The Life and Times of Alexander Hamilton E-Book

Samuel M. Smucker

• Herausgeber: Charles River Editors
• Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 412

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2018

Beschreibung

The Pergamum Collection publishes books history has long forgotten. We transcribe books by hand that are now hard to find and out of print.

Das E-Book The Life and Times of Alexander Hamilton wird angeboten von Charles River Editors und wurde mit folgenden Begriffen kategorisiert:
federal reserve; federalist; federalist papers; free; biography; constitution

Leseprobe

PREFACE.

The want of a complete and satisfactory yet succinct and popular life of Alexander Hamilton, has long been felt by the reading public; and when we remember the very eminent position which he occupies in American history, it is somewhat singular that no attempt has been made to execute such a work. The Memoir published by his son, John C. Hamilton, is excellent as far as it goes; although it is not only unfinished, but is also too cumbersome and diffuse for the popular reader. The small work of Dr. Renwick, though well adapted to the purpose for which it was written, was necessarily very superficial and incomplete. I am not aware that any other reliable Memoir of Hamilton is in existence.

In the preparation of the following pages, I have freely used and appropriated all the sources of information which were accessible to me on the subject. These include the most important publications which were cotemporary with the events narrated; together with all the published works of Hamilton, and the existing biographies of himself, his associates, and his opponents. The fierce passions and jealousies of that memorable era in which Hamilton figured and flourished, have now been laid to rest in the slumber of the tomb; and he who attempts at the present day to write the history of this great man, may claim at least one advantage over his predecessors—that he has no temptation from party prejudice and bias, either to color, exaggerate, or suppress the truth.

The remarkable incidents of Hamilton’s career will never lose their singular power to attract and instruct mankind; for they furnish impressive illustrations both of the brightest and the basest elements of human character. The brightest all appertained to himself; the basest belonged to those by whom he was surrounded and assailed. Few men have ever lived whose virtues were so transcendent, whose motives were so disinterested, whose usefulness was so extensive and so permanent; yet there never lived a man against whom the envious, the malicious, and the vile, fabricated so many baseless and absurd slanders, and illustrated by the aspersions which they cast upon him, and by the filthy slime of their hate with which they endeavored to pollute him, how despicable humanity in their own persons could become. To a very eminent degree Hamilton paid the natural penalty which superior genius and distinction must always suffer from the envious, the disappointed, and the obscure.

With the lapse of time the false impressions which once existed in reference to the political principles and personal qualities of the subject of this history, have gradually become, in a great measure, rectified. I have attempted in the following pages to aid in accomplishing this result.

My endeavor has been to describe Hamilton precisely as he was; neither to set down aught in malice, nor yet unfairly to extenuate. I remembered the severe order given by Cromwell to the limner who executed his portrait, to paint him as he was, and not to omit the warts which embellished his stern visage. Such defects as Hamilton really possessed have not been overlooked. The immortal statesman and orator would himself have directed his biographers thus to write of him, had he lived to guide and counsel them. And after having thus been true to history in exhibiting what may have been defective in the principles or the conduct of Hamilton, we are convinced that every impartial reader must admit that, if Washington is esteemed first in war, in peace, and in the hearts of his countrymen, Hamilton, beyond all question, deserves to be regarded as the second.

Samuel M. Smucker.

Philadelphia, November, 1856.

THOMAS JEFFERSON.

INTRODUCTION.

MISSION OF AMERICAN STATESMEN—FIRST COLONY FOUNDED IN AMERICA—SUCCESSIVE ESTABLISHMENT OF ALL THE AMERICAN COLONIES THEIR GROWTH—THE “OLD FRENCH WAR”—SUBSEQUENT HISTORY OF THE COLONIES—THE STAMP ACT CONDUCT OF THE BRITISH PARLIAMENT—OUTBREAK OF THE REVOLUTIONARY STRUGGLE—FIRST MEETING OF THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS—DECLARATION OF AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE—THE GRAND DRAMA BEGINS.

The genius and enterprise of Columbus discovered an unknown world; but it fell to the lot of other men to perform the noble task of adorning that world with the triumphs of civilization, with the trophies of art and science, with fair, stately, and enduring structures of civil and religious liberty. In the accomplishment of this mission, some of the most remarkable personages who ever lived were called into prominence and activity; and in the fulfillment of the destiny designated for them by Providence, they won for themselves undying names, and erected monumenta aere perenniora, which will engage and retain the admiration of men in all coming time. One of the most distinguished of these was Alexander Hamilton.

As the life and abilities of this great man were devoted to the establishment of the government, and the attainment of the liberties of the American confederacy, it may not be inappropriate to preface the history of his remarkable career, by a brief survey of those events which immediately preceded his appearance on the scene of action, and which directly prepared the way for his own subsequent achievements.

