Virginia Argus

DOMESTIC INTELLIGENCE.

From the National Intelligencer.

MASSACRE AT DARTMOOR.

The causes which led to this horrible outrage upon unarmed men confined in prison, and entitled to protection from the boasted laws of England, are not yet sufficiently known to enable us to form a just estimate of its enormity. We do not yet know precisely what was the conduct of the Americans, which brought on this massacre. Enough is known, however, to mark it with every feature of cowardly and malignant barbarity. It is known that not a single English soldier was hurt in the attempt to quell this formidable insurrection, consequently the prisoners were all unarmed, for we know, by experience, that with arms in their hands Americans are not so easily subdued. No, danger then was to be apprehended from their resistance, and it was therefore an act of cowardly, wanton, inexcusable barbarity--perpetrated by armed soldiers, on men without arms and in prison. The other day when two or three English rioters were shot in the streets of London, the gentle Mr. Robinson, of Corn Law memory, shed tears in the House of Commons, to the great edification of that orderly assembly, which shouted "hear, hear." almost as loudly as they do at one of my Lord Castlereagh's "pump handle speeches." On this brilliant occasion, when nearly a hundred defenceless prisoners were butchered in cold blood, we dare say, Mr. Robinson thought it a mighty clever thing and thinking Johnny Bull no doubt rejoiced exuberantly, at such a decisive proof of the superiority of British valor. We should not be surprised to see it quoted in Parliament as an offset against the affair at New Orleans.

One circumstance in this massacre ought not to be overlooked. It appears that the defenceless Americans were not only shot, by these valiant soldiers, but stabbed three, four, aye five times, and that too in the back. It proves, that these valiant Wellingtonians having, we suppose, clearly ascertained that the American prisoners were without arms, went boldly in amongst them like butchers, tucked up their sleeves and stabbed, and cut, and hacked and slashed away, even after all resistance had ceased, if indeed any had been made. They stabbed William Blake three times in the back! This poor fellow had, it appears, been discharged from the Repulse man of war, where he had been a slave for God knows how many years, remanded to prison as an American, and stabbed in his back three times, because he perhaps assisted to hang Reuben G. Beasley in effigy--that is, reader, hanging a wooden image, or thing of stuffed straw, and calling it by his name. For this the renowned Captain Shortland went in among them, to expostulate, doubtless with that exemplary courtesy usually practised by British officers towards the Yankees, when in his power. and it is said that a pistol was snapped in his face. How came a prisoner with arms? But it is useless to ask this question; there is falsehood on the very face of it, and even if it were true, it would be no justification of the scene that followed. Brave Englishmen! This was much pleasanter work than you had at Chippewa, Bridgewater and Erie, or even at New Orleans. Here you had no awkward American bayonets and broadswords--no Browns, or Scotts, or Millers, or Ripleys. or Aspinwalls to cool your invincible valor, and you gloriously achieved the only victory you gained over Americans since the declaration of war. Shortland, it seems, was the name of the gallant commander of this invincible troop of day light assassins, and without doubt his name will soon appear in the list of knights companions of the most noble order of the Bath, immediately under those of Captain Hope, the notorious Cockburn, and many other famous conquerors.
Is it--ought it--can it be wondered at, if after the experience of England's conduct towards this ill-used country--after all our experience of her stern unrelenting arrogance and persecution--and above all, after this new outrage, can it be wondered at, if the Americans should hate the English! And is it not to be wondered at that the English and Federal newspapers have the intolerable insolence to charge this hatred upon us as a crime? Have not the English vilified us through the world? Has not their government succeeded in exciting among them a spirit of inveterate hostility, which in its operation leads to a total disregard of all the common courtesies essential to politeness, and renders their warfare against this country a disgrace to the civilized world? Have they not, while hypocritically voting two thousand pounds, to build a church in one quarter of the world; appropriated forty thousand dollars to keep up a bloody Pagan Temple in another quarter: and robbed christian temples in a third.--Have they not burnt our towns and public edifices, at Havre de Grace, and Washington, and wherever else they came? Have they not stood looking on, when their Indian allies were scalping our officers, in violation not only of common humanity, but of the express terms of their surrender? Have not their officers turned their backs when urged by poor prisoners to protect them against these terrible outrages? Have they not violated our women at Hampton, and broke open coffins, and kicked about the sacred bones of the dead at Tappahannock?--And have they not now, in time of peace, when the passions of war have had leisure to subside into forgiveness or oblivion--have they not entered like butchers into the fold of our unarmed and imprisoned countrymen, to stab them in the backs?

Yet have the English and Federal newspapers the intolerable insolence to charge us with the crime of hating the English! We ought to love them, forsooth, because, two centuries ago, their fathers persecuted our fathers out of their country; we ought to love them, because they abuse and calumniate us in their pulpits, their sermons, newspapers and reviews--because they overwhelm us with eternal falsehoods;-- rob our churches; burn our towns; violate our women; break open graves; and, in a period of profound peace, murder our defenceless prisoners in cold blood, to appease mortifications for defeats which they have not the prowess to resent in any other way. For all these good offices we ought to love this magnanimous, thinking, canting and humane nation. For these neighbourly offices we ought to treat all Englishmen as brothers, or rather as our masters--if they smite us we ought to give them both cheeks; if they spit in our faces we ought to make them a low bow; if they pick our pockets, we should open our strong boxes to them; if they calumniate us, we should return it with praise; if they tickle us, we should not laugh; if they prick us we should not bleed: if they tread on us we should by no means turn; and if they injure us, we should not think of revenge.-- Far from it: we ought to feast them as the Marquis of Tweeddale, and his band of red captains were feasted at New York, and Philadelphia, by certain good people, who never feasted any body before, and who never will again, unless perhaps the gallant commander, of the assassins at Dartmoor should chance to "honor them," as the polite federal papers say, with a visit. We ought to give them balls and tea parties; to parade our wives and daughters before them, in hopes some mighty Lordling may condescend to throw his handkerchief, to some favored dame or damsel. The young ladies should be taught that it is the highest proof of gentility to administer to the vanity of English officers, by staring at them as they walk the streets, or whenever they enter a room. They should be educated with a full conviction that no human being can be half so brave, generous, gallant and accomplished as a British officer; and they should be instructed to admire a little red coat without any skirts, above all earthly things--except an English Lord with a bushy head: they should also be carefully instructed to despise our clod-hopping officers, with their miserable blue coats, and long skirts. In short, these British officers, whether bullies, bottle bruisers, boxers, boasters, or blackguards, ought always to be preferred to our gallant fellows, who have spread a blaze of glory over this wide continent. If, for instance, a knot of these officers, no way distinguished either for character or exploits, should be stayed at Washington Hall in New York, or at Renshaw's Hotel in Philadelphia, at the same time with one or two of our most gallant protectors--say General Ripley and Colonel Brown, for instance, men, whose names are associated with almost every illustrious achievement on our frontiers.-- If this should happen to be the case, the British officers with their little red coats, without any skirts, ought to be called upon by all the genteel people, and invited to great dinner parties, and Gen. R. and Colonel B. being only American officers shall be totally neglected. This would please our Federal Editors, and properly demonstrate our gratitude for robbing our churches;-- burning our towns; scalping our citizens; violating our women; abusing the living; disturbing the dead: and massacring our defenceless prisoners at Dartmoor.

AN AMERICAN.