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Collegt Ol this Cg^iy^ 'T^LIi«'¥]MII¥lEI^SIir¥" Bought with the income ofthe Society of the Cincinnati Fund A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND A COLONIAL GOVEENOH IN MARYLAND HORATIO SHARPE AND HIS TIMES 1753-1773 BY LADY EDGAR AUTHOR OF 'TEN TEARS OP UPPER CANADA' AHD 'LIFE OF GENERAL BROCK' {Mahert of Canada Series} WITH ILLUSTRATIONS LONGMANS, GREEN, AND CO. 39 PATERNOSTER ROW, LONDON NBW YORK, BOMBAY, AND CALCUTTA 1912 ' He lived just on the verge of that old world from which we are drifting away so swiftly. ' He was familiar with many varieties of men and fortune. ' His lot brought him into contact with personages of whom we read only in books, whose voices I almost fancy I hear as I read the yellow pages written scores of years since. ' To the best of my ability I haye endeavoured to revivify the bygone times and people. With what success the task has been accomplished, with what profit or amusement to himself, the kind reader wiU please to determine.' — The Virginiaris. PREFACE In August 1753, Colonel Horatio Sharpe, late of His Majesty's 20th Regiment, crossed the Atlantic to take the governor ship of the province of Maryland under the sixth and last Lord Baltimore. Accompanied by his young secretary, John Ridout, he arrived at Annapohs, the capital of Mary land, just before the breaking out of the final war with the French in America. He reigned as governor for sixteen years, and remained in the province until 1773. That period covered some of the most eventful days in colonial history. Although Horatio Sharpe may be considered a character of minor importance in that great drama which was being played on the American Continent, yet his career is distinctly interesting, not only from his personal character, but also by reason of the points of contact between his Ufe and the lives of his great contemporaries. He was eminently a man of his time, and a study of his career serves to iUumine a most fascinating period. The materials for this sketch have been taken from the Sharpe correspondence, from contemporary newspapers, and from private sources. If letters have been largely drawn upon, it is because, as Cardinal Newman says, ' Not only for the interest of a biography, but for the arriving at the inside of things, the publication of letters is the true method.' CONTENTS CHAPTER I Annapolis and Horatio Shaepe I'AOE Arrival of Horatio Sharpe — His proclamation as Governor — Anna polis in 1753 — Its English characteristics — Schools — Eace- course — Theatre — BaUroom — Manners — The Council — Its members — Description of Governor's entertainments . . 1 CHAPTEE II Annapolis and Fort Necessity Government House, Annapolis — The Ohio Company — French aggres sion — Governor Din^widdie of Virginia — Difi6culties with as semblies — Confederation of colonies — Congress at Albany — Benjamin Franklin's proposal — Fort at junction of the Alle ghany and Monongahela — George Washington in command — Coulon de Jumonville — Fort Necessity — Capitulation — George Washington blamed . . . . . .11 CHAPTER III Braddock's Arrival Sharpe's commission — Colonel Fitzhugh — Letter to the Secretary of State — Sharpe's plans — Washington resigns commission — A question of rank — Tour of inspection — Sharpe superseded in command — General Braddock — Letter from Sir Thomas Kobin son — Troops raised in Maryland— Military expenses — Sharpe proposes a stamp duty — Conciliation of Indians — Wampum belts — Arrival of Sir John St. Clair — Joins Sharpe at Wills' Creek — ^Do^wn the Potowmac in a canoe — Arrival of Braddock — Chain of French forts — English forts — Meeting of governors . 23 X A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND CHAPTER IV Braddock's Defeat PAGE Question of taxation — General Braddock's indignation — Horatio Sharpe's difficulties — A troublesome assembly — The Upper House — Braddock's plans — Expedition to Fort Duquesne — George Washington — Benjamin Franklin — Warning from Bradstreet — Letter from Calvert — News from Braddock — News from England — The French fleet — State of pro-vince — Indian depredations — News from the front — First tidings of disaster — Naval successes — Letter from Innes — Letter from Lieutenant Orme— Braddock's death — The Governor goes to Fort Cumberland — Panic of troops — Sharpe's account— Colonel Dunbar— Militia called out . . . . .42 CHAPTER V Shirley, Commander-in-Chief, 1755 Governor Shirley — Story of Louisbourg — Pepperell — Shirley at Oswego — Plans for winter — Lake George — Dieskau — Johnson's victory — Rejoicing in England — Troubles in Maryland — Fort Cumberland — George Washington — Indian outrages — Terror in Annapolis — Monckton in Acadia — Takes three forts — Naval affairs — Council of war — New York, 1755— Sir Charles Hardy — Letter from Sharpe — Shirley's delay — Death of his son — Shirley's plan of campaign — Approved of by council . . 64 CHAPTER VI Acadia and Maryland The Acadian exiles — In Nova Scotia — French or English — Oath of allegiance — The crisis — Beau S6jour — Colonel Monckton — Governor Shirley — Governor Lawrence— John Winslow — Sen tence of banishment — Anguish of Acadians — Their deportation — Acadians in Maryland — Their treatment — Mr. Callister — Nemesis — Story of Le Blanc and Munier . . .83 CONTENTS xi CHAPTER VII Shirley's Recall PAOE Sharpe to Sir Charles Hardy — New commander-in-chief— The Earl of Loudoun — Swiss officers — German emigrants — Indians in Maryland — Scalping parties — Letters to Gazette — Forts on frontiers — George Washington — A gentleman of merit — John Winslow — Sir William Johnson— Shirley's failure— Montcalm — De L6vis — Sir John St. Clair — His discontent— Colonel Bradstreet — His success — Condition of Maryland— Arrival of Webb and Abercrombie — Letter from Shirley — Anecdotes from Franklin— Shirley's fate — Pennsylvania . . .94 CHAPTER VIII Loudoun's Arrival Friction between provincials and regulars — Montcalm and Oswego — Who was to blame ? — Death of Sharpe's brother — Pitt Secre tary of State — Troops for America — The Sharpe family — Gregory Sharpe — Anecdote — News from Europe — Battle of Prague — Coalition ministry — Loudoun's plan of campaign, 1757 — Sir John St. Clair — Louisbourg — Failure of Loudoun — Franklin's anecdote — Fort William Henry — Montcalm and De L4vis — Fall of the fort — Indian massacre . . . 106 CHAPTER IX The Cherokees French sovereignty — Population — Cherokees offer services to Eng lish — Letter to Sharpe — Wahachy of Keeway — Ridout and Wolstenholme sent as envoys — Their account of mission — Indian scalps — Wampum belts — Wahachy's speech . .123 CHAPTEE X Loudoun's Recall Sharpe's troublesome assembly — No supplies granted — Lord Lou doun's letter — Sharpe to Calvert — Proposal of taxation — Lord xii A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND PAGE Colville — Sir John St. Clair — Governor Dinwiddle — Quarter ing of troops — Great dissatisfaction — Colonel Haldimand — His letter to Sharpe — Lord Loudoun's recall — Abercrombie succeeds — Calvert to Sharpe — Colonel Amherst — Expedition to Louis- bourg- Sir John St. Clair to Sharpe— Fort Duquesne — Brigadier Forbes — Sharpe's action — George Washington — Colonel Bouquet — Forbes's campaign — Boscawen's fleet — Am herst and Wolfe — Lake George . . . . .136 CHAPTEE XI TiCONDBROOA — LoUISBOURG Abercrombie's campaign — His troops — July 1798 — Lake George — Lord Howe — His death — Carillon — Montcalm's defence — Aber crombie's orders — Disastrous defeat^Louisbourg — Amherst and Wolfe — Victory — Loudoun's triumph — Abercrombie's re call — Amherst succeeds — Colonel Bradstreet — Takes Fort Frontenac — Bouquet's road — Convention with Indians — Forbes occupies Fort Duquesne . . . . .150 CHAPTEE XII Ticonderoga — Oswego — Niagara — Quebec Pitt's instructions — Amherst's work — Governor Sharpe — No supplies voted for army — Death of Forbes — Stanwix succeeds — Amherst to Sharpe — Campaign of 1759 — Governor Denny — Ticonderoga — Letter from Amherst — Haldimand and Oswego — Prideaux and Niagara — Death of Prideaux — Sir William Johnson succeeds — Takes Fort Niagara — The St. Lawrence — Quebec — James Wolfe — Letter in Gazette — London dispatches — Death of Montcalm and Wolfe — Quebec taken . . 162 CHAPTEE XIII 1759-1760 Affairs in Maryland — The church — Letter from ex-governor Din widdle to Sharpe — Condition of Prance — Murray and De Ldvis — Quebec — The second siege — English on defensive — Waiting CONTENTS xiii PAGE for succour — French or English— An English ship — Amherst's plans — His descent of the St. Lawrence — Junction of English — Montreal — Vaudreuil surrenders — General Murray — Jeffrey — Amherst ....... 176 CHAPTER XIV 1760-1765 Sharpe and Lord Baltimore — Whitehall — Story of Woodcarver — Secretary Ridout — Appointment to King's Council — Jealousy in province — Letter from Calvert — News from London — Pitt's resignation — George iii. — Interview with Calvert — His Majesty's opinion of Sharpe — The assembly of Maryland — Calvert's scheme — Sharpe's answer — Peace of Paris, 1763 — Unrest in colonies— Pontiac — Bouquet and Fort Pitt — Treaty ¦with Indians — Boundary question — Mason and Dixon's line — Presents from Lord Baltimore — His character . . . 188 CHAPTER XV The Stamp Act A new cabinet in England — Lord Grenville chief — The Stamp Act — Storms in America — Mr. Hood — Mr. Mowbray — The Vir ginians — Convention of assembly — Dispatches from England — Death of Secretary Calvert — Hamersley succeeds— His letter to Sharpe — Parliamentary report — Pitt's speech— Lord Camden — Lord Mansfield — The chancellor — Repeal of Stamp Act . 207 CHAPTER XVI Repeal op Stamp Act, 1766-1768 Enthusiasm in America — Statue for Chatham — Portrait of Camden — Address from assemblies to King — Presented by Lord Bal timore—The liberty lottery — Sale of lands — Rockingham's administration ends 1766 — Pitt's return— Townshend's plan — The Eevenue Act — Sharpe and convict ships — Story of a con-vict — Episcopacy in America — A Maryland parson — Rev. Bennett Allen — Another type — Eev. Jonathan Boucher . 225 xiv A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND CHAPTER XVII Last Years in Maryland, 1768-1773 PAGE The Revenue Act — Excitement in America — Pennsylvania farmer s letter — John Dickinson — Loyalty to King — Non-importation Act unpopular in England — King withdraws taxes except tea — Agitation increased — Burke — Horatio Sharpe superseded — Letter from Hamersley — ^Death of Benjamin Tasker — Captain Eden appointed Governor — Arrives June 1769 — Lord Balti more's death — Dispute on succession — Character of Sharpe — Eddis's letters — Washington's Diary — Gathering storm — Sharpe's departure ...... 241 CHAPTER XVIII La Debacle Revolution — Whitehall — John Ridout — Afterwards . . 252 APPENDIX Maryland and the Lords Baltimore George Calvert — Colony in Newfoundland — A new Charter — CaecUius Calvert, founder of Maryland — Leonard Calvert — A Representative Legislature — The Indians — Claiboume's Rebel lion — Proprietary government overthrown — The English Ee volution — William Stone, Governor — Charles il — Davenant appointed Governor — Taken prisoner — Cromwell — Eestoration — Philip Calvert — Charles Calvert — Death of CsecOius — Charles, third Lord Baltimore — Catholics and Protestants — William and Mary — A royal governor — Sir Lionel Copley — Sir Edmund Andros— Colonel Greenbuiy — Nicholson — Annp Arundel town — Blaikiston — Death of Charles Calvert — Bene dict Leonard, fourth Lord Baltimore— Last royal governor — Death of Benedict Leonard — Charles, fifth Lord Baltimore — Eestoration of proprietary rights — Charles Calvert, Governor — His death — Benedict Leonard succeeds — Samuel Ogle — Thomas Bladen — Death of Charles, fifth Lord Baltimore — Succeeded by his only son Frederick — Samuel Ogle, Governor — Death in 1753 — Horatio Sharpe 282 INDEX . . 297 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Whitehall — Governor Sharpe's Country Seat- Front View .... Governor Horatio Sharpe The Colonial Governor's House : Official Residence of Go^vbrnor Sharpe, 1753-1769 . Go^vBRNOR Horatio Sharpe Chevalier de L]fivis .... Whitehall ..... South Doorway of the Hall at Whitehall Facsimile Letter referring to Ridout's Appoint. ment to a Seat in the Council North-west Doorway of the Hall at Whitehall Facsimile Letter from the Boundary Commissioners to Governor Sharpe . . . ietiveen pp. 204 a'nd 205 Governor Sharpe's Signature , Whitehall — Ebar View The Ridout House .... Cameo Portrait of Governor Sharpe Hall of the Chase House Frontispiece . facing page 2 CE 11 )) 94 )) 180 » 188 J) 190 )J 192 -• » 194 . facing •page 2\2 j» 245 >j 248 n 250 )» 253 xvi A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Mrs. George Samuel Ogle and Child, N:fiE Anne Tasker ...... facing page 262 The Upton Scott House . . . „ 277 George Benjamin Tasker-Ogle . • „ 280 Governor Ogle's House . . • „ 294 CHAPTER I ANNAPOLIS AND HOEATIO SHARPE, 1753 An extract from the Maryland Gazette, then the only news paper in the province, dated Thursday, 16th August 1753, gives the folio-wing item : ' Early on Friday morning last, we had the pleasure of seeing in the Bay, coming towards the Town with a fair gale, a ship -snth a Flag at her foretop mast-head, which proved to be the long wished-for Captain Nicholas Coxen in the Molly, with His Excellency Horatio Sharpe our Governor. At eight o'clock the ship anchored in the Severn near the Town, and at nine His ExceUency disem barked and landed in good health at the Dock, where he was received by His Honour the President,^ some of the gentlemen of His Lordship's Council and a number of other gentlemen. ' From thence they walked through Green Street to His Honour the President's, where he tarried till after dinner. About four in the afternoon, His Excellency, attended by His Honour the President and the members of His Lord ship's Honourable Council, walked to the Council House, where His ExceUency's Commission was opened and pubUshed. After which His ExceUency issued the foUowing Proclamation.' This was the formal announcement of his appointment as governor, ending with : ' Given at the City of AnnapoUs this 10th day of August, 1 Hon. Benjamin Tasker. A 2 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND in the 27th year of the Reign of our Sovereign Lord George the Second of Great Britain the King, and in the 3rd year of His Lordship's Dominion, Anno Dom. 1753. 'J. Ross. HoEATio Sharpe. ' God Save the King.' Passengers with Captain Coxen on this tedious twelve weeks' voyage were the Rev. Matthew Harris, his Lordship's chaplain ; John Ridout, Esq., his ExceUency's secretary ; Dr. Upton Scott, his ExceUency's physician; Mr. Daniel Wolstenholme, merchant, and Mr. John Murdock. A word must be said here to introduce the new governor and his companions. Horatio Sharpe was a native of Yorkshire and one of a numerous family, some of whom distinguished themselves in the literary and poUtical world. He was bom near HuU, Yorkshire, in 1718, and therefore at the date of his arrival in America was in his thirty-fifth year. His eldest brother was the celebrated Dr. Gregory Sharpe, a prebendary in SaUsbury Cathedral, chaplain to Frederick, Prince pf Wales, and to George ni., and Master of the Temple. Their mother lived at this time in Marlborough Street, London. Governor Sharpe's commission as captain in Brigadier - General Powlett's regiment of marines, dated 1745, and also his commission as lieutenant-colonel of foot in the West Indies are stiU extant. ^ His character as an administrator, a friend and a citizen, public and private, is portrayed in the annals of Maryland. An important member of that company on the Molly • The original commissions were bequeathed by Grovernor Horatio Sharpe to his secretary, Hon. John Ridout, and are now in the possession of the latter's great-grandson, Wm. G. Ridout, M.D., of Annapolis, to whom I am indebted for much private information contained in family letters of the time whioh have never hitherto been published. GOVERNOR HORATIO SHARPE To face /, ANNAPOLIS AND HORATIO SHARPE, 1753 3 was Dr. Upton Scott, who came to America as his ExceUency's physician, and whose presence in that capacity throws some Ught on the military antecedents of Colonel Sharpe. Dr. Upton Scott was born in the year 1722 at Temple Patrick, County Antrim, Ireland. He received his early education at Dublin University, and studied medicine with the celebrated Dr. CuUen of Glasgow. After graduating at that University, he obtained a surgeon's commission in the British army, and served under General, then Colonel, WoUe in Scotland. It was doubtless in this campaign that he formed what was to be a lifelong friendship with Horatio Sharpe, for though the latter's commission was that of captain in the marines, it is also stated that he served with the 20th regiment of foot, of which regiment James WoUe was heutenant-colonel. Upton Scott resigned his commission as surgeon of the 20th in order to accompany Sharpe to America, bearing ¦with him as a token of remembrance from General WoUe a splendid pair of pistols, now in the possession of Major Rogers Bu-nie of the Ordnance, U.S.A. Afterwards, in those sad days before Quebec, when the great general was ' sick unto death,' it is said that he sent for his friend and old comrade to prescribe for him. Upton Scott had a very distinguished career in Maryland. Being a protege of the governor he soon acquired an exceUent practice, and in course of time so high a reputation that he was often sent for as consulting physician by the adjoining colonies. He married EUzabeth Ross, an heiress with a large landed estate in Frederick County. An ardent lover of flowers he shared this taste with his two friends, Horatio Sharpe and John Ridout. John Ridout, the youngest of the trio, was born at Sherborne, Dorsetshire, England, in 1732, and was there- 4 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND fore but twenty-one years old when he arrived in Maryland. He had just graduated at the University of Oxford after five years' residence there, and had been recommended for the position of secretary by his Hebrew professor to Dr. Gregory Sharpe, who had been commissioned by his brother the governor to find him ' a scholar and a gentleman ' to accompany him to America. That the place of secretary was no sinecure the voluminous correspondence preserved in the archives of Maryland bears witness. Of Huguenot descent, for the Ridouts had left France in the sixteenth century, presumably on account of the reUgious persecutions in that country, John Ridout was throughout his Ufe firm in his convictions, straightforward in his conduct and, as became his ancestry, somewhat austere. He soon won the esteem and affection of Governor Sharpe, whose letters bear testimony to the worth of his young secretary. And what was this good town of AnnapoUs Uke when Horatio Sharpe landed there in 1753 ? It was in 1694 that Governor Nicholson moved the seat of government from St. Mary's to Anne Arundel to-wn, so caUed after the wife of the third Lord Baltimore. Not long afterwards that name was changed to AnnapoUs. We read that, in 1696, the secretary of Maryland, Sir Thomas Lawrence, with Mr. Bray, waited on the Princess Anne of Denmark on behalf of the province, ' to request her gracious acceptance of the Governor's and Country's dutiful Respects in having denominated the metropolis of the Province there but lately built from her Royal Highness' name.' She graciously accepted the compUment, and when she ascended the throne of England she took the new town under her patronage and granted it many marks of royal favour. It was an ideal situation for the capital of the province, being on a beautiful peninsula at the mouth of the Severn ANNAPOLIS AND HORATIO SHARPE, 1753 5 River, and possessing a harbour that ought to have given it the commercial supremacy of the colony. It was no mere settlement in the backwoods, nor did it spring into existence like the pioneer towns of to-day, where log shanties give place to frame dwelUngs, to be changed in a few years to the brick houses of the suburban villa style. AnnapoUs was planned and laid out by EngUsh gentlemen, or by those whose associations and education were thoroughly EngUsh. Everywhere was the stamp of elegance and good taste. The town houses were of red brick (at first imported from England), weU and soUdly built, as their appearance to this day bears witness. The gardens, often terraced to the water's edge, were surrounded by the high red-brick waUs so dear to EngUsh eyes, and fuU of English flowers whose beds were separated by box borders in the quaint stiff style of the Georgian era. A curious plan was adopted in the laying out of the city, namely, on the highest elevation there was set apart a large circle for the government buildings with a radius of 538 feet, and further west a smaUer circle for the church. From these two circles the streets radiated in aU directions. East of the State or Stadt House, as it was caUed, and between it and the fine harbour was the portion reserved for business, and the large wharves and capacious store houses gave evidence of the extensive foreign trade which then existed. Ships from aU countries came here, bringing aU that wealth and fashion and culture could desire from those lands beyond the sea, and going out again laden with that kingly weed, tobacco, which was the principal wealth of the province. To the west of the State House was the high road, also devoted to trade, where were the shops and the homes of the tradespeople, who had their o^wn common, Bloomsbury 6 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Square as it was caUed, where they could disport themselves on high days and hoUdays ; for very rigorous were the restrictions these same tradespeople had to submit to in this aristocratic town. The very names of the streets wer6 entwined with memories of the motherland. There were Fleet Street and CornhiU, and, in compUment to the Royal Princess who had given her name to the to-wn, Prince George Street, so called after her spouse of Denmark, and Duke of Gloucester Street, named after her hapless heir. There was an endowed school or coUege, known as King WiUiam's, afterwards known as St. John's, although it was much the custom of the wealthy inhabitants to send their children home, as they caUed it, to Eton or Harrow and the Universities. There was gaiety enough in the pleasure-loving place, for the first theatre to be estabUshed in America was there, and the racecourse was weU patronised. Benjamin Tasker and Samuel Ogle were lovers of the latter, and were noted for the fine horses they imported from England, and as to the theatre, it was opened with great eclat by Governor Tasker in 1752, and the first play-biU ever printed in America is to be foimd in the Maryland Gazette of the 2nd July of that year, when it is announced that, by permission of his Honour the President, the plays of The Busy Body and The Lying Valet will be performed. The ballroom ^ was a necessity, and the latest fashions in ruffs and silken hose, brocades and velvets were there exhibited ; and probably no London assembly turned out better-dressed women or more gaUant gentlemen. Coaches and four, and coaches and six, and outriders, and Uveried servants, were by no means uncommon; and royal hos pitaUty reigned in the country houses, which, like the ^ The Assembly Room where balls and routs were given, was built on land presented to the town by President Tasker. ANNAPOLIS AND HORATIO SHARPE, 1753 7 town houses, were soUdly built, with ample accommoda tion, too, in the outbuildings for the indispensable negro slaves. ' Bel Air,' Governor Ogle's country seat in Prince George's, is described as a stately colonial mansion not to be surpassed by more recent structures, and a model of convenience and comfort. With rivers and bay teeming with fish, oysters, and terra pin ; with the country swarming with game ; with wine, both home-made and the choicest brands of Madeira, France and Spain, what wonder that gaiety overspread the land, and that from 1750, until the Revolution, Annapolis was the centre of fashion, culture and hospitaUty ! Among those trim box hedges and quaint gardens of roses and hoUyhocks, leaning over the sundials that marked the Shadow of Time, one might see the young beUes of Annapolis, patched and powdered, dressed in brocaded gowns and aU the latest devices of London fashion, or in gay chintzes and gipsy hats, tending the flowers they loved so well. Nor were there wanting gaUant beaux, who might have stepped from Reynolds's canvas, ready to hand them into coach or barge, or lead them in the assemblies through stately minuets, to those old-world tunes which have vanished Uke the odours of rose leaves and lavender. A glance must be taken at some of the members of his Lordship's Council and other gentlemen, who met the new governor on his arrival. First, of course, comes the Hon. Benjamin Tasker, at whose house his ExceUency was re ceived. He had been president of the council for thirty- two years, and acting-governor since the death of his son-in-law, Samuel Ogle, in 1751. His father, Captain Thomas Tasker, had settled in Calvert County in 1682. He was for many years treasurer of the province, and a man of wealth and influence. 8 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Benjamin Tasker's wife was Anne Bladen, whose brother Thomas had also been governor of Maryland. She was the granddaughter of Nathaniel Bladen of York, and IsabeUa, daughter of Sir WiUiam Fairfax of Streton, and daughter of WiUiam Bladen who settled in AnnapoUs early in the eighteenth century. So by marriage the Taskers were related to some of the most interesting and prominent people in the colony. The Hon. President was not only a poUtician, but was also a passionate lover of horses, and founded the celebrated Jockey Club of Maryland. He and his only son, Benjamin, who shared his father's tastes, owned the best racehorses in America, which they imported from England, among which was the famous SeUna, whose successes are told in the annals of the club. In the group, no doubt, were the Dulanys, father and son, notable as lawyers, statesmen and orators. The history of Daniel Dulany, the elder, reads Uke a romance. Early in the eighteenth century, at the age of eighteen, whUe a student at Trinity CoUege, DubUn, he quarreUed with his step mother and ran away from his Irish home. In the heat of his passion, and without counting the cost, he indentured himseU, in order to defray his passage money, to the captain of a ship saiUng for the plantations. On his arrival in AnnapoUs the captain, as the custom was, sold the youth's services to Attorney-General Plater, who soon discovered that the so-caUed redemptioner was an educated gentleman. With a wisdom and kindness that time justified, Mr. Plater articled him in his office for the study of law, and he was caUed to the Maryland Bar in 1710. He then went to England and entered at Gray's Inn, and was caUed to the EngUsh Bar in 1716. From that time his career was one of honour and influence. Returning to Maryland he married, in the orthodox fashion of romance, his benefactor's daughter. ANNAPOLIS AND HORATIO SHARPE, 1753 9 Their eldest son, Daniel Dulany the younger, as he was known, was sent to England for his education, first to Eton and then to Clare College, Cambridge. He entered at the Temple, but returned to practise law in his native province, where he married Rebecca, the eldest daughter of President Tasker. He won the highest place at the Bar of Maryland, and was also frequently engaged to argue cases in England, being imsurpassed, it is said, in abiUty by any of the Crown lawyers of the day. Even the great Pitt was captivated by the young colonial statesman. He was noted as the author of a pamphlet on the Stamp Act of 1765, called Considera tions on the propriety of imposing taxes on the British Colonies for the purpose of raising a revenue hy Acts of Parliament. Strong as the Dulanys were in opposition to the Stamp Act, they remained Tories to the last, and the family chose exile and loss of property rather than renounce their aUegiance to the Crown. The elder Dulany, who was a member of his Lordship's Council under Gtovernors Bladen, Ogle, and Sharpe, only survived the latter's arrival a few months. Another notable who must have been present at the governor's reception was Thomas Addison of Oxon HiU, a descendant of Colonel John Addison, who came out to the province in 1667, and was the brother of Launcelot Addison, Dean of Lichfield. Many letters from the famous Joseph Addison are said to have found their way to his cousins of Maryland. Nor must we forget to mention in that company of gentle men Charles CarroU, whose father had emigrated from Ireland in 1686, and had been agent and receiver of rents for many years for the Lords Baltimore. He was the father of CarroU of Carrolton, so famous in the history of the Revolution. 10 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Two others were present that day at the President's reception, Mistress Mary Ogle, the ten-year old daughter of the late governor, and her Uttle brother Benjamin, who had come to their grandfather's house to see the fine com pany assembled there. As the Uttle maid looked with wondering eyes at the stately figure of the new governor Uttle did she dream that he would one day be a suitor for her hand, and that the grave young student by his side would be the husband of her choice. And the boy — if it had been given him to peep into the future, he might have seen the day when he, too, would be governor of Maryland, but elected by the people, when proprietary governments and royal warrants should have vanished for ever. NOTE ON THE RIDOUT FAMILY. The Ridouts (spelt also Rideout) of Sherborne, were descendants of Thomas Ridout of Henstridge, Somerset. The family came originally from France from the neighbourhood of Foutainebleau and settled in England about the middle of the sixteenth century. In Hutchins' Visitation of the Somerset, now in the CoUege of Arms, London, mention is made of the granting of a coat-of-arms in 1551 to Thomas Ridout of Henstridge. These arms bear a striking resemblance to those borne by the de Rideouts de Sanc6 (see Hozier's Armorial General of the French NobiUty), near Foutainebleau. In the will of Walter Ridout of Langlin, Dorset, a descendant of Thomas, dated 1582, among other legacies he bequeaths a large sum of money to the church at Foutainebleau. Christopher Ridout, son of Thomas, was baptized at Henstridge, Somerset, 24th November 1664, and settled in Sherborne, Dorset. His eldest son, George, born at Sherborne in 1702, was the father of the John Ridout who came to America with Horatio Sharpe. Another descendant of Thomas of Henstridge settled in Bristol, and mention is made in Hutchins of the marriage in 1674 of Susannah, daughter of John Ridout of Bristol to Thomas Strangways of Melbury, Dorsetshire, Their granddaughter Elizabeth married Stephen Fox, who was created Earl of Ilchester. ¦^ 3O 03 w O a Z o a: z g " o % o o £ ¦^ g S J Q u a CHAPTER II ANNAPOLIS AND FORT NECESSITY Government House, Annapolis, was not finished when Horatio Sharpe arrived, but in spite of the difficulty in getting the assembly to vote suppUes for its completion, it was ready for occupation by the close of the year. There is a letter, dated 5th January 1754, from CaeciUus Calvert, Lord Baltimore's uncle and secretary, in which he says : ' My Lord wishes the completion of Government House, and hopes the Assembly will find means to finish their work, especiaUy as requisite Lustre to his Province will not want his valuable gift.' From this curiously involved sentence it may be inferred that his Lordship wished the governor to entertain sumptuously. Nor was his ExceUency loath to exercise hospitality, and the bachelor governor's parties were in high favour. No governor in America had a more charming home or more deUghtful surroundings. The house overlooked the harbour, with a fibae sweep of lawn reaching down to the water, and stretching along the harbour's front as far as the mouth of the Severn. On each side of the central haU were rooms that might be used for the official business of the governor or for reception rooms. To the rear was the great drawing-room or state dining-room, whose windows gave a charming view over lawns and water. Here many a gay party assembled during the fifteen years of Governor Sharpe's rule, and of some entertainments there remain descriptions in the Maryland Gazette, whose local columns, 11 12 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND meagre as they are, stiU furnish entertaining items of social news. Turn over those pages yeUow with age and read : 'AnnapoUs, Thursday, 21st February 1754. Sunday last being the Birthday of the Rt. Honourable the Lord Balti more, Proprietary of the Province, when he entered into the Twenty-Third year of his age, the same was observed here on Monday. His Excellency the Governor made an elegant entertainment at his own House at Dinner for a great number of Gentlemen and Ladies. In the afternoon the PubUc Healths were drunk, the great guns firing at each Health, and in the Evening His ExceUency gave a PubUc BaU in the Coimcil Chamber, where aU the Loyal Healths were repeated, and the BaU lasted tiU two o'clock at which the Ladies and Gentlemen made a gay appearance. There was a large bon-fire made in the Common when a Hogshead of Punch was given to the populace and the greatest part of the town was beautifuUy iUuminated.' Another item gives an account of the races : ' 25th AprU 1754. On the 15th inst. His ExceUency's gift of twenty pounds was run for near Talbot County Court House by four horses. There were a great number of people on the Race Ground, supposed to be upwards of 2000 Horses, besides a great number of carriages, and in the middle of the ground was erected a stage about sixty feet in length and twenty in width for the reception of His ExceUency and a number of Gentlemen and Ladies who could from thence view the Horses quite round the Course. The prize was won by a horse belonging to Mr. Rice.' But balls and dinners and races and play-going were not the only occupations of the governor, for he had faUen upon troublous times, and firmness and good sense, energy and moderation were needed. Fortunately, Horatio Sharpe ANNAPOLIS AND FORT NECESSITY 13 possessed these qualities, and though his patience was often sorely tried, he managed to execute his duty with fairness and prudence. Although selected for the position he held partly through family influence, his brother WiUiam being one of the guardians of the young proprietary. Colonel Sharpe's appointment was probably due also to his military and colonial experience. He had seen service (his commis sion as colonel mentions his experience in miUtary affairs), and it was thought necessary to place a soldier at the head of a province which lay so near the frontier already threatened by the French. The situation in Maryland may be briefly told. In 1748, the Ohio Company had been formed by Thomas Lee and twelve others, including Lawrence and Augustine Washington and John Hanbury, a Quaker merchant of London. The company had a grant of five hundred thou sand acres of land on the Ohio, between the Monongahela and Kanawha rivers, west of the AUeghanies. Two hundred thousand acres were to be settled immediately, ' free from quit rent or other tax to the King,' on condition that the company should, at their own expense, settle one hundred families on the land within seven years, build a fort and maintain a garrison. Trading posts were soon established ; but no sooner was this done than the French began to piUage and destroy them, looking upon the advance of the EngUsh towards the west as an encroachment on their territory. In 1749, the Marquis de la Jonquiere succeeded the Marquis de la GaUssoniere as governor of Canada. The latter had conceived the idea of linking aU the French possessions in America by a chain of forts from the St. Lawrence and the Great Lakes, by way of the Ohio and Mississippi, to the GuK of Mexico. De la Jonquiere 14 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND endeavoured to carry out this plan, but died in 1752. He was succeeded by the Marquis Duquesne de Menneville, who was governor of Canada on Sharpe's arrival. The latter's correspondence shows how keenly he felt the gravity of the situation, and how necessary it was for aU the EngUsh colonies to unite in resistance to the aggressions of the French. Governor Dinwiddle of Virginia, though not a miUtary man, was already engaged in efforts to defend the EngUsh trading-posts on the Ohio. In the spring of 1753, the French had built a strong fort at Presqu'isle on Lake Erie, and another at Riviere aux Bceufs south of the lake, where Legardeur de Saint Pierre was placed at the head of a strong garrison. In order to protest against their marauding expeditions. Governor Dinwiddle, in October 1753, sent George Washington, then a youth of twenty-one, on an embassy to the French commander. It was a difficult and dangerous expedition. His route lay through a hostile Indian country for one hundred and fifty miles from WiUiams- burg to the shores of Lake Erie ; but the young envoy, whose only companions were a guide and an interpreter, accompUshed the journey unmolested, and deUvered his message. This was a demand to evacuate the country as lying within the domains of His Majesty the King of England. Instead of complying, the French commandant replied that it was more the part of his commander, the governor of Canada, than his, to dispute with the governor of Virginia about the property of the land. He was only concerned with his commanding officer's orders, which he was determined punctuaUy to obey, and repel by force whatever power should attempt to dislodge or interrupt him in the execution of his duty. Although since the peace of Aix-la-ChapeUe, in 1748, ANNAPOLIS AND FORT NECESSITY 15 there had been a temporary suspension of hostilities between England and France, the treaty left the boundary of their respective American possessions stiU unsettled, and the French claimed, not only the Great Lakes, but the Mississippi with its tributary streams and the lands they watered. AU along the route, in token of the sovereignty of its monarch, the UUes of France were blazoned on the trees, or carved on metal plates sunk in the ground. It is not surprising then that Washington's demand was not compUed with. Indeed, the French laughed to scorn the idea of giving up the territory they claimed, and, during the winter and spring of 1754, they prepared a strong force to invade and occupy the vaUey of the Ohio. The claims of the French encroached on the lands of Virginia, so Governor Dinwiddle was eager to take decisive steps to resist their advance. He ¦writes to Sharpe : .' Williamsburg, ' Virginia, 29fA Jawuary 1754. ' Sir, — Your kind assurances of co-operating with me in the Common cause for His Majestie's Service gave me much pleasure, as a zeal like that which inspired them ought to give. The Progress of the French and their avowed Designs make it necessary for me to apply for your Assist ance, and that the men you can furnish may join our People as early as Possible, in March, at a Place caUed Wills Creek on the Head of Potowmack which I have chosen for the Rendezvous, beUeving it to be the most convenient in aU the Colonies of any that is near the scene of action. The French have fortified themselves on Lake Erie and on a Branch of the Ohio, and have 220 Canoes ready made, and a great many more blocked out, and everything in readiness to execute their design of faUing down the River when the 16 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND waters serve in the Spring, and building forts at any place of consequence. They have already engaged the Chippeways, Ottaways, and Arundacks to take up the Hatchet against the English, and themselves have seized the Effects of His Majesty's Subjects who were settled there, and have made Prisoners of their Persons. Since writing the above I received yours of the 26th of December, and am mighty glad of the Hopes you have that your Assembly 'wiU enable you to raise men for the support of His Majesty's undoubted rights to the lands on the Ohio, and at the same time to protect the Colonies from the Insolence of those that would disturb our Peace.' He writes again on 23rd February 1754 : ' Sir, — I received the Favour of your Letter of the 10th Curr. and observe your Assembly were to meet the 25th, and hope they wiU cheerfuUy aid the intended Expedition against the Enemies of our Cotintry. I prorogued our Assembly this Day. They have given £10,000 for the support of His Majesty's Rights to the Lands on the Ohio, in consequence thereof I design immediately to raise five or six companies of men to march to WUls Creek. I have wrote to the Cherokees and Catawba Nations of Indians to the southward of this who some months ago offered a body of 1000 of their warriors to go to the Ohio. I have by express ordered their marching to the Ohio to defend their Hunting Grounds, which, if they comply with, I am in hopes we shaU make some figure there.' Still again Dinwiddle writes to Governor Sharpe : i Williamsburg, ;25«A March 1754. ' Yours of the 1 1th duely received, and am heartily sorry your Assembly wiU not assist with Forces to repeU the ANNAPOLIS AND FORT NECESSITY 17 unjustifiable Encroachments of the French. The President of North CaroUna -writes me that their Assembly have voted £120,000, and that they are enUsting men accordingly and think they wiU raise 750. The Governor of Pennsyl vania ^ thinks he wiU be able to prevail with the Assembly to grant a handsome supply. I have raised 300 men, wliich, with a Company under Captain Trent's command now at the Ohio, is aU I can propose to raise from the small sum given by our Assembly. I am thoroughly convinced of your assiduous endeavours with your people, but there is no resisting an ill-founded Prejudice. If they would look forward and consider the dismal consequences that must f oUow the settlement of the French so near our frontiers, they certainly would cheerfuUy assist with a proper supply. Besides, they ought to show themselves good subjects, as the Dignity of the Crown, His Majesty's just right to these Lands, and the safety of aU the Colonies much depends on this expedition.' No wonder Governor Dinwiddle exclaimed in despair some time afterwards in one of his letters : ' A Governor in the discharge of his Duty to his King and Country is much to be pitied, when it is considered his Transactions -with an obstinate Assembly.' Governor Sharpe's difficulties are told in a letter to Lord Baltimore, 6th June 1754 : ' Thursday last I prorogued the Assembly to the 16th of next July, after a session of three weeks, in which time I succeeded -with them so far as to procure the sum of £500 for a present to be sent to the Six Nation Indians, who are to be met in obedience to the letter from the Lords of Trade, at Albany, the 14th inst. by Commissioners from the several Governments on the Continent.' 1 Morris. B 18 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND In 1752, Governor Dinwiddle had urged upon the Lords of Trade the estabUshment of two separate confederacies for the North and the South. Others had suggested that all the colonies should be united under one central govern ment, and in 1754 the Earl of Holdernesse, then secretary of state, recommended that a congress of all the colonies should be held at Albany for the object of securing co operation against the French, and also of making an alliance with the Indians. Only seven of the colonies, however, sent delegates to this the first congress in America. Maryland's delegates were Benjamin Tasker ^ and Abraham Barnes. The congress adopted a form of union drawn up by Benjamin Franklin, which proposed that the general govern ment was to be administered by a president appointed and supported by the Crown, and a council chosen by the repre sentatives of the several colonies. This council was to consist of forty-eight members. A new election of members was to be made triennially. No province was to be entitled to more than seven or less than two counciUors. The assent of the president was required to aU acts of the councU, by whose advice he could hold treaties with the Indians, regu late trade, make peace, or declare war. The council was authorised to raise and pay soldiers, build forts, equip vessels to guard the coast and protect the trade on the ocean or lakes, and le^vy such duties as were necessary to defray the expenses accruing. The laws made were not to be repugnant, but, as near as may be, agreeable to the laws of England, and were to be transmitted to the King for approval as soon as possible. If not disapproved within ' Mr. Tasker kept a diary ot his journey on horseback from Annapolis to Albany. At Philadelphia he was joined by Dr. Franklin, and they went on from that city together. This diary is mentioned in a private letter, but has not come to Ught. It would prove, doubtless, an interesting document, and it is to be hoped that it will yet be found. ANNAPOLIS AND FORT NECESSITY 19 three years, they were to be considered in force. The first meeting of the government was to be held in Philadelphia. Although this form was adopted by the congress, it was not accepted by the provincial or home governments. Benjamin Franklin, speaking of it afterwards, said the assemblies all thought there was too much prerogative in it, and England thought it was too democratic. In April 1754, by the orders of Governor Dinwiddie of Virginia, the building of a smaU fort had been begun by Captain Trent and seventy or eighty men at the junction of the AUeghany and Monongahela rivers, and about three hundred militia under Colonel Joseph Fry were on their way to garrison it, foUowed by another detachment under Washington. Contrecceur, however, before these reinforce ments could arrive, appeared in force, and the EngUsh were compeUed to withdraw, leaving their haU-completed works in the hands of the French, who immediately proceeded to strengthen the fort with the materials at hand, and gave to it, in honour of the governor of Canada, the name of Fort Duquesne. Colonel Fry was soon after accidentally kiUed by a fall from his horse, leaving George Washington in command. Washington, who was on his way to the fort with his detachment, on hearing of the surrender, determined to await the arrival of the rest of the expected troops from Carolina and New York, and set about making a road from the frontier towards the fort. While thus employed he fell in with a small party of the French under Coulon de Jumon- viUe, who was kiUed with several others of his party in the skirmish that foUowed. The rest were taken prisoners. Contrecceur, to avenge the death of the French com mander, sent Coulon de ViUiers, brother of Coulon de JumonviUe, with six hundred men to attack the English 20 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND troops, who threw up hasty defences at a place caUed the Great Meadows, but named by the latter Fort Necessity. This they were not able to hold, and, on the 3rd of July 1754, Washington was forced to capitulate. In the terms of capitulation was found the word ' assassination,' referring to the death of Jumonville. Governor Sharpe writes to his brother John Sharpe his account of the disastrous affair as foUows. It may be presumed that it was given him by one who was present. ' On being informed of the Ennemy's near approach they retired to a little useless kind of Intrenchment in a vaUey between two eminences. The French came in sight about noon and immediately took possession of one of the Emin ences where every soldier found a large Tree for his shelter from the fire of the English, and placing himself behind it fired away on the Troops beneath as fast as he could load. This continued some time, and more than thirty of the English fell, but only one Cadet and two privates of the French. The wily French Captain, finding that the am munition of his party was giving out (for they had only a Handful of BaU each and powder in proportion distributed to them when they left the Fort, besides an insufficient supply of victuals), ordered a parley, not doubting that the English would in their miserable situation, and not sensible what were his fears, gratefully accept any conditions that he should be pleased to offer, in which opinion he was not indeed at aU mistaken.' Dinwiddie writes to Sharpe : ' Williamsburg, 31st July 1754. ' Col. Washington's orders from me was by no means to attack the Ennemy tiU the whole Forces were joined in a body, and they knew no Intention of the Ennemy till the ANNAPOLIS AND FORT NECESSITY 21 very morning they engaged them. If the misfortune attending our Forces has roused the Spirit of our neighbour ing Colonies, as you justly observe, it has done more than probably a victory would have effected. Excuse Brevity and Scralls, being much hurried. I send you a copy of the Capitulation which from the small number of our troops they were obliged to accept of. ' " Capitulation granted by Monsieur de ViUiers, Captain and Commander of Infantry and Troops of His Most Christian Majesty, to those EngUsh Troops actuaUy in the Fort of Necessity which was built on the Lands of the King's Dominions, July 3rd, 1754, at eight o'clock at night. As our intentions have never been to trouble the peace and good Harmony which reigns between the two princes in Amity, but only to revenge the assassination Committed on one of our Officers, Bearer of a Citation, as appears in his writing, as also to hinder any estabUshment on the Lands of the King my Master, etc. ' " 1st. We grant leave to the EngUsh Commander to retire with aU his Garrison and to return peaceably into his own country. ' " 2nd. It shaU be permitted him to go out and carry with him aU that belongs to them except the artillery which we keep. ' " 3rd. That we will allow them the honours of war, that they march out with Drums beating, and a Swivel Gun, being wiUing to shew them that we treat them as friends. ' " 4th. That as soon as the Articles are signed by both parties, the EngUsh Colours shaU be struck. ' " 5th. That to-morrow at break of Day a Detachment of French shaU go and make the Garrison file off and take possession of the Fort. ' " 6th. As the English have but few Oxen and Horses, 22 ANNAPOLIS AND FORT NECESSITY they are free to hide their Effects and to come again and search for them when they have got a sufficient number of Horses to carry them off, and that for this end they may leave what guards they please, on Condition that they give their word of Honour not to work upon any BuUdings in this Place or any part this side the Mountains during the space of one year to commence from this Day. ' " 7th. And as the EngUsh have in their power an Officer, two Cadets, and most of the Prisoners made in the Assassina tion of the Sieur de JumonviUe, they must promise to send them back with a Safe Guard to the Fort du Gume, situated on the fine River, ^ and for surety of performing this article, as weU as the Treaty, Mr. Jacob Van Braam,^ and Robert Stobo,^ both Captains, shaU be kept as Hostages tUl the arrival of the Canadians and French above mentioned. We obUge ourselves on our Side to give an Escort to return in Safety these two Officers, and expect to have our French in two months and a half at farthest." ' In a letter to Lord Bury, Governor Sharpe says that Washington ' was prevailed on to sign a dishonourable Capitulation owing, he declares, not to these difficulties, but to the InfideUty of one of his Captains, now a Hostage with the Ennemy, on whom he depended to interpret to him the Terms and Conditions purposed which were ¦written in French, a language that Mr. Washington had the misfor tune to be entirely unacquainted with.' So without blazon of victory, but under the shadow of disaster, ' one, Mr. Washington,' appears on the scene. ' La Belle Riviere as the Ohio was called. ' Washington's old fencing master. ' Eobert Stobo, a Scotsman, was taken to Quebec, and during the years he remained » prisoner there learnt much of the place and its surroundings. He escaped to Halifax, and thence joined Wolfe at Quebec in 1759, to whom he made an eflSoient guide. CHAPTER III braddock's arrival 'Saddened and humbled in spirit the young officer presented himself after a while to his old friends at Castlewood. He was very young ; before he set forth on his first campaign he may have indulged in exaggerated hopes of success, and uttered them. " I was angry when I parted from you,'' he said to George Warrington, holding out his hand which the other eagerly took. " You seemed to scorn me and my regiment, George. I thought you laughed at us, and your ridicule made me angry ; I boasted too much of what we would do.'' " Nay, you have done your best, George," says the other. " Everybody knows that a hnndred and fifty starving men, ¦with scarce a round of ammunition left, could not face five times their number perfectly armed, and everybody who knows Mr, Washington knows that he would do his duty. Harry and I saw the French in Canada last year. They obey but one wUl : in our provinces each Governor has his own. They were royal troops the French sent against you." " Oh, but that some of ours were here ! " cries Madam Esmond, tossing her head up, " I promise you a few good English regiments would make the whitecoats run." ' — The Virginians. Madam Esmond was not alone in this opinion. There were many in Virginia and Maryland who thought that the raw levies of the provinces were not able to cope with the tried troops of His Most Christian Majesty Louis xv. In the meantime, a commission arrived for Governor Sharpe, appointing him ' Lieutenant-Colonel of the Forces intended to be sent against the Forces which have invaded His Majesty's Dominions, from Frederick, Absolute Lord Proprietor of the Province of Maryland and Avalon in America, and Baron of Baltimore in the Kingdom of Ireland.' The commission goes on to say: 'That you do in the most serious and earnest manner recommend it to the good people of my said Province, that they do in furtherance of 24 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND His Majesty's Royal intention most heartily co-operate with His Majesty and the neighbouring governments by granting such effectual suppUes and prosecuting such rigorous measures against the Common Enemy as shaU demonstrate to aU future ages the distinguished zeal and Loyalty of this my Province of Maryland to their Sovereign and the cause of their Country.' Almost at the same time Sharpe received a commission as commander-in-chief from His Majesty George n. Colonel Sharpe was much pleased at his appointment and lost no time in going to see and consult ¦with his friend, good Robert Dinwiddie of Virginia. The Gazette of 17th October 1754 has this announcement : ' Simday evening last His ExceUency our Governor received an express from WiUiamsburg, and next day between 12 and 1 o'clock His ExceUency accompanied by some gentlemen from hence sailed in a smaU schooner ¦with a fair brisk -wind for Virginia.' The next Thursday's Gazette continues : ' We hear that His Excellency on his way to Virginia put into Patuxent, the first night after he left home, to Colonel Fitzhugh's, and tarry'd there tiU Thursday morning, when the -wind not being favourable His ExceUency set off by land for WiUiamsburg.' Rousby HaU, near the mouth of the Patuxent, the country seat of Colonel WilUam Fitzhugh, was one of the many charming country houses that abounded in that land of hospitaUty. No doubt the distinguished party were made very welcome, and over the best of cheer the old soldiers talked of past campaigns and of the coming one, which naturally was the absorbing topic of the day. Colonel Fitzhugh, at an early period of his Ufe, had entered the British army, and served with Admiral Vernon in his attacks on Carthagena. He was the friend and companion of Lawrence Washington, and equaUy intimate with George BRADDOCK'S ARRIVAL 25 Washington. From WiUiamsbm-g Colonel Sharpe ¦wrote to Sir Thomas Robinson, then secretary of state, an acknow ledgment of the receipt of His Majesty's commission, as foUows : ' Williamsburg, 25th October 1754. ' I take the Uberty by the first opportunity most gratefuUy to acknowledge the Receipt of His Majesty's most gracious favour which was presented me by Governor Dobbs ^ last Saturday, together with a letter which yourself was pleased to honour me with the 5th of July. I entreat you to assure His Majesty that no one can be more truly sensible of the honour He has been pleased to confer on me than I am, and that it shaU be my constant Study and Endeavour to manifest the most dutiful and punctual Obedience to His Royal Pleasure now signified to me and to whatever future Commands and Instructions I may have the Satisfaction to receive. On Governor Dinwiddie intimating to me the Receival of His Majesty's Orders I immediately set out for this place to take his advice how I may best execute the Commission I found myself honoured with, and to consult him about taking the most expedient measures for the Defence of His Majesty's Dominion on this Continent at this time, and with the smaU Force that we shaU be able to coUect this ¦winter or early in the ensuing spring. In pursuance of his and Governor Dobbs' advice and approbation I propose if possible to raise 700 men immediately who will, I hope, if a very severe season does not set in, be able in conjunction with the three Independent Companies to carry the Fort, caUed Fort Du Quesne, which the French have built upon the River Monongahela, before a Re-inforcement can be sent the Garrison from Canada, or the French Settlements in that part of the Continent which they call Louisiana. If 1 Governor of North Carolina. 26 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND the several colonies should be persuaded to increase our American forces enough in the Spring to afford us a Prospect of making a successful attempt upon the Fort that the French have completed on Buffaloe River near Lake Erie you wiU be pleased to think that I wiU ¦with the greatest Alacrity prosecute that Service. I must at present confess that the strength of the Ennemy in those parts, their superior know ledge of the Country which is Ukely to be the scene of Action, and their numerous AUiances among the Indian Nations, forbid me to fiatter myseU, unless the Colonies grant supplies beyond my expectations, with hopes of any very important successes against our Ennemy who are strength ened by Unanimity among themselves. Upon this con sideration I cannot indeed but entertain some suspicion that these His Majesty's Dominions can never be effectuaUy secured from the Encroachments of the French and Devasta tions of their Indian AUies, unless the Ennemy be com peUed to reUnquish at once the several Fortresses that they have built on the Lakes and Rivers behind us, and we take possession and garrison them ourselves. But as I look at this as too great a Design to be executed or ever attempted with such assistance and suppUes only as the several Colonies wiU be prevailed on to advance, without they be supported by such a Body of Troops from Home as I dare not presume to hope for the Direction of, I forbear saying any more on such a scheme, but confine my hopes with a Resolution to endeavour to shew myself not entirely unworthy of the Charge with which His Majesty has been pleased already to entrust me. As there is great Room to fear that the Disputes which have arisen and stiU subsist between the Independent Companies and the Troops which the Colonies have raised on this Occasion may be carried to such a length as to distress the Service unless some BRADDOCK'S ARRIVAL 27 remedy be timely appUed I humbly hope that what Governor Dinwiddie writes on this matter wiU be thought to deserve some Consideration.' The Independent companies were troops raised in the colonies, but whose officers held commissions from the Cro-wn ; whereas officers of the provincials held their com missions from the governors of their respective provinces. There was constant friction between thejn as to rank. Washington at this time had resigned his commission. An order had just come from England settling the rank of the officers of His Majesty's forces when serving with the provincials in North America. It was therein directed that aU officers commissioned by the King or his generals should take rank over all officers commissioned by the governors of the respective provinces ; further, that the general and field officers of the provincial troops should have no rank when serving with the general and other commissioned officers commissioned by the Crown. The young provincial colonel was not incUned to submit to these regulations and therefore retired into private Ufe. Colonel Sharpe and Colonel Fitzhugh, weU knowing his good quaUties as a soldier, in spite of the disaster of the year before, did aU that they could to induce him to alter his determination, but he was not to be persuaded by them and went back to his farm. Colonel Sharpe's first office as commander-in-chief was to set off to inspect aU the military posts on the frontier, leaving Colonel Fitzhugh as his second in command in the province. The governor is thus described by an officer writing from Fort Cumberland,! or Wills Creek, on 21st November : • Fort Cumberland at the junction of Wills Creek and the Potomac on the site of the present town of Cumberland, Alleghany County. 28 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND ' We had the pleasure of being joined three days ago by His ExceUency Colonel Sharpe with one Company from Maryland. He appears to be a stirring active gentleman, and by his method of proceeding I beUeve a very good soldier ; cheerful and free, of good conduct, and one who won't be trifled with.' News in those days was long in transmission, and Washing ton's affair at the Great Meadows in July was not com mented on from England until months had passed. In a letter from Secretary Calvert to Sharpe, dated London, 10th December 1754, we find the current opinion there of Washington's capitulation : ' The affair of the Ohio, the defeat of Major Washington by the French, is the sub ject here. Lost from his unmilitary skiU. Major-General Braddock with considerable Forces and a great Train of ArtiUery having taken departure for America leaves me Uttle to say on that Head as his arrival wiU inform you of the expedition.' While Horatio Sharpe was making every preparation for his intended expedition against Fort Duquesne, a letter was on its way from the secretary of state. Sir Thomas Robinson, informing him of the despatch of two regiments to America under the command of a general officer, who would, of course, be commander-in-chief of aU the colonial forces. The letter is dated WhitehaU, 20th October 1754 : ' Sir, — Having informed you in my letter of July 5th that the King had under His Royal Consideration the State of Affairs in North America ; I am now to acquaint you that amongst other measures that are thought proper for the Defence of His Majesty's Just Rights and Dominions in those parts the King has not only been pleased to order two Regiments of Foot consisting of 500 men each besides BRADDOCK'S ARRIVAL 29 commissioned and non-commissioned Officers, commanded by Sir Peter Halkett and Colonel Dunbar, to repair to Virginia and to be there augmented to the number of 700 each, but likewise to send orders to Governor Shirley and Sir WiUiam PeppereU to raise Two Regiments whereof they are respec tively appointed as Colonels of 1000 men each, and also to sign Commissions for a number of Officers to serve in the said Two Regiments and who will forthwith repair to North America. Whereas there wiU be wanting a considerable number of men to make up the designed Complements of the said Four Regiments ; it is His Majesty's pleasure that you should be taking the previous Steps toward contributing, as far as you can, to have about Three Thousand Men in readiness to be enUsted. And it is His Majesty's Intention that a general Officer of Rank and Capacity to be appointed to command in chief aU the King's forces in North America, a Deputy Quarter Master General and a Commissary of the Musters shaU set out as soon as conveniently may be, in order to prepare every Thing for the Arrival of the Forces above mentioned from Europe, and for the Raising of the others in America. The King wiU not therefore imagine that either you, or the rest of His Governors, will suffer the least neglect or Delay in the Performance of the present Service, particularly with regard to the foUowing Points, namely : That you should carefully provide a sufficient Quantity of fresh Victuals, at the Expence of your Govern ment to be ready for the use of these Troops at their Arrival. That you should Ukewise furnish the Officers who may have occasion to go from Place to Place with all necessaries for traveUing by Land in case there are no means of going by Sea, and that you should use your utmost DiUgence and Authority in procuring an exact observance of such Orders as shaU be issued from Time to Time by the Commander-in- 30 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND chief for quartering the Troops, impressing Carriages and providing all Necessaries for such Forces as shall arrive or be raised within your Government. As the Articles above mentioned are of a local and peculiar nature and arising entirely within your Government it is almost needless for me to acquaint you, that His Majesty will expect that the charge thereof be defrayed by His Subjects belonging to the same. But with regard to such other Articles which are of more general concern it is the King's Pleasure that the same should be supplied by common Fund to be estab lished for the benefit of aU the Colonies coUectively in North America. For which Purpose you will use your utmost Endeavour to induce the Assembly of your Province to raise forthwith as large a sum as can be afforded, as their Contribution to the Common Fund, to be employed pro visionally for the general Service of North America particu larly for paying the Charge of levying the Troops to make up the Complements of the Regiments above mentioned until such Time as a Plan of a general Union of His Majesty's Northern Colonies, for their Common Defence, can be perfected. As it is the King's Intention to give aU proper Encouragement to such Persons, who shaU engage to serve upon this occasion, you will acquaint aU such persons, in the King's name, that they will receive arms and Clothing from him. As the several Governors in all the King's Provinces and Colonies in North America will receive by this convey ance a letter to the same Effect with this which I now send you, they wiU be prepared at the same Time to obey His Majesty's commands. And I am to direct you to correspond with all or either of Them occasionaUy as you shaU find it Expedient for the General Service.' AU was now excitement in Maryland. Governor Sharpe, BRADDOCK'S ARRIVAL 31 like the loyal gentleman that he was, seems to have taken most amiably his deposition from the post of commander-in- chief and entered with vigour into the preparations for the coming campaign. Volunteering went on enthusiasticaUy all over the province, and the governor wrote to Lord Balti more : ' As to levying any number of men I conceive we shaU not find it difficult. But the difficulty wiU be to get money from the Assemblies to support them after they are raised.' On account of the persistent refusals of the AssembUes, particularly those of Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Maryland, to grant supplies for the maintenance of troops, Sharpe proposed that the British Legislature should bring in a BiU at their next session, making it obUgatory on aU the provinces and colonies to contribute equaUy for the defence and protection of His Majesty's dominions. He suggested that one of the foUowing methods might be adopted for raising a fund in the several provinces : ' By imposing an equal PoU Tax or by a Duty on the importation of Spirituous Liquors and Wines or an excise on such as may be either imported or made on the Continent, or by a Stamp Duty or something similar to it in Deeds and Writings. If such a proposal as the last mentioned should be made it would be weU to guard against any words being inserted in the BiU that may be construed to affect Patents for Land, and it would, I conceive, be proper for the Law to order the Enrollment of aU Deeds of Bargain and Sale and to invali date aU Deeds of Trust imless they be also properly stamped and enroUed as weU as Deeds of Sale in the Provincial or County Clerk's Office, where I apprehend the Stamp or Seal might be lodged.' This, then, was an outUne of the famous Stamp Act that ten years later was to cause such an upheaval throughout the colonies. 