fage both tedious and difficult to Colonel Webster. It was, however, at length accomplished towards the evening; and he was enabled to join the commander in chief, in .fome time after dark, at about fix miles diftance, from the ford.

Intelligence being received, that Morgan had commenced a forced march in the afternoon, which it was afterwards found that he had continued through the night, to the northward, towards Salisbury, the defire of retaliating on that commander, was fo ftrong with the army, that they purfued him in the morning with the utmost fpirit and vigour; hoping, notwithstanding the diftance he had gained, by dint of exertion, fill to overtake or intercept him while he was entangled among the rivers. But the difficulties of bad roads, bad weather, and fwelled creeks, which they had to furmount, were fo great and fo numerous, that it could not poffibly be done, with the effect that was wifhed. Morgan had arrived at the trading fort on the Yadkin, in the night between the second and third of February, and during the remainder of that, and in the courfe of the following day, had paffed the body of his infantry, with the cavalry, and moft of the waggons over the river; fo that when the guards, by a courfe of the most ftrenuous exertions, had come up in the evening, they could only rout and difperle his rear, and take the few remaining waggons.

Morgan having fecured the boats on the other fide, and the ford through which he had palled his waggons and cavalry being now rendered impaffable by the fudden

The

rife of the river, Lord Cornwallis determined to march to the upper fords, which, as we before obferved, are generally paffable; but he was under a necellity of making fome fhort delay by the way at Salisbury, for the precuring of a hafty and fcanty fupply of provifions. In the mean time he received intelligence, that Morgan had quitted the banks of the Yadkin, and that Greene was marching with the utmoft dispatch to form a junction with him at Guildford. British commander knowing that Greene had not yet received his reinforcements from Virginia, nor even had time to collect the North Carolina militia, was fenfible, that he would by all poffible means avoid an engagement in the latter, and of courte endeavour to make his way into the other, where his fupport lay. To counteract this defign was therefore his great object; and he accordingly endeavoured with the utmoft diligence, and every degree of exertion, to get before him to the river Dan; for that river, and the Roanoke into which it falls, form the boundary between the two provinces; and by feizing the upper fords on the firft, he hoped to reduce Greene to a neceflity either of fighting, or of abandoning his communication with, and all hope of fuccour from Virginia; while, in the latter cafe, he would run no fmall rifque of being inextricably enclosed and hemmed in, between the great rivers on the weft, the fea on the caft, and the forces under the Lords Cornwallis and Rawdon, on the north and fouth.

It was now a trial of difpatch between both armies, which should

first gain the northern frontier. The British fucceeded, and cut Greene off from the upper fords; and Lord Cornwallis being affured, that the lower were impracticable, and that the country could not afford any number of boats, at all fufficient for the paffage of Greene's army, thought he could not now efcape without a decifive blow, and accordingly pursued him with the utmost expedition. This was, however, impeded by great and numerous difficulties. The intelligence to be obtained, was not only extremely defective, but seems to have been intendedly delufive; the want of light troops was now feverely felt; and the enemy by their abundance of them, were enabled to break down all the bridges in the line of march, and to throw numberlefs other impediFeb. 15th. ments in the way of the army. Upon their arrival at Boyd's Ferry, they difcovered to their inexpreffible grief and vexation, that all their toil and exertions had been vain, and that all their hopes were fruftrated. The enemy had been furnifhed with boats fufficient (in direct contradiction to all the intelligence received by the British general) to convey their whole army and baggage, on the preceding day and night, over the ri

ver.

Nothing ever exceeded, except the vigour and perfeverance with which they were encountered and furmounted, the hardships, and difficulties, which the army endured in this long courfe of march, from Salisbury to the Dan, and then in the pursuit of Greene to Boyd's Ferry. Their wants and diftreffes were not less than their toils and

fatigues. They traverfed a count try, which was alternately a wild and inhofpitable forest, or inhabited by a people, who were at least highly adverfe, however they might venture, or not, to be hostile. When to these we add all the poffible incommodities, incident to bad roads, heavy rains, want of cover, and the continual wading through numberlefs deep creeks and rivers in the depth of winter, we fhall ftill form only very faint and inadequate ideas of the fufferings which they endured.

