The fourth
President.

Cause of of the war of 1812.

CHAPTER XXV.

MADISON AND MONROE, THE WAR OF 1812, AND THE

TH

ERA OF GOOD FEELING.

HE next president was James Madison, of Virginia. He had been a member of the convention that had framed the Constitution; and he served as presi

JAMES MADISON.

dent for two terms,

or eight years, from 1809 to 1817. When he was inaugurated, he found the nation involved in disputes with the British Government, about the right of searching American vessels, and the restrictions laid on American commerce. These disputes remained unsettled; and at

last, June 18, 1812, the Congress of the United States, by a large majority, declared war against England.

to the war.

There was a great deal of opposition to the war, as it Opposition was thought by many to be quite unnecessary; and many even thought that the offences committed by England were not so great as those of France. This increased the hostility between the Democrats, who favored France, and the Federalists, who liked England better; and at one time some members of this last party held a convention at Hartford, Conn., in order to oppose the prolongation of the war.

of our

But the war went on, though at first the American The defeats troops were quite unsuccessful. There was an attempt army. to conquer Canada; but General Hull had finally to surrender Detroit to the British troops; and General Van Rensselaer was also defeated. The Indians took an important part against the Americans in this war, under a chief named Tecumseh, who formed a plan to unite the various Indian tribes against the whites, as had been attempted by Pontiac half a century before. Even before the war with England, Tecumseh had led his Indians against the Americans, and had been defeated by General Harrison at Tippecanoe; and this made him strive more desperately to unite the Indian tribes with the English troops. He took an active part in many battles, but was killed at last.

cesses of

our navy.

But while the United States army was rather unsuc- The suc cessful, the navy obtained great honor in the War of 1812. The frigate "Constitution," under Captain Hull, took the British frigate "Guerrière;" and there were other important American successes. On the other hand, the British frigate "Shannon" captured the United States frigate "Chesapeake," at the mouth of Boston harbor; and the brave Captain Lawrence, the

peake and

The Chesa commander of the "Chesapeake," was killed, exclaimShannon. ing as he died, "Don't give up the ship!" Afterwards, on Lake Erie, there was a contest (Sept. 10, 1813) between a British squadron of six vessels, and an American squadron of nine; these last being under command of Lieut. O. H. Perry. His flagship was named the "Lawrence," after the brave captain of the Chesapeake"; and his flag had inscribed upon it

Perry's victory.

66

LIEUTENANT PERRY.

the dying words of Lawrence. But this ship was almost destroyed in the fight; and Perry, getting into an open boat, transferred his flag to a second ship, and gained the victory. When the British ships surrendered, Perry I wrote to his commanding officer, on the back of an old letter, "We have met the enemy, and

they are ours." This is said to have been the first instance in the history of the British navy of the surrender of an entire squadron. Later in the war, Capt. David Porter fought the "Essex" against two British vessels, for two hours and a half, and only surrendered when his frigate was burning under him.

The war lasted nearly three years; and in the last

year of

year (1814), the British troops took and plundered The third many towns on the southern coast, and finally burned the war. the Capitol, and the president's house at Washington. They also attacked New Orleans, which was defended by Gen. Andrew Jackson, with a much smaller force than that brought against it. He built breastworks of cotton-bales, and fought from behind them, repulsing

Ghent.

the attacking army of twelve thousand, with the loss of but seven Americans killed. This happened Jan. 8, 1815, and was the last battle of the war; indeed, the Treaty of treaty of Ghent had been signed a fortnight before the battle (Dec. 24, 1814); making peace between the two nations, though the news of this peace had not yet reached the armies at New Orleans. It is a remark

Thirty years of peace.

able fact, that the treaty of Ghent said not a word in regard to the right of search on board of American vessels, the very thing about which the war had been chiefly waged. But the bravery and success of the United States navy had virtually settled that dispute; and no further trouble ever arose about it. Thus ended the "War of 1812," sometimes called the "Late War," between the United States and Great Britain. Since that time, in spite of some temporary disagreements, there has been peace between the two great English-speaking nations; and it is to be hoped that it will always continue.

For a long time after this, the United States seemed very peaceful and prosperous. For thirty years there was no war; and the feeling of hostility between political parties gradually diminished. The population of the country in 1810 was more than seven millions, The third (7,239,881); and after this it went on increasing more rapidly. The new States and Territories of the West were being opened for settlement. A great national road had been built from Cumberland, Md., to Wheeling, Va.; and along this road a perpetual stream of wagons poured into Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky. Emigration Other emigrants went westward and southward by the

census,

1810.

westward. new steamboats just introduced on the Ohio and Mis

sissippi. Others went on rafts and barges, carrying all their household goods with them. The forests still covered all Ohio; and there were almost no roads, so that water-communication was the chief dependence. A whole neighborhood would unite and build a flatboat to send their produce to New Orleans; the boatmen perhaps walking home again. Other emigrants