1781. ACTION AT THE COW-PENS. 107 enemy, at a place called the Cow-pens. He found them about equal in infantry, but inferior in horse; on the other hand, his own troops were exhausted with fatigue, from a long night-march. Nevertheless, the impetuous Tarleton, too confident of victory, led them forward to the charge. He succeeded in throwing into confusion the first and second line of the Americans; but they quickly rallied, and became the assailants in their turn. The way - worn English were altogether overpowered. Tarleton and the cavalry made their escape from the field; but the infantry were all either slain or taken prisoners; the number of these last being full 500. The action at the Cow-pens gave lustre to the American arms. It surprised, and mortified, but did not dispirit, Lord Cornwallis. On the contrary, he set his troops in rapid movement, cheerfully, for the sake of speed, sacrificing the greater part of his own and his officers' baggage. His object was to intercept Morgan and the prisoners at the fords of the Catawba. A sudden rise in the water, from the rains, delayed his progress; first at that stream, and next, also, at the Yadkin. But though Lord Cornwallis could not hinder Morgan from rejoining the main body under Greene, he advanced, with good success, against both these chiefs combined. It was only through Greene's great activity and judgment, that they saved themselves from being compelled to fight under many disadvantages. Closely pursued, they crossed the river Dan into Virginia, and left the whole of North Carolina at the mercy of the English. Desisting from further pursuit, Lord Cornwallis repaired to Hillsborough. There he raised the Royal Standard, and issued a proclamation inviting all loyal subjects to join him. He had good grounds to expect the accession of considerable numbers. Greene himself, in his most confidential correspondence, a few weeks afterwards, speaking of the southern States, owns that "the majority is greatly in favour "of the enemy's interest now."* So important, indeed, at *To President Reed, May 4. 1781. a red the time, did Cornwallis's gathering of the loyalists appear to Greene, that he determined, at all hazards, to impede it. He crossed the Dan once more, with the aid of some new Virginian Militia, and hung upon Cornwallis's flank and rear. It so chanced, that immediately afterwards, a body of some 200 loyalists, on their way to join the British, fell in with Greene's vanguard, under Colonel Lee, which they mistook for their own friends. Colonel Lee, on the contrary, detected them at once from the badge which they bore rag upon their hats. Thus they were taken wholly unawares, in a long, narrow lane, near the river Haw; and they were beginning to protest that they were "the very best friends "of the King," when, suddenly, their countrymen, deaf to all cries for mercy, fell upon them, and cut them down, without resistance, in cold blood. Cruelty is not always would that it were! ineffectual for its objects; and this dire act of slaughter certainly tended, in a great degree, to keep back the other Carolina loyalists, and scare them from the new-raised Royal Standard. Greene, though at first unequal to Cornwallis, received, by degrees, both reinforcements and supplies. Choosing some strong ground, near Guilford court-house, he no longer declined the battle which the English General offered. It was fought on the 15th of March, and was well contested. At length, the Americans, consisting, in part, of raw Militia, were utterly defeated, and driven from the field, leaving behind their artillery, and upwards of 300 dead. In the words of one of their historians: "No battle, in the course "of the war, reflects more honour on the courage of the "British troops than this of Guilford. On no other occasion "had they fought with such inferiority of numbers, or dis"advantages of ground."* This inferiority of numbers was, indeed, considerable. Lord Cornwallis, in his despatch to Sir Henry Clinton, reports his troops in the action as 1,600; and declares his opinion that the enemy in front of him were 7,000. The best American authorities observe that, * Marshall's Life of Washington, vol. iv. p. 345. 1781. MARCH OF LORD CORNWALLIS TO VIRGINIA. 109 not counting their first line, which fled without a struggle, the force that really fought on their side was 3,200. However signal was this victory, it brought no fruits to Lord Cornwallis. He had expected some reinforcements from among the country people; but, as is stated by himself: "Many of the inhabitants rode into camp; shook me "by the hand; said they were glad to see us, and to hear "that we had beat Greene, and then rode back again."