The first attempt to found a colony in the new world was made by Sir Walter Raleigh, in the year 1585. It failed; but the enterprise was more successfully renewed by Captain John Smith, in Virginia, in 1607. That colony located at Jamestown was destined to live, though brought on several critical occasions to the verge of ruin. In the same year a small colony was also attempted on the Kennebec River, but it did not succeed. Yet the reports which were conveyed to England, in reference to the new continent, were the cause of the emigration of the Puritans, who, in 1620, founded the Plymouth colony in the province of Massachusetts. In 1636 the colony of Rhode Island was commenced by Roger Williams; and in the same year that of Connecticut was established by a clergyman named Hooker, who, like Williams, was an emigrant and an exile from Massachusetts. In 1623 New Hampshire was first settled, Maine in 1635, Maryland in 1633, South Carolina in 1650, New York about 1600, New Jersey in 1664, and Pennsylvania in 1682. The other colonies were afterward founded and established at successive periods; sometimes by emigration from the older communities already named, and sometimes by direct emigration from the countries of Europe. Georgia was the last of the thirteen original colonies which was established, having been founded by General Oglethorp, in 1732.

During the progress of a century this family of incipient empires flourished together in harmony; gradually increasing their strength, numbers, and resources. The only foe with whom they had to contend were the fierce savages of the primitive wilds, whose ancient and untilled heritage they had rudely appropriated to themselves. Many dark and bloody scenes were enacted between the belligerent races, some of the thrilling details of which have now descended to oblivion; but stout hearts were often requisite in those primeval times, to resist undismayed the vengeance of the despoiled and enraged children of the forest.

In 1754 the first conflict with an external and civilized foe took place. Then the old French war occurred between the British colonies, and those of the French, in Canada, and along the Mississippi. The question of boundary between England and France had, for many years, been a subject of useless and unavailing negotiation. The sword alone seemed able to solve the difficulty. In 1753 France endeavored, by establishing a chain of military posts along the Ohio River and the Lakes, to connect together their possessions in Canada with those on the Mississippi, and thus to confine the British colonists to a small and narrow territory along the Atlantic Ocean, and perhaps eventually even to expel them entirely from the country. Various conflicts ensued between the British and French colonial troops. In 1755 the memorable defeat of Braddock took place at Fort Du Quesne, and during three succeeding campaigns the French continued to triumph. On the accession of William Pitt to the British ministry in 1756, the tide of conquest was turned, the French were repeatedly routed, and in 1762, after hostilities had raged for eight years, a general peace was concluded, by which France ceded Canada to Britain; and Spain, unwilling to encounter the uncertainties of a conflict with a triumphant and formidable power, exchanged the Floridas for Cuba.

The British colonies then continued to flourish with increased prosperity; but a dark cloud began to hover over them. In 1765, under the auspices of Mr. Grenville, the British minister, the British parliament passed the celebrated and obnoxious Stamp Act, by which it was enacted that all legal instruments should be written only on stamped paper or parchment, in order to be valid. The price of this stamped paper was excessive; and during the seven months which elapsed before the act was ordered to take effect, the voice of murmur and discontent began to be heard in the American colonies. At first that discontent was uttered in whispers. It then became louder and louder. At length it sounded in thunder-tones, which reverberated over the whole length and breadth of the continent. The first organized resistance was made in the Virginia House of Burgesses. There, for the first time, the eloquent voice of Patrick Henry was heard, and he concluded his first speech in defense of American liberties, by declaring:—“That every individual who, by speaking or acting, should assert or maintain that any person or body of men, except the General Assembly of the province, had any right to impose taxation there, should be deemed an enemy to his majesty’s colony.” Soon the flame spread far and wide. The Assembly of Massachusetts passed a resolution in favor of the meeting of a Continental Congress, and proposed a day for its convocation in the city of New York. The proposition was accepted by all the other colonies, excepting four, and their deputies assembled at the appointed time. But their measures were as yet indecisive; and they adjourned without having accomplished any thing, except the adoption of a Declaration of Rights.

When the time arrived for the Stamp Act to go into operation, it was generally disregarded throughout the colonies. Associations were formed against importing British manufactures until the law should be repealed. The lawyers were prohibited from commencing any suits for money due to any inhabitant of England. The consequence of these vigorous measures was that in March, 1766, the British parliament repealed the obnoxious law. But at the same time they passed an act authorizing duties on glass, paper, painters’ colors, and tea imported into the colonies. The parliament doubtless supposed that if the colonists could abandon the use of stamped paper, they could not deny themselves the luxuries and conveniences of life. This measure only kindled the fires of opposition and rebellion still more fiercely than before. The Assembly of Massachusetts, having passed resolutions exceeding in boldness and severity those of any other deliberative body in the colonies, were dissolved by George III. In 1768, Mr. Hancock’s sloop Liberty was seized at Boston, for not having entered all the wines contained in her cargo; and British ships and regiments were sent to Boston to aid the British revenue officers. The colonies remained hostile and rebellious. This attitude of affairs induced the repeal, in 1770, of all the obnoxious duties, excepting that imposed upon tea. Large consignments of this article were sent by the British East India Company to several American ports. In New York and Philadelphia the popular fury prevented the attempt to discharge the cargoes. At Boston, the tea sent for the supply of that port being consigned to the particular friend of the British governor, Hutchinson, seemed to be in a fair way of delivery, when a party of patriots, disguised as Indians, boarded the ships, broke open the boxes and threw the contents into the sea.

