these tribes as being wretchedly poor and destitute, and others as having good houses, excellent guns, and such a plenty of horses, that a traveller could at any time buy one for a few beads. These Indians knew so little of civilized habits, that one chief was very grateful for some dried squashes, and said that they made the best food he had ever tasted, except sugar, of which he had once eaten a single lump. He said that he should be very happy if he lived in a country that produced so many nice things. The white explorers learned, that, by trading with the Indians, they could obtain a great supply of valuable furs; and a New York merchant, named John Jacob Astor, soon established a trading-post, called Astoria, at the mouth of Columbia River. But this post was afterwards sold to one of the British fur-companies; and it was not till many years later, that any part of the Pacific slope was recognized as belonging permanently to the United States.

CHAPTER XXV.

MADISON AND MONROE, THE WAR OF 1812, AND THE ERA OF GOOD FEELING.

ΤΗ

HE next president was James Madison of Virginia. He had been a member of the convention that had framed the Constitution; and he served as president for two terms, or eight years,from 1809 to 1817. When he was inaugurated, he found the nation involved in disputes with the British Government, about the right of searching American vessels, and the restrictions laid on American commerce. These disputes remained

JAMES MADISON.

unsettled; and at

last, June 18, 1812, the Congress of the United States, by a large majority, declared war against England.

There was a great deal of opposition to the war, as it was thought by many to be quite unnecessary; and many even thought that the offences committed by England were not so great as those of France. This increased the hostility between the Democrats, who favored France, and the Federalists, who liked England better; and at one time some members of this last party held a convention at Hartford, Conn., in order to oppose the prolongation of the war.

But the war went on, though at first the American troops were quite unsuccessful. There was an attempt to conquer Canada; but General Hull had finally to surrender Detroit to the British troops; and General Van Rensselaer was also defeated. The Indians took an important part against the Americans in this war, under a chief named Tecumseh, who formed a plan to unite the various Indian tribes against the whites, as had been attempted by Pontiac half a century before. Even before the war with England, Tecumseh had led his Indians against the Americans, and had been defeated by General Harrison at Tippecanoe; and this made him strive more desperately to unite the Indian tribes with the English troops. He took an active part in many battles, but was killed at last.

But, while the United States army was rather unsuccessful, the navy obtained great honor in the War of 1812. The frigate "Constitution," under Captain Hull, took the British frigate "Guerriere ;" and there were other important American successes. On the other hand, the British frigate "Shannon" captured the United States frigate "Chesapeake," at the mouth of Boston harbor; and the brave Captain Lawrence. the

commander of the "Chesapeake," was killed, exclaim. ing as he died, "Don't give up the ship!" Afterwards, on Lake Erie, there was a contest (Sept. 10, 1813) between a British squadron of six vessels, and an American squadron of nine; these last being under command of Lieut. O. H. Perry. His flag-ship was named the "Lawrence," after the brave captain of the "Chesapeake ;" and his flag had inscribed upon it

LIEUTENANT PERRY.

the dying words of Lawrence. But this ship was almost destroyed in the fight; and Perry, getting into an open boat, transferred his flag to a second ship, and gained the victory. When the British ships surrendered, Perry wrote to his commanding officer, on the back of an old letter, "We have met the enemy, and

they are ours." This is said to have been the first instance in the history of the British navy of the surrender of an entire squadron. Later in the war, Capt. David Porter fought the "Essex" against two British vessels, for two hours and a half, and only surrendered when his frigate was burning under him.

The war lasted nearly three years; and in the last

year (1814), the British troops took and plundered many towns on the southern coast, and finally burned the Capitol and the president's house at Washington. They also attacked New Orleans, which was defended by Gen. Andrew Jackson, with a much smaller force than that brought against it. He built breastworks of cotton-bales, and fought from behind them, repulsing

the attacking army of twelve thousand, with the loss of but seven Americans killed. This happened Jan. 8, 1815, and was the last battle of the war; indeed, the treaty of Ghent had been signed a fortnight before the battle (Dec. 24, 1814); making peace between the two nations, though the news of this peace had not yet reached the armies at New Orleans. It is a remarka