The Loyalists of America and Their Times Volume II Part 43

[Footnote 222: As in the storming of the fort at York, the explosion which took place was and is a matter of dispute, and as to whether the explosion was accidental, or caused by the British; so it is a matter of unsettled dispute as to whether the explosion of Fort Erie was caused by the Americans, or was accidental. General Pike was killed in the explosion which took place in the fort at York, and Colonels Drummond and Scott were killed at the explosion of Fort Erie: many of the British and Canadians were killed in the explosion in the fort at York, but none of the Americans were killed at the explosion in Fort Erie.]

[Footnote 223: The greater part of the foregoing accounts of the campaign of 1814 are extracted and condensed from Thompson's and Christie's Histories of the War of 1812, compared with other histories of the same events.]

CHAPTER LIX.

MISCELLANEOUS DOc.u.mENTS AND PAPERS, EXTRACTED FROM Ma.n.u.sCRIPTS RESPECTING THE U.E. LOYALISTS IN THE DOMINION LIBRARY AT OTTAWA.

"CHARACTER OF THE MILITIA." ETC., ETC.

I. "Amongst the first settlers on the frontier of Upper Canada were those faithful and loyal men, the United Empire Loyalists, with the Six Nations of Indians, who, at the sacrifice of their all, were steadfast to the British Crown during the revolutionary struggle of the old British colonies, now the United States, for independence, and other United States citizens who had adopted Canada as a home for themselves and their children. That struggle ended by the treaty of 1783.

"Those faithful men, the U.E. Loyalists and their a.s.sociates, sought an asylum under Britain's Crown in this, the then wilderness of Canada, which now stands as one of the most flouris.h.i.+ng provinces of our beloved Sovereign. In that then wilderness the flag of England was unfurled, and after the lapse of one century, and on the commencement of another, that flag floats triumphantly over this loyal Canadian land. Those first settlers were our first militiamen, under our first and venerated Governor, Sir John Graves Simcoe, in the year 1791.

"The descendants of those faithful men, with some soldiers and sailors and others, the sons of Britain who had adopted Canada, were our first militiamen in the war of 1812; and those who are left of them are therefore the veteran soldiers of 1812. The war was declared by the United States Government against Great Britain, June 18th, 1812--involving Imperial interests alone, and not those of the colonies.[224] This declaration of war against Britain was the signal for the loyal inhabitants of Canada to rush _en ma.s.se_ to the frontier of their country to repel invasion. In this momentous crisis we met our beloved Governor and Commander-in-Chief, the late Major-General Sir Isaac Brock, on the Niagara frontier, whose monument stands on the battle ground of Queenston Heights. That monument stands in remembrance of him who sacrificed his valuable life in duty to his King and in defence of our Canadian homes; in memory of him who caused the youthful part of the Militia of Upper Canada to be embodied in the Militia Flank Companies, to be trained for actual service in their country's defence; in remembrance of him in whom their entire confidence was placed--for where he led they were sure to follow."

II. The invasions of Canada by the Americans during the war were as follows:

Men.

1. General Hull, at Sandwich 3,000

2. General Van Rensellaer, at Queenston 2,000

3. General Smyth, at Fort Erie 3,000

4. General Pike, Toronto 2,500

5. General Dearborn, Fort George 3,000

6. General Winchester, Chrystler's Farm, for Montreal 3,000

7. General Hampton, Chateauguay river, L.C., for Montreal 8,000

8. General Brown, Fort Erie 5,000

9. General Brown, Lundy's Lane 5,000

10. General Izzard, Fort Erie 8,000

11. General Wilkinson, Lacolle Mills, L.C. 2,500

Total number of invaders 45,000

The foregoing is an aggregate of the United States forces employed in the attempt to invade and take Canada, when they desired peace; and when peace was proclaimed, they did not find themselves in possession of an inch of Canadian territory.

"Thus it may be said as the opinion of all, that if the loyal inhabitants of Canada had not, in those days of trial and privation, stood to their arms under General Brock and other generals, Canada might not at this day be a continued appendage of the British Crown. In corroboration of this opinion, I here insert General Brock's answer to an address of the magistrates at Niagara after Hull's surrender of Detroit. General Brock said--

"That had not Western Canada rose in their might as one man, in defence of their rights, and in support of the const.i.tution of Great Britain, his hands would have been as if tied, being without the aid of the regular British troops, who were all then engaged in the European war.

"Truly extracted from my book,

"JOHN CLARKE, "Captain-Adjutant-General of Militia, 1812, '13, '14."

Colonel Clarke says of himself: "I was placed on duty by General Brock from the commencement of the war of 1812, as Lieutenant and Adjutant of the 4th Lincoln flank companies. In March I was promoted to the rank of Captain-a.s.sistant-Adjutant-General of Militia by General Sir Roger H.