The British parliament became enraged at this decisive step. They passed an act by which they closed the port of Boston, and removed its customhouse and trade to Salem. They remodeled the charter of the colony of Massachusetts, by which the whole executive government was taken from the people, and the nomination and appointment to all important offices was vested in the crown. Thus the property, life and liberty of the colonists were subjected to the arbitrary caprice of the British monarch.

This act of outrageous and unwarranted despotism threw the whole continent into a blaze of patriotic indignation, which was increased when General Gage arrived at Boston, in 1774, with a large British force, with the avowed purpose of dragooning the rebellious inhabitants into submission. His troops took military possession of Boston, and fortified it. At this crisis all the colonies, then thirteen in number, determined to summon a Continental Congress, for the purpose of deliberating on the existing state of their affairs, and ascertaining what course they would in future pursue. The deputies met in Philadelphia on the 5th of September, 1774. Fifty-four delegates appeared, and took their seats in the first Continental Congress. They met in a now obscure building entitled Carpenter’s Hall, which deserves the immortal honor of being the birthplace of the American republic. Peyton Randolph of Virginia was chosen president. Among them were found the Adamses, the Livingstons, the Henrys, the Lees, the Randolphs, the Rutledges, and the Jays. It was here that the matchless and thrilling eloquence of Patrick Henry was first “heard in the Congress of the nation. After its organization, he was the first to break the long and painful pause which ensued. He spoke, and the pathos and power of that great speech have been recorded and remembered by generations since, and the fame of it has gone forth over all the world. The Congress unanimously published a Declaration of Eights, formed an association not to import or use British goods, sent a petition to the King of England, published an address to the inhabitants of that kingdom, another to the residents of Canada, and a third to the citizens of the colonies.

Incensed by these decisive measures the British parliament, instead of retracing their steps or conciliating the malecontents, passed an act restraining the trade of the middle and southern colonies to Great Britain, Ireland, and the West Indies. This additional outrage aroused the patriotic indignation of the whole country. The day for the amicable adjustment of the difficulties between the colonies and the mother country had now passed by forever. Preparations were industriously made throughout all the States for conflict with the British forces, and soon the lurid flames of war were kindled. The first revolutionary blood was spilt at Lexington. That battle aroused the continent throughout the full extent of its countless vales, its fertile plains, its pathless forests, and its mountain heights. The glorious struggle for liberty had in fact begun. In July, 1776, Congress proclaimed the Declaration of American Independence; and immediately afterward General Washington assumed the command of the continental army, then assembled around the British batteries at Boston. Another era of immortal deeds had dawned upon the world, and the chief actors were preparing to enter on the stage and play their destined parts.

CHAPTER I.

BIRTH OF ALEXANDER HAMILTON—HIS ANCESTORS—HIS EARLY SCHOOLING—ENTERS A COUNTING-HOUSE—PROPITIOUS ACCIDENT—SAILS FOB NEW YORK—HIS STUDIES AT ELIZABETH-TOWN—HE ENTERS COLUMBIA COLLEGE—HIS STUDIOUS HABITS AND PROGRESS—HIS FIRST PUBLIC ORATION—ITS EFFECTS AND PROMISE OF FUTURE SUCCESS.

Alexander Hamilton was a native of the Island of Nevis, in the British West Indies. He was born on the eleventh day of January, 1759. His ancestors on the paternal side were Scotch; and were connected with the great clan of the Hamiltons, which has long possessed no inconsiderable consequence in Scottish history. His father had been reared in Scotland to mercantile pursuits; and being allured by the favorable prospects of trade which invited him to St. Christopher, he removed thither when comparatively young, and had there engaged in business.

Hamilton’s mother was of French extraction, and was directly descended from one of those noble old Hugonots who, after the infamous revocation of the Edict of Nantes by Louis XIV., in 1685, had deserted his native land rather than basely betray his religion, and had sought a refuge and a home on one of the blooming and verdant islands, which lie embosomed amid the western main. The mother of Hamilton was a woman of superior intelligence and rare beauty. When very young she had married a wealthy Dane, named Lavine, against her own wishes, at the instance of her family. But the parties were quite uncongenial in their tastes and characters; and the union proving a source of much misery to the lady, she applied for and obtained a divorce. She then removed to St. Christopher, and several years afterward became the wife of James Hamilton, and the mother of Alexander.

Whilst he was very young, Hamilton’s mother unfortunately died, and left him to the charitable care and protection of her relatives. They did not neglect the trust, and sent the orphan boy to school at Vera Cruz. His father was at that time very much impoverished, and he remained in that condition until his death in 1799. Alexander, who was diminutive for his age, was entirely dependent on his mother’s relatives not only for support, but also for the future guidance of his life. Yet at this early period the superior intelligence of the child attracted general attention; and those who were interested in his fate already began to indulge hopes of a brighter future for him, than the misfortunes of the commencement of his career had seemed to presage.

