History of the United States
r" :<«.2v&£<SS<Sr^ As^Ai; A*«..S^^'.^^Xi^-S» ^tS^-!' HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES! (CONDEl^SED) BY JUNIUS ROYAL MCCARTY Six years with United States Senate. ■{ 1 CHICAGO THE T. M. W. JONES STATIONERY AND PHINTINCJ CO. ("opyrighted 1896, By Junius RoyaJ McCarty. \ { I I HTSTOBY OF TJIE UNITED STATES (CONDENSED) BY .fH JUNIUS EOYAL MCCARTY Six years with United States Senate, JAN 221896 CHICAGO THE J. M. W. JONES STATIONERY AND PRINTING CO. 1895 ^^ ,1. PREFACE. This little book presents.a brief statement of facts touching American history, and to those who desire a broader knowledge of the free institutions which our fathers established, it will, we hope^ prove a faithful guide. The author is a decendant of George Mason, framer of the Bill of Rights of Virginia, and an intimate friend of George Washing- ton ; also of Stevens Thompson Mason, U. S. Senator from Virginia and an officer of the Eevolutionary army. By permission we insert the following beautiful remarks of Gen. John C. Black in speaking to the toast: "Our Country," at the Columbus Club banquet, October 16, 1895 : " What glowing fancies rise within the mind at the sound of those magic words and what a splendid realization exists! Our country— far-spreading; its surface teeming with immeasurable crops; its bosom bearing exhaustless wealth of minerals; its fields of cotton and of corn and all the necessaries of life; bounded by the silver seas; seamed with rivers; piled with mountains; gemmed with lakes; vestured with the emerald and gold of the changing year; stretching through the zone?, magnificent in its vast expanse; a domain on which the daylight never dies; for when the sun passes from the Alaskan islands his first beams summon the New England farmer to his toil and gild the uplifted monument on Bunker Hilll "Oh, our America, my countrymen! How beaming with youth; how fair with eternal loveliness; how crowned with great achieve- ments; how majestic in righteousness; how sublime in hope; how noble in purpose, with the clustered love of all her sons and daughters; with the magnificence of all their sacrificial deeds; with the sublimity of all their faiths, I see her stand filled with the power of the free; her eyes luminous with the undying fervor of human hope; her lips full of the music of upraising humanity; her hands bearing the bounteous reward of noble toil; her brow crowned with the laurel of victory and the bay of genius, her sheathed sword replaced by the timbrel of rejoicing, while round her as she stands serene breaks the new dawn of God's everlasting and stormless day." THE CONSTITUTION. The foundation upon which the Government of the United States rests is the Constitution, which was framed by a Con- vention held in Philadelphia in 1787, ratified by the States, and went into effect March 4, 1789. It provided for a legis- lative, executive and judicial department. The legislative department, called Congress, to consist of a Senate and House of Representatives; two Senators from each State chosen by the legislature of the State, to serve six years, and the Rep- resentatives, chosen by the people of each State, to serve two years, in proportion to population; the executive department to consist of a President and Vice-President, chosen for four years bj^ electors voted for by the people of the several States, the number of electors being equal to the number of Senators and Representatives from each State. The President appoints a Cabinet, confirmed by the Senate, consisting of a Secretary of State, Secretary of War, Attor- ney General, Postmaster General, Secretary of the Navy, Secretary of the Interior, and Secretary of Agriculture, each of whom presides over a department. The judicial depart- ment consists of a Supreme Court with nine members, called Justices, appointed by the President — one Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices; Circuit Courts and District Courts. There are nine Circuits in the United States, and these are divided into fifty-eight Districts. Each Circuit and District Court is presided over by a judge appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. Justices and Judges hold oflSce during good behavior. Each of the States has a Governor 6 and a Legislature, elected by the people, also a judiciary. Each State is guaranteed a Republican form of government, and is permitted to manage its internal affairs. Each Territory has a Governor and Judges appointed by the President, but the people of the Territory elect a delegate to Congress, who is a member of the House of Representa- tives, but cannot vote. The Vice-President succeeds the President in case of death, and upon the death of both, the Cabinet officers assume the duties of the office in the order above named. THE INDIANS. When the first white men came to America they found the country occupied by a race of people differing in every respect from any other human beings, being of a red or copper color, and their origin unknown, although it is claimed that they are the decendants of Asiatics who were driven upon our Pacific coast by storms or in some other way. They were called Indians because it was at first thought that the country was a part of India. At first the whites and Indians lived in peace, but soon the former began to maltreat the red men and a bitter feeling took the place of the former friendship, and hostilities commenced. It is an historical fact that the whites have generally been the aggressors, and almost