THE
MEMOIRS, &c.

Notwithstanding my aversion to formal beginnings, and any thing that may relish of romance, as the reader may desire some knowledge of the person who has submitted his actions to his judgment, I shall, in hastening to my principal design, just acquaint him, that my father was an inhabitant of Virginia, who dying while I was yet a minor, left me a small fortune, no ways sufficient for my support, without some employment. For some time, by the advice of my friends, I proposed following the more lucrative one of commerce, but after my minorship was elapsed, my genius burst out. Arms had been my delight from my infancy, and I now resolved to gratify that inclination, by entering into the service. Pursuing this resolution, I made my first campaign in the year 1756, with a company of gentlemen called the Patriot Blues, who served the country at their own expence; but whether terrified by our formidable appearance, or superior numbers, the enemy still avoided us; so that, notwithstanding many recent tracks and fires, we never could come to an engagement. On our return, I made application for a commission in the Virginia regiment, then commanded by Col. Washington; but there being at that time no vacancy, I returned home.

In the year 1758, a new regiment was raised for that year’s service, to be commanded by the Hon. William Byrd, Esq; from whom I not only received an ensigncy, but as subalterns were to be appointed to a troop of light-horse, he honoured me with the cornetcy of that also. I was soon after ordered on an escort, in which service I continued till July, when I joined the army at Ray’s-Town, where I found General Forbes already arrived. The army then marched to Fort Ligonier, on the way to Fort Du Quesne. I was seized here by a violent fit of sickness, caught in searching for some of the troop-horses that were lost, by overheating myself with running, and drinking a large quantity of cold water, which rendered me incapable of duty. I got something better about the time the troops marched for Fort Du Quesne and could sit my horse when helped on, but was ordered back by the General, who, however, on my telling the doctor I hoped to do duty in a day or two, permitted me to continue the march. We heard the French blow up their magazine, while yet some miles off; and, on our arrival, we found the barracks, and every thing of value, in flames. My malady rather increased, so that I was at last compelled to petition for my return. I lost my horse at Fort Ligonier, the third I had lost during the campaign; and being obliged to mount a very weak one, I met with great difficulty in crossing the Allegany mountains; and before I reached Ray’s Town my horse was entirely knocked up. I bought another, and proceeded to Winchester, where, in a little time, I got perfectly recovered.

Those light-horsemen that survived the campaign, were herein want of all necessaries; and no money being sent up from Williamsburg to pay them, I advanced upwards of an hundred pounds, intending to reimburse myself from the first that should arrive; mean while the troops I belonged to were disbanded, and I, in consequence, out of pay. I had no further business at Winchester than to wait for this money, which I did, till my patience being quite exhausted, I resolved to go down the country in search of it. On my arrival at Williamsburg, I was informed the money had been sent up to me by the paymaster. I returned immediately to Winchester, near 200 miles, where I found the paymaster had paid it to the Lieutenant of the troop, who had appropriated it to his own use. He returned me fifty pounds, but it has never been in his power to pay me the remainder, and to all appearance it never will.

After such unfortunate essays I began to give over all thoughts of the army, when Col. Byrd was appointed to the command of the old regiment, in the room of Col. Washington, who resigned; on which I was unfortunately induced to accept another commission. I served another campaign in the year 1759, under General Stanwix, in the same quarter; but on our arrival at Pittsburg, formerly Fort Du Quesne, I had little employment, except looking over the men at work, till the fall of the leaf, when the General gave me the command of Fort Burd, about sixty miles to the eastward of Pittsburg, where I continued about nine months at a very great expence, partly through hospitality to those who passed to and from Pittsburg, and the dearness of necessaries, and partly by building myself a house, and making several improvements, and finishing the half-constructed fort, for which I never received any gratuity. I was relieved by a company of the Pensylvania regiment in the spring, and returned to Pittsburg, but found Col. Byrd with one half of the regiment ordered against the Cherokees, now become our most inveterate enemies; while the remainder under Col. Stephen were destined to serve on the Ohio. I will not fatigue the reader with an account of campaigns wherewith all our news-papers were filled, but confine myself to what more immediately concerned me.

