The Connecticut courant, and the weekly intelligencer — Hartford [Conn.], 1781-08-28 00:00:00, page 2

r^. TO t\>fe poor, onfortune men, their practice was
% % !:r them, to aboat o:e hunted and one, into a weigh
hya’c, much fiich a one as those at an English turnpike ;
here they were allowed at firft to take some baggage; but
the mod tender of all charities, that of parent and husband,
were co be diilolvea, and they were compelled to relinquish
their families. They demanded what time they were to de
part, they were 1 ifwered on the morrow ; and on asking
^here to, they were not informed. Their cloaths which
they had on were ripped open, their portmanteaus and par
cels feirched, and upwards of eight thoufanU pounds plunder
edfromthem. The next aR was cofend away thirty of them
to the iiland of St. Christopher's; the remainder, by a pecu
liarity of indulgence, were permitted to Ray. The Ameri
cans followed, the French fuacceded; then the Dutch, and
then British. Sir George Rodney received a petition from
fl committe of St. Christopher's, to which his aafwer was,
in reply to a Rating, that they hi I the authority of afts of
Parliament, that he had come to make war, and war he had
made ; —that to the alls of Parliament they were framed
by factious persons in England. He then Rated, that the
Granada ad was proposed by Lord Beauchamp and Sir Grey
Cooper. The other aßsMiniftry look on as the great fup
porc of the trade.—He then Rated, as the law of nations,
rhe authority of Vettel; for war having taken a smoother
appearance, and from the unfortunate fubjed, attended only
to the offending Sovereign.
He said this, asthelaft authority, was always ofmoft con
sequence, and preferable co every name which may have had
a Latin termination ; the best precedent, too, was the left
on the capture of Grenada. There die example given by
the French King was well worthy of imitation. He Rated
the * contradiaorinefs of the Racute law to the business of St.
Buftatius, pointed out some instances offevere injuries hap
pening to perlons here, by the conduct of Sir George Rod
ney. He concluded his speech by a motion.
" That a humble address be presented tohis Majesty, pray
" ing chat lie will be graciously pleased to order his Mini
s' fters to lav before the house, copies of all letters, papers
'' and correspondences, officially received from the Weft
" Indies, relative to the capture of St. Euftatius, and other
" Dutch islands in chose parts."
Mr. Stanley fnpposted the motion, and charged the mem
bers for Liverpool with having neglected a petition sent to
them from their constituents.
Mr. Gafcoigne, member for Liverpool, exculpated himfelf
by faying, that he had confuted with his colleague, and they
both agreeing one was too violent, had sent it back by ex
f>refs. Th it he had delivered anotherto the noble Lord be
ow him (Lord George Germaine) and he had information,
that it had been sent to the proper person. He said, he was
not prepared to argue the qutltion, but had formed a hope,
that better authorities than verbal assurances, or a detail of
well told misfortunes, would have been adduced.
Mr. Rawlinfoh, the other member for Liverpool, agreed
in general with Mr. Gafcoigne, as to the petition, but dif
fered as to his opinion of the motion, which he thought
well founded.
The Honorable Captain John Lutterell, (the conquerer of
Omoa) then spoke against the motion ; he chiefly observed,
that if the papers now called for were produced to the house,
they might be the innocent means, by a mifeonftraaion, of
Calumniating the characters of the brave and fortunate Ad
miral and General, and he ever did, and always should* ?-
probate any attempt to ittick or even examine into the con
duß ofany person in his absence, more especially when
th it absence was occasioned by his serving his country ; and
he believed no person would attempt to fa, that the Hon.
Admiral and General had not served their country, and that
too moR essentially ; and while of course they were'prevent
cd exculpating themfeves, or aligning those motives, for
their conduct, which if present they would be enabled to do.
Mr. Lutterell alfp added, that the laying before the house
in the absence of those gentlemen, the papers called for by
the motion, might be the means of creating disturbances be
tween the commanders and their refpe&ive officers ; he
therefore oje&ed to the motion.
