The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1884-02-21
Two Obscure Heroes.

Spring OF l7SO, they thought the rovolu
tion was ct en- end in the Southern States
and it really seemed 80. Even the pa
tTiots thought il was useless to resist any
longer, aud go when the Britieh ordered
oil the poople TO come together ct differ
ent places and enroll themselves 6,
Britiah subjects moat Of them we're ready
TO do it, simply becausa they thought
they could not help themselves.
Only feu daring men, here and
there. aero bold enough 10 think oil
refuoing, and but for them tho British
could have Get up the royal power again
in South Carolina, and then they would
have been free to take their whole force
against the patriots further north. The
fate Of the whole country depended, to O
large extent, upon the courage Of the
few men who would not give UP. even ct
such time, but kept up the hght sgains,
ell odds. Theee brave men forced tho
British TO keep an army in the South
which they needed further North.
The credit Of beginning thia kind OF
partisan warfare belongs chiefly TO two
or three plain men, who did it oimply DO.
cause they loved their country moro than
their eeae.
The man who first began it was Justin
Gaston-e vhite.haired patriot. who
lived on O little Otream called Fishing
Crock, near Rocky Mount. He uas
eighty years of ege, and might we'll
have thought himself too old 10 care
about war matteB; but he was a bravo
man and patriot, and the people who
lived near him were in the habit of tak.
ing his advice and doing 90 he did.
WhsE :hs BGNE Isaas .hst Th:lsiob
!,s3 N:l!ets y !ass.; as patriots. snssrr Co!.
Buford, In cold blood. Justin Gaston
called bis nine gons eud many of his
nopheus round him. Joining hands
thsoa young men promised each other
that they never would tsko the British
oath, end never could give up the cause.
Soon sftervard British force came TO
the neighborhood, and ell tho people
were ordared to meet ct Rocky Mount TO
enroll their names aud take tho OATH
Ono of the Britieh officers vent to Geo
Justin Gaaton, end tried TO par0uade him
that it Yves folly to refuse. He knew
that il Goeton advised tho people TO give
up there would DO no trouble; but the
wbito.hoired patriot told him 10 hio face
that be would never take tho oath him
sell, or advice anybody else to Dc 80.
As coon 40 the officer left, the old man
sent for his friends, and about thirty
brave fellows met at his bouse that night
with their rifles In their bando. They
knew there would be strong force Of
British and Torieo at Rocky Mount the
next day, but in spite of the odds
against them they made up their minds
to attack the place. Creeping through
the woods, they suddenly came upon the
crowd, aud after sharp fight sent tho
Britieh flying heltes-skolser in every di.
rection. This stopped tho work of
enrolling the people % Britiuh subjects,
and it did moro than that. It showed
the patriots through tho whole country
that they could still give the British Q
great deal Of trouble, and after this affair
many of the men Who had thought Of
giving up rubbed up their riflea instead,
and formed little bands of fighting men
to keep the war going.
Another man who did much to stir up
partisau warfare was the Rev. William
Martin, an old and pious preacher in
Scotch-Irioh we're very religioue people,
oil thingu. One Sunday after the news
men bad been killed by the British in
into tic pulpit and preaehed aboa. the
prosched ogain, and oven when the aer.
vice vas over be vent on in the open
air, still preaching to the people how
they should 6ght for their country, until
all the men in the settlement were full
of fighting spirit. The women told the
men to 60 and do their duty. and that
they would take care Of the crops.
These little bands OF patriots were Too
amall to fight regular battles, or even to
hold strong posts. They had TO hide in
the voojo and suamps, and only came
out when they ssv chance to strike .
blow. Then the blow fell like lightning,
and tho men who doalt 1t quickly hid
themuel7es again.
They had signB by which they told
each other what they uero going to do.
A tvig bent down, few ntones strung
s!eng path or any ether Of the hundred
email signs, served 10 toll every patriot
when and uhe,e to meet his friends. A
man riding about, breaking q .wig here
and there, Or making come other sign Of
the kind, could call together large
force ct chosen spot within Q few hours.
The men brought out in this way would
fall suddenly upon some STRAY British
force that was off its guards, and utterly
destroy 1t. The Britiah would at once
send o etrong body of troops to punish
the daring patriots, but the redcoat lead.
or would look in vain for anybody to
punish, The patriots could scatter and
hide as quickly as they could come
together.
Finding that they could not destroy
these patriot companies, tho British and
Tories took their revenge on women and
children. They burned the houses of
the patriots, carried off their crops and
killed their cattle, 20 as to starve their
families; but the women were as brave
ao the men, and from firBt to last not one
Of ther, ever wished her husband or Eon
to give up the Sight.
If the pstriots could not conquer the
British, they ct least kept them in o
hornets neat. If they could not drive
them out of South Carolina, they could
keep them there, which was nearly %
good o thing to do becauae every colder
that CORVALLIS had to keep In the South
would have been cent to some other part
Of the country to fight Americans If the
Carolinians had left the British alone.
In this way small banda of resolute
mefkept CORVALLIS busy, and held the
State for the American cause, until Con.
eral Greene went South and took com.
mand. Greene was one Of tho groat.
eat of the American Generals, and after
o long campaign he drove the British out
of the State. But if 1t bad not been for
the partibans the South wonld have been