Narrative of the Fenian invasion of Canada

by Alexander Somerville

The retreat, the confusion, did not originate in the cry of cavalry.

The fight was a soldier’s battle, not that of a general. No coherent words of command had been given by Lt.-Col. Booker. The fight was won.

The Fenians were retreating. With waggons and stores they were getting away to Niagara river Ferry from Henry F. Angur’s house, O’Neil’s head-quarters. They were throwing food out of the waggons to make room for the wounded and hurrying around to be off. Captain Mahony came into Henry F. Augur’s house, hurriedly put off his uniform and assumed the clothes of a labouring man to disguise himself. They were destroying arms and ammunition, which they could not carry with them. Unused rifles and bayonets in quantities they were plunging into a marsh to be hidden. On the upper woods they were retreating on the run to reach round to the concession road and so on to Fort Erie village. They had lost the battle. What stopped them? O’Neil and his officers heard Booker’s bugle sounding retire, that stopped them. A second time it sounded retire. A third time retire, and the call to double.

At first the Fenians thought this was a trick of tactics to draw them on in pursuit, and into ambush. They were cautious, but at last discovered that the force which had advanced upon them so gallantly, steadily, beautifully, was actually retreating, and in confusion. They then raised a shout. They followed up. The U. R. Company had been nighest to them, nearly concealed in the upper wood. It did not hear the retire and lingered. When the increase of Fenian firing, with shouting, and the decrease of firing on their own skirmish line, led them to examine their position, the U. R. retired. And then came their casualties. They were now at short range and shot down; so also the Highland Company, but in less degree.

Let us examine that bugle call, retire. Sergeant Gibbons of the 13th, (an experienced soldier of H. M. 71st), says: “It was that bugle call, retire, that began the confusion. The first call was for the skirmishers to come in, and also the second, and they were retiring, in proper order; but the third was given with the double; and then men came running, and leaping, over fences, and stumbling.” Capt. Grant, who was with Lieut. Gibson, beside No. 1 Company of the 13th, highest up concession road, except U. R. and Highlanders, heard the bugle call retire. He knowing the enemy had been retreating, and Fenian fire declining, remarked; “what is meant by that retire? Why is it sounding?” On its second call they retired upon their supports at head of the orchard. Others fell back in obedience to that call, and formed on the supports. Major Skinner, Adjutant Henery and the force nearest their position at the brick house, and in the orchard beyond the house, over concession road, remained, the bugle sound not having reached them through the noise of firing, and impediments of trees.

O’Neil does not admit that he was beaten. Perhaps he did not feel that he was. But in his Nashville speech he admits that he felt the necessity of retreating, having a formidable force in his front, and knowing that, “two or three other small armies were pressing forward to overwhelm his small and inadequate force.” He was retreating, pressed by the gallant 13th, and Q. O. with York and Caledonia Rifles, and would have yielded the field to their advance, had not the unaccountable retreat of his assailants recalled him to action.

They of the skirmish line who heard the first and second calls retired. The supports retained their places in the orchard until the third call and double were sounded. Then they also retired across the orchard, fields, and fences towards the Q. O. reserve. Then arose the panic; the cry of, look out for cavalry. Perhaps O’Neil and his mounted officers may have been seen at this crisis riding to their front to ascertain what was the matter. Perhaps some of the portions of companies and officers of the Q. O. who were near Lt.-Col. Booker, beside the barn where he had taken his station, with its walls in front of him, the orchard on his right hand, nothing visible to him but the reserve in his rear and the persons around,—it may have been some of these who cried “look out for cavalry” if he did not himself imagine its presence. Booker did not know where his front skirmish line was, did not know that some were beyond hearing the recall of the bugle from his place of retirement, did not know the enemy had retreated. The bugler bears testimony that Booker gave the commands to sound. He seemed to have decided, so far as, in a condition of imbecility and nervous prostration, he could decide anything, to retreat from the field of action.

It had been his custom on field days, and Hamilton holidays, to follow the call of skirmishers retire, with form square; prepare to receive cavalry. My old note-books written when looking on, bear that record, so do the memories of his men. Perhaps, in this hour of his mental prostration he reverted to the old rotation of movements learned from a book, and gave the order to the bugler form square. Charity would rather believe that he made that mistake in forgetfulness, than that his vision of cavalry, crossing a variety of fences, five and six feet high, in pursuit of the retiring skirmishers, whom he had called in, led to the formation of a square.

An hour and a half earlier, the action about to begin, but no shots fired, he mistook a farmer “running off his cows” for a Fenian force of two hundred men, some of them mounted. In his narrative to the court of inquiry, concocted after the events, and in contradiction to animadversions on his conduct published two or three days after the 2nd of June, he said: “I observed loose horses moving about in the woods to our left, but saw no men.”

Officers of the 13th who were then beside him, would make affidavit were it required, that he said to them his field glass enabled him to see, distinctly two hundred men, some of them mounted. But these are gentlemen of honor. They have passed their word to this statement, their word is sufficient. Thus we have it that Lt.-Col. Booker, entered on the field seeing cavalry where none were.