Methinks I hear the muffled drum, And see the column move;

—Lo here they come—how sad their looks: Farewell to life and love!

See six black coffins rang’d along— Six graves before them made;

Webb, Lindsey, Harris, Lewis, Hunt, And Morrow kneeled and prayed.

They kneel’d and pray’d, and tho’t of HoME, And all its dear delights,

The deadly tubes are levell’d now— The scene my soul affrights!

Sure he will spare! Sure Jackson yet Will all reprive but one—

O hark! those shrieks! that cry of death! The deadly deed is done!

All six militia men were shot; And O! it seems to me

A dreadful deed—a bloody act Of needless cruelty.

II. A short time before the execution of the militia-men, seven regular soldiers were shot near Nashville, by a band of regulars scarcely suffi- cient to guard the prisoners.—They were confined in a house, and taken out and executed one at a time, there being scarcely enough men for the purpose of executing and guarding at the sare moment. An eighth sol- dier was to have been executed at the same time. He was a young man, who had deserted one month before his time had expired. General Jack- son doomed him to die with the others. He was saved by a writ of habeas corpus from Judge M’Nairy, who fell under Jackson’s displeasure for snatching this one victim from his blood-stained hands. If Jackson’s army had been at hand, no doubt M’Nairy would have shared the fate of Judge Hall and Judge Fromentin. Capital punishments in an army, are designed for example as well as for penalty ; but in this case it was a trans- action of horror to peaceful citizens: no army was there to witness the bloody tragedy. He has ever been a man of “ blood and carnage ”.

III. Poor Joun Woops; he was a generous hearted, noble fellow as ever lived, who had volunteered in the service of his country. He was on guard one day at Fort Strother—the officer of the guard had permitted him to go to his tent, and snatch a hasty breakfast ; whilst disposing of his scanty meal, seated on the ground beside his skillet, an upstart little officer, who was not Woods’ equal at home, ordered him to pick up and carry off some bones that lay scattered about the place—Woods refused, and the little officer attempted to compel him. At this instant, Gen. Jackson, hav- ing heard the dispute, came out of his tent, and without knowing any thing of the merits of the case, repeatedly vociferated—“ Shoot the damn’d rascal!—Shoot the damn’d rascal”. For this offence, the unfor- tunate, the gallant Woods, was tried, condemned and shot. Before his trial, Gen. Jackson used this language to the court-martial. “ By the im- mortal God! if you find him guilty I will not pardon him!” And he kept his promise; though he did offer a pardon provided he would enlist in the regular service—Thus perished as noble a fellow as ever lived, for as trifling an offence as ever took the life of man I!

IV. On the 27th day of March, 1814, General Jackson had found at an Indian village, at the bend of the Tallapousie, about 1000 Indians, with their squaws and children, “ running about among their huts ”, ‘The fol- lowing is an account of the sanguinary massacre which took place ;—it is Gen. Jackson’s own, and therefore must be received as sufficient evidence against himself. He says:—‘‘ DETERMINING TO EXTERMINATE them, I detached Gen. Coffee with the mounted men, and nearly the whole of the Indian force, early on the morning of yesterday, to cross the river about

two miles below the encampment, and to surround the bend in such a manner as that none of them should escape by attempting to cross the river.” The result he then details:—“ Five hundred and fifty seven were left dead on the Peninsula, and a great number of them were killed by the horsemen in attempting to cross the river;* it is believed that no more than ten escaped.* We * continued * to DESTROY many of them who had concealed themselves under the banks of the river, until we were pre- vented by the night. THIS MORNING WE KILLED 16 WHICH HAD BEEN

We ask you to pause and reflect that the above tragic narration of cold- blooded and merciless cruelty, is taken from an official communication made by General Andrew Jackson.

The General, after sleeping (with what composure, we cannot say) thro’ the night ensuing the tragedy we speak of, awoke in the morning surrounded by the corpses of “ five hundred and seventy” fellow crea- tures, to cause, by way of worthy afterpiece, sixteex: others to be dragged from their concealments, and put to death in cold blood. We cannot boast of more than common sensibility, but we must think that to witness such an act, would make ours a little cold also. What are the general’s words ?—these: “ this morning we killed sixteen which had been con- cealed ”—and the man who acts and speaks thus; who has half as much blood upon his conscience, as he has upon his hands,—he, forsooth, is to be called the peer and like of Washington, the happy warrior,—

ins h e Whom every man at arms could wish to be.”’

But it is time to have done with the unpleasant subject. We will ob- serve in addition to the details already given, that the village was burnt, and several women and children killed. In conclusion, we ask our fellow citizens, whether Genl Jackson though he has contributed largely to the military reputation of our country, has not done enough to disqualify him,

in the eyes of the people as virtuous as they are free, for the office he seeks at their hands.

