The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1921-01-08

sanity, but to the mans wild and
reckless courage in plunging into
battle, where the odds against him
seemed hopeless. He had other
nicknames too, Dandy Wayne" was
one of them, because of his absurd
love for wearing fine clothes in the
wilderness and in battle, as the
author of Famous Americans"
records. The Indians called him
BLACK Snake" from the swift dead
Illness of his attack. -s
Wayne was farmer and the son
of farmer. He was born in East
town, Pa, on January /, 1745. When
the Revolution began he taught him
self military tactics and bullied or
coaxed his less warlike neighbors into
letting him drill them into militia
regiment. From that time until his
death he was almost always fighting.
Frequently wounded, always attacking,
he rose fast to the rank of brigadier
general. He was a scourge to the
British and the idol of his own men.
In the winter of 1777-1778, while
Washington's troops where starving at
Valley Forge, Wayne saved the
patriots from actual famine by reck-
lessly dashing again and again
through the British lines and "run-
ming off, cattle and sheep for the Val
ley Forge Army. At the Battle of
Monmouth it was Wayne's fearless
charge that turned defeat into VIC
tory. He repeated this same feat
later in Virginia, thereby saving La
fayette's army.
A light infantry corps was organ
lied and Wayne was appointed it's
leader. He set to work at once in
an effort to clean the Hudson river
region of the British The strongest
and most dangerous British fortress
on the Hudson was Stony Point. 1t
controlled the road leading to the New
England colonies and it was thought
to be invincible. Washington, in some
doubt, asked Wayne If tho latter
thought that he could take it. 81,
I'D take the internal regions them
selves if Your Excellency so COM
manded!" replied Wayne. 5#
Better try Stony Point first" dryly
suggested Washington.
Accordingly on July Is, 177g, Wayne
made midnight attack upon the fort
With fixed bayonets and unloaded
guns, the Americans in two columns
rushed" Stony Point, Wayne dressed
as if for a balD leading them. Mad
Anthony smashed his way through
every defense, drove back the gar
rison, and gained the center of the
fort. There the conflict was hand-to-
hand, and scene of fearful carnage
followed. Wayne received a danger
Gus wound on his head. Determined
to die fighting, he refused to be car,
ried to safety. Half supported, half
carried by soldier on either side of
him, the general remained at the head
of his men, charging, even into the
thick of the battle. AT length the
British surrendered. Wayne treated
the beaten foe with all gentleness, but
he leveled their Notifications to the
ground and carried all their arms and
ammunition to West Point
Next year he was sent with a pitt
fully small force to capture Fort Lee,
in New Jersey. He attacked with all
his wonted fury, but the. fort was too
strong for him. This Vas almost his
only, setback. He avenged it.aby raw.
aging the surrounding country and TAX.
ing from the British there all their
horses and cattle, leaving the district
too poor to feed the English masters
This act spoiled certain of the British
General Clinton's best plans against
the patriots, and led young Major John
Andre to describe the raid in poem
called THE Cow Chase The poems
| final verse ran:
And now I've closed my epic strain
| I tremble as I show it,
Lest the same warrior drover Wayne
should ever catch the poet!"
The testing stanza proved to be
prophetic. For when Andre was con
| demned to death for sharing Bene
| dict Arnold's treason it was squad OF
Wayne's own men who stood on guard
at his execution.
In 1871 nearly 1,4OO Pennsylvania
troops mutinied. Washington could
ill spare so large a number from his
weak, small armies. Wayne solved
the problem by going to the mutineers
and by tact and sheer force of will
making the malcontents return to
their military duty. A little later he
was prominent in the crushing ,ol
CORVALLIS at Yorktown. Then while
on the way south to join Gen. Greene
his men were surrounded one night by
a huge war party of Creek, Indians
(led by Chief Guistersigo and Brit
ish officer), who took the Americans
completed by surprise and for a mo
ment threatened to overwhelm and
massacre them. Wayne reused from
sleep, rallied his startled soldiers anG
led furious sword and bayonet at
tack against the Indians. In fierce
single combat he himself slew Chief
lGuistersigo, greatest of all Greek
warriors. The Indians fed in confu
sion, leaving many dead upon the field
The war over, Wayne moved tt
Georgia and went to Congress from
that state, but he could not adapt him
self to peace. In 1892 he was ap
pointed General-in-C Chief of the United
States army. Almost at once he
marched against some Indian tribes il
the Northwest whom British influence