USA > South Carolina > Documentary history of the American revolution: consisting of letters and papers relating to the contest for liberty, chiefly in South Carolina, from originals in the possession of the editor, and other sources, V.2 > Part 26
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days; on his march he met with a singular adventure. Feeling sore at the loss of a fine horse, as related above. he wished to recover him, and, as a mere possibility to obtain that end, he determined to make an effort. He struck into a road which deviated to the left of the main road, and rode rapidly on, in hopes to be able to regain the road on which his department marched, and, struck with a track of a single horse on said road, which resembled that of his stolen horse, he pur- sued the track for many miles, at a round gallop, not conscious how far he was deviating from his direct road. At length the track ceased, by the grass on a neglected road, and he saw a building; it proved a lofty mill, now in disuse. On approaching the scene, he perceived two men running; they ran towards a dwelling-house, whither he pursued them, in order to speak to them. He was accosted by a respectable-looking man with, " Who art thou?" and " What dost thou want ?"' He told his errand without dismounting, and asked for some refreshment. Dr. Read was invited in, where he saw another very respectable-looking man, a senior. They called in a negro man, and set before him beef, bread and eggs. and ordered his horse fed. One of his servants came in and said, in an under voice, "he never saw such a horse before." He rode his fine Irish grey. He felt uneasy, and wished for the time that he had rode some less attractive horse; but his meal being finished, he requested to be instructed how to fall in with the main road to Salis- bury, and then informed them who he was, and his march towards that town. These people had only a vague report of the battle of King's Mountain, and the death of Col. Ferguson. This was a place of mills; a vast quantity of lumber lay about. Dr. Read was now told that, if he wanted to depart by any other way than that he came on, he must be blindfolded, and obey instructions; he consented, and had his handkerchief placed over his eyes. He and his horse were lead over heaps of boards, and carried to a river, embarked in a flat, and poled along by the white man and negro; no word was uttered except " stoop," "stoop low." The boat appeared to enter a creek, and to be poled along many miles. At length he was landed, and, being released by his conductors, got directions to ride forward in a precise direction, to ride hard, until he struck a deep swamp, and to course along about ten miles, and he would strike the main road. He did so; probably gallopped twenty miles before he struck the swamp, and ten along that course. About half-way along, he came to a settlement of new huts; asked for some water; was known to the negroes; called young master, and was told that they had belonged to his uncle Rose, and that they had seen him at Oakhampton; said they belonged to the public. Dr.
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Read, on reaching the main road, and perceiving no fresh track of his department, road down the road in hopes of meeting his party. In an hour's ride, now at night, he met some of his officers, who had been uneasy at his rash resolve to leave his party in the vain search of a lost horse, they being in an enemy's country. He moved on as speedily as the insufficient equipment of his department would admit; numbers of wounded and invalids insisted on going on in hopes of recovery, and being able to take the field again. Never was there an instance of such zeal, such enthusiasm, displayed in common soldiers, as was ex- hibited here on Gen. Greene taking the command. He reached Salis- bury, and not being preceded by a Quarter-Master, had to ride through the town, and to put under requisition such buildings as he required for an hospital, and such apartments as he stood in need of for himself and officers. He did so as best suited the purpose, but it occasioned much discontent between the Republican and Royalist owners, and some warm conversations with him. Dr. Read's policy was to conciliate good will, and to make friends to the cause wherever he served, and he suc- ceeded in many instances. At Salisbury he was well established, him- self and the young gentlemen of his department, and some prisoners. Col. Rugely was a sick man, a prisoner on parole. They thought them- selves well off for some weeks; and, had Gen. Greene been able to fight and repel Cornwallis, he might have remained stationary. When, behold, one night his landlord came to his bed-side, saying, " Dr. Read, I have bad news for you!" A marauding party has been to my wash-house, and plundered my washer-woman of all my clothes, and of yours, and of these gentlemen, meaning Col. Rugely, and of Capt. Churchill Jones (a sick officer, who was at my quarters). "Another piece of bad news is, that Gen. Greene is on the retreat, and there is an express now in town enquiring for you." They all dressed in a hurry. The express did come, and communicate