up to the present da}^ wars have marked the advance of white civilization on this continent. The Indians have always claimed that many moons ago the Great Spirit gave their ancestors the country, and Sitting Bull remarked to the Committee on Indian Affairs of the United States Senate that the Great Spirit had appointed him chief. To day, the Indians are for the most part living quietly upon their reservations, many of them have become educated, and are members of some religious denomination, and those who are still disposed to create a disturbance, are deterred from so doing by their knowledge of the superior power, of 7 the whites. An old chief, after a visit to the East a few years since, said in a speech on some public occasion, that it was useless for his people to longer contend with the whites, because they were as numerous as the blades of grass upon the prairies. They were like the sun rising in all his glory, whilst his people were as the setting sun. They would soon disappear. DISCOVERIES, SETTLEMENTS, ETC. This continent was called America, after Amerigo Ves pucci, a Florentine navigator, who visited the West Indies and the coast of South America about 1497. It is believed a German writer first called it by that name. The Scandinavians claim the honor of the discovery of the North American continent. We are told that about the year 1000 a small vessel left the port of Bergen, Norway, and sailing in a westerly direction reached the New England coast, and landed her crew near the present site of New Bedford, Massachusetts, and that settlements were made here and at other points in the neighborhood, and for several hundred years these people lived in the new country, but after this no trace of them could be found. As a fitting tribute to the memory of these hardy navigators of the olden time, and to remind the world of their claims, the Norwegians built and sent out from the same port a strange looking craft said to be an exact reproduction of the Viking ship in which the discoverers sailed, to form part of the exhibit of Norway ;it the World's Columbian Exposition. It had an open hull and was sailed and rowed, carrying a large square, striped sail, and many oars, and came to anchor off Jackson Park, Chicago, after a voyage of nearly a month, and was wel- comed by a national salute from the batteries on the ships of war, and the shouts of many thousand visitors on the Expo- sition grounds. To Christopher Columbus, a native of Genoa, Italy, is conceded the honor of being the discoverer of the American continent. He had an idea that the earth was a sphere, and that by sailing westward he could reach India. His views of the shape of the earth were considered heretical by the church, and he met with many disappointments in endeavor- ing to bring others into his way of thinking, and to obtain assistance in carrying out his wish to go on a voyage of dis- covery. At last Queen Isabella, of Spain, came to his assistance, and on August 3, 1492, he set sail from Palos, Spain, with three small vessels, the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria, and on October 12th reached an island of the Bahama group, which he named San Salvador. He also discovered Cuba and Hayti. He made in all four voyages, but it was not until the third of these that he discovered the main land. This was in 1498, when he landed on the eastern coast of South America, at the mouth of the Orinoco river. He was at first loaded with honors by the Spanish sovereigns, but charges were made against him, and he was sent home in chains, and died in poverty at Valladolid. A magnificent funeral was the only reward this great discoverer and bene- factor of mankind received. This has been the fate of many other great and good men. Exact reproductions of the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria were sent by Spain to the World's Fair and were welcomed with national honors, and the wildest demonstrations from the vast concourse of people on the Exposition grounds. In 1497, John Cabot discovered the continent of North America, and the next year his son Sebastian sailed along the coast from Labrador to the Delaware river. England based her claims in America upon these discoveries. In 1504, French fishermen discovered the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and Caspar Cortereal, in the Portuguese service, also explored it. 1511 — Diego Columbus conquered Cuba. In 1513, Balboa, a Spaniard, crossed the Isthmus of Darien and discovered the Pacific Ocean. It received its name from the calmness of its water. 1512 — Ponce de Leon, a Spanish cavalier, in search of gold and the "Fountain of Perpetual Youth" which it was said would bring the freshness of youth to all who drank of its waters, discovered Florida, which was so called from the abundance and rich variety of its flowers, or because it was Easter Sunday (the Feast of Flowers). 1519 — Ferdinand Magellan, a Portuguese, discovered the strait which was named after him. He died on the voyage, but his fleet sailed around the globe. 1520-21 — Hernando Cortez, a Spaniard, conquered Mexi- co. He found it occupied by a race of people called Aztecs, who were quite far advanced in civilization. They had cities and temples, were governed by laws and were surrounded by many of the luxuries of life. They accepted readily from the Spaniards the Christian religion. The missionary Las Casas had great influence over them. 1524 — Verrazani, in the service of France, explored the northern coast of the continent as far south as New York. France made this the basis of her claims in America. 