Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1889-06-21


freedom in the rebellion against Eng
land. Before the Revolution handful
OF Virginians had pushed across the Al
leghenies and built at Watauga, in what
is now Tennessee, one Of the first out
posts Of American civilization in the
then unknown West lying between the
Alleghenies and the Pacific. They held
in check the 5000 Cherokee warriors
who were melted by the English TO at
tack the rebels of the seaboard in the
rear. and when these Eastern rebels
seemed hopetessly demoralIzed, when
CORVALLIS. with Tarieton and Ferguson
under him, had cut the confederacy IN
two, "the rebel yell was heard for the
first time east OF The mountains. II YVES
the accompaniment OF style OF fighting
with which the English regulars were
entirely unfamiliar masslng OF
small force against the weakest point OF
scattered opposing force, and then,
without regard TO the numbers of the
opposing force, a headlong rush and the
wild charging cry which has since be-
come memorable as "the rebel yell"
When the brave Col Ferguson re-
treated TO Kings mountain ard IL
trenched himself there in what he sup
posed to be an nnpregnable position his
second in command, DuPeyster. said to
him, as the Western men charged up the
mountain under the CALLING fire of has
superior force: There are those yell
ling devils again" Six hours later the
yelling rebels from the West had won
the battle of Kings mountain, captured
its Surviving defenders. and turned the
tide Of the Revolution back against
England, sending CORVALLIS in con
fused retreat to the surrender at York
town.
There is no doubt AZ all Of the genesis
Of the rebel veil as it was heard at
Kings mountain. 1t was the war-cry
Of men as brave as ever died in defense
OF homes-the Tennessee Cherokees,
whose language has made the rivers and
mountain, of their OLD huntingdon
musical with names that are soft as
Italian. With the possible exception Of
the Natchez. they We're the most intelli-
gent and least cruel OF North American
Indians, holding the universal Indian
law of retaliation, but more capable
than any others OF the Indian stock Of
forgivng injuries.
Under Oconostata and Old Tarsel they
made heroic fight against the west
ward advance Of civilization, and their
! battle cry was heard in defense of Ten
nessee soil at the first tight on Lookout
! mountain aS deliantly as at the second.
! II was turned against them 10y the white
| TennesseeanS who followed John Sewer
| in over hundred fights with them, IN
! every one Of which the CherOkecS We're
| losers. Before Sewers time most Of
/ the fighting against Indians had been
! done from behind stockadeS or IN Skin
mlshing from behind trees. With a
military genus that was Napoleonlc be-
! fore Napoleon, Sewer adopted and never
! swerved from a policy OF sudden attack
! in the open field. always IN the enemy 5
! country, without waiting TO reckon up
| how many men the enemy could bring
| against him if given time. This art of
war was defined i'm 1850 by the Tonnes
see cavalryman whom General Lee
! called the greatest of his generals in the
! West getting there first with the most
/ men, AGAINST this method OF lighting
! the unframed Cherokees could do moth
ing. They fought for every foot of
/ territory, bat always with great loss of
} their own warriors, inlicting little in
return.
The author of the Rear Guard of the
Revolution has no theory of his own
concerning the origin Of the rebel yell,
/ but the facts he has collected make II
/ certain enough that it was originally
/ the battle-cry of these Red Tennessee
| ans. who called their warriors "Sons OF
+ Fire (Cherahkeesl. In all mouths but
+ theirs it has been a rebel yell invariably.
/ 1t was raised by rebels at Kings noun
/ tain: again a few years later at Jones
/ boro, where 800 Tennessee rebels as
/ sembled TO rescue John Sewer, who had
been kidnapped by North Carolina and
. carried across the mountains TO be tried
/ for treason as the head of the Tennessee
4 rebellion against North Carolina: it was
a rebel cry at the Alama and san Jacin-
/ 20: later on it was heard again at Shiloh
and Chicamauga from the threats OF
+ TenneSseeans VINO rebeled against Ten
4 nessee for the Union, and of other Ten
nesseeans who rebelled against the
/ Union for Tennessee.
1t is in accord with eternal fitness that
/ the rebel war-cry should trace its origin
/ TO Tennessee-which above all others is
/ the rebel State-the only State Of the
second rebelious confederacy which
waived all discussion of the coustitu-
/ tonal rights of secession and, standing
squarely on its rebellious record against
England and North Carolina, rebelled
out Of the Union instead Of seceeding
out of it.