32 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND In a letter to Lord Baltimore on 12th January 1755, Governor Sharpe mentions the letter received from Sir Thomas Robinson, exhorting him to raise such suppUes as the present danger required, and goes on to say : ' On the receipt of this letter I desired the advice of your Lordship's Council whether to issue Proclamation for the Assembly to meet before the Day appointed to consider of granting of requisite supplies and paying Obedience to the Royal pleasure, or whether it would be more proper for me to proceed to the Camp where my presence seems quite necessary to have the American Troops a Uttle discipUned and see provisions laid in, and proper preparations made for the Reception of those Regiments from England as weU as those Companies that are raising in Virginia and'the Pro-vince. At Present there are at the Camp the three Independent companies and the Maryland Co. compleated to 110. The Virginians who are at present dispersed and quartered in several parts of that Province have orders to begin their march thither in Divisions to-morrow. Their number. Governor Dinwiddie informs me, when they come to join wiU be about 500, which number he proposes to increase to 700 or 800, but I know not whether this last letter from home wiU not make him decUne it as there are thereby no Directions given how they are to be formed, or on what footing or Establishment they are to be raised. This Doubt and Ignorance makes us wait with impatience the Arrival of these Regiments and further and particular Instructions from His Majesty.' Another important measure engaged the governor's attention, which was that of conciliating the Indians. The congress that met in Albany had loaded the chiefs of the Six Nations with presents. Maryland alone had given £500 for the purpose, and a ' chain of friendship ' was sup- BRADDOCK'S ARRIVAL 33 posed to have been formed. But at the very time that the chiefs were receiving presents it was reported that their tribes were devastating the outskirts of the provinces. Many of the inhabitants were kiUed, many taken captives, and a reign of terror existed on the frontier. ReaUsing the importance of enUsting the Indians in the King of England's service, it was proposed by Governor Sharpe to send four belts of black wampum to the different Indian tribes, engaging them to join against the French, the belts to represent Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New York. Sharpe ¦writes of these savage alUes : ' They are and have been long wavering between the two Crowns. I believe they have no real regard either for the French or us, and I doubt not daily curse their ancestors for suffering either of us to so peaceably possess ourselves of Lands that they caU their ancient Possessions.' Wampum played a very important part in deaUngs with the Indians. In the first place, it was the current money among them, and it also served as the material for necklaces bracelets, and other ornaments. It was of two sorts, white and purple, the former being wrought from the shells of whelks, and the latter from the hard-shell clam, caUed ' quahang ' in corruption of the Indian name. The sheUs or beads were woven with sinews of deer and strips of deerskin into strings caUed belts, often as wide as the palm of the hand and about two feet in length. These were given and received in treaties as seals of friendship, each belt being associated with a message or speech and deUvered by the speaker or messenger. The belts also served as records, being wrought with figures composed of beads of different colours to assist the memory. The first man to arrive in advance of the EngUsh regiments was the Deputy Quartermaster-General, Sir John St. Clair, who -writes at once to Sharpe as foUows : c 34 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND ' Sir, — As His Majesty has appointed me Deputy Quarter master-General to the Troops to be sent forthwith to Virginia and there to be levied in the different Provinces, I have taken the first opportunity of acquainting you with my arrival in Virginia, in order to make the necessary prepara tions for the reception of the Two Regiments which were to embark at Cork a few days after my departure from England. I shaU be glad to know the particulars ¦with regard to what may have lately happened in the Province you command ; that I may regulate myself accordingly and have them ready to lay before General Braddock on his landing that no time may be lost. As I am an entire Stranger to the Ground in America, it is highly necessary I should get the best information of its situation that I can which I have no other way of doing but requesting of you to send me any Maps or Drawings you may have of your Province, or if you have any knowledge of the ground at the back of our Settlements it wiU be of use Ukewise for me to have it. These are things that General Braddock wiU expect that I should have, that he may be exactly informed of the distance of Places for regulating the Marches of the Troops through the different Provinces. Being ordered by His Majesty to correspond with you I am glad of this opportunity of expressing the Respect with which I am your most obedient and most humble servant, 'John St. Clair.' This letter reached Sharpe at Wills Creek, or Fort Cumber land as it was now caUed, after His Royal Highness of CuUoden fame. There Sir John St. Clair met him a few days afterwards. In the Maryland Gazette there is a despatch from the fort, dated 27th January 1755 : ' Yesterday arrived Sir John BRADDOCK'S ARRIVAL 35 St. Clair, Bart., Colonel and Quarter-Master-General to aU His Majesty's Troops intended for the service, and sets off to-morrow morning with Governor Sharpe. Your worthy Governor has been here about a week on this, his second visit to camp within two months, and we shall be sorry, very sorry if he should not cross the AUeghany mountains with us, in a station agreeable to himseU and equal to his great merit. We daily expect to hear of the arrival of General Braddock with the troops.' A further notice in the Gazette says : ' His ExceUency our Governor and Sir John St. Clair are returned from Wills Creek and gone to WiUiamsbtirg, and we hear they came down the Potowmack 200 miles in a canoe. The Quarter master-General and the Governor were five days making the trip from the camp to Belhaven or Alexandria on the south Branch of the Poto-wmack.' An account of this expedition is given by Sharpe in the following letter to Braddock, which he left with Governor Dinwiddie to be delivered to the general on his arrival : ' WiLLiAMSBUEG, 9th February 1755. ' Sir, — At the time I was setting out for WiUs Creek a letter came to hand from Sir Thomas Robinson, and having in compUance there-with given necessary Directions for pro curing a quantity of fresh provisions and raising a proportion of men for compleating the British Regiments, I proceeded to the Fort to prepare materials and build Barracks there for the reception of the Troops under your Command that as Uttle time might be lost as possible. Soon after my arrival I was favoured with a Letter from Sir John St. Clair who arrived there himseU two Days after, being the 26th of January, when it was thought unnecessary to put the government to that Expense as the season would be suffi- 36 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND ciently advanced to admit of an Encampment. The next day Sir John examined some Hunters that I had appointed to go with me and reconnoitre the Highlands between that and the French Fort, amongst whom he found but one person that understood or could give any tolerable Information about the matter. After this, and fixing upon a proper Magazine for Powder, we set off to explore Potowmack River, which proved from the number of Shoals and Falls to be of no service in transporting ArtiUery or other Baggage. In our Passage down Sir John contracted for aU the Forage Flour and Calavances ^ on the Banks of that River. I hope soon to have the pleasure of seeing you myseU, and assure you that nothing less than the meeting of the Assembly should have prevented my stay here tiU your arrival.' Braddock had no Ught task before him. The position of the French in America was extremely strong. They held the basins of the Ohio and the Mississippi on the south, the St. Lawrence and Great Lakes on the north. Their chain of forts was perfect. Among them the principal were Fort Prudhomme on the Upper Mississippi, Duquesne on the Ohio, Fort Venange on the AUeghany, Fort Lebceuf on French Creek, fifteen miles from Lake Erie, Presqu'ile on that lake. Fort Niagara at the entrance of Lake Ontario, Fort La Presentation ^ on its south shore, and at the lower end Fort Frontenac ^ or Cataraqui. Stretching eastward were Ticonderoga and Crown Pomt at the southern end of Lake Champlain, Beau Sejour between the Nova Scotia peninsula and the mainland, and Louisbourg in Cape Breton. Quebec was the principal base of operations, and Frontenac the most important depot of supply. 1 Dried beans or pease. « Afterwards Ogdensburg. ' Afterwards Kingston. BRADDOCK'S ARRIVAL 37 On General Braddock's arrival Colonel Sharpe imme diately writes again to welcome him, in the politest of periods : ' Annapolis, 2'lth February 1755. ' Sir, — By Captain Rosse, an officer on half pay, the gentleman who presents you this, I take the Uberty to congratulate you on your safe arrival in America, which I have had the happiness and satisfaction to be informed of by a Letter that Sir John St. Clair did me the honour to write as soon as he was advised thereof. You wiU be pleased to think that it is not without great Reluctance I postpone for a few Days Journeying to Virginia to pay my Respects to you myself in person, but I hope you wiU excuse such my Tardiness when you learn that the Assembly of this Province are now met in Obedience to a Letter that Sir Thomas Robinson has honoured me with requiring Aids of this Province for His Majesty's Service, and particularly to pro vide Provisions for the Troops that shaU be under your Command in this part of His Majesty's Dominions.' He then gives the general his opinion of the situation of affairs in America, and continues : ' I am apprehensive that, unless the Communication between Canada and the Forts and Settlements that the French have made to the southward of Lake Erie can be cut off, it wiU not be an easy matter to secure our possession of them after the success of your Arms have recovered His Majesty's Dominions on which the French Troops have presumed to encroach. The Permission and Lycence that the Nation obtained some years ago to build a Fort in the Country of the Six Nations ^ ' ' In the seventeenth century the country east of the Mississippi from the line of Tennessee and the Carolinas northward to Hudson Bay was occupied by two families or races of Indians difiering radically from each other in their speech, and slightly in their physical characteristics. These were called by the French the Algonquin and Iroquois families. In tha 38 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND at Niagara, the pass or streight between Lakes Erie and Ontario, have now given them command over those people and an opportunity of monopoUzing the Trade ¦with the distant Nations, and has secured them a short and easy Communication between their Northern and Southern Colonies, as they are masters of Ontario Lake by means of their strong and weU-garrisoned Fort thereon named Cataraqui. As the Nature of the adjoining country renders a Road to Niagara by Land impracticable, they have not hitherto given themselves much trouble to render that place more defensible than Nature has made it, imagining for the two reasons just mentioned that the EngUsh would never attempt its conquest, however strongly its vast importance might invite them thereto. ' At present we have only a Trading House distinguished sometimes by the Appelation of Oswego Fort, on Ontario Lake, where perhaps 50 or 60 men from the New York Independent Cos. may now be posted ; but by what I can find the French may make themselves masters thereof at a very small Expense just when they please, unless some of the Indians should insist on its being a place of NeutraUty as they did during the last war between the two Cro^wns.' Sharpe was at this time very busy laying in suppUes, and ¦writes to Dinwiddie that he has contracted for 200 beeves, to be delivered at the camp wherever the troops should happen to be, between WiUs Creek and the Monongahela. On the 10th of March, General Braddock forwarded letters central portion of this vast country dwelt the Iroquois. Of these the so- called Five Nations — Mohawks, Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas, and Senecas — who occupied the central portion of New York, were considered the most formidable in numbers, the bravest in war, and the shrewdest in diplomacy. One Iroquois tribe, the Tuscuroraa, lay quite apart from the rest in North Carolina, but, in 1715, this tribe migrated to New York and joined the famous league which was henceforth known as the Six Nations.' — Fiske, in Harper's Magazine. BRADDOCK'S ARRIVAL 39 to the governors of the different colonies, desiring them to meet him at Annapolis on the 1st of April for consultation, and to settle a plan of operations. The troops were then encamped at Alexandria, and thither the general went on the 26th of March, accompanied by Governor Dinwiddie and Commander Keppel. Here Governor Sharpe paid them a visit on the 28th. On the 3rd of April, the general with a numerous suite arrived at Annapolis, as arranged, to meet the governors, but as De Lancey of New York, Shirley of Massachusetts, and Morris of Pennsylvania did not come in time, the meeting was postponed until the 14th, and the place was changed to Alexandria or Belhaven. The Maryland Gazette, AnnapoUs, announces on Thursday, 3rd April 1755 : ' This afternoon arrived in to-wn General Braddock, the Honourable Governor Dinwiddie, Commodore Keppel, and a good many other gentlemen.' We may be sure, though their names are not chronicled, that many a gay and gaUant young British officer came in the train, ready for what fun and froUc the good town afforded. If the general feasted, no doubt the staff flirted, much to the satisfaction of the fair damsels of AnnapoUs, who were, perhaps, a Uttle inclined to scorn the provincials. And to Government House must have come also the new aide-de-camp, Mr. Washington, who in that capacity, having been specially invited by General Braddock, had consented to go on the campaign. But Mr. Washington did not flirt, being, as Thackeray's veracious fiction informs us, earnestly engaged ' with Mr. Orme, A.D.C., and Roger Morris, A.D.C., and young WiUiam Shirley, in deep con sultations as to roads and rivers and conveyances and sumpter horses and artiUery trains. And at dinner the provincial miUtia Colonel has bits of bread laid at intervals 40 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND on the table before him, and stations marked out on which he has his finger, and regarding which he is talking to his brother aides-de-camp, tiU a negro servant changing the courses, brushes off the Potomac with a napkin and sweeps up the Ohio with a spoon.' High festival was kept up for nearly a week waiting for the other governors who were late in arriving, thanks to the •wretchedness of the roads. The society newspaper announces on 10th April 1755 : ' Monday morning last. His ExceUency General Braddock, Hon. Gov. Dinwiddie, Commodore Keppel, Captain Orme, and WiUiam Shirley, Esq., set off from here for Alexandria. Governor De Lancey of New York, Governors Shirley and Morris have been expected here for some days.' In a letter to Lord Baltimore on 19th April 1755, Sharpe says : ' The three Governors, Shirley, De Lancey, and Morris came hither the Ilth and 12th inst. This day senight I proceeded with them to Alexandria which place we left again Thursday morning, and they are now on their way returning to their respective governments. General Brad dock departs from Alexandria to-day and I have promised to be with him next Tuesday evening at Frederickton, where I shall tarry tiU the 1st of May when aU the troops wiU be in motion and he wiU proceed to WiUs Creek and thence without any stop or delay for the Ohio.' A proclamation issued shortly after Governor Sharpe's arrival, and pubUshed in the Gazette, shows that Jacobite sentiments had not quite died out in the colony : 'The Pretender. ' By His Excellency Horatio Sharpe, Governor and Commander-in-Chief. Whereas I have received information by the Deposition of John Willis Sargeant in the Virginian Regiment and others, that a certain Gerard Jordan, Junior, of St. Mary's County, hath been guUty of obstructing the raising of His Majesty's Levies, drinking the Pretender's health and several BRADDOCK'S ARRIVAL 41 other disloyal and illegal practises, and that a certain Joseph Broadway of the said county hath been aiding and assisting to the said Gerard Gordon therein, I offer a Reward of Twenty Pounds current money for apprehending and bringing to justice the said Gerard Gordon, and Ten Pounds for appre hending and bringing to justice Joseph Broadway.' That there were stUl many unfortunate eiUed Scots living in service or rather slavery in many parts of the province is proved by the numerous advertisements for runaway servants that appear in the Weekly Gazette. The following is a specimen : 'Ran away from subscriber a Scotch Servant man named MacKemp about 26 years of age. Had on when he went away a short blue coat, an old red jacket -with Lepels, a ruffled shirt, old Fustian Breeches, Blue worsted stockings. Pumps or shoes, a middling good castor Hat but has no lining in it, a Pair of Petticoat Trousers and a large FuU Black wig and sundry other things packed up in a PiUow Case. Whoever secures the said servant so as his master may have him again shall have Ten Pistoles Reward. N.B. — All masters of vessels are forbid to take away the said servant at their perU.' Who these Scotch servants were is explained by advertisements of a few years earlier, such as 28th July 1 747 : ' A number of rebels imported on the ship Johnson into Maryland are here and are now upon sale.' In September of the same year there is another paragraph : ' Two servants, rebels, lately imported, were found guilty of drinking the Pre tender's health, together with some other treasonable expressions ; being incapable of paying fines were weU whipped at the whipping post and were stood in the piUory.' Alas ! for the followers of ' Bonnie Prince Charlie.' CHAPTER IV braddock's defeat At that notable meeting in Alexandria, the question of revenue for the support of the army was discussed, and the general was much displeased that the joint fund for the benefit of the colonies had not been estabUshed. The governors explained to him their controversies with their assemblies, and Sharpe in particular told him that nothing could be accompUshed without the direct intervention of the English Parliament. It is not recorded that he further explained to him that the money biUs brought in by the Lower House were rejected over and over again by the Upper House and the governor, because the proposed mode of raising taxes was an encroachment upon the prerogative of the Lord Proprietary. The latter owned large tracts of land in the province, and the assembly contended that these lands should bear a just proportion of the cost incurred in maintaining their defence. It was the same with Penn sylvania. The proprietaries would not aUow their deputies to pass Acts for levying the necessary taxes, unless their vast estates were expressly exempt. Sharpe's loyalty to his chief compeUed him to reject the grants that were saddled with con ditions to which he knew Lord Baltimore would not consent. General Braddock wrote to Lord HaUfax : ' I cannot sufficiently express my indignation against the provinces of Pennsylvania and Maryland, whose interests being alike concerned in this Expedition, and much more so than any 12 BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT 43 others on this continent, refuse to contribute anything toward the project.' The year before, Sharpe had proposed to Lord Baltimore a plan to counteract the perverseness of the Lower House. He considered that the short duration of the sessions — three years — prevented the better class entering on a canvass for seats in that assembly: 'Therefore,' he says, ' there are too many instances of the lowest persons, at least, men of smaU fortunes, no soul, and very mean Capacities, appearing as Representatives of their respective counties. As there would be no want, I apprehend, of gentlemen to appear as Candidates if the Drudgery of Electioneering was to return less frequently, I submit to your Lordship's wisdom whether there may be any impro priety — if a more agreeable choice of members should be made — in continuing the next Assembly for more years than has been lately usual or customary.' Horatio Sharpe had now been nearly two years in office, and found the task that he had undertaken no light one. As a colonial governor responsible to the EngUsh Crown, he had to uphold its rights. As the representative of Lord Baltimore he was forced on many occasions to wage battle against the House of Burgesses in their disputes as to the rights and prerogatives of his master. As the resident ruler of the province, he had in every way to protect its inhabitants and promote their interests. To steer a right course in this sea of difficulties demanded an uncommon share of ability, tact, and firmness. It was no longer the Maryland of the earlier Calverts, whose paternal govern ment had the weUare of the people at heart. The present lord looked on the province merely as a source of revenue, from which as much as possible was to be drawn. In return, the people were jealous of their rights and privileges 44 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND as granted by their charter, and not incUned to yield one iota of these privUeges in favour of their absent ruler. The House of Burgesses, too, looked with distrust on the Upper House as representing no interests but those of the proprietary, whose nominees they were. The proposition of elevating some of these burgesses to his Lordship's CouncU, in order to conciliate them, was not looked upon favourably by Governor Sharpe, as the foUowing letter shows : Sharpe to CaeciUus Calvert, 12th March 1755. ' You are pleased to acquaint me that his Lordship desires Recommendation from me of Personages from the Lower House to be now and then preferred to be of his Council of State, and that his Lordship also desires the members of the Lower House or their FamiUes may have share of his favours as thereby their virulency may be abated. I wiU assure you that I am persuaded, to coun tenance the virulent in the Lower House, or withdraw them thence by giving them preferment, wiU be Uke behead ing a Hydra where three serpents' heads are fabled to have immediately sprouted out instead of one.' The story of the ' virulent ' burgesses is continued in this letter from Sharpe to Calvert : 'Annapolis, 10th April 1755. ' After a month had been spent in sending messages from one House to the other, the Upper House put an end to the Dispute by rejecting the BiU absolutely, whereupon the Burgesses came to a Resolution not to grant a shiUing by any other means than such as are similar to those proposed by the BiU which was passed last session. I have now prorogued them to July next, but cannot indeed entertain the least hopes of meeting them with greater success next time.' BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT 45 To return to miUtary proceedings. The campaign decided on at Alexandria by General Braddock was that he in person should attack Fort Duquesne, while Governor Shirley should conduct an expedition against Niagara, and Colonel Johnson one against Cro-wn Point. This latter officer, afterwards Sir WiUiam Johnson, was an Irishman, a nephew of Admiral Sir Peter Warren. He came out to America in 1734, at the age of nineteen, and settled in the Mohawk VaUey, where he acquired an extraordinary ascendancy over the Six Nations Indians. Braddock hoped to be beyond the AUeghanies by the end of AprU, but he had not counted on the bad condition of the roads, and the difficulty of obtaining transport. On the 22nd of that month Sharpe joined him at Fort Frederick, Maryland, where a part of the army was quartered. It is to be noted that at this place and time two of the foremost figures of the century first met — George Washington and Benjamin FrankUn. The latter was then the British post master-general for the colonies, and had come to Fort Frederick to arrange plans for forwarding dispatches, Washington was there in his capacity as aide-de-camp. Hearing from General Braddock of the great scarcity of wagons, the adroit and resourceful Franklin undertook to furnish them from Pennsylvania. He soon obtained one hundred and fifty wagons with four horses each, and fifteen hundred saddle or pack horses. Complaints had been loud in Maryland against Braddock for having taken away a great many indented servants, as weU as for having impressed wagons, horses, teamsters, carriages, and carriage horses. Sharpe writes to Secretary Calvert with reference to this arbitrary measure : 'The General stiU finding the Regiments incomplete gave orders for recruiting Servants. This I in vain endeav- 46 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND oured to persuade him off from, representing the mischief and Detriment that the Inhabitants must suffer from such a measure. The Servants immediately flocked in to enlist, convicts not excepted, and their masters made innumerable appUcations to me for Relief which I was sorry to be unable to grant. Here I found myseU in difficult circumstances. Many of the Peoples Cases reaUy caUed for Pity and Redress, as the Planters' Fortunes here consist in the number of their Servants who are purchased at high rates much as the Estates of an English Farmer do in the Multitude of Cattle.' It was, indeed, a tremendous undertaking to advance through forests and over steep mountains with the amount of equipage that the EngUsh general thought he required, besides guns, ammunition, and food supplies. At the end of May, Sir John St. Clair -with six hundred men was sent forward to clear a road to the Little Meadows, about twenty-five miles distant from Fort Cumberland. It was the middle of June before Braddock was fairly on his way through that gloomy pine forest, propheticaUy, in his case, named the ' Shades of Death.' Before leaving Fort Cumberland Braddock wrote to Sharpe : ' As I propose soon to begin my march to Fort Du Quesne I am desirous of adjusting every future contingency in such a manner as to avoid any mistake or misunderstanding. If I take the Fort in its present condition I shall make additions to it as I shaU judge necessary, and shaU leave the Guns, Ammunition, and Stores belonging to the Fort with a garrison of Virginian and Maryland forces. But should they, as I have reason to apprehend, abandon and destroy the Fortification with its guns, I wiU repair and construct some place of defence and leave a garrison as BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT 47 before. But as to the ArtiUery, Ammunition, Stores, Provisions, etc., they must be immediately supplied by the Governments of Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania, separately or jointly, according to the agreement made at Alexandria. ' I must beg that you wiU have aU these things in readiness to be forwarded to the Fort escorted by your Militia. A proper quantity of Flower and Meal should be preparing as these in any situation must be required, and if care is not taken to send these convoys the men must starve, and His Majesty's Arms be dishonoured, and his expenses and trouble wliich his regard for the colonies have engaged him in rendered useless. ' As I find it impracticable to take my Chariot with me,^ if you wiU send for it and the Harness for the six Horses, I shaU be much obUged to you and you wiU make use of it tiU I want it. I shaU be stiU more so as I am sure it ¦wiU be less damaged by good usage than by lying stiU. It wiU also save you the trouble of sending for another to England, as it shaU be at your service at your o-wn price when I leave this part of the world. Let your ser vants take care of the harness and have it oiled if you don't use it. I shaU leave directions to Col. Innes to deUver Chariot, Harness, spare axle-trees and pole to your order.' This incident of the chariot shows how signaUy Braddock had miscalculated the natural difficulties of such a campaign. He had evidently hoped to proceed in pompous state into the heart of the enemy's country, trusting that the walls of Fort Duquesne would faU at the crack of his postiUion's whip, or, at least, at the roU of the British drum. FrankUn recounts in his autobiography his last conversa- 1 Sharpe had sold this chariot to the general. 48 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND tion with the iU-fated general. 'After taking Fort Du quesne,' Braddock said, 'I am to proceed to Niagara, and having taken that to Frontenac if the season ¦wiU aUow time, and I suppose it wiU, for Duquesne can hardly detain me above three or four days, and then I see nothing that can obstruct my march to Niagara.' FrankUn ventured to remark that the danger to be apprehended was from ambuscades of Indians and from flank attacks on the long slender Une which the army must make in their march by a very narrow road. Braddock smUed at Franklin's ignorance, and said : ' These savages may indeed be a for midable enemy to your raw American miUtia, but upon the King's regular and discipUned troops, Sir, it is impos sible they should make any impression.' Sharpe answers Braddock's letter from AnnapoUs, 28th May 1755 : ' Your favour of the 22nd inst. I have just now received, and beg leave to assure you that no Endeavours shaU be wanting to engage the Assembly in some sort to perform their Duty by granting SuppUes for the purposes you mention. Did I find myseU impowered I would not lose a moment to lay in a quantity of Provision, but as the power of granting Money for such uses rests in the Repre sentatives of the people in Assembly, I can promise nothing more as to that matter than that I wiU attempt to make them sensible of the necessity of granting such SuppUes from the fatal consequences that may attend their Neglect. ' I shaU take care to get the Chariot hither and secure it tiU you may have occasion for it again, or whenever you please shaU be ready to receive it at your own price.' A warning as to the movements of the enemy came to BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT 49 Sharpe from John Bradstreet, adjutant-general to Governor Shirley, dated Oswego, 29th May 1755 : ' I think it my Duty to give you the EarUest notice that on my way to this place Col. Johnston and I examined a Frenchman who deserted from Canada with his wife who informed us that the French had actuaUy sent nine hundred and fifty men to the Ohio in four detachments, the last of which he saw at Cataraqui, and they passed this place about the time he expected and that on my Arrival here, the 27th inst., I made it part of my business to Examine into the truth of it from Indians who are constantly coming here from aU quarters who agree intirely with his account, since which the movement and Activity of the French make it stiU more necessary I should lose no time in letting you know what has passed. That on the 25th of this month twelve Bateaux passed this place with Men and Provisions, the 27th Eleven, and this day Eleven, which latter had on board nine smaU cannon and they carry one with the other ten men, and I am weU informed there are more men preparing to set out from Cataraqui and others daily expected from Montreal, and the French are using aU their power and Artifice to get as many Indians with them to oppose General Braddock as they possibly can, and openly declare to the Indians they will send the whole force of Canada, but they wiU carry their Point. I must also inform you there are many Indians here and Numbers are daily expected, and they appear to be very attentive to the proceedings between the French and us, and that I conceive there never was a time when the giving Provisions to such as are in real want, and well chosen presents to the Principal People would do more good than at this time.' A letter to Sharpe from Secretary Calvert in his customary D 50 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND chaotic style comments on affairs in general in America and England : ^EoNDON, 12^^ June 1755. ' I have yours of the 10th April by way of Philadelphia. It concerns his Lord to understand the Lower House have shewn no regard to his Instructions for Amendment of the Tabacco Law. Obstinacy against the Superior Lord weU advised and with Candour layd before a Legislative Body to Rectify a real mistake, the Non CompUance Endangers the WeUare of a People. AUke is his concern to know their un-wiUingness to grant aid in support and Defence Ag't the Ennemy of their King and Country and their Offers of ¦wrongs to his Rights without any regard or consideration to him. ' By yrs. since General Braddock's arrival in America you have not wanted Company at AnnapoUs ; it seems to a-been a general Rendez-vous. It gives my Lord pleasure as it Lusters Honour to the Province as weU as Profitt to the MetropoUs. Alls Peaceable here. No account of Admirel Boscawen since his departure westward.' Sharpe now sends Governor Dinwiddie the latest news from the camp : '. Annapolis, 22nd June 1755. ' I received a letter this morning from General Braddock dated 17th inst. at the Little Meadows between 20 and 30 miles from Fort Cumberland. Mr. Shirley teUs me they were got so far with much Difficulty and Distress, but were preparing to go on with more speed by lessening the number of waggons to those necessary for the ArtiUery, and reducing the Provision, etc., to such a quantity as may be carried on Horses. A detachment of a thousand of the best Troops were to go forward to the great crossing, and the Rest were BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT 51 to foUow more slowly with the remaining waggons and Provisions.' Some EngUsh gossip is given too, in this letter, for a gentleman had arrived in AnnapoUs that day just seven weeks from London, and the news was that His Majesty had gone to Germany, and it was reported that he was about to leave England for good ; that inteUigence had just been received of twenty-two ships having sailed from France towards the western coast of Ireland, and that Admirals Hawke and Boscawen had sailed after them with twelve ships ; and that the French had embarked a very consider able number of troops with a design of making a descent on that kingdom. Altogether, times were exciting on both sides of the Atlantic. A letter from Governor Shirley brings word that a French fleet had been seen on the 5th of June about forty leagues from Louisbourg, also that the assembly of Massachusetts had brought in a BiU laying an embargo on all vessels laden with provisions, fish only excepted, or with warUke stores for the space of one month ; provided, nevertheless, that the governor or commander-in-chief might permit a supply to be sent to the army and na-vy with necessary provisions ¦within that time. Governor Shirley goes on to say that he hears the French at Louisbourg, as weU as in Canada, are but scantUy suppUed with provisions, and he hopes the other governments wiU act in concert ¦with him and continue the embargo for three months instead of one. News from Braddock was scarce and long in coming. The Annapolis Gazette of the 26th June has : ' We are just informed that His ExceUency General Braddock with the force under his command have passed the mountains and expected to reach the Great Meadows about the middle 52 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND of the week. May the great God of Hosts cro-wn their Enterprize with success.' On the 28th, Sharpe writes to Lord Baltimore that he had that morning received letters from the troops who were on the 22nd inst. about forty miles westward from Fort Cumberland, and that it had taken them twelve days to accompUsh this distance owing to the difficulty of getting the wagons and heavy baggage over the mountains. A letter from Sharpe to Calvert gives rather a dismal picture of the state of the province : ' Annapolis, 5th July 1755. ' I have received advice that Fifteen more of our distant Inhabitants are kiUed or carried away by Indians, a party of whom have been seen not far from Conegogeek, which is nearly a hundred miles within our settlements. The Lower House still persevere in their obstinacy and I beUeve will never recede from what they are contending for tho' haU the Province should be depopulated. They have not yet addressed me to be prorogued, but I expect they wiU to-morrow morning, and it wiU be absolutely to no purpose ever to meet them again. ' I have not since heard from the General, but I am not without apprehension that he will be obliged to desert the Fort when he has taken it, for want of Pro-sasions which he cannot now expect from these Colonies ; in that case I fear the French wiU again take possession of that Country and then, let the General's success be ever so great, we shaU be in as bad if not a worse situation than we were last winter.' Sharpe writes to Calvert on the 9th of July 1755 : ' As I am despatching an Express to Virginia I request the favour of Governor Dinwiddie to put this on Board BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT 53 the first Ship that sails, to acquaint you that finding the Burgesses determined to do nothing either for His Majesty's Ser-dce or their o-wn protection unless the points for which they have been contending were given up to them, I prorogued otir Assembly yesterday evening after they had twice requested me to be dismissed. ' We are advised from the Northern Governt. that the French Fleet consisting of Six Men of War and 9 large Transports with Four Thousand Land Forces on board are in the Harbour of Louisbourg and that Admiral Boscawen Ues before that Town with 13 Capital Ships. ' Governor Dinwiddie also informs me that two parties of Indians and French, amounting together to about 130 Men, have been seen in the Frontier Counties where they have destroyed 9 FamiUes and plundered and burnt their Habitations. From our receiving no letters from the General since those dated 22nd June, we apprehend that those Indian Parties have cut off the Communication between him and Fort Cumberland and taken aU the Carriers. ' I am about to depart for Frederickton to try what can be done with the MiUtia for the Defense and Protection of our distant Inhabitants. I propose to draft a Company of 60 or 80 from the MiUtia by Lot and obUge them to keep ranging on the Frontiers for a few months -without any pay. Provisions they must impress and take in where it can be found, and if money be ever granted the People from whom it is taken must be satisfied for the same. Unless some such step be taken the people wiU not be persuaded to stay on their Plantations, being already struck with an universal Panick. We hope very shortly to hear from General Braddock at Fort Du Quesne, and from Oswego on Ontario Lake, where Gov. Shirley with the 54 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Troops under his Command must, we expect, be by this time arrived,' Sharpe, in a letter to Braddock of the 9th of July 1755, informs him that the appUcation for money and suppUes had been refused by the assembly, and refers to the expedi tion against Louisbourg, saying : ' There is great reason to beUeve that they are not extremely weU suppUed ¦with Provisions on account of the Embargo that was laid in Ireland ; if so, they must soon be greatly distressed, as some late Laws that have been made by these several Provinces have prevented the Exportation of any SuppUes hence to Cape Breton.' Sharpe writes to Captain Orme, aide-de-camp to Braddock, 9th July 1755 : ' Yours of the 22nd ult. was the last letter that has' been received from the camp ; we shaU begin to be in daUy Expectation of receiving better news from you than we can write hence, which you may be assured wiU much rejoice us.' One more letter from the front arrived in AnnapoUs from a young officer attached to the rearguard under Colonel Dunbar. It was dated the 21st of June near the Great Meadows. He feared the sport would be aU over before their division could reach the general. The horses were so weak from want of food and rest that it would take the whole rear, he thought, twenty-five days to join the front. On the 13th, Sharpe ¦writes to Calvert : ' A few days since we were informed by letter from the Camp that General Braddock with the troops under his command was the 1st inst. within 25 miles of Fort Du Quesne, which place he hoped to see in four or five days. They had lost only four men on their march from Fort Cumberland, three of whom were scalped by Indians, and one carried BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT 55 off aUve, No enemy had been seen by them for three days,' On the same day Sharpe writes to his brother in England, and gives the news of the capture of Fort Beau Sejour ^ on the 16th of June 1755, by the Massachusetts troops under Monckton and Winslow, and also of the successes of the EngUsh fleet under Admiral Boscawen off Louisbourg, when Captain Spry of the Fougueux brought in to HaUfax the Alcide of sixty-four guns, and the Lys, a seventy-four- gun ship. When news of the capture of the Alcide reached Paris, King Louis xv. withdrew his ambassador from London. It was on the 8th of July that the advanced body had reached the Monongahela, a few miles from the fort, the goal of their hopes. The eastern side of the river was too rocky for progress, so the general resolved to cross and find a smoother path, and ford the river again lower down. Already, as was kno-wn afterwards, their approach had been signaUed at Fort Duquesne, and Contrecceur even was contemplating retreat, when Beaujeu proposed to lead a party of Canadian marksmen and Indians to waylay the EngUsh on their march. The bold Frenchman met his death at the first voUey, but the ambuscade he had led did the work he had planned. A short note, dated Fort Cumberland, Ilth July 1755, and addressed ' To aU whom this may concern,' brings the first tidings of disaster, although even this does not reach AnnapoUs until the 16th of July. It was written by James Innes, a native of Scotland and a citizen of New Hanover, North CaroUna, who commanded the North CaroUna contin- 1 Beau Sejour was built by the French in 1750, on the Acadian isthmus, at the head of the Bay of Fundy. Forts Gaspereau and Pont a Buot capitulated at the same time. 56 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND gent in 1754, and the garrison at Fort Cumberland in 1755. It reads : ' I have this moment received the melancholy account of the Defeat of our Troops, the General kiUed and numbers of our Officers, our whole ArtiUery taken. In short the account I have is so very bad that, as please God I intend to make a stand here, it is highly necessary to raise the mUitia everywhere to defend the Frontier.' Innes -writes to the governor of Virginia a Uttle more fuUy on 13th July : ' This Dismal news brought down here on the Eleventh obligd me to send it as it came to my Ears from Waggoners and such people. I was surprised not to have some mes senger sent me from the Armie with accounts that I might depend on, which obUged me to send a Boy on purpose next day, and gave him one of the best and freshest horses I hade here and this moment he is returned with much the same accoimts. His Horse giving out he could proceed no forrder then the Little Meadows 25 miles from this. AU the Accounts I gett from him is relaited by the Waggoners and much to the same purport as at first, that the General and many Officers are kiUed and haU of our soldiers, with most of the ArtiUery taken by the Indians. But not in this time having any accounts from the Army gives me hope things cannot be so very bad with us. However I think it is hily requisite and full time that the miUtia in the three neighbouring Provinces should be immediately drafted and sent out to their assistance. Horses and waggons wiU be absolutely needfuU. Three or Four Thousand Men wiU carry Victory before us when five times the number in a Uttle time hence wiU not do. AU which I most humbly submit. You may depend as soon as I receive aney accounts I shall forward them. You may likewise Depend, Pleas God I Uve, I wiU do my best to maintain this post. I am BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT 57 this instant getting another Person and another horse to send out to the Armie with directions not to return without some Accounts.' The people in Annapolis would not beUeve the rumours that came. On 17th July 1755 the Gazette says : ' Upon the arrival of the agreeable news of the gaUant and victorious New England EngUshmen taking the three French Forts at the Eastward, and the brave Admiral Boscawen's taking their two men-of-war, a general joy was upon every true subject's countenance. But now we have been filled with concern and a melancholy diffused on some reports which have been brought to town of General Braddock's army ha-vdng met with a severe blow from the French and Indians, but the reports are so vague and uncertain that we cannot insert them, as they clash and are contradictory and leave room to hope that His Excellency may yet be weU, and instead of being conquered be the Conqueror, for knowing truly the Event we must submit to Time, and next week our Readers may expect a further account.' Preparations had been made in Philadelphia and Anna poUs for celebrating Braddock's victory. No one dreamed of defeat for the British regulars. How the rash general and his army fared is best told in Lieutenant Robert Orme's letter to Governor Sharpe : 'Fort Cumberland, ISth'July 1755. ' I am so extremely iU in bed -with the wound I have received in my thigh that I am under the necessity of employing my friend Captain Dobson to -write for me. I conclude you have had some account of the action near the Banks of the Monongahela, As the reports spread are very imperfect what you have heard must consequently be so too. You should have had more early accounts of it, but 58 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND every officer whose business it was to have informed you was either kiUed or wounded and our distressful situation put it out of our powers to attend to it so much as we would otherwise have done, ' The 9th inst. we passed and repassed the Monongahela by advancing first a party of 300 men which was immediately foUowed by another of 200, the General with the Column of ArtiUery Baggage and the main Body of the Army passed the river the last time about one o'clock. As soon as the whole had got on the Fort side of the Monongahela we heard a very heavy and quick fire on our front. We immediately advanced in order to sustain them, but the Detachment of the 200 and 300 men gave way and feU back upon us, which caused such confusion and struck so great a Pannick among our men that afterwards no miUtary expedient could be made use of that had any effect on them ; the men were so extremely deaf to the exhortations of the General and the officers that they fired away in the most irregular manner aU their ammunition and then ran off lea-ving to the Ennemy the ArtiUery, Ammunition, Pro-visions and Baggage, nor could they be persuaded to stop tiU they got as far as Gust Plantation, many of them proceeding even as far as Col, Dunbar's party, who lay six miles on this side. The officers were absolutely sacrificed by their unparaUeled good behaviour, advancing sometimes in body and some times separately hoping by such example to engage the soldiers to follow them but to no purpose. The General had five horses shot under him and at last received a wound through his right arm into his Lungs, of which he died the 13th inst. Poor Shirley was shot through the head, Capt, Morris wounded, Mr, Washington had two horses shot under him and his cloaths shot through in several places, beha-ving the whole time with the greatest courage and resolution. BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT 59 Sir Peter Halkett was kiUed upon the spot, Col, Barton and Sir John St, Clair wounded, and Enclosed I have sent you a Ust of the kiUed and wounded according to as exact an account as we are yet able to get. ' As our number of horses was so much reduced and those extremely weak and many carriages being wanted for the wounded men, occasioned our destroying the ammunition and superfluous part of the provisions left in Col, Dunbar's Convoy to prevent its faUing into the hands of the Ennemy. As the whole of the ArtiUery is lost, and the troops are so extremely weakened by Deaths, wounds and sickness, it was judged impossible to make any further attempts, there fore Col. Dunbar is returning to Fort Cumberland with everything he is able to bring with him. As the General's Chariot is to be disposed of I should be glad to know if you would have it again. It has been at this place since our departure from hence. If you propose taking of it again I -wiU send it to you and bring the General's Coach back. Capt. Morris' compUments attend you with Mr. Washington's.' Parkman states that Captain Robert Orme, the ¦writer of this letter, was the author of a copious and exceUent journal of the expedition, which is now in the British Museum. His portrait, painted at fuU length by Sir Joshua Reynolds, hangs in the National GaUery at London. He stands by his horse, a gaUant young figure, with a face pale, yet rather handsome, booted to the knee, his scarlet coat, ample waistcoat, and small three-cornered hat all heavy with gold lace. Too anxious to wait inactive. Governor Sharpe set off for Fort Cumberland, with his secretary, John Ridout, Lieutenant Gold, and Ensign RusseU of His Majesty's 60 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND forces, and a band of volunteers. The Marylaind Gazette of Thursday, 24th July, has the foUowing : ' Tuesday morning last His ExceUency our Governor set out from hence for Frederick County and lodged that night at Colonel Tasker's seat at BeUair. We hear His ExceUency intends for Fort Cumberland.' At every step Horatio Sharpe took, the reports of the British disaster were confirmed. Those two famous regi ments which had fought in the Scottish and continental wars had fled from an enemy almost tmseen, and their boasted discipline and valour had not enabled them to face a band of savages and a few French infantry. When the Governor reached Fort Cumberland, aU was alarm and confusion. The inhabitants of the surrounding country had rushed to its waUs for safety. Colonel Dunbar arrived there on 22nd July, with four hundred wounded men in the ranks. To add to the panic he announced, in spite of Sharpe's remonstrances, that he intended to abandon everything and retreat -with the remnant of his troops into winter quarters at Philadelphia. The losses had been enormous, and the troops who remained were demoraUsed. Of the 1460 officers and privates who went into the engage ment, 456 were kiUed or wounded. Of 89 commissioned officers, 63 were kiUed or wounded. Everything had been abandoned : artiUery, smaU arms, ammunition, wagons, provisions, baggage and stores, the miUtary chest -with £25,000 in specie, and the general's cabinet -with his instruc tions and private papers. Worse than the loss of aU this was the loss of British prestige. The French marksmen and the Indian savages had proved more than a match for King George's troops. The story was a sad one to hear. For three hours the slaughter had gone on. The officers' devotion in trying to raUy their men was shown by their BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT 61 losses. Nearly aU were kiUed or wounded. Not a staff officer was left, except George Washington, who bore a charmed Ufe that day, and with his Virginians had done much to cover the retreat. In the Ust of casualties sent to Sharpe and pubUshed in the Maryland Gazette of Slst July, it is curious to find the names of some who twenty years afterwards fought on different sides in another contest little dreamed of then. Among them were Thomas Gage, who was commander-in-chief of the British forces in 1775, and Horatio Gates, who, in 1777, received at Saratoga the siurender of Burgoyne. Sharpe, in writing to England an account of the melan choly affair, says : ' As soon as the general was brought back to Colonel Dunbar's camp he gave orders for the Destruction of aU the Ammunition and Artillery that Dunbar had with him except two six-pounders. In pur suance of this order near 150 waggons were burnt, the Powder casks stored in a spring, the Cohorns broke or buried and the shells bursted. The provisions were scattered abroad on the ground or the Barrels broke and thrown into the water. Soon after this was executed the General died and was buried privately on the Road. ' It was as surprizing a Defeat I think as has been heard of, for 'tis supposed that the Indians that day opposed were not less than 1500 or 2000, and yet none of the EngUsh that were engaged wiU say they saw an hundred, and many of the officers who were in the Heat of the Action the whole time wiU not assert that they saw one enemy. It seems the French had most advantageously posted them selves behind the large Trees that grew on the Eminences or HiUs that were on the Right Flank and in the front of our Troops. Thence they fired irregularly on the EngUsh beneath them, who being in a compact body became a fair 62 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND mark to their Ennemis, against whom they fired in Platoons almost as fast as they could load without doing as I conceive any great execution. The men had not been used to nor had any idea of this kind of fighting, which dispirited them and soon threw them into confusion. Colonel Dunbar, with the remains of the Two Regiments and the three Independent companies is on his march to Philadelphia. The loss of the greatest Part of the ArtiUery ammunition and camp Equipage which cannot be replaced but from Europe, the Death of the General and the Loss of aU his papers and Instructions, together with the want of officers and Terror of the men that survive have determined Colonel Dunbar against attempting anything tiU he can receive Instructions and Directions for his Conduct.' The control of affairs on the frontier was now left to Lieutenant-Governor Sharpe, who did what he could to aUay the panic that prevailed. After leaving the provincial troops under Colonel Innes to garrison Fort Cumberland, and promising to build three new forts to protect the terror- stricken inhabitants of the district, the governor returned to AnnapoUs. The Gazette announces on the 7th of August : ' This day His ExceUency our Governor returned in good Health.' AU his energy was now needed, for Braddock's defeat was bearing fruit already. The enemy laid waste the borders of Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania, and, to add to the general alarm, the Shawanese and Delaware Indians, who had hitherto remained faithful to the British, went over to the French side. People were now aroused to the necessity of keeping up a miUtary force, and sub scriptions were started aU over the country to defray the expenses of the volunteer company which Colonel Sharpe had raised on his way to the fort. AnnapoUs alone furnished BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT 63 about a thousand pounds. On the 18th of October the governor caUed out the miUtia of the province. He was of the opinion that in case of another attack against Fort Duquesne, there ought to be at least one thousand woods men or hunters, who were marksmen and used to rifles, to precede the army and engage the Indians in their own way, Sharpe had -written to Sir Thomas Robinson in July that he beUeved in the three colonies, Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania, there were eighty thousand men fit to bear arms, yet on account of not having a good militia law, such as was in force in the eastern colonies, these men had no notion of arms or miUtary duty. Soon, however, in consequence of the French and Indian war, the colonies became training schools for military service, with what result was seen twenty years after. CHAPTER V SHIRLEY, COMMANDBR-IN-CHIEP, 1755 By Braddock's death the position of commander-in-chief devolved on Lieutenant-Governor Shirley, WiUiam Shirley, the governor of Massachusetts from 1741 to 1746, and again from 1753 to 1756, was an EngUshman by birth. He was bom at Preston, Sussex, in 1693, was by profession a la-wyer, and came out to America in 1731, His talents and energy soon brought him into a prominent position in the colony, and throughout his career he was a strenuous defender of British interests in America. He jealously watched the encroachments of the French in Acadia, and when, in 1744, they took and destroyed the Uttle fishing viUage of Canseau on the strait of that name, he suggested to the EngUsh Government the bold plan of capturing the fortress of Louisbourg, Cape Breton. He undertook, more over, to carry out the enterprise by the aid of colonial volunteers, only stipulating that the EngUsh fleet should support the attack. The expedition was entered into almost as a crusade by the enthusiastic New Englanders, who had recently been roused to religious fervour by the preaching of Whitefield. The motto suggested by the revivaUst for their flag was Nil Desperandum Christo duce. About four thousand men were raised from among the farmers, mechanics, shopkeepers, and fishermen of Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire. These were placed by Shirley under the command of WiUiam SHIRLEY, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, 1755 65 PeppereU, a good honest bourgeois merchant of Kittery, Maine, whose only quaUfications for the post were popu larity, unf aiUng good-temper, and reUgious zeal. Of miUtary experience he had none. Indeed, Shirley, who had great confidence in himseU, -wrote to the Duke of Newcastle that ' though the officers had no experience, and the men no discipline, he would take care to provide against these defects.' Under PeppereU's leadership these amateur soldiers performed unheard-of feats, and the expedition was a complete success. Commodore Warren arrived in time to blockade the harbour, and a French man-of-war, the Vigilante, bringing food and munitions for the beleaguered and mutinous garrison, feU into his hands. On land the grand battery of thirty cannon was taken by PeppereU, giving him the hea-vy guns he required for the siege, and after a bombardment of several weeks, Louisbourg, the strongest fortress in America, on which the French king had expended miUions, capitulated on 17th June 1745. For this service PeppereU was made a baronet, and Warren an admiral.^ When Shirley became commander-in-chief of His Majesty's forces in America, he entered on the duties of the position with fervour, for he dearly loved power, and imagined that he exceUed in miUtary strategy. It was not his fault that Canada had not been attacked ten years before, for after the success of Louisbourg he -wrote urging the Duke of Newcastle to send out troops for the capture of Canada, and imdertaking to raise twenty thousand men himseU in the colonies. Newcastle promised to send eight battaUons with General St. Clair, and Shirley with his usual energy began his preparations for the campaign. In vain he 1 By the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1748, much to the mdignation of the victorious New Englanders, the fortress was restored to the French. E 66 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND waited for the coming of the promised British troops ; Newcastle, the notoriously incompetent prime minister, changed his mind, and although the eight battaUons had actuaUy embarked, they were ordered on shore again, and afterwards sent on a futile expedition against the coast of France. Shirley was left to his o-wn resources. It may easily be imagined how zealously he now set to work against his old time enemies, rendered stiU more his foes by the death of his son at Monongahela. With a courtesy that was characteristic he writes as foUows to Sharpe, who had ambitions perhaps also himself as to the command : ' Camp at Oswego, 9th September 1755. ' As it may be acceptable to your Honour to know the situation of the Service which is under my immediate care, I transmit you the foUowing account. The last di-vision of the Forces under my command were twenty-six days upon their march from Schenectady to this place, where they did not arrive until the 2nd inst. The Troops are much reduced by Desertion and Sickness and absence of Detachments upon Parties and Command, that by a Field Return it appears that the number of men in the Three Regiments and Independent Cos. fit for Duty upon the Spot don't amount to 1400, out of which we are obUged to keep a 100 at work on a New Fort, and if the body of the forces moves from this place must leave 300 at least for the defence of it, so that not 1000 men wiU remain for other service. ' However, if I am not disappointed of SuppUes of Pro visions which I hourly expect ; I am encouraged upon the InteUigence I have gained since my arrival here, that with our Naval Force, and the Assistance of the Indians whom I have picked up in my passage thro' the Country of the five Nations, and the Albany men whom I hired to go with SHIRLEY, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, 1755 67 me as a Scouting Party of Guards, both which may amount to 140 men, I say, I am encouraged, sir, to hope that we may proceed upon action in a very few days, and that a foundation wiU be laid this year for such a Campaign the next as I flatter myseU, provided the Colonies shaU exert a proper spirit, may secure aU points in dispute between us and the French. ' As I think a very early Campaign the next year neces sary, I have sent orders to Col. Dunbar, the Commanding Officer of H.M. Two British Regiments, and two Independent Cos. of New York, to march those Troops directly to Albany, where I design their winter Quarters shall be.' Sharpe, who keeps his brother in England weU informed of aU that takes place in the Colonies, writes to him 15th September 1755 : ' In my letter of the 1 1th August I informed you that Col. Dunbar was on his march from Fort Cumberland to PhUadelphia. By letters thence I learn that he arrived at that Place a fortnight ago, and that as soon as he could get some necessary cloathes made for the men who were in great want thereof and a little Field Equipage he would obey General Shirley's orders by proceeding to N. York and making the best of his way to Oswego. As that place is not much less than 400 miles distant from N. York I am afraid he will not be able to reach it and reinforce Genl. Shirley time enough to enable him to make a successful attempt on Niagara this year, and I beUeve that without his Assistance that Enterprise wiU not be undertaken ; indeed I think that if the General can secure himself, construct a strong place of Defence on the shore, and by the Vessels that are building secure the Lake Ontario this year he wiU do good service, and be 68 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND in a fair way of making a Conquest early in the Spring. The Fort and Pass of Niagara is in my opinion the most desirable place in North America.' In a letter of the same date to Calvert, Sharpe teUs him that a deserter has brought him the information that the French have no less than two thousand men at Fort Duquesne, under the command of one Count Brodie, a Scotsman. A gleam of comfort came this month for the English from Lake George, where the French under General Dieskau were defeated on the Sth of September. Major-General Johnson, as had been arranged by Braddock at Alexandria, was to attack Crown Point on Lake Champlain during the summer, and in August he proceeded in that direction with his little army of provincials, mostly hunters and f armers,together with a party of Mohawks, in all about three thousand men. Johnson marched from Albany with his motley crowd, only one company being in uniform, and on the way stopped at Fort Lyman, about fourteen miles south of the lake then known as St. Sacrement. Leaving at the fort a detachment of about five hundred men, he leisurely made his way with the remainder to the shore of that beautiful lake which he renamed in honour of His Majesty, Lake George. In the meantime, Baron Dieskau, who had arrived in the spring from France with Vaudreuil, the new governor of Canada, was ordered to march with a force of three thousand five hundred men, consisting of French regulars, Canadians, and Indians, to defend Crown Point from the expected attack. When he arrived there he found from his scouts that the EngUsh were in great force near Lake St. Sacre ment. Dieskau wanted to proceed first against the lately built Fort Lyman, which he heard they were strengthening, but his unruly Indians refused, so he determined to advance SHIRLEY, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, 1755 69 at once upon the camp at Lake George. Here aU remained serene until Sunday the 7th of September, when the news reached Johnson that the French were approaching. He determined then, in spite of the advice of Hendricks the Indian chief, to send out a thousand men to intercept them, while the remainder proceeded to fortify their camp. On the morning of the Sth September the rattle of musketry was heard in the distance, and Johnson knew that his men were engaged. He soon learnt that they had unfortunately faUen into a cleverly planned ambuscade. The EngUsh pro-vincials did not attempt to stand their ground. The survivors of the sudden attack scattered in aU directions, shooting with true hunters' instinct from behind trees or anything that afforded cover. At last they regained their camp, still pursued, but aided in their retreat by a party of their friends who came out to meet them. In the mean time those who had been left in the camp had strongly entrenched themselves by an abattis of feUed trees, wagons, and bateaux, behind which their marksmen lay concealed, protected at the rear by the lake. Soon after the breath less fugitives had reached this place of refuge the white uniforms and shining arms of the French regulars appeared in front, while in the morasses and bushes on either side the Canadians and Indians were posted. Johnson's men were so weU protected that the enemy's fire had little effect, and from behind their shelter they returned it with deadly aim, assisted also by three pieces of artiUery which did great execution. So incessant was the rain of buUets that poured upon them that the un- discipUned Canadians broke and fled. The French regulars stood their ground for some time longer, and kept up their attack until, weakened by their losses, with haU their men killed and their general severely wounded, they at last gave 70 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND way, and with a shout the EngUsh provincials and their savage aUies leaped over their barricades and pursued them. The rout was complete, and Dieskau was taken prisoner. In their retreat the unfortunate French, in their turn, rushed into an ambuscade of some New York and New Hampshire rangers, who hearing the fire had come out from Fort Lyman, and now lay in wait in the darkness. Though fewer in number, so sudden and deadly was their attack that the French who fell into the trap were almost annihilated. ' This memorable conflict,' Parkman says, ' has cast its dark associations over one of the most beautiful spots in America. Near the scene of the evening fight a pool, half overgrown by weeds and water UUes, and darkened by the surrounding forest, is pointed out to the tourist, and he is told that beneath its stagnant waters lie the bones of three hundred French men deep buried in mud and sUme.' Great was the rejoicing when the news reached England, for though it was but a small skirmish, and the main attack on Crown Point was not carried out, it was stiU an offset to the humiliation of Braddock's rout, and honours were poured upon the fortunate Johnson who had snatched a victory from defeat. It was all the more surprising, because he had never seen service himself, and knew nothing of war, while his opponent Dieskau had been one of Marshal Saxe's best officers, and had fought under him on many a famous battlefield. A letter from Calvert to Sharpe gives what was thought in England of the affair. From London, on 23rd December 1755, he writes that he sends him ' The London Gazette Extraordinary, Oct. 30th, wherein is an Extract of a letter from Gov. Wentworth to the Rt. Hon. Sir Thomas Robin son, dated Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Sept. 10th, 1755, SHIRLEY, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, 1755 71 enclosing letter writ by Major Johnson from the camp at Lake George, Sept. Oth, 1755.' ' The Action was glorious on the EngUsh Side and by Mr. Johnson well conducted and gained with MiUtary SkiU and Bravery by the Officers and Troops, The Baron Dieskau the French General seems to have fallen into an Ambuscade Uke General Braddock. Mr. Johnson here is in high Esteem and as a Distinguishable Mark of Reward for his real service His Majesty has dignified him with the Stile and Title of Baronet.' Johnson did not foUow up his victory as he might have done while the enemy were demoraUsed, but contented himseU with building on the south-west shore of Lake George a fort which he caUed WiUiam Henry after a Royal Prince of that name. His excuse for not moving on Crown Point was that the reinforcements sent him by Shirley in October had made him short of provisions, that the season was advanced, and his men had no proper clothing. Shirley had now determined to caU a council of war like the one held by Braddock at Alexandria, and Horatio Sharpe was among the few bidden to it. On 7th October, Shirley writes to him from Oswego : ' Being fuUy per suaded that a meeting between you. Governor Morris, Sir Charles Hardy and myseU, at New York, on my return to Boston through that place at the latter end of November would be greatly for the good of His Majesty's service in settUng the plan of operations for the ensuing Spring, I have sent to you an Express to desire that you should do me the pleasure to meet me at New York in 30 days from this date,' In the meantime, Sharpe was much troubled by affairs in his own province. Very bad reports came from Fort Cumberland, where Captain Dagworthy commanded in the place of Innes. The Indians had cut off many families 72 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND who Uved near the fort on both sides of the Potomac. More than a hundred persons had been carried off, or scalped and tomahawked. The garrison was reduced by desertions to about a hundred and forty, including about a hundred that remained of the decimated Virginians. Governor Dinwiddie was raising a thousand men to complete the regiment, which he intended to put under the command of Colonel Washington. Now arose another difficulty, for Captain Dagworthy, who had formerly held a king's commission, refused to give up the command to Washington, who held his only from the governor of Virginia. It looked very much as if there would be friction between the pro-vince of Maryland and the dominion of Virginia as to the right to command the fort. Mr. Washington, who was never wilUng to give up a point, determined to appeal to the commander-in-chief, and set off in mid- winter on horseback for a ride of five hundred miles to Boston and back, accompanied by Captains Morris and Stewart. Governor Shirley confirmed Governor Dinwiddle's appointment, and the young provincial colonel became com mandant of Fort Cumberland. A sad and thankless office it was, for the ravages of the Indians continued aU winter, and almost in despair of reUeving the suffering he saw, Washington -writes : ' The supplicating tears of the women, and moving petitions of the men melt me into that deadly sorrow that I solemnly declare, if I know my own mind, I could offer myseU a ¦wiUing sacrifice to the butchering ennemy, provided that would contribute to the people's ease.' In Annapolis, even, the terror was great. A letter from an inhabitant says : ' The Indians as we are now informed are within a Hundred Miles of this City the Metropolis of our Province, and that in a considerable and formidable Body the Country lies open before them.' SHIRLEY, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, 1755 73 The Gazette of 6th November says : ' We are now about entrenching the Town. If the gentlemen in the neighbour hood of Annapolis would send their force to assist in it, a few days would complete the work.' It does not appear that the entrenchments were ever required, though deeds of horror still went on in the western part of the province. Sharpe called out the miUtia of the province, and volunteers under Captain BeaU, Lieutenant Samuel Magruder, and Colonel Henry Ridgely hastened to the invaded district. In a letter to Shirley of 17th October 1755, Sharpe accepts his invitation to the council, and thinks it wiU be attended with good consequences. It had evidently been decided that nothing more could be attempted this year. The greater part of Admiral Boscawen's fleet was to sail to England. General, now Sir WiUiam Johnson, had decided to abandon the expedition to Crown Point, and to return to Albany with most of the provincial troops, leaving only a smaU garrison at Fort WiUiam Henry and at Fort Lyman, now caUed Fort Edward. General Shirley, who had intended in September to make a descent upon Fort Frontenac, had not found the scheme practicable. Therefore, with the exception of the capture by Colonel Monckton of the three forts in Acadia, and the successful skirmish at Lake George, the campaign of 1755 had been barren of results, and singularly unfortunate in the affair of Fort Duquesne. As to naval affairs, a letter from Captain Spry of H.M.S. Fougueux, dated from Halifax Harbour, 20th October 1755, to Lieutenant-Governor Sharpe, gives the latest report, and also incidentally shows that the authorities looked to the latter for wise counsel in miUtary operations : ' Admiral Boscawen being sailed for England and having honoured me with the Command of aU His Majesty's Ships 74 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND and Vessels he has thought proper to leave in this Harbour, as well as those stationed at the Bahama Islands and the different Colonys of North America ; a Ust whereof I herewith Transmit you, that you may be a Judge of His Majesty's Naval Force still remaining in those seas. ' As the winter season advances apace, and Admiral Boscawen was pretty well assured before he sailed that the garrison of Louisbourg would receive no more suppUes from France this year, he therefore directed me to lay up the great ships and secure them for the winter that I may be the better enabled to proceed to sea as early in the Spring as the Season will permit, and Cruize in such a manner as shaU be judged most proper to distress the French both at Louisbourg and Quebec ; and you may be assured I shaU use aU the means in my power to prevent any suppUes of men or Provisions from being thrown into either of these places ; in executing which service I shaU on aU occasions pay great deference to your advice as I am sensible your ExceUency is very capable of informing me properly. ' A list of Ships and Vessels under the command of Richard Spry, Esq., Captain of His Majesty's ShipFov^uevx : FougueuxLitchfield Norwich CenturionSuccess Vulture, Sloop Mermaid Nightingale GuarlandSyrenBaltimore, Sloop Jamaica, Sloop Guns. Men. 64 500 50 330 50 330 54 400 20 130 14 90 20 130 Boston. 