When some of us would have accompanied Colonel Ashe and Captain Walker to Tryon's camp under a flag of truce, Master Husband sternly forbade any such procedure, and declared that he should hold the gentlemen prisoners until after the enemy had retreated, or been whipped in battle.
Next morning, instead of sending out skirmishers, our leader appeared to think that a written notice from him would be sufficient to disperse the king's men, and accordingly he wrote what it pleased him to call a "proclamation," setting forth the fact that the governor had come contrary to law into counties over which he had abandoned control, and demanded that he should send answer within four hours explaining when it would please him to retreat.
We had among us the Reverend David Caldwell of Orange, that good minister who followed such of his congregation as belonged to the Regulation, knowing full well a battle was imminent, and believing he might acceptably serve God and his fellow-man at the time when death was about to seize upon some of us.
Master Caldwell had been among those who spoke the loudest against Master Husband's brutality of the previous evening; but now he accepted the position of messenger in the hope that he might prevail upon Tryon to draw off and thus avert bloodshed.
The good man disdained to use a flag of truce; but set off trusting that his cloth would protect him, as indeed it did, for he was speedily given audience with the enemy.
Governor Tryon received the clergyman graciously; but excused himself from making a reply to the ill-advised proclamation until noon of the following day, because, as he said, until then there would not be time to discuss the matter with such of his officers as were entitled to consideration.
However, he gave the parson the most positive assurance that no blood should be shed unless the Regulators began the battle; in other words, he bound himself to keep his force in leash unless we made an unprovoked assault.
When Master Caldwell came within our lines again, he had a long interview with Master Husband, the substance of which none of us knew thoroughly; but it was whispered among the more knowing, that the parson had insisted on liberty being given to the two prisoners, and our leader had flatly refused.
Master Howell and a dozen others who had shared the command of the company with General Hamilton, were loud in their complaints because Master Husband refused to send out scouts, and, finally, after no little bickerings which would have swelled into open mutiny but for the situation of affairs, they left the bigoted man to himself, and sent secretly a dozen or more to spy upon the enemy.
By this means we knew that during the night Governor Tryon's force had crossed the Alamance and marched silently along the Salisbury road until within half a mile of our camp, where they were formed in battle order by daybreak.