whom were painted and dressed like the Indians.

Repulse of the Savages.

When they reached the fort they found camped close to the walls a party
of fifty dragoons and ninety riflemen. These dragoons and riflemen had
escorted a brigade of packhorses from Greeneville the day before, and
having left the supplies in the fort were about to return with the
unladen packhorses. But soon after daybreak the Indians rushed their
camp. Against such overwhelming numbers no effective resistance could be
made. After a few moments' fight the men broke and ran to the fort. The
officers, as usual, showed no fear, and were the last to retreat, half
of them being killed or wounded,--one of the honorably noteworthy
features of all these Indian fights was the large relative loss among
the officers. Most of the dragoons and riflemen reached the fort,
including nineteen who were wounded; nineteen officers and privates were
killed, and two of the packhorsemen were killed and three captured. Two
hundred packhorses were captured. The Indians, flushed with success and
rendered over-confident by their immense superiority in numbers, made a
rush at the fort, hoping to carry it by storm. They were beaten back at
once with severe loss; for in such work they were no match for their
foes. They then surrounded the fort, kept up a harmless fire all day,
and renewed it the following morning. In the night they bore off their
dead, finding them with the help of torches; eight or ten of those
nearest the fort they could not get. They then drew off and marched back
to the Miami towns. At least twenty-five [Footnote: Canadian Archives,
G. La Mothe to Joseph Chew, Michilimackinac, July 19, 1794. McKee says,
"17 men killed"; evidently he either wilfully understated the truth, or
else referred only to the particular tribes with which he was
associated. La Mothe says, "they have lost twenty-five people amongst
different nations," but as he was only speaking of the Upper Lake
Indians, it may be that the total Indian loss was 25 plus 17, or 42.
McKee always understates the British force and loss, and greatly
overstates the loss and force of the Americans. In this letter he says
that the Americans had 50 men killed, instead of 22; and that 60
"drivers" (packhorsemen) were taken and killed; whereas in reality 3
were taken and 2 killed.] of them had been killed, and a great number
wounded; whereas they had only succeeded in killing one and wounding
eleven of the g