immediate friends and comrades, many of whom were on the log at the same moment did not deign to lend him an as sisting hand. Death stared us in the face. I gave him a sin cere sigh at parting, for to lose my place in the file, might have been fatal. This pitiable being died in the wilderness. The hard fate of many others might be recapitulated, but the dreadful tale of incidents, if truly told, would merely serve to lacerate the heart of pity, and harrow up the feelings of the soul of benevolence. Tears many years since have wetted my cheeks, when recollecting the disasters of that unfortunate campaign, the memorable exit of my dearest friends, and of many worthy fellow citizens, whose worth at this time, is embalmed solely in the breasts of their surviving associates. Seven died sheerly from famine ; and many others by dis orders arising from hard service in the wilderness — [Henry. THE JOURNAL 53 Oct. 31. This day 1 took my pack and went by land, all the way, to inhabitants. I was not well, having the flux. We went twenty-one miles. Good rich's company marched three miles and were over taken by Captain Smith, who informed them that Captain Goodrich had left two quarters of a dog for them. They stopped and sent for the meat, but the men returned without finding it ; however, some of them killed another dog which belonged to us, which probably saved some of their lives. Captain Ward's company killed another dog. This dog belonged to Capt. Dearborn. " My dog was very large and a great favorite, I gave him up to several of Capt. Goodrich's company. They carried him to their company, and killed and divided him among those who were suffering most severely with hunger. They ate every part of him, not excepting the entrails." — [Letter of Gen. Dearborn. Nov. I. Continued unwell; this day I ate the last of my provisions; 1 kept with the company, and we went twenty miles. " 2. Traveled four miles; 1 shot a small bird called a sedee, and a squirrel, which I lived upon this day. About noon we met some Frenchmen with cat tle for our army, and some meal in a canoe. 1 had a small piece of meat and bread given me; yesterday my messmates gave away victuals to strangers, but refused me, though they knew I had mine stolen from me. This evening, to our great joy, we arrived at the first French house, where was provisions ready for us. The first victuals I got was boiled rice, which 1 bought of the Indians, giving one shilling and four 54 MELVIN'S JOURNAL pence for about a pint and a half. Here we were joined by about seventy or eighty Indians, all finely omalmented, in their way, with broaches, bracelets and other trinkets, and their faces painted. 1 had gone barefoot these two or three days, and wore my feet sore. At 5 o'clock Lieut. Hutchlns, Ensign Thomas and fifty of my men arrlv'd with Capt. Smith's Company, which were the first company that arrived. Here Col. Arnold had provided provisions for us ogalnst we arrived. We stayed here one night. This morning our men proceeded down the river, though In poor clrtumslnnccs for travelling, a great many of them being barefoot, and the weather cold and snowy. Many of our men died within the last three days. — [Copt. Dear born's Journal. At Harllgon Arnold wan waited unon by a body of Indians accompiinlcd by Interpreter to Inquire his reasons for conjlng among them In a hostile manner. They pretended to be greatly astonished, etc, and addressed him In great pomp, Indian fashion, one of their chiefs delivering an oration with all the air and gesture of an accomplished orator. After this was explained, or translated, Arnold replied, moking a veiy florid speech, us reported, At Its conclusion the Indions ex pressed tliemselvcM satisfied, nnd a number of them, twenty- two according to Dearborn, lolned the expedition nnd look part In the assault upon Quebec, Henry, who never falls to score Arnold when the clinnce offers, says i "thin Is the first Instance In the coiirnc of our revolutionary war, of the em ployment of liuliiiMK In nitiial warfare iignlnut our enemies, I'o be Bure, It was the net of n Jiiiiloreoitunaiulcr, unwnrrnMled, so fnr a« liiin come to my knowlc(lf,'e, by the orilcm of tils nM|icri(jrii ( yet It Neenied to iiiiljiorlzc, In ii small ilegiee, upon the purl of our opponentu, tliiU horrible "Vxletii of agKifixloti which 111 a short time ciiNUcd, and ttsloiilnlicd und disgusted the civilized world," " 3. Snowed all day ; marched about nine miler, when we drawed provisions. " 4. Marched about thirteen miles. THE JOURNAL 55 Nov. 5. Sunday — Marched about twelve miles. Our Colonel went forward and got beef killed for us every ten or twelve miles, and served us potatoes instead of bread. 1 stood sentry over one Flood, who was whipped for stealing Captain Dearborn's pocket- book. This was at St. Mary's. ¦* " 6. Marched twenty miles ; very bad traveling, as it was all the way to Quebec. Twelve miles was through woods, in the night, midleg in mud and snow. 1 traveled the whole day without eating, and could not get any house to lay in, but lodged in a barn all night. Our troops proceeded as fast as possible. They followed the river Chaudeur down from the first inhabitants about 36 miles, and then turned to the eastward, and left the river. Had to pass through a wood 15 miles where there is no inhab itants, and at this time of the year it is terrible traveling, by reason of its being low, swampy land. Our people carried twenty birch canoes across these woods, in order to cross the river St, Lawrence in, — [Capt, Dearborn's Journal. " 7. Marched fifteen miles; snowed all day. My money being gone 1 could get nothing to eat 'till night, when there was an ox killed. " 8. Marched six miles and came to Point Levi, on the river St. Lawrence, opposite Quebec. The main body of our detachment arrived the 9th day of November, but so fatigued that they are very unfit for action. A considerable number of our men are left on the road, sick or worn out with fatigue and hunger, — [Capt, Dearborn's Journal. By the 12th all the detachment had come up. When the men were paraded their appearance was pitiable, Abner Stocking, a private in Hanchett's company, says In his jour nal, that the French peasants, had they not been In a measure 56 MELVIN'S JOURNAL prepared by Arnold, would have fled from their habitation* nt tno sight of such savages emerging from the forests. Geo. Morlson, a private In Hendrick's company, siiys the nimibcr of effective men at this time was 510, and that 70 or 80 had died In the wilderness. — [Codman, Nov. 9. Our people took a prisoner, who was a