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THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
vous off the bar of the north channel and blockade that and the Matanzas pass to St. Augustine. Captain Warren, with two hundred sailors, was to land on Anastasia Island and erect bat- teries for bombarding the town in front. When his land forces should come into position and be prepared for the assault, he was to notify Sir Yelverton Peyton, commanding the naval forces, and St. Augustine would thus be attacked on all sides.
Shortly after the middle of May, 1740, General Oglethorpe, with a land army numbering over two thousand regulars, militia, and Indians, moved upon St. Augustine. Fort Moosa,1 situated within two miles of that place, lay in his route. Upon his ap- proach the garrison evacuated it and retired within the lines of the town. Having burnt the gates of this fort and caused three breaches in its walls, General Oglethorpe, on the 5th of June, made his reconnoissances of the land defenses of St. Augustine and prepared for the contemplated assault. Everything being in readiness, the signal previously agreed upon to insure the co- operation of the naval forces was given ; but, to the general's surprise and mortification, no response was returned. His forces being disposed and eager for the attack, the signal was repeated, but failed to evoke the anticipated answer. Satisfied that the town could not be carried without the assistance of the naval forces, and being ignorant of the cause of their non-action, the general reluctantly withdrew his army and placed it in camp at a convenient distance, there to remain until he could ascertain the reason of the failure on the part of the navy to cooperate in the plan which had been preconcerted. This failure was ex- plained in this wise. Inside the bar, and at such a remove that they could not be affected by the fire of the British vessels of war, - the Flamborough, the Phoenix, the Squirrel, the Tartar, the Spence, and the Wolf, - Spanish galleys and half galleys were moored so as effectually to prevent the ascent of the barges intended for the attack, and preclude a landing of troops upon Anastasia Island. The shallowness of the water was such that the men-of-war could not advance near enough to dislodge them. Under the circumstances, therefore, Sir Yelverton Peyton found himself unable to respond to the important part assigned him in the attack.
1 This was an ontpost on the North River, about two miles north of St. Au- gustine. A fortitied line, a considerable portion of which may now be traced, ex- tended across from the stockades on the St. Sebastian to Fort Moosa. A commu-
nication by a tide.ercek existed through the marshes between the castle at St. Augustine and Fort Moosa. Fairbanks' History and Antiquities of St. Augustine, p. 144. New York. 1858.
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SIEGE OF ST. AUGUSTINE.
Certified of this fact, and chagrined at the non-realization of his original plan of operations, Oglethorpe determined at once to convert his purposed assault into a siege. The ships of war lying off the bar of St. Augustine were directed to narrowly observe every avenue of approach by water, and maintain a rigid block- ade. Colonel Palmer, with ninety-five Highlanders and forty- two Indians, was left at Fort Moosa with instructions to scout the woods incessantly on the land side and intercept any cattle or supplies coming from the interior. To prevent surprise and cap- ture, he was cautioned to change his camp each night and keep always on the alert. He was to avoid anything like a general engagement with the enemy. Colonel Vanderdussen, with his South Carolina regiment, was ordered to take possession of a neck of land known as Point Quartel, about a mile distant from the castle, and there erect a battery. General Oglethorpe, with the men of his regiment and most of the Indians, embarked in boats and effected a landing on Anastasia Island, where, hav- ing driven off a party of Spaniards there stationed as an ad- vanced guard, he, with the assistance of the sailors from the fleet, began mounting cannon with which to bombard the town and castle.1
Having by these dispositions completed his investment, Ogle- thorpe summoned the Spanish governor to a surrender. Secure in his stronghold, the haughty Don "sent him for answer that he would be glad to shake hands with him in his castle." Indig- nant at such a response, the general opened his batteries upon the castle and also shelled the town. The fire was returned both by the fort and the half galleys in the harbor. So great was the distance, however, that although the cannonade was maintained with spirit on both sides for nearly three weeks, little damage was caused or impression produced.2 It being evident that the reduction of the castle could not be expected from the Anastasia Island batteries, Captain Warren offered to lead a night attack upon the half galleys in the harbor which were effectually pre-
1 The main battery on Anastasia Isl- and, called the Poza, was armed with four eighteen-pounders and one nine- pounder. Two eighteen-pounders were mounted on the point of the wood of the island. The remains of the Poza battery are still to be seen, almost as distinctly marked as on the day of its creetion. Four mortars and forty cochorns were employed in the siege.
See Fairbanks' History and Antiqui- ties of St. Augustine, p. 146. New York. 1868.
