142 many more guns than the Americans. A terrible result seemed in doubt; but the American gunartillery duel followed. For an hour or two the ners showed themselves to be far more skilful than their antagonists, and gradually getting the upper hand, they finally silenced every piece of British artillery. The Americans had used cotton heads of sugar; but neither worked well, for the bales in the embrasures, and the British hogscotton caught fire and the sugar hogsheads were both were abandoned. By the use of red-hot ripped and shot the American annoyance but she had splintered by the round-shot, so that British succeeded in setting on fire the schooner which had caused them such on the evening of the night attack; serve her purpose, and her destruc tion caused little anxiety to Jackson. Having failed in his effort to batter down the American breastworks, and the British artillery Pakenham decided to try open assault. He had having been fairly worsted by the American, ten thousand regular troops, while Jackson had under him but little over five thousand men, who were trained only as he had himself trained them fourth of them in his Indian campaigns. Not: carried bayonets. under him were the over most renov soldiers th CIICIII Both Pakenham and the troops fresh from victories won over ned marshals of Napoleon, and at had proved themselves on a 145 hundred stricken fields the masters of all others in Continental Europe. At Toulouse they had driven Marshal Soult from a position infinitely Stronger than that held by Jackson, and yet Soult had under him a veteran army. At Bada joz, Ciudad Rodrigo, and San Sebastian they Ihad carried by open assault fortified towns whose strength made the intrenchments of the Americans seem like the mud walls built by children, though these towns were held by the best soldiers of France. With such troops to follow him, and with such victories behind him in the past, it did not seem possible to Pakenham that the assault of the terrible British infantry could be successfully met by rough backwoods riflemen fighting under a general as wild and untrained as themselves. He decreed that the assault should take place on the morning of the eighth. Throughout the previous night the American officers were on the alert, for they could hear the rumbling of artillery in the British camp, the muffled tread of the battalions as they were marched to their points in the line, and all the smothered din of the preparation for assault. Long before dawn the riflemen were awake and drawn up behind the mud walls, where they lolled at ease, or, leaning on their long rifles, peered out through the fog toward the camp of their foes. At last the sun rose 146 HERO and the fog lifted, showing the scarlet array of was clear columns of Pakenham gave the word, and the kilted Highlanders moved steadily forward. From Under the stopped. to sweeping hail the head of the British. Then it surged forward again, almost the foot of the breastworks; but not a man lived to reach troops broke and rage, them, and and in a moment more the ran back. Mad with shame Pakenham rode among them to rally and lead them forward, and the officers sprang around him, smiting the fugitives with their swords and cheering on the men who stood. For a moment the troops halted, and again came for-ward to the charge; but again they were met by a hail of bullets from the backwoods rifles. One shot struck Pakenham himself. He reeled ag fell from the saddle, and was carried off the field. The CCIE and second and third in command fell also, and then all attempts doned, and the B at itish further advance were abantish troops ran back to their |