by Michael Aye
“Yes sir, I do. We have them on their heels, sir. It’s time to put them on their backs.”
“I agree with you, Jonah. I will send a rider to recall Colonel Johnson and his mounted rifles. That will add another twelve hundred men to our numbers.”
“But sir,” Jonah objected. “We have over four thousand men in camp now. We can mobilize them while the rider seeks out Colonel Johnson. Being mounted, they will catch up. General, I watched good men die trying to drive the British from the lakes and cut their supply line to the army. I don’t think the president would be happy if we didn’t take full advantage of the victory the navy paid so dearly for. The time to move, General, is now. It’s time to attack the British with every man, every gun, and every blade that’s at hand. They are now on the run. Let’s not give them time to regroup. We must attack now.”
Harrison turned red and showed his displeasure by the tone of his voice. “Well, you don’t mind if I have my supper first do you, Mr. Lee? I’m sure the president would approve of a man eating before he begins a force march.”
Now it was Jonah who was fuming. “I doubt he’d have the stomach for it at a time like this, General. If you don’t mind, I will accompany your rider to recall Colonel Johnson.” Without waiting for a reply, he wheeled around and left thinking, I don’t really give a damn whether you like it or not, I’m going.
As he left, Jonah heard Harrison slamming down his eating utensils and barking out orders. He couldn’t catch the exact words. But he didn’t care; if he could push Harrison into action, damn his displeasure. He owed it to those brave sailors. Nay, he owed it to his country. Moses was drinking a cup of cider when Jonah entered the tent. Taking another cup, he filled it half full with cider then filled it the rest of the way with liquid from a stone jug, thinking it was water. Downing the fiery liquid caused Jonah to cough and his eyes to water.
“Damn, Moses! You trying to kill me?”
“No, more like putting out a fire.”
“By starting a back fire,” Jonah wheezed.
“If that’s what it takes.”
“Damn,” Jonah cursed again.
“Keep that up and you’re going to upset some of them Kentucky boys. They set a heap of store in what they call sipping whiskey.”
“You have to sip it,” Jonah said, getting his voice back. “Otherwise, it burns your throat clean through. A full cup of that downed at one time could cause a man to lose his voice forever.”
Hearing this, Moses smiled and said, “There’s a woman or two I might like to try that on.”
“Well, I don’t want to know who they are,” Jonah replied. Reaching down for his bedroll, saddle, and bridle, he continued, “I’m going for a ride, want to come?”
Not waiting for an answer, Jonah shouldered his load and collided with a soldier as he walked out of the tent. “My apologies,” he stated as he offered a hand to help the soldier up.
Biting back a curse, the soldier took the offered hand. “Are you Mister Lee?”
“Guilty.”
Smiling at the response, the soldier’s anger faded. “General Harrison is sending me after Colonel Johnson, sir. He said I was to let you know as you might prefer riding to sitting.”
Another dig, Jonah thought. Well, he might have pushed a little too hard. He’d let up, but if the general wasn’t ready to march when they got back, he’d find out just how hard Jonah could push.
The horses seem to understand the urgency their riders felt. Jonah kept going over and over in his mind his conversation with Harrison. He was certainly a better leader than Hull. In their days when both he and Harrison were with General Wayne, he showed no reluctance to give battle. Did he fear the unknown? Once, when they paused to give the horses a blow, Jonah discussed his concerns with Moses while the soldier led the horses down to a small creek.
“Maybe he fears death,” Moses said.
“Death!” Jonah exclaimed. “Every soldier lives with that possibility. He fears something worse than death, but what could it be?”
“You can’t guess?” Moses asked.
Jonah gave him a quizzical look and then replied, “You tell me.”
“His soul.”
Jonah was awestruck and stood spellbound for a few seconds. When he made no comment, Moses added, “No man can lead an army into battle, to kill or be killed without fearing the judgment of the Almighty.”
