402 The Winning of the West 



brass field-pieces. 30 In point of numbers the force 

 was amply sufficient for its work; but Harmar, 

 though a gallant man, was not fitted to command 

 even a small army against Indians, and the bulk of 

 the militia, who composed nearly four-fifths of his 

 force, were worthless. A difficulty immediately oc 

 curred in choosing a commander for the militia. 

 Undoubtedly the best one among their officers was 

 Colonel John Hardin, who (like his fellow Ken- 

 tuckian, Colonel Scott), was a veteran of the Revo 

 lutionary War, and a man of experience in the in 

 numerable deadly Indian skirmishes of the time. He 

 had no special qualifications for the command of 

 more than a handful of troops, but he was a brave 

 and honorable man, who had done well in leading 

 small parties of rangers against their red foes. 

 Nevertheless, the militia threatened mutiny unless 

 they were allowed to choose their own leader, and 

 they chose a mere incompetent, a Colonel Trotter. 

 Harmar yielded, for the home authorities had dwelt 

 much on the necessity of his preventing friction be 

 tween the regulars and the militia ; and he had so lit 

 tle control over the latter, that he was very anxious 

 to keep them good-humored. Moreover, the com 

 missariat arrangements were poor. Under such cir 

 cumstances the keenest observers on the frontier 

 foretold failure from the start. 31 



80 Do., Indian Affairs, I, p. 104; also p. 105. For this ex 

 pedition see also Military Affairs, I, pp. 20, 28, and Denny's 

 Military Journal, pp. 343, 354. 



31 Am. State Papers, Indian Affairs, I. Jno. O'Fallan to 

 the President, Lexington, Ky., Sept. 25, 1790. 