midshipman^ Continued nt Point Levi; kept guard along the river side, making scaling ladders and col lecting canoes to cross the river, the enemy having broken all the boats they could find. The midshipman was a young lad, named McKensle, brother of Cnpt. McKensle of the Pearl frigate. He hnd come ashore with a boat from the frigate, und the boat drawing off to obtain a better landing, was fired upon by Morgan's men, and drew still further off, out of gun shot range, nnd left young McKensle on the beach, lie attempted 10 swim to the boat, was fired at, and turned toward shore to surrender hIniHcIf a prihoner. Saliatia sprniig forward, scalping knife In hand, and would probably have killed hlin, luit was outrun by Morgan, who brought the boy safe to camp. " 13. In the evening crossed St. Lawrence at the mill above Point Levi, and landed at Wolfe's cove. I went back twice to fetch over the people, and stayed 'till day. The town was alarmed by our Colonel firing at a boat on the river. We went to Major Caldwell's house, about two miles from the city, where we were quartered; a whole company having only one small room. Soon after our landing, a barge from tlie frigate Lizard came rowing up the river. We hailed her and ordered her to come into the shore. On refusing we fired upon them. They pushed off shore, and cried out. — [Maj. Meig's Journal. " 14, One of our sentries was taken by the enemy, which alarmed us ; we expected they were come to give us battle, and the whole detachment THE JOURNAL 57 marched within musquet shot of the walls, but saw none to oppose us ; but when we were turned to go back they fired several cannon shot at us without doing any damage. " 15. The detachment went out on a scout; 1 went on guard at Wolfe's cove. " 17. Went on guard at Wolfe's cove, " 19. I was employed all the fore part of last night in butchering for the army, and about four in the morning got on our march and went to Point aux Trembles, about twenty-six miles above Quebec. We kept guard at the river Caroch. We set a guard of two Lieuts, and 40 men over a river and a Bridge between us and Quebec, A man belonging to Capt, Topham's company who was supposed to be starved to death, returned to-day and informed us that he and Onley Hart kept together for some time, both sick, and wading through tlie rivers. After being 6 days from the height of land. Hart was seized by the cramp and expired shortly after, Burdeen and 5 Riflemen left him dead, and shortly after met another; then espied a horse that strayed away from the man that brought us provisions, which they shot, and eat heartily of the flesh for 3 or 4 Days, with 7 or 8 more that came up; by which means they fortunately escaped the dismal pangs of Death, which they partly endur'd for 7 Days before, not having any kindof nourishment but Roots and black birch bark, whlcifi they boiled and drank , . . . When reflecting on the dismal marches and the famished situation of our troops, it Is wonderful how we were able to endure the hardships with such undaunted courage and steadfastness; and were the Cambridge officers to review our men at present they certainly would sooner prefer the Hospital for them than the field, tho' recruiting fast, and am willing to think, If once clothed and refreshed a little, would be as eager as ever, tho' many having their constitutions Racked, are in such a condition as never to be capable of enduring half what they have done hitherto— [Capt. 'Thayer's Journal. 58 MELVIN'S JOURNAL Nov. 27. Monday — Lt. Hutchins and sixty men went up to meet and convoy a quantity of gunpowder, clothes etc. The clothes were British uniforms, a large quantity of which Montgomery had secured at Montreal. In the attack upon the city the Americans and British were dressed alike and the Americans wore sprigs of hemlock in their hats to distinguish themselves from the enemy. " 28. I went on guard at a bridge, six miles from Quebec; stood sentry two hours and off once every night, where I continued 'till the army came down to Quebec. Dec'r. 3. The cannons were sent down the river in batteaux and landed in the night. " 5, The detachment marched on their way to Quebec. We were quartered in a nunnery, near the town, but it was used for a hospital, and we went over the river St. Charles, where we continued. Dec'r, 5 — I now had orders to take possession of the Gen eral Hospital for the reception of our sick and wounded. This was an elegant building, situate upon St, Charles river, half a mile from St. Roques gate A chapel, nunnery and hos pital wore all under one roof This building was every way fit for the purpose, a fine spacious ward, capable of containing fifty patients. The number of sick was not very considerable at this time, however, they soon grew more numerous, — Dr, Senters' Journal. " 10. Sunday — Busy making scaling ladders, etc. " 25. Had orders to give our opinion whether to scale or not. An assault upon such formidable works seemed to the offi cers so exceptionally hazardous that they felt it just to the men to learn and weigh their sentiments with regard to its advisability. Influenced by the spirited words of Montgom ery, upon the question being put they voted in the affirmative, — [Codman, THE JOURNAL 59 Dec. 26. Turned out to storm the town but it was too light. The troops assembled and were about to march, when there came an order from the General to return to our quarters, by reason of the weather clearing up which rendered it Improper for the attack. — [Capt. Dearborn's Journal. " 31. Sunday. — About four in the morning, were mustered in order to storm the town ; it snowed and stormed and was very dark. Our company had not timely notice of the attack, which occasioned us to be too late, for when the firing began we had a mile and a half to march. We made all possible haste and met Colonel Arnold going back wounded. 1 was on guard in St. Roque that night, and went forward with the main body, and was not with the company. The company went beyond Palace gate, the enemy firing briskly at them from the walls, and killed two or three. The enemy sallied out, and they surren dered, as did all the detachment, except some few who made their escape. We were put into a monas tery among the friars ; at night we had some biscuit distributed among us. We were escorted to a ruinous monastery of the order of St. Francis. It was an Immense quadrangular building, con taining within its interior bounds half an acre or more of area which seemed to be like a garden or shrubbery. , The whole building would have accomodated four thousand men. Many rooms were comfortable, others dilapidated. — [Henry's Narrative. 