In the spring of 1781, Colonel Watson was sent with a select corps of five hundred men to attempt the destruction of Marion's brigade. He moved with caution, evidently afraid of the partisan, for he was then striking successful blows at different points, in rapid succession, and appeared to be possessed of ubiquitous powers. * Marion observed him, and concentrated his force on Snow's Island, whence he sallied forth as occasion required. He sped with rapid foot to the path of Watson's approach, and at Wiboo Swamp, nearly opposite the present Santee Canal, he confronted him. The advanced guards of Marion and Watson (the former under Horry, the latter under Riehboo, a Tory colonel) met unexpectedly, and a severe skirmish ensued. Other portions of the two armies engaged in the fight. The field-pieces of Watson gave him great advantage, and Marion was obliged to fall back in the direction of Williamsburg. At a bridge over the Black River, below Kingstree, he checked his pursuers by well-aimed rifle-balls and the destruction of the bridge by fire. Down the stream, upon opposite sides, the belligerents marched nearly ten miles, skirmishing all the way. Darkness terminated the conflict, and both parties arranged their flying camps for rest, near eaeh other. For ten days Watson remained stationary, continually annoyed by Marion, until he was obliged to choose between certain destruction in detail there, or attempt boldly to fight his way to Georgetown. He decided upon the latter course, and at midnight he fled. Marion pursued, fell upon him at Sampit Bridge, near Georgetown, and smote down many of his wearied soldiers. Watson escaped to Georgetown with the remnant of his army, complaining that Marion would not "fight like a gentleman or a Christian!"
Sad intelligence now reached Marion. The Tory colonel, Doyle, had penetrated to his camp on Snow's Island, dispersed the little garrison, destroyed his provisions and stores, and then marched up Lynch's Creek. He pursued the marauder until he was informed that Doyle had destroyed all his heavy baggage, and had the advantage of a day's march on the road to Camden. Marion wheeled, and hastened, through the overflowed swamps, to confront Watson, who was again in motion with fresh troops, and had encamped upon Catfish Creek, near the present Marion Court House. Our partisan encamped within five miles of him, and there he was joined by Lee on the fourteenth of April.1781This junction alarmed Watson. He destroyed his heavy baggage, wheeled his field-pieces into Cat-fish Creek, and fled precipitately by a circuitous route back to Georgetown. Soon after this, we find MarionMay 1781hanging upon the rear of Lord Rawdon on his
* At this time, Major M'Hraith, with a force about equal to that of Marion's, was met by the latter in swamp near Nelson's Ferry. They prepared for battle, when M'Hraith, who was a humane man, made the chivalric proposition that twenty picked men of each army should meet and fight for victory. It was agreed to; the forty men were drawn up in line and approached each other, when those of M'Hraiths party fell back. The sun went down, and yet they lingered; and at midnight, M'Hraith doubtless considering prudence the better part of valor, decamped, leaving his heavy baggage behind. He was pursued by Colonel Horry early in the morning, but without effect.
Capture of Georgetown.—Attack on British Posts near Charleston.—Battle at Quimby's Creek Bridge
retreat from Nelson's Ferry toward Charleston; and from that time until the siege of Ninety-Six, he was often with Sumter and Colonel Washington, watching the enemy's movements near the Santee and Edisto, and cutting off intelligence and supplies from Cruger.
In June1781Marion took possession of Georgetown, the garrison fleeing down Winyaw Bay after a slight resistance. He could not garrison it, so he moved the stores up the Pedee to his old encampment on Snow's Island, and demolished the military works. Informed that the Loyalists of Charleston had organized, and under Colonel Ball were about to ravage the country south of the Santee, he anticipated them. He drove off the cattle, removed the provisions to a place of safety, laid waste the country, and left nothing but barrenness and desolation in the district menaced by the enemy.
We have observed (page 695) that soon after Greene abandoned his design of attacking Rawdon at Orangeburg, and retired to the High Hills of Santee, he detached Sumter, with Marion, Lee, and other active partisans, to beat up the British posts in the direction of Charleston, drive these hostile detachments to the gates of the city, and cut off all convoys of supplies for the British troops on the Edisto. The chief object to be gained was to cause Rawdon to abandon Orangeburg and hasten to the relief of Charleston. Sumter was the commander-in-chief of this expedition. As he approached Monk's Corner, he divided his little army into separate detachments. Among the subordinate commanders of these were Horry, Mayham, Taylor, the Hamptons, and James. The garrison at Dorchester, first attacked, made no resistance to Colonel Lee, who also captured, at about the same time, all the wagons and wagon horses belonging to a convoy of provisions; while Colonel Wade Hampton pressed forward to the very lines at Charleston, captured the patrol and guard at the Quarter-house, five miles from the city, and spread terror through the town. He also took fifty prisoners (mounted refugees) at Strawberry Ferry, and burned four vessels laden with valuable stores for the British army.