V. A difference which had been for some months brewing between Gen. Jackson and myself, produced on Saturday, the 4th inst. in the town of Nashville, the most outrageous affray ever witnessed in a civilized country. In communicating the affair to my friends and fellow-citizens, I limit myself to the statement of a few leading facts, the truth of which I am ready to establish by judicial proofs.

1. That myself and my brother, Jesse Benton, arriving in Nashville on the morning of the affray, and knowing of General Jackson’s threats, went and took lodgings in a different house from the one in which he staid, on purpose to avoid him.

2. That the General and some of his friends came [to] the house where we had put up, and commenced the attack by levelling a pistol at me, when

I had no weapon drawn, and advancing upon me at a quick pace, without giving me time to draw one.

3. That seeing this, my brother fired upon General Jackson, when he had got within eight or ten feet of me.

4. That four other pistols were fired in quick succession; one by Gen- eral Jackson at me; two by me at the General; and one by Col. Coffee at me. In the course of this firing, General Jackson was brought to the ground; but received no hurt.

5. That daggers were then drawn. Col. Coffee and Mr. Alexander Donelson made at me, and gave me five slight wounds. Captain Ham- mond and Mr. Stokeley Hays engaged my brother, who being still weak from the effect of a severe wound he had lately received in a duel, was not able to resist two men. They got him down; and while Capt. Hammond beat him on the head to make him lie still, Mr. Hays attempted to stab him, and wounded him in both arms, as he lay on his back parrying the thrusts with his naked hands. From this situation a generous hearted citizen of Nashville, Mr Summer, relieved him. Before he came to the ground, my brother clapped a pistol to the breast of Mr. Hays, to blow him through, but it missed fire.

6. My own and my brother’s pistols carried two balls each; for it was our intention, if driven to arms, to have no child’s play. The pistols fired at me were so near that the blaze of the muzzle of one of them burnt the sleeve of my coat, and the other aimed at my head at a little more than arms length from it.

7. Capt. Carroll was to have taken part in the affray, but was absent by the permission of General Jackson, as he has proved by the General’s certificate, a certificate which reflects I know not whether less honor upon the General or upon the Captain.

8. That this attack was made upon me in the house where the Judge of the District, Mr Searcy, had his lodgings! Nor has the civil authority yet taken cognizance of this horrible outrage.

These facts are sufficient to fix the public opinion. For my own part, I think it scandalous that such things should take place at any time; but particularly so at the present moment, when the public service requires the aid of all its citizens—As for the name of courage, God forbid that I should ever attempt to gain it by becoming a bully.—Those who know me, know full well that I would give a thousand times more for the repu- tation of Croghan in defending his post, than I would for the reputation of all the duellists and gladiators that ever appeared upon the face of the earth.

Tuomas Hart Benton, Lieut. Col. 39th Infantry. And now a member of the Senate of the United States.

VI. Do not be startled, gentle reader at the picture before you. It is all true and every body ought to know it. Gen. Jackson having made an assault upon Samuel Jackson, in the streets of Nashville, and the latter not being disposed to stand still and be beaten, stooped down for a stone to defend himself. While in the act of doing so, Gen. Jackson drew the sword from his cane and run it through Samuel Jackson’s body, the sword entering his back and coming out of his breast.—For this offence an in- dictment was found against Gen. Jackson by a grand jury, upon which he

was subsequently arraigned and tried. But finding means to persuade the petit jury that he committed the act in self- defence, he was acquitted. Gentle reader, it is for you to say, whether this man, who carries a sword cane, and is willing to run it through the body of any one who may presume to stand in his way, is a fit person to be our President.

VII. Gen. Jackson, detailing his progress among the Indians, in the course of which, men, WOMEN and CHILDREN, were indiscriminately “ ex- terminated ”’, their towns burnt and their country laid waste, with the utmost complacency and sang froid, says, in his letter dated, “ Camp before St. Marks, April 9, 1818 ”’—“‘ Capt. M’Ever having hoisted En- glish colours on board of his boats, Francis the Prophet, Hocomochemut- cho and two others, were decoyed on board. These have been hung to- day!’’ Reader, mark the perfect indifference with which Gen. Jackson shoots, hangs or stabs his fellow beings, with or without trial, and the more than callous, aye, even exulting composure, with which he details his horrid and bloody deeds! If the Indians, according to the customs of their nation, put to death a prisoner, all the feelings of our nature rise into indignation against them. With what feelings then should we con- template the decoying and the cold-blooded murder of prisoners by a civilized man in the face of the laws and customs of his country!

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