the orders: "that Dr. Read must retreat immediately." Capt. Jones was not in a condition to ride ; but, getting a litter made, he was laid on it, and they were all on the retreat towards the River Yadkin before daylight. Drs. Brownfield and Gillet were eminently useful in packing up their stores and medicines, wad in getting off the patients. They crossed the Yadkin. Dr. Read, couldent of his horse, remained in town until he saw Greene's retreat- ing army march through. Greene followed, and was actually alone, the most fatigued man he ever saw. Read was seated giving paroles to certain prisoners of war. Some of this assumed service was attended with such circumstances of romance, as would not bear a narrative here, although strictly true. A scene transacted here is given in Garden's
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anecdotes. Dr. Read, having Gen. Greene's sanction and approbation, finished the business, and rode with the General to the Yadkin, and they crossed the river together at the Island Ford. Dr. Read continued with the General, no aid-de-camp or other officer being with him; his aides and secretary were all absent-gone, as he said, to meet Gen. Huger, and to hasten his march. Gen. Isaac Huger commanded such of Gates' defeated troops, and such volunteers as he could collect North of the Cape Fair, and to him all eyes were turned for the reinforcement to enable Greene to meet the foe. Huger's name was uttered a thousand times by the soldiery, as a desirable arrival. He at length reached the River Dan, and crossed. Gen. Greene requested an interview with Dr. Read the morning after their crossing the Yadkin; and, giving him his orders, said -- " Your department would embarrass my march ; you must march to the left, and reach Virginia as soon as you can. You are to take the prisoners (the Queen's Rangers) with you, about 150. You march through an hostile country, and these men may be rescued by the disaffected inhabitants; each man is worth the release of an American soldier, a prisoner, therefore be careful of them." Dr. Read said, " Gen. Greene this is more than my duty." The General con- templated Dr. R. for some time and said : " Dr. Read, we must all do more than our duty, or we never shall succeed; this is not the first time that extra duty has been required of you. I rely much on you. I will give you thirty stand of arms, and you must organize a guard of volunteers from among the invalids, and be upon your guard." Dr. R. knew that Cols. Scophol and Cunningham were in the field, no great way from his march, as a short time previous to this he (Dr. Read) was sent by the General, express to Col. Lock, to order a thousand men raised, to cover Major Hyrne's retreat with the captive regiment, the British 71st, taken at the battle of the Cowpens, as Scophol and Cunningham were in the hostile position a little to the west. The service was promptly performed. The transaction was attended with a laughable circumstance, which was given to Major Garden as an anecdote. Dr. Read's march was made with all possible dispatch, lame and insufficient as his transportation was. On the first night, being on the way in rainy weather, Dr. Read riding in the van, was hailed-" Who comes there ?" to which he responded, drawing out and cocking his pistol. Again they hailed. when Dr. Read, telling his name, was answered with the reply --- " You are the man I am looking for, having come across the country with great perseverance." It proved to be Major Call, with a dispatch. Dr. Read went under a wagon, struck a light, and read the dispatch. The service was done to Gen. Greene's satisfac-
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tion. It was most important, and is told in Garden's anecdotes. The cartridges obtained by Dr. Read's vigilance, and his influence with Tranqut Buggie (the principal of the Moravians), were dispatched to the army on the Dan, and were probably the missiles at the battle of Guildford. Buggie would take no payment for the fare of the officers, and took certificates only for the rations furnished the troops. The march was continued, attended with many interesting circumstances, one of which may be told. Dr. Read, in riding forward in the van, reached a dairy, which in a manner overhung the road. He looked in, and observing a fine dairy, endeavored to buy all the milk. &c .. in it. for his poor, sick and wounded soldiers. A bargain was struck for all in the dairy except the butter. The woman of the dairy went into the dwelling-house to ascertain the worth of her milk. &c., and stayed a long time. In the meantime his wagon and marching parties moved on, were ordered to halt, and the people to return with their canteens and cups; they did so, and carried off all the milky fluid. Payment was now offered; the price fixed was four-and-a-half crowns. Dr. Read held the silver in his hand; the woman did not take it, but opened a gate, and motioned Dr. Read to ride in; he said "no! that he was in a hurry," and again handed the money. The woman refused to extend her hand, but urged him to ride in. He thought that he saw something designing in her manners, and much trepidation, when, looking