Lord George Germaine rote chiefly to corroborate what had
been said by the two members for Liverpool, relative to the
petition from their constituents, which his Lordship having
d me, he proceeded to speak shortly to the question then be
fore the house ; and observed he agreed with the honorable
gentlemen who made the motion, so far that the present
yas a case of a peculiar nature, and certainly demanded the
greafeft attention ; but he could not conceive that the peo
ple who were found on the id rod of St. Euftatius, calling
themselves inhabitants thereof, could exped, or were in the
least entitled to even common lenity, much less that peculi
ar degree the honorable gentleman seemed to fay he thought
ought to have been shewn them, for it was indeed too true, a
great partofthefe people were English, and Riled themselves
fubjed's th the crown of Great- Britain ; But was that a rea
son why lenity ought to be shewn them ? Quite the reverse•
and if any thing could more than another require exemplary
punishment and severity, it was their conduct aggravated by
being English, they who had carried on a contraband trade
rvith the enemies ofthis country, and by the means of that
jfland which was nothing more than a store house or mart
from which all neceflaries were conveyed to our enemies,
and that too by these very people who would now pretend
to confider themselves fubieds of and seek protection from
the very kingdom, which by their unnatural and illicit com
merce they had attempted to deftrefs and ru ; n. For his part,
he considered the conduct of his Majeßy's commanders in
th it part of the worl 1 as highly just, equitable, and meritori
ous ; they had made a difference, and with great propriety,
between those who were ad^ally fubjefts ofthe States Gene
ral, and those, who, allured by the gain ofan unlawful trade,
had traitorously resorted there, and sheltered themselves in
the mod villainous practices under the cover of living in a
neutral Settlement, To the former all lenity had been shewn,
to the, full as much or more than the English experienced
at Grenada : As to the latter, they deferred every degree of
severity that could be inffiaed. He allowed thecondud with
regard to the Jews, was barbarous and cruel; that he was ve
ry well informed, that the whole was done without the pri
vi.y of Sir George Rodney, and that he had given orders, as
so >Q as it came to his knowledge, to hive it amended; that
the gentleman who had given this information was in Lon
don, and ready, if they plcafed, to be examined at the bar.
That as to aiding contrary to law, he had too greats de
PHILADELPHI A, August r 4.
Extract of a letter from. Major General Greene,
dated Head Quarters,.on the High Hills of
Santee, July 17, 17^1.
I Did myfelf the honour to address your Excel
lency on the 22d of June, at Little River,
near Ninety-Six, fince r which we have been
constantly upon the move. In the afternoon of
the 23d I -got .intelligence that the enemy had
crossed the Saluda, .and were advancing rapidly
to attack us. I immediately put the army in mo
tion, having few or no militia with me, and re
tired towards Charlotte, on which rout we had
previously ordered provisions and forage to be
provided. The enemy pursued us two days, but
as our tick, wounded and stores had all been sent
ofF before, they could effea nothing, though
they came on as light as possible, leaving even
their knapsacks and blankets behind them.
The enemyadvanced no farther than the Eno
ree, as we rendered their subsistence difficult, by
dismantling the mills as we retired. On the
morning of the 26th they began to retire to
wards Ninety-fix. We halted near the Cross-
Roads, at a point proper to file off towards the
Congaree, and favorable to return to the siege of
Ninety-fix. As the enemy retreated I kept the
legion close to their heels. Lord Rawdon lay at
Ninety-fix only two days, and then, with a little
more than half his force, he began his march for
the Congaree, leaving Col. Crugerat Ninety-fix
with the remainder. From these appearances it
was evident the enemy intended to hold the post
of Ninety-fix, and re-establish one on the Con
garee, at Friday's ferry. To prevent the enemy
from establishing a post there, and holding their
ground at Ninety-fix (which served to awe the
Georgians and encourage the Indians, who fre
quently committed depredations within thirtyor
forty miles of us) we left our baggage, stores and
invalids behind us atWinnfborough, with orders
to proceed to Camden, and marched the army
with all poflible expedition for the Congarees.
His Lprdfhip arrived there two days before us ;
but, on our approach he retired to Orangeburgh,
with evident marks of precipitation, which dis
covered that our movements were unexpected.
Captain Egglefton, of Lieut. Col. Lec's legion
made a firoke at his horse, which served to en
creafe his fears. Inclofcd is Limt.Col. Lec's re
port of the affair. The address and gallantry of
Captain Egglefton in the affair cannot be too
highly commended.
ference for the legislative authority, and that deference, he
trailed, too well known to give any person authority to sup
pose heshould fatisfy any thing illegal. The law was open
for every person who felt himfelf offended, or injured, and
they might have recourse to it.
Mr. St. Mndrev, St. John answered Lord George, and by re
ferring to St. Christopher's Gazettes, and the proclamations,
orders, &c. issued by Sir Geo-ge Rodney and General
Vaughan, endeavoured to prove that the noble Lord's decla
ration, that those officers were ignorant of the treatment ex
perienced by the Jews, could not be well-founded. Mr. St.
John also said, that the noble Lord had argued, asif the pre
sent motion was merely calculated th impute blame co the
Admiral and General, whereas in fad, it was not intended
to throw blame on any particular individuals, but was in
tended merely to affordthe house an opportunity of inquiring
into the matter, and difeovering whether the faffs, Rated by
the honorable gentleman, who made the motion, were true;
and as blame, in that case, would be unavoidably found to
be imputable foraewhere, to know to whom that blame was
really to be ascribed.
Lord Nugent opposed the motion, and retorted on Mr.
Burke, for his laughable attack on his Lordship last Friday ;
degrading as comparing him to a cat was, he said, it was
railing him one degree above the animal Rate he was con
demned to two years ago, for then he was only a rat. He
said, ifhe was not able to difeharge the total ofhis debt of
wit to Mr. Burke at once, he was resolved not to die an in
solvent debtor, but would pay him a shilling in the pound at
a time, and so get fid of the whole by inftalments.