20 130 New York. 22 130 Virginia. 20 130 S. CaroUna. 16 90 N, Carolina 14 90 Bahamas,' SHIRLEY, COMMANDER-IN CHIEF, 1755 75 The Maryland Gazette, on Thursday, 6th November, announces : ' Friday morning last His ExceUency our Governor accompanied by a number of the principal gentle men of the place set off for the Northward.' Governor Shirley was not prompt in keeping his appoint ment, and the governor of Maryland was delayed for some weeks in New York awaiting his arrival. It was indeed a gay place in that autumn of 1755. Although the prestige of England had waned on Braddock's fatal field, New York was bracing itself to weather the storm. The Hudson was crowded with sloops, transporting supplies to the frontier. The drums were beating through the city streets gathering recruits, and great were the festivities at the arrival of Sir Charles Hardy, who had been sent out to take the place of Sir Danvers Osborne, whose suicide two days after his arrival had been such a tragedy the year before. Sir Charles came by the frigate Sphynx in September 1755, and his arrival was made the occasion of a brilUant pageant. We read that as his barge reached White Hall it was saluted with fifteen guns from Fort George, and at the landing were gathered all the high dignitaries of the province in their robes of state. The new governor was escorted by a troop of horse to his residence within Fort George, the way Uned by the inde pendent companies of the province. After the commission was published, the whole city betook itself to festivity. The governor held a reception where the royal healths were drunk, and a grand dinner was laid at the ' Province Arms,' the former residence of the Hon. James de Lancey, lieutenant-governor. A letter to Sharpe from Lieutenant-Governor Morris suggests that in that gay to-wn there were distractions from the cares of State. He writes as follows : 76 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND ' I have the honour of your ExceUency's of the 20th inst., and I am sorry you have been obliged to stay so long for Genl. Shirley, but hope the company of the many agreable Ladies in New York have in some measure made amends for the want of business. I am sure I have wished myseU with you ever since you went from hence, not only on account of the pleasure I always enjoy in your company, but to be free from the plague of having to do with an obstinate assembly who seem to have no regard for the safety of the province. The Indians have attacked and destroyed one of the Moravian Settlements near the Forks of the Delaware, and have put to death aU the people except two.' On 25th November, Sharpe was stiU waiting in New York for General Shirley, and on that date he -writes from there to his brother : ' We impatiently desire to know what Steps ¦wiU be taken in Consequence of General Braddock's Defeat and the Issue of this Campaign. For my own part I hope not less than four or five Regiments wiU be sent over, and beUeve that that number with those that are already here and three or four Thousand Irregulars, wiU find enough business on their hands if it is determined to cut off the Communica tion between the Ennemy's northern and southern Settle ments. This year's Experience I fiatter myseU, has demon strated that the Colonies are not to be depended on for Assistance, and unless the People are obUged by an Act of Parliament to furnish Horses, Waggons, etc., to the utmost of their power to forward any future Expedition, it wiU be in vain to concert Plans for Conquest or under take any Enterprise on the Continent of America. ' P.S. — I have just been informed by Sir John St. Clair that the General has come to a resolution to raise two more SHIRLEY, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, 1755 77 Regiments on the Establishment in America this winter ; he -wiU not dispose of such Regiments when raised, but leave it to His Majesty to appoint the Colonels. As this is the case I flatter myseU you wiU exert your interest in my favour and endeavour to procure me the command of one,' General Shirley had in the meanwhile been employing his troops in the strengthening of the fort at Oswego, and had left for its defence about nine hundred men of his own and Sir WilUam PeppereU's regiment under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Mercer. On Lake Ontario he had placed a sloop and schooner carrying six carriage and twenty swivel guns each, and as the French were buUding at Cataraqui vessels of a large size to dispute the navigation of the lake the foUowing summer, he ordered some vessels of more than a hundred tons' burden to be placed on the stocks, and a great number of whale-boats to be built during the winter. One of the causes of his present delay in attending the council was the iUness and death of his second son. Captain John Shirley, from fever at Oswego, Governor Morris writes to Dinwiddie : ' My heart bleeds for Mr. Shirley, The loss of two sons in one Campaign scarcely admits of consolation,' The councU of war was held at New York on Friday, the 12th of December 1755, From the minutes of the meeting we learn that there were present : ' His ExceUency Wm. Shirley, Esq., General, etc., Com mander-in-Chief ; Sir Charles Hardy, Kt., Governor, Com mander-in-Chief Province New York ; the Hon. Horatio Sharpe, Lieutenant-Governor and Commander-in-Chief Pro vince Maryland ; Robt. H. Morris, Lieutenant-Governor and Commander-in-Chief Province Pennsylvania ; Thomas Fitch, Governor and Commander-in-Chief Colony Connecticut; 78 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Colonel Thos, Dunbar; Major Charles Craven; Sir John St, Clair, Deputy Quarter-Master-General ; Major James Kinneer ; Major John Rutherford. ' The instructions given to General Braddock were read, and His ExceUency, General Shirley, observed that the Reasons Assigned in His Majesty's instructions for ordering General Braddock to begin his operations on the Ohio seemed to be principaUy founded on some information which had been given, that the support of the French forts and settlements upon that River is dra-wn from their Settle ments upon the Mississippi,' His ExceUency then continued : ' The only practicable Entrance which His Majesty's Subjects have with the Lake Ontario is at Oswego, thro' the River Onondaga, which is the only Harbour fit to receive Vessels of any force that His Majesty hath upon that Lake, and that Oswego is situated in the country of the Onondagoes which Ues in the middle of that inhabited by the Six Nations, and is the only Trading House the EngUsh have for carrying on a Commerce and Correspondence with the Western Indians. The only practicable Entrance the French have into the same Lake is thro' the River Iroquoise, caUed in some of their late Maps the River St. Lawrence, and near Fort Frontenac, which is situated on the north-east Edge of that Lake at about 50 miles Distant from and nearly oppo site to Oswego. Whilst the French are in possession of that Fort and the Harbour there, with a free passage into the Lake through the River Iroquoise, together with their Harbour at Toronto on the Lake, they wiU have it in their power to build and Maintain Vessels of Force upon the Lake which, unless His Majesty shaU keep up at least an equal Naval Force there, may not only annoy any Fort which should be erected by His Majesty's Subjects at the SHIRLEY, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, 1755 79 N.E. End of the Pass of Niagara, but endanger the loss of Oswego itself to the French, which would inevitably be attended with the Defection of the several Castles of the Indians of the Six Nations to the French Interest in a short time, and with the loss of the whole country as far as Shenectady, and very possibly soon foUowed with the Loss of the city of Albany. From the best information he can procure it appears to him that the French Forts and Settlements at Niagara, upon Lake Erie, and the Ohio, and even as far as MisiUmakinak upon the Lake Hiu:on are whoUy supported with stores and Provisions from Montreal by water carriage through the River Iroquoise and across the Lake Ontario and not from the French Settlements on the Mississippi, which being near the distance of 2000 miles from any of them are too remote to afford them any support. Consequently, the dislodging of the French from Fort Frontenac and their small fort ^ at Toronto, and barring up their Entrance into the Lake Ontario thro' the River Iroquoise would cut off aU their Forts and Settle ments upon that and the other Lakes, and the River Ohio, from aU support from Canada, without which they could not possibly long subsist. ' Therefore His ExceUency proposes the foUowing Plan of Operations for the ensuing year : ' That a Body of 5000 Troops should be assembled at Oswego by the last week in April, and Fort Frontenac and La Galette upon the River Oswegatie be attacked with 4000 of them in the beginning of May, leaving 1000 at Oswego for the Protection of that Place. ' That after dislodging the French Troops at Cataraqui and La Galette they should be employed in attacking the French Forts and Settlements at Niagara, Presqu'isle, 1 FortRouUl^. 80 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND the River a Boeuf, Detroit, and MisilUmackinac, and to secure the several Posts there. That 3000 Troops should at the same time be marched to Fort Duquesne by Land from WiUs Creek to attack that Fort. ' That Cro-wn Point should be at the same time attacked with 6000 Troops, a Fort afterwards built on Lake Champ lain, and one or more Vessels built to navigate that Lake ; and in order to divide the Force of Canada more effectuaUy after breaking up aU the French Settlements upon the river Chaudiere, with 2000 Troops, about the same time, to make a feint on Quebec at the mouth of the said River, which is within Three Miles distance from that MetropoUs situate on the opposite side of the River St. Lawrence. ' His ExceUency then desired the opinion and advice of the Council upon every part of the proposed plan, and particularly whether the number of Troops was sufficient. He then observed to the Council that if the before-men tioned attempts for the reduction of the French Forts and Settlements upon the Lake and the Ohio and Crown Point should not be made at the same time, but one of them only carried out at a Time, these Dangers would ensue, -viz.. If an attempt should be made upon the Lake Ontario for the reduction of the Fort at Cataraqui and Niagara, etc., without any against Crown Point, the French would either bend the chief part of the whole force of Canada to oppose it, in which case three times a larger Body of Troops would be required to encounter it there as would make the Transportation of them and their stores and Provisions to Oswego in time almost impracticable, or else the French would muster so strong a Force against Albany as might take it, and by that means Uke-wise cut off all communica tion between it and the Forces at Oswego, which must receive its whole support of Stores and Provisions from SHIRLEY, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, 1755 81 thence. On the other hand, if an Attempt should be made for the Reduction of Crown Point only, and not against Fort Cataraqui, Niagara, etc., at the same time, Oswego, which from the IntelUgence gained at that place, appears to be the great object of the French, would be in danger of being lost to them, in case they should bend their principal Force against it ; which loss would be an irretrievable One to the English, as it would not only be loss of the Country as far as Albany, together with the Six Nations, but give the French the Dominion of the Great Lake and the whole Southern Country.' The council, after taking the several matters into con sideration, gave it as their unanimous opinion : ' 1st. That it is most essentiaUy necessary at all Events to secure the Navigation of the Lake Ontario, and from the InteUigence the General has informed them he has already received, of Vessels building by the Ennemy at Fort Fron tenac, that at least Three Vessels be built immediately at Oswego, and that on any future Intelligence of the Ennemys increasing their Naval Force, that the General should build such and so many more vessels as he finds necessary for securing the Mastery of the Lake, ' 2nd. That one expedition be carried on against Crown Point and another against the French Settlements and Encroachments on Lake Ontario ; that both Armies ren dezvous at their respective Places of Destination as soon as possible in the Spring. ' 3rd, That an Army of 10,000 Men wiU be necessary for the Expedition against Crown Point, ' 4th, That an Army of 6000 Men at least wiU be neces sary for the Expedition against the French Encroachments on Lake Ontario, ' 5th, Approving of the Attempt against Fort Du Quesne. F 82 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND ' 6th, Approving of the Feint with 2000 Men against Quebec by way of the River Chaudiere, provided that it can be done withoilt prejudice to the other parts of the service already agreed on, ' That with regard to the operations on Lake Ontario it was the opinion of the majority of the council that they should be begun by the attack of Cataraqui. ' Lastly, the council are unanimously of opinion that an additional number of Regular Troops wiU be necessary for effectually recovering and securing His Majesty's Rights and Dominions upon this Continent,' The plan of campaign was a bold one and promised much, but Shirley was not destined to carry it out. CHAPTER VI ACADIA AND MAR-JXAND While Horatio Sharpe was absent in New York there came to his province a hapless band of exiles destined to receive but a sorry welcome in whatever land their lot was cast. The Maryland Gazette has the foUowing : ' Annapolis, Uh December 1755. ' Sunday last arrived here the last of the vessels from Nova Scotia, with French Neutrals for this place, which makes Four within this fortnight who have brought upwards of 900 of them. As the poor people have been deprived of their settlements in Nova Scotia, and sent here for some very poUtical reason bare and destitute. Christian Charity, nay. Common Humanity, CaUs on every one according to their AbiUty to lend their Assistance and Help to these Objects of Compassion.' It was the last sad chapter of a long story beginning as far back as 1633, and even at this day, one hundred and fifty years after the expatriation, the question is not settled whether their doom was just, or whether the mode of carry ing out their sentence was too severe. Historians differ. We only know that of those tragic days : ' The shadow of inextinguishable paia The poet's deathless music — these remain.' The people of Acadia were mainly descendants of the colonists who were brought out to La Heve and Port Royal between the years 1604 and 1630, ' They came from 83 84 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND RocheUe, Saintonge, and Poitou — from a country of marshes, where the sea was kept out by artificial dykes, and they found in Acadia similar marshes which they dealt with in the same way,' AU through its early history Acadia, or Nova Scotia, suffered from the insecurity to life and property which arose from its repeated change of masters. Neither France nor England cared much for a region of so Uttle apparent value. Both aUke regarded it merely as debatable ground or as a convenient makeweight in adjusting the balance of conquests or losses elsewhere. After changing hands several times, in 1692 it was annexed to Massachusetts, but the British authority was only nominal. It was again surrendered to France by the Treaty of Ryswick in 1697, In 1710, the garrison of Port Royal capitulated to the EngUsh fleet under the following terms. The garrison was to be transported to France. The inhabitants living within a cannon shot of Port Royal were to be protected in person and property for two years on taking an oath of aUegiance to the Queen of England, or were to be aUowed to remove to French territory. The name of Port Royal was changed to AnnapoUs in honour of Queen Anne, but the oath of aUegiance was not taken by the inhabitants. Acadia never again came under French control, but was formally ceded to England by the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713, By this treaty France was left in possession of Cape Breton, and began to build a very strong fort at Louisbourg, and invited to its protection the inhabitants of Acadia, Very few accepted the offer at the time, and very soon the EngUsh governors of Nova Scotia refused to aUow them to settle in Cape Breton, as they feared the strengthening of that French colony. In 1715, the Acadians again refused ACADIA AND MARYLAND 85 the oath of aUegiance to King George, but in 1730 General PhiUips, then governor of the province, prevailed upon them to take the oath on the understanding that it should not require them to bear arms against France. In 1745, PeppereU's army of artisans and farmers took Louisbourg, and the Acadians were accused of hampering the EngUsh by refusing them suppUes, In 1746, Shirley, then governor of Massachusetts, thought that they might be made good subjects if French priests were excluded, and if English forts weU garrisoned were placed on the Acadian peninsula, Knowles, then governor of Louisbourg, proposed deporting them and placing Catholic Jacobites from the Highlands in their place. Shirley, with his aversion for the Roman CathoUc religion, thought Protes tants from Ulster would be better. Newcastle, to whom he wrote, like GaUio, ' cared for none of these things,' and remained passive. In 1748, the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle restored Louisbourg and Cape Breton to France. The year after, ComwaUis became governor of Nova Scotia and founded the town of Halifax. He then demanded an un conditional oath of aUegiance from the Acadians, who then numbered 12,500 souls. This caused great consternation in the province, and the inhabitants sent deputies to him with a petition stating that they would not take the oath in the form he required, but, to quote their language, ' If your ExceUency wiU grant us our old oath with an exception for ourselves and our heirs from taking up arms, we will accept it.' CornwalUs would not Usten to these terms, but seems to have acted with patience and forbearance, as also did his successor, Hopson. As Cape Breton and Louisbourg had been restored to the French, and as the latter had, in 1750, built three forts on the Acadian isthmus, which was debatable ground, the simple and ignorant peasant people 86 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND no doubt thought that once more they were to come under French rule, and therefore they refused the oath. Besides, priestly influence was at work. Le Loutre, missionary to the Micmacs and vicar-general of Acadia under the Bishop of Quebec, taught them that to take the oath of aUegiance to the heretic English king would imperil their souls. They asked permission to leave the province and settle in Isle Royale (Cape Breton) or Isle St. Jean (Prince Edward Island). Like the IsraeUtes, they were not aUowed to go. In 1752 there were about fourteen thousand Acadians in the province, Neutrals, as they were caUed, The oath of allegiance they still refused, although they professed fideUty to the British Crown. The fiery Lawrence was now Ueu- tenant-governor of Nova Scotia. He wrote in his wrath to the Lords of Trade : ' I am determined to bring the inhabitants to a compliance, or rid the Pro-vince of such perfidious subjects.' Later events proved that this governor was not altogether disinterested. In 1755 the crisis came. In June of that year Colonel Monckton, commanding a regiment in Nova Scotia, assisted by two thousand Massachusetts men under Colonels Winslow and Scott, captured the three French forts on the Isthmus, and three hundred Acadians were found under arms in Beau Sejour. It is true that by the terms of capitulation these were pardoned by Monckton, but it did not prevent the terrible retribution which foUowed. Their conduct was made the excuse for the punishment which feU on aU their compatriots. It was Governor Shirley of Massachusetts who asked permission of England for the deportation of the unhappy Acadians, It was Governor Lawrence who designed the plan, and Colonels Monckton and Winslow who were the principal agents by which it was carried out. They were ACADIA AND MARYLAND 87 assisted by the New England soldiery who, Puritans by descent, with the harshness that was part of their reUgion, looked upon the scattering of these Papists as a righteous deed. No instructions had been received from the Home Government, and Lawrence had even been counseUed by the secretary of state to act with prudence and forbearance. There is no need to enter fuUy into the miserable story, Lawrence had given orders to clear the country, Winslow was bidden to summon aU the male inhabitants of Grand Pre and the district round to meet him at the church, where he read the edict of banishment, ending with the words : ' You are prisoners of the King,' Of that miserable band of four hundred men twenty were aUowed to go home each day to teU the sad tidings. The rest were kept as hostages for their return. Colonel Murray at Fort Edward carried out the same plan, and writes : ' I have got 183 in my possession.' Handfield -wrote from AnnapoUs that many of the men of that neighbourhood had escaped to the woods. Winslow says in his diary : ' Things are very heavy on my heart and hands.' This was the 5th of September. From another settlement Major Preble, of Monckton's battaUon, -writes that his party had just returned from Chepody, where he had gone to destroy the settlements and bring off the women and children. They had burned two hundred and fifty-three buildings, and had left fifty men to burn the mass-house, as they caUed the church. These men were set upon by some Indians and Acadians under Boishebert, and haU the number were kiUed or wounded. This seems to have been the only resistance made. The sentence of banishment was so sudden and unex pected that no resistance on the part of the Acadians was possible. One feU blow deprived them of home, of country. 88 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND of all that they had won by hard toil. Of money they had little or none. Their wealth lay in their garnered grain, their orchards yet ungathered, their cattle grazing on those vast marsh lands saved from the sea, their vine-clad houses, their rude furniture carved by their own hands, their home made clothing wrought on the looms and spinning-wheels which must be left in the spoilers' hands. The very grave yards, where their loved ones lay, were trampled on by those cruel feet. What wonder that Winslow writes : ' It hurts me to hear their weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. I am in hopes our affairs wiU soon put on another face and we get transports, and I rid of the worst piece of business that ever I was in.' On the Wednesday after the seizure, when he had five hundred unarmed men guarded by his three hundred soldiers, Winslow feared a movement among them, and at once decided to make use of the five vessels from Boston which were lying in the harbour, and to place fifty men in each. They refused to move, until forced on by the point of the bayonet, and then they set off slowly, ' praying, singing and crying, being met by the women and children aU the way with great lamentation upon their knees.' Winslow, though not tender-hearted, showed a rough kind of compassion in his treatment of the unfortunate exiles. He was but a soldier obeying the orders of his superior, and was glad when the work was done. When the great embarkation came he did what he could to keep families together, but it was inevitable that there should be sometimes separation in the confusion of departure. There was a long delay for want of sufficient transports and provisions, and Winslow grew heartsick at the misery he had caused. At last seven transports came, and Murray wrote to him from Fort Edward in his hard fashion : ' Thank ACADIA AND MARYLAND 89 God, so soon as I have shipped off my rascals I wiU come down, settle matters with you and enjoy ourselves a little.' The first sailed on Sth October, and not tiU they were actuaUy on board could the people beUeve it was true. Winslow's diary says of the departure : ' The women in great distress were carrying their children in their arms ; others their decrepit parents in carts with their goods, moving in great confusion.' Then the torch was applied to their once happy homes. The last were not embarked till late in December. About seven thousand were scattered among the English colonies from Massachusetts to Georgia. Some had escaped to the woods and others to Canada, where at Quebec they met with a harsher reception even than from the EngUsh colonies. Montcalm's aide-de-camp wrote of them : ' They are dying by wholesale. Their past and present misery joined to the rapacity of the Canadians who seek only to squeeze out of them aU they can and then refuse them the help so dearly bought, are the cause of this mortaUty.' How the exiles fared in Maryland is told in the corre spondence of Governor Sharpe. It was not a propitious time for a number of French CathoUcs to settle in that province. There was a strong anti-CathoUc feeling there, which the ravages of the Indians, incited as they were by their French aUies, had increased. However, the miserable condition of the exiles did excite some feeling of compassion, and food and shelter were provided for the time through the influence of one Mr. CalUster, ' without whose assistance,' they say in their memorial to Governor Sharpe, ' they would have been reduced to die of hunger, as no rations were supplied by the King, after the day of landing.' CalUster writes : ' If their effects had been sent out with them it would be but 90 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Justice to the Colonies who take them in,' Evidently these unfortunates had not their household goods, as had been promised in their edict of banishment. They were not aUowed to remain in Annapolis, but, by order of the presi dent of the council, Mr. Tasker, who acted in the governor's absence, they were scattered in different parts of the pro vince. Callister writes of those sent to Oxford on the Chesapeake : ' Nobody knows what to do ; and few have charity for them. I think it an unhappy event that has put them into our hands at this time, when Papist prin ciples are dangerous, even in sworn subjects. Some of them who are dispersed to other parts of Maryland and the other colonies we daily hear the most shocking accounts of. In Somerset Co. I hear they were obUged to betake themselves for shelter to the swamps, now and a long time fuU of snow, where they sicken and die. I have had the good fortime, not without opposition and difficulty, to dispose of this sloop load ; almost every family being now placed in good houses for the winter. There 's a number now about me in tears, craving rehef for their sick,' In a letter to Sharpe, in which he claims some compensa tion for the expense he had incurred on their account, CaUister says : ' The simple people caUed themselves prisoners of war, but they were soon made sensible of their mistake. They might easily be forgiven when one con siders. It is a dilemma to them, and may well puzzle wiser heads, especiaUy as they say in their address to His Majesty they were treated as prisoners of war by Governor Lawrence. They might have thought themselves not only in duty bound to declare themselves prisoners, but also in that character to be entitled to better treatment than they have met with as faithful subjects. . , , ' We are very liberal to the French of the epithet of ACADIA AND MARYLAND 91 perfidious, and with justice ; but those who sow thorns should not go barefoot,' In February 1757 there was an address presented to the House of Assembly from the electors of Talbot County, on whom the Acadians had been quartered, stating that they had become a grievance ' inasmuch as we are not at present in a situation capable of seconding their own fruitless endeavour to support their numerous families, as a people plundered of their effects. They cannot find houses, cloth ing, and other comforts in their condition needful, without going from house to house begging, whereby they are become a nuisance to a country hardly able to support their own poor.' Some were more fortunate. Those who had been sent to Baltimore were received weU, and after a while, by their industry and frugaUty these poor exiles regained some portion of comfort. The quarter in Baltimore where they estabUshed themselves was caUed French town, and many of their descendants are to be found now prosperous and wealthy citizens. In time, some found their way back to Nova Scotia, and with those who had escaped at the time of the deportation became the ancestors of the Acadians of the present day, A Nemesis seemed to foUow those who had taken part in the sorry work in Acadia, Colonels Monckton and Winslow fought a duel, in which they were both severely wounded ; while Shirley in a very short time was dis possessed of aU his dignities, and had to seek in his old age a new home in a distant island, Morris writes to Sharpe on 29th January 1756 : ' A Messenger employed upon some private business to your town gives me an opportunity of writing you, but aUows only time to mention an unhappy affair that happened at 92 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND HaUfax between the Colonels Monckton and Winslow, who it seems had some dispute while they were upon service together, but suppressed their resentment tUl they came to HaUfax, when, meeting either by Accident or Appoint ment, they engaged, and are both wounded in such a manner as to leave little hope of the recovery of either of them,' They both recovered, however, and did much good service afterwards. So many adverse criticisms have been lodged against LongfeUow for his aUeged romantic perversion of events in his poem ' Evangeline,' that it wiU not be uninteresting to note that, after aU, the main features of his story find adequate confirmation in fact, despite the admitted one- sidedness of his point of view. Governor Morris writes : ' Two of the Neutrals, one imported at New York, and the other here, have obtained my leave to go to AnnapoUs in quest of their Families who, they think, are in some of the Ships which have arrived in your Province, If they light on them, or any other of the wives and children belonging to those imported here, I desire the favour of you to suffer as many to come to their friends here, as these two wiU undertake to conduct and defray the charges of their journey. I do not mean to put you or myseU to any Expense for their removal; but if Joseph Munier and Simon Leblanc who are recom mended to me as good trustworthy people, and one of whom had been in the service of His Majesty, will bring any here at their own Expense, I desire they may be indulged to do it.' Governor Sharpe in his answer says : ' Your Request in favour of Munier and Leblanc shaU be complied with. The wife and family of the first are here, the other is gone to look for his in a distant part of the Province,' ACADIA AND MARYLAND 93 Garueau states : ' The aged notary Le Blanc, who had done Britain great service, died at Philadelphia destitute and broken-hearted, while in search of his sons, who were scattered about the colonies,' Of the wife nothing is said. It is to be hoped that he found her sooner than Evangeline found her Gabriel. CHAPTER VII shxrley's recall Governor Sharpe returned to Annapolis about the middle of December, and writes from there to Sir Charles Hardy : ' Since my return from New York I have had the satis faction to receive a Letter from Gov, Dinwiddie advising me that he has prevailed with 130 Cherokees to take up the Hatchet against the French, and that they are gone with some Companies from Virginia to attack one of the Shawanese Towns. The Catawaba Nation and Cherokees have engaged to send 1000 warriors in the Spring to act in conjunction with any Troops that may be employed in this part of the Continent next Summer against His Majesty's Enemies, ' I embrace this opportunity of making my acknow ledgement for the civilities I received at your house during my stay at New York, and to desire my compUments to Mr. Barons and his Lady.' At this time the question of a new commander-in-chief in America was freely discussed. It was known that in fluences were at work against Shirley, and that he was not a persona grata to the authorities in England. Although the news did not reach America until the end of April, his successor had been appointed in March, in the person of John CampbeU, Earl of Loudoun, a friend of Lord HaUfax and a nominee of the Duke of Cumberland, under whom he had served in Scotland in the '45. Lord Loudoun was appointed titular governor of Virginia, as well as com- GOVERNOR HORATIO SHARPE {To face p. 94 SHIRLEY'S RECALL 95 mander-in-chief of His Majesty's forces in America. As time proved, his appointment was not a happy one. Governor Dinwiddie -writes to Sharpe, Sth March 1756 : ' We are intirely in want of arms. None are sent here from His Majesty. Our agent says there are 6000 sent to New England to be distributed among the colonies ; they would have come sooner to hand if sent from London. Pray have you heard any account of Colonel CornwaUis being appointed as commander-in-chief ? ' Lord Baltimore writes to Sharpe, London, Oth March 1756: ' I have the pleasure to deliver this to the Earl of Loudoun and to inform you of the happiness His Majesty has done America by his appointment.' News from England came that in December 1755 Henry Fox had been appointed secretary of state in the place of Sir Thomas Robinson. Fox writes to Sharpe from White haU, 13th March 1756 : ' The Earl of Loudoun, whom the Eing has appointed commander-in-chief of aU His Forces whatsoever in North America, being prepared to set out with aU possible expedi tion together with two Regiments of Foot, a Train of ArtiUery, and a sufficent quantity of Warlike Stores, I am commanded to signify to you the King's Pleasure that you should be ready to give His Lordship, and the Troops from England, all the Assistance in your Power on their arrival in America ; and you will correspond with and apply to the Earl of Loudoun on all occasions in the same manner as you were directed to do with the late General Braddock and Major-Greneral Shirley. ' It having been represented that a considerable number of Foreign Settlers in America might be more wiUing to enter into the King's service if they were commanded by 96 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Officers of their own Country ; an Act of ParUament has been passed, enabling His Majesty to grant commissions to a certain number of German, Swiss, and Dutch Protestants, who have served as Officers or Engineers, and as they have already engaged, they wiU embark with aU Expedition, in order to assist in raising and commanding such of the Foreign Protestants in N. America as shaU be able and willing to serve with the rest of the forces upon this occasion.' From 1752 to 1755 a number of German emigrants had come to Maryland, the descendants of the inhabitants of the country lying on the Rhine and Necker which had been devastated during the wars of Louis xiv., and who had taken refuge in HoUand. Now their children found in the New World a country that reminded them of the vine- clad hiUs of their fatherland. The first comers Uked so weU the cUmate and sunshine of America that their good report induced numbers of German and Swiss Protestants, who were known in the colonies as Palatines, to emigrate. About three thousand came to Maryland. Sharpe was much opposed to the plan of raising regiments under Swiss officers, because, as he says in a letter to his brother, no step could have been taken more disagreeable to His Majesty's American subjects, and because he looked upon it as absolutely impracticable. ' Can it be supposed,' he said, ' that four thousand of our Inhabitants wiU hasten to enUst and serve under Foreigners, for I shaU be much deceived if these Swiss are not esteemed as such by the Germans who have for any considerable time resided among us.' He continues : ' Could I by your means obtain such a Colonel's Commis sion as would give me a right to haU-pay and at the same time a power to raise a Regiment, I think I could soon convince the Switzers that they are not the most proper SHIRLEY'S RECALL 97 persons to be sent to raise men in these Parts. If my hands had not been tied up by such instructions as Empty Coffers seem to have dictated, I should many months ago have had a regiment of Maryland Troops under my com mand, and in aU probabiUty have been enabled to prevent any Incursions of Indians into the Province and thereby have saved a great part of the £1600 which his Ldps. Agent teUs me he has lost, by the back Inhabitants deserting their Plantations to avoid the Barbarities of the Savages.' There was indeed a reign of terror throughout the province, and great were the sufferings of the settlers. Scalping parties came within thirty miles of Baltimore, and on the frontier women and children were carried off by the savages or tomahawked and scalped within a few feet of their own doors. The Gazette of the 4th March says : ' Our accounts from the westward are truly alarming. All the slaughters, scalpings, burnings, and every other barbarity and mischief that the Mongrel French, Indians, or their chieftain the Devil can invent, are often perpetrated there, and approach us nigher and nigher. We are told last Sunday two boys in Frederic County were kiUed and scalped, and a son of one Mr. Lynn was found dead and scalped, himself and three more of his family missing. At the little Cove aU the houses were burnt. Half a mile from Stoddarts Fort, Ralph Matson's house was burnt, some sheep the Indians flung in the fire alive, others they kiUed, some they scalped.' Another letter to the Gazette states : ' On our march to Tonalowya, 5 miles from Stoddarts Fort, we found John Myers' house in flames. Three miles and a half further we found a man killed and scalped with one arm cut off and several arrows sticking in him. At Stoddarts Fort 98 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND we found them aU under arms expecting every minute to be attacked. At Combe's Fort we found a young man about 22, kiUed and scalped. Only four men in this fort and upwards of forty women and children, afraid to go out of the fort even for a drink of water. The young man mentioned above was one Lynn's son, who was sitting on the fence with young Combe when they discovered some Indians who were surrounding the fort ; the boys ran to get into the fort, but before they reached it Lynn's son was shot down. The other one was pursued to -vidthin thirty yards of the Fort by an Indian with a tomahawk, but he luckily got in and shot the Indian. About haU a mUe on this side of Mr. Kenny's we found two loads of oats and turnips in the road, which two boys were bringing to Combe's. It is thought the boys were carried off. Two miles further, about 200 yards from his house, we found Lowther dead and scalped.' At last in retaliation a party of sixty riflemen under Thomas and Daniel Cresap, dressed and painted Uke Indians, set off on an expedition to the Indian to-wns to kiU the women and children left there by the warriors, who were committing similar destruction on the frontiers. It was a ghastly remedy, and the leader perished in the attempt. The Cresaps had long been distinguished for their skill in Indian warfare, and their house, which was a sort of block house, and strong enough to resist an Indian attack, was a refuge for their neighbours whenever tidings came of the approach of the dreaded foe. SmaU wonder it was that in Annapolis armed patrols paraded the streets, and men's hearts failed them for fear as they looked at their wives and children, and thought of the painted devils incarnate that were so near. The pleasure-loving to-wn had changed indeed, and the governor's heart was fuU of care. SHIRLEY'S RECALL 99 The Gazette reflected the temper of the inhabitants, and the counsel it gave was ' to fortify the to-wn or to pack up and be gone with all speed and seek out some safer habitation than this desolate and infatuated place ; for there is no time to lose, and one cannot go to bed of a night in safety, it being probable the enemy will burn our houses and cut our throats while sunk in sleep.' During the -vrinter Governor Sharpe had been employing himself in building a chain of forts on the frontiers of his province, and a specially strong fort on the Potomac River, near the present town of Hancock. This one, named Fort Frederick, had barracks to accommodate several hundred men ; its bastions and curtains were faced with stone, and on each bastion was placed a six-pounder. The river was na-vigable nearly to Fort Cumberland. In a letter to his brother Sharpe complains bitterly of the parsimony of the colonies in the question of defence, and says : ' To what a condition wiU they be brought, and what a vast acquisition will the French have made on the Continent while we are so infatuated as to look on as idle Spectators not interested in the event of the Campaign. That the Ennemy know the value and importance of the Lakes I am fully persuaded.' George Washington, then twenty-four years of age, was not an idle spectator, but eager to take his part in the coming struggle. Sharpe -writes to Shirley on his behalf : ' The enclosed letter I am desired to forward to your ExceUency from Colonel Washington, to request you to commission and appoint him second in command, in case these colonies shaU raise a sufficient number of Troops for carrying on an expedition or making a Diversion to the westward this summer. As Mr, Washington is much esteemed in Virginia and reaUy seems a gentleman of merit, 100 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND I should be exceedingly glad to learn that your ExceUency is not averse to favouring his request.' In reply Shirley writes : ' In the meantime I beg you would be pleased to acquaint Colonel Washington that the appointment of him to the second in command in the pro posed expedition upon the Ohio will give me great satis faction and pleasure, that I know no Provincial Officer upon this Continent to whom I would so readily give it as to himself, that I shaU do it if there is nothing in the King's orders that interferes with it, and that I wiU have the pleasure of answering his Letter immediately after my receiving them.' In a letter from Sharpe to Governor Morris of 24th April 1756, he reports that by a ship that had arrived at Hampton, Virginia, on the 16th inst., news had come of the declaration of war by England against France, and that Lord Loudoun and Colonel Abercrombie with three regiments were coming to America. This statement, however, as to war being declared by England, was premature, for the declaration did not take place until the 18th of May, In a letter to his brother of the 2nd of May, Sharpe says : ' Sir WiUiam Johnson is not, as you seem to expect, to have the command of the Provincial Troops that are raising in the Eastern Colonies for another expedition against Crown Point, That is to be given to Colonel Winslow, who commanded the New England Troops last summer in Nova Scotia, I cannot learn what character he bears as an officer, but he is much esteemed in New England,' John Winslow was a native of Massachusetts, a descendant of one of the early governors of Plymouth colony. He was not well educated, but had great force of character. He had seen military service at Carthagena and on other SHIRLEY'S RECALL 101 occasions, and had the complete confldence of his men, who enlisted readily to serve under him. The letter continues : ' Sir WiUiam Johnson will concern himself only with the Indians, which is his proper sphere, I beUeve that the Indians that he leads are to act in con junction with the Jersey Regiment on the Lakes this summer. I have been informed that to support his Interest among the Six Nations he has almost spent his fortune,' The letter continues : ' I am inclined to think General Shirley must be weary of his command, and will resign without much reluctance. The news of his being super seded wiU not I beUeve be unwelcome to the Troops or the Inhabitants of N, York, but I fear the people of the Massachusetts Bay will not be so weU satisfled with any gentleman that might be appointed the successor in that Government.' One cannot help feeling pity for Shirley, who that year had been so unfortunate both in public and private life. His star was setting in gloomy clouds. Everything that he did was misrepresented. The plans he had laid were exceUent, but he had miscalculated his powers of fulfilment. Nothing was ready in time, but his failure was partly owing to the lukewarmness of the different colonies, and their want of cohesion. Each assembly had its own ideas and plans for raising troops, for transportation, for supplies. Each was jealous of the other. As to the French, they were united under one head, possessed a trained army, were not dependent for suppUes or money on local govern ments, and had the advantage, although fewer in numbers, of being weU organised. General Montcalm, who had re placed Dieskau, arrived in May, and with him came the ChevaUer de Levis, as second in command. Sir John St, Clair, who was no friend to Shirley, writes 102 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND to Sharpe from Albany on 28th April 1756 : ' I have just now received your ExceUency's letter of the 6th, I shall do everything in my power to obey your commands in serving Mr. McKay, but my interest and influence with our com manding General diminishes daily, in so much that I am the only person in the Army who has nothing to do. I have requested of His ExceUency, seeing he has no use for me, to order me home, but that cannot be granted, AU I can say is that our affairs to me have an e-vil aspect, and in place of annoying the Ennemy, I wish we may be able to hinder them from annoying us. As to our taking the field, that must entirely depend on the Military knowledge and activity of Lt.-Col. Bradstreet. I wish he may not lead us astray ; he and General Shirley I suppose under stand one another ; I understand neither. I wish you all the Success you can desire, and more satisfaction than I ever can hope for in America.' The expedition he speaks of under Colonel Bradstreet was one for the purpose of conveying stores and provisions to Oswego, and to the ports between Albany and Lake Champlain. Owing to his scanty supply of soldiers Shirley devised a plan to avoid weakening the garrisons in providing escorts. He enlisted two thousand boatmen or fishermen, divided them into companies of fifty, armed each man -with a gun and a hatchet, and placed them under the com mand of John Bradstreet, the energetic and capable, if somewhat vainglorious, provincial officer. In spite of Sir John St. Clair's forebodings, Bradstreet managed his raw recruits with success ; notably so in an engagement with the French under Coulon de Villiers near Oswego early in July, The state of the province of Maryland at this time is SHIRLEY'S RECALL 103 described in a letter from Sharpe to Lord Baltimore, 5th May 1756 : ' With regard to the present condition of your Lordship's Province and the unhappy situation of the Frontier Inhabi tants, I have little to add. Those that are exposed to immediate Danger want Spirit and Unanimity, and those that are remote seem to have but Uttle feeUng for the Miseries of their FeUow Subjects, In Virginia some of their Uttle Forts have been attacked and some reduced, and a Captain of the Virginia Regiment with a Detachment of 60 men was about a fortnight ago defeated by a large party of Indians about 20 miles on this side of Fort Cumber land, the Captain, Lieutenant, and 15 of the Detachment kiUed ; the rest retired to a little Fort that happened to be near the place where the Action happened, ' Another party of Indians have been attacked by some Virginia Planters with better success. The Indians were commanded by a French Ensign who was kiUed, and in a little Bag that was tied about his neck were found some Instructions from the Commandant of Fort Du Quesne. We are told that a Party of French and Indians have lately attacked Oswego, but without success, and that they are again retired to Frontenac. The Regiment, we hear, are on their march for Oswego, and I hope the Provincials are also ere this in motion toward Crown Point.' On 7th June Colonel Webb arrived at New York after a passage of eight weeks, and about the same time came Colonel Abercrombie, who was to take command until Lord Loudoun's arrival. They left for Albany at once, and Governor Morris -writes to Sharpe : ' There is to be an Intire Alteration in our friend Shirley's plans, but I much doubt whether such alteration wiU be for the better, and he is to be absolutely dismissed from aU miUtary affairs.' 104 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Shirley's last letter to Sharpe is dated. New York, 13th July, in which he informs him that he had received two letters from the Right Hon, Mr, Fox, one acquainting him with the appointment of the Earl of Loudoun as com mander-in-chief, the other stating that it had been repre sented to the King that his, Shirley's, presence in England would be ' very useful and necessary to His Majesty's Ser vice, as he could give many Lights and Informations relative to the State of Affairs in North America,' Poor Shirley continues : ' I have the pleasure of being acquainted in the former of these Letters that the Disposition His Majesty has thought proper to make of the command of his Forces in North America is not owing to any dissatisfaction -with my Services; but that on the contrary it is the King's intention to give me a new mark of his Royal Favour.' Benjamin Franklin says in his autobiography : ' Shirley was, I believe, sincerely glad of being reUeved from so burdensome a charge as the conduct of an army must be to a man unacquainted with miUtary business, I was at the entertainment given by the city of New York to Lord Loudoun for his taking upon him the command. Shirley, though thereby superseded, was present also. There was a great company of Officers, citizens, and strangers, and some chairs having been borrowed in the neighbourhood, there was one among them very low, which feU to the lot of Mr. Shirley, I sat by him, and perceiving it I said, " They have given you a very low seat." " No matter, Mr, Franklin," said he, " I find a low seat the easiest," ' Shirley returned to England early in the autumn to find, instead of rewards, a weary waiting for royal bounty grudgingly bestowed. At last in his old age he was made governor of the Bahamas, and passed altogether from the scene of his former triumphs and trials. SHIRLEY'S RECALL 105 Governor Morris writes to Sharpe on the 12th June 1756 : ' Finding no likelihood of agreeing with my perverse Assembly, and that for that reason I could not do the good I proposed and could ¦wish to do in this troublesome station, I gave the Proprietors notice some time ago that I was grown quite tired of it, and was fuUy determined to resign, and desired they would send another gentleman to succeed me. In their last they tell me they had some Thoughts of appointing Mr, Thos, Po-wnall, and as I understand he is to come with Loudoun he may be expected every day, and I sincerely wish him more Success and Happiness in his Administration than I have had ; so that I have now a near prospect of being released and of returning to the desirable situation of a private gentleman, in which and every other capacity I shall always retain the highest regard and Esteem for you, dear Sir,' Mr. Pownall refused to take Pennsylvania, and ' one Mr. Denny, a gentleman of the army,' was appointed instead, Mr, Pownall becoming governor of Massachusetts, CHAPTER VIII loxtdoitn's arrival, 1756 It was the 23rd of July when the new commander-in-chief arrived in New York, The Earl of Loudoun was not a distinguished soldier. He owed his present position to the friendship of Henry Fox and of Lord HaUfax, President of the Board of Trade. He came determined to find fault with everything his predecessor had done, and his first act was to abandon the proposed expedition against Fort Frontenac and Niagara, and to announce his intention of proceeding at once against Ticonderoga, that fortress on Lake Champlain, known sometimes as CariUon, The first ordqr he issued to the provincial troops was not one calculated to promote harmony. It was to the effect that aU general and field officers with provincial commissions were to take rank only as captains when serving -with regular troops. This caused almost a rebeUion, and the general had to make some concessions before the -wrath of the provincial officers was appeased. Another order which also produced great friction throughout the colonies was that troops were to be biUeted on the inhabitants,^ While bickerings were going on in the EngUsh camps and councils, the French were perfecting their plans for a descent upon Fort Oswego, Leaving de Levis to defend Ticon deroga, Montcalm set off to Montreal, thence to Fort 1 By an order in council the English Government had given authority to the generals in command to quarter soldiers on the inhabitants without the consent of the colonial assemblies. 108 LOUDOUN'S ARRIVAL, 1756 107 Frontenac, with a force of about three thousand men, and an abundant supply of artillery. With him were a large number of Indians, some from the mission stations of Quebec, some from the far West, Rigaud, the brother of Governor Vaudreuil, was already at Niaour6 Bay (Sackett's Harbour), and the regiment of Beam was on the way from Niagara to join in the attack. It was on the 4th of August that Montcalm crossed by night to WoUe Island, He lay hidden there aU the next day, and at nightfall again set off to join Rigaud on the opposite shore. On the Sth, all were imited and in readiness for the attack. At midnight on the Oth of August they were within a mile of the English forts, whose occupants were aU unconscious of their arrival. Not tiU dawn was the discovery made, and by that time the French had their guns in position on the shore. The English sent two armed vessels to attack the invaders, but their Ught guns were no match for the French artiUery, In the three forts at Oswego all was confusion and dismay. Fort Ontario, which was considered the best of them, was a wooden structure garrisoned by about four hundred men, with eight cannon and a mortar. For a time they attempted a defence, but Colonel Mercer, the commandant at Fort Oswego, which was five hundred yards distant across the river, ordered them to abandon it under cover of night. Fort Oswego was almost as defenceless. It was of rough stone and clay, fit to resist musketry, but not hea-vy guns, A quarter of a mile away was another unfinished fort, named, on account of its poverty of construction. Fort Rascal, The garrison, which during the winter had been decimated by disease and starvation, was made up of raw recruits, labourers, and boatmen, and was in no condition to resist an attack, Montcalm soon had his guns in position on the hiU of the abandoned fort, as on that side Fort 108 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Oswego lay quite open. From behind a shelter of pork barrels the little garrison returned for a while the fire, but when Colonel Mercer was cut in two by a cannon shot, despair seized the defenders, and the white flag was raised. After the surrender came a scene of wild disorder, for the savage allies of the French, as was their wont, began butcher^ ing their unhappy prisoners, until stopped by Montcahn, who had to promise them presents in the name of the king. Montcalm wrote to the minister : ' This ¦wiU cost the King some S or 10,000 livres, but any amount of money I would have sacrificed, rather than there should be a stain on French honour resulting from this business.' The loss of this fortress gave the undisputed command of Lake Ontario to the French, and took away from the English any chance of attempting expeditions against Forts Frontenac and Niagara. The disaster had been occasioned by the fatal delay attending the movements of Webb and Abercrombie, For more than a month they had been idly awaiting orders, and it was not untU the 12th August that General Loudoun sent Webb forward with the 44th Regiment and some provincials to reinforce Oswego, On the way Webb heard the dismal news, where upon he recklessly burned the forts at the ' Carrying place,' and retreated in haste to Albany, Colonel Winslow, who was on his way to Ticonderoga with his regiment of pro vincials, was ordered back. So ended Loudoun's first disastrous campaign. On the 20th of August the commander-in-chief ¦writes to Sharpe : ' Sir, — I received last night accounts by which I appre hend that Oswego with all its stores and Ammunition and the Train placed there is lost, the garrison made prisoners, and our naval power on the Lake destroyed. LOUDOUN'S ARRIVAL, 1756 109 ' I must put you on your guard against every IU conse quence of such an unhappy Event, and as you may now expect the weight of the French and Indian Power on your back I must caution you to put your Frontiers immediately in the best posture of Defence you are able, as from the condition and number of the Troops left to me when I came to my command I can scarce hope to do more than to resist the French power in these Quarters.' Loudoun goes on to say that the Royal American Regi ment of four battalions needed recruits ; that His Majesty had supplied the officers for the service of the colonies, and that the latter must supply the necessary levies to complete the regiment. Governor Dinwiddie writes to Sharpe from WiUiamsburg on the 2nd of September : ' Your letter of the 20th by the Express I received with the melancholy Account of the Loss of Oswego, the Vessels on Lake Ontario, and the Train of ArtiUery lodged in that Fortress, which is confirmed by Lord Loudoun's letter to me ; and I think he complains that Affairs were in great disorder on his arrival. The Loss of that important Place is extremely unlucky, and if we don't succeed against Crown Point, it 's more than probable we wiU lose all the Indians, and very likely they wiU come down the Ohio and invade these colonies. We are in a bad situation to repel -their force, but it may be hoped that these Prospects may infuse a spirit of Resentment into our People to do at last what they should have begun with.' From Head-quarters, Albany, Sir John St. Clair writes to Sharpe on the 22nd of September, and his letter shows plainly that he blamed Shirley for the loss of Oswego : ' What has happened to us by Mr. Shirley's conduct is enough to alter the nature of Man, nor do I find he has altered his way of thinking since he has been superseded. 