860

HULL AT SANDWICH, CANADA.

1812.

ing passed tbe needful act, the Secretary of War wrote to General Hull, one letter saying nothing of the matter, and sent it by a special messenger   and a second, containing tbe vital news, which he confided to a half organized post as far as Cleveland, and thence literally to accident. Nor is this all: while the general of the north western army was thus, not uninformed merely, but actually ndsled, letters franked by the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States, bore the notice of what had been done to the British post of St. Joseph, near the north-western shore of Lake Huron ; and also to Maiden, which place it reached upon the 28th of June. And as if to complete the circle of folly, the misled general, through neglect, suffered his official papers, which he owned ought never to have been out of his possession, to pass into that of the foe, aud thus informed them of his purposes and strength.*

That strength, however, was such, compared with their own, that no effort was made to prevent the march of the Americans to Detroit, nor to interfere with their passage across the river to Sandwich, where they established themselves on. the 12th of July, preparatory to attacking Maiden itself, and commencing the conquest and conversion of Upper Canada. And here, at once, the incapacity of Hull showed itself; by his own confession he took every step under the influence of two seta of fears; he dared not, on the one hand, act boldly, for fear that his incompetent force would be all deployed; while, on the other hand, he dared not refuse to act, for fear hia militia, already uneasy, would utterly desert him.

Thus embarrassed, he proclaimed freedom and the need of submission to the Canadians, held out inducements to the British militia to desert, and to the Indians to keep quiet, and sat still at Saudwich, striving to pacify his blood thirsty backwoodsmen, who itched to be at Maiden. To amuse his own army, and keep them from trying dangerous experiments, he found cannon needful to the assault of the British posts, and spent three weeks making carriages for five guns.

While these were under way, Colonel Cass and Colonel Miller, by an attack upon the advanced parties of the enemy, demonstrated the willingness and power of their men to push their conquests, if the chauce were given, but Hull refused the opportunity; and when at length the cannon were prepared, the ammunition placed in wagons, and the moment for assault agreed on, the general, up-

*For the foregoing facts see Manifesto of the Senate, June 3<1, 1812.