University of Virginia Library

CHAPTER V.

DUNMORE'S CAMPAIGN.

In the east, the effort to organize a force sufficient to
operate with effect against the savages, proved successful,
and two bodies, numbering in all nearly twenty-five hundred,
were collected,—one in the counties of Augusta, Bottetourt,
&c., and the other in Frederick, Shenandoah, &c.

The first of these was placed under the command of
General Andrew Lewis, who rendezvoused at Camp Union,[37]
now Lewisburg, while the governor in person commanded
the second.

By the 1st of September, General Lewis only awaited the
arrival of Col. Christian, and orders from Lord Dunmore, to
march. In a few days a messenger reached him with orders
from Dunmore to meet him on the 2d of October, at the
mouth of Kanawha. On the 11th, he struck his tents and
commenced the line of march through an unknown and trackless
wilderness.

The division of General Lewis numbered between one
thousand and twelve hundred men, composed of the very
flower of the Virginia Valley.[38]

Captain Arbuckle, an experienced and skilful frontier-man,
conducted the division to the river, which they reached on the
30th, after a fatiguing march of nineteen days.

General Lewis was greatly disappointed in not meeting
Dunmore, and still more in not hearing from him. It was
not until the morning of the 9th, that a messenger[39] reached
him, bringing information that the plan of the campaign had
been changed, and ordering him to march direct to the Indian
towns on the Scioto, where the other division would join him.
Arrangements were accordingly made preparatory to leaving,
and on the following morning, (Monday, October 10th,) Gen.
Lewis intended moving, as directed. Shortly after daybreak,
on the morning referred to, two soldiers who had gone
up the Ohio to hunt, discovered a large body of Indians just
rising from their encampment. The men were fired upon and
one killed, but the other escaping returned to camp, hallooing
as he ran, that he had seen "a body of Indians covering four
acres of ground."[40]

All was, of course, surprise and confusion in the camp of
the whites, but the commander-in-chief, "calm as a summer
morning," lighted his pipe with the utmost sang froid, and
ordered out the regiment under Col. Lewis, supposing that the
discovery of the soldiers was merely that of a scouting party

of Indians, similar to such as had watched the movements of
the army since leaving Fort Savannah.

Colonel Lewis had barely passed the outer guard, when the
enemy in great number appeared and commenced the attack.
Col. Fleming was now ordered to reinforce Col. Lewis, and
soon the battle raged with unparalleled fury. The sun had
just risen, and was gilding with his bright autumnal tints the
tops of the surrounding hills when the battle commenced, and
not until it had sunk low in the heavens, did the sanguinary
conflict materially abate.

Colonel Lewis was mortally wounded at an early hour in
the engagement, but with a resolute devotion rarely equalled,
concealed the character of his wound until the line of battle
had been fairly formed. He then sunk exhausted from loss
of blood, and was carried to his tent, where he died about
twelve o'clock. A braver, truer or more gallant soldier the
country has rarely produced; and it is a burning shame that
his memory, as well as that of the brave men who fell with
him, has not been perpetuated in some appropriate and
enduring form on the scene of this memorable conflict.

On the fall of Col. Lewis, the line of his men stretching
along the high ground skirting Crooked run,[41] which was the
first attacked and had sustained the heaviest fire, gave symptoms
of irresolution, and momentarily did fall back; but Col.
Fleming speedily rallying them, maintained the fortunes of
the day until he, too, was struck down and borne bleeding
from the field.

The troops now gave way, and in all probability would
have been routed had not Gen. Lewis ordered up Col. Field
with a fresh reinforcement. This command met the retreating
troops and rallied them to the contest. The fight
now became more desperate than ever, and was maintained by
both parties with consummate skill, energy and valor. The

BATTLE OF POINT PLEASANT.