110 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND I am far from thinking myself out of harm's way this Campaign. If the French do but forbear their intended stroke eight days longer, I think we may give them a warm reception,' Now Sir John St. Clair anticipated being all winter in Albany, and knowing that Maryland was noted for both good wine and good horses, he asks his friend Sharpe to get him a few hampers of red wine, and also a very good horse. His letter ends with the usual compUments : ' You see I do not ¦write to you as Governor of Maryland, but on aU occasions I shaU be glad to show my respect to you as such, and as a friend to convince you of the regard and esteem with which I am, dear Sir, Your most obedient and most humble servant, John St. Clair,' A letter from ex-Governor Morris to Sharpe gives his opinion as to the loss of Oswego : ' The loss of Oswego I esteem a very fatal blow to the British Interest on this Continent, and must be owing to the alterations made in the Plan of operations settled at New York, which ¦with great submission to better judgments, I think could not be changed but for the worse. I find the New York scheme is to lay the blame of that affair upon General Shirley, but how just their censures are the foUo^vring facts wiU show. General Webb arrived at New York June 7th, General Abercrombie arrived at New York on June 15th. Both arrived at Albany on the 25th. On the 26th of June, General Shirley acquainted General Abercrombie of the state of Oswego, and advised the sending two BattaUons there. Col. Bradstreet returned to Albany on the 12th July, having thro-wn into Oswego six months' Provisions for five thousand men and a great quantity of Ammunition and Naval Stores ; and defeated a party of French and LOUDOUN'S ARRIVAL, 1756 111 Indians on his way back. He informed General Aber crombie that he had inteUigence from his prisoners that a French army was in motion and designed to attack Oswego, whereupon the 44th Regt, was ordered to hold itself in readiness to march to Oswego, ' Lord Loudoun arrived at New York July 23rd, and at Albany July 29th, It was not until the 12th of August that the Regiment moved with a number of Batteau men who had remained idle at Schenectady from the Ilth July, It was on the 19th of August that General Webb, then at Bumet's Field, received the news of Oswego being taken. I have mentioned these facts that you might be satisfied of the truth with respect to that important loss.' One of the natural consequences of the war was to occa sion a violent outbreak of hostiUty against the Roman CathoUcs. This spirit of fanaticism Sharpe endeavoured to restrain with his customary fairness. He writes to his brother John : ' I am now to communicate to you some thing that more particularly relates to myseU, and to desire your good Offices in case a set of people, whom I have some reason to suspect, should think proper to become my enemies. You may remember that I told you in a former Letter that the Roman CathoUcs were much dissatisfied at my having assented to the Act for granting a supply of £40,000 for His Majesty's Service, because it imposes a double Tax on the Lands of aU Persons of that Persuasion. They are, I find, determined to apply to His Lordship or the King in CouncU for reUef , and to remonstrate, by what I can find, against my conduct in assenting to the BiU, They have given out that one of my Brothers has engaged to espouse their Cause and to get the Act dissented to, but as you have never given me a Hint to that Purport, I am inclined to think they speak in such a manner with a Design 112 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND to render me more suspected of favouring them than I am already. If they had Gratitude I think they would consider how I have contended with the Assembly in their Behalf ; I could have purchased many friends by giving them up, when, by acting a moderate part, I have given great offence to their inveterate ennemies. Their priests held large Tracts of Land among us ; and their Children are frequently sent to St. Omers for their education ; these are in my opinion great indulgences, such as are aUowed in none of the Colonies but Maryland and Pennsylvania, I believe about one tweUth part of our Inhabitants are of that persuasion, and many of them are Persons of Considerable Fortune,' In November, Sharpe writes to Lord Baltimore that the last advices received from the northward were that the French army at Crown Point was much superior to that which Lord Loudoun had on Lake George, and that his Lordship was entrenching himseU at Fort WiUiam Henry, A letter from Calvert to Sharpe, dated 16th December 1756, conveys the information of the death of one of his brothers. He says : ' It is with real concern I write of the Death of your Brother John, who died last FaU at Bristol ; a great loss to our affairs. Your last packet to him is delivered to your Brother WiUiam.' The same letter contains the news of WiUiam Pitt being appointed Secretary of State in the place of Mr. Fox. Calvert says of the new secretary : ' He is a person deemed of pecuUar Discernment. Great Expectations are estimated from his AbiUties.' England was now certainly waking up to the importance of sending more men for the defence of the colonies, and the change of ministry brought more vigorous measures. The letter says : ' 24 Companies of LOUDOUN'S ARRIVAL, 1756 113 Private men, and one Regiment from Ireland sailed last month for America ; and Transports are taken up for Ten or Eleven Regiments more. By a list the army is here 49,749, I suppose including officers. Inclosed are Gazettes and Historical Magazines and Evening Posts as wiU inform you of PubUck Affairs and the Change of Ministry. The Commons have voted 55,000 men for sea service, £1,213,746, 3 sh. for payment of 49,749 men, and for guards and garrisons in Great Britain ; and £423,963, 16 sh. lOd. for the Forces and Garrisons in the Plantations and Gibraltar. By this Packet you have His Lordship's Commissions to you as Vice-Admiral of the Province.' It was not until the end of February 1757 that Horatio Sharpe received the news of his brother John's death in October of the preceding year. He -writes to his brother Gregory on the 26th February from Philadelphia, where he had gone in obedience to a summons from the commander- in-chief : ' As no other opportunity of conveyance will probably offer for some time, I shaU send this by the first Packet that might be despatched from New York, to let you know that the Letter which you -writ from Bristol in October last reached me before I left Maryland, but not before our last vessels were sailed for London. The ship by which you sent it fell into the hands of an Ennemy, but the Master was afterwards suffered to ransom her and proceed on his Voyage, otherwise I should not till I arrived here, have been shocked with the news of my Brother's Death ; nor before this time have felt what I have there upon already suffered. The loss to me is grievous and irreparable, but since I am persuaded that I have no reason to lament on his account, I wiU not repine at this Act of Providence on my o-wn, but rather be grateful for the friends that survive to me, and think myseU sufficiently H 114 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND happy in not being yet destitute of Brothers that are truly entitled to that appellation.' Horatio Sharpe was one of a numerous family to whom he was deeply attached. His letters to his brothers show his affection for them. Their early home was in Yorkshire, John, whose death had just been announced, was one of the guardians of Frederick, Lord Baltimore ; had held various public offices, and was a member of ParUament for CoUington. Gregory, to whom the letter is addressed, was the most celebrated. He was born in 1713, and graduated at Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1738. He was a dis tinguished Oriental scholar, and was the author of numerous books and pamphlets. In 1751 he entered Oxford as a professor. In 1763 he became Master of the Temple, which office he held until his death in 1771. In Boswell's Life of Johnson it is recorded that on one occasion the celebrated lexicographer went to hear him preach. Maxwell, assistant preacher at the Temple, says : ' He, Johnson, went with me one Sunday to hear my old master Gregory Sharpe preach at the Temple, In the prefatory prayer Sharpe ranted about liberty, as a blessing most fervently to be implored and its continuance prayed for. Johnson observed that our liberty was in no sort of danger ; he would have done much better to pray against our licentiousness.' Another brother was WiUiam, who was Horatio Sharpe's most constant correspondent. In 1756 he was appointed Keeper of the Council Records. The other brothers were, Philip, who appears also in the family correspondence ; and Joshua, who was an attorney and soUcitor, and who seems to have been consulted on legal affairs connected with the province of Maryland. It was not only in the wilds of America that war was LOUDOUN'S ARRIVAL, 1756 115 raging. All Europe was aflame. England and Prussia were pitted against Austria, Russia, France, Sweden, Saxony, and most of the German states in that bloody conflict kno-wn as the Seven Years War. It is little wonder that both France and England hesitated about sending troops across the Atlantic when they were needed much nearer home. However, Loudoun's imsuccessful campaign had awakened the English Government to the necessity of increasing their force in the colonies. A letter, dated 17th February 1757, to Sharpe from Calvert, brought the information that ten thousand troops had received their orders for America under convoy of six teen line of battleships. It also contains the grim news that Admiral Byng was to be shot. It was on 14th March 1757 that John Byng knelt for his death on the quarter deck of his ship in Portsmouth harbour. He had been unsuccessful in an expedition to relieve Minorca, and fell a sacrifice to the unpopularity and incapacity of the ministry of the day. He was shot, in spite of the protests of Pitt and the unanimous recommendation to mercy by the court that condemned him. History has since done full justice to his memory. Lord Baltimore now seems to have been roused to a sense of the dangers to which Maryland was exposed, and on the 7th April Calvert writes to Sharpe that he has shipped to him, on board the vessels Sally and John and Anne, forty barrels of buUets and twenty barrels of gunpowder for the use of the province. This letter was long delayed for want of safe passage by convoy, so he adds, on 20th May, an account of the briUiant victory gained by the King of Prussia over the Austrians, and known in history as the Battle of Prague, He relates how His Majesty Frederick the Great passed over the Moldau with a small part of hia 116 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND army, and being joined by that under the command of Marshal Schwerin, determined to attack the enemy who were much superior in number of troops, and posted besides in an almost inaccessible camp ; how the Prussian officers and men vied with each other in passing defiles, in crossing marshes and seizing the rising ground, tiU at length, after a long and obstinate engagement, the enemy was forced to abandon the field of battle, leaving behind them the greater part of their artillery, all their tents, their baggage, and, in a word, their whole camp. Marshal Schwerin was kiUed, but the loss of the Austrians was greater not only in the number of the dead and wounded, but also in the number of prisoners. The main body of the Austrians with the royal princes retired, and were shut up in Prague. Calvert also gives the names of the new coaUtion ministry, with his Grace of Newcastle First Lord of the Treasury, Lord Anson, First Lord of the Admiralty, Right Hon. Henry Fox, Paymaster of the Forces, and the great com moner, Hon. William Pitt, Secretary of State. England, at home and abroad, was about to emerge from the clouds that had gathered round her ; and although Newcastle was the nominal head, it was Pitt on whom the nation relied, and who proved himseU worthy of the trust. When Calvert wrote to Sharpe, however, all was stiU dark and gloomy. He ends his letter with : ' The issue of things bears Melancholy Presage. Pray God avert the Evil, and may all Happiness attend you.' Spring had now come, and Loudoun had determined secretly on his plan of campaign, which was no less than the capture of Louisbourg. He had obtained the consent of the EngUsh Government, and they had promised him the assistance of the fleet under Admiral Holbourne, and five thousand men. He expected that they would sail in April, LOUDOUN'S ARRIVAL, 1756 117 and made aU his preparations accordingly. He writes to Sharpe from New York on 5th May 1757 that he was leaving with the transports to join the fleet and reinforce ments from Europe, He also tells him that Major-General Webb was to remain in command at Albany and the forts, with some regulars and troops raised in the northern colonies ; that Colonel Stanwix was to be in command of the Royal American Regiment, and the troops raised in Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania, Further south, in the Carolinas, Lieutenant-Colonel Bouquet was in command. His Majesty's orders were that the provincial troops should be entirely supported and maintained by the provinces by which they were raised. Sir John St. Clair, who had been desperately wounded in the Braddock disaster, was now invalided at New Brunswick in New Jersey, and writes to his friend Sharpe on the 18th April: 'The Phisicians have sent me to this place for the Air and to be out of the way of Business. They thought it dangerous for me to cross the sea in my situation, and they teU me that living on Vegetables and Milk with Moderate Exercise is the only chance I have for recovering. I am sure you will think it hard to have this sentence pronounced against me, and what appears strange to me is that I have neither Sickness nor pain, and I sleep and eat as I used to. I have entirely got into a scene of life new to me ; I hope I shall have temper enough to go through with it. I ride out twice a day in my Chariot, As for the rest of my time, I pass it away in doing nothing, and comfort myself with thinking I shall not live to be troublesome to mankind, as the Physicians say a few months wiU determine my fate. If it is decided in my favour I hope to see you in the Autumn, and I promise you a long visit.' St, Clair writes again on 6th May from 118 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND New York : ' My being in the country for three weeks has so much recovered me that I have been able to return to this place to see how things are going on, and I propose staying until his Lordship sails, which I hope will be in ten Days at furthest. Our affairs are now carried on with spirit.' Loudoun was now waiting with the utmost impatience the news of the arrival of Admiral Holbourne and the English fleet, which, however, did not sail from Ports mouth until the 5th May. Pitt's dismissal from office for eleven weeks at this period had again thrown poUtical affairs in England into confusion, and was probably the cause of this unfortunate delay. In order to keep the expedition against Louisbourg a secret, Loudoun had laid an embargo on shipping, much to the annoyance of the different colonies. The whole success of the expedition depended on haste and secrecy, but during the tedious interval a spy in London informed the French of the proposed attack, and three French squadrons, consisting of twenty-two ships of the line and several frigates, were sent at once, under Admiral la Mothe to Louisbourg, which was also reinforced until the garrison numbered, it was said, seven thousand men. All unknowing of this, Loudoun at last set out from New York for HaUfax on the 20th June, bearing with him the cream of the forces that should have been engaged against Vaudreuil and Montcalm on the lake frontiers. He arrived on the SOth, and not until the first week in July did Hol- bourne's ships come straggUng in. On the lOth of July 1757 all were at anchor before Halifax, and the troops were landed. More weeks were spent in inaction, and at last the fatal news came on the 4th of August of the over whelming strength of the enemy at Louisbourg. The LOUDOUN'S ARRIVAL, 1756 119 unfortunate Loudoun had to abandon his enterprise and return to New York baffled and disappointed. It does not seem fair to blame Loudoun for the mis carriage of this affair, but his contemporaries seem to have thought him of a vaciUating disposition. In his auto biography, FrankUn teUs the foUowing story of Lord Loudoun's indecision : ' Going one day to pay my respects I found in the antechamber one Tunis, a messenger of Philadelphia, who had come thence express with a packet from Governor Denny for the General. He delivered to me some letters from my friends there, which occasioned my inquiring when he was to return to Philadelphia, and where he lodged, that I might send some letters by him. He told me he was ordered to call to-morrow at nine for the General's answer to the Governor, and should set off im mediately. I put my letters into his hands the same day, A fortnight after, I met him again in the same place, " So, you are soon returned, Innis ? " " Returned ? No, I am not gone yet," " How so ? " "I have caUed here this and every morning, these two weeks past, for his lordship's letters, and they are not yet ready," "Is it possible, when he is so great a writer, for I see him constantly at his escritoir ? " " Yes," said Innis, " but he is Uke St. George on the signs, always on horseback, and never rides on." ' Admiral Holbourne with his fleet lingered for a while cruising off Louisbourg, hoping to draw out the enemy's ships, but in vain ; and, to add to his misfortunes, a furious storm wrecked some of his vessels, and he was obUged to sail away discomfited from the rocky coast of Cape Breton, In Loudoun's absence another blow fell, which filled to the brim his cup of disaster. As the best of the English troops had been taken away for the Louisbourg expedition, Montcalm thought it the most favourable time to strike a 120 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND blow on the frontiers. From far and near he gathered his Indian alUes, until at Ticonderoga there was assembled a force of eight thousand men, white and red. At the end of July aU was ready. De Levis set out by land with two thousand five hundred men — regulars, Canadians, and Indians, Montcahn foUowed with the rest by water. Their destination was Fort WiUiam Henry on Lake George, defended by Lieutenant-Colonel Munroe, of the 35th Regiment, with about two thousand men. Fourteen miles away, at Fort Edward, was Major-General Webb, whose force was now reduced to sixteen hundred men, as eight hundred provincials and two hundred regulars had been sent to reinforce Fort WiUiam Henry. Loudoun had been so intent on his o-wn expedition to Louisbourg that he had failed to see the importance of defending his frontier posts. On the 3rd of August, Munroe sent an urgent letter to Webb, begging for more reinforcements, as his scouts had told him of the impending attack. Webb sent off expresses to Massachusetts and New York for help, but remained passive himseU. Montcalm and de Levis had meanwhile arrived before the fort, almost at the same place where Dieskau had met -with his fatal defeat at the hands of Johnson. They resolved to carry the entrenched camp and fort by assault. Mont calm first demanded a capitulation, which was refused, and then he set the men at work to open trenches, while Munroe from the fort poured on them a hea-vy fire. At last the French batteries were completed, and now began a cannon ade whose roar reached even the dull ears of Webb at Fort Edward. Poor Munroe had received an express from him on the 4th, saying : ' The General has ordered me to acquaint you he does not think it prudent to attempt a junction or to assist you tiU reinforced by the miUtia of the LOUDOUN'S ARRIVAL, 1756 121 Colonies, for the immediate march of which repeated expresses have been sent.' This letter reached its destina tion, though the bearer of it was killed on the way. Mont calm kept it tiU the EngUsh fort was haU battered do-wn, and then sent it with a few graceful words to Munroe. Its contents were not encouraging. To add to the horrors of the siege, smaUpox had broken out in the garrison. When, after four days' siege, more than three hundred men had been kiUed and wounded, and most of the guns disabled, it was decided by the officers in council that they would surrender. Montcalm, the soul of poUteness, agreed that the EngUsh should march out with the honours of war, and be escorted in safety to Fort Edward ; that they should not serve for eighteen months ; and that all French prisoners captured since the beginning of the war should be given up. The stores and artiUery were to be the prize of the victors. But, alas for Montcalm's weU-meant mercy ! He could not restrain his savage allies. They were thirsting for blood and scalps, and fell on the helpless wounded and invaUds left in the camp, and butchered them. They then foUowed the retreating column, -wreaking their vengeance on the wounded, and dragging away and kiUing men, women and children. Montcahn, when he heard of the slaughter, tried to calm the frenzy of the savages. ' KiU me, but spare the English who are under my protection,' he cried ; but his efforts were in vain. At last, by the help of his chief officers, some sort of order was restored, and the unhappy fugitives were gathered again in the camp under the care of a strong guard, who, the next day, accompanied them to Fort Edward, The Indians, drunk with blood, set off the day after the massacre for Montreal, carrying with them about 122 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND two hundred prisoners. The fort was now set on fire, and on the 16th of August the French army re-embarked, leaving behind them ruin and desolation. This was the state of affairs to which Loudoun returned from his fruitless expedition to Louisbourg. CHAPTER IX the cherokees A HUNDRED and fifty years ago, the French claimed the sovereignty of that vast area which stretched from Hudson Bay to the GuU of Mexico, including the province of Canada and the province of Louisiana, whose western boundaries were limitless. Their settlements were few and far between, yet each settlement was a miUtary centre, by which the Indians were kept in allegiance. The strip along the Atlantic coast held by England seemed insignificant in contrast to the broad domain claimed by the monarch of France, yet it was being rapidly settled by a population of varied elements, hardy, enterprising, and independent. It was certainly deficient in military organisation, as has already been shown, whereas every man in New France was a soldier, and one viceroy reigned over aU the land. The instructions to this governor were precise and minute, and to ensure his carrying them out, there was another officer, called the intendant, whose business it was to travel about the colony, investigating the family affairs of every household, and to keep a watchful eye on the governor's actions. From 1755, Pierre Fran§ois, Marquis de Vaudreuil, was governor, and Bigot, of scandalous memory, was the intendant. If one regarded the number of inhabitants of the English colonies in comparison to the French, the disparity was enormous, for the former were about eleven hundred thousand, scattered along the Atlantic border, while the 123 124 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND latter numbered in 1755 only about sixty-six thousand souls. But the French had for aUies, in a much larger number than the EngUsh could command, the Indians, those ruthless demons of the forest who stained with deeds of horror every engagement of this war. It cannot be said, though, that the EngUsh were averse to having their support. Every effort was made to con ciliate them, and, what to modern ideas of civiUsation seems monstrous, a bounty of fifty pounds was given to these savages by the English Government for every scalp brought in and delivered to them. In the southern colonies, the Cherokees, who lived on the borders of Virginia, were dis posed to enlist in King George's service, but after the success of Montcalm at Oswego they, too, were wavering. Early in the spring of 1757, however, a body of them came to Fort Frederick to offer their services to Governor Sharpe. The following letter from their chief, Wahachy, is a curious specimen of Indian diplomacy. The EngUsh answer is given in the picturesque account written by John Ridout and Daniel Wolstenholme, who had been sent as ambassadors to Fort Frederick to meet the savage warriors : ' Fort Feedeeick, 29th April 1757. ' To the Governor of Maryland : ' Brother of Maryland. This day I came into your Pro vince, with a company of our nation, on our way to war against the French, Shawanese, and all their Indians, hearing they had kiUed some of our brothers, not kno-wing when we set off from Winchester but the murder was committed in Virginia ; but coming to this Fort, found we were in another Province ; and on being informed by Capt. BeaU, that our brother, the Governor of this Province, had a real love for our nation, and that he had provided clothes for our nation. THE CHEROKEES 125 though unacquainted with us, I have just now held a council with my young warriors, and have concluded to write to you, to acquaint you, our brother, our design of coming into this country, was, hearing from our good brother, the Governor of Virginia, that it was the desire of our father. King George, that we would join the EngUsh in war against the French and their Indians. On hearing this news we immediately took up the hatchet against the French and their Indians, and hold it fast till we make use of it, which I expect will be in a few days. We intend to set out immediately from this fort, and immediately on our return expect to meet you, our brother, here, to make ourselves acquainted with you. If you cannot come your- seU, you will send one of your beloved men with your talk, which we will look upon as from your own mouth. I hope you wiU let the Province of Pennsylvania know that I am come this length to war, and if they are in need of our assistance, I have men plenty at home, and wiU not think it troublesome to come and fight for our brothers. I set off from home with 150 men, part of which are gone to Fort Cumberland ; forty more by this are come to Winchester, Our people will be so frequent among you, that I wish you may not think us troublesome. Our hearts ache to see our brothers' bones scattered about the country, but you will hear in a short time we have got satisfaction for our brothers, and in confirmation of what I have spoke, I have sent you these few white beads to confirm my regard to this Province, Likewise I have sent you these black beads, to convince you that I have taken up the hatchet against aU the English enemies. We intend to stay as long amongst our brothers as there is use for us. I have sent you a list of what is useful for us, and have got our good friend Mr, Ross to carry this letter to you, whom we shaU always 126 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND acknowledge as a particular friend to us. As we expect to see you soon, we wiU add no more at present ; but remain your loving brother. His ' Wahachy X of Keeway,' Mark, In answer, the governor sent with his commissioners, Messrs. Ridout and Wolstenholme, a wagon-load of presents, and also the sum of £100, which had been voted by the Assembly for the purpose of securing the services of the Cherokees. A much larger sum had been voted some time before, but the appropriation had been expended in raising, equipping, and paying five hundred men for the defence of the frontier. However, as the Cherokees had kiUed four hostile Indians while waiting for his answer, the governor had to furnish £200 worth of goods in payment for their scalps. The letter relating the adventure of the two young envoys gives a vivid picture of the manners and customs that then prevailed in dealing with the red man. ' To His Excellency Horatio Sharpe Esq. Lieutenant Governor and Commander in Chief of the Province of Maryland. ' Sir, — Agreeable to the Instructions which We had the Honour to receive from your ExceUency the 17th Instant, We proceeded the same Day towards Fort Frederick and reached that place on the 19th in the Afternoon. We were met about nine miles beyond Conegochiege by a party of the Cherokee Indians who escorted us to the Fort and when We came near the Gate drew up in a Rank and Saluted us. Wahachey their Chief then invited us to Smoke a Pipe with him and some of the Warriors that were in THE CHEROKEES 127 greatest esteem. On our Accepting his Invitation he bad us Welcome and expressed great Satisfaction at our Arrival, he afterwards enquired how long We had been on the Road and what the Distance was between Fort Frederick and the place where the Governor resided. When we informed him that We had made the Journey in three Days they seemed to be surprized that they had not received an answer to their message sooner and observed that many Days had elapsed since your Excellency must have received it. We told them that when they sent their message you happened to be far from home, and that you had been obliged after your return home to send to Distant Parts of the Province for a Quantity of Goods to make them a present of, by reason that a proper assortment was not to be had in Annapolis nor in any one part of the Province ; With this answer they seemed to be weU satisfied and only asked whether the Goods were yet coUected and brought up. We told them that they may be expected in a Day or two and that whenever they came We should immediately advise them thereof. The Chief afterwards asked some questions about the Treaty which he said he had heard the Governor of Pensilvania was then holding with the Shawanese and Delawares at Lancaster, and expressed a good deal of Surprize at the Pensilvanians treating as Friends and making presents to a People with whom they were at open War, by whom they had been so cruelly used, and against whom the English had been and were still SolUciting their (the Cherokees') assistance. Finding that what had been dropt about that Treaty had made an iU Impression on their Minds We intimated that the affair had been misrepresented to them, for that none but some of the six nations and of Certain Tribes of the Shawanese and Delewares who were in. Amity with the English and 128 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND who disapproved of the others Conduct were come to the Treaty of which they had heard. The Chief soon after ordered some of their young Men to bring down the two Indian Prisoners which they had taken and by way of Compliment obUged them to parade before us and to sing their Death Songs. The next Day we Invited the Chief and the principal Warriors to Dine with us, and after Dinner the Interpreter Capn. Pearls told them He under stood that their Brother the Governor's present would be up the next Morning, and that he had made a Considerable addition to it as a reward for the Services they had done in destroying four and taking two of the Ennemy Prisoners, but that it was expected that they should deUver up the Prisoners and Scalps before they received the additional present such being the Custom here and what was required by the Laws of the Province. To this the Chief replyed with some warmth that he thought it would suffice to shew his Brother the Governor or those that he had sent to represent him, the Prisoners and the scalps of the Ennemies that they had destroyed, that it was the Indians' Custom to preserve as Trophies the Hair of the Ennemies that they killed in Battle and to carry them home to their own People, and in short that if they were not to have the Goods that had been talked of unless they would purchase them with their Prisoners or Scalps they would return home naked as they came thence, and that they would think no more of going to War if they were not allowed to keep what they set the highest value on as it procured them most Honour among their own People. As the Chief (for many of the others did not) appeared to be much displeased with the proposal that had been made or the Intimation that had been given him by Captain Pearis We desired the Interpreter to drop the affair, but as we were not at Uberty to give THE CHEROKEES 129 them a larger present than could be purchased with £100 unless they would deliver up the Scalps to be destroyed agreeable to the Directions of the Act of Assembly and as we understood that so small a present as £100 would not be Acceptable, We desired Mr. Pearis the Interpreter to talk to them severaUy and to endeavour by any arguments that he should think fit to urge, to persuade them to give up some of the Scalps that we may be thereby enabled to make such an addition to the present given by the Assembly as might make it acceptable. In the morning of the 21st Instant he assured us that he had used his utmost Endeav ours to procure us either the Prisoners or some Scalps, but that Wahachey the Chief continued obstinate and had declared that nothing should tempt him to part with the Prisoners, but that Yaughtanew the second in reputation and who was in fact much better affected than the other, had promised him to send the Scalps as a present to your ExceUency afterwards, tho he could not deliver them up to be destroyed in such a manner as the Act Directs, lest he should be charged by his own People with SeUing them. Upon this assurance We sent to Conegochiege for two hundred pounds Worth of Goods more, and as soon as they were brought up We advised the Indians thereof and desired to know if they would choose to receive them in the afternoon and to hear your ExceUency's answer to the Message which they had sent you by Mr, Ross, Our proposal being accepted the Goods as well as those that were purchased with the one hundred pounds, the price of four Scalps, were after Dinner laid on a Table in two Separate parcels, and when aU the Indians except a few who were left to guard the Prisoners were Assembled (Capn. BeaU the Commandant of the Fort, Capn, Armstrong who was come thither from Pensilvania with a message I 130 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND from Governor Denny to the Cherokees, and several other Officers of the Maryland and Pensylvania Troops being also present) we addressed ourselves to Wahachey the Chief saying that We were come thither by your order and that We were about to deliver your ExceUency's answer to their message which answer Capn. Pearis would interpret to them, and then we proceeded, ' " Brother Wahachey of Keeway and Brethren of the Cherokee Nation, I have received the Message which you sent by Mr. Ross to advise me of your being come to Fort Frederick, I rejoice at your arrival and bid you welcome by this String of Wampum [gave a string]. I have heard of your Fame and your good intentions towards us from your Brother of Virginia and have for a long time had a great desire to see you, but it happens that now you are come I am unable to meet you, this I am sorry for but I hope you wiU excuse me since I have sent Mr. Wolsten holme and Mr. Ridout to communicate my Sentiments to you, I have appointed them because I know that they have a particular regard for you, and because I am Con fident they wiU deliver my words f aithfuUy ; They ¦wiU in my name and on behaU of the People of Maryland make a league with you which I hope wiU last as long as the Sun and Moon shall endure, to confirm it I present you this Belt of Wampum [gave a Belt], Brethren when Mr, Ross was with me I gave him orders to supply you -with such Provisions as you should stand in need of. As a farther mark of my Friendship towards you I have now sent you a present [pointing to that of one hundred pounds Value], was it in my power I would send you a larger, but as it is not I hope you will not consider the value of the present so much as the inclination of him that sends it, ' " Brethren now we have made a League of Friendship THE CHEROKEES 131 and are kno-wn to each other I wiU'speak to you more freely on the purpose for which you are come. You say that your good Brother the Governor of Virginia has signified to you that our Father King George desires you wiU joyn the EngUsh and declare War against the French and their Indians who without any just cause or provocation have faUen upon our People and Scattered their Bones over the Country. You also teU me that upon our Father's pleasure being made known to you, you have taken up the Hatchet against our Ennemies and that you wiU hold it fast till you have used it against the French and the Indians in their AlUance ; I am weU pleased that you have already taken such a resolution. I hope you wiU soon make our Ennemies sensible of it and that you wiU prosecute the War Vigorously against them, to make your Hatchet Sharp and to fasten it in your Hands I present you with this String of black Wampum [gave a string]. ' " You were told, you say, when you came to Fort Frederick, that you were no longer in Virginia but in another Province. This was true, but I must observe to you that We and the Virginians are nevertheless one People. The Inhabitants of CaroUna, Virginia, Maryland, Pensylvania and of aU the Provinces to the Northward are Brethren, Subjects of the same great King, and they that are Friends to some of us must be Friends to aU. You are then the Friends of aU, Let us become one People and unite against the French and their Indians our Ennemies. Let our Men go out to War -with you. Look on them as your Brethren, Teach them to fight after your manner, and then neither the French nor their AUies wiU be able to stand before you. For your Encouragement and as a reward for those that fight bravely I wiU give you a present as large as that which I have now sent you [pointing to the smaU parceU] 132 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND for every two Ennemies that you shaU take Prisoners and deliver up to me or that you shaU kiU and bring me the Scalps of, or I will give you the value thereof in money. Let this sink deep into the minds of your young men and let them remember my promise in the Day of Battle. I have ordered Capn. BeaU who commands at Fort Frederick and the Officer that commands the men at Fort Cumberland to receive and at aU times Treat you and those of your nation that shall join you as Brethren and as my best Friends. I have also notified your Arrival to yom- Brother the Governor of Pensylvania ; in this I hope I have done according to your desire and that the words which I have spoken are agreeable to you, to Confirm the truth of them and to Convince you that they flow from my Heart, I give you this Belt [gave a Belt] and the answer in Writing." 'After a short pause. We addressed Ourselves to them again and spoke to the foUowing purport : ' " Brethren you have heard your Brother the Governor's answer to your Message, you have also seen the present which he sent you as a mark of his Friendship and to wel come you to this Province, we are now to Congratulate you in his name on the Success which you have lately had against his and your Ennemies. He was exceedingly pleased with the news, and for the Service you have already done he has ordered us to give you these Goods [pointing to the large parcell] ; Brethren now you have found where the Ennemy is to be met with. We hope you wiU not suffer them to escape but on the Contrary that you wiU pursue and overtake them and destroy tiU none of them remain. To in spire you with such a Resolution your Brother the Governor sends you this String [gave a String of black Wampum]." ' After a few Minutes, Wahachey rose up and said he had heard good words, and then stepping up on one of the THE CHEROKEES 133 Seats that were round the Table he harangued his People a Considerable time, repeating as we were told by the Interpreter the substance of what We had said and Con cluding with an Exhortation to the young Men to look on the EngUsh and on the People of this Province in Par ticular as their Friends and Brethren, to fight bravely for them against the Ennemies that had attacked them, and to entitle themselves to the present that had been promised as a reward for their Valour. They then proceeded to divide the Goods and We retired, having first desired the Commandant of the Fort to order Sentries to the Door to prevent the Intrusion of any White People. ' An Account being brought to the Fort in the Evening that several Moccoson Tracks had been discovered a few Miles off on the South side of Potowmack River, and the Indians being informed thereof they sent to us early in the Morning of the 22nd Instant saying they were very impatient to pursue the Indians that had as it was Supposed made the abovementioned Tracks, and that they hoped We would meet them as soon as possible and hear the reply that they intended to make to their Brother the Governor. We immediately compUed with their request, and as soon as We were seated the Chief expressed himseU in the foUow ing words : " I am now going to reply to the Governor of Maryland, but as I do not imderstand making Beads I shaU send him nothing but Paper. Brother, while I was coming from home my thoughts were very bad. I was enraged against the Ennemy who have been Murthering my Bretheren, but now I have been out and killed some of them I am better Satisfied in my mind. My Brother the Governor of this Province has sent us this Belt [holding in his Hand the Belt that was first given him the Day before] to welcome us hither and to open a Path from my Country. 134 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND This shaU be done ; at present it is only a smaU Track, but I wiU make it a large Path. AU my young Men have taken hold of this Belt, they are determined to make the Path Broad, and wiU take care that there be no blood shed upon it ; I wUl keep this Belt to remind our young Men to Freshen the Track and I wiU immediately send off to my Nation that they may see these Belts [holding up all the Belts and Strings that had been given him] and know how kindly We have been received and treated in this Province. I will also send them a speech and invite them hither to go out to War with us and to receive presents as we have done. These are not only my own Sentiments and my o^wn Resolutions, but all the young Warriors that are with me agree with me and are come to the same Deter mination. This String [holding up the black String] that was first given, my Brother the Governor sent to Sharpen my Hatchet ; he may depend on our doing so there^with, and that We wiU always have it Stained with the Blood of the Ennemy ; the very sight of this String makes me angry with them, they have often sent to me caUing me their Father, but I looked on them with disdain and as Ennemies, My talk with the Governor of Maryland shaU be always Straight, I shaU never deal double with him and I hope his Language to us wiU be always Straight and true." Then, holding up the Black String that was last given, he said : "I received this yesterday with a speech to invite me to War, which I receive as if it came from our Father King George, the Governor our Brother having sent you to deliver it, and you may be assured that so long as King George wiU furnish us with Cloathes, I wiU continue to Destroy his and our Ennemies. I have been a long time here to War, and having kiUed a few of the Ennemy have received a smaU present, but when I come this way again with my People I wiU kill more of the Ennemy and THE CHEROKEES 135 hope to receive a larger Present, I hope our Father King George -wiU take care to furnish us with Cloaths, and I desire he might be informed of what I have already done and of what I intend to do." ' The young Warrior caUed Yaughtanew then put into his Hand the Scalps which he had promised us and holding them up to Wahachey proceeded : " When I came to Win chester I heard that the Ennemy was murthering People in this Province, the news made my Heart ache and I immediately pursued and came up with them, I have kiUed some of them, and to shew the Governor my Brother that I have destroyed some of his and my Ennemies I send him this Hair for which I expect my Brother wiU thank me " [gave the scalps]. He then signed the answer as it was taken down, and the Interpreter certified it to be a true Interpretation as your ExceUency wiU see by the Original herewith presented. After he had done speaking we thanked him in a few words for the reply he had made and the Hair which he had given, and concluded with teUing them that you would look on the Latter as a Testimony of their Bravery and memorial of their Friendship. As soon as we had finished, Capn. Armstrong and the other Gentlemen who were sent by Governor Denny to invite the Cherokees to Pensilvania deUvered their Message, and Yaughtanew the second Warrior gave them a Short Answer, The Indians soon after took their leave appearing weU Satisfied and went over to Virginia carrying their two Prisoners with them. We also left the Fort the same Day, and returned towards AnnapoUs to Inform your ExceUency of our proceedings, and to assure you That we are Your Excellency's Most Humble and Most Obedient Servts., ' Danl, Wolstenholme. ' J. RiDOTJT. ' The 25th of May 1757,' CHAPTER X LOUDOTTN'S RECAIiL Colonel Sharpe was in great distress about provisioning the troops he had raised, who were to be stationed at Fort Cumberland. The Assembly had flatly refused to provide supplies, and the perplexed governor wrote on the 20th of October to Lord Loudoun, entreating him to send orders as soon as possible to Colonel Stanwix about the matter, as he feared he would not be able to keep the men together as soon as they heard the resolution of the Assembly. The number of soldiers in the pay of the province, so the Assembly said, must be reduced to three hundred ; and none should be sent to Fort Cumberland but must garrison Fort Frederick and patrol near the settlements. The poor governor, in order to prevent the fort being abandoned for want of food, supplied the immediate wants from his own purse. As to the contumacious Assembly of Maryland, Lord Loudoun writes to him : ' Your Assembly in this case have taken a step that tended to subvert aU Government, and at once to throw off aU submission to the Mother Country. I need not say to you how fatal the example may be if it cannot be stopped here tiU the King's Ministers are informed of the situation, and have time to apply a proper Remedy to the Evil that is of so dangerous a Nature, in this so extensive a Country, inhabited by people of such a variety of Religions, and so far removed from the centre of Govern ment in the Mother Country.' 13S LOUDOUN'S RECALL 137 Colonel Sharpe wrote to Calvert and told him what the Assembly proposed ; namely, to grant twenty thousand doUars for the support of three hundred men for the im mediate protection of the frontier. He says : ' The Money, I am told, is to be raised by a Tax on all Real and Per sonal estates on offices. Professions, His Lordship's Quit Rents and Ecclesiastical Reforms. The tax is to be laid by assessors, appointed by certain Commissioners whom the People are to choose, and the Troops to be in fact under the Command of Nobody but the Agent, ' If the ParUament should, in consequence of the Earl of Loudoun's Representation, take the Conduct of our Assembly as weU as the proceedings of a neighbouring one, under consideration, and ease them of the trouble of framing Supply BiUs by making some for them, you will be pleased to remember that no considerable sum of money, except from the Duty on Tobacco, has ever been raised in this Province otherwise than by a Poll Tax, that as the People have been always accustomed to that mode of Taxation, they aU prefer it, except some few Leading men of the Assembly who desire nothing more than to throw things into confusion,' Lord Colville was now appointed commander-in-chief of His Majesty's ships and vessels in North America, and wrote to Sharpe begging him for a supply of seamen to recruit the ships then in Halifax harbour, which were the Northumberland, Sutherland, Terrible, Kingston, Oxford, Arc-en-Ciel (a recent capture). Defiance, and Somerset. The governor, who was unable to obtain the necessary recruits for the land service, was obliged to -write a polite refusal. He also wrote to WiUiam Pitt saying he had placed the admiral's demand before the Assembly, but their answer was that it was not in their power to comply with the 138 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND request ; that the trade of the province would be entirely ruined if any more seamen should be taken away. The death of Sir John St. Clair having been reported from Albany, Governor Dinwiddie writes to Sharpe lament ing the loss of a valuable man and a good officer ; but a little while after a letter from Sir John himseU brought the good news of his recovery. He writes from PhUa delphia : ' Finding an express going to you I have just time to tell you that I have not forgot the good Advice you have often given me in coming to pay you a visit at Annapolis, I have got over a most severe fever which had very near sent me to the other world, and by the advice of the doctor I came to this place to take a passage to Lisbon, lest I should get into a consumption, I have many things to mention to you which I shall have the pleasure of doing on Sunday next if the weather is good. I shaU leave this to-morrow, Tuesday, and make smaU journeys by Baltimore until I reach you, but after a few days rest I am afraid the cold will drive me southward. I know nothing of Lord Loudoun's motions.' Lord Loudoun had written in November to Sharpe most seriously protesting against the action of the Maryland Assembly in refusing to provide for the five hundred men enlisted the year before for service in the frontier garrisons. He continues : ' As to their disposing of the troops in the winter I have the King's Commission to command aU men that are or shall be in Arms in North America. I am on the spot, and whilst the King does me the Honour to con tinue that commission to me I wiU execute it, and if any Officer or Soldier presumes to disobey my orders, I wiU treat him as the Law directs,' Lord Loudoun, in con clusion, begged the governor to take every measure to bring his Assembly to a right understanding. LOUDOUN'S RECALL 139 This severe letter was accompanied by a private one, saying that so important did he hold the position of Fort Cumberland, that he would not trust altogether to the Assembly of Maryland coming to a right judgment on that point, but had ordered Colonel Stanwix to coUect as many of the Virginian troops as possible to march, and garrison the fort ; and if they should be infected with the spirit of the Maryland Assembly, that then he should occupy it with a number of the King's regulars, and, in the meantime, he had ordered the contractor for provisions to dispatch a proper person to Colonel Stanwix to receive his orders as to victualUng the post. These orders go to show that Lord Loudoun was taking a particiUar interest in the preparations for the winter, aU unknowing that letters were on their way to deprive him of his command. The Assembly was stiU sitting at the end of November, and Sharpe sent the commander-in-chief a copy of the mUitary part of the BiU which they had sent to the Upper House, in which they insisted that the soldiers should only garrison Fort Frederick, and also reduced the captains' pay from 12s, 6d, currency to Ss, lOd. Sharpe continued : ' They themselves have the conscience to receive for serving their country in assembly, at the rate of 14s, a day each, besides TraveUing Expenses, so that the Taxes which have been levied on the People of the Province to pay the Assem bly for sitting, since the war was first begun in America, amounts to at least a fifth part of the money that has been granted here for His Majesty's Service ; which consideration is a sufficient reason why every person among us should desire to see the Parliament of Great Britain interpose, and compel us to pay towards carrying on the War as much as should be judged our reasonable quota,' 140 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Dinwiddie was now about to leave Virginia for England, and Sharpe promised to send him an account of the action of the burgesses that would afford him some amusement after he has turned his back ' on us poor governors and all American Assemblies,' The Assembly seems also to have found fault with the governor for having provided himseU with the luxury of a secretary, but if one may judge by his voluminous correspondence no man ever had more need of one, Sharpe says : ' They have thought proper to ask what necessity I can have for a Secretary, and to insist that if I employ any gentleman under that or any other title to write for me, they will compel him to appear at the bar of the House and to answer aU such questions as they shaU out of Curiosity or in their Discretion be pleased to put to him,' Truly, the position of an English governor in the colonies was not an enviable one ! In Sharpe's letter to Calvert, referring to the resolution of the Lower House restricting the service of the troops to Fort Frederick, he says : ' Tho' the money proposed to be raised was said to be granted for the support of Troops for His Majesty's Service, yet that by restraining the service of those troops to a par ticular spot. His Majesty's Service must be in fact cramped and retarded, while the King's undoubted prerogative was most presumptuously invaded.' There was great dissatisfaction in AnnapoUs at the close of the year 1757 on account of the quartering of the troops on the inhabitants by order of the commander-in-chief. In order to punish the Assembly, Lord Loudoun quartered five companies of the Royal Americans upon the citizens of Annapolis. This roused the wrath of the inhabitants, and was a grievance that served to embitter the relations between the province and the mother country, Sharpe LOUDOUN'S RECALL 141 remonstrated, urging that the citizens had done no harm, and the punishment feU upon them, instead of the bur gesses. In spite of this argument, Loudoun was obstinate, and the unwelcome guests remained in AnnapoUs until the end of March 1758. Among the Swiss officers who had been sent out in the course of the war was Colonel Haldi mand, and a letter from him in quaint French to Sharpe shows that he much enjoyed the hospitalities of Annapolis during this winter. It is written from Philadelphia, Slst of March 1758 : COL, HALDIMAND TO SHARPE ' Monsieur, — A mon arrivee icy, je trouvay le Brigadier Stanwix, a qui je remis Votre lettre ; en Iui faisant les details dont Vous m'avaies Charge, il etoit Sur Son depart pour N, Yorck, bien resolu de representer au General, la situation de vos forts, et les difficultes que vous aves k Surmonter, je ne doutte point Mons'r qu'il ne vous procure une reponse Sattisfaisante, ' Le Brigadier Forbes est attendu icy dans 8 jours avec Sr, John St, Clair, qui Sera de Son Expedition ; On dit que les 5 Compagnies du Ld Bait, avec le Regim't de Mont gomery en formeront les trouppes reglees. ' On Conte beaucoup Sur les Provintieaux et les Indiens ; je Souhaitte qu'on ne se trompe pas, et qu'EUes arivent a temps,' 'Les 5, Compagnies du Brigr Stanvix sont encorre a Lancaster, et attendent tons les jours des ordres pour le suivre. ' J'ay trouv6 icy un Ordre D'Ambarquer le 35 Regimt Avec le notre, le plustot possible, mais je ne vols pas que nous puissions le faire avant une 12ne de jours, les Quakres sent des Animeaux tropp lent, et rempUs de trop de difficultes. 142 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND ' Deux Regiments sont dejk passes a Rod Island, d'ou Us marcheront k Boston pour y etre Ambarques, d'autres sont deja partis pour Albany, mais je n'ay point de details Certains. Je suis seulm't Charme de voir qu'on se mette de bonne heure en mouvement. La Province de N. Yorck, Messieurs DeLancy a la tete, fait des merveiUes. ' On assure qu'U ne Viendra que 3 Regiments d'Europe, j'ay peine a le croire. ' Permettez Monsr que je vous remercie encorre de toutes vos PoUtesses ; S'il se presente quelque chose d'interessant dans les Brouillards ou je Suis destine, je me feray un plaisir de vous I'apprendre. Esperant que Vous Voudrez bien me faire part du succes de Votre Expedition. ' J'ay I'honneur d'etre avec une parfaitte Consideration, Monsieur, Votre tres humble et tres obeissant serviteur, ' Fe, Haldimand, ' P.S. — J'offre mes CompUmts a Monr, Rydhout, et le prie de vouloir presenter mes respects a la beUe Veuve et aux autres Dames, avec mes Obeissance, aux Messieurs je leur reste redevable de bien des PoUtesses. ' Le Col. Tasker ne sera pas surpris d'apprendre que Nantzy est toujours aimable, et il Sera Charme de Savoir que Sa derniere maladie la Ambelie.' Letter. haldimakd to sharpe. Philadelphia, Slst March 1758. On my arrival here I found Brigadier Stan-wix, to whom I presented your letter giving him the details with which you charged me. He was about to set off for New York resolved to represent strongly to the General the situation of your forts and the difficulties that you have had to surmount. I do not doubt, sir, that he will procure for you a satisfactory answer. Brigadier Forbes is expected here in a week with Sir John St. Clair, who will be with his expedition. They say that five companies of Lord Baltimore's, with Montgomery's Kegiment, wiU compose the regular troops. LOUDOUN'S RECALL 143 They count much upon the Provincials and the Indians. I hope they may not be mistaken, and that they will arrive in time. Five of Brigadier Stanwix's companies are stUl in Lancaster and expect every day orders to foUow him. I have found here an order to embark the 36th Eegt. with ours as soon as possible, but I do not see that we can do so before twelve days. Quakers are very slow animals and full of too many difficulties. Two Eegiments have already passed to Ehode Island whence they wUl march to Boston to embark there. Others have already set off for Albany, but I know no certain detaUs. I am only charmed to see they are getting early into movement. The Province of New York, Mr. DeLancy at its head, is doing marvels. They say only three Eegiments wUl come from Europe ; I can hardly believe it. Permit me, sir, to thank you again for all your attentions. If anything presents itself of interest to you in the fogs for which I am destined, I wiU be pleased to let you know. I send my regards to Mr. Ridout and beg him to present my respects to the pretty widow, and to the other ladies, with my compliments to the gentlemen to whom I owe so many favours. Colonel Tasker will not be surprised to learn that Nancy is quite amiable, and that her last indisposition has rather improved her. One is curious to know who was ' la belle veuve,' and one cannot help identifying her with the Uttle widow, Mrs, Martha Custis, who this year captivated George Washington, The -writer of this letter, Frederick Haldimand, was destined to play an important part for many years in His Majesty's domains in North America, He was a native of Berne, Switzerland. As a youth he entered into the service of the King of Sardinia, and then served in the army of the great Frederick of Prussia. In 1754 he entered the British army, and, with his friend Bouquet, was sent to America to serve as colonel in the Royal American Regi ment, which had just been raised, and which was drafted principally from Swiss and German settlers in America. He greatly distinguished himseU during the war, especiaUy at Ticonderoga, and afterwards at Oswego and Montreal. In after times he was for six years governor of the Canada he had helped to win for the Crown. The first official announcement of Lord Loudoun's retire ment came this month. On the 4th of March the Squirrel, 144 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND ship of war, brought letters to say that the king had judged proper that the Earl of Loudoun should return to England, and that His Majesty had appointed General Abercrombie to succeed his Lordship as Commander-in-Chief of the King's Forces in North America. A characteristic letter from Secretary Calvert to Governor Sharpe gives an epitome of the news. It is dated London, 12th January 1758 : ' Our squadron of 14 of the Line under command of Admiral Boscawen, Col. Anstruthers and Colonel Amhersts Regiments take departure the 18th instant for HaUfax, where they join eight of the Line, and then to attack Louisbourg. Lord Loudoun is recaUed, giving no content. Maj. -General Abercrombie appointed in his stead. Colonel Amherst to command the Expedition to Louisbourg, General Webb ordered home — disUked. They speak of Brigadier Generals to be made, who are to command separately in America the Force which it is said wiU be greatly augmented by Provincial Forces raised on a new plan. 'Tis hoped to better end than the force has yielded hence, which like Beef Stake has been sent hot and hot, but to little purpose, English Beef having greatly faUen as to Substance and Heart.' That the recall of Loudoun was not altogether satisfactory in America is evidenced by letters from Sir John St, Clair, He -viTites to Sharpe on 20th March from New York : ' In all this unexpected revolution of our Military affairs you wiU certainly be curious to know what has become of your old friend and weU wisher. If I am not much deceived, I may rank you amongst the number of those who regret our general loss ; if you do not you wiU be one of few, and in d d bad company to the bargain.' Sharpe's answer was : LOUDOUN'S RECALL 145 ' Dear Sir, — I neither converse with nor hear of any Persons that entertain different Sentiments from your own with regard to the late sudden and surprising Revolution, Those that are least concerned thereat say 'tis highly proper the Customs and People of America should be better known in England than they are at present, and that no one can communicate such knowledge to those that want it so weU as the Person that is best acquainted with both. I am glad however that some of those you regard and esteem are left behind, ' By the time that our Assembly breaks up it is likely you ¦wiU be on the Frontiers of Maryland, In that case you may expect a visit from me, but a journey to Philadelphia is reaUy what I cannot think of, though I would most readily take a much longer one if I could thereby contribute in the least degree to the success of the Expedition you are about to engage on.' The wine question was again discussed, and Governor Sharpe assured Sir John that if he could not be suppUed with tolerable wine at Philadelphia he wiU endeavour to get what he wants in the Province of Maryland ; but, he •writes, ' it will be out of my power to send you such Madeira as you had at Fort Cumberland. I have a Hhd of Prize Claret at my Command, which, if it be agreable to you, shaU be bottled and sent to Fort Frederick,' The baronet, who seems somewhat of a gourmand as to his supply of wine, is further informed some time after wards that the pipe of Madeira wine he had ordered was safely in the governor's ceUar, and as soon as it was in fine condition it would be dra-wn off and conveyed to Fort Frederick, Brigadier-General Forbes had now charge of the expedi tion against Fort Duquesne, The defence of the south- 146 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND western frontier had been for months conducted by Washing ton, who with his scanty force (a single regiment) had kept the savages at bay. He had vainly tried to get up an expedition to attack the French stronghold on the Mononga hela, but Loudoun had been too engrossed by his expedition against Louisbourg, and had ignored the importance of winning this post, which was made the centre and starting- point for all the depredations committed on the frontiers of Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania, It was the month of July 1758 before Forbes could complete the preparations for the advance. His force consisted of about seven thousand men, including two Highland regiments, about five hundred Marylanders under Colonel Dagworthy, and the Virginia Regiment under Colonel Washington. As soon as Sharpe heard at AnnapoUs of the order for the advance, he set out with about two hundred men to garrison Fort Cumberland, which was about to be vacated by Washington. In spite of the adverse resolutions of his Assembly, Sharpe, with his customary vigour, had gathered some companies of mUitia from Calvert, Kent, Baltimore, Charles and Prince George's Counties, and placed himseU at their head. A little correspondence between George Washington and Colonel Bouquet reveals the former's character for punctiU- ousness in the smallest matters which characterised him in after years. He writes on 21st August from Fort Cumber land : ' Governor Sharpe may be expected here in a day or two. I am at a loss to know how he ranks, and whether he is entitled to the command. In the British army his rank is that of lieutenant-colonel only ; but what it may be as Governor in his own Province I reaUy do not know ; nor whether he has any, out of the troops in his Province. LOUDOUN'S RECALL 147 I should therefore be glad of your advice, being unwiUing to dispute the point with him -wrongfully, or to give up the command if I have a right to it,' Bouquet replied ' that the Governors in America had no command of the troops, even in their o-wn Province, when they are joined with any other of His Majesty's forces, unless they have a commission from the commander-in-chief for that purpose.' The new plan for raising troops spoken of by Secretary Calvert was, that the Crown would provide arms, ammuni tion, tents, and provisions for the colonial levies ; the Colonies had only to raise, pay, and clothe them, and for these expenses it was promised that the EngUsh Govern ment would reimburse them. The man to whose command had been entrusted the expedition against Fort Duquesne was well fitted for the task. Brigadier-General John Forbes was a Scotsman of determined character, and possessing the qualities of tact and caution which his predecessor Braddock had lacked. His Uttle army of about six thousand men was composed of twelve hundred Highlanders, Montgomery's Regiment, and Provincials from Pennsylvania, Virginia, Maryland, and North CaroUna, who were raw troops, whose chief recom mendation was their knowledge of woodcraft. The general was fortunate in having to assist him such men as Colonels Washington, Montgomery, and Bouquet, though the former did not possess the absolute confidence of his chief. A letter from Forbes to Sharpe amply proves that the former was not bound by the hard and fast Unes of miUtary precedent that had been the imdoing of General Braddock, He begs in his letter that the officers and soldiers employed for this service be able-bodied, good men, capable of endur ing fatigue, and that their arms be the best that can be found 148 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND in the province. He also asks the province to send twenty or thirty men, mounted upon light serviceable horses, and every way accoutred to serve in conjunction with these furnished by the other provinces as a body of Light Horse, He also directed Governor Sharpe to form a company of rangers ' from his properest men who are used to Woods and Hunting,' and to see that they have good officers who know all the country to conduct them. One more thing he suggests which proved that his ideas about uniforms were akin to those of the present day. He says, ' as there is sometimes a great deal of time lost in Cloathing and furnishing Provincial troops, a good man in any Cloathes, and a Blanket, may weU answer the pur poses required of him,' The troublesome Assembly stiU stood in Sharpe's way as to the raising and equipment of the men required, Forbes writes to him on 3rd May : ' I am extremely sorry that the animosities betwixt your upper and lower House should prove of so fatal a consequence as to obstruct the King's measures at this so critical a time for the whole continent of North America. Can the gentlemen that compose these Houses imagine that His Majesty and the whole People of Great Britain will be blind to their behaviour upon this so urging and pressing an occasion, and can they imagine that a great nation drained to the last in the protection and defence of those Provinces and Colonies will forgive and forget the being abandoned by any of them in this critical time of public Calamity and Distress ? I shaU be sorry to let it enter my thoughts that they are not to act as good and Loyal Subjects ought to do, because it would grieve me much to think that we had ever cherished and protected concealed enemies, infinitely more dangerous than the most open and declared ones.' LOUDOUN'S RECALL 149 While Forbes was endeavouring to get ready for his march on Fort Duquesne, Admiral Boscawen's fleet had arrived off Halifax, and Jeffrey, Lord Amherst, and James Wolfe were on the way to Louisbourg with transports, bearing eleven thousand six hundred regulars and five hundred rangers, to lay siege once more to that formidable fortress ; while Abercrombie, the new commander-in-chief, lay in camp with fifteen thousand picked troops at the head of Lake George, ready to march on Montcalm's strongholds on Lake Champlain. CHAPTER XI TICONDEROGA — LOUISBOURG For more than two years England had waited in vain for good news from America, There had been three com manders-in-chief who in turn had failed, and now a fourth one was to bring fresh disaster on English arms. For some political reason, Pitt, when he recaUed Loudoun, retained and promoted James Abercrombie, who was destined to bring about the most ignominious defeat that England received from France during this war. On the 4th of July 1758, fifteen thousand men, the largest army that had yet mustered, were gathered under his command at the head of Lake George, near the blackened ruins of Fort William Henry, the scene of the massacre of the year before. About haU of them were regulars : the Fifty-fifth, the Twenty-seventh, the Forty -fourth, a battaUon of the Royal Americans, afterwards known in history as the Sixtieth Rifles, twelve hundred kilted Highlanders (the Forty-second or Black Watch), also a great train of artiUery, The other haU of the troops were light infantry regiments from New York, New England, and the Jerseys, led by PhiUp Schuyler, Israel Putman, and John Bradstreet, together with a band of Rogers' Rangers clad in hunting shirts and moccassins. All were full of confidence, and looked on their foe as already crushed. An immense fleet of boats and bateaux had been collected for the passage of the troops over those silvery waters to where Montcalm waited for them, forty miles away, at the outlet of Lake leo TICONDEROGA— LOUISBOURG 151 George, Abercrombie had as his brigadier-general Lord Howe, a gifted, brave, and resourceful man, who was beloved and trusted not only by his own soldiers, but by every class in the colonies. It was early in the morning of the 5th of July that the armada set off, and once again martial music woke the echoes of that lovely lake. Ten thousand oars flashed in the sunlight, and in three files, six miles in length, the loaded boats passed on their way, A brief rest at sundown, and then again in the silence of the night they pressed on, tiU dayUght found them near the outlet of Lake George into Lake Champlain ; and by noon of the 6th the army was on shore, with but a strip of dense forest to cross between the landing-place and the promontory, on which rose the famous fortress of Ticonderoga or Carillon, Here Montcalm was at bay with less than four thousand men : before him this apparently invincible army ; behind him three hundred miles of wilderness in which retreat was impossible. Only a week's provisions remained to him. The advance guard of the English was led by Lord Howe, and consisted of his own light infantry regiment and Rogers' company of Rangers, These met by chance with about four hundred of Montcalm's light troops who had been sent out as scouts, and who were hurrying back to the fort. An engagement ensued, in which the French were totaUy routed ; but the victory was dearly purchased by the loss of Lord Howe, who fell almost at the first discharge, shot through the heart. This loss was irreparable, and Aber crombie seemed helpless without him. It was as if the brains of the army had gone, AU night the troops lay in the woods, and in the morning, without any reason, they were marched back to the landing-place to make an advance in another direction. This delay gave Montcalm the oppor- 152 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND tunity he needed to complete his defences. Although know ing that the fort was open to artiUery from neighbouring heights, the French commander decided to erect breastworks across the peninsula, and thus protect his position from a direct assault on the landward side. For twenty-four hours officers and men worked without ceasing, and a strong abattis was raised. At dawn on the Sth, a breastwork of logs about eight feet high, packed -with sandbags and earth, spanned the peninsula, while densely wooded swamps guarded the approach from either side. In front of the breastwork the ground sloped downwards, and this slope was covered with branches, whose sharpened points made a most formidable defence, while for two hundred yards in front of this trees had been feUed, covering the whole open space. In spite of aU this, there were several hills near by from which artiUery could have raked the breastworks, but for some inscrutable reason Abercrombie determined to leave the artiUery behind him at the landing-place, and to order an assault in the open with the bayonet. His haste was increased by the erroneous report that reinforcements for Montcalm were approaching. It was noon when the first long lines of grenadiers appeared with fixed bayonets, and tried to cross the two hundred yards of tangled trees that lay between the forest and the abattis. Not a Frenchman was to be seen, but three thousand rifles were ready, behind the bristUng barriers, to deal death and destruction. Aber crombie's orders were to carry the outworks by steel, and weU his brave troops tried to obey them. Regiment after regiment advanced, only to meet with a hail of buUets that drove their shattered columns back. Hour after hour the pitiless and hopeless struggle went on, while Abercrombie, two miles away, still gave orders for fresh troops to advance. TICONDEROGA— LOUISBOURG 153 only to meet the same fate. Then a sudden unaccountable panic seized them, and they turned and fled. It was more than a flight. It was a stampede. Some of the colonial troops and rangers remained on the field and covered those who were engaged in bringing off the wounded, but the rest — Highlanders, grenadiers, riflemen, who had vainly fought with such splendid courage — hastened in the wildest disorder through woods and swamps to the landing-place, where Bradstreet's common sense in guarding the boats alone prevented further disaster. Two thousand kiUed and wounded was the sum of the day's loss. By night they were aU embarked, their pusiUanimous commander urging on their flight though they stiU counted four times the number of the foe they fled from. With rage and shame, utterly demoraUsed, the army sped back to the camp they had left so proudly a few days before, while Montcalm uttered with good reason a paean of victory, and raised on the scene of his triumph a cross, giving to God the glory. Far away on the Cape Breton shore, ignorant of the disaster at Lake George, Amherst and Wolfe and Boscawen were urging on the siege of Louisbourg. No obstacle dis mayed them. From the Sth of June, when through fog and bUnding surf WoUe and his men cUmbed the craggy shore, the first to land, one move after another of the siege had gone on with unerring rapidity. Redoubts had been thrown up, entrenchments made round the doomed town, and each day the EngUsh lines grew closer, until, on the 26th of July, after a furious bombardment, the last breach was effected. Early on the 27th the white flag was raised, and Drucour, the French commandant, was forced to capitulate without the honours of war. The terms of the surrender were exceedingly severe, for Amherst remembered the treachery of Fort WiUiam Henry. 