his men were killed at the first discharge. The soldiers continued to fight bravely, sheltering themselves as well as possible behind trees; and, as the Indians rose up, poured in their fire so briskly as to drive the enemy from the field. Every instant was now occupied in forming a slight protection by cutting and piling up the trunks of pines. The Indians, however, soon returned in great force, and, surrounding the little intrenchment, destroyed nearly every man of the company. After they had taken possession of the arms which lay scattered around, the Indians retired, but a body of mounted negroes are said to have come up and finished the murderous work by knocking out the brains of the wounded. Only four men escaped, being passed over by the negroes and Indians, as they lay wounded and motionless among the dead bodies. One of these was killed on the following day, while endeavoring to make his way back to the fort: the other three, cautiously threading their path through the wilderness, arrived safe at Tampa Bay. On the same day with the destruction of Dade's command, Osceola revenged himself upon his hated foe, General Wiley Thompson, by whom he had been imprisoned, as before mentioned. A company of nine, among them General Thompson, were dining at the house of a Mr. Rogers, within fifty rods of Fort King, when the house was beset by Indians, and a volley poured in upon the company.. Thompson and four others were killed; the rest escaped to the fort. In the course of the month, various plantations were destroyed in different parts of the country bordering on the Indian reserve, and some skirmishing took place. On the last day of December, General Clinch, who had been stationed at Fort Drane, thirty miles north-west of Fort King, being on his march towards Osceola's head-quarters with a considerable force of Florida volunteers and about two hun dred regular troops, encountered the enemy upon the left bank of the Ouithlacoochee. The Indians, numbering, as was supposed, about six hundred, headed by Osceola, fell upon the first division of the American army that had effected the passage of the river. The stream, contrary to expectation, was in no place fordable, and the only means of crossing was by a single canoe; the horses passed the river by swimming. The Indian commander evinced great bravery and consummate marksmanship, and his men, firing from the cover of a thick growth of underwood, and from behind trees, proved difficult opponents to dislodge. The troops, with one or two slight exceptions, stood firm, and after repeated charges, drove the Indians from the field. In this engagement more than fifty Americans were wounded, and several killed; the loss of the enemy was reported to have been over one hundred. Additional troops from Louisiana, and forces connected with the marine service, were collected at Tampa Bay; and a large detachment, under General Gaines, marched to Fort King, where they arrived on the 22d of February. Provisions being scarce, and the state of the roads being such that supplies could not be easily procured, Gaines and his force commenced their return to Tampa, by the route formerly taken by Clinch, across the Ouithlacoochee. On the bank of the river, no great distance from the scene of the last battle, the army was, in a manner, surrounded and besieged for more than a week, by Indians, apparently to the number of from one to two thousand. A galling fire was kept up at every exposed point. Word was sent to Fort Drane, where General Clinch was stationed, for relief, as the provisions of the army were nearly expended. On the 6th of March, a conference was held between the American officers and three of the principal Indian chiefs-Osceola, Jumper, and Alligator. The camp had been hailed during the previous night, and a wish for a parley expressed on the part of the savages. The chiefs professed a desire for peace; said they were weary of war, and that, if they could be allowed to retire quietly beyond the Ouithlacoochee, and could remain there unmolested, they would create no further disturbance. They were informed that the general had no authority to conclude any agreement with them, and that their only course was to comply with the requisitions of the government, as forces, which it would be impossible for them to resist, were on their way to enforce submission. The Indian chiefs wished for an opportunity to take counsel with their great King Micanopy, before returning an answer; but General Clinch appearing, with the desired relief, and engaging with a detachment of the Indians, the meeting was broken up. They agreed, however, before retiring, to draw off their warriors to the south bank of the river, and to hold themselves ready to attend further council when notified. Nothing further was effected, and the combined American forces returned to Fort Drane. CHAPTER V. CONDITION OF EAST FLORIDA. — GENERAL SCOTT'S CAMPAIGN.-GARRISON BESIEGED ON THE OUITHLACOOCHEE. — OCCURRENCES DURING THE SUMMER OF 1836.—ARRIVAL OF CREEK ALLIES. - COLONEL LANE'S EXPEDITION FROM TAMPA.- BATTLES OF THE WAHOO SWAMP.-GENERAL JESSUP APPOINTED TO THE COMMAND IN FLORIDA. 66 * And there are tales of sad reality By this time grievous injury had been done by the Indians to the settlements in East Florida. Philip was the principal leader in the devastations that took place in that region. New Smyrna, at Mosquito Inlet, was destroyed, and the plantations upon Halifax river, to the northward of the town, were ravaged and the settlers driven off. The white inhabitants of the interior were every where obliged either to abandon their homes, or to erect defences and to establish a regular watch. General Scott having been appointed to the command of the army in Florida during the spring of this year (1836), formed a plan to penetrate the heart of the country, with a large force, from three different quarters simultaneously, and thus surround the Indians and cut off their retreat. Generals Clinch and Eustice, and Colonel Lindsey were appointed to lead the three divisions. General Clinch's party was attended by General Scott in person. The army was put in motion in the latter part of the month of March. The service was accomplished, but with little good effect. The Indians, possessing perfect knowledge of the country, instead of opposing the advancing columns in force, hung about the flanks and rear of the army, and kept up a vexatious skirmishing. No important engagement took place, and the three divisions, after lying for a few days at Tampa, were again put in motion. Separate detachments were ordered to proceed, one to Fort Drane, one to attack the enemy at Pease Creek, to the southward, one to ravage the country in the vicinity of the Ouithlacoochee, and another to march to Volusia. Little benefit appears to have resulted from the campaign: a careful attention to the plans of Indian warfare laid down, at an earlier age, by Captain Benjamin Church, of New England, or by the redoubtable pioneer of Virginia, Captain John Smith, might have produced effects far more decided. A small detachment of troops had been left, about the middle of March, to guard a quantity of provision, stored in a rude building fifteen miles up the Ouithlacoochee. Not having been heard from for many weeks after, they were supposed to have been cut off by the Indians, and no attempt was made to relieve them until towards the latter part of May, when three of the garrison managed to escape the vigilance of their besiegers, and to convey intelligence of their condition to Tallahassee. The small party had been defending their post gallantly for more than two months against hosts of the enemy; their blockhouse had been partially destroyed over their heads, so that they were exposed to the inclemencies of the weather, and their provision consisted entirely of corn. A steamer was sent to the river's mouth, and the company was brought down to it in a barge. As the season advanced, the enervating influence of the climate produced its natural effect upon the troops. The fevers of the country attacked those who were not acclimated, and the rest were but poorly conditioned for an arduous campaign. Active operations for the most part ceased; the volunteers were discharged, and the regular |