* One third of his own small force had been disabled in the fight; the remainder were exhausted with fatigue, and straitened for supplies. Thus, unable to improve his advantages, he fell back, by easy marches, towards the coast, fixing his head-quarters at Wilmington, a small seaport on the Cape Fear river. Greene followed in his track for some marches, appearing, to his own surprise, in the light of a pursuer so soon after his great defeat. Ere long, however, Greene stopped short, and took a different direction. He had judiciously resolved, instead of following Lord Cornwallis any further, to renew the war in South Carolina, and attack Lord Rawdon, who commanded the British posts in that province. At Wilmington, Lord Cornwallis halted for about three weeks. He found himself in great perplexity as to his future plans. Even after calling in some outposts, his whole force was but 1,500 men. With these, should he march back to South Carolina, and relieve Lord Rawdon; or advance into Virginia, and join Generals Phillips and Arnold? Compelled to decide without consulting Clinton, he resolved upon the latter course; and, on the 25th of April, commenced his march to the northward. He made his way through Virginia, with little or no opposition from the people; impeded only by the number of rivers to be crossed, and by the difficult nature of the country. On the 20th of May he arrived at Petersburg. There he had to mourn the recent death of his friend General Phillips, but found General Arnold *To Sir H. Clinton, April 10. 1781. (Corresp. published in 1783, p. 10.) strengthened by another detachment from New York. The whole united force amounted to nearly 7,000 men. With this augmented army, General Arnold did not remain. He had lately stated it as his opinion, in his letters to Lord George Germaine, that his former post at West Point might yet be reduced by a few days' regular attack. Lord George had referred the project back to Sir Henry Clinton, as one highly deserving of adoption. By his own, as well as by Sir Henry's wish, Arnold now sailed for New York, to consult upon this project, which, however, came to nothing. Indeed, the whole effective force of Clinton, at this time, as we learn from his despatches, was exactly 10,931. Far from undertaking a campaign in the Highlands, on doubtful representations, he desired to recall the last detachments from Virginia, if Cornwallis could spare them. He had cause to apprehend an attack of the French and Americans combined, upon New York; an attack which Washington several times seriously planned, and brought to the brink of execution, but which difficulties on his side had always hitherto prevented. * The In Virginia, where Jefferson was Governor, and where La Fayette commanded, the Americans were, as yet, much inferior to Cornwallis. "I am not strong enough even to "get beaten!" writes La Fayette to Washington.** English Earl sent out, from his head-quarters, two light expeditions; the one under Colonel Tarleton, the other under Colonel Simcoe. They had great success; both Jefferson and La Fayette most narrowly escaping. Cornwallis who himself undertook some rapid marches in advance, strong hopes of seizing his young French adversary. "The "boy cannot escape me!" - these words, it is said, he used in some letters written home, which, after the event, were well remembered.*** To slip away from a superior force, by dint of good intelligence and celerity of movements, had is no *To Earl Cornwallis, June 11. 1781. (Corresp. published 1783, p. 115.) **Letter, May 24. 1781. (Corresp. of the Revolution, vol. iii. p. 322. ed. 1853.) *** Gordon's Hist. Amer. Rev. vol. iv. p. 111. 1781. ACTION OF HOBKIRK'S HILL. 111 high military exploit; it is the highest, however, that, as the leader of an army, History has to record of the Marquis de La Fayette. In the south, General Greene had never been able to collect again the greater part of the Militia scattered far and wide at the battle of Guilford. With nearly 2,000 men, however, he advanced against Lord Rawdon, who held the post of Camden with 900. On coming up, the American chief judged it best to wait for reinforcements; and, meanwhile, took post some two miles from Camden upon Hobkirk's Hill. On the other hand, Lord Rawdon determined to sally forth and attack him, before his reinforcements could arrive. The action was fought on the 25th of April; the very day on which Lord Cornwallis began his march from Wilmington. After a sharp conflict, Lord Rawdon found himself master of the field, having driven the Americans with heavy loss from the heights which they had held. Thus, only a few days afterwards, does their General describe his situation and his views: "We fight, get beat, and fight again. We have so "much to do, and so little to do it with, that I am much "afraid these States must fall, never to rise again; and what "is more, I am persuaded they will lay a train to sap the "foundation of all the rest."* But, as usual in this singular campaign, the British, though victorious, did not reap the fruits of victory. Greene took another post, only a few miles distant from them, and applied himself, with great success, to cut off their supplies, and harass their communications. Before the middle of May, Lord Rawdon, unable to bring Greene to a second action, found it necessary (first, however, destroying his least portable stores), to relinquish Camden, and fall back for the protection of Charleston. The exertions of Greene at this juncture were well seconded by one of his own detachments under Colonel Lee, and by the partisan warfare of Marion and Sumpter, who, upon this change of fortune, had again emerged. Fort * Private Letter from Greene to Washington, May 1. 1781. |