1531-36 — Francisco Pizarro conquered Peru. Immense quantities of gold and silver were gotten from the people by torture. The Spaniards found some evidences of civilization among the Peruvians. 1541 — Ferdinand de Soto discovered the Mississippi river. He was buried in its waters. The name is Indian and means "The Father of Waters." 15o5 — St. Augustine, Florida, settled by Melendez, a Spaniard. This is the oldest town in America. 1579 — Sir Francis Drake passed through the Straits of Magellan, visited the coast of California, and circumnavigated the globe, 1584 — Sir Walter Raleigh sent a colony of Englishmen to 10 settle Roanoke Island, which lies off the coast of what is now North Carolina. At that time all the main land opposite the island was given the name of Virginia, in honor of Eliza- beth, the virgin queen of England. 1 586 — Virginia Dare, daughter of the governor of Roanoke Colony, born. She was the first white child born in America. 1604 — French Huguenots made the first permanent French settlement on this side of the Atlantic. They called the country Acadia, now called Nova Scotia. They were driven out by the English in 1710. 1607 — Jamestown, Virginia, settled. This was the first permanent English settlement on the continent. 1608 — Champlain, a Frenchmen, settled Quebec, and in 1609 explored upper New York. 1609 — Henry Hudson, who was in the service of the Dutch East India Company, explored the Hudson river. Holland claimed the country and named it New Nether- lands. 3 1610 — The first houses built on Manhattan Island, New York. 1619— Captain John Smith, a prominent colonist of Vir- ginia, was captured by the Indians, and would have been killed but for the interference of Pocahontas, the daughter of the Indian Chief, Powhattan. Pocahontas afterw ards mar- ried Sir John Rolfe, an Englishman. A large painting rep- resenting this marriage is in the rotunda of the Capitol at Washington. Some of the best people of the State of Virginia are descended from Pocahontas. A Dutch vessel brought natives of Africa to Jamestown, Virginia, and sold them. This was the beginning of negro slavery on this continent. 1623 — Protestants from Holland settled on Manhattan Island. This island was purchased of the Indians for $24.00. In 1661 the New Netherlands came into the possession of England, and was called New York in honor of the Duke of York, to whom the grant was made. It was afterwards held 11 by Holland for a time, but finally passed by treaty to Eng- land in 1673. 1626-27 — Young women came over from England and became the wives of Virginia colonists. 1630 — Boston settled by John Winthrop. 1632 — Maryland patented to George Calvert, Lord Balti- more. He died, and patent was issued to his son, Cecil Calvert, who became Lord Baltimore. Settlement made by William Clay borne for the London Company. 1634 — Cath- olics first settled at St. Mary's under Leonard Calvert, a brother of Lord Baltimore. Clayborne and Calvert con- tended for the possession of Maryland for a number of years, but in 1646 Calvert came into peaceable possession. Named after Queen Henrietta Maria. 1635 — Connecticut settled by emigrants from Boston. 1636— Rhode Island settled by Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson, who had been banished from Massachusetts for heresy. 1637 — Harvard College founded. 1639 — First printing press set up at Cambridge. 1701 — Yale College founded at Say brook. Afterwards removed to New Haven. Named in honor of Elihu Yale. 1638 — New Haven settled by Puritans from England under Theophilus Eaton and Rev. John Davenport. 1656 — Quakers driven from Boston. 1665 — New Haven and Connecticut colonies united. Providence, Rhode Island, so named by its founder, Roger Williams, out of gratitude for God's merciful providence to him. 1675-6 — King Philip, son of Massasoit, chief of the Wampanoag Indians, engaged in war with the New England colonies. 1651-3 — Emigrants from Virginia settled in what is now know^n as North Carolina. 1663 — Granted by Charles II to Lord Clarendon, and called Carolina. 1665 — Planters from 12 Barbadoes settled near Wilmington, and John Locke, the philosopher, prepared a constitution for them, but it finally proved a failure. 1676 — John Culpepper became governor, and in the same year emigrants from other colonies made settlements ; also Irish, Scotch and French Protestants settled there. 1729 — Divided into North and South Carolina by George II. 1690 — French Huguenots made the first settlement in South Carolina. 1692 — Witchcraft punished in New England with death. The eastern portion of New Jersey settled by Dutch about 1638, and that portion along the Delaware by Swedes in 1627. Name changed to New Jersey when it was granted to the Duke of York. It was purchased from the Duke of York by Sir George Carteret and Lord Berkley. 1630 — Delaware settled by the Dutch, and in 1637 Swedes settled in that portion near Philadelphia, and called it New Sweden. Many of them were driven out by the Dutch. Delaware was sold to William Penn by the Duke of York, and separated from Pennsylvania in 1703, but the two colo- nies were under one governor until 1776. 1668— Mission of St. Mary, Michigan, started. 1681 — Charles II. granted Pennsylvania to William Penn. 1682 — Penn, with a colony of Quakers, founded Phila- delphia. 