Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1876-05-04

der General Lincoln. Count d'Estaing was, at
this time, in the West Indies, where he had
conquered number of the British possessions
and out-genersled Admiral Byron, Of the
British fleet. Flushed, no doubt, with his
recent victories over the British, and desiring
to make some reparation for his previous fail.
ure in behalf of the American colonies, the
Count gladly complied with the request.
Expecting, with the aid of General Lin
coins army, to annihilate Prevost's forces,
Count d'Estaing set sail from Cape Fran.
co.'s, with twenty ships of the line and eleven
frigates, on board of which were ten regi.
ments of soldiers, amounting to six thousand
men. His point of destination, as previously
agreed upon by him and Lincoln, was Tybee'
Two ships of the line and three frigates COM
manded by Major.General Fontauges were
sent to Charleston to apprise General Lincoln
and Governor Rutisdge of his approach.
General Lincoln set out at once for Savan'
nah. He crossed the Savannah river at
zubly's ferry on the 9th of September. Gov
ernor Rutledge collected all the small boats
that could be procured. and sent them to Sa-
vannah to assist D'Estaing in landing his
troops. On the 18th of September, the French
troops, to the number of three thousand, land.
ed at Beaulien. On the 18th, Count Pulaski
and his legion joined the French, and on the
10th General Lincoln, and the troops under
his command, arrived, and the two allied ar.
mics were Joined in front of the city of sa-
vannah. The enterprise, so far, was, in the
main, we'll conducted. -Four British ships fell
into the hands of the French feet on its ap.
proach to the coast of Georgia. The British
regarded themselves at that time mistress of
the sea, and feared little from the naval forces
of the French. d ..#. ""s
Provost, on the approach Of the French
and American forces, began to make prepars'
tiops, in earnest to defend his post.
D'Estaing's feet appeared off the coast Of
Georgia on the 3rd of September, like an ca
gle from the sky. The four British ships al
ready mentioned were taken by surprise, and
the whole region round about Savannah
thrown into confusion. The tories and loyal
lists began to tremble. Provost was brave
man and skillful officer. He began to make
every preparation in his power to defend the
city. Every man who could be spared from
other service, was put to work on the fortif-
cations Besides, three hundred negroes we're
decoyed from the plantations adjacent to the
city. General Provost called in his troops
from the various posts in the neighborhood.
On the 4th of September, the French fleet
disappeared, and the garrison and inhabitants
Of the city began to breathe more freely. Even
General Provost cherished, with delight, the
hope that D'Estaing and his fleet we're gone.
Preparations for an attack still went on with
energy. On Tyber Island was British gar
rrtsou; cunuzude y sssprztn Moncrisff, and
manned by one hundred and fifty soldiers.
This forti6cation was strengthened. On the
9th, the French feet again appeared in great
er force than before, and on the 9Th it anchor
ed off Tyber Island and proceeded to land some
troops on the south side of the Island. Cap
tain Moncrief. seeing that he could effect moth
ing by resistance, spiked his cannon, and hav-
ing embarked his troops on boats, fled to Sa-
vannah.
General Provost was now convinced that
the object which D'Estaing had in view was
the capture of Savannah. During the time
that the armies of the allied powers were
forming junction, various skirmishes took
place; but nothing, of any great Importance,
was effected by either party. At this time the
city was prepared for neither storm nor a
siege. Many of the best troops of the Brit
ish had not yet reached the city, and Lieu
tenant-C Colonel Maitland, without whom it
could not, perhaps, have been defended, was
at Beaufort. Had D'Estaing made an at
tack upon the city as soon as he landed, it is
highly probable that few hours would have
been sufficient to have reduced it. General
Mcintosh urged that the attack be made at
once, but D'Estaing was; in this instance, as
III tuduy OLueTS, selI-WlIIeu'
On the 18th of September, the forces under
General Lincoln and Count d'Estaing sat
down about three miles from the city, on the
west By this time General Provost had con-
structed thirteen redoubts, fifteen batteries
and strong abattis in front of the whole.
Still, he was not prepared for an engagement.
Colonel Maitland had not yet arrived, but it
had been ascertained that he was Fastening,
by forced marches, with eight hundred men,
to his assistance. .
On the 18th of September, the very day
that the French forces under D'Estaing and
the American troops under Lincoln formed a
junction, but before the arrival of General
Lincoln, for some unaccountable reason,
D'Estaing summoned General Provost, in the
name Of Louis XVI, to surrender. This was
an insult offered either through ignorance,
haste or design, to the American General and
the forces under his command. General Lin
coin was in condition that he could not ven
ture to be stickler respecting nice distinction,
and perhaps took no notice of the thing at
the time. Provost promptly refused to sur
render, because the summons was not specific
and definite in stating the conditions of sur
render, and asked that twenty-four hours
might be given him to consider the matter.
The truce was as hastily granted by DEs-
taing, as the summons for surrender had been
rashly made short time before. Provost
determined not to surrender if he could pos.
sibly avoid it, Delays and the granting of a
truce had caused him to fail in capturing