At Biggin, near Monk's Corner, where Huger's cavalry were surprised more than a year before, was a strong force of about five hundred infantry, one hundred and fifty horse, and a piece of artillery, under Colonel Coates of the British army. Biggin Church, and a redoubt at Monk's Corner, about a quarter of a mile distant, composed the defenses of the garrison. Against these Sumter, Marion, and Lee proceeded. They halted at sunset within a short distance of Coates's camp, with the intention of attacking him early In the morning. Coates, alarmed by the intelligence brought by his patrols, that one half of Greene's army, with all the partisan officers of the South, were upon him, decamped during the night, set fire to Biggin Church, so as to destroy stores which he could not carry away, and crossing the head waters of the Cooper River on the eastern side, retreated rapidly toward Charleston. When the blaze of the church was perceived in the American camp, Sumter called his troops to arms and hotly pursued the fugitives. Within a short distance of Quimby's Creek Bridge, eighteen miles from Monk's Corner, the cavalry of Lee and Marion overtook the rear-guard of the flying troops. Dismayed at the near approach of horsemen, they east down their arms without firing a gun, and begged for quarter. Coates had crossed the bridge with his main body, and was waiting for the passage of his rearguard, with the baggage, to destroy the bridge. The planks were already loosened, and every thing was in readiness for its demolition when the American cavalry approached. The brave Armstrong, with a section of Lee's horsemen, dashed across the bridge and fell upon the British guard with a howitzer stationed there for its defense, and drove the artillerists from the gun. The place of contest was a narrow causeway and lane leading to the bridge, and for a short time a close and deadly conflict ensued. Many of the British fled, and Coates and some of his officers were left to fight alone, defended only by a wagon. Another section of the eavalry, under Carrington, followed close upon Armstrong, and leaping the chasm formed by the casting down of some loose planks by the hoofs of Armstrong's horses, joined in the close combat with the enemy. Lee had now gained the bridge, where Captain O'Neil, with the third section, had halted. Captain Mayham, of Marion's cavalry, dashed by them, when his horse was shot under him. The chasm had been widened by
Severe Battle above Quimby's Creek Bridge.—Public Services and Execution of Colonel Hayne
the passage of Carrington's troops, and all Lee's efforts to repair the breach were ineffectual. The stream was too deep to ford, and the shores too muddy to land if the horses had swam it, and, consequently, a victory so nearly secured had to be abandoned. Coates, with his recaptured howitzer, retreated to a strong two-story house and other buildings a little further up the stream, into which many of his soldiers had fled at the first attack. There he was assailed by Sumter and Marion, between three and four o'clock in the afternoon, and a severe battle was waged for three hours. Darkness, and the failure of the powder of the patriots, terminated the contest. Fifty of Marion's brigade were killed or wounded, and seventy of the British fell. Coates held his position, and Sumter, informed of the approach of Rawdon, collected his own immediate forces, crossed the Santee, and joined Greene upon the High Hills, while Marion remained lower down upon the river to watch the movements of the enemy.
It was at about this time, while the army of General Greene was in repose near the Wateree, that the execution of Colonel Isaac Hayne, a leading Whig of South Carolina, took place at Charleston; an event which, in the opinion of the Americans, and of just men in Europe, marked the character of the British officer in command at Charleston with the foul stain of dishonor and savage cruelty. * The patriots were greatly exasperated by it, and
* Isaac Hayne was a highly respected and well-beloved citizen of South Carolina. He was among the early patriots of that state who took the field, and at the siege of Charleston, in 1780, he served in a company of mounted militia, and at the same time was a member of the State Legislature. His corps was not in the city, but operated in the open country, in the rear of the besiegers, consequently it was not included in the capitulation. After that event his command was dispersed, and be returned to his family and estate, near the Edisto. Believing that the wisest policy for him to pursue was to go to Charleston, surrender himself a prisoner, and take his parole like others, he repaired thither. He was too confiding in the honor of the conquerors, for, knowing him to be a man of influence, the commandant refused the privilege, and told him that he must either become a British subject or submit to close confinement. He would gladly have endured imprisonment, but he could not bear the thought of leaving his family exposed to the insults of marauders, and the pestilence of small-pox, then spreading over the lower country. He consulted his friend, Dr. Ramsay, the historian, who was himself a prisoner in Charleston, and, influenced by family affection, he accepted a British protection upon the humiliating terms proposed by Clinton in his second and cruel proclamation, and took the oath of allegiance. He was assured by Patterson, the deputy British commandant in Charleston, that he would not be called upon to take up arms for the king, "For," he said, "when the regular forces of his majesty need the aid of the inhabitants for the defense of the province, it will be high time for them to leave it."
