Tarleton pursued our brigade, losing time here and there to burn dwellings which sheltered only women and children, until he was come to within less than twelve miles of our camp, when, to the surprise of enemies as well as friends, he turned suddenly about and marched with all speed for Camden.
It was afterward said by the Tories that Lord Cornwallis had expressly ordered him to return; but more than one of us believed then, and yet hold to it, that the redcoated Britisher who could be so courageous when he had none but old men, boys and women in front of him, was absolutely afraid to measure strength with General Marion.
Now while we laid here in safety, gathering numbers every day, much was done by our friends in other parts of the colony.
General Sumter, our kinsman, gave battle to Tarleton at the Blackstock farm on the banks of the Tyger, defeating him utterly, but at a terrific loss, so far as the Cause was concerned. The Britishers had ninety-two killed and one hundred and four wounded. Among the Americans only three were slain and four wounded; but in the latter list was the general himself, who bore as marks of the victory a severely dangerous wound in the breast.
His gallant followers, true to him as was our brigade to General Marion, lashed him in the raw hide of a bullock which was slung as a litter between two horses, and thus, guarded by an hundred picked men, he was carried to the upper colony, so we were told, where he lay hovering 'twixt life and death.
It was also while we were encamped here that the battle of King's Mountain was fought, when the British, under Major Ferguson, were defeated handsomely, the killed, wounded and captured of the enemy amounting to eleven hundred men, and among the dead was the major himself.
Two exceedingly fortunate encounters for us—encounters such as guaranteed to us final victory if we could but hold out as we had begun, and this seemed most probable, for, as ever will be the case, a successful commander finds plenty of recruits.
We of Williamsburg were not inactive during the days spent in camp; but made forays here and there, capturing in some places bands of Tories on their way to Georgetown, or, having the good fortune to come across detachments of the redcoats who were guarding store-trains, until, should I attempt to repeat all the little adventures which befell us, I might continue this writing until so many pages were filled that one would shrink from the reading because of the magnitude of the task.
It is with the more adventurous, but yet the sadder part of our service under General Marion that I must close this record which has been intended only to show what we comrades did, up to the time Snow's Island was fortified, when we ceased active operations during the year.
The British post at Georgetown was the one place which our people most needed as a base of operations against Charleston, and, in fact, to hold our own in Williamsburg district.