1732^ — Georgia settled by James Oglethorpe. Called Georgia in honor of George II. WAR WITH FRANCE. Both France and England claimed the country lying between the Allegheny mountains and the Mississippi river. French missionaries and traders explored the territory along the Wabash, Illinois and Mississippi rivers, Marquette going as far south as the mouth of the Arkansas river, LaSalle reaching Texas, and Lemoine d'Ibberville descending the 13 Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico, and France soon estab- lished military and trading posts through this part of the country. In 1749, England granted through the Governor of Virginia, to a company of traders known as the "Ohio Company," a portion of the country west of the Alleghenies, lying along the Ohio river. This company established trad- ing posts and traded with the Indians. Settlers, also, entered the Ohio valley. France sent General LaPierre with a body of troops and Indians, to drive out these people. Governor Dinwiddie, of Virginia, sent a letter to the French general, protesting against the action of the French government in send- ng troops to territory claimed by England, to molest British subjects. This letter was delivered by George Washington, born February 22, 1732, then a young Virginian not more than twenty-one or twenty-two years of age. The French general refused to consider for a moment any adverse claims to the country, and Washington brought this answer back to the Governor, and war was declared. The French captured the trading post of the Ohio Company, where Pittsburg now stands, and erected Fort DuQuesne there. In 1754, Dinwid- die sent out an expedition against the French, under Col. Frye. Washington also went with the expedition and, Frye dying on the journey, Washington took command. He met the French, under Jumonville, near DuQuesne, and defeated them, but nothing of importance was accomplished by the expedition. The next year (1755), General Braddock, with British regulars and Virginia militia, Washington acting as aide, was sent on another expedition. They were surprised near DuQuesne by a large force of French and Indians, and General Braddock and a large number of his men were killed. Washington succeeded in getting to a place of safety with a portion of the command. Several unsuccessful attempts were made to capture the French posts at DuQuesne, Frontenac, Niagara, Crown Point and Louisburg. Finally they were taken, and the French made their last stand at 14 Quebec in 1759. The English and colonists defeated the French on the Heights of Abraham, in front of Quebec, and the city surrendered. The French commander, the Marquis de Montcalm, and the English commander, General Wolfe, were both killed in the engagement, By the Treaty of Paris, in 1763, France lost all her possessions east of the Missis- sippi river, except the Island of Orleans. Pontiac, chief of the Ottawa Indians, continued to fight the British and colon- ists until 1764, when he was compelled to surrender. THE REVOLUTION. In 1761 the English Parliament passed acts levying taxes upon the colonies. The colonies remonstrated and denied the right of England to tax them without representation in Parliament. The Stamp Act required an official stamp upon every sheet of paper used. This was bitterly denounced and was called "England's Folly and America's Ruin." Search warrants were authorized to be issued whereby the houses of any citizen could be entered and searched at all times. Troops were also quartered on the people. Patrick Henry introduced resolutions in the House of Burgesses of Virginia, denouncing England, and the Massa- chusetts Assembly passed resolutions of the same character, and urged the colonies to meet for the purpose of devising some means of relief. In October, 1765, a congress of the colonies met in New York and adopted a "Declaration of Rights and Grievances of the Colonies,'' and memorials were sent to Parliament and a petition to the King. The colonists pledged themselves to use no more foreign goods until the tax was removed. It was finally removed in March, 1766; but in 1767 an act was passed taxing tea, paper, glass, lead, paints, etc., imported into the colonies. This law was finally repealed except as to tea. The colonists refused to drink tea, and w^ould not allow it to be unloaded. On the night of December 16, 1773, forty men in the disguise of Indians 15 went on board vessels in Boston harbor and threw overboard 340 chests of tea. Just previous to this, in the year 1770, British troops whilst parading the streets of Boston tired into a crowd of citizens and killed three and wounded eight. In 1774, the port of Boston was closed to all vessels by the Port Bill. In September, 1774, the first Continental Congress met in Phihidelphia, all of the States but Georgia being represented, and adopted a Declaration of Rights, and sent an address to the Kina and to the English people. This was of no avad, and Bridsh troops soon arrived and took possession of Boston Neck and fortltied it. The Massachusetts militia organized. April 18, 1775, 800 regulars were sent from Boston to destroy ammunition stored at Concord by the patriots, but Paul Revere made his celebrated ride and gave the alarm to Lexinoton and the surrounding country, and the minute men were ready to receive the British. The command of the British officer to disperse was disobeyed, and the British fired and killed seven citizens and wounded many. The British moved on to Concord and destroyed what stores were left, but were attacked by the minute men and driven back to Lexington with considerable loss. The British were sur- rounded Tn Boston