* Colonel Hayne was often called upon by subordinate officers to take up arms for the king, but steadily refused. When, in 1781, Greene approached with a Continental army, and the partisan troops had swept royal power from almost every place where it had planted its heel of military subjugation, Colonel Hayne felt released from his oath of allegiance, because its conditions were such that its obligations ceased when royal rule should be suppressed. When again summoned (as he was peremptorily, while his wife was upon her dying bed) to repair, with arms, to the British camp at Charleston, he again refused. He did more; he buckled on his armor, repaired to the American camp, and, forswearing his forced allegiance to the British erown, he pledged his life to the defense of his country. With a troop of horse, accompanied by Colonel Harden, he scoured the country toward Charleston, and captured General Andrew Williamson, a former efficient patriot, but now aetive in the British service. When intelligence of the event reached the city, a troop of cavalry was sent in pursuit of Hayne. A battle ensued, and the patriot was made a prisoner and conveyed to Charleston. Colonel Nesbit Balfour, a proud, vain, and ambitious man, was then the commandant. He knew that the surest road to distinction was rigor toward the rebels. He chose to consider Hayne a traitor, because he had signed an oath of allegiance, and then took up arms against the king. Here was an opportunity for Balfour to distinguish himself, and Hayne was east into the provost prison, and kept there until Rawdon arrived from Orangeburg. He was then taken before a court of inquiry, where neither the members nor the witnesses were sworn. The whole proceeding was a mockery, for Rawdon and Balfour had prejudged him worthy of death. Without even the form of a trial, he was condemned to be hung. No one, not even the prisoner, supposed that such cruelty was contemplated, until the sentence was made public, and he had but two days to live! The men of the city pleaded for him; the women signed petitions, and went in troops and upon their knees implored a remission of his sentence. His sister, Mrs. Peronneau, with his orphan children (for his wife was in her grave), clad in deep mourning, knelt in supplication before his judges, but in vain. Rawdon and Balfour were inexorable, and on the thirty-first of July, 1781, one of the purest patriots and most amiable of men was hung upon a gibbet. Like Andre, he asked to be shot as a soldier, but this boon was denied him. Thirty-two years afterward, Lord Rawdon, in a letter to General Henry Lee (see his Memoirs, page 459), attempted to excuse his want of humanity, by pleading the justice of the sentence. But the denunciations of the Duke of Richmond at the time, in the House of Lords, and the truth of history, have given the whole transaction the stamp of barbarism.
Skirmish at Parker's Ferry.—Retreat of the British from Eutaw.—Attack on British Posts near Charleston.
General Greene gave the British commander notice that he would retaliate when opportunity should offer, not by the sacrifice of misguided Tories, but of British officers. He soon had power to exhibit terrible retribution, but happily, actuated by a more humane policy, Greene hesitated; the beams of peace soon appeared in the horizon, and bloody human sacrifices were prevented.
Here let us resume the general narrative of events in the South not already related, from the time of the encampment of Greene upon the High Hills of Santee, in 1781, until the evacuation of Charleston by the British the following year.
