Virginia Argus. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1796-1816, 1813-08-16

L
force in the pay of Grca, Britain, the a
mount of ransom may be regarded as part
OF their stipulated compensation for militia
ry service and as ransoms would be in
| creased and their value enhanced BY the
| terror inspired by the most shocking bar
barities, il may be fairly concluded, whate
YER may be the intention of the British go
vernment, that the practice of redeemiDg
captives by pecuniary means will be occa
sionaly quiokened by the butchery of our
fellow Citizens. and by indignities offered
70 their remains; as long as the Indians are
employed by the enemy. The justice of
this conclusion is confirmed by the tcstimo-
ny ct those witnesses VINO were retained
after ransom as prisoners OF war.
| The testimony collected under the Sc
wealth head shews, that the private proper
~ OF unarlsed Citizens has been pilaged by
the officers and crews Of the British vessels
\ OF war on our coast, their houses burnt, and
places OF public worship mutiiated and de-
hled. 1t appears that the officers, animat-
| cd by the presence of Admiral Cockburn,
particularly distinguished themselves in
these exploits. This evidence proves, that
| they were governed by the combined mo-
tives of avarice and revenge not satisfied
with bearing OIL, for their own convenience.
the valuable article found, the others
which furnished no allurements to their Gu
pidity, were wantonly defaced and destroy
ed. 1t has been a,ledged, in palliation of
| these acts or wantOn cruelty, that flag
| sent on shore by the admiral was fired upon
by the American militia. The evidence
proves this not To have been the fact. This
pretence has been rcsorted TO only 20 .ex-
cuse Conduct which no circumstance can
justify.
The committee forbear to make any OBJ
| servations upon the Testimony collected TN
DER the eighth head, from perfect conviC
zion that no person OF this or any other ma
| ton Can read the simple narrative Of the dIf
| .erent witnesses of the grossest violations OF
hohor' justice and humanity, without the
| strongest emotions of indignation AID hor-
| ror. That these outrages were perpetra-
| ted oy Indians. is neither palliation nor ex.
cuse. Every civilized nation is answerable
Tor the conduct of the allies under their
command. and while they partake of the
advantages Of their ccesses, they are
| qualify partakers of the odium of their
crimes. The British forces concerned in
1 he affair OF the 22d, at the River Raisin.
ARE more deeply implicated in the infamy
III these transactions than by this mode Of
Feasoning, however correct. The mass,
lyere nt the Esd January, after the caDitula
tlon,' was perpetrated without any exertiun
| on their part 10 prevent it indeed, it is APP
parent from all the circumstances that if
the British officers did not conneive at their
destruction, they were crimiHally Indifferent
about the ta;e of the wounded prisoners.
Out what marks more strongly the depra-
dation OF the character oft British soldiers.
| IS me refusal OF the last Offices of humanity
to the bodies of the dead The bodies of our
countrymen were exposed TO every indisnity
and became food for brutes in the SIGHT of
men who affect sacred regard to the die
tates OF honor and religion. Low indeed is
the Character OF that army which is reduced
TO the confession, that their savage auxilia-
ries VIII not permit them to perform the
rites Of sculpture to the slain. The com
mIttee have hot been able to discover even
the expreSSi n OF that detestation which such
Conduct must inspire from the military or
civil authority on the Canadian frontier. un,
less such detestation is to be presumed from
the choice OF an Indian trophy as an orna
ment orthe Legislative Hail es supper Can
ada.
The committee have cnsidered it their
duty to submit the evidence collected under
the ninth bead of the atrocities comu itted
AT Hamp ton. although these enormites have
been committed since their appointment.
heSe barbarities may be nationally con.
sidered as the Consequence of the EXAMPLE
set by the officers of the naval force on orr
coast Human turpitude is always progress
sive, and soldiers are prepared for the per
pctration of the most dreadful crimes by the
commission of minor offences with impun,ty.
hat troops who had been instigated by the
example of their officers, to plumber the
property and burn the houses of snarmed
citizens, should proceed to rape aud muir
Der, need not excite surprize, however il
may inspire horror. For every detestabIe
violation OF humanity an excuse is fabricated
or found. The wounded prisoners on the
northern frontier were maasacred by Indians:
the SICK murdered and the women violated
at Hampton by the foreign troops in the pay
OF Great Britain These pretex.s, adm ittins
them TO be true, are as disgraceful as the
conduct which made a resort TO them ne.
cessary. Honor and magnanimity not only
forbid the soldier TO perpetrate crimes, but
require every exertion on his part to pre-
vent them. If, in defiance of discipline, acts
OF violence are committed upon any mdivid-
val entitled TO protection, the exemplary
punishment of the offender can alone vindi-
cate the reputation OF the nation by whom he
Is employed. Whether such exertions were
made by the British soldiers, or the charac-
ter OF the British nation thus indicated, the
evidence will shew.
The shrieks of the inOcent victims Of in
ternal lust at Hampton were heard by the
American prisoners, but we're too weak To-
reach the ears or disturb the repose of the
British officers, whose duty, as men, REQUIRED
them To protect every female whom the
fortune of war had thrown into ,h,.;,. ,,,,..,