towards the house, he saw two men riding hard towards him; one of them was one of the Queen's Rangers, in green and crimson, a man that he had missed all the day previous. Dr. Read took the hint, and rode off towards his party. His soldiers were indignant at this treacherous affair, and were with difficulty prevented from returning and wreaking vengeance on the house; but policy, as well as humanity, restrained him. He was in hourly expectation of being pursued by Tarleton, or a de- tachment of his corps, as he knew they were to cross the Yadkin at the Shallow Ford, and would march through Salem, and there get an account of Dr. Read's marching party, which might be an object; he, therefore, proceeded in all meekness and benevolence towards the in- habitants. The two men were seen late on that day riding on the side of a mountain parallel with the marching party, out of reach of musket. shot. Dr. Read was delicate in making requisitions on the inhabitants, except for provisions, and a few blankets for the needy. The scarcity of that article was severely felt in many instances. After the defeat of Gates, scarce one man in five had a blanket. Dr. Read was at quarters out of Hillsborough, together with Gen. Isaac Huger and L'ol. Kosciusko, without a blanket, for more than six weeks, their only bed-
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ding being the General's cloak, under which they occasionally slept ; they constantly hoped for a supply. The weather was in the meantinie very cold, but they bore it without a murmur. The sick soldiers, women and children, benefited by the milk, and the treacherous woman lost her money. Returning this way some months after, nobody was at this house; all was ruin and desolation. On reaching Salem on a mission to obtain scalpels and lancets, he learned that the British army did march through Salem, and the respectable old Principal observed to Dr. Read that "he took all their milk," but said he, " the British took off all our milch cows." The instruments were obtained, and were probably used on the field of battle at Guildford Court House.
Dr. Read here retrogades to relate a story in the operations of this campaign, highly to the credit of Gen. Morgan, which should not be lost. Dr. Read, after parting with Gen. Greene on the evening of their crossing the Yadkin. walked into camp, and on enquiring for Gen. Morgan, whom he was desirous of seeing, he found him in a tent laying on leaves, under a blanket. On enquiry. the General said he was very sick, rheumatic from head to feet. The Doctor gave him advice to leave camp, and retire to some place of safety, and warm quarters. The General said, "I do not know where that is to be found until I reach Virginia." Dr. Read left him and walked down to the river, where were a number of officers observing the arrival of the enemy on the rising grounds over the river, column after column, which he and they contemplated as long as the light served them Presently he saw Morgan come down to the river. Several officers approached him on seeing anxiety in his manner, and enquired what was the matter. The General's reply was short and evasive. At length Dr. Read made up to him, to reproach him for not following his advice, which was to seek an opportunity of perspiration as remedy against his painful rheumatic affection. The General said : "to you, Dr. Read, I will be explicit, as it may give you some business. I have laid an ambuscade of 120 Virginia men for the British; we hope to do them some harm." Dr. Read's reply was: " good God, is it possible !" He did not think they had a hostile man over the river, and expressed his wonder how they could escape. The General observed that this was one of the strata- gems of war that must be resorted to, and as to the bazard, brave men were always prepared for it. At this moment a firing was heard; the General appeared in ecstacy. "There are my rifles, there the British pistol;" now a barking and howling of dogs were heard, then all was still, and a solemn silence ensued. Dr. Read stood looking over the dark expanse, reflecting on the horrors of war, when he saw an object
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which appeared like a vision. It was the discharge of a gun; a man on horseback falling backwards, then all was obscurity. He spoke of it; it was treated like a thing of imagination, and Dr. Read, mistrust- ing his own vision, insisted no more on it. Gen. Morgan was gone, and soon after Dr. Read retired to his camp. The next morning the General and a number of officers were at the river, to know the fate of the ambuscade. Presently was seen a company of men marching in loose order up the banks of the river-wet, and apparently much fatigued. Numbers made enquiry, and conversed on the subject. Dr. Read related what he had seen the night before, and pointed to the spot, where there appeared to lay an object like a dead man; when a