We have noticed on page 705, that Greene's camp upon the Hills was broken up on the eighteenth of November, and the remnants of his diminished army were put in motion toward Charleston. Already intelligence of the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown had reached him, and the day of its arrivalOct. 30was made jubilant by the army. In the mean while, Marion was operating with vigor. He suddenly disappeared from the Santee upon one of his secret expeditions, and as suddenly was seen sweeping across the country in the direction of the Edisto, on his way to relieve Colonel Harden, who was closely pressed near Parker's Ferry, a few miles above Jacksonborough, in Colleton District, by a British force of five hundred men, under Major Fraser. That officer's camp was at the ferry. Marion prepared an ambuscade, and then sent out some of his swiftest horses with experienced riders to decoy his enemy into the snare. Fraser, with his cavalry, fell into the ambuscade in a narrow place, and was terribly handled.Aug. 30, 1781The sure rifles of Marion's men thinned his ranks, and had not their ammunition failed them, they would have accomplished a complete victory. For the want of powder, they were obliged to retire at the moment when the palm was offered to them. The loss of the British was severe, while Marion was not bereft of a man. He had succeeded in rescuing Harden, and as we have seen (page 699), obedient to the call of Greene, hastened toward the Santee and joined the American army at Laurens's plantation,Sept. 7, 1781when pressing on toward Eutaw.
After the great battle at that place, and his pursuit of Stewart, Marion encamped in the deep recesses of a cane-brake on Santee River Swamp, and awaited an occasion again to go forth to action.
The British commander, ignorant of the weakened condition of Marion's brigade, * and the great diminution of Greene's army, was alarmed when he was informed that the latter had crossed the Congaree, and was again pressing on toward Eutaw. He struck his tents and hastened toward Charleston. Perceiving this movement, Greene left his army while on its march from the Santee Hills, and at the head of two hundred cavalry and as many infantry moved rapidly toward Charleston. The garrison at Dorchester, more than six hundred strong, advised of his approach, went out to meet him. But so sudden and vigorous was the charge of Colonel Hampton, of the advance, that the enemy wheeled and fled in great confusion to their camp. Believing the whole army of Greene to be near, they destroyed all the public property, cast their cannons into the Ashley, and then fled toward Charleston, closely pursued. At the Quarter-house they were joined by Stewart's forces, retreating by another road, and all hastened to the city gates. Terror spread through the town. The bells were rung, alarm guns were fired, and every friend of the crown was called to the defense of the city. Greene's object was accomplished; the British outposts, were driven in, and he hastened to join his army, now encamped at Round O, not far from the Four Holes' Creek, forty or fifty miles from the city. Marion and his men lingered around the head waters of the Cooper to watch the enemy, and prevent his incursions beyond Charleston Neck. St. Clair had driven the British from Wilmington, and only Charles-
* After the battle at Eutaw, Marion was re-enforced by detachments of mountain men, under Colonels Shelby and Sevier, the heroes of King's Mountain, and with them he confidently took the field. He attacked the British outpost at Fairlawn, while the main body, under Stewart, were encamped behind redoubts at Wappetaw and Wantoot. The attack upon Fairlawn was successful. The garrison, and three hundred stand of arms, with provisions and stores, were the spoils of victory. Encouraged by this success, Marion prepared for other enterprises, when the Mountaineers, after about three weeks' service, suddenly left him and returned to the upper country. No satisfactory reason for this movement has ever been given.
Re establishment of Civil Government.—Change in public Sentiment.—Waning of British power.—Mutiny.
ton and Savannah, with their respective dependencies, now remained in undisputed possession of the Royalists.
Governor Rutledge, with his accustomed energy, now prepared to re-establish civil government. He first offered conditional pardon to Tories and others who should join the American army. Hundreds came from the British lines and eagerly accepted the governor's clemency. Writs for an election of representatives were issued, and in January, 1782, a Republican Legislature convened at Jacksonborough, on the Edisto, thirty-five miles below Charleston.
Hope dawned upon the future of the South, and the bowed head of Republicanism was lifted up. General Leslie, the chief-commandant in Charleston, perceived the change in the aspeet of affairs, with alarm, and sent out proclamations, filled with promises and menaces, to counteract the movements of the patriots. It was too late. The people perceived the waning of British power as the area of its action was diminished, and promises and threats were alike unheeded. The army of Greene drew near to Jacksonborough, and encamped upon the Charleston road, six miles below the town. Thus protected, the Legislature acted freely and judiciously, and from that time the civil power met with no obstructions.
John's Island was yet occupied by the enemy, under the command of Major Craig, who had been driven from Wilmington. Greene resolved to expel them. An expedition for the purpose was intrusted to Lieutenant-colonel Laurens, a son of Henry Laurens, who had lately come from the field of victory at Yorktown. Lee was his second in command. An attempt was made, on the night of the thirteenth of January,1782to surprise and capture the garrison of five hundred men, but the miscarriage of a part of their plan deprived them of their anticipated victory. Yet the design was not abandoned. A large body of Greene's army moved forward, and Craig, taking counsel of his fears, abandoned the island, and fled, with his troops, to Charleston. A few prisoners, and provisions and stores of the camp, were the spoils of victory. Still further secure, the Legislature now labored industriously and without fear. Confiscation laws were enacted; the currency was regulated; general laws for the future government of the state were adopted; and a bill was originated for presenting to General Greene, in consideration of his services, the sum of ten thousand guineas. * They closed their labors by electing John Matthews governor.
