After the capitulation, the American commanding officer remonstrated with General Proctor, on the necessity of protecting the wounded prisoners from the fury of the savages. That officer pledged himself to attend to it, but he forgot to keep his word: they were left without the promised protection, and on the morning of the 23d, horrible to relate, the allies of a christian king, stripped, scalped, tomahawked and burnt all of them who were unable to walk.[ [3]
The dead were denied the rites of sepulture;[ [4] the living were treated with the greatest indignity. The prisoners were generally stripped of their clothing, rifled of their cash, and the swords of the officers given to the savages. Men whose education, talents and character ought to have entitled them to respect, had their feelings grossly outraged.
The advance of Gen. Winchester to the river Raisin, was not authorised by the orders of Gen. Harrison; the motives of the Gen. were no doubt good, but to his imprudence is attributed the failure of the campaign. He was induced to make the movement in consequence of the earnest solicitude of the inhabitants of that place, who were threatened with a general massacre by the Indians.
As soon as General Harrison learnt the exposed situation of Gen. Winchester's corps, he ordered a detachment from Gen. Perkins' brigade under Col. Cotgreaves, to march with all possible expedition to his relief—but so much time was spent in preparation, that it only arrived in hearing distance at the commencement of the battle, and then suddenly retraced its steps.
Why a commanding officer, situated as Gen. Winchester was within a few hours march of Malden, and liable every moment to be surprized, should suffer his men to be encamped in detached and exposed situations, in the manner they were, is a question not yet explained. The night before the battle a Frenchman arrived from Malden, and informed that the enemy had commenced their march. This information which was made known to Gen. Winchester, was disregarded. His quarters were three or four hundred yards from Camp. He did not arrive at the scene of action till the right wing had begun to give way.
I cannot forbear to notice in this place a circumstance that reflects the greatest lustre on the military character of the Kentuckians. On their march from Fort Defiance to the rapids, the horses were worn out and nearly famished for want of forage. The men themselves were destitute of many articles of the first necessity. Yet these circumstances did not in the least damp their ardor. When the horses were no longer able to draw, these gallant sons of Mars harnessed themselves to the sleds, and in this manner, with cheerfulness and alacrity, conveyed their baggage sixty miles through frost and snow—thus, manifesting an intrepidity of character which rivals that of Greece or Rome.
Yet these were men, whose homes, for the most part, were the seats of elegance and wealth—but their spirits were not to be broken by adversity. Notwithstanding they were compelled to travel on foot and with scarcely a covering for their backs, in the dead of winter, from Malden to Buffalo, and from thence to Kentucky, a distance of eight hundred miles, still not a murmur escaped their lips! Their honest hearts sprung forward with the elastic hope, that their wrongs would be avenged and the day of retribution arrive.
After the defeat of Gen. Winchester, General Harrison retreated from the rapids eighteen miles, and took a position at Portage river. It being found impracticable to remove all the provisions a considerable quantity was destroyed.
On the 30th Gen. Harrison dispatched Capt. Lamont, Doctor M'Keehan and a Frenchman with a flag of truce to Malden. They encamped the first night near the rapids and hoisted the white flag; but this was not respected—the Indians fired upon them while asleep, killed Lamont, wounded Dr. M'Keehan and took the Doctor and the Frenchman prisoners.
Governor Meigs having promptly ordered out two regiments of Ohio militia to reinforce General Harrison; the army again advanced to the rapids, and commenced building Fort Meigs. Gen. Crook's brigade in the mean time were busily employed in fortifying at Upper Sandusky.