ar Department by John Armstrong, who had served in
the Revolution, and William Jones of Philadelphia succeeded Paul
Hamilton as Secretary of the Navy. Congress authorized more men, to
the number of 58,000, and more ships, and voted more loans. Finally,
in the summer it was actually driven to impose internal taxes like
those which, when imposed by Federalists, had savoured of tyranny.

On the northern frontier, renewed efforts were made to collect a real
army, and, with late comprehension of the necessities of the case,
naval officers were sent to build flotillas to control Erie, Ontario,
and Champlain. On their part, the British Ministry sent out a few
troops and officers to Canada, but {224} relied this year chiefly upon
a strict blockade, which was proclaimed first in December, 1812, and
was extended, before the end of the year, to cover the entire coast,
except New England. Ships-of-the-line, frigates, and sloops patrolled
the entrances to all the seaports, terminating not only foreign but
coastwise commerce.

Things went little if any better for the United States. The army was
on paper 58,000 men; but the people of the north and west would not
enlist. The utmost efforts at recruiting did not succeed in bringing
one-half the nominal force into the field. The people would not take
the war seriously, and the administration was helpless. To make
matters worse, not only did the north-western frontier agonize under
Indian warfare, but the south-west became involved, when, in August,
1813, the Creek Indians, affected by Tecumseh's influence, rose and
began a war in Tennessee and Georgia. For months Andrew Jackson,
General of Tennessee militia, with other local commanders, carried on
an exhausting and murderous conflict in the swamps and woods of the
south-west. The war was now assuming the character of the last stand
of the Indians before the oncoming whites.

In the north-west, decisive blows were struck in this year by General
Harrison and {225} Commander Perry. The latter built a small fleet of
boats, carrying in all fifty-four guns, and sailed out to contest the
control of Lake Erie. Captain Barclay, the British commander, with
scantier resources, constructed a weaker fleet, with sixty-three
lighter guns, and gallantly awaited the Americans on September 9. In a
desperately fought battle, Perry's sloop, the _Lawrence_, was
practically destroyed by the concentrated fire of the British; but the
greater gun