Savannah river, with the
troops engaged at Brier's Creek, and a large body of royalists and Creek
Indians, and made slow marches towards Charleston. In the meantime
General Lincoln had been active and recruited vigorously, and now
mustered five thousand men under his command. Whilst General Prevost
marched against General Lincoln's front, the former ordered the 71st to
make a circuitous march of several miles and attack the rear. Guided by
a party of Creek Indians the Highlanders entered a woody swamp at eleven
o'clock at night, in traversing which they were frequently up to the
shoulders in the swamp. They emerged from the woods the next morning at
eight o'clock with their ammunition destroyed. They were now within a
half mile of General Lincoln's rear guard which they attacked and drove
from their position without sustaining loss. Reaching Charleston on May
11th General Prevost demanded instantly its surrender, but a dispatch
from General Lincoln notified the people that he was coming to their
relief. General Prevost, fearing that General Lincoln would cut off his
communication with Savannah, commenced his retreat towards that city, at
midnight, along the coast. This route exposed his troops to much
suffering, having to march through unfrequented woods, salt water
marshes and swamps. Lieutenant-Colonel Prevost, the Quartermaster-General,
and a man of the name of Macgirt, and a person under his orders, had gone
on a foraging expedition, and were not returned from their operations; and
in order to protect them Colonel Maitland, with a battalion of Highlanders
and some Hessians, was placed in a hastily constructed redoubt at Stono
Ferry, ten miles below Charleston. On June 20th these men were attacked by
a part of General Lincoln's force. When their advance was reported,
Captain Colin Campbell, with four officers and fifty-six men, was sent
out to reconnoitre. A thick wood covered the approach of the Americans till
they reached a clear field on which Captain Campbell's party stood.
Immediately he attacked the Americans and a desperate resistance ensued;
all the officers and non-commissioned officers of the Highlanders fell,
seven soldiers alone remaining on their feet. It was not intended that
the resistance should be of such a nature, but most of the men had been
captured in Boston Harbor, and had only been recently exchanged, and
this being their first appearance before an enemy, and thought it was
disgraceful to retreat