by the colonial army. Col. Prescott sent, on ni^ht of June 6, 1775, to occupy Bunker Hill, but occu- pied Breed's Hill instead, and threw up intrenchments. Next day the British fleet opened fire upon the Americans and they were also attacked by 3,000 British regulars under General Howe. They withstood two assaults, but at the third, for want of ammunition, had to give way, and the British swept over the works, but their loss was terrific, and they gained nothing. Ethan Allen took Crown Point and Ticonderoga. Second Continental Congress met at Philadelphia in May, 1775, and an unsuccessful plea was made for a settlement of the trouble. On June 15th, George Washington was elected 16 Commander-in-Chief of the Continental army and found 14,000 men encamped at Cambridge, in a very poor con- dition. March 4, 1YT6, Washington took position on Dor- chester Heights, overlooking Boston, and the British were forced to evacuate the city. In 1YT6, General Charles Lee prevented the British from occupying New York, and they sailed to Virginia, and being reinforced attacked Charleston, but were driven off and returned to New York. General Montgomery and Col. Benedict Arnold invaded Canada, but were finally forced to give up the expedition. France formed an alliance with the colonies and sent a fleet in April under Count D'Estaing. England attempted to conciliate the colonies but failed. They demanded independence and nothing less. In this year American vessels captured many English ships loaded with supplies for the army of occupation in America. On July 4, 17Y6, the Continental Congress adopted the ^'Declaration of Independence," and soon after adopted "Articles of Confederation" for the government of the country. Washington occupied New York, but was driven into Pennsylvania by the British troops. The English army was 30,000 strong and was composed largely of Hessians who had been hired for the conquest of America. Just prior to this Howe, the British general, proclaimed a pardon to all who would lay down their arms, but it was of no avail. The Americans were very despondent, but were cheered by Wash- ington. He re-crossed the Delaware river the night of December 25, 1776, and defeated the Hessians at Trenton, taking 1,000 prisoners. Washington, knowing the superior force of the enemy, avoided a pitched battle with them by skillful manoeuvres. The British landed at the head of Ches- apeake Bay and marched on Philadelphia and defeated Wash- ington at Brandy wine creek and took Philadelphia. The 1 17 Americans attacked the British at German town, but were repulsed. October 7, 1777, General Gage captured Bur- goyne's army at the battle of Saratoga. France recognized the independence of the colonies in 1778, and formed an alliance with them. England repealed the acts which had aroused the opposition of the colonies and sent commissioners to arrange terms of peace, but America w^ould not agree to iheir terms. A French nobleman, the Marquis de Lafayette^ came to America in 1777 and fought for the independence of the colonies, and it was largely through his exertions that France came to our assistance. Baron von Steuben, DeKalb and other distinguished foreigners joined our army. The colonial army suflfered terribly during the winter of 1777 and 1778 in their camp at Valley Forge, near Philadelphia, but stood the test like true patriots, and in the spring the arrival of the French fleet in the Delaware river gave them renewed courage. Robert Morris, a Philadelphia merchant, provided funds for the carrying on of the war. In 1778, Savannah, Georgia, fell into the hands of the British, and the next year they occupied the whole of Georgia. An attempt to re-take Savannah in September was unsuccessful. John Paul Jones, with three vessels, gained a naval victory off the coast of England. In May, 1780, Charleston was taken by the British, and they overran the State of South Carolina. Corn- wallis was now placed in command in the South. In South Carolina Sumter, Pickens and Marion had repeated engage- ments with the British. General Gates defeated at Camden, S. General Benedict Arnold, while in command at Philadel- phia, misappropriated public funds, but was forgiven by Washington and placed in command of West Point, on the Hudson river. This place he attempted to turn over to the British in September, 1780, but Major Andre, the young British officer through whom the arrangements were made, 18 was captured, and the proofs were found on his person. Andre was hanged as a spy, but Arnold escaped to England. Col. Tarleton, a young officer of the British army who had committed many cruelties in the South, was defeated at Cow- pens by General Morgan, January 17, 1781. Americans defeated at Guilford Court House, N. C, March 15th. British defeated at Eutaw Springs by Gen. Greene, Sept. Sth. Cornwallis entered Virginia and fortified himself at York- town. He was surrounded by the French fleet and the Continental army and forced to surrender, October 19th. This closed the war, and by the treaty of Paris, Sept. 3, 1783, England finally recognized the independence of the colonies. The British evacuated New York Nov. 25, 1782, and Savannah in December. November 3d the Continental army disbanded. December 2d Washington said good-bye to the officers at New York ; delivered his farewell address to Con- gress at Annapolis, Maryland, December 23d, and retired to his home at Mount Vernon, Virginia. 