assured him that he was safe; and moved by his youth, as he had previously been affected by the helpless infant at Tallushatchee, he sent him home to Nashville, watched over his interests, and established him in a respectable trade.

"How freshly and sweetly, like blossoms on the battle-field, do such noble and generous acts spring up amid the waste of war! and how much of beauty and of tenderness do they add to the heroic strength of a great commander! They are like a garland of roses around the iron helmet of the warrior. A hundred generations have wept over the verses of Homer which describe the parting of the Trojan chief from his infant boy as he goes out to battle. American hearts shall throb with tearful pleasure, through all time, as they think of the tenderness of Jackson

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towards the infant Lincoyer, and the youthful captive of Tohopeka."*

That so few warriors should have sought and obtained safety, by appealing to the clemency of the victors, will not appear a matter of surprise to persons acquainted with the mode of Indian warfare. It seldom happens that they extend or solicit quarter: faithless themselves, they place no reliance on the faith of others; and when overcome in battle, seek no other protection than dexterity and speed afford. Another cause for it may be found in a reason already given, in the attack made by a detachment of General Cocke's division on the Hillabee tribes, who were assailed and put to the sword at a moment when, having asked for peace, they were expecting it to be given. This misfortune had destroyed all confidence on the part of the savages, in the integrity and humanity of the Americans; and they now looked and trusted for safety to nothing but their own valour. In this contest they maintained resistance, fighting and firing from their hiding-places, long after the hope, either of success or escape, was or should have been at an end, and after the proposal had been submitted to spare the further useless waste of blood. A few who had lain quiet and concealed under the cliffs, survived the severity of the conflict, and effected their retreat under cover of the night.

Jackson's loss, though considerable, was small when compared with that of the enemy. The whole estimate, including in it the Cherokees and friendly Creeks, was but fifty-four killed, and one hundred

* Bolles's Eulogy.

and fifty-six wounded. Of the former was Major Montgomery, a brave and enterprising young officer of the thirty-ninth regiment, and Lieutenants Moulton and Somerville, who fell early in the charge.

The object of the expedition being thus accomplished, General Jackson, in pursuance of his first plan, decided to return to Fort Williams for provisions, and then hastened to the Hickory Ground, where he hoped to be able to put an end to the war. After committing the bodies of the slain to a watery grave in the river Tallapoosa, that they might not be scalped by the Indians, General Jackson set out on his return to Fort Williams.

Having arrived at that post on the 1st of April, his first object was to excite in the breasts of his soldiers a sense of pride, commensurate with the achievements they had performed and the valour they had displayed. He was impelled to it by the consciousness that excitement, once subsided, could with difficulty be again roused; and from a strong desire to ward off from his ranks that despondency which had once proved so fatal to his hopes. Besides, he wished to point out to his followers the good effects which would result from their splendid victories, to thank them for their implicit obedience and unsurpassed gallantry, and to congratulate them on the approach of the period when the frontiers should be no longer alarmed by the yell of the murderous Creek. With a view to these objects, the next day, on parade, before the fort, he addressed them as follows:

"Soldiers of Tennessee:-You have entitled yourselves to the gratitude of your country and your gene

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ral. The expedition from which you have just returned has, by your good conduct, been rendered prosperous beyond any example in the history of our warfare: it has redeemed the character of our state, and of that description of troops of which the greater part of you are.

"You have, within a few days, opened our way to Tallapoosa, and destroyed a confederacy of the enemy, ferocious by nature, and grown insolent from impunity. Relying on their numbers, the security of their situation, and the assurances of their prophets, they derided our approach, and already exulted in anticipation of the victory they expected to obtain. But they were ignorant of the influence of government on the human powers, nor knew what brave men and civilized force could effect. By their yells they hoped to frighten us, and with their wooden fortifications to oppose us. Stupid mortals! their yells but designated their situation the more certainly; whilst their walls became a snare for their own destruction. So will it ever be, when presumption and ignorance contend against bravery and prudence.

"The fiends of the Tallapoosa will no longer murder our women and children, or disturb the quiet of our borders. Their midnight flambeaux will no more illumine their council-house, or shine upon the victim of their infernal orgies. In their places a new generation will arise, who will know their duty better. The weapons of warfare will be exchanged for the utensils of husbandry; and the wilderness, which now withers in sterility, and mourns the desolation which overspreads her, will blossom as the rose, and become the

nursery of the arts. But before this happy day can arrive, other chastisements remain to be inflicted. It is indeed lamentable that the path to peace should lead through blood, and over the bodies of the slain; but it is a dispensation of Providence to inflict partial evils that good may be produced.

"Our enemies are not sufficiently humbled,-they do not sue for peace. A collection of them await our approach, and remain to be dispersed. Buried in ignorance, and seduced by their prophets, they have the weakness to believe they will still be able to make a stand against us. They must be undeceived, and made to atone their obstinacy and their crime by still further suffering. The hopes which have so long deluded them, must be driven from their last refuge. They must be made to know that their prophets are impostors, and that our strength is mighty, and will prevail. Then, and not till then, may we expect to make with them a peace that shall be lasting."