Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1875-04-08

near them, induced Sayle and his men to leave
Port Royal and seek some other locality less
exposed to Spanish cruelty. In April, they
landed OH high land on the west side of the
Keawaw, as the Ashley river was then called
A settlement was commenced at this point, IN
earnest A fortifcation was built and ditch
dug around the settlement This was wise
precaution, and, in all probability, saved this
infant colony from experiencing the same suf
ferings and meeting the same tragcal fate
which had befallen La Caroline. But a short
time after the settlement had commenced, a
Spanish vessel was sent out by the authorities
at St. Augustine to extermnate this English
colony. The vessel entered Stono inlet, but
finding that they were too late-the English
having fortified themselves-they concluded
that it was best to leave the colony undisturbed
and return to St. Augustine. This attempted
invasion, on the part of the Spaniards, seems
strange, when we remember that England and
Spain were at peace.
The hardships which the new settlers were
called to endure were too much for Governor
Sayle. He sickened and died, leaving the
government in the hands Of Joseph West
The spot that contains the dust of the first
Governor of the State is unknown. No mon
umental slab marks his final resting place
Where or how West succeeded Sayle it is i'm
possible, at this late date, to say. All that we
certainly know u.s. that on the 10th of April
1871, the will of Sayle was, upon oath, proved
by Paul Smith and Joseph Dalton before Jo'
seph West as Governor of the province Of
Carolina.
With the landing of Sayle commences the
history of South Carolina. 1t cannot be 9th
erwise than interesting to the inhabitants OF
the State of the present day to know some
thing about this germ, which has, amid mul'
titude of disasters, grown to be great State,
sending out colonists at various times to settle
up the rich lands of the West and Northwest
Charles the Second of England, granted
permission to Edward, Earl of Clarendon and
his colleagues, to plant colony in South
Carolina, and that was all. The company
supplied everything else. Their vessels were
furnished, together with considerable num-
ber of able men, how many we do not know
provisions for year and half, clothes, tools,
ammunition, and everything else thought neces.
sary, by the proprietors alone. The sum in
vested in the undertaking, amounted to about
fifty thousand dollars. The avowed purpose,
which the propretors had in view, was to
spread the gospel amongst the aborigines, but
there are many unmistakable evidences that
there was at least something merceuary in
their designs. They expected the money ex'
pended in planting the colony to be first,
class investment.
1t would be interesting to know all the
hardships which this noble band of pioneers
suffered, and all the triumphs which they
achieved; ; but although it is only a little more
than two hundred years ago, much that trans
pired in the infancy of the colony is lost
Even the names of most of them are hopeless
ly forgotten. The spot on which they first
settled has passed through various hands, and
is now in part the wharf, railroad track and
grounds of the Charleston and Savannah
railroad company.
From the frst the colony fourished and
increased. The Constitution of the Colony
breathed spirit of universal and absolute
toleration," in things pertaining to religion
Provision was made in the charter granted by
Charles, for the establishing ofchurches by the
Dissenters. The articles Of the "Fundamen'
tai Constitutions" also provided that an effort
he made to Christianize the Indians. All the
liberty of conscience was granted, by both the
King and proprietors, which any reasonable
individual could desire, unless it be objected
that it was further provided, that "no person
above the age of seventeen years, shall have
any benefit or protection of the law, who is
not member of some Church or Profession
having his name recorded in some one
religious record" This, it is admitted, is
Objectionable, since it, for the sake of protec.
ton, forced persons to join some church
whether they were converted or not. We
must take into consideration all the crcum-
stances of the case, before we condemn too
harshly. In fact, the religious liberty granted
to the Carolina colony, is one of the most
wonderful facts recorded in history. We see
those same men, who, for their native country
had enacted what they called the "Bill OF
Uniformity" and, in the enforcing Of said
BILL had silenced John Owen and sent Rich
ard Baxter and John Bunyan to prison, per-
hitting each individual in the colony to wor.
ship God in that way which, to himself, ap'
peared most agreeable to the Divine will as
revealed in the Bible.
In order to understand this thing, we must
know something of the men to whom the
grant was made, and we must also have a
knowledge of the history Of the times. For
many years previous to the settlement OF
South Carolina, the nations Of Europe had
been in disturbed state France and Eng
land, the only two nations that made any Sc
rous efforts to plant colonies in the New
World had, for period of more than one
hundred years, been lacerated by the bitter
feuls which existed amongst themselves. In
each of these Kingdoms, citizen had been ar
rayed against citizen. The waters of the riv'
ers had been tinged and the soil made rich
with the blood of the slain. In each country
Protestants and Catholics had arrayed them.
selves against each other in deadly hostility
No less bitter had been the contest between
the Protestants of different creeds. This sys'
tenn of persecution existed during the reign of
Elizabeth, and was continued in the time OF
James the First. 1t eliminated in the reigns
of the two Charles of England, and Louis the
Fourteenth of France Victory sometimes
perched upon the banner of one party and
sometimes on the banner of another. Charles
the First was beheaded, and Charles the Sec
ond was driven into exile Cromwell estab'
lished Commonwealth which lasted whilst
he lived, and when he died, his Commonwealth
died. Charles the Second was brought from
his exile and seated upon the throne of his
fathers. The people were tired of war. TO
escape the vengeance Of the restored sovereign,
the judges who condemned Charles the First,
had fled to America. Other persons did the
same thing; whilst some who were regarded as
implicated in that deed, remained in Eng land
and suffered the extreme penalty of the law.
A few were, through the clemency of the