19 The Articles of Confederation were not considered strong enough, and at Washington's suggestion a convention was held at Philadelphia in May, 1787, and a new constitution was adopted, and afterward ratified by the States. Washington and John Adams were elected the first presi- dent and vice-president of the United States of America, in 1789, and inaugurated April 30, 1790, from the balcony of the old city hall, New York. They should have been inaug- urated March 4th, but delay in meeting of Congress pre- vented. The members of the first cabinet were Thomas Jeflferson, Secretary of State; Alexander Hamilton, Secretary of the Treasury; General Knox, Secretary of War. John Jay was the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. The federal government took upon itself the entire debt of the war. 1790 — Philadelphia became the capital. First census taken 3,929,000 people. 1791— National Bank established. Ver- mont admitted. 1792 — Kentucky admitted into Union. Daniel Boone settled Boones borough, Kentucky, in 1775. 1792 — Washington and Adams re-elected. 1794 — Whisky rebellion in Pennsylvania. 1793 — Great Britain seized American vessels in French trade, but afterwards paid damao^es. 1797 — Tennessee admitted. 1799 — Washington's farewell address. The country had for some time been divided into two parties — the Federalists and the Republicans. Washington, Hamilton, Adams and Jay were Federalists, and Jefferson was the leader of the Republican party. Adams and Jeffer- son were elected president and vice-president in 1796, and inaugurated the following March. War with France began because the United States refused to aid her in her war with Great Britain. Peace declared in 1800. Washington died December 14, 1799. Called the "Father of his country." 1800 — Jefferson and Aaron Burr elected president and vice- president and inaugurated March 4, 1801, at Washington, 20 which was now the capital of the country. 1802 — Ohio admitted. This state was first settled at Marietta by New Enoflanders under General Rufus Putnam, in 1788. 1803 — Louisiana purchased from France. It had been bous^ht by Napoleon from Spain a short time before this. Commodore Preble fought the pirates in the Mediterranean sea. Lieute- nant Decatur distinguished himself in this expedition. 1801: — Hamilton killed by Burr in a duel. 1805 — Expedition of Lewis and Clarke to the mouth of the Columbia river. 1806 — Aaron Burr attempted to set up an independent govern- ment in the west, but failed, was tried for treason, but acquitted. 1806 — England claimed the right to search American vessels for suspected British subjects, and in 1807 the "Leopard" took seamen from the "^ 'Chesapeake." Congress passed an act called the Embargo Act, which forbade American vessels leaving our ports, in retaliation for the action of France and England in regard to our commerce, but this embargo act did no good, and was repealed. 1807 — The first steamboat, the invention of Robert Fulton, was launched on the Hudson river. "Sub-Treasury Bill " passed, establishing sub-treasuries throughout the country for public funds. War with the Seminole Indians, of Florida. It lasted until 1812. 1808— James Madison and Henry Clinton elected president and vice president, and inaugurated March 4, 1809. Congress stopped trade with England. Commerce with France renewed. 1811 — Battle of Tippecanoe, in which General Harrison whipped Indians under Tecumseh, chief of Shawnees. War of 1812 with England. Many naval victories gained. Madison re-elected, with Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts, vice-president. Inaugurated the following March. Commodore Perry's victory on Lake Erie over British fleet. His message to General Harrison: " We have met the enemy and they are ours." Massacre by Creek Indians at Fort Minims, near 21 Mobile. Defeat of Creeks by General Andrew Jackson at Tohopeka, Florida. No qtiarter given. Naval duel between ''Chesapeake" (Captain Lawrence) and ''Shannon" (Captain Blake) off Bostofi harbor June 1st. The "Shannon" captured her. Lawrence was mortally wounded. His last words were: "Don't give up the ship." The "Boxer" captured off coast of Maine by U. S. S. "Enterprise." 18 U— Battles of Chip- pewa and Lundy's Lane. British fleet captured at Platts- burg. August 23d, General Ross burned Washington, D. C. He was killed on the march to Baltimore. Fort McHenry in Baltimore harbor bombarded by British fleet September 13th, who had to retire down Chesapeake bay without success. During the bombardment Francis Scott Key, who had been captured in Maryland and taken aboard the British fleet, composed the "Star Spangled Banner." Hartford Convention, which endeavored to bring the war to an end, ruined the Federalist party. 1815 — January 8th, Battle of New Orleans, where General Jackson whipped the British with loss of only 7 killed. 1815— Treaty of Ghent. End of War. 1816— United States Bank chartered at Philadelphia. 1815 — War with Algiers. Commodore Decatur compelled Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli to pay indemnity for destruction of our merchant marine. 1816 — James Monroe and Daniel Tompkins elected president and vice-president. Indiana admitted. 1817 — Mississippi admitted. Season of great prosperity all over the country. General Jackson continued war with Seminoles, and invaded Florida. Spain remonstrated. 1818 — Illinois and Alabama admitted. 1820 — Maine admitted. 1821 — Florida purchased by the United States. Missouri admitted under what is known as the " Missouri Compromise." This state was ad- mitted as a slave state, but slavery was prohibited north of 3t) degrees, 30 minutes, and west of the Mississippi River. 