f 1813. Captain Oliver Hazard Perry was sent to Lake
Erie to build a navy. Perry at that time was not thirty years old and
had never seen a naval battle. By August, he had a squadron of two large
and seven small vessels, carrying 54 guns and 416 men, with which he set
out to find Commodore Barclay, who had two large and four small vessels,
with 63 guns and 440 men.

The two squadrons met at the western end of Lake Erie on the 10th of
September. Barclay centred such a furious fire upon the _Lawrence_,
Perry's flagship, that in two hours she was in a sinking condition.
Perry entered a small boat, and, exposed to a sharp fire, was rowed to
the _Niagara_, on which he hoisted his flag. The battle was renewed,
and, while the enemy was trying to form a new line of battle, Perry ran
the _Niagara_ directly through the fleet, delivering broadsides right
and left. The other vessels were prompt in following her, and poured
such a raking fire into the enemy that fifteen minutes later Barclay
surrendered. The British commander had but one arm when the battle
opened, and, before it ended, his remaining arm was shot off. He lost
200 killed and wounded and 600 prisoners, while the Americans had 27
killed and 96 wounded.

It has already been shown that this victory was of the utmost
importance, for Proctor was waiting to invade Ohio, if it went his way,
while General Harrison was also waiting to invade Canada, in the event
of an American triumph. In sending news of his victory to General
Harrison, Perry, in his hastily written dispatch, used the words which
have been quoted thousands of times: "We have met the enemy and they are
ours." It will be recalled that Harrison immediately embarked his troops
on Perry's ships, and, crossing the lake, pursued Proctor to the Thames,
where he decisively defeated him and ended all danger of an invasion of
Ohio by the enemy.

The American government now began to heed the benefit of the severe
lessons of defeat. The worthless generals were weeded out, and the army
in western New York reorganized so effectually that the country was
cheered by a number of victories--proof that the rank and file were of
the best quality and that their previous defeats were due to their
leaders.

On July 3, 1814, Gens. Scott, Ripley, and Brown crossed the Niagara from
Black Rock to Erie with 3,000 men. Brown's ability had become so
manifest that by this time he was a major-general. When he appeared in
front of Fort Er