Indians, sure of success when they beheld the ranks give way
after the fall of Lewis and Fleming, became frantic with rage
when they saw the reinforcement under Col. Field. With
convulsive grasp they seized their weapons, and would have
rushed headlong upon the whites had the latter not kept up a
steady and most galling fire, which seemed to have the double
effect of thinning their ranks and cooling their rage. The
battle scene was now terribly grand. There stood the combatants;
terror, rage, disappointment and despair riveted
upon the painted faces of one, while calm resolution, and the
unbending will to do, were strongly and unmistakably marked
upon the other. Neither party, says an eye-witness, "would
retreat; neither could advance. The noise of the firing was
tremendous. No single gun could be distinguished, but it
was one constant roar. The rifle and tomahawk now did their
work with dreadful certainty. The confusion and perturbation
of the camp had now arrived at its greatest height.
The confused noise and wild uproar of battle added greatly
to the terror of the scene. The shouting of the whites, the
continual roar of fire-arms, the war-whoop and dismal yelling
of the Indians, sounds harsh and grating when heard separately,
became by mixture and combination highly discordant
and terrific. Add to this the constant succession of the dead
and wounded, brought off from the battle-field, many of these
with shattered limbs and lacerated flesh, pale, ghastly and
disfigured, and besmeared with gore, their `garments rolled in
blood,' and uttering doleful cries of lamentation and distress;
others faint, feeble and exhausted by loss of blood, scarcely
able with quivering lips to tell their ail to passers-by. Sounds
and sights and circumstances such as these were calculated to
excite general solicitude for the issue of the battle, and alarm
in each individual for his own personal safety. Early in the
day General Lewis had ordered a breast-work to be constructed
from the Ohio to the Kanawha, thus severing the
camp from the neighboring forest. This breast-work was
formed by felling trees and so disposing of their trunks and
branches, as to form a barrier which was difficult to pass. It
was designed that should the enemy gain an ascendancy in
the field, this barrier might prevent their entrance into the
camp, while at the same time it might serve as a protection
to the garrison that was within."

About twelve o'clock the Indian fire began to slacken, and
the enemy were seen slowly to retire. A desultory fire was
kept up from behind trees; and often, as the Virginians
pressed too hotly upon the retreating foe, were they fatally
ambuscaded.

Gen. Lewis, noticing the manœuvres of the enemy, detached
three companies commanded respectively by Captains
John Stuart, George Matthews and Isaac Shelby,[42] with
orders to move quietly beneath the banks of the Kanawha
and Crooked run, so as to gain the enemy's rear.

This manœuvre was so handsomely executed that the savages
became alarmed, and fairly gave up the fight about 4 o'clock.
The victory of the Virginians was complete. During the
night the Indian army crossed the Ohio, and made off. The
gradual retreat of the Indians was one of the most masterly
things of the kind ever undertaken in the west. Cornstalk
alternately led on his men, and then fell back in such a manner
as to hold the whites in check and uncertainty. Between
11 o'clock A.M. and 4 P.M., the Indian army fell back more
than three miles. This gave them an opportunity to bear
off their wounded and dead.

This battle scene, in an unbroken wilderness on the Ohio,
is described as having been one of the most thrilling affairs
that ever took place on our western frontier. The line of
battle was at times nearly a mile long, and often throughout
its entire length gleamed the blended flame from Indian and
provincial rifles.

The Indians, under the lead of experienced and able chiefs,
were confident of success, and fought with a desperation
which no language can describe.

The exact losses sustained by the respective parties were
never fully ascertained, as the Indians were known to have
thrown many of their dead into the Ohio. Their loss has
been estimated at about one hundred and fifty, while that of
the provincials in killed and wounded was over two hundred;
more than one-fourth of the whole number actually engaged.
The annals of history do not show another instance where
undisciplined troops held out so successfully and for so long a
time against a foe vastly their numerical superior.

At least one hundred of Gen. Lewis' men were absent,
hunting, and knew nothing of the battle until evening.[43]

The Indian army was composed principally of Delawares,
Mingos, Iroquois, Wyandotts and Shawanese. It was commanded
by Cornstock, the celebrated and noble-minded
Shawanese chief, whose melancholy end at the same place on
a subsequent occasion, and under circumstances of the most
revolting treachery, cannot be dwelt upon, even at this late
day, without feelings of melancholy regret.

Logan assisted in the command, and burned to revenge the
past wrongs which he had received at the hands of the "Long-knives."

In this prolonged and bloody battle the brave Virginians

suffered terribly. Of the killed were Colonels Lewis[44] and
Field,[45] Captains Morrow, Buford, Ward, Murray, Cundiff,
Wilson and McClenachan; Lieutenants Allen, Goldsby and
Dillon, with many gallant subalterns, whose names we have
not been able to ascertain.[46]

The Indian army is said to have comprised the pick of the
northern confederated tribes. Cornstock's towering form
was seen rapidly hurrying through their midst, and every
now and anon, when he found the spirits of his men were flagging,
was heard to exclaim in his native tongue, "Be strong!
be strong!" One of his warriors showing signs of fear, the
savage chieftain slew him at the moment with his tomahawk.[47]

Gen. Lewis having buried his dead, and thrown up a rude
fortress for the protection of the wounded, which he gave in
charge of a sufficient force; crossed the Ohio to meet Dunmore
at the point designated. He moved rapidly forward,
and in an unprecedented short period reached the Pickawy

plains. Here he was met by a message from Dunmore,
ordering him to stop, as he (Dunmore) was about negotiating
a treaty of peace with the Indians. Indignant at the manner
he had been treated, and finding himself threatened by a
superior force of Indians, who kept constantly in his rear,
General Lewis disregarded the earl's orders, and pushed on.

