The telescope. (Columbia, S.C.) 1815-1818, April 02, 1816, Image 1
?V
m
?^;~T
[Vol.1.] .
"III! Iiamri \\\ss9&masam=sssm
. Attt&a. 1810. * .
[V?. 10.]
BY TH0MA3 W. LOHR'AJK^
MMM^tlUtANK, ANN *HT AnbvK CU^
Cftftl
ilMOX KTNKilT. .
' Three Dollar* per annum, p?y*
, e....No paper to l?e discontinued, but *t
I of the Kditor, until nil iirrcaraflW aropald.
pO not excccdinjf fourteen li?w? ln*crtc<l
Tine for *evcnu?fivc cents wxl forty cent* |br
wjUcnt insertion i wul in the utne proportion
jtyMitunlirr of line*. ' ? /.r.,4 ...V.
i ? J
BIO?WAPH*
1 "'f ? ' ?*?* m r. X AT.il. crinoxir tr.
CAPTAIN THOMAS MACDONOUGH.
The writers of biography in legitimate mo*
narchies possess great advantages over those of
a simple republic, where a man must depend oil
his own merits rattier than those of his ances
tors, for .public admiration. lu writing, for in
stance, too life of a nohlo lord, who never in
his 1Mb did stiy thing worth recording, the true
legitimate biographer alily resort* to the noble
lord's ancestors, their ex|doits, intermarriages,
attd other important events in the fiunilv histo*
rv. By these means, aided by the legends of
tfie herald's oflice, ho compiles a very interest*
ingtnemoir, at least of the noble lord's ances
tors, to whose exploits ho is fully entitled by
the theory as well ob the practice of hereditary
sucressiaii. For if it should happen (as cer
tainly it may possibly happen) tlmt folly or
knavery should succeed to the distinctions ori
ginally bestowed,oii virtue ami genius, it can
only be justified by means of somo mysterious
extension of birthright., by which the great-great
grandson becomes a party in exploits that hop
pened long before ho was born. By this theory
the true legitimate biographer obtains an un
doubted right to decorate his tried hero with as
many of those achievements as he can conve
niently carry i and thus it happens in legiti
mate governments, that family honors are ac
cumulating by a sort of compound interest, not
withstanding the degeneracy of the means,
somewhat in tho same way that the riches of
somo countries nre said to increase with the a
? mount of their debts and expenditures. This
accumulation of family honors, which, like the
rust on an old coin, increases with voars, and
furnishes unequivocal proof of antiquity, makes
it worth a man's while to perform great uctlons,
since he thereby not only ennobles himsolf and
his wife, but all the rogues and blockheads of
his posterity forever and ever. Tho temptation
to perform great actions is thus inconceivably
heightened, and it is without doubt owing to this
accelerating motive, that tho achievements of
men in legitim*te anveroments are so much
inov prodigious in simple republics, where
all that a man can expect for his highest exer
tions in the cause of his country, is Iioiioi-h that
are exclusively paid to his own * merit, together
with the admiration of his cotempornries, and
tin: veneration of their poster ity. The highest
reward the Roman republic ever paid to her most
illustrious warriors, was a ride through the
streets of Rome ih a chariot drawn by four
white horses, together with a laurel crown, that
might lie worth about one penny. The nutural
result of all this was, that none of the Koman
heroes of whom we have read so much, ever per
formed an action that can bo put in competition
with the burning of thccopitol of Washington,
for which the renowned perpetrator was enno
bled, together with all his posterity.
Happily for us, however, the subject of our
present notice, although most respectably de
scended, does not require the assistance of any
document* from the herald's oflice, nor to in
trench himself under mngui limit in i a unibrtt.?~
"We will therefore proceed to a detail of the
prominent incident* of his life, which havo gain
ed him the notice of the world and the grati
tude of his countrymen.
Thomas Macdotiough, the father of captain
Thomas Macdonough, whs an eminent phvsician
who resided at a farm called the Trapp, *in tho
county of New -( 'astle, Delaware. In the vear
17715, he entered the army and was appointed
a major in u regiment raised in the state of Del
aware, of which Mr. John Haslet t was colonel.
Mnjor Macdonough, from wliat cause is not
known, retired early from the armv and return
ed to the Trapp. After the establishment of
our independence, he was appointed a judge,
and held that oflice till his death, which took
place in ITOfl. He left several children, of
whom three w ere sons. The eldest, Jamen, was
a mid?hinman under commodore Truxton when
he took the Insurgent, in which engagement ho
received a wound from a musket ball, that reii
dered the amputation of his leg
u .lames." says, the gentleman who furnished us
with these particulars, " was very bravo. Ilo
was nl.iced in the tops when he was wounded,
and he told me that when the men in tho tops
were lowering him down, ho could distinct) v
see the enemy aiming and living at him." The
amputation of his leg rendered it necessary that
he should retire from the service.