Before Jonah could reply, the soldier was back with the horses. Deep in thought, Jonah mounted and led them off down the trail. This time the pace wasn’t so hurried. It was late that afternoon when the soldier called for Jonah and Moses to hold up for a minute.
“We are almost there,” the soldier muttered.
“Where?” Jonah asked.
“The River Raisin, sir. I was there when it happened.”
“The massacre?” Jonah asked incredulously.
“Yes sir. I was one of the lucky ones. I had felt in my bones you couldn’t trust the Redcoats, and I knew we were fools to trust the red devils. We kilt too many of the savages for them not to have devilment on their minds.”
Jonah and Moses sat and waited for the soldier to speak. He was having difficulty as he relived that night in his mind. The horses stamped and pawed while they stood. Moses’ horse stretched his neck, loosening the reins on the bridle. Once loose, he shook his neck and whinnied; impatiently waiting to move on or get the weight of the saddle and rider off his back.
Suddenly, the man started speaking. “We fought ’em till we was out of powder and shot, and then the major told us to fix our bayonets but then somebody surrendered. They didn’t have no wagons to move the wounded on, so they was left at Frenchtown until some could be rounded up. My neighbor from back home in Ohio was one of the wounded to be carried in the wagons. When they marched off the unwounded prisoners, I ducked into the bushes and hid out. When it got dark, I was going to round him up, and if he could make it with my help, we’d skedaddle out of there back to General Harrison.”
“Did you find your friend?” Jonah asked.
The soldier hung his head and shook it. “No, I never did. Once it got dark, I knew our wounded was in trouble. The red devils showed up all liquored up. Some said Proctor had it waiting on them at Stoney Creek. Whether he did or didn’t, don’t much matter at this time, as the killen’s done been done, but if I ever get that Redcoat in my sites, he’s a goner.”
The soldier paused again as if recalling that night. Finally, he continued, “I wasn’t the only one hiding out. I run up on a couple of boys from Kaintuck, who had the same worries I did. As more and more Indians showed up, it was plain to see they was all worked up with an appetite for blood. All night long they drank, yelled, and whooped it up. Come morning when no wagons or sleds showed up, they started their hellish ways. They had painted their faces red and black so I knew it would be a massacre. One of the Kaintuck boys wanted to high tail it, but the other was too weak, so we just stayed put. We were between some rocks that weren’t too comfortable, but it was flanked by a deadfall and bushes. I figured as long as we didn’t move about we’d be all right. Soon the red devils started their evil doings. They began to plunder the wounded and scalped ’em while they were at it. Some were scalped even before they were killed. Two houses full of wounded men were set afire. I don’t guess I’ll ever forget the smell and the screams as men were burned alive. The wounded that could took off running toward Fort Malden, but most of them were caught. They had their heads cut off and stuck on poles to put fear into the Americans. To this day, the road to Fort Malden and Frenchtown is full of bodies left to rot where they fell.”
Without giving any indication he’d finished his story, the soldier clucked to his horse and rode off. Jonah felt moisture at his eyes and was surprised how emotional he’d gotten.
“Brave man,” Moses volunteered.
Jonah nodded but didn’t speak. The two
turned their horses and rode after the lone soldier.
Chapter Fifteen
Captain Clay Gesslin had a party of skirmishers spread out when Jonah’s group rode up. Stepping from behind a tree, Gesslin flagged down the riders. As they pulled up, Gesslin asked, “You pleasure riding or you got a purpose?”
Smiling, Jonah replied, “It was such a pretty day I couldn’t see wasting it sitting around camp.”
The soldier then saluted Gesslin. “Private Lewis, sir. I’m looking for Colonel Johnson.”
“He’s back at the battlefield,” Gesslin said, a somber tone to his voice. “Most of those killed were Kentuckians, so the colonel felt it was time they were given a decent burial.” Gesslin then called to one of his men to take charge until he returned and escorted the group to Colonel Johnson’s location.
