The Battle of New Orleans 231 



of rockets and mortar shells. The Americans were 

 taken by surprise, but promptly returned the fire, 

 with equal fury and greater skill. Their guns were 

 admirably handled ; some by the cool New England 

 seamen lately forming the crew of the Carolina, 

 others by the fierce Creole privateersmen of Lafitte, 

 and still others by the trained artillerymen of the 

 regular army. They were all old hands, who in 

 their time had done their fair share of fighting, 

 and were not to be flurried by any attack, however 

 unexpected. The British cannoneers plied their 

 guns like fiends, and fast and thick fell their shot; 

 more slowly but with surer aim, their opponents 

 answered them. 27 The cotton bales used in the 

 American embrasures caught fire, and blew up two 

 powder caissons ; while the sugar hogsheads of which 

 the British batteries were partly composed were 



47 The British historian, Alison, says ("History of Eu 

 rope," by Sir Archibald Alison, gth edition, Edinburgh and 

 London, 1852, xii, p. 141): "It was soon found that the 

 enemy's guns were so superior in weight and number, that 

 nothing was to be expected from that species of attack." As 

 shown above, at this time Jackson had on both sides of the 

 river 16 guns; the British, according to both James and 

 Gleig, between 20 and 30. Jackson's long guns were i 32, 4 

 245, i 18, 5 i2S, and 3 6s, throwing in all 224 pounds; Paken- 

 ham had 10 long i8s, 2 long 35, and from 6 to 10 long gs and 

 6s, thus throwing between 228 and 258 pounds of shot; while 

 Jackson had but i howitzer and i carronade to oppose 4 car- 

 ronades, 2 howitzers, 2 mortars, and a dozen rocket guns; so 

 m both number and weight of guns the British were greatly 

 superior. 