154 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND More than five thousand prisoners were sent to England. London went wild with joy. The captured flags were carried in triumph through the streets, and placed as trophies in St. Paul's Cathedral, and even Abercrombie's failure was forgotten in Amherst's victory. An immense quantity of arms and stores were taken, and the island of Cape Breton, and Isle St. Jean, now Prince Edward Island, were yielded unconditionaUy to the EngUsh Crown. The news was received with rapture both in the colonies and England. Honours and rewards were showered upon the successful general, and he was immediately made commander-in-chief of His Majesty's forces in America in succession to the unfortunate Abercrombie, who henceforth disappears from history. Amherst, the new chief, was born in Kent, England, in 1717. When a boy he entered the service of the Duke of Norfolk as a page ; then, by his patron's influence, he received a commission in the Guards, and later served on the staff of General Ligonier and the Duke of Cumberland in Germany. He fought in the battles of Dettingen and Fontenoy, and soon rose to the command of a regiment. When WiUiam Pitt was selecting his officers for America, the young colonel was caUed back from Germany, made a major-general, and entrusted with the expedition against Louisbourg, He was fortunate in having associated with him James WoUe, another man of Kent, ten years his junior, who like himseU had served in Germany, fighting against the French, By his enterprise and daring he had gained the attention of William Pitt, always on the look-out for leaders in miUtary affairs. He was made a brigadier-general, though only thirty-two years old, and sent with Amherst to America, WoUe's character was impetuous, fiery, and energetic, while Amherst was slow and cautious, though dogged and TICONDEROGA— LOUISBOURG 155 determined. It was Wolfe's spare form that landed first on that craggy Cape Breton shore, and led the daring charge on the batteries. It was WoUe to whom Amherst gave credit in his dispatches for the successful carrying out of his orders, nor was it WoUe's fault that Quebec was not taken that year, for the young brigadier wished to press on to the St. Lawrence, while the more cautious commander- in-chief refused, after Abercrombie's disaster, to venture on an autumn campaign. So slowly did news travel in those days that no certain accounts of Louisbourg had reached the wilds of Pennsyl vania on the 16th of August, Forbes writes to Sharpe on that date from Shippensburg : ' There is a talk this morn ing, but with what foundation I know not, as if Louisbourg should have been surrendered the 22nd of last month, but this surely cannot be true altho' we are in daily expecta tion of good news from that quarter,' On the 2Sth of August Sharpe was still in ignorance of the faU of Louisbourg, but on the 3rd of September Forbes writes to him a letter of congratulation on the news. He says : ' I give you joy of Louisbourg, which is certainly a great acquisition, and may be of some service to me, for as I don't hear that they have reinforced Fort Du Quesne with any Regulars I fancy their chief reliance may be on the Western Indians from Detroit.' Colonel Sharpe's and Sir John St. Clair's comments on the disaster of Ticonderoga show that they thought a great mistake had been made in removing General Loudoun in the midst of the campaign, Sharpe writes to his brother : ' You cannot easily conceive how the loss of the Earl of Loudoun is now regretted in America, as weU in these southern colonies as to the Northward, Indeed nothing has seemed to go on rightly with us since His Lordship 156 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND was superseded. The plan which he had laid for an early expedition against Fort Du Quesne was at once overset by the Troops, which he had quartered for that purpose in Maryland and Pennsylvania last winter, being ordered to the Northward as soon as General Abercromby assumed the chief command ; besides, you must know that His Lordship began to be regarded among us as a Vice Roy and to have great influence in aU the Colonies, which I am apt to think his successor wiU never have, ' The Inactivity, as it has been caUed, of the last campaign was indeed censured for a while, but after the people had heard affairs represented in their true Ught, they were perfectly reconciled to His Lordship's conduct. I had before heard, and since I have seen Brigadier Forbes I have the greatest reason to believe, that Greneral Abercromby and he have been on very ill terms since the Earl of Loudoun left them.' Another success came a month after Louisbourg, when Colonel Bradstreet with three thousand provincials suc ceeded in taking Fort Frontenac. He had vainly implored Lord Loudoun to allow him to attempt this, but after many delays and rebuffs he succeeded in persuading General Abercrombie to give him the necessary troops for the enterprise. He set off up the Mohawk and down the Onondago by Lake Oneida until he came to the blackened and deserted walls of Oswego. Here he was joined by some Indians, and embarked his troops in bateaux and whale- boats for the passage across the lake. He landed by night about two miles below the fort, and the next morning demanded its surrender. The garrison was smaU and helpless, and surrendered without a blow. An immense amount of provisions and naval stores feU into his hands, together with nine armed vessels, whose crews had escaped, TICONDEROGA— LOUISBOURG 157 and sixty cannon and sixteen mortars found in the fort. This victory was the more important as Frontenac guarded the entrance of the St. Lawrence River, and commanded Lake Ontario. Here provisions were stored for the western forts, including Fort Duquesne, and here also were the presents for the Indians, without which the fickle red men would soon give up their aUegiance to the French. AU these feU into Bradstreet's hands, who destroyed what he could not carry away. Meanwhile the southern campaign was proceeding but slowly. The delay was accounted for, as Governor Sharpe writes, by the tedious passage of the vessels freighted with the artiUery and stores, the late arrival of Colonel Mont gomery's battalion, the backwardness of the assemblies, the difficulty of collecting wagons, and the opening of the new road from Carlisle in Pennsylvania to Fort Cumberland, by way of Raystown, It had been decided by Forbes, much against Colonel Washington's opinion and advice, not to foUow the road made by General Braddock, A worse draw back came, for the poor general feU iU, He writes to Sharpe on the 16th of August : ' I cannot paint the misery and distress that I have been in since I had the pleasure of seeing you, by that d d Flux, which I hope has now made its last effort by knocking me up at this blessed habitation. I now begin to mend a little and hope in a day or two to get forward. Our new road is advancing apace, so that in a few days I hope to have our advanced post on the other side of the Laurel Hill pretty well advanced towards the ennemy.' Lieutenant-Governor Sharpe remained at Fort Frederick forwarding suppUes, looking after purchases, trying to raise money, encouraging his volunteer Maryland troops to remain at their posts even with scanty rations and no pay. 158 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND and -writing aU the time long dispatches to Pitt, to Lord Baltimore, to General Forbes, and to the governors of the neighbouring provinces, all of which correspondence, care fuUy preserved, brings to light a good many admirable traits in this worthy and hard-working governor. Early in September General Forbes -writes to him that he is leaving Shippensburg for the advance on Fort Duquesne in a kind of horse litter. He says : ' I am so weakened by my distemper that I neither can ride nor bear the roughness of my wagon. I hope a few days wiU make a great change,' He thanks the governor for agreeing to garrison Fort Cumberland in his absence, and says he has ordered the commissary to furnish the troops there with provisions and a gill of spirits each day. He finds fault with the quarter-master-general, Sir John St. Clair, for failing to provide forage for his horses, and says : ' It is a neglect that he can never answer for, as he was sent from Philadelphia to make magazines of forage aU along the march route.' In the meantime he depends upon Governor Sharpe to see about a proper supply of blankets, of which his army were in great need. Colonel Sharpe scoured the country in search of blankets, but could only collect four hundred and eighty-nine pairs at the cost of £326, 16s. 6d. Maryland currency. He writes on the 20th of September to Forbes, congratulating him on the success of His Majesty's arms under Bradstreet, and also teUs him that the volunteers under his command wiU be returning home on the 10th of October, On the 5th of October General Forbes writes to him thanking him for the care he had taken of the good Fort Cumberland, and begs him to excuse his not writing with his own hand, as he had been unable to write for ten days. The poor governor had not had an easy time in command. TICONDEROGA— LOUISBOURG 159 for a hundred Virginians had been left sick in the fort, dying at the rate of three or four a day, and a storehouse was blo-wn up, kiUing his adjutant and a captain of volun teers, and setting the fort on fire. He returned to AnnapoUs on the 19th of October to meet his pugnacious assembly. Bouquet's road over the mountains was being pushed on with all haste, but autumn rains had set in making it almost impassable. In the meantime, General Forbes had arranged for a convention of governors and commissioners from various provinces to meet at Earton, Pennsylvania, with representatives of different Indian tribes, to discuss terms of aUiance with them. There were Delawares, Shawanese, and Five Nations, aU of whom were inclined just now to look with favour on the EngUsh, from whom they hoped to receive large presents. Sir WiUiam Johnson had long been endeavouring to win the Five Nations over, although he was opposed to the convention. However, it met in October and lasted nineteen days, and the result was favourable to the English and most disheartening to the French, The heavy rains had broken up the new road so much that it was now thought that the best plan would be to cut a cross-road into the one made by General Braddock, This would have lengthened the march, and there was a danger that the water of the Monongahela would have risen too much for carriages to pass or for men to ford it. So Bouquet's road was kept, and the general struggled on. In September a detachment of his army under Major Grant had met -with a very severe repulse in attempting to reconnoitre Fort Duquesne. They had set out from the camp at Loyal- hannon eight hundred strong, Highlanders, Virginians, and Eoyal Americans, but the French and Indians met them 160 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND in force, and routed them with great loss. The affair had happened without the knowledge of the general, who was on his sick-bed in Raystown. On the 28th of November Sharpe ¦writes to Pitt from Annapolis to acknowledge the receipt of a letter from that minister dated the ISth of September 1758, in which is announced that His Majesty had thought fit to appoint Major-General Amherst commander-in-chief of aU the forces in North America, Sharpe reports that General Forbes had reached Loyalhannon on the 2nd of November ; that on the 13th a detachment of a thousand men marched thence to open a road to Fort Duquesne ; that as many more followed on the 15th ; and on the 16th part of the artiUery moved on, escorted by Colonel Montgomery with about seven hundred men ; and that the general was to march next day with about a thousand more, Forbes had received a report from a prisoner brought in, that the French had sent away a good many of their garrison and Indians, imagining that after Grant's repulse the general would do nothing more that season. He was indeed very nearly abandoning the enterprise, but hearing of the weakened condition of the French he advanced, in spite of the terrible condition of the roads, and his own increasing weakness. It was on the 23rd of November that the French com mandant decided to retire. About haU of his garrison of five hundred men went down the Ohio in bateaux carrying the artillery and all the stores ; the rest, having set fire to all the houses in and without the fort, marched towards Fort Venango, about sixty miles to the northward. They had been in great want of provisions, owing to the capture of Fort Frontenac, and their Indians had left them. This was the report that a Virginian had brought in, who had TICONDEROGA— LOUISBOURG 161 been taken prisoner and escaped. The next day the EngUsh occupied Fort Duquesne, the capture of which had cost so much. The general gave orders for a number of huts and cabins to be built, surrounded by a stockade for the protec tion of the two hundred men who were to be left to guard the position, now named by him Pittsburg, and then with the rest of his troops he set off homewards. Want of pro visions prevented him from following the French, and also prevented his leaving a larger number at the fort. In weariness and pain the poor general, who had finished his task, was borne back, a dying man, to Philadelphia. CHAPTER XII 1759 TICONDEROGA — OSWEGO — NIAGARA — QUEBEC That Pitt thoroughly understood the situation of affairs in America, and directed every move of the campaign, is amply proved by the instructions he gave to Amherst on his appointment as commander-in-chief, in a letter dated 29th December 1758 : ' It is His Majesty's pleasure that you do attempt an invasion of Canada by the way of Crown Point, or La Galette, or both, according as you shaU judge practicable, and proceed and attack Montreal or Quebec, or both of the said places successively with such of the forces as shaU remain under your o^wn immediate direction. ... It is also the King's pleasure that you should give a due attention to the Lake Ontario, and faciUtate as far as possible the re-establishment of the important post of Oswego, a place so highly essential to His Majesty's possessions in North America in .time of peace as weU as war ; and you ¦wiU accordingly not fail to concert with the Lieutenant-Governor of New York, within whose province Oswego is situated, aU necessary and effectual measures for re-estabUshing that post in the course of the ensuing year ; and the enclosed copy of my letter to Mr. DeLancey wiU shew you that he has similar orders to concert with and assist you in the execution of this very important service. It were much to be wished that any operation on the side of Lake Ontario 162 TICONDEROGA— OSWEGO— NIAGARA— QUEBEC 163 could be pushed on as far as Niagara, and that you may find it practicable to set on foot some enterprise against the Fort there, the success of which would so greatly con tribute to estabUsh the uninterrupted dominion of that Lake and at the same time effectually cut off the communica tion between Canada and the French Settlements to the South,' Amherst's work during the winter of 1758-59 had been to recruit and drill and discipUne Abercrombie's demoralised and shattered army on Lake George, A new fort was built there near the site of Fort William Henry and caUed Fort George, New roads were made, and the whole lake region was carefuUy explored. Nothing was left to chance. It has been well said that from the beginning to the end of his American campaign, Amherst never lost a point in the great game of war. His operations covered all the English Colonies, the western and southern, as well as the northern and eastern frontiers, ' Under his masterly combinations distant and varied forces now moved together for one common end, the destruction of French power in North America,' On the 26th of January 1759 Governor Sharpe writes to Amherst, congratulating him on his appointment as com mander-in-chief, and also teUing him of the difficulties he was having with his Assembly as to the support of the Maryland troops. Since October 1757 the men had received no pay, Sharpe had met the Assembly four times within the year, and had endeavoured to the utmost to persuade them to comply with the requisitions of His Majesty's generals, but all in vain. Each supply bill was saddled with conditions that the governor, in the interests of the proprietary, could not agree to, Sharpe trusted that the next time he convened them he would be able to com- 164 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND municate to them some instructions or a letter from His Majesty's minister, and also one from the commander-in- chief, which might have some weight with them. Instead of disbanding the Maryland companies, who would no longer serve without pay, the governor had decided it would be best to give them furlough until the necessary supplies were raised. In February he wrote again to Amherst, who was then in Philadelphia, that General Forbes had requested him to send there Mr. Ross, who had ' victuaUed ' the Maryland troops from the time the Assembly had decUned to provide for their support till they marched against Fort Duquesne, and that he had sent with Mr. Ross his OAvn secretary Mr. Ridout, and begs to introduce him to the general, as being acquainted with all that passed between the Earl of Loudoun, General Stanwix, and General Forbes about the Maryland troops. He trusted that any further commands or instruc tions from His ExceUency to be laid before the Assembly might be sent by Mr. Ridout. Early in March General Forbes, who had never raUied from the fatigues of his campaign, died ; and the com mander-in-chief immediately appointed Brigadier-General Stanwix to succeed him. He writes to Sharpe from New York on 18th March, announcing the appointment, and continues : ' I am therefore to request you that during such his command, you wiU upon every immergent occasion correspond and co-operate with him in the same manner as you are enjoined by Mr. Secretary Pitt's Letter to do with me, which must prove of great benefit to the pubUck Services ; as from my removal from hence into the Back Country, whither I may be caUed soon, it prove very prejudicial to the safety and security of the southern provinces to wait for the answers to any of the Letters TICONDEROGA— OSWEGO— NIAGARA— QUEBEC 165 you may have occasion to write to me in relation thereto ; and I have accordingly directed Brig. Gen. Stanwix to correspond and co-operate with you in like manner on every matter relative to the service in these parts.' Sharpe writes to Secretary Calvert in April, that although he had pressed the Assembly in the most importunate manner to raise supplies for the next campaign, they were stiU deter mined to adhere to their old bill ; that the Upper House were equaUy steadfast on their part in rejecting it ; that he had no hope of prevailing on them to raise either money or troops, unless the King's Ministers, upon an inquiry into the dispute between the two houses, stiU thought fit to censure the conduct of those that compose the Lower in a more particular manner than the Secretary of State had yet done. He had prorogued them again until the middle of July, and unless something extraordinary should happen, would further prorogue them until the winter. Another letter from Amherst to Sharpe on 2Sth March annotmces that, in dispatches from Secretary Pitt that moment received, he was instructed to lose no time in restoring the ruined fort of Duquesne, or erecting another in the room of it, of sufficient strength and in every way adequate to maintain His Majesty's subjects in the imdis- puted possessions of the Ohio ; and it was His Majesty's pleasure that the Governor of Maryland should use his utmost endeavours with his Council and Assembly to induce them to send materials of aU sorts, and workmen, which the commander-in-chief should require for this service ; and also to furnish every other assistance of men, cattle, car riages, provisions, etc., which shall be necessary for the support and maintenance of the King's forces employed in this essential work. The same instructions were sent to Virginia and Penn- 166 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND sylvania, and by aid from those provinces General Stanwix accompUshed the task of building the new fort, which he named Fort Pitt, in honour of the minister. The campaign of 1759 was now decided on, and Sharpe outlines it in a letter to Calvert on the 17th of April. Another attempt was to be made on Ticonderoga by ten battaUons of regular troops and ten thousand provincials, under the immediate command of General Amherst. Three other regiments, with those left in Nova Scotia and Cape Breton, were to join General Wolfe ; and General Stanwix with the first battalion of the Royal American and Provincial troops from Virginia and Pennsylvania was to keep possession of the Ohio country, and compel the French to abandon their forts at the head of that river. In Pennsylvania Governor Denny had at last submitted to the demand of his Assembly, and had assented to a supply biU which subjected the proprietary's estate to be taxed by assessors of the people's choosing. In conse quence of the passage of the biU for raising one hundred thousand pounds, the Pennsylvania troops were to be immediately augmented to two thousand seven hundred men. Sharpe naturally was rather wrathful at the action of Governor Denny, and asks : ' What can the Proprietaries of Pennsylvania or Governor Denny expect after such a step ? Will they hope to preserve any authority ? Do they not encourage the people to make any demands on the Governors, and as it were tell them that if they do not lack resolution to persevere they wiU obtain every thing they want, be their Demands never so unreasonable ? ' Evidently our conservative and loyal governor was impatient of the growth of popular power on the Continent of America. In defence of his own position, and his reason for refusing TICONDEROGA— OSWEGO— NIAGARA— QUEBEC 167 assent to the BiU taxing Lord Baltimore's estate, Sharpe refers to two Acts that were passed in 1651 and 1661, showing that the lord proprietary then gave up to the people certain privileges, on condition that they should thereafter defray the whole expense of any war that might arise. In order to make this clearer, his secretary, Mr. Ridout, had by his instructions drawn up a narrative of the matter after examining all the old records.^ In the meantime, while Stanwix was holding the frontier at Pittsburg, and receiving the homage of the Indian tribes who had renounced their aUegiance to France, and WoUe and his squadron were sailing up the St. Lawrence to Quebec, Amherst had begun his advance northward to Ticonderoga. His own account of how he fared there is given in a letter to Governor Sharpe, dated ' Camp at Ticonderoga, 27th July 1759 ' : ' On Saturday morning last I Embarked with the Army at Lake George, The next day landed without Opposition, and proceeded to the Saw miUs ; and took post on the Commanding Grounds, meeting only a trifling Opposition from the Ennemy, We lay on our Arms all Night, and Early on the 2Srd We continued our March to this Ground, the Ennemy having Abandoned the Lines without destroy ing them, first having Carried off their Effects as weU as sent away the greatest part of their Troops. As soon as I was set down before the place and after having reconnoitred it, I Ordered the Trenches to be Opened, and Batteries to be made, which were finished last Night, and were to have Opened at break of day but the Ennemy did not think proper to Wait tiU then, having about ten of the Clock Yesterday evening blown up a part of the Fort and made ' This narrative is often referred to, but is not among the Sharpe oorrespondenoe. 168 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND their Escape aU to about 20 Deserters, Our Loss, consider ing the fire we sustained, is inconsiderable ; We have only two Officers kiUed, viz.. Colonel To-wnshend, Deputy- Adjutant-General, and Ensign Harrison of Late Forbes, I take the earUest Opportunity of Acquainting you with this, and of Assuring you that I Am, with great Regard, Sir, Yr, most Obedt. Servant, Jeff. Amherst,' So, almost without a blow, the fortress that Montcalm had defended with so much skiU and courage the year before feU before the victorious and successful general. Crown Point on Lake Champlain was also abandoned, and the French withdrew to the RicheUeu River, and took up their position on the Isle aux Noix, From Cro-wn Point Amherst -vrrites again on 5th August : ' No time shaU be lost in building here such a Fort as from its situation and strength wiU most effectually cover the whole country and ensure the peaceable and quiet posses sion of this side.' Amherst proceeded also to build a fleet on Lake Champlain, as the French had the advantage of four armed vessels on the lake. Although Parkman finds fault with his failing to support Wolfe during the summer, there is much to be said of his sagacity in strengthening the position of the EngUsh on Lake Champlain. Amherst's plan of campaign also included the re-estabUsh- ment of Fort Oswego and the capture of Fort Niagara, General Prideaux was selected to lead the attack on Niagara ; while Colonel Haldimand was to reoccupy the deserted post of Oswego, defend it from an attack, and prevent Prideaux from being cut off on his return from Niagara, Haldimand was attacked, as was expected, by a force of a thousand French regulars, Canadians and Indians, who had been stationed at the head of the St, Lawrence TICONDEROGA— OSWEGO— NIAGARA— QUEBEC 169 Rapids, and who now, under St. Luc de la Corne, made a dash to surprise Haldimand's detachment. The latter had barricaded his camp with pork and flour barrels, and was prepared to receive them. The attack was not con ducted with either skiU or spirit, and the French were driven off with the loss of their commander. This was early in July 1759, In the meanwhile, Prideaux had reached Niagara in safety, and laid siege to the fort which had been lately strengthened, well garrisoned, and provisioned. It was a bold undertaking to capture it, isolated as the English force was in a hostile country. From Detroit, from Michilimackinac, from the far west, French and Indians had been summoned by Vaudreuil to come down the lakes to drive their hated foes from the Ohio. These bands were scattered at the different posts on the way, at Venango, Le Bceuf, and Presqu'isle on Lake Erie. To these Pouchot, the commandant at Niagara, sent messengers, bidding them to come with aU speed to his aid. Prideaux had with him about a thousand of the Five Nation Indians, led by Sir WiUiam Johnson, At the very opening of the siege an unfortunate accident deprived the EngUsh of their commander. General Prideaux was kiUed by a fragment of a shell from one of his o-wn cohorns, and Sir WUUam Johnson took command. For more than two weeks the siege went on, tiU at last a breach was made, and the exhausted garrison had no alternative but to surrender, unless the expected reinforcements should arrive. At last, on the 24th of July, a distant firing was heard, which brought hope to Pouchot and his men. John son's force consisted of about two thousand men, not counting the Indians. A third of these had been left to guard the bateaux, a third had remained in the trenches. 170 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND while the remainder had advanced to meet the coming foe. A short but sharp engagement ensued on the banks of the Niagara River, but a panic seized the French and Indians, though their commander, Aubrey, and his officers did what they could to raUy them. After heavy loss they fled to their boats, above the FaUs, and the remnant made their way back to Fort Presqu'isle, which they burnt. With the defeat of their reinforcements the garrison was forced to surrender, and one more bulwark of French rule in Canada was destroyed, Sharpe writes : ' The siege of Niagara was begun in a very lucky hour, for had it been delayed a Day or two longer the French and Indians who were assembled at Venango would have faUen do-wn the Ohio and attacked Pittsburg, the garrison whereof was by no means formidable, far from being weU suppUed with Provisions, and the Fort scarcely proof against Musketry,' Brigadier Stanwix was then on the frontiers of Penn sylvania, unable, as it was said, to proceed for want of wagons. Soon after Fort Niagara surrendered, the French, being vastly reduced by an unsuccessful attempt to raise the siege of that place, decided that it would be impossible to hold the Ohio, if Brigadier Stanwix should act offensively ; and therefore at once abandoned and destroyed their several forts on the south side of Lake Erie and on the head branches of the Ohio whereby the EngUsh were left masters of that river with aU the country on the eastern side. AU interest was now centred on the St. Lawrence, where the French under Montcalm had drawn together for the defence of their capital almost the whole force of Canada, which vastly exceeded the troops under the command of General Wolfe, After the success of Louisbourg the year TICONDEROGA— OSWEGO— NIAGARA— QUEBEC 171 before, James WoUe had gone back to England, hoping in spite of his frail health to be sent again to Germany ; but Pitt had other work for him, and he was sent back to Canada in the spring to find there ' Glory and the grave,' The struggle between the French and English on the continent of America was now intense, and news from Canada was eagerly looked for in all the English colonies, and nowhere more eagerly than in Maryland, Among its archives, in an old Gazette yeUow with age, mutilated, but stiU legible, there is printed on 13th September 1759, a letter dated ' River St, La-wrence, 12th August,' from an officer to a friend in Annapolis, It reads : ' I wish I could inform you by this opportunity of the surrender of Quebec, The general opinion of most here is that it will require another campaign except General Amherst should join us. We keep an incessant fire from our batteries on the to-wn, of which we have already destroyed one haU. We have set it on fire in several different places with our sheUs, They have sent do-wn their fire-fleets several times to destroy our shipping, but no ships have received any damage from them. Our Grenadiers made an attempt on their entrench ments some days ago, but were soon beaten off with the loss of about four hundred kiUed and wounded. They are entrenched up to their very noses in aU parts where they are Ukely to be attacked, and as our men-of-war can be of no service or covering to our troops it wiU make all attacks both difficult and dangerous, I imagine we shaU faU from hence by the latter end of September, and if we don't succeed shaU destroy the country aU the way, which is fuU of houses and very plentiful of corn. Our people have had several skirmishes with the Canadians and Indians in the outparts of the coimtry, of whom we have kiUed a great many and taken about five hundred prisoners, I 172 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND reckon we have on the whole about seven hundred men kiUed and wounded, officers included. I beUeve our people find Quebec a much stronger place than they expected,' This letter was published in the Gazette on the very day of the successful battle, news of which did not reach AnnapoUs until weeks had passed. The whole story is told in the dispatches given in the London Gazette of 17th October 1759 : ' Last night Colonel John Hale and Captain James Douglas, late Commander of His M, ship the Alcide, arrived from Quebec with the foUowing letter to the Rt. Hon, Mr, Secretary Pitt : ' From the Hon, General Monckton to the Rt, Hon, Mr, Secretary Pitt, dated River St, La-wrence camp, at Point Levi, 15th September 1759, ' " Sir, — I have the pleasure to acquaint you that on the 13th instant, His Majesty's troops gained a very signal victory over the French a little above the Town of Quebec, General WoUe exerting himseU on the right of our Une, received a wound pretty early, of which he died soon after, and I myseU had the great misfortune of receiving one in my right breast by a ball that went through part of my lungs and which has just been cut out under the blade bone of my shoulder, just as the French were giving way, which obUged me to quit the field, I have, therefore, sir, desired General Townshend, who now commands the troops before the town, and of which I am in hopes he wiU be soon in possession, to acquaint you of the particulars of the day and of the operations carrying on. I have the honour to be, etc., Robt, Monckton." TICONDEROGA— OSWEGO— NIAGARA— QUEBEC 173 ' From Brigadier Townshend, dated 20th September 1759 : - '' Camp before Quebec ' " Sir, — I have the honour to acquaint you -with the success of His Majesty's arms on the 13th instant, in an action with the French on the heights to the westward of the town. It being determined to carry the operations above the town, the Posts at Point Levi and L'Isle d'OrMans being secured, the General marched with the remainder of the force from Point Levi, the 5th and 6th, and embarked them in transports which had passed the to-wn for that purpose. On the 7th, Sth, and 9th a movement of the ships was made up by Admiral Holmes, in order to amuse the enemy now posted along the North shore, but the transports being extremely crowded and the weather very bad, the General thought proper to canton haU his troops on the south shore, where they were refreshed and re- embarked upon the ISth at one in the moming. The Light Infantry, commanded by Colonel Howe, the regiments of Bragg, Kennedy, LasceUes and Anstruther, with a detach ment of Highlanders, the whole being under the command of Brigadiers Monckton and Murray, were put into the flat-bottomed boats, and, after some movement of the ships made by Admiral Holmes to draw the attention of the enemy, the boats fell down with the tida and landed on the north shore, within a league of Cape Diamond an hour before daybreak. The rapidity of the tide of ebb carried them a Uttle below the intended place of attack, which obUged the Light Infantry to scramble up a woody precipice in order to secure the landing of the troops by dislodging a Captain's post, which defended the small entrenched path the troops were to ascend. After a little firing the Light Infantry gained the top of the precipice and dispersed 174 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND the Captain's post, by which means the troops, with a very Uttle loss from a few Canadians and Indians in the wood, got up and were immediately formed. The boats as they emptied were sent back for the second embarkation, which I immediately made. Brigadier Murray, who had been detached with Anstruther's battalion to attack the four- gun battery upon the left, was recalled by the General, who now saw the French army crossing the River St, Charles, General Wolfe thereupon began to form his line, having his right covered by the Louisbourg Grenadiers ; on the right of these again he afterwards brought Otway's. To the left of the Grenadiers were Bragg's, Kennedy's, LasceUes', Highlanders and Anstruther's. ' " The right of the body was commanded by Brigadier Monckton, and the left by Brigadier Murray. His rear and left were protected by Colonel Howe's Light Infantry, who was returned from the four-gun battery before mentioned, which was soon abandoned to him. General Montcalm having coUected the whole of his force from the Beauport side, and advancing, showed his intention to flank our left, where I was immediately ordered, with General Amherst's battalion which I formed en potence. ' " My numbers were soon after increased by the arrival of the two battalions of Royal Americans, and Webb's was dra-wn up by the General as a reserve, in eight sub-divisions, with large intervals. The enemy lined the bushes in front with 1500 Indians and Canadians, and I daresay had placed most of their best marksmen there, who kept up a very gaUing, though irregular, fire upon the whole Une, who bore it with the greatest patience and good order, reserving their fire for the main body now advancing. ' " The fire of the enemy was, however, checked by our posts in our front, which protected the forming of our o^wn Une. TICONDEROGA— OSWEGO— NIAGARA— QUEBEC 175 ' " The right of the enemy was composed of haU of the troops of the colony, the battaUons of La Sarre, Languedoc, and the remainder of their Canadians and Indians. Their centre was a column, and formed by the battaUons of B6arn and Guienne. Their left was composed of the remainder of the troops of the colony and the battalions of Royal RoussiUon, This was as near as I can guess their Une of battle. They brought up two pieces of smaU artiUery against us, and we had been able to bring up but one gun, which, being admirably weU served, gaUed the column exceedingly. My attention to the left will not permit me to be very exact with regard to every circumstance which passed in the centre, much less to the right, but it is most certain that the enemy formed in good order, and that their attack was very brisk and animated on that side. ' " Our troops reserved their fire tiU within 40 yards, which was so weU continued that the enemy everywhere gave way. It was then our General feU at the head of Bragg's and the Louisbourg Grenadiers advancing with their bayonets. About the same time Brigadier-General Monckton received his wound at the head of LasceUes'. In front of the opposite battaUon fell also Mr. Montcalm, and his second in command. Brigadier Senezergues, is since dead of his wounds on board our fleet." ' The dispatches sent from the field give but a simple record of that fateful day. There was no time for either lament or praise. Montcalm and WoUe had both faUen ; henceforth their names are to be inseparably joined. The perspective of history has given to both figures that dramatic interest which was lacking in the nearer view. On the grave of the one the crushed UUes of France are lying. From the grave of the other blooms to-day the rose of England's power. CHAPTER XIII 1759-1760 It was not until November that the good news of the faU of Quebec reached Annapolis, and there it was received with demonstrations of joy. Minute guns were fired from the battery, the militia were paraded, at night the town was iUuminated, bonfires blazed on every hiU, and the governor gave a great baU in the council chamber ; aU of which is duly chronicled in the Gazette. The utmost loyalty to England was displayed, and Pitt was the hero of the hour. Peace now reigned on the borders of Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Maryland. By the capture of Niagara aU the French posts south of Lake Erie had been cut off from their eastern connections, and therefore were abandoned. Henceforth, General Stanwix and his coUeagues were able to defend the western frontier from French and Indian forays ; confidence was restored, deserted homesteads were again occupied, and the young knights who had won their spurs came back to their plantations. Governor Sharpe was now free to attend to home affairs — the renting of manors, the distribution of Church Uvings, and appointments to different offices connected with the government. As Lord Baltimore held very tightly in his o-wn hands the reins of patronage, places were too often fiUed by unworthy favourites from over the sea ; and very diplomatic correspondence was necessary on the part of the governor. In connection with the appointment of Church livings in Maryland, which rested with the pro ne 1759-1760 177 prietary, the following letter from Calvert, the secretary, to Sharpe, shows in some manner how they were disposed of : ' Sir, — Having forgot to mention in my Letter I put this in as Postscript. Mrs. Bladen having requested of My Lord for a Living on BehaU of a Scotchman who is Clergy man and has married her Woman, my Lord desires you wiU present him with St. John's or Christ Church, small Uvings vacated in Queen Anne County, It wiU be proper having some Trial of him on Approbation,' That the state of the Church in Maryland at the time of Sharpe's arrival was deplorable is amply shown in his letters. In 1764 he writes to Lord Baltimore : ' I have taken the Liberty to enclose to your Lordship the copy of a Letter I lately received from the Rector of Coventry Parish, Somerset Co., a Person of a most abandoned and prostituted Life and Character ; which I apprehend he was invited to -write me by my refusal to grant him a Nolo Prosequi, to prevent his being punished according to Law for marrying Persons without a Lycence. If your Lordship should be pleased to take any steps for his suspension or Removal the whole Parish will gladly transmit me attesta tions of his notorious Immoral Behaviour, by which he has forfeited not only the Character of a Clergyman but even of a Christian.' Small wonder that George Whitefield, the celebrated preacher, when he visited the country, said he ' found a sad dearth of piety in Maryland ! ' In a letter to the Bishop of London, written during Horatio Sharpe's administration. Dr. Chandler says : ' The general character of the clergy is most wretchedly bad. It would really, my lord, make the ears of a sober heathen tingle to hear the stories that were told me by many serious people of several clergymen in the neighbourhood of the parish where I visited.' M 178 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Though the EstabUshed Church was disgraced by the unworthy appointments to Uvings made by the proprietary, there were notable exceptions — ' lights shining in a dark place ' — such as the Rev, Mr. Boucher and the Rev. Henry Addison. The latter -writes to the Bishop of London strongly urging the expediency of estabUshing Episcopacy in America as the only means of saving the Church of England from destruction. Dr. Chandler -writes : ' The In habitants look upon themselves to be in the crueUest state of oppression with regard to Ecclesiastical matters. The churches are built and liberaUy endowed entirely at their expense, yet the Proprietor claims the sole right of patronage, and causes inductions to be made without any regard to the opinion of the Parishioners. Some who are inducted are kno-wn to be bad men at the very time. There is no remedy, as they cannot be removed even by the highest exercise of Proprietary power.' ^ Another writes : ' The clergy of Mary land are better provided than those of any other colony, and they are less respectable.' This was not a matter of wonder, when we reflect that the needy friends of Frederick, Lord Baltimore, were frequently ordained in order to obtain the living in his province, where the stipends were large and the duties nominal. When Bennett AUen, a coUege com panion of Lord Baltimore, asked what might be the yearly income of a certain parish in Maryland and was told £300, ' That,' said he, ' wiU hardly supply one with liquors.' In the meantime, while the Church of England was thus hampered, the Methodists, Presbyterians, Grerman Lutherans, Baptists, and Quakers aU increased ; and the Catholic * ' The holder of an advowson under Lord Baltimore was not amenable to any but criminal law. The canon law could not remove him, nor could the Lord Proprietor who had sold him an advowson, a parish in other words, producing so many thousand pounds of tobacco.' — Sohaef. 1759-1760 179 Church flourished, particularly in the western part of the state. AU were taxed for the support of the disreputable clergy of the Established Church ; which tax was a grievance that rankled in the minds of the people. Colonel Sharpe was a loyal member of the Church of England, and did what he could to uphold it by precept and example. The 17th of March 1760 was set apart to be observed throughout the province as a day of public thanksgiving for the many signal successes which it had pleased Almighty God to give to His Majesty's arms both by sea and land during the course of the last year, ' which day,' Governor Sharpe -writes, ' was accordingly observed by myseU and His Majesty's good subjects, the Inhabitants of Maryland, ¦with such Solemnities as were suitable to so great an occasion,' Ex-Governor Dinwiddie of Virginia, who was now residing in London, ¦writes from there to his old friend Sharpe on the 12th February 1760, congratulating him on the repeated successes of the last campaign, and ' hopes that General Amherst in the ensuing summer will be able to take Mount Real.' Dinwiddie goes on to say : ' We had great rejoicings here on the above successes, and Admiral Boscawen's and Sir Edward Hanke's defeating two French Squadrons so effectuaUy that 'tis thought it wiU be many years before the French can bring their navy into a respectable condition. After all our successes His Majesty and the King of Prussia proposed a Congress for bringing about a general Peace, but it appears this must be a work of time, as there has been no direct answer to the above generous Proposal, but aU parties are preparing with great assiduity for the operations of the ensuing campaign. Our Ministry are very sanguine. A subscrip tion was opened, and in a few days was subscribed eight miUions for that service, which is aU that was demanded 180 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND or expected. The French have neither money nor credit. They have called in all their plate to the Mint to be coined. They stop payment of aU their Funds. Annuities to the People not paid, BiUs of Exchange of all kinds, by an edict from the Crown are not to be paid, which puts a general stagnation on their trade, and they cannot borrow money at 8 per cent, interest. In short I think tbat nation was never reduced to so low an ebb.' Hard pressed in Europe, France had neither money nor men to send to Canada, yet Vaudreuil and de Levis hoped against hope that all might yet be retrieved. After Wolfe's death, as Monckton was wounded, and Townshend obliged to leave for England, General Murray was left in command at Quebec, with about four thousand able-bodied men, and two thousand invalids. The ¦winter was severe, and provisions were scarce. Cold and privation told on the troops ; and when spring came there were not three thousand men fit for duty. Scurvy, fever, and dysentery had done their fatal work. On their side the French were exhausted with fatigue and lack of food ; but all through the winter the indefatigable de Levis driUed and encouraged his little army of three thousand regulars, and two thousand militia and savages, bidding them hope for a speedy victory. He laid his plans for an early descent on Quebec in the spring ; and, in the meantime, sent urgent appeals to France for aid. The English were well suppUed with artillery, which the French lacked. When April came, after two or three feints, designed to put the EngUsh off their guard, the wily Marquis succeeded in drawing the English general outside the walls. On the 28th of April was fought the second battle of the Plains of Abraham, Sainte Foy, as it is generally called, where de Levis proved himself more than a match for CHEVALIER DE LEVIS {To fa:ep. i8o 1759-1760 181 Murray ; although the latter succeeded, after heavy loss, in regaining the shelter of the fort. The EngUsh in Quebec were now on the defensive, and in a very critical position, Vaudreuil and de Levis were determined to prevent the junction of Murray with Amherst, while help from England was long delayed. In spite of his disabUities, Murray resolved to make a stubborn resist ance ; and addressed these words to his troops : ' n the issue of the action of the 2Sth of April has not been favourable to the arms of His Britannic Majesty, our affairs are not so discouraging as to deprive us of aU hope. I know by experience the bravery of the soldiers under my command, and I am sure they will strain every nerve to regain what has been lost. A fleet is expected, and reinforcements are on their way. I ask the officers and soldiers to bear their fatigues with patience, and I beg that they ¦wiU expose themselves with good heart to all perils ; it is a duty they owe their King and country.' In order to lighten the numbers dependent on him, Murray gave orders for the unfortunate inhabitants of Quebec to leave its waUs ; and, in sullen misery, men, women, and children went forth to seek what subsistence they could find in the surrounding country.^ General James Murray, on whom so much depended, was a son of Lord EUbank, and had served for some time on the Continent. He had commanded his brigade with much distinction at the taking of Quebec. This second siege of 1760 seems an anti-climax to the glorious victory of the year before ; and the fact that Quebec nearly feU again into the hands of the French is * It was Wolfe who said in his first manifesto to the Canadian people : ' We offer you the sweets of peace amid the horrors of war. England in her strength will befriend you. France in her weakness leaves you to your fate.' 182 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND often lost sight of. No wonder Horace Walpole exclaimed, when news came of Murray's defeat at Sainte Foy, ' America was Uke a book one has read and done with ; but here we are on a sudden reading our book backward.' Besieged and besiegers alike were exhausted waiting for the long expected succour from across the sea. Both sides knew that Quebec would be the prize of the one to whom help came first ; and de Levis and Murray both anxiously watched the river for the coming sails. At last, on the Oth of May, the two camps saw the long-looked-for ship doubling the Point of Orleans, Was it for France or England ? No standard fluttered from its mast. A cannon shot announced its arrival, and then, as the smoke cleared away, the English soldiers from the rampart, the French from the cUff, saw floating in the air the flag of England. It was a deathblow to the hopes of the French ; and on 15th May, after the arrival of two other frigates, de Le^vis decided on raising the siege. Afterwards it was kno^wn that France had sent help. Several ships, loaded with provisions and munitions of war, and four hundred men, had crossed the Atlantic under the convoy of a frigate ; but had been chased and driven into the bale de Chaleurs, where the ships were burnt, the cargoes confiscated, and the men taken prisoners of war. There was nothing now to prevent Amherst from carrying out his final movement for the conquest of Canada, His plans had long been formed. He himseU, with an army of ten thousand men, was to descend the St, Lawrence to Montreal, taking the river garrisons on the way, and cutting off the possible escape of the French by that route to Detroit, Murray, with the remnant of his troops, con sisting of about two thousand five hundred men, and Lord RoUo, with thirteen hundred men from Louisbourg, 1759-1760 183 were to move cautiously up the river, which was now blockaded with EngUsh ships ; and Brigadier Haviland, with about three thousand men and armed vessels from Lake Champlain, was to force a passage from that lake and drive de BougainviUe and his garrison from Isle aux Noix. It was aU carried out -with the utmost precision. The French were driven from Isle aux Noix, St. John, and Chambly to the St. Lawrence ; and the English troops, under the guidance of Rogers' Rangers, moved northward through the woods to meet Murray's army from Quebec. General Amherst had led his men safely up the Mohawk vaUey, across Oneida Lake, to Oswego on Lake Ontario. Here they embarked for their dangerous passage down the St. Lawrence. He writes on the 15th of August to Colonel Bradstreet : ' I write this from an Island some few miles do-wn the river St. Lawrence, whither the army has got this day, after having met with some high winds and heavy Rains. Upon the whole, however, we have got on pretty weU and lost but a few Batteaux ; and I intend to proceed to-morrow. I shaU depend upon you for Provisions, and you wiU give orders to your people within the Communication to forward it up as fast as possible to Oswego.' This was the crowning point of Amherst's career. It was no Ught task to move ten thousand armed men, with aU the munitions of war, including artiUery, down that river in open boats, past dangerous rapids. These heavily laden bateaux had to pass the Galops, the Long Saut, the Coteau du Lac, the Cedars, and the Cascades. In the Cedars alone sixty-four boats were lost, and one hundred men. The cynical Horace Walpole even was moved to admiration at the exploit, and wrote : ' The spectacle rivaUed the expeditions of ancient story, when the rudeness and novelty of naval armaments raised the first adventurers 184 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND to the rank of demi-gods. That vast lake was to be tra versed in open gaUeys, laden with artiUery, not arrows and javeUns. Wolfe, with aU the formidable apparatus of modern war, had almost failed before Quebec ; Amherst with barks and boats invaded Montreal, and achieved the conquest, though, what would have daunted the heroes of antiquity, he had the cataracts to pass.' Sir Joshua Reynolds, in his weU-known portrait, takes this bold descent of the St. Lawrence as the most heroic moment in Amherst's life, and represents him as standing upon a height at one of the rapids, watching the distant scene. The hero is clad in armour, with the fuU regaUa of a Knight of the Bath ; although it was not tiU the year after, 1761, that knight hood was conferred on him at Staten Island, and the red ribbon of the Order placed over his shoulder by General Monckton, then governor of New York. It was on the moming of the 6th of September that the commander-in-chief landed his troops above the La Chine Rapids, about nine miles from Montreal, where de Levis, with the remnant of his shattered army, stood at bay. The next morning General Murray landed below the town ; while the tents of Haviland were pitched on the south shore. The EngUsh army closed round Montreal, and on the Sth of September 1760, in spite of the remonstrances of the gaUant de Levis, who wished to fight to the last, Vaudreuil, knowing aU resistance was futile, signed the capitulation which surrendered aU Canada to the EngUsh cro-wn. Vaudreuil returned to France, only to be cast into the BastiUe, from which he emerged cleared, indeed, from the charge of maUeasance in office, but only to survive a few years with broken health and fortunes. It was a hard fate for a man, who, although rather boastful as to his miUtary performances, was stiU a good and popular governor of 1759-1760 185 Canada, The more fortunate de Levis, who had fought to the uttermost for the glory of France, again sought active service -with the Prince of Conde ; was made a marshal in 1783, and the foUo-wing year, a duke and peer of France, He died in 1787. General Murray, who had distinguished himseU so much during this trying year, was appointed the first EngUsh governor-general of Quebec, which then meant all Canada, He continued in that office until 1767, and won the good- wiU of the French in a very high degree. After leaving Canada he distinguished himseU stiU further in the field ; particularly in the defence of Minorca, in 1781, against the Duke de CriUon, who was at the head of a large Spanish and French force. There is a story connected with this defence which may weU be repeated, De CriUon, despairing of success, thought that a bribe of a miUion sterling would gain the surrender of the fort, and offered that sum to the gaUant British general. Murray, Uke the fiery Scot that he was, indignantly repUed : ' When your brave ancestor was desired by his sovereign to assassinate the Duke de Guise, he returned the answer,^ which you should have thought of, when you attempted to assassinate the character of a man whose birth is as illustrious as your own. I can have no further communication with you but in arms. If you have any humanity, pray send clothing for your un fortunate prisoners in my possession ; leave it at a distance to be taken up for them, because I wiU admit of no contact for the future, but such as is hostile to the most inveterate degree,' To which the duke repUed : ' Your letter restores each 1 When Henry iii. of France in 1588 asked the Due de CriUon, com mandant of the Guards, to rid him of the troublesome Duo de Guise, his answer was, ' Sir, I am a soldier, not an assassin.' 186 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND of us to our places ; it confirms in me the high opinion which I have always had of you. I accept your last proposal with pleasure.' Murray died in 1794, fuU of years and honours ; and was buried in Westminster Abbey. Quebec stiU preserves many mementoes of this brave general, whose name is com memorated there in hamlet, bay, and river. As for Amherst, rewards and honours were heaped upon him. Parliament gave him a vote of thanks. He was appointed governor-general of British North America ; including at that time not only the French territory which had just been ceded, but those ' thirteen jarring common wealths,' which were so soon to pass from the sway of England, In the first glow of triumphant victory aU were loyal to the core. Throughout the churches of the land the pulpits resounded -with Amherst's praises. In a sermon preached in the old south church in Boston the pastor said : ' We behold His Majesty's victorious troops treading upon the high places of the enemy, their last fortress deUvered up, and their whole country surrendered to the King of Great Britain, in the person of his general, the intrepid, the serene, the successful Amherst,' Jeffery Amherst's name Uves in counties, to-wns, and colleges throughout the United States ; wliile in Canada, where he won his fame, the same memorials are to be found. He returned to England in 176S, and for the rest of his days was a popular hero. He was made commander-in- chief of the forces of Great Britain ; and during the American Revolution was the miUtary adviser of the EngUsh Government, He remained royal governor of Virginia until 1768, though he never revisited America, In 1771 he was made Baron Amherst of Holmesdale ; and in 1787 1759-1760 187 received another title, when he was created Lord Amherst of Montreal, He refused an earldom in 1795, but was made a field marshal in the following year, and died in 1797 at the age of eighty. He left no children, but was suc ceeded in his title and estates by his nephew WiUiam Pitt Amherst, son of that brother who had been his aide-de camp at Louisbourg. The second Lord Amherst added stiU further lustre to the fame of the family by his great ser-dces in India, when he was governor-general from 1823 to 1828. Sir Joshua Reynolds's splendid portrait of Jeffery Amherst hangs at the family seat, ' Montreal,' Seven Oaks, Kent. The coat of arms of this distinguished general bears a motto which was the keynote of his Ufe : ' By Constancy and Valour.' CHAPTER XIV 1760-1765 Horatio Sharpe had now been governor of Maryland for seven years, and was apparently quite content to remain there. Early in his administration he had bought a beautiful estate on the shores of Chesapeake Bay, about eight miles from Annapolis, Here he built a fine country house named Whitehall, whose solid waUs bear -witness to-day to the good workmanship of the eighteenth century. A fine brickyard and sawmill had been early estabUshed on his property to furnish materials not only for his o-wn mansion, but for friends building houses in AnnapoUs. Their soUd wahiut window frames and siUs, beautiful floors of hard pine laid on locust beams bear evidence of the skiU in seasoning and preparing lumber of those workmen of a century and a haU ago. Hand-wrought nails testify to their labour as mechanics. The governor spent as much of his time as was possible at WhitehaU, amusing himseU with his favourite pursuit of farming, and consulting with his friend Judge Borfley on the best methods of improving agriculture and developing home industries. An old mill was eventuaUy converted into a loom and spinning factory, where wool from his famous South Devon flock and cotton and flax were spun and woven into clothes for ' my people,' as Sharpe calls them. They were emphatically ' his people ' ; no kinder master 188 < wH af 1760-1765 189 could be found, and his large retinue of negro slaves and indentured white servants were supremely happy. The duty of looking after the weUare and comfort of those under him was faithfuUy discharged. His garden was his passion, and seeds and scions of trees and rare shrubs and flowers to beautify it were sent for from HoUand and England and France. The fine orchards and la-wns sloping to the blue Chesapeake Bay were his pride and deUght. Those who visit Whitehall to-day can see the results of his horticultural skiU. With reference to this farm, as the governor called it, Calvert writes : ' Captain Love having hinted to me of your desire of some English Hares he informs me you have a viUa and grounds to keep them in. It gives me pleasure your being in such a situation, the recess of Happiness. I have ordered Hares to be got at Woodcote. The Steward has ketched four Brace. I shall have them augmented to more if I can and send them by Captain Love.' As to the hares, Sharpe writes some months after wards : ' I am very much obliged to you for the Present of EngUsh hares and Dogs you were so kind as to send me by Captain Love, who I daresay took all possible care of them. Unluckily aU the Hares except a Leash died at sea, and one of them also the day after they were brought hither. I am much afraid the surviving Brace which I have turned out at my farm are infected with the same disorder.' Various and curious presents were sent by the governor to Lord Baltimore — sometimes a pipe of Maryland biurgundy or good madeira, meUowed in the cellars of WhitehaU ; sometimes a dozen smoked hams ; quail and partridge and wild turkeys, and even Indian scalps and rattlesnakes. Sharpe writes : ' Mr, Calvert having intimated to me that your Lordship was desirous of having some dried Rattle- 190 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND snakes I sent home some of them powdered by a ship of Colonel Lloyd's, Since I have been here I have coUected about a dozen more that I shall send by the first vessel that sails from this Province.' A curious inquirer may find in the list of medicines used in the eighteenth century a powder made from dried rattlesnakes as a specific for rheumatism. WhitehaU, we read, was furnished in the best of taste, for the governor was somewhat of a connoisseur, and costly wood and rarest marble adorned his coimtry home, A story is attached to the decoration of the house which gives a pathetic touch to its history. Among the indented servants of Horatio Sharpe was a young redemptioner who had been shipped to the plantations as a criminal. Touched with pity for the youth, the governor took him into his o-wn household at WhitehaU, where he soon showed his aptitude for woodcarving. Day by day he worked, until halls and rooms were enriched by his wonderful skiU. How he had been taught none knew, for he never broke the sUence con cerning his past ; but his whole soul was thrown into his daily task. At last it was finished, and with it too ended the young Ufe that had faded away under the shadow of reproach, A few days after his death proofs came from England of his innocence of the crime for which he had suffered. They came too late. His grave was his only portion in the land of his captivity, but his monument remains in the house adorned by his genius. The memory of the young woodcarver is stiU cherished at WhitehaU. Horatio Sharpe had a warm friendship for his young secretary, John Ridout, and sought his advancement in every possible way. No post fell vacant but he thought Mr. Ridout was quaUfied to fiU it. He writes to Lord Baltimore on the 27th of March 1760 : SOUTH DOORWAY OF THE HALL AT WHITEHALL {To face p. iqo 1760-1765 191 ' My Lord, — Having been just now informed that Col. Wm. Goldsborough, whom your Lordship was sometime ago pleased to appoint a member of the Council and Upper House, is so extremely iU that his Life is despaired of, I take the Liberty to transmit this by the way of New York, to advise your Lordship thereof and at the same time to recommend to your Lordship's favourable notice a gen tleman whom I hope you wiU think worthy of it and of succeeding Col. Goldsborough in case the Distemper with which he is afflicted should carry him off. The person in whose behaU I am thus addressing your Lordship is Mr, Ridout, who came with me from England in the character of my Secretary, having been introduced to my Brother Doctor Sharpe by the Professor of Hebrew in the University of Oxford, where he had studied near five years and taken a Degree. Your Lordship may probably remember that he had the honour of being in your Lordship's company together ¦with myseU two or three times, tho' not long enough perhaps to be much noticed. Ever since my arrival in Maryland he has resided with me as a companion, stiU acting as my private Secretary, which your Lordship wiU imagine hath given him more opportunities than any other gentleman could have of making himself acquainted with your Lordship's affairs and with whatever has in earUer times, as weU as during my administration, been transacted in the Province. I need not, I apprehend, assure your Lordship that unless I was entirely satisfied with his Conduct since he has been kno-wn to me I should not presume to mention him in this manner, and since your Lordship in December 1756 was pleased to return him thanks, as Mr, Calvert signified to me in a letter of that date, for his assiduity in turning over aU the Council Records in order to draw up an historical account or state of the several 192 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Revenue Laws, which had been passed here since the Settle ment of the Country, I flatter myseU your Lordship had from that Performance conceived a good opinion of him, and that therefore it wiU not be necessary for me to say anything more in his favour,' The governor's wish was gratified, and on the death of Mr. Goldsborough, John Ridout, then twenty-eight years old, was made a member of the King's Council, or Upper House, a position which he held until the revolution, when proprietaries, king's councils, and EngUsh governors were swept away. The appointment of John Ridout to various important positions excited the jealousy of certain individuals, one of whom -wrote a letter to Secretary Calvert, which the latter repeated to Sharpe as foUows : ' " What a ferment the people are in upon the strange unaccountable unprecedented advancement of John Ridout to a seat in the Council, and as if there was to be no end to the Indignities offered to his Lordship's government and the people of this Province, the same Ridout is actuaUy put into the office of Commissary General, a place of the highest honour and trust in the gift of His Lordship, which requires a considerable knowledge of the laws of England as well as a thorough insight into the constitution of the Province. To how low a state His Lordship's government is reduced by such a promotion ! Why this mark of favour to him, against rank and fortune of others, and a long course of important services to His Lordship ? Why so many gentlemen in the Council, and so many others out of it, who have fifty times his capacity to support the right of the Proprietor, and to serve the People, thus insultingly trampled upon to make way for this obscure child of Fortune ? " This I insert to show what abuse they are arrived at.' FACSIMILE LETTER REFERRING TO RIDOUT'S APPOINTMENT TO A SEAT IN THE COUNCIL [To face p. 192 1760-1765 193 The governor again takes up the cudgels on behalf of his secretary, an anonymous pamphlet having also appeared with an attack on the latter's appointment to office. Sharpe writes : ' I am confident there is not a gentleman in the Province, acquainted with Mr. Ridout, who does not condemn the author for expressing himseU after that manner. He is, I am satisfied, weU esteemed by most of the Principal people in the Province that know him, particularly the gentlemen of the CouncU. Who, pray, are said to be those persons of Rank, Fortune, and Superior Capacity whose long course of important services have gone unrewarded ? If there are any, either in or out of the Council, who have devoted as much time to the business of his Lordship and the government as Mr. Ridout hath already done, who are better acquainted with the Constitu tion or poUtical history of the Province, and have so much incUnation to serve his Lordship, the Letter -writer would have done weU to point them out. Even his not having been born in Maryland was mentioned as what ought to have been an insuperable objection to his promotion ; and as he had no family connection or large estate here it was insinuated that he had no inducement to consult and promote the weUare of the Province. As Mr. Ridout is with my consent and approbation, as weU as with that of Mr. Tasker, her grandfather and guardian, about to make an aUiance with the eldest daughter and eldest child of the late Governor Ogle, those who may have hitherto considered him an aUen, and not interested in the Prosperity of the Province, wiU not long have an opportunity of mentioning his want of connections here as either a fault or a mis fortune.' Congratulatory letters to Mrs. Ogle on the engagement of her daughter to one so highly esteemed, from the Bladum n 194 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND and other relations in England, are preserved in Mr. Ridout's home at AnnapoUs. With reference to Mr. Ridout's appointment as agent for Lord Baltimore, Sharpe -writes : ' H it should be thought that this is a place of too great consequence for one that has never been employed by your Lordship in one of less importance I can only say that has been his misfortune. I have more than once expressed an earnest desire to have it in my power to bestow one on him and to convince him as weU as the gentlemen of the Province how much I regard and esteem him. I shall only add on the present occasion that altho' he is not possessed of an Estate which might be thought a sufficient security for the due Discharge of such a Trust as the Agency he can prevaU on many gentle men of Fortune in the Province to become joint Sureties with him, or if that is not sufficient he has a very nigh relation in England that hath a Landed Estate in Somerset shire worth upwards of 12,000 pounds sterUng, who, he is persuaded, would, if security is required to be given in England, become surety on his BehaU.' The consent of the governor to his secretary's marriage is magnanimous if the story current in the pro-vince be true that Horatio Sharpe was himseU enamoured of the fair Mary Ogle. Youth triumphed over rank, and the handsome and talented young secretary was chosen instead of the more mature governor. This episode, however, did not interrupt their friendship, and in the soUd brick house built by John Ridout in Duke of Gloucester Street, where he brought his young wife in 1765, and where his descendants stiU live, there is a room known as Colonel Sharpe's room, which was always ready when he chose to pay a visit to town, especially after he gave up his town residence to Governor Eden. NORTH-WEST DOORWAY OF THE HALL AT WHITEHALL [To face ^. 