6o MELVIN'S JOURNAL ^^ccounl of the A^tjauli BY CAPTAIN THAYER. Dec. 31. This Evening received orders that the General determin'd to storm the city this night, ordering our men to get their arms in readiness. It was very dark and snowed. The plan was as follows : Gen'l Montgomery with the York forces, was to proceed around Cape Diamond and make his attack there. Col. Livingston, with a party of Canadians, to make a false attack on the same, and on St. John's Gate. An advanced party of 25 men to go to Drummond's wharf. Col, Arnold's detachment to attack the lower town in the follow ing manner : Capt, Morgan's company in the front, with Col, Arnold and Lieut. Col. Green ; then Capt. Lamb's company with one field piece; then Capt. Dearborn's, Capt, Topham's and mine, and Wards, Bigelow's in the center, then Capt, Smith's, Hendrick's, Goodrichs', Hubbards', and Major Meig's in the Rear, We were to receive the signal by firing of three sky-rockets to attack, but not observing them soon eno', Capt. Dearborn's company, on acct. of being Quartered over Charles river and the tide being high, did not come up, and marched on without him, imagining he would soon overtake us. They fired br'skly upon us as we passed the street for the space of half a mile, killing and wounding numbers of our men, of whom was Capt, Hubbard, who died shortly after In the hospital of Quebec. The front having got lost by a prodigious snow storm, I undertook to pilot them, having measur'd the works before, and knowing the place. But coming to the Barrier, two field pieces played briskly on us that were placed there. But on them drowlngthem back to re-charge, Capt. Morgan and myself Quickly advanced through the Ports, seized them with 50 men rank and file, which wos their main guard, and made Prisoners. Immediately afterwards, advancing toward a Picket, that lay further up the street, where there was a THE JOURNAL 6l company of the most responsible citizens of Quebec, found their Capt. Drunk, took them likewise Prisoners, and taking their dry arms for our own use, and laying ours up in order to dry them, being wet and advancing by which time our whole party got into the first Barrier. We rallied our men, and strove to scale the second. Notwithstanding their utmost efforts, we got some of our ladders up, but were obliged to re treat, our arms being wet, and scarcely one in ten would fire ; whereon some did retreat back to the first Barrier we had taken, and when we came there we found we could not retreat without exposing ourselves to the most imminent Dangers. We had killed in our detachment, Capt. Hendricks, Lieut. Cooper and Lieut. Humphreys, with a number of Privates and in Gen'l. Montgomery's party there was killed the Brave and much to be lamented Gen'l. Montgomery and his aid-de camp McPlierson, Capt. Cheeseman and some Privates. Col. Campbell then took the command, and ordered a retreat, so that the force of the Garrison came upon us ; Capt. Lamb was wounded. There was no possibility of retreating, and they promising us good quarters, we surrendered. Col. Arnold being wounded in the beginning of the action was carried to the General Hospital. The number of us that did not retreat amongst whom Were Col. Greene, Capt. Morgan and a num ber of officers and myself with a number of Privates, after passing the first Barrier, having been for upwards of 4 hours victorious In the Lower town, in fact, and had about 130 prisoners in our possession, fell unhappily the victims of them that a little while before felt the same dismal fate with ourselves, which thinking were the only ones. But to our great surprise, on our coming into the upper town as prison ers, we found Capt. Dearborn and company, who missed his way and advanced to the palace gate, unfortunately and to our astonishment, felt the same fate 4 hours before. The officers that were taken with myself, viz : Lieut. Col. Green; Majors Bigelow and Meigs ; Capts. Morgan, Goodrich, Lockwood, Oswald, Topham, Thayer, Ward, Dearborn, 62 MELVIN'S JOURNAL Lamb, Hanchett and Hubbard, who died of his wounds; Adjutant Steele; Volunteers Duncan, McGuire and Porter- field; Lieuts. Heath, O'Brien, Savage, Compston, Brown, Tisdale, Clark, Humphrey, Webb, Slocum, Shaw, Andrews, Hutchins, Thomas and Nichols, Lieut. McDougall, Adjutant Febiger and Chattin, Quartermaster, were altogether imprisoned on the first of January, being a bad method to begin the new year. However, there was nothing to be done but strive to content ourselves as well as time and place afforded us. Lijt of OfflcTj Kllltd. Brigadier General Montgomery. John McPherson, Aid-de-Camp. Capt, Cheaseman of New York. Capt. Wm. Hendrick of Pensylvanla. Lieut. Humphrey of Virginia. Lieut. Sam'I. Cooper of Connecticut. Offictrj tOoundid. Col. Benedict Arnold, shot through leg; Capt. John Lamb, of New York, shot In cheek bone; Capt. Jonas Hubbard, Worcester, Mass., shot through ankle; Lieut. Archibald Steele, two fingers shot off; Lieut. Tisdale, Massachusetts, shot through right shoulder. -^ The sergeants, copoials and privates killed and wounded according to the best accounts I could obtain, amounted to about one hundred men, the number killed on the spot about 40, The number of sergeants, corporals and privates taken, but not wounded, are about 300,— [Capt Dearborns Journal . THE JOURNAL 63 Heath of General Montgomery. NARRATIVE OF JOHN JOSEPH HENRY, From Wolfe's cove there Is a good beach down to, and oround Cnpe Diamond, The bulwarks of the city came to the edge of the hill above that place. Thence down the side of the river there was a stockade of strong posts, fifteen to twenty feet high, knit together by a stout railing at bottom and top with pins Within this palisade about a hundred yards was another similar palisade^ though it did not run so high up the hill. Again, within this at the distance of about fifty yards stood a block house which took up the space between the foot of the hill and the precipitous bank of the river, leaving only a cart way or pas sage on each side of it. , , , The block house was 40 or 50 feet square ; the lower story contained loop holes for mus kets and the upper story had four or more port holes for can non of large calibre. These guns were charged with grape or canister shot and were pointed toward the avenue of Cape Diamond, Montgomery came. The drowsy or drunken guard did not hear the sawing of the posts of the first palisade. Four posts were sawed so as to admit four men abreast. The column entered. Montgomery accompanied by his