Toledo) to Detroit, sending by her his own baggage and that of most of his officers, together with all the hospital stores, intrench. ing tools, and a trunk containing his commission, his instructions from the war department, and complete muster-rolls of the army under his command. Within twenty-four hours this schooner was captured by the British at Malden, and the valuable supplies and important papers fell into the hands of the enemy.

Much discussion has arisen concerning this affair. As a matter of fact, the British commandant at Malden had been informed of the declaration of war, and Hull had not. It is not the province of this paper to attempt to fix the responsibility for the failure to communicate the information to Hull at as early a day as it was received by the British commandant. Still, it is difficult to hold Hull entirely blameless. He knew that war was almost certain, and it was certainly imprudent to place such important stores and papers in jeopardy.

The capture of the schooner, and the receipt of information by Hull that war had been declared, occurred at about the same hour; and supposing that the enemy would, if possible, take advantage of the knowledge gained, he pushed on to Detroit, and on the evening of July 5th, encamped at Springwells, near the present site of Fort Wayne.

After some maneuvering, Hull's army of about 1500 men crossed to the Canada side on the 12th, at a point opposite Bloody Run, but unnecessarily delayed its advance upon Malden. A reconnoitering party was sent to Turkey creek, half way to Malden, and returned with sensational reports of the swarms of Indians lying in ambush between the creek and that post. This, with other rumors, caused Hull to hasten the fortification of his camp on the land side, and to send McArthur on a reconnaissance to the Moravian towns, sixty miles to the eastward.

In the meantime, Colonel Cass, with a detachment of volunteers and regulars, made a reconnaissance toward Malden. After a sharp skirmish, he succeeded in getting possession of the bridge over the river Aux Canards, four miles above Malden, and asked permission to attack that post. Hull refused. It is now understood that Colonel St. George, the commander of the British forces, was so well satisfied of his inability to hold Fort Malden, that he had made every preparation to abandon it upon the approach of the American forces.

By the 17th of July, the British were again in possession of the Aux Canards bridge, with the armed vessel "Queen Charlotte" covering it with her guns at close range.

While the movements already described were going on, the commandant of the British forces on the island of St. Joseph, taking advantage of his knowledge that war had been declared, and the ignorance of the United States commander at Fort Mackinaw of the same fact, with an overwhelming force made a descent upon the unsuspecting garrison of sixty men at the latter place, and on the 17th of July captured it without a blow, thus getting possession of the key point to that region, and securing the active alliance of the Indians inhabiting a vast area.

Hull had sent to the Governors of Ohio and Kentucky for supplies and reinforcements, but as yet had no tidings of their approach. The fall of Mackinaw, the success of the British in perfecting extensive alliances with the Indians, and rumors of large reinforcements composed of regulars, militia and employes of the Northwest Fur Company, all said to be under command of Colonel Proctor of the British army, combined to cause General Hull great uneasiness. During the first week in August intelligence reached him that Captain Brush, with two hundred Ohio volunteers, one hundred beef cattle and a mail, were at the fords of the river Raisin, thirty-five miles south of Detroit, (Monroe, Mich.) They were in great peril, and Major Van Horn, of Findlay's regiment, was sent with two hundred men to join Brush. They fell into an ambuscade near Brownstown, and were driven back with considerable loss, at the same time losing a mail containing important information, which they were escorting from Detroit. An effort was made to induce Hull to dispatch a larger force to Brush's relief, but he refused, greatly to the dissatisfaction of his officers and men. This caused him to assemble a council composed of field-officers, which resulted in an agreement to march immediately on Malden, and orders were given to that effect, but before the day closed they were countermanded, and instead, orders were issued for the army to recross the river to Detroit. Huil had permitted the opportunity to pass, and now General Brock, commander-in-chief of the British forces in Upper Canada, was hastening toward Malden, with reinforcements, real or imaginary,—real enough, however, to induce the former to place himself entirely upon the defensive.

On the 9th of August, after the return to Detroit, Colonel Miller was sent with six hundred men to the relief of Captain Brush, still at the Raisin. The enemy was found at Maguagon, and after a spirited engagement was driven from the field. Colonel Miller was disabled, however, and General Hull ordered the force to return, being induced thereto by rumors of the approach of large Indian reinforcements.

The disaffection in the army was now so great that it was proposed to deprive Hull of the command, and confer it upon Colonel Miller, who declined, but was willing to give it to Colonel McArthur. When the time for action came all hesitated until it was too late.-Lossing.

