Revelation: Risk taking and stamina may lead to rewards.
December 18, 1814
Two men traveled across Lake Borgne and arrived at a fishermen’s village located at the mouth of Bayou Bienvenue. They were Lieutenant John Peddie and Captain Robert Spencer, officers of the British army and navy, respectively. These men typically wore red, which would have attracted negative attention from anyone sympathetic to the American cause. Now, however, thanks to obliging Spanish fishermen, they dressed in the regional attire of blue shirts and dark, coarse canvas trousers.
The British spies negotiated with a couple of the fishermen to guide them to a plantation along the edge of the Mississippi. Their mission: to plan the best clandestine approach inland for two thousand troops to move from their ships, now anchored at Pea Island in Lake Borgne. Their goal: to establish a base camp and prepare for a quick surprise invasion and seizure of the city of New Orleans.
“What do you think?” asked Peddie quietly, as they floated in the pirogue down Bayou Bienvenue. “It’s pretty shallow here, I’d say maybe only six feet deep and one hundred yards wide. Do you think we can move our men through this bayou?”
“It’s not ideal,” answered Spencer. “I’m not liking the dankness of the swamp.”
“And don’t forget all the wildlife,” added Peddie, as another alligator lying on a log slowly turned its head to observe the pirogue gliding by. “But the bayou is navigable and this eastern route is not protected. According to our guides, all the other bayous have felled trees blocking any approaches.”
“Yes,” said Spencer, brushing a spider off his shoulder. “The Americans probably expect us to attack them by land from the north. But I think General Keane will agree that this unobstructed bayou is the best way to go.”
The Spanish fishermen continued rowing the British scouts most of the way down Bayou Bienvenue and then punted with long poles through the much shallower Bayou Mazant. They reached the canal of the Villeré plantation, less than ten miles below New Orleans. The Englishmen noted the firm footing afforded by the roads running along the canal’s banks.
“This is ideal for us,” said Peddie. “The levee protects the area from the river. We can ferry the troops across Lake Borgne to the mouth of Bayou Bienvenue—that’s about thirty miles—and then they can row another six miles to Bayou Mazant.”
“You’re right,” agreed Spencer. “Once they reach the path onshore, though, that will take them to the Mississippi, and then it’s onward to New Orleans.”
The two men stepped out of the pirogue and continued their exploration of the cultivated area on foot. They spied on the main big house, along with the smaller cabins, outbuildings, pigsties, and poultry yards.
Spencer nodded enthusiastically to Peddie. “I think we’ve just found our new camp,” he whispered. “Beauty and booty!”