1820 — Monroe and Tompkins re-elected. Independence of South American states recognized in message of President 22 Monroe to Congress March, 1822 : " The American conti- nents are not to be considered as "subjects for colonization by any European power." This is known as the "Monroe Doctrine." 1824— Lafayette visited the ifnited States, hav- ing been invited by Congress. John Quincy Adams declared president by House of Representatives. John C. Calhoun, of South Carolina, elected vice president. 1826— Creek Indians removed beyond Mississippi River. John Adams and Thomas Jefferson died at same hour on 4th of July. This was the fiftieth anniversary of the Declaration of Independ- ence, which Jefferson had drawn up. 1828— High protective tariff bill passed by Congress. Andrew Jackson elected president. He believed that "to the victor belong the spoils," and filled all public offices with his party adherents. Vetoed National Bank Bill. South Carolina was opposed to the tariff bill, and declared it null and void. President Jack- son's prompt action in sending troops to the state prevented trouble, and the matter was settled. 1882— War with Black Hawk and the Sac and Fox Indians. Indians conquered. 1832— Jackson re-elected, and Martin Van Buren chosen vice-president. 1833— Public money placed in state banks. War with Seminoles renewed. 1836— Arkansas admitted, 1837— Michigan admitted. 1836— Martin Van Buren elected president and Richard M. Johnson vice-president. 1837— Panic in business of all kinds. Many failures. 1837— Canadian Rebellion. 1840— William Henry Harrison and John Tyler elected president and vice-president. Harrison died April 4th following, and Tyler became president. Na- tional Bank Bill vetoed. Boundary between British Columbia and United States fixed. Texas declared her independence of Mexican authority. Annexed to the United States in 1845. 1840— Iowa and Florida admitted into Union. 1844— James K. Polk elected president. 1845— War with Mexico over Texas boundary. 1846— Taylor defeated Mexicans at Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma, captured Fortress of Monterey 23 and defeated Santa Ana at Buena Vista. 1847 — Gen. Winfield Scott captured Vera Cruz, defeated Mexicans at Churubusco, Molino del Rey, Chei)ultepec, and took City of Mexico Sep- tember 14th. In 184:6 New Mexico and California were taken from Mexico. California was admitted into Union. 1848 — Peace declared by treaty of Guadaloupe Hidalgo. 1848 — General Zachary Taylor elected president. Wis- consin admitted. President Taylor died in 1850, and Vice- President Millard Filmore became president. 1851 — Louis Kossuth visited the United States. 1852 — Commodore Perry's expedition to Japan. Japan opened to commerce. 1852 — Franklin Pierce elected president. 1853 — Arizona bought from Mexico. 1854 — Stephen A. Douglas, of Illi- nois, introduced into the United States Senate the Kansas- Nebraska bill, which left the question of slavery to be decided by the people of these Territories. This bill was passed and it made null and void the Missouri Compromise measure. 1856 — James Buchanan elected president. Question of slavery the all-absorbing one. Trouble over the Kansas constitution. Southern members of Congress favored a pro- slavery constitution. Free constitution finally adopted. 1857 — Mormon troubles. 1858 — Minnesota admitted. 1859 — Oregon admitted. 1859 — John Brown took possession of United States arsenal at Harper's Ferry, Virginia, but was captured, and turned over to the Virginia authorities and hanged. This created very bitter feelings between the North and South, and the bitterness increased, and finally a war was the result. THE CIVIL WAR. In the year 1860 there were four candidates for the presidency: Stephen A. Douglas, of Illinois, represented those democrats who believed the question of slavery should be left to the people of the Territories to decide. John C. Breckenridge, of Kentucky, was the candidate of that 24 portion of the Democratic party who thought Congress should recognize slavery in the Territories under the con- stitution. Abraham Lincoln, of Illinois, was the Republican candidate, and that party opposed slavery in the Territories, but thought each State should manage its own affairs. It did not uphold John Brown. John Bell, of Tennessee, rep- resented the Constitutional Union party. Their platform was, "The Union, the Constitution, and the enforcement of the laws." Abraham Lincoln was elected. The South had threatened to withdraw from the Union if the Republican party triumphed at the polls, and South Carolina seceded December 20, 1860, and was followed by Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Louisiana and Texas. February 4, 1861, a convention was held at Montgomery, Ala., and organized the Confederate States of America, and Jefferson Davis, of Mississippi, and Alexander H. Stevens, of Georgia, were elected president and vice-president. All government property was seized, except Fort Pickens, Florida, and Fort Sumter, in the harbor of Charleston. This last place Major Robert Anderson held until April 13, 1861, when it was taken by the Southern troops. It had been thought that war could be averted, but this act precipitated the con- flict, and President Lincoln called for volunteers. Early in 1861, Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina and Tennessee withdrew from the Union, and the government property at Harper's Ferry and