gantlet between a double file of Indians and Graves' skull was cloven while he was running for his life. For his success against Gen. Winchester, Col. Procter was promoted to the rank of brigadier-general.

On the arrival of a messenger from Frenchtown Gen. Harrison started to go to the rescue, but on hearing of the disastrous defeat which left nothing to rescue, he stopped at Fort Meigs. The Government at Washington incurred terrible responsibilities by choosing irresponsible men to take charge of serious undertakings in the West. Generals Harmar and St. Clair, through their carelessness and inexperience, had sacrificed about 1,200 lives in the Ohio country. Gen. Hull had surrendered Detroit and 2,200 men to an inferior force. Gen. Winchester had sacrificed a force of nearly 1,000 men through his blundering and stupid neglect. In consequence American commanders were regarded with contempt both by the British and the Indians. The Indians, however, still had a profound respect for the Kentuckian "Long Knives," who had learned to fight them in their own fashion and to kill and scalp as eagerly as did the Indians.

Detroit owes a large debt to those valiant Kentucky riflemen and Indian-hunters. They had answered every call for help. They had left their bones on the battlefields of Generals Harmar and St. Clair; they had made the long marches under George Rogers Clarke, and they had helped Gen. Wayne drive way through to Detroit. Gen. Harrison had more of them in the army he was gathering in Ohio for the recovery of the lost territory.

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The bones of the men who perished at River Raisin were buried at Frenchtown. In 1818, after Lewis Cass had become Governor, their remains were removed to Detroit, where they were buried with military honors east of Fort Shelby. It was easy to identify the victims of the massacre, for the skull of each one had a round hole in the forehead where the point of an Indian tomahawk had been driven. In 1849 a movement was started by Edward Brooks of Detroit for the removal of these remains of Kentuckians to their native soil. A delegation,

from Kentucky came to receive them and to conduct their removal.

It was evident that Detroit was not to be recovered as easily as it had been captured by the British under Brock, so Gen. Harrison took his time in gathering and drilling his little army. The Americans and the British watched each other's movements by means of scouts. Harrison made his headquarters at Fort Meigs at the Rapids of the Maumee for the remainder of the winter. The ice proved too treacherous for further winter operations, so nothing was done until spring.

Meanwhile Gen. Procter strengthened his forces and kept about 2,000 Indian allies in camp at Malden. In the latter part of April he collected the available brigs and gunboats, filled them with men and war materials and sailed to the Maumee to attack Harrison. They landed near old Fort Miami. Harrison, seeing that he was outnumbered, sent Peter Navarre to Fort Defiance to secure reinforcements from Gen. Green Clay. The British began their attack on Fort Meigs May 1 with a heavy cannonade, to which Harrison responded with occasional shots as he desired to save his ammunition to repulse any attempt at assault. The British batteries boomed away from the opposite. side of the Maumee for four days while the reinforcements were awaited.

Tecumseh planned a cunning ruse in the hope of drawing the Americans out of their fort. Under cover of darkness a part of the British force was concealed in a ravine near the fort entrance while a detachment of Indians made a detour to the south and began rapid firing of their guns in the woods to give the impression that the reinforcements expected from Defiance were being attacked. On hearing this the Americans were expected to dash out of the fort to go to the rescue and men concealed in the ravine would then cut them off from the rear and capture the fort.

Gen. Harrison suspected a trick, for it was too soon for the reinforcements to have arrived, so he merely fired a few rounds of solid shot into the woods and held to the fort. Presently the reinforcements arrived. A British battery had been planted so

close to the fort that its fire was proving destructive, and Col. Dudley was sent out with 800 men on a sudden sortie to drive away the support of the battery and spike the guns. Gen. Harrison gave him strict orders not to venture farther than the guns, and, having done his appointed task, to return promptly to the fort, for the Indians swarmed in the woods and there was danger of an ambush.

Dudley's sortie immediately stampeded the crew of the battery and the enemy fled into the woods. Dudley's men forgot their orders, rushed in pursuit and in a few minutes were completely surrounded by Indians. Of the 800 men who went out only 170 lived to return to the fort and these were saved by Tecumseh, who rushed into the melee to beat his frantic followers off their helpless victims and send them back to the fort.

