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Show 72 LIFE OF GEN. JACKSON. CHAP. disposed to become friendly, I neither wish nor intend III. to make war ; but they must afford evidences of the ~sincerity of their professions ; the prisoners and property they have taken from us, and the friendly Creeks, must be restored ; the instigators of the war, and the murderers of our citizens, must be surrendered ; the latter must and will be made to feel the force of our resentment. Long shall they remember Fort Mimm§ in bitterness and tears." Having stated to general Cocke, whose division was acting in this section of the nation, the propositions that had been made by the Hilla bee clans, with the answer he had returned; and urged him to detach to Fort Strother six hundred of' his men, to aid in the defence of that place, during his absence, and in the operations he intended to resume on his return; he proceeded to Deposit and Ditto's landing, where the most effectual means in his power were taken with the contractors, for obtaining regular tiupplies in future. They were required to furnish, immediately, thirty days' rations at Fort Strother, forty at Talladeg<~, and as many at the junction of the Coosa and Tallapoosa; tw? hun~e~ pack horses, and forty wagons, .were put m reqt~ISI· tion, to facilitate their transportatlon. U nderstandmg, now that the whole detachment, from Tennessee, had, by the president, been received into the service of the they saw themselves thus assailed, they no long:er considered that any pacific disposition they might manifest would alford them protection from danger ; and looked upon it as ~ war. of extermination. In their battles, afterwards, there JS no JOe stance of their asking fur quarter, or even manifesting a dis-' pOiition to recf"ive it. LlFE OF GEN. JACKSON. 75 United States, he persuaded himself that the difficulties CHAP. he had heretofore encountered, would not recur and ll I. that the want of supplies would not again be ·a c·ause ~ of impeding his operations. He now looked forward with sanguine expectations, to 'the speedy accomplish-ment of the objects of the expedition. The volunteers, who were at Deposit, began to manifest the same unwillingness to return to their duty, that the militia had done, and were about to break out into the same spirit of mutiny and revolt ; but were restrained by an animated address of the general, who, .having assembled them together, painted, in the most glowing colours, all the consequences that were to be appreh.ended, if, from any defalcation of theirs, the campa1gn should be abandoned, or ineffectually prosecuted. By this mean, he succeeded, once more, in restoring quietness to his troops. He n?w set out on his return to Fort Strother, and ~vas dehghted to find, by the progress of the works, the mdustry that had been used in his absence. But the satisfac~ion he felt, and the hopes he began to cherish, were of short continuance. Although he had succeeded. ~n stilling the tumult of the volunteers, and in preV~ Ihng on them to return to their posts, it was soon d1sco~ered, he had not eradicated their deep-rooted ~verswn ~o a further prosecution of the war. Nothing 1s more difficult than to re-animate men who have once lost their spirits, or inspire with new ardour those in whom it has lately become extinct. E vcn ,~here the e:ils, '; hich produced the change, are removed, apologiC'S Will be. sought, and pretexts seized, for justifying and preservmg tl1e present tone of mind. The volun- K |