From this time until the evacuation of Charleston, military operations were confined to attempts on the part of the British to procure supplies from the country, and opposition thereto by the patriots. In these operations, Marion's brigade was conspicuous. Elected to a seat in the Assembly at Jacksonborough, he left it in command of Colonel Hurry. Previous to his departure, he had a severe skirmish, near Monk's Corner, with three hundred regulars and Loyalists, who came up from Charleston to surprise him. He repulsed them, but soon afterward, while he was absent, a larger force, under Colonel Thompson (the celebrated Count Rumford subsequently), attacked his brigade near the Santee. Fortunately, he arrived during the engagement, but not in time to prevent the defeat and partial dispersion of his beloved troops. The remnant of his brigade rallied around him, and he retired beyond the Santee to reorganize and recruit.
The main armies continued quiet. Each felt too weak to attempt to disturb the other. Leslie's condition was far worse than Greene's. Confined within the city, provisions soon became scarce, while the flight of Tories to the town increased the demand. Greene had ample provisions, and moving forward, encamped near the head of the Ashley, within twenty miles of the enemy's lines. Unable to damage the Americans in warfare, the British employed stratagem and bribery to weaken their power. Emissaries came into camp, and a mutinous spirit was engendered. A scheme was planned to abduct Greene, and convey him to Charleston. It was discovered twenty-four hours before it ripened, and was crushed. The conspirators were of the Pennsylvania line. Gornell, the leader, was executed, and
* This example was imitated by the Legislatures of North Carolina and Georgia. The former voted him five thousand guineas, and the latter twenty-four thousand acres of land.
Operations of a Spy.—War declared ended by Parliament—Abduction of Governor Burke.
four of his known companions in crime were sent, guarded, up to Orangeburg. The demon of discord was seen no more, and the British made no further attempts to arouse it.
Early in April, Marion, with a considerable force, was sent to "keep watch and ward" over the country between the Cooper and Santee Rivers. A Scotchman, pretending to be a deserter, came out from the city, visited Marion, and passed on unsuspected toward the Scotch settlements on the Pedee. Soon an insurrection appeared in that quarter, and Marion was informed that Major Gainey, for the third time, was gathering the Tories. The pretended deserter was a spy, and, by false representations of the power of the British and weakness of the Americans, he called the Highlanders to arms. The spy was caught and hanged while returning to Charleston, and before Gainey could organize his recruits, Marion fell upon him. More than five hundred Loyalists laid down their arms, and Gainey, thoroughly humbled, joined the ranks of Marion. *
While the theater of war was thus narrowing, British statesmen of all parties, considering the capture of Cornwallis and his army as the death-blow to all hope for future conquests, turned their attention to measures for an honorable termination of the unnatural war. General Conway, the firm and long-tried friend of the Americans, offered a resolution in Parliament in February,1782which was preliminary to the enactment of a decree for commanding the cessation of hostilities. It was lost by onlyone vote.Thus encouraged, the opposition pressed the subject warmly upon the attention of the House of Commons and the nation, and on the fourth of March, Conway moved "That the House would consider as enemies to his majesty and the country all those who should advise, or by any means attempt, the further prosecution of offensive war on the Continent of North America." The resolution was carried without a division, and the next day the attorney general introduced a plan for a truce with the Americans. Lord North, after an administration of affairs, as prime minister, for twelve years, finding himself in the minority, resigned the seals of office.March 20, 1782Orders for a cessation of hostilities speedily went forth to the British commanders in America, and preparations were soon made for evacuating the cities of Savannah and Charleston.
When General Leslie was apprised of these proceedings in Parliament, he proposed to General Greene a cessation of hostilities in the South. That officer, like a true soldier, refused to meddle in civil affairs, and referred the matter to the Continental Congress, the only competent tribunal to decide. Of course there must be a delay of several weeks, and while no important military movement was made by the main army of either party, each was as vigilant as if an active campaign was in progress.
