Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1906-10-09

although undergoing severe hardships
and suffering great deprivations, were
in good health and bouyant spirits.
Between the British and Williams
corps, frequent skirmishes took place.
On the second Of March q skirmish oc-
Cured between part Of Tarleton's de-
gion and Colonel Preston's mountain
men, in which the British lost thirty
men. At wetzells mill, on Reedy
Fork, a thrilling incident occurred.
Williams had taken his position near
the camp Of Cornwallis. Alamance
creek lay between them. Under cover
of thick fog, a strong detachment Of
British cavalry, supported by body Of
infantry and few pieces Of field
artillery, was sent to dislodge Will
liams. Concealed by the fog, the Brit
lsh gained favorable position and 1t
became necessary for the Americans
to retreat. At first 1t was thought the
British were advancing to attack
Greene: A messenger was Immediately
dispatched to Greene's camp to inform
him of the supposed intentions OF the
British and Of the course proposed by
Williams to battle his undertaking.
Colonels Campbell and Preston were
stationed in a thick cluster Of trees,
near the ford of the creek at Wet
zelrs mill, to delay the passage Of the
enemy at that point
klo Co
house. In this house, Campbell placed
twenty-fiv of the best rif1emen in his
command. So expert were these men
with their rifles, that they were accus-
camp, by placing an apple on the end
Of a ramrod and whilst one held the
ramrod in his hands, his comrades
would shoot at the apple. Rarely was
the apple missed. These twenty-five
skilled marksmen were placed in the
school house, with instructions to act
as their good sense might direct The
British were on the opposite hill. So
an officer approached them and after
having given the soldiers some in
structions which the marksmen in the
sShool house could not hear, he turned
away and dashed down the hill to-
ward the ford in the direction Of the
school house. Without q moments de-
lay he plunged into the creek. The
bottom Of the ford was rough and he
was obliged to move slowly. He rode
a beautiful black horse which felt his
way carefully through the stream. The
eyes of twenty-five riflemen were up
on him. He was in full view and
within rife shot One after another of
the twenty-five men in the school
house took deliberate aim and fired,
each expecting to see either the horse
or rider fall into the stream. Steadily
as II nothing was transpiring, the off,
Ger moved on. Thirty-two balls from
accurate rifles, aimed by skillful
marksmen, were hurled at him as he
rode calmly across the stream. I'm
harmed he reached the bank near the
school house, drew up his bride reins,
and dashed down the creek to his own
men, whom he Immediately led against
the Americans. The back-mountain
men stood gazing upon each other In
They concluded that
both the man and his horse were bull
let proof. 1t was afterwards learned
from British prisoners that the officer
was Lieutenant Colonel Webster. He
was not however bullet proof, for he
fell a short time after at the battle
of Guilford court house. Notwith-
standing the failure of the riflemen to
kill Webster, the British detachment
failed to entrap Williams.
TO BE CONTINUED.