"We have discovered some men who listed themselves as spies. We took upon one of them his furlough from Berwick's regiment in the Irish troops. They strove to persuade some of our men to betray a post to the Spaniards; who, instead of complying, discovered their intentions. I have ordered a general Court Martial, for the trying of them, who have not yet made their report. One of them owns himself a Roman Catholic, and denies the King having any authority over him."
"I conceive," says Dr. Stevens, "that these two letters refer to one and the same thing, viz.: that there were spies, which came over with the troops who arrived in September; that they designed to betray the English posts; that they were to murder the officers; and defeat the object for which the regiment was sent to Georgia. But this plot was crushed by the fact of its being discovered, the ring-leaders seized, and a Court Martial ordered."
Writing again to the Duke of Newcastle from Frederica, November 20, 1738, Oglethorpe says,—"Those soldiers who came from Gibraltar, have mutinied. The King gave them provisions and pay at Gibraltar. He gave them but six months provision here; after which they were to live upon their pay. On the expiration of their provisions, they demanded a continuance of them, and not being able to comply with their demands, they took to arms. One of them fired upon me. After a short skirmish we got the better of them. One of the officers was slightly, and one of the mutineers dangerously wounded, and five are secured prisoners, to be tried by a Court Martial. We have strong reason to suspect that our neighbors have tampered with these men. Many of them speak Spanish, and some of their boats,[1] under various pretences, came up hither before my arrival."
[Footnote 1: He refers here to boats from St. Augustine.]
Upon this Dr. Stevens remarks—"In this case the cause of mutiny had no reference to the Spaniards. While in Gibraltar the troops had received provisions in addition to their pay. These were continued six months after their arrival in America; but when these were withdrawn, and nothing but their bare pay left, they became dissatisfied; demanded additional supplies; and, on refusal by General Oglethorpe, took to their arms. Here was a simple cause originating among themselves; in the other affair, the soldiers who created the difficulty were acting as agents of a foreign power; the bribed and acknowledged traitors to their own country. In the one case it was the sudden outbreaking of discontent, owing to the retrenchment of their wages; in the other, it was a premeditated and well-concerted plan, framed by Spanish emissaries on the other side of the water, to be executed on this."
Referring to the remark of General Oglethorpe at the close of the last letter, as also to some suggestions in the letter of mine, to which the foregoing was the reply, Dr. Stevens adds—"That the Spaniards tampered with the English, and endeavored to seduce them from their allegiance, is not to be doubted; because it was of the utmost importance to them to create divisions in the regiment; but the one to whom Hewatt refers, as having been 'in the Spanish service, and had so much of a Roman Catholic spirit,' is doubtless the same spoken of by Oglethorpe in July, upon whom a Court Martial sat in September; and who could not, therefore, have been connected with the mutiny at Fort St. Andrews, in November."
XXI.
FURTHER PARTICULARS OF TOMO CHICHI.
In the preceding pages are several references to Tomo Chichi, which show how strongly he became attached to Oglethorpe; how liberal he was in the grant of territory; how considerate in furnishing to the new settlers venison, wild turkeys, and other articles, as opportunity offered, and the occasion made particularly acceptable; how serviceable he was in procuring such interviews with the Chiefs of the Upper and Lower Creeks as led to amicable treaties; and how ready to assist, not only with his own little tribe, but by his influence with others, in the contests with the Spaniards. Some other notices of him, which bring out his excellent character more prominently, but could not be inserted in the body of this work, I have deemed to be sufficiently interesting to be inserted here.
"There were no Indians near the Georgians, before the arrival of Oglethorpe, except Tomo Chichi, and a small tribe of about thirty or forty men who accompanied him. They were partly Lower Creeks, and partly Yamasees, who had disobliged their countrymen, and, for fear of falling sacrifices to their resentment, had wandered in the woods till about the year 1731, when they begged leave of the Government of Carolina to sit down at Yamacraw, on the south side of Savannah river."[1]