The army being in no condition to venture the invafion of fo powerful a province as Virginia, in the prefent circumftances, and North Carolina being in a state of the utmoft diforder and confufion, Lord Cornwallis, after giving the troops a day's reft, led them by eafy marches to Hillsborough, where he erected the royal standard, and iffued a proclamation, inviting all loyal fubjects to repair to it, and to take an active part in affisting him to restore order and conftitutional government in the colony.

During these transactions, Colonel Balfour, who commanded at Charles-Town, equipped a small force for an expedition to Cape Fear River, not only to co-operate with Lord Cornwallis by a diverfion on that fide, and by gaining poffeffion of Wilmington, but likewife to make that way a conveyance for the furnishing his army with thofe neceffary fupplies, which, in the prefent ftate of the war, could fcarcely be done in any other manner. Major Craig, with about 300 land forces, was dispatched upon this fervice towards the latter end of January; and the men

were

were convoyed and fupported by Capt. Barclay, in the Blonde frigate, with the Otter and Delight floops of war; the marine force and the troops, being equally partakers in the fortune of the enterprize.

Capt. Barclay landed all the marines, in order to fupply the weakness of the land force, about nine miles fhort of Wilmington; the inhabitants fent a deputation to propose terms, which were not liftened to; and the town being abandoned by its defenfive force, confifting of about 150 men, was taken without refiftance. The inhabitants delivered up their arms, were admitted to parole, and fecured in their property. The British commanders being informed, that feveral veffels loaded with provifions, ammunition, and the effect of thofe who were in arms, as well as of fome Spaniards and French, who had lately fettled at Cape Fear, had efcaped up the north-eaft branch of that river, purfued them both by land and water; four or five were accordingly taken, and fome others burnt by the enemy. The batteries being clofed in, and the works repaired or completed, Wilmington was made a poft of fome fort of ftrength, and continued for fome little time to be of import

ance.

Lord Cornwallis being informed, that a confiderable number of loyalifts inhabited the country between the Haw and the Deep rivers, he dispatched Col. Tarleton with the cavalry, and a small body of infantry, to prevent any interruption in their affembling or moving. But it happened moft

unluckily, that a part of the enemy's light troops had entered the country on one fide, at the very time that the British detachment entered it on another; and that they fell in with a body of about 200 of these people, who, under the conduct of a Colonel Pyle, were on their way to join the royal army at Hillsborough. Thefe unfortunate royalifts, who had notice of Tarleton's approach, mittaking the enemy for his detachment, and not being yet apprehenfive of the wiles and circumvention of war, fuffered themselves, without the smallest effort, to be enclosed and furrounded; when, without refiftance, and, it is faid, crying out for quarter, a number of them were ntoft inhumanly put to the fword!

In the mean time, Lord Cornwallis having received intelligence, that Greene being reinforced in Virginia had repaffed the Dan, he thought it neceffary to collect his force by recalling Tarleton; and forage and provifions growing fcarce in the neighbourhood of Hillsborough, and the pofition being too distant to afford countenance and protection to the well affected upon the advance of the enemy, he thought it expedient

to make a movement to the Haw River, which he paffed, and encamped near Allemance Creek; having pushed Tarleton a few miles forward towards the Deep River, with the cavalry, the light company of the guards, and 150 of Webfter's brigade. Greene's light troops foon made their appearance; upon which Tarleton received orders to move forward, and, with proper precaution, to make what discovery

discovery he could of the motions and defigns of the enemy. Tarleton had not March 2d. advanced far when he fell in with a confiderable corps of the enemy, whom he inftantly at tacked, and foon routed; but being ignorant of their force, how they were fupported, and grown circumfpect from experience, he with great prudence restrained his ardour, and defifted from the purfuit. He foon learned from the prifoners, that thofe he had defeated were the corps called Lee's legion, with three or four hundred Back Mountain men, and fome militia, under a Colonel Preston. He likewife difcovered through the fame intelligence, that Greene, with a part of his army, was at no great distance.