After the death of his father, young Macdo*
ntfttgli, the subject of this memoir, obtained a
midshipman's warrant, and commenced his ca
reer, with many other gallant vmmg men, who
only want opportunity to distinguish thcnuelves
like bun. Of the vessels in which ho served >
t'lotimo of his promotion to a lieutfcnoncy, and
other ordinary circumstances of tho life, of eve.
rv naval officer, we know nothing, ami in truth
t new tjufigs are of no extraordinary interest in
tnemsflVb*. Ho followed the fortunes of our
little fleet In the wjirs of Tripoli, Afid, like otlier
voung ofllcer* who, oft that occasion, first met
grim visaged war" faco to face, wu* frequent
I y engaged in those conflicts where the Clids,
tian and Mahometan prowess was sd severely
lied, though at this time, grave* reserved,
and hi a remarkable degree circumspect, we are
.'jld he was then remarkable for a daring impc*
tyhoslty, an Invincible chivdh-ous sort of perse
verance in every kind of<advcn<ure. In tWKl
fie was first lleutenantof the^ren, then lying at
Gibraltar harbor, under the late captain John
Smith. A. circumstance took place here, whieh
as it stronglt displays that firmness which is
the strong feature of his character, we will de
tail particularly., Is is derived from the most
undoubted autnqrfyy ) and when we consider
what a Vast difference Is observable in oar feeU
ings now and at that time, we canpot help great
ly admiring the conductor the younglleutenant
During the forenoon of a day, tn which captain
Smith was on shore* a merchant brig, under the
colors of the United States, came into port^and
anchored a-hoad, and close the Siren. Soon
after, a boat was sent from a British frigate then
lying in the harbor, on board this brig. After
remaining alongside a little while, the boat re
turned with one more man than she went with.
This ciroumstance attracted the notice of Mac
donough, who sent lieutenant Page on board the
brig to know tho particulars of the affair. Mr.
Pago returned with information that the mail
hail been proved by the boat from the British fri
gate, although ho Imd a protection as an Ame
rican seaman, Immediately on the receipt of
this information, Macdonou'gh ordered tho Si
rens* gig to bo manned and armed, and putting
himself into her, wont in pursuit of the boat,
determined to rescue his countryman. He o
vcrtook her alongside the British frigate, just
as the man at tho bow was raising his noat-hook
to reach the ship, and todk out the Aiuericun by
force, although the other boat had eight onrs and
his only fourt and carried him on board the Siren.
Whenitho report of this affair was made to the
captain of the British frigate, ho came on board
tho Siren in a great rage, and desired to know
how Macdonuugh dared to tajl? a man from one
of his iii4)esfy's bbato. "the , lieutenant, with
great politeness, asked him down in the cabin ;
this he refused, at the same .time repeating tho
same demand with abundance of thteats. Mac
donoughtoldhim with firmness, that he was not
accountable to hinubutto captain Smith, for his
conduct. Tho BnslUhmaii threw oat some
threats that lie would take the mnu by force, and
said he would haul the frigate alongside the Si
ren for tlifft purpose. To this Macdonough re
plied, " he Supposed bis shin could sink the Si
ren, but as long as she could swim he should
keep the mat^" The English captain said to
Macdonough, " you arc a very young, an<t a ve
ry indiscreet young man? -suppose I had been
in the boat, what would you havo Uono ?" " I
would taken the man or jtost my life." " What !
Sir, would jwu attempt to atop irte If I were to
n 1 1 iiiimiI I fimn from that brig F" " I
woulu, anoTO. convince yourself I would, you
have only tdmikft the attempt/* Un thin the
Englishman went on board his ship, and wa*
shortly afterwars seen bearing her in a direc
tion for the American merchant brig. Macdo
nough ordered Ids boat manned and armed, got
into nor himself* and was in readiness for pur
suit. Tho Englishman took a circuit round tho
Amorican brig, and returned again to the fri
gate. When contain Smith caine on board, he
Justified the conduct of Macdonough, and de
clared his intcntionto protect the seaman.