Portsmouth, Virginia, fell into the hands of State troops. A portion of the State of Virginia re- mained loyal to the Union and organized the State of West Virginia. Maryland, Missouri and Kentucky did not secede, but the people of these States were divided in opinion. The battle of Bull Run was the first important engage- ment between the North and South. This battle was fought on July 21, 1861, and resulted in the defeat of the Union army under General McDowell, by the Confederates under 25 Generals Beauregard and Johnson. Here the Confederate officer Gen. T. J. Jackson, received the name " Stonewall," for his conduct on the field of battle. A desperate struggle ensued, lasting for four years, dur- ing which time many great battles were fought, and it was demonstrated to the world that the American soldier has no superior in valor, skill, endurance and patriotism. There have never been greater commanders than Grant, Sherman, Lee and Jackson, and many others made records of which the American people, both North and South, are justly proud. Some of the principal battles, besides Bull Run, were Shiloh, the Seven Days' Battles around Richmond, Antie- tam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville (where " Stonewall'' Jackson was killed), Gettysburg, Chickamauga, The Wilder- ness, Spottsylvania Court House, and Cold Harbor. January 1, 1863, slavery was abolished by proclamation of the President. General Lee surrendered his army to General Grant, at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, April 9, 1865; General Johnson surrendered April 26th, and General E. Kirby Smith, May 26th. This ended the war; but the country was shocked by the assassination of President Lincoln, by John Wilkes Booth, at Ford's Theatre, Washington, D. C, April 14, 1865. Booth fled to Virginia, but was overtaken and killed. Vice-President Andrew Johnson now became President, and undertook to restore the southern states to their former places in the union, without congressional action, and charges were brought against him by the House of Repre- sentatives, and he was tried by the Senate, but was acquitted. In 1865, the 13th amendment to the Constitution was adopted, which abolished slavery. In 1868, the 14th 26- amendment was adopted, which guaranteed civil rights to all persons, whether white or black. In 1870, the 15th amendment was adopted. This guaranteed the right of suf- frage to all, without reference to "race, color, or previous condition of servitude. ' ' The expenses of the war made the public debt $2,700,- 000,000, but this was reduced by degrees, by congressional action. In 1866, the Atlantic cable was laid. In 1868, General Ulysses S. Grant was elected president, and was inaugurated March 4th, 1869. In the same year the Pacific Railway was completed. In 1872, Great Britain paid $16,000,000 indemnity to the United States for depre- dations committed on our commerce by the "Alabama" and other confederate cruisers built in British ports. The "Ala bama" was sunk by the "Kearsarge," near Cherbourg, France, June 19, 1864. 1871— The Chicago fire. In 1872, Grant was again elected, his opponent being Horace Greeley. Mr. Greeley died November 29th, and it was supposed disappoint- ment hastened his end. 1873 — War with Modoc Indians. They massacred the peace commissioners, were conquered and the murderers hanged. 1873 — Steamer "Virginius" captured by Spanish, and most of crew shot for giving aid to Cuban insurgents. Damages paid by Spain. There was a great panic in business in this year, and many failures occurred. It was followed by great depression in every industry. 1875 — Resumption of specie payments provided for by act of Congress. Centennials of Concord, Bunker Hill and Lexington held, and troops from the south partici- pated in the Bunker Hill celebration. 1876 — Colorado admitted. Centennial Exposition, at Philadelphia. War with the Sioux Indians. Massacre of General Custer. As a result of the presidential election of 1876, both Rutherford B. Hayes, of Ohio, and Samuel J. Tilden, of New York, claimed the presidency. The dispute was finally referred to a commission of fifteen members, five appointed 27 by the Senate, five by the House of Representatives, and five members of the Supreme Court of the United States. This commission decided by a vote of eight to seven that Hayes was elected, and he was inaugurated March 4th, 18 77. The principal event of Mr. Hayes' administration was the removal of the federal troops from the south as a part of his reconstruction policy. This gave the whites of the south control of affairs in that section, and gave much satisfaction to the democratic party. James A. Garfield was elected president in 1880, and inaugurated March 4, 1881. The republican party was divided into two factions, those who opposed the policy of the new administration being called "Stalwarts.'' Senators Conkling and Piatt of New York, were the leaders of this faction. On July 2, 1881, President Garfield was shot by Charles J. Guiteau, in the Baltimore & Potomac depot in Washing- ton, while on his way -with Secretary Blaine, to the train for New England. The president lingered until September 19th, when he died at Long Branch, New Jersey, whither he had been taken in the hope that the sea air might help him. He was buried at Cleveland, Ohio. Vice-President Chester A. Arthur was sworn in as president first at New York September 20, and at the capitol in Washington, on September 22d. Charles J. Guiteau was hanged in the jail at Washington, D. C. 