Page images
PDF
EPUB
[graphic][ocr errors]
[blocks in formation]

I pressed my lips to his death-cold cheek And begged him to show me, by word or sign,

That he knew and forgave me: he could not speak,

But he nestled his poor cold face to mine.

And the gate of this chapel was shut,

And "Thou shalt not" writ over the door; So I turned to the Garden of Love,

That so many sweet flowers bore.

And I saw it was filled with graves,
And tombstones where flowers should be;

The blood flowed fast from my wounded And priests in black gowns were walking

[blocks in formation]
[graphic]

THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS.

N the morning of the 8th of January, 1815, full six thousand expert sharpshooters, mostly from Tennessee under Coffee and Carroll, and from Kentucky under General Adair, lay behind Jackson's entrenchments almost wholly concealed from the enemy encamped on the plain that stretched away to the southward. Pakenham, who had twelve thousand effective men, had resolved to carry this line by storm, satisfied that his overwhelming numbers of regulars might easily crush the American militia gathered on both sides of the Mississippi. With about nine thousand troops he pressed forward for the purpose as soon as a heavy fog was dispersed, leaving the remainder as a reserve under General Lambert. An ominous silence prevailed along the American line until the enemy approached within a short cannon-range of Jackson's batteries. These were opened with terrible effect, cutting fearful lanes through the ranks of the British. Yet the invaders continued to advance steadily until they came within range of the American rifles, when volley after volley poured a deadly storm of lead upon the British. Whole platoons were mown down as with a scythe, but the gallant army continued to press forward until officer after officer was killed; and Pakenham himself fell, bleeding and dying,

into the arms of the late Sir Duncan McDougall, his favorite aid, who performed a similar service for General Ross when he was mortally wounded, near Baltimore, a few months before. Very soon afterward the whole of the assailants broke and fled back across the plain of Chalmette in great confusion. Lambert, with the reserve, covered the retreat. On the west side of the Mississippi the assailants had also retreated. The slaughter and maiming before Jackson's lines had been fearful. The fugitives left seven hundred dead and fourteen hundred wounded on the field, and suffered a further loss by having five hundred of their companions made prisoners-a loss of twenty-six hundred. The Americans lost only eight killed and thirteen wounded. They were thoroughly protected by breastworks, while the invaders were exposed on an open plain. The bodies of the slain British officers were taken to Villere's plantation, where they were buried that night by torchlight, excepting those of Pakenham and three or four general officers, which were sent to England in casks of rum. The British troops under General Lambert stole noiselessly away on the night of the 19th across Lake Borgne in small transports and escaped to the fleet. They then besieged Fort Bowyer for two days, when Major Lawrence was compelled to surrender, and the victors were about to push on to Mobile, when they were arrested by tidings of peace. General Jackson, with the main body of his

[merged small][graphic][merged small][subsumed]
« PreviousContinue »