On the thirteenth of August, Leslie, in general orders, declared his intention of evacuating Charleston, and sent a flag to Greene with a request that he might be allowed to receive and purchase supplies from the planters. ** Greene refused his acquiescence, for it
* Among the insurgents was the notorious David Fanning, a Loyalist of North Carolina. He was one, of the most desperate and brutal of the Tory leaders, and at one time had command of almost a thousand marauders like himself. He became a terror to the people of central North Carolina. He captured many leading Whigs, and took them to Craig, at Wilmington. On the thirteenth of September, 1781, he and his associate, Hector M'Neil, with their followers, entered Hillsborough, carried off the governor, Thomas Burke,* and other prominent Whigs, and hastened with them toward Wilmington. They were intercepted by a party under General Butler, and a severe skirmish ensued at Lindley's Mill, on Cane Creek. Fanning was wounded, but successfully retreated with his prisoners to Wilmington. After the defeat here mentioned, on the Pedee, Fanning went to Charleston, and accompanied the Tories who fled to Nova Scotia, where he died in 1825.
9787
* Greene's army now covered a fertile district, where wealth abounded, and prevented foraging and plundering where the enemy had generally found the best supplies. Perceiving their homes thus secured, many of the families returned from exile, and every where the board of hospitality was wide spread to their deliverers. The rugged features of war were soon changed by the refinements of social life, and the soldiers, who had been battling for years among desolated homes or the dark wilderness, felt that a paradise was gained. The wife of General Greene reached his camp at the close of March, and was every where caressed. The officers were greeted at numerous social gatherings, and the charms of many a fair daughter of the sunny South subdued hearts which never quailed before an enemy. In the district occupied by the army, were many wealthy, beautiful, and accomplished women, and "many," says Johnson, in his Life of Greene, "were the matrimonial connections to which this period gave rise between the officers of the army and the heiresses of Carolina and Georgia."
* Thomas Burke was one of the purest patriots of the South. He was a native of Ireland; came in early life to Virginia, and in 1774 settled as practicing lawyer, in Hillsborough, North Carolina. He was one of the earliest Republican legislators in the state. He was a member of the Provincial Congress at Halifax in 1776, and of the Continental Congress, from 1777 till 1781, when he was chosen governor of his state. After his capture by Fanning, he was sent to Charleston, and kept closely guarded, upon John's Island, when Craig commanded there. He escaped, and in 1782 resumed his official duties. He died at Hillsborough in 1783.
British attempts to collect Provisions.—Vigilance of Greene.—Skirmishes on the Combahee.—Death of Laurens.
would tend to nourish a viper, perhaps yet disposed to sting. Leslie replied that he should obtain supplies by force, for it was necessary to have them before putting to sea. This menace gave activity to the camp of Greene, for he resolved to oppose with spirit every attempt of the enemy to penetrate the country. General Gist, with a strong force, was advanced to the Stono, and spread defensive corps, under good officers, southward to the Combahee, while Marion was instructed to keep watch over the region of the Lower Santee. Rapidly, and in wide circuits, that partisan, with his cavalry, scoured the region between the Sampit and the Santee, and sometimes he would sweep down the country, all the way to Cainboy and Haddrell's Point. Some warm skirmishes occurred, but he effectually kept the enemy at bay in that quarter.