aids, McPherson and Cheeseman advanced in front. Arriving at the second palisade the general with his own hands sawed down two of the pickets. These sawed pickets were under the hill and but a few yards from the very point of the rock out of the view and fire of the enemy from the block house. Until our troops advanced to the point, no harm could ensue, but by stones thrown from above. Even now, there had been but an im perfect discovery of the advancing of an enemy, and that only by the intoxicated guard. The guard fled, the general advanced a few paces. A drunken sailor returned to his gun, swearing he would not forsake It while undischarged. Ap- 64 MELVIN'S JOURNAL plying the match, this single discharge deprived us of our excellent commander. His aids, McPherson and Cheeseman and two privates were killed by the same discharge. . . . . . Colonel Campbell, appalled by the death of the general, retreated a llttie way, and pretendedly called a council of officers, who, It Is said, justified his receding from the attack. If, rushing on, as military duty required, ond a brave man would have done, the block house might have been occupied by a small number, and was unassailable from without, but by cannon. From the block house to the center of the lower town, where we were, there was no obstacle to Impede a force so powerful as that under Colonel Campbell, Cowardice, or a wont of good will toward our cause, left us to our miserable fate, . , , Campbell, who was ever after considered as a poltroon in grain, retreated, leaving the bodies of the general, McPherson and Cheeseman, to be devoured by the dogs. The disgust caused among us, as to Campbell, was so great as to create the unchristian wish that he might be hanged. In that desultory period, though he was tried he was acquitted ; that was also the case of Colonel Enos, who deserted us on the Kennebec, There never were two men more worthy of punishment of the most exemplary kind. THE JOURNAL 65 'Pri.soner in Quebec^ January, 1776. January i. We had a straw bed between two, and a blanket each man served to us. We had some porter given us. Snowed in the morning. The merchants of the city obtained leave of the Governor to make the prisoners a "New Year's gift" of a large butt of porter and a proportionate quantity of bread and cheese, " 3. We were ordered to give a list of our names, age, where born, and to what regiment we belonged to. Snowed in the morning. This list was made by Col. McDougal, who reviewed the prisoners and questioned each man personally. " 4. All the old countrymen were called into another room and examined. Snowed in the morning. We were visited by Colonel McLean, attended by many officers, for a peculiar purpose, that is, to ascertain who among us were born in Europe. We had many Irishmen and some Englishmen. — [Henry. " 5. They were called for again, and made to take arms for the king until the 31st May. All the men of British birth were required to enlist In the Royal Highland Emigrant regiment, under threat of being sent to England and tried as traitors. Many enlisted under this constraint, and with the notion that such an oath could not be binding on the conscience, determined to escape at the first opportunity. " 6. Fair weather ; they were taken out. The number of men who "listed In the king's service" was ninety-four, according to the Journal kept by Joseph Ware, 66 MELVIN'S JOURNAL Jan. 7. Some of our people taken with the small pox. Fair weather. " 8. Snowed in the morning. " 9. Very dark weather and snowed. Some more taken with the small pox, and we expr t it will be a general disorder, for we are very thich, nasty and lousy. Our living is salt pork, biscuit, rice and butter, and a sufficient quantity allowed if we were not checked in our weight, by one Dewey, who is appointed our quarter-master-sergeant, to deal out our provisions ; and instead of being our friend, proves our greatest enemy, defrauding us of great part of our provision. We have not above three oz. of pork a day, and not half-pint of rice and two biscuit a day. Dewey took the small pox and died, about a month later. George Mo.-lson mentions this fact In his journal, with evi dent satisfaction. "The Lord of Hosts delivered us out of his hands. He took the small pox which soon swept him off the face of the earth." " 10. Fair, but excessive cold. 1 went to the hospital, having the small pox. " II. A snow storm, lasted two days and nights. " 12. Snowed all day ; cleared at night. " 13. Snowed all day. " 14. Sunday, Fair, but very cold. " 15. An excessive cold snow storm. " 16. Fair weather, snowed all next night. " 17. Snowed all day. " 18. Cloudy and cold; several taken with the small pox, went to the hospital; some of our men's clothes brought into town from our army, but none THE JOURNAL 67 for our company. 1 am now got almost well, having had the small pox lightly. A Frenchman being at the point of death, the nuns came and read over him, afterward the priest came in, then they fetched in a table covered with a white cloth, and lighted two wax candles about three feet long, and set them on the table. The priest put on a white robe over his other garments, and the nuns kneeled down, and the priest stood and read a sentence, and then the nuns a sen- sence, and so they went on some time; then the priest prayed by himself; then the nuns and then the priest again; then they read altogether a spell, and finally the priest alone; then the priest stroked the man's face, and then they took away their candles and tables, etc., and the man died. " 20. Dewey complained of fifteen of our men who had agreed to fight their way out; two of them were put in irons. " 21. Cloudy and cold; cleared in the afternoon. We were ordered to make a return of. all tradesmen among us. About this time two of our company, who were listed into the king's service, made their escape out of town. This day I came out of the hospital. Edward Kavanaugh and Timothy Connor of Smith's com pany. They were on guard duty on the ramparts near Palace gate, and knocking down their companion sentinel leaped off the wall, about 30 feet high, into the snow bank beneath. They were fired at, but escaped unharmed. " 22. Last night our army burnt four of the enemy's vessels. Cloudy and cold; cleared in the afternoon. 68 MELVIN'S JOURNAL Jan. 23 . Cloudy. " 24. Cloudy; snowed in the morning. " 25. Fair weather. " 26. Cloudy and cold. ." 