A second flag was now sent, but treating it as he had done
the first, Gen. Lewis continued to advance until he had reached
within three miles of the governor's camp. Dunmore now
became uneasy, and accompanied by White-Eyes, a noted
Indian chief, visited Gen. Lewis, and peremptorily ordered
him to halt. It is asserted by some, that at this juncture it
was with much difficulty Gen. Lewis could restrain his men
from killing Dunmore and his Indian companion.[48]

Gen. Lewis' orders were to return forthwith to Point Pleasant;
there to leave a force sufficient to protect the place,
and a supply of provisions for the wounded, then to lead the
balance of the division to the place of rendezvous, and disband
them. Dunmore returned to camp Charlotte, and concluded
a treaty with the Indians.[49] The chief speaker on the
part of the Indians was Cornstalk, who openly charged the
whites with being the sole cause of the war, enumerating the
many provocations which the Indians had received, and dwelling
with great force and emphasis upon the diabolical murder
of Logan's family. This great chief spoke in the most vehement
and denunciatory style. His loud, clear voice was
distinctly heard over the whole camp of twelve acres. Cornstalk
had from the first, opposed a war with the whites, and

when his scouts reported the advance of Gen. Lewis' division,
the sagacious chief did all he could to restrain his men, and
keep them from battle. But all his remonstrances were in
vain, and it was then he told them, "As you are determined
to fight, you shall fight." After their defeat, and return
home, a council was convened to determine upon what was
next to be done. The stern old chief rising, said, "What
shall we do now? The Long-knives are coming upon us by
two routes. Shall we turn out and fight them?" No response
being made, he continued, "Shall we kill all our squaws and
children, and then fight until we are all killed ourselves?"
Still the congregated warriors were silent, and after a moment's
hesitation, Cornstalk struck his tomahawk into the
war post, and with compressed lips and flashing eye, gazed
around the assembled group, then with great emphasis spoke,
"Since you are not inclined to fight, I will go and make
peace."

This distinguished chief was one of the most remarkable
men his race has ever produced. He possessed in an eminent
degree all the elements of true greatness. Colonel Wilson,
who was present at the interview between the chief and Lord
Dunmore, thus speaks of the chieftain's bearing.[50]

But there was one who would not attend the camp of Lord
Dunmore, and that was Logan. The Mingoe chief felt the chill
of despair at his heart; his very soul seemed frozen within
him; and although he would not interpose obstacles to an
amicable adjustment of existing difficulties, still he could not
meet the Long-knives in council as if no terrible stain of blood
rested upon their hands. He remained at a distance, brooding
in melancholy silence over his accumulated wrongs during

most of the time his friends were negotiating. But Dunmore
felt the importance of at least securing his assent; and for
that purpose sent a special messenger, Colonel John Gibson,
who waited upon the chief at his wigwam.

The messenger in due time returned, bringing with him the
celebrated speech which has given its author an immortality,
almost as imperishable as that of the great Athenian orator.[51]

It is due perhaps, in candor, to state that the authenticity
of this celebrated speech has been questioned. To all, however,
who have examined the testimony carefully, and with an
unprejudiced eye, the conclusions in favor of its genuineness
are overwhelming. A great deal of unnecessary bitterness
has been shown by friends for and against this simple but
touching appeal of the native chieftain. The friends of
Cresap, feeling that he had been undeservedly reproached,
were not willing to let his memory rest under the charges;
while on the other hand, Mr. Jefferson and his friends, conceiving
that his veracity had been attacked, exhibited much

warmth and determination to establish the charge by confirming
the speech.

But, the question of authenticity, we think should not
depend upon the extent of Cresap's participation in the crime
charged by Logan. As stated elsewhere, Logan was deceived
as to the facts. Cresap, at that time, was one of the most
prominent men on the frontier, and was known to have taken
an active and energetic part in the defence of the settlements.
He was known to have been engaged in the Captina affair,
and is it therefore strange that he should have been charged
with this third, or Yellow creek murder, occurring as it did
only a few days after that at Captina? The circumstances
certainly were strongly against him, and nothing but such a
statement as that of Col. Clark, now submitted, could have
availed to rescue his memory from the heavy reproach which
was fast settling upon it. We therefore repeat, that it was
not strange Logan should have been deceived. According to
Doddridge, many of the settlers—those living in the neighborhood,
and whose opportunities should have enabled them to
know the facts, were mislead.

