rº
º
:
f
-->
".;
w* .º
ºº
i-
|
:ºº
º|
|
:
ººº:~ *-
E.
º
º
g
§
#
º
"Aº
;
ºw.
:
:
.
‘. . . .”. 5.º." º
*.*.*.*.*.*.*.º." * . . . . . .
*.*.* º º “ . . .” "
º, as a º
º
º, a a 3 s : *
& s a & . . . . . .
a 4 a.º., a º'
* : . . . . * * *
* * * * *
… tº
- c. C. T. º
• - ~ w w - - ſº is º ºr tº ºr -- g w º
*i. - *...* , 5-3. . - - - º, , , , . . " ","...º.º.º.º. ‘. . .”.”, a - º-- ~ - º
- ~ - Lºº --> tºº - - ---> Sºº--º'-' & º, º º ºg º ºx º º º º ~ - º - º - 8 * * * *
ºr º ºf * --...sº ºxºr vºw ºr ºxº - sººººº… º sº. .” * * * * - e- ** * * = - . . . . .",". * * : * * ". . . º -
aw º & º º * * sº gº: & º's º'-º', -º-º-º-º-º: Rº º - * * * º :
~ - º, º º - . .*:
- - Yºu wº. * nº * .4 .*


















-->i>>~
- º \ * [[] à:
º
LIBRARYºyof THE
|
2 ºf Tu-1: 1; or: Xº- & -
- r - º
L’.3 } d º *s E
* | -- ‘P =\{ A, E- º -ºf \!
a - *º- ..., - s
>< -" 26 - #:= Nº
ſº
3.
- º -
* * ſº ºn tº * * * w” k *
St Ass - -- > * { *: ‘‘, GU *
\ S Yºlº -- - --
T -> - --> - f
- - f
r
\\
23s
º§
U.I.ſ.º.º.º.º.º.
º
º
[]
º
º
C
C
[]
ſº
[.
º
G
D
º
º
C
[]
[]
[]
[.
ſ
[]
º
º
º
C
U
C
d
ſº
U
º-rall
#
:=
É
E.
E
H
E.
#
E
E
E
H
H
[[IIf（IIIHEAT （ITHE
ºrr * -T
#





THE
BY
**
«\ , 1. ***
CHARLES C. JONES
5
|-
ÉÐ
2.
P
H
O
Þ>
*
OC
ABORIGINAL AND COLO
Y
S.
4.
EP
BO STON
HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN AND COMPANY.
11 East Seventeenth Street.
(The Rivergiue pregg, Cambridge.
New York
1883.



Copyright, 1883,
By CHARLES C. JONES, JR.
All rights reserved.
© e
© e
o © e o
*** * * ©
o © e O
• * * e s
º O
© O
The Riverside Press, Cambridge:
Electrotyped and Printed by H. O. Houghton & Co.
To
THE MEMORY OF
fún father,
CHARLES COLCOCK JONES, D.D.
~ ^ C ~~~~~. T
* --v_r}^
º > - L| *
PREFA CE.
MY purpose is to write a history of Georgia from the earliest
times down to a period within the memory of the living. In the
execution of this design two volumes are now offered to the pub-
lic. They embrace the aboriginal epoch, a narrative of discovery
and primal exploration, schemes of colonization, the settlement
under Oglethorpe, and the life of the Province under the guid-
ance of the Trustees, under the control of a President and Assist-
ants, under the supervision of Royal Governors, and during the
Revolutionary War. They conclude with the erection of Georgia
into an independent State. All available sources of information
have been utilized. That the relation should respond to the gen-
uine circumstance and true philosophy of the action has been the
author's care. Wherever the faithful record and a lively recital
of facts could best be presented in the language of contempora-
neous documents of admitted authenticity, they have been re-
produced. The two concluding volumes, which will deal with
Georgia as a commonwealth, are in course of preparation.
A historian, says Lord Macaulay, must possess an imagination
sufficiently powerful to make his narrative affecting and pictur-
esque. Yet he must control it so absolutely as to content him-
self with the materials which he finds, and to refrain from sup-
plying deficiencies by additions of his own. He must exercise a
self-command which will enable him to abstain from casting his
facts in the mould of his hypothesis.
Whether the author has succeeded in his honest effort to ob-
serve these injunctions, let the candid reader decide.
AUGUSTA, GEORGIA, October, 1883.
CONTENTS OF WOLUME I.
CHAPTER I.
ABORIGINAL POPULATION.—THE MANNERS, MANUFACTURES, AMUSE-
MENTs, EMPLOYMENTs, AND CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SOUTHERN IN-
DLANS OF THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY . . . . . . . . . . . .
CHAPTER II.
EARLY Vox AGES. —ExPEDITION OF HERNANDO DE SOTO . . . . . .
CHAPTER III.
GRANT TO THE LORDS PROPRIETORS OF CAROLINA.— EARLY Posts
SOUTH OF THE SAVANNAH RIVER – SPANISH MINING OPERATIONS
IN THE APALATCY MOUNTAINS. — MARGRAVATE OF AZILIA. — Gov-
ERNOR MooRE’s ExPEDITION. — MISSION OF SIR ALEXANDER CUM-
ING. — SALE AND SURRENDER BY THE LORDS PROPRIETORS . . .
PAGE
67
CHAPTER IV.
JAMES EDWARD OGLETHORPE. – ENGLISH PRISONS. – MISERIES OF IN-
SOLVENT DEBTORS. — SCHEME FOR THE COLONIZATION OF GEORGIA. —
ROYAL CHARTER GRANTED TO OGLETHORPE AND HIs Associates. –
ANALYSIS OF THAT CHARTER . . . . . . . . . . . . .
* CHAPTER V.
ACCEPTANCE OF THE CHARTER BY THE CORPORATORS. – THEIR ORGAN-
IZATION PERFECTED. — THE CORPORATE SEAL. — SUBSCRIPTIONS so-
LICITED. — THE SCHEME OF COLONIZATION AS UNFOLDED BY THE
TRUSTEES. — OGLETHORPE’s APPEAL TO THE PUBLIC. — MARTYN's
REASONS FOR ESTABLISHING THE COLONY OF GEORGIA . . . . .
82
VIII CONTENTS OF VOLUME I.
CHAPTER VI.
REGULATIONS ESTABLISHED BY THE TRUSTEES. – GRANTS IN TAILMALE
*MINED UPON.— NEGRO SLAVERY AND THE IMPoRTATION or Ruyſ
PROHIBITED . . . . . . . .
º o º e e e o o & e º º e
CHAPTER VII.
PREPARATIONS FOR THE FIRST EMBARKATION. — OGLETHORPE LEADs
THE COLONISTs. – DEPARTURE IN THE GALLEy. ANNE. — ARRIVAL
AND RECEPTION AT CHARLEstown, South CARolina. — OGLETHORPE
VISITs YAMACRAW BLUFF.—HIs FIRST INTERVIEw WITH TOMO-CHI-
CHI. – THE COLONISTS LAND AT SAVANNAH
e o & tº & e º & º
CHAPTER VIII.
EARLY LABORS OF THE COLONISTs AT SAVANNAH. – OGLETHoRPE’s LET-
TERS TO THE TRUSTEES. – COMMUNICATION AND REsolutions of THE
GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF SOUTH CAROLINA.—AssistancE FROM PRI-
VATE PARTIES IN CAROLINA. — Account of THE PROGREss of THE
CoLONIZATION WRITTEN BY A GENTLEMAN FROM CHARLEstown. —
OGLETHORPE VISITS CHARLESTOWN AND ADDRESSES THE GENERAL As-
SEMBLY. — CoNGRATULATIONS FROM PENNsylvania AND MASSACHU-
SETTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
CHAPTER IX.
OGLETHORPE's CONCILLATORY CONDUCT TOWARD THE INDIANs. – CHAR-
ACTER AND INFLUENCE OF TOMO-CHI-CHI. — GEORGIA’s DEBT OF GRAT-
ITUDE TO THIS MICO. — CONVENTION OF CHIEFs. – ARTICLES OF
FRIENDSHIP AND COMMERCE PROPOSED AND RATIFIED . . . . .
CHAPTER X.
ARRIVAL OF THE SHIP JAMES. — FORT ARGYLE BUILT AND GARRISONED.
— THE VILLAGES OF HIGH GATE AND HAMPSTEAD LOCATED AND PEO-
PLED. — FORTS AT THUNDERBOLT AND SKIDOWAY ISLAND. — Joseph’s
Town. — ABERCORN. — IRENE. — THE HORSE-QUARTER. — EARLY
PLANTATIONS. — MANCHECOLAS FORT AT SKIDOWAY NARROWs. –
TYBEE LIGHTHOUSE. — PLAN OF SAVANNAH. —ITS SQUARES, STREETs,
WARDS, AND TITHINGs. – ARRIVAL OF HEBREW IMMIGRANTs. – DEED
sHow ING FIRST ALLOTMENT OF Town LOTS, GARDEN LOTS, AND FARMS
IN SAVANNAH, AND CONTAINING THE NAMES OF THE ORIGINAL
GRANTEES e e © e & º e o o º e e o © © e tº e º © e
106
113
132
146
CONTENTS OF WOLUME I. 1X
CHAPTER XI.
OGLETHoRPE MAKEs A RECONNOISSANCE OF THE SOUTHERN FRONTIER
of THE PRovi NcE. – HE INSPECTS FORT ARGYLE. – INDUCEMENTS
of FERED To THE SALZBURGERs To EMIGRATE TO GEORGIA. – THEIR
SETTLEMENT At EBENEZFR. — Vox RECK's DESCRIPTION OF SAVAN-
NAH. — His TRIBUTE To OGLETHORPE. — PALACHOCOLAS. - RECEIPTs
AND ExPENDITUREs on BEHALF OF THE TRUST. – OGLETHORPE DE-
PARTs for ENGLAND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
CHAPTER XII.
ToMo-CHI-CHI AND RETINUE Accompany OGLETHORPE TO ENGLAND. —
ODE To THE MIco. —ENTERTAINMENT OF THE INDIANS IN LONDON
AND ITS ENVIRONs. – RETURN To GEORGIA. – HAPPY INFLUENCES
ExERTED BY THIS VISIT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
CHAPTER XIII.
RELIGIOUS INSTRUCTION OF THE Colonists AND THE INDIANS. — FRED-
ERICA NAMED, AND ITS SETTLEMENT AUTHORIZED BY THE TRUSTEES.
— OGLETHORPE RESUMEs TEMPORARILY HIS SEAT IN PARLLAMENT. —
INTRODUCTION OF RUM AND SLAVES INTO GEORGIA PROHIBITED BY
SPECIAL ENACTMENT. — CAUSTON IN CHARGE OF THE COLONY. — SILK
CULTURE. – STALWART COLONISTs SELECTED FOR THE SOUTHERN
FRONTIERs. – RULES OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR 1735. — AR-
RIVAL OF THE MORAVIANs. – THEIR HISTORY IN GEORGIA. — SCOTCH
IMMIGRATION FROM INVERNESS. – THE DARLEN SETTLEMENT FORMED
ON THE ALATAMAHA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
CHAPTER XIV.
REv. JoHN WESLEY ENGAGED As A MISSIONARY. — DR. BURTON's
ADVICE TO HIM. — THE GREAT EMBARKATION. — ANECDOTES OF
OGLETHORPE DURING HIS RETURN WOYAGE TO GEORGIA. — ARRIVAL
OF THE SYMOND AND THE LONDON MERCHANT AT TYBEE ROADS. —
ACCESSIONS TO THE POPULATIONS OF EBENEzER AND IRENE. — THE
SALZBURGERS DESIRE A CHANGE OF LOCATION. — THEIR REMOVAL TO
New EBENEZER ON THE SAVANNAH River. — MARTYN's Account of
THE NEW SETTLEMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
CHAPTER XV.
ANECDOTE OF TOMO-CHI-CHI. — OGLETHORPE ACCOMMODATES DISPUTES
BETWEEN THE INDIANS AND CERTAIN TRESPASSERS FROM CAROLINA.
... — AUGUSTA LOCATED AND SETTLED. — FRANCIS MOORE’s DESCRIPTION
X CONTENTS OF WOLUME I.
OF SAVANNAH. —OGLETHORPE PROCEEDs To St. SIMON's Island AND
DESIGNATES A PLAN FOR FREDERICA. – HE VISITs NEw INVERNESs,
AND THEN, RETURNING TO TYBEE ROADS, CoNDUCTS THE NEwly AR-
RIVED IMMIGRANTS TO ST. SIMON's ISLAND. —DEscRIPTION or FRED-
ERICA.-FORTS ST. ANDREW, ST. SIMON, AND GEORGE. –OGLETHoRPE
ASCERTAINS THE BOUNDARY LINE BETWEEN GEORGIA AND FLORIDA.
—INDIAN DANCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
CHAPTER XVI.
FREDERICA A MILITARY TOWN.— MISSION of MR. DEMPsey AND MAJoR
RICHARDS.–AMICABLE RELATIONS ESTABLISHED BETweBN GEORGIA
AND FLORIDA. – OGLETHORPE's INTERVIEw witH THE SPANIsh OF-
FICIALS. – SUBSEQUENTLY THE SPANIARDs CALL UPON THE ENGLISH
TO EVACUATE ALL TERRITORY LYING SouTH of ST. HELENA Sound. —
CONFERENCE WITH SOUTH CAROLINA CoMMIssionERS IN REGARD To
THE INDIAN TRADE. – OGLETHORPE DEPARTs A SEcond TIME FOR
ENGLAND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238
CHAPTER XVII.
DISPUTE BETWEEN GEORGIA AND CAROLINA witH REGARD TO THE NAVI-
GATION OF THE SAVANNAH RIVER – DISAGREEMENTS BETwFEN THE
SALZBURGERS, SOME CAROLINIANS, AND THE UCHEE INDIANs. – THE
HOME GOVERNMENT MEMORIALIZED BY THE TRUSTEEs To FURNISH
TROOPS AND MUNITIONS OF WAR FOR THE PROTECTION OF GEORGIA
AGAINST THE SPANIARDS. — OGLETHORPE EMPOWERED TO RAISE A
REGIMENT, AND PROMOTED TO THE RANK OF COLONEL. — APPOINTED
GENERAL, AND COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF HIS - MAJESTY's FoRCES IN
CAROLINA AND GEORGIA. — RETURNS TO GEORGIA WITH HIS REGI-
MENT. — MILITARY OPERATIONS AT FREDERICA. — SPIES IN CAMP. —
OGLETHORPE’s RESOLUTION AND ENERGY. — CONFERENCE AT SAVAN-
NAH witH THE INDIANS. — CAUSTON'S DEFALCATION AND REMOVAL.
— WILLIAM STEPHENS. —DEPRESSED CONDITION OF THE FINANCES
OF THE COLONY. — OGLETHORPE's GENEROSITY . . . . . . . . 256
CHAPTER XVIII.
THE BROTHERs JoHN AND CHARLES WESLEY IN GEORGIA . . . . . . 275
CHAPTER XIX.
MUTINY IN OGLETHORPE's REGIMENT. — ATTEMPT TO ASSASSINATE THE
GENERAL. – NEGRO INSURRECTION IN SOUTH CAROLINA. — OGLE-
THORPE DENIES CAUSTON'S INSINUATIONS.–REV. MR. NORRIS. —
GRANT OF £20,000 BY PARLIAMENT. — MAGISTRATES AND FREEHOLD-
CONTENTS OF WOLUME I. XI
ERs of SAVANNAH APPLY TO THE TRUSTEES FOR FEE SIMPLE TITLES
To LAND, AND FOR THE PRIVILEGE of INTRODUCING NEGRO SLAVES.–
THE HIGHLANDERS AT DARLEN AND THE SALZBURGERS AT EBENEZER
PROTEST AGAINST THE ADMISSION OF SLAVERY. — OGLETHORPE COUN-
SELS AGAINST THE PROPOSED CHANGES. — HE IS ATTACKED BY MAL-
CoNTENTs. – DEPRESSED CONDITION OF THE PROVINCE. — THE TRUS-
TEES REFUSE To PERMIT THE INTRODUCTION OF NEGRO SLAVES, AND
DECLINE TO ENLARGE THE TENURE OF LANDS . . . . . . . . . 297
CHAPTER XX.
DISSENSIONS AMONG THE OFFICERS OF OGLETHORPE’s REGIMENT. —
OGLETHORPE VISITs CHARLESTOwn AND EXHIBITS TO THE GENERAL
ASSEMBLY OF CAROLINA HIS COMMISSION AS COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF.
— REPORT OF THE CONDITION OF THE COLONY IN 1739. —OGLETHORPE
VISITS COWETA Town. — CONFERENCE AND TREATY WITH THE IN-
DLANS. – OGLETHORPE AT SAVANNAH. — LAST ILLNESS AND DEATH
OF TOMO-CHI-CHI. — IMPENDING WAR WITH SPAIN. — THE SOUTHERN
FRONTIER STRENGTHENED. — SPANISH OUTRAGE ON AMELIA ISLAND.
— OGLETHORPE RETALLATEs, BURNS FORT PICOLATA, AND CAPTURES
AND GARRISONS FORT FRANCIS DE PAPA. — HE APPLIES FOR ADDI-
TIONAL BOATS, ARTILLERY, AND MUNITIONS . . . . . . . . . 314
CHAPTER XXI.
OGLETHORPE PREPARES FOR AN ADVANCE UPON ST. AUGUSTINE. — AID
INVOKED AND RECEIVED FROM SOUTH CAROLINA. — SIEGE OF ST.
AUGUSTINE. – OGLETHORPE's COTTAGE NEAR FREDERICA. —DESCRIP-
TION OF FREDERICA IN 1740. — VILLAGE OF ST. SIMON.— MILITARY
POSTS ON THE SOUTHERN FRONTIER.— VILLAGE OF BARRIMACKE. —
EFFICIENT SERVICES RENDERED BY INDIAN ALLIEs . . . . . . . 326
CHAPTER XXII
OGLETHORPE RENEWS HIS DEMAND FOR MEN-of-WAR AND MILITARY
STOREs. -SCURRILOUS ATTACKS UPON OGLETHORPE AND THE TRUs-
TEES' SERVANTS.-SPANISH FORCES conceNTRATED For THE SUBJU-
GATION OF GEORGIA. — ATTACK UPON ST. SIMON's ISLAND, AND ITs
HEROIC DEFENSE CoNDUCTED BY OGLETHoRPE. – NARRATIves of
THIS IMPORTANT AFFAIR.—OGLETHORPE's CountER BLow DELiverED
AGAINST FLORIDA. – DESCRIPTIONs of FREDERICA IN 1743. — OGLE-
THORPE's DEPARTURE FOR ENGLAND. – His CHARACTER, SUBSEQUENT
CAREER, AND DEATH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341
CHAPTER XXIII.
MR. WILLIAM STEPHENS APPoſNTED PRESIDENT of THE PROVINCE. —
CIVIL ESTABLISHMENT AT FREDERICA. – STATE of THE COLONY. —
XII CONTENTS OF WOLUME I.
SILK CULTURE. — INCREASE AND THRIFT OF THE GERMAN POPULATION.
— AFFAIRS AT NEW EBENEZER.— GRAPE CULTURE . . . . . . . 370
CHAPTER XXIV.
OGLETHORPE’s INTERCOURSE witH AND INFLUENCE OVER THE INDIAN
NATIONS. — PLOT OF CHRISTIAN PRIBER. — ExPLOSION OF THE BOMB-
MAGAZINE AT FREDERICA. — MARY MUSGROVE. — THOMAS Bosom-
WORTH. — MEMORIAL OF MARY BOSOMWORTH. — MALATCHE OPIYA
PROCLAIMED KING. — HOSTILE DEMONSTRATION ON THE PART OF MARY
BOSOMWORTH, HER HUSBAND, AND A LARGE RETINUE OF INDIANs.
— ADJUSTMENT OF THE Bosoxſworth CLAIM. . . . . . . . . 380
CHAPTER XXV.
THE REv. GEORGE WHITEFIELD. — Hon. JAMES HABERSHAM. —BE-
THESDA ORPHAN HOUSE. — WHITEFIELD's ExeRTIONS IN ITS BEHALF.
— ANECDOTE OF BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. — PLAN TO CONVERT THE
ORPHAN HOUSE INTO A SEMINARY OF LEARNING. — WHITEFIELD's
MEMORIAL. — ADDRESS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY. — GOVERNOR
WRIGHT’s RESPONSE. — BARTRAM's DESCRIPTION OF BETHESDA. —
FATE OF THIS ELEEMOSYNARY SCHEME . . . . . . . . . . . 400
CHAPTER XXVI.
THE COLONY UNDER PRESIDENT STEPHENs. – PRACTICAL EVASION OF
THE REGULATION PROHIBITING THE INTRODUCTION OF NEGRO SLAVES.
— THE PRESIDENT, Assist ANTS, AND PEOPLE REPEAT THEIR PRAYER
FOR THE ALLOWANCE OF SLAVERY. — RESPONSE OF THE TRUSTEES. —
SLAvPRY PERMITTED. — PROPOSITION TO SUBORBINATE GEORGIA To
SouTH CAROLINA. — CASE OF CAPTAIN DEMETREE. — ABROGATION
of THE ACT FORBIDDING THE IMPORTATION AND MANUFACTURE OF
RUM AND OTHER DISTILLED LIQUORS. — LAND TENURES ENLARGED. —
Sol A BILLS. — FIDELITY OF THE TRUSTEES. – COMMERCIAL HOUSE
of HARRIS & HABERSHAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 416
CHAPTER XXVII.
Mission of PICKERING ROBINSON AND JAMES HABERSHAM. — FILATURE
ERECTED IN SAVANNAH. – ENCOURAGEMENT OF THE SILK CULTURE. —
A PROvINCIAL Assembly AUTHORIZED AND CONVENED. — ITS FIRST
SEssroN, ITs CoMPOSITION, AND ITS PROCEEDINGS. — THE TRUSTEES
PROTEST AGAINST THE ANNExATION OF GEORGIA TO SOUTH CAROLINA.
— ORGANIZATION OF THE COLONIAL MILITIA. — FIRST GENERAL MUS-
TER. — CoNSERVATORs of THE PEACE NAMED. — THEIR POWERS. —
MARY Bosoxſworth’s DEMAND. — RELIGIOUS TOLERATION. — RU-
MoRED UPRISING OF THE CHEROKEES.–REVIEW OF THE POLICY OF
THE TRUSTEES.—THEIR NAMES, OCCUPATIONS, AND CONDUCT. — CLER-
GyMEN, -CHURCHES. — RELIGIOUS DENOMINATIONS . . . . . . 432
CONTENTS OF WOLUME I. xiii
CHAPTER XXVIII.
THE TRUSTEEs surrendER THEIR CHARTER AND GEORGIA PASSES INTO
THE HANDs of THE CROwn. — DEED of SURRENDER.— SERVANTS
of THE TRUSTEEs contLNUED IN OFFICE PENDING THE ERECTION OF A
Roy AL Government. — PATRICK GRAHAM sucCEEDS MR. PARKER AS
PRESIDENT. — POPULATION AND CONDITION OF GEORGIA IN 1753. —
ROYAL PLAN FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A CIVIL GOVERNMENT. —
CAPTAIN JOHN REYNoLDs APPOINTED As FIRST ROYAL GOVERNOR. —
HIS Powers AND DUTIES. — PUBLIC SEAL. — GEORGIA DURING THE
INTERREGNUM. — THE LIEUTENANT-Governor. — THE COUNCIL. —
QUALIFICATIONS OF ELECTORS AND OF REPRESENTATIVES. — THE COM-
MONS House of Assembly. — THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY. — THE
COURTS. — THE CHIEF JUSTICE AND ASSOCIATE JUSTICES. — THE
PROVOST MARSHAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 450
CHAPTER XXIX.
GOVERNOR REYNOLDs’ ADMINISTRATION. — REPORT TO THE LORD's CoM-
MISSIONERS OF TRADE AND PLANTATIONS OF THE CONDITION OF THE
COLONY. — HARDWICKE SUGGESTED AS THE CAPITAL OF GEORGIA. —
ESTABLISHMENT OF THE GENERAL COURT, THE COURT OF CHANCERY,
THE COURT OF OYER AND TERMINER, THE COURT OF ADMIRALTY,
MAGISTRATES’ COURTS, AND SPECIAL COURTS FOR THE TRIAL OF
SLAVES.–CONVOCATION OF THE GENERAL AssFMBLY. — GoverNor
REYNOLDs’ INAUGURAL ADDRESS, AND RESPONSEs of Both Houses. –
LEGISLATIVE ACTS. — MILITIA AND SLAVE LAws. – EDMUND GREY.
— SURRENDER OF FORMER GRANTS, AND SUBSTITUTION OF NEW CON-
VEYANCES FROM THE CROWN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 468
CHAPTER XXX.
MIDWAY DISTRICT. —THE DORCHESTER SocIETY. —ITS REMOVAL FROM
DORCHESTER AND BEECH ISLAND IN SOUTH CAROLINA AND SETTLE-
MENT IN THE MIDWAY DISTRICT. — THE TOWN OF SUNBURY . . . . 491
CHAPTER XXXI.
INDIAN PRESENTS DISTRIBUTED AT AUGUSTA. — ARRIVAL OF ACADLANs.
– DEBRAHM's CoIONY AT BETHANY. — MILITARY CoNDITION of THE
PROVINCE. – Gover NOR REYNoLDs’ AND CAPTAIN DEBRAHM's REP-
• RESENTATION OF THE FORTS AND GARRIsoNs NECEss ARY FoR THE
DEFENSE OF GEORGIA. – SUGGESTION To PURCHASE ONE HUNDRED
AND FIFTY NEGRO SLAVES witH which To construct THE REQUI-
SITE FORTIFICATIONS. – DISAGREEMENTs BETweBN THE Executive
AND THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY. —DR. WILLIAM LITTLE. — REYNoLDs'
ADMINISTRATION OF PUBLIC AFFAIRs CRITICISED. — HE Is RECALLED,
AND HENRY ELLIS IS NAMED AS LIEUTENANT-GoverNOR.—Gover Nort
REYNoLDS RESIGNS, AND RESUMEs HIS STATION IN THE BRITISH NAwy 502
XIV CONTENTS OF WOLUME I.
CHAPTER XXXII.
LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR ELLIS ARRIVES IN GEORGIA AND IS HEARTILY
WELCOMED. — TEMPER OF THE COLONY. — PRUDENCE AND IMPARTIAL-
ITY OF THE NEW CHIEF MAGISTRATE. — HE VISITs THE SOUTHERN
FRONTIER AND REcoMMENDS THE REMOVAL OF THE SEAT OF GOVERN-
MENT FROM SAVANNAH TO HARDWICKE. — COURTESIES ExCEIANGED
BETWEEN THE ExECUTIVE AND THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY. — GEORGIA
DrviDED INTo EIGHT PARISHEs. – LEGISLATIVE ENACTMENTs. --PRO-
VISION FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT, INCORPORATION, AND SUPPORT OF
CHURCHES. — ELLIS’ REPORT ON THE CONDITION OF THE PROVINCE IN
1758. — ELLIS COMMISSIONED GOVERNOR. — GEORGIA UNABLE TO AS-
SIST IN THE WAR AGAINST THE FRENCH IN AMERICA. — CONFERENCE
AND TREATY WITH THE INDIANS AT SAVANNAH. — EDMUND GREY AND
HIS ADHERENTS. – HEAT AT SAVANNAH. — GOVERNOR ELLIS IN ILL
HEALTH solicITs A RECALL. — JAMES WRIGHT APPOINTED HIS SUC-
CESSOR.—DEPARTURE OF GOVERNOR ELLIS . . . . . . . . . . 515
ILLUSTRATIONS.
PORTRAIT OF GENERAL JAMES OGLETHORPE . . . To face title-page.
PORTRAIT OF HERNANDO DE SOTO . . . . . . . . 34
A PLAN OF THE MARGRAWATE OF AZILLA. . . . . . . 72
A VIEW OF THE TOWN OF SAWANNAH IN THE COLONY OF GEORGIA 121
PORTRAIT OF TOMO-CHA-CHI, MICO, ETC. . . . . . . . 134
A MAP OF THE COUNTY OF SAVANNAH . . . . . . . 148
A PLAN OF THE TOWN OF EBENEZER & © tº º º ºs . 212
PORTRAIT OF JAMES HABERSHAM . . º • . . . . . 402
A PLAN OF THE TOWN OF SUNBURY . . . . . . . . . 499
THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
CHAPTER I.
ABORIGINAL PopULATION.—THE MANNERS, MANUFACTURES, AMUSEMENTS,
EMPLOYMENTs, AND CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SOUTHERN INDIANS OF
THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY.
WHEN the colony of Georgia was founded, the ceded lands
lying between the Savannah and the Alatamaha rivers and
extending from their head-waters indefinitely toward the West
were occupied by Indians whose principal settlements were es-
tablished in the vicinity of streams, in rich valleys, and upon the
sea-islands. The middle and lower portions of this and the ad-
jacent territory were claimed by the Muskhogees, or Creeks, con-
sisting of many tribes and associated together in a strong con-
federacy. North of them dwelt the Cherokees, – a brave and
comely race, — numbering some six thousand warriors, inhabit-
ing the hilly and mountainous parts of the country, and exer-
cising dominion even beyond the Tennessee River where they
were confronted by the Shawnees. The entire region permeated
by the sources and upper tributaries of the Coosa, the Chatta-
hoochee, the Savannah, the Santee, and the Yadkin was held
by them. Between the Cherokees and the Muskhogees the di-
vision line followed Broad River and, generally, the thirty-fourth
parallel of north latitude.
East of these nations resided the Yemassees, the Stonoes, the
Edistoes, the Westoes, the Savannahs, and the Catawbas ; while,
on the west, stretching away even to the Mississippi River, were
domiciled the Alibamons, the Choctaws, the Natchez, and the
Chicasaws.
The population of the Upper and Lower Creeks dwelling
within the territorial limits of the Province of Georgia at the
date of its settlement was estimated at fifteen thousand men,
women, and children. When, however, we remember that the
2 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
lands possessed by the Muskhogee confederacy — comprehending
the seats of the Seminoles in Florida — were bounded on the
West by Mobile River and by the ridge which separates the wa-
ters of the Tombigbee from those of the Alabama, on the north
by the Cherokees, on the north and east by the Savannah River,
and otherwise by the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico,
the aggregate number of inhabitants acknowledging allegiance to
that confederation must have been much greater.
The Muskhogees constituted the prevailing nation, and are
said to have furnished rather more than seven eighths of the peo-
ples composing the confederacy. The Hitchittees, residing on
the Chattahoochee and Flint rivers, although originally a dis-
tinct people, spoke the Muskhogee dialect and formed a com-
ponent tribe of the Creek confederation.
The Seminoles, or Isty Semoles (wild men), were pure Musk-
hogees, and received that name because they subsisted chiefly
by hunting and were little given to agricultural pursuits. They
inhabited the peninsula of Florida. Both the Muskhogees and
the Hitchittees claimed to be autochthonous : the former assert-
ing that their nation in the beginning issued out of a cave near
the Alabama River, and the latter boasting that their ancestors
had fallen from the sky.
By the Choctaws was Captain Romans informed that in the
olden time they walked forth in great numbers from a hole in
the ground, situated between their territory and that of the Chi-
C2S3, WS.
The Uchees and Natchez both yielded obedience to the Musk-
hogee confederacy. Of the former the original seats are sup-
posed to have been east of the Coosa. They proclaimed them-
selves the most ancient inhabitants of the country, and it has
been suggested that they were the peoples called Appalaches by
the historians of De Soto's expedition. Their land abounded in
towns and in subsistence. Early in the eighteenth century they
dwelt upon the western bank of the Savannah River, and as
late as 1736 claimed the country above and below the town of
Augusta. The name of a creek in Columbia County perpetuates
to the present day their memory and the fact of their former
occupancy of this region.
Forsaking their old habitat on the left bank of the Mississippi
River, and journeying eastward, the Natchez associated them-
selves with the Creeks not very many years prior to the advent
of Oglethorpe.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF SOUTHERN INDIANS. 3
Among the principal towns of the Creeks may be mentioned
Cussetah, Cowetah, Tukawbatchie, and Oscoochee. The Musk-
hogee, the Hitchittee, the Uchee, the Natchez, and the Alibamon
or Coosada, were the languages generally spoken by the various
tribes composing the Creek confederacy. Captain Romans enu-
merates remnants of the Cawittas, Talepoosas, Coosas, Apalachias,
Conshacs or Coosades, Oakmulgis, Oconis, Okchoys, Alibamons,
Natchez, Weetumkus, Pakanas, Taënsas, Chacsihoomas, Abékas,
and of other tribes whose names he did not recollect, all calling
themselves Muskokees and constituting what was known as the
Creek Confederation.
On the 12th of March, 1733, Oglethorpe reported the Upper
and Lower Creeks and the Uchees as the three most powerful
Indian nations in Georgia dwelling between the coast and the
mountains. The Lower Creeks possessed nine towns or can-
tons, and their warriors were estimated by him at one thousand.
The military strength of the Upper Creeks he reckons at eleven
hundred men capable of bearing arms; while the Uchees were,
at that time, supposed to be incapable of bringing into the field
more than two hundred bowmen. This computation of the pop-
ulation of these peoples, vaguely formed, was manifestly inade.
Quate.
In perpetuating his impressions of the physical characteristics
of these Southern Indians, Mr. Bartram writes: “The males of
the Cherokees, Muscogulgees, Siminoles, Chicasaws, Chactaws,
and confederate tribes of the Creeks are tall, erect, and moder-
ately robust; their limbs are well shaped, so as generally to form
a perfect human figure ; their features regular and countenance
open, dignified, and placid, yet the forehead and brow so formed
as to strike you instantly with heroism and bravery; the eye,
though rather small, active and full of fire; the iris always black,
and the nose commonly inclining to the aquiline. Their coun-
tenance and actions exhibit an air of magnanimity, superiority,
and independence. Their complexion of a reddish-brown or cop-
per color ; their hair long, lank, coarse, and black as a Taven,
and reflecting the like lustre at different exposures to the light.
