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Men Follow Leadership Brig. Gen. Peter B. Porter got much better performance out of militia troops than most other commanders, but then he didn't flinch from leading. Case in point: September 17, 1814, the siege of Ft. Erie, Porter and a small escort run into 80 British troops, Porter calls on them to surrender. They make no response and Porter calmly walks up to them and starts taking their muskets and putting them on the ground. Some of the other British troops put their muskets on the ground voluntarily. Suddenly, one British trooper puts a bayonet to Porter's chest a demands he surrender. Porter grabs the soldier's musket, while twenty or so men aim their muskets at the man's head. Again there is a call for the British to surrender. More US troops arrive on the scene. The British now refuse to surrender. The America troops open fire. The British take several casualties, but the rest finally surrender.
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