he Roanoke, and about seventy miles from Guilford Court-house.
This would give him twenty-five miles advantage of Lord Cornwallis at
the outset. General Kosciuszko was sent with a party in advance to
collect the boats and throw up breastworks at the ferries.

In ordering his march, General Greene took the lead with the main
body, the baggage, and stores. General Morgan would have had the
command of the rear-guard, but being disabled by a violent attack of
ague and rheumatism, it was given to Colonel Otho H. Williams
(formerly adjutant-general), who had with him Colonels Howard,
Washington and Lee. This corps, detached some distance in the rear,
did infinite service. Being lightly equipped, it could manoeuvre in
front of the British line of march, break down bridges, sweep off
provisions, and impede its progress, in a variety of ways, while the
main body moved forward unmolested. It was now that Cornwallis most
felt the severity of the blow he had received at the battle of the
Cowpens in the loss of his light troops, having so few to cope with
the elite corps under Williams.

We forbear to enter into the details of this masterly retreat, the
many stratagems and manoeuvres of the covering party to delay and
hoodwink the enemy. Tarleton himself bears witness, in his narrative,
that every measure of the Americans was judiciously designed and
vigorously executed. So much had Cornwallis been misinformed at the
outset as to the means below of passing the river, that he pushed on
in the firm conviction that he was driving the American army into a
trap, and would give it a signal blow before it could cross the Dan.

In the meantime, Greene, with the main body, reached the banks of the
river, and succeeded in crossing over with ease in the course of a
single day at Boyd's and Irwin's ferries, sending back word to
Williams, who with his covering party was far in the rear. That
intelligent officer encamped, as usual, in the evening, at a wary
distance in front of the enemy, but stole a march upon them after
dark, leaving his camp fires burning. He pushed on all night, arrived
at the ferry in the morning of the 15th, having marched forty miles
within the last four and twenty hours; and made such despatch in
crossing, that his last troops had landed on the Virginia shore by the
time the astonished enemy arrived on the opposite bank.

For a day the two armies lay panting within sight of each other on the
opposite banks of the rive