27. Fair weather. " 28. Sunday. Qear and excessive cold. " 31. The time seems very long; no employ- ment. Nothing heard or seen, but playing at cards, swearing, and some playing away all their allowance of victuals; some employ themselves in making wooden spoons, little boxes, etc. ; cloudy. FEBRUARY, 1776. Feb'y. I. Clear. " 2. A pleasant day. " 3. Clear weather. " 4. Sunday, clear and cold. " 5- Cold and windy; snowed at night. " 6. Gear weather. " 7. Thick weather. " 8. Clear and cold. " 9- Cold and snowed. " 10. An excessive bad snow storm; some sen- tries froze dead. " II. Sunday. Cleared up in the night, and was a fair day. " 12. Pleasant weather. Our men take the small pox fast " 13. Fair and cold. " 14. Fair weather. THE JOURNAL 69 Feb. 1 5. Clear weather. One of the men named Parrot, put in irons for calling one of the emigrants a tory. Our army opened a battery. " 16. All the old countrymen brought into prison again, because six of them deserted last night " 18. Sunday; clear weather. " 19. do do. " 20. do do. " 21. Thick weather. " 22. Clear weather. " 23. Cloudy and windy. " 24. Various reports concerning us: some say we shall be sent to England and sold as slaves to some island; others say that we shall be sent to Boston and exchanged; others say that we shall certainly be hanged; but we are in hopes that our people will re lease us by taking the town. " 25. Sunday. Fair weather, " 26. Thick weather. " 27. Snowed in the morning and thawed at night (I day. 28. Snowed in the morning and thawed all 29. Fair and cold. MARCH, 1776. March i. Gear and cold; one Brown put in irons for answering one of the sentries who abused him. " 2. Snowed in the morning; clear and cold all day. 70 MELVIN'S JOURNAL March 3. Sunday. Clear and cold. " 4. Clear. " 5. Cloudy, windy and cold; snowed all night. " 6. Cold weather; hail and rain. " 7. Clear weather. " 8. Clear and cold. " 9. The town was alarmed. " 10. Sunday. " 13. We were removed to the goal, near St. John's gate, which is bombproof. Here we have the liberty of a yard of about a quarter of an acre. " 16. Rained all day. " 17. Sunday, pleasant weather. The guard set over us are old Frenchmen and boys, who are very saucy, telling us we shall be hanged; pointing their bayonets at us; threatening to shoot us for opening a window, or any such trifle. " 18. Pleasant weather. " 19. Snowed. " 20. Snowed in the morning; cleared at night " 21. Clear and cold. The French guard of boys and old men are very saucy — threatening us daily. " 22. Cloudy and cold. " 24. Sunday. Cold and squally. " 25. Clear and cold. " 26. Last night one of our men escaped out . of goal and got clear. About this time a plan was laid for our enlargement, and we prepared to break out and make our escape, by seizing the guard. THE JOURNAL 71 March 27. Clear and cold. " 28. do do. " 29. Gear; a warm sun. " 30. Clear; a warm sun. " 31. Sunday. Snowed; our scheme found out; the sentry hearing some noise in the cellar, search was made, and some suspicion raised that might have passed off had not one of our men, John Hall, dis covered the whole affair, and all the sergeants and corporals were put in irons. Henry gives a detailed account of this plan to escape, occu pying a dozen or more printed pages. George Morison says in brief, "The plan was as follows: We made officers of Our sergeants and formed ourselves into three divisions. The first division was to take the guard that stood over us. The second was to secure the guard at St. John's gate. The third, among whom was the artillery men was to seize the cannon and turn them upon the town. Then we procured a person to go to the army under Col. Arnold, now blockading the place, and notify the colonel of the plot, and signals to be used; but a scoundrel that knew of it, informed the barrack- master. The consequence was that the sergeants were all put In irons, seven in a bolt, and the privates hand-cuffed two and two together. Here we lay, wretched, ragged, and covered with vermin until the 8th of May." APRIL, 1776. April I. Fair weather. This morning the guard turned out and fired some time before the goal; then the, alarm bell rang, and the cannon on the walls were fired in order to draw our army near the walls that they might cut them off with grape shot This day we were almost all in irons. This was a stratagem' of the British officers. A pretended insurrection was enacted, with parties marching from point 72 MELVIN'S JOURNAL to point, firing, shouting etc. to simulate an uprising of the people against the government. They hoped to draw the Americans up near tlie walls where they could be cut down by grape, or captured en masse by a sally from the gates. April 2. Pleasant weather. " 3. Canonnading on both sides. Our army are erecting a battery at Point Levi. Goudy, and rained in the afternoon. " 4. Squally. " 5. Fair weather. " 6. Cloudy and cold. " 7. Sunday. " 8. Cloudy. " 9. Warm weather. " 10. Fair weather. " II. Very windy last night; rained in the after noon. " 12. Cloudy and snowed. " 13. A raw air. " 14. Sunday. Major McKenzie came in and took Captain's Morgan's company out of irons. Clear in the morning; cloudy almost all day. " 15. This day the Yorkers time was out, and they wanted to go home, but were compelled to stay. Refers to the New York men among the prisoners, 39 In number, belonging to Lamb's artillery. According to Arnold's returns of the troops before Quebec on the 30th of March, 786 men were on the sick list out of 2,505, most of whom were grievo jsly ill of the small pox. — "Fifteen hundred of these men," he says, "are at liberty on the 15th of April, and probably not more than half of them will be retained in the service." " 16. Clear morning; clouded up soon. THE JOURNAL 73 April 17. Had a week's allowance of fresh beef, which had been killed three or four months, of which they boasted much, telling us it was more than our army could get Windy and cold. This beef killed in November as provision against the siege had been kept frozen all winter, and now as warm weather was coming on, was given out liberally. To the prisoners it was a grateful change in diet. " 18. Cloudy morning; clear afternoon ; can nonading on both sides. " 19. Cloudy and cold. ' ' 20. Cloudy. " 21. The time seems long; all though most of us pull them off at night, but two nights with them on. " 23. Cold and squally. " 24. Fair and windy. " 25. Our army began to cross to and from Point Levi. Fair weather. " 26. Cloudy and some rain; the ground one- half bare of snow. " 27. Cloudy. " 28. Some of our officers tried to make their escape, but were discovered and put in irons. Fair weather. are in irons; I never lay This occurred In the Seminary where the officers were con fined. Capts. Thayer and Hanchett and sea-captain Lock- wood, a volunteer in Lamb's artillery, were put in irons for this attempt, and kept in close confinement, on board a prison ship, until the 5th of May. [See Thayer's JournaL] " 29. Pleasant weather. " 30. Foggy and rainy. 