Yet the extent of his literary advantages was very limited. His schooling did not long continue. He had the good fortune at that time to enlist the charitable regard of a Presbyterian clergyman named Knox, and from him he received some useful instruction and many valuable hints. These were of great service to a youth so intelligent and so ardent in the pursuit of knowledge as Hamilton; but he was compelled by circumstances to relinquish his studies in 1769, and enter the counting-house of Nicholas Cruger at Vera Cruz. In this situation ho devoted himself attentively to the details of business; and his superior abilities and probity soon secured him the confidence of his employer. At the age of fourteen he was intrusted by him with the entire care of his establishment, during his absence on a visit to the United States in 1770.

Nevertheless during the period of Hamilton’s connection with Mr. Cruger, his active and inquiring mind was not content with the mere details and responsibilities of business, but he employed his leisure in extending his knowledge. He studied mathematical science, chemistry, history, and general literature. He seemed to be conscious that a higher destiny awaited him, than that which lay immediately before and around him; and he was assiduous in the acquisition of knowledge and the training of those superior faculties whose mighty and restless energies he already felt working within him.

While thus uncertain as to his future destiny, an accident occurred which immediately gave it a paramount and an appropriate direction. In 1772 a furious and destructive tornado, such as the tropical climes alone experience, swept over the Leeward Islands of the West Indies, carrying ruin and desolation along its pathway. The stoutest hearts were appalled by the fearful havoc which ensued; and while the public mind was still filled with awe and consternation at its effects, a description of the hurricane and of its consequences appeared in the public journal of the Island of St. Christopher.

In this event originated the future greatness and celebrity of Hamilton. The description in question was written with such ability, and bore throughout such unquestionable evidences of a superior intellect, that it attracted universal attention, and inquiries were industriously made for its author. When it was discovered that a lad so young, so small, so friendless as Hamilton, had penned that powerful production, the interest was increased tenfold; and many friends arose around him who offered to send him to the United States in order to complete his education. He gladly embraced the opportunity. He received letters of introduction from Mr. Knox to Dr. Mason and other distinguished clergymen in New York, and ample means were furnished him for his immediate support. In October, 1772, he sailed from the West Indies; bade farewell to the home of his childhood; and set foot on that land with whose rising splendors his own name and fame were destined afterward to become so closely and so honorably identified.

Having arrived in New York and presented his letters of introduction, Hamilton concluded, in accordance with the advice of his friends, to commence his studies at the Grammar-school of Elizabethtown, then ably conducted by Francis Barber. His industry and application here were such as to warrant the brightest prospects of his future success. In winter he frequently continued his studies till midnight. In summer the early hour of six found him intently at his books. Scarcely a year elapsed before he was deemed fit, by his instructors, to enter college. He accordingly visited Dr. Witherspoon, at that time president of Princeton College, for the purpose of being admitted to the Freshman class. Hamilton however desired to make one condition with the faculty of the college, preliminary to his matriculation,—a condition which furnishes singular evidence both of his attainments, of his future purposes of application, and of his confidence in the success of his endeavors. He wished to stipulate that he might be permitted to advance from one class to another, not by the usual gradations of progress but with as much rapidity as his improvement in learning would enable him to do. This proviso was in opposition to the usages and rules of the college; for if it were granted to one, it might be demanded by many; and such an arrangement would soon throw all the classes into confusion. In refusing his application Dr. Witherspoon however added, that he regretted the necessity which prevented him from complying with Mr. Hamilton’s request, “inasmuch as he was convinced that the young gentleman would do honor to any seminary in which he should be educated.”

Hamilton proceeded from Princeton to New York, and there entered the institution now known as Columbia College. In addition to the usual collegiate course he studied anatomy. He then thought it not improbable that he might devote his future life to the profession of medicine. He is represented as being, even at this early period of his life, unusually devout; that he was regular in his attendance on public worship; that he prayed night and morning on his knees; that his prayers were marked by unusual eloquence and fervor; and that he was a firm and sincere believer in the truth and divine origin of Christianity. One of his poetical productions at this time was a hymn entitled the “Soul entering into bliss.” Yet he was remarkable also for the cheerfulness and elasticity of his temper, and was not reluctant occasionally to enter into every species of innocent and honorable amusement.

But the most stirring and portentous times were now approaching in the land of his adoption; and while Hamilton was still a member of the college, his great talents were drawn out into active play by the force of unexpected circumstances, while yet a mere youth. At the early age of seventeen he took his place prominently among American orators and patriots; and his great political and national career may be said to have commenced before he left the quiet and contemplative shades of the academy.