The Women of the Cherokees are tall, slender, erect, and of a
delicate frame; their features formed with perfect symmetry,
their countenance cheerful and friendly; and they move with a
becoming grace and dignity.
“The Muscogulgee women, though remarkably short of stature,
are well formed ; their visage round, features regular and beau-
4 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
tiful, the brow high and arched, the eye large, black, and lan-
guishing, expressive of modesty, diffidence, and bashfulness.
These charms are their defensive and offensive weapons, and
they know very well how to play them off; and under cover of
these alluring graces are concealed the most subtle artifices;
they are, however, loving and affectionate. They are, I believe,
the smallest race of women yet known, seldom above five feet
high, and I believe the greater number never arrive to that
stature; their hands and feet not larger than those of Europeans
of nine or ten years of age : yet the men are of gigantic stature,
a full size larger than Europeans; many of them above six feet,
and few under that, or five feet eight or ten inches. Their com-
plexion much darker than any of the tribes to the north of them
that I have seen. This description will, I believe, comprehend
the Muscogulges, their confederates the Chactaws, and, I believe,
the Chicasaws (though I have never seen their women), except-
ing some bands of the Siminoles, Uches, and Savaunucas, who are
rather taller and slenderer, and their complexion brighter. The
Cherokees are yet taller and more robust than the Muscogulges,
and by far the largest race of men I have seen ; their com-
plexions brighter and somewhat of the olive cast, especially the
adults; and some of their young women are nearly as fair and
blooming as Europeans.
“The Cherokees in their dispositions and manners are grave
and steady; dignified and circumspect in their deportment;
rather slow and reserved in conversation, yet frank, cheerful, and
humane; tenacious of the liberties and natural rights of man :
secret, deliberate, and determined in their councils; honest, just,
and liberal, and ready always to sacrifice every pleasure and
gratification, even their blood and life itself, to defend their terri-
tory and maintain their rights. . . . The national character of
the Muscogulgees, when considered in a political view, exhibits
a portraiture of a great or illustrious hero. A proud, haughty,
and arrogant race of men, they are brave and valiant in War,
ambitious of conquest, restless, and perpetually exercising their
arms, yet magnanimous and merciful to a vanquished enemy
when he submits and seeks their friendship and protection; al-
ways uniting the vanquished tribes in confederacy with them,
when they immediately enjoy, unexceptionably, every right of
free citizens, and are, from that moment, united in one common
band of brotherhood. They were never known to exterminate
a tribe, except the Yemasees, who would never submit on any
ABORIGINAL POPULATION OF GEORGIA. 5
terms, but fought it out to the last; only about forty or fifty of
them escaping at the last decisive battle, who threw themselves
under the protection of the Spaniards at St. Augustine. . . . The
Muscogulgees are more volatile, sprightly, and talkative than
their northern neighbors, the Cherokees.” +
James Adair, who resided for forty years among the Chero-
kees, furnishes a most valuable account of these peoples who
occupied a charming country and numbered among their settle-
ments sixty-four towns and villages.
To Oglethorpe, Sir Alexander Cuming, Baron Von Reck, and
others, are we indebted for early notices of this aboriginal popu-
lation; but it had then been already shocked by European inva-
sion and demoralized by unscrupulous traders.
Pretermitting, therefore, such narratives as introduce us to an
acquaintance with these Indian tribes as they appeared a hun-
dred and fifty years ago, let us turn to an earlier period in their
history, contemplating the Southern nations, their habits, manu-
factures, amusements, employments, and characteristics as they
existed in the sixteenth century.
It will not be forgotten that at the epoch to which our atten-
tion will now be directed Georgia, then without a name, formed
a part of ancient Florida, a wide domain whose nether and east-
ern shores were washed by the waters of the Gulf of Mexico and
of the Atlantic Ocean, whose northern boundary confronted Vir-
ginia of the olden time, and whose western confines, stretch-
ing even beyond the Meschachipi River, were guarded by un-
known seas. We speak of Florida and its native population
as known to De Leon, De Soto, Cabeça de Vaca, Ribault, and
Laudonniere.
When the Europeans first visited the territory embraced within
and adjacent to the limits of the modern State of Georgia, they
found it peopled by Indian tribes, well organized, occupying per-
manent seats, and largely engaged in the cultivation of maize,
beans, pumpkins, melons, and fruits of several sorts. In the
vicinity of Tampa Bay, Baltazar de Gallegos, who had been dis-
patched by De Soto upon a reconnoitring expedition, observed
extensive tracts tilled by the natives, the products of which he
reported “sufficient to subsist a large army without its knowing
a Want ; ” and we are told that the followers of the Adelantado
on one occasion marched for two leagues through continuous
fields of corn.
* Travels through North and South Carolina, Georgia, etc., p. 481. London, 1792.
6 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
The walnut, the hickory, the pecan, and other nut-bearing
trees were watched and nurtured. Their fruit was industriously
gathered, cracked, and boiled, and the oil thence obtained —
“clear as butter and of a good taste,” says the gentleman of
Elvas — was preserved in earthen jars. But for the food and
forage procured from fields cultivated by the natives and found
in primitive granaries, the Spaniards and their horses would
often have been Sorely pinched by hunger.
These ancient plantations were located in rich valleys where
a generous soil yielded with least labor the most remunerative
harvest, upon islands, and in the vicinity of streams where the
products of the earth were readily supplemented by the fishes of
the waters and the game of the forests. In clearing them the
grooved axe was freely employed for girdling the trees. The
circulation being thus interrupted, these trees perished, and were
either consumed by fire or suffered to fall down and rot piece-
meal.
While tribes claimed specific boundary lines, while to nations
and confederacies were accorded recognized territorial limits, and
while in such public domain, with its rivers, lakes, and woods,
each Indian exercised equal rights and privileges for the pur-
poses of travel, hunting, and fishing, a special or temporary own-
ership was admitted in lands cultivated by individual labor.
The town plantation, if at first cleared by the united effort of
the community, was subsequently parceled out among its mem-
bers who were thereafter entitled to reap the fruits of their per-
sonal industry. Each year, at the appointed season, under the
superintendence of overseers, the inhabitants of the town, as one
family, prepared the ground and sowed the seed. Upon the IIl-
gathering of the harvest each Indian deposited in his private
crib the yield of his particular lot, contributing, however, a cer-
tain portion to the public granary or king's storehouse. These
public granaries—built of wood, clay, and stones, and covered
with poles, earth, and palmetto leaves —served also as deposito-
ries for dried fishes, alligators, dogs, deer, and other jerked meats.
From them were the chiefs supplied, and their stores Were ex-
pended in entertainment of travelers, guests, and distinguished
strangers. Should the private crib of a member of the commu-
nity be destroyed by fire, or should want overtake any one, by
the king's command he was assisted from the public granary.
Thence, also, did warriors draw rations when setting out upon
an expedition.
IMPLEMENTS, AGRICULTURAL AND DOMESTIC. 7
Besides his lot in the general plantation, each inhabitant of
the village cultivated a garden spot near his habitation, where
melons, beans, and other vegetables were produced.
The principal agricultural implements in vogue were wooden
mattocks, scapulas of deer and buffalo, large fish bones, Wooden
sticks for piercing holes in the ground, and stone spades and
hoes. Of the latter three varieties may be mentioned: One, a
large leaf-shaped implement, another a sort of grooved adze, and
the third the notched hoe.
The green corn was boiled in earthen vessels or roasted in the
fire. When dry, the seeds were parched and then pulverized.
For this purpose, crushing stones, wooden and stone mortars,
rollers, and pestles were employed. While most of these stone
mortars were formed from flat bowlders taken from the beds of
neighboring streams, – their surfaces being hollowed out to the
depth of a few inches, – others may be seen manufactured of
ferruginous quartz, symmetrical in shape, accurately fashioned,
beautifully polished, and capable of holding a quart or more. In
Some localities we behold permanent mortars scooped out of
large bowlders or rocks, which appear to have been regarded and
used as public property.
Were we not precluded by the general scope of this chapter,
it would be interesting to describe the ceremonies and festivals
observed by these primitive peoples when planting and harvest-
ing the maize, and the various methods adopted by them in its
preparation as an article of food. Perhaps nothing tended so
surely to develop and consolidate the Southern tribes, and to
render permanent their habitations, as the general and regular
cultivation of this important American plant. Regarded as a
direct gift from the Author of life, and held in special esteem,
it was not permitted to treat lightly either the grain or the cob.
In the neighborhood of their corn fields were villages, play-
grounds, tumuli, fish-preserves, and defensive works. Encouraged
by their improved possessions to forego the uncertainties and pri-
Vations of a nomadic life, long prior to the dawn of the historic
period these peoples had become provident of the future, obedient
to the will of rulers, jealous of the conservation of their homes,
attached to fixed abodes, and, to a certain degree, tolerant of
labor.
Ribault thus describes a native village on the Florida coast :
“Their houses be made of wood fitly and close; set upright and
covered with reeds; the most part of them after the fashion of a
8 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
pavilion. But there was one house among the rest very long
and broad, with settles about made of reeds, trimly couched
together, which serve them both for beds and seats; they be of
height two foot from the ground, set upon great round pillars
painted with red, yellow, and blue, well and trimly polished.”
Of these ancient towns it may be stated that they were gencrally
small, circular in outline, and defended by stockades, inserted in
the ground and inclosing spaces varying from two to fifty acres.
To strengthen and maintain them securely in their upright posi-
tion, the lower ends of these stockades were reinforced by earth
thrown against them from within and without. Such an addition
contributed materially to the safety of the inclosure; and it is not
improbable that some of the old earth-walls and parapets, still
extant in Southern valleys, indicate the lines of palisades anciently
planted for the protection of these towns.
Occasionally timbers were placed athwart the piles, and the
spaces between the uprights were rammed with straw and clay.
The town of Mauvila, where De Soto encountered such loss and
determined resistance at the hands of the lion-hearted Alibamons,
was thus fortified. Its defensive line, in the language of
Herrera, “looked like a wall smoothed with a trowel.” These
walls, loopholed for archers, were strengthened by towers, and at
the gateways or entrances guard-houses were located in which
sentinels kept watch.
The dwelling of the mico usually occupied a central position
in the village. It was either sunk below the level of the ground
to avoid the heat, or was elevated upon an artificial mound.
Around, in the order of rank, were congregated the houses of
the chiefs and principal men. The cabins of the common people
were circular or parallelogrammic in plan, the walls being made
of upright poles, and the roofs covered with cane, palmetto leaves,
moss, or earth. The summer houses were open, while those in-
tended for occupancy during the winter were often plastered
with clay. In many instances, particularly during hot weather,
the cooking was done outside of the cabins, and in small struc-
tures specially built for that purpose. Around the residences
of the chiefs — which were more ample than those of the com-
mon people — extended deep balconies, furnished with mats and
came seats. Each village had its large council-house where public
deliberations were held.
Sometimes, as at Talomeco, there was a mausoleum, or
temple, wherein reposed the skeletons of dead micos and priests.
GOVERNMENT OF THE SOUTHERN TRIBES. 9
This was supplemented by a building which served as an ar-
mory. If located at some distance from natural spring, lake, or
river, an artificial pond was dug to furnish the town with the
requisite supply of fresh water.
Ephemeral in their character, these primitive structures were
liable to early decay, and had to be constantly renewed. At cer-
tain seasons these villages were almost deserted of their inhabit-
ants who repaired in large bodies to favorite streams and to the
coast to fish and hunt.
To the office of chief ruler among these Southern tribes apper-
tained powers well-nigh despotic. In approaching a king the
subject used gestures modified in degree but similar in form to
those employed in the adoration of the sun; the intimation being
that to his person and rank were accorded a superiority, a dignity,
and an authority near akin but subordinate to those which in-
hered in that celestial luminary, admitted to be the most potent
and admirable representative of the goodness and Supremacy of
the Great Spirit. s
At the earliest period of our acquaintance with these peoples
they were divided into families, nations, and confederacies.
Among all the patriarchal relation was observable. Over the
confederacy ruled a king, counseled and supported by micos of
component tribes. The office was generally elective, and the ad-
vancement to this highest grade was usually accorded to him
most worthy of it. As chief magistrate he presided over the
grand council. The office of mico, or ruler of the tribe, was
also elective; in some instances hereditary. Subject to the ad-
vice and consent of his council, the power of life and death, the
ability to command the entire labor and obedience of his sub-
jects, and the direction of affairs, both civil and military, rested
with the king.
The great chief of the Natchez bore the appellation of the
Sun, and was succeeded in his kingly station by the son of the
woman who was most nearly related to him. He acknowledged
no superior other than the sun from whom he claimed descent.
Over his subjects he wielded despotic power, disposing at will of
life, labor, and property. The caciques governing tribes east
of the Mississippi, visited by De Soto during his long and devious
march, exacted and received the implicit obedience of their sub-
jects. Occasionally, as in the case of the province of Cutifachi-
qui, a cacica bore sway.
Presiding at all public deliberations, having at his disposal the
10 TTIE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
corn and meats collected in the public granaries, prescribing the
times for planting and harvesting, entitled to the first fruits of the
season, possessing the exclusive privilege of granting audience to
deputies and strangers, proclaiming feasts and festivals, directing
his warriors in battle, providing for the care and maintenance of
widows whose husbands had perished in fight or by disease,
hearing and determining disputes among his subjects, counseling
war or peace, meting out capital punishment to offenders or cap-
tives, and capable of compelling the united labor of a community
for the accomplishment of a prescribed object, the chief mico
was at once king, adviser, judge, master, leader. Nothing short
of a controlling will such as his could have compassed the erection
of those larger earth-works which even now are recognized as
monuments of industry.
Next in rank appeared the great war chief, the leader of the
army. In council his seat was nearest the mico, and at the head
of his noted warriors. His voice was most weighty in military
affairs. In the absence of the mico, it was his privilege to pre-
side over the deliberations of the general council. Subordinate
to this war captain were leaders of parties and heads of families
claiming precedence according to their acknowledged influence,
wisdom, strategy, and Valor.
Here, too, was the high priest, charged with the conduct of
spiritual affairs. He it was who ministered between the people
and the Great Spirit, and offered propitiatory sacrifices to the
sun as the immediate giver of heat and life and light. No
council determined upon a hostile expedition until he had au-
gured the fortune of the enterprise. Believed capable of fore-
telling the coming drought, of bringing rain upon the thirsty
zea, of quieting the tempest and directing the lightning in its
course, of expelling evil spirits and invoking the presence of
such as imparted health and plenty, this personage was most
marked in his influence.
And, then, another prominent individual in this primitive so-
ciety was the conjurer, who often united the callings of priest,
physician, and fortune-teller. Presumed to be in constant com-
munication with spirits, both good and evil; addicted to numer-
ous and extravagant incantations; possessing charms mysterious
and, to the common mind, inexplicable; indulging in prolonged
and violent contortions while practicing his deceptions; claim-
ing and exhibiting no inconsiderable knowledge of simples, phil-
ters, and medicinal herbs; administering fumigations, inhala-
PRIMITIVE INHABITANTS. 11
tions, baths, blood-lettings, scarifications, local applications, and
emetics, the violence of which, says Coreal, one must be either
a Floridian or the Devil to resist, the Jaoüna imposed largely
upon the credulity of the community and received rich rewards
from his patients, who, in pain and superstition, regarded the rav-
ing of the quack as the utterance of a divine language, beheld
the behavior of the cunning impostor with awe, and submitted
with unquestioning obedience to the treatment he prescribed. It
must be admitted, however, that these medicine men excelled in
the treatment of many distempers, and that some of the cures
effected by them were remarkable. The early accounts are full
of curious instances of their successful conjurations.
“If we have seen one American, we may be said to have seen
all, their color and make are so near alike.” Such was the ob-
servation of Ulloa, the entire accuracy of which we will not pause
to discuss.
Tall, erect, copper-colored, with long, straight black hair, with
prominent noses and cheek-bones, with regular features, arched
brows, and eyes rather small but active and full of fire; usually
grave in deportment, reserved in conversation, tenacious of natu-
ral rights, hospitable to strangers, kind to members of their own
tribe, honest, haughty and cruel to an enemy, crafty, valiant,
and often engaged in war; expert in hunting and fishing, fond
of music and dancing, observant of festivals, nimble of foot;
skilled in the use of the bow and arrow, the club, the axe, the
harpoon, and the blow-gun ; patient of fatigue and hunger, yet
given to ease and frequent meals; addicted to smoking; ac-
knowledging the existence of a Supreme Being; adoring the
sun as the symbol of life and heat ; entertaining some notions of
a life beyond the grave ; plagued with visions, dreams, trances,
and the influences of malign and lesser divinities; worshiping
the Devil, and offering human sacrifices in propitiation of the
Spirit of Evil; indulging to some extent in image worship, and
perpetuating the memory of the distinguished dead by mounds
and figures of wood and stone; excelling in the manufacture of
fictile ware, boats of single trees, shawls, coverings, mantles
beautifully woven and adorned with feathers, articles of dress
made of the skins of buffalo, bear, and deer, carefully prepared,
dyed, and colored, fishing lines and nets of the inner bark of
trees, mats and baskets of split cane, reeds, and rushes, and la-
boriously constructed weirs for the capture of fishes; extensively
engaged in the fabrication, use, and interchange of various arti-
12 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
º
cles and implements of wood, bone, shell, Copper, and stone;
frequently monogamous—the contubernal relationship being dis-
soluble at the will of the male —the chiefs and principal men
claiming as many wives as fancy and station dictated; ornament.
loving, jealous of their possessions, given to agriculture, obedi-
ent to kings, – thus runs a general description of these primitive
inhabitants.
For the use of queens, on public occasions, a palanquin was
prepared. Furnished with mats, cushioned Seat, and feathered
canopy, it was borne on the shoulders of men, preceded by mu-
sicians playing upon reed flutes, accompanied by a retinue of
attendants carrying baskets of fruit, and guarded by plumed
warriors bearing javelins in their hands. The female breech-
clout, made of the long moss of the country, depending from
the shoulders, passed transversely below the navel and across
the opposite hip. It was far more graceful and flowing than the
flap and band, or moss-wad, used by the men. Except when
compelled, during the winter, to clothe themselves in skins,
blankets, and shawls of their own manufacture, the Southern
Indians passed their time in a state almost entirely nude. Even
when attired for war the men claimed but little artificial pro-
tection for their bodies, and contented themselves with fanciful
head and ear ornaments and personal decorations of various
Sorts. Upon the left shoulder of him who had rendered him-
self famous in battle was depicted a tomahawk, the skin being
pricked with a sharp instrument to the depth of the tenth of an
inch and powdered charcoal rubbed in. Underneath, and in-
delibly imprinted in like manner, was the hieroglyphic sign of
the conquered nation.
Almost universal was the custom of tattooing. Their bodies
being so much exposed, the amplest opportunity was afforded for
the exhibition of skill and ingenuity in this respect, and also in
skin-painting. Ear, nose, and lip ornaments, necklaces, anklets,
armlets, and waistbands of pearl and shell, inflated fish-bladders,
copper gorgets, and, very rarely, gold beads were worn. Cover-
ing the feet were buckskin shoes, reinforced at the bottom, fas-
tened with running-strings around the ankles, and gathered like
a purse on the top.
Without recounting the traditions, myths, and speculations re-
garding the genesis and migrations of these peoples, or discuss-
ing the various proofs and hypotheses which might be offered in
support of the antiquity of man in this region, it may now be as-
MOUND-BUILDING BY FLORIDA INDIANS. 13
serted that he existed contemporaneously with the mastodon, and
that his occupancy dates back to a period indefinitely remote.
It has not yet been satisfactorily determined to what time, late
or remote, the life of that pachyderm was prolonged. Drift im-
plements have been reported in a few localities, but the search
for them has thus far been partial and in the main unsatisfac-
tory.
Exempt from trials incident to a rigorous climate and a barren
territory; their wants supplied by the abundant food treasures
of the waters and the forests, and the spontaneous offerings of a
warm and generous soil; in a great measure relieved from those
grievous struggles for covering and subsistence which in colder
latitudes manifestly tend to harden the condition of the savage
and embitter his existence, these peoples, pleasure-loving in
their disposition, were, at the time of our first acquaintance with
them, leading gentle, agricultural lives, and claiming old and
prominent monuments. Without thought of change, they had
developed a degree of taste, skill, and a variety in manufacture
superior to those exhibited by more northern tribes, excepting,
perhaps, some resident in the Mississippi Valley and its tribu-
taries. Among the Natchez, in many respects, this Southern
semi-civilization found its fullest expression, its most marked de-
velopment. There the machinery of temple, idol, priest, keepers
of sacred things, religious festivals, sun worship, and all that, was
most elaborate, and there the preservation of the eternal fire en-
listed the utmost solicitude.
When the Europeans first landed upon these Southern coasts
the Florida Indians were, and apparently for an indefinite period
anterior to that time had been, addicted to the custom of mound.
building. Desiring to wrest from oblivion the names and graves
of those who were famous in the kingly office, distinguished in
arms, or noted in the priesthood ; sympathizing in that wish so
natural to the human heart to accord affectionate and honorable
sepulture to friend and kindred; eager to dignify the dwellings
of their rulers; and ever on the alert to descry from afar the dam-
ger which menaced town and temple, these peoples were led to
erect tumuli which will here remain for centuries yet to come
the most prominent and interesting exhibitions of early construc-
tive skill. As affording the most substantial proofs of primitive
occupancy, and often being treasure-houses wherein are garnered
the surest expressions of the customs, rites, and manufactures of
nations whose former existence can otherwise Scarcely be estab-
14 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
lished, we turn with peculiar interest to these mounds for glimpses
of a forgotten past.
That sepulchral tumuli of no mean dimensions have been
erected within the historic period is capable of easy demonstra-
tion. It is equally certain that the custom of mound-building
Was generally discontinued shortly after European settlements
were formed in this country. Subsequently, instead of being care-
fully disposed in the womb of the laboriously constructed mound,
the dead were exposed upon ephemeral scaffolds, hidden away
in the hollow trunks of trees, submerged in ponds, lakes and
streams, buried in the depths of forests, concealed in ledges of
rocks, or laid away beneath the floors of lodges with few and
feeble indicia to denote their last resting-places.
That this ancient population was essentially shocked and de-
moralized by Spanish and French incursions; that ideas of gov-
ernment, worship, and native power, long entertained, were sadly
overturned ; and that the influence of the European upon the in-
stitutions and customs of these peoples was most disastrous, can
scarcely admit of a reasonable doubt. That the abandonment of
many of their established notions and customary labors is to be
attributed to this violent and sudden upheaval of preconceived
ideas, to the ravages of foreign diseases, to disintegration and loss
encountered at the hands of Europeans and experienced in wars
formented by this new order of things, and that these Indians,
recognizing their inferiority and weakness when contrasted with
the intelligence and power of the white race, discontinued in
large measure their primitive industries and neglected their
weightier efforts, may be regarded as not improbable. That in
this changed condition of affairs we find at least a partial expla-
nation of the discontinuance of the custom of mound-building
may be fairly claimed.
While it may not be confidently asserted that the Indians of
the sixteenth century and their progenitors were the authors of
all the earth-works found in this region, and particularly of the
larger terraced mounds and truncated pyramids, and while
we may be unable fully to explain how later tribes became less
patient of labor and neglectful of customs which gave rise to
such enduring monuments, the likelihood is that these earth-
works were constructed in the olden time by peoples akin to and
possessed of no higher art and civilization than characterized the
nations resident here at the dawn of the historic period.
Among these Southern tumuli we occasionally meet with ani-
CLASSIFICATION OF TUMULI. 15
mal, bird-shaped, and emblematic earth and stone works allied
to structures of that class so frequent in Wisconsin, and some-
times observed in other localities in the West.
Without attempting an exact classification or minute descrip-
tion of these prominent indications of early occupancy and prim-
itive labor, we may note the existence of truncated pyramids,
constructed of earth, rising from ten to seventy-five feet above
the level of the valleys and fertile plains upon which they are
located. Generally frustums of four-sided pyramids, they ma-
terially differ in size; some of the largest containing, at the top,
a level area of an acre.
The approaches to their summits were effected not infre-
quently by means of inclined planes and graded paths, either di-
rect or winding. Occasionally these structures are supplemented
by terraces and platforms or curtains. The slope of their sides
is such as would be assumed by earth and clay conveyed in bas-
kets and earthen vessels and deposited from above. Sometimes
standing alone, these structures are often associated with comical
mounds, frustums of smaller pyramids, and grave-mounds.
If builded near a river, these tumuli were now and then inclosed
by circular or semicircular earth-walls, or by canals communi-
cating with the stream, and, at the upper ends and along their
courses, developing into artificial ponds which served as fish-pre-
serves. Introduced from the river into these artificial lakes, –
the narrow mouths of which were closed by gates made of came
and slivers of wood, - the fishes were there bred, and were thence
caught with nets, various forms of which were in use among
these Indians. The limits of the ancient towns are indicated
by the trend of these canals and parapets. The spaces thus in-
closed were often considerable, and within them may yet be seen
the remains of elevated roads, wells, traces of covered ways lead-
ing to the water, and chunky-yards.
Some of the more prominent of these truncated pyramids and
cones may, we think, be recognized as elevations prepared for the
erection of temples for sun worship ; while others of less altitude
were seemingly intended as foundations for the residences of kings,
micos, and priests. By more than one of the early historians
are we informed of the existence of large artificial tumuli, with
precipitous sides and flat tops, located in valleys and near the
banks of streams, which were erected for the purpose of sustain-
ing the houses of chiefs and their families. Wooden stairways,
made by cutting inclined planes fifteen or twenty feet wide,
16 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
flanked on the sides with posts and with poles laid horizontally
across the earthen steps, afforded facile access to their tops. At
the foot of such a mound a square was marked out around which
were established the dwellings of the principal members of the
tribe. Outside appeared the cabins of the common people. A
disposition to dignify the residence of the mico, a Willingness at
all times to elevate the ruler above his subjects, and a desire to
promote his safety and that of his family are assigned as motives
for the expenditure of so much labor.
Indicating the chosen seats and towns of these peoples, pro-
claiming the subjection of the general labor to the undisputed
will of king and high priest, betokening the supremacy of the
governor over the governed, certifying the fixed character of the
population, and illustrating the attention bestowed upon the erec-
tion not only of temples for sun worship, but also of substantial
structures denoting the extent, permanency, and accord of the
settlement, such tumuli and their dependent works are full of in-
terest and afford material for careful study.
A second class of tumuli worthy of mention includes conical
mounds, truncated and situated upon commanding bluffs and
hill-tops, which served as signal stations in this densely wooded
region. In the absence of bugle note, the roll of drum, the boom
of cannon, and the flight of the electric spark, fires kindled upon
their summits, with their glare by night and smoke by day, gave
tokens which, repeated from kindred mounds along the reaches
of rivers or on answering eminences, within a period much shorter
than that allotted to the swiftest runner warned tribe and nation
of approaching danger. These mounds of observation may be
recognized by their peculiar locations and relative positions, and
by the fact that when opened they are found to contain nothing
other than the traces of fire underlying the roots of overshadow-
ing trees.
Springing from the depths of extensive swamps and in regions
liable to inundation may be seen tumuli of considerable dimen-
sions which served either as retreats during seasons of sudden
overflow, or as foundations for the dwellings of those who here
hunted and fished.
It was manifestly the custom of the Florida tribes in the six-
teenth century — a practice too which had long been observed—
to dignify the last resting-places of their dead with coverings of
earth, stone, or shells. This method of perpetuating the memory
of the departed, and of imparting prominence and permanency to
GRAVE-MOUNDS. 17
thier graves appears, during periods the most remote and in
localities widely separated, to have suggested itself as most natu-
ral, convenient, and enduring.
Those mighty mound-tombs of Scythian kings towering along
the banks of the Borysthènes, that prince of tumuli which for
more than twenty-five hundred years has perpetuated the mem-
ory of Alyattes, the grave of the murdered Agamemnon, He-
phaestion's tomb, the burial-place of Patroclus, and the countless
barrows and sepulchral tumuli scattered over the plains, peo-
pling the valleys and crowning the hills of Europe, Asia, Africa,
America, and the islands of the oceans, all attest the universality
of this custom.
Compared with each other, these tumuli give evidence of vary-
ing ages. Hundreds of years agone, some of them were aban-
doned to the guardianship of the forest trees, while a few have
been erected since commerce was established with the White
race. Appearing singly and in groups, they vary in size from
the almost obliterated mound scarce swelling above the ground
littered with sherds of pottery and fragments of bone, to the
well-preserved tumulus five and twenty feet high and possessing
a base diameter of a hundred feet. The prevailing type is con-
ical, although structures ovoidal in outline are not uncommon.
The tendency of the aboriginal population being toward the
rivers and deep swamps, the rich valleys and the sea-coast where
water, oysters, mussels, fishes, and game were easily procurable,
where streams afforded facilities for communication, and where a
generous soil made amends for the rude cultivation bestowed,
the sites and antiquity of villages and resorts are certified by
these monuments.
Later generations — whether direct descendants of the former,
or strangers to them, we cannot positively either affirm or deny,
— oblivious of ancient memories and less patient of labor, util-
ized many of these older tumuli for the purposes of secondary
interments. Thus will appear instances of sepulture on the tops
and sides of mounds, only a few feet below the surface, evi-
dently the work of more recent tribes, while the skeletons
and property of the dead in whose honor these tumuli were
heaped up lie at the bottom and on a level with or below the
surrounding earth. Wasted by the elements, robbed of distinc-
tive recollections by the oblivion of time and the carelessness of
those who came after, and torn by the furrows of a new civiliza-
tion, —
2
18 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
“The very generations of the dead
Are swept away, and tomb inherits tomb
Until the memory of an age is fled.”
In Plate XL. of the “Brevis Narratio,” Le Moyne furnishes
an illustration of the mound which the Florida Indians heaped
above their dead kings and priests: “Defuncto aliquo Rege ejus
Provincide, magma Solemnitate sepelitur, & ejus tumulo crater, é
quo bibere solebat, imponitur, defia is circa ipsum tumulum multis
Sagittis.”
Adopting this suggestion, confirmed as it is by later narratives
and observations, we will not greatly err in designating sepul-
chral tumuli containing a single skeleton as chieftain or priest
'mounds. Such distinguished dead, so far as our experience goes,
were never burnt. Prior to inhumation, the corpses were placed
upon the ground, where they were sometimes held in a sitting
posture by being lashed to a post. Possessions of value were laid
at the feet or placed by the side, and then the earth was piled
above by mourning friends and obedient subjects. For its further
protection, prior to the construction of the tumulus, the body
was sometimes defended from contact with the rising earth by
a clay covering, several inches thick, sun-dried or baked, and
closely resembling a large earthen pot, inverted. From such
mounds have been obtained some of the choicest specimens of
the workmanship of these peoples in stone, bone, and shell.
Among other nations the custom obtained of depositing in
wooden chests, carefully made and placed upon shelves, the skele-
tons of kings, chiefs, noted warriors, and priests. Near by, and
in smaller chests and cane-baskets, were accumulated valuable
furs, robes of dressed skins, mantles woven of the inner rind of
trees, and of a species of grass, well beaten and resembling flax,
feather coverings of various colors, and stores of pearls. The
mausoleum at Talomeco, which served as a receptacle for such
coffins and chests, is said to have been a hundred paces long and
forty broad. Its lofty roof was constructed of cane reeds, and
the entrance to the temple was guarded by gigantic Wooden stat-
ues, carved with considerable skill, some of them twelve feet
high. Armed with various weapons, they maintained threaten-
ing attitudes and ferocious looks. Within were statues of vari-
ous shapes and sizes. Similar receptacles were observed among
the Natchez and some of the Virginia tribes.
In certain localities cremation was practiced by these Southern
Indians. The contents of not a few grave-mounds consist of
FUNERAL CUSTOMS. 19
calcined bones, charred fragments of pipes, pottery, and various
articles of use and ornament, and partially consumed pieces of
wood. In such busta were multitudes of skeletons remanded to
nothingness.
Urn burial also obtained, particularly in the case of children;
— the funeral vase containing the bones being made of terra
cotta. Securely covered by a lid of the same material, the ves-
sel was deposited in the common earth, or committed to the keep-
ing of the general grave-mound.
It being no easy task, with the rude implements, friable earthen
vessels, and frail baskets at command, to construct a large sepul-
chral tumulus, these peoples were in the habit of reserving the
skeletons of their dead until they accumulated sufficiently to war-
rant a general inhumation. Primitive undertakers with their
long nails stripped the decaying flesh from the bones, disjointed
the skeletons, placed the cleaned bones in coffins or chests fabri-
cated of canes and splints, and stored them away in the village
bone-house, where, marked for the recognition of relatives, and
well guarded, they remained until they so multiplied as either
to fill the structure, or to enlist the sympathy of the community
in the erection of a grave-mound.
Upon a day appointed, the kindred of the deceased repairing
to the bone-house, and taking up the coffins of their respective
dead, followed one another in the order of Seniority. Accompa-
nied by the inhabitants of the town or nation, they proceeded to
some designated spot in the vicinity of the settlement, where, in
pyramidal form, the chests were deposited on the ground. In
some instances wood was added and fire applied to the pile.
During the cremation relatives and friends sat around chanting
songs and smoking, or indulged in funeral dances, and delivered
orations eulogistic of the virtues and valor of the deceased. The
pipes then used were finally contributed to the pyre, and above
the collected ashes the multitude set about erecting the family
or tribal grave-mound. Generally, however, the coffins contain-
ing the skeletons and personal property of the dead were placed
in order upon the ground and the earth piled above.
Where cremation occurred, it seems no addition was made to
the tumulus when once completed. Although family or tribal
mounds in which the dead were entombed without being burnt
usually contain but a single stratum of bones, we find examples
of the gradual formation of large grave-mounds by consecutive
burials; the different strata indicating that the skeletons had lain
20 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
for unequal periods in the ground, and being separated from each
other by intervening layers of earth.