74 MELVIN'S JOURNAL May, 1776. Cloudy; snowed in the morning. Fair and cold. Fired brisk on both sides. Heard cannon fired at some distance. At nine or ten o'clock, at night, the town was alarmed by a fire-ship from our people, which did no damage. An attempt to set fire to the shipping and wharves of the lower town ; intending to make an attack with the troops in the midst of the confusion. The fire-ship ran aground before it reached the proper place and exploded harmlessly. May I. " 2. " 3- " 4. Rained in the morning; cleared " 5. Sunday. toward night. " 6. Pleasant. About sun rise the town was alarmed, and three ships came up, landed some troops, and sailed up the river. The troops marched out at noon, and our army retreated, leaving a few sick men behind them who were brought into town. This morning three ships came in with a reinforcement of about one thousand men. All the bells of the city rang for joy most of the day. Then all the forces of the town marched out on Abraham's Plains to have a battle with bur people, but they retreated as fast as possible, and left a number of sick In the hospital. Likewise some of their cannon and ammunition, with a number of small arms and packs — [Jos. Ware's Journal. " 7. Governor Carieton came in and ordered our irons to be taken off. Pleasant day. In his treatment of the American prisoners, General Carle- ton was humane. Having been informed that many persons, suffering from wounds a- 1 various disorders, were concealed in the woods and obscu- ilaces, fearing that if they appeared openly they would be Si. .zed as prisoners and severelv treated, he Issued a proclamation, commanding the militia officers to search for such persons, bring them to the General Hospital THE JOURNAL 75 and procure for them all necessary relief, at the public charge. He also Invited all such persons to come forward voluntarily, and receive the assistance they needed, assuring them "that as soon as their health should be restored, they should have free liberty to return to their respective provinces." Few names that stand out in the history of the events.in which he was concerned are remembered with more respect, even in the country of his foes. — [Sparks. " 8. Cloudy. Hear many Improbable stories about Boston, New York, &c. " 9. Rainy day. Six prisoners were brought into goal. They have men out daily to pick up the sick men our peo ple left behind. They have taken a great number of papers, among which was an Orderly book, — [Thayer's Journal, " 10, Two riflemen were taken out of goal; we don't know on what terms. Same day, two Jersey dumpling eaters were brought in ; they were found among the bushes, not having tried to make their escape, being too heavy laden with dumplings and pork, having forty pounds of pork, a knapsack full of dumplings, and a quantity of flour. Fair in the morn ing; rained at night. The riflemen referred to were probably John J, Henry and Thomas Boyd, Henry, who belonged to a family of eminent respectability, was personally aqquainted with Colonel Mc Dougal and other of the officers. By the friendship of Capt. Prentiss, he was allowed the freedom of the city for a few hours each day about this time. In this liberty he took his friends Boyd and Cunningham along with him. Fair weather A party of king's troops " II. marched. " 12. " 13. Sunday. Clear weather. Fair; a raw wind. Fair; a ship sailed for England. 76 MELVIN'S JOURNAL May 1 5. Fair; a raw wind. " 16. Fair and clear. " 17. Fair. " 18. Pleasant weather; hear that Major Meigs and Captain Dearborn are gone home. May 16. At 5 o'clock, the Town Major came for Major Meigs and myself to go to the Lieutenant Governor to give our parole. The verbal agreement we made was, that If ever there was an exchange of prisoners, we were to have the benefit of It, and until then we were not to take up arms against the King. After giving our paroles from under our hands we were carried before the General, who appeared to be a very humane, tender-hearted man. After wishing us a good voyage and saying he hoped to give the remainder of our officers the same liberty, he desired the Town Major to con duct us on board. We desired leave to visit our men in prison, but could not obtain it, — [Capt. Dearborn's Journal, " 19. Sunday. Fair weather. " 20. Cloudy and showery. Light infantry and grenadiers marched. " 21. Cloudy and raw wind. " 22. Pleasant weather, " 23. do do, " 24. do do. " 25. Rained in the afternoon. Sergeant Boyd brought back to prison. Sergeant In Capt, Smith's company; later Captain In ist Penn, reg. He was killed by the Indians, Sept 12, 1779, " 26. Sunday. " 27. Pleasant. Ten ships arrived with troops. " 28. Clear and windy. ' ' 29. Fair. " 30. Fair; cloudy at night " 31. Fair; some troops marched. THE JOURNAL 11 June I, thousand. " 2. " 3. 4- JUNE, 1776. The Brunswickers arrived ; said to be six Sunday. Fair weather. Warm; cloudy at night. A royal salute fired, being the king's birth day. Cloudy. " 5. Pleasant weather. Gov. Carieton came in to us and offered to send us hoine on condition not to bear arms again. '' 6. Cloudy; rained at night Sent the gov ernor an answer to his proposal. " 7. Cloudy and windy. " 8. Fair weather. Hear that there are three thousand of our men at Sartlgan. " 9. Fair weather. Sunday, Hear that they landed three thousand men and our army defeated them. " 10. Fair weather. Hear that two thousand of our men were surrounded and taken. " II. Very pleasant " 12. Fair weather. " 13. Fair weather. Hear they have taken two hundred of our men, who are to be sent to Halifax. Hear that our men sunk the Commodore. " 14. Raw cold wind. " 15. Rained at night " 16. Fair weather. " 17, Fair weather. Hear that our army have killed and taken four thousand Dutchmen. 