General Brock reached Malden on the 13th of August, and found preparations already made for beginning a siege of Detroit. After a conference with Tecumseh, commanding his Indian allies, he continued the preparations, and on the 15th demanded of Hull the immediate and unconditional surrender of the post, threatening him with the vengeance of the Indians in case of refusal. The batteries of the enemy were in readiness, and on the 16th his forces crossed to the Detroit side. Hull withdrew into the fort all the troops in its immediate front, (McArthur and Cass, with three hundred men, had gone on another expedition for the relief of Captain Brush), thus unduly crowding the place, the enemy at the same time advancing, and his batteries throwing shot into the overcrowded fort. A few casualties resulted, and the white flag was displayed in token of surrender. Not a shot had been fired upon the enemy, not a single effort made to stop his advance. Not only was the garrison of the post surrendered, but the forces of McArthur and Cass were also included.

Hull was tried by court martial for, 1st, cowardice; 2d, neglect of duty; found guilty, and sentenced to be shot to death; but the sentence was commuted to dismissal from the service.

In his "Outline of the Political History of Michigan," Judge Campbell has gone into an exhaustive analysis of the conduct of Hull, and his conclusions carry conviction. To that discussion of the case the inquirer is referred for further information. In 1863 Lossing wrote as follows:

"Notwithstanding almost two generations stand between us and the events of fifty years ago, and we are too remote to be seriously influenced by the prejudices and passions of that day—

notwithstanding the voice of the accused was heard at the time of trial, and in after years, protesting innocency in solemn cadences, and citing grave facts and arguments not to be rightfully unheeded by dispassionate reason, history still repeats the terrible sentence, the general order, and the merciful words of the President, without more than hinting at the defense; and we all acquiesce in the justice of the verdict."

On the 9th of August, a letter from Hull was received by the commanding officer of Fort Dearborn (Chicago), ordering him to abandon that post and move his command to Detroit. In attempting this he was attacked by the Indians, and thirty-eight out of sixty-six soldiers killed, together with two women and twelve children. Although the others were spared, yet, as prisoners, they were treated with great harshness.

The immediate result of Hull's surrender was a general uprising all over the west, and General Harrison was put in command of all the forces. The Indians were soon scattered from the Wabash and driven northward. During the winter of 1812-13 an attack upon Malden, by crossing on the ice, was contemplated, but not carried out.

On the 17th of January, 1S13, General Winchester, who was in command of the Maumee, sent on a force of between six hundred and seven hundred men to the river Raisin to protect the inhabitants. They found a force of the enemy on the left bank of the river, at the site of the present town of Monroe, and drove it for two miles, darkness putting an end to the fighting. On the 20th they were reinforced by two hundred and fifty men, under the personal command of General Winchester, and felt perfectly secure. Before daylight on the 22d, they were attacked by the enemy, under Proctor, and, after severe fighting and heavy loss, the entire force was surrendered by Winchester, who reported that it was done upon condition that the prisoners should be protected, private property respected, and the side-arms of the officers restored to them at Malden. Proctor reported that the surrender was without conditions. The evidence goes to show, however, that Winchester's statement was correct. Disregarding his promises, Proctor permitted the murder of many of the prisoners, and the plunder of all. For his success he was promoted to the grade of Brigadier-General, but his name was universally execrated.

The massacre at the Raisin carried sorrow into nearly every home in Kentucky, and aroused the greatest indignation. Large forces of volunteers were organized in Ohio and Kentucky and other parts of the west. All the available Indian forces were gathered for the work of driving the Americans out of the country, and the British, adding their share of white troops, assumed the task of defeating the army in Ohio. General Harrison made adequate preparations, including the building of Fort Meigs at the Maumee rapids. On the 1st of May, 1813, Proctor besieged Fort Meigs, but on the 5th raised the siege and rapidly retired towards Malden. Soon after this, a noted trader, named Dickson, gathered a large force of Indians from the Green Bay country and southward of it in Wisconsin. They reached Detroit early in the summer, where Proctor and Tecumseh had brought together a large army for a second attempt upon Harrison. They again approached Fort Meigs, but failing to draw the garrison into the open field, after a slight demonstration, separated, a part returning to Malden and Detroit and a part moving upon Fort Stephenson on the Sandusky river. Harrison held his command in readiness to move in accordance with the development of events. Proctor left the vicinity of Fort Meigs on the 27th of July, and on the 31st appeared before Fort Stephenson, with gunboats and a force composed of four hundred and ninety regulars, five hundred of Dickson's Indians, with about two thousand Indians under Tecumseh near by in the woods. The fort was garrisoned by a force of one hundred and sixty-seven men under command of Major George Croghan, a youth of twenty-one, with one sixpounder, having a small supply of ammunition. After vainly endeavoring to obtain the surrender of the fort, an assault was made by Proctor on the 2d of August, which was most gallantly repulsed, with heavy loss to the assailants. The garrison lost only one killed and seven wounded.

During the night Proctor departed for Canada with all his force, in order to avoid Harrison, who was rapidly coming up.

The immediate effect of this brilliant defense was to encourage the Americans and dispirit the Indians. About two hundred and sixty, who had remained neutral, now joined Harrison; enlistments went on with great enthusiasm, and the army began to assume formidable proportions.

About this time, Commodore Perry had completed fitting out,