Sometimes small islands were dedicated almost exclusively to
the purpose of sepulture.
In the vicinity of the coast, oyster, clam, periwinkle, and
conch shells were freely employed in covering grave-mounds,
thereby imparting a permanency which they would not otherwise
have possessed. Lacustrine and fluviatile unios and bivalves
were expended in a similar way. Such protection afforded no
mean defense against the disintegrating influences of time and
the elements. Scattered upon sea-islands, along headlands, and
near the borders of lakes and rivers are numerous mounds com-
posed either wholly or in part of shells. There they have stood
for centuries, and there, if undisturbed, they will endure for an
indefinite period.
In certain localities may still be seen stone-piles designating the
spots where warriors perished in battle.
Another mode of sepulture is represented by stone graves,
parallelogrammic, cruciform, or square in outline, some two feet
deep, and from eighteen inches to seven feet in length. The
sides consist of rough slabs of stone set on edge. The bottoms
are paved with small bowlders, and the tops covered with stone
slabs. Thus were formed rude Sarcophagi or vaults. In some
the corpse was deposited at full length, the arms being disposed
by the side. In others, the bodies were laid with the arms ex-
tended at right angles, which explains their cruciform shapes.
Frequently the skeleton was disjointed; the skull being placed
in the centre of the vault, and the long bones arranged compactly
around it. Thus was it accommodated within a narrow compass.
The smallness of many of these sarcophagi suggested to careless
observers the impression that they were the graves of a race of
pigmies. Curious and interesting are the relics with which these
vaults abound, and their contents will amply reward further re-
search.
Within the rayless recesses of caves have been found shriveled
bodies, various articles of dress, and implements fashioned by the
red race; but these retreats have been but partially explored. A
thorough and scientific investigation of their floors and avenues
will doubtless impart additional information most valuable and
interesting.
It would be entertaining to recount the funeral customs of
these peoples as revealed by grave-mounds, as recorded by early
MISCELLANEOUS STRUCTURES. 21
observers, and as modified in after years by contact with Euro-
peans. But such a description lies not within the limits of this
sketch. Nor is it permitted, in enumerating the obvious proofs
of early possession and combined labor, to do more than allude
to the existence of circumvallations of earth and stone by which
hill-tops and eminences were fortified; to the presence of embank-
ments of earth, and ditches isolating considerable areas and pro-
tecting villages, temple-mounds, and play-grounds; to the remains
of chunky-yards, with their tumuli, elevated spaces, and earth-
banks (seats for spectators), of pottery kilns of stone, and pits
whence clay was dug for the manufacture of fictile ware, and
to traces of open-air workshops. We mention also among these
indicia of primitive occupancy extensive refuse piles and shell
heaps, composed of marine, fluviatile, and lacustrine shells, upon
the animals of which the natives fed and from which they ex-
tracted many pearls.
Intermingled with the débris of these long-continued encamp-
ments will be seen the bones of fishes, birds, terrapins, alligators,
snakes, buffaloes, deer, and other animals, sherds of pottery,
arrow and spear points, net sinkers, and manufactured imple-
ments of various kinds.
In these refuse piles human bones have been found, split longi-
tudinally, as though the marrow had been extracted from them,
and conveying the impression that cannibalism was, at some time
and among some peoples, practiced within the limits of ancient
Florida.
While it may be regarded as a matter of speculation whether
the builders of the largest monuments of early constructive skill
within the confines of Georgia were the actual progenitors of the
Indians who were occupying the region when it was first visited
by Europeans; and while we may not fully comprehend how it
came to pass that later tribes were apparently more nomadic in
their habits, less addicted to combined and consecutive work, and
neglectful of customs which seemingly obtained among the peo-
ples whose united industry, compassed these enduring structures,
in the light of the Spanish narratives, after a careful survey of the
objects themselves, in view of all the facts which have thus far
been disclosed both by personal investigation and the observation
of others, and while freely admitting that the modern Indians,
from various causes, had ceased to engage in the erection of works,
the completion of which, with the indifferent implements at com-
mand, involved so much tedious labor, we nevertheless see no
22 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
good reason for supposing that these prominent tumuli and inclo-
sures may not have been formed in the olden time by peoples of
the same race, and no further advanced in the scale of semi-civi.
lization than the red men native here at the dawn of the historic
period. In other words, we do not concur in the suggestion that
the Mound-Builders were distinct from, and superior in art, gov-
ernment, and religious ideas to, the Georgia tribes of the fifteenth
and sixteenth centuries.
Aside from the profuse and fanciful ornamentation of their
bodies with pigments of red, white, yellow, and black, the South-
ern Indians displayed no little taste in depicting marks, signs,
images, and symbols on prepared skins, wood, bone, and stone.
The smooth bark of a growing tree or the face of a rock was in-
cised in commemoration of some feat of arms, in explanation of
the direction and strength of a military expedition, or in solemni-
zation of a treaty of peace.
Upon precipitous slopes, and at points almost inaccessible,
have been noted carved and colored representations of the sun,
accompanied by rude characters the significance of which is in
the main unintelligible to the present observer.
Roughly cut intaglios in imitation of the human form, of the
hands and feet of men, of the tracks of buffalo, deer, and other
animals, of bows and arrows, canoes, circles, and various figures
are still extant. Ignorant of alphabet, phonetic sign, or digit,
these peoples, by means of this primitive system of picture-writing
and intaglios, sought to perpetuate the recollection of prominent
events, and by such visible shapes to communicate desired intel-
ligence. This effort was supplemented by the use of wampum,
which, in certain cases, possessed a significance scarcely inferior
to that of the knotted quipu.
The boldest attempts at sculpture are expressed by images,
sometimes two feet high and more, carved out of a talcose stone,
and representing the human figure, both male and female, usually
in a sitting or kneeling posture. From the existence of such
objects, and of images of terra cotta and wood, it may be inferred
that something like idol or hero worship obtained among these
primitive peoples.
Proofs are not wanting to confirm the belief that the worship
of the Priapus was observed among not a few of the Southern
nations. As the sun was adored as the author of light and joy,
of heat and increase, so was this symbol of the life-giving princi-
ple saluted with homage, and accredited with the attributes of
divinity.
IMPLEMENTS OF COPPER, STONE, BONE, ETC. 23
Ignorant of iron and bronze, these primitive peoples indulged
in the use of copper. Treating it as a malleable stone, they
hammered it into various forms of use and ornament, among
which may be enumerated ceremonial axes, gouges, chisels, knives,
spear-heads, arrow-points, wristbands, armlets, anklets, gorgets,
spangles, beads, pendants, rods, and spindles for perforating
pearls. That the principal supply of this metal was procured
from the ancient mines of Lake Superior seems highly probable.
So extensive were the aboriginal trade relations that there would
have been no difficulty in transporting both the ore and the
manufactured objects. An examination of copper implements,
taken from the graves of these Southern Indians, justifies the
suggestion. That they were ignorant of the art of melting
copper, and that they did not invoke the agency of fire to facili-
tate the manufacture of articles from this material, may be safely
asserted. All the specimens we have seen present a laminated
structure, and we are not aware that any moulds for casting have
yet been found. Small nuggets of gold and silver, perforated for
suspension as ornaments, have been taken from ancient graves.
Relics of this kind are very rare. Such were possibly the tink-
lets of gold to which Cabeça de Vaca refers. Copper objects of
primitive fabrication are not abundant within the territory for-
merly occupied by the Southern tribes. Articles made of hema-
tite are frequently obtained.
Among these Southern Indians the manufacture of implements
of stone, bone, and shell was general and very excellent. Speci-
mens of unusual beauty and Symmetry attest this fact. Liv-
ing in a genial climate, the warm earth yielding spontaneously
many fruits, forest and river abounding with animal life, and
the contest with nature for subsistence being by no means ardu-
ous, these peoples enjoyed every opportunity for Sport, amuse-
ment, personal decoration, and for the exhibition of taste and
skill in the fabrication of articles of use and ornament.
Famous were the arrow-makers of this region. Traces of their
open-air workshops may be seen not only in elevated localities,
but even on the coast, and upon knolls in the depths of swamps
where nuclei, transported from great distances, were splintered
and chipped into desired shapes. These arrow and spear points
2.Te remarkable for beauty of material and excellency of work.
manship. Party-colored jaspers, smoky, milky, and sweet-water
quartz, pure crystals, chalcedony, and varieties of flint and chert
Were the favorite stones from which these implements were
24 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
fashioned. Among them every known form finds expression, and
they are of all sizes, from the delicate point scarce half an inch
in length to the formidable spear or lance-head fourteen inches
long and weighing considerably more than two pounds. The
light, tough river cane (Arundinaria macrosperma) formed the
customary shaft for these points. Shafts split from hard wood,
and rounded and smoothed by means of grooved coarse-grained
stones, were also in use. Spear-heads fastened to wooden han-
dles were hurled in battle, were employed at close quarters to
parry blows and deliver thrusts, and proved serviceable in the
capture of sturgeon and large game. It would appear that the
manufacture of these implements was somewhat monopolized by
particular individuals in each tribe, who devoted their time and
labor to their fabrication, and acquired a dexterity quite remark-
able when we consider the limited tools at command. As these
objects were finished, they were often secreted in the ground,
whence they were taken from time to time and disposed of as
occasion offered.
Not infrequently these artificers, with considerable store of
articles on hand, would perform long journeys to exchange their
implements for commodities foreign to the regions in which they
dwelt. To such traders safe conduct was accorded, and they
were welcomed wherever they went. Most attractive stone ar-
ticles are found in localities far distant from the points where
the materials of which they are made could have been procured,
and it is to the practical operation of these trade relations that
their dissemination may be fairly ascribed.
Cabeça de Vaca informs us that the Florida Indians were all
archers, admirable in proportions, of great activity and strength,
with bows as thick as a man’s arm, eleven or twelve spans in
length, and capable of projecting arrows a long distance and with
wonderful precision. Even the good armor of the followers of
De Soto did not afford safe protection against these missiles. On
many occasions the bodies of the Spaniards were traversed from
side to side and their horses killed by these weapons. In the
battle of Mauvila there fell of the mail-clad Christians eighty-
two, while the survivors bore the marks of seventeen hundred
and seventy dangerous wounds inflicted by Indian arrows. With
such ancient artillery did these peoples not only wage wars, but
provide themselves, and that bountifully, with buffalo, deer, wild
turkeys, game of various sorts, and large fishes.
Bow-strings were made of stag's gut or thongs of deer-skin.
STONE IMPLEMENTS, ETC. 25
A supply of arrows was carried in a fawn-skin quiver which de-
pended from the right hip. The tip was fastened to the shaft by
means of moistened sinews, a glue made of the velvet horns of
the deer, or a preparation of resin. Youths were regularly ex-
ercised in the use of these weapons, and became very expert in
handling the blow-gun from which light arrows, feathered with
thistle wool, were projected against birds, squirrels, rabbits, and
other small game. Ordinary arrows were fledged with turkey-
feathers.
Of grooved axes, celts, perforated hatchets, and ceremonial
axes, the varieties are abundant and the manufacture is most ad-
mirable. Weighing from a quarter of a pound to twelve pounds
and upwards, and generally made of greenstone or diorite, they
were first picked into shape with a sharp-pointed implement and
Subsequently, at great labor, ground and polished. Lafitau, in .
commenting upon the tedious toil involved in this process, re-
marks: “The life of a savage is often insufficient for accomplish-
ing the work, and hence such an implement, however rude and
imperfect it may be, is considered a precious heirloom for the
children.” Chipped and ground axes of jasper sometimes occur,
and occasionally some were fashioned of hematite. Ceremonial
axes of ferruginous quartz, polished to the last degree, have been
found. Perforations were compassed by solid and hollow drills
operated with sharp sand and water. Whetstones served to re-
store the edges when dulled by use.
Instances have been noted in which both the blade and handle
were cut out of a solid piece of diorite. These implements were
some thirteen inches in length, with blades about six inches long
and rather more than two inches wide at the cutting edge. At
the lower end of the handle was a perforation for the suspension
of the Weapon. The manufacture of these axes, hatchets, and
celts was discontinued so soon as iron implements were freely
furnished by the Europeans.
We may not essay a description of the various forms of stone
adzes, picks, scrapers, gouges, awls or borers, knives, cutting
implements, saws, leaf-shaped implements, Smoothing and crush-
ing stones, hammer stones, hoes, spades, mortars, pestles, nut-
stones, and other articles of bone, shell, and stone, which still de-
clare the occupations, industries, and mechanical labors of these
nations.
Interesting as it would be to revive their piscatorial contri-
Vances and engagements during that remote period when pond,
26 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
lake, swamp, and river were replete with animal life, and when,
in the language of Ribault, the waters of the Florida coast were
“boiling and roaring through the multitude of all kinds of fish,”
we can only refer to artificial preserves where fishes were bred
and taken with nets; to the use of bone and shell hooks, and
lines twisted from the fibres of bark and silk-grass; to the man-
ufacture of stone plummets and net-sinkers, perforated, notched,
and grooved ; to the construction of dams, traps, and extensive
weirs for taking fishes; to the practice of intoxicating them by
lashing ponds with the branches of certain trees, and scattering
pounded horse-chestnuts and roots in the water ; to attracting
them, by night, with bright pitch-pine fires kindled in the bows
of canoes; to their capture with the bow and arrow, and the de-
struction of the larger kind with spears and reed harpoons.
Upon their weirs, traps, nets, and mechanical contrivances of
this sort the Southern Indians largely depended for support.
During certain months of each year they resorted in great multi-
tudes to the coast and to the banks of rivers, and spent much
time in taking fishes. Large quantities, when smoked and dried,
were carried to their private cribs and public storehouses.
Ribault says the Indians of May River put as presents into his
boats “sundry fishes which with mervelous speed they run to
take in their packs made in the water with great reeds, so well
and cunningly set together after the fashion of a Labarinthe or
Maze, with so many turns and crooks as it is impossible to do it
without much consideration and industry.” Weirs and set-nets
were sometimes held in position by large, perforated soapstone
sinkers, and by stone anchors or weights, notched and grooved.
Upon hand-nets, push-nets, and dip-mets much reliance was
placed. In the refuse piles indicating these ancient fishing re-
sorts no relic is more common than the perforated and notched
soapstone sinker.
Were we called upon to suggest a class of articles which amply
expressed the patient industry and mechanical skill of these
primitive workers in stone, we would be inclined to select those
beautiful objects known as discoidal stones, many of which were
used in playing that great gambling game called by the Chero-
kees Chungke, in which the contestants were engaged from morn-
ing until night, caring nothing for the sun's rays, staking their
ornaments, weapons, apparel, and even wives and personal lib-
erty upon the hazard, and refraining not from its excitement
until all was lost or utter prostration forbade further exertion.
THE CHUNGKE GAME, ETC. 27
The spaces prepared for playing this game have not wholly
disappeared. Rectangular in outline, slightly elevated, rendered
quite level, and freed from all impediments such as roots and
stones, their surfaces were sometimes hardened by a flooring of
rammed clay. All known types of these discoidal stones are
here richly represented, and ferruginous quartz, marble, agate,
and a hard, black, close-grained stone were the materials gen-
erally employed in their manufacture. Polished to the last de-
gree, they are fashioned with a mathematical accuracy which
could not be excelled were the skill of a modern Workman with
compass and metallic tools invoked. In the hands of later tribes,
some, possessing saucer-shaped cavities, were applied to second-
ary uses and treated as mortars for pulverizing substances ser-
viceable for paint.
No longer is this famous game played within the limits of
Florida of the olden time. Like the exercise of the discus in
the heroic age, it has now become only a tradition, a shadowy
memory. The carefully prepared areas over which the red ath-
letes rushed in enthusiastic pursuit of victory, at the expense of
time, property, and personal liberty, are now deserted and rugged
with the trunks and roots of huge forest trees. The anointed
poles and the swift hands which launched them have alike crum-
bled into nothingness.
Winners and losers, oblivious of their profits and losses, the
exultations and the disappointments of this exciting amusement,
are themselves forgotten, and little remains to remind us of the
former existence and prevalence of this popular game, character-
ized by severe exercise, singular dexterity, and desperate ven-
tures, save these discoidal stones so remarkable for their beauty
and symmetry and so declaratory of the skill and labor ex-
pended in their manufacture.
Pretermitting all else save a bare mention of medicine and
ornamental tubes, pierced tablets, pendants of hematite, green-
stone, quartz, and jasper, amulets of striated slate, stone plates,
mirrors of mica membranacea, slung stones, and other articles the
uses of which are not always well ascertained, we venture the
remark that in no portion of the United States other than that
whose antiquities we are now considering, unless it be in the val-
leys of Ohio, can be found so many and such excellent speci-
mens of ancient pipes.
Entertaining the belief that the Great Spirit was addicted to
Smoking, and regarding the tobacco plant as a direct gift from
28 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
him for the enjoyment of his favorite children, the pipe was es-
teemed by many as a sacred object, and smoking became, at
times, a devotional exercise. The incense of tobacco being pleas.
ing to the Father of Life, the ascending smoke was selected as
the most suitable medium of communicating with the great un-
known. The curative properties of tobacco were invoked in
some diseases, and its narcotic influences recognized as a solace
in hours of ease and during periods of hunger and fatigue. The
small clay or stone pipe was the constant companion of the
Southern Indian while engaged in hunting, fishing, or in war, and
amid the laziness of his rude home life. The more imposing
calumet, with its long stem adorned with feathers, was present
On occasions of moment. Its introduction was essential to a
declaration of war, and with it was the treaty of amity solem-
nized. Alternate whiffs from its fuming bowl were tantamount
to the signing and sealing by the contracting parties. From no
solemn conference or important assembly was it absent. The
ceremonies and dances observed in its honor were numerous and
impressive. As embodied in and symbolized by the calumet,
public faith was inviolate, and he who bore it as a token of peace
was entitled to safe conduct through the nations.
Serpentine, gneiss, steatite, oblite, soap-stone, and a tough
stone composed of mica and dark brown feldspar were the ma-
terials usually selected for the manufacture of pipes of this class.
Many are bird and animal shaped, - some of them weighing as
much as eight pounds. Their bottoms are flat so as to maintain
an upright position when placed on the ground. The bowls,
generally at right angles with the shanks, are capacious, with
substantial walls, and cavities either circular or square. The
apertures for the stems are large. Although generally plain, the
surfaces are, in not a few instances, ornamented with incised
lines."
We have observed very few pipes in this region made of Cat-
linite.
Common pipes were manufactured of clay and stone. Occa-
sionally they occur fabricated of some hard material such as
1 Others, with ample, cup-shaped bowls, Others still, with a central bowl, ex-
possess apertures no less than eight in hibit two elongated shanks in the same
number for the insertion of stems, thus plane, perforated for the insertion of long
affording opportunity for an equal num- stems, so that two individuals, facing each
ber of smokers at the same moment to other, can at the same time smoke the
partake of the consolations of the fuming same pipe.
weed from a common receptacle.
PRIMITIVE PIPES AND POTTERY. 29
quartz. In many instances a hole was drilled through the heel,
or lower edge of the shank, so as to admit of suspension when
the object was not in use." The ordinary swamp cane supplied
convenient stems. Associated with the truncated pyramids and
larger tumuli have been found pipes, denominated idol-pipes, evi-
dently of great antiquity, generally representing the human form
in a sitting posture, the bowl supported in the uplifted hands,
the face upturned, the hair confined at the top of the head and
thence falling backwards, and the perforation for the stem enter-
ing below the shoulders and passing through the back and belly
into the bottom of the bowl. Such specimens are usually about
six inches in height. They may be easily distinguished from the
human-shaped pipes of the Cherokees which frequently, in the
language of Adair, cannot “much be commended for their mod-
esty.”
To the pottery of this region the Knight of Elvas pays high
compliment when he describes it as “little differing from that
of Estremoz or Montemor.”
If we may believe Cabeça de Vaca, some of the Florida In-
dians were either ignorant or neglectful of the potter's trade.
“Not having discovered the use of pipkins to boil what they
would eat,” so runs the narrative, “they fill the half of a large
Calabash with water, and throw on the fire many stones of such
as are most convenient and readily take the heat. When hot,
they are taken up with tongs of sticks and dropped into the
calabash until the water in it boils from the fervor of the stones.
Then, whatever is to be cooked is put in, and, until it is done,
they continue taking out cooled stones and throwing in hot ones.
Thus they boil their food.” This statement is certainly not of
general application, for we have abundant proofs that the manu-
facture of fictile articles by these peoples was not only common,
but also that it had been carried on, from periods the most re-
mote, in almost all localities inhabited by them. It may be
safely asserted that as savages they excelled in the ceramic art,
bestowing special care upon the selection of clays, their admix-
ture with powdered shells, gravel, and pulverized mica, and upon
the shape and ornamentation of their vessels. The use of the pot-
ter's wheel seems to have been unknown. Surviving the changes
* Much labor was bestowed upon the and blue were employed in the decoration
fabrication and ornamentation of these of their exterior walls. But a little while
pipes, both common and ceremonial. Va- ago we beheld a large bird-shaped pipe,
rious are the birds and animals which they two beautiful opal stones having been in-
represent. Pigments of white, red, black, serted as eyes,
30 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
of centuries, and affording glimpses of ancient taste and cus.
toms, these fictile articles are among the most interesting remains
which have been transmitted. Varied in form, symmetrical in
shape, excellent in composition, and diversified in ornamentation,
this pottery was both sun-dried and baked. Flat-bottomed jars
Serving as receptacles for pounded maize, honey, bear's-grease, and
oils made from the nuts of the pecan, the hickory-nut, and the
walnut ; pots varying in their capacities from a pint to ten gal-
lons and upwards, with and without legs and ears; burial urns,
water flasks, hooded vases, cups, pans, platters, – all these and
more are found; the grave-mounds yielding the best specimens,
while fields, refuse piles, and the sites of old villages are covered
with countless shards.
Many of these vessels appear to have been modeled within net-
works, rush-baskets, and coverings of the desired size and shape
made of twigs or split cane, or within large calabashes the in-
terior walls of which were carved so as to leave raised figures
and lines upon the exterior surfaces of the jars thus formed.
Trowel-shaped implements of soapstone and baked clay were
used in pressing the plastic material against these contrivances
for imparting the desired shape, and in rendering the interior of
the open-mouthed vessels and pots smooth and compact. When
thus fashioned, the ornamentation upon the vessels, the moulds
being burnt or cut away, appears impressed. Blocks of wood
and cores of sand and clay were also in Vogue.
At other times, while the vessels were drying, flint flakes, the
finger nail, the end of a hollow reed, thongs, dies of Soapstone
and wood, and corn cobs were employed to incise or imprint the
desired ornamentation.
Raised mouldings near the rims, ears, legs, and fanciful pro-
tuberances were added while the clay was still soft and ready
adhesion of such parts could be compassed. By the insertion of
pieces of mica and shell, and with the aid of white, red, yellow,
blue, and black pigments, the ornamentation was further diversi-
fied.
During the hardening process the pots and wide-mouthed jars
were sometimes subjected to a heat so intense as to cause a
fusion of the particles of the interior surface near akin to glaz-
ing. Traces of pottery-kilns, formed of stones and with paved
floors, closely resembling rude ovens, are still extant.
From soapstone large tubs, troughs, and smaller vessels were
fashioned.
PEARL AND SHELL ORNAMENTS. 31
To the women was the construction of this earthenware mainly
committed.
The manufacture of fictile articles was abandoned upon the
introduction by the Europeans of iron pots and copper kettles.
No fact is more emphatically asserted in the early narratives,
or more clearly demonstrated by the relics themselves, than that
pearls and shell ornaments were highly prized and extensively
worn by these Florida Indians. Near the bay of Espiritu Santo
pearls of large size were found, “such as the Indians valued,
piercing them for beads” and stringing them about their necks,
wrists, waists, and ankles. In welcoming De Soto, the Indian
queen at Cutifachiqui drew from over her head a long string of
pearls and threw it around his neck with words of courtesy and
friendship. From sepulchres there, and at other points along the
line of march, the Spaniards obtained quantities of these glisten-
ing beads. At the confluence of the Etowah and the Ooste-
naulla the cacique of Ichiaha presented the adelantado with a
string of pearls two fathoms in length, and, having sent his peo-
ple out over night to gather margatiferous unios from the rivers,
the next morning showed the Spaniards how the pearls were
extracted from them. Thus are we assured by these and other
observers that, in the sixteenth century, upon the persons of the
natives and in the graves of their dead, were many pearls, some
of them as large as filberts. Grievous was the disappointment
of the Spaniards at finding most of them discolored by fire, and
rendered valueless for the purpose of commerce from having
been perforated with heated copper spindles. The oysters of
the Gulf of Mexico and the pearl-bearing unios of the Southern
streams and lakes supplied in great abundance these coveted
ornaments. That they were eagerly sought after is attested by
the artificial shell-heaps still extant upon the coast, on the banks
of rivers, and upon the shores of lakes and ponds. The shells
were opened by fire, the animals eaten, and the pearls which
they contained carefully preserved. So constant and extensive
were the trade relations established between the coast region and
the interior that these treasures were widely disseminated.
From marine, fluviatile, and lacustrine shells were manufac-
tured beads, gorgets, pendants, arm-guards, masks, pins, drinking
cups, spoons, and money. Welcomed everywhere was the trader
Who brought store of such articles. Dwelling under soft skies,
these Southern Indians passed the greater part of the year in a
state of nudity, delighting in tattooing and skin-painting, in the
32 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
exhibition of necklaces, waist-bands, bracelets, armlets, and ank-
lets of pearls and shells, and in the display of shell pendants
and gorgets.
Various are the forms of the shell-beads and gorgets. Some
of the latter are very large and curiously engraven. The in-
terior of the shell being lined with an iridescent nacre, and na-
ture having polished that surface beyond all art, the inner and
not the outer surface was selected for exhibition. The oliva and
the marginella were used as ornaments, the apices of the former
being cut off, and the backs of the latter ground so as to admit
of their being strung. Pins fashioned from the columns of the
strombus gigas were frequently worn.
Thus from an eminence too distant for careful survey, and
with a flight too rapid for specific mention, have we glanced at
the semi-civilization of the red races who antedated us in the oc-
cupancy of this region. Although too general for accurate dis-
crimination, and too discursive for scientific precision, these
observations will, it is hoped, convey at least a tolerable impres-
sion of the ancient peoples who, in the flood of years, like the
restless waves of the ocean, covered our land and, receding, left
here and there these sea-shells which we have been gathering, —
physical tokens that the great tide of an early and almost forgot-
ten human life was once here.
That the older Indian tribes erected monuments more substan-
tial and imposing than those constructed by the Indians of the
eighteenth century cannot be denied. That the Cherokees and
Creeks did not in some things equal the aborigines of the six-
teenth century as described by the historians of the Spanish and
French expeditions must be admitted. Why this decadence in
power and industry 2 Will it be doubted that the burthens im-
posed, the desolations wrought, and the diseases introduced by
Europeans contributed to the manifest demoralization of the
primitive population ? Time was, if we may fairly judge from
the proportions and uses of some of these august tumuli and their
attendant relics, when those who built and cared for them occu-
pied a position somewhat in advance of the later Indian tribes.
Forming permanent settlements, they devoted themselves to agri-
cultural pursuits, erected temples, fortified localities, worshiped
the sun, possessed images, wrought extensively in stone and bone
and wood, fashioned money and ornaments of shell, used copper
implements, traded extensively, and were not improvident of the
future. Such was the fertility of the localities most thickly
EXTINCTION OF THE RED RACE, 33
peopled by them, so pleasant the climate, and so abundant the
supply of game, that these ancient settlers were in great meas-
ure exempt from the stern struggle which, among nomadic tribes
and under more inhospitable skies, constitutes the great battle
with nature for life. With but few temptations to wander, they
bestowed much attention upon the cultivation of their fields,
and expended great labor in establishing their temples, protect-
ing their abodes, and confirming their chosen seats. And yet
they were not exempt from the vicissitudes which have befallen
greater and more civilized nations, reverses born of the cupid-
ity and cruelty of strangers.
Certain it is that the inroads of the Spaniards violently
shocked this primitive population, imparting new ideas, intro-
ducing contagion hitherto unknown, interrupting customs long
established, overturning acknowledged government, impoverish-
ing whole districts, engendering a sense of insecurity until that
time unfelt, instigating intertribal wars, causing marked changes,
and entailing losses and demoralizations far more potent than we
are inclined, at first thought, to imagine.
The operation of that inexorable law which subordinates the
feebler to the will of the stronger, inaugurated here more than
three hundred years agone, has in the end brought about the
utter expatriation of the red race from the soil of Georgia. Al-
though half a century has elapsed since the last of the Cherokees
departed hence for their enforced homes beyond the Mississippi,
Indian memories linger upon our hills and are interwoven with
some of the most dramatic episodes in the history of this State.
Our
“Everlasting rivers speak
Their dialect of yore.
The mountains are their monuments
Though ye destroy their dust,” 1
* For fuller description of the archae- Georgia Tribes. Charles C. Jones, Jr.
ology of this region, see Antiquities of New York: D. Appleton & Co. 1873.
the Southern Indians, particularly of the
CHAPTER II.
EARLY VOYAGES. —ExPEDITION OF HERNANDo DE SOTO.
WHETHER Sebastian Cabot, as has been surmised by some,
coasted as far as the shores at present claimed by the modern
State of Georgia; whether the veteran soldier Juan Ponce de Leon,
while traversing the Land of Flowers in quest of the fountain of
perpetual youth, wandered over any portion of the territory ceded
more than two centuries afterwards by the Crown of England to
Oglethorpe and his associates; whether the careless Sea-captain
Diego Miruelo in trafficking with the natives held commerce
With the ancestors of the Lower Creeks, must, we fear, remain.
undetermined. That the licentiate Lucas Vasquez de Ayllon
With his two slave ships, during his ill-starred voyage to Chicora,
beheld the low-lying islands which guard the Georgia coast is
not improbable ; but, so far as we now know, he never landed
upon them, or sought by means of the intervening rivers to reach
the interior and accomplish his purposed rape of the unsuspecting
inhabitants. The tragic overthrow and the wasted fortunes of
his second expedition gave to the native dwellers on the banks
of the Combahee trinkets and objects of European manufacture
which were highly prized and widely distributed.
It is doubtful whether Verrazzano, with his single caravel,
came further south than the palmetto-shaded headlands of Caro-
lina. During his blind ramblings of eight hundred miles through
the untrodden wilds of Florida in search of some distant territory
abounding in gold, Narvaez may have penetrated the jungles of
Southern Georgia, but he left no footprints upon the yielding
soil. In the Relation of Alvar Nuñez Cabeça de Vaca, however,
we have a recorded memory of the expedition replete with inter-
est and archaeological value.
In ascending the Savannah River Oglethorpe is said to have
carried with him the Journal of Sir Walter Raleigh. From the
latitude and marks of the place, as well as from the traditions of
the Indians, he was led to believe that Sir Walter had landed
at Yamacraw Bluff and conversed with the natives. In fact, a
H RNANDO DE 50T 0.

RIBAULT'S IMPRESSIONS OF GEORGIA. 35
grave-mound, distant some half a mile from the spot, was pointed
out by the Indians, who informed the founder of the colony of
Georgia that the king who then talked with Raleigh was there
interred. It is a pleasant memory and has been repeated for a
century and a half, but its truth we seriously question.
It may not be denied, however, that Ribault, acting under the
orders of Admiral Coligny, before selecting a location for his fort
and planting his Huguenot colony near the mouth of Port Royal,
traversed the Georgia coast, observed its harbors, and named its
rivers. It was “a fayre coast, stretchyng of a great length, cou-
ered with an infinite number of high and fayre trees.” The
waters “were boyling and roaring through the multitude of all
kind of fish.” The inhabitants were “all naked and of a goodly
stature, mightie, and as well shapen and proportioned of body as
any people in ye world; very gentle, courteous, and of a good
nature.” Lovingly entertained were these strangers by the na-
tives, and they were, in the delighful springtime, charmed with
all they beheld. As they entered and viewed the country they
pronounced it the “fairest, fruitfullest, and pleasantest of all the
world, abounding in hony, venison, wilde foule, forests, woods of
all sorts, Palm trees, Cypresse, and Cedars, Bayes ye highest and
greatest, with also the fayrest vines in all the world, with grapes
according, which, without natural art and without man's helpe
or trimming, will grow to toppes of Okes and other trees that be
of a wonderfull greatnesse, and height. And the sight of the
faire medowes is a pleasure not able to be expressed with tongue:
full of Hernes, Curlues, Bitters, Mallards, Egrepths, Wood-cocks,
and all other kinds of small birds: with Harts, Hindes, Buckes,
wilde Swine, and all other kindes of wilde beastes, as we perceiued
well, both by their footing there, and also afterwardes in other
places by their crie and roaring in the night.
“Also there be Conies and Hares: Silke Wormes in merueil-
ous number, a great deale fairer and better than be our silk
Wormes. To be short, it is a thing vnspeakable to consider the
thinges that bee seene there, and shal be founde more and more
in this incomperable lande, which, neuer yet broken with plough
yrons, bringeth forth al things according to his first nature where-
with the eternall God indued it.”
So reads our extract from “The True and Last Discouerie
of Florida made by Captain John Ribault in the yeere 1562.”
Enraptured with the delights of temperature, sky, woods, and
Waters, and anxious to transfer to this new domain names conse-
36 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
crated by pleasant associations at home, Captain Ribault called
our St. Mary’s River the Seine, the St. Illa the Somme, the
Alatamaha the Loire, the Newport the Charante, the Great Ogee-
chee the Garonne, and the Savannah the Gironde. "
Two years afterwards, when René de Laudonniere visited Ri-
bault's fort, he found it deserted. The stone pillar, inscribed
with the arms of France, which he had erected to mark the
furthest confines of Charles IX.’s dominion in the Land of
Flowers, was garlanded with wreaths. Offerings of maize and
fruits lay at its base, and the natives, regarding the structure
with awe and veneration, had elevated it into the dignity of a
god.
