The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1931-12-25

over the British at the Battle of New
Orleans. Few, if any, victories in history were
more complete more unexpected by the defeated
or contrary to military experience.
In the first place, the victors outnum-
bered nearly two to one by the vanquished. But
what more important was the fact that in
contrast to Jackson's nondescrpt army of a
few regulars and a majority of undiscipined
militia and volunteers, the British army was
composed of trained and toughened troops, the
divisions which had scattered the Americans at
Bladensburg with a volley and a shout, killed
Hghlanders famous regiments which had earned
the praise of wellington, the Iron Duke in the
Spanish Peninsula, and brawny negro detach-
ments recruited in the West Indies. 1t was such
an army as would have been considered fit to
withstand the finest troops in Europe. In COM
mand was one of England's most brilliant SOL
diers Gen. Sir Edward Pakenham. of whom
Wellington had said My Partially for him does
not lead me astray when tell you that he is
one of the best we have He the idol Of
his officers who agreed that they had never
served under a man whose good opinion they
were so DESTROYS of having, and to fall in his
estimation would have been worse than DEATH"
So, by all the accepted rules of warfare as it
was waged in those t. hes, it was the British
who should have won at New Orleans instead
of the Americans The only trouble with that
theory is that the Americans were led by "a
great general with the rare attribute of reading
correctly the mind of an opponent and divining
his course of action. endowed with an unyield-
ing temper and an iron hand. relentless pur-
pose, and the faculty Of inspiring troops to
follow obey, and trust him in the last extremity.
He was one of them, typifying their passions
and prejudces, their faults and their virtues,
sharing their hardships as If he were common
private, never grudging them the credit in sue
cess" (Note: The foregoing quotations are from
Ralph D. Paine's "The Fight for a Free Sea-
in the Yale University Press CHRONICLES Of
America') So when "Old Hickory" Jackson told
his Kentucky and Tennessee rifemen, his Louisi-
ana volunteers. his Yankee sailors, his "Bara-
taria pirates" led by Jean Lafitte and all the
other heterogeneous elements in his army, that
they could click their weight in wildcats" it
never occurred to them but that they could also
lick their weight in British regulars as well.
So that did 1t
AS for a description of the battle itself, what
could be better than given by the victorious
general on that famous field? So here is the
story of the Battle of New Orleans Jackson
himself reported it to James Monroe then secre-
tary of war:
1.-The battle commenced at very little before
a. m. January s. 1915, and far the in
fantry concerned it was over by a. m. My
force very much mixed. had portions of
the Seventh and Forty-fourth regular infantry
regiments Kentucky and Tennessee rifemen,
creoles United States marines and sailors, Bara-
tartan men-one of them, Capt Dominique You,
commanded part of my artillery land famous
gunner he was) and two battalions of free
negroes. l had in the action about 5000 men.
The British strength was almost the same as
mine. but vastly superior in drill and discipline.
OF their force my rifemen killed and wounded
2117 in less than an hour, including two gen.
eral officers Cloth died on the field, each
f,,1l
line and staff officers. lost six killed and seven
wounded
"As to tactics, there were very little in
either side We had some works of earth fronting
the river, but the Kentucky and Tennessee rife
men, who sustained the main attack, had pro-
tected themselves by a work about two and a
half feet high. made of logs placed two feet
apart, and the space between filed in with EARTH
This work began at the Mississippi river. and
ended in the swamp, being at right angle with
the river
Thinking this the weakest portion of our
line. and seeing ununformed men behind the
trfng defenses General Pakenham thought it
the best thing to begin his attack by carrying
this part of my line with the bayonet. On the
third of January had ordered that each rifle
mans powder horn be filed and enough lead
for 100 bullets be issued besides good material
for bullet patching. Coffee reported to me on
the 18th that this order had been obeyed, and
every man had cleaned up his rifle and put
flint into the hammer; so ready
as could be for the attack.
There was very heavy fog on the river that
morning, and the British had formed and were
moving before knew it. The disposition of the
rifiemen very simple. They were told off
in numbers and two. Number one was TO
fire first. then step back and let number two
fire while he reloaded. About 600 yards from
the riflemen there great drainage canal
running back from the Mississippi river to the
swamp in the of the titled land on which
we were operating. Along this canal the British