The circumstances of the case were these. In the year 1769, the colony of New York, like the rest of the nation, was in a state of intense excitement. Resistance to the increasing tyranny of the British crown had already begun. Furious conflicts daily arose between the incensed populace and the civil and military powers of the colony. A duty having been laid on tea, the British ministry determined that none of that article should be imported except through the East India Company, whose privileges were exorbitant. The people determined to resist this arbitrary enactment—the forerunner, as they justly feared, of other and more detestable encroachments on their liberties. The British ministers then took the first step of retaliation, and, as we have said, closed the port of Boston—an act of the most ruinous tyranny. A resolution being formed to summon a general Continental Congress, to take into consideration the existing evils and the peculiar state of the country, delegates were to be elected to this Congress from the State of New York. The republicans or patriots desired that these delegates should be chosen by the whole mass of the people. The British ministry claimed the exclusive right to nominate them. On July 6th, 1774, a great assembly of the people was held in the suburbs of the city of New York, and this meeting at last determined to take decisive steps. But harmony of sentiment did not by any means pervade the assembly. The ministry were not without the aid of their hired representatives among its members present; and the discussions were both animated, hostile, and bitter.

It was on this interesting and important occasion that Alexander Hamilton, then seventeen years of age, ventured to come forward to address the multitude. At first, the youthful appearance and diminutive form of the orator, operated strongly against him. He also displayed that modesty and hesitation of manner which is usually an attendant of the first inexperienced efforts of great oratorical abilities. But he had not proceeded far in his address before he recovered his self-confidence, and then the vigor of his thoughts, the clearness and precision of his language, the force of his reasoning, his eloquence, his pathos, his persuasive powder, as well as the singular appropriateness of his delivery, commanded the most intense admiration. When he concluded his speech, his ability and fame had been placed beyond the reach of dispute or question; and he became at once a person of consequence, around whom the future hopes and interests of the patriots clustered. He was thenceforward known in New York as the “eloquent collegian.” Yet notwithstanding this flattering opening of his public career, Hamilton still retained for the present his connection with the college, and continued to pursue his studies there with his former earnestness and diligence.

CHAPTER II.

COLONIAL AFFAIRS IN NEW YORK IN 1774—DR. COOPER—DR. INGLES—DR. SEABURY—HAMILTON’S FIRST POLITICAL PAMPHLET—ITS MERITS AND EFFECTS—INCREASE OF HAMILTON’S FAME—INCIDENTS OF 1775—HE ENTERS THE CONTINENTAL ARMY IN 1776—IS APPOINTED PRIVATE SECRETARY AND AID-DE-CAMP TO WASHINGTON—GAINS WASHINGTON’S ENTIRE CONFIDENCE—HIS CONDUCT IN HIS NEW SPHERE.

During 1774 the political excitement in New York became more and more intense. In September of that year the Congress had assembled in Philadelphia, and measures of resistance to George III. had been deliberated on and adopted. The community had become divided into two great parties; but in New York, as elsewhere, the patriots were vastly in the majority. The chief supporters of British despotism and supremacy were the Episcopal clergy, who derived their appointments and their livings from the crown, and who had been taught to regard the king as supreme head both of the church and state.

A written controversy now ensued on the subject of colonial affairs in New York, and a series of pamphlets were issued on both sides of the dispute. It was in this controversy, in which some of the ablest men then living participated, that the youthful Hamilton won his second wreath of laurels, and received the meed of well-deserved renown. Rev. Dr. Cooper, the president of King’s or Columbia College, published a labored defense of the acts of the British monarch. He was followed on the same side by Dr. Ingles, father of the subsequent Bishop of Nova Scotia, Dr. Chandler, Dr. Wilkins, and Dr. Seabury, afterward Bishop of Connecticut. On the side of the people were found Governor Livingston of New Jersey, Mr. John Jay, and Mr. Hamilton, all of whom put forth in reply pamphlets of equal power, and of superior truth and conclusiveness. Dr. Seabury published his “Free Thoughts on the Proceedings of the Continental Congress.” Dr. Wilkins wrote his “Congress Canvassed by a West Chester Farmer.” Mr. Hamilton, several weeks after the appearance of the latter, published “A Full Vindication of the Measures of Congress from the Calumnies of their Enemies, in answer to a letter under the signature of A West Chester Farmer, whereby his sophistry is exposed, his cavils confuted, his artifices detected, and his wit ridiculed, in a general address to the inhabitants of America, and a particular address to the farmers of the province of New York. Printed by James Livingston, 1774.”

The character of Hamilton’s style as a writer, at this early period, may be inferred from the following short extract from this essay:—“Tell me not of the British commons, lords, ministers, ministerial tools, placemen, pensioners, parasites—I scorn to let my life and property depend upon the pleasure of any of them. Give me the steady, uniform, unshaken security of constitutional freedom—give me the right of trial by a jury of my own neighbors, and to be taxed by my own representatives only. What will become of the laws and courts of justice without this? The shadow may remain, but the substance will be gone. I would die to preserve the law upon a solid foundation; for, take away liberty, and the foundation is destroyed.”

The West Chester Farmer soon replied to this pamphlet in terms of great bitterness and severity. This brought out an answer again from Hamilton, more lengthy and elaborate than the first. It was a pamphlet of seventy-eight pages, entitled “The Farmer Refuted; or, a more Comprehensive and Impartial View of the Disputes between Great Britain and the Colonies, and intended as a Further Vindication of the Congress. By a Sincere Friend to America. 1775.”