Hesitating to rehabilitate a settlement which had chanced upon
such utter misfortune, Laudonniere departed from Port Royal
and, passing by the Georgia inlets, selected a site on St. John’s
bluff where he builded a fort and called it Carolin. In token of
the jurisdiction of France, he there elevated a stone column bear-
ing the Royal Arms.
Thus far no permanent lodgment had been effected on the
Georgia coast. No collision had here occurred between the Eu-
ropeans and the natives. The interior was still a terra incognita,
and the soil was free from blood. The slaughters engendered by
fratricidal strife, by national and religious animosities, and by
savage brutalities in neighboring territories were not enacted
here. The earliest memories of the region are peaceful and
happy.
It will be perceived that by none of the voyagers whom we
have mentioned, nor by any others, so far as we are advised, had
even temporary settlements been formed between the rivers Sa-
vannah and St. Mary. And yet, from certain signs of ancient
occupancy, consisting of tabby foundations at a few prominent
points, we cannot resist the impression that at some remote
period small forts were builded or look-outs erected on the Geor-
gia coast long antedating the advent of Oglethorpe. We re-
frain from everything save a bare mention of them, because the
origin, possession, and abandonment of these
“Remnants of things that have pass'd away ”
are enshrouded in the darkness of an unrecorded past.
The first Europeans who are known to have traversed the ter-
1 See De Brahm's History of the Province of Georgia, pp. 29, 30. Wormsloe.
1849.
ROYAL CONCESSION TO DE SOTO. 37
ritory of primeval Georgia were Hernando de Soto and his com-
panions. -
Flushed with the distinction he had won as a captain in Nica-
ragua, enriched by spoils gathered while a lieutenant general in
the conquest of Peru, envious of the greater fame of Pizarro,
anxious to achieve victories grander and more startling, and
thirsting for booty more abundant, Hernando de Soto sought
and obtained from the Spanish Crown a concession to subdue and
settle all the region from the river Palmas eastwardly to the “Isl-
and of Florida,” including the tierra nueva adjoining it on the
ocean. Northwardly this domain was without specific limit and
might be indefinitely enlarged by discovery and occupancy. Over
it he was to preside as governor and captain general, with the
dignity of adelantado for life, and high sheriff in perpetuity to
his heirs.
“For the purpose,” — so wrote the king, — “you will take
from these our kingdoms, and our said Indias, five hundred men,
with the necessary arms, horses, munitions, and military stores;
and that you will go hence from these our kingdoms, to make
the said conquest and settlement within a year, first following, to
be reckoned from the day of the date of these articles of author-
ization ; and that when you shall leave the island of Cuba to go
upon that enterprise you will take the necessary subsistence for
all that people during eighteen months, - rather over than under
that time, – entirely at your cost and charges.” . . .
As great gain was anticipated, the Crown was careful to re-
serve to itself, for the first six years, one tenth of all gold which
should be realized from mines; and of that precious metal, ob-
tained by barter or as spoil during incursions, one fifth was to be
paid into the royal treasury.
Remembering the treasure-trove in Peru, his majesty was
further pleased to enjoin that to his tribunal and exchequer
should belong one half of the gold, silver, stones, pearls, and
other articles of value which might be taken from the graves,
sepulchres, Ocues, temples, religious precincts, public places, or
private hoards of the natives. *
To facilitate him in the subjugation and retention of this pos-
session, and that he might the more easily command a conven-
ient base of operations and supplies in the conduct of this great
undertaking, De Soto was commissioned by the king, his master,
governor of Cuba.
Having, with much deliberation, selected and enlisted six hun-
38 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
dred men,' competent in every respect and thoroughly equipped,
in April, 1588, the adelantado set sail upon his mission. Pass.
ing over the bar of San-Lucar on Sunday, - the morning of Saint
Lazarus, -he sought the open sea amid the braying of trumpets,
the thunders of artillery, and the shouts of thousands. The
expedition presented the aspect of a holiday excursion. Every
heart on board was imbued with the spirit of adventure, confi-
dent of success, and persuaded that the Land of Flowers would
yield greater riches than the homes of the Incas. So general
was the belief, entertained in Spain, of the wealth of the region,
that the proudest of the land craved permission to be represented
in the adventure either in person or by proxy. In the composi-
tion of this band we find explanation of the spirit of endurance
and wonderful courage which characterized it during its eventful
Cal’éel".
On Pentecost De Soto arrived with his command in the har-
bor of Santiago, in Cuba of the Antilles, and thence proceeded
to Havana. Here he remained, perfecting his arrangements,
until Sunday, the 18th of May, 1539; when, with a fleet of nine
vessels, — five of them ships, two caravels, and two pinnaces, –
he sailed for Florida. Delayed by contrary winds, it was not
until the 25th, being the festival of Espiritu Santo, that land
was descried and anchor cast a league from the shelving shore.
On Friday, the 30th, the army debarked at a point two leagues
from the town of the Indian chief Ucita. Two hundred and
thirteen horses were set on shore, the royal standard was ele-
vated, and formal possession taken of Terra Florida. In the name
of Charles V. The camp was pitched upon the sands of Tampa
Bay.
This was the most brilliant, enthusiastic, and warlike assem-
blage which, up to that period, had ever been seen this side the
Atlantic. Herrera says De Soto had, of his private fortune, con-
tributed one hundred thousand ducats for the equipment of this
expedition. This little army was composed of men accustomed
to wars, of personal daring, skilled in the use of weapons, and
inured to hardships. Scarcely a gray head appeared among
them. Their arms were strong, and their breasts filled with
visions of glory and wealth. It was confidently believed that
this new and unexplored kingdom of Florida would exceed in
riches the realms of Atahualpa, during the conquest of which De
1 The Inca, Garcilasso de la Vega, says: Lucar, more than nine hundred Span-
“There assembled for Florida, at San- iards, all in the prime of life.”
DE SOTO MARCHES NORTHWARD. 39
Soto had received, as his individual share of the spoils, the enor-
mous sum of one hundred and eighty thousand crowns of gold.
Many of the young cavaliers who now rallied around this
standard carried in their veins the best blood of Spain. Their
equipment was superb and their enthusiasm unbounded. It was
a strange sight, on the lonely shores of the New World, this con-
vocation of soldiery in rich armor and costly dresses, of attend-
ing slaves, caparisoned horses, and burden-bearing mules; this
assemblage of fleet greyhounds, savage bloodhounds, and grunt-
ing Swine ; this accumulation of artillery, weapons, handcuffs,
chains, neck-collars, crucibles for refining gold, tools, instruments,
and material of every needed sort.
A valuable experience, acquired during the invasions of Nica-
ragua and Peru, was utilized on the present occasion; and the
ample preparations made encouraged in the hearts of all hope of
success more astounding than that which had characterized both
those expeditions.
Twelve priests, eight clergymen of inferior rank, and four
monks accompanied the army. In the thirst for conquest and
gold the conversion of the aborigines was not forgotten. Men
of letters, who were to perpetuate the events of the march, were
also present.
With the wanderings of De Soto and his followers within the
territorial limits of Florida, with the narrative of their battles
with the natives, with the difficulties encountered in the crossing
of rivers and the passage of perplexing morasses, with the sore
disappointment experienced in the quest for gold and precious
stones in this low-lying semi-tropical region, and with the ac-
counts of the privations endured, we have now no special con-
cern, as our inquiry is limited to a recital of what transpired
Within the confines of the present State of Georgia.
It may be stated, however, that after Wintering at Anhayca,
which was probably in the neighborhood of the modern town of
Tallahassee,' De Soto, allured by a report of the existence of
gold to the northward, determined to proceed in that direction in
search for that much-coveted precious metal. Receiving an in-
timation that his march would extend for many leagues through
* *P*sely populated region, the governor ordered his command
to carry the largest allowance of maize. The cavalrymen packed
* Portions of Spanish armor have been found in th
exhumed in a field adjacent to this city, stances c
and other European relics have been made.
is vicinity under circum-
onfirming the suggestion here
40 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
a liberal supply of this grain on their horses, and the foot-soldiers
conveyed as much as they could conveniently bear upon their
backs. This store had been pillaged from the native villages,
and the Indians, whom the Spaniards had forced to act as bur-
den-bearers during their previous wanderings and about the win-
ter cantonment, had, in nakedness and chains, perished from
hard usage. Sad is the record of the inhuman treatment meted
out to the aborigines by these Christian adventurers. Such was
the utter contempt entertained for them by the Spaniards that
they hesitated not to subject them to every form of cruelty, hu-
miliation, and privation. The men were condemned to the office
of beasts of burden. The women were misused and driven from
their habitations. Supplies of all sorts were ruthlessly appro-
priated. Even sepulchres were ransacked in the greedy search
for pearls and hidden treasures. The path of the invader was
marked on every hand by death, ruin, and desolation. The de-
moralizing influences exerted upon this aboriginal population by
the inroads of the Spaniards cannot be overestimated.
On Wednesday, the 3d of March, 1540, the army moved north-
ward, its objective point being Yupaha, governed by a woman
whose chief city was reported to be of astonishing size. Of
some Indians captured in Napetuca, the treasurer, Juan Gaytan,
had brought to camp a lad who spoke knowingly of this queen,
of neighboring chiefs tributary to her, and of the clothing and
gold with which they supplied her. So exactly did he describe
the process of taking this metal from the earth, melting and re-
fining it, that the Spaniards came to the conclusion either that
he had seen the whole affair with his own eyes, or that he had
been taught of the Devil. Expectation was on tip-toe, and the
belief was universal that the land of gold was at hand.
On the fourth day of its march the army encountered a deep
river, for the passage of which it became necessary to construct
a periagua. So swift was the current that a chain was stretched
from bank to bank for the guidance of this craft. By this means
the soldiers and the baggage were crossed, and the horses di-
rected in swimming the stream. We believe this to have been
the Ocklockony River. De Soto had now arrived, or very nearly
so, at the southwest boundary of Georgia. Within the next
forty-eight hours the Indian village of Capachiqui was reached.
At the approach of the Spaniards the natives fled; but when
five of the Christians visited some Indian cabins, surrounded by
a thicket, in rear of the encampment, they were set upon by In-
PRIMITIVE DWELLINGS AT TO ALLI. 41
dians, lurking near, by whom one was killed and three others
were badly wounded. Pursued by a detachment from the camp,
the natives fled into a sheet of water filled with forest trees
whither the cavalry could not follow them. Thus does the Gen-
tleman of Elvas record the death of the first Spaniard who fell
upon what is now the soil of Georgia.
Departing from Capachiqui on the 11th, and traversing a des-
ert, the expedition had, on the 21st, penetrated as far as Toalli.
This region, which the historian designates as a desert, was
doubtless a dreary pine barren, devoid of population and but
little frequented by animal life. The site of Toalli or Otoa can-
not now be definitely ascertained; but as it was near Achese,
or Ochis (which, according to Mr. Gallatin, is the Muskhogee
name of the Ocmulgee River), we may not greatly err in locating
it somewhere in Irwin or Coffee County.
Of the peculiarities of this place the Gentleman of Elvas, whose
narratives in the main, we adopt, has perpetuated the following
impressions: The houses of this town were different from those
behind, which were covered with dry grass. Thenceforward they
were roofed with cane after the fashion of tile. They are kept
very clean. Some have their sides so made of clay as to look
like tapia. Throughout the cold country every Indian has a
winter house, plastered inside and out, with a very small door
which is closed at dark, and, a fire being made within, it remains
heated like an oven, so that clothing is not needed during the
night-time. He has likewise a house for summer, and near it a
kitchen where fire is made and bread baked. Maize is kept in
barbacoa, which is a house with wooden sides, like a room, raised
aloft on four posts. It has a floor of cane. The houses of the
principal men, besides being larger than those of the common
people, had deep balconies in front furnished with benches made
of the swamp cane. Adjacent were large barbacoas in which
were collected maize, the skins of deer, and the blankets of the
country, offered as tribute by the populace. These blankets re-
sembled shawls, and were fashioned from the inner bark of trees,
and from a certain grass which, when beaten, yielded a flax-like
fibre." They were used by the women as coverings. One was
worn about the body from the waist downward. Another was
thrown over the shoulders, leaving the right arm free after the
manner of the gypsies. The men were content with one, which
was carried in like manner over the shoulders. The loins were
* This was evidently the tough silk grass of the region.
42 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
covered with a bragueiro of deer-skin, after the fashion of the
Woolen breech-cloth once customary in Spain. These blankets
Were colored either vermilion or black. Garments of well-
dressed deer-skin were also in vogue, and shoes made of the same
material. -
Three days were spent at Toalli; and on Saturday, the 24th
of March, the expedition moved onward. Thursday evening,
while crossing a small stream over which a bridge had been
thrown for the passage of the command, Benito Fernandes, a
Portuguese, was drowned. A short distance beyond this stream
Was located the village of Achese, whose inhabitants, upon the
approach of the Europeans, plunged into the river and made
their escape. Among some captives taken was found one who
understood the language spoken by the Indian who had acted in
the capacity of guide to Yupaha. By him the governor sent a
message to the chief dwelling on the further side of the river,
desiring an interview with him. Responding to the invitation,
the cacique appeared with words of courtesy and an avowal of
friendship. Frankly thanking him for his good will, De Soto
informed him that he was the child of the sun,' coming from his
abode, and that he was seeking the greatest prince and the rich-
est province. The chief replied that further on there reigned a
powerful king whose territory was called Ocute. A guide, who
understood the language of this province, having been furnished,
the captives were set at liberty. Before leaving Toalli a high
wooden cross was erected in the middle of the town yard, and
some effort made to instruct the natives in the doctrines of Chris-
tianity.
Resuming his march on the 1st of April, De Soto moved along
a river whose shores were thickly populated. On the fourth day
he passed through the town of Altamaca, and on the tenth ar-
rived at Ocute. If we are correct in our impression, the march
of the expedition had been in a northeasterly direction, and the
Spaniards were now probably in Laurens County. In the word
Altamaca (or Altapaha, as it is written by Biedma and also by
Garcilasso de la Vega) we recognize one of the prominent rivers
in Southern Georgia, and the many traces of early constructive
skill, ancient relic beds, and old Indian fields along the line of
that and of the Oconee River give ample token that in former
1 This announcement, if credited, was the sixteenth century, were nearly all
calculated to make a profound impression sun-worshipers.
upon the natives, as the Florida tribes, in-
PRIVATIONS OF DE SOTO'S COMMAND. 43
times the aboriginal population dwelling here was by no means
inconsiderable.
While approaching Ocute, De Soto's command was met by two
thousand Indians bearing, as a present from the chief, many
conies, partridges, bread made of maize, dogs, and two turkeys.
Such was the scarcity of meat that the Spaniards welcomed this
offering of dogs as heartily as if it had been a gift of fat sheep.
In the language of the narrative from which we have quoted so
freely: “Of flesh meat and salt in many places and many times
there had been great need; and they were so scarse that if a man
fell sicke there was nothing to cherish him withall; and with a
sicknesse that in another place easilie might have been remedied,
he consumed away till nothing but skinne and bones was left:
and they died of pure weaknes, some of them saying: ‘If I had
a slice of meate or a few cornes of salt, I should not die.’”
The sufferings of these Spaniards were grievous and almost
without interruption. On more than one occasion they were on
the point of starving when relieved by the generous offerings of
the natives. Surely these primitive inhabitants were hospitable
peoples. In view of the harsh treatment dealt out to them by
the Whites we are little less than amazed at such exhibitions of
charity and good will.
While the Indians, through the apt use of their bows and
arrows, supplied themselves abundantly with game, the Span-
iards, less expert with their clumsy weapons, and on the march
not daring to straggle, so craved meat that upon their entrance
into a native village they at once set about killing every dog in
sight. Should the private soldier, who had been so fortunate
as to secure one of these animals, omit to send his captain a
quarter, he would surely be visited with displeasure and extra
duty.
Having obtained from the cacique of Ocute four hundred
tamemes, or burden-bearers, the governor, on the 12th of April,
took his departure. Passing through Cofaqui, he journeyed to
Patofa, by the mico of which he was hospitably entreated.
While here, the Indian youth who had accompanied De Soto
as his guide and interpreter “began to froth at the mouth, and
threw himself on the ground as if he were possessed of the
Devil.” An exorcism having been said over him, however, the
fit went off: at least, so runs the story.
Upon the cacique of Patofa a contribution was levied of seven
hundred tamemes and a four days' supply of maize. Thus aided,
44 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
the expedition started, apparently in a northeasterly direction,
following a path which gradually grew less and less distinct,
until, at the end of the sixth day, all trace was lost in the midst
of a wide-spreading pine barren. For three days more vainly
seeking to acquire some valuable information, and having marched
continuously, the governor called a halt and went into camp among
the pine-trees. During these nine days he had with difficulty
forded two rivers (sources of the Great Ogeechee ?) and swam
another (Briar Creek 7).
Accompanied by some cavalry and infantry, De Soto made
a detour of five or six leagues, looking for a path. He re-
turned at night, having failed to find any inhabitants, quite
dejected and sore perplexed. His command was in a sorry
plight. The circumjacent country was a barren. No sign of
human habitation appeared. The maize which his soldiers had
brought from Patofa was utterly consumed. Both beasts and
men were lean and hungry. In this enfeebled condition resist-
ance, in the event of an attack, seemed impossible. Starvation
and annihilation stared the expedition in the face. Unable
longer to subsist the burthen-bearers from Patofa, they were
dismissed to make their way back to their homes as best they
could.
The next day, intent upon extricating himself from this per-
ilous situation, the governor sent out four expeditions — each
consisting of a captain and eight cavalrymen — with instruc-
tions to scour the country and find some source of relief, some
avenue of escape. The day was consumed in a fruitless search,
and they all came into camp at night-fall leading their broken-
down horses, or driving them before them. On the following
day, having selected the best horses, and soldiers who could
swim, he organized four bands, each containing eight mounted
men. Baltasar de Gallegos, who commanded one, was directed
to move up the river. Juan de Anasco, with another, was to
move downwards. Alfonso Romo and Juan Rodrigues Lobillo,
with the other two, were ordered to strike into the country.
The thirteen sows which had been brought from Cuba had so
multiplied during the progress of the expedition that there were
now three hundred swine in camp. During this season of priva-
tion these animals were killed, and a ration of a half pound of
fresh pork was issued, per diem, to each man. This, supple-
mented by such native herbs as could be collected and boiled,
constituted the only subsistence of the soldiery. Upon the rough
ARRIVAL OF DE SOTO AT AYMAY. 45
grass, leaves, and the tops of palmettos did the horses feed.
The entire command was in an enfeebled, dispirited, and almost
perishing condition.
On Sunday afternoon (April 25th) Juan de Anasco, who was in
charge of one of these reconnoitring parties, returned, bringing
a woman and a youth whom he had captured. He reported that
at a remove of some twelve or thirteen leagues he had found a
small town. At this intelligence, says the Gentleman of Elvas,
the governor and his people were as much delighted as if they
had been raised from death to life.
Without awaiting the incoming of the other detachments, De
Soto set out for this village, which the Indians called Aymay,
and to which the Spaniards gave the name of Socorro." At the
foot of a tree in the camp was buried a letter stating in what
direction the command would march. That the attention of the
absentees on their return might be called to it, on the bark of
the tree were cut, with a hatchet, these words: “Dig here : at
the foot of this pine you will find a letter.”
Following the road which Anasco had made while passing
through the woods, the governor set out on the morning of the
26th of April, taking with him his troopers who were best
mounted, and moved as rapidly as he could in the direction of
Aymay. That village he reached before night-fall. The army
followed as best it could in its enfeebled condition, straggling all
the way. At this town a barbacoa of parched meal and maize
was found, the contents of which were immediately issued to the
starving command.
Four Indians were captured who refused to give any informa-
tion touching the existence of any adjacent native villages. One
of them having been burnt, another stated that at a remove of
two days’ journey was the province of Cutifachiqui.
Two days afterward the three captains arrived with their de-
tachments. On returning to camp they found the buried letter,
and followed on in the trail left by the army. Two soldiers re-
mained behind, and they belonged to the detachment of Juan
Rodrigues. Their horses had entirely given out and they lagged
with them. After a severe reprimand from the governor, this of
ficer was dispatched to hurry up these loiterers. Without tarrying
for their coming, De Soto advanced in the direction of Cutifachi-
qui. On his journey thitherward three Indians were taken who
informed the Spaniards that the queen of that province had been
1 Village of Good Relief.
46 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
advised of the approach of the army, and, in her chief town, was
awaiting the arrival of the strangers. One of them was imme.
diately dispatched with a message of friendship from the gover-
nor to the cacica, and the announcement that he would speedily
visit her. Upon the governor's arrival at the river, four canoes
approached from the opposite bank. In one of these was a kins-
Woman of the cacica, who had been by her deputed to extend an
invitation to the Spaniards to cross over and partake of the hos-
pitalities of the town. She excused the absence of the cacica on
the ground that she was engaged in giving directions for the
reception of such distinguished guests. She returned with the
thanks of the governor. Soon after, the cacica came out of the
village, seated in a chair of state," which was borne by some of
the principal men to the water's edge. Thence alighting, she
entered a canoe, the stern of which was sheltered by an awning.
Cushions lay extended in the bottom, and upon these she re-
clined. In her passage across the river she was accompanied by
her chief men and other subjects in canoes. Having landed, she ap-
proached the spot where De Soto awaited her, and addressed him
with courteous words of welcome. Drawing from over her head
a long string of pearls, she suspended it about the governor's neck
in token of amity. She also presented him with many shawls
and dressed skins, constituting the clothing of her country. Finely
formed, with great beauty of countenance, and possessing much
native grace and dignity, the Spaniards were impressed by her
appearance and queenly conduct. During her interview with the
governor she sat upon a stool carried by one of her attendants.
Her subjects preserved an unbroken silence and most respectful
demeanor. She was the first female ruler whom De Soto had
met during all his wanderings. The governor was sensibly
moved by her generous salutation and pleasing behavior. In ac-
knowledgment of her beautiful gift, and as a pledge of peace and
friendship, De Soto, removing from his finger a ring of gold set
with a ruby, gently placed it upon one of her fingers. The hos-
pitalities of her town were generously extended. She promised
to share her store of maize with the strangers, and said that she
would send canoes for their conveyance to the other side of the
river. This ceremony of welcome ended, the cacica returned to
her home. On the following day, in canoes and upon rafts fur-
1 In Plate XXXVII. of the Brevis queens of these primitive people were con-
Narratio we have a spirited illustration veyed. See also Jones' Antiquities of the
of the litter, or palanquin, in which the Southern Indians, p. 72. New York, 1873.
CUTIFACHIQUI. 47
nished by the natives, the army crossed to the other shore and
found food and rest in wigwams shaded by luxuriant mulberry-
trees. Four horses were drowned in the passage of the river.
So soon as De Soto was lodged in the village many wild turkeys
were sent to him, and during his sojourn in this place he and his
men were entertained with every mark of hospitality. To be
thus rested and feasted was most joyous to this band, foot-sore
and weary, disappointed, dejected, and well-nigh overborne by
the difficulties and privations of the journey.
The inhabitants, well proportioned and of a good countenance,
were more civilized than all other peoples seen in the wide-ex-
tended territory of Florida. They wore clothing and shoes. The
country, in that early springtime, was beautiful and gave every
indication of fertility. The temperature was delightful, and the
woods were most attractive. The Spaniards were particularly
gratified with the profusion of walnut and mulberry trees. To
all save the governor it seemed good to form a permanent set-
tlement here. The point appeared favorable for raising sup-
plies; and, as the natives stated it was only two days’ journey
from the coast, it was thought that ships from New Spain, Peru,
Sancta Marta, and Tierra-Firme, going to Spain, might be in-
duced to stop here and refresh their crews. Thus ignorant were
these strangers of their true geographical position.
In the vicinity of Cutifachiqui were large, vacant towns over-
grown with grass. It was ascertained that two years before there
had been a pest in the land, and in order to escape its ravages
multitudes of the inhabitants had removed to other localities.
In the barbacoas were found “large quantities of clothing;
shawls of thread made from the bark of trees, and others of
feathers, white, gray, vermilion, and yellow, rich and proper for
winter. There were also many well-dressed deer-skins, of colors
drawn over with designs, of which had been made shoes, stock-
ings, and hose.”
Upon searching the sepulchres in the town “three hundred and
fifty weight of pearls, and figures of babies and birds made from
iridescent shells,” were taken from them. The suggestion of the
Spanish narrators is that this quest was undertaken by permis-
sion of the cacica, who observed how highly the Christians valued
these gems of the water. When we remember, however, how
ardently attached these primitive peoples were to the graves of
their dead, how carefully they deposited in them the treasures
of the deceased, how tenderly they watched over and sacredly
48 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
guarded the last resting-places of their departed, we recognize in
this procedure not the voluntary intervention of the native, but
the cupidity, the violence, and the outrage of the foreigner.
In the town were found a dirk and beads of European manu-
facture. From the best information which could be gathered
touching their origin and the manner in which the Indians be-
came possessed of them, it was believed that they had been ob.
tained from some members of the unfortunate expedition of the
governor-licentiate Ayllon. Biedma says, in alluding to these
relics, “We found buried two wood axes of Castilian make, a
rosary of jet beads, and some false pearls such as are taken from
this country [Spain] to traffic with the Indians, all of which we
supposed they got in exchange made with those who followed the
licentiate Ayllon. From the information given by the Indians,
the sea should be about thirty leagues distant. We knew that
the people who came with Ayllon hardly entered the country at
all ; that they remained continually on the coast until his sickness
and death. In strife for command, they then commenced to kill
each other, while others of them died of hunger; for one, whose
lot it was to have been among them, told us that of six hundred
men who landed, only fifty-seven escaped, - a loss caused to a
great extent by the wreck of a big ship they had brought, laden
with stores.”
Learning that the mother of the cacica resided about twelve
leagues down the river, and that she was a widow, De Soto ex-
pressed a strong desire to see her. This wish was doubtless born
of the fact that she was reported to be the owner of many valu-
able pearls. Upon intimating his pleasure, the cacica of Cuti-
fachiqui dispatched twelve of her prominent subjects to entreat
her mother to come and see the wonderful strangers and the re-
markable animals they had brought with them. To these mes-
sengers the widow administered a severe rebuke, declined to ac-
company them, and returned to her daughter words condemnatory
of her conduct. Still intent upon his object, De Soto dispatched
Juan de Anasco, with thirty companions, to secure the presence
of the queen mother. They were accompanied by a youthful
warrior whom the cacica selected as a guide. He was a near
relative of the widow and had been reared by her. It was sup-
posed that he of all others could best bespeak for the expedition a
favorable reception. In the blush of early manhood he possessed
handsome features and a graceful, vigorous form. “His head
was decorated with lofty plumes of different colored feathers; he
SUICIDE OF A YOUNG INDIAN GUIDE. 49
wore a mantle of dressed deer-skin; in his hand he bore a beautiful
bow so highly varnished as to appear as if finely enameled ; and
at his shoulder hung a quiver full of arrows. With a light and
elastic step and an animated and gallant air, his whole appear-
ance was that of an ambassador worthy of the young and beauti-
ful princess whom he served.”
What next befell the Spanish captain and his Indian guide we
relate in the language of Theodore Irving, quoting from Garci-
lasso de la Vega : —
“Juan de Anasco and his comrades having proceeded nearly
three leagues, stopped to make their midday meal and take
their repose beneath the shade of some wide-spreading trees, as
the heat was oppressive. The Indian guide had proved a cheer-
ful and joyous companion, entertaining them all the way with
accounts of the surrounding country and the adjacent provinces.
On a sudden, after they had halted, he became moody and
thoughtful, and, leaning his cheek upon his hand, fell into a
reverie, uttering repeated and deep-drawn sighs. The Span-
iards noticed his dejection, but, fearing to increase it, forbore to
demand the cause.
“After a time he quietly took off his quiver, and placing it
before him drew out the arrows slowly one by one. They were
admirable for the skill and elegance with which they were formed.
Their shafts were reeds. Some were tipped with buck's horn,
wrought with four corners like a diamond ; some were pointed
with the bones of fishes, curiously fashioned; others with barbs
of the palm and other hard woods; and some were three-pronged.
They were feathered in a triangular manner to render their
flight of greater accuracy. The Spaniards could not sufficiently
admire their beauty; they took them up and passed them from
hand to hand, examining and praising their workmanship and
extolling the skill of their owner. The youthful Indian con-
tinued thoughtfully emptying his quiver, until, almost at the
last, he drew forth an arrow with a point of flint, long and sharp,
and shaped like a dagger ; then, casting round a glance, and
seeing the Spaniards engaged in admiring his darts, he suddenly
plunged the weapon in his throat and fell dead upon the spot.
“Shocked at the circumstance, and grieved at not having been
able to prevent it, the Spaniards called to their Indian attendants
and demanded the reason of this melancholy act in one who had
just before been so joyous.
“The Indians broke into loud lamentations over the corpse;
4
50 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
for the youth was tenderly beloved by them, and they knew the
grief his untimely fate would cause to both their princesses.
They could only account for his self-destruction by supposing
him perplexed and afflicted about his embassy. He knew that
his errand would be disagreeable to the mother, and apprehended
that the plan of the Spaniards was to carry her off. He alone
knew the place of her concealment, and it appeared to his gen-
erous mind an unworthy return for her love and confidence thus
to betray her to strangers. On the other hand, he was aware
that should he disobey the mandates of his young mistress he
would lose her favor and fall into disgrace. Either of these
alternatives would be worse than death; he had chosen death,
therefore, as the lesser evil, and as leaving to his mistress a proof
of his loyalty and devotion.
“Such was the conjecture of the Indians, to which the Span-
iards were inclined to give faith. Grieving over the death of the
high-minded youth, they mournfully resumed their journey.
“They now, however, found themselves at a loss about the
road. None of the Indians knew in what part of the country
the widow was concealed, the young guide who had killed
himself being alone master of the secret. For the rest of that
day and until the following noon they made a fruitless search,
taking prisoners some natives who all professed utter ignorance
on the subject. Juan de Anasco, being a fleshy man and some-
what choleric, was almost in a fever with the vexation of his
spirit, the weight of his armor, and the heat of the day; he was
obliged, however, to give up the quest after the widow, and to
return to the camp much mortified at having for once failed in
an enterprise.”
Three days afterward, upon the offer of an Indian to guide
him, by water, to the point where the widow had secreted her-
self, Anasco, with twenty companions, departed in two canoes for
the purpose of capturing her. At the end of six days he returned
vexed and chagrined at the failure of his expedition. Thus did
the queen’s mother avoid the Spaniards and preserve her pearls.
Still intent upon his quest for gold, in response to his in-
quiries De Soto was told that there was here yellow and also
white metal, similar to that shown by the Spaniards. Natives
were dispatched to bring samples of both. To the sore disap-
pointment of the Christians, however, the yellow metal proved
to be a copper ore, and the white metal a light crumbling mate-
rial like mica.
TEMPLE AT TALOMECO. 51
Turning his attention again to the pearls of the region, the
governor visited Talomeco, the former chief town of the prov-
ince, distant about a league from the village of the princess of
Cutifachiqui, where was a large mausoleum containing many dead
and a large store of pearls. On this occasion he was accompanied
by Anasco, the contador, or royal accountant of the expedition,
by the officers of the royal revenue, and by a number of his prin-
cipal officers and soldiers.
The Inca, Garcilasso de la Vega, thus describes the temple
of Talomeco, which constituted the sepulchre of the kings of
the country: “It is more than one hundred steps long by forty
broad. The walls are high in proportion, and the roof very ele-
vated to supply the want of tiles and to give more slope to the
water. The covering is of canes, very thin, split in two, of
which the Indians make mats, which resemble the rush carpets
of the Moors, which are very beautiful to view. Five or six of
these mats placed one upon the other serve to prevent the rain
from penetrating and the sun from entering the temple; which
the private people of the country and their neighbors imitate in
their houses.
“Upon the roof of this temple are many shells of different
sizes, of divers fishes, ranged in very good order. These shells
are placed with the insides out to give more brilliancy. The great
spiral sea-shell is located between two small shells. These shells
are connected, the one with the other, by strings of pearls of va-
rious sizes. These festoons of pearls, extending from the top of
the roof to the bottom, in association with the vivid brilliancy
of the mother-of-pearl and the other shells, produce a very beau-
tiful effect when the sun shines upon them.
“The doors were proportioned to the grandeur of the temple;
and at the entrance were seen twelve gigantic statues made of
wood. So ferocious and menacing was the aspect of these fig-
ures that the Spaniards paused for a long time to consider them.
They say that these giants were placed there to defend the en-
trance of the door. They stand in a row on each side, and
gradually diminish in size. The first are eight feet high and
the others proportionally a little less, in the order of the tubes of
an Organ.
“They have arms conformable to their height: the first on
each side bearing clubs, ornamented with copper, which they hold
in an elevated position as though ready to bring them down with
fury upon those who may dare to enter. The second have maces,
52 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
and the third a kind of oar; the fourth, copper axes, the edges
of which are of flint ; and the fifth hold a bended bow with the
arrow ready to be discharged. Curious are these arrows, the
lower ends of which contain pieces of stag's horn well finished,
or flint stones as sharp as a dagger. The last giants hold very
long pikes ornamented with copper at both ends. They also
maintain a threatening attitude. *
“The ornamentation of the inner walls of the temple conforms
with that of the exterior, for there is a kind of cornice made of
great spiral sea-shells placed in excellent order, and between .
these are seen festoons of pearls depending from the roof. At
intervals between the shells and pearls, suspended from the
arches and tied to the roof, are plumes well arranged and of
divers colors. Besides this order which reigns above the cornice,
many plumes and strings of pearls hang from all the other parts
of the roof, retained by imperceptible threads.