Sheaffe, Administrator of the Government of Upper Canada; which place I retained until the peace of 1815."--"I served throughout the rebellion of 1837 and 1838--being invested with the command of an organized regiment of militia, the First Frontier Light Infantry."

Colonel Clarke's recollections and reminiscences are in every respect reliable, and are very valuable, extending to nearly 300 ma.n.u.script quarto pages, in the Parliamentary Library at Ottawa (ent.i.tled "U.E.

Loyalists"). His own contributions are ent.i.tled, "Memoirs of Colonel John Clarke, of Port Dalhousie, C.W.; born in Canada in 1783: giving an account of the family's early arrival in the country in 1768; the progress of the settlers; the arrival of Governor Simcoe, his improvements and government; settlement of the Indians; the war of 1812--full particulars; the rebellion of 1837; the Welland Ca.n.a.l, and various other things connected with the progressive growth of Upper Canada."

TREATMENT OF CANADIANS BY THE AMERICANS WHO INVADED CANADA.

"In 1812 General Hull invaded the British province of Upper Canada, and took possession of the town of Sandwich. He threatened (by proclamation) to exterminate the inhabitants if they made any resistance. He plundered those with whom he had been on habits of intimacy for years before the war. Their plate and linen were found in his possession after his surrender to General Brock. He marked out the loyal subjects of the King as objects of his peculiar resentment, and consigned their property to pillage and conflagration.

"In the autumn of 1812, several houses and barns were burnt by the American forces near Fort Erie, Upper Canada.

"In 1813--April--the public buildings of York, the capital of Upper Canada, were burnt by the troops of the United States, contrary to the articles of capitulation. These public buildings consisted of two elegant halls, with convenient offices for the accommodation of the Legislature and the Courts of Justice. The library and all the papers and records belonging to these inst.i.tutions were consumed at the same time. The Church was robbed, and the town library perfectly pillaged.

Commodore Chauncey, who has generally behaved honourably, was so ashamed of this last transaction, that he endeavoured to collect the books belonging to the town and legislative library, and actually sent back two boxes filled with them; but hardly any were complete. Much private property was plundered, and several houses left in a state of ruin.

"In June, 1813, Newark, Niagara, came into possession of the army of the United States, and its inhabitants were repeatedly promised protection to themselves and property by Generals Dearborn and Boyd. In the midst of these professions, the most respectable of them, although non-combatants, were made prisoners and sent to the United States.

"Two churches were burnt to the ground. Detachments were sent under the direction of British traitors [of whom the traitor deserter Wilc.o.x was the leader] to pillage the loyal inhabitants in the neighbourhood. Many farm-houses were burnt during the summer; and, at length, to fill up the measure of iniquity, the whole beautiful town of Newark, with a short previous intimation--so short as to amount to none, and in an intense cold day of the 10th of December--was consigned to the flames.

"The wretched inhabitants had scarcely time to save themselves, much less any of their property. More than 400 women and children were exposed without shelter, on the night of December the 10th, to the inclement cold of a Canadian winter. A great number must have perished, had not the flight of the American troops, after perpetrating their unfeeling act, enabled the inhabitants of the country to come to their relief.

"President Madison has attempted to justify this cruel act as necessary for the defence of Fort George. Nothing can be more false. The town was some distance from the fort; and instead of thinking to defend it, General McClure was actually retreating to his own sh.o.r.e when he caused Newark (Niagara) to be burnt. This officer says that he acted in conformity with the orders of his Government.

"The American Government, finding their defence useless, disavow the conduct of McClure, who appears to have been a fit agent for such a Government. He not only complied with his instructions; but he refined upon them, by choosing a day of intense severity, giving the inhabitants almost no warning until the fire began, and the conflagration in the night."

(The above facts relating to the burning, etc., are extracted from the proceedings of the Loyal Patriotic Society of Upper Canada, established at York for the relief of sufferers in the war; and of which Chief Justice Scott was President.)

_The Royal and Patriotic Society of Upper Canada_ was established at Toronto, extended its branches to different parts of the Province, existed from 1812 to 1815, and did a great deal for the relief of sufferers by the war. On the destruction of the town of Niagara, large subscriptions were obtained and distributed for the relief of the sufferers. The following are extracts from its recorded proceedings:

"The inhabitants came forward in the most n.o.ble manner, as well as the gallant officers of his Majesty's troops.

Major-General Sheaffe 200

Lieutenant-Colonel Bishop 100

with a vast number of liberal subscriptions, according to the means of the donors: so that in a short time upwards of 2,000 was raised to commence with.

City of Kingston sent 500

Amherstburg " 300