The great ability displayed in these several pamphlets, their calm and sagacious spirit, and the clear conviction which they carried to every impartial mind, attracted universal attention. Their author was at first unknown. By some they were attributed to Governor Livingston, by others to Mr. Jay; and the great fame of these distinguished men was even augmented by their supposed authorship of these productions. Dr. Cooper, president of the very institution in which Hamilton was then a pupil, insisted that Mr. Jay must be, and alone could have been, their author. When it was hinted that Alexander Hamilton, a youth of eighteen, was suspected by some to have written them, he treated the suggestion as absurd in the extreme. Nevertheless the truth came out at last; and it was proved by Messrs. Troup and Mulligan, two associates of Hamilton to whom he had read a portion of the manuscript, that he alone was the author.

It may readily be supposed that the public announcement of this established fact, added greatly to the fame of the youthful aspirant. He was universally regarded as an intellectual prodigy; and bright hopes were not unreasonably entertained that one possessed of such superior gifts, and such rare ability to use them, would yet attain high eminence. He then received the honorable title of the “Vindicator of the Congress.”

A sublime and imposing epoch had now arrived in history. During several centuries the North American continent had been gradually filling up with immigrants from various, countries of the old world, but especially from the British empire. The colonists found these realms a vast wilderness, inhabited only by rude and ferocious savages. For many years they lived and toiled surrounded by great perils, with the bloody tomahawk constantly hanging over their heads, and the terrific war-whoop ever resounding in their ears. Shut out from all frequent or easy intercourse with the civilized world, they endeavored to develope the rich resources of their adopted home. They planted and tilled. They felled the sturdy giants of the forest. They sowed, reaped and built. And soon a fair and fertile paradise arose around them, blooming with natural and artificial loveliness, to reward their faithful industry, and to bless them and their children with the rich fruition of all that men most highly cherish. They had left behind them, beyond the rolling main, the detested fetters of the tyrants under whom their forefathers had groaned; and no footmark of a despot had ever yet polluted the virgin land of their adoption. Already faint glimpses of the coming splendor and glory of this new world illumined the horizon, streamed across the distant Atlantic, and attracted the attention of European monarchs. The sovereign of England especially, was strongly moved. The majority of the colonists had been, and were even still, his subjects. He thought their prosperity deserved and invited taxation. They should not be exempt from the ponderous burdens under which all his other subjects groaned. He laid heavy taxes, and refused at the same time the coordinate right of representation. The injured colonists, who had now at last struggled through sufferings, perils, and toils innumerable, up to the possession of wealth, consequence, and power, without the least assistance and protection from the mother country, began to show signs of restlessness and dissatisfaction. Soon a storm of patriotic indignation burst forth over the whole land. The thirteen colonies became agitated like a wild and heaving ocean, and the horizon was overhung with dark and fearful portents. The sleeping spirit of Hampden and Cromwell was aroused. The threatenings of enraged and besotted kings were defied; and zealous patriots might be seen flying to and fro in hot haste, proclaiming the necessity of unyielding resistance to foreign oppression; while here and there might be heard, amid the discordant tumult, the savage night-yell of cowardice and conservatism. A deadly conflict was inevitable; a conflict on the issue of which depended the fate of countless millions yet unborn, and of vast realms then just struggling into political existence.

As may readily be supposed, the outbreak of the American Revolution attracted the attention of the whole civilized world. Nor was that attention shunned by those who had determined to throw off the supremacy of England. They proclaimed to the world that they held it as self-evident truths that all men are created free and equal, and that all men possess the inalienable right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. They boldly set forth the outrages which the King of Great Britain had already inflicted, and still purposed to inflict, upon them; how he had attempted to establish an absolute tyranny over them; how he had withheld his assent to the most useful and necessary laws; how he had refused them the right of representation, and had yet imposed on them heavy taxes; how he had dissolved their representative assemblies for resisting his unjust invasions of their liberty; how he had endeavored to prevent the population of the States, and had put forth his utmost efforts to restrict immigration; and how, by many other base acts of hostility to their interests, and tyranny over their rights, he had rendered himself their uncompromising and eternal foe. They concluded by pledging their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor to the support of the cause in which they had engaged. Europe especially gazed with profound attention on the conflict about to commence. Her inhabitants, bound in heavy chains, viewed it with silent and muttered but ardent hope for the patriots. Her tyrants, trembling on their rotten thrones, regarded its progress and issue with painful doubt and apprehension. The great problem of these latter ages was now about to be solved; whether the long night of tyranny was ever to end over the civilized world, and whether the glorious morn of hope and freedom was destined at length to dawn, and dispel the gloom of many centuries.

Washington having been chosen by the Continental Congress as commander-in-chief of all the armies of the United Colonies, at once accepted the important and difficult trust. He refused all compensation for his services; but stated that he would keep an account of his actual expenditures during the continuance of his office, which, as he supposed. Congress would eventually repay.

