



Produced by Ron Swanson





[Frontispiece: "'Tis the star-spangled banner: O, long may it wave
               O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!"]




HERO STORIES
FROM AMERICAN HISTORY

_FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS_


BY

ALBERT F. BLAISDELL
AUTHOR OF "STORIES FROM ENGLISH HISTORY," "THE STORY OF AMERICAN
HISTORY," ETC., ETC.

AND

FRANCIS K. BALL
INSTRUCTOR IN THE PHILLIPS EXETER ACADEMY




GINN AND COMPANY
BOSTON. NEW YORK. CHICAGO. LONDON
ATLANTA. DALLAS. COLUMBUS. SAN FRANCISCO




ENTERED AT STATIONERS' HALL
COPYRIGHT, 1903, BY ALBERT F. BLAISDELL AND FRANCIS K. BALL
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA




The Athenaeum Press
GINN AND COMPANY. PROPRIETORS. BOSTON. U.S.A.




TO
Edwin Ginn
FINANCIER EDUCATOR PHILANTHROPIST




PREFACE


This book is intended to be used as a supplementary historical reader
for the sixth and seventh grades of our public schools, or for any
other pupils from twelve to fifteen years of age. It is also designed
for collateral reading in connection with the study of a formal
text-book on American history.

The period here included is the first fifty years of our national
life. No attempt has been made, however, to present a connected
account, or to furnish a bird's-eye view, of this half century.

It is the universal testimony of experienced teachers that such
materials as are pervaded with reality serve a useful purpose with
young pupils. The reason is plain. Historical matter that is instinct
with human life attracts and holds the attention of boys and girls,
and whets their desire to know more of the real meaning of their
country's history. For this reason the authors have selected rapid
historical narratives, treating of notable and dramatic events, and
have embellished them with more details than is feasible within the
limits of most school-books. Free use has been made of personal
incidents and anecdotes, which thrill us because of their human
element, and smack of the picturesque life of our forefathers.

It has seemed advisable to arrange the subjects in chronological
order. As the various chapters have appeared in proof, they have been
put to a practical test in the sixth grade in several grammar
schools. In a number of instances the pupils learned that, in the
first reading, some of the stories were less difficult than others.
From the nature of the subject-matter this is inevitable. For
instance, it was found easier, and doubtless more interesting, to
read "The Patriot Spy" and "A Daring Exploit" before beginning "The
Hero of Vincennes" and "The Crisis." "Old Ironsides" will at first
probably appeal to more young people than "The Final Victory."

An historical reader would truly be of little value if it could be
read at a glance, like so many insipid storybooks, and then thrown
aside.

Hence, it is suggested that teachers, after becoming familiar with
the general scope of this book and gauging with some care the
capabilities of their pupils, should, if they find it for the best
interests of their classes, change the order of the chapters for the
first reading. But in the second, or review reading, they should
follow the chronological order.

The attention of teachers is called to the questions for review, the
pronunciation of proper names, and the reference books and
supplementary reading in American history mentioned after the
chapters below. The index (also below) is made full for purposes of
reference and review.

In the preparation of this book, old journals, original records and
documents, and sundry other trustworthy sources have been diligently
consulted and freely utilized.

We would acknowledge our indebtedness to Mrs. Janet Nettleton Ball,
who has aided us materially at several stages of our work; and to Mr.
Ralph Hartt Bowles, Instructor in English in The Phillips Exeter
Academy, for valuable assistance in reading the manuscript and the
proofs.

  ALBERT F. BLAISDELL,
  FRANCIS K. BALL.

  BOSTON, March, 1903.




CONTENTS


CHAPTER I                                          PAGE
THE HERO OF VINCENNES...............   1

CHAPTER II
A MIDWINTER CAMPAIGN ...............  18

CHAPTER III
HOW PALMETTO LOGS MAY BE USED...........  36

CHAPTER IV
THE PATRIOT SPY..................  50

CHAPTER V
OUR GREATEST PATRIOT ...............  62

CHAPTER VI
A MIDNIGHT SURPRISE................  77

CHAPTER VII
THE DEFEAT OF THE RED DRAGOONS ..........  90

CHAPTER VIII
FROM TEAMSTER TO MAJOR GENERAL .......... 105

CHAPTER IX
THE FINAL VICTORY................. 123

CHAPTER X
THE CRISIS .................... 138

CHAPTER XI
A DARING EXPLOIT ................. 156

CHAPTER XII
"OLD IRONSIDES".................. 169

CHAPTER XIII
"OLD HICKORY'S" CHRISTMAS............. 185

CHAPTER XIV
A HERO'S WELCOME ................. 199

     *     *     *     *     *     *

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW ............... 217

PRONUNCIATION OF PROPER NAMES........... 231

BOOKS FOR REFERENCE AND READING IN THE STUDY OF
  AMERICAN HISTORY ................ 233

INDEX....................... 241


{1}


HERO STORIES FROM AMERICAN HISTORY




CHAPTER I
THE HERO OF VINCENNES


Early in 1775 Daniel Boone, the famous hunter and Indian fighter,
with thirty other backwoodsmen, set out from the Holston settlements
to clear the first trail, or bridle path, to what is now Kentucky. In
the spring of the same year, George Rogers Clark, although a young
fellow of only twenty-three years, tramped through the wilderness
alone. When he reached the frontier settlements, he at once became
the leader of the little band of pioneers.

One evening in the autumn of 1775, Clark and his companions were
sitting round their camp fire in the wilderness. They had just drawn
the lines for a fort, and were busy talking about it, when a
messenger came with tidings of the bloodshed at Lexington, in
far-away Massachusetts. With wild cheers these hunters listened to
the story of the minutemen, and, in honor of the event, named their
log fort "Lexington."

[Illustration: A Minuteman of 1776]

{2} At the close of this eventful year, three hundred resolute men
had gained a foothold in Kentucky. In the trackless wilderness,
hemmed in by savage foes, these pioneers with their wives and their
children began their struggle for a home. In one short year, this
handful of men along the western border were drawn into the midst of
the war of the Revolution. From now on, the East and the West had
each its own work to do. While Washington and his "ragged
Continentals" fought for our independence, "the rear guard of the
Revolution," as the frontiersmen were called, were not less busy.

Under their brave leaders, Boone, Clark, and Harrod, in half a dozen
little blockhouses and settlements, they were laying the foundations
of a great commonwealth, while between them and the nearest eastern
settlements were two hundred miles of wilderness. The struggle became
so desperate in the fall of 1776 that Clark tramped back to Virginia,
to ask the governor for help and to trade for powder.

Virginia was at this time straining every nerve to do her part in the
fight against Great Britain, and could not spare men to defend her
distant county of Kentucky; {3} but, won by Clark's earnest appeal,
the governor lent him, on his own personal security, five hundred
pounds of powder. After many thrilling adventures and sharp fighting
with the Indians, Clark got the powder down the Ohio River, and
distributed it among the settlers. The war with their savage foes was
now carried on with greater vigor than ever.

Now we must remember that the vast region north of the Ohio was at
this time a part of Canada. In this wilderness of forests and
pr