“Beneath the ceiling and cornice, and around the four sides of
the temple, are two rows of statues, one above the other, the one
of men and the other of women, of the stature of the people of
the country. Each has its niche, and thus is the wall adorned,
which would otherwise appear naked. The male statues have
arms in their hands, encircled with four or five rows of pearls
strung upon colored threads and terminating in tassels. The
hands of the female statues are empty. At the base of the walls
are wooden benches, cleverly fashioned, whereon are placed the
coffins of the lords of the province and their families. Two feet
above these coffins, and in niches in the wall, we behold the stat-
ues of the individuals who there lie entombed. So natural is the
representation that these images perpetuate the recollection of
the departed. The males are armed, the women not.
“The space intervening between the images of the dead and
the two ranks of statues above described is decorated with buck-
lers of various sizes, made of reeds, and so strongly woven that
they appeared capable of resisting perforation by the arrow of a
cross-bow or the shot of a musket. The beauty of these shields is
greatly enhanced by decorations of pearls and variegated tassels.
“In the middle of the temple were three rows of chests upon
separate benches. The largest chests served as a base for those
of medium size; and these in turn supported the smallest. Thus
these pyramids consisted ordinarily of five or six chests. Open
spaces existed between them and the benches. These chests
were filled with pearls, the largest containing the finest, and the
WEALTH OF ARMS IN THE TEMPLE. 53
smallest only seed pearls. They represented the accumulations
of ages.
“Besides this quantity of pearls were found packages of skins
colored, and raiments of skin with the hair variously dyed.
“About this temple, which was clean and kept in excellent
order, was a large magazine divided into eight halls. Upon en-
tering these the Spaniards found them filled with arms. In the
first were long pikes, mounted with beautiful copper, and orna-
mented with pearls. The place where these pikes touched the
shoulder was embellished with colored skins, and at the extremi-
ties were tassels with pearls, contributing greatly to the beauty
of these weapons. There were, in the second hall, maces, like
those in the hands of the giants guarding the entrance to the tem-
ple, decorated with pearls and colored tassels. In the third were
found hammers embellished as the others; in the fourth, pikes
decked with tassels near the blade and at the handle; in the fifth,
a kind of oar adorned with pearls and fringes; in the sixth, very
beautiful bows and arrows. Some were armed with flint sharp-
ened at the end in the form of a bodkin, a sword, a piko-blade,
or the point of a dagger with two edges. The bows were adorned
with divers brilliant colors and embellished with pearls. In the
seventh hall were bucklers of wood and of buffalo-skins decked
with pearls and colored tassels. In the eighth were seen shields
of cane, skillfully woven, and ornamented with tassels and seed
pearls.” +
This temple represented the grandeur and the wealth of the
province.
While the existence of pearls upon the persons and in the
graves of the natives of this region may not be questioned, it is
highly probable that the accounts of the quantities of these glis-
tening beads here found are exaggerated. The treasures of the
New World were greatly magnified by these adventurers, who
dealt largely in the marvelous, and sought, by glowing descrip-
tions, to excite the wonder and enlist the sympathies of their
friends at home.
Shell heaps — still extant along the line of Southern rivers,
upon the shores of ponds and lakes, and on the sea-coast – are
not infrequent. Upon the animals which they contained did the
aborigines depend in no small degree for food, and the pearls
thence obtained were industriously gathered and perforated to
1 See History of Hernando de Soto and Florida, etc., by Barnard Shipp, pp. 362-
365. Philadelphia. 1881.
54 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
be worn as ornaments. Through aboriginal trade relations con-
stant supplies were also procured from margatiferous shells of
the Gulf of Mexico.1
It was the purpose of the intendants of the revenue, who ac-
companied the expedition, to collect and preserve all the pearls
found in these temples and graves; but upon a suggestion by the
governor that these could not be conveniently carried, and that at
present they were simply engaged in an expedition for discovery,
it was resolved that specimens only should be taken for exhibi-
tion in Havana, and that the rest should remain until such time
as they might return and possess the land. Handfuls of large
pearls were distributed among the officers, with an exhortation
from De Soto that they make rosaries of them. The Crown
officers were allowed to retain quite a quantity which they had
already weighed out. -
So pleased were the soldiers with this goodly land, with its
fruits and stores of pearls, that they urged upon the governor the
propriety of forming here a permanent settlement. But, in the
language of the Gentleman of Elvas, “the governor, since his
intent was to seeke another treasure like that of Atabalipa, lord
of Peru, was not contented with a good countrie, nor with
pearles, though many of them were worth their weight in gold.
And if the countrie had been divided among the Christians, those
which the Indians had fished for afterward would have been of
more value; for those which they had, because they burned
them in the fire, did leese their colour. The governour answered
them that urged him to inhabit, that in all the countrie there
were not victuals to sustaine his men one moneth, and that it
was needfull to resort to the port of Ocus, where Maldonado was
to stay for them ; and that if no richer countrie were found,
they might returne againe to that whensoever they would ; and
in the meantime the Indians would sow their fields, and it would
be better furnished with maiz.
“He inquired of the Indians whether they had notice of any
great lord farther into the land. They told him that twelve daies
journie from thence there was a province called Chiaha, subject
to the lord of Coga. Presently the governour determined to
seeke that land. And being a sterne man, and of few words,
though he was glad to sift and know the opinion of all men, yet
1 In further proof of the general use Southern Indians, etc., chapter xxi. New
of pearls as ornaments among the South- York, 1873.
ern tribes, see Jones' Antiquities of the
LOCATION OF CUTIFACHIQUI. 55
after hee had delivered his owne hee would not be contraried,
and alwaies did what liked himselfe, and so all men did conde-
scend unto his will. And though it seemed an errour to leave
that countrie (for others might have been sought round about,
where the people might have been sustained untill the harvest
had been readie there, and the maiz gathered), yet there was
none that would say anything against him after they knew his
resolution.”
We have thus traced the progress of the expedition from the
southern confines of Georgia to the mulberry-shaded town of
Cutifachiqui. The general trend of the march was northeast,
with manifestly many deflections which we have found it impos-
sible to pursue with any degree of accuracy." From Anhayca to
the point where the army is now resting, the route has been, in
our judgment, nearly parallel with the Atlantic coast. We be-
lieve the location of Cutifachiqui to have been identical with that
of Silver Bluff, on the left bank of the Savannah River, about
twenty-five miles by water below the city of Augusta. The river
here impinges against a bold bluff, rising some thirty-five feet
above the level of the adjacent swamp and extending along the
line of the stream, with an unbroken front, for the distance of
nearly a mile. Bounding this high ground on the west is Hol-
low Creek. Stretching to the north is fertile upland. At this
place were extensive Indian fields when the region was first
visited and settled by Europeans. Three miles below, in a di-
rect line, is another bluff upon the same side of the Savannah
River, — not quite so bold as that where we now stand, – with
an adjacent expanse of rich upland, which we suppose to be the
site of Talomeco. Here also were old Indian fields and manifest
tokens of primitive occupancy.
When, one hundred and seven years ago, William Bartram
visited Silver Bluff, then owned by George Galphin the famous
Indian trader, there were still extant “various monuments and
vestiges of the residence of the ancients: as Indian conical
mounts, terraces, areas, etc., as well as remains or traces of for-
tresses of regular formation, as if constructed after the modes of
European military architects, which are supposed to be ancient
camps of the Spaniards who formerly fixed themselves at this
place in hopes of finding silver.”
* That the progress of the expedition tervals by rivers, streams, and swamps,
was necessarily slow will be freely ad- that its baggage and supplies were trans-
mitted when it is remembered that it was ported upon the backs of the soldiers and
traversing the depths of an unbroken, of Indian burthen-bearers, and that a
pathless forest, permeated at irregular in- drove of hogs kept pace with the march.
56 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
These proofs of early constructive skill have, however, all dis-
appeared. They have been obliterated by the plowshare and
the changing seasons, and the most marked of them, occupying
positions near the edge of the bluff, have been swept away by
the encroaching tides of the tawny-hued Savannah. Within the
memory of an old inhabitant, more than one hundred feet in
breadth of this bluff have been eaten away and dissipated by the
insatiate currents of this river. That the Spaniards were once
here, was generally believed at the period of Bartram's visit, and
the tradition has been handed down to the present day. But
our intelligent traveler was manifestly at fault in ascribing some
of these earth-works to the agency of Europeans. So far as we
can discover, De Soto fortified no camps within the present limits
of Georgia, and left no enduring proofs of his occupancy.
The presence of pyrites and of sulphurous nodules in the face
of the bluff and frequent particles and flakes of mica still attest
the sources from which the Indians, in the days of De Soto,
attempted to satisfy the Spanish craving for gold and silver.
While it may be true that nuggets of native silver have been here
found, as is stoutly asserted by some, the suggestion that this
bluff derived its name from this circumstance we deem quite im-
probable. We would rather ascribe the name to the tradition,
derived from the Indians, and dominant here at the period of
primal settlement, that many years before a band of white men
had here come and, in the bed of the river and elsewhere in the
neighborhood, made search for this metal.
Those who have studied the route of De Soto are not agreed
as to the precise location of Cutifachiqui. Thus, Dr. Monette
places it on the peninsula formed by the confluence of the Broad
and Savannah rivers. Dr. McCulloh thinks it was on the Oc-
mulgee River, in Monroe County. William Bartram, Colonel
Albert James Pickett, Mr. Albert Gallatin, Mr. William B. Rye,
Mr. Buckingham Smith, and Mr. J. Carson Brevoort all incline
to the belief that at Silver Bluff we behold the site of the ancient
village of Cutifachiqui. In this impression we sympathize. Mr.
Theodore Irving, too, appears to yield to this persuasion, while
freely confessing how perplexing it is to “ make out the route in
conformity to modern landmarks.”
During the latter portion of the Spanish sojourn at Cutifachiqui
the queen had become so much incensed at the Outrages perpe-
trated by the Christians upon her subjects that when advised by
De Soto of his contemplated departure she utterly refused to
MARCH TO CHELAQUE. 57
furnish him with guides and tamemes. The governor thereupon
placed her under guard; and, upon commencing his journey
northward, on the third day of May, he compelled her, on foot,
escorted by her female attendants, to accompany him. Com-
menting upon this conduct of De Soto, the Gentleman of Elvas
remarks: This was not “so good usage as she deserved for the
good wil she shewed and good entertainement that she had made
him. And he verified that old proverb which saith : “For wel-
doing I receive evil.’” The present objective point of the expe-
dition was Guaxule, situated near the northerly or northwesterly
confines of the territory ruled over by the cacica of Cutifachiqui.
As her domains were quite extensive, De Soto trusted, through
her presence and influence, to control the natives along the line
of his march. In this expectation he was not disappointed.
“In all the townes where the Governour passed, the ladie com-
manded the Indians to come and carrie the burdens from one
towne to another. We passed through her countrie an hundred
leagues, in which, as we saw, she was much obeyed. For the
Indians did all that she commanded them with great efficacie
and diligence.” Before departing from Cutifachiqui the army
was organized into two divisions: the one commanded by the
adelantado in person, and the other under the guidance of Bal-
tazar de Gallegos. Upon the second day the Spaniards encoun-
tered a storm of wind, lightning, and hail so severe that, had
they not sought the close protection of the forest trees, many of
them would have perished. The hail-stones were as large as
pigeon's eggs.”
After a march of seven days the province of Chelaque was
reached. In this name, with but slight alteration, we recognize
the land of the Cherokees. According to Adair and others the
national name was derived from Chee-ra, “fire.” Hence Cher-
akees, Chelakees, Cherokees.
The route had thus far, if we understand it aright, been up-
ward and along the right bank of the Savannah River. De Soto
was now, we think, within the confines of the present county of
Franklin. The country was described as “the poorest off for
maize” of any which had thus far been seen in Florida. The
inhabitants were domestic, slight of form, and, at that season,
quite naked. Upon the roots of plants dug in the forests, and
upon the animals destroyed with their arrows, did they chiefly
subsist. One of the chiefs presented the governor with two
1 Herrera.
58 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
deer-skins as a mark of friendship. Turkeys abounded. In one
village seven hundred of these birds were given to the Spaniards,
and there was no scarcity of them in other localities.
Five days were occupied in passing from this province to Xualla.
The chief town of this last-named province bore the same name,
and was located on the flanks of a mountain with a small but
rapid river flowing near. We venture the suggestion that this
village was situated in Nacoochee valley, Habersham County, and
that the mountain referred to was Yonah. In this valley phys-
ical proofs of primitive occupancy are still extant, and metallic
fragments of European manufacture have there been found con-
firmatory of the fact that many years prior to the settlement of
this region by the whites it had been visited by kindred peoples.
We do not now allude to the remains of an ancient village, –
the cabins of which were made of logs hewn and notched by
means of chopping-axes, – unearthed by Colonels Merriwether
and Lumsden in Duke's Creek valley in 1834, or to the traces
of early mining in Valley River valley and adjacent locali-
ties, where deep shafts passing through gneiss rock, their sides
scarred by the impression of sharp tools, and windlasses of post-
oak with cranks and gudgeon holes were observed; the trees
growing above this old settlement and springing from the mouths
and sides of these abandoned pits being not less than two hun-
dred years old. These are to be referred to the labors of
Tristan de Luna, who, in 1560, at the command of Louis de Ve-
lasco, came with three hundred Spanish soldiers into this region
and spent the summer in eager and laborious search for gold.
This expedition moved up from Pensacola; and was dispatched
on the faith of the representations, made by returned soldiers
from De Soto's command, of the presence of the precious metal
among these mountains. We are informed by the German trav-
eler, Johannes Lederer, that as late as 1669 and 1670 the Span-
iards were employed in working gold and silver mines in the Ap-
palachian mountains.
Although little grain was found at Xualla, the adelantado
rested there two days that he might refresh his Weary soldiers
and recuperate his horses, which were lean and Sadly jaded.
Apparently inclining his route westwardly, De Soto set out for
Guaxule, which marked the furthest confines, in that direction,
of the dominion of the queen of Cutifachiqui. During this stage
of the journey the queen succeeded in making her escape into
the forests. So thoroughly did she conceal herself that efforts for
ESCAPE OF THE QUEEN OF CUTIFACHIQUI. 59
her recapture proved fruitless. We are told by the Fidalgo of
Elvas that she took with her a cane box, like a small trunk,
called petaca, full of unbored pearls of great value. Up to the
moment of her flight this precious box had been borne by one of
her female attendants. The governor permitted this, hoping that
when he reached Guaxule, at which point he was minded to
liberate her, he would be able to beg these pearls of her. In
her return homewards she was accompanied by three slaves who
deserted from the camp. A horseman, named Alimamos, who
had been left behind sick of a fever, came upon these slaves and
persuaded two of them to abandon their evil design. The third,
however, a slave of André de Vasconcelos, remained with the ca-
cica. When Alimamos last saw them, they were living together
as man and wife, and were together to return to Cutifachiqui.
Such is the final glimpse we have of this Indian queen, whose
welcome of and association with De Soto form one of the marked
episodes in the nebulous story of this wonderful expedition.
The country traversed during the five days consumed in march-
ing from Xualla to Guaxule was mountainous, with interven-
ing valleys “rich in pasturage and irrigated by clear and rápid
streams.” Much fatigue was encountered, and One day a foot-
soldier, calling to a horseman who was his friend, drew forth
from his wallet a linem bag in which were six pounds of pearls,
probably filched from one of the Indian sepulchres. These he
offered as a gift to his comrade, being heartily tired of carrying
them on his back, though he had a pair of broad shoulders capa-
ble of bearing the burden of a mule. The horseman refused to
accept so thoughtless an offer. “Keep them yourself,” said he ;
“you have most need of them. The governor intends shortly to
send messengers to Havana; you can forward these presents and
have them sold, and three or four horses and mules purchased for
you with the proceeds, so that you need no longer go on foot.”
Juan Terron was piqued at having his offer refused. “Well,”
said he, “if you will not have them, I swear I will not carry
them, and they shall remain here.” So saying, he untied the
bag, and, whirling around, as if he were sowing seed, scattered
the pearls in all directions among the thickets and herbage. Then
putting up the bag in his wallet, as if it were more valuable than
the pearls, he marched on, leaving his comrades and the other
bystanders astonished at his folly.
The soldiers made a hasty search for the scattered pearls and
recovered thirty of them. When they beheld their great size
60 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
and beauty, none of them being bored and discolored, they la-
mented that so many of them had been lost; for the whole would
have sold in Spain for more than six thousand ducats. This
egregious folly gave rise to a common proverb in the army, that
“There are no pearls for Juan Terron.” The poor fellow him.
self became an object of constant jest and ridicule, until, at last,
made sensible of his absurd conduct, he implored them never to
banter him further on the subject.
After a march of five days the army reached Guaxule. Upon
the route, both men and horses had suffered from an insufficient
supply of maize and of meat. When within half a league of the
chief town of the province, De Soto was met by the cacique, or
king, escorted by a band of five hundred warriors attired in dec-
orated mantles of various skins and adorned with feathers of
brilliant hues. The interview was entirely amicable; and by
him and his train was the governor conducted to the village, con-
sisting of three hundred houses. It occupied a pleasant situation
and was well watered by streams taking their rise in the adjacent
mountains. The adelantado was hospitably entertained at the
dwelling of the mico, which stood upon the top of an artificial
elevation “surrounded by a terrace wide enough for six men to
go abreast.” The site of Guaxule we believe to be identical, or
very nearly so, with Coosawattee Old Town," in the southeastern
corner of Murray County.
Perceiving that the Christians were killing and eating the vil-
lage dogs, the native king collected and presented three hundred
of them to the Spaniards. This animal was not used as an arti-
cle of food by the aborigines. On the contrary, it was held in
special regard. The constant companion of its master in his
journeys through the forests, and in hunting and fishing; a
trusted guard about his camp-fires and at the door of the home
lodge, not infrequently were accorded to it rites of sepulture
akin to those with which the owner was complimented. We
wonder therefore at this gift, and are inclined to interpret it
rather as a euphemistic statement that these dogs were appro-
priated by the strangers.
Four days were here passed by the command. An Indian was
dispatched with a message to the chief of Chiaha requesting that
1 Some fifty years ago two large silver tion. These objects have been figured,
crosses were taken from an Indian grave- and will appear in the next Annual Re-
mound at this point, which we are inclined port of the Smithsonian Institution.
to regard as relics of De Soto's expedi-
CORDIAL RECEPTION AT CHIAHA. 61
he would concentrate maize at that place, as it was the purpose
of the governor to tarry some time in that village.
After two days’ travel the town of Canasagua was reached.
There is no good reason why we should not recognize in this
name the original of that borne at the present day by the river
Connasauga. This stage in the journey of De Soto we locate at
or near the junction of the Connasauga and Coosawattee rivers,
in originally Cass, now Gordon County. Before reaching this
town he was met by twenty men from the village, each bear-
ing a basket of mulberries. This fruit was here abundant and
well flavored. Plum and walnut trees were growing luxuriantly
throughout the country, attaining a size and beauty, without
planting or pruning, which could not be surpassed in the irri-
gated and well-cultivated gardens of Spain.
Following the course of the Oostenaula, and marching well
nigh parallel with its left bank, the army moved in the direction
of Chiaha (Yehiaha, Ichiaha, China). On the fifth day, when
within two leagues of that town, fifteen Indians, bearing presents
of maize, met the adelantado. They conveyed the salutations
of the cacique, and a message that he was in his village awaiting
the arrival of the strangers. They further assured the governor
that twenty barbacoas, full of maize, were there subject to his
orders. Chiaha was entered by the Spaniards on the 5th of
June. Cordially was De Soto welcomed by the cacique, who re-
signed to him the use and occupancy of his residence. Into his
mouth the Gentleman of Elvas puts the following address : —
“Powerful and Eccellent Master, — “Fortunate am I that you
will make use of my services. Nothing could happen that would
give me so great contentment, or which I should value more.
From Guaxule you sent to have maize for you in readiness to
last two months: you have in this town twenty barbacoas full of
the choicest and best to be found in all this country. If the re-
ception I give is not worthy so great a prince, consider my youth,
which will relieve me of blame, and receive my good will, which,
with true loyalty and pure, shall ever be shown in all things that
concern your welfare.”
To these words the governor responded feelingly, assuring the
young chief that he was greatly pleased with his gifts and kind-
ness, and that he would always regard him as a brother.
De Soto had now reached the confluence of the Etowah and
the Oostenaula rivers. The ancient village of Chiaha has been
supplanted by the modern city of Rome. The town is described
62 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
as situated between two arms of a river and seated near one of
them. Both branches were then fordable, and the meadow lands
adjacent to their banks were rich. Maize fields appeared on
every hand. There was an abundance of lard in calabashes,
Which the inhabitants said was prepared from bear's fat. Oil of
walnuts, “clear and of good taste,” was found in the possession
of the natives. They also had a honeycomb which the Chris-
tians had never seen before. It was a pleasant and hospitable
region, and the army here rested for thirty days. The horses
had become so jaded by rough and continuous marches, and so
enfeebled from lack of substantial food, that it was absolutely
necessary to indulge them in a season of quiet. When they ar-
rived at Chiaha they were so worn out that they could not carry
their riders; they were accordingly turned out to graze. So
amiable were the natives, that, although greatly exposed, the
Spaniards suffered no molestation from them either in their per-
Sons or animals. Had they, in their unguarded condition, seen
fit to set upon the Christians, they could scarcely have defended
themselves. Contrary to the conduct of the natives on similar
occasions in other localities, the inhabitants of Chiaha did not
abandon their houses upon the approach of the army or during
the Sojourn of the Spaniards; consequently the soldiers were
quartered beneath the trees, the only house occupied by a Euro-
pean being that of the chief in which the governor lodged.
In response to his repeated inquiries in regard to gold, De Soto
was here informed that to the north, and in a province called
Chisca, were mines of copper and of a metal of like color, but
finer and brighter. Encouraged by this information, confirma-
tory of what he had been told at Cutifachiqui, he dispatched
Juan de Villalobos and Francisco de Silvera, two brave soldiers
who volunteered for the enterprise, to proceed on foot, and, if
possible, locate these mines.
After an absence of ten days they returned and reported that
they had been well received by the natives; that their route lay
partly through land excellent for grain and pasturage, and again
over mountains so rugged that it would not be practicable for
the army to cross them ; that they had found among the natives
a buffalo hide an inch thick and with hair as soft as sheep's
wool; and lastly, that they had seen only a fine variety of cop-
per, such as had already been met with. From the appearance
of the soil, however, they thought it not improbable that both
gold and silver were native to the region.
PEARLS AT CHIAHA. 63
While De Soto was awaiting the return of these soldiers, the
cacique of Chiaha one day presented him with a string of pearls
two arms 1 in length. These pearls were as large as filberts;
and, had they not been perforated, would have been of great
value. Thankfully receiving them, De Soto complimented the
Indian with pieces of velvet and cloths of various colors, and
with other Spanish trifles held in much esteem by the natives.
Upon inquiry, he learned that these pearls had been obtained in
the neighborhood, and that in the sepulchres of the ancestors of
the cacique many were stored. The governor being curious to
see in what manner these pearls were extracted from the shells,
the cacique dispatched forty canoes to fish for the oysters during
the night. “At an early hour next morning a quantity of wood
was gathered and piled up on the banks of the river, and, being
set on fire, was speedily reduced to glowing coals. As soon as
the canoes arrived, the coals were spread out and the oysters
were laid upon them. They soon opened with the heat, and from
some of the first thus opened the Indians obtained ten or twelve
pearls as large as peas, which they brought to the governor and
cacique, who were standing together, looking on. The pearls
were of a fine quality, but somewhat discolored by the fire and
smoke. The Indians were prone, also, to injure these pearls by
boring them with a heated copper instrument.
“De Soto having gratified his curiosity, returned to his quar-
ters to partake of the morning meal. While eating, a soldier
entered with a large pearl in his hand. He had stewed some
oysters, and, in eating them, felt this pearl between his teeth.
Not having been injured by fire or smoke, it retained its beauti-
ful whiteness, and was so large and perfect in its form that sev-
eral Spaniards, who pretended to be skilled in these matters,
declared it would be worth four hundred ducats in Spain. The
soldier would have given it to the governor to present to his
wife, Doña Isabel de Bobadilla, but De Soto declined the gen-
erous offer, advising the soldier to preserve it until he got to
Havana, where he might purchase horses and many other things
with it; moreover, in reward of his liberal disposition, De Soto
insisted upon paying the fifth of the value, due to the crown.”
The mussel or oyster here alluded to was doubtless the pearl-
bearing unio still native to the Etowah and the Oostenaula, and
to many other Southern streams. At that early period these
shells were far more numerous than they are at present. Arti-
1 Garcilasso de la Vega says two fathoms.
64 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
ficial shell-heaps still attest how industriously in that olden time
these margatiferous shells were collected by primitive peoples,
who valued them not only for their flesh, but also for the glisten.
ing beads they contained, and for their iridescent coverings from
which various ornaments were manufactured. When pounded
they were kneaded with clay and tended materially to give con-
sistency and strength to the pottery of the region.
The denudation of the banks of these streams, and the destruc-
tion of extensive forests in reducing wild lands to a state of culti-
vation, have caused marked changes in the animal life of the
country.
“Before these fields were shorn and tilled,
Full to the brim our rivers flowed.”
Limpid then, with constant volumes they pursued their accus-
tomed channels. Subsequently, becoming turbid with the soil
washed from the slopes of a hundred hills, and no longer fed with
regularity by well shaded and pure springs, but at one time en-
feebled by drought and at another engorged by torrents, these
streams have for many years been liable to sudden and violent
fluctuations. Multitudes of margatiferous unios have consequently
been torn from their habitats by unruly currents, and imbedded
beyond life in sand bars and muddy deposits. The stable bot-
toms upon which they rested and multiplied have been rendered
both uncertain and unwholesome. Thus has it come to pass
that a marked extinction of such animal life has ensued.
A melancholy occurrence which took place while the army was
at Chiaha is thus narrated by Theodore Irving" in his “Conquest
of Florida: ”—
“A cavalier, one Luis Bravo de Xeres, strolling, with lance
in hand, along a plain bordering on the river, saw a small animal
at a short distance, and launched his weapon at it. The lance
missed the mark; but, slipping along the grass, shot over the
river bank. Luis Bravo ran to recover his lance, but to his
horror found it had killed a Spaniard who had been fishing with
a reed on the margin of the river at the foot of the bank. The
steel point of the lance had entered one temple and come out at
the other, and the poor Spaniard had dropped dead on the spot.
His name was Juan Mateos; he was the only one in the expedi-
tion that had gray hairs, from which circumstance he was called
father Mateos, and respected as such. His unfortunate death
was lamented by the whole army.”
1 Quoting from Garcilasso de la Vega.
DEPARTURE FROM CHIAHA. 65
A month had well-nigh elapsed since the arrival of the Span-
iards at Chiaha. The men were entirely rested and the horses
were again in good order. The governor resolved to take up the
line of march for Coga on the Coosa River. Before leaving, yield-
ing to the importunity of some in his command “who wanted
more than was in reason,” he asked from the cacique thirty
women that he might take them with him in the capacity of
slaves. The chief responded that he would consult with his
principal men. Informed of the demand, and before answer had
been made to it, the inhabitants fled by night from the town,
taking their women and children with them. Although the ca-
cique professed his regret at the course his people had pursued,
and acknowledged his inability to control them, the governor,
with thirty mounted men and as many foot soldiers, went in pur-
suit of the fugitives. In passing the towns of some of the chiefs
who had absconded he cut down and destroyed their maize fields.
Proceeding along up the stream he found the natives congregated
upon an island in the river to which his cavalry could not pene-
trate. By an Indian he sent them word that if they would return
and furnish him with some tamemes, he would not disturb their
women, seeing in what special affection they were held. Upon
this assurance they all came back to their homes.
Parting from the cacique of Chiaha with kind words, and hav-
ing received from him some slaves as a gift, De Soto set out with
his companions down the valley of the Coosa, and was soon, with-
out further incident of moment, beyond the confines of the pres-
ent State of Georgia. He had entered this territory early in
March, 1540, and departed from it on the second day of July in
the same year.
Thus did these mail-clad Spaniards,-- the first Europeans who
traversed the soil of Georgia, beheld the primal beauties of her
forests, rivers, plains, and mountains, participated in the hospital-
ities of her primitive peoples, and sought but found not the
treasures hidden within her bosom, — disappointed, yet not de-
spairing, pass onward in quest of richer native lords and goodlier
countries.
We may not follow them even until that day when, amid the
smoke and thunder of battle at Mauvila, they barely escaped de-
struction at the hands of the lion-hearted Alibamons. It lies not
within our purpose to accompany them as, impeded by tangled
brake, morass, and stream, often pinched by hunger, frequently
opposed by the red warriors, now buoyed up by hope, again
5
66
THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
oppressed by apprehension, they painfully groped their way
through vast and unknown regions this side and even beyond the
Meschachepi.
In the end, their golden visions vanished, the
body of their leader silently and “in darkness entombed in the
Father of Waters, few in numbers and broken in spirit, their
munitions exhausted, the survivors of this famous expedition fled
from the land wherein they had garnered a harvest only of priva-
tion, peril, sorrow, mortification and death."
1 Itinerary of Hernando de Soto, while
marching through the Territory of the mod-
ern State of Georgia, as contained in the
True Relation given by a Fidalgo of Elvas.
March 3, 1540. Left Anhaica [Talla-
hassee, Fla. ?].
March 7, 1540. Crossed a deep river
[Ocklockony ?].
March 9, 1540.
March 21, 1540.
March 24, 1540.
March 25, 1540.
April 1, 1540.
Arrived at Capachiqui.
Came to Toalli.
Left Toalli.
Arrived at Achese.
Departed from Achese.
April 4, 1540. Passed through the
town of Altamaca.
April 10, 1540. Arrived at Ocute.
April 12, 1540. Left Ocute. Passed
through a town whose lord was called
Cofaqui, and came to the province of
another lord named Patofa.
April 14, 1540. Departed from Patofa.
April 20, 1540. Lost in a pine barren.
Six days consumed in fording two riv-
ers and in the effort to find a way of
escape.
April 26, 1540. Set out for Aymay.
Reached Aymay before nightfall.
April 28, 1540. Departed for Cutifachi-
qui.
May 3, 1540.
May 10, 1540.
May 15, 1540.
May 20, 1540.
May 22, 1540.
June 5, 1540.
July 1, 1540.
Left Cutifachiqui.
Arrived at Chelaque,
Arrived at Xualla.
Arrived at Guaxule.
Arrived at Canasagua.
Arrived at Chiaha.
Departed from Chiaha,
CHAPTER III.
GRANT TO THE LORD's PROPRIETORS OF CAROLINA. — EARLY POSTS SOUTH
OF THE SAVANNAH RIVER, -SPANISH MINING OPERATIONS IN THE APA-
LATCY MOUNTAINs. – MARGRAVATE OF AZILLA. — GOVERNOR MOORE’s
ExPEDITION.— MIssion OF SIR ALEXANDER CUMING. — SALE AND SUR-
RENDER BY THE LORDS PROPRIETORS.
THE claim of Great Britain to the coast of North America
lying between the fifty-sixth and twenty-eighth degrees of north
latitude rests upon the discovery of Sebastian Cabot, who, under
a commission from and at the charge of the king of England,
visited and sailed along that portion of the western continent.
After the discovery of Florida by Juan Ponce de Leon, Spain
does not appear to have attempted any conquest of that region
until the expeditions of Narvaez in 1527 and of De Soto in
1539. By neither of these were any permanent settlements ef-
fected. The earliest grant of the lower portion of this terri-
tory was made by his majesty King Charles I., in the fifth
year of his reign, to Sir Robert Heath, his attorney-general. In
that patent it is called Carolina Florida, and the designated
limits extended from the river Matheo in the thirtieth degree to
the river Passa Magna in the thirty-sixth degree of north lati-
tude. There is good reason for believing that actual possession
was taken under this patent, and that considerable sums were
expended by the proprietor and those claiming under him in the
effort to colonize. Whether this grant was subsequently surren-
dered, or whether it was vacated and declared null for non user
or other cause, we are not definitely informed. Certain it is that
King Charles II., in the exercise of his royal pleasure, deemed it
proper to make to the Lords Proprietors of Carolina two grants
of the same lands, with some slight modifications of boundaries.
The last of these grants, bearing date the 30th of June in the
seventeenth year of his reign, conveys to the Lords Proprietors all
that portion of the New World lying between the thirty-sixth and
the twenty-ninth degrees of north latitude. While the English
under this concession were industriously engaged in peopling a
portion of the coast embraced within the specified limits, it is
68 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
notorious that the Spaniards occupied only St. Augustine and a
few adjacent points. -
Although in 1670 England and Spain entered into stipulations
for composing their differences in America, stipulations which
have since been known as the American Treaty, the precise line
of separation between Carolina and Florida was not defined.
Disputes between these powers touching this boundary were not
infrequent. In view of this unsettled condition of affairs, and in
order to assert a positive claim to and retain possession of the
debatable ground, which neither party was willing either to re-
linquish or clearly to point out, the English located and main-
tained a small military post on the south end of Cumberland
Island, where the St. Mary's River empties its waters into the
Atlantic. In 1720, apprehending that the French or Spanish
forces would take possession of the Alatamaha River, King
George I. ordered General Nicholson, then governor of South
Carolina, with a company of one hundred men to secure that
river as being within the bounds of South Carolina, and to erect
a fort at some suitable point, with an eye to the protection of
his majesty's possessions in that quarter and the control of the
navigation of that stream. The fort was located near the con-
fluence of the Oconee and Ocmulgee rivers and was named King
George. Having been accidentally destroyed by fire, it was sub-
sequently rebuilt at the expense of the province of South Caro-
lina, but in an insubstantial manner. The garrison clamored for
better accommodations. The locality, lonely and uninteresting
at best, proved very unhealthy. The soldiers refused to exert
themselves in procuring wholesome water, neglected to plant
gardens, and proved insubordinate when ordered to prepare in-
closures for cattle which General Nicholson proposed to send to
them. They were so lazy that they would not even fish and
hunt. Within a few years the post was abandoned. In 1727
the Crown was memorialized to reinstate this fort, as an evidence
of English proprietorship in the territory, and to relieve the gar-
rison at stated intervals from Port Royal. Orders were, in 1729,
issued to Governor Robert Johnson, who had been appointed
royal governor of South Carolina in the room of Nicholson with
the full authority of captain-general and commander-in-chief, to
rečstablish this deserted post on the Alatamaha. They were
never carried into effect. It was contemplated also to lay out
two towns on the Alatamaha, but this purpose failed of execu-
tion. Upon these efforts of the English to maintain a show of
SPANISH MINING OPERATIONS. 69
occupancy within the disputed territory the Spaniards looked for
the while with an eye of seeming indifference.
