The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1915-08-05

ish Authorities before they put these
prisoners aboard. Eight hundred of
these men. imprisoned for thirteen
months, died. There was Turner.
stripped to the waist an old woman
of South Carolina. Mrs. Scysia, tied
her to a post, and brutally whipped
her to force her to disclose where
party of Americans. among whom
was her son. was located. That son
afterwards shot Turner for mistreat-
ing his mother. There was the mas
sacre of Capt. James Butler, his son
James and twenty-siX others, by
Bloody Bill Cunningham and his
men. Although these South Carolin-
ians had surrendered, they were
butchered by the sabres of their meT-
ciless foes. All of them, except the
two Buffers. were buried hastily IN
single grave. This same Cunning
ham on another occasion hung two
South Carolina patriots who had sur
rendered to him on a fodder stack.
1t broke, but Cunningham, drawing
his sword. murdered the two half
strangled men as they lay pros
trate before him. On this occasion,
fourteen other men who had surren-
dered were deliberately hacked to
pieces. There was Bloody Bates,
of what is now Greenville, who at the
head of a band of Cherokees and
white men painted as Indians from
the Saluda mountain, fell like
wolf upon the fold, upon the fort of
the patriots at Gowen's Ferry. The
fort was surrendered on the express
condition that protection be afford
ed its inmates, but no sooner had
they delivered themselves into the
Tory's hands than he ordered and
executed a general and indiscrlml-
nate massacre of all his prisoners
men. women and children. including
even his own kindred.
These facts are called to demon
strate that our forefathers suffered
as greatly as the victims of our pres
ent war. They are not recited to stir
prejudice against the English people
at this time nor to create an i'm
preston favorable to their present
foes. They are simply the facts OF
history.
No ether State suffered as South
Carolina suffered in the Revolution
| ary war. Here for great part OF
the time was the seat of war and
here the people most painfully felt
the iron heel of their mother coun-
try which was aware Of and acquies-
ced in the sort of warfare waged
against South Carolinians. The low
est classes within the State were
formed into banditti, the leaders Of
which being the commissioners of
his majesty, were turned loose, to
indulge their private animosities,
their thirst for blood and rapine.
without reference to the interest OF
king or country" Nor was this all.
The savage Indians were allies
against US and by the British govern
ment were supplied with arms and
ammunition and aided and abetted
to add the horrors of their barbara
ties to the war upon the good peo-
pie of South Carolina.
I'm consequence of the civil wars
between the Wings and Tories says
Ramsay. the incursions of the saw
ages. and the other calamities result
ing from the operations of the Brit
ish and American armies, South Car
olina exhibited scenes of distress that
we're shocking to humanity. The sim
gle district of Ninety-SiX which was
the only one of seven into which the
State was then divided was computed
by we'll informed persons residing
therein to contain within its limits
1,40O widows and orphans made so
by the war. Nor was it wonderful
that the country involved in such &C
cumulated distress. The State gov
ernment was suspended and the Brit
ish conquerors were careless of the
civil rights of inhabitants. Order
and police were scarcely objects of
their attention. The will of the
strongest was law. Such, was the
general character of those who called
themselves Tories that nothing could
be expected from them. unrestralned
as they were by civil government, Dut
outrages against the peace and order
of society. Though among the To-
ries in lower parts of South Carolina.
we're gentlemen of honor, principle
and humanity, yet in the interior and
frontier a great portion of them con-
stituted an ignorant, unprincipled
banditti. to whom idleness. licentious-
ness and deeds of violence were IA