2 The light guns, at long range, caused trifling effect upon the strong wall- of the castle. When struck, they received the balls in their spongy, infrangible embrace, and sustained comparatively little injury. The marks of their impact may be noted to this day.
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THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
venting all ingress by boats. A council of war decided that inasmuch as those galleys were covered by the guns of the castle, and could not be approached by the larger vessels of the fleet, any attempt to capture them in open boats would be accompanied by too much risk. The suggestion was therefore abandoned.
Observing the besiegers uncertain in their movements, and their operations growing lax, and being sore pressed for provis- ions, the Spanish governor sent out a detachment of three hun- dred men against Colonel Palmer. Unfortunately, that officer, negligent of his instructions and apprehending no danger from the enemy, remained two or three consecutive nights at Fort Moosa. This detachment, under the command of Don Antonio Salgrado, passed quietly out of the gates of St. Augustine during the night of June 14th, and after encountering a most desperate resistance succeeded in capturing Fort Moosa at daylight the next morning. Colonel Palmer fell early in the action. The Highlanders " fought like lions " and " made such havoc with their broadswords as the Spaniards cannot easily forget." This hand-to-hand conflict was won at the cost to the enemy of more than one hundred lives. Colonel Palmer, a captain, and twenty Highlanders were killed. Twenty-seven were captured. Those who escaped made their way to Colonel Vanderdussen at Point Quartel. Thus was St. Augustine relieved from the prohibition which had hitherto estopped all intercourse with the surround- ing country.
Shortly after the occurrence of this unfortunate event the ship of war which had been blockading the Matanzas River was withdrawn. Taking advantage of the opportunity thus afforded, some small vessels from Havana, with provisions and reinforce- ments, reached St. Augustine by that narrow channel, bringing encouragement and relief to the garrison. This reinforcement was estimated at seven hundred men, and the supply of pro- visions is said to have been large. "Then," writes Hewitt,1 whose narrative we have followed in the main, " all prospects of starving the enemy being lost, the army began to despair of forcing the place to surrender. The Carolinian troops, enfeebled by the heat, dispirited by sickness, and fatigued by fruitless ef- forts, marched away in large bodies. The navy being short of provisions, and the usual seasons of hurricanes approaching, the
1 Historical Account of the Rise and and Georgia, vol. ii. p. 81. London. Progress of the Colonies of South Carolina 1779.
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333
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THE SIEGE OF ST. AUGUSTINE RAISED.
commander judged it imprudent to hazard his majesty's ships by remaining longer on that coast. Last of all, the general himself, sick of a fever, and his regiment worn out with fatigue and ren- dered unfit for action by a flux, with sorrow and regret followed, and reached Frederica about the 10th of July, 1740."
The Carolinians, under Colonel Vanderdussen, proved inef- ficient, "turbulent, and disobedient." They lost not a single man in action, and only fourteen deaths occurred from sickness and accident. Desertions were frequent.1
Upon Oglethorpe's regiment and the Georgia companies de- volved the brunt of the siege. On the 5th of July the artillery and stores on Anastasia Island were brought off, and the men crossed over to the mainland.2 Vanderdussen and his regiment at once commenced a disorderly retreat in the direction of the St. John, leaving Oglethorpe and his men within half-cannon shot of the castle. In his dispatch to the Secretary of State, dated Camp on St. John in Florida, July 19, 1740, the gen- eral thus describes his last movements : " The Spaniards made a sally, with about 500 men, on me who lay on the land side. I ordered Ensign Cathcart with twenty men, supported by Major Heron and Captain Desbrisay with upwards of 100 men, to at- tack them ; I followed with the body. We drove them into the works and pursued them to the very barriers of the covered way. After the train and provisions were embarked and safe out of the harbour, I marched with drums beating and colours flying, in the day, from my camp near the town to a camp three miles distant, where I lay that night. The next day I marched nine miles, where I encamped that night. We discovered a party of Spanish horse and Indians whom we charged, took one horseman and killed two Indians; the rest ran to the garrison. I am now en- camped on St. John's River, waiting to know what the people of Carolina would desire me farther to do for the safety of these provinces, which I think are very much exposed to the half-gal-
1 Stephens says, . . . Most of the gay Volunteers run away by small Parties, basely and cowardly, as they could get Boats to carry them off during the Time of greatest Action ; and Capt. Bull (a son of the Lieutenant-Governor), who had the Command of a Company in that Reg- iment, most scandalously deserted his Post when upon Duty, and not staying to be relieved regularly, made his Flight privately, carrying off four Men of his
Guard with him, and escaped to Charles Town ; for which he ought in Justice to have been tried as a Deserter : but he was well received at home. Journal of Pro- ceedings, etc., vol. ii. p. 462. London. 1742.