Yet it must be confessed that the prospects of the revolutionists were not very encouraging. To confront the gigantic power of England,—then assuredly the first nation in Europe and confessedly the mistress of the seas,—the confederate colonies mustered in the camp at Cambridge fourteen thousand, five hundred men. But even this insignificant force was rendered in a great measure inefficient by other serious disadvantages. They were in want of ammunition. The magazines could furnish but nine cartridges for each man. The troops were almost destitute of clothing, and also of tents. Their arms were inferior in quality and deficient in number. Only a small proportion either of the officers or of the men had ever received much military training, or were familiar with military tactics.

Yet none of these great disadvantages discouraged the new commander. He busily set himself to work to improve the condition and the training of his troops. Boston was then occupied by the British army under General Gage, and soon the town was closely blockaded by the American troops. In January, 1776, Washington summoned a council of war, and proposed to their consideration the project of making a general assault. The decision was favorable to the attempt; and as a preparatory step he fortified the heights of Dorchester, in order to annoy the British ships in the harbor, and assail the town. On the 2d of March Washington began a general bombardment of the British lines. So vigorously was this effected during the two succeeding weeks, that the British commander determined at length to evacuate his dangerous and untenable position. This purpose was carried into effect on the 17th of March; and the troops, marching forth from their intrenchments, embarked on board the fleet, and sailed from Nantasket road. Thus complete success attended the exertions of the American commander, in the first important scene of his career. One of the chief cities of the colonies was released from the grasp of the foe; and fortune, which ever smiles upon the brave, seemed to be propitious to the patriots.

On evacuating Boston, General Howe had sailed for Halifax. From that port he directed his course to the city of New York. On the 3d of July he disembarked his forces on Staten Island, and found the inhabitants strongly in favor of British rule. At this period, large reinforcements arrived from England, and the invading army numbered about twenty-five thousand regular troops. To this well-fed, well-trained, vigorous and efficient force, Washington had but seventeen thousand men to oppose, three thousand of whom were on the sick list. Yet with this great disproportion in numbers, the American general prepared to meet the British in a general engagement.

The battle of Brooklyn ensued. The two armies were drawn out in the best manner which the exceedingly irregular nature of the ground permitted. There was indeed but little of that gorgeous display of military power and splendor, which attended the great engagements in which Marlborough and Napoleon commanded. The appearance of the Continental troops especially was scarcely more martial or imposing than that of well-regulated militia. On the 27th August, at half past eight, the battle began. The immense extent of ground over which the combatants were scattered, rendered the movements of the day exceedingly irregular and indecisive. The American troops in various quarters were broken, driven back, and hemmed in by the skillful marches and countermarches of the British regulars. They were pursued to and fro alternately by the Hessians and the English, and many were slain, wounded, and captured. It was a disastrous day for the Americans. One thousand and ninety-seven prisoners were made by the British, among whom were Generals Sullivan, Stirling, and Woodhull. Probably the entire loss of the Americans may have amounted to two thousand men, that of the British to four hundred.

On the night of the 28th of August, Washington retreated from Long Island. This retreat was conducted in the most admirable order, and with such superior skill that all the stores of the Americans and their ammunition were secured, notwithstanding the utmost vigilance of the British outposts. Washington has been severely censured by military men for the conduct and the issue of this disastrous day. But their strictures are undeserved. The object of Washington was to defend the city of New York from the British troops; and at the same time to waste away the campaign in movements which, even if they were not decisively in favor of his troops, would harass and dishearten his assailants. An indecisive battle would help to accomplish this result. But the real cause of the disaster of Brooklyn was the want of cavalry in the Continental army. There was not a single troop of horse among them. All those operations, both of offense and defense, in which celerity of movement was of essential importance, were necessarily impossible. And besides all this, the British troops had vastly the advantage in numbers, in discipline, in ammunition, and in position. The influence of this defeat on the public mind was most discouraging. The popular enthusiasm was much diminished. The American troops immediately evacuated New York, and the British entered it. Washington still retreated, and took possession of a favorable position at White Plains. He was indefatigable in his exertions to discipline, accoutre, and encourage his troops; and in some few skirmishes, which took place between separate detachments of both parties, the Americans obtained the advantage.