194 1760-1765 195 News came early in 1761 of the death of George ii. in October 1760, and the usual formal condolences were passed between the officials on both sides of the Atlantic, though formal indeed must have been their senti ments of grief, for he had not been beloved by the nation, while the advent of an English-bom monarch was hailed with joy. Calvert writes to Sharpe from London on SOth October : ' I condole with you on the melancholy Event of the Death of our late Most Gracious Sovereign, alleviated in our grief by His present Majesty's accession to the Throne, a glorious prospect to us and all his subjects from his benevolent and benign Princely Qualities. Enclosed you have the Lord Proprietor's Orders and Instructions for Proclaiming His Majesty's Accession to his Imperial Realms. The immediate departure of the packet aUows me only to say of our joy for the taking of Montreal and the Possession of Canada. His Majesty died at Kensington Palace the 25th inst.' This reached AnnapoUs on the 23rd of January 1761, and the governor in a letter of the 28th January describes the proclamation of George m., which being the last ceremony of the kind in Maryland, is worthy of note : ' Yesterday then being the day appointed for proclaiming His Majesty in this City, at 11 o'clock the Armourer began and fired 34 minute guns from the Battery, the Colours or Flag being hoisted haU-staff high, and about noon several gentlemen of the Council, the county Justices, the Members of the Corporation and many other gentlemen having assembled at my House we went thence in procession, being preceded by four Deputy Sheriffs with white wands to the Stadt House HiU, where the City Company and some of the Country MiUtia being drawn up, received us with rested Arms, and after a few minutes His Majesty King 196 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND George the Third was proclaimed by us on the Parade in the form of words directed by the Lords of Trade. As soon as the proclamation was read there were three loud shouts of "Long live King George the Third," then, the Flag having been hoisted quite up, a Royal Salute of 21 guns was fired from the Battery and the MiUtia fired three volleys. Then having drank His Majesty's Health, for which purpose wine and punch had been brought on the parade, the principal gentlemen who attended on the occasion returned and dined at my House, and when His Majesty's health was drank again, after Dinner, the Battery fired another Royal Salute.' Who would have thought then that soon many of those same loyal gentlemen would be in arms against that most gracious Sovereign whose reign seemed to have begun so peaceably ! Secretary Calvert writes in October 1761 to Sharpe : ' This year has been very joyous attended with the greatest Festivals : His Majesty's Marriage and the Queen's Corona tion, of which the splendour and briUiant Magnificence is beyond my description. From the armies in Germany not much Action, having rested mostly on the Defensive. His Majesty on the West Coast of France has BeUeisle in hand, and in possession of Pondicherry in the East Indies and the Isle of St. Domingo in the W. Indies, besides the capture of some men of war.' Another important item of news foUows : ' Mr. Secretary Pitt, in his fuU glory, has resigned the Seals of Secretary of State. Mr. Pitt's resignation seems to a'stem'd the administration.' Pitt, the popular idol, not being in accord with the royal favourite, the Earl of Bute, on the subject of a war with Spain, resigned, and remained out of office untU 1766. Meanwhile the ship of state roUed helplessly in a sea of 1760-1765 197 troubles under the successive guidance of Bute, GrenviUe, and Rockingham. In one of Secretary Calvert's interminable letters there is a curious account of an interview with George m., wherein His Majesty inquired about Maryland and its governor. Calvert says : ' His Majesty was pleased to admit me alone with him about an hour. Inter al. he spoke of Maryland, asked if the province was quiet. I repUed yes. Says he, " Quite quiet ? " I answered, " So please you, sir, save such persons as are in aU governments of Discontented minds and mischievous too often thro' self-interest and ambition." He smiled and said, " Of that I know." He asked how the Governor pleased ? I reply'd, " Very well." He then said, " What is your opinion of him ? " I reply'd, " That of a person brave and resolute and of real honesty and in the due execution and administration of Govern ment, very adroit and aU Deserving." I also took the Uberty to refer him of your miUtary character to His High ness the Duke of Cumberland, who, I knew, had spoken and had recommended you in Council to His late Majesty, and was the cause of much Honour done to you, viz,, that of His Majesty's commission and command of His Majesty's forces in America, which Honourable Post you held until the arrival of General Braddock, He asked how long you had been governor. I reply'd about eight years, I ought to have said about ten, but was by awe confused. His Majesty after a Uttle pause was most graciously pleased to say, " You give me pleasure in your character of him, and I weU approve of him." This Testimony of His Majesty's approbation of you is Fact.' It is not chronicled that the worthy governor ever knew the opinion expressed of him by the late King, George ii., who, as Walpole relates, when urged by Sharpe's friends 198 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND to continue him in command of the forces in America because of his exceeding honesty, repUed, 'A Uttle less honesty and a Uttle more abiUty might on the present occasion better serve our turn.' Another letter from Secretary Calvert is found in the collection concerning the management of the trouble some House of Assembly, It begins : ' To His ExceUency Horatio Sharpe on a Question propounded and a general view of the constitution and Government of Maryland and of proper Regulations to prevent Turbulent and Malevolent Spirits and those prejudices against his Lordship's Just Rights,' The scheme propounded by the wise CaeciUus was no less than buying up the Lower House, and in a lengthy document he lays out his plan. His estimate of the members was : ' That whatever noise and clamour may be raised under the appearance of consulting and promoting the weUare of the people, 19 in 20 of these only consult their own private interest, therefore by throwing out a sop in a proper manner to these noisy animals it wiU render them not only silent but tame enough to bear stroking, and tractable enough to follow any directions that may be thought fit to be given them,' He goes on to say : ' I do not mean the buying of those who are pleased to caU themselves Leaders, for the insignificant and worthless would demand and expect a very considerable price, and one would no sooner be bought off than their numbers would be Increased by others starting up ; but instead of this I would take off their followers and leave the Leaders with so slender a Train as to prevent their doing any mischief,' This was his plan as laid down in the letter : ' There are 58 members of the House, 14 counties send four each, and the City of Annapolis sends two. Now the business is to 1760-1765 199 find baits for thirty of these, which number is a clear majority supposing they were aU to attend. ' To answer the purpose I would appropriate the 14 Sheriffs' places, which wiU undoubtedly secure 14 members, and may by good management secure double that number. There are 14 Farmers of His Lordship's Quit Rents, 14 Deputy Commissioners, and 14 Deputy Surveyors. All these places are considerable to the middUng sort of people of whom the Lower House is composed, and might gain a great majority of that House by being properly appUed amongst them, their Brothers and Sons.' This scheme is elaborated through many pages, and concludes with this : ' The foregoing plan supposes that these favours are to be earned before they are obtained, and indeed it is much more safe and prudent that these gentlemen should trust to the Honour of the Govern ment than that the Government should trust to their gratitude.' A postscript says : ' The purpose of this Epistle is on no account designed towards corrupt views. But as maUg- nancy is prevalent your strict Honour is relyed on, that you keep secret the name to this Letter and against accident by MortaUty, after you have considered the sub stance you are desired to extinguish this letter. Keeping it tiU then in close privacy that none may see or get a copy of it.' The letter was not extinguished, but has remained among the flotsam and jetsam of that politicaUy corrupt eighteenth century, Sharpe's answer to this epistle is also preserved. He disapproves of the plan, not apparently on account of its immorality, but because, as he writes to Calvert, ' How ever plausible the Scheme proposed in your letter might appear in Theory, it never can effectually be carried into 200 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Practice. That a great Influence hath at times been gained by the British House of Commons by such means is certain, but it cannot be thence inferred that the same might easily be done here. Let it be considered how many hundred offices, Civil and MiUtary, are in the gift of the Crown ; that by means of a great number of Boroughs many of the Gentlemen who enjoy these offices get returned to ParUament ; that it is the Interest of almost aU the Lawyers in the Kingdom to defend the measures that are pursued by the government, and one cannot be surprized that the Ministry should have always a majority in the House of Commons ; but in this Province affairs are very differ ently circumstanced. The only way, then, in my opinion, for His Lordship to obtain a soUd and lasting Influence, and the measure I would advise him to, was I now writing my last letter, is to appear steady and resolute ; to reward as far and as often as it is in His Power those who behave themselves weU, but never bribe any of those who endeavour to carry their Points by Violence.' The Peace of Paris was signed in 1763, but in the colonies there was stiU unrest, for Pontiac's fiery spirit had roused the Indians, and blazing farms and desolated hearths, and ruined forts, marked the path of the avenger of his people. Except with reference to the province of Maryland it is not the place here to enter into the exciting incidents of that Indian war known as the conspiracy of Pontiac. Parkman, with his magic pen, has told the thriUing story. Suffice it to say that from 1763 to 1766, when the bold chief, deserted by his tribes, gave up his lost cause and submitted to the terms offered him by Sir WiUiam Johnson, the frontiers of aU the colonies were in constant dread and peril. Lord Baltimore was now, in the summer of 1763, in Constantinople, but being informed of the new depredations 1760-1765 201 of the Indians on the frontiers of Maryland, sent, through Secretary Calvert, the sum of £200 to be expended in powder and baU for the defence of the province. The Gazette has the foUowing letter describing the state of affairs on the Maryland frontier : ' Frederick Town, I9th July 1763, ' Every day for some time has been offered the melan choly scene of poor distressed famUies drlAring downwards through this town who have deserted their plantations, for fear of faUing into the hands of our savage enemies, now daily seen in the woods, and never was panic more general or forcible than that of the back inhabitants whose terror at this time exceeded what foUowed on the defeat of General Braddock when the frontier lay open to the incursions of both French and Indians.' That Lord Baltimore's present came just in time is shown by this letter, which continues : ' In Conococheague settlement the officer in charge of the smaU fort there caUed the town Company together and organized for defence. Just as the drum beat to arms we had the satisfaction of seeing a wagon sent up by His ExceUency the Governor loaded with powder and lead — of the greatest importance «at this critical juncture when the whole coimtry had been drained of those necessary articles by the diUgence of our Indian traders who had bought up the whole for the supply of our enemies, to be returned as we have dearly experienced in death and desolation upon us. Had not the Governor's supply arrived so seasonably it was doubted whether the whole Town could have furnished ammunition sufficient for that small party half of which marched backwards in high spirits on Thursday and the remainder on Friday.' Fort Pitt had been surrounded and isolated in July, and 202 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND General Amherst sent Colonel Bouquet ^ with five hundred men to relieve it and drive off the savages. On the way was fought, on the 5th of August, the famous battle of Bushy Run, where after a two days' fight the Indians were put to flight. Four days afterwards Bouquet and his force reached Fort Pitt, where they were received with joy and reUef by the hard-pressed Uttle garrison. The Indians had fled on Bouquet's approach. In 1764 a treaty was made by Sir WilUam Johnson with all the Indian tribes of the Lakes Ontario, Erie, Huron, and Michigan, The Shawanese and Delawares on the frontiers of Maryland and Virginia had not joined in the treaty, and therefore Lieutenant-Colonel Bouquet was sent by General Gage, the new commander-in-chief, to punish them for the depredations they had committed. Bouquet found on his way that a treaty, which he considered disgraceful, had been concluded with them by Colonel Bradstreet, Hearing, however, of renewed attacks on their part. Colonel Bouquet advanced into the heart of their country, determined to chastise them for their perfidy. As the victor of Bushy Run his name inspired terror, and the dusky warriors were compeUed to sue for peace, deliver up their prisoners, and bring their chiefs and warriors as hostages. Having secured peace on stern terms. Bouquet returned to Fort Pitt, and ' Henry Bouquet was born at RoUe in the canton'of Berne, Switzerland, in 1719. In 1736 he entered as a cadet in the regiment of Constant, in the service of Holland. Thence he passed into the service of the King of Sardinia, and distinguished himself in the wars against France and Spain. The account he wrote of these campaigns attracted the notice of the Prince of Orange, who engaged him in the service of the Republic. He was made Lieutenant-Colonel in the regiment of Swiss Guards at the Hague in 1748. At the breaking out of the war in America in 1754 he was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel of the Royal American Regiment, in whioh he served with great distinction. At the close of the Indian war he hoped to return to Europe, but was given the command in the southern district, and died at Pensacola of fever in 1765. 1760-1765 203 soon after for his services was promoted to the rank of brigadier-general. There was another subject that engaged the attention of the governor during these years, and that was the boundary question. For nearly a century the dispute as to the boundaries of their respective domains had been waged by the proprietaries of Pennsylvania and Maryland, FinaUy, in 1760, an agreement was entered into by Lord Baltimore and Thomas and Richard Penn that a definite survey should be made ; and commissioners were appointed from each province to overlook the work. For Maryland the com missioners were the governor, Hon. B. Tasker, Edward Lloyd, Daniel Dulany, Stephen Bordley, and the Rev, Malcolm, On Mr, Tasker's death Sharpe nominated John Ridout to take the vacant place, as ' being capable of serving his Lordship and giving us assistance as any member of his Lordship's Council,' The Pennsylvania commissioners were James Hamilton, WiUiam Allen, Richard Peters, Benjamin Chew, Lynford Lardner, Ryves Holt, and George Stephen son, There were many and great difficulties to be sur mounted : want of proper instruments, perils by Indians, perils by fever, Sharpe reports : ' The Surveyors have broke off work as they could no longer take observations after the manner they had done before, the Polar Star and the Star caUed AUoth now transiting the meridian in the daytime.' Work was carried on in a dismal part of the country abounding with marshes. The governor reported that both he and his secretary, John Ridout, had been on a tour of inspection of the survey, and had contracted fever and ague at a place caUed Marshy Hope in Dorchester County. Calvert -writes with reference to this : ' His Lordship desires you will not be so free with your health improperly. He thinks you of too much consequence to him to risque 204 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND your loss by intemperate air in the swamps, and returns you thanks for your care and Assiduity in running the Boundary Line.' Sharpe writes that some of the difficult questions con cerning the boundary should be presented ' to the Considera tion of some gentlemen who have devoted a great part of their Uves to the Study of the Mathematicks and whose reputation is estabUshed. Such I presume are Doctor Bradley, Regius Professor of Astronomy at Greenwich, Mr. Senex the Map Maker, and Mr. Cockayne who reads lectures at Gresham College, but as these gentlemen may not be apprized of all the Difficulties which wiU attend running Lines on the Surface of the Earth, some thro' a Forest, some over Boggs and Marshes, and others over a hUly or mountainous country, and the difficulty which wiU attend the measuring such Unes horizontaUy, Your Lord ship will not think it amiss to submit the opinions or schemes of these gentlemen or any other Theorists whom you may be pleased to consult to the consideration of some Person that hath been used to run and measure Lines on the Surface of the Earth, for oftentimes a thing may appear very easy in Theory which the best Artist cannot carry with Practice,' At last, on the 4th of August 1763, Lord Baltimore and the Penns determined to send out Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon, ' two mathematicians or surveyors, to mark, run, settle, fix, and determine aU such parts of the circle, marks, Unes, and boundaries as were mentioned in the several articles of commissions, and were not yet completed.' Calvert writes of these men on 3rd September 1763 : ' Jeremiah Dixon is of good skiU, may peradventure be of use in Maryland. Charles Mason is regularly bred at the Philosophical Academy at G ' It is not necessary to enter into aU the details of the very FACSIMILE LETTER FROM THE BOUNDARY ^^r^ OMMISSIONERS TO GOVERNOR SHARPE {Bet-ween pp. 204 and 205 1760-1765 205 compUcated question of the boundary. Volumes have been written on it. It was 1768 before the survey was completed, and the commissioners reported that they had finaUy settled on the eastern and northern boundaries of Maryland. The paraUel westward dividing the province from Pennsylvania is the famous Mason and Dixon's Une. The southern boundary between Maryland and Virginia, owing to the difficulty of interpreting the description of what was the ' first fountain of the Potomac,' is stiU unsettled. Lord Baltimore sent out at this time, 1765, a full-length portrait of himseU (now in the Executive Chamber at Annapolis), which he desired the governor to place with the other portraits of his ancestors in the province. He also begs Horatio Sharpe to accept from him a smaU box of plate as a token of his friendship. In spite of aU his faults. Lord Baltimore does not appear in the correspondence as the monster of iniquity he is so often painted, and one can understand the warm and loyal attachment felt for him by the worthy governor. WiUiam Hand Brown, editor of the archives of Maryland, says : ' An impartial examination of this correspondence throughout, wiU, the editor thinks, tend to modify the harsh judgment that has been generaUy passed on Frederick, sixth Lord Baltimore. It is true, he was neither a George nor a CaeciUus ; but his letters and those of his secretaries, as weU as his formal instructions, show a desire to deal justly and even generously -with the people of his Province. From almost the very founding of the Colony there had been, as was natural enough, a party opposed to the Proprietary, and hostUity to him was usuaUy a sure road to popular favour. In Frederick's case this hostiUty was particularly fierce and unscrupulous, and the impressions it left have descended to our own time. 206 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND ' The editor confesses to having shared this prejudice, and in regard to an infamous charge brought against the Proprietary, alluded to in the correspondence, was incUned to believe it true until he read the official report of the trial and testimony of the witnesses, which left him con vinced that the specific charge brought was untrue, and the whole affair an attempt at blackmail.' Some of these enemies were deUnquents in financial trusts to the second proprietary. Investigations of the accounts of one in particular added to Sharpe's worries and harass- ments when settling Parson Allen's and Mr. Jordan's difficulties. CHAPTER XV THE STAMP ACT In 1763 a new cabinet had been formed in England. George GrenviUe took the place of the Earl of Bute at the head of the Treasury, and the Earl of Egremont and Lord HaUfax became secretaries of state. Immediately on its formation, Grenville renewed the attempt for the passage of a revenue biU extending the stamp duties to the colonies. On the Oth of March 1764 he read in the House of Commons a series of resolutions declaring the intention of the Government to raise a revenue in America by a duty on stamped paper, announcing, however, that the colonies should have an opportunity of suggesting other modes of taxation. In August 1764 Lord HalUax wrote to Governor Sharpe announcing the intention of the Government to charge certain stamp duties in the colonies and plantations, a scheme which Pitt had charac terised as taking an unjust and ungenerous advantage of them. The letter is as foUows : 'St, James's, Uth August 1764. ' Sir, — The House of Commons having, in the last session of Parliament, come to a Resolution by which it is declared that toward defraying the necessary expenses of defending, protecting, and securing the British Colonies and Plantations in America, it might be proper to charge certain Stamp Duties in the said Colonies and Plantations. It is His Majesty's pleasure that you should transmit to me without S07 208 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND delay a List of aU Instruments made use of in PubUck Transactions, Law Proceedings, Grants, Conveyances, Securities of land, or money within your Government -with proper and sufficient Description of the same in order that if ParUament should think proper to pursue this Intention of the aforesaid Resolution they may thereby be enabled to carry it into Execution in the most effectual and least burthensome manner. — I am, with great truth and regard. Your most obedient humble servant, Halifax.' In America the question was discussed in pubUc meetings, by the press, and by the people everywhere. In spite of the strongest representations against it the Act received the royal assent on the 22nd March 1765. This roused a spirit of indignation throughout the colonies, and the merchants entered into engagements not to import goods from England until the Act should be repealed. Massa chusetts was particularly active in measures of resistance, and the House of Representatives proposed a meeting of committees from the burgesses of the several British colonies to consult together on the subject, and to draw up a loyal, humble, and dutiful representation of their condition to present to His Majesty, and to implore reUef. The day appointed was the first Tuesday in October 1765. Maryland was requested to send delegates, and the House of Assembly concurred in the proposition. The Upper House and the governor sanctioned the measure, and there was an appropriation made of five hundred pounds to meet expenses. To show its detestation of the Stamp Act the Maryland Gazette went into mourning on the 10th of October, with a skuU and crossbones on the front page representing the stamp. Everywhere in Mary land passionate speeches were made against the Act, and THE STAMP ACT 209 able pens were wielded in protestation. One especially powerful pamphlet, written by Daniel Dulany, had an immense influence. Reference was constantly made to the pro-\nsion of the charter of Maryland, by which the king had renoimced for himseU and his successors aU right to tax that province, transferring the power to the proprietary, who was to exercise it only by the advice and assent of the freemen, or a majority of them. A Mr. Hood had been appointed distributor of stamps in the province of Maryland, an office which, Sharpe says, ' wiU probably be worth many hundreds a year, but is extremely unpopular.' On the 5th of September the governor wrote to Lord HaUfax that the inhabitants of his province, incited by the example of the populace of Boston and other places, were not satisfied with expressing their indignation against Mr. Hood by hanging or burning him in effigy, but had assembled to the number of three or four hundred, and puUed down a house he was repairing for the reception of a cargo of goods. Sharpe says : ' Mr. Hood intimated to me that if I thought his resigning the office would reconcile his country men to him, and if I would advise him to take the step he would do so. I could not take upon myseU to give him such advice, and as both he and his Relations doubted whether he could, while the ferment continued, be safe in my or any other house in the Province, he has retired for a few weeks to New York.' Sharpe told Lord HaUfax that if the stamped paper were to arrive he could not preserve it from being burnt, that he could not depend upon the miUtia to protect it, and therefore if a vessel should arrive with it he would caution the master against landing, and advise him to return to the men-of-war station in Virginia until the people showed a better disposition. In Sharpe's o 210 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND letter to Lord Baltimore he stiU further describes the state of feeling in the province ; how the lawyers, almost without exception, were against the Act ; and the printers, who expected to be ruined by it, were constantly pubUshing articles calculated to raise the resentment of the colonies against the mother country ; that aU through the several colonies those who had been appointed distributors were being treated with every indignity. Sharpe in his letter to Calvert wrote of another outbreak which might have had serious consequences : ' While the mob were stiU in a ferment after destroying Mr, Hood's house, the tender belonging to H.M.S. Hornet unluckily dropped anchor off Annapolis. The people, thinking she had brought the stamped paper, boarded her, and the Ueutenant in command, Mr. Mowbray, would give them no satisfaction as to his business. He went on shore with two Virginian gentle men who had come with him, and ordered supper at the inn. While at supper one of the men who had boarded the tender came into the room with his hat on, and a paper on it with the words, "No Stamp Act," printed thereon. Mr. Mowbray put the man out of the room, and ordered four of his crew to keep him out and re main with their arms at the Tavern door until the company should break up. Then a dispute arose between one of the Virginians, who was not sober, and a Mr. Hammond, one of the Representatives for the county. In order to determine the affair they agreed to have a bout at Boxing, in which Mr. Hammond got the worst of it. In order to make trouble, a man, supposed to be the one who was turned out of the tavern, went through the town crying that the officer of the Tender was murdering Mr. Hammond. This brought a mob together, who having weapons feU on the officer and wounded him, though not dangerously. THE STAMP ACT 211 The Virginian, who had been the cause of the broil, had to swim for his Ufe to the ship.' The governor invited Mr. Mowbray to his house until he should be recovered of his wound, and sent to England a proper account of the affair, fearing it might be considered a premeditated attack on His Majesty's authority. He thought Mr. Mowbray had been to blame in coming ashore when the people were in such a ferment, and also in ordering the crew to keep sentry armed at the tavern door. Colonel Sharpe continues : ' What lengths the people, now they have once begun, may go, is not easy to say, but as the inhabitants of aU the colonies with regard to the Stamp Law seem to act as it were in concert, it wiU not I think be possible without a considerable Military Force in each Colony to let it have its effect.' GrenviUe had been dismissed from office in July 1765, and was succeeded as prime minister by the Marquis of Rockingham, with the Duke of Grafton and General Conway as secretaries of state. So Uttle was the storm that had arisen in America expected in England that a letter came from the Treasury chambers, signed ' Charles Lowndes,' and dated 14th September, giving Governor Sharpe special instructions as to assisting the distributor of stamps in his province, and appointing under distributors in every town. The commander-in-chief had now ordered a hundred men of the Royal Highlanders to march from Pittsburg to Annapolis to queU any insurrection that might arise, but Sharpe's opinion was that it would be better to secure the stamped paper on one of H.M. ships, and not venture to land it. The governor had meanwhile received a petition from all the principal la-wyers of the provincial court asking him to convene the assembly before the day to which it stood 212 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND prorogued, that the representatives should meet in time enough to send some of their members to New York to join with those who should be there from the other colonies in a memorial for the repeal of the Stamp Act, Accordingly they met on the 2Srd of September 1765, with a fuU house. After they had appointed three members to go to New York and made some resolutions showing their opinion of the Stamp Act, and after declaring what privileges the inhabitants of Maryland had a Hght to as British subjects under their special charter, they adjourned. The members were determined to do no business until their representa tives should return from New York. Sharpe's dispatches were now addressed to Gteneral Conway, as secretary of state for the southern department. Conway writes from St. James's to Sharpe on the 24th of October : ' Sie, — It is with the greatest concern that His Majesty learns the disturbances which have arisen in some of the North American colonies. If the evil should spread to the Government of Maryland where you preside, the utmost exertion of your prudence wiU be necessary so as justly to temper your conduct between that caution and coolness which the deUcacy of such a situation may demand, on one hand, and the vigour necessary to suppress outrage and violence on the other. It is impossible, at this distance, to assist you by any particular or positive instruction, because you wiU find yourseU necessarily obUged to take your resolution as particular circumstances and emergencies may require. It is hoped and expected that this want of confidence in the justice and tenderness of the Mother Country and this open resistance to its authority, can only have found place among the lower and more ignorant of the people. The better and wiser part of the colonies wiU ry:^- 7^f^*a^i GOVERNOR SH.ARPE'S SIGNATURE {To face p. THE STAMP ACT 213 know that decency and submission may prevail, not only to redress grievances, but to obtain grace and favour ; while the outrage of a public violence can expect nothing but severity and chastisement. If, by lenient and persuasive methods, you can contribute to revive that Peace and TranquiUity to the Provinces on which their welfare and happiness depend, you wUl do a most essential and acceptable service to your country. But having taken every step which the utmost prudence and lenity can dictate in compassion to the foUy and ignorance of some misguided people you will not on the other hand fail to use your utmost power for the repeUing aU acts of outrage and violence and to provide for the maintenance of peace and good order in the Province, by such a timely exertion of force as the occasion may require, for which purpose you wiU make the proper applica tion to General Gage or Lord ColviUe, commander of His Majesty's land and naval forces in America,' At this time CaeciUus Calvert, Lord Baltimore's uncle and secretary, died, and his vague, incoherent, and verbose letters no longer appear in the correspondence. His place was fiUed by Hugh Hamersley, who aimounces his appoint ment in a letter to Lieutenant-Governor Sharpe, dated the Oth of November 1765, wherein he hopes ' that his obliga tions to and his long connection with His Lordship, will effectuaUy attach him to his interest, while the little know ledge he has of the Colony may at the same time render him no unworthy servant of Maryland.' In the meanwhile, the unlucky stamps destined for Mary land had been put for safe keeping by the governor of Virginia on board His Majesty's ship the Rainboiv, Captain Stirling, commander, where they were to await further orders. Colonel Mercer, in whose charge the stamps had come from England, writes to Sharpe : ' Captain Stirling 214 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND has with great Readiness, and most obUging condescension done everything in his power to reUeve me from the most disagreeable commission I ever undertook, as I had the Stamps for three Provinces in Charge, and dared not let any one know where they were, though I must confess I was not a little apprehensive of an attempt to force the discovery from me. ' Although the season is so far advanced, and I have not been more than ten days in America, I find myseU under a necessity of returning immediately to England. I had the honour of being known to your brother, Mr. PhiUp Sharpe, whom I left weU in London the last of August.' Zachariah Hood writes from New York to Sharpe giving an account of the state of affairs there. He says : ' They have hung and burnt the Governor here in Effige, burnt all his carriages which was the only things to be gott at, burnt Major James' furniture, who incurred their dis pleasure. The Fort was expected to be attacked, but ia order to prevent the consequences the Governor deUvered up the Stamps to the Mayor and Corporation, They agreed to Protect the same, or if destroyed to pay what ever the Stamps might raise. Peace is restored to the City.' Lieutenant-Governor Sharpe writes to Lord Baltimore in November teUing him that not one of the persons appointed to distribute the stamps had ventured to act, and therefore scarcely any business, public or private, could be trans acted, as the courts of law, custom-houses, and also pubhc offices were in a manner shut up, and would remain so until it was known if the legislature of Great Britain meant to enforce the law or not. As the Act of ParUament enjoined the use of stamped paper in almost every transaction under THE STAMP ACT 215 severe penalties, and there was no such paper to be got, no business could be done in the different departments. The new secretary, Hugh Hamersley, on the 20th of December, writes to Sharpe a resume of what passed in ParUament -with reference to the Stamp Act. He tells him that ParUament met on the 17th of December, and he was present in the House of Peers, ' In an amendment to the address, the Earl of Suffolk proposed " to express to His Majesty the deep concern and indignation at the Dangerous Tumults and Insurrections which have been raised and fermented in His Majesty's Dominions of North America," The resolution continues, " We embrace with pleasure the earUest opportunity in our Power to assure His Majesty that, fuUy sensible of the indispenslble necessity of Vindi cating and EstabUshing the just power of the Legislature of Great Britain, we wiU cheerfully concur in every measure which may strengthen the hands of Government and enforce the Legal Obedience of the Colonies and their Constitutional Dependence on the Sovereign Authority of the Kingdom." This amendment was supported by the Earls of HaUfax, Sandwich, Gower, Temple and Buckingham, Lord Lyttleton and the Duke of Bedford. The members on a Division were twenty-four for it. It was opposed by the Duke of Grafton and the Earls of Shelburne, Dart mouth, Pomfret, and Northington, the chanceUor, who divided eighty against it.' Hamersley continues : ' Some general arguments used in favour of the amendment were that the connexion between Great Britain and her colonies was analagous to the relation between parent and child. For the parent not to correct or reprehend the undutiful child would argue weakness. That the colonies wanted to be supported with all the Military power of this country without paying for it, that 216 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND they had been for some time endeavouring to shake off their Dependence, and the attempt had begun in Pennsyl vania in 1756, by first refusing to assist government tho' the enemy was at their gates, and when afterwards they granted their aid, doing it in such a manner as to invade the King's prerogative. That the next attempt of the colonies would be for ridding themselves of the navigation act, " the great bulwark of the country," by Centring the trade of her colonies in herseU, which they had long been aiming at, that is, they would choose to take their Com modities from the French and Dutch rather than from their feUow-subjects because they could obtain them 25 per cent, cheaper. ' The objections for want of Representation were absurd. Who were affected by the Duties on Hardware but the people of Manchester, Birmingham, and Leeds, and how were they represented ? Were the Legislature always to be dictated to in Riot and Tumult ; the Weavers were at your door last year because you would not pass a law to please them, the Americans are this year up in arms because they do not like what you have passed. " First suppress the RebeUion, and then inquire into the grievances, U any there are." The speech and address were equaUy fiimsy,' Hamersley writes, ' and might be construed to show the ParUament afraid or in doubt, and would give spirits to the riots unless checked by the amendment. ' " It had been said that America was conquered in Ger many," he continues to quote, " but give up the Law, and Great Britain would be conquered in America and become a Province of her own Colonies. America must submit," This last expression fell from the chanceUor, and with the quotation from King WiUiam's act which was also made by him, sufficiently indicated his general Sentiments, tho' THE STAMP ACT 217 he voted against the Amendment. Lord Shelburne, on the other side, alone ventured to launch a little out, intimating his sense for a repeal of the law which was not avowed by any other Lord, He said, " Before they resolved on each measure they should weigh the matter weU. That the Romans planted their Colonies to increase their power, we to extend our Commerce. Precipitate measures might bring the Indians upon the Colonys, for Indians were no bad PoUticians. Supposing there were a few Regiments in America, one or two at Halifax, and as many at Pensacola. Let them aU embark at once upon the same destination equaUy compleat DiscipUned and victuaUed, and no inter vening accident to disappoint the expedition, what could be effected by their Uttle united efforts against Colonies so populous and of such a magnitude and extent ? " ' Hamersley continues : ' I was not present in the other House where a simUar amendment was proposed by Mr. Grenville and afterwards -withdrawn. Mr. Charles To-wnshend, tho' other- -wise against the motion, said that sooner than make our colonies our AlUes he would wish to see them returned to their primitive Deserts.' Hamersley goes on to say : ' By what I can recoUect there seems a disposition in Govern ment to relax and quaUfy the Law, at least attended probably with an Indemnity and Oblivion for what is past. ' Pitt was expected in Town after the Recess to throw his weight into the Ministerial scale. Delay seemed desired by the Ministry.' When Pitt addressed the House on 16th January 1766, he said : ' It is a long time, Mr. Speaker, since I have attended in ParUament. When the resolution was taken to tax America I was iU in bed. If I could have endured to have been carried in my bed, so great was the agitation of my mind for the consequences, I would have solicitated 218 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND some kind hand to have laid me down on this floor to have borne my testimony against it. . . . It is my opinion that this kingdom has no right to lay a tax upon the colonies. At the same time I assert the authority of this kingdom over the colonies to be sovereign and supreme iu every circumstance of government and legislation whatsoever. . , . The gentleman tells us America is obstinate, America is almost in open rebeUion. I rejoice that America has resisted. Three miUions of people so dead to aU the feel ings of Uberty as voluntarUy to submit to be slaves would have been fit instruments to make slaves of the rest. . . . The Americans have not acted in aU things with prudence and temper ; they have been wronged ; they have been driven to madness by injustice. WiU you punish them for the madness you have occasioned ? Rather let prudence and temper come from this side, I wUl undertake for America that she wUl foUow the example. There are two Unes in a baUad of Prior's of a man's behaviour to his wUe, so appUcable to you and your colonies, that I cannot help repeating them : " Be to her virtues very kind. Be to her faults a Uttle blind," Upon the whole I wUl beg leave to teU the House what is my opinion. It is that the Stamp Act be repealed abso lutely, totaUy, and immediately. At the same time let the sovereign authority of this country over the colonies be asserted in as strong terms as can be de-rised ; and be made to extend to every point of legislation whatsoever ; that we may bind their trade, confine their manufactures, and exercise every power whatsoever except that of taking their money out of their pockets without their consent.' Another powerful voice in favour of the repeal of the THE STAMP ACT 219 Act was now raised in ParUament, for Edmund Burke, private secretary to the Marquis of Rockingham, was returned to the Commons for the pocket borough of Wendover, and made his first speech in ParUament on the 27th January 1766. In that month Hamersley writes to Governor Sharpe : ' The affairs of America are now at their crisis. Both Houses of ParUament have been employed this week in reading the Papers laid before them by the Crown, which has been done in the most secret manner by excluding every other Individual from their walls, for as the private corre spondence of the governors and other servants of the Crown in the different colonies makes a considerable part of the coUection, they are justly apprehensive of the consequences to particular Persons should the contents by being made pubhc find their way back to their proper colonies. As to censures, both parties seem concerned to Level them at each other,' In America aU courts of justice and offices had been closed since November 1765, Hamersley writes again in February 1766 : ' The Stamp Act has undergone much discussion and Altercation in both Houses, where it is made the PoUtical Tub and Tryal of SkiU between the Contending Parties, each of whom have alternately claimed the Royal support and countenance for the repeal or Enforcing of the Law : in consequence of which the Ministry have one day carried their question in the commons by a large majority and in two days after have been defeated in the Lords, where the strength of opposition Ues tho' by smaU numbers. I apprehend the groimd wiU be fought Inch by Inch with great obstinacy and in the Lords perhaps with no great inequaUty. But " magna est Veritas," and, I trust, " Prsevalebit." Enclosed 220 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND I send you the Resolutions of the Lords, those of the commons are nearly the same. The great struggle was on the 1st Proposition asserting the universal sovereignty of the British legislature over aU her colonies in all cases whatsoever.' It was Lord Camden, formerly Lord Chief-Justice Pratt, who was the great champion for America in the Lords. He objected to the words ' in aU cases whatsoever.' He acknowledged that Daniel Dulany's able pamphlet. Con siderations on the Propriety of imposing Taxes on the British Colonies for the Purpose of raising a Revenue by Acts of Parliament, had made a great impression on him. Tyler, in his Uterary history of the Revolution, says: ' Three months after the pubUcation of Dulany's pamphlet Pitt appeared in the House of Commons after a long absence and spoke with tremendous power in favour both of an immediate repeal of the Stamp Act and of the final abandon ment of aU measures dealing -with the taxation of the colonies by ParUament. In one of the speeches he held up Dulany's pamphlet to the approval and admiration of the imperial legislature, and though but a meagre outline of his speech is now in existence, even from such outline it is made clear that in all but one of the great features of his argument as to the constitutional relations of Great Britain to her colonies, he foUowed the very line of reasoning set forth by Daniel Dulany — an old Eton boy himself.' Hamersley continues in his letter to Sharpe : ' Lord Camden argued that it appeared from the fundamentals of the Constitution that the People had always kept the Purse, that the Commons in the language of every Bill of Supply emphatically gave and granted, and tho' the King willed it to be a law, yet he always returned thanks ; that THE STAMP ACT 221 Calais formerly sent members to Parliament and therefore they were taxed, that neither Guernsey nor Jersey had ever been represented and consequently they were never taxed. The colonies when they migrated carried their birthright with them, the same spirit of Liberty stiU per vaded the whole of the new empire and he enforced his arguments in favour of Representation for the colonies by supposing a case to exist where their Interest and that of the Mother Country might happen to clash, in which event he declared he should, as an Englishman, incline against them, and he thought every honest man here would do the same, ' Lord Mansfield took the other side. He argued that the Doctrine of Representation was Ul-founded, that there were twelve miUions of people in England and Ireland not repre sented. He particularised the East India Company, the Turkey Company, Hudson's Bay Co., and the Proprietors of all the PubUc Funds, none of whom sent members to ParUament tho' Laws were made every day respecting them. That Henry vin, sent a -writ to Calais to return a Member, but it appeared they were taxed in ParUament before. That the Province of Gascoyne, Tournay, etc., were constantly taxed in Parliament yet were never repre sented. That the sovereignty of the British ParUament extended to all the Dominions belonging to the Crown of Great Britain, that is, such as had been conquered by EngUsh arms, not to Hanover, which did not faU within the Predicament, That the Colonies migrated as colonies, and settled upon the terms of being Subjects of England. The very Idea of a colony implied Subordination and Dependence, to render aUegiance for Protection. If they were not Subject they ought to pay Duties as AUens. Lord Mansfield continued : " That Maryland was made expressly 222 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND subject to and dependent on the Crown of England, their express tenure was of Windsor Castle, and their rights were to be co-extensive with any Bishop of Durham in that County Palatine, and the Statute-book showed they were taxed by ParUament before they were represented. He repeatedly caUed upon the advocates for America to draw the Une, to move their exceptions, and to say how far the sovereignty of the British Parliament should go and where stop." ' The ChanceUor, Lord Northington, spoke very shortly to the point. As a Lawyer he declared that aU the colonies had forfeited their charters by sending deputies to New York to the Continental Congress, That he had accounts in his hand to show this country , spent thirty-two milUons upon America in the last war, besides as much spent in Germany. Was Great Britain gro-wn old and impotent to be insulted by the Buxom Lass her Colonies ? That if she withdrew her Protection they would become a Prey to the first Invader, the Petty States of Genoa or Uttle Kingdom of Sweden would run away with them.' After quoting from Lord Temple's speech Hamersley continues : ' If I have troubled you with more of the arguments in disfavour than in favour of the Americans you will not impute it to any partiaUty for that side of the Question, but to a desire to communicate what could be said for it, the other side was too weU supported in America for anything new to be said here for it. As to what passed in the Commons, they have throughout the business shut their doors against all strangers, and in -writing to your Excellency I could not venture to offer anything but what I heard with my own ears. ' P.S. — As our Tributary arrows are almost exhausted I am to request a fresh supply when convenient.' THE STAMP ACT 223 Another letter from Hamersley brings the happy news of the almost certain prospect of the total repeal of the Stamp Act. He says : ' The business was opened on the 21st February 1766 by a motion from Mr. Burke, private secretary to the Marquis of Rockingham. After a debate which lasted tiU two in the morning it was carried in favour of a repeal by 275 against 163. He was in hopes that the Lords would receive it favourably, and that they would be incUned to do for expediency what they have denied as a right.' On the 22nd March Hamersley congratulates Governor Sharpe and aU America on the repeal of the Stamp Act, the Act repealing it having received the royal assent on the 18th March. He sends with it at the same time the companion Act, ' for securing the Dependency of the colonies, or, as the late Secretary of State would have amended it, for securing the Independency of the Colonies.' Hamersley continues : ' The great struggle upon the Repeal Law was at the second and third readings. The Duke of York voted against it, as did Lord Mansfield ; Lord Camden for it, and with him the Chancellor, who having roared so lustily that America must submit now thought proper to change his note. There was such a con course of Peers upon the Debate of those ten days that they found it necessary to exclude aU strangers. I must there fore refer your ExceUency to the Enclosed Protests for what passed on one side at least, and take my leave of the great business upon which I beUeve you have been long ready to exclaim " Satis jam satis." ' The Repeal of the Stamp Act is a most happy event rendered more particularly so by the unparaUeled example of British moderation. The present Turn inclines not only to Forget and Forgive, but to chaUenge a reconciUation 224 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND and future Harmony. Let not then the colonies baulk so good a disposition but meet at least haU way. Let them not exult and triumph as upon a victory gained over the Mother Country ; but as was said in one of the Houses of ParUament, " Let the Past, Uke the FaUing out of Lovers, prove only the Renewal of Love." ' A copy of the protest of the minority in the Lords at the second reading of the BiU was sent at the same time by Hamersley to Sharpe, signed by thirty-three noble Lords. The Duke of Grafton having seceded from the administra tion, another secretary of state for the southern depart ment was appointed in the month of May in the person of the Duke of Richmond, General Conway taking the northern department. CHAPTER XVI REPEAL OE STAMP ACT, 1766-1768 The repeal of the Stamp Act was hailed with the greatest demonstrations of joy. One mighty wave of enthusiasm swept through the land. The news was received in Anna poUs on the 22nd of May 1766, Both Houses of the Legislature were then in session, and they adjourned to the councU chamber, ' where loyal toasts were drunk, the guns at the dock at the same time firing,' The king's birthday, the 4th of June, was celebrated with firing of guns, the ine-vitable punch drinking, and in the evening a general iUumination, In his letter of 27th June to the secretary of state, the governor says : ' Such a sudden alteration in the Face of things and in the Behaviour of the People encourages me to hope that there is an end to aU Uneasiness and Discontent and Murmurings, and I am incUned to think His Majesty's Subjects within this Province wiU, for the future, be more studious than ever to demonstrate to our most gracious Sovereign their Loyalty, Duty, and Gratitude, and to the Mother Country their Thankfulness and affection,' In November 1766 the House of Delegates, ' taking into consideration the noble and spirited conduct of the Right Honourable WiUiam Pitt, now Earl of Chatham, and the Rt, Hon. Charles Pratt, now Lord Camden, Lord ChanceUor of England, in defending and supporting the rights and liberties of their feUow-subjects in general,' and as a lasting testimony of the gratitude of the freemen of Maryland, 226 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND unanimously decreed that a marble statue of Chatham should be erected in AnnapoUs, and a portrait of Camden by some eminent hand should be placed in the provincial court, A BiU was brought in to carry the resolution into effect, but was rejected by the Upper House. It was unanimously resolved, however, ' that the most grateful thanks and sincere acknowledgment be presented by Mr. Garth ^ to the Rt. Hon, the Eari of Chesterfield, the Rt. Hon. Lord Shel burne, Secretary Conway, Greneral Howard, Col. Barre, Sir George SaviUe, Alderman Beckford, and any other of the Lords and Commons Mr. Garth may think have acted the Uke glorious part of defending through principle the just rights of the Colonists, and that they be assured their memories wiU be endeared by their benevolence and regard to British America.' The assembly, ' impressed with a just sense of His Majesty's tender and affectionate regard for these colonies, manifested by his ready and cheerful assent to a repeal of the oppressive American Stamp Act,' on 6th December 1766 adopted an address to the king and transmitted it to the lord proprietary, with the request to present it to His Majesty. The address was as foUows : ' To the King's most exceUent Majesty : 'Most Gracious Sovereign: We, your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the Upper House of Assembly of the Province of Maryland, beg leave to present our unfeigned thanks for the recent and signal instance of your Royal Attention to the welfare of your Majesty's American Colonies. ' When we contemplate and compare their late distressed 1 Mr. Garth was a member of ParUament and agent for the province. REPEAL OF STAMP ACT, 1766-1768 227 condition and dismal prospect with their present situation, we admire the wisdom and justice of your Majesty's councils, to which they are indebted for the happy change ; and our hearts are fiUed with gratitude to the best of Sovereigns, for an event so highly interesting, not only to your American, but also to your British subjects ; the weUare of these colonies and that of your European dominions being absolutely inseparable. ' We take the Uberty to assure your Majesty that we shaU, by our conduct on aU occasions, endeavour to give continual proof of our zeal, loyalty, and respect to your Majesty and the ParUament of Great Britain ; with the greatest fervour we implore of Heaven that the tranquillity now restored throughout these Provinces, the affectionate regard of Great Britain towards her colonies, and their attachment to her, may be perpetual, and that your Majesty may long Uve to enjoy the pleasure it must afford you to see aU your subjects throughout your extensive dominions perfectly happy under your mild, equal, and auspicious government, Benjamin Taskek, President.' ' 6th December 1766,' Lord Baltimore writes to Governor Sharpe, 16th Feb ruary 1767 : ' I presented myself the address of the Upper House, His Majesty received it very graciously ; I had previously desired the Secretary of State to observe it, and he pro nounced it an Exceeding good one. The Lower House address had been presented a few days before, because it arrived first, I Ukewise deUvered your letter to Lord Shelburne. I have a great Happiness in the Harmony which subsists between the Upper House and myself. I look upon them, not as my dependents, but more like the 228 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND House of Peers in this country, as the middle part of the Legislature, to prevent the Lower House with their demo cratic spirit from destroying the present happy EstabUsh ment, sanctified by experience and the Pattern of their Mother Country, whose Constitution and government is by aU the world admired. ' I look upon the Upper House of Assembly in Maryland as composed of the Wisest men of the Province, and that when they differ from the Lower House they do it in support of their own just rights and of mine. This Liberty Lottery is a flagrant proof of the rash conduct of the Lower House, and ungenerous to me to the greatest degree. The Houses ought to have settled these things in a parUamentary way 't-wixt themselves, but shaU a Tribune go out and harangue the people -with a cry of Liberty against the Proprietor, as if he were a Bashaw ? This is Ucentiousness and not liberty,' The Liberty Lottery mentioned was organised by an association caUing themselves ' Sons of Liberty.' The sum of one thousand pounds was raised for the purpose of sending an agent to England to represent to the king the grievances of the Lower House of Representatives. At this time Lord Baltimore, with a seeming foreboding of troublous times in America, had given instructions to Governor Sharpe to sell his manors and tracts of land in the province of Maryland, which consisted of about three hundred thousand acres. He writes to the governor : ' I am extremely weU satisfied with your conduct in aU respects, and I entreat you to continue to exert your abiUties towards the sale of these manors, especiaUy Ann Arundel.' Sharpe reports a sale of part of Ann Arundel Manor, 7104 acres for the sum of £8919, Is. 9d. Secretary Hamersley writes in August 1767: 'The REPEAL OF STAMP ACT, 1766-1768 229 addresses from Maryland could not have been presented more opportunely to place her in a favourable Ught and contrast her with Massachusetts Bay and New York, upon whom the Government have set their mark, though the latter has already cried " Peccavi," and I presume the other wiU do the same.' Rockingham's short-Uved administration ended in July 1766, and Pitt came back to office. He formed a govern ment, with the Duke of Grafton as nominal prime minister, while the great Commoner himseU, now transformed into the Earl of Chatham, became Lord Privy Seal, He was no longer the popular idol of former days, and -with a strange apathy he stood aside, while the motley ministry he had caUed together stumbled into that dark road which led to dire disaster. In May 1767 the reckless Charles To-wnshend, ' a reputed man of genius, the leading wit of the day, the author of the famous champagne speech, and light and frothy as the beverage by which the speech was inspired,' then chanceUor of the exchequer, submitted a plan for raising a revenue from the colonies by imposing duties on glass, paper, white and red lead, painters' colours and tea. The Earl of Chatham's potent voice was silent. The fatal Act received the royal assent on 29th June 1767, The author of the measure did not Uve to see its fruits, for Charles Townshend died in November of the same year, and was succeeded by Lord North, who had opposed the repeal of the Stamp Act, and was in favour of using the most vigorous measures to reduce the colonies to a proper state of humiUation, It was he who declared that however prudence or policy might hereafter induce the Government to repeal the Act, he hoped they would never think of it until America was ' prostrate at their feet.' 230 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND During the interregnum between the repeal of the Stamp Act and the renewed excitement caused by the Revenue Act, Lieutenant-Governor Sharpe was busy administering the internal affairs of the province, and trying to ameUorate the condition of the convict ships. He writes of the crowded state of these ships and of the deadly jaU fever brought into the province, whereby scores of people were destroyed. In a Mr. Blake's family, Queen Anne's County, the governor says : ' Thro' a convict imported from Bristol the Lady herseU and more than twenty negroes died in the space of two months. , , , Those contractors who have only a certain number of vessels in the Maryland Trado, must, it seems, at particular times, empty the jails, and by that means it sometimes happens that they oblige the masters of their ships to receive on board twice the number they ought to bring, little anxious themselves of the consequences to the Inhabitants here, not very soUcitous whether or no the crowding too great a number of the poor wretches into a smaU compass may not be the means of destroying some of them. When there are more convicts to be sent out than their ships bound hither wiU receive conveniently, let them assign the Surplus to some other merchants who wiU be glad to take them off their hands or bring them hither for a reasonable freight ; and as only a moderate number wiU then be transported hither in any one ship, very few wiU lose their Uves on the Passage, and people here will not have such reason to dread their Arrival.' There are a couple of letters that teU a sad tale of one of these poor wretches. One is from the secretary of the Earl of Shelburne to Sharpe, dated WhitehaU, 26th May 1767: ' Sir, — I am commanded by the Earl of Shelburne to REPEAL OF STAMP ACT, 1766-1768 231 transmit to you a copy of His Majesty's Pardon for Thomas Sawyer, convicted at Gloucester for theft. The Pardon was issued too late for the unhappy man, who had sailed from Bristol in the ship Albion with other convicts, consigned by Messrs. Sedgeley, Wilhouse and Randolph, contractors at Bristol for the transportation of convicts, to their agents Thomas and WiUiam Reynolds in Maryland. I am there fore, in his Lordship's name, to recommend it to you, sir, to use your good offices in behaU of Sa-wyer, that Messrs. Rejmolds may send him properly back by the first good conveyance. Enclosed is the Pardon, ' " Greorge R, Whereas Thomas Sa-wyer was at the special commission held at Gloucester, indicted for and convicted of steaUng cheese and a pair of Shoes, and was sentenced to be transported for the same ; And whereas Some favour able Circumstances have been humbly represented to us, in his Behalf, inducing us to extend our Royal Mercy unto him, the said Thomas Sawyer to be inserted in our first and next General Pardon that shaU come out for the Oxford Circuit, and that in the meantime you take Bail for his appearance in order to plead our said Pardon ; And for so doing this shall be your warrant. ' " Given at our Court at St. James the 29th day of April 1767, in the seventh year of our Reign." ' The convict was sent back, but the end of the story is told in another letter to Sharpe : ' Sawyer died on his arrival at Portsmouth, The death of the poor convict was unlucky after so much pains taken by his friends to retrieve him.' The negro slaves, being more valuable, were better treated than the convicts or redemptioners. The foUowing advertisement from the Maryland Gazette is a typical one : ' Friday evening arrived here, AnnapoUs, in about six weeks 232 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND from Gambia, the Ship Upton, Captain Birch, with upwards of two hundred very Ukely healthy slaves which are aUowed by good judges to be as choice a Parcel of Negroes as has ever been imported into this Province, The sale of them begins this day.' A question now agitating the minds of churchmen was that of estabUshing a bishop in North America. A deputa tion from the north waited on Lieutenant-Governor Sharpe to obtain his support. He writes to Hamersley on the Oth June 1767 : ' I thought it my Duty to refer them entirely to His Lordship with whose Charter Rights and Prerogatives the Establishing of an Episcopate here may perhaps eventually interfere, for tho' by the scheme the Bishop is not to interfere in Civil Matters, and is only to make a Tour from time to time in order to confirm and ordain, it might be questioned whether all his successors wiU be satisfied without some greater share of Power and Influence than this alone wiU give them.' Hamersley writes in August : ' I am no friend to the Episcopal Scheme and though ordination at the Fireside may suit the In dolence and Poverty of some, perhaps not the most fit to exercise the function, yet " Timeo Danaos," nor shall I be very well pleased to purchase their SpirituaUtes at the expense of the Loaves and Fishes, which has always been the ultimate, if not the only view, adopted by the Church from the beginning of time, and I am too good an Englishman to wish to see aU the colonies united under the same Church Government.' He writes again in November : ' His Lordship by no means wishes to see an Episcopal Palace rise in America, or to have St. Peter's chair transferred to Maryland. He is determined to support his Charter Rights by whatever body of men attacked, especially to resist all church REPEAL OF STAMP ACT, 1766-1768 233 attacks, and much approves of your refusal to convene the body of the Clergy for that or any such purpose. Should you be blessed with a Bishop wiU he not want your ExceUency's Perquisites arising from Marriage Licenses ? ' The Rev, Jonathan Boucher of Virginia and afterwards of St, Anne's Church, AnnapoUs, whose able pen was wielded on the LoyaUst side during this period, maintained that the AngUcan Church in America had the right, by the introduction of bishops, to complete its o-wn necessary organisation there, and that this involved no menace to the religious or the civil liberties of the American people. In connection with the establishment of the American Episcopacy the foUowing story is of interest. In those stormy days of the eighteenth century, when Episcopacy in Scotland, Uke the cause of the Stuarts, was on the wane, Dr. Alexander Rose, Bishop of Edinburgh, was evicted from his cathedral of St. Giles, and the ancient Church of Scotland came near annihilation. Dr. Rose retired with the remnant of his congregation to Carrubber's Close, where a refuge was offered him by an old Episcopalian in whose house service was held every Sunday. As time passed the whole house became the church known after wards as St. Paul's. One Sunday a young American student in Edinburgh asked his landlady where he could find an Episcopal church. She belonged to the persecuted faith, and bade the stranger foUow her cautiously. From that time he became a worshipper at Carrubber's Close, His name was Samuel Seabury, By and by he returned to America determined to enter the Church. Years passed, and the day came when the EngUsh ParUament refused the episcopate to the revolted colonies, Samuel Seabury was the candidate refused. He thought then of the old 234 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND service in Carrubber's Close, and his Church sent him over to see if there remained in Scotland a bishop who would consecrate him. Thanks to the fortitude of a few strong and patient men, the ancient Episcopal Church of Scotland had survived its persecution, and Seabury was consecrated at Aberdeen the first bishop of the American Church, About this time there came to Maryland a protege of Lord Baltimore's, one Mr, Bennett AUen. In August 1766, the proprietary, in a letter to Governor Sharpe, says : ' I desire that you will be pleased to observe what has been men tioned to you in Relation to a Living for a particular friend of mine here in England, Mr. AUen of Oxford. I propose he shall have one of the best.' It was in November that the young gentleman, who afterwards became so notorious, appeared on the scene, and brought with him to the governor this letter of introduction from Lord Baltimore : ' The bearer hereof is Mr. Allen, the Oxford gentleman I sometime since mentioned to you, and as from the great desire he has of visiting America he has resigned a good appointment I would not have him a loser by the Exchange. As you say there are Livings vacant worth £150 sterling each, I should be glad Mr. AUen might hold two of those, tiU one of the best becomes vacant, to which I desire you wiU present him. I recommend Mr. AUen to your care and. notice as a person for whom I have a great esteem and friendship, and who wiU by his conduct, I daresay, recommend himseU to your favour and meet with the approbation of the rest of the clergy.' Hamersley speaks of AUen as a ' very sensible, valuable young gentleman.' When he arrived the governor offered him the choice of a couple of parishes on the eastern shore, which he decUned, preferring a smaUer charge in AnnapoUs. Lord Baltimore writes again: 'I hope your ExceUency REPEAL OF STAMP ACT, 1766-1768 235 enjoys weU your health, I have sent you a Box with a gold and steel sword, a plain steel one pierced, two Pitchers and two Muggs with covers which on account of the flys in summer wiU prove useful, I desire you will continue to patronise my good friend, Mr, Bennett Alien.' Mr. AUen was not satisfied, so the foUowing year Hamers ley writes : ' His Lordship is much concerned to find no further advance has been made in settling Mr. AUen to his entire satisfaction, and in a manner sufficiently expressive of his Lordship's great friendship and regard for him. By no means would his Lordship involve you or himseU in any Disputes about Pluralities, but if Mr. AUen can proceed no further in his ecclesiastical walk, he must strike into some other Path, and a civil employment must be found for him not inconsistent with his Function, His Lordship has therefore executed an immediate commission under his own Hand and Seal in favour of Mr. AUen, leaving the par ticular employ in blank, to be fiUed up by your ExceUency as soon as it arrives according to what shaU then offer.' That Mr. Bennett Allen had a facile pen is proved by the voluminous letters that appear in the archives. One is styled, ' A vindication of the Lord Proprietary's Supremacy over the Church in Maryland,' etc., and was evidently written to justify Mr. Allen's appointment to two or more livings. The governor was sorely puzzled what to do with Mr, AUen, for he wished to fulfil Lord Baltimore's behest, and yet he knew the storm that would arise in both the vestry and the Lower House concerning his appointment. He -wrote a diplomatic letter in reply counseUing delay. In his letter to Hamersley the governor says : ' Mr. AUen is fuUy persuaded he shaU by some means or other be able to carry his pouit and that the Assembly wiU never trouble 236 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND themselves about the matter, while I for my part am of a very different opmion and suspect that this spark alone wiU be sufficient to kindle a new Flame in the Country that wiU not soon be extinguished.' Mr. AUen was now getting into very hot water. He had had a violent quarrel with Mr. Samuel Chew of the vestry of St. James, had been tumed out of the latter's house, and in consequence a chaUenge had passed between them. The record of the quarrel, as told in the archives, gives a very striking picture of the manners of the newly imported Maryland parson. Mr. Chew had determined not to support his appointment to St. James, After a pause Mr, AUen said, ' I know where this sudden change comes from — Dulany.' Mr, Chew answered, ' Sir, you 've no right to reflect on any gentleman, for I give you my word and honour I have had no conversation with Mr, Dulany nor know his sentiments on it.' Mr. AUen repeated several times, ' I should doubt that.' A Bible lying on a desk near Mr. Chew, he laid his hand on it, and said : ' Sir, I can here solemnly swear that I have had no conversation with Mr. Dulany, nor know anything of his being your Enemy than you have told me yourseU.' Mr, AUen said : ' Notwith standing that, sir, I should doubt your word. Mr. Chew answered : ' What 's that you say, sir ? there 's the door.' Mr, Chew then caUed him a d d scoundrel, took him by the coUar, dragged him to the door, and put him out, telUng him to go and learn better manners before he came to a gentleman's house again. Mr. Chew's narra tion continues : ' On my attempting to bar the door he put his whole weight against it, upon which I aimed a Blow with a very good wiU, I must confess, at his Bald Pate, but unluckily the door took it, and thus he escaped a broken pate — the best part of his deserts. The next REPEAL OF STAMP ACT, 1766-1768 237 morning a servant brought a letter to Mr, Edmundson, Mr. AUen's curate, who was staying with me, enclosing one for me. I told him I would not receive a letter from such a scoundrel and threw it unopened into the fire, not dreaming, as it came from a Minister of the Gospel, that it could be a chaUenge. Notwithstanding Mr. Allen knew I had burnt his letter, and therefore could know nothing of the appointment, he most heroicaUy marched on the appointed day to the fleld of Battle. After that he went to Mr. Thomas's, and before he came away showed his pistols. Mr. T. told him he thought it strange he should carry them. The Minister replied, " I not only carry them but will make use of them." From thence he went to the Church, with his Pistols and a cane with a dirk in it, and preached a most insolent sermon.' A few months afterwards Mr. Bennett Allen was inducted into AU Saints, Frederick Town, the richest living in the colony. How he fared there is told in a letter from him to the governor : ' Fbedebick Town, %th June 1768. ' Sir, — I have a strange Detail of Occurrences to transmit to Your ExceUency since my arrival here. . . . Things went on very quietly and I did not surmise the least opposi tion tiU Saturday morning when Information was brought that Letters had arrived from Annapolis to one Murdoch, a vestryman, and that a Plan was laid to steal the Keys from the Sexton. There were private letters recommending aU kinds of violence even to murder, and that it was a shame I should have so good a Parish. I saw the storm and anticipated it. On Saturday I got the Keys, went into the church, read Prayers, the 39 Articles and my Induction. On Sunday having heard that the Locks were taken^off and the Door bolted within, I got up at four 238 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND o'clock, and by the Assistance of a Ladder unbolted them, getting in at a Window and left them on the jar, I went at ten o'clock and found aU the doors and Windows open. The vestry came up to me and spoke to me of Breach of Privileges, I said, " I am not acquainted with customs. I act by the letter of the Law. The moment the governor signs an Induction your power ceases." I saw they drew to the Doors of the Church. I got a Uttle advantage, leapt into the Desk, and made my apology and began the service. The Congregation was caUed out. I proceeded as if nothing had happened tiU the Second Lesson, I heard some commotion from without that gave me a Uttle Alarm, and I provided luckily against it. They caUed a number of their Bravest, that is to say, their largest men to puU me out of the Desk, I let the Captain come within two paces of me and clapt my Pistol to his Head. What consternation ! They accuse me of swearing I would shoot him and I believe I did swear, which was better than praying just then. They retired and I proceeded, but the Doors and Windows flying open and stones beginning to rattle, my aide-de-camp Mr. Dakins advised me to retreat. We walked through the midst of them facing about from time to time tiU we got to some distance, when stones began to fly, I luckily escaped any hurt. This I have the Dulanys to thank for. I -write in a hurry. I see they are inveterate. I beg your Excellency not to let anything transpire. I have ordered my Papers to be got in. I am going to Philadelphia. Have employed Mr. Goldie here as my curate, he is a favourite. These men forbid my entering the Church, and raised the Riot. I look upon my possession of the Living as vaUd and let the Law dispose of the Income. — Your Excellency's most obliged and humble servant, ' B. Allen.' REPEAL OF STAMP ACT, 1766-1768 239 Mr. Allen's subsequent career may be briefly told. He returned to England, where he -wrote for the Press, Remem bering his old grudge against the Dulanys, when Mr. Lloyd Dulany, a Tory refugee, came with his young wife to London in 1782, AUen published a scandalous piece in the newspaper about his brother Daniel. A duel followed, when Mr. Lloyd Dulany was kiUed, and Mr. AUen was tried for manslaughter and sent to Newgate for a term. Of another type altogether was the Rev. Jonathan Boucher, who became rector of St. Anne's Church, Anna poUs. In soUciting Lord Baltimore for a Uving for him, Sharpe says : ' At the request of Mr. Dulany, Mr. Tasker, Mr. Addison, and other gentlemen, I promised three years ago to recommend him for a smaU Uving in this part of the province, in order that gentlemen may have an opportunity of having their sons educated by him, he having given great satisfaction in the capacity of a Teacher of Languages,' Jonathan Boucher was born in England in 1738 and came to America in 1759 as tutor to the sons of a Virginian planter. He was ordained priest by the Bishop of London in 1762, and served as rector in Virginia and Maryland until 1775, when, on account of his opposition to the Revolu tion, he was outlawed and driven away. He was not only sincere and devout in his offices, but a brilUant scholar, an ardent poUtician, pamphleteer, and controversialist. He was a slaveholder, though he believed in the aboUtion of slavery, and treated his slaves with humanity and enlighten ment. In his autobiography he says no compliment paid him ever went so near his heart as that bestowed by a negro, who, when asked to whom he belonged, replied, ' To parson Boucher, thank God.' When, in 1775, he and his family had to flee from the country, they left their house amidst tears and cries of their slaves. He was a personal 240 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND friend of Washington, and whUe in AnnapoUs was tutor to Washington's step-son, yoxmg Custis, When the stormy days came that preceded the Revolution he fearlessly and openly took the LoyaUst side. In the last sermon he preached in America, he says : ' If I am to credit some surmises which have been kindly whispered in my ear, unless I wiU forbear to pray for the King you are to hear me pray no longer. Entertaining aU respect to my ordina tion vows I am firm in my resolution, whilst I pray at aU, to conform to the unmutilated Uturgy of my Church ; and reverencing the injunction of the Apostle I wiU continue to pray for the " King and aU in authority under him." As long as I live, therefore, yes, while I have my being, wiU I, with Zadok the priest, and -with Nathan the prophet, proclaim " God save the King." ' For six months he teUs us he had preached ' with a pair of loaded pistols on the cushion ; having given notice that if any one attempted what had long been threatened, to drag me out of the pulpit, I should think myseU justified in repeUing violence by violence.' When he returned to England he was made vicar of Epsom. In 1797 he pubUshed in London thirteen sermons he had preached in Virginia and Maryland between the years 1763 and 1775, The book was entitled, A View of the Causes and Consequences of the American Revolution. It is said that nowhere else probably can be found so com prehensive, so able, and so authentic a presentation of the principles and motives of the American LoyaUsts, par ticularly from the standpoint of a High Church clergyman of great purity and steadiness of character, and of great moral courage, than in these sermons, Jonathan Boucher died at Epsom in 1804. Boucher's letters to Washington were placed in the hands of Thackeray by Frederick Locker, grandson to Boucher, CHAPTER XVII last years in mar-sxand, 1768-1773 The Revenue Act was to go into effect in November, and in the meantime the indignation of America was growing stronger, fanned by the letters, pamphlets, satirical verses, sermons, etc., that were poured forth weekly through the length and breadth of the land. Governor Sharpe -writes to his brother in February 1768 : ' You wiU see by the enclosed papers caUed the " Pennsylvania Farmer's Letters," which are repubUshed in aU the colonies, how soUcitous some people are to rouse once more the resentment of the Americans against the Mother Country on account of the Act of ParUament imposing a duty on glass, etc' John Dickinson, the author of these letters, was a young barrister of Philadelphia. He was bom in Maryland in 1732, and was most highly educated. He has been caUed the ' penman of the Revolution,' and was a most prolific •writer. The celebrated ' Letters from a Farmer in Penn sylvania ' were twelve in number, the last appearing in February 1768. Strange to say, the author, who did so much to rouse pubUc feeUng on the subject of colonial rights, was later in disrepute himseU, because he was not in favour of the independence of the United States. ' Let us behave,' he says in one of his letters, ' like dutiful children who have received unmerited blows from a beloved parent. Let us complain to our parent ; but let our complaints speak at the same time the language of affection and venera tion.' He protests against any thought of independence 242 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND as of a ' fatal calamity.' This was the tone of most of the political writers of that time. They counseUed loyalty to the monarch whUe resisting the action of the ministry. On account of the colonies entering into a non-impor tation agreement, the Revenue Act became exceedingly unpopular in England, At the close of the session of 1769 Lord HiUsborough, secretary of state, declared that the king would not lay any further taxes on America for the purpose of raising a revenue, but at the next session would take off the duties upon glass, paper, and colours, ' upon consideration of such duties having been laid contrary to the true principles of commerce.' Unfortunately the tax was left upon tea merely to ' mark a principle,' and the action of the Government, instead of allaying the popular agitation in America, only increased it. ' No man ever doubted,' exclaimed Burke ^ in the House of Commons, ' that the commodity of tea could bear an imposition of threepence. But no commodity wiU bear threepence, or will bear a penny, when the general feeUngs of men are irritated, and two miUions of people are resolved not to pay.' Meanwhile, in Maryland Horatio Sharpe was doing what he could to appease the discontented and to reconcile the conflicting Houses of Assembly. The good govemor, how ever, was not destined to keep the reins of power much longer. His dismissal from office was on the road, as follows : ' Sir, — The Purport of this letter is to acquaint you that I have appointed my brother-in-law, Robert Eden, to succeed you as Lieut.