Mr. Fox made a moR brilliant speech, in which he power
fully attacked the noble Lord at the head of the American
department, and Rrenuoufly fupportedhis honorable friend's
motion. Mr. Fox spoke for near two hours.
The Lord Advocate zealoufty defended &he characters of Sir
George Rodney and General Vaughan from the imputations,
which he insisted upon it had been insinuated against them
in the course of the debate..
Mr. Courtney spoke a warm eulogium on the Admiral and
General; he was called to order by Mr. T. Townsend, for al
luding to the King.
Theother speakers were Mr. Bying, Mr. Bamber Gafcoigne,
fen. Lord Suriy, Sir Thomas Eagerton, General Smith, and
Mr. W. Stanhope.
Mr. Bur{e wound up the whole debate, by an animated
speech of an hour's continuance, in which he repeated all
his former arguments, and added several new ones, contro
verting the strongest of the Lord Advocate's portions with
infinite ability and humour.
The House divided at half past eleven o'clock.
Ayes -— 86
Noes — 160
Majority 74.
The House rose at twelve.
From a persuasion that the enemy would at
tempt to rc-ellablilh themselves at the Congaree,
I had directed Generals Sumpter and Marion to
collet all the force they could and meet me at
that place. I left the army on the march, and
joined the cavalry near the enemy, that I might
the better direct the force to the moll proper
point for operating to advantage.
We got intelligence by an intercepted letter,
that Col. Stewart with a reinforcement, was
convoying a quantity of provisions and stores
from Charleftown to Lord Rawdon. We made
a rapid march with the whole of our cavalry,and
a body of mounted infantry, under General
Marion to intercept them; but unfortunately we
were too late, they formed their junction with
out interruption : However, Col. Horry took 3
of their waggons, which were a little in the rear
loaded with a variety of ilores.
On the arrival of the army at the Congaree,
we eroded and drew our force together at Bea
ver Creek, and General Pickens was detached to
watch the motions of the enemy at Ninety-fix.
With the rest of our force having been joined by
Generals Sumpter and Marion with about loco
men, composed of State troops and militia, we
began our march on the 11th to attack the ene
my atOrangeburgh, and arrived before the place
on the I2fh, but we found them so strong and
advantageously polled, that we had little hopes
of succeeding in an attempt, especially as our
cavalry; from the nature of the ground and pefi
tion of the enemy, could not be brought to a&
to advantage : nor could we have improved a de
feat, as the enemy had a fafe retreat over the
Ediito river,and the only pass defended by a large
Brick jail, not inferior to a strong redoubt. In
this building, and in several others near it, their
troops were polled. Secured on one fide by an
impafuble river, and covered - on the other by
strong buildings, little was to be expected from
an attack.
In this fituatiori we got intelligence of the eva
cuation ofNinety-Six, and that Col. Cruger and
the troops with him were oh their march, in the
forks of the Ediftoe, for Orangeburgh. There
was no poflityity of firiking at him, as the north
branch of Ediftoe, which lay between us, had
no other pass for thirty miles,'eitherabove or be
low, than that which the enemy occupied. As
the evacuation of Ninety-Six was one great ob
je& of our manoeuvre, and as the enemy were
driven from the Congaree, we thought it most ad
vifeable to attack their lower polls at Monk's
Corner and Dorchester ; by which we were in
hopes to force the enemy at Orangebuigh to re
tire into the lower country for the protection of
those posts. Generals Sumpter and Marian,with
the legion cavalry, are detached uponthis service,
and began their march from Orangeburgh on
the 13th, at which time we began our's for this
place to refresh the army,and to form a junction
with General Sumner and a body of militia ex
pelled from Salisbury district. The day after
we left Orangeburgh the enemy formed a junc
tion with the troops from Ninety-Six, and had
made no movements the day before yesterday.
The late reinforcement whicli arrived in
Charleftown amounted to a little more than
2000 men, and had orders only just to call there,
but were not expelled to be wanted; and were
to have gone to the northward. One of the re
giments mutinied a few days firice at Dorchester,
in quelling which near an hundred men were
killed and wounded: It is faidto have arisen from
the nature of the service the men were employed
in, different from what they expelled. They
came over as fcttlers, not as soldiers.
Nothing can equal the cruel ravages of the
enemy in these parts, where they leave thecoun
try. 'I he tories are all ordered down belmrf
Orangeburgh, but I believe few will go ; and I am
happy to hear a far less number have joined the
enemy, in their late movements, than was ex
peaed; The militia on our fide are increasing;
in Georgia a considerable body are collected,and
in readiness to defend the State."
Extract of a letter from Lieut. Col. Lee, dated
July 3.
,“ Knowing the distressed situation of the Bri
tish army, and having learnt that his Lordship
had left a body of his cavalry at Ninety-Six, I de
tached Capt. Armstrong with an additional troop
to reinforce Capt. Egglefton, with advice to pais
the river Saluda, to gain the forage country, and
to seek an opportunity for striking at the enemy's
foragers.
" In the night of the 2d Capt. Eggleflone for
tunately crofted the enemy undiscovered, and