During the continuance of the TrinoHtan war,
our ships occasionally visited the city of Syra
cuse, once so famous but now mouldering away
ur.dcr that wretched system of government
which has blasted and withorcd one of the fair
est portions of this earth. Of Sicily, once the
resort of Gods? the cradle of fertility? 4ho seat
of arts and luxury? the country of Archimedes
and Theocritus ? the granary oV Koine, and the
mo *t famous island or the most famous sea of
tho world? who is ignorant ? It is associated
with the earliest recollections oi the scholar j?
its very name conjures up a thousand ideas of
beauty, grandeur and fertility ; but the admirer
of antiquity, in visiting the countries most fa
mous in days of yore, and the cities most cele
brated for their grandeur and exploits, is doom
ed to have his enthusiasm chocked or destroyed
by the miserable contrast of their present state
with tho descriptions of the ancient poets and
historians. The history of the world is but the
history of man ; and as in the one ca?o the
young succeed to the old, so in the other, new
"citiea, and new empires, soring into existence,
to take the lead upon the tuciitre of life, while
those that preceded them, ?ink into io> ^nili
cance, and are only preserved from oblivion by
the writers, whose famo has long survived every
vestige of the splendors they celebrated.
Tho climato of Sicily has been the theme of
praise iu every , and the hardy northern
mail, who is exposed to the iiiclemencicN of win
ter, three-fourth* of tho year, and whose toils
ars repaid by a scanty subsistence, might per
haps complain of the unequal distributions of
Providence, wliilo reading of the genial airs, the
flowery Inends, the ruddy skies and the deli
ciouH vnlps of Sicily, where the earth yields .111
hundred fold. Hut when he finds in flio histo
ry of all nations, that such a climate and. such
a soil is ever the concomitant, or rather the pa
rent of idleness, luxury, anil its inevitable pro
duct, slavery ? when he read* how nations thus
happily situated, sooner or later are ever the
prey of tyranny? he becomes reconciled to
frost* and snows, and wintry blasts, and barren
hills, and i# grateful for being horn boyoud the
reach of a luxurious indulgence, to he 'followed
by such depredations as have prostrated the
manly genius not only of Sicily, but of nil Italy.
ItichiM may enslave a country, but will never
make it frc.o f for it is only tho poor and the
hardy that ran sustain the labors and privations
by which t|jo struggle of freedom must be main
tained. M ith the exception of the city of Home*
the city of Mv recuse was the most celebrated in
all Itafy, anil its islands. In its most flourishing
state it extended twenty-two mile* iu circum
ference, and maintained an army of one hun- 1
died thousand lout, ten thotifaml horse. with a
navy of four hundred ships. It was Haiti of the
Inhabitant* of Syracuse, that they were tho best
of aitymen when virtuous? tho moot wicked
when depraved by vicious nursuita. Unhappi
ly they verify the truth of the latter position at
tmatfme. Our officers all agree thai no com*
iWi' iUy can be in a worse moral state than the
people of . this city. 'Hie nobility are impover
ished and corrupt ? monopolisers of almostev'e
ry fmnloyraent? one nobleman ha* the monopo
ly of baking bread for a city, and no ouo is per
mitted to bake but himself j -and auot^r one
has the rare privilege of supplying Messina, or
some other place with fish, and it is not many
years since this last city was obliged to live m>
on tainted fish for several days, becauso the
prince who had monopoly of tnat article, and
who, if we remember riglit, claimed a descent
from the Cyclops, who onco possessed {Sicily,
choie to enrich himself at the expenso of 'the
wretched populace. In short, cwry thing is
myftopolv in Sicily ) and the peasant who has a
surplus of grain to sell, cannot dispose of it
until a price is fixed by ?\ certain chamber at
Palermo. Certainly it is worth while to shed
little blood for the restoration of such a system
of government. Robberies and assinalioun are
tho nightly amusements of Syracusans, and our
officers in their evening rambles, were frequent
ly assailed by soldiers, or fellows armed with
linives or daggers. Their favorite mode of
fighting is to blow out the candles, and in that
situation their knives and daggers arc the most
dangerous of all weapons. On some occasion
which occurred ill Syracuse, Macdonougti was
atturked by three of these desperadoes j with
his back against a door, lie had tlic good fortune
to wound two, and the other took to his heels.
He was followed by the lieutenant, who pushed
him so hard that ho climbed up to the roof of
the barracks, whither Macdonough followed him
still, and finding no other means of escape, lie
jumped oft; with the loss of his life.
In the interval between the Triiiolitan war I
and that which commenced in 1812, no occasion
occurred to our naval officers for siguali-/.iug
themselves ; we shall pass silently over this pe
riod of lieutenant Macdonough*# life, because
itforiiishes no incident of sufficient importance
io be interesting to the reader.