Compare Ramsay's History of South Carolina, vol. i. p. 143. Charleston. 1809.
2 Wright's Memoir of General James Oglethorpe, p. 254. London. 1867.
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THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
leys, with a wide extended frontier hardly to be defended by a few men."
In one of the Indian chiefs Oglethorpe found a man after his own heart. When asked by some of the retreating troops to march with them, his reply was, " No! I will not stir a foot till I see every man belonging to me marched off before me; for I have always been the first in advancing towards an enemy, and the last in retreating." 1
This failure to reduce St. Augustine may be fairly attributed
I. To the delay in inaugurating the movement, caused mainly, if not entirely, by the tardiness on the part of the South Carolina authorities in contributing the troops and provisions for which requisition had been made ;
II. To the reinforcement of men and supplies from Havana introduced into St. Augustine just before the English expedition set out ; thereby materially repairing the inequality previously existing between the opposing forces ;
III. To the injudicious movement against Forts Francis de Papa and Diego, which put the Spaniards on the alert, encour- aged concentration on their part, and foreshadowed an imme- diate demonstration in force against their stronghold ; and
IV. To the inability on the part of the fleet to participate in the assault previously planned, and which was to have been vigorously undertaken so soon as General Oglethorpe with his land forces came into position before the walls of St. Augustine.
V. The subsequent destruction of Colonel Palmer's command, thereby enabling the enemy to communicate with and draw sup- plies from the interior ; the lack of heavy ordnance with which to reduce the castle from the batteries on Anastasia Island ; the impossibility of bringing up the larger war vessels that they night participate in the bombardment ; the inefficiency of Colo- nel Vanderdussen's command ; the impatience and disappoint- ment of the Indian allies who anticipated early capture and lib- eral spoils ; hot suns, heavy dews, a debilitating climate, sickness among the troops, and the arrival of men, munitions of war, and provisions through the Matanzas River, in the end rendered quite futile every hope which at the outset had been entertained for a successful prosecution of the siege.
Great was the disappointment upon the failure of the expedi- tion, and unjust and harsh were the criticisms leveled by not a
1 See Harris' Memorials of Oglethorpe, pp. 239, 240, Boston, 1841, quoting from the Gentleman's Magazine.
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335
ILLNESS OF GENERAL OGLETHORPE.
few against its brave and distinguished leader.1 We agree with the Duke of Argyle who, in the British House of Peers, declared, " One man there is, my Lords, whose natural generosity, con- tempt of danger, and regard for the public prompted him to ob- viate the designs of the Spaniards and to attack them in their own territories ; a man whom by long acquaintance I can con- fidently affirm to have been equal to his undertaking, and to have learned the art of war by a regular education, who yet miscarried in the design only for want of supplies necessary to a possibility of success."
Although this attempt, so formidable in its character when we consider the limited resources at command, and so full of daring when we contemplate the circumstances under which it was un- dertaken, eventuated in disappointment, its effects were not with- out decided advantage to the colonies. For two years the Span- iards remained on the defensive and General Oglethorpe enjoyed an opportunity for strengthening his fortifications on St. Simon's Island, so that when the counter blow was delivered by his ad- versary he was in condition not only to parry it, but also to severely punish the uplifted arm.2
For two months after the termination of this expedition Ogle- thorpe lay ill of a continued fever contracted during the ex- posnres and fatignes incident upon his exertions and anxieties during the siege. When, on the 2d of September, Mr. Stephens called to see him at Frederica, he found him still troubled with a lurking fever and confined to his bed. His protracted sickness had so " worn away his strength " that he " seldom came down stairs, but retained still the same vivacity of spirit in appearance
1 See An Impartial Account of the Late Expedition against St. Augustine under General Oglethorpe, etc., London, 1742, which called forth The Spanish Hireling Detected, ctc., London, 1743.