Anxious to leave Charleston, where famine stood menacing the army and civilians, Leslie resolved to make a bold effort to penetrate the country by the Combahee, for little could be effected in the region guarded by Marion. He accordingly sent a large party thither in armed boats and schooners, where they arrived on the 25th of August, and passed up directly toward the head of the stream. Gist, with about three hundred cavalry and infantry, hastened to oppose the invaders, leaving Colonel Laurens with a guard near Wappoo, to watch the movements of the enemy in Charleston. Laurens, burning with a desire for active service, left a sick-bed and followed Gist. He overtook him upon the north bank of the Combahee, near the ferry, and at his earnest solicitation he was detached to the extreme end of Chehaw Neck, to garrison a small redoubt cast up there for the purpose of annoying the British when they should return down the river. With fifty light infantry, some matrosses, and a howitzer, Laurens moved down the river,August 26, 1782and halted at the house of Mrs. Stock, within a short distance of the point. At three o'clock in the morning he resumed his march. He had proceeded but a short distance, when a picket of the enemy was perceived, and at the same moment a large detachment, which lay concealed in the high fennel grass, arose and delivered a murderous fire. They had been informed of the march of Laurens, and landing on the north shore of the Combahee, concealed themselves in ambush by the road side. Laurens saw the danger of a retreat, and had no alternative but to surrender or fight. His brave spirit could not brook the former, and leading the way, he made an energetic charge upon the foe. The step was fatal to the young commander; he fell at the first fire. Captain Smith of the artillery was also slain, the howitzer was seized by the enemy, and the whole American force turned and fled in confusion. The fugitives were pursued a short distance, when Gist, with a considerable force, confronted the victors. They recoiled for a moment, but soon recovered, and a severe combat ensued. The British fell back to their boats, and the field of strife was the field of victory for the Americans; yet it was dearly won. Many unnamed patriots fell, and in the death of Laurens the country lost one of its most promising men. * The
* John Laurens was a son of Henry Laurens, president of the Continental Congress in 1777. He joined the army early in 1777, and was wounded in the battle at Germantown. He continued in the army (with the exception of a few months), under the immediate command of Washington, until after the surrender of Cornwallis, in which event he was a conspicuous participant as one of the commissioners appointed to arrange the terms. Early in 1781, he was sent on a special mission to France, to solicit a loan of money and to procure arms. He was successful, and on his return received the thanks of Congress. Within three days after his arrival in Philadelphia, he had settled all matters with Congress, and departed for the army in the South, under Greene. There he did good service, and was killed on the Combahee, on the twenty-seventh of August, 1781, when he was but twenty-nine years of age. Washington, who made him his aid, loved him as a child. He declared that he could discover no fault in him, unless it was intrepidity, bordering on rashness. "Poor Laurens," wrote Greene, "has fallen in a paltry little skirmish. You knew his temper, and I predicted his fate. The love of military glory made him seek it upon occasions unworthy his rank. The state will feel his loss." He was buried upon the plantation of Mrs. Stock, in whose family he spent the evening previous to his death in cheerful conversation. A small inclosure, without a stone, marks his grave.
Last Blood shed in the Revolution.—Evacuation of Charleston.—Revolutionary Localities near.
British succeeded in carrying off a large quantity of provisions and plunder from the Combahee, and from Beaufort and the neighboring islands. They made no other attempt to procure supplies, but applied themselves diligently to preparations for leaving Charleston. Kosciuszko, who was placed in command of Laurens's corps, watched Charleston Neck, and detachments guarded the passes of the Stono. In this latter service the last blood of the Revolution was shed. *
The evacuation of Charleston took place on the fourteenth of December.1782Leslie had leveled the walls of Charleston and demolished Fort Johnson, and on the morning of the thirteenth, the American army crossed the Ashley, and slowly approached the city, according to previous arrangements with Leslie. At daylight the next morning the British marched to Gadsden's Wharf, and embarked. At eleven o'clock an American detachment took formal possession of the town, and at three in the afternoon General Greene escorted Governor Mathews and other civil officers to the Town Hall. From windows, balconies, even housetops, the troops were greeted with cheers, waving of handkerchiefs, and cries, "God bless you, gentlemen! Welcome! welcome!" Before night the British squadron (about three hundred sail) crossed the bar, and the last speck of canvas of that hostile array glittered far out upon the ocean in the parting beams of the sun that evening. The cool starry night which succeeded was one of great joy to the people, and the dawn of the morrow was that of a long and bright day for the emancipated state. Generosity succeeded revengeful feelings; confiscation acts were repealed; Loyalists were forgiven, on repentance, and those who had adhered to royal rule as the least of two evils, rejoiced in the glories of the happy days of freedom and prosperity which succeeded.
Here let us close the chronicles of the war in the Southern States, and depart for the North.
On the morning of the day when I departed from Charleston,Jan. 29, 1849the sun came up from the sea bright and unclouded, and I could not have wished for a lovelier day to visit places of note in Charleston and vicinity. I had already been out to theLines, and the old ship-yard and magazines on Cooper Raver, with Reverend Dr. Smythe. The scars of the former are yet visible in several places upon the Neck, and a portion of the citadel, a remnant of the "horn work," survives the general wreck of the military works about Charleston. It was just at sunset when we passed through a beautiful avenue of live oaks, draped with moss, to view the ruins of the magazines and officers' quarters, among thick shrubbery and tangled vines near the banks of the river, about four miles above the city. A little to the northwest of these ruins is an ancient burial-ground, on the verge of a deep morass. The tall trees, pendent moss, silent ruins, and deep shadows of night fast hovering over the scene, gave the place a tinge of romance, thrilling and sad. On our way to this interesting spot we turned aside, about a mile and a half nearer the town, to view a venerable and lordly magnolia, under whose spreading branches tradition avers General Lincoln held a council of officers during the siege in 1780. Incredible as it may ap-
* Captain Wilmot, a brave young officer, who commanded a company detailed for the purpose of covering John's Island, impatient of inaction, often crossed the river to harass British foraging parties on the island. While engaged in one of these excursions, in company with Kosciuszko, he fell into an ambuscade and was killed. This occurred in September, 1782, and was, it is believed, the last life sacrificed in battle.