On the 25th of October, General Howe determined to attack Washington in his fortified position at White Plains. The militia in the American army fled upon the first assault of the British. The regular troops made a longer resistance; but they too eventually retreated, though in good order. The victory again belonged to the British. Washington prudently continued to retire, while General Howe made his preparations to invade New Jersey. Two important garrisons—those of Fort Lee and Fort Washington, lay in his route, which it behooved him to take. After a spirited resistance both of these fortresses surrendered to the assailants. The garrison which manned Fort Washington became prisoners of war. During Washington’s further retreat through New Jersey he was compelled to sacrifice his heavy cannon and military stores. The position and prospects of the patriots had already, at the termination of the second campaign, become apparently desperate. Posted at Newark, Washington endeavored to concentrate at one point the scattered troops of the different colonies—some from Massachusetts, some from Connecticut, some from Pennsylvania. It was the 1st of December, 1776, and never did a more gloomy future seem to appal a commander. The American forces from the first had been inferior to their opponents in every respect—in numbers, in ammunition, in discipline, and in experience. At that moment the continued series of disasters which had occurred subsequent to the evacuation of Boston, had depressed the spirits of the whole people, as well as of the army, to the lowest ebb. The same patriots who, at the commencement of the conflict had been ardent, enthusiastic, and confident, now began seriously to despair of the republic. At this moment also the period of the enlistment of a large portion of the Continental troops expired, and whole companies, in spite of the utmost exertions of Washington, disbanded and returned home. It was confidently expected that, in a few weeks, the whole army would dwindle away and disappear. Those who remained in camp seemed to be in constant danger of being surrounded and destroyed by the much larger force mustered by the British. Then Philadelphia would immediately become the prey of the triumphant invaders. Worse than all this, there was foul treason even in the patriot camp. General Howe had issued a proclamation insuring pardon and immunity to all who, within sixty days, would renew their allegiance to the British king. An insurrection soon occurred in Monmouth county, New Jersey, against the Continental government; and even several American generals, who had previously stood high in the confidence of the commander-in-chief, of Congress, and of the whole country, began perfidiously to tamper with British officials, and to take steps preparatory to making a transfer of their allegiance from the ruined and subjugated colonial government to the now victorious and resistless English despot.

In this dark hour of disaster and gloom Washington preserved his serenity, his confidence, and his hope. He readily perceived that some decisive movement was absolutely necessary to inspire confidence again into the people and the army, and he determined to make it. It was then the middle of winter. His shattered and broken army lay in their feeble and hastily prepared works on the Pennsylvania side of the Delaware. He formed the daring plan of attacking several of the British posts on the Delaware, in New Jersey, at the same moment, so as to deliver Philadelphia from the impending danger of invasion, and compel the British to release New Jersey from the grasp in which they then held it. The latter were posted at Trenton, Bordentown, Mount Holly, and the White Horse, though large divisions were also placed at Princeton, Brunswick, and Elizabethtown. On the night of the 25th of December the cold was intense, and the earth was deluged with sleet, snow and hail. General Washington resolved on this night to inarch in person with one division of his army, consisting of twenty-five hundred men, upon the British posted in Trenton. General Irvine was directed to cross the Delaware opposite Trenton, and secure the bridge below the town; while General Cadwallader was ordered to cross at Dunk’s Ferry, and attack the British at Mount Holly. All these movements were to be accomplished simultaneously, with secresy and celerity; and had the plans of the commander-in-chief been promptly carried out, their success would have been complete and overpowering. The chief obstacle was the state of the ice and of the weather, which impeded the troops in their attempt to cross the Delaware. In the end, that portion alone of the American army which Washington himself led, was able to effect a passage in time, and with this portion alone he achieved a brilliant victory. He reached the British position at Trenton at eight in the morning, and instantly commenced an attack with the utmost fury and impetuosity. The British Boon began to waver, then to flee. Washington intercepted them in their flight, and after a brisk conflict compelled them to surrender. About one thousand of them were made prisoners, fifty were killed and wounded. Among the number of the slain was Colonel Rawle, their commander. So intense was the cold that two American soldiers were frozen to death. Five hundred British escaped from the lower end of Trenton, in consequence of the failure of that portion of the plan intrusted to General Irvine. The condition of the river also rendered it impossible for General Cadwallader to transport his artillery over it, and accordingly he was compelled to relinquish his design on Mount Holly.

The victory of Washington at Trenton was complete. He had accomplished, in the dead of winter, one of the most daring and successful feats recorded in military annals. He had even surprised the vigilant and able commanders who led the British veterans, and had taken captive a large and important portion of their army. But his career of success did not terminate here. One of the strongest positions of the foe was at Princeton. Washington pressed forward to attack them. The battle of Princeton ensued, in which the British were totally defeated—one hundred were killed, and three hundred taken prisoners. The chief loss of the Americans was in the death of General Mercer. Lord Cornwallis, the British commander, endeavored immediately after this success, to assail and crush the patriot army before they could reach Brunswick, which was their next object of attack. Under these circumstances, Washington deemed it prudent to abandon this portion of his bold design. His exhausted troops were without blankets, without provisions, and many of them were barefooted, and marked their painful progress over the frozen earth, with the traces of their blood. He therefore retired into shelter at Morristown for the rest of the winter.

These heroic and triumphant operations of Washington and his co-patriots, revived at once the drooping spirits of the colonies. Joy and hope illumed that gloomy horizon which had settled down so sadly over the whole nation. The British officers and men were astonished at these displays of unexpected vigor and bravery; and their commander began seriously to reflect upon the difficulty of subjugating a people, whose army—few, ragged, naked, without ammunition and without provisions, could rise in the midst of winter, invested with such desperate and resistless power, and strike so fatal a blow upon their confident and well-appointed foes. The patriots were filled with encouragement and hope; while the covert and yet undeclared traitors in their camp, thought it advisable still to dissemble for a time their infamous purposes, and postpone the consummation of their perfidy until a more propitious hour.