2 For fuller account of this demonstra- tion against St. Augustine see Harris' Complete Collection of Voyages and Trav- els, etc., pp. 339, 340. London 1748. An Impartial Account of the late Expedi- tion against St. Augustine, etc. London. 1742. The Spanish Hireling Detected, etc. London. 1743 Stephens' Journal of Pro- ccedings, etc., vol ii. pp. 438, 444-448, 461 et aliter. London. 1742 Hewitt's ITis- torical Account of the Rise and Progress of the Colonies of South Carolina and Geor-
gia, vol. ii. chap. viii. pp. 65-82. London. 1779. McCall's History of Georgia, vol. i. pp. 143-151. Savannah. 1811. Ste- vens' History of Georgia, vol. i. pp. 167- 179. New York. 1847. Spalding's " Sketch of the Life of General James Oglethorpe," Collections of the Georgia IIistorical Society, vol. i. pp. 265-272. Savannah. 1840. Harris' Biographical Memorials of James Oglethorpe, pp. 222- 242. Boston. 1841. Wright's Memoir of General James Oglethorpe, etc., pp. 235- 255 London. 1867. Ramsay's History of South Carolina, vol. i. pp. 140-144. Charleston. 1809. Fairbanks' History and Antiquities of St. Augustine, pp. 141- 152. New York. 1858.
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THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
to all whom he talked with, though he chose to converse with very few." 1
Four companies of the regiment were now encamped at the southeast end of St. Simon's Island, and the other two at Fred- erica. So soon as the men recovered from the malady contracted at St. Augustine, they were employed in erecting new fortifica- tions and in strengthening the old. From these two camps detachments garrisoned the advanced works, St. Andrew, Fort William, St. George, and the outposts on Amelia Island ; the details being relieved at regular intervals.2
During the preceding seven years, which constituted the entire life of the colony, General Oglethorpe had enjoyed no respite from his labors. Personally directing all movements, supervising the location, and providing for the comfort, safety, and good order of the settlers, accommodating their differences, encouraging and directing their labors, propitiating the aborigines, influencing necessary supplies, and inaugurating suitable defenses, he had been constantly passing from point to point finding no rest for the soles of his feet. Now in tent at Savannah, now in open boat reconnoitring the coast, now upon the southern islands, his only shelter the wide-spreading live-oak, designating sites for forts and look-outs, and with his own hands planning military works and laying out villages ; again in journeys oft along the Savannah, the Great Ogeechee, the Alatamaha, the St. John and far off into the heart of the Indian country ; frequently inspect- ing his advanced posts, undertaking voyages to Charlestown and to England in behalf of the trust, and engaged in severe contests with the Spaniards, his life had been one of incessant activity and solicitude. But for his energy, intelligence, watchfulness, and self-sacrifice, the enterprise must have languished. As we look back upon this period of trial, uncertainty, and poverty, our admiration for his achievements increases the more closely we scan his limited resources and opportunities, the more intelli- gently we appreciate the difficulties he was called upon to sur- mount. Always present wherever duty called or danger threat- ened, he never expected others to press on where he himself did not lead.
The only home he ever owned or claimed in Georgia was on St. Simon's Island. The only hours of leisure he enjoyed were
1 Stephens' Journal of Proceedings, etc.,
2 Idem, p. 496.
vol. ii. pp. 467, 468, 494, 495. London. 1742.
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OGLETHORPE'S COTTAGE.
spent in sight and sound of his military works along the south- ern frontier, upon whose safe tenure depended the salvation of the colony. Just where the military road connecting Fort St. Simon with Frederica, after having traversed the beautiful prairie constituting the common pasture land of the village, entered the woods, General Oglethorpe established his cottage. Adjacent to it were a garden, and an orchard of oranges, figs, and grapes. Magnificent oaks threw their protecting shadows above and around this quiet, pleasant abode, fanned by delicious sea- breezes, fragrant with the perfume of flowers, and vocal with the melody of song-birds. To the westward, and in full view, were the fortifications and the white houses of Frederica. Behind rose a dense forest of oaks. "This cottage and fifty acres of land attached to it," says the Honorable Thomas Spalding in his "Sketch of the Life of General James Oglethorpe," 1 " was all the landed domain General Oglethorpe reserved to himself, and after the General went to England it became the property of my father. . . . After the Revolutionary war, the buildings being destroyed, my father sold this little property. But the oaks were only cut down within four or five years past, and the elder people of St. Simon's yet feel as if it were a sacrilege, and mourn their fall." Here the defenses of St. Simon's Island were under his immediate supervision. His troops were around him, and he was prepared, upon the first note of warning, to concentrate the forces of the colony for active operations. In the neighborhood several of his officers established their homes. Among them, " Harrington Hall," the country seat of the wealthy Hugue- not, Captain Raymond Demere, inclosed with hedges of cassina, was conspicuous for its beauty and comfort.