8o^n after the declaration of war, in 181 S, a
small naval force was created on lake Chain
plain^fot* the three-fold object of affording pro
tection to our frontier in that quarter ; facilitat
ing military operations s and preventing, as far
aa possible, the enemy from receiving those sup
plies, whleh were continually furnished by the
corrupt and treasonable agency of some of our
own citizens. It became necessary, in propor
tion as the operations of our armies were di
rected to this quarter, to augment this force, as
well because it could materially co-opcrate in
offensive designs, as because it had become in
dispensable, perhaps, from the augmentation of
the naval force of the enemy, on lake Champlain.
This contest of building was carried on from
year to year, until 1814. when the relative forco
of tho two nations stood as follows t
AisntcAM. o uxs. aam ?h .
Hamtoga, 36 VConfiancc, 39
F#?gle, 30 Linnet, 16
T.comlcrocrn, 1 7 Chubb, 11
Preble, 7 Pinch, % 11
10 gallics, 16 13 grilles, 18
Total, Hfl T0t.1l, 95
Thus stood aft'airs, whcnearlvin the month
of September, it! that year* sir George Provost
began hia march at the head of fourteen thou
Hand men, with the intention of dlslodgim.; Gen.
Macomb from Ida works at Plattshtr. g, and
then penetrate into the heart of tho slate ol' N.
York* There ia reason to suppose that Hum plan
was connected with an attack on the city or N.
York, by the force on our maritime frontier, had
it succecded in the affair of Ualtimnre. Cer
tain it in that this apprehension had drawn tho
militia from the country above, and left it in a
state very much cx|*>sed to the incursions of the
enemy. Tho dostruetion of the American na
val force on lake Cham plain was supposed by
Sir Georgo Prevost to be essential to the suc
ccas of his plan of operations | and t'ant. Dow*
nie, who was at tho neid of the Drjtisli squad
ron, was directed to attack the American naval
force, which had been for somo timo under the
command of Macdonnugh, then only a lieuten
ant, at the same time that sir Georgo stormed
the intronchinents at I'lattsbug.
Aware of their intentions, and knowing of
their approach, Macdonongh decided to await
(Itc attack at anchor. At eight in the morning
of the I tth of September, 1814, tho look-out boat
announced the approach of the enemy' 's aqua*
dron. At tnne the action was general, and we
cannot do bettor than describe it in captain Mac
donniigh's own word* :
" At nine." sa ys tho captain, " the enemy an
chored in a line ahead, at about three hundred
yards distant from my line t his ship opposed to
the Saratoga | bin brig to the Kagle, captain |io
bert Henley ; his gallics, thirteen in number, to
the schoniier, sloop, and a division of our gal
lies? one of his sloops assisting their ship nod
blip; ; the othei assisting their (rallies. Our re*
maining gallics were with the Saratoga and Ka
gle. In this situation, the whole force on l>oth
Hides became engaged, the Saratoga su fieri no
much from tho heavy lire of tho Confiance. I
could perceive at the same, however, that our
lire was very destructive to her. The Ticondc
rnga, Hoiitciiauf-commaudant Casein, gallantly
sustained her full share of the action. At half
pist ten, the Kagle not being nhlo to bring her
guns to bear, cut her cable, and anchored in a
more eligible position, between ir.y ship ami the
Ticouderoga, whero she vary much annoyed
the enemy j but unfortunately leaving mo ex
posed to a galling fiie from the enemy's brig.***
Our guns ou the ttarbvard side being neatly all
dismounted, or unmanageable, a stern anchor
was lot go, the bower cable cut, and tha ship
winded with a fresh broadside on tho enemy'*
jship* -which hooi? after atirrcndcrcd. Our broad
side wan then sprung to boar on tho brig, which
struck alraut fifteen minutes afterwards. Tho
sloop which wna op|x/sed to tho Kagle, had
struck soma tiino before, and dtiftcd down tlm
line. * TJiesloOpthat wan with their gallics had
also struck. Three of their gullies are said tp
be sunk ) the other* pulled oft*. Our gallies
were about obeying with alacrity tho signal to
follow them, wlien all tho vosscl* wore reported
to me to bo in sinking state. 1 1 then became ne
cessary to annul the signal to tho gallics, and
order their mon to the pumps. 1 could only
look at the cneinv's gallics going off in ashai
tercd condition) fur thero was not a mast in ei
ther squadron that could stand to make vail on.
il'be lower rigging being nearly oil shot away,
bung down as though it hud just been placed o
vcr tho mast heads. The Saratoga had fifty
nine round shot in her hull ; the I'onfiance one
hundred and five. The enemy's shut passed
principally just over our heads, *as there were
not twenty whoie hau.iv.oc!.-. in the nettn?rs, at
the clone of the action, which lasted witho >t in
termi.' sion two hours and twenty minutes. The
absence and sickness of lieut.* Raymond Per
ry left me without the assistance of that ?'\cel
lent officer. Much ought Inirlv to he ttttri:> itcd
to him fur his great care and attention in tiisci
nliiiin:? the ship's crew, as her fust lieutenant.