Mr. Jefferson, we think, at a very early day, had his confidence
in the fullness of the charge against Cresap considerably
shaken. The late John Caldwell of Wheeling creek,
one of the earliest settlers in Ohio county, was one of the
persons to whom Mr. Jefferson made application for facts
concerning the unfortunate affair at Yellow creek. The affidavit
which he gave, but which was never published, went far
to exculpate Cresap from all immediate participation in that
melancholy affair. But, we again repeat, whatever may have
been Cresap's connection with the Yellow creek murder, it
should not materially affect the genuineness of Logan's speech.
He felt and believed that Cresap was the man, and so declared.
If mistaken in the perpetrator, why should that one single
error militate against the entire production?

But, to return from this digression. A treaty was concluded

at Camp Charlotte,[52] in the month of November,
and the war known as Dunmore's, Cresap's, and Logan's
terminated. By this, the Shawanese agreed not to molest
travellers, or hunt south of the Ohio River.[53] The termination
of this war greatly dissatisfied the Virginians, who had
marched many hundred miles through an unbroken wilderness
to chastise the savages. Now that they were within their
grasp, and about to strike an effective blow, to be thus compelled
to return on the mere feint of a treaty, was, to them,
entirely inexplicable.

The conduct of Dunmore could not be understood except
by supposing him to act with reference to the expected contest
between England and her colonies, a motive which the
colonists regarded as little less than treasonable.[54] And here
we wish to notice a statement given as a curious instance of
historical puzzles by Mr. Whittlesey, in his address before the
Ohio Historical Society, delivered in 1841, at page 28.[55]

In 1831, a steamboat was detained a few hours near the
house of Mr. Curtis, on the Ohio, a short distance above the
mouth of the Hockhocking, and General Clark[56] came ashore.
He inquired respecting the remains of a fort or encampment
at the mouth of the Hockhocking river, as it is now called.
He was told that there was evidence of a clearing of several

acres in extent, and that pieces of guns and muskets had been
found on the spot; and also, that a collection of several hundred
bullets had been discovered on the bank of the Hockhocking,
about twenty-five miles up the river. General Clark
then stated, that the ground had been occupied as a camp by
Lord Dunmore, who came down the Kanawha with 300 men
in the spring of 1775, with the expectation of treating with
the Indians here. The chiefs not making their appearance,
the march was continued up the river twenty-five or thirty
miles, where an express from Virginia overtook the party.
That evening a council was held and lasted very late at night.
In the morning the troops were disbanded, and immediately
requested to enlist in the British service for a stated period.
The contents of the despatches had not transpired when this
proposition was made. A major of militia, by the name of
McCarty, made an harangue to the men against enlisting,
which seems to have been done in an eloquent and effectual
manner. He referred to the condition of the public mind in
the colonies, and the probability of a revolution, which must
soon arrive. He represented the suspicious circumstances of
the express, which was still a secret to the troops, and that
appearances justified the conclusion, that they were required
to enlist in a service against their own countrymen, their own
kindred, their own homes. The consequence was, that but
few of the men re-enlisted, and the majority, choosing the
orator as a leader, made the best of their way to Wheeling.
The news brought out by the courier proved to be an account
of the opening combat of the Revolution at Lexington, Massachusetts,
April 20, 1775. General Clark stated that himself
(or his brother) was in the expedition.

Lord Dunmore is said to have returned to Virginia by way
of the Kanawha river.

There are very few historical details sustained by better
authority than the above relation. Desirous of reconciling
this statement with history, I addressed a letter to General
Clark, requesting an explanation, but his death, which happened
soon after, prevented a reply.[57]

This we know cannot be true in the form in which it is
stated. The battle of Lexington was on April 19th; on April

21st, Lord Dunmore removed the powder from the public storehouse
at Williamsburg on board a King's vessel, and was
thenceforward at Williamsburg. June 5th he informs the
Assembly that he had meant to go West and look after Indian
matters, but had been too busy.[58] It is one of many instances
showing how sceptical we should be where a single person
testifies, and especially from memory.[59]

The charge of treasonable design so industriously made
against Dunmore, although plausible in part, is not sustained
by facts and circumstances. That his course was not disapproved
at the time is clear from the fact, he was thanked for
his conduct by the Virginia Convention, at the head of which
stood Washington, Randolph, the Lees, &c. &c. He was also
thanked by the House of Burgesses, and received an address
praising his proceedings, from the people of Fincastle County.
(American Archives, fourth series, ii. 301, 170.)