It appeared afterwards, though it does not seem to have been then known to the British general, that Greene had yet only received a part of the reinforcements he expected; and that a more confiderable body were then on their way to join him from Virginia. This induced him to fall fuddenly back to Thompson's House, near Boyd's Ford, on the Reedy Fork. It is remarkable, and deferving of particular notice, that although this part of the country, where the army now was, was confidered and diftinguished, as being peculiarly and zealously attached to the British cause and intereft; and yet, that Lord Cornwallis fhould have had occafion pathetically to complain, that his fituation was amongst timid friends, and adjoining to inveterate rebels; and, that between them, he had been totally destitute of information; by which

means, he loft a very favourable opportunity of attacking the rebel

army.

Though Greene had thus fallen back with his main body, he left his light troops and militia to forage and occupy the country in the front of the British army; and thofe, in defiance of repeated examples, which might well have ferved to keep them conftantly alert and upon their guard, feeming totally to forget the fort of enemy, to whofe eye and obfervation they were expofed, were difperfed, and posted carelessly at feveral plantations, confulting only their convenience, and the facility of fubfiftence. This fitua- 6th. tion induced Lord Cornwallis to put the army fuddenly in motion; with a view, not only of beating up their quarters, and driving them in upon the army, but of attacking Greene himself, if any fair opportunity fhould offer.

He completely fucceeded in the firft part of his design; and at Weitzell's Mill, on the Reedy Fork, where they ventured to make a stand, the Back Mountain men, and fome Virginia militia, fuffered confiderably; and the fecond part only failed, through Greene's making a timely and precipitate retreat over the Haw River.

The vicinity of the fords on the Dan, which lay in the rear of the enemy, and the extreme difficulty of fubfifting the army, in the intermediate exhaufied country, rendered it in vain for the British general to pursue them over the Haw, under any hope of being able to force them to action. thought therefore, the moft eligible courfe which he could in the

He

prefent

prefent state of things purfue, was, by effectually covering their country, to afford the friends of the royal caufe time and encouragement to affemble, and to join the army; keeping an eye at the fame time to Cape Fear River; the communication with which it would foon become indifpenfably neceffary to open, through the grievous diftreffes of the army, which were now become nearly infupportable, under the want of fupplies of every fpecies. He was, however, determined to fight the enemy in the mean time, if their army at all approached, under a full conviction, that nothing lefs than a clear and decided fuperiority in arms, could anfwer the great purpose and end of their exceedingly toilfome and arduous winter campaign, which was to draw forth into action the fuppofed numerous loyalifts who inhabited that province.

In pursuance of this plan, the army encamped, on the 13th of March, at the Quaker Meetinghoufe, within the forks of the Deep River. On the following day, Lord Cornwallis was informed, that General Butler, with a body of North Carolina militia, together with the expected reinforcements from Virginia, had all joined Greene; this was accompanied with a very exaggerated representation of his force, which was ftated at no lefs than nine or ten thousand men; and intelligence, which was confiderably nearer the truth, that he was in full march to attack the British army. On the fame evening he received authentic intelligence, that Greene had advanced to VOL. XXIV.

Guildford, which was only about twelve miles from the British camp.

Lord Cornwallis being now pretty well perfuaded that the enemy intended to venture an engagement, thought it neceffary to fend the waggons and baggage, under a ftronger efcort than he could well fpare, to Bell's Mill, which was confiderably lower down on the Deep River, in the heart of the well-affected country; and on the following morn- March ing, at day-break, he 15. marched with the remainder of the army, either to meet the enemy on the way, or to attack them in their encampment. About four miles from Guildford, the advanced guard, under Col. Tarleton, fell in with Col. Lee's legion, and those other light troops whom they had before engaged. Thefe Tarleton again attacked and routed; and the army continuing its march, foon difcovered the enemy drawn up in order of battle, upon a rifing ground, about a mile and a half from Guildford Courthoufe. The light troops who had been defeated, having been feveral days entirely detached from Greene's army, the prifoners now taken could give no manner of account, of the order, numbers, or difpofition of the enemy; and the country people, who were examined as to the nature of the ground, whether from ftupidity or defign, were fo exceedingly inaccurate, if not unintelligible in their defcriptions, as to afford very little fatisfaction upon the fubject. Indeed the difficulty of procuring intelligence, and the little reliance to be placed upon that [E]

which