I (is place was filled by a gallant young nfficer,
lieutenant Peter Gamble, w?to, I regret to inform
you. w as killed early in the action.*'
Captain Macdono'uch concludes his letter by
stating that the Saratoga was twice set on liro
during the engagement by hot shot from the c
nemy's ship ; and expressions of gratitude for
the able support he received from every officer
and man in the squadron.
The loss of the Americans in this hard-fought
battle was fifty -two killed and fifty eight wound*
ed : that of the Rritish eighty-four Killed and
one hundred and ten wounded. Among tho kil
led on the American side was lieutenant Peter
tiamble. a gallant young officer, one of three
K limit brothers who had devoted themselves to
e service of their country. The other two
brothers still survive, one a commandant in tho
navy, the other a cantain of marines, and both
ranking among the first officers of their grade in
either service, lie who fell on the memorable
1 1th of Kopteml>cr is inseparably connected with
an event which will never 1m? forgot in this nu
tion, and will, we trust, bear with it the rccol
lection uh well of the living as of the dead who
were instrumental in (raining one of the most im
portant victories of ti.e war. The American
squadron carried two thousand and twenty
three pounds weight of mctnl, and eight hun
dred and twenty men ; that vr the Itritish nine
teen hundred and fifty weight of metal, and one
thousand and fifty men.*
It wan in this action that tho far-famed ma
noeuvre of coming down head first upon the ene
my was first tried against the Americans, and
the result was, what we will vehture to predict
it always will be, when tried againata force an v
way equal in skill, numbers, ami ctfurage. 'l'lio
British vessels were cut to pieces before they
were {ft 4 situation to bring their guns to hear
against the Americans, and nothimr carrie? n
stronger conviction to our minds, of the want of
proper ntclll and self-possession in tlie officer* &
tnen of tk^nf l!cct^ unit have been taken or de
feated uy iliiit manoeuvre, than the fatal eft'ecU
which reunited from the attempt in this instnnc**.
Tho anxiety of the public had long drawn tho
attention of ail that were cajpable of reasoning
u|H?n tho probable effect of sir George Provost**
operation*), or who Colt an interest in tho fate of
this country,. It won justly feared that the ene
my, after succeeding against the fleet on Lake
t,'hamptain, and forcing the intrcnchincnta of
general Macomb at Plattsburg, would penetrate
into the heart of tho state of New*York, and per
haps establish a communication, by means or tho
Hudson. with tho Atlantic fleet and forces,
should these succeed against the city ol New
York. Hut the news of this victory, and the
consentient precipituto retreat of hi- George,
turned their gloomy anticipations into trium
phant rejoicings. Kvcry soul slept in peace
that night, and many a prnyer, wo warrant, w .u
breathed for Macdonough, and his gallant asso
ciates, who had thus saved the hopes of the
peaceable fnrtner, and freed his innocent fold*
from probable plunder and devastation. Inde
pendently of the real magnitude of the ertWu
produced by this victory, it derived a pccHar
and picturcsnue character from the circumstan
ess under which it was gained. It was fought
in sight of two hostile armies, whose hopes of
ultimate Success depended upon its i?sUc ; and
in the view of thousands of people, who uatchcri
in breathless anxiety the result of n struggle that
was to decide whether thoy wero to be driven
from their homes in beggary, or remain in tho
peaceable eidoyir.cut of their firesides. Tho
shores of the lake adjacent, the projecting points
of land, and tho neighbouring hills were anima
ted witlt spectators, and the victory was greeted
by the nhoutings of multitudes. It is full bro
ther to that of the gallant ami amiable l'erry ;
and equally young, gallant, and fortunate, tho
names of Perry and Macdonough will, wo trust,
be associated together to the latest times, ns bro
thers in deserving, and brothers in success.
Amid the usual demonstrations on such occa
sions, the state of New-York, which had been
nlost peculiarly benefited by Mardouough's vic
tory, gave m<?re solid testimonials of her grati
tude. lie received a grant of land from the le
gislature of ono thousand acre*, we think, which
is* in itself, an independency, and must he don
? \Ve .no iwU-Vfii fit this latter iiPv**iiiSTlo7T ioTSiV
Nib*.' It^tcr, which eotiii n* pa-hip-/ mor* vMusbla
in^rnmt on ili?n any work now publish*! in this country