The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1912-04-11

OIL Tue 0IlllSu.
To announce the fall of Charleston,
the Earl of Lincoln was sent to Eu-
rope. On the reception Of the news,
all England was jubilant. So soon as
Charleston surrendered, Sir Henry
Clinton set about to establish civil
government in the city and State.
Having reduced as he supposed,
Charleston to stage of subsection
to the king of England, he returned
to New York, taking with him a part
of his army, while the remainder was
placed under CORVALLIS. Before
taking his departure, Sir Henry Clin-
ton planned three expeditions. One
to move up the Savannah river to
Augusta; another to pass through
the country to Ninety-Six; and the
third, commanded by CORVALLIS, to
pass through the eastern part of the
State in pursuit of Colonel Abraham
Buford. It is with this last that we
are at present concerned.
During the siege of Charleston,
troops from different sections of the
State, and from other States, were
sent to assist the besieged in repell-
ing the assaults of the enemy. The
entrance to the city was, soon after
the work of throwing up redoubts
was bgun, entirely cut off. Among
the troops cut off were those led by
Colonel Abraham Buford. The exact
number of his command cannot, at
this late day, be ascertained. An old
and trustworthy authority says: 1T
consisted of about 800 Continentals,
the rear of the Virginia line" This
probably was only the nucleus to
which many others connected them
selves temporarily. How near Col.
Buford had approached Charleston
is not certain, but the probability is
that he had reached the neighborhood
of Monck's Corner. On the 18th day
of May, CORVALLIS began his pursuit
of Colonel Buford. With some diff
Guilty he crossed the Santee river at
Laneau's ferry. The difficulty arose
from the fact that all the ferries on
the river had been destroyed by the
Americans-so some probably by Colo
mel Buford-for it seems that Corn
wallis learned, on crossing the river,
on the 22nd, that Colonel Buford had
left that point ten days previous.
Immediately on getting all his
troops across the Santee, at Laneau's
ferry, CORVALLIS set out in hot pur-
suit of Buford, following in his
tracks. On the 9th, at Nelson's
ferry, on the Santee, CORVALLIS de-
tached Colonel Tarleton with a COM
mand consisting of forty cavalry
one hundred and thirty of the legion;
one hundred mounted infantry, and a
three-pounder, to pursue the Amerl-
can colonel. The whole force of Tar
Teton, exclusive of the three-pounder,
was two hundred and seventy, all of
which were either cavalry or mount
ed infantry. The pursuit by this de-
tachment began on the 9th of May.
Camden was reached on the next day.
Here Tarleton learned that Colonel
Buford had left Rugeley's mill, on
the 26th, and was fastening to join
body of troops on their way from
Salisbury to Charlotte. At 2 o'clock
on the morning of the 10Th, Tarle-
tons detachment was again in mo-
ton. At daylight, Rugeley's mill was
reached, where it was learned that
Colonel Buford and his command
were about twenty miles distant.
1t was manifest that Colonel Bu-
ford thought he was entirely out OF
danger, and, as the weather was
very warm, moved forward very lels-
urely. He seemed to have halted
for some days at Camden, and then
went to Rugeley's mill. At 3 o'clock
in the afternoon of the 29th of May,
Tarleton's detachment overlook him.
At Rugeley's mill, however, Tarleton
sent Capt. Kinlock to summon Colo
mel Buford to surrender. To this
summons Colonel Buford returned
the following reply: II reject your
proposal, and shall defend myself to
the last extremity"
The place where Tarleton overlook
Colonel Buford, is about ten miles,
by the road, nearly east of Lancaster,
the county seat of Lancaster county
Although it is more than Ill years
since the battle-if battle it may be
called-was fought, scarcely any
change has taken place on the battle
ground. The road runs where it did
then, and with the exception of a
small amount of underground, the