Including the soldiers and their families, Frederica, in 1740 is said to have claimed a population of one thousand.2 This esti- mate is perhaps somewhat exaggerated, although much nearer the mark than that of the discontents Tailfer, Anderson, and Douglas, who, in their splenetic and jacobinical tract entitled " A True and Historical Narrative of the Colony of Georgia in America," 3 assert that of the one hundred and forty-four lots into which the town is divided only " about fifty were built upon,
1 Collections of the Georgia Historical Society, vol. i. p. 273. Savannah. 1840. 2 Collections of the Georgia Historical Society, vol. i. p. 274. Savannah. 1840. Bancroft's History of the United Sates, olina. 1741. vol. ii. p. 434. Boston. 1852.
In this estimate must necessarily be in- eluded such officers and men of Ogle- thorpe's regiment as were there stationed. 3 Page 106. Charles-Town, South Car-
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THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
and that the number of the Inhabitants, notwithstanding of the Circulation of the Regiment's money, are not over one hundred and twenty Men, Women, and Children, and these are daily steal- ing away by all possible Ways."
As we have already seen, the town was regularly laid out in streets called after the principal officers of Oglethorpe's regi- ment. Including the military camp on the north, the parade on the east, and " a small wood on the south which served as a blind to the enemy in case of attack from ships coming up the river," it was about a mile and a half in circumference. The fort was strongly built of tabby and well armed. Several eighteen-pound- ers, mounted on a ravelin in front, commanded the river, and the town was defended on the land side by substantial intrenchments. The ditch at the foot of these intrenchments was intended to ad- mit the influx of the tide, thus rendering the isolation of Fred- erica complete, and materially enhancing the strength of its line of circumvallation.
We reproduce from " An Impartial Enquiry into the State and Utility of the Province of Georgia " 1 the following contempora- neous notice : " There are many good Buildings in the Town, several of which are Brick. There are likewise a Fort and Store- house belonging to the Trust. The People have a Minister who has a Salary from the Society for propagating the Gospel. In the Neighbourhood of the Town there is a fine Meadow of 320 Acres ditch'd in, on which a number of Cattle are fed, and good Hay is likewise made from it. At some Distance from the Town is the Camp for General Oglethorpe's Regiment. The Country about it is well cultivated, several Parcels of Land not far distant from the Camp having been granted in small Lots to the Soldiers, many of whom are married, and fifty-five Children were born there in the last year. These Soldiers are the most industrious, and will- ing to plant ; the rest are generally desirous of Wives, but there are not Women enough in the Country to supply them. There are some handsome Houses built by the Officers of the Regiment, and besides the Town of Frederica there are other little Villages upon this Island. A sufficient Quantity of Pot-herbs, Pulse, and Fruit is produced there to supply both the Town and Garrison ;
1 Pages 51 and 52. London. 1741.
p. 36. London. 1741. Wright's - Mem- Compare A State of the Province of oir of General James Oglethorpe, pp. 263, Georgia attested upon Outh, etc., p. 11. 264. London. 1867. London. 1742. An Account showing the Progress of the Colony of Georgia, etc.,
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SOUTIIERN FORTIFICATIONS.
and the People of Frederica have begun to malt and to brew ; and the Soldiers Wives Spin Cotton of the Country, which they Knit into Stockings. At the Town of Frederica is a Town-Court for administering Justice in the Southern Part of the Province, with the same Number of Magistrates as at Savannah."
At the village of St. Simon, on the south point of the island, was erected a watch-tower from which the movements of vessels at sea might be conveniently observed. Upon their appearance, their number was at once announced by signal guns, and a horse- man was dispatched to headquarters with the particulars. A look-out was kept by a party of rangers at Bachelor's Redoubt on the main, and a corporal's guard was stationed at Pike's Bluff. To facilitate communication with Darien a canal was cut through General's Island. Defensive works were erected on Jekyll Island, where Captain Horton had a well-improved plantation, and there a brewery was established for supplying the troops with beer. On Cumberland Island were three batteries : Fort St. Andrew, built in 1736, on high commanding ground, at the northeast point of the island ; a battery on the west to control the in- land navigation ; and Fort William, a work of considerable strength and regularity, commanding the entrance to St. Mary's River. Two companies of Oglethorpe's regiment were stationed near Fort St. Andrew. As many of the soldiers were married, lots were assigned to them which they cultivated and improved. Near this work was the little village of Barrimacke, of twenty- four families.
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