By the treaty of Seville in 1729 commissioners were appointed,
among other things, to determine the northern boundary line of
Florida which should form the southern limit of South Carolina.
Nothing, however, was concluded in this regard, and the question
remained open and a cause of quarrel until the peace of 1763,
when Spain ceded Florida to Great Britain. It will be perceived
that at the date of the colonization of Georgia this southern
boundary line was in dispute between Great Britain and Spain.
It proved, as we shall see, a source of inquietude and extreme
peril to the settlers under Oglethorpe.
In recalling the instances of temporary occupancy, by Europe-
ans, of limited portions of the territory at a later period conveyed
to the trustees for establishing the colony of Georgia, it is proper
that we should allude to mining operations conducted by the
Spaniards at an early epoch among the auriferous mountains of
Upper Georgia. Influenced by the representations made by the
returned soldiers of De Soto's expedition of the quantity of gold,
silver, and pearls existent in the province of Cosa, Luis de Velasco
dispatched his general, Tristan de Luna, to open communication
with Cosa by the way of Pensacola Bay. Three hundred Span-
ish soldiers of this expedition, equipped with mining tools, pene-
trated to the valley of the Coosa and passed the summer of 1560
in northern Georgia and the adjacent region. Juan Pardo was
subsequently sent by Aviles, the first governor of Florida, to
establish a fort at the foot of the mountains northwest of St.
Augustine in the province of the chief Coabá. It would seem,
therefore, that the Spaniards at this early period were acquainted
with and endeavored to avail themselves of the gold deposits in
Cherokee Georgia.
The German traveler, Johannes Lederer, who visited North
Carolina and Virginia in 1669 and 1670, and wrote in Latin an
account of his adventures, asserts that the Spaniards were then
working gold and silver mines in the Appalachian Mountains.
He avers that he saw specimens of the ore in the possession of
the natives, and that he brought back samples with him. “ Had
I had with me,” he adds, “half a score of resolute youths who
would have stuck to me, I would have pushed on to the Spanish
mines.”
In 1690, while journeying over the “ Apalathean Mountains'
for inland discovery and trade with the Indians, Mr. James
70 . THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Moore was informed by them that the Spaniards were at work
in mines within twenty miles of the place where he then was.
The Indians described to him the bellows and furnaces used by
them, and offered to convey him to the Spot where their opera-
tions were being conducted. A difference between himself and
his guides prevented his visiting these mines. Subsequently he
Volunteered to lead a party to them, but the scheme was aban-
doned.
Thus are we advised that the Spaniards, long before the ad-
vent of the English colonists, permeated the valleys of the Cher-
okees in earnest quest for gold. Thus are we enabled to ac-
count, with at least some degree of probability, for those traces
of ancient mining observed and wondered at by the early set-
tlers of Upper Georgia, – operations of no mean significance,
conducted by skilled hands and with metallic tools, which can-
not properly be referred either to the red race or to the follow-
ers of De Soto.
In June, 1717, Sir Robert Mountgomery secured from the Pala-
tine and Lords Proprietors of the Province of Carolina a grant
and release of all lands lying between the rivers Alatamaha and
Savannah, with permission to make settlements also on the south
side of the former river. This territory was to be erected into a
distinct province, “with proper jurisdictions, privileges, preroga-
tives, and franchises, independent of and in no manner subject
to the laws of South Carolina.” It was to be holden of the
Lords Proprietors by Sir Robert, his heirs and assigns forever,
under the name and title of the Margravate of Azilia. A yearly
quit-rent of a penny per acre for all lands “occupied, taken up,
or run out,” was to be paid ; such payment, however, was not
to commence until three years after the arrival of the first ships
transporting colonists. In addition, Sir Robert covenanted to
render to the Lords Proprietors one fourth part of all the gold,
silver, and royal minerals which might be found within the lim-
its of the ceded lands. Courts of justice were to be organized,
and such laws enacted by the freemen of the Margravate as
might conduce to the general good and in no wise conflict with
the statutes and customs of England. The navigation of the
rivers was to be free to all the inhabitants of the colonies of
North and South Carolina. A duty, similar to that sanctioned
in South Carolina, was to be laid on skins, and the revenue thus
derived was to be appropriated to the maintenance of clergy.
Sir Robert, in consideration of this cession, engaged to trans-
THE MARGRAVATE OF AZILIA. 71
port at his own cost a considerable number of families, and all
necessaries requisite for forming new settlements within the spe-
cified lands. It was mutually covenanted that if such settle-
ments were not made within three years from the date of the
grant it should become void.
In the “Discourse concerning the Designed Establishment of
a New Colony to the South of Carolina in the most delightful
Country of the Universe,” prepared by himself and printed in
London in 1717, Sir Robert in glowing terms unfolds the at-
tractions of his future Eden. Sympathizing in the views enter-
tained by Colonel Purry, and submitted only a few years after-
wards to the Duke of New Castle in aid of a Swiss colonization
on the left bank of the Savannah, Sir Robert proclaims the
Southern bounds of Carolina “the most amiable country of the
universe,” and affirms “ that nature has not blessed the world
with any Tract which can be preferable to it; that Paradise
with all her virgin beauties may be modestly supposed at most
but equal to its native excellencies.” “It lies,” he continues,
“in the same latitude with Palestine herself, that promised
Canaan which was pointed out by God's own choice to bless
the labors of a favorite people.” After commending in the high-
est terms its woods and meadows, mines and odoriferous plants,
soil and climate, fruits and game, flowers and agricultural capa-
bilities, streams and hills, he proceeds to explain his plan of set-
tlement. He did not propose to satisfy himself “with building
here and there a fort, the fatal practice of America, but so to
dispose the habitations and divisions of the land that not alone
our houses but whatever we possess will be inclosed by military
lines, impregnable against the savages, and which will make our
Whole plantation one continued fortress. It need not be Sup-
posed that all the lands will thus be fortified at once. The first
lines drawn will be in just proportion to the number of men
they inclose. As the inhabitants increase, new lines will be
made to inclose them also, so that all the people will be always
safe within a well-defended line of circumvallation. . . . At the
arrival therefore of the first men carried over, proper officers
shall mark, and cause to be entrenched a square of land in just
proportion to their number. On the outsides of this Square,
within the little bastions or redoubts of the entrenchment, they
raise light timber dwellings, cutting down the trees which every-
where encompass them. The officers are Quartered with the
men whom they command, and the governour in chief is placed
72 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
exactly in the centre. By these means the laboring people (be-
ing so disposed as to be always watchful of an enemy's approach)
are themselves within the eye of those set over them, and all to-
gether under the inspection of their principal.
“The redoubts may be near enough to defend each other with
musquets, but field pieces and patareros will be planted upon
each, kept charged with cartridge shot and pieces of old iron.
Within these redoubts are the common dwellings of the men who
must defend them. Between them runs a palisadoed bank, and a
ditch which will be scoured by the artillery. One man in each
redoubt, kept day and night upon the guard, will give alarm upon
occasion to the others at their work. So they cultivate their
lands, secure their cattle, and follow their business with great
ease and safety. Exactly in the centre of the inmost square will
be a fort defended by large cannon, pointing every way, and
capable of making strong resistance in case some quarter of the
outward lines should chance to be surprised by any sudden acci-
dent, which yet, with tolerable care, would be impracticable.
“The nature of this scheme, when weighed against the igno-
rance and wildness of the natives, will show that men, thus settled,
may at once defend and cultivate a territory with the utmost
satisfaction and security even in the heart of an Indian country.
Then how much rather a place considerably distant from the Sav-
age settlements.
“As the numbers shall increase, and they go on to clear more
space of land, they are to regulate their settlements with like re-
gard to safety and improvement; and, indeed, the difference as
to time and labour is not near so great as may be thought betwixt
enclosing land this way and following the dangerous common
method. But what is here already said will serve the end for
which it has been written, which was only to give a general
notion of the care and caution we propose to act with.”
After picturing Azilia in the plenitude of her beauty and ma-
tured growth, and having endeavored to demonstrate the fact that
colonists at the very outset might reasonably anticipate the enjoy-
ment of wealth, safety, and liberty, Sir Robert proceeds to give
the following explanation of the engraved “ plan, representing
the form of setting the districts or county divisions in the Mar.
gravate of Azilia,” with which his “ Discourse" was illustrated.
“You must suppose a level, dry, and fruitful Tract of Land in some
fine Plain or Valley, containing a just Square of twenty Miles
each way, or two hundred and fifty-six thousand Acres, laid out
and settled in the Form presented in the Cut annexed: ©
THE MARGRAVATE OF AZILIA. 73
“The District is defended by sufficient Numbers of Men who,
dwelling in the fortified Angles of the Line, will be employed
in cultivating Lands which are kept in hand for the particular
advantage of the Margrave. These Lands surround the district
just within the Lines, and everywhere contain in Breadth one
Mile exactly.
“The Men thus employed are such as shall be hired in Great
Britain or Ireland, well disciplined, armed, and carried over on
condition to serve faithfully for such a Term of Years as they
before shall agree to. And that no Man may be wretched in
so happy a Country, at the expiration of those Peoples’ Time,
besides some other considerable and unusual Incouragements, all
such among them who shall marry in the Country, or come
married thither, shall have a right of laying claim to a certain
Fee-Farm, or Quantity of Land, ready cleared, together with a
house built upon it, and a stock sufficient to improve and cultivate
it, which they shall enjoy, Rent and Tax free during Life as a
reward for their Services. By which Means two very great Ad-
vantages must naturally follow. Poor laboring Men, so secured
of a fixed future settlement, will be thereby induced to go thither
more willingly and act when there with double Diligence and
Duty. And when their Time expires, possessing just Land
enough to pass their Lives at Ease, and bring their Children up
honestly, the Families they have will prove a constant Seminary
of sober Servants, of both Sexes, for the Gentry of the Colony,
whereby they will be under no necessity to use the dangerous Help
of Blackamoors, or Indians. The Lands set apart for this Purpose
are two Miles in Breadth, quite round the District, and lie next
within the Margrave's own reserved Lands above mentioned.
“The 116 Squares, each of which has a House in the Middle,
are every one a Mile on each Side, or 640 Acres in a Square,
bating only for the Highways which divide them. These are
the Estates belonging to the Gentry of the District who, being so
confined to an Equality in Land will be profitably emulous of
outdoing each other in Improvement, since that is the only way
left them to grow richer than their Neighbors. And when the
Margravate is once become strong enough to form many Districts,
the Estates will be all given gratis, together with many other
benefits, to honest and qualified Gentlemen in Great Britain,
or elsewhere, who, having numerous and well-educated Families,
possess but little Fortunes other than their Industry, and will
therefore be chosen to enjoy these Advantages, which they shall
74 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
pay no rent or other Consideration for, and yet the Undertaking
will not fail to find its own Account and Prosperity.
“The four great Parks or rather Forests are each four miles
square, that is 16 Miles round each Forest, in which are prop-
agated Herds of Cattle of all sorts by themselves not alone to
serve the uses of the District they belong to, but to store such
New Ones as may from Time to Time be measured out on Afflu-
ence of People.
“The Middle hollow Square, which is full of streets crossing
each other, is the City, and the Blank which runs about it on
the outside surrounded with Trees, is a large void Space which
will be useful for a thousand Purposes, and, among the rest, as
being airy and affording a fine Prospect of the Town in drawing
near it.
“In the Centre of the City stands the Margrave's House,
which is to be his constant Residence, or the Residence of the
Governour, and contains all sorts of public Edifices for Dispatch
of Business; and this again is separated from the City by a
Space like that which, as above, divides the Town from the
Country.”
Sir Robert, continuing his “Discourse,” which was in reality
intended as an attractive manifesto to invite immigration, en-
larges upon the profits which might, in this charming country,
be readily realized from the cultivation of rice, coffee, tea, figs,
raisins, currants, almonds, olives, silk, and cochineal. From
the manufacture of potash great gain was anticipated. Liberal
offers were made to all who might feel disposed to become col-
onists in the Margravate of Azilia, and ample guaranties were
given for the protection of person and property.
Although subscription books were opened at the Carolina
Coffee House in Birchin Lane, near the Royal Exchange, it
does not appear that much stock was taken in the enterprise.
To the king Sir Robert addressed a petition specifying the
tract of land, called Azilia, with which he had been invested by
the Lords Proprietors of Carolina, declaring that he had a bond
fide intention of founding a colony there, and requesting the
privilege of establishing in the city of Edinburgh a lottery of
one hundred thousand tickets, at the rate of forty shillings per
ticket, for the purpose of raising funds with which to defray
the expense of the adventure.
A memorial was received from the Lords Proprietors explain-
ing the proposal of Mountgomery “for settling the most South-
MOUNTGOMERY'S SCHEME A FAILURE. 75
ern parts of Carolina,” of which he was to be the governor. It
was referred to a committee of the Privy Council for considera-
tion. The board of trade, while recommending Sir Robert as a
proper person for governor, in order to avoid the inconveniences
arising from proprietary and charter governments, suggested to
the Lords Proprietors of Carolina the advisability of their sur-
rendering to the Crown their powers of government over the
places intended to be erected into a new government, reserving
to themselves only the property in the lands. The whole matter
was referred to the attorney-general, who reported that, after
examining the lease and release from the Lords Proprietors of
Carolina, and the charter of Carolina, he saw nothing in the ces-
sion prejudicial to the rights of the Crown, if his majesty thought
fit to approve of the appointment of a governor for life. He
doubted, however, whether the powers granted to the proprietors
for the government of Carolina could be divided as proposed by
the case. He also regarded it as questionable whether the Lords
Proprietors alone could exempt the new colony from liability
to the present laws of Carolina which were framed for the reg-
ulation of the entire province. To remove all difficulty, he
suggested that if the Lords Proprietors would surrender to his
majesty their powers of government over the territory to be
erected into a new province, reserving to themselves only the
right of property, they might then lease the land on such terms
as they saw fit, and that his majesty might create a new gov-
ernment upon such conditions and with such powers as he deemed
proper.
Despite the efforts made to induce immigration into this fa-
vored region, at the expiration of the three years allowed by the
concession from the Lords Proprietors of Carolina, Sir Robert
Mountgomery found himself without colonists. His grant ex-
pired and became void by the terms of its own limitations. His
Azilia remained unpeopled save by the red men of the forest.
His scheme proved utterly utopian, and it was reserved for Ogle-
thorpe and his companions to wrest from primeval solitude, and
to vitalize with the energies of civilization, the lands lying be-
tween the Savannah and the Alatamaha.
On more than one occasion during its ante-colonial period was
the territory of Georgia the theatre of war and bloodshed. Ex-
cited by the French and Spaniards to open hostility against the
English settlers in Carolina, and sometimes provoked to acts of
violence by the rapacity and frauds of traders who, not content
76 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA."
with barter on the outskirts of civilization, penetrated into the
heart of the Indian nations dwelling beyond the Savannah, the
natives indulged in predatory excursions against their white
neighbors. These evoked counter expeditions which generally
resulted in the discomfiture of the weaker race. Thus the Appa-
lachian Indians, because of their connection with the Spanish,
having become insolent and troublesome, Governor Moore of
South Carolina, at the head of a body of white troops and Indian
allies, invaded their territories, laid such of their towns as were
situated between the Savannah and the Alatamaha rivers in
ashes, killed and captured several hundred of them, and com-
pelled the province of Appalachia to submit to English rule. He
also conducted within the region subsequently ceded to the trus-
tees for the establishment of the colony of Georgia some fourteen
hundred Indians who placed themselves under his protection.
“This exertion of power in that quarter,” says Mr. He watt,
“was attended with good effects, as it filled the savages with
terror of the British arms and helped to pave the way for the
English colony afterwards planted between these rivers.” After
their defeat by Governor Craven, the Yemassees abandoned their
homes in Carolina and, retreating to Florida, allied themselves
to the Spaniards, by whom they were welcomed with ringing
bells and salvos of artillery.
§ Although a treaty of peace had been signed at Seville in 1729
between the English, French, and Spaniards, the accommodation
of existing difficulties amounted in fact to little more than a
truce. The Spaniards from the south and the French on the
west were still busy in their efforts to monopolize the Indian
trade and to form alliances with the Cherokees. It was deemed
important by the British government to share in this trade, and
to win the Cherokees over to friendship and to an acknowledg-
ment of at least a quasi allegiance to the Crown. Accordingly,
Sir Alexander Cuming, of Aberdeenshire, Scotland, was dis-
patched on a secret mission to compass these desiderata. Depart-
ing from Charles-Town, South Carolina, with a small retinue,
on the 13th of March, 1730, he penetrated into the heart of the
Cherokee nation. At Keowee he found a large number of
Indians assembled in their council house. Upon inquiry he
learned that the disposition of the Cherokees towards the English
was hostile. He further ascertained that the Lower Creeks, in
sympathy with the French, were exerting themselves to induce
the Cherokees to join them. Presents were expected from the
EMBASSY OF SIR ALEXANDER. CUMING. 77
French, and upon their arrival it was confidently anticipated that
the Cherokees would proclaim their hatred against the English.
The situation of affairs was precarious. Sir Alexander resolved
to play a bold part. At night, unheralded, he entered into the
council house where above three hundred Indians were con-
vened, and demanded from them an acknowledgment of the king
of England's authority over them and their country. Surprised
at the audacity of the stranger they at once submitted. Upon
an intimation from Sir Alexander that if they violated the pres-
ent promise their nationality would be destroyed, they declared
upon bended knees their solemn intention to observe the vow of
allegiance to the English Crown. Expresses were dispatched
requiring the three head men of the nation to meet Sir Alex-
ander at Nequassee on the 3d of April, and directing them to
bring full power and assurance from the three settlements that
what had been promised should be performed. The Indian
traders at Nequassee and Joseph Cooper, the interpreter, who
were eye-witnesses of what transpired on this occasion, declared
they would not have believed it possible had they not themselves
beheld the occurrence. They further asserted that if they had
been made acquainted with what Sir Alexander purposed doing
they would not have dared to have entered the council house
with him. Taken by surprise and amazed at the heroism of Sir
Alexander, the Indians quickly yielded to his demand. Standing
up bravely in their midst he delivered his address through an
interpreter. Although armed with pistols, gun, and sword, he
permitted them to remain concealed under his great-coat, and
made no attempt by show of weapons to intimidate the red
|HTOl6211.
During the next thirteen days he journeyed through the do-
mains of the Cherokees, visiting their chief cities, and making
friends of their kings, head warriors, and medicine men. He
learned that the Cherokees were governed by seven mother
towns, viz.: Tanassie, Kettooah, Ustenary, Telliquo, Estootowie,
Keeowee, and Noyohee, each having a king and a head war-
TIOT.
On the morning of the 3d of April he repaired to Nequassee,
where he found a large concourse of Indians gathered from all
parts of the nation in obedience to the summons issued from
Keeowee. It was a day of the greatest solemnity, rendered
memorable by singing, dancing, feasting, speeches, the creation
of Moytoy as emperor, and then by a resignation of crown,
78 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
eagles' tails, scalps, and other emblems to Sir Alexander in
token of submission to the sovereignty of King George. This
submission was made on the knee by all the Cherokees present.
Sir Alexander thereupon caused a document to be drawn up
detailing the event and its significance. It was attested by him-
self, eleven companions, and by the leading Indians present.
His mission having been successfully accomplished, Sir Alex-
ander retraced his footsteps, reaching Charlestown on the 20th of
April and bringing with him seven prominent members of the
Cherokee nation. The emperor Moytoy also accompanied him,
and would have gone with him to England had he not been pre-
vented by the sickness of his wife. Having tarried two weeks
in Charlestown Sir Alexander, taking with him the seven In-
dians, on the 4th of May went on board the man-of-war Fox and
set sail for Dover, where the ship safely arrived on the 5th of
June. Thence he proceeded immediately to London by post,
and the Cherokees were brought up in the ship. The names
of these Indians were respectively Ok-Oukah-Ulah, K. Skalilos-
ken, Ketagustah, T. Tathlowe, C. Clogoittah, K. Kollannah,
U. Ukwaneequa, and O. Onaconoa. Portraits were painted of
them, attired in English garments and standing amid the tall
trees of the park in London. Of this painting a fine engraving
was made, impressions of which are now very scarce. From one
of those engravings we borrow the following legend which, in a
few words, narrates the reception and entertainment of these
sons of the forest during their sojourn in the capital of the United
Kingdom : —
“The above Indian kings or chiefs were brought over from
Carolina by Sir Alexander Coming, Bart. (being the chiefs of
the Cherrokee Indians) to enter into Articles of Friendship and
Commerce with his Majesty. As soon as they arriv'd they were
conducted to Windsor & were present at the Installation of
Prince William & the Lord Chesterfield. The Pomp and Splendor
of the Court and yº Grandeur not only of the ceremony as well
of the Place was what struck them with infinite Surprise and
Wonder. They were handsomely entertain’d at his Majesty's
Charge, and Cloathed with these Habits out of y” Royal Wardrobe.
When the Court left Windsor they were brought to Town and
proper Lodgings & Attendance provided for them near Covent-
1 See Early History of Georgia, em- year 1730, etc. By Samuel G. Drake.
bracing the Embassy of Sir Alexander Cum- Boston. 1872.
ing to the Country of the Cherokees in the
CHEROKEE CHIEFS IN LONDON. 79
Garden. They were entertain’d at all y” publick Diversions of
the Town, and carried to all Places of Note & Curiosity. They
were remarkably strict in their Probity and Morality. Their
Behaviour easy & Courteous: and their Gratitude to his Majesty
was often express'd, in a publick Manner, for y” Many Favours they
receiv'd. On Monday Sept. 7, 1730, Articles of F riendship and
Commerce were accordingly propos'd to them by y” L* Commis-
sioners for Trade and Plantations wº were agreed on Two Days
after, viz: on ye 9th at Whitehall and Sign'd on y” Part of their
Lordships by Alured Popple Esq: ; upon wº Ketagustah, after a
short Speech in Complement to his Majesty, concluded by laying
down his Feathers upon y” Table & said: This is our Way of
Talking wºn is ye same Thing to us as y” Letters in yº Book are
to you ; and to you, Beloved Men, we deliver these Feathers in
Confirmation of all that we have said.”
Having been generously entertained in England for some four
months, these Indians, early in October, departed for Charles-
town, whence they returned to their homes in Upper Georgia im-
pressed with the wealth and power of the English nation, gratified
at the liberal reception accorded to them, and resolved to per-
petuate the friendly relations they had promised to maintain.
This embassy of Sir Alexander Cuming and this introduction
of these chiefs to a personal acquaintance with the majesty of the
home government and the wonders of its metropolis, exerted a
beneficial influence upon the entire Cherokee nation. It brought
about a complete pacification most valuable to the exposed settle-
ments of Carolina, and all important to those colonists who were
soon to establish their first town upon Yamacraw Bluff.
The protracted Indian wars maintained by Carolina and the
effort to protect her coast against the incursions of pirates mate-
rially reduced the resources of the province, and engendered in
the mind of the English population a painful sense of insecurity.
In this emergency the legislature, memorializing the Lords Pro-
prietors, and representing to them the enfeebled condition of the
colony and the manifest dangers which threatened its destruction,
implored their paternal assistance and protection. Apprehending
that the proprietors might hesitate to pledge their English es-
tates in order to raise funds requisite for the relief of their Caro-
lina plantations, then in such a precarious situation, the legisla-
ture instructed its appointed agent, in case he failed in securing
succor from the Lords Proprietors, to apply to the Crown for
relief. The inhabitants generally were grievously annoyed at
80 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
and thoroughly dissatisfied with the posture of affairs. Incensed
against a proprietary government which was either unable or un-
willing to protect them, and which discountenanced any appeal
to the Crown, they were unanimous in the opinion that the king
should be immediately advised of their unfortunate condition and
that his intervention should be earnestly sought.
About the middle of the year 1715 the Carolina agent, in the
prosecution of his mission, waited upon the Lords Proprietors
and represented the heavy calamities under which the colony
was laboring. He further acquainted them with the fact that the
Yemassees, instigated by Spanish emissaries, were claiming whole
districts by virtue of their ancient occupancy of them, and that,
having formed an alliance with other Indian nations, they were
asserting their rights with force of arms. He insisted that under
the circumstances prompt assistance should be rendered.
The answer of the proprietors being evasive and unsatisfac-
tory, the agent at once petitioned the House of Commons in be-
half of the distressed Carolinians. Thereupon the Commons
addressed the king, beseeching his kind interposition and praying
early assistance for the colony. The matter was referred by the
king to the Lords Commissioners of Trade and Plantations, who,
in their report, suggested that the province of Carolina being a
proprietary government, if the English nation was to be at the
expense of its protection, its government ought to be vested in
the Crown."
Advised of this, Lord Carteret addressed to them a commu-
nication in which he uses the following language : “We, the
Proprietors of Carolina, having met on this melancholy occasion,
to our great grief find that we are utterly unable of ourselves to
afford our Colony suitable assistance in this conjuncture; and,
unless his Majesty will graciously please to interpose, we can fore-
see nothing but the utter destruction of his Majesty's faithful
subjects in those parts.” The Lords of Trade inquired what
sum would be necessary for the relief of the colony, and asked
whether the government of the province of Carolina ought not
to be surrendered to the Crown, if Great Britain should agree to
bear the expense of its defense. To this Lord Carteret responded
that the proprietors preferred that his majesty, in the exercise of
his superior judgment, should determine what amount should be
granted. He added, in case the money advanced from the public
1 See An Historical Account of the Rise olina and Georgia, Vol. i. Ch. V. London.
and Progress of the Colonies of South Car- MDCCLXXIX.
SURRENDER BY THE LORDS PROPRIETORS. 81
treasury for the benefit of the colony was not repaid within a
reasonable time, his majesty would certainly have an equitable
right to take the government of Carolina under his immediate
protection. Within a short time a bill was introduced into the
House of Commons for the better regulation of the charters and
proprietary governments of his majesty's plantations in America.
Its chief object was to supplant them with royal governments.
Although it was apparent to those best capable of forming a val-
uable opinion on the subject that it was for the interest alike of
Crown and plantations that the mother country should, at the
earliest practicable moment, purchase these American colonies,
delay occurred. In Carolina matters grew from bad to worse.
There the disputes and conflicts between the Lords Proprietors
and the colonists continued to be so constant and of such a pro-
nounced character that all the proprietors, except Lord Carteret,
taking advantage of the provisions of an act of Parliament, sur-
rendered to the king not only their rights and interest in the
government of Carolina, but also their ownership of the soil.
The indenture of purchase and sale was executed on the 25th
of July in the third year of the reign of his majesty King
George II. The consideration paid amounted to £22,500. Thus,
for this small sum, were seven eighths of the extensive territory,
constituting the province of Carolina, sold by the Lords Proprie-
tors to the Crown. The other eighth interest was owned by Lord
Carteret, Baron of Hawnes. Subsequently, by deed dated the
28th of February, 1732, he conveyed to the trustees for establish-
ing the colony of Georgia in America the one undivided eighth
part of all lands lying between the Savannah and Alatamaha
rivers. The other seven eighths of this territory were ceded to
them by the Crown. With this explanation we understand why
in the charter granted by King George II., dated the 9th of June,
1782, royal cession was made of only seven eighths of the lands
to be erected into a province south of and entirely distinct from
Carolina, and to be called GEORGLA.
6
CHAPTER IV.
JAMES EDWARD OGLETHORPE. – ENGLISH PRISONs. – MISERIES of IN-
SOLVENT DEBTORS. — SCHEME FOR THE COLONIZATION OF GEORGIA. —
ROYAL CHARTER GRANTED TO OGLETHORPE AND HIS Associates. – ANAL-
YSIS OF THAT CHARTER.
THE scheme which culminated in planting a colony on the
right bank of the Savannah River, at Yamacraw Bluff, originated
with James Edward Oglethorpe, a member of the English House
of Commons, and “a gentleman of unblemished character, brave,
generous, and humane.” He was the third son of Sir Theoph-
ilus, and the family of Oglethorpe was ancient and of high re-
pute. It appears from the parish register of St. James’, West-
minster, that the Founder of the Colony of Georgia was born on
the 1st of June, 1689. At an early age a matriculate of Corpus
Christi College, Oxford, he soon quitted that seat of learning
for an active military life. A love of arms was with him a mat-
ter of inheritance, for his father had attained the rank of major-
general in the British service and held the office of first equerry
to James II.. who entrusted him with a command in the army
assembled to oppose the Prince of Orange." For a few years
he served abroad as a gentleman volunteer. As an illustration
of his self-possession, courage, and readiness, while still a youth,
to redress a personal affront, this anecdote, related by Boswell
in his “Life of Dr. Samuel Johnson,” ” may be accepted: “The
general told us that when he was a very young man, I think
only fifteen, serving under Prince Eugene of Savoy, he was sit-
ting in a company at table with a prince of Wirtemberg. The
prince took up a glass of wine and, by a fillip, made some of it
fly in Oglethorpe's face. Here was a nice dilemma. To have
challenged him instantly might have fixed a quarrelsome char-
acter upon the young soldier; to have taken no notice of it
might have been considered as cowardice. Oglethorpe there-
fore, keeping his eye upon the prince and smiling all the time
as if he took what his highness had done in jest, said, “ Mon
1 Wright's Memoir of Gen. James Ogle- 2 Vol. iii. pp. 217, 218. Murray's edi-
thorpe, p. 3. London. 1867. tion. London. MDCCCLI.
JAMES EDWARD OGLETHORPE. 83
Prince' (I forget the French words he used; the purport how-
ever was), ‘that 's a good joke, but we do it much better in
England,” and threw a whole glass of wine in the prince's face.
An old general, who sat by, said, “Il a bien fait, mon prince, vous
l'avez commencé, and thus all ended in good humour.”
Entering the English army as an ensign in 1710, he retained
that rank until peace was proclaimed in 1713. The following
year he became captain-lieutenant of the first troop of the queen's
life guards. Preferring active service abroad to an idle life at
home, he soon repaired to the Continent to perfect himself in the
art of war under the famous Prince Eugene of Savoy who, upon
the recommendation of John, Duke of Argyle, gave him an ap-
pointment upon his staff, first as secretary and afterwards as aid-
de-camp. It was a brave school, and his alertness, fidelity, and
fearlessness secured for him the good will, the confidence, and
the commendation of his illustrious commander. Upon the con-
clusion of the peace of 1718, he returned to England versed in
the principles of military science, accustomed to command, inured
to the shock of arms, instructed in the conduct of campaigns, the
management of sieges, and the orders of battle, and possessing a
reputation for manhood, executive ability, and warlike knowl-
edge not often acquired by one of his years.
His brother Theophilus dying, he succeeded to the family es-
tate at Westbrook. The tradition is still current in the neighbor-
hood that the Pretender was for some time secreted in the old
mansion, with its park of noble trees, overlooking the ancient
town of Godalming.
In October, 1722, he was elected a member for Haslemere in
the county of Surrey. This venerable borough and market-town
he continued to représent, through various changes of administra-
tion, for two and thirty years." Beginning his political career at
a time when the Jacobites were meditating the restoration of the
Stuarts, and a high Tory in principles, his parliamentary course,
from its inception, was independent and consistent. While evinc-
ing a loyal interest in all questions of general significancy, his
energies were mainly enlisted in proposing and Supporting meas-
ures for the benefit of commerce and the redress of grievances.
His sympathies were specially engaged for the relief of unfortu-
nate debtors, and his labors expended in the reformation of
abuses which then disgraced the conduct of prisons within the
realm. In this philanthropic mission, self-imposed, he became
* Wright's Memoir of General James Oglethorpe, p. 12. London. 1867.
84 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
most deeply interested. Sad indeed was then the lot of all who
found themselves unable to respond to their pecuniary obliga-
tions. Arrested and imprisoned at the instance of exacting cred-
itors, they were powerless to liberate themselves from the dis.
agreeabilities of a sponging-house or the greater horrors of a
Prison. The laws then contained no provisions for the relief of
honest debtors, – for a judicious discrimination between fraud
and misfortune. The hardships and barbarities inflicted upon
confined debtors by the warden of the fleet, the infamous and
extortionate Bambridge, by the butcher Acton, of the Marshalsea,
and by others, were such as to shock common humanity and cur-
dle the blood in all honest veins. In the long catalogue of bru-
talities which have scandalized the annals of civilized nations
few, if any, can be named more abhorrent than those which were
then perpetrated in English prisons. Among the maladministra-
tions of justice which have disgraced officers and imposed unlaw-
ful and grievous burthens upon the unfortunate, none can be
remembered more appalling than those which at this period char-
acterized the conduct of both judges and jailors within the pre-
cincts of the city of London. Once within prison walls, to the
confined, - be he Robert Castell, skilled in architecture and born
to competency, whose only offense was that in the pursuit of his
ingenious and liberal calling he incurred debts he was unable to
pay, or Captain John Macpheadris, a flourishing merchant, who
failed because he had become surety to the Crown for a friend,
or Sir William Rich, or Oliver Read, or the most infamous
thief, pirate, smuggler, or murderer, — Small-pox, fever, filth,
shackles, thumbscrews, iron skull-caps, and often death were
meted out without discrimination by keepers who, save in form,
bore no resemblance to humanity. The extortions practiced by
these wardens were incessant and monstrous. Their treatment
of the prisoners committed to their care was most inhuman. In-
solently did they batten upon the fears and the slender purses of
the immured, and their administration of the jails and sponging-
houses of London was a disgrace to humanity and a blot upon
civilization.