78 MELVIN'S JOURNAL June 1 8, Clear morning; cloudy afternoon. " 19. A thunder storm, with hail stones as big as 2 oz. balls; a young woman was killed by the lightning. " 20. A fair morn; a shower in the afternoon. " 21. Fair weather. " 22. A fair morn; rained in the evening. " 23. Sunday. Fair weather. Hear that out men drove the king's troops. " 24, Fair. Hear that our army have retreated out of Canada. " 25. Fair weather. Hear that they have brought three thousand Jersey blues, prisoners to town. " 26, Fair weather. " 27. Fair. Two ships came up in the morning. " 28. Fair and warm. " 29. Fair weather. Hear that peace is pro claimed; also that they have killed four thousand of our men and taken ten thousand, and that Gen. Washington is killed. " 30. Sunday, We hear there is a French fleet come in at Philadelphia, of seventy sail. Two ships came up to Quebec. July, 1776, July I, Fair weather; a thunder shower at night Hear of the Indians scalping our people at Three Rivers. " 2. Lowery weather. THE JOURNAL 79 July 3. Showery weather; cleared in the after noon. " 4. Fair weather. We hear that they are waiting for some officers that they have taken, to come here, and then we shall be exchanged. Two prisoners brought in. Thunder at night. " 5. Rainy morn; clear afternoon. One of our men was so indiscreet as to pull out one of the iron bars, in sight of the sentry. When he was relieved he fetched the officer of the guard and showed him what had been done, and search being made, some more were found out which caused much suspicion of us all. The prisoners brought in last night, inform us that the Indians scalped many of our soldiers, some of them alive; but that Gen. Carieton, to his great honor, has refused to pay those murdering fiends for any more scalps, but will pay them the same reward for every prisoner. " 6. Fair weather. Saw three ships working in. The man who pulled out the grate was informed of, so that we hope it will have no ill effect. " 7. Sunday. Some showers in the morning. The man who pulled out the grate beat the man who informed of him, and he complained to the Provost. We hear that they have sent an express to the Governor, informing him we have made another attempt to break out; we have also a report that our officers had attempted to set the place they were con fined in on fire. This, as well as many more reports are not worth belief. 8o MELVIN'S JOURNAL July 8. Pleasant weather. Hear that Col. Mc Lane is taken. " 9. Hear that we are to go home soon. Pleas- ant weather. " 10. Very fine weather. " II. Fine morning; rained in the afternoon and night. Hear that Col. McLane is taken, and two thousand of their men, crossing the lake, and that there is a French fleet coming here. We hear also that the German troops are to return home. " 12. Rained almost all day. Hear that we are to sail for New York in less than ten days. " 13. Fair and warm. " 14. Sunday. Fair weather. We hear we are to embark tomorrow. " 15. Fair and moderate. Hear that the Gov ernor is expected in town soon, and then it will be known what will be done with us. " 16. Showery. " 17. Showery, cold. We have bread served to us instead of our allowance of butter. " 18. Fair and temperate. Hear that Col. Mc Lane is come to town, and that the Governor is expected every minute. " 19. Cloudy and cold; the weather is so cold that the Canadians do not expect a good crop of corn. It is so cold as to wear a great coat. We hear that Col. McLane says we shall not be sent home. " 20. Fair weather. Connor one of the pris oners who came into goal last, was taken and put in THE JOURNAL 8l some other place of confinement and, as we suppo.se, put in irons for talking impertinently to the Captain of the Provost guard. " 21, Rainy weather, with thunder. Hear that we are to go home very soon; heard from our officers who gave us encouragement. We have also a report that the French, Spanish and Prussians are at war with Great Britain, and that there is a large fleet in the bay of St. Lawrence. " 22. Fair weather. Saw a ship sail out This afternoon the Governor arrived from the army, and was saluted with fifteen guns. This gives us hopes that we shall be sent home. " 23. Cloudy morning; fair all day. One of our company is out of his right mind. " 24. Rainy weather for part of the day. We hear we are to be sent to Montreal and exchanged. " 25. Fair. Hear we are not to go home. " 26. Some rain. We hear that the Governor has sent to let our officers know that within three days he will appoint a day when to send us home. Saw a brig and a ship come in. " 27. Fair weather. We hear that the Gov ernor has let our officers know that he will send us home on 4th or 5th of August. This day we saw the French priest going to visit a sick person. He was attended by about twenty people as follows: first a man goes ringing a little hand bell, then two men or boys carrying two lanthorns, with lighted candles on poles, about ten feet long; then comes the priest 82 MELVIN'S JOURNAL under a canopy, supported by two men; it is like the teaster of a bed. The priest is dressed in white linen robes over his black clothes, and things as heavy as boards tied to his knees, and hang dangling and knocking against his shins. They have crosses on these two things. After the priest, follow the friends and children of the sick person, and any others that happen to be going that way who think they are doing good to join in with the rest Every one that hears the bell is obliged to kneel down while they pass by. The priest has a great cross upon his breast, and a string of wooden beads hanging by his side. The people all have these beads when they go to church, to help them remember their prayers. They also use the same ceremony when they go to a burying, and have choristers singing before the corpse. " 28. Fair weather. This day, Mr. Murray, barrack master, came in and told us we were to sail in a week. We now begin to believe there is some thing in it, though we have had so many different reports that we can scarce believe anything we hear. We are all to have a shirt apiece given us. " 29. Rainy weather. Sias, the man who is out of his senses, grows worse, talking of killing some of the people, etc. " 30. Fair weather except a shower or two. " 31. Fair weather. We hear a report that our army have reentered Canada, and retaken Fort St. Johns. We have been seven months in prison to-day. THE JOURNAL 83 AUGUST, 1776. Aug. I. Rainy morning. " 2. Fair weather. The news to-day is, that our people ha\e wounded the German General mor tally, and taken five hundred prisoners at Lake Cham- plain. \N'e have it confirmed that we are to go on board the vessel on Sunday next " 3. Fair weather. Hear that our sick men at the hospital, are to go on t>oard this evening. We expect to go tomorrow morning. " 4. Sunday. Fair weather. " 5, Fair weather. This afternoon we have each of us a shirt given to us, and thirt)--five of our men were sent on board, after signing the paper. END OF JOURNAL. August 7th, This day the men all in good spirits and em barked on board the ships. Sixty of the prisoners on board the Mermaid, " nth. This morning the signal was given for