CHAPTER VI. PONTIAC'S TREACHERY-CAMPBELL AND MCDOUGAL MADE PRISONERS— COMPLAINTS CAMPBELL and his compainions passed up the river road, crossed the little bridge over Parent's Creek, and soon came in full view of the Ottawa village. As soon as the Indians observed their red coats on the summit of the little hill they sent up a burst of triumphant yells, as if they expected soon to shed more English blood, and there can be but little doubt that the officers would have been scalped, had not Pontiac stepped forward, and, by his imperious voice, commanded the savages to remain quiet. The great chief advanced and took Campbell by the hand and welcomed him; and then, turning round, led the way to his lodge, followed by the officers and the interpreter. The chief halted at the entrance of a large lodge, and, pointing to some mats at the farther end, he signalled the officers to enter. As soon as they had been seated the lodge was thronged with warriors. Campbell and McDougal were now in the hands of their enemies; their lives depended alone upon the generosity of Pontiac. All the savages present were eager to kill them on the spot, but the Ottawa chief, perhaps, remembered that when he and his warriors were in the hands of the garrison, a few days previous, detected in their treachery, they were treated in mercy, and protected from injury and insult. The garrison waited, with much anxiety, the return of the officers, until quite late in the evening, when the interpreter returned to the fort with the information that Campbell and McDougal had both been made prisoners by Pontiac. The Ottawa chief, resolved on continuing the war, inaugurated a regular system. Having secured the full co-operation of the Wyandots, he made an improved disposition of his forces. A detachment of the Pottawatomies were sent down the river a short distance, where they were to surprise and capture any reinforcements or supplies that might be advancing to the relief of the fort; others was ordered to conceal themselves in the woods in the rear of the fort, to prevent any advance from that direction; another band were directed to conceal themselves as near to the fort as possible, and to shoot down any soldier or Englishman who might expose himself when no general attack was in progress. This work of detail and preparation was continued until the twelfth of May, when the warriors, under the immediate direction of Pontiac himself, surrounded the fort and made another desperate assault, which was continued, without intermission, from dawn till evening. Leaving the events outside, let us look in upon the condition of the little garrison. Their commander was now fully convinced that a general Indian outbreak had begun, and, in the face of the danger which presented itself on every hand, he was forced to ask the advice of those around him. Therefore, on the evening of the twelfth, all the officers in the fort met to consider what course of action was best to adopt. It was a desperate moment. Only the darkness had forced the savages from the attack, and with the dawn of the following day, the assault would be resumed with increased vigor. Such, however, was the conviction of the weary garrison. Major Gladwyn was a brave officer, well qualified for this emergency. Should the fort be taken, every Englishman within its palisade would be tomahawked; and, in the light of the probable success of the Indians in their attempt to capture the place, it would seem that there would be but one opinion in this council--that of the expediency of embarking and sailing for Niagara. Indeed, all, except the courageous Gladwyn, advised this course; but that officer, although half convinced that the savages would succeed, was unwilling to desert his post. But there were other considerations of great importance, which, no doubt, had their weight in advising the garrison to abandon the fort. Their provisions were nearly exhausted, and, at the fartherest, would not last more than three weeks. In this short space of time, since a multitude of infuriated warriors had surrounded the place, there could be but little hope of succor. The danger of their situation was also increased from the fact that all the buildings within the fort "being of wood, and chiefly thatched with straw," might be set on fire at any moment, by burning missels. Perhaps there was no consideration which rendered their situation so desperate as that the Indians would make a general rush against the fort and burn or cut their way through the palisades-a mode of attack which would be sure to accomplish the reduction of the weak fortification. This manner of attack was, however, foreign to every maxim of Indian warfare. Resolved to defend the fort while defence was possible, Gladwyn made the best possible disposition of his little garrison, and otherwise prepared to withstand the foe. Time passed on. Day after day the warriors continued the siege, and yet there were no signs of assistance for the hapless garrison. The provisions rapidly decreased. For many long days and nights no man attempted to sleep, except in his clothes, with his weapons by his side. When an opportunity presented itself, the soldiers ran