- young man stepped up and said : " It is true, sir, I am the man. was pursued by a dragoon when running across that field; he overtook me, and I wheeled about and shot him; I think he fell. At the mo- ment he gave my rifle a heavy cut;" and, showing his rifle, the sabre cut was evident. The horse ran off, and the rifleman made good his retreat. Dr. Read now accosted the bystanders with a hope that they were no longer incredulous. Dr. Read spoke encouragingly to the young soldier, whose name was Campbell, and advised him to keep that rifle as a sacred deposit. After this battle, some anxiety was expressed to know its fate, when two young men, Steel and Gillespie, volunteered to go over the river and see. They mounted fine horses, and rode down a hill, which seemed vastly precipitous, and riding to the western end of the rocky island that gives the name of Island Ford to the crossing place, they crossed the river, and saw numbers of soldiers burying the dead in large pits. Some of Morgan's ambuscade were missing, but Dr. Read never heard of their fate. He marched next morning on his important command, and never returned to this part of the country, and he never met Morgan again to enquire the history of this expedi- tion. An army is a little world, composed chiefly of men; the members of it form an acquaintance which is speedily to be estranged-they con- tract friendships which are soon to be ended by arbitrary severation, never to meet again. A surgeon parts with his amiable young friend, and sees him on the same day brought in a corpse-he parts with an old college acquaintance to join him in serving, while in the midst of battle he sees him brought off the field a dying man. In another in- stance a wounded officer is brought many miles, a valued intimate acquaintance, to have a wounded arm amputated. Alas! poor Col. Ford! He had seen Dr. Reed amputate at Monmouth, and insisted on being brought to him for that friendly office; when, behold, the post- ponement became fatally destructive-he epasmed and died, and severed
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two manly hearts loug attached to each other. Col. Ford departed with extraordinary fortitude, being sensible of his approaching death. He had been bred to physic; all matters for his funeral were appointed by himself. The music was instructed to practice at his quarters, and the tune prescribed. Some romantic circumstances ensued in couse- quence of this death. Ford was under the impression that the de- parted could communicate with the living, and he promised to appear to Dr. Read on the night of his death. Dr. Read, considering the possibility of the thing, sat up alone, anxiously waiting the event, but no ghost appeared. He waited until twelve o'clock, when ghosts are said to retire ; theo, putting ou his night-gown, he walked out to Gen. Pulk's burial-ground, where the mortal remains of his friend were de- posited, and invoking him, remained there an hour. This proceeding was useless, no ghost was seen, no voice heard. It was imprudent, as his (Dr. Read's) appearance, in a white gown, gave an alarm which was attended with serious consequences; not, however, worth relating here. Dr. Read continued to exercise his professional avocations in Charlotte, receiving the sick and wounded from all the outposts, and the operations of Colonels Marion, Sumter, Hampton and Maham, likewise of the gallant Harry Lee, of the Legion; aided and assisted by Drs. Gillet. senior and junior, and by Dr. Robert Brownfield, he did a great deal of good to the service. The several gentlemen, aides-de-camp of Gen. Greene's army, came to Dr. Read in bad health, in succession, from their arduous duties in the low country-Colonels Lewis, Morris, Shubrick, Pierce, Pendleton, Major Burnet, Col. Kosciusko, Carrington and Gunby-the latter to decide an affair of honor. Gunby lost his right thumb. Dr. Read received them all in comfort, being enabled to do so by the zealous assistance of his Commissary, Matthew McClure, from his popularity with the people of the country, and mainly by the ser- vices of a soldier, who, possessing the art of slight of band, would go through the country and exercise his art, to the diversion of the people, and profit of the mess, in poultry, pigs, eggs, and small meats. Elliot had been dismissed the Maryland line for diminutiveness, which he thought very hard, as he had marched and fought alongside of many a tall fellow, through a severe campaign; he was, however, eminently useful to Dr. Read's mess, enabling bim to keep a table like any general officer. He was enabled to receive in comfort many of the exchangedl prisoners who wended their way south after their exchange on the coast of Virginia; among them was Henry Middleton, John Middle- ton, Henry Peronneau, John Badly, &e., &c., and Dr. Read's young brother, George P. Read. About this time Dr. Read was informed by