Arriving at the site where the massacre had taken place, Jonah and Moses watched from their horses as Colonel Johnson’s men reverently dug graves for those bodies still intact. Johnson could be seen speaking with General Harrison’s dispatch rider. The colonel then rode over to a sergeant and instructed him to finish with the graves already dug then prepare to ride out. Jonah, Moses, and Gesslin rode up to the colonel once he had given his orders.
“I hear Perry has had a great victory,” Colonel Johnson volunteered.
“Yes sir,” Jonah replied.
When he didn’t add anything else, Johnson prompted him. “They tell me you were with Perry during the battle.”
Shaking his head, Jonah gave a quick narrative of Perry’s battle. When he finished, Johnson said, “A remarkable man, our commander.”
“He is that,” Jonah agreed. “Tried to get me to volunteer for the Navy. I respectfully declined, of course.” This brought a chuckle from Johnson and Gesslin.
Colonel Johnson then asked a very direct question. “So, you think it’s time to press the enemy, Mr. Lee?”
Without hesitating, Jonah replied, “I do, sir. I see no need in allowing the British to regroup. If we wait, winter will be here and that will mean we will be forced to wait until spring to engage the enemy. Who knows what they will have waiting for us by then. I feel the time is right, Colonel. We have to push now. The destiny of our nation may well depend on how fast we act.”
Colonel Johnson sat staring at Jonah for a minute or so. “You and I are of one mind, sir. Let’s hope we can persuade our leaders to forego too much caution and move.”
“Maybe a little nudge,” Gesslin spoke for the first time.
Without thinking, Jonah volunteered, “More like a kick in the arse.”
Colonel Johnson bellowed out in laughter upon hearing this. “Tell me, Captain Gesslin, is Mr. Lee from Kentucky?”
“I don’t think so, sir,” Gesslin replied, grinning from ear to ear.
“Well, he ought to be. He speaks like a Kaintuck.”
The trip back to Camp Seneca was a miserable ride. The sky grew gray as angry clouds gathered, and the wind started blowing. Then the rain started falling in sheets. Soaked clear through, the men could feel the wet cold all the way through to their bones. A couple of riders would have been able to find enough shelter to protect them from most of the weather, but with twelve hundred men, they pushed on. The horses slogged through the mud until those bringing up the rear had to struggle to get through the quagmire caused by those in the front.
Once on a stretch of high ground, the order was given to dismount. Walking, the mounted rifles gave their tired mounts a breather. After thirty minutes of walking the order was given to mount. As they rode on, Jonah heard some of the men talking. They had friends, neighbors, and relatives among the dead at the River Raisin. The grisly sight of mutilated bodies still not buried from the previous winter angered Jonah. He could only imagine the rage these men felt as they buried their friends and comrades. There would be no quarter given from this group.
General Harrison was once again in good humor when Jonah returned to camp in company with Colonel Johnson’s men. An officer’s call was held, and Harrison explained that he had called on Governor Shelby of Kentucky for another fifteen hundred men to help in pursuit of General Proctor.
Governor Shelby would be given the honor of leading his Kentuckians. Governor Shelby was called ‘Old King Mountain’ by his men. This was a tribute to the governor for his victory at King’s Mountain during the first war against the British in 1780, the same year General Harrison was born. The news was music to Jonah’s ears. The music was made even sweeter when he discovered a meeting was to be held the following day with Commodore Perry. He had transferred his flag to the Ariel and they would go aboard to map out the strategy that the combined forces would use in their attempt to defeat Proctor and the British army. After the officer’s call, Jonah headed back to his tent to have a nightcap and rest his weary, achy body. Moses would be awake and hopefully he’d have something for them to eat. However, on arrival, he found Captain James Hampton and Clay Gesslin sipping bourbon from the stone jug.
Gesslin introduced Hampton to Lee and stated they’d been enjoying Moses’ good cooking while they waited. I hope there’s some left, Jonah thought.