-Governor of Maryland. I return 1 'Edmund Burke, the Irish adventurer, as members of aristocratic connections called him, without a landed estate or any capital but genius and learning, who had done Rockingham the honour to select him as his political patron,' — Goldwin Smith, The United Kingdom. LAST YEARS IN MARYLAND, 1768-1773 243 your ExceUency my utmost thanks for your extreme good Conduct during your administration, which nothing but Fraternal Affection could have made me wish to have altered. — I am, with the greatest Esteem and Consideration, Your Excellency's Sincere Friend and most Obedt. Servant, ' F. Baltimore.' Lord Baltimore's sister had married Mr. Eden, a lieutenant in the Coldstream Guards, a younger brother of Sir John Eden, Bart., and the position in Maryland was wanted for him. Unfortunately this letter and one from Mr. Hamersley were delayed on the voyage, and the faithful governor had the mortiflcation of hearing from others the news of his deposition from office. He had been Ueutenant- govemor for more than fifteen years, a wonderful record considering the many changes that had taken place in the neighbouring provinces. Of those who had served in his council many had passed away, among whom this year was the Hon. Benjamin Tasker, who had welcomed him on his arrival in Maryland. The governor writes : ' It is not -without very great concern that I advise you of the Loss we have suffered in the death of Mr. Tasker who died last Sunday after an Indisposition of about a fortnight. He was, I think, more than seventy-eight years old, but until this sickness seized him as hearty, cheerful, and in appearance Ukely to live many years. He had been a member of the Council ever since 1722, and president of that Board for twenty years.' His only son predeceased him. Even in October the July letters from Secretary Hamersley and Lord Baltimore had not reached the govemor, who was evidently perplexed at the silence. Sharpe writes to the former rather cooUy : ' I see by the late Northern Papers, 244 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND copied from some London papers of August, that Lord Baltimore went abroad soon after he had appointed Captain Eden to succeed me as Lieutenant-Governor.' On the SOth of October the missing letters appeared, having been just three months on their way. The good- natured govemor writes in reply : ' It affords me great satisfaction to be assured by My Lord himseU as well as by you that my Conduct in general during the time I have had the honour to bear his Com mission hath met with his Approbation and that his Ldp. stiU entertains a favourable opinion of me. The reason his Ldp. condescends to give for appointing me a Successor is very sufficient and satisfactory, the Expectations Captain Eden had entertained from the time he had made such an aUiance were natural and extremely reasonable, and I sincerely wish he may from their being now fulfiUed derive much benefit and happiness. That my Administration here was drawing to a Conclusion I had great room to expect from many hints Mr. Jordan thought fit to drop while he was in the Province, nor was I at aU concemed thereat, for really, to speak my mind freely, I had within these two years met with some rubs and had some difficulties to encounter that made me uneasy and which it is altogether needless to recount to any one not an entire stranger to late Transactions in the Province. Happy in a Conscious ness that I have, during the course of my Administration, discharged my duty to the utmost of my abiUties towards his Ldp. and towards the people over whom I have had the honour to preside, I flatter myself I shaU not when I become a Private Person be the less respected or esteemed, and that I shaU be as happy in Cultivating my Garden after resigning to Captain Eden the Reins of Government as I have ever been since I came to America, Whenever WHITEHALL— REAR VIEW To face p. 245 LAST YEARS IN MARYLAND, 1768-1773 245 he arrives I shaU receive him with CordiaUty as an Officer, a man of honour, and the brother of one to whom I am under great obUgations,' Govemor Eden did not arrive until June 1769, when Horatio Sharpe finaUy gave up office. On the arrival of the new govemor. Colonel Sharpe left Government House, and took up his residence at his beloved WhitehaU. Here in the exercise of a generous hospitaUty and the management of his estate he was supremely happy. His portrait that stiU hangs over the mantelpiece in the dining-room of WhitehaU (probably painted by Hesselius, the pupil of Godfrey KneUer), represents him as a man of middle age, tall and stately, with strong, clear features and steadfast eyes. He is dressed in a dark red uniform of the fashion of the eighteenth century. The laced waistcoat comes nearly to the knee, and the coat is elaborately made, with flap pockets and great cuffs, from underneath which fall lace ruffles. Many were the parties given at WhitehaU by the genial host, and its poUshed floors were often trodden by the feet of the merry young people who assembled there and danced to the music of the old spinet. There is a story told that John Ridout's handsome sister Mary crossed the ocean to pay a visit to her brother, and that George Washington was her partner at a dance, while Benjamin FrankUn played the time on musical glasses. Whether this notable event took place at WhitehaU or Duke of Gloucester Street history does not say, but this is the legend that is attached to a portrait that hangs in a country-house near Bristol, Young people were especiaUy fond of this good ex-governor, and many happy boatloads sailed from AnnapoUs by the Sevem round Greenbury Point to visit his deUghtful country home. 246 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Hamersley still -wrote to Colonel Sharpe, In a letter of the 13th July 1771 he says : ' I have heard from His Lordship from Linden on Borden- see within these few days ; he writes in good spirits, speaks favourably of His Health, and Contradicts aU the Reports spread of him from Florence, Vienna, etc., of Duels, Murthers and Hairbreadth Escapes, He has sold his Home in Southampton Row and makes no mention of returning to England. I hope you continue to enjoy your Health, and am, etc' Frederick, Lord Baltimore, died at Naples on the 14th of September 1771, leaving no legitimate children. The title therefore became extinct. He had married in 1753 Lady Diana Egerton, daughter of the Duke of Bridgewater, who died shortly afterwards, the result of a carriage accident while out driving with her husband, Louisa Browning, eldest sister of Frederick, under the will of her father, the fifth Lord Baltimore, became entitled to the proprietaryship of Maryland, Her claim was disputed by Henry Hertford, the iUegitimate son of Frederick, sixth Lord Baltimore, to whom the province had been left by wiU, the executors being Hugh Hamersley, Robert Eden, Robert Morris of Lincoln's Inn, and Peter Provost, During the time the suit in chancery was going on as to the succession, news arrived in England that the United States of America had declared themselves independent of Great Britain, so the question was settled for ever, Robert Eden, we read, had not the fine manners and popular ways of Horatio Sharpe, Still he sought to ingrati ate himself with the people by attempting to redress every grievance except the great grievance of aU, which, before he had been in the province many weeks, he knew could not be redressed except in one way. But the contest had LAST YEARS IN MARYLAND, 1768-1773 247 not yet actuaUy begun, and was not advanced enough for men to prognosticate when it would come. Meanwhile, until it did come, the two sides, Uke swordsmen who knew that they must soon battle in mortal combat, maintained relations of the most distinguished courtesy with one another. There never was more gaiety in AnnapoUs and throughout the State than at the time of, and just after Eden's arrival. The social whirl resembled, of course on a reduced scale, the giddy excitement of Paris just before the outbreak of the great Revolution, and the cause was probably the same : men took their deUght to-day because they knew not ' what to-morrow might bring forth.' A few leaves from George Washington's Diary will per haps give a better picture than can be found elsewhere of social Ufe in AnnapoUs from 1771 to 1773 : ' September 1771. — On a visit to Annapolis, September 24th, — Dined with the Governor and went to the Play and the BaU afterwards. September 25th. — Dined at Doctor Stewart's and went to the Play and Ball afterwards. September 26th. — Dined at Mr. Ridout's and went to the Play. September 27th. — Dined at Mr. Carroll's and went to the BaU. September 28th. — Dined at Mr. Boucher's and went from there to the Play and afterwards to the Coffee House. ' October 4th, 1772, — Set off for the Annapolis Races. Dined and Lodged at Mr. Boucher's. October 5th. — Reached Annapolis, Dined at the Coffee House with the Kosky Club and lodged at the Governor's after going to the Play. October 6th, — Dined at Major Jenifers — went to the BaU, and Supped at the Governor's. October 7th. — Dined at the Governor's and went to the Play afterwards. October Sth. — Dined at Mr. Lloyd's and went to the Play — from thence early to my Lodgings. October 9th. — Dined 248 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND at Mr. Ridout's, went to the Play and to the Govemor's to supper. October 10th. — Dined with Mr, CarroU of CarroUton, and set out for Mr. Boucher's, at whicli place I arrived about eight o'clock. October Ilth. — Got home to a late dinner — John Parke Custis came with me. ' September 26th, 1773. — I set off for the AnnapoUs Races. Dined at Mr. RoUin's and got into AnnapoUs between five and six o'clock. Spent ' the evening and lodged at the Governor's. September 27th. — Dined at the Govemor's and went to the Play in the Evening. September 28th. — Again dined at the Governor's and went to the Play and the BaU in the Evening. September 29th. — Dined at Mr. Sprigg's and went to the Play in the Evening. September SOth. — Dined at Mr. Ridout's and spent the afternoon. Supped at Mr. Jenifer's and spent the Even ing. October 1st. — Still at Annapolis. Dined with Mr. Ogle, Spent the Evening at the Govemor's. October 2nd. — Set off on my return home. Dined at Marlborough and Lodged at home. Mr. Custis came with me.' WiUiam Eddis, an EngUshman who had come out to Maryland as surveyor of customs, has left in his letters a most vivid picture of the times. His estimate of the ex-govemor's character is worthy of notice. He writes : ' Colonel Sharpe has resided many years in this country ; where he has estabUshed a reputation which reflects the highest honour on his pubUc capacity and on his private virtues. This gentleman does not seem to entertain any idea of returning to his native land, but appears incUned to spend the residue of his days within the Umits of a province which he has so long governed with honour to himseU, satisfaction to the people, and fidelity to his sovereign. Had Governor Eden been appointed to succeed a person who had consulted his private advantage in oo33HDOQ LAST YEARS IN MARYLAND, 1768-1773 249 preference to that of the pubUc, who had been found unequal to the discharge of his important trust or remiss in the execution, it would have required no extraordinary exertion of abilities to have appeared in a favourable point of view. But his immediate predecessor, by the invariable rectitude of his conduct, the affabiUty of his manners, and his unremitting attention to the happiness and prosperity of Maryland had estabUshed a well-merited popularity which during an administration of sixteen years continued in fuU force and has secured him the unabated love and attachment of a grateful people.' Eddis's lively pen sketches AnnapoUs as it appeared to him in 1770, He says : ' I am persuaded there is not a to-wn in England of the same size which can boast a greater number of fashionable and handsome women, and were I not satisfied to the contrary I should suppose that the majority of our beUes possessed every advantage of a long and famiUar intercourse with the manners and habits of your great metropoUs, The quick importation of fashion is adopted earUer by the poUshed and affluent Americans than by many opulent persons in London. Nor are oppor tunities wasted to display superior elegance. There are many lovely women who have never passed the boundaries of their respective provinces, and yet I am persuaded might appear to great advantage in the most briUiant circles of gaiety and fashion.' Another writer, the Abbe Robin, says : ' There appears to be more wealth and luxury in Annapolis than in any other city which I have visited in this country. The extravagance of the women here surpasses that of our own provinces : a French hairdresser is a man of great import ance : one lady here pays her coiffeur a salary of a thousand crowns.' 250 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND To return to Horatio Sharpe, The idyUic Ufe at White haU did not long continue. In 1773 he was summoned to England by family affairs, one of his brothers having lately died. Politics had nothing to do with his departure, for, though clouds were gathering, there was nothing then that pointed to the disruption that was so soon to foUow. He set sail on 10th July 1773, in the ship Richmond, Captain Love. He was accompanied by Mrs. Ridout's mother, Mrs. Ogle, and her grandson Samuel, John Ridout's eldest son, who was then a lad of eight and had been entered at Harrow. There also went in the same vessel John Bordley, aged nine, the son of John Beale Bordley, bound for the same school.^ The fareweUs were said, none dreaming that it was a last fareweU to some, and that eleven years would pass before the family would be reunited. Much was to happen in the interval. It was not until November 1773 that tidings were received by the anxious parents of the safe arrival of the ship in England, It had met with a succession of gales, and was nearly wrecked off Cape Henry, The voyage ended happUy, however. The boys were placed at Harrow, Mrs. Ogle, who had a daughter married and settled in London (Mrs, Anderson), went to her house, and Colonel Sharpe, after a short stay at Tower HiU and Chelsea, took lodgings for the winter in Bond Street. Subsequently his mother bought a house in SaviUe Row, where he resided for some time. He had left the entire manage- ' In Judge Bordley's pocket register of 1773 is the following memorandum : ' July 10th, Saturday. Son John sailed tor England in the Rich/mond, Captain Love, from the mouth of South River, wind west and continued fair all Sunday and part of Monday so that I expect she put out of the Capes, Sunday night. Colonel Sharpe, Mrs. Ogle and Sammy Ridout, fellow-passengers,' CAMEO PORTRAIT OF GOVERNOR SHARPE {To face p. 251 LAST YEARS IN MARYLAND, 1768-1773 251 ment of his estate in America in the hands of his friend John Ridout. The letters interchanged give a vivid picture of affairs in England and Maryland, and permit us to foUow the progress of the quarrel between the parent state and its wiUul child. CHAPTER XVIII LA DEBACLE On the 2Sth of November 1773 a vessel containing a large quantity of tea arrived in the harbour of Boston, foUowed by two others. The story has been often told how Boston cast the cargo overboard, how England retaUated by closing the port, and how the sister colonies raUied round Massa chusetts, The Boston Port BiU received the assent of the king on the 31st of March 1774, This was foUowed by another BiU ' for the better regulation of the Government of Massachusetts Bay,' which practicaUy deprived Massa chusetts of its charter. Another Act was passed which ordained that any person indicted for capital offences committed in aiding the magistrates in the execution of the laws, might be sent by the governor to any other colony or to England for trial. Another authorised the quartering of soldiers in the houses of the citizens. Then came the Quebec BiU, which granted to Roman CathoUcs greater privileges, estabUshed a legislative council with arbitrary power, and extended the Umits of the province of Canada so as to comprehend the territory between the lakes, the Ohio, and the Mississippi. General Gage was now appointed governor of Massa chusetts. ' AU America is in a fiame,' writes Eddis. ' The colonists are ripe for any measures that wiU tend to the preservation of what they caU their natural Uberty,' In Annapolis a meeting was held condemning the action of ParUament in blocking the harbour of Boston, and resolu- 262 HALL OF THE CHASE HOUSE [ To face /. 25;:; LA DEBACLE 253 tions were passed to put a stop to all exports to and imports from Great Britain until the Act should be repealed. Almost simultaneously Maryland and Virginia proposed a congress of the colonies. This was held in Philadelphia on the 5th of September 1774. Maryland's three delegates were Robert Golds borough, WiUiam Pace, and Samuel Chase. Eddis says : ' The Canada BiU is as unpopular as the Boston Port BiU, and adds greatly to the universal discontent. It is high time some methods were adopted to conciliate their grow ing differences. The colonies are daily gaining incredible strength. They know, they feel their importance, and persuasion, not force, must retain them in obedience.' In November the congress had finished its labours. The members had dra-wn up a petition to His Majesty ; and addresses to Great Britain, to Canada, and the confederating American colonies. The petition was said to be a masterly performance, firm, expUcit, and respectful, and the different addresses pathetic, persuasive, and moderate. In October 1774 came the burning of the ship Peggy Stewart in AnnapoUs, with aU its attendant commotion. Anthony Stewart's brig, loaded with tea from London was entered at the port, the owner paying the duty (imposed by Act of the British ParUament) against the wiU of the people of AnnapoUs. A stormy meeting of the inhabitants was the result, when the unfortunate owner was seized and compeUed to sign a paper declaring himself sorry for the offence he had given, and offering to destroy the tea and the vessel as an atonement. One of the owners of the tea, Thomas Charles WiUiams, had arrived in New York that very day by the ship Samson, a fellow-passenger with Thomas Ridout, a young brother of the Hon. John Ridout, to whose care and good offices 254 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND he had been consigned by his parents in England. Letters of introduction to Robert Morris and Thomas WilUng had been sent by the brother to meet this youth in New York, but these miscarried, and young Ridout's apparent con nection with WiUiams nearly proved his undoing. He tells of his adventure in an old memoir which stiU survives, and whose recital throws a curious sidelight on the tea story : ' I took leave of my parents for the last time and embarked in the Downs the 4th Sept. 1774 for New York, where I arrived after seven weeks' passage. In the vessel went also a passenger, the merchant who had shipped a few weeks before some tea to Annapolis in Maryland against the express rules of the convention then sitting at AnnapoUs, His anxiety on his arrival was I perceived very great, but two days passing away and hearing no news of his tea he flattered himself that all things were weU. The arrival of the post, however, undeceived him. He learned that his tea and vessel had been burnt by an enraged populace, and that in consequence of it his life was in danger. In an hour's time New York was in quest of him. He escaped, but I was in danger of feeUng the effects of his indiscretion, to say no worse of it ; for having since his arrival been always in his company and lodging together I was by many looked on as an accompUce, and as such was forbidden entrance to the house where I lodged. A gentleman, Hugh WaUace, who was a member of the King's Council and an acquaintance of my brother, hearing of my arrival, protected me, and by his attentions I was secured from insult.' ^ ' In the face of Thomas Ridout's recital, it is curious to read an item from the Boston Gazette of 17th November 1774 : ' Letters from New York, 27th October. •Thos. Charles Williams who arrived at New York per ship Samson from London is extremely uneasy at a report being spread that he shipped LA DEBACLE 255 On the 1st of December the general non-importation resolutions came into force, and thousands of manufacturers in England were threatened with ruin. America was in deed ' a land of trouble,' as the new governor of Maryland found. From across the sea Sharpe watched the conflict that was going on with the keenest interest, his hopes not yet extinguished, while John Ridout stood shoulder to shoulder with him in Annapolis, striving for reconciliation, and using every effort to keep the province loyal to the Crown. That his efforts and those of the other Loyalists in the Council were very powerful is evidenced by the fact that Samuel Chase and his party had the greatest difficulty in obtaining the vote of the assembly for independence. Chase harangued the country for weeks, but did not carry the vote until Friday, 1st July 1776. He left immediately on horseback for Philadelphia, arriving there on Monday morning, 4th July, just in time to place Maryland with the other revolt ing colonies. But this is anticipating events. In March 1775 Eddis writes : ' From one extremity of this continent to the other every appearance indicates approach ing hostilities. Very considerable subscriptions have been made in every quarter for the relief of the Bostonians, large sums have been Ukewise coUected for the purchase of arms and ammunition.' Yet few beUeved that England the tea lately destroyed at Annapolis, Ind. He assures the public the said report is groundless, and entreats they will suspend their opinion upon that matter a few days when he hopes to give them the fullest proofs of his innocence,' That he did ship the tea is further proved in the Anthony Stewart papers in the British Government archives, wherein is to be found 'Williams Memorial to the British Treasury in 1777.' See letter to the BaUimore News, 13th April 1905, by Richard D. Fisher, Baltimore. 256 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND would resort to arms. Eddis continues : ' She wiU be more just, more tender to her offspring, the voice of reason wiU prevail. Our grievances will be redressed and she wiU be found to the end of time a kind — a fostering parent. But admitting that Great Britain was determined to enforce a submission to all her mandates, even in that case we have Uttle cause to apprehend that she wiU unsheath the sword and establish her decrees in the blood of thousands.' In April came the news of Lexington, where the ' em battled farmers ' with their rifles gained the advantage over the king's troops who had been sent by Gage to seize arms and ammunition. In the meantime, in England both Houses of ParUament had addressed the king, request ing him to enforce the Acts and to increase the army in America. The news of this probably hastened hostiUties, as it was advisable to reduce General Gage before he could be reinforced. There was stiU a peace party who wished for reconciUation, and thought that the colonies ought to contribute more UberaUy towards the maintenance of the army in return for the protection afforded by Great Britain. From Virginia came news that in April the powder and stores of ammunition had been removed by order of his Excellency Lord Dunmore from the magazine at WiUiams burg by some marines belonging to one of His Majesty's vessels at that station. In order to prevent the same thing happening in AnnapoUs, some of those known as the patriotic party waited on the governor, asking him to deliver into their keeping the arms, powder, and stores belong ing to the province. With the consent of his council, and to avoid a riot, the governor agreed to comply with the requisition. A circular letter was now sent by Lord Dart mouth to the governors of the different colonies, containing LA D:fiBACLE 257 a resolution of the House of Commons relative to a con- ciUatory plan. But the affair at Lexington had hardened men's hearts, and strengthened the ' patriotic party.' In July 1775 things had gone from bad to worse. Bunker's HiU had foUowed Lexington, and the regulars, though they drove the provincials from their entrenchments, had suffered severely, Eddis -writes of Maryland : ' In every district of this Province the majority of the people are actuaUy under arms ; almost every hat is decorated with a cockade ; and the churUsh drum and fife are the only music of the time. Numbers are now preparing to bid fareweU to a coimtry where they cannot possibly remain with any degree of safety, unless they take an active part in the opposition to the measures of Govemment.' Horatio Sharpe writes from London to John Ridout on the Ilth of October 1774 : ' The situation of affairs in America was undoubtedly the strongest if not the sole motive that has influenced the ministry to advise so sudden a dissolution of the present parUament which happened the SOth day of September. The writs are returnable by the 29th of November foUowing, at which time Parliament is to meet for the Despatch of Business, a period devoutly to be wished for. If the Plan deUvered by the select committee of Pennsylvania unto their Assembly be adopted, at the General Congress, I have the most sanguine expectations that a firm and lasting agreement might at this critical conjuncture be brought about to the satisfaction of both Great Britain and the Colonies. ' With pain and anxiety shall I await the Resolutions of the General Congress, for my regard and affection for all America is too sincere to be void of fear, and God grant that these ultimate resolves be not only reasonable, but B 258 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND conducted with that coolness ever essential to tmdertakings of so great moment. The Repeal of the Boston Port Bill will, on satisfaction being made to the India House, meet with very Uttle opposition. But as to the Act for altering the Massachusetts Charter, I am afraid it is not to be got over. The Act directing tryals here for offences com mitted in America being such a one as never could be weU carried into execution, it could only be passed in terrorem, therefore, I have some hopes it may not be insisted on too strenuously, and the granting an annual aid for the support of the British Empire wiU in my opinion remove aU pretences whatever for laying for the future any additional taxes for the sole purpose of raising a revenue in America. Should this favourable oppor tunity be slipt God knows the evils that may attend America, ' It is true the people here cannot but be great sufferers by so unhappy a dissension, but what -wiU that be when compared to the distresses that must unavoidably attend the people of America, Maryland and Virginia in particular, should the non-importation of tobacco take place. Are we to give up a staple to cultivate what ? Wheat ? WiU that, when so generaUy gone into, afford an equivalent to the cost for maintaining and clothing themselves and negroes ? I am afraid not, nor do I know what -wiU. It may be said that he that is industrious -wiU produce some what to pay for his subsistence and clothing, but -wiU that be the case of the poor and needy in Maryland 1 I am rather inclined to believe they -wiU endeavour to force a subsistence from those they think may have it to spare. Love of gain is so implanted in our nature that the people cannot be long kept from it, but wiU give up or risk every thing for the attainment of it, and say with the Dutchman LA DlfiBACLE 259 that to prosecute his gain he would sail thro' Hell at the risk of singeing his sails. ' This, I think, sufficiently shows the absurdity of a non-importation and a non-exportation act, and com pels me most sincerely to wish that affairs may be so conducted as to meet with a speedy and happy issue to us aU. ' There is little or nothing at present to be done here ; aU is bustle and confusion, and there it wiU remain until the middle of next month, at which time the elections will be pretty weU over. Mr. Wilkes is Lord Mayor and stands fair to be elected a member of Parliament for the county of Middlesex. It is said that several of the old ministerial members wiU be forced to give up their seats to those of another complexion. This may perhaps be the case with respect to a few counties, but it is not so with the cities and Boroughs except London, Westminster, and the Borough of Southwark, for which last place Mr. Wm. Lee, late Sheriff, formerly of Virginia, who married Miss Ludwell, stands a PoU, but he wiU not I imagine carry his election. If General Lee, alias Mad Lee, is not possessed of an easy fortune, he may perhaps repent his trip to America, for his Knight errantry thro' that part of the world is no secret at St. James. ' I shaU rejoice to hear you have received benefit from the warm springs and that your pleasures were uninter rupted by the savages. [Mr. Ridout had bought a large tract of land on the Potomac, near the Berkeley Springs, and had a log cabin at TonoUoway.] You wiU be pleased to present my hearty compUments to Mr. and Mrs. Golds borough and family, aU the Carrols, and other friends of whatever sex or age, particularly Beale Bordley, and sincerely -wishing Mrs. Ridout and little ones health and 260 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND prosperity, your much obUged friend and humble servant, Sam is very weU at Harrow, but I have not been able as yet to pay him a visit. Mrs. Ogle and your humble servant wait with impatience to take Mrs, Ridout and family by the hand and pray ship yourselves off as early in the Spring as you can. If you bring a few hambs as a present to Mr. Hamersley they wiU be kindly received. Don't forget the Red Bird I -wrote you about. My compUments to Dr, Scott,' He writes again : ' London, ith December 1774, ' This letter you wiU find very short for want of time, having just received notice that Mr. RusseU sends his letters away to-morrow morning. Your favour of the 20th September did not come to hand tiU yesterday, nor is Captain Herrick yet in the river, his ship having, by a violent gale of wind, with many others been driven out of the Downs, but they are now returned there again, and we are waiting for a wind to bring them up the river. I have had a return of my cold this FaU and am not yet recovered, which has prevented my paying a visit to Harrow according to promise, but I wiU as soon as I con veniently can in order to converse with the master and find out his real sentiments relative to Sam's capacity or readiness at his book. As I am not in immediate want of cash nor shaU not for some months to come, I shaU expect no remittances except what you shaU bring yourseU, and the sooner I see you and Mrs. Ridout (to whom my best compUments) and the Uttle ones the better, for if I return to Maryland as Governor, of which you are not to say a word, I am afraid they wiU aUow me but a short time as things are now circumstanced, so that the latter end of next FaU or early in the Spring of '76 wiU be the utmost LA DlfiBACLE 261 Umit, and this solely depends on Governor Eden quitting the Government, which he had not resolved on when he left London, Though his brother the Secretary has since assured me that he wiU not tarry in Maryland, but of this be also silent. At present I am weU satisfied they have no thought of displacing you.' During Governor Sharpe's regime in 1760, Mr, Ridout had been appointed coUector of customs at the port of AnnapoUs, and Dr, Upton Scott sheriff, appointments made, as Colonel Sharpe said in one of his letters, ' not only on account of esteemed friendship, but for their personal merits to worthily fiU these offices better than any other I could appoint ' (Ilth October 1774), Another letter from London of the ISth December the same year speaks of receiving a cargo of tobacco from Mr. Ridout by Captain Love, He continues : ' I had previous to your letters received inteUigence of the death of Mr, Wolstenholme, and immediately took every step I could think of to procure his office for you, and desired Mrs, Ogle to write to Lord Essex and Mr. Bladen, which she has done,^ Whether we shaU succeed or not is uncertain, as appUcation had been made to Lord North the very day before I received the information. God bless you and yours.' Governor Eden had paid a visit to England during the summer, but was ordered back by Lord Dartmouth in August 1774, Another letter from Sharpe of the 20th of May 1775 speaks of one from John Ridout of the 25th of February only reaching him that day. What wonder that * Lady Essex was first cousin to Mrs. Ogle, who was a frequent visitor at Cassiobury Park, where Samuel Ridout spent many of his holidays with his school friend young St. John, son of Lord Bolingbroke. A sister of Lady Essex was married to a brother of Lord Bolingbroke. 262 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND there were misunderstandings between the two countries, when communication was so slow ! Things were growing darker, and Sharpe says : ' I cannot but lament the near approach of that unhappy period that wiU deprive us of every other mode of conveyance, -with the additional postage from Boston (where the Packet is now ordered) to New York. FareweU to our poUtical correspondence. No more pamphlets, no more newspapers. What a change ! God alone forsees the end of it. However, as every good man ought, I wiU fervently pray for a speedy and happy union between the Colonies and the mother country. By this opportunity you wiU receive an account of aU money transactions between you and me except the tobacco, which is not yet all sold, but wUl be shortly. ' I have cautioned Mr. MolUsson against drawing the cord too tight, and by what he teUs me it wiU produce three pence or threepence haUpenny a pound, of wliich you shaU have as early an account as possible. You wiU also receive the Public Ledger to this day, and should any other ship sail for Maryland a fortnight hence you wiU then have the Parliamentary Register which comes out monthly. Your observations on the governor quitting the Province with a professed declaration not to return unless a repeal of aU the offensive acts should take place, are certainly most just. If he gives up the Governorship before harmony is restored there are but few men that would accept it, of which number I shaU not make one.' Sharpe writes on the 20th of May 1775, referring to the possible resignation of Governor Eden : ' Mr, Browning is the man to whom the government of the Province wiU be offered, and I am apt to think his circumstances are such as wiU induce him to accept of it, particularly if nothing turns up to encourage him in a MRS. GEORGE SAMUEL OGLE AND CHILD {Nee Anne Tasker) {To face p. 262 LA DEBACLE 263 more steady pursuit of his claim to the Province. His claim my brother thinks very favourably of. ' The Governor certainly judges right in leaving the Province with regard to his Brother's interest, but how it wiU be approved of by the Ministry I know not, ' His brother the Deputy Secretary has great interest, and it may be passed over, ' We are going into mourning for the Queen of Denmark, who died at ZeU a few days past. I have much more to say, but have not time. My compUments to Dr, Scott and let him know that he wiU soon be in Fortune's Cup, I -wiU send the numbers of the tickets by the first opportimity after my purchase, 'Mrs. Ogle and Sam are weU, but I have had a fever and ague. It is over, and I am in high spirits, — Your most sincere and affectionate friend.' On the 4th of July 1775 a letter from Colonel Sharpe teUs of the contest that was going on in the courts for the proprietorship of Maryland between Messrs. Hertford and Browning. ' So imprecedented and of such consequence was this cause held,' he says, ' that the Judge, lest he should be charged as I suppose with giving too hasty a determination, thought it proper to order a second hearing. However, by what dropt from the Judge during the argu ment, it appeared to many as if it should be determined in favour of Mr, Browning, Before I say more I shaU observe that according to the ancient feudal laws no manors could be conveyed or devised by wiU, so that on failure of issue those grants reverted to the Cro-wn. This in time being complained of as a grievance a statute was made empower ing the holders of manor lands to convey and dispose thereof by wiU. ' The Counsel on behaU of Mr, Hertford in their argument 264 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND treated the charter of Maryland as a mere grant of a manor, therefore disposable by the statute of wiUs. On the other side it was contended that the charter of Maryland was of a much higher nature and could not be otherwise deter mined than as a principaUty and of course not devisable. Mr. Eden the Secretary, with counsel, attended on behaU of the governor, but neither himseU or counsel opened their Ups, disposed to have the advantage let the cause go which way it wiU. I am apt to think that judgment will pass in favour of Mr. Bro-wning,' Colonel Sharpe speaks of the success of Colonel Lewis against the Indians, who seem again to have been troubUng the people of Maryland, He continued : ' I am greatly pleased with what you relate of Com Stalk, He is certainly a sensible Indian, a great warrior, and fit to command. So valuable and brave a man should at aU events be made a friend. Alas, aU the happiness that would have fiowed from these transactions is clouded over, if not for ever lost, by the mournful contest with the Parent state, a contest that makes me extremely unhappy, not only on my own account but that of my country, and if no favourable offer arrives, and that speedily, from your side of the water, I shaU lose aU hope of a reconciliation. May God avert it. My heart bleeds for America as weU as England. ' I am greatly obUged for the great care you have taken and the concern you show relative to my affairs. U the flour is shipped I have reason to think it wiU come to a good market, I am pleased with your intention of selUng the wheat. I am to acknowledge the receipt of 12 Hambs, eight of which wiU be deUvered in your name to Mr, Hamersley, the other four I intend to make use of myseU, ' Col, Lloyd is shortly to be married to Miss Lee, a young LA DEBACLE 265 lady from the Isle of Wight, exceeding good, and she wiU when of age be entitled to a very genteel fortune. ' The Lottery tickets are not issued ; as soon as they are the purchase shaU be made and notice given to you and Dr, Scott of the number,' In a previous letter he had written : ' The act for a lottery is passed and you may dream of thousands tiU it is ended, for I shaU make a gambling purchase for you, Dr, Scott, and seU,' The rage for lotteries was at its height in England, and aU classes were seized by it. Another letter from the ex-governor shows that his liking for Maryland ' hambs ' tempted him to reduce the number for Mr, Hamersley by two, as he thinks that six will be a handsome present. The reason he gives for the donation to Mr, Hamersley is that ' though most people are of the opinion that the sovereignty of the province is undoubtedly with Browning, yet there are many of a different way of thinking,' Colonel Sharpe's love for his garden at WhitehaU still continued, and he promised to send his friend some young vines and plenty of cuttings from the best Burgundy grapes. The letter to Mr. Ridout continues : ' I am obUged to you for the BiUs of Exchange, one for £37, 19s, 4d, and the other for £10, which wiU pay for Sam's schooUng ^ to the 25th day of December, and no other demand can be made on his account until the next haU-year, so that the net proceeds of your Tobacco which now bears a pretty high price, may be appUed as you shaU be pleased to direct. Enclosed I send you the King's speech, which I am sorry to say forebodes no good to America, and certain it is that a submission from America wiU be insisted on before any ' It has been stated that Horatio Sharpe paid Samuel Ridout's school fees, but this was not the case. When the Revolution was at its height and trade was stopped he advanced what sums were necessary. 266 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND conciUatory measures wiU be adopted, that is, an acknow ledgment of the power of Parliament to tax the colonies, a pubhc satisfaction from Massachusetts to the India Co. for the loss of their tea, and a full submission to the Charter of that Province as altered by an act of the last Parliament, As to the destroying of the town of Boston, I never can suppose any such measure was ever thought of or wiU be attempted. The fortifying it wiU be most likely under taken. As there seems little Ukelihood of ha-ving affairs soon settled, and if the non-exportation of Tobacco should be resolved on I am afraid such a measure wiU pre judice my Brother against my returning to Maryland at aU.' On the 10th of July he writes again to John Ridout : ' My dear Sir,^ — ^Words would want force to express the joy of my heart could I but form to myseU the least hopes of a reconciliation, yet I must confess that what from the calmness of the answer returned by the Pennsylvania Assembly to the Govemor's message, relating to Lord North's motion, the seasonable address of the councU to the people of Virginia pubUshed soon after Lord Densmpre's Proclamation against Colonel Henry, and the Instruction which was given to the Maryland delegates " not to go so far," I had, until the receipt of your favour of the 16th May, flattered myseU into a beUef that a compromise would be brought about ; on the perusal of which aU my hopes vanished like a dream. You on that side of the Atlantic say that the late Resolutions of ParUament, so far from disposing the People in general to submit, that they have had quite a contrary effect, and we on the other hand also say that your opposition is for Independency, Should this be once ascertained it wiU infaUibly unite the people as one man in support of the ministry. LA DlfiBACLE 267 ' It makes me happy to hear that you intend to take up your residence at WhitehaU, where I think you may in some smaU degree avoid those inconveniences which cannot but so frequently happen in the city, ' I also flatter myseU that you are not now to be told that there is no one thing either at WhitehaU or in Mary land belonging to me but what it is at your service, ' If my young slaves are so numerous as to be a great drawback on the produce of the farm you have my Uberty to dispose of as many as you think necessary, provided they can at this time be disposed of to advantage, I would not be understood by this that they are to be sold to every purchaser, but to such ones as you are well assured ¦wiU treat them with Humanity.' The visit of Mr. and Mrs. Ridout to England planned for the spring of 1775 did not take place, although arrange ments were nearly completed. John Ridout's longing to revisit his native land and to see his parents once more was destined not to be gratified. In January 1776 a permit for leaving Maryland was sent to him from England, but when it reached Annapolis it was necessary for every patriot British or American to ' stand in his lot,' He remained, not that he loved England less, but that he loved Maryland more. It was the land of his adoption, where he had come in his early manhood and had found wife and home and a career of honourable and useful service, Maryland's position during the Revolution was unique, and so was the situation of the British LoyaUsts there. The respect, confidence, and protection of both parties were accorded to them if they remained, and leave to go abroad was given if they so preferred. Many prominent men of the reconciliation party chose to join friends in England, Ireland, and France ; others, Uke John Ridout, felt it their 268 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND duty to remain in America. Most stringent local laws were passed in AnnapoUs for the protection of British LoyaUsts of his type, faithful patriots, eager for reconciUa tion untU the inevitable had to be accepted. When some people in AnnapoUs, in their zeal, gave their leaden window weights to be melted into buUets, and proposed that weights from all the houses should be so used, the committee of safety ordered that none should be accepted unless volim- tarily given, and on no account should they be taken from the houses of the Loyalists. A heavy penalty was imposed if this order was not obeyed. The rights and safety of Loyalists were carefuUy guarded in every par ticular in Annapolis, where the authorities recognised the services of those who had struggled to secure the people's rights while still working for reconciUation with the mother country. In the early days of the war John Ridout and his wife remained at WhitehaU superintending affairs there. An overseer, a redemptioner who had been treated with great kindness by Colonel Sharpe, had been left in charge. Finding that his lord did not return, and taking advantage of the unsettled state of the country, the man ceased to make remittances. He was dismissed, and Mr, Ridout took personal charge, and entered heartily into agricultural affairs. Madam Ridout, with the spirit of a true home missionary, looked after the weUare of the slaves, super intended their clothing and the various industries carried on on the estate. Sometimes more than a year would pass without any communication between WhitehaU and the beloved mother and son and friend in England, A few letters only survive of that anxious tirtte. One tells of Samuel's last prize day at Harrow, when Colonel Sharpe took with him Mr. Lee of Virginia and Mr. LA D:fiBACLE 269 Jenifer, a feUow member -with Mr. Ridout of the King's Council, to witness his ward's triumph. The letter is fuU of praise of the youth, his bearing, and attainments. It had been intended that Samuel should enter Oxford, but the troublous times in America prevented that, and he joined his grandmother in France and remained there until 1784, Darker days yet were to faU on the family in Maryland, Servants had been drafted for the war. The price of pro visions was exorbitant ; even the common necessaries of Ufe were hard to obtain. Under these circumstances, Mr, and Mrs. Ridout took refuge in the log cabin at TonoUaway. Their son Horace was sent to a boarding-school which had been opened in Frederick county by an English gentleman. Tliree thousand pounds of continental money was paid for his education there, procured by the sale of five hundred acres of land in Baltimore county. The sum was not so prodigious when we remember that the paper currency by which business was carried on was almost worthless. At the end of 1778 the paper doUar was worth twelve cents ; in 1780 it had faUen to two cents, and before the close of the year it took ten paper doUars to make a cent. ' Not worth a continental,' was an expression of contempt.^ How the war was waged with varying fortunes may be briefly told. Appeals for better government, arguments for colonial privileges, protestations of loyalty, prayers for redress had not been so much rejected as treated with contempt. In May 1775 three British generals arrived. Sir WiUiam Howe, Sir Henry CUnton, and General Burgoyne, On the 3rd of ' Indian corn sold for 150 dollars a bushel, butter was 12 dollars, tea 90 dollars a pound, and a barrel of flour cost 1575 dollars. 270 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND July Washington assumed command of the Americans, All winter the British remained inactive, Washington got cannon from Ticonderoga, which fort, as weU as Crown Point, had been taken possession of by Ethan AUen and his Green Mountain boys. Montgomery, a former British officer, had taken the fort at the north of Lake Champlain, occupied Montreal, and with Benedict Arnold stormed Quebec, Slst December 1775, where he met his death. In October General Howe had superseded General Gage. On the 17th of March 1776 Boston was evacuated by the British, and Howe took the troops to Halifax by sea. The third Continental Congress met in May 1776 at Philadelphia, and the Declaration of Independence was signed on 4th July. New England was now hopelessly rebeUious, but the middle colonies were mostly for the Crown. Washington transferred his headquarters to New York, and the valley of the Hudson became a long strategic line. On the 2Sth of June Lord Howe's transports gathered in New York harbour, while Washington was -within his trenches at Brooklyn Heights. Even yet there was a chance for reconciliation, but while the Howes — Lord Howe and Sir WiUiam — offered pardon to aU who would submit, they could offer no concessions.^ Lord Howe issued his flrst proclamation on his arrival at Sandy Hook, and followed it up with messages to the congress at Philadelphia. Sir WiUiam landed his troops on the 21st of August at New York, and also offered general pardons by proclamation. On the 27th he drove the American outposts in, Washington saw that the Heights were untenable, and ordered the withdrawal of his raw, * Admiral Lord Howe and Sir William were brothers of the Lord Howe who fell at Ticonderoga, who had been idolised by the troops he com manded, and whose memory was held in great esteem in America. LA D:fiBACLE 271 undisciplined troops. There was again a message of conciUation to congress. Benjamin FrankUn, John Adams, and E. Rutledge met Lord Howe and Sir WiUiam to discuss terms. Dr. FrankUn had been in London until March, and had there talked with Lord Howe concerning affairs in America ; but the ministry were not wiUing then to make the concessions which would have ended the struggle — nor would they now. The conference was fruitless, Washington retired, kept his men together, and repulsed the British at Harlaam Heights on the 16th September, and held his o-wn at White Plains on the 28th of October. He did not abandon Manhattan until after Greene's defeat at Fort Washington on the 16th of November. Sir Guy Carleton, in the meantime, had driven Benedict Arnold from Canada, and by the 14th of October had occupied Crown Point. On the SOth November 1776 Howe again issued a pro clamation of pardon. There was dejection everywhere among the provincials. Washington had scarcely three thousand men, and the Declaration of Independence looked like a piece of bravado. Congress fled from Philadelphia to Baltimore, but on Christmas Day Washington crossed the Delaware and took Trenton at the point of the bayonet. CornwaUis with eight thousand men advanced from New York, but Washington sUpped away at night, beat the detachment at Princeton on the 2nd January 1777, and withdrew to the heights at Morristo-wn. Once again the Americans controUed New Jersey. Frederick of Prussia said it had been the most briUiant campaign of the century. Trenton and Princeton, though sUght affairs, had turned the current of events. The year 1777 dawned on an apparently settled war. There was no money for Washington's troops, and men 272 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND deserted by scores. The general said he was losing more men by desertion than he was gaining by enUstment, The English plan of campaign was to make three separate attacks, Burgoyne was to move down Lake Champlain. Another division under General St. Leger was to move from Oswego, and a third, under General Howe, was to meet them from the south, moving up the Hudson. It was a simple thing to pass Lake Champlain and occupy the forts on its shore, but the forests aroimd the upper waters of the Hudson swarmed with hidden foes. Burgoyne had been obUged to leave large detachments to guard the forts he had taken, and when with the balance of his troops he reached Saratoga he found himseU outnumbered by the provincials. His discipUned troops always gained the ad vantage in a set encoimter, but were useless in the gueriUa warfare that was carried on under the leadership of Benedict Arnold. No reinforcements reached him, and on the 17th of October 1777 the British general was forced to capitulate, Howe, in the meantime, instead of meeting Burgoyne, had struck off further south, with Philadelphia as his goal. He attempted to reach it through the Jerseys, but was foiled by Washington, He therefore feU back on New York, and placed his army of eighteen thousand men in transports to go by sea to Maryland, that they might thus reach Philadelphia from the south. At Brandywine he met and defeated Washington's troops, and entered Philadelphia in triumph on the 27th September. It was not until October that Sir Henry CUnton, mo-ving from New York, marched aU too late to the rehef of Burgoyne. In the meantime, arms and ammunition and munitions of war had been secretly sent by France to the aid of the revolted colonies. FrankUn was now in Paris working to this end. Frederick LA Di^BACLE 273 of Prussia, who was keenly watching the confUct, gave orders not to aUow German troops in the pay of England to cross his territory. Volunteers from Germany, France, and Prussia were serving in Washington's army ; but this army was in desperate straits at VaUey Forge during the winter of 1777-8. Nevertheless it came out more fit for action in the spring — driUed by the German colonel, Baron Steuben. Washington's men starved and worked, while Howe's men danced and idled at Philadelphia. In February Lord North introduced reconciliatory measures, retracing every false step taken with regard to the colonies. Commissioners of peace were sent out to America ; but it was too late. That month a treaty of peace was signed between France and the United States. The congress would not treat with the EngUsh commissioners. General CUnton, who had succeeded Howe in command, had orders from England to abandon Philadelphia and concentrate his forces at New York. The hea-vy guns, the wounded and sick were placed on the transports, together with three thousand LoyaUsts who sacrificed their homes and fortunes for England's sake. Clinton, after a terrible march, barely escaped with the wreck of his army from the watchful Washington. England had now no hold in America except her Unes and some seaports. In 1778 and 1779 backwoodsmen under Clarke swept the country of the lUinois, and made stiU larger the district to be conquered for the Cro-wn. In the far south the British were successful. Savannah was taken by CUnton 29th December 1778, while Washington could do nothing against him in New York without a naval force. In 1779 Spain joined with France against England, and on the 10th of July 1780 a French fleet at Ne-wport landed six thousand men, under Rochambeau. CUnton s 274 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND left a large garrison in New York, and with eight thousand men went by sea to Charlestown, where he was entirely successful. He was joined by South CaroUna LoyaUsts, the British troops swept the country, and CUnton went back to New York, leaving CornwaUis to complete the work of subjugation. Horatio Gates commanded the Americans, and he was defeated by ComwaUis on the 16th of August 1780. The news of this victory was received with joy in England, where it was thought impossible that British arms should not be successful in the end. ' We look on America as at our feet,' Horace Walpole proudly wrote. In the meantime aU the states had accepted articles of confederation except Delaware and Maryland. The latter held out to the last, and Maryland's statesmanUke scruples kept the country without a government through that aU but hopeless year, 1780, In the autumn came the great catastrophe for the British. CornwaUis, who had carried on a successful campaign in the Carolinas, ventured too far from his base, and was beset like Burgoyne. On his way north he lost twelve hundred men at King's Mountain. He could not get back, and could only press forward into Virginia. Here his forces were caught in detail. In midsummer 1781 he entrenched himseU -with eight thousand men at Yorkto-wn. There he was trapped. The Count de Grasse was in the West Indies with twenty- eight ships of the Une, six frigates, and twenty thousand men. Washington asked him to join him in Virginia. Washington had with him four thousand Frenchmen mider Rochambeau, and two thousand Continentals, and marched four hundred miles straight to York River. There he found CornwaUis penned in with de Grasse's fleet in the LA D]£BACLE 275 bay and Lafayette entrenched across the peninsula with five thousand men. Three thousand men were put ashore from the fleet, and CornwaUis was forced to surrender on 17th October 1781. It was on the 19th of October 1781 that Cornwallis's army of seven thousand two hundred and forty-seven men marched out of York with colours furled, while the band played, ' The world turned upside down.' It was noon on 25th November when the news was brought to Lord George Germaine in London. ' 0 God, it is all over ! ' Lord North exclaimed. Fox clapped his hands, and William Pitt the younger openly rejoiced, for he had always looked on the war as an unrighteous one. Until the treaty of peace was definitely signed many thought that, under different generals, England would yet regain her lost colonies, but it was not to be. Finis was the word, ' Who has not speculated in the course of his reading of history upon the " Has been " and the " Might have been " ? I take my tattered old map-book from the sheU and see the board on which the great contest was played ; I wonder at the curious chances which lost it, and putting aside any idle talk about the respective bravery of the two nations, can't but see that we had the best cards and that we lost the game,' ^ 1 Thackeray, The Virginians. AFTERWARDS Extract from a letter written by Mrs. John Ridout to her mother, Mrs. Samuel Ogle, dated AnnapoUs, 16th January 1784: ' I wrote to you, my dear mamma, some weeks ago by a frigate that went from this place to Brest. This you wiU certainly receive, as it goes by a gentleman that carries a copy of the definitive Treaty ratified by Congress who are in this Town at present, but I fear they wiU not make it their permanent residence — it would make property here of value if they did. I went with several others to see General Washington resign his Commission. The congress were assembled in the State House, both Houses of Assembly were present as spectators, the Gallery full of ladies. ' The general seemed so much affected himself that every body felt for him. He addressed congress in a short speech, but very affecting. Many tears were shed. He has retired from all public business and designs to spend the rest of his days at his own seat. I think the world never produced a greater man, and very few so good. . . . ' We have a very pretty and agreeable Uttle man here, Mr. Harford.^ I hope the Assembly will do something handsome for him — they ought when they have taken such a noble estate from him. He is much liked, ' Sir Robert Eden seems in bad health. He does not flirt now. They are very agreeable neighbours to us, 1 Harford or Hertford was the illegitimate son of Frederick, Lord Baltimore. 276 THE UPTON SCOTT HOUSE {To face p. -i-ii AFTERWARDS 277 They Uve in Doctor Scott's house. The Doctor himseU is in an iU state of health.' Letter from the Hon. John Ridout to Colonel Sharpe : ' Annapolis, 21th July 1784. ' Dear Sir, — I had not sealed my letter of yesterday's date three hours, when the owner of a boat belonging to this place who had been down the Bay, came ashore and reported that the Sally, Captain Hunter, from London had just brought to a Uttle below the mouth of the river ; that he saw some passengers on the deck, both ladies and gentlemen, that the sailors were lowering baggage into the pilot boat alongside. 