Besides the Creoles and the British garrisons, there were quite a number of American settlers in West Florida.  In the immediate presence of Spanish and Indian foes, these, for the most part, remained royalists.  In 1778 a party of armed Americans, coming down the Ohio and Mississippi, tried to persuade them to turn whig, but, becoming embroiled with them, the militant missionaries were scattered and driven off.  Afterwards the royalists fought among themselves; but this was a mere faction quarrel, and was soon healed.  Towards the end of 1779, Galvez, with an army of Spanish and French Creole troops, attacked the forts along the Mississippi—­Manchac, Baton Rouge, Natchez, and one or two smaller places,—­speedily carrying them and capturing their garrisons of British regulars and royalist militia.  During the next eighteen months he laid siege to and took Mobile and Pensacola.  While he was away on his expedition against the latter place, the royalist Americans round Natchez rose and retook the fort from the Spaniards; but at the approach of Galvez they fled in terror, marching overland towards Georgia, then in the hands of the tories.  On the way they suffered great loss and damage from the Creeks and Choctaws.

    A Spanish Attempt on St. Joseph.

The Spanish commander at St. Louis was inspired by the news of these brilliant victories to try if he, too, could not gain a small wreath at the expense of Spain’s enemies.  Clark had already become thoroughly convinced of the duplicity of the Spaniards on the upper Mississippi; he believed that they were anxious to have the British retake Illinois, so that they, in their turn, might conquer and keep it. [Footnote:  Clark to Todd, March, 1780.  Va.  State Papers, I., 338.] They never had the chance to execute this plan; but, on January 2, 1781, a Spanish captain, Don Eugenio Pierro, led a hundred and twenty men, chiefly Indians and Creoles, against the little French village, or fur post, of St. Joseph, where they burned the houses of one or two British traders, claimed the country round the Illinois River as conquered for the Spanish king, and forthwith returned to St. Louis, not daring to leave a garrison of any sort behind them, and being harassed on their retreat by the Indians.  On the strength of this exploit Spain afterwards claimed a large stretch of country to the east of the Mississippi.  In reality it was a mere plundering foray.  The British at once retook possession of the place, and, indeed, were for some time ignorant whether the raiders had been Americans or Spaniards. [Footnote:  Haldimand MSS.  Haldimand to De Peyster, April 10, 1781.  Report of Council at St. Joseph, March 11, 1781.] Soon after the recapture, the Detroit authorities sent a scouting party to dislodge some Illinois people who had attempted to make a settlement at Chicago. [Footnote:  Do. Haldimand to De Peyster, May 19, 1782.  This is the first record of an effort to make a permanent settlement at Chicago.]