Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1906-09-11
S0vFl& caR0hlaA M
Yak REp0hO OYl0&
How the Spirit of Liberty Was Kept Alive By an
UncOnquerable People.
By REV. RoBERT LATHAM. ID. ID.
from the Yorkville Enquirer Of 187
INSTALLMENT xxx.
The Battle of Cowpens.

Everything III tnlS Woriu 10 o''ooS
with uncertainty. When the British
Icaptured Savannah and Charleston
and in a short time after literally de-
Imolished the army of General Gates at
lCamden, the people of Great Britain
iwere jubilant They thought the blow
lnad been struck which would reduce
the American colonies into subjection
to the British crown. The British Of
icers in South Carolina thought thsy
mad nothing to do now, but by easy
marches advance as far as Chesa-
lpeake. This done. Georgia, South Car
o1ina, North Carolina and Virginia,
would be reduced to hopeless servitu1e
to the majesty Of Great Britain. The
plan adopted by the British comman-
der was to advance through the coun-
try, establish garrison's at convenient
places, and thus keep in subsection the
territory overrun. The military posts
were designed to be so many places
Of rendezvous for the Tories and loyal
lists. His majesty's troops were ex-
pected to live on plunder
This was not the dream of mere
novices in the art Of war. 1t was the
device of officers Of whom England is
today justly proud. American liberty
is enhanced in value, when we reflect
that It was won by raw militia against
officers trained in the best schools OF
Europe. Those who talk about Cora
wallis, Tarleton and Rawdon as fools
and towards, suffer their Judgment to
be perverted to blind prejudice. TO
braver man ever drew sword or corn
manded a military organization thiLn
he who fell on Kings Mountain. TO
man understood better how to make
victory complete than Tarleton. TO
out general CORVALLIS or out fight
Tarleton is the highest encomium that
can be passed upon any officer. To
thwart the purposes and disconcert the
plans Of these men as our fathers did,
Is sufficient to write their names on the
highest niche of military fame. Those
who say that the British officers were
destitute of military skill and that the
British soldiers they led were towards,
either have never studied the history
of the Revolutionary war or have stud
led 1t to no purpose.
That Cornwallis might be enabled to
execute with ease and promptness his
plans for subjugating the whole of the
southern colonies, and consequently
all the American colonies, General Les
| lie was sent by General Clinton from
New York with corps of three thou
sand choice troops to the Chesapeake.
Leslie set out from New York about
the 10th of October and landed at
Portsmouth, Va, about the middle OF
the same month. The object for which
General Leslie was sent to Virginia,
was to destroy all the public property
belonging to the Americans and pre-
vent General Washington from sending
any forces to the assistance OF the par
| tisan leaders in the south.
These plans of the British officers
were concocted Immediately after the
fall of Charleston and matured and at
tempted to be put in execution on the
defeat of Gates at Camden. Cornwall
lis expected to advance to Charlotte
where he would meet the brave Pa
trick Ferguson, and having established
and fortified Charlotte in way similar
to Camden, he would then advance on
to Portsmouth.
In the meantime the Wings of Geor-
gia and the two Carolinas were not iclly
pining over past misfortunes. Their
defeats had only stimulated them to
invincible energy. On the seventh or
October-a few days after Cornwall
lis reached Charlotte-Patrick Ferguson
and his whole army were surrounded on
Kings Mountain and literally annihi-
lated A chasm was made in the plans
Of the British chieftain which no strate-
gy could span. The advance in the d.
der the existing circumstances. The
region around Charlotte swarmed with
Scotch Irish Wings. To remain In
that locality was to jeopardize his
whole command. Following the die
tates Of wise policy, he retri ated to
Winnsboro and ordered Genera Leslie
to leave Portsmouth and join him In
South Carolina. This must have been
sad news to Leslie. He had expected
to hear Of CORVALLIS far on his way
to Virginia when he landed at Ports
mouth. Heretofore every victory had
crowned every effort of the British and
nothing but apparent defeat attended
the undertaking Of the Americans
| The country was not as we have
already seen, subdued. Partisan lead
ers had sprung up in ell sections OF
the state. These were followed by men
who were ready to suffer and die for
their bleeding country. Marion and
his men were lurking in the swamps
Of the Santee and Black rivers, ready
whenever an opportunity presented it
self to emerge from their watery hid
ing places and pour destruction and
death into the ranks Of the invading
foe. Sumter and his illustrious coad-
tutors were in upper and western
South Carolina, breaking up military
posts and slaughtering the troops Of
the active and valiant Tarleton. I'm
mediately before the battle of Kings
Mountain, 1t seemed as If the sun OF
American liberty had gone down to rise
no more. 1t was only the darkness
which precedes a rising sun.
On the Sabbath morning after Pat
rick Ferguson slept his last sleep on
the rocky summit of Kings Mountain
the sun rose as 1t had never been seen
to rise before by the Americans. The
tide Of victory had turned. From this
time onward 1t continued to flow in ia
vor of the patriots, until 1t terminated
in the imposing sight Of General
O'Hara surrendering the sword Of Earl
CORVALLIS to General Lincoln at
Yorktown.
Until General Leslie would arrive,
CORVALLIS was obliged to remain at
Winnsboro. He did not however, aban-
don his original plan to advance north
ward through North Carolina and Vir-
ginia. Soon after Leslie was called
south from Virginia, the traitor, Ar
L