out and leveled the outhouses to the ground, and removed everything that would serve as a shield or covering for the warriors. This done the Indians could find no shelter, and, being unwilling to expose themselves to the fire of the fort, they seldom approached very near to it. The two vessels that lay in the river guarded the north and south corners of the fort with their fire, and thus considerably strengthened Gladwyn's position. The Indians next attempted to set fire to the buildings within the fort by shooting arrows tipped with burning tow, upon their roofs, but the fort being well provided with water, their efforts were futile. Pontiac next summoned the garrison to surrender. He said the officers and soldiers would be allowed to embark in their vessels and depart uninjured, but in the event they refused to comply, and the fort should be taken, they would all be slaughtered. Major Gladwyn's reply was short and decisive, and, it is believed, convinced Pontiac that his British foe was still firm, and determined to hold possession of the fort. "The attacks were now resumed with increased activity, and the assailants were soon after inspired by the arrival of a hundred and twenty Ojibwa warriors from Grand River." In the fort, every effort for its defense was put forth. The soldiers slept upon the ramparts, and a constant vigilance was maintained. Meanwhile every possible effort was made to obtain a supply of provisions for the garrison. At length negotiations were opened with a Canadian named Baby, who, for ample consideration, supplied the fort with cattle, hogs and such other necessaries as he could command. These were carried from the east side of the river, where M. Baby resided, to the fort, in canoes, which crossed the river with their precious freight under cover of the darkness. Being thus supplied with food, the wearied garrison took new courage. About this time the Indians, who had hoped to capture Detroit by a single assault, were beginning to suffer for food. They had rushed into the war with a recklessness characteristic of their race, and were now sorely perplexed in their endeavors to continue the siege. Want gradually compelled them to apply to the Canadians for assistance, but this was granted only in cases where threatened violence advised it. When this had become a source of trouble and annoyance to the Canadian settlers, they appointed a deputation from among their number, instructing them to visit the camp of Pontiac, and lay their grievances before him. This they did, meeting the Ottawa chief at the house where Capt. Campbell and Lieut. McDougal were confined. When the sachems of the various tribes had been convened, one of the deputies rose and said: "You pretend to be friends of the French, and yet you plunder us of our hogs and cattle. You trample upon our fields of young corn, and when you enter our houses you enter with tomahawk raised. When your French father comes from Montreal with his great army, he will hear of what you have done. and, instead of shaking hands with you as brothers, he will punish you as enemies." Pontiac replied in the following words: "We have never wished to do you harm, nor allow any to be done you; but among us there are many young men who, though strictly watched, find opportunities of mischief. It is not to revenge myself alone that I make war on the English. It is to revenge you, my brothers. When the English insulted us they insulted you also. I know that they have taken away your arms, and made you sign a paper which they have sent home to their country. Therefore you are left defenseless; and I mean now to revenge your cause and my own together. I mean to destroy the English, and leave not one upon our lands. You do not know the reasons from which I act. I have told I have told you those only which concern yourselves; but you will cease then to think me a fool. I know, my brothers, that there are many among you who take part with the English. I am sorry for it, for their own sakes; for when our father arrives, I shall point them out to him, and they will see whether they or I have most reason to be satisfied with the part we have acted. will learn all in time. You "I do not doubt, my brothers, that this war is very troublesome to you, for our warriors are continually passing and repassing through your settlement. I am sorry for it. Do not think that I approve of the damage that is done by them; and, as a proof of this, remember the war with the Foxes, and the part which I took in it. It is now seventeen years since the Ojibwas, of Michilimackinac, combined with the Sacs and Foxes, came down to destroy you. Who then defended you? Was it not I and my young men? Mackinac, great chief of all these nations said, in council, that he would carry to his village the head of your commandant; that he would eat his heart and drink his blood? Did I not take your part? Did I not go to his camp, and say to him, that if he wished to kill the French, he must first kill me and my warriors? assist you in routing them and driving them away? you think that I would turn my arms against you? brothers; I am the same French Pontiac who assisted you Did I not And now No, my |