I remained at Pittsburg till autumn, when I obtained permission to pass the winter at home. I accordingly set out in company with an Ensign named Seayres, who had obtained the same permission: we found great difficulties from the badness of the road, of which I may quote the following instance. After marching three whole days from Pittsburg to the place where General Braddock first crossed the Yawyawgany river (little better than sixty miles), and leaving one of my horses fast in the mire, we found, to our great surprise, the river about twelve feet high. We waited a whole day in hopes of its falling, but had the mortification to find it had rather rose a foot; our provisions beginning to run short, we hunted to recruit them, but without any success, which obliged us to come to an immediate determination. We at last resolved to look for some other crossing-place; we found about two miles lower, a part of the river, which by its breadth we judged to be fordable; but as the water was muddy, and the bottom could not be seen, there was a considerable risk in attempting it, especially as it lay under a fall, from whence the current darted with great impetuosity. After some deliberation, we resolved to venture it; pushed on by the fears of starving, if we remained any longer where we were, Mr. Seayres proposed himself to try it first; mounting therefore the best of our horses, he plunged into the stream: for the first hundred yards the water reached little higher than the horse’s belly, but before he got to a small island in the middle, which we had resolved to rest at, he was quite up to the saddle-skirts; after halting a little time, he set out again for the opposite side, but found it impossible to proceed, a deep channel lying between him and the shore, into which he often plunged, but was as often obliged to turn back, at a great hazard of being carried away by the current. Despairing at last of being able to cross it, yet unwilling to return, he forced up the shallow part about an hundred yards, towards the falls, making several attempts to cross, which he at last effected; but the banks being excessively steep, he found as much difficulty and danger in climbing them, as he had before done in crossing. We then followed, and tho’ we now knew exactly what course to keep, as our horses were weaker, and more heavily loaded, our task was not less dangerous or difficult. We found the bottom so rocky and irregular, that the horses staggered with their loads. The rapidity of the stream, and the false steps they made, threatened every moment to leave their burthens and lives in the middle of the stream. One of them, on which my servant was mounted, actually fell, letting my portmantua into the water, which luckily lodged among the limbs of an old tree, that had been washed down by the current; the horse recovered himself, and all the damage occasioned by this accident was, the spoiling of my cloaths, and to the amount of forty pounds in paper money, which got so wet, and stuck so fast together, that the greatest part of it was rendered entirely useless. Happy, however, that this was our only loss, and that we escaped with our lives.

In the spring 1761, I received orders to return to my division, which was to proceed to the southward, and join the other half against the Cherokees. Soon after this junction we began our march towards the Cherokee country. Col. Byrd parted from us at a place called Stalnakres, and returned down the country, by which the command devolved on Col. Stephen. We marched, without molestation, to the great island on Holston’s river, about 140 miles from the enemy’s settlements, where we immediately applied ourselves to the construction of a fort, which was nearly completed about the middle of November, when Kanagatucko, the nominal king of the Cherokees, accompanied by about 400 of his people, came to our camp, sent by his countrymen to sue for peace, which was soon after granted by Col. Stephen, and finally concluded on the 19th instant. All things being settled to the satisfaction of the Indians, their king told Col. Stephen he had one more favour to beg of them, which was, to send an officer back with them to their country, as that would effectually convince the nation of the good intentions and sincerity of the English towards them. The Colonel was embarrassed at the demand; he saw the necessity of some officer’s going there, yet could not command any on so dangerous a duty. I soon relieved him from this dilemma, by offering my service; my active disposition, or, if I may venture to say, a love of my country, would not permit its losing so great an advantage, for want of resolution to become hostage to a people, who, tho’ savage, and unacquainted with the laws of war or nations, seemed now tolerably sincere, and had, seeing me employed in drawing up the articles of peace, in a manner cast their eyes upon me as the properest person to give an account of it to their countrymen. The Colonel seemed more apprehensive of the danger than I was myself, scarce giving any encouragement to a man whom he imagined going to make himself a sacrifice, lest he should incur the censure of any accident that might befall me.