The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1911-12-26

positions IA the SERVICE OF the State.
On December LIST, 1716. he sa, OF
Kingston aS q member OF 4 military
court A year Later. the Legislature
the purpose OF obtaining arms. cloth.
Tag. and other ~necessariss for the pa
riots On December eth, ATS, Gov
eFnor Caswell directed him to pur-
chase provisions. His e~xceiiency's
letter contained instructions as to the
kind OF pork to b e bought. what the
hogs should weigh, how much to pay
for them. etc. In 1880 he was a
commissioner Of trade. At the close
of the year, salt became scarce.
Three wagons were sent to Tarooro
for this article. but Mr.. Bignall wrote
to the authorities that there was no
public salt On any part Of the Tar
River worth mentioning, nor indeed
anywhere else in the State under the
immediate direction OF the commits
sioners Of trade.
Robert Bignall also served In the
Council Of State. He must have been
a valuable man to the Commonwealth
because sixty thousand pounds, in
money, were turned over to the War
trade, Ia the year 1889. He WAS ap-
pointed a commissioner in 1871 to
purchase or borrow tobacco. One
OF Mr. BignalI's letters, written at
Tarboro, will be appended to this out
line OF his Revolutionary activities in
order to present the MAJ at close
range. The letter is addressed to
General Jethro Sumner at camp in
Warren and proceeds:
"Just after the battle at Guiford
and just as General CaSWe1l returned
from Granville home we sent to Har-
risburg one barrel g and one
barrel coffee for the major general.
which did not get up before the gen.
eral got home, SO that / suppose il
yet remains. 1t was directed to
Major General CasweIl; you will do
well to make inquiry after 1t n
make use OF it.
w have a report from Halifax
that On Tuesday week, the Marquis
D~elafyatt and Lor CORVALLIS had an
engagement, that h former had the
better day; it is said thai the British
lost three thousand men and the
Marquis thirteen hundred. If this
report be true I make no doubt but
you have the particulars before now.
/ sincerely wish you all the success
you yourself can wish for and am
with great esteem.
Henry Irwin left a family OF in
FAINT children to fight for his country.
Reference has already been made
above to this patriotic son of Edge
combe, who requested the governor
to allow him to go northward SO that
he could join General Washington's
| army. When the Revolution began,
hi was a merchant at Tarboro and
enjoyed the comforts Of a successful
business man. 1t was double hard
| ship for him to enlist, as lie left both
the joys of a family life and the ease
Of a home. He fell in the battle Of
Germantown and, at first, it was be-
lieyed that his bones were lost How
| ever, a noble son of Philadelphia,
many a ago, marked a spot in
the old cemetery where Henry Irwin
and seven Of his companions lie. The
Quaker City's historic suburb is we'll
worth a pilgrimage. especially to
/ North Caro1inians VINO are bound to
Germantown by the sacred blood OF
the State martyrs. E~dgecombe's soil
! may not have been stained with the
gore Of war, but she sent forth in the
far distance men whose sacrifice en-
ables US today to speak of tine lane
Of the free and b home Of the
brave"