Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1935-08-25

VAC 4CuoC kOcoAbAO OCldJs 81 tA1dO JI4C
| army might retire without loss of
time, the following buildings were
set fire to and consumed-the Capt.
tol, including the Senate House and
House of Representation, the Arsenal
the Dockyard, Treasury, War office,
Presidents Palace, Rope-walk, and
the great bridge across the Potow-
mack; in the dock-yard a frigate
nearly ready to be launched, and a
sloop of war, were consumed. The
two bridges leading to Washington
over the Eastern branch had been
destroyed by the enemy, who appre-
hended an attack from that quarter.
The object of the expedition being
accomplished. I determined, before
any greater force of the enemy could
be assembled, to withdraw the troops,
and accordingly commenced retiring
on the night of the 25th. On the
evening of the goth we reached
Benedict, and re-embarked the fol-
lowing day"
Gen. Ross had a very pleasant
visit in Washington with one ex-
ception-when he was fired upon
when passing some houses near the
Capitol, accompanied only by some
officers. Here he and his party re-
ceived a heavy fire of musketing
from the Capitol and two other
houses, according to the report of
Rear Admiral Cockburn, who says:
These were therefore almost i'm
mediately stormed by our people,
taken possession Of, and set on fire,
after which the town submitted with
out further resistance" Upon this
occasion Gen. Ross horse was shot
from beneath him.
However, that night, according to
a British statement: when the
conquerors entered Mr.. Madison's
palace, they found the table laid
for a. grand supper. The champagne
was in coolers-a fine dessert set out
on the sideboards so the officers
ordered in the supper, and Gen. Ross
drank his majesty's health at
the head Of the table with the
Presidents wine"
If this was humiliating then. how
much more so would it be today?
And yet there are those who would
abolish our army and our navy and
put us in the position China finds
itself today. Thomas Jefferson was
responsible for making it possible for
the great Bladensburg debacle Of
August "a. 1914, to occur. followed
by its embarrassing situation.
CONGRESS was not then in SEES.
sion, the second session of the
Thirteenth Congress having adjourn
ed on April 10, four months before.
But the executive branch of the Gov
eminent was here-or at least had
been here until the British came with
in sight of the, Capital, when it be-
came conspicuous by its absence and
only saw at a safe distance the light
from the burning public buildings,
the same light by which some Of the
English officers quartered at Mrs.
Suffers nearby. ate their supper. In
deed, any number OF ofhcials close to
President Madison were anxious to
accompany him to place Of security.
For the part played by Thomas
Jefferson in the American Revolu-
ton, we owe him much; but like
all human beings, he was not without
his serious faults, and the greatest
of these was the course he pursued
involving the theory that America
could govern itself without an army
and resist foreign enemies without
war. AS a financier, he was q total
failure. Though it is marvellous, in
at least one instance, how he profited
by his own folly. as he did shortly
after the destruction Of the Library
of Congress In 1914. The incident
is related thus:
1.-THE leading officers entered the
House of Representatives, where Ad-
miral Cockburn Of the Royal Navy
lwho was co-operaeng with Gen.