Taking a sip of the bourbon, Gesslin looked at Jonah and asked, “Know what James does?” Not giving Jonah time to speak, he answered the question, “He handles the Canadian and Indian spies. He’s got a bit of information that will plumb perk up your ears. I told him you was from Washington and would be interested in what he’s found out.”
“Has General Harrison been informed?” Jonah asked, wondering if the general had kept something from him.
“Oh, he’ll tell the general after he’s talked with Colonel Johnson.”
“Colonel Johnson,” Jonah repeated, not sure he was hearing right.
“Captain Hampton is from Kentucky,” Gesslin said, as if that explained it all.
In fact, it did explain a lot. Jonah had already decided that most of the damn army was made up of Kaintucks. So there was little doubt where Hampton’s first loyalty lay.
“How did you come to be involved with the Canadians?” Jonah asked.
“My mother, sir, is from York.”
“I see. And what seems to be the attitude of the Canadians?”
Turning up his cup, Hampton drained the last of the bourbon and then stared into the empty bottom as in disbelief that it was all gone. Moses passed the jug, and Hampton poured half a cup.
“I’d say the general feeling varies considerably. Some support the Redcoats fully, others half-heartedly, but there’s a bunch who want nothing to do with them and would like to see York become a part of the United States. All but the staunchest loyalist have had their fill of the Redcoats high-handed ways and taking what they want without so much as a thank you.”
“I see,” Jonah replied. This was much as he’d been told. “Well, Captain, what have you heard that you think will be of interest to me?”
Taking another swallow of Jonah’s bourbon, Hampton replied, “It’s the Indians. They are fed up with the British and are deserting in droves. Tecumseh is finding his power is weakening and has confronted Proctor openly. He’s said to have compared Proctor’s conduct to that of a fat animal that carries its tail on its back until trouble comes along. Then, when frightened, it tucks its tail between its legs and runs off.”
“That’s calling the kettle black,” Gesslin volunteered. His words were a little slurred after helping himself to Jonah and Moses’ jug.
“There’s more,” Hampton went on. “We are told Fort Malden and Amherstburg cannot be defended. Not only is there no food, but Barclay had the guns removed from the fort to be mounted on his ships so he could do battle with Commodore Perry. We’re told Proctor has left his army under his second in command, Colonel Augustus Warburton, while he’s packed up his wife, his personal belongings and skedaddled.”
Hampton started to continue but paused as he let go a long and loud b
elch. “Pardon me!” he exclaimed, reaching for the jug once more only to find Gesslin had already drained the last of its contents. “Had to happen sooner or later,” he mused.
“What?” Jonah asked
“The well has gone dry,” Hampton answered, as he belched again. When he took a deep sigh but didn’t continue, Jonah prompted him.
“You were saying?”
“Saying,” Hampton repeated, his eyes now looking heavy and glassy. “Oh, yes. We were told Proctor has promised Tecumseh he’ll make a stand. However, our sources don’t know when or where the stand will be.”
Chapter Sixteen
A few days later, the decision was made to go after the British from two fronts. Colonel Johnson would go over land with his mounted rifles, while the infantry would be transported on Commodore Perry’s ships. For two days, beginning on September 25th, Perry transported the army to a forward position. Seeing the American warships caused a panic among those loyal to the British, as their army had fled, leaving no one to protect them.
Harrison’s troops were put ashore in small boats at a landing some three miles below Fort Malden called Hartley Point. Expecting the worst, Perry had loaded and run out his cannons should a covering fire be needed. There was little need, however, as the army landed without being fired upon by cannon or musket. Sending out an advance party, they came upon a farmer’s wife. She attempted to run but was quickly cut off. Once she realized her captors were not looking to harm her but only wanted information, she quickly told them how just the day before, Proctor’s army had retreated.
She went on to say they had burned most of the public buildings and destroyed everything they thought the Americans might use, including all the food they couldn’t carry with them. The lieutenant sent a dispatch back to General Harrison. When he came ashore, he had his drums and fifes playing “Yankee Doodle.” The British army had retreated until they were now back on Canadian soil.