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some of Gen. Polk's scouts that a British officer lay near the Catawba, in a lone woman's house. badly wounded. Dr. Read, ever ready in any work of humanity, feeling excited, determined to see and relieve the wounded officer, required of Gen. Polk a guide and two mounted men, set out, and after riding hard for two hours, reached the house. There lay a fine-looking officer, leaning on an old woman's bosom, while a negro man stood preparing to dress his wounded side. He appeared alarmed at his arrival until Read informed him his erraud; he thanked him kindly. The old lady remarked that he could not have said so much three or four days ago; she then proceeded to relate the circum- stance. " That about two weeks ago an officer of dragoons of Greene's army came there with this wounded man behind his servant, and left him with her, saying, that he could not wait, requesting me to take care of him. He stopped, however, a few minutes, and loosened his valise, and took from it a bundle, saying: 'on leaving home my mother gave me this bundle, saying, if you should be wounded, or any friends of yours, open this bundle.' He loosened the bundle saying, . I con- sider this suffering fellow creature entitled to my kindness, although an enemy.' It contained lint and bandages, and a box of pills ; he shared the lint and bandages, and divided the pills, and gave directions; they were as remedy in case of spasm. The good creature, God bless him, then rode off." The wounded man now spoke, saying, "I was sensible of all that passed, although I could not speak. I had lost a fore tooth, which happily made an aperture, through which I took water through the spout of' a tea-pot, and by the same opening I took the pills. In about twelve or sixteen hours I could open my mouth, which was com- pletely locked ; I had taken four pills. On examining the mass, Dr. Read thought they were of opium, camphor and musk. Dr. Read had carried with him a bottle of wine; he made the wounded man take a glass of it, and proceeded to examine and dress his wounds. A mus- ket ball had struck a rib, and glanced out, ripping the skin and muscle four inches long ; a sabre or hatchet cut over the ear was to the bone. ile had not been conscious of the wound of the head. He had be- longed, or commanded a flanking advance of their army, which pursued Greene after the retreat from Ninety-Six, and was shot down and aban- doned by his men. The officer who took him up was one of Greene's rear, and finding him on the ground alive, placed him behind his mounted servant, and brought him to this house as related.
The good lady's remark was, " that he was a fine young man, and that she dare say that his mother was a religious woman, and that her son was well brought up." Dr. Read made him repeat the glass of wine,
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and saw him in good spirits. The good woman was struck with his change of manner. He was jocular, and said to Dr. Read, " you have a fine fellow in your service, Abraham Beauford." Dr. Read replied, " yes, I know him well, and we think him a five fellow." " But," said he, "after the surprise at Waxsaws, be sent in a flag to enquire for and ransom a pair of mares, instead of enquiring after his wounded and prisoners." Here Dr. R. counteracted his opinion, and said, " that Beauford would not discredit the humanity of your army so far as to suppose the wounded would not be taken care of." He smiled and said, " there you pose me." Dr. Read then took leave of this gentle- man, giving the old lady directions in case of pain or future spasms, and rode off. Not long after this hazardous transaction, for he rode through a hostile country, at least infested with hostile marauders, by some of which, a little while ago, some miles to the west of this region, he had been chased to within five miles of Charlotte, when he went out to remedy the wounds of Gen. Sumter. The fleetDess of his horse, with the General's instructions, saved his life or free- dom. At about this time he says he was called upon to exercise his zeal and activity in carrying dispatches to Gen. Greene; a rider came into Charlotte very sick, with despatches, on a tired horse. They were from Yorktown, Virginia, from Washington to Greene, and thought to relate the capture of Lord Cornwallis. Dr. Read was on marching orders. On Gen. Greene encamping about the high hills of Santee, he directed Dr. Read to follow him as speedily as he could with his de- partment, and fix a flying hospital in the rear of his camp. Dr. Read volunteered to carry these dispatches. Transcending his orders as above, he left his department under the guidance of Dr. Elisha Gillet, and set out; he rode his own horse. There was not at this time a man or horse at the command of Gen. Polk; his son Charles had lately been furnished with every disposable man and horse to scour the country around, and to protect Charlotte against the Tories, who were in the field in force. Dr. Read rode eighty miles in ten hours, lay down at Camden four hours, and then proceeded on at the rate of nine miles an hour on the same horse to Gen. Greene, at Gabriel Guignard's house. A council was immediately held of his aides-de-camp, and of Major Edmund Hyrne, who was at head-quarters. It would appear extraor- dinary that Dr. Read would condescend to be an express rider, but it will be acknowledged that the occasion was extraordinary. He saw, with somewhat of a soldier's eye, that it was all important that Greene should know . the fate of Cornwallis's army before the British army, under Lord Rawdon, should hear it. Greene immediately moved down
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