** Preparatory to the evacuation, commissioners were appointed to make arrangements to prevent the carrying away of slaves on the departure of the British. All was made satisfactory; but the promises of the enemy were shamefully violated. Moultrie says that more than eight hundred slaves, employed on the works in the city, were sent to the West Indies and sold. It has been estimated that between the years 1775 and 1783 the state of South Carolina was robbed of twenty-five thousand negroes, valued at about twelve million five hundred thousand dollars.
Destruction of the "Council Tree."—Departure from Charleston.—Wilmington.—British Occupation there.
pear, the owner of the land, and of the house shaded by the tree wherein he and his mother were born, had just felled it for fire-wood.
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Instead of being its destroyer, who, in like circumstances, would not have been its defender? and when rude hands were laid upon it,
"Woodman, spare that tree!
Touch not a single bough!
In youth it sheltered me,
And I'll protect it now.
'Twas my forefather's hand
That placed it near his cot;
There, woodman, let it stand,
Thy ax shall harm it not! "—Morris.
I sketched the venerable house near by, the property of Colonel William Cummington during the Revolution, and marking the position of the stump of the magnolia, preserved for posterity a sketch of what tradition calls theCouncil Tree, with its surroundings.
It was on the bright and balmy day of my departure that I visited Sullivan's Island, and made the sketch printed on page 757. From thence I crossed over to Haddrell's Point (now Point Pleasant), and after passing an hour there, where so many of the brave patriots of South Carolina suffered a long imprisonment, I returned by steam-boat to the city. There are no remains of revolutionary fortifications at Point Pleasant, and it is now famous in the minds of the citizens of Charleston only as a delightful summer resort.
At three o'clock in the afternoon I left Charleston for home, in a steam-packet bound to Wilmington, bearing with me many mementoes of the war for independence at the South, and filled with pleasing recollections of a journey of several weeks among the inhabitants of that sunny land where I had enjoyed the hospitality and kindness of true Republicans, keenly alive to the reflected glory of their patriot fathers, and devotedly attached to the free institutions of our common country, the fruits of a happy union.
The waters of the harbor were unruffled by a breeze, and I anticipated a delightful voyage to the Capo Fear; but as the city and fortifications receded, and we crossed the bar to the broad bosom of the Atlantic, we found it heaving with long, silent undulations, the effects of the subsiding anger of a storm. Sea-sickness came upon me, and I went supperless to my berth, where I remained until we were fairly within the mouth of the Cape Fear, at Smith's Island, on the following morning. The low wooded shores of Carolina approached nearer and nearer, and at eight o'clock we landed at the ancient town of Wilmington, on the eastern side of the Cape Fear.
I contemplated spending a day at Wilmington, but circumstances requiring me to hasten homeward, I was there only during the hour while waiting for the starting of the rail-way cars for the North. I had but little opportunity to view the town, where Republicanism was most rife on the sea-board of North Carolina before and during the Revolution; but by the kindness of friends there, especially of Edward Kidder, Esq., I am enabled to give, traditionally and pictorially all that I could have possibly obtained by a protracted visit.
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Already I have noticed many stirring events here during the earlier years of the war; it now remains for me to notice only the British occupation.
When, toward the close of 1780, Cornwallis prepared to move from his encampment at Winnsborough, toward North Carolina, he directed Colonel Balfour, at Charleston, to dispatch a sufficient force to take possession of Wilmington, that he might have a sea-port for supplies, while in that state. Major James H. Craig (who was governor general of Canada in 1807) was sent with four hundred regulars to perform
Craig at Wilmington.—His Flight.—Journey Homeward.—Arrival in New York.
that service. He took possession of the town without much resistance, toward the close of January, 1781. He immediately fortified himself, using the Episcopal church, a strong brick edifice (of the front of which the engraving is a correct view), for a citadel.