an assassin rather than a soldier. And it is with evident gratification that General Harrison added to his report:

"It will not be among the least of General Proctor's mortifications to know that he has been baffled by a youth who has just passed his twenty-first year. He is, however, a hero worthy of his gallant uncle, General G. R. Clark, and I bless my good fortune in having first introduced this promising shoot of a distinguished family to the notice of the Government."

The defense of Fort Stephenson was hailed as a great victory by the American people, who had had so few events to rejoice over in the conduct of the war. It was a fit prelude to Perry's victory on Lake Erie and Harrison's at the Thames, which followed soon after. The youth of the Commander, his refusal to retreat, the disparity in the number of men engaged on the two sides, the freedom from loss all combined to give Croghan peculiar fame. All the papers were full of his praise. His name was on all men's tongues, as was Dewey's after Manila. brevet rank of Lieutenant Colonel was conferred upon him. The military committee of Congress recommended a bill providing him a jeweled sword, but the matter fell through before the bill was enacted. The ladies of Chillicothe, however, presented him with a sword, and he received a large number of silken flags from citizens who rejoiced in his patriotism.

The

Croghan was in active service during the rest of the war, but he did nothing of special significance. In the summer of 1814 he had command of an expedition that made a brave attempt to recapture Michillimackinac, as the island was then called, but the attempt was a failure. He was also engaged in breaking up British posts on Lake Huron. In all his operations he was known for his care of his men. He never allowed his men to camp without first providing a fortification. He also showed remarkable shrewdness in the selection of the camp sites, and never was his command surprised.

Croghan remained in the army after the close of the war, until March 1817 when he resigned. In May, 1816, he married Serena Livingston, daughter of John R. Livingston, of New York, and niece of Chancellor Robert Livingston, famous as jurist and diplomat, who administered the cath of office to Wash

ington, when he first became President of the United States, and who as Minister to France negotiated with Bonaparte the Louisiana Purchase. Another uncle was Edward Livingston, one of the greatest lawyers of his day, who served his country as Congressman, Senator and Secretary of State under Jackson, whose celebrated Nullification Proclamation he is believed to have written. She was a niece also of the widow of General Montgomery, of Quebec fame.

Of the children of this marriage, one a daughter, Mrs. Mary Croghan Wyatt, still lives in New York, cherishing the memory of her noble sire; another, a son, George St. John, by name, a Confederate officer perished in battle in West Virginia in the first year of the Civil War, regretting, so it is said, that he had espoused the wrong side. In that battle the regiment of Colonel Rutherford B. Hayes took part.

After resigning his commission in the army, Croghan removed to New Orleans, where his wife's uncle, Edward Livingston was one of the most prominent citizens. He was the postmaster of that city in 1824. The following year he turned to the army again and was made Inspector General in the United States army, with the rank of Colonel. Then followed long years of unostentatious service. It is said that he was on one occasion about to be courtmartialed for "intemperance in alcoholic drinks." Colonel Miller, who himself had won distinction in the war of 1812, informed President Jackson of what was going forward. "The old general," we are told, "listened impatiently to the information, but heard it through, and then he laid down his paper, rose from his chair, smote the table with his clenched fist, and, with his proverbial energy, declared: 'Those proceedings of the courtmartial shall be stopped sir, sir! George Croghan shall get drunk every day of his life if he wants to, and by the Eternal the United States shall pay for the whiskey." This anecdote may not be true but if not it is well invented. It is a good companion to the story that Lincoln asked some preachers who had come to complain that Grant drank whiskey whether they could find out what brand Grant drank. He wanted to send some of the same kind to the other Generals!

In the Mexican war Col. Croghan again took the field. He joined the army on its march to Monterey, and was present at the assault on that place. During the crisis of one of the three days' fighting, when a Tennessee regiment shook under a tremendous concentric fire, Croghan rushed to the front and, taking off his hat, the wind tossing his gray hair, shouted: "Men of Tennessee, your fathers conquered with Jackson at New Orleans follow me!" The stirring words were received with bursts of cheers, and the troops, reanimated, dashed on to victory.

By an act of Congress, passed February 13, 1835, Croghan was presented with a gold medal "with suitable emblems and

devices, in testimony of the high sense entertained by Congress of his gallantry and good conduct in the defense of Fort Stephenson, Ohio."

After the Mexican war, Col. Croghan was again stationed at New Orleans where he died of cholera, January 8, 1849, expiring just as the sound of the last gun fired in celebration of Jackson's victory thirty-four years before, fell upon his ears.

IV.

The world is grudging of fame. Of the many battles fought in the war of 1812, with all their deeds of valor and acts of heroism, how few there are that this generation knows aught of or

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cares about! Of all the leaders whose names for the time filled large space in the thought of the country how few that we now recall! The battle of Fort Stephenson was not a great fight; the victory in itself was not of large importance. But the time when it occurred was fortunate; the manner of it was such as to touch the imagination and to thrill the souls of men; and at once the deed and the doer were acclaimed and their fame became sure and lasting. The names of the brave fellows that shared in the noble enterprise have sunk, alas, into

Lethe's dreamless ooze, the common grave,

Of the unventurous throng.

And there is pathos in that fact; but such is the universal law of life.

Whatever 'scaped Oblivion's subtle wrong

Save a few clarion names, or golden threads of song?

The great multitude of us must be content to do the work God gives us to do, unknown and unnoted. Croghan himself never rose again to the height of his one achievement. Perhaps opportunity was lacking; at any rate except for his few days at Fort Stephenson his life was commonplace and uneventful. But what of that? There was that one glorious day in August, in his young manhood when opportunity smiled beckoning, and he greeted her with bold front and ready hand. He illustrated the old, old truth that

One day with life and heart,

Is more than time enough to find a world.

It is not the intrinsic importance of a deed always that gives it value. It is the high and holy quality of the spirit that conceived and directed its execution. And this the world is quick to recognize and appreciate. The race makes few mistakes in the men it honors with enduring memory.

To you of Fremont the memory of Fort Stephenson and the fame of Croghan are a peculiarly glorious heritage. It is a great privilege to live where of old time a great act was once greatly done. No one can pass by the site of the old fort and see the old six-pounder that spoke to such good purpose ninety years ago, and