“No modern nation,” says Grahame,” “has ever enacted or
inflicted greater legal severities upon insolvent debtors than Eng-
land. That jealous regard for liberty and national honor, and
that generous and extended concern for the rights of human na-
ture which the English have always claimed as distinguishing
1 History of the United States of North America, vol. iii. p. 179. London. 1836.
OGLETHORPEPS PHILANTHROPY. 85
features of their character, had proved unable to withstand the
most sordid and inhuman suggestions of commercial ambition.
For the enlargement of their commerce they sanctioned the
atrocities of the slave-trade, and for the encouragement of that
ready credit by which commercial enterprise is promoted, they
armed the creditors of insolvent debtors with vindictive powers,
by the exercise of which free-born Englishmen, unconvicted of
crime, were frequently subjected, in the metropolis of Britain, to
a thraldom as vile and afflicting as the bondage of negro slaves
in the West Indies. So long was it before English sense and
humanity were fully awakened to the guilt and mischief of this
barbarous legal system, and its still more barbarous administra-
tion, that till a late period of the eighteenth century misfortunes
in trade exposed an Englishman to a punishment more dreadful
than the public feeling of England in the nineteenth century
would suffer to be inflicted on the most infamous and detestable
offenders.”
Mr. Oglethorpe, the philanthropist, — whose “strong benevo-
lence of soul” is eulogized by Pope, — was chairman of the com-
mittee raised by the House of Commons to visit the prisons, ex-
amine into the condition of the inmates, and suggest measures
of reform. In three reports did that committee, in commenting
upon the miserable national grievance, instance cases of suffer-
ing, injustice, and mismanagement, too painful and loathsome for
repetition. Oglethorpe's public-spirited and charitable design
prevailed, and measures were adopted for the punishment of the
offending wardens, the alleviation of the sufferings of the incar-
cerated, and the purification of the prisons.
The idea occurred to him, while engaged in this philanthropic
business, that not a few of these unfortunate individuals, con-
fined for debt, of respectable connections and guilty of no crime,
might be greatly benefited by compromising the claims held by
their creditors upon condition that they would consent to become
colonists in America. Thus would opportunity be afforded them
of retrieving their fortunes. Thus would England be relieved of
the shame and expense of their incarceration, and thus would
her dominion in the New World be confirmed. Let us not mis-
understand the project. Not the depraved who were suffering
confinement as a punishment for crime; not felons who awaited
the approach of darker days when graver sentences were to be
endured; not the dishonest, who hoped by submitting to tem-
porary imprisonment to weary out creditors and emerge with
86 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
fraudulently-acquired gains still concealed ; but the honestly un-
fortunate were to be the beneficiaries of this benevolent and pa-
triotic scheme. Those also in the United Kingdom who, through
want of Occupation and lack of means, were most exposed to the
liability of confinement for debt were to be influenced in behalf
of the contemplated colonization. It was believed that others,
possessing some means, who were energetic and ambitious of pre-
ferment, could be enlisted in aid of the enterprise.
The anxiety of the Carolinians for the establishment of a
plantation to the south which would serve as a shield against
the incursions of the Spaniards, the attacks of the Indians, and
the depredations of fugitive slaves; the memorial of Colonel
Purry, addressed to the Duke of Newcastle, advocating Swiss
colonization ; the scheme of Sir Robert Mountgomery for the
foundation of the Margravate of Azilia and the attraction of
Scotch emigration, and suggestions of a similar character, while
they drew Oglethorpe's attention to the lands lying between the
Savannah and the Alatamaha rivers as a suitable territory for
the location of his purposed colony, also warned him of funda-
mental errors to be avoided in his plan of settlement. The idea
grew upon him until his scheme, expanding, embraced within its
benevolent designs not only the unfortunate of Great Britain, but
the persecuted and oppressed Protestants of Europe. Charity
for and relief of human distress were to be inscribed upon the
foundations of the dwellings he proposed to erect amid the South-
ern forests. Their walls were to be advanced bulwarks for the
protection of the Carolina plantations, and their aspiring roofs
were to proclaim the enlarged honor and dominion of the British
nation. With Oglethorpe, in this whole affair, there lingered
no hope of personal gain, no ambition of a sordid character, no
secret reservation of private benefit. His entire project was
open, disinterested, charitable, loyal, and patriotic. Thus was it
recognized by all. Such was its distinguishing peculiarity, and
Mr. Southey did but echo the general sentiment when he af.
firmed that no colony was ever established upon principles more
honorable to its projectors.
As the accomplishment of his purpose demanded a larger ex-
penditure than his means justified, and as the administration of
the affairs of the plantation would involve “a broader basis of
managing power” than a single individual could well maintain,
Oglethorpe sought and obtained the coöperation of wealthy and
influential personages in the development of his beneficent enter-
prise.
CHARTER OF THE COLONY OF GEORGIA. 87
In order that proper authority and royal sanction might be
secured, in association with Lord Percival and other noblemen
and gentlemen of repute, he addressed a memorial to the Privy
Council in which, among other things, it was stated that the
cities of London and Westminster and the parts adjacent thereto
abounded with indigent persons, so reduced in circumstances as
to become burdensome to the public, who would willingly seek a
livelihood in any of his majesty's plantations in America if they
were provided with transportation and the means of settling
there. The petitioners engaged in behalf of themselves and their
associates to take charge of the colonization and to erect the
plantation into a proprietary government, if the Crown would be
pleased to grant them lands lying south of the Savannah River,
empower them to receive and administer all contributions and
benefactions which they might influence in encouragement of so
good a design, and clothe them with authority suitable for the
enforcement of law and order within the limits of the province.
After the usual reference, this petition received a favorable re-
port, and by his majesty's direction a charter was prepared, which
received the royal sanction on the 9th of June, 1782.
The features, grants, and privileges of this charter may be
thus epitomized : —
As inducements to this exercise of his royal prerogatives, his
majesty King George II. declares he has been credibly informed
that many of his poor subjects, through misfortune or want of
employment being unable to provide a maintenance for them-
selves and families, would, if the charges of passage and the ex-
penses incident to new settlements were defrayed, be glad to
settle in the American provinces where, by cultivating lands at
present waste and desolate, they could not only gain a comfort-
able subsistence for themselves and families, but also strengthen
the colonies and increase the trade, navigation, and wealth of the
British nation. -
Alluding to the fact that his provinces in North America had
been frequently ravaged by Indian enemies; that South Caro-
lina in a late war had been devastated by the fire and sword of
neighboring savages and a great number of the inhabitants mas-
sacred; that his subjects still resident therein were exposed to
like calamities by reason of the fewness of their numbers and
from the circumstance that the entire southern frontier of that
province remained unsettled and open to the inroads of the In-
dians; deeming it highly necessary that protection should be
88 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
afforded; believing that the establishment of a colony in the
southern territory would materially conduce to the safety of Car-
olina and the relief of her inhabitants; and being well assured,
if the Crown would be graciously pleased to erect and settle a
corporation for receiving, managing, and disposing of the contri-
butions of loving subjects, that various persons would assist in
the enterprise, his majesty willed, ordained, constituted, declared,
and granted, “that our right trusty, and well beloved John, Lord
Viscount Percival of our Kingdom of Ireland, our trusty and well-
beloved Edward Digby, George Carpenter, James Oglethorpe,
George Heathcote, Thomas Tower, Robert Moor, Robert Hucks,
Roger Holland, William Sloper, Francis Eyles, John Laroche,
James Vernon, William Beletha, Esqrs, A. M., John Burton,
B. D., Richard Bundy, A. M., Arthur Beaford, A. M., Samuel
Smith, A. M., Adam Anderson, and Thomas Coram, gentlemen,
and such other persons as shall be elected in the manner herein-
after mentioned, and their successors to be elected in the man-
ner hereinafter directed, shall be one body politic and corporate
in deed and in name, by the name of The Trustees for establish-
ing the Colony of Georgia in America.”
The corporation, thus constituted, was vested with perpetual
succession, and declared capable in law of purchasing, receiving,
and enjoying in fee all lands, hereditaments, and franchises
which it might acquire, and all personal property requisite for
settling and maintaining the colony. Powers of gift, grant,
lease, and demise were conferred. The right to sue and be
sued, to have and use a common seal, to appoint a common coun-
cil of the corporation, and to hold meetings from time to time
and at such place or places as might be deemed convenient for
the transaction of the business of the corporation, was fully ac-
corded. The third Thursday in March in each year was desig-
nated for the election of members of the corporation and for
filling any vacancies which might occur in the organization.
All persons elected members of the common council, before en-
tering upon their office, were required to take an oath for the
due and faithful execution of the duties appertaining to the Posi.
tion. This oath the president was to administer.
Lord John, Viscount Percival, was designated as the first presi-
dent of the corporation, and it was made his duty, within thirty
days after the grant of the charter, to convene the corporators that
they might perfect their organization and enter upon the impor-
tant business which lay before them. It was further declared as
PROVISIONS OF THE CHARTER, 89
the king's will that the common council of the corporation should
consist of fifteen members. In the charter John, Lord Viscount
Percival, Edward Digby, George Carpenter, James Oglethorpe,
George Heathcote, Thomas Laroche, James Vernon, William
Beletha, Esqrs., and Stephen Hales, Master of Arts, were ap-
pointed and constituted the common council of the corporation, to
continue in office during good behavior.
An increase, by election, of the number of the corporators be-
ing contemplated, provision was made for adding nine additional
members to the common council, and Edward Digby was selected
as its first chairman. Careful provision was made for rotation in
the office both of president of the corporation and of chairman
of the common council. These officers, at all meetings, were de-
clared competent to vote and to participate in the deliberations.
Both the president of the corporation and the chairman of the
common council were expressly forbidden to receive either directly
or indirectly any salary, fee, perquisite, benefit, or profit whatsoever
by virtue of office or membership. Before entering upon the dis-
charge of the duties appertaining to his office the president of the
corporation was required to take an oath, to be administered by
the Chief Baron of the Exchequer, for the due and faithful exe-
cution of the trust devolved upon him. A like oath was to be
administered by the president, when inducted into office, to each
member of the corporation. Every member was declared inca-
pable of holding any position of profit within the gift of the cor-
poration.
Permission was granted to solicit and receive subscriptions, and
to appoint agents to collect moneys and gifts in aid of the enter-
prise.
It was made the duty of the corporation to submit annually, in
writing, to the Chancellor or Speaker, or commissioners for the
custody of the Great Seal of Great Britain, the Chief Justice of
the Court of King's Bench, the Master of the Rolls, the Chief
Justice of the Court of Common Pleas, and the Chief Baron of
the Exchequer, or any two of them, an account of all moneys and
effects received and expended in behalf of the colony. The corpo-
ration was invested with ample power to frame and ordain such
constitutions, by-laws, orders, and ordinances, to prescribe and
impose such reasonable pains and penalties for infractions, and
to establish such methods for their enforcement and collection as
were not repugnant to the statutes and laws of the realm. The
grant of territory was made in the following terms: —
90 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
“And whereas the said corporation intend to settle a colony
and to make a habitation and plantation in that part of our
province of South Carolina, in America, hereinafter described:
Know ye that we, greatly desiring the happy success of the said
corporation, for their further encouragement in accomplishing so
excellent a work have, of our aforesaid grace, certain knowledge,
and mere motion, given and granted, and by these presents, for
us, our heirs and successors, do give and grant to the said cor-
poration and their successors under the reservation, limitation,
and declaration hereafter expressed, seven undivided parts, the
whole in eight equal parts to be divided, of all those lands, coun-
tries, and territories situate, lying, and being in that part of
South Carolina, in America, which lies from the most northern
part of a stream or river there commonly called the Savannah,
all along the sea coast to the southward, unto the most southern
stream of a certain other great water or river called the Alata-
maha, and westerly from the heads of the said rivers respectively
in direct lines to the South Seas: and all that share, circuit,
and precinct of land within the said boundaries, with the islands
on the sea lying opposite to the eastern coast of the said lands,
within twenty leagues of the same, which are not inhabited al-
ready or settled by any authority derived from the Crown of
Great Britain, together with all the soils, grounds, havens, ports,
gulfs, and bays, mines, as well royal mines of gold and silver as
other minerals, precious stones, quarries, woods, rivers, waters,
fishings, as well royal fishings of whale and sturgeon, as other
fishings, pearls, commodities, jurisdictions, royalties, franchises,
privileges, and prečminences within the said frontiers and pre-
cincts thereof, and thereunto in any sort belonging or appertain-
ing, and which we by our letters patent may or can grant ; and
in as ample manner and sort as we may, or any our royal pro-
genitors have hitherto granted to any company, body politic or
corporate, or to any adventurer or adventurers, undertaker or
undertakers of any discoveries, plantations, or traffic of, in, or
unto any foreign parts whatsoever, and in as legal and ample
manner as if the same were herein particularly mentioned and
expressed : To have, hold, possess and enjoy the said seven undi-
‘vided parts, the whole into eight equal parts to be divided as
aforesaid, of all and singular the lands, countries, and territories,
1 We have already seen that the re- purchase from Lord Carteret, Baron of
maining undivided eighth part of this ter- Hawnes.
ritory was acquired by the trustees by
PROVISIONS OF THE CHARTER, 91
with all and singular other the premises hereinbefore by these
presents granted or mentioned, or intended to be granted, to
them the said corporation and their successors forever, for the
better support of the said Colony; to be holden of us, our heirs
and successors, as of our honour of Hampton Court, in our County
of Middlesex, in free and common socage, and not in capite ;
yielding and paying therefor to us, our heirs and successors,
yearly forever, the sum of four shillings for every hundred acres
of the said lands which the said corporation shall grant, demise,
plant, or settle ; the said payment not to commence or to be
made until ten years after such grant, demise, planting, or set-
tling, and to be answered and paid to us, our heirs and succes-
sors, in such manner, and in such species of money or notes as
shall be current in payment by proclamation from time to time
in our said province of South Carolina : all which lands, coun-
tries, territories, and premises hereby granted, or mentioned, and
intended to be granted, we do by these presents make, erect,
and create one independent and separate province by the name
of GEORGIA, by which name we will that the same shall hence-
forth be called; and that all and every person or persons who
shall at any time hereafter inhabit or reside within our said
province shall be, and they hereby are declared to be free, and
shall not be subject to, or be bound to obey any laws, orders,
statutes, or constitutions which have been heretofore made, or-
dered, and enacted, or which hereafter shall be made, ordered,
or enacted by, for, or as the laws, orders, statutes, or constitu-
tions of our said province of South Carolina (save and except
only the command in chief of the militia of our said province of
Georgia to our governor, for the time being, of South Carolina,
in manner hereafter declared), but shall be subject to and bound
to obey such laws, orders, statutes and constitutions as shall from
time to time be made, ordered, and enacted for the better gov-
ernment of the said province of Georgia in the manner herein-
after declared. And we do hereby, for us, our heirs and suc-
cessors, ordain, will, and establish that for and during the term
of twenty-one years, to commence from the date of these our let-
ters patent, the said corporation assembled for that purpose shall
and may form and prepare laws, statutes, and ordinances fit and
necessary for and concerning the government of the said colony,
and not repugnant to the laws and statutes of England, and the
same shall and may present, under their common seal, to us, our
heirs and successors, in our or their Privy Council for our or their
92 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
approbation or disallowance: and the said laws, Statutes, and
ordinances being approved of by us, our heirs and Successors,
in our or their Privy Council, shall from thenceforth be in full
force and virtue within our said province of Georgia.”
In order to obviate the inconvenience of assembling all the
members of the corporation for the transaction of the ordinary
affairs of the colony, power was lodged with the common councii,
or a majority of them, to receive and disburse the moneys and
effects of the corporation in furtherance of the enterprise; to
use the common seal in the execution of necessary covenants or
contracts; to nominate and appoint a treasurer, secretary, and
such other officers, ministers, and servants as might be adjudged
requisite, and the same to remove at pleasure ; to fix salaries,
perquisites, and other rewards; and to administer oaths for the
faithful discharge of the duties devolved upon such officers, min-
isters, and servants. The secretary and treasurer, during their
tenure of office, were declared incapable of becoming members of
the corporation.
Upon the corporation, its officers and agents, was conferred the
privilege of transporting and conveying out of the limits of the
United Kingdom, or from any of the British dominions into the
province of Georgia for settlement there, as many subjects of the
Crown as should be willing to go, and also such foreigners as
should consent to there abide under the allegiance of the English
Crown. Permission was granted to carry into the province such
munitions of war as were requisite for its defense, and such
clothing, implements, furniture, victuals, merchandise, cattle,
horses, and wares as were needed by the colonists for their own
use or for traffic with the natives. The faith of the general gov-
ernment was pledged to the doctrine that all persons born within
the province, and their descendants, should enjoy all the liberties,
franchises, and immunities of free denizens and natural-born sub-
jects of Great Britain as fully as if born and abiding within the
kingdom of England.
In the worship of God liberty of conscience was to be univer-
sally allowed. To all, except Papists, was accorded a free exer-
cise of religion, provided its ministrations and enjoyment were
peaceable and caused no offense or scandal to the government.
In regard to alienation of land by the corporation, the charter
contains the following provisions and limitations: “And our
further will and pleasure is, and we do hereby for us, our heirs
and successors, declare and grant that it shall and may be lawful
PROVISIONS OF THE CHARTER. 93
for the said common council, or the major part of them assembled
for that purpose, in the name of the corporation and under the
common seal to distribute, convey, assign, and set over such par-
ticular portions of lands, tenements, and hereditaments by these
presents granted to the said corporation, unto such of our loving
subjects, natural born or denizens, or others that shall be willing
to become our subjects and live under our allegiance in the said
colony, upon such terms and for such estates, and upon such
rents, reservations, and conditions as the same may be lawfully
granted, and as to the said common council, or the major part of
them so present, shall seem fit and proper. Provided always,
that no grants shall be made of any parts of the said lands unto
any person being a member of the said corporation, or to any
other person in trust for the benefit of any member of the said
corporation; and that no person having any estate or interest in
law or equity in any part of the said lands shall be capable of
being a member of the said corporation during the continuance
of such estate or interest. Provided also, that no greater quan-
tity of lands be granted, either entirely or in parcels, to or for the
use or in trust for any one person, than five hundred acres ; and
that all grants made contrary to the true intent and meaning
hereof shall be absolutely null and void.”
The corporation was invested with the right to appoint suit-
able persons to administer the oaths prescribed by act of Parlia-
ment passed in the first year of the reign of King George I., - to
be taken instead of oaths of allegiance and supremacy, — also
oaths of objurgation to persons residing in the colony, and
solemn affirmations to Quakers as authorized by the laws of the
realm. It was further ordained that the corporation and its
successors should have full power and authority for and during
the term of twenty-one years next ensuing the date of the letters
patent to erect and constitute courts of record and other courts
for “hearing and determining all manner of crimes, offenses,
pleas, processes, plaints, actions, matters, causes, and things what-
soever arising or happening within the said province of Georgia,
or between persons of Georgia, whether the same be criminal or
civil, and whether the said crimes be capital or not capital, and
whether the said pleas be real, personal, or mixed, and for award-
ing and making out executions thereupon.”
All leases, grants, plantings, conveyances, settlements, and im-
provements of any lands, tenements, and hereditaments within
the limits of the colony made by or in the name of the corpora-
94 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
tion, or memorials containing the substance thereof, were to be
registered with the auditor of plantations within one year from
the respective dates thereof; otherwise they were to be held
void.
Annually an account of such conveyances was to be trans-
mitted to the auditor of plantations for the time being, or to
his deputy, and to the surveyor, for the time being, of South
Carolina ; both of whom had the power of inspection and verifi-
cation by resurvey so as to ascertain the quit rents due to the
Crown. 4A
From time to time statements showing the progress of the col-
ony were to be rendered to the principal secretaries of state and
to the Commissioners of Trade and Plantations.
Eight members of the common council were declared a legal
quorum for the transaction of business, and the common council
was authorized to nominate, appoint, and commission such gover-
nors, judges, magistrates, ministers, and officers, civil, military,
and naval, as they might deem fit and needful for the govern-
ment of the province. The Crown, however, reserved to itself
the right of selecting all officers for the management and collec-
tion of revenues due from the colony to the general government.
It was further stipulated that the colonial governor before enter-
ing upon his office should be approved of by the Crown, that he
should take such oaths and qualify himself in such manner as
were required of the governors and commanders-in-chief of the
other colonies in America, and that he should give approved
security for observing the several acts of Parliament relating to
trade and navigation, and for obeying all instructions which
should be issued to him by the home government.
The corporation and its successors, during the twenty-one years
sequent upon the grant of the charter, were empowered, through
officers by them from time to time appointed, to train, instruct,
exercise, and govern a militia for the special defense of the
colony; to assemble in martial array, upon an emergency, all the
inhabitants capable of bearing arms, to repulse as well on land
as at sea any enemy either within or without the confines of the
province, and in all fitting ways and enterprises to slay and con-
quer any who in a hostile manner might attempt the invasion,
detriment, annoyance, or destruction of the plantation. Martial
law might be proclaimed in seasons of actual hostilities, invasion,
or of rebellion.
The duty of erecting forts and of fortifying towns, of supplying
PROVISIONS OF THE CHARTER. 95
them with ordnance and ammunition, and of garrisoning them,
was also imposed upon the corporation which stood charged alike
with the maintenance of good order within the confines of the
ceded territory and with the protection of its coast and boundaries
from the incursions of marauders, pirates, Savages, and enemies.
The governor of South Carolina was named as the commander-
in-chief of the militia of Georgia. All orders issued by him were
to be respected.
Free importation and exportation of goods and products were
authorized. Vessels conveying them were not compelled to first
touch at a Carolina port.
Upon the expiration of the term of twenty-one years specified
in the charter, it was provided that such form of government
would then be adopted and such laws promulgated for the regula-
tion of the colony and the observance of its inhabitants as the
Crown should ordain. Thereafter the governor of the province,
and all its officers, civil and military, were to be nominated and
commissioned by the home government.
These letters patent conclude with a royal promise that they
would be upheld according to their true intent and meaning;
and that they would be construed in all courts and elsewhere in
a sense most favorable, beneficial, and advantageous to the corpo-
ration and its successors.
CHAPTER W.
ACCEPTANCE OF THE CHARTER BY THE CORPORATORs. – THEIR ORGANIZA-
TION PERFECTED. —THE CORPORATE SEAL. — SUBSCRIPTIONS SoLICITED. —
THE SCHEME OF COLONIZATION As UNFOLDED BY THE TRUSTEEs. – OGLE-
THORPE’s APPEAL TO THE PUBLIC. — MARTYN's REASONS FOR ESTABLISH-
ING THE COLONY OF GEORGIA.
THE projected colony was called GEORGIA in honor of the
reigning monarch of England, who had graciously sanctioned a
charter so liberal in its provisions, and granted a territory so
extensive and valuable for the encouragement of the plantation.
Compared with other instruments of like character, it will be
freely admitted that these letters patent embrace all that could
have been asked from the Crown, that in their scope they are
generous and comprehensive, and that they contain unusual
pledges of a charitable and disinterested nature on the part of
those who sought the concession and were charged with the exe-
cution of the enterprise.
In July, 1732, the corporators convened for a formal accept-
ance of the charter, and to perfect an organization under its
provisions. The letters patent having been read, the right hon-
orable Lord Viscount Percival exhibited a certificate from the
Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer, by which it appeared that he
had qualified himself as president of the corporation and taken
the oath for the faithful observance of the trust. He then ad-
ministered the oath of office to such of the trustees as were
present. Frequent meetings were held for the transaction of
business connected with the rapid and orderly development of
the scheme of colonization. The Bank of England was desig-
nated as financial agent and custodian of all moneys which might
be contributed in aid of the colony. Benjamin Martyn was
elected secretary, and the following gentlemen formed the com-
mon council: the right honorable Anthony, Earl of Shaftsbury;
the right honorable John, Lord Viscount Percival ; the right
honorable John, Lord Viscount Tyrconnel; the right honorable
James, Lord Viscount Limerick; the right honorable George,
Lord Carpenter; the honorable Edward Digby, Esq., James Ogle-
THE CORPORATE SEAL. 97
thorpe, Esq., George Heathcote, Esq., Thomas Tower, Esq.,
Robert Moore, Esq., Robert Hucks, Esq., Rogers Holland, Esq.,
William Sloper, Esq., Francis Eyles, Esq., John Laroche, Esq.,
James Vernon, Esq., Stephen Hales, A. M., Richard Chandler,
Esq., Thomas Frederick, Esq., Henry L’Apostre, Esq., William
Heathcote, Esq., John White, Esq., Robert Kendal, Esq., alder-
man, and Richard Bundy, D. D."
The corporate seal adopted had two faces. That for the au-
thentication of legislative acts, deeds, and commissions contained
this device : two figures resting upon urns, from which flowed
streams typifying the rivers forming the northern and southern
boundaries of the province. In their hands were spades, suggest-
ing agriculture as the chief employment of the settlers. Above
and in the centre was seated the genius of the colony, a spear in
her right hand, the left placed upon a cornucopia, and a liberty
cap upon her head. Behind, upon a gentle eminence, stood a tree,
and above was engraven this legend: COLONIA GEORGIA AUG.
On the other face — which formed the common seal to be affixed
to grants, orders, and certificates — were seen silk-worms in the
various stages of their labor, and the appropriate motto NON
SIBI SED ALIIS. This inscription not only proclaimed the dis-
interested motives and intentions of the trustees, but suggested
that the production of silk was to be reckoned among the most
profitable employments of the colonists.
Aware of the fact that the mulberry-tree was indigenous to
Georgia, and informed that the climate was favorable to the
silk-worm, the trustees were encouraged by Sir Thomas Lombe
to believe that raw silk of a superior quality could be readily pro-
duced in the province, and that thus vast sums, which were an-
nually expended in the purchase of foreign silks, might be saved
to the nati Oglethorpe was firmly persuaded that England
could thus b \ most materially benefited, and the trustees re-
solved to enga e persons in Italy, acquainted with the method of
feeding the Woºls and winding the threads from the cocoons, to
accompany the first settlers and instruct them in the various
necessary processes.”
That the public might be intelligently advised of the benev-
olent character and scope of the undertaking, and rest assured

1 Reasons for Establish% the Colony * See Wright's Memoir of Gen. James
of Georgia, with Regard to the Trade Oglethorpe, p. 52. London. 1867.
of Great Britain, etc., p. 3, London.
MDCCXXXIII. *A \
7 \
\
\
98 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
that any pecuniary assistance rendered would be faithfully ap-
plied, a commission of leading citizens was organized to solicit
subscriptions. To prevent any misappropriation of funds a special
account was opened with the Bank of England, where a register
Was kept of the names of all benefactors and the amounts of
their several donations. The trustees contributed generously of
their private means. Liberal responses were received from in-
dividuals and public institutions; and, as an honorable indorse-
ment of the scheme and of its managers, Parliament donated the
sum of £10,000. So charitable was the design, so unselfish the
attitude of the trustees, and so manifest were the benefits which
might reasonably be expected from a proper administration of the
trust that the great heart of the nation beat in sympathy with
the project. Even the pulpit raised its voice in commendation
of the proposal.
In an account of their designs, addressed to the public, the
trustees, after explaining the need for funds not only to defray
the passage of the colonists, but also to support them while en-
gaged in a new and unsubdued region in felling trees, building
houses, fortifying settlements, and tilling the land preparatory to
the first harvest, declare their intention “to relieve such unfor-
tunate persons as cannot subsist here, and establish them in an
Orderly manner so as to form a well-regulated town. As far as
their fund goes, they will defray the charges of their passage to
Georgia; give them necessaries, land, and subsistence till such
time as they can build their houses and clear some of their land.
They rely for success first on the goodness of Providence, next
on the compassionate disposition of the people of England ; and
they doubt not that much will be spared from luxury and su-
perfluous expenses, by generous tempers, when such an opportu-
nity is offered them by the giving of £20 to proy &e for a man
or woman, or £10 to a child, forever.
“In order to prevent the benefaction given this purpose
from ever being misapplied, and to keep up, aſ / far as human
precaution can, a spirit of disinterestedness, the Trustees have
established the following method : That each) benefactor may
know what he has contributed is safely lodged and justly ac-
counted for, all money given will be deposited in the Bank of
England and entries made of every benefaction in a book to be
kept for that purpose by the Trustees; Af, if concealed, the
names of those by whose hands they sent sheir money. There
are to be annual accounts of all the mºney received, and how
/
/
DESIGNS OF THE TRUSTEES. 99
the same has been disposed of, laid before the Lord High Chan-
cellor, the Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench, the Master
of the Rolls, the Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas, and
the Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer, or two of them, and
copies of these will be transmitted to every considerable bene-
factor.
“By such a Colony many families, who would otherwise starve,
will be provided for, and made masters of houses and lands; the
people in Great Britain to whom these necessitous families were
a burthen, will be relieved ; numbers of manufacturers will be
here employed for supplying them with clothes, working tools,
and other necessaries; and by giving refuge to the distressed
Saltzburghers and other persecuted Protestants, the power of
Britain, as a reward for its hospitality, will be increased by the
addition of so many religious and industrious subjects.
“The Colony of Georgia lying in about the same latitude with
part of China, Persia, Palestine, and the Madeiras, it is highly
probable that when hereafter it shall be well-peopled and rightly
cultivated, England may be supplied from thence with raw silk,
wine, oil, dyes, drugs, and many other materials for manufac-
tures which she is obliged to purchase from southern countries.
As towns are established and grow populous along the rivers
Savannah and Alatamaha, they will make such a barrier as will
render the southern frontier of the British Colonies on the Con-
tinent of America safe from Indian and other enemies.”
This account discusses also the benefit which will accrue to
home manufacturers by an increased supply of the crude ma-
terial at reduced prices. It declares that by the execution of
their designs the trustees will be instrumental in the conversion
of the Indians, and in the reformation, perhaps, of some of the
colonists, who will be encouraged to lead sober, industrious, and
religious lives. After contemplating with satisfaction the prob-
ability that the colonization of Georgia would prove more speedy
and successful than the settlement of the other plantations in
America, and after expressing the hope that the province would
soon be able to take care of itself in a pecuniary point of view,
the address concludes with the following appeal: “There is an
occasion now offered for every one to help forward this design ;
the smallest benefaction will be received and applied with the
utmost care : every little will do something ; and a great num-
ber of small benefactions will amount to a sum capable of doing
a great deal of good.”
100 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
:
gº Oglethorpe, ever on the alert, not only intervened by personal
influence, spoken argument, and private contribution, but pre-
pared and circulated a carefully considered tract 1 by which he
anonymously, yet none the less earnestly, sought to enlighten
the public mind in regard to the colony, the nature and situation
of its lands, and the benefits which would inure to England from
its successful foundation.
Upon the temperature, climate, and natural products of the
region he dwells with genuine rapture, concluding this part of
his description with Waller's account of the delights experienced
on an island in the neighborhood of Carolina: —
“The lofty Cedar which to Heav'n aspires,
The prince of trees, is fuel for their fires.
The sweet Palmettoes a new Bacchus yield,
With leaves as ample as the broadest shield,
Under the shadow of whose friendly boughs
They sit carousing where their liquor grows.
Figs there unplanted thro’ the fields do grow
Such as fierce Cato did the Romans show:
With the rare fruit inviting them to spoil
Carthage, the mistress of so rich a soil.
With candid Plantines and the Juicy Pine,
On choicest Melons and sweet Grapes they dine, :
And with Potatoes fat their lusty swine.
— The kind spring which but salutes us here
Inhabits there and courts them all the year.
Ripe fruits and blossoms on the same trees live,
At once they promise, what at once they give.
So sweet the air, so moderate the clime,
None sickly lives, or dies before his time.
Heav'n sure has kept this spot of earth uncurs’t,
To show how all things were created first.”
Of the health of the country he speaks in unqualified praise.
In proof of the longevity of the natives, he cites the case of one
of the Florida kings, mentioned by Purchas, who, three hundred
years old, had a father, then living, fifty years older than him-
self.
Maintaining the proposition that persons reduced to poverty
at home, detracting from the wealth of the nation and impair-
ing its prosperity, would be greatly benefited by a removal to
the new settlement, he writes thus: “Let us in the mean time
cast our eyes on the multitude of unfortunate people in the king-
dom, of reputable families, and of liberal or, at least, easy educa-
tion ; some undone by guardians, some by lawsuits, some by ac-
1 A New and Accurate Account of the Provinces of South Carolina and Georgia, etc.
London. 1732.
OGLETHORPE'S COMMENDATIONS. 101
cidents in commerce, some by stocks and bubbles, and some by
Suretyship. But all agree in this one circumstance that they
must either be burthensome to their relations or betake them-
selves to little shifts for sustenance which ('tis ten to one) do not
answer their purposes, and to which a well-educated mind de-
scends with the utmost constraint. What various misfortunes
may reduce the rich, the industrious, to the danger of a prison,
to a moral certainty of starving ! These are the people that may
relieve themselves and strengthen Georgia by resorting thither,
and Great Britain by their departure. I appeal to the recollec-
tion of the reader (tho’ he be opulent, tho’ he be noble) does not
his own sphere of acquaintance (I may venture to ask), does not
even his own blood, his set of near relations furnish him with
some instances of such persons as have been here described 2
Must they starve 2 What honest mind can bear to think it 2
Must they be fed by the contributions of others? Certainly
they must, rather than be suffered to perish. Are these wealth
to the nation ? Are they not a burthen to themselves, a burthen
to their kindred and acquaintance, a burthen to the whole com-
munity ?
