4 
30(5 Lon 
and to conflder what publis or private advantage could 
be made of the new ftate of affairs. Subfequent events, 
too, render it highly probable that the American govern¬ 
ment had anticipated credit from the commencement of 
the war, efpecially from the conqueff of Canada, which 
feems to have been regarded as an eafy talk. 
The firft aft of hoftility between the two powers occur¬ 
red almoft immediately after the declaration of war. 
Commodore Rodgers, of the Prefident frigate, leaving 
New York with a fquadron of (hips of war, having re¬ 
ceived intelligence that a Britifh convoy had failed about 
a month before from Jamaica, made courfe to the fouth- 
ward ; and on June 23d fell in with the Belvedere Englifh 
f rigate, Capt. Byron, to which he gave chafe. The Pre- 
fident alone got near enough for aftion, and a running 
fight enfued for three hours, after which the Belvedere 
kept on her way for Halifax unmoleffed, having under¬ 
gone fome damage, and had fome men killed and wounded. 
The Prefident alfo incurred fome lofs of men, chiefly from 
the burfting of one of her own guns. Capt. Byron, con¬ 
cluding from this attack that war was declared, captured 
three American mercbant-veffels before he arrived in port; 
but thefe were releafed by admiral Sawyer, commander on 
the Halifax ffation ; hoping and expefting probably that 
matters would yet be accommodated. 
Parties are the infeparable concomitants of free govern¬ 
ments ; and the republic of the United States has always had 
its full fhare of the diffenfions fpringing from this fource. 
A war fo differently affefting the different parts of the 
union, could not but be received with great diverfity of 
feeling.—At Boffon, on the day of its declaration, all the 
fhips in the port difplnyed flags half-maft high, the ufual 
token of mourning; and a town-meeting was held in that 
city, in which a number of relolutions were paffed, ffig- 
matizing the war as unneceflary and ruinous, and leading 
to a connexion with France deftruftive to American li¬ 
berty and independence.—Very different were the popular 
fentiments in the fouthern ftates, where fwarms of priva¬ 
teers were preparing to reap theexpefted harveft of prizes 
among the Welt-India ifiands. Of the towns in this in- 
tereft, Baltimore flood foremoll; in violence and outrage. A 
newfpaper publiflied there,entitled the Federal Republican, 
had rendered itfelf obnoxious by its oppcfition to the mea- 
fures of the war-party, and menaces had repeatedly been 
thrown out againft the conduftors. On the night of the 
27th of July, a mob affembled before thehoufeof the edi¬ 
tor, for the purpofe of deffroying it. In expeftation of this 
attack, he had collefted a number of friends with fire-arms 
to defend it from the infide, among whom were generals 
Lee and Lingan. An affray arofe, in which the mob w-ere 
feveral times repulfed with lofs. At length a party of 
military were brought to the fpot by the mayor and ge¬ 
neral Strieker, to whom thofe of the defenders who were 
left in the houfe, twenty-fix in number, furrendered them- 
felves upon afTurar.ee of fafety, and were condufted to 
prifon. Next day, at the fhameful inftigation of a pnb- 
lic journal, the mob re-affembled before the gaol, with 
the intention of taking their revenge; and, having broken 
open the doors, after fome of the prifoners had rufhed 
through and made their efcape, they fell upon the reft 
with clubs, and beat them till fcarcely any figns of life 
remained. General Lingan, a man of feventy years of age, 
ar.d formerly a friend of Vvafhington, was killed on the 
Spot. General Lee, a diftingnifhed partifan in the revo¬ 
lutionary war, had his fkull fraftured ; and many others 
were feverely injured. The militia refilled to turn out 
while this maffacre was perpetrating; and the mayor is faid 
to have abfented himfelf. It muff be added, that this atro¬ 
city was regarded with horror and indignation in all the 
other parts of the United States. 
The campaign againft Canada commenced early in July. 
On the nth of that month, general Hull, with a body of 
2300 men, regulars and militia, crofted the river above 
.Detroit, and marched to Sandwich, in the province of 
Upper Canada,, He there iifued a proclamation to the 
DON. 
