“The insolent fellow!” cried Lulu.  “I hope they didn’t do it, papa?”

“No; indeed, they flatly refused compliance and told him to do his worst.  The people on both sides of the bay and river had heard of his approach and armed bodies of them were gathered at points where an attack might be expected.  There were still among them some of the old soldiers of the revolution, and you may be sure they were ready to do their best to repel this second invasion by their old enemy.  One of these was a bent old man of the name of Jonathan M’Nult.  He lived in Dover, and when, on the Sabbath day, the drums beat to arms, he, along with men of every denomination to the number of nearly five hundred, quickly responded to the call, took part in the drill, and spent the whole afternoon in making ball-cartridges.

“The people of all the towns of the vicinity showed the same spirit and turned out with spades and muskets, ready to take part in the throwing up of batteries and trenches, or to fight ’for their altars and their fires’—­defending wives, children, and other helpless ones.  At Wilmington they built a strong fort which they named Union.

“This spirited behavior of the Americans surprised Beresford, and for three weeks he refrained from any attempt to carry out his threat.

“During that time Governor Haslet came to Lewis and summoned the militia to its defence.  On his arrival he reiterated the refusal to supply the British invaders with what had been demanded.

“Beresford repeated his threats and at length, on the 6th of April, sent Captain Byron, with the Belvidera and several smaller vessels, to attack the town.

“He fired several heavy round shot into it, then sent a flag of truce, again demanding the supplies Beresford had called for.

“Colonel Davis, the officer in command of the militia, repeated the refusal; then Byron sent word that he was sorry for the misery he should inflict on the women and children by a bombardment.

“To that a verbal reply was sent:  ’Colonel Davis is a gallant officer, and has taken care of the ladies.’

“Then Byron presently began a cannonade and bombardment and kept it up for twenty-two hours.

“The Americans replied in a very spirited manner from a battery on an eminence.  Davis’s militia worked it and succeeded in disabling the most dangerous of the enemy’s gunboats and silencing its cannon.

“The British failed in their effort to inflict great damage upon the town, although they hurled into it as many as eight hundred eighteen and thirty-two pound shot, besides many shells and Congreve rockets.  The heavy round shot injured some of the houses but the shells did not reach the town and the rockets passed over it.  No one was killed.

“Plenty of powder was sent for the American guns from Dupont’s at Wilmington, and they picked up and sent back the British balls, which they found just fitted their cannon.”