Dale beheld a regular, pitched battle between large numbers of civilized forces. He was spellbound by the awful grandeur of the scene.

General Jackson was so astonished at Dale's speed in bringing the dispatches that he sent him back to Georgia with other dispatches. As Dale reached Fort Decatur on the Tallapoosa, wet and almost frozen, General McIntosh helped him from Paddy, put his arms around him, carried him to the fire, gave him food and hot coffee, and kept him quiet until he was rested and warm. Dale then delivered the dispatches and told of the glorious battle at New Orleans. The old general wept and shouted for joy. Officers and men came rushing to the door, and Dale had to tell the story over and over until daylight, while the delighted patriots shouted with wildest huzzas.

He went on to Milledgeville, delivered his dispatches, and then returned to Dale's Ferry on the Alabama river, where he again took up business.

8. Public Services.-Governor Holmes had great confidence in Dale. He sent him commissions in blank, and permitted him to appoint justices, sheriffs, constables, and other civil officers.

After the Creek War Dale's life was full of work and honors. He was a delegate to the convention that met at the house of John Ford, an old settler, on the Pearl river, to divide the Mississippi Territory, the western portion to form a State and the eastern to constitute Alabama Territory. He served many years in the general assembly of Alabama, beginning as a delegate to the first assembly that met

Jan. 8

1815

1816

1825

1831

1832

May 24, 1841

at St. Stephens. He was a member of the legislative committee that met General LaFayette at the Chattahoochee and escorted him to Montgomery. With George S. Gaines he helped to remove the Choctaws to their new homes on the Arkansas and Red rivers.

9. Later Life.-Dale bought from an Indian two sections of land in Lauderdale county, Mississippi, and lived there during his last years. He served several terms in the general assembly of Mississippi. He visited Washington during Jackson's administration, and spent many pleasant hours alone with the President, talking over campaigns and other matters of interest in those wonderful years.

Dale met most of the great men of the times. Calhoun, Clay, Webster, Benton, William R. King, and others showed him much attention and captured his honest heart. He was not educated in books, but he knew men and the country, and his opinions were expressed in words that instructed his listener. The great politicians loved to talk with him, and they valued highly the information which he gave them. He was a manly and worthy pioneer who loved his country and loved it well.

Dale county in Alabama is named for him.

10. Death and Burial.-General Dale died on May 24, 1841, calm and self-possessed, and was buried near Daleville, Mississippi. Shortly after his burial it is said that a Choctaw chief, standing by his grave, said, "You sleep here, Big Sam, but your spirit is a chieftain and a brave in the hunting-ground of the sky."

In peace the Creeks respected and loved him.

Weatherford admired him and had him as groomsman at his marriage. The hungry Indians lived on his fields, "but in battle the name of Big Sam fell on the ears of the Seminole like that of Marius on the hordes of the Cimbri."

SUMMARY

General Samuel Dale was among the greatest men of pioneer history. His young life battled against poverty and met all the hardships and dangers of border civilization. His daring made him in demand for protection of travellers. He was present at the Tookabatcha grand council when Tecumseh spoke; shared the mortification of defeat at Burnt Corn; bravely stood with Captain Austill for the defense of Fort Madison; was chief hero in the Canoe Fight; and brave and true in all things. He was a courier to Jackson with an express from the secretary of war, and saw the engagement between the English and American forces in the battle of New Orleans. He was generous to his own loss, but his devotion to the public good gave him a scat in the general assemblies of Alabama and Mississippi. He died in Daleville, Miss.

QUESTIONS

1. Give an account of Dale's early life. 2. What service did he render to movers? 3. Describe Tecumseh's actions and talk at the Tookabatcha grand council. 4. Describe the battle of Burnt Corn. 5. What was Dale's conduct at Fort Madison? 6. Relate the incidents of the Canoe Fight. 7. What caused Dale to fail as a farmer? 8. Describe his trip to New Orleans and his report of the battle there. 9. What public services did he render? 10. Give an account of his visit to Washington. 11. What great men met and admired him? 12. Relate the incidents of his death and burial.

1813

Andrew Jackson

CHAPTER VI

ANDREW JACKSON IN ALABAMA

(1813-1814)

1. Jackson Takes Command in Creek War.When Mr. George S. Gaines reported the massacre of Fort Mims to Governor Blount, of Tennessee, Andrew Jackson was suffering from an arm wounded in a difficulty with the Bentons. He was so excited by the news that he arose from his bed, and took command of the Tennessee troops for the Creek War.

2. General Coffee Sent to Huntsville.-General John Coffee, with five hundred cavalrymen and such other mounted troops as he might gather on the way, was sent ahead to Huntsville to quiet the people in

that region where there was much excitement on account of Indian butcheries and rumors of Indian attacks.

When Jackson reached Fayetteville, Tennessee, a dispatch from General Coffee reported that the Indians were approaching. So anxious were Jackson's soldiers to meet the Indians that they marched on foot thirty-two miles in five hours that they might take part in the expected battle. Coffee was misinformed, but the speed with which the western frontiersmen moved and the way that they held out on the march showed that much could be expected of them.

John Coffee

time, and the provisions could not be shipped. The scanty supplies at Huntsville were soon exhausted,. and what could be procured from the surrounding country was not enough to sustain the troops. Jackson waited in vain at Camp Coffee for the promised supplies. Cutting through the mountains, he moved up to Thompson's creek, and established