Canadians in a ftyle expreffing great confidence of fuccefs j 
and threatening a war of extermination in cafe of the em¬ 
ployment of favages, which appeared to be an objeft of 
his peculiar dread. The Indians were, however, already 
engaged in hoftilities ; and intelligence was foon after re¬ 
ceived of the capture of Fort Michilimachinack, July 17, 
by a combined force of Englifh, Canadians, and favages, 
the latter of whom were hitherto kept in perfeft order. 
General Hull’s operations were direfted againft Fort 
Malden, or Amherftburg; and, after having driven in the 
militia who oppofed him, he arrived with part of his forces 
at the river Canard, which he thrice attempted to crofs, 
but was foiled with confiderable lofs. Major-general. 
Brock, in the Britifh fervice, had in the mean time been 
aftive in collefting fuccours for the relief of Fort Am- 
herftburg ; and, on Auguft the 12th, he entered that place 
with a reinforcement, having met with no obftacle, on ac¬ 
count of the fuperiority of the Britifh naval force on the 
lakes. The Americans had now become difpirited, and 
had given up their hopes of taking the fort with their 
prefent means. They retreated to their own fort of De¬ 
troit, and the Britifh in their turn became affailants. Bat¬ 
teries were conttrufted oppofite to that poft, and a party 
crofted the river, and took a pofition to the weft of it.. 
General Brock now refolved upon an aflau't hough his 
united force confifted of no more than about 700 men, in¬ 
cluding militia, and 600 auxiliary Indians. This extre¬ 
mity was, however, prevented by a propofal of capitula¬ 
tion from general Hull : the terms were foon fettled, and 
the important fort of Detroit was furrendered, on Au¬ 
guft 16, with 2500 men and 33 pieces of ordnance. This 
was doubtlefs a levere mortification to the Americans, as 
it gave a decifive proof of the inferiority of their military 
prowefs or fkill to thofe of the enemy they had provoked, 
and damped their hopes of the conqueff: of Canada. That: 
thefe had been fanguine, may be inferred from the refufai 
of the prefident of the United States to continue an ar- 
miftice which had been temporarily agreed upon betweea 
general Prevoft, the governor-general of Canada, and ge¬ 
neral Dearborn, commander-in-chief of the American 
forces in the northern ftates. This meafure had been 
propoled by the governor, in the hope that the repeal of 
the orders in council, of which intelligence had reached 
America, would have led to an amicable adjuftment of 
the fubfifting differences; but the government of the 
United States, determined, it ftiould feem, to purfue a fa¬ 
vourite objeft, would not confent to a iulpenfion of its 
operations. 
The lofs and difgrace incurred by the furrender of Gen. 
Hull were, however, in fome degree balanced to the Ame¬ 
ricans by their fuccefs on the element which had long 
been the theatre of triumph to their adverfaries.—The 
ftrength of the navy of the United States confifted in a 
few frigates of a rate correfponding to the largeft Britifh ; 
but in lize, weight of metal, and number of men, almoft 
equal to fitips of the line of battle. This difference feems 
not to have been known, or not attended to, in the Eng¬ 
lifh navy, the officers of which, with their habitual readi- 
nels to meet au enemy, would certainly never decline an 
encounter where the nominal force was any thing near a 
parity. In engaging with other enemies, the fuperiority 
of Britifh fkill and valour had indeed often compenfated 
the difference of force ; but the American navy was man¬ 
ned by Tailors many of whom were unfortunately Britifh,, 
and many more had been trained in Britifh fervice. 
The fatal confequence of this mifapprehenlion was firft 
experienced by the Englifh frigate Guerriere, commanded 
by captain Dacres, which, on Auguft 19, being in lat» 
40. 20. N. and Ion. 55. W. was brought to aftion by the 
American frigate Conftitution, captain Hull. The re- 
fpeftive force is thus ftated : Guerriere, rating 38 guns, 
but mounting 49, her gun-deck 18-pounders, carronades 
32 ; complement 300 men, but only 263 on-board at quar¬ 
ters : Conftitution, rating 44 guns, but mounting 65, gun- 
deck 24-pounders, carronades 32-pounders; complement 
I 
