e bank.

Early on Sunday morning, January 8th, 1815, the British sent a rocket
whizzing up into the sky; a few minutes afterward they sent up a
second one. It was the signal that they were about to march to attack
us.

[Illustration: BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS.]

Just before the fight began General Jackson walked along among his
men, who were getting ready to defend the ditch. He said to them,
"Stand to your guns; see that every shot tells: give it to them,
boys!" The "boys" did give it to them. The British soldiers were brave
men; they had been in many terrible battles, and they were not afraid
to die. They fought desperately; they tried again and again to cross
that ditch and climb the bank, but they could not do it. The fire
of our guns cut them down just as a mower cuts down the tall grain
with his scythe.[12] In less than half an hour the great battle was
over; Jackson had won the victory and saved New Orleans. We lost only
eight killed; the enemy lost over two thousand.[13] We have never
had a battle since with England; it is to be hoped that we never shall
have another, for two great nations[14] like England and America,
that speak the same language, ought to be firm and true friends.

[Illustration: MONUMENT TO GENERAL JACKSON AT NEW ORLEANS.]

[Footnote 11: See map in paragraph 218.]

[Footnote 12: Scythe (sithe).]

[Footnote 13: Killed and wounded.]

[Footnote 14: Nations: a nation is a people born in the same country
and living under the same government; as the American nation, the
French nation, the English nation.]

218. We buy Florida; General Jackson made President of the United
States; the first railroad.--After the battle of New Orleans General
Jackson conquered the Indians in Florida, and in 1819 we bought that
country of Spain, and so made the United States much larger on the
south.[15] This was our second great land purchase.[16]

[Illustration: The light parts of this map show the extent of the
United States in 1819, after we had bought and added Florida. The
black and white bars in the northwest show that the ownership of the
Oregon country was still in dispute between the United States and
Great Britain.]

Ten years after we got Florida General Jackson became President of
the United States. He had fought his way up. Here are the four steps:
first the boy, "Andy Jackson"; then "Judge Jackson"; then "General
Jackson"; last of all, "President Jackson."

Shortly after he became the chief