With the Swamp Fox

eleased one hundred and fifty prisoners and discovered that only three had su

of the word, worthy citizens. This I say because the British people even at this late day, five years since peace was declared and we have becom

whom owned plantations in or near the Williamsburg district, and the fact that they had f

ruggled so long was much the same as lost, so far as we in the southern colonies were con

this failure which followed a brilliant victory, they were the more

been circulated among us, I heard my uncle, the major, say that no document could have been put in a style better calculated t

ose men, who, having been released from captivity

ttle wonder that the faint-hearted should have begun to despair, when, after

s we called them, and had any of the men begged us for food I question if we

hich the British soldiers were continually passing, and particularly since those whom w

could be no question but that the chase would be a lively one since the Britis

rtain sense of relief, when, after a halt of no more tha

est round about Hope Mountain, when the word was given th

t that moment was to make a prisoner of the young Tory, for he, knowing well every man in the brigade, would be able to give the Britishers many valua

goodly store of provisions, and there was no fear of suffering from lack of food

ncerned, and, although not a trooper left the camp, we were kept well informed regarding t

llis hanged eight old men and seven boys, prisoners whom he had taken after the battle, simply

ime committed by the conquerors in the Ca

une soon proved, despite the horror, to be a blessing in disguise, for it drove into our ranks every man from the surrounding count

al Marion no less than seven hundred and fifty good men and true

because such a body could not readily be supplied with provisions, and secondly, because the majority of these troopers were men

p at Hope Mountain; but the others stood ready to resp

ause we could rely, came into camp with the information that Tarleton's Legion an

elieved our commander a gallant officer, otherwise why were the 63d Regulars and the Legion

63d Regulars, and a large body of Tories under Major Harrison, were advancing rapidly toward Hope Mountain, information of our

lt a certain sense of satisfaction that the time for action was near at hand. None of us had doubted b

d our horses, which were in prime condition after their long halt, there was a certain sense of exultation in our hea

any deeds of daring which the followers of General Marion were given liberty to perform, this incide

, in order the sooner to come to that time of sorrow and hu

connoiter, understanding that the remainder of the force led by General Marion would follow fifteen or twenty miles in t

alt at the old Sinclair plantation, if it so ch

n we were met by those who told us that the

as they passed, and in such position we were to remain until the last straggler was beyond us, after which the major proposed that, by makin

men were in the vicinity, the position we had taken was a dangerous one, for peradventure one of our horses was allow

orses' muzzles, saw the formidable 63d Regulars as they came up with swinging stride even more than a thousand strong, and

n a lad unused to warfare knew beyond a question that should t

n, and yet although fifty horses were concealed either side

, which I believe was even more in numbers than Major Wemyss' men, and a

side of the road from where Percy and I stood, an

emselves safe because of the large force in advance, the thought came into my mind

se from the opposite side of the road, and immediately the major appeared

and perhaps no more than sixty seconds elapsed before each man

in order to circle around the main body of the enemy, and the frightened prisoners had an opportunity of knowing th

twenty disconsolate-looking prisoners, who by this time had come to know

table, and, to the surprise of us

came up, and there they remained, as did we, while our officers, withdrawing to a clump of live o

d men in the immediate vicinity searching for us, who would soon be joined by Tarleton's Legion, I believe there was not

e consultation come to an end, and then

who was by my side, asked in a low tone, and t

mplished by staying here where capture or death must inevitably result; but so long as we remain at liberty, so long will the Cause live, and I promise you that however unpleasant and apparently disastrous may seem this move, you shall y

e general ceased speaking, and the words were no more than

ong, could not repress their sorrow because at this moment, when we were threatened by over two

amsburg district, that they were saddened only because of not being brought immedia

dent flame in the hearts of those who had pledged themselves to follow General Marion

behind us there was no other name for the move. The old camp at Lynch's Creek was the direc

and then in years to come no man may wonder why we w

of Williamsburg and of Pedee to be left unprotected. Until this moment the enemy had never appeare

Britishers and the Tories who had in other parts of the Carolinas,

while there were yet two thousand enemies in the district with more to come, and knowing full well that should they ever return again it would be to find their houses smoking ruins, their wiv

therefore, but in a lesser degree, of course, were we bowed down by sorrow as, setting our faces in that dire

his horse forward, for it was as if we we

essary it was-can understand that He who rules the destinies of nations had willed that, like the childre

t this time, let me hurry over such portion of t

were halted only so long as was necessary to make the

o the old camp, to leave the brigade and return home, there

hat those who were needed at home should be enabled to give to thei

here remained among us every member of the James family-a fa

der in whom they had every confidence-none would desert the Cause, although it was come so low. Yet for the h

old. To him I said, when, man after man, raising his hat in adieu, depart

n well be spared, even though we leave behind a mother w

rt Sumter, and yet they will be comforted,

n, and you can well be spared when th

ty-the time when all hope seems to have fled; but my desire to free the colonies from the yoke of the king is as strong as when I first set out, nigh on to four years ago. I shall remain in the saddle, Robert S

again would I allow another to utter aught against Gavin Witherspoon-never agai

sisted on bringing to us their best horses and the major part of all their store of ammunition, because, in so doing, it seemed a

, as was afterwards proven, to strengthen our hearts for the future tria

Amy's Mill on Downing Creek, we never drew rein, save to halt that the tired stee

at might be going on in the lower Carolinas, and to cheer those of our number who

the east side of White Marsh, near the head of the Waccamaw River, where my uncl