History Plays for the Grammar Grades Part 8

INTRODUCTION:

Jackson was successful as a lawyer; was made district attorney and was finally elected to Congress. Later became a frontier judge and a man of business. He won fame as a fighter in the war of 1812, and in many fights with the Indians and won the name of "Old Hickory."

The next act will be calling for volunteers to fight at New Orleans.

JACKSON'S SPEECH: The British are again our enemies. They are capturing our men on the high seas and forcing them to fight for Great Britain. Shall we stand this? No, I say no. Perry and other great sailors are fighting hard with our vessels. The British, if we are not careful, will capture New Orleans. Who volunteers to go with me? On to New Orleans and Victory!!

_End of Act III._

ACT IV

INTRODUCTION:

After the Battle of New Orleans Jackson was a great hero. In 1828 he was elected President of the United States. He had bitter quarrels with Clay, Calhoun and Webster over the U. S. Banks. In the Senate was another great man, Thomas H. Benton. He and Jackson had once fought a duel but were now good friends. Benton took Jackson's part against the other men. Refusal of South Carolina to pay the tariff caused trouble during Jackson's time. This act was called nullification.

The next act will be President Jackson talking to General Scott about South Carolina.

ACT IV

JACKSON: South Carolina must be forced to obey the laws of the land.

The tariff will be collected by force if necessary. To nullify an Act of Congress would be most dangerous to the Union. Take soldiers and war vessels, General Scott, to Charleston and enforce the law at all hazards.

GENERAL SCOTT: I will do my best to enforce the laws of the land, President Jackson.

JOHN C. FREMONT

INTRODUCTION:

John C. Fremont was born in Savannah, in the year 1813, while his parents were on a journey through the South. His father died soon after, and his mother moved to Charleston, South Carolina. He was well educated, and after college spent some years in travel.

He joined a company of engineers to explore the mountains between Tennessee and South Carolina to find a place for a railway. This region was a rough, beautiful, and wild country, and it gave Fremont a taste for exploring which never left him. His longing for wild life was gratified when he was made a.s.sistant to a famous Frenchman who went to explore the region between the Missouri and Canada.

He married Jessie Benton, daughter of the famous Senator Benton.

Benton was interested in the growth of the West. He knew that Fremont was interested in exploring, and used his influence with President Van Buren to have Fremont explore the Rocky Mountains.

The first act will be Fremont talking to President Van Buren.

ACT I.

(Senator Benton talking to Van Buren:)

BENTON: The West is a great country, Mr. President. We should have it explored and investigated.

VAN BUREN: I agree with you, Senator Benton. The West should be explored. If we had a good man to send on this expedition.

BENTON: I know a man, Mr. President; John C. Fremont. He is an experienced engineer, and loves the wild life of adventure.

VAN BUREN: Bring Fremont to me.

(Fremont enters and is introduced by Benton).

VAN BUREN: You are an explorer of note, Mr. Fremont? Will you undertake a journey to the Rocky Mountains and bring back a report of that country?

FREMONT: Yes, I am very much interested in exploring the West, and with your permission and the permission of Congress, will try to find out all that we can about that great country.

_End of Act I._

ACT II.

INTRODUCTION:

The next act will be Fremont telling about his first and second trip to the West.

SECRETARY TO PRESIDENT: Fremont and his famous guide, Kit Carson, have returned from their second exploring trip to the West and await outside.

PRESIDENT: Show them in.

(Enter Fremont and party).

FREMONT: I have just returned from my explorations, and would like to tell you of the trips. On my first trip I left Kansas City and followed the Kansas River to the South Pa.s.s. On my second trip I followed the same route to the South Pa.s.s, where I took four men, and continued on, to the highest peak in the Rocky Mountains.

ONE OF THE MEN: While there and on the top, we unfurled the stars and stripes in all its glory.

FREMONT: Then I decided to cross the mountains. After many weary months we beheld a great lake.

ONE OF THE MEN: You can imagine what feelings stirred the b.r.e.a.s.t.s of men shut in for months by mountains, at seeing what appeared to us to be an ocean here in the midst of a continent.

FREMONT: As we strained our eyes along its silent sh.o.r.es, I could hardly repress the almost desire to continue our explorations.

MAN: After making preparations, we crossed over the mountains till we reached the Columbia River, and traveled down to Vancouver. Here we were the guests of the Governor of the British Hudson Bay Company.

FREMONT: On November tenth, we started across the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and then on, till we came to Sutter's Fort.

MAN: Here we met the remarkable Captain Sutter. Captain Sutter is a native of Switzerland. He came here with the intention of building a colony. The Spanish Governor, Alvarado, gladly gave him a great tract of land. Captain Sutter has great herds of cattle and many acres of grain.

FREMONT: We then decided to cross the mountains farther to the south, where the San Joaquin River makes a gap. Here we beheld a great desert.

MAN: An Indian told us that there was neither water nor gra.s.s--nothing. Every animal that goes on this desert dies.

FREMONT: From here we traveled forward, reaching Salt Lake; having made a circuit of the Great Basin. Here we are, with the story of our trip.