sailing. Weighed anchor and went down about one mile. At night weighed anchor and wtnt down the river thirteen miles. The weather cold and stormy, September 6th, We are informed by the shipmen, accord ing to reckoning, that we are in the latitude of Philadelphia, longitude 19 deg. North, — [Joseph Ware's Journal, There was an Inducement for my mind, at all times since the attack, to conclude that It was never General Montgomery's real design to conquer the upper town, but his hidden and true plan was, by a con solidation of our whole force to burn the lower town and the shipping Presuming the colonists to be successful In the lower town, where there was much wealth, and the avaricious among us be In some degree satisfied, It would have crea ted a spirit of hope and enterprise In the men, tending to Induce them to remain with us. Afterward, combining our whole force, with the reinforcements we had a prospect of receiving, an attack upon the upper town might have succeeded. In a word, the destruction of the lower town, in my apprehension, should be considered merely as preparatory to a general assail- ment of the upper town, notwithstanding all that has been said in the memoirs of those days, A contrary opinion went abroad " that the general, If he had lived, by this assault would have conquered Quebec," No Idea could be more falla cious. It was politically right to keep up that opinion among the people In those trying times, but Its accomplishment, with our accompanlament of men and defective arms, was ideal. — [Henry. End of the Campaign End of the Campaign. A FEW words of rapid sketch, having reference solely to the political aspects of the campaign in Canada, should be added to trace the progress of events to their close. The invasion, as we endeavored to show in the introductory chapter, was essentially a political propa ganda. The conflict was between the military on both sides, while the people of the province mani fested less and less desire to join us as events progressed. As a military achievement, it may be said that the campaign failed with the failure of the Quebec assault on January ist, but the country was nominally in our possession for some months after ward. On the 1 5th of February, ' Congress in session at Philadelphia, authorized the visit of Commissioners to Canada, "to promote or to form a union between the colonies and the people of Canada." On the 20th of March the commissioners received their instructions, ample in scope and power, and on the 2d of April departed from New York, but it was not until the 29th— nearly a month later— that they reached their destination in Montreal. 88 MELVIN'S JOURNAL Dr. Franklins' health had suffered greatly by the journey, and he soon perceived that no efforts of his could avail in Canada. On the contrary, he saw that public opinion was setting strongly against the col onies, that the army was in wretched condition, that the mouth of the St. Lawrence was lost to us, and that powerful British reinforcements would probably soon arrive from abroad. He therefore left Canada to younger and more hopeful men, and took his de parture on the nth of May, in company with the Rev. John Carroll whose labors among the Catholic clergy of the province had been equally unsuccessful. The other two members of the commission, Samuel Chase and Charies Carroll, had meanwhile been busy with the military part of their embassy. Their manu script letters to Congress detailing the progress of events are preserved in the department at Washing ton, dated ist 8th, loth, 15th and 27th of May, and collectively present a graphic picture of a most dis heartening state of affairs. "We cannot find words strong enough to describe our miserable situation," they say in their joint letter of the 27th. The written report which they made to Congress on the 12th of June, after their return from Canada, could not be found in Washington, though dilligent search was made for it, by the Maryland Historical Society, more than fifty years ago; and the findings of the commis sioners are, therefore, made known to us only by these letters, which are depressing, not to say humil iating, in the extreme. END OF CAMPAIGN 89 Having done all in their power to maintain American credit and authority in Canada, the commissioners left Montreal on the 29th of May to be* present at a council of war of the general and field officers at Chamblay. On the 30th it was resolved by this couricil "to maintain possession of the strip of country between the. St Lawrence and Sorel, if possible, and in the meantime to dispose matters so as to make an orderly retreat out of Canada." On the 2d of June the commissioners started on their homeward journey and returned to Philadelphia, where they reported to Congress. Congress voted to send new troops and to supply them properiy. But in the meantime the fate of our efforts in Canada was sealed. The last stand was made by General Sullivan at Sorel, from which at last yielding to the pressure of adverse circumstances, and retiring before a powerful British advance, the whole army made an orderiy retreat, evacuating Canada on the 1 5th of June, and retired over the lake to Crown Point.* Arnold, with his detachment of three hundred men, was the last to leave. He left Montreal with the British army close at his heels, and at St. John's embarked to cross the lake. He remained behind until he had seen every boat leave the shore but his , own. He then mounted his horse, attended by an aid-de-camp, and rode back two miles, when they discovered the enemy's advance division in full march * Memoir of Charles Carroll, Maryland Hist. Soc'y, from which this concluding chapter Is mainly condensed. 90 MELVIN'S JOURNAL under General Burgoyne. They gazed at it for a short time, and then hastened back to St John's. A boat being' in readiness to receive them, the horses were stripped and shot, the men were ordered on board and A.rnold, refusing all assistance, pushed off the boat with his own hands, being the last man who embarked from the shores of the enemy. Thus ended the American campaign in Canada, the eariiest important episode in our Revolutionary strug gle. The lessons in diplomacy and warfare it taught our forefathers prepared them for continued stubborn defence of their "inalienable rights." Retreating from the extremity of the British possessions, our ' army gathered more solidly within the limits of our native territory, to protect the vitals of our own land in the approaching War of Independence. THE END. YALE UNIVERSITY I a39002 Q02883^95b yVALE B5:^i5';5B5ssr-;ica&*