The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1896-05-28
ended the campaign for tho winter,
ard the militia was disbanded.

ence Of tho British, had not the same
happy effect In securing for tho up
country the cessation Of hostilities be-
tween the Wings and Tories. "Other
States," says Simms, "know nothing
of the horrors which wore the conse-
quence OF these domestic feuds OF the
South" The Tories after their defeat
by Colonel Richardson led into tho
country of the Cherokees, whore they
melted the Indians to rise against the
Wings. They, therefore, began their
massacrcs upon tho frontiers. The
panic stricken inhabitants, unable to
defend themselves, fled to the stockade
forts which had been built for their
protection in such emergencies. A
notable one Of these massacres was
that of the Hampton family, which oc.
Cured in Spartanburg County, and to
which General Hampton 50 oloquently
referred III his speech ut that county
! court house in 1876.
General Williamson, having raised q
force of three hundred mon, proceeded
to attack the savages, and captured q
small body of them, among whom
were thirteen white men, disguised az
Indians. This seemed only to intensi-
fy the hatred Of the Wings and Tories.
'"They pursued each other," said Gen
eral Gates, "like wild beasts" Gener-
al Williamson came upon the main
body of the Cherokees at Occonoree
Creek, where he defeated them and
laid waste their territory. The saw.
ages sued for peace and were COM
PEELED to cede to South Carolina all
| their lands, now comprising the
counties of Pickers, Oconee, Ander-
son and Greenville.
The campaign Of 1880 opened with
South Carolina, after her long respite,
| as the principal theatre of hostilities.
After tho surrender of Charleston on
May II, General Clinton, determined
to subdue the whole State, sent out
| threo armies into tho interior ono
under Colonel Cruger towards Ninety
Six; another under Lord CORVALLIS to
Camden and u third under Colonel
Brown to Augusta while the "Bloody
Iarleton was ranging at large over
the whole State.
Hearing of the advance of Colonel
BufOrd with four hundred Continent
ais, Colonel Tarleton with seven hun
dred cavalry and mounted infantry
hastened to intercept him at the Wax
haws. Negotiations for surrender
failed and while they sought quarter,
Tarleton fell upon the rebels with q
fury equaled only to the annals Of In
dian warfare and cut to pieces the
whole command. "Tarleton's Quar-
ter'' Is to this day a prover5 for whole
sale cruelty.
AS u result Of these combined disas-
| ters, the spirit Of the CarOlinians
| seemed broken. Charleston had fallen
and their country was overrun by an
invading army which they felt them
selves powerless to oppose. At this
juncture, General Clinton offered /,
pardon to all who would takc British
protection. The people generally,
those Of York accepted, took advan-
tagc Of these terms, and General Clin-
country complete, sailed for New
York, leaving Lord Cornwallis in com
mand. But the British made the fatal
mistake of calling upon those who bad
accepted their protection to take up
arms against their countrymcn.
Then it was that these sturdy back
woodsmen, unaided and alone, took up
the struggle for independence and be-
gan that partisan warfare which final
ly drove the British from the State.
When it is remembered against what
odds these people were fighting; how
they had to contend not only against
an invading foe but also their twn
vindictive neighbors land this without
' they could supply for themselves, with,
> out arms or ammunition except as
, captured from the enemy, it will be
seen how stupendous was the under.
taking, how marvellous the result.
. 1t was at this trying period that the
women Of tho State, seeing the straits
to which their husbands and brothers
were reduced, performed SO many he.
roic deeds and exhibited those quail,
ties of endurance, patience and devo.
} tlon which were afterwards cmulated
by their granddaughters of the Con,
federacy. Space fails to speak in de.
tail Of the youthful and daring Emily
, Getger. who carried message from
General Greene to General Sumter
J through country infested with To
, r1es; OF Dicey Langston, who swan the
deep and rapid Tiger to warn her
brothers Of the approach Of "Blood y
Bill" Cunningham Of Mrs. billiard
who rode sixty miles through the
; darkness to save Colonel Clarke and
his men, encamped at Cedar Springs
from surprise by the Tories of Mrs
| Bratton, "who would 10, have hel
husband and his comrades owe to q
, cowardly stratagem the victory they
should gain in the field of battle ;" OF
the lovely Mary Musgrove and the
courageous Esther CASTOR, whose
, gentle ministrations soothed the pains
of the wounded and the dying; those
and many other noble deeds have been
recorded in history some are preserv-
ed In family tradition others again
are known only to that ever watchful
Eye which takes note evon of the fall
Of q sparrow.
The most active of the partisan load
ers at this time were Pickens, Sumter
and Marion, the three great and
choice spirits Of the Revolution. Ma
rion operated from Camden to the soa-
coast; Sumter from Camden to Ninety
Six; while Pickens traverscd the
country from Ninety-Six to Augusta.
On the twelfth Of July, Sumter at
Williamsons Plantation in York
County, engaged detachment of
British and Tories commanded by Coils
Huch and Ferguson and completely
routed them, killing both these officers.
After an unsuccessful attack upon tho
enemys post at Rocky Mount in Fair
field County, he moved on to Hanging