217.  The British send war-ships to take New Orleans; the great battle and the great victory.—­These things happened during our second war with England, or the War of 1812.  About a year after Jackson’s victory over the Indians the British sent an army in ships to take New Orleans.

General Jackson now went to New Orleans, to prevent the enemy from getting possession of the city.

About four miles below the city, which stands on the Mississippi River,[11] there was a broad, deep ditch, running from the river into a swamp.  Jackson saw that the British would have to cross that ditch when they marched against the city.  For that reason he built a high bank on the upper side of the ditch, and placed cannon along the top of the bank.

Early on Sunday morning, January 8th, 1815, the British sent a rocket whizzing up into the sky; a few minutes afterward they sent up a second one.  It was the signal that they were about to march to attack us.

[Illustration:  BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS.]

Just before the fight began General Jackson walked along among his men, who were getting ready to defend the ditch.  He said to them, “Stand to your guns; see that every shot tells:  give it to them, boys!” The “boys” did give it to them.  The British soldiers were brave men; they had been in many terrible battles, and they were not afraid to die.  They fought desperately; they tried again and again to cross that ditch and climb the bank, but they could not do it.  The fire of our guns cut them down just as a mower cuts down the tall grain with his scythe.[12] In less than half an hour the great battle was over; Jackson had won the victory and saved New Orleans.  We lost only eight killed; the enemy lost over two thousand.[13] We have never had a battle since with England; it is to be hoped that we never shall have another, for two great nations[14] like England and America, that speak the same language, ought to be firm and true friends.

[Illustration:  MONUMENT TO GENERAL JACKSON AT NEW ORLEANS.]

[Footnote 11:  See map in paragraph 218.]

[Footnote 12:  Scythe (sithe).]

[Footnote 13:  Killed and wounded.]

[Footnote 14:  Nations:  a nation is a people born in the same country and living under the same government; as the American nation, the French nation, the English nation.]

218.  We buy Florida; General Jackson made President of the United States; the first railroad.—­After the battle of New Orleans General Jackson conquered the Indians in Florida, and in 1819 we bought that country of Spain, and so made the United States much larger on the south.[15] This was our second great land purchase.[16]

[Illustration:  The light parts of this map show the extent of the United States in 1819, after we had bought and added Florida.  The black and white bars in the northwest show that the ownership of the Oregon country was still in dispute between the United States and Great Britain.]