'As you may suppose, such intelUgence put us into no Uttle flutter ; I looked out and discovered the ship and about noon saw the pilot boat come into the harbour, while the ship stood up the bay, the wind blowing very fresh at S, West. This it had continued to do all the preceding night, so that she had run up from the capes in 24 hours. When the pilot boat had come within a few hundred yards of the wharf, the lads whom the pilot had left in her dropt anchor, being afraid to come nigher. I instantly stept into a smaU canoe, there being no row boat in the dock, and went on board, where I had the happiness to find Mrs. Ogle, Sam, Miss Anderson, and my brother Thomas in perfect health ; it was not without a good deal of difficulty nor in less than a quarter of an hour that I could prevail on the young men to hoist sail and run the pUot boat to the wharf so that the ladies may step ashore, for as to Sam and my brother, they had landed in the canoe. They had, it seems, almost during the whole voyage met with contrary winds and had sometimes tempestuous weather, not being able to get farther southward than the 278 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND latitude of 36. The first land they made was Matchapungo Shoals, about 30 miles northward of Cape Charles. Captain Hunter behaved, they teU me, exceedingly weU towards them during the whole voyage, but failed a Uttle at last by showing a great unwillingness and for some time refusing to bring his ship to off this place, insisting that he should not be justifiable in stopping a moment tiU he reached Baltimore. Knowing it will afford you great pleasure to hear of their safe arrival here and of our happy meeting after so many years and such variety of events, I -write these few Unes while they are aU asleep, lest the Captain who has taken charge of my letter of yesterday should leave to-wn early to-day and return to his ship, which is I understand loaded and ready to sail from Potowmack.' Colonel Sharpe -writes of Samuel Chase's visit to London : ' Hearing Mr. Chase was in town sent on a pubhc mission, I waited some days thinking he would caU and see me, but suddenly realising the change in our positions I made up my mind to put pride aside and caU on him. At first he seemed rather constrained and embarrassed, but he was soon made to feel at his ease, and old time cordiaUty returned as I made anxious inquiries of him for yourseU and family and our old friends Dr. Scott, Mr. Carroll, and many others.' The colonel's heart was stiU warm for Maryland, He was then living at Hampstead, where he had a garden, and he asks for ivy to be sent him from WhitehaU, and poison asp from his Frederick plantations, to make ' an album in his English garden.' John Ridout had managed to save the Whitehall estate from confiscation by some exchange of property in Ireland, and was also able to collect some debts due to the colonel by the Custis family and others, but he told his friend to AFTERWARDS 279 be content with the principal and not to expect interest, for ' these people have suffered too much.' In 1789 Mr. Ridout made arrangements for the long- deferred visit to England, and letters from Colonel Sharpe express great deUght at the prospect of once more taking him by the hand. This time the embarkation was actuaUy made from Alexandria, but after being out two weeks the vessel sprang a leak, and returned. AU hands had to work at the pumps nigbt and day to save her from sinking until she arrived in port. After waiting two weeks more for repairs the vessel was pronounced unseaworthy, and no other being available the voyage to England was given up. In 1790 came the sad news of Horatio Sharpe's death at Hampstead, in the seventy-second year of his age. A cameo ring, stiU cherished in the family (now in possession of Dr. WilUam G. Ridout, fourth in descent from the Hon. John Ridout) bears the likeness of the colonel in old age, and has this inscription : ' With affectionate and loving remembrance to John Ridout, my valued and faithful friend in pubUc and private. Horatio Sharpe, obit Oth Nov. 1790, cet 72.' In his wiU he bequeathed WhitehaU to the same beloved friend, at whose death it was to pass to Samuel and Horatio Ridout, the two sons. Whitehall was the joy and deUght of the family. John Ridout survived his friend seven years, and died in 1797 at the age of sixty-five years. He was laid to rest in the private burial ground of WhitehaU, which is still in the possession of the Ridouts. By his request no stone marks his grave. His eldest son, Samuel, on his return from abroad entered Mr, Stone's office for the study of law, and did his life's work nobly in his native town. He married in 1790 Mary Grafton Addison (a descendant of Colonel John Addison, brother of the Dean of Lichfield), and lived until 1840, 280 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND dying in the house on Duke of Gloucester Street where he was born. The venerated grandmother, Mrs. Ogle, Uved after her return to America in 1784 for twenty years with her son-in- law John Ridout, and after his death with her grandson Samuel. Her only son, Benjamin, Uved in the house built by his father. Governor Ogle, in King George Street, He, too, was governor of Maryland from 1798 to 1801, Horatio Ridout, John Ridout's second son, married Rachel Goldsborough and Uved at WhitehaU, which remained in the possession of the Ridouts for one hundred and sixteen years. Anne Tasker Ridout (Uttle Nancy) married in 1785 Mr, Gibson of the Eastern Shore, and hved in the house buUt for her by her father next his own in Duke of Gloucester Street. Her cousin Harriet Anderson (a daughter of LeUora Ogle) came to AnnapoUs with her grandmother in 1784, and married Mr, Buchanan, afterwards Chief-Justice Buchanan. In the century and a quarter that has passed old Anna polis (with the exception of the addition of the splendid naval academy) has changed but Uttle, and it remains to day a unique to-wn in America. One might without surprise see ' our colonial governor ' himseU walk do-wn Duke of Gloucester Street, or George Washington emerge from one of those stately doorways that have remained unaltered since his day. In the haU of the Ridout house is the very table at which he so often dined ; the harpsichord that was sent as a wedding present in 1764 from Lady Essex to her cousin Mary Ogle stiU stands in the corner. Silver, china, old carved furniture remain as they were in the old days. GEORGE BENJAMIN TASKER-OGLE {To face p. 280 AFTERWARDS 281 Mrs. Ogle's work-table is stiU in the sunny window looking out on that terraced garden where year by year have bloomed for more than a century the flowers she loved and planted. Upstairs lies folded the oUve satin gown that Madam Ridout wore on that notable day when the great general came back to Annapolis to lay down his victorious sword. On the stairway of the Chase House,^ where Hester Chase Ridout Uved after the death of her husband, still ticks the clock that marked the hours at WhitehaU. There on the table is the punch bowl that once upon a time, in Govemor Sharpe's hospitable house, filled with fragrant sangaree, welcomed the coming or sped the parting guest. On the table, too, is his sword. It is summer once more in the ancient town. The honey suckle blooms in the garden of the old Ridout house. Down the path among the roses comes a Uttle maiden three years old, the latest descendant of the Bladens and Taskers and Ogles and Ridouts of Maryland, and she plays in the garden that her great-great-great-grandmother planted, and her nursery is the room where Horatio Sharpe spent his last night in America. ^ Built by Samuel Chase the Signer. APPENDIX MARYLAND AND THE LOEDS BALTIMOEE When George Calvert, in the reign of bis friend and sovereign James i., obtained a patent for the south-eastern part of New foundland, he determined to found there a colony to the glory of God and for the spreading of His gospel among the heathen. Shortly after the grant of the patent to Calvert, he announced to the king that he had left the Established Church of England and had joined the Roman Catholic communion. In spite of this the king did not -withdraw his favour from him, but raised him to the Irish Peerage as Baron of Baltimore in the coimty of Longford. In 1628 he set out to inspect the colony he had planted in 1621, taking -with him his wife and children, with the exception of his oldest son. He was woefully disappointed. In a letter to the Duke of Buckingham he -writes : ' I came to build and settle and sow, but I am fain to fighting with Frenchmen who have heere disquieted me and many other of His Majesty's subjects fishing in this land.' Besides fighting the French, the chmate seems not to have been to his hking, for in a letter to King Charles he says : ' I have found by too dear bought experience that from the middlest of October to the middlest of May there is a sadd fare of -wynter upon all this land. ' I am determined therefore to commit this place to fishermen that are able to encoimter storms and hard weather, and to remove miself with some forty persons to your Majesty's dominion of Virginia, where if your Majesty will be pleased to grant me a precinct of land -with such privileges as the King your father, my gracious master, was pleased to grant me 282 APPENDIX 283 here, I shall endeavour to the utmost of my power to deserve it.' The end of the story is given in a letter from the Rev. Mr. Mead, who reports that ' my Lord Baltimore, being weary of his intolerable plantation of Newfoundland, sent home some of his chUdren to England, and went -with his lady into Virginia.' Here he was not received very cordially, as the Virginians were a little jealous of one who came seeking to found a new colony in what they considered their territory. However, Lord Baltimore determined to go to England and seek another patent from the king. His Majesty would not permit him to return, but told him to send for his -wife and children, whom he had left behind in Virginia. The cup of his misfortunes was not full, for the barque in which his family set sail was lost -with aU on board. In 1632 the much-tried man died, just after obtaining from Charles a charter for a new colony. It was therefore his son, Csecilius, second Lord Baltimore, to whom waa entrusted the task of founding Maryland. The father had selected for his grant a lovely and fertile region on the Chesapeake Bay, as yet unsettled, although Virginia laid claim to it. Here he meant, under his own govemment, to build up a home for the religious freedom denied to his fellow-subjects in England. In after days, the Puritan, the Catholic, and the Quaker found sanctuary in Maryland. Though George Calvert had passed away -without reahsing the dream of his life, his son, who under the charter became true lord and proprietary, carried out his plans. The charter reads : ' To hold of us, our heirs and successors, as of our castle of Windsor, in our county of Berks, in free and common soccage, by fealty only for all services, and not in capita, nor in knight's service, yielding therefore unto us, our heirs and successors. Two Indian arrows of these parts, to be dehvered at the said castle every year.' Besides the rights granted to the proprietary, who in his o-wn province was little less than a king, the people had the 284 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND right to remain Enghsh subjects, and as such to inherit, purchase, or possess land in England. Also, they were granted freedom of trade to English ports, participation in making the laws, and exemption from taxation by the Crown. They had also the right to trade in HoUand and elsewhere, which Virginia had not. CaeciUus Calvert at first intended to go out in person to his new proviace, but finally determined on sending his two brothers to estabUsh his govemment, making the eldest, Leonard, lieu tenant-governor or general. A great part of the original emigrants were Roman CathoUcs, and the cost of the first emigration, about £40,000, was borne by Lord Baltimore. Two vessels with symboUcal names, the Ark and the Dove, were fitted out for the expedition, and left England in November 16SS. Nearly two hundred gentlemen adventurers and their servants embarked. A Jesuit priest. Father White, who sailed among the company, has left a most interesting and entertaining account of the expedition (Scharf's History of Maryland). The govemor, Leonard Calvert, seems to have treated the Indians -with discretion and humanity. They in turn received the newcomers kindly, even sharing their cabins with the strangers, and teaching them how to hunt the game that was so plentiful about them. In fact, it was at first an ideal com munity, and to cro-wn their welcome. Sir John Harvey, the govemor of Virginia, paid a friendly visit to them, and a great feast was made on board of the ship, at which the Indian king of Patuscent was a guest, and sat at the table of honour between the two Enghsh governors. An Indian village, Yoacomacoes, was selected by the govemor as his first settlement, and having given the Indians in exchange Enghsh cloth, axes, hoes and knives, the adventurers entered into possession on the 27th of March 1634, and called the place St. Maries. The serpent in the Eden was one Claibourne, a Virginian who claimed the island of Kent within the boundaries of the APPENDIX 285 new province, and for many years did what he could to foster ill--wUl between the Indians and the colonists, and between Virginia and Maryland. On the 26th of February 1635 the first assembly was con vened, and according to the charter the measures they drew up were sent to the proprietary in England for approval. He objected to them, and for two years the colony remained under the common law of England. In 1637 Lord Baltimore sent special authority to his brother George to call together the assembly during the winter, and to propose to them a body of laws of his o-wn preparation. At this second session the colonists rejected these laws totally, and so began the struggle between the assembly and the proprietary as to the rights of legislation, which lasted until the Revolution. The assembly then consisted of but one House composed of all the freemen of the colony, and the governor presided as chief executive and speaker of the House. The model was the British House of Commons. The population of the colony at that time (16S5), including the town of St. Mary's and the people in Kent Island, did not exceed seven hundred. At last, after the third attempt of the assembly to frame their own laws, the proprietary made some concessions, allowing the colonists to initiate laws, though reserving for himself the power of veto. In 1641 a representative legislature seems to have been estabhshed, the freemen of the province being represented by burgesses chosen electively. The Indian tribes, as their lands were being further encroached on, were growing restless. The fierce Susquehannoughs were on the warpath, and even the peaceful Patuscents showed signs of hostility, fostered doubtless by the mahgn influence of Claibourne. In 1643 Leonard Calvert went on a visit to England, and while he was away a friend of Claiboume's, Captain Richard Ingle, who seems to have been both pirate and rebel, hovered 286 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND round the settlement with an armed ship, stirring up the dis affected in the province. Of late there had been a gro-wing feel ing of discontent, partly stirred up by Claibourne, and partly occasioned by the same feehng of animosity that was gro-wing in England between Puritan and Catholic, between Roundhead and Cavalier. An order had been sent from the king of England to take possession of any ships fitted out in the parliamentary interest in the colonies, and as Ingle's ship was the only one answering the description, it was seized in the name of the king, and Captain Ingle was taken, charged with treason, and put in prison. However, he soon escaped from it, and joined Claibourne. When Leonard Calvert returned from England in September 1644 he found the province in much confusion. The Indians were threatening, Ingle was free, and Claibourne was openly hostile. The latter had been appointed treasurer of Virginia by the king in 1642, but nothing would content him but the proprietorship of the island of Kent. As the king's cause waned in England, Claibourne became more distiuctly on the parliamentary side. The battle of Marston Moor, in 1644, stiU further increased his boldness. Lord Baltimore being, of course, a Royalist, and not disposed to desert his sovereign in his hour of need, his possession of Mary land was becoming very insecure. Claibourne seized Kent Island, and -with Ingle invaded the western shore of Maryland. The proprietary government was overthro-wn, and Leonard Calvert had to take refuge in Virginia. Although that dominion had treated Maryland with hostility, Calvert was warmly received, for the Virginians did not love the Puritans, and were Royahsts to the core. Sir William Berkeley was the govemor, and long after England had submitted to the parUa mentary party, Virginia was loyal to the king. For nearly two years the insurgents remained in power. The Catholic missionaries, including Father White, were sent in chains to England. APPENDIX 287 Thus Maryland shared in the convulsion that was shaking the mother country. In 1646, however, order was once more restored by the well disposed in the province, who were tired of the factious rule of Claibourne and his associates ; and Leonard Calvert returned to his office. He did not long survive, but died on the 9th of June 1647. In England the royal cause seemed hopeless, and Lord Baltimore felt that the province he had founded at so much cost would pass away from him and his heirs. In order to save it, he appointed as governor Wilham Stone of Virginia, a Protestant, and also sent commissions as privy councillors to six men, of whom half were Protestants. The Lower House consisted of nine burgesses, chiefly Catholics, and they were required to take the same oath as the governor relating to the reUgious liberty of all sects of the Christian religion. When the next assembly met, in April 1649, the Act concerning rehgion, or Toleration Act, was passed, making it unlawful to speak reproachfully of either Puritan or Papist, Presbyterian or Jesuit, Lutheran or Calvinist, etc., and also enacting ' that no person professing to believe in Jesus Christ shall from hence forth be troubled, molested, or discountenanced for or in respect of his or her rehgion, nor in the free exercise thereof within this proviuce or the islands thereunto belonging.' As the province was a palatinate,^ it was within the power 1 The origin of the term ' palatine ' is usually assigned to the times of the Merovingian kings of France, who delegated a quasi royal power in judicial matters to an of&cer called Count of the palace. The title and exclusive powers were afterwards bestowed upon great vassals, who were entrusted with almost kingly powers in their fiefs. These dignities were known as kingdoms, principalities, dukedoms, seigniories, etc., outside of England, but when granted within the limits of England they were usually designated counties palatine. Chester and Durham were counties palatine in the reign of William i. Edward nr. erected Lancaster into a palatinate. Henry iv. granted the Isle of Man as a kingdom to the Earls of Northimiberland, and after their attainder Henry vn. granted it in the same form to the House of Stanley, to whom in large part he owed his crown. The heads of these palatinate governments were invested with powers and prerogatives little short of those of royalty itself. 288 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND of the proprietary to carry out his liberal policy without molestation. One little episode happened this year which showed a sturdy independence of the then dominant power in England. When Charles i. was executed, the Enghsh Parhament passed a decree declaring it to be treason for any one to acknowledge Charles Stuart, son of the late Charles, commonly called the Prince of Wales, to be king. In spite of this, Thomas Greene, acting govemor of Maryland in Stone's absence, issued a proclamation on 15th November 1649 declaring Charles to be the imdoubted rightful heir of all his father's domioions. Although affairs seemed to be progressiag favourably to the proprietary in his distant province, a storm gathered from an unexpected quarter. Charles n., though an exUe in HoUand, was displeased -with Lord Baltimore for having given permission to the expelled Puritans from Virginia to settle in Maryland, and issued an order deposing the proprietary on account of his adhering to the rebels in England, and admitting all kinds of schismatics into the plantations. Therefore he appointed Sir William Davenant to be royal govemor in Maryland.^ Davenant set sail -with a colony of Frenchmen, but was taken in the Enghsh Channel and imprisoned in Cowes Castle, to be released soon after, however, by the friendly offices of the poet, ' WilUam Davenant, an English poet and playwright, was born in 1616, at Oxford, where his father kept the Crown Inn, a house at which Shakespeare was in the habit of stopping when on his journeys between London and Stratford. Davenant while still a child had a great admira tion for Shakespeare, and when only ten years old, on the occasion of Shakespeare's death, he penned an ode, 'In remembrance of Master -William Shakespeare.' He began to write for the stage in the year 1628, and ten years after, on the death of Ben Jonson, he was appointed poet laureate. He afterwards became manager of Drury Lane Theatre, but entering into the Civil War on the Boyalist side, he was apprehended and cast into the Tower. He escaped to France, and afterwards returning distinguished himself so much that he was knighted by Charles after the battle of Gloucester. His second imprisonment is related above. Once more free, he set about establishing a theatre. After the Restoration he was favoured by royal patronage, and continued to write verses and plays until his death in 1668. APPENDIX 289 MUton, now CromweU's secretary. The unfortunate proprietary had pleased neither master, for he now found he was about to suffer for the ill-timed proclamation of Charles n. as king in his province. In order to exculpate himself. Lord Baltimore went before a parhamentary committee, and showed that Govemor Stone was a Protestant and a Parliamentarian, and claimed that he himself had given the Independents an asylum in Maryland when they were expelled from Virginia. His efforts were successful, and the committee decided that his province was not to be disturbed. It was an anxious time though, for Charles ii. had returned from exUe, and was waging a desperate war with Cromwell, If royalty succeeded. Lord Baltimore was out of favour, and as a Cathohc he was looked on with suspicion and dislike by the Parhamentarians. Then came the battle of Worcester, that made Charles once more a fugitive and an exile, and settled Cromwell as Lord Protector of England. Then came orders for the Enghsh fleet to depart for the reduction of that contumacious dominion of Virginia. On board that fleet were a hundred and fifty Scotch soldiers, taken prisoners at Worcester and sent as slaves to the colonies. Virginia soon submitted to CromweU's forces; and now they directed their attention to Maryland. Govemor Stone was required to recog nise the authority of Parhament, and as he did not immedi ately do so, CromweU's commissioners issued a proclamation depriving him of his govemment and making void all the acts of the proprietary. It looked as if the province were lost to him for ever. Govemor Stone, however, made an arrange ment whereby he held the govemment until the pleasure of the authorities in England should be known. Lord Baltimore did not give up his possessions without a struggle, and issued his orders to Governor Stone to require all persons holding office to take the oath of fidelity to him, and to re-estabhsh the proprietary govemment. The Dutch war now being at its height, little notice was taken in England of T 290 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND these distant plantations. Claibourne was still at work to depose Lord Baltimore, and coerce Govemor Stone into submission. Religion was brought in to aid his machinations, and Puritan was set against Catholic. Claibourne succeeded in ha-ving commissioners appointed in the name of OUver Cromwell. These summoned an assembly, for which all such should be disabled to give any vote or be ' elected members thereof, as have borne arms in war against the Parliament or do profess the Roman Cathohc religion. Alas for the dream of George Calvert and for rehgious hberty in Maryland ! Cromwell was concihatory to the proprietary, and apparently anxious not to disturb his rights in the province. Lord Balti more, learning that the govemment was now administered by commissioners appointed by Claibourne, dispatched a special messenger to the colony, rebuking Stone for so tamely yielding up his government. Another govemor was appointed in his place, one Josias Fendall. Lord Baltimore also sent his brother, Philip Calvert, to act as secretary. After a struggle of six years, the Puritans in Maryland were overthro-wn, and the lord proprietary restored to his fuU rights. Charles n. now reigned in England. In 1660 Phihp Calvert was commissioned as governor, having procured from King Charles n. an order commanding all the officers and inhabitants of the province to aid him in the re-estabhshment of his govemment. He was succeeded as govemor by his nephew, Charles Calvert, son of the proprietary, who held that office untU the death of his father in 1675, Caecilius Calvert, second Lord Baltimore, died on the SOth of November of that year, leaving behind an illustrious name. Charles Calvert succeeded him as the third Lord, and having appointed Thomas Nolly as deputy-governor in the name of his infant son Cecil, he returned to England. In 1680 Lord Baltimore returned to Maryland, and now again religious intolerance lifted its head. The rehgious struggle be tween Catholics and Protestants in England was being reflected APPENDIX 291 in America. ./Mother trouble also arose, connected -with the boundary question. It was in 1680 that William Penn received his grant in America from King James n., and the boundary dispute between Maryland and Pennsylvania that lasted so many years had its beginning from that time. When the Revolution of 1688 placed William and Mary on the throne of England, the proprietary gave in his adhesion to them, but ELing WiUiam determined to send over a governor to administer affairs as representative of the Crown. Lord Balti more offered to place the government in Protestant hands, though he would not surrender his charter. Sir Lionel Copley nevertheless received his commission as first royal governor of Maryland. Govemor Copley died in 1693, and Sir Edmund Andros claimed the govemment, in spite of Thomas Nicholson's prior claims. He kept it only ten days, followed by Colonel Nicholas Green bury, who held the reins until Nicholson arrived from England, The latter immediately convened the assembly to meet, not at St. Marie, but at Anne Arundel-to-wn, afterwards kno-wn as Annapohs. It was Nicholson who urged on the Crown the importance of bringing all the colonies under one head and one viceroy, and of keeping up a standing army. Nathaniel Blaikiston succeeded Nicholson as governor. In 1702 he solicited Queen Anne to permit him to return to England, and John Seymour was appointed in his stead. In 1710 Charles Calvert petitioned the Crown that his province might be restored, but this was denied on account of his religion. He died on the 28th of February 1714, and was succeeded by his son, Benedict Leonard Calvert, as fourth Lord Baltimore. The new proprietary had in 1713 renounced the Roman Cathohc rehgion, much to the displeasure of his father, who in consequence -withdrew his allowance. The change of faith was palpably not one of conviction, but of self-uiterest. He announced his change of religion in a memorial to King George i. in 1715, in which he stated that his six children, four sons and 292 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND two daughters, had been brought up by his father abroad in Popish seminaries, but he had brought them back to England, and had placed them in Protestant schools in London. In the meantime, the last royal governor. Captain John Hart, had been sent to the province, and in 1714 the last assembly was held in Annapolis under the royal govemment. Benedict Leonard survived his father only a few months, and died on the 5th of April 1715, leaving an infant son, Charles, now being brought up a Protestant, as fifth Lord Baltimore. The king granted to him the restoration of his proprietary rights, ' to give encouragement to the educating of the numerous issue of so noble a family in the Protestant rehgion.' There was still a Catholic party in the pro-vince of Maryland favourable to the restoration of the Stuarts, who drank the health of the ChevaUer de St. George as James m. of England. An Act was therefore passed at the first session held under the new proprietary, introducing the test oath of England, and excluding Catholics from all participation in the govemment. All persons admitted to enjoy any place of trust in the province were required to take the oath of abhorrency against the Pope, of aUegiance to King George, and abjuration of the claims of the Pretender. The govemment now became exclusively Protestant, and many oppressions were practised on the CathoUcs of Maryland. In 1715 Maryland contained forty thousand adult males and nine thousand five hundred negroes. There was a protest against bringing convicts into the colonies, but after the rising in 1715 in favour of James Stuart, two shiploads of unfortunate Jacobites were sent over and sold as servants, and many a gallant Scot wore his life out on the plantations in helpless slavery. The vessels that brought them over bore the names, in cruel mockery, of Friendship and Good Speed. In 1720 Lord Baltimore's uncle. Captain Charles Calvert of the Foot Guards, became governor. He died in 1726, and the proprietary's brother, Benedict Leonard Calvert, was appointed APPENDIX 293 in his place. Another brother, Edward, was made president of the council. In 1731 Benedict Calvert returning to England on account of ill health, died on the voyage, and was succeeded by Samuel Ogle, who remained govemor for eleven years. During that term the boundary disputes between Maryland and Pennsylvama became violent, and his administration was much disturbed by them. Thomas Bladen succeeded Samuel Ogle as govemor in 1742. Charles, fifth Lord Baltimore, died in 1750, leaving an only son, Frederick, who was the sixth and last Lord Baltimore. Samuel Ogle was again commissioned as governor in 1747, and remained in office until his death in 1751, when the govern ment of the province devolved upon his father-in-law, Benjamin Tasker, president of the council, until the arrival of Horatio Sharpe, the new govemor, on the 10th of August 1753, Among the many distinguished men of the province none was of better lineage than Samuel Ogle, t-wice governor of Maryland. The Ogles were of an ancient Saxon family whose lands were on the borders of Scotland, It is recorded on the monument of the Barons Ogle in the church and castle of Bothel in Northumberland that William the Conqueror gave to Humphrey Ogle the manor of Ogle to hold as free as he held the same before the conquest. Sir Robert Ogle, eighth in lineal descent from Humphrey, was granted the right ' to fortify his manor and create it into a castle, and to have free warren for it through all his domain.' Robert, by his marriage to the only daughter of Sir Robert Bertram of Bothel, became possessed of that barony and its vast domains. In the Border Wars the Ogles distinguished themselves. When Sir Robert Ogle was taken prisoner by the Scots he obtained a grant from King Henry m. of one hundred marks towards his ransom, after which he served under John Plantagenet. One of his descendants, another Sir Robert, was sheriff of Northumberland in the reign of Henry v., and conducted James, King of Scotland, back to his realm when 294 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND released from captivity in the reign of Henry -vi. The Ogles of Maryland are descended from Wilham Ogle, third s6n of Sir Robert, and brother to the first Lord Ogle, created Baron in 1641. Another Lord Ogle fought at Flodden. After the death of Cuthbert, the seventh Lord, as he had no son, the barony was carried away by his only daughter, who was the -wife of Sir Charles Cavendish and mother of the first Earl of Ogle. Samuel Ogle was a son of Commissioner Ogle, so called from his com mission to Ireland by Queen Anne, and at the time of his appointment as govemor by the proprietary on 16th September 1731 was a captain of cavalry in the British army. He was a man of large fortune, genial, hospitable, and a great lover of horses. His London house was in Sa-ville Row, Bond Street, then a fashionable quarter. When he arrived in Maryland he found a kindred spirit in the Hon. Benjamin Tasker, one of the most important men in the province, who had a magnificent estate and hved in great style, dri-ving four in hand with Uveried outriders, as the legends of Annapolis relate. Those were spacious days in old Maryland. Benjamin Tasker, whose -wife was Anne Bladen, was the proud father of an only son and four lovely daughters, of whom Rebecca was the -wife of Daniel Dulany, secretary of the province. Two of the sisters, EUzabeth and Frances, married respectively Christopher Lo-wndes and Robert Carter of Virginia ; while Anne, the youngest, who was but a child of nine when Samuel Ogle arrived in the country, became his -wife in 1741. Although there was a great disparity in age, it was a very happy marriage.^ In 1742 Samuel Ogle took his lovely young bride to hve in England. He was succeeded by her maternal uncle, Thomas Bladen, who had married a daughter of Sir Theodore Jansen of Low Layton, Essex. Her sister was the -wife of Charles, fifth Lord Baltimore. It was Govemor Bladen who commenced the erection of a magnificent Government House iu Annapolis, which • Their portraits, painted by Hudson, are now in the possession of the Taylor family at Mount Airey, Maryland. GOVERNOR OGLE'S HOUSE [To face p. 294 APPENDIX 295 the legislature refused to complete. It remained unfinished for forty years, and then was presented by the state to St. John's CoUege, formerly kno-wn as King Wilham's. Samuel Ogle returned to Maryland as governor in 1747, the year that his -wife's favourite cousin married the Earl of Essex. Lord Chesterfield, in one of his letters to his son, thus alludes to her : ' Our friend Harriet Bladen,^ -with a fortune of £20,000, is to be married to the Earl of Essex.' During his first term of office Govemor Ogle built a beautiful residence on the comer of King George and Tabernacle Street, which still remains one of the finest specimens of colonial archi tecture in Annapolis. He had also in Prince George County a magnificent country estate (Bel Air) of three thousand six hundred acres, six hundred acres of which was a park enclosed for deer, and which also included a race track and kennels. Here he was enabled to enjoy his favourite pastime, racing, in which governors, councillors, and the first gentlemen of the pro-vince participated, Govemor Ogle imported from England the celebrated horse Spark, a gift from Lord Baltimore, to whom the racehorse had been presented by Prince Frederick, the father of George m, Samuel Ogle, at the time of his death in 1751, held the rank of lieutenant-general in the British army. ^ Captain, afterwards Admiral Bladen Capel, who commanded the Culloden of eighty guns off the coast of America during the war of 1812 was Harriet Bladen's son. INDEX Abeeceombie, Major - General James, 100, 103 ; his delays occa sion loss of Oswego, 108, 110-11; appointed commander - in - chief, 144, 150 ; incompetence of, 151 ; defeated at Ticonderoga, 150-3 ; superseded by Amherst, 154 ; mentioned, 149, 156, 163. Acadia, 73, 84. Acadians, the, history of, 83-4 ; refuse oath of allegiance to Britain, 84, 85 ; accused of hampering the English, 85 ; Cornwallis demands unconditional oath from, 85 ; priestly influence on, 86; Lieut.- Governor Lawrence's determination regarding, 86 ; capture of Beau Sejour and discovery of 300 under arms, 86; banishment of, 86-90; ra pacious treatment of, byCanadians, 89 ; condition of, in Maryland, 85- 90 ; influence of Mr. Callister for, 89-90 ; dispersed in different parts of the provinces, 90-3 ; present- day Acadians, 91 ; Longfellow's ' Evangeline,' 92, 93. Adams, John, 271. Addison, Rev. Henry, 178, 239. Col. John, 9, 279. Joseph, 9. Launcelot (Dean of Lichfield), 9, 279. Mary Grafton, 279. Thomas, 9. Albany, Congress of, 18. Algonquin family (Indians), 37-8 n. Allen, Bennett, 178, 206, 234-9. Ethan, 270. American Church, 233-4. indignation at Revenue Act, 241-2 ; attitude regarding inde pendence, 241-2, 255, 266.- American Revolution, 246-7, 252 et seq., 269 et seq. ; causes deprecia tion of the paper currency, 269 ; independenee declared, 246, 270, 271. Amherst, Colonel (Jeffrey, Lord Amherst), commands expedition against Louisbourg, 144, 149, 154 ; captures Louisbourg, 153-4 ; supersedes Abercrombie, 154, 160; instructions from Pitt to, 162-3, 165; work and operations, 163; plan of campaign of 1759, 166, 168 ; captures Ticonderoga, 167, 168 ; proposes to build fort at Crown Point, 168 ; strengthens English position on Lake Cham plain, 168.; plan for re-establish ment of Fort Oswego, 168 ; and capture of Fort Niagara, 168-70 ; plans for conquest of Canada, 182 ; passage down the St. Lawrence, 183 ; capitulation of Montreal to, 184; rewards and honours, 184, 186 ; death, 187 ; Sir Joshua Reynolds's portrait of, 184, 187 ; mentioned, 171, 179, 181, 202. -Wm. Pitt, 187. Anderson, Miss, 277, 280. Mrs., 250, 280. Andros, Sir Edmund, 291. Annapolis (Maryland) in 1753, 4, 5 ; history of name, 4, 291 ; curious plan in laying out the city, 5 ; life in, 6-7, 12, 39, 247-8, 249; Government House, II ; news of Braddock's defeat in, 57 ; state of terror in, by reason of Indian 297 298 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND ravages, 72, 98 ; dissatisfaction with Loudoun in, 140 ; news of fall of Quebec received in, 176 ; buildings and workmen in, 188, 294, 295 ; the burning of the Peggy Stewart, 253-5 ; and British Loyalists in the Revolution, 268 ; of to-day, 280. Annapolis (in Nova Scotia), 84. Anne Arundel town. See Annapolis (Maryland). Anne, Princess of Denmark, 4. Anstruther, Col,, regiment mentioned, 144, 173, 174. Armstrong, Capt,, 129, 135. Arnold, Benedict, 270, 271, 272. Arundacks (Indians), 16. Aubrey (French commander), 170. Baltimore, Lord. See under Calvert, Baltimore News, cited, 255. Baptists, 178. Barnes, Abraham, 18. Barton, Col., 59. Beall, Capt., 73, 124, 129, 132. Beaujeu (French commander), 55. Beau Sejour, Fort, 36 ; capture of, 55 and«,, 57, 86. Berkeley, Sir -WilUam, 286, Bigot, the intendant, 123, Birnie, Major Rogers, 3. Bladen, Anne, 8, 294. Harriet, 295. Nathaniel, 8, Rebecca, 294. Thomas, 8, 9, 293, 294, William, 8. Blaikiston, Nathaniel, 291. Boish6bert, 87. Bolingbroke, Lord, 261 n. Bordley, John, 250. John Beale, 188, 250 n., 259. Stephen, 203. Boscawen, Admiral, 50, 51, 53, 55, 57, 73, 74, 144, 153, 179. Boston, the cargo of tea, 252, 266. Boston Gazette, quoted, 254. Boston Port Bill, 252, 253, 258. Boswell's Life oj Johnson, quoted, 114. Boucher, Rev. Jonathan, 178, 233, 239-40, 247. Bouquet, Lieut.-Col. Henry, 202 n. ; defeats Indians at Bushy Run and relieves Fort Pitt, 202 ; proceeds against Shawanese and Delawares, 202; mentioned, 117, 143, 146, 147, 159. Braddock, Major-General, departure for America, 28 ; arrival, 34, 35, 37, 50 ; his task, 36, 46-7 ; arranges meeting of governors, 38- 9 ; indignation of, at Assemblies' refusal to grant supplies, 42 ; plan of campaign, 45-7 ; arbitrary recruiting of indented servants . by, 45-6 ; miscalculates difficul ties of the campaign, 47-8 ; last conversation with Franklin, 48 ; French arrangements to oppose, 49 ; progress of, 50-2, 54, 55 ; approach of, signalled at Fort Duquesne, 55 ; ambuscaded at the Monongahela, 55, 58, 61 ; defeat, 55-62 passim ; final orders, 61 ; death, 58, 61 ; losses, 60, 62 ; loss of officers, 58, 60 ; iucmrsions by French and Indians after defeat, 62-3, 201 ; mentioned, 40, 68, 70, 71, 76, 78, 95, 159, 197 ; charac teristics of, 147. Bradley, Dr., 204. Bradstreet, Lieut. -Col. John, warns Sharpe as to movements of French to oppose Braddock, 49 ; boatmen enlisted and placed under his command by Shirley, 102 ; ex pedition to Oswego, 102, 110; engagement with Coulon de Villiers, 110 ; returns to Albany, 110; in Abercrombie's expedition, 150, 153; takes Fort Frontenac, 156 ; serves under Amherst, 183 ; mentioned, 202. Brandywine, battle, 272, Broadway, Joseph, 41 n. Brodie, Count, 68. Brown, Wm. Hand, cited on character of Lord Baltimore, 205. Browning, Louisa, 246. INDEX 299 Browning, Mr., 262-4, 265. Buchanan, Chief-Justice, 280. Bufi-alo River Fort, 26. Bunker's Hill, 257. Burgoyne, General, 61, 269, 272. Burke, Edmund, 219, 223, 242 and n. Bushy Run, battle, 202. Bute, Earl of, 197, 207. Byng, Admiral John, shot, 115. Callister assists the Acadians, 89-91. Calvert, Benedict, 293. Benedict Leonard (4th Lord Baltimore), 291, 292. Cecil, 290. Csecilius (2nd Lord Balti more), founds Maryland, carries out the plans of his father, 283 ; conditions of the charter, 283-4, 285 ; differences with the Assembly, 285 ; possession of Maryland rendered insecure by Royalist re verses in England, 286 ; measures to save the province, 287 ; de posed by Charles ii., 288 ; diffi culties during Great Oi-vil War, 287-9 ; deprived by CromweU's commissioners, 290 ; conciliated by Cromwell, 290 ; death, 290 ; mentioned, 43. Csecilius, Lord Baltimore's uncle and secretary, 1 1 ; character of his letters, 50, 144, 197, 213 ; interview with George ill., 197 ; opioion of Sharpe, 197 ; scheme for management of the House of Assembly, 198 ; on Ridout's advancement, 192; death, 213; mentioned, 189, 191 et passim. Charles Ord Lord Baltimore), 291. Charles (5th Lord Baltimore), 246, 292, 293. Charles, Captain, 292. — - Edward, 293. Frederick (6th Lord Balti more), 293 ; birthday celebration in Annapolis, 12 ; designation as proprietary of Maryland, 23 ; sends a commission to Sharpe, 23 ; re commendation to people as to defence, 24 ; contention of the Assembly as to taxation of his estates, 42 ; Maryland regarded.by, merely as a source of revenue, 43 ; roused to a sense of the dangers to Maryland, 115 ; sends ammunition to Maryland, 141 ; and ecclesiastical patronage in Maryland, 176, 178 and n, ; contribution by, for de fence of province against Indians, 200-1 ; and the boundary dispute, 203 ; concern for Sharpe's health, 203 ; presents his portrait to the Executive Chamber, 205 ; sends box of plate to Sharpe, 205 ; presents Assembly's letter to the King on repeal of the Stamp Act, 226-7 ; views as to the Assembly, 227-8 ; and the ' Liberty Lottery,' 228 ; sells his manors and tracts of land, 228 ; letter dismissing Sharpe and appointing Bobert Eden, 243 ; dies at Naples, 246 ; his executors, 246 ; rival claims for the succession, 246, 263-4 ; character of, 205-6 ; hostility to, 205-6; mentioned, 11, 13, 17, 158, 276. Calvert, George (1st Lord Baltimore), founds colony in S. -E. Newfound land, 282 ; created Baron of Baltimore, 282 ; troubles with the French and abandonment of Newfoundland, 282 ; proceeds to -Virginia and seeks patent from the King, 282 ; misfortunes and death, 282. Leonard, 284-7 passim. Philip, 290. Camden, Lord, 220. Campbell, John. See Loudoun, Earl of. Canada Bill, the, 252, 253. Cape Breton Island, 84, 85, 86, 154. Capel, Admiral Bladen, 295. Carillon. See Ticonderoga, Carleton, Sir Guy, 271. 300 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Carolina, North, 17 ; Governor of, 25. Carroll, Charles, 9, 278 ; family, 259. — - of Carrollton, 9, 247, 248. Carter, Robert, 294. Cataraqui, 38, 77, 79 ; a'nd see Frontenac. Catawba (Indians), 16. Catholics, Roman, in Maryland, 89. Ill, 178, 283, 286, 287, 292; and the Quebec Bill, 252. Cayugas (Indians), 38 n. Champlain, Lake, 80, 102, 149, 168, 183. Chandler, Dr., quoted, 177, 178. Chase, Samuel, 253, 255, 278, 281 n. Cherokees, the, prevailed upon by Dinwiddie to make war on the French, 16, 94 ; under Wahachy offer services to Sharpe, 124 et seq. ; Ridout and Wolstenholme sent as ambassadors to, 124, 126- 35. Chew, Samuel, 236. Chippeways (Indians), 16. Church Livings, 176-9 ; deplorable state of the Church in Maryland, establishment of Episcopacy urged, 178. Civil War in England, 286 et seq. Claibourne, , 284, 285, 286, 287, 290. Clinton, Sir Henry, 269, 272-4. Cockayne, Mr., 204. Colonies, the, as training schools for military service, 63. Colville, Lord, 137, 213. Combe's Fort, 98. Contrecceur, 19, 55. Convict ships, 230. Conway, General, 211, 212, 224. Copley, Sir Lionel, 291. Corn Stalk (Indian), 264. Cornwallis, Lord, 85, 95, 271, 274-5. Coxen, Captain Nicholas, 1, 2. Craven, Major Charles, 78. Cresap, Daniel and Thomas, expedi tion against Indians, 98. Crown Point, 36, 68, 73, 80, 109, 162, 168, 270, 271. Cumberland, Duke of, 197. Fort (Wills Creek), 27, 34, 46, 55, 60, 71, 99, 125, 132, 136, 139, 146, 154, 158 ; alarm and con fusion at, 60 ; measures for de fence, 62. Custis, Mrs. M., 143. John Parke, 248. family, 278. Daowortht, Captain, 71, 72, 146. Dartmouth, Lord, 256, 261. Davenant, Sir Wm., 288 and n. de Bougainville, 183. de Grasse, Count, 274. de Guise, Duke, 185 and n. de Jumonville, Coulon, 19-20, 22, de la Galissoni^re, Marquis, 13. de la Jonquiere, Marquis, 13, De Lancey, Hon. James, Lieut. -Gov. of New York, 39, 40, 75, 142, 162. Delaware, State, 274. Delawares (Indians), 62, 127, 159, 202. de L6vis, Chevalier, 101, 106, 120 ; his zeal in preparation for descent on Quebec, 180; battle of Sainte Foy, 180 ; campaign against Murray in Quebec, 180-2 ; at capitulation of Montreal, 184 ; subsequent career, 185. Denmark, Queen of, 263, Denny, Governor of Pennsylvania, 105 ; message to the Cherokees, 130, 135 ; submits to taxation of proprietary's estate, 166 ; men tioned, 119, 127. Densmure, Lord, 265. de Saint Pierre, Legardeur, 14. de Vaudreuil, Marquis, Governor of Canada, 68, 107, 118, 123, 169, 180, 181, 184. de -ViUiers, Coulon, 19-21, 102. Dickinson, John, 241 ; Pennsylvania Farmer's Letters, by, 241. Dieskau, Baron, 68-70, 101, 120. Dinwiddie, Governor of Virginia, 14 ; efforts of, to defend English trading posts, 14-17, 19 ; difficulties with INDEX 301 his Assembly, 17 ; urges estab lishment of two confederacies, 18 ; on Washington's failure at Fort Necessity, 20-2 ; and the Vir ginian forces for defence, 32 ; receives from Innes news of Braddock's defeat, 56 ; appoints Washington to eommand at Fort Cumberland, 72 ; negotiations, etc., with Cherokees, 94, 125, 130, 131 ; leaves for England, 140 ; mentioned, 19, 24, 25, 27, 35, 38, 39, 40, 52, 53, 95. Dixon, Jeremiah, 204-5. i Dobbs, Governor of North Carolina, 25. Douglas, Capt. James, 172. Drucour (French commandant), capitulates at Louisbourg, 153. du Gurne, Fort, 22. Dulany, Daniel, 8, (jun.), 9, 294 ; his pam phlet on the Stamp Act, 9, 209, 220 ; Bennett Allen's enmity for, 236, 238, 239 ; mentioned, 203, 239. Lloyd, 239. Dunbar, Col., 29, 54, 58, 59, 78; his retreat after Braddock's defeat, 60-2, 67. Dunmore, Lord, 256. Duquesne de Menneville, Marquis, 14, 19. Fort, 19, 25, 36, 45, 68, 73, 80, 103, 145, 147, 155-60 passim ; capture of, 161. Eddis, Wm., 248, 252, 253, 255, 257. Eden, Robert, succeeds Sharpe as Lieut. -Gov. of Maryland, 194, 242-3, 246, 248-9, 255, 261, 262-3 276. '— (brother), 261, 263, 264. Edmundson, Mr., 237. Edward, Fort, 73, 87, 120, 121 ; and see Lyman. Egerton, Lady Diana, 246. Egremont, Earl of, 207. England and Frauce, boundary of American possessions unsettled, 15 ; domains of, in North America contrasted, 123 ; condition of armies of, after capture of Quebec, 180. England, English attempts to secure co-operation of the colonies against the French, 1 8 ; and alliances with the Indians, 18, 33, 124, 159; give bounty for scalps, 124, 126, 128 ; regulations as to Crown and provincial troops, 27, 106, 117, 146-7; measures for defence of the Dominions, 28-9 ; naval force in North America, 74 ; wane of prestige, effect of Braddock's defeat, 75 ; declara tion of war with France (1756), 100; awaking to importance of de fence of the colonies, 112; colonial forces increased after Loudoun's unsuccessful campaign, 115 ; Pitt's dismissal, confusion of political affairs, 118 ; the king's instruc tions to Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania, 165 ; critical posi tion of, in Quebec, 181 ; death of George ii., 195 ; accession of George in., 195 ; marriage of George in. and the Queen's coronation, 196 ; new Cabinet in England, 207 ; and the American Revolution, 256 et seq., 270 et seq- Episcopacy in Scotland, a story of, 233. Episcopate, American, question of estabUshment of, 178, 232-4. Essex, Lord, 261. Lady, 261 n., 280, 295. Europe, situation in (Seven Years' War), 115, 196. Fairfax, Sir William, 8. Fendall, Josias, 290. Fisher, Richard D,, letter to Balti more News, cited, 255. Fitch, Thos,, 77. Fitzhugh, Col. Wm., 24, 27. 302 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Five Nations, the, 38 n., 159, 169. See Six Nations. Forbes, Brigadier-General, 147 ; expedition against Fort Du quesne, 145-7, 158-60 ; his forces, 146, 147 ; ideas of, on troops, accoutrements, uniforms, etc, , 147-8; on the obstruction by the Assemblies, 148 ; on the capture of Louisbourg, 155; decides not to follow Braddock's road, 157, 159 ; iUness, 157, 158 ; arrangements as to Fort Cumberland, 158 ; complains of St. Clair, 158 ; re pulse of Grant's detachment, 159 ; occupies Fort Duquesne, 161 ; taken to Philadelphia, 161 ; death, 164 ; mentioned, 141, 149, 156. Fox, Henry, 95, 106, 112, 275. Stephen, 10 ra. Franklin, Benjamin, 18 and ra., 19 ; meeting with Washington, 45 ; resourcefulness of, 45 ; last con versation with Braddock, 47 ; Autobiography quoted, 104, 119 ; mentioned, 245, 271, 272, Frederick the Great, 115-16, 179, 271, 272. Fort, 99, 126, 131, 132, 136, 157. French, the, aggression by, on the Ohio, 13-15, 49; claims as to territory, 15, 123 ; occupy English fort, 19 ; capture Fort Necessity, 20-2 ; strong position of, in North America, 26, 36, 38, 101 ; princi pal forts held by, 36 ; importance of Lake Ontario to, 77-9 passim ; descent on Oswego, 106-7 ; secure Lake Ontario, 108 ; strength at Crown Point, 112; reinforce Louisbourg against Loudoun, 118 ; abandon forts on Lake Erie and on the Ohio, 170, 176 ; finances depleted, 180; and Acadia, 64, 84 ei seq. ; alliances with Indians, 16, 26, 124, 159 ; declaration to Indians, 49 ; method of ensuring allegiance of Indians, 123 ; with draw ambassador from London, 55 ; attempt invasion of Ireland, 51 ; aid Colonies during the American Revolution, 272-4. French Neutrals. See Acadians. Frontenac, Fort, 36, 73, 79, 103, 106, 107, 108, 156-7, 160; and see Cataraqui. Fry, Col. Joseph, 19. Gage, Thomas, General, 61, 202, 213, 252, 256, 270. Garth, Mr., 226. Gaspereau, Fort, 55 n. Gates, Horatio, 61, 274. George, Fort, 163. — —Lake, 68, 149. German emigrants in Maryland, 96. Lutherans, 178, Gibson, Mr,, 280, Gold, Lieut., 59. Goldsborough, Col, William, 191 ; family, 259. Rachel, 280. Robert, 253. Grafton, Duke of, 211, 215, 224, 229. Grant, Major, 159-60. Greenbury, Col. Nicholas, 291. Greene, Thomas, 288. Grenville, George, 197, 207, 211. Haldimand, Col,, 141-3, 168-9. Hale, Col. John, 172. Halifax (N.S.), founded by CornwaUis, 85. Lord, 106, 207. Halkett, Sir Peter, 29, 59. Hamersley, Hugh, Secretary to Sixth Lord Baltimore, 213, 215, 228, 234, 243, .246, 260, 264, 265 et passim. Hammond, Mr., 210. Hanbury, John, 13. Hancock town, 99. Handfield, , 87. Hardy, Sir Chas., 71, 75, 77, 94. Harford, Robert. See Hertford. Harris, Rev. Matthew, 2. Harrison, Ensign, 168, INDEX 303 Hart, Capt. John, 292. Harvey, Sir John, 284. Haviland, Brigadier, 182, 184. Hawke, Admiral, 51, 179. Hendricks (Indian chief), 69. Henry, Col., 266. Herrick, Capt., 260. Hertford, Robert, 246, 263, 276 and ra. Hesselius's portrait of Sharpe, 245. HiUsborough, Lord, 242, Holbourne, Admiral, 116, 118, 119. Holdernesse, Earl of, 18. Holmes, Admiral, 173. Hood, Zachariah, 209-14 passim, Hopson, , 85, Howe, Colonel, 173. Lord, Admiral, 270-1. Lord, Brigadier-General, 151, 270 ra. Sir WiUiam, 269, 270-3 passim. Hozier's Armorial General of the French Nobility, 10. Hunter, Capt., 277, 278. Hutchins' Visitation of Somerset, 10 n. Ilchester, Earl of, 10 ra. Indentured persons, custom as to, 8. Independent Companies, the, 27, 62. Indians, the, and early colonists in Maryland, 284; engaged by French against English, 1 6 ; French efforts to secure assistance of, 49 ; Din widdie prevails on, to fight the French, 16 ; receive presents for assistance, 17, 32, 49, 157; Eng lish Government gives bounty to, for scalps, 124 ; conciliation of, by EngUsh, 33, 124, 159; importance of wampum in deaUngs with, 33 ; as alUes of English and of French, 124 ; raids and incursions by, 33, 52, 53, 71-3, 76, 97-8, 103, 200- 1, 264; Annapolis entrenched against, 72-3 ; raids increase anti- Catholic feeUng in Maryland, 89 ; terror in Maryland by reason of, 97-9 ; the Cresaps' expedition against, 98 ; successful attack on, by Virginian planters, 103 ; effect of loss of Oswego on, 109, 124 ; massacre of prisoners by, at Oswego, 108 ; massacre by, at Fort William Henry, 121 ; kept in allegiance by military centres, 123 ; conven tion with, at Earton, Penn., 159; Bouquet's campaign against, 202 ; battle of Bushy Run, 202 ; John son's treaty with, 202 ; renounce aUegiance to France, 167; a speci men of diplomacy by, 124 ; con spiracy of Pontiac, 200 ; Indian traders buy up powder and lead, 201. See also Five Nations, Six Nations, and under Tribal ¦names. Ingle, Capt. Bichard, 285-6. Innes, Colonel, 47, 55-7, 62, 71. Innis, messenger, 119. Iroquois family, 37 ra., 38 ra. Isle aux Noix, 168, 183. Isle St. Jean, 154. Jacobites, 40-1 n., 289, 292. Jenifers, Major, 247, 248. Jersey Regiment, 101. Jockey Club of Maryland, 8. Johnson, Col. (Sir Wm.), 45 ; his ascendancy over Six Nations Indians, 45, 101 ; endeavours to win over Five Nations, 159 ; advance to Crown Point, 68 ; affair with Dieskau at Lake George, 68-70 ; honours for, 70- 1 ; builds Fort William Henry, 71 ; return to Albany, 73 ; at the siege of Niagara, 169 ; submission of Pontiac to, 200 ; treaty with Indians, 202 ; mentioned, 49, 100, 120. Dr., cited, 114. Jordan, Mr., 206, 244. Gerard, 40 ra. Kennedy's regiment, 173. Keppel, Commander, 39, 40, Kingston (Ont.), 36 ra, Kinneer, Major James, 78, 304 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Knowles, Governor of Louisbourg, 85. Kosky Club, the, 247. La Galette, 79, 162. La Mothe, Admiral, 118. La Presentation, Fort, 36. Lascelles' Regiment, 173, Lawrence, Governor, 86, 87, 90. Sir Thomas, 4. Leblanc, Simon, 92. Lebceuf, Fort, 36. Lee, General (Mad Lee), 259. Miss, 264. Thomas, 13. WiUiam, 259. Legardeur de Saint Pierre, 1 4. Le Loutre, missionary, vicar-genl. of Acadia, 86. Lewis, Colonel, 264. Lexington, battle of, 256, 257. Liberty Lottery, the, 228. Ligonier, General, 154, Lloyd, Colonel, 190, 247, 264. Locker, Frederick, 240. London Gazette, 70, 172. Longfellow, ' Evangeline,' cited, 92. Lotteries, the rage for, 265. Loudoun, Earl of, appointed titular governor of Virginia, 94 ; and commander-in-chief in succession to Shirley, 95, 100, 104, 106; arrival in New York, 106, 111 ; determination to find fault with Shirley's actions, 106, 109 ; changes plans, 106 ; order to provincial troops, 106 ; troops billeted on the inhabitants by, 106 and -ii., 140 ; first disastrous campaign of, 1 08 ; sends Webb to reinforce Oswego, 108 ; orders Winslow back from Ticonderoga expedition, 108 ; cautions Sharpe as to defence of frontiers, 109 ; complains of condition and number of troops, 109 ; expedition against Louisbourg planned, 116-18 ; and abandoned, 119; fails to defend frontier posts, 120 ; loses Fort WiUiam Henry, 120-2 ; and the Maryland Assembly, \Z6-& passim preparations for his winter cam paign, 139 ; recalled, 143, 150 superseded by Abercrombie, 144 feeling in America, 144, 155 relations with Abercrombie, 156 Bradstreet's request to proceed against Frontenac refused by, 156 characteristics, Franklin quoted, 118, 119; mentioned, 103, 105 111, 164. Louisbourg, 36, 84 ; Shirley's plan for capture of, 64 ; capitulates to Pepperell and Warren, 65, 85 ; restored to France, 85 ; Loudoun's expedition planned and abandoned, 116, 118, 119; new expedition under Amherst, 144, 149 ; siege and capitulation of, 153-5 ; men tioned, 51, 54, 74. Grenadiers, 174. Louisiana, 25. Lowndes, Charles, 211. Christopher, 294. Lowther, , 98. Love, Capt., 189, 250, 261. Lyman, Fort, 68, 70, 93. See Fort Edward. Lynn, father and son, 97, 98. Magruder, Lieut. Samuel, 73. Maryland, founded by 2nd Lord Baltimore, 283-4 ; charter of, 283-4 ; the original emigrants, 284 ; discontent in, 286 ; pro prietary government overthrown, 286 ; order restored, 287 ; the province a palatinate, 287 ; attitude to ParUament on execu tion of Charles i,, 288 ; pro prietary deposed by Charles ii,, 288 ; difficulties of proprietary during Great Civil War, 288-90 ; overthrow of Puritans in, 290 ; origin of boundary dispute with Pennsylvania, 291, 293 ; the royal governors, 291-2 ; restoration of proprietary rights in, 292 ; pro test against importation of con victs, 292, INDEX 305 Maryland (contd.) — Situation in, at time of Sharpe's arrival, 13 ei seq., 43; views in, as to provincial troops, 23 ; re cruiting in, 30, 31 ; complaints against Braddock in, 45-6 ; state of the province in 1755, 52-3 ; after Braddock's defeat, 62-3, 71-2; in 1756, 103; interest in EngUsh V. French struggle, 171 ; proclamation of King George in. in, 195 ; boundary dispute and survey, 203-5 ; position of, during the Revolution, 255, 257, 267, 274 ; British LoyaUsts in, 267-8. See also Annapolis, Calvert, Indians, Sharpe. Church livings in, 176 et seq. Jacobite sentiments in, 40-1 ra. Proprietary. See above and also under Calvert. Population of (in 1635), 285 ; in 1715, 292. Religious freedom in, 283, 287, 290-2. Assembly, attitude of, to de fence of province, 16-18; delegates to Congress of Albany, 18 ; con tention as to taxation of pro prietary's lands, 42-4 ; origin of struggle with the proprietary, 285 ; refusal to grant supplies, 31, 42, 50-4 ¦passim, 76, 136-7, 148, 157, 163, 165 ; defence pro posals by, 136-9 passim; Loudoun's letter of protest, 136-9 ; consti tution of, 198-9, 227-8, 285, 287 ; Calvert's scheme for management of the Lower House, 198-9 ; the ' Liberty Lottery,' 228 ; and re peal of the Stamp Act, 225-7. Co. troops, 32, 157, 163, 164. Maryland Gazette, 1, 6, 11-12, 24, 34-5, 39, 40,51, 60, 61,62, 73, 75, 83,97, 99, 171, 176, 201, 208, 231. Mason, Charles, 205. Massachusetts, Assembly's embargo on provisions and warUke stores, 51 ;, troops capture Beau Sejour, 55 ; a bill for regulation of the Government of Massachusetts Bay, 262 ; charter of, 256, 258, 266. Matson, Ralph, 97. MaxweU, , 114. Mercer, Col,, 77, 107-8, 213, Methodists, 178, Micmacs, the, 86. MiUtia law, 63. Milton, 289. MisiUmakinak, 79, 80. Mississippi, French, settlements, 36, 79. Moooosons, the, 133. Mohawks, the, 38 «., 68. Monckton, Col., 55, 73, 86, 172, 173, 180, 184; duel with Win- slow, 91-2. Monongahela, 13, 19, 25, 146. Montcalm, arrival in Canada, 101 ; descent on Fort Oswego, 106, 107; joins Rigaud, 107 ; captures Oswego, 124 ; endeavours to stay massacre by Indians, 108, 121 ; attack on the frontiers by, 119; concentrates at Ticonderoga, 120 ; captures Fort William Henry, 120 ; defeats Abercrombie at Ticonderoga, 150-3 ; defence of Quebec, 170, 174; death, 175; mentioned, 89, 149. Montgomery, Col., 141, 147, 157, 160, 270. Montreal, capitulation of, and sur render of Canada, 184, 195. Moravian settlements, 76. Morris, Governor, of Pennsylvania, 17 ra,, 39, 40, 71, 103 ; resignation of, 105 ; views of, as to loss of Oswego, 110. Capt. Roger, 39, 58, 72. Robert, 254 ; of Lincoln's Inn, 246. Mowbray, Mr., 210-11. Munier, Joseph, 92. Munroe, Lt.-Col., 120-1. Murdock, John, 2. Murray, Col., 87, 88, 173, 174; in command at Quebec, 180-5 passim; Govt, -General of Quebec, 185-6. Myers, John, 97. U 306 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND Negro slaves, 7 ; and convicts, 231. Neutrals. See Acadians. Newcastle, Duke of, 65, 66, 85. New Englanders, 64, 65 ra. New France, 123. New York (1755), 75, 76 ; CouncU of War in, 77 et seq. ; Governor of, burnt in effigy, 214. Niagara, Fort, 36, 67, 68, 79, 106, 108, 163 ; capitulation of, 170 ; effect of capture of, 176. Niaour6 Bay (Sackett's Harbour), 107. Nicholson, Gov. Thomas, 4, 291. Nolly, Thomas, 290. North, Lord, 229, 261, 266, 273, 275. Ogdensburg, 36 ra. Ogle, Samuel, Gov,, 6, 79, 193, 280 ; family history, 293-5. Mrs,, 193, 250, 260, 261, 263, 277, 280, 281. Benjamin (son), 10, 280. LeUora. See Mrs. Anderson. Mary (daughter), 10, 193, 194, 268, 276, 280, Ohio Company, 13. the. La Belle Riviere, 22 ra, ; English claims on, 16, 17, 165, Oneidas, the, 38 n. Onondagoes, the, 38 n., 78. Ontario, Fort, 107. Lake, 67, 77, 78, 162. Orme, Capt, Robert, 39, 40, 54, 57, 59. Osborne, Sir Danvers, 75. Oswego, Fort, 38, ,53, 67, 78, 103, 107, 156 ; captured by French, 106-9 ; Gov. Morris ou causes of the loss of, 110-11. Ottaways, the, 16. Otway's regiment, 174. Page, William, 253. Palatine, explanation of the term, 287. Palatines (German and Swiss Protes tants), 96, Parkman, cited, 59, 168, 200; quoted, 70. Patuscents, 285. Peace of — Aix-la-ChapeUe, 14, 65 ra., 85. Paris, 200. Ryswick, 84. Utrecht, 84. Pearis, Capt,, 128, 130. Penman of the Revolution, the, 241. Penn, Thomas and Richard, 203. WilUam, 291. Pennsylvania, and French encroach ments, 17 ; Assembly's refusal to grant suppUes, 31, 42, 105, 216 ; question of taxing the proprietary's estate, 42 ; Gov. Morris resigns, 105 ; Gov. Denny appointed, 105 ; borders laid waste by the enemy, 62 ; absence of a good miUtia law, 63 ; news of the fall of Louis bourg in, 155 ; boundary dispute with Maryland, 203-5, 291, 293 ; Gov. Denny submits to demands of Assembly, 166 ; troops augmented, 166 ; confidence restored in, 176 ; mentioned, 132, 257, 266. Pennsylvania Farmer's Letters, 241. Pepperell, Sir W,, 29, 65 ; captures Louisbourg and Cape Breton, 65, 85 ; his regiment, 65, 77, 85. PhUadelphia, 57, 253, 270, 271. PhUUps, General, 85. Pitt, Wm., appointed Secretary of State, 112; dismissed for eleven weeks, 118 ; his thorough under standing of affairs in America, 162; popularity of, after fall of Quebec, 176; resignation of , 196; andthe Stamp Act, 207, 217-18, 220, 225 ; made Earl of Chatham, 225 ; return to office, 229 ; mentioned, 115, 150, 154, 171, 172. Fort, relieved by Bouquet, 201-2. Pittsburg, 170. Plater, Attorney -General, 8. Pont k Buot, 56 ra, Pontiac, conspiracy of, 200. Port Royal (Annapolis), 84. INDEX 307 Potomac River, 36, 99. Pouchot (French commandant), 169, Pownall, Thomas, 105. Preble, Major, 87. Presbyterians, 178. Presqu'ile, Fort, 36, 79, 170. Prideaux, General, 168-9, Prince Edward Island, 154, Princeton, affairs at, 271. Provincial troops, 27, 106, 117, 144, 146-7. Provost, Peter, 246. Prudhomme, Fort, 36. Prussia, Kingof, 115, 179, 271, 272, Puritan Revolution, 283. Putnam, Israel, 150. Quakers, 141, 178, 283, Quebec, 36, 74, 162; siege of, 3, 171 ; capture of, 172 et seq. ; nearly falls again into French hands, 181-2. BUl, the, 252. Rascal, Fort, 107, Rattlesnakes as medicine, 190. Redemptioners, 8. Revenue Act, the, 229 ; indignation in America, 241-2 ; the tax on tea, 242 ; unpopular in England, 242 ; Colonies non-importation agreement, 242. Reynolds, Sir Joshua, portrait of Orme, 59 ; portrait of Amherst, 184, 187. Thomas and WilUam, 231. Richmond, Duke of, 224, Ridgely, Col, Henry, 73. Ridout family, note on the, 1 0 ra. Hon. John, secretary to Gov. Sharpe, 2 and ra., 3-4; parent age and family, 10 ra,, 194; sent as ambassador to meet the Cherokees, 124 et seq. ; meeting with Amherst, 164; draws up note on Revenue Laws, 167, 191-2; made member of the Eling's CouncU, 192; and Com missary-General to Lord Baltimore, 193 ; jealousy excited by his appointments, 192-3 ; Sharpe's friendship for, 190-4, 261, 279 ; engagement and marriage, 193, 194; appointed a commissioner on the boundary survey, 203 ; col lector of customs, 261 ; Sharpe's estate left to his management, 251, 262, 264, 268, 278 ; LoyaUst in the Revolution, 255, 267-8 ; plans to visit England, 260, 267, 279 ; buys land on the Potomac, 259 ; hard times, 269 ; death, 279 ; mentioned, 59, 142, 245, 253, 261, 279, 280-1. Mrs, John [nie Mary Ogle), 10, 193, 194, 268, 276, 280. Anne Tasker (daughter), 280. Hester Chase, 281. Horatio (son), 269, 276, 280, Mary (sister), 245, Samuel (son), 250, 260, 265, 268, 269, 277, 279, 280, Thomas (brother), 253, 254 ra., 277. Dr. W, G,, 2, 279. Rigaud, 107. River k Bceuf, 80. Robin, Abb6, quoted, 249, Robinson, Sir Thomas, 25, 28, 32, 35, 37, 63, 70, 95. Rockingham, Marquis of, 197, 211, 229. Rogers' Rangers, 150, 183. RoUo, Lord, 182. Roman Catholics in Maryland and Pennsylvama, 111-12, 178, 283, 286, 287, 292 ; anti-Catholic feel ing excited by Indian ravages, 89 ; the Quebec BiU, 252. Rose, Dr. A,, Bishop of Edinburgh, 233. Ross, Elizabeth, 3. J,, 2, 125, 129, 130, 164. RouU16, Fort, 79 n. Royal American Regiment, 109, 117, 160, Russell, Ensign, 59. Rutherford, Major John, 78. 308 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND St. Clair, Sir John, 33-7, 46, 65, 76, 78, 101-2, 110,138, 141, 145, 155, 158 ; wounded in Braddock's disaster, 59, 117. St. Luc de la Corne, 169. St. Sacrement, Lake, 68, Sainte Foy, battle, 180. Saratoga, 61, 272. Sawyer, Thomas, 231. Scharf's History of Maryland, quoted, 178 ra., 284. Schuyler, PhiUp, 150. Schwerin, Marshal, 116. Soots exiles, 41 9i., 289, 292. Scott, Dr, Upton, 2, 3, 260, 261, 263, 265, 277, 278. Colonel, 86. Seabury, S. (Bishop), 233-4. Senecas, the, 38ra. Senex, the map maker, 204. Senezergues, Brigadier, 175. Servants, the planters' wealth con sisted in, 46. runaways, 41 ra. Seven Years' War, 116. Seymour, John, 291. ' Shades of Death,' the, 46. Sharpe, Horatio, Governor of Mary land, birth, 2 ; family connections, 2, 114; his commission in the marines and in the army, 2 and ra. , 3, 13; arrival in Annapolis, 1, 2, 293 ; reasons for his appoint ment, 13 ; difficulties with his Assembly, 17, 31, 42, 44, 62-3, 54, 136-7, 139-40, 148, 159, 163, 164, 165, 242; views of, on Washington's capitulation at Fort Necessity, 20, 22 ; receives com mission as Lieut.-Col. from Lord Baltimore, 23 ; receives commis sion from King George, 24-5 ; consults with Dinwiddie as to defence plans, 24-6 ; difficulty with the Independent Companies, 27 ; endeavours to induce Wash ington not to resign his commis sion, 27 ; inspects frontier military posts, 27, 35 ; plans and prepara tions by, for attack on Fort Duquesne, 25-6, 28 ; instructions from London as to measures for defence, 28-32 ; proposes taxa tion for a defence fund, 31, 137 ; conciliation of Indians by, 32-3, 126 et seq. ; on attitude of the Indians, 33 ; preparations for Braddock's arrival, 35-6 ; letter to Braddock on the situation in America, 37-8 ; provasioning the troops, 38 ; visits Braddock at Alexandria, 39 ; loyalty to his chief on question of taxation, 42, 43, 163, 167 ; proposes lengthen ing session of the Assembly, 43 ; difficulties and anxieties of his office, 43, 98, 206; attitude to the ' virulent' burgesses, 44 ; joins Braddock at Fort Frederick, 45 ; endeavours to dissuade Braddock from recruiting intended servants, 45-6 ; receives warning from Bradstreet, 49 ; apprehensions as to Braddock's force, 52 ; en deavours to draft militia for de fence of the frontier, 53 ; receives news of Braddock's defeat and sets off for Fort Cumberland, 57-60 ; remonstrates with Col. Dunbar, 60 ; account of Braddock's defeat by, 61-2; control of affairs left to, 62 ; raises volunteer force, 62 ; measures for defence of province, 63 ; invited to Shirley's council of war. New York, 71, 75-6, 77, 94 ; and the Indian ravages, 71-3, 76, 97-8, 103, 264 ; sends miUtia to Fort Cumberland, 73 ; view as to troops necessary in consequence of Braddock's defeat, 76 ; on the colonies and the question of de fence, 76, 99 ; desires command of a regiment, 77, 96-7 ; and the Acadians, 89-92 passim ; opposed to plan of raising reginlents under foreign officers, 96-7 ; builds chain of forts on frontiers, 99 ; recom mendation of Washington, 99 ; endeavours to restrain hostility to Roman Catholics, 111-12; death INDEX 309 of his brother John, 112-13; dis tress as to provisioning of troops at Fort Cumberland, 136; re fuses request for supply of seamen, 137 ; voluminous correspondence, 140; the Assembly and his sec retary, 140 ; remonstrance to Loudoun as to quartering of troops, 140-1 ; on Loudoun's re call, 145, 166 ; sets off with miUtia to garrison Fort Cumber land, 146, 158 ; question of his rank, 146 ; on Abercrombie's de feat at Ticonderoga, 155 et seq. ; en courages troops at Fort Frederick, 157 ; on the delay in the southern campaign, 157 ; buys blankets for Forbes, 158 ; on Forbes's progress to Fort Duquesne, 160 ; angered by Denny's submission to Assembly of Penn,, 167; on the siege of Niagara, 170 ; work after capture of Quebec, 176; Whitehall, 188 et seq., 278, 279 ; various presents to Lord Baltimore, 189 ; defence of Ridout, 193 ; friendship for Ridout, 4, 190-4, 261, 279 ; Miss Ogle, 194; criticism of Calvert's proposals regarding the Assembly, 199-200 ; and the boundary ques tion, 203-4 ; receives presents from Lord Baltimore, 205, 235 ; and the Stamp Act, 208 et seq. ; sells Baltimore's manors, 228 ; efforts to ameliorate condition of convict ships, 230 ; the Episcopate in Maryland, 232 ; Bennett Allen, 234 et seq. ; solicits a living for Boucher, 239 ; dismissed from office, 242-5 ; returns to England, 250 ; interest in conflict of American Revolution, 255 ei seq. ; leaves his estate in Ridout's man agement, 251,262, 264, 268; pros pect of return as governor, 260-1, 263, 266 ; sells Ridout's tobacco, 261, 262, 265 ; fever and ague, 263 ; on Browning v. Hertford claims, 263-4 ; the present of hambs to Hamersley, 264, 266 ; Sam Ridout's school fees, 265 ; instructs Ridout as to disposal of young slaves, 267 ; meets Samuel Chase in London, 278 ; death, 279 ; wiU, 279 ; length of his rule, 11 ; his house and enter tainments, 11, 188-90, 245 ; friendship for Dr. Upton Soott, 3 ; portrait by Hesselius, 246 ; mementoes of, 280-1. Appreciations of, 35, 245 ; by King George in,, 197 ; and George II,, 198; Eddis's estimate of, 248-9. Characteristics, 2, 12-13, 28, Ul, 158, 188-9, 190, 244-5, 246, 248-9, 267 ; love of flowers, 3 ; and garden, 189, 244, 265, 278; as soldier, 13, 28; reputa tion for wise council in military operations, 73, 74 ; attachment to his family, 114 ; loyal churchman, 179. Otherwise mentioned, 34, 50, 67 ei passim. Sharpe, Gregory (brother), 2, 4, 114, 191. John (brother), a guardian of the 6th Lord Baltimore, 112, 114. Joshua (brother), 114, PhiUp (brother), 114, 214. WilUam (brother), 13, 112, 114. Shawanese, the, 62, 94, 124, 127, 169, 202. Shirley, William, Lieut. -Gov. of Massachusetts, 39, 40, 64-6, 85 ; project for capture of Louisbourg, 64-5 ; attitude to Acadians, 85 ; commander-in-chief, 66-6 ; loss of his sons, 58, 66, 77 ; sends to Sharpe an account of his forces, 66 ; confirms appointment of Washington, 72 ; decision to raise two more regiments, 76-7 ; strengthens Oswego and defences of Lake Ontario, 77 ; counoil of war at New York, 71, 76, 76, 77 ; abandons attempt on Fron tenac, 73 ; on strength of British and French on Lake Ontario, 78 ; 310 A COLONIAL GOVERNOR IN MARYLAND plan of campaign, 79-82 ; enlists boatmen, 102; recall, 91, 94, 101, 104 ; reasons for his failure, 101 ; dismissed from all military affairs, 103 ; his plans altered, 103, 110; blamed for loss of Oswego, 109, UO; return to England, 104 ; Gov, of Bahamas, 91, 104 ; Benjamin Franklin quoted on, 104 ; mentioned, 29, 45, 61, 53, 67, 71, 95. Shirley, WilUam (son), 39, 40, 50, 58, 66. Capt. John (son), 77, Six Nations, the, 37 ra., 38 ii., 78 ; Maryland's present to, 17, 32 ; Col, Johnson's influence with, 45, 101. See also Five Nations, Smith, Goldwin, The United King dom, quoted, 242 ra. Spry, Capt., 55, 73, 74. Stamp Act, 9, 31, 207 ; indignation in the Colonies, 208 ei seq. ; the Colonies' non-importation agree ment, 208 ; active resistance to in Mass,, 208 ; Dulany's pamphlet on, 209 ; lawyers against the Act, 210; effect of, in stopping business, 214-15, 219 ; discussion of, in Parliament, 215 ei seq. ; repeal of, 223-7. Stanwix, Brig. -General, 117, 136, 139, 141, 164-7, 170, 176. Steuben, Baron, 273. Stewart, Anthony, 253. Capt,, 72. Dr., 247. StirUng, Capt,, 213. Stobo, Robert, 22 and n. Stoddarts Fort, 97. Stone, WUUam, 287, 289, 290. Strangways, Thomas of Melbury, 10 ». Susquehannoughs, 285. Tasker, Hon. Benjamin, Ira,, 6-8 passim, 18 and ra., 60, 142, 193, 203, 227, 243, 293, 294. Tasker, Anne (wife), 8, 294. Benjamin (son), 8, 239, 243, Tasker, Rebecca (daughter), 9. Thomas (father), 7. Thackeray, 240 ; The Virginians, quoted, 23, 275. Ticonderoga, or Carillon, 36, 106 ; Abercrombie's defeat at, 150-3 ; captured by Amherst, 166-8. Toleration Aet, 287. Townshend, Colonel, 168, 172, 173, 180, Charles, 217, 229. Trade, Lords of, 17, 18, Treaty of — Aix-la-Chapelle, 14, 65 ra,, 85. Ryswick, 84, Utrecht, 84. Trent, Captain, 17, 19. Trenton, capture of, 271. Tuscuroras, the, 38 ra. Tyler, Literary History of the Revolu tion, quoted, 220. Van Braam, Jacob, 22 and ra. Venango Fort, 36, 160, Virginia, 15, 62, 63, 95, 103, 125, 263, 256 ; views as to provincial troops in, 23 ; Assembly's con tribution for defence, 16, 17 ; Assembly's refusal to grant sup plies, 31 ; confidence restored in, 176 ; hostiUty to Maryland, 286 ; attitude during Great Ci^'il War, 286 ; submits to CromweU, 289. Wahachy of Keew.^y (Cherokee chief), 124, 126, 128-9, 132. Wallace, Hugh, 254. Walpole, Horace, quoted, 182, 183, 197, 274. Wampum in deaUngs virith Indians, 33, 130. Warren, Admu'al Sir Peter, 45, 65. Washington, Augustine, 13. George, 14, 15 ; affair with de Jumonville, 19 ; capitulates at Fort Necessity, 20-2, 28 ; resigns his commission, 27 ; aide-de-camp to Braddock, 39 ; meets Franklin, 45 ; escapes from the Monon gahela, 58, 61 ; dispute with INDEX 311 Dagworthy at Fort Cumberland, 72 ; Sharpe's recommendation of, 99 ; Ohio expedition, 100 ; punc tiliousness in small matters, 146- 7 ; his Diary, quoted, 247-8 ; assumes command of the Americans, 270 ; operations during the war, 270-4 ; resigns his commission, 276, 281 ; mentioned, 22, 24, 143, 147, 157, 241, 245. Webb, Major-General, 103, 108, no, 117, 120, 144. Weekly Gazette, the, 41 ra. Wentworth, Governor, 70. White, Father, 284, 286. Whitfield, 64, 177. WhitehaU, Sharpe's country seat, 188-90, 278, 279 ; the young woodcarver at, 190. Wilkes, 259. William Henry, Fort, 71, 73, 120-1, 150, 163. Williams, Thomas Charles, 253 et seq. Willing, Thomas, 254. WilUs, John, 40 n. WiUs Creek (Port Cumberland), 27, 34, 66, 80. Winslow, Colonel John, 55, 86-92 passim, 100, 108. Wolfe, James, 3, 22 n., 149, 153, 154, 166, 168, 170-1, 172, 174, 180, 181 ra. ; death, 175. Wolstenholme, Daniel, 2, 124, 130-5, 261. Yaughtanew (Cherokee), 129, 135. Yorktown, surrender of, 274. Printed by T. and A. Constable, Printers to His Majesty at the Edinburgh University Press lit ftfe£j3)ft!»>( ,4(1(11,1.] j' \\^mH " f'ti '1 1 I ( , tfF'¥'-^w 1 * 1 II 11 ' ' '¦*' WWliflH; r (5!f* ' S^iptWV.'i-^''^' >^|v'«,Mrt 1». t ,-;'%•" ir^^'^'V '1 ;i"i':. w?-"- 'Till fi ," . * •'Ri'igHn^.* ¦¦.¦¦ If MV' 'tia^'"!'^' I' »*¦*!»» rilf ' iM")'! It*!' >¦' '^ti "t*"4 . 1 I .< . i " 'iiJS' •'^¦^ I 1 1 i_ -t U. 't*^ ii^.' V ^ ' ^4 ^ '."v -»• -^ 1 1 1 ^ ^*-? J f ;S-I . - ;, '^-¦11^ 1 P ! -J I-* rii-fn 1 , ''