Procter's bombardment seemed to have little effect. Harrison's men made a number of sorties which discouraged too close an approach to the fort. While the siege went on a messenger brought the report of Com. Isaac Chauncey's success on Lake Ontario, the capture of Fort George at the mouth of Niagara River by the Americans and the abandonment of Fort Erie at the head of the Niagara River by the British. The siege was then abandoned and the besieging force returned to their ships and boats, carrying their prisoners with them. On the way to the ships a number of the prisoners were killed and scalped and the others were taken to Detroit to be sold for ransom money furnished by civilian residents. As in the case of the residue of prisoners saved at Malden after the River Raisin massacre, these prisoners were literally hawked about the streets of Detroit to be sold to the highest bidder or traded for rum.

For several days after each of these battles at Frenchtown and Fort Meigs the prisoners of war were led about the streets of Detroit by their Indian captors and offered for ransom money, which ranged from $10 to $80 per life saved. People of Detroit practically exhausted their available resources in this merciful work. Those who had no money would offer blankets, clothing, shawls and trinkets. This practice caused such bitter criticism of Gen. Procter that in July he offered the Indians $5 for each

prisoner brought in alive, but this was not such an attractive offer, since by torturing the prisoners on the streets of Detroit the Indians could secure much more.

These criticisms angered Procter and in revenge he ordered 30 of the leading citizens of Detroit to leave the country. Some of the deported ones were: H. J. B. Brevoort, William Macomb, Lewis Bond, David McLean, William Wilson, John Dicks, Archibald Lyon, Israel Taylor, Anderson Martin, William M. Scott, David Henderson, William Russell, Joseph Spencer, James Patterson, George R. Chittenden, W. Robertson, John Walker, Conrad Seek, Elijah Brush, Conrad Ten Eyck, Peter Desnoyers, Robert Smart, James Burnett, Richard H. Jones, Dr. William Brown, J. McDonnell, John Congsett, Duncan Reid, A. Langan, George Battzes and James Chittenden.

This deportation left the families of some of these men without support and the garrison was compelled to furnish about 1,200 rations a day to the Indian allies and the destitute white residents. Then a deadly epidemic broke out from which many died from lack of proper medical attendance. The Indians wandered about the town at will, forced their way into private houses and helped themselves to whatever they might fancy. One day an Indian took a bolt of cloth from Maj. Dequindre's store and started for the door. Dequindre tore it away from him and threw the Indian out. The Indian raised the war cry which brought several other Indians. Dequindre hurriedly locked his store and ran to headquarters to ask protection for his property. He was told that nothing could be done. The Indians were British allies and must not be offended.

Meeting Col. McKee, the Indian agent, Dequindre appealed to him and McKee told him he would do what he could. In the meantime a mob of Indians had broken through the door and windows of the Dequindre store and were helping themselves to the contents. McKee obtained three barrels of whisky from the cellars of Judge McDonnell and Robert Smart. The barrels were rolled out on the common and the heads stove in. In half an hour the Indians were too drunk to cause further trouble and their spite toward Dequindre was forgotten.

During the period of the war the Canadian or British residents placed a red broad-arrow mark on the doors of their houses and on their cattle, which insured protection from the Indians.

Gen. John E. Hunt of Toledo left among his papers a diary of the war period of which the following is a fragment: “On a beautiful Sunday morning in Detroit I heard the scalp whoop of a war party coming up the river. As they came nearer I saw they were carrying a woman's scalp on a pole. They had with them nine children of the woman who had been scalped, ranging from three years of age to two grown daughters. These prisoners were bareheaded and their clothes were torn to shreds by the brush through which they had travelled.

"I brought the entire party into my house and gave them a meal. Told the children not to be frightened for as soon as my brother would return he would buy them. Next day my brother, H. J. Hunt, paid $500 for the lot." It is hard for those who go about the streets of Detroit today to realize that such things were common occurrences here only 110 years ago.