“I have heard it said (and 'tis easy to say so) let them learn
to Work: let them subdue their pride and descend to mean em-
ployments, keep ale-houses, or coffee-houses, even sell fruit, or
clean shoes for an honest livelihood. But alas ! these occupa-
tions, and many more like them, are overstocked already by peo-
ple who know better how to follow them than do they whom we
have been talking of. Half of those who are bred in low life
and Well versed in such shifts and expedients, find but a very
narrow maintenance by them. As for labouring, I could almost
wish that the gentleman or merchant who thinks that another
gentleman or merchant in want can thresh or dig to the value
of subsistence for his family or even for himself, I say I could
wish the person who thinks so were obliged to make trial of it
for a week, or (not to be too severe) for only a day. He would
find himself to be less than the fourth part of a labourer, and
that the fourth part of a labourer’s Wages could not main-
tain him. I have heard it said that a man may learn to labour
by practise; 'tis admitted. But it must also be admitted that
before he can learn he may starve. Suppose a gentleman
were this day to begin, and with grievous toil found himself able
to earn three pence, how many days or months are necessary to
form him that he may deserve a shilling per diem 2 Men whose
102 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Wants are importunate must try such experiments as will give
immediate relief. 'Tis too late for them to begin to learn a trade
When their pressing necessities call for the exercise of it.
“Having thus described (I fear too truly) the pitiable condition
of the better sort of the indigent, an objection rises against
their removal upon what is stated of their imbecility for drudg-
ery. It may be asked if they can’t get bread here for their
labour, how will their condition be mended in Georgia 2 The
answer is easy. Part of it is well attested, and part self evident.
They have land there for nothing, and that land is so fertile that
(as is said before) they receive an hundred-fold increase for tak-
ing very little pains.
“Give here in England ten acres of good land to one of these
helpless persons and I doubt not his ability to make it sustain
him, and this by his own culture without letting it to another.
But the difference between no rent and rack-rent is the difference
between eating and starving. If I make but twenty pound of
the produce of a field, and am to pay twenty pound for it, 'tis
plain I must perish if I have not another fund to support me.
But if I pay no rent the produce of that field will supply the
mere necessities of life.
“With a view to the relief of people in the condition I have de-
scribed, his majesty has this present year incorporated a consid-
erable number of persons of quality and distinction and vested a
large tract of South Carolina in them, by the name of Georgia,
in trust to be distributed among the necessitous. These trustees
not only give land to the unhappy who go thither, but are also
impowered to receive the voluntary contributions of charitable
persons to enable them to furnish the poor adventurers with all
necessaries for the expense of the voyage, occupying the land, and
supporting them till they find themselves comfortably settled. So
that now the unfortunate will not be obliged to bind themselves
to a long servitude to pay for their passage, for they may be car-
ried gratis into a land of liberty and plenty where they imme-
diately find themselves in possession of a competent estate, in a
happier climate than they knew before, and they are unfortunate
indeed if here they can’t forget their sorrows.”
In this practical, cogent manner did Oglethorpe appeal to the
impoverished, and seek to influence the better class of the un-
fortunate in England to become friends of and participators in
the proposed colonization.
Then addressing himself to a consideration of the question of
MARTYN'S REASONS. 103
emigration from a political and economical point of view, he
demonstrates very clearly that many who at home were not only
unable to earn a subsistence, but were a positive incubus upon
the fortunes and industry of others, yielding no taxes or revenues
to the government, might, in the new province of Georgia, under
the charitable administration of the trustees, maintain them-
selves in comfort, enrich the mother county by the products of
their labor, and extend the dominion of the realm.
Alluding to the condition of the Salzburgers, martyrs in the
cause of truth and conscience, and gratefully acknowledging the
sympathy and valuable coöperation of the Society for the Propa-
gation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, he sees, in the accession
of colonists from this source, the advancement of Christianity,
the rapid conversion of the natives, relief from religious persecu-
tion, and sure increase of the wealth and trade of Great Britain.
“Subjects thus acquired,” says he, “by the impolitic persecu-
tions, by the superstitious barbarities of neighboring princes, are
a noble addition to the capital stock of the British Empire.”
The tract concludes with an encouraging view of the advan-
tages which would accrue to the commerce and wealth of Eng-
land from the production of silk, rice, cotton, wine, lumber, and
other articles of trade and consumption.
The designs of the trustees were further unfolded in a publi-
cation made by Benjamin Martyn, secretary of the Board, en-
titled “Reasons for Establishing the Colony of Georgia with
Regard to the Trade of Great Britain,” etc., a contribution of
no little merit and importance. In this work the profits to be
realized from silk production in Georgia are carefully considered,
and the expectations of the trustees are confirmed by a letter
from Sir Thomas Lombe, the inventor of silk-throwing machin-
ery of curious and intricate structure, in which he declares that
the silk, raised in Carolina, possesses as much natural strength
and beauty as the silk of Italy, and ventures the opinion that its
culture in Georgia would be attended with success if proper
measures were adopted for the instruction and encouragement of
those who were to be employed about it. Looking eagerly to
the development of this industry, the trustees, at the outset, pro-
cured from Italy a sufficient quantity of silk-worm eggs, and en-
gaged the services of competent Piedmontese to accompany the
colonists and acquaint them with all necessary information on
the subject. We will hereafter learn that in the development of
1 London. MDCCXXXIII.
104 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
their plans the trustees established formal rules for the propaga.
tion of white mulberry trees.
Having discussed at considerable length the benefits which
might be confidently anticipated from a trade in indigo, cochi.
neal, olives, dyeing-woods, medicinal herbs, wine, flax, corn, and
other products, and having reviewed the advantages which would
accrue to England upon the establishment and development of
Georgia as a home for the unfortunate, the oppressed, and the
enterprising, Martyn concludes with this appeal to the charity
and patriotism of the nation : —
“As the Mind of Man cannot form a more exalted Pleasure
than what arises from the Reflexion of having relieved the Dis-
tressed; let the Man of Benevolence, whose Substance enables
him to contribute towards this Undertaking, give a Loose for a
little to his Imagination, pass over a few Years of his Life, and
think himself in a Visit to Georgia. Let-him see those, who are
now a Prey to all the Calamities of Want, who are starving with
Hunger, and seeing their Wives and Children in the same Dis-
tress; expecting likewise every Moment to be thrown into a
Dungeon, with the cutting Anguish that they leave their Fami-
lies expos'd to the utmost Necessity and Despair: Let him, I
say, see these living under a sober and orderly Government, set-
tled in Towns, which are rising at Distances along navigable
Rivers; Flocks and Herds in the neighbouring Pastures, and
adjoining to them Plantations of regular Rows of Mulberry-
Trees entwin’d with Vines, the Branches of which are loaded
with Grapes; let him see Orchards of Oranges, Pomegranates,
and Olives; in other Places extended Fields of Corn, or Flax
and Hemp. In short, the whole Face of the Country chang'd
by Agriculture, and Plenty in every Part of it. Let him see
the People all in Employment of various Kinds, Women and
Children feeding and nursing the Silkworms, winding off the
Silk, or gathering the Olives; the Men ploughing and planting
their Lands, tending their Cattle, or felling the Forest, which
they burn for Potashes, or square for the Builder; let him see
these in Content and Affluence, and Masters of little Possessions
which they can leave to their Children; and then let him think
if they are not happier than those supported by Charity in Idle-
ness. Let him reflect that the Produce of their Labour will be so
much new Wealth for his Country, and then let him ask himself,
Whether he would exchange the Satisfaction of having contrib-
uted to this, for all the trifling Pleasures the Money, which he
has given, would have purchas'd.
MARTYN'S REASONS. 105
“Of all publick-spirited Actions, perhaps none can claim a
Preference to the Settling of Colonies, as none are in the End
more useful. . . . Whoever then is a Lover of Liberty will be
pleas'd with an Attempt to recover his fellow Subjects from a
State of Misery and Oppression, and fix them in Happiness and
Freedom.
“Whoever is a Lover of his Country will approve of a Method
for the Employment of her Poor, and the Increase of her People
and her Trade. Whoever is a Lover of Mankind will join his
wishes to the Success of a Design so plainly calculated for their
Good: Undertaken, and conducted with so much Disinterested-
In 62.SS.
“Few arguments surely are requisite to excite the Generous to
exert themselves on this Occasion. To consult the Welfare of
Mankind regardless of any private Views is the Perfection of
Virtue ; as the Accomplishing and Consciousness of it is the
Perfection of Happiness.”
CHAPTER VI.
REGULATIONS ESTABLISHED BY THE TRUSTEEs. – GRANTs IN TAIL MALE
DETERMINED UPON.—NEGRO SLAVERY AND THE IMPORTATION OF RUM
PROHIBITED.
THE trustees, meanwhile, were framing regulations for the
observance of the colonists and maturing such plans as, under the
provisions of the charter, appeared most conducive to the prosper-
ity and permanence of the contemplated settlement. Their views
are fully expressed in a publication made by them entitled “An
Account showing the Progress of the Colony of Georgia in Amer-
ica from its first Establishment.” I
Each male inhabitant was regarded both as a planter and as
a soldier. He was therefore to be provided with arms for de-
fense and with tools for the cultivation of the soil. In their use
was he to be instructed. Towns, in their inception, were reck-
oned as garrisons; consequently the lands allotted for tillage
were to be in their immediate neighborhood, so that, in case of
alarm, the inhabitants might speedily betake themselves thither
for safety and mutual protection.
That the military strength of the province might be main-
tained at the highest possible standard, they deemed it impor-
tant to establish such tenures of land as would best conduce to
that end. Each lot, therefore, was to be held as a military fief,
and fifty acres were adjudged sufficient for the support of a plan-
ter and his family. The number of lots ceded was to equal the
number of persons capable of occupying and rendering service.
Regulations were established to prevent on the one hand the ac-
cumulation of lots in one ownership lest the garrison should be
enfeebled, and their division on the other hand into Smaller par-
cels whereby they would be rendered too scanty for the procure-
ment of suitable subsistence.
Grants in tail male were declared preferable to any other
tenure because most likely to answer the needs of the province.
Should they be made in tail general it was thought that the
i London, MDCCXLI, pp. 71.
REGULATIONS FRAMED BY TRUSTEES. 107
strength of each township might be speedily diminished, inas-
much as a female heir in tail, although unmarried, might become
entitled to a lot and thus withdraw from the garrison the portion
of a soldier. By intermarriages, too, several lots might be merged
into one ownership. If the tenant in tail general should chance
to have several daughters, his lot must then be divided equally
among them as coparceners. -
Nor were these the only inconveniences which, in the judg-
ment of the trustees, would probably arise should estates in tail
general be allowed. Women being incapable of serving on juries
or acting as soldiers, those duties and others, such as watching
and warding, would devolve upon each adult male the oftener
as the number of men in the township was lessened, and might
become very burdensome. In case of attack from the Indians,
French, or Spaniards, the township, under such circumstances,
would be less able to offer a becoming resistance.
Nor was it deemed prudent to sanction alienations in fee;
for, a right of sale being inseparable from an estate in fee, the
grantee, upon being invested with the title, might at once sell,
mortgage, or alien his lands to any one he chose. The trustees
refused to commit this power to the early colonists and for the
following reasons : —
First. Many of the persons who were to be transported to
Georgia were indigent. What they had been masters of at home
they had administered so indiscreetly that it did not appear safe
at the outset, and before they had by careful and industrious be-
havior given some assurance that they would prove better man-
agers in the future, to entrust them with the entire and unre-
strained property in the lands allotted to them.
Second. They were to be sent over to inhabit, cultivate, and
secure, by a personal residence, the lands granted to them in the
province. This they voluntarily engaged to do; and, in the ex-
pectation that they would observe this promise, they were to be
maintained at the public expense during the voyage and to be at
no charge for their passage. They were, moreover, to be provided
with tools, arms, seeds, and other necessaries, and to be supported,
at least for a season, from the general stores. Hence the public
might be said to have purchased from such settlers, for a valua-
ble eonsideration, their personal residence, and all the industry
and labor they could bestow upon the cultivation of the soil
assigned for their new homes.
Third. It was thought unsafe to grant estates in fee because
108 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
they might be the means of introducing into the colony persons
opposed to the Protestant religion, the maintenance of which
was regarded as all important. On the west of the province
were the French, and the Spaniards to the south, – Papists all.
Fourth. The concentration of the ownership of many lots in a
single individual would be a necessary consequence of a free pur-
chase and sale of lands within the province, and this would con-
flict with the manifest intent of the charter which forbade a
grant of more than five hundred acres of land to any one person.
Besides, where the tenant in fee died without children and
intestate, it might be a difficult and a tedious matter to ascertain
the heir general. Meanwhile, the improvements upon the lot
would decay and the land remain uncultivated.
Although these restraints upon the ownership and sale of real
property were deemed wholesome in the beginning, the trustees
were prepared, upon special cause shown, to modify their rules
and even to grant a license for the alienation of land. We shall
see, too, that when the succession of females became less dan-
gerous to the province, when its population multiplied and grew
confirmed in its local attachments, and when, by the arrival of
the king's forces, its military capabilities were increased, the
trustees consented to an enlargement of the land tenures.
In order to insure industry on the part of the settlers to be
transported and furnished with homes at the expense of the trust,
they were placed under covenant to clear and cultivate, within a
given time, a certain portion of the lands allotted to them re-
spectively, and also to plant one hundred white mulberry trees
upon every ten acres which should be cleared. Should this con-
tract not be observed on the part of the tenants, the trustees
reserved to themselves the right of reëntry on such portions of
the lots as remained untilled.
Subsequently, however, when it was evident that the colonists,
because of Spanish alarms, successive droughts, and other un-
foreseen accidents, had been prevented from reducing into cul-
tivation within the required time the specific number of acres,
the trustees resolved to cancel all forfeitures.
To such persons as could carry ten men-servants with them
and settle in Georgia at their own expense, if, upon inquiry, their
characters were found to be above reproach, the trustees agreed
to grant five hundred acres of land in tail male, reserving to
themselves for the support of the colony a yearly rent of twenty
shillings sterling for every hundred acres. The payment of this
LAND TENURES. 109
rental was not to commence until ten years after the date of the
grant.
Within a month after its execution the grant, or a memorial
of it, was to be registered with the auditor of plantations. The
grantee obligated himself, within twelve months after the date
of the cession, to repair to Georgia with ten able-bodied men-
servants, each being at least twenty-one years of age. He
further agreed to abide in Georgia with his servants for three
years, building houses and cultivating his lands. Within ten
years from the date of the grant he was to clear and cultivate
two hundred of the five hundred acres, and plant thereon two
thousand white mulberry trees. On every hundred of the remain-
ing three hundred acres, when cleared, one thousand white mul-
berry trees or plants, to be furnished by the trustees, were to be
set out and preserved. No alienation of the five hundred acres
or of any part thereof for a term of years or otherwise could be
made except by special leave of the trustees. On the determina-
tián of the estate in tail male the land was to revert to the trust.
These grantees were not permitted to depart from the province
without license. All forfeitures for non-residence, high treason,
felonies, etc., were to inure to the trustees for the benefit of the
colony. If any part of the five hundred acres of land, within
eighteen years from the date of the grant, should remain unculti-
vated, uncleared, unplanted, and without a worm fence or paling
six feet high, such portion should then revert to the trust.
Upon the expiration of the terms of service of the male ser-
vants (“the same being for not less than four years”) the
common council agreed, if requested by the grantee so to do, to
grant to each of such servants twenty acres of land in tail male
upon such rents, conditions, limitations, and covenants as might
have been attached to grants to men-servants in like circum-
stances. The grantees of these five-hundred-acre tracts were
prohibited from hiring, keeping, lodging, or employing any negro
except by special permission.
When the lands reverted to the trust on determination of the
estate in tail male, the trustees covenanted to grant it again to
such persons as the common council should think most advanta-
geous to the colony, special regard being had for the daughters
of such as had made improvements upon their lots. The widows
of persons dying without male issue were, during their lives, to
be entitled to the enjoyment of the mansion house and of one half
of the lands improved by their husbands.
110 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
The introduction of rum was prohibited. Trading with In-
dians was forbidden, unless sanctioned by special license. The
trustees also saw fit to prohibit the importation, ownership, and
use of negroes within the limits of the province of Georgia. For
this action on their part the following reasons were assigned : —
The intention of the charter being to provide for poor persons
incapable of subsisting themselves at home, and to establish a
frontier for South Carolina which, because of the small number
of its white inhabitants, was much exposed to the inroads both
of hostile Indians and jealous Spaniards, it was thought impos-
sible that the indigent who should be sent from England, and
the foreign persecuted Protestants who would enter the colony
utterly without means, could either purchase negroes or support
them if they were furnished. Should the trustees undertake
such a charge they would be crippled in their ability to maintain
the white settlers. The prime cost of a negro was then about
thirty pounds. This sum would suffice to pay the passage over
of a white man, supply him with tools and other necessaries, and
subsist him for a year. At the expiration of that time it was
hoped that the planter’s own labor would enable him to earn
a livelihood. Consequently, argued the trustees, the purchase-
money of every negro (deducting the cost of feeding him and
his master) by being applied in that way would prevent them
from sending a white man who would add to the strength of the
colony, whereas the negro would only render its security the
more precarious.
It was thought that the white man, in possessing a negro slave,
would himself be less inclined to labor ; that much of his time
would be consumed in keeping the negro at work and in guard-
ing against any dangers he and his family might apprehend from
the slave; and that in the event of the death or absence of the
master his family would be in large degree at the mercy of the
negro."
It was also apprehended that the Spaniards at St. Augustine
would be continually enticing the negroes away or inciting them
to insurrections. This fear found its justification in the conduct
of the Spaniards toward the negro slaves of Carolina. Although
1 It will be here remembered that the zation, and ignorant of those attachments
negro alluded to was the recently im- and of that sense of mutual dependence
ported African, with his wild passions in which, at a later period, bound master
large measure unsubdued, but little modi- and servant so closely together.
fied by the restraints of a superior civili-
REASONS FOR PROHIBITING SLAVERY. 111
at a greater distance from St. Augustine, many of them, per-
suaded by emissaries from that place, had deserted in periaguas
and small boats to the Spaniards; and on more than one occa-
sion large bodies of them had risen in arms, to the great alarm
and loss of that province.
The trustees were under the impression that the products of
Georgia would not require the intervention of negro labor. The
cultivation of rice in Carolina was an unhealthy and a heavy
task demanding the service of slaves, whereas the silk and other
matters which would claim the attention of the Georgia colonists
could be best cared for by white men and their wives and
children.
It was also feared that if the persons who should go over to
Georgia at their own expense were allowed the use of negroes
the poor planters, who constituted the strength of the colony and
who could not purchase them, would be dispirited and perhaps
ruined. Under such circumstances, clamorous to have negroes
furnished to them, and being refused, they would either quit the
colony or grow negligent of their small plantations. Or, dis-
daining to work like negroes, they would seek to hire themselves
as overseers to the wealthy planters. Upon the admission of
negroes these wealthy planters would be inclined to adopt the
course pursued in other colonies and absent themselves from their
plantations, entrusting them and their black slaves to the Super-
vision of paid overseers.
It was believed by the trustees that the poor planter, sent on
charity, in his eagerness to own negro slaves, and the rich plan-
ters too who had come at their own charge, if permitted to alien-
ate lands, would mortgage their real estate to the negro merchant,
or at least become his debtors in the purchase of slaves. If
these claims were not met, both negroes and land might pass into
the ownership of the slave dealer, — a result to be deeply de-
plored and to be avoided if possible.
It was apprehended that the introduction of negro slaves into
Georgia would facilitate the desertion of the Carolina negroes
through Georgia into Florida, thus defeating one of the prime
intentions of the founders of the colony, which was to make it
a barrier and sure defense to Carolina against the malign influ-
ences and malevolent designs of the Spaniards at St. Augustine.
Influenced by these considerations the trustees made the non-
introduction of negro slaves a fundamental principle in the con-
stitution of the colony of Georgia. At first the prohibition was
112 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
:
doubtless Salutary in its operation, but there soon came a time,
in the development of the plantation, when its abrogation was
found essential to the prosperity, nay, to the life itself, of the
province.
In preparing a form of government under the provisions of the
letters patent the trustees arranged for the establishment of a
court for the trial of causes both civil and criminal, for the ap-
pointment of magistrates, three bailiffs, a recorder, two consta-
bles, and two tithing-men. Those were selected as magistrates
who seemed to be most prudent and discreet; although, where
“all were upon a level at the first setting out,” it appeared “im-
possible to make any choice or distinction which would not create
some future uneasiness among them.”
1 See an Account showing the Progress its first Establishment, pp. 5–11, 48, 49.
of the Colony of Georgia in America from London. MDCCXLI.
CHAPTER VII.
PREPARATIONS FOR THE FIRST . EMBARKATION. — OGLETHORPE LEADS THE
CoLoRNISTs. – DEPARTURE IN THE GALLEY ANNE. – ARRIVAL AND
RECEPTION AT CHARLESTown, SouTH CAROLINA. – OGLETHORPE VISITs
YAMACRAw BLUFF.—HIs FIRST INTERVIEw witH TOMO-CHI-CHI. —THE
CoLONISTs LAND AT SAVANNAH.
HAVING thus digested a plan for the conduct of the proposed
colony, and having secured funds sufficient to justify them in
putting into practical operation their scheme for the settlement
of the ceded lands, the trustees gave public notice of their readi-
ness to receive and consider applications from parties who desired
to emigrate to Georgia. Numerous were the responses. That
they might not be deceived in the characters and antecedents of
those who signified a wish to depart, a committee was appointed
to visit the prisons and examine the applicants there confined.
If they proved worthy of the charity, compromises were to be
effected with their creditors, and consents for their discharge pro-
cured. Another committee was raised to inquire into the circum-
stances and qualifications of such as presented themselves at the
office of the corporation. Keeping in view the benevolent objects
of the association and the nature of the settlement to be com-
passed, it was manifest that only fit persons ought to be selected,
and that due care should be exercised in the choice of emigrants."
As the men were to act in the double capacity of planters and
soldiers, it was important not only that they should be able-
bodied and reliable, but that they should, at the earliest moment,
1 It has been idly charged that in the
beginning Georgia colonists were impecu-
nious, depraved, lawless, and abandoned,
that the settlement at Savannah was a
sort of Botany Bay, and that Yamacraw
Bluff was peopled by runagates from
justice. The suggestion is utterly with-
out foundation. The truth is, no appli-
cant was admitted to the privilege of en-
rollment as an emigrant until he had been
subjected to a preliminary examination
and had furnished Satisfactory testimony
that he was fairly entitled to the benefits
of the charity.
Other American colonies were founded
and augmented by individuals coming at
will, without question, for personal gain,
and bringing no certificate of present or
past good conduct. Georgia, on the con-
trary, exhibits the spectacle, at once
unique and admirable, of permitting no
one to enter her borders who was not, by
competent authority, adjudged worthy the
rights of citizenship,
8 t
114 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
be instructed in the use of arms. Consequently, upon receiving
the approbation of the committee, and until the arrival of the
time fixed for sailing, the emigrants were drilled each day by the
Sergeants of the Royal Guards. Preferences were given to those
who came well recommended by the ministers, church-wardens,
and overseers of their respective parishes.
By the 3d of October, 1732, one hundred and fourteen indi-
viduals, comprising men, women, and children, had been enrolled
for the first embarkation. Three weeks afterwards they were
asked whether they objected to any of the terms and condi-
tions proposed by the trustees. They all responded that they
Were fully satisfied with them. Articles testifying their consent
Were thereupon signed, sealed, and filed in the office of the
trustees.
Four of them desired that their daughters might inherit as
well as their sons, and that provision should be made for the
widow’s dower. Yielding to their solicitation, the trustees re-
solved that any person claiming the privilege might name a suc-
cessor to the lands granted to him, and that in case the original
grantee died without male issue such successor should hold to
himself or herself and his or her male heirs forever. It was
further ordained that widows should have their thirds as regu-
lated by the laws of England."
Five thousand acres of land within the limits of Georgia were
granted to three of the colonists” in trust to convey therefrom
fifty acres to every male adult upon his arrival in the province,
at his request, and upon condition that he would form a settle-
ment thereon. Such lot was to become the property of the
grantee and his heirs male. *º-
A vessel chartered to convey the emigrants was, at the charge
of the trust, comfortably fitted out for their accommodation, and
furnished not only with necessaries for the voyage, but also with
arms, agricultural implements, tools, munitions, and stores for the
use and support of the colonists after their arrival in America.
The liberality of the supervisors was further shown in the supply
of domestic utensils. Ten tuns of Alderman Parson’s best beer
were put on board,” and every provision was made for the reason-
able subsistence of these industrious adventurers during their
1. Account showing the Progress of the 2 Thomas Christie, William Calvert,
Colony of Georgia in America, etc., pp. and Joseph Hughes.
11, 12. London. MDCCXLI. 8 Gentleman’s Magazine for 1732, p.
1029.
OGLETHORPE LEADS THE COLONISTS. 115
earliest efforts to subdue the native wilds of the untrodden region
so soon to become their permanent home.
At his own request Oglethorpe was selected to accompany the
colonists and establish them in Georgia. He voluntered to bear
his own expenses, and to devote his entire time and attention
to the consummation of the enterprise. Himself the originator
and the most zealous advocate of the scheme, this offer on his
part placed the seal of consecration upon his self-denial, patriot-
ism, and enlarged philanthropy. Most fortunate Were the trus-
tees in having such a representative. To no one could the power
to exercise the functions of a colonial governor have been more
appropriately confided. Attentive to the voice of suffering, and
ready to lend a helping hand wherever the weak and the op-
pressed required the aid of the more powerful and the noble-
minded for the redress of wrongs and the alleviation of present
ills; “in the prime of life, very handsome, tall, manly, digni-
fied, but not austere, the beau idéal of an English gentleman,
and blessed with ample means for the gratification of every rea-
sonable desire ; ” possessing a liberal education, a fearless soul,
a determined will, a tireless energy, a practical knowledge of
military affairs and of the management of expeditions, and an
experience of men and climes and matters which only years
of careful observation, intelligent travel, and thoughtful study
could supply, there was that about his person, character, at-
tainments, and abilities which inspired confidence and rendered
Mr. Oglethorpe, beyond all dispute, the man of his age and peo-
ple best qualified to inaugurate and conduct to a successful issue
an enterprise so entirely in unison with his own philanthropic
sentiments and so important to the interests of both England and
America."
A more striking instance of self-negation, of disinterested be-
nevolence, of public spirit, cannot readily be recalled; and we
cordially sympathize in the compliment paid by a contemporary
who, in reviewing Oglethorpe's behavior, says: “To see a gentle-
man of his rank and fortune visiting a distant and uncultivated
land with no other society but the miserable whom he goes to
assist, exposing himself freely to the same hardships to which
they are subjected, in the prime of life, instead of pursuing his
pleasures or ambition, intent on an improved and well-concerted
plan from which his country must reap the profits, at his own
1 See Historical Sketch of Tomo-chi-chi, p. 16. C. C. Jones, Jr. Albany, N. Y.
1868.
116 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
expense, and without a view or even a possibility of receiving
any private advantage from it; this, too, after having done and
expended for it what many generous men would think sufficient
to have done, – to see this, I say, must give every one who has
approved and contributed to the undertaking the highest satis-
faction, must convince the world of the disinterested zeal with
which the settlement is to be made, and entitle him to the truest
honour he can gain, – the perpetual love and applause of man-
kind.” I
Their last Sabbath in England was passed by the emigrants at
Milton, on the banks of the Thames. There, in a body, they at-
tended divine worship in the parish church. Fortunately their
sorrows at the prospect of an early separation from home and
friends were not then enhanced by any gloomy picture of the
land to which they were hastening. Goldsmith had not then
penned his mournful lines: —
. “To distant climes, a dreary Scene,
Where half the convex world intrudes between,
Through torrid tracts with fainting steps they go,
Where wild Altama murmurs to their woe.
Far different these from all that charm'd before,
The various terrors of that horrid shore;
Those blazing suns that dart a downward ray,
And fiercely shed intolerable day;
Those matted woods where birds forget to sing,
But silent bats in drowsy clusters cling ;
Those poisonous fields with rank luxuriance crowned,
Where the dark scorpion gathers death around;
Where at each step the stranger fears to Wake
The rattling terrors of the vengeful snake;
Where crouching tigers wait their hapless prey,
And savage men more murd’rous still than they ;
While oft in whirls the mad tornado flies,
Mingling the ravag’d landscape with the skies.
Far different these from every former Scene,
The cooling brook, the grassy-vested green,
The breezy covert of the warbling grove,
That only sheltered thefts of harmless love.”
On the 16th of November several of the trustees went to
Gravesend, where the vessel was moored with the colonists on
board, inquired strictly into the provisions made for their ac-
commodation, ascertained that everything was in good order
and that the emigrants were in fine spirits, addressed to them
cheering words, and took formal leave of them. The following
1 Political State of Great Britain, Feb. Stevens in his History of Georgia, vol. i.
ruary, 1733, vol. xlv. p. 181, quoted by p. 81.
DEPARTURE OF THE COLONISTS. 117
day the Anne, a galley of some two hundred tons burthen, com-
manded by Captain Thomas, and having on board about one
hundred and thirty persons, among whom were Mr. Oglethorpe,
the Rev. Dr. Henry Herbert, a clergyman of the Church of
England who went as chaplain, and Mr. Amatis, from Piedmont,
who was engaged to instruct in breeding silk-worms and in the
art of winding silk, departed from England bearing the first
persons selected for the colonization of Georgia. Thirty-five fam-
ilies were represented among these emigrants. There were car-
penters, bricklayers, farmers, and mechanics, – all able-bodied
and of good reputation. Mr. Oglethorpe furnished his own cabin,
and, at his individual expense, laid in provisions sufficient not
only for himself and servants but for the comfort of his fellow-
passengers.” Shaping her course for the island of Madeira, the
Anne touched there and took on board five tuns of wine. Sail-
ing thence she fetched a compass for Charlestown harbor, where
she dropped anchor outside the bar on the 13th of January, 1733.
The voyage, although a little protracted, proved pleasant and
prosperous. Two delicate children had died at sea.” With this
exception no sorrow clouded the passage, and all the colonists
were well and happy.
On the very night of their arrival, having first assembled the
emigrants and returned thanks to Almighty God for this favora-
ble termination of the voyage, Oglethorpe, accompanied by an
escort, proceeded to Charlestown and waited upon his excellency
Robert Johnson, governor of the province of South Carolina.
By him and his council was he warmly welcomed, and treated
with the most distinguished hospitality. The Duke of Newcas-
tle, then at the head of colonial affairs, had addressed circu-
lars to the governors of the American provinces, commending
Oglethorpe and his mission to their courtesy and favor. The
lords of the admiralty, too, had issued instructions to naval com-
manders on the Virginia and Carolina stations to render every
possible assistance to the Georgia colony and its leader. This
courteous reception, therefore, was accorded both in obedience to
royal command and as an expression of the good-will of the au-
thorities of Carolina who were deeply interested in the success
1 Dr. Herbert charitably volunteered * These were Richard Cannon's young-
to go without any allowance, and to per- est son, aged eight months, and Robert
form all religious and ecclesiastical offices Clarke's youngest son, aged one year and
for the colonists. a half. — Journal of the Trustees.
* Wright's Memoir of Oglethorpe, p. 58.
London. 1867.
118 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
of the plantation. In truth, Georgia was to constitute a protec-
tion to all of the American colonies, and especially to Carolina,
against the encroachments of the Spaniards, who regarded with
jealous and hostile eyes the growing power and expanding settle-
ments of England upon American shores. This mutual sympa-
thy and dependence were, at an early date, acknowledged by a
contributor to the “London Magazine’’ in the following lines: —
“To Carolina be a Georgia joined;
Then shall both colonies sure progress make,
Endeared to either for the other's sake;
Georgia shall Carolina’s favour move,
And Carolina bloom by Georgia's love.”
Cheerfully responding to his needs, Governor Johnson ordered
Mr. Middleton, the king's pilot, to attend upon Mr. Oglethorpe
and to conduct the Anne into Port Royal. Instructions were
also issued for small craft to convey the colonists thence to the
Savannah River. Further assistance was cordially promised on
the part of Carolina. The next morning Oglethorpe returned on
board the Anne and sailed for Port Royal harbor. Having
posted a detachment of eight men upon an island about midway
between Beaufort and Savannah River, with injunction to “pre-
pare huts for the reception of the colony against they should lie
there in their passage,” he proceeded to Beaufort-town, where he
arrived early on the morning of the 19th. He was saluted by
all the artillery there posted, and at his request the new barracks
were made ready for the reception of the colonists who ascended
the river and occupied them on the following day. Valuable
assistance was rendered by Lieutenant Watts, Ensign Farring-
ton, and the other officers of his majesty's independent com-
pany, by Mr. Delabarr, and by some gentlemen of the neighbor-
hood.
Leaving the colonists to refresh themselves at this pleasant
place, Oglethorpe, accompanied by Colonel William Bull, pro-
ceeded to the Savannah River and ascended that stream as far as
Yamacraw Bluff. Regarding this as an eligible situation, he
landed and marked out the site of a town which, from the river
which flowed by, he called Savannah. This bluff, rising some
forty feet above the level of the river, and possessing a bold
frontage on the water of nearly a mile, ample enough for the
riparian uses of a settlement of considerable magnitude, was
the first high ground, abutting upon the stream, encountered by
him in its ascent. To the south a high and dry plain, over-
SAVANNAH LOCATED. 119
shadowed by pines, interspersed with live-oaks and magnolias,
stretched away for a considerable distance. On the east and
west were small creeks and swamps affording convenient drain-
age for the intermediate territory. The river in front was capa-
ble of floating ships of ordinary tonnage, and they could lie so
near the shore that their cargoes might with facility be dis-
charged. Northwardly, in the direction of Carolina, lay the rich
delta of the river, with its islands and lowlands crowned with a
dense growth of cypress, sweet-gum, tupelo, and other trees,
many of them vine-covered and draped in long gray moss sway-
ing gracefully in the ambient air. The yellow jessamine was
already mingling its delicious perfume with the breath of the
pine, and the trees were vocal with the voices of song-birds.
Everything in this semi-tropical region was quickening into life
and beauty under the reviving influences of returning spring.
In its primeval repose it seemed a goodly land. The temperate
rays of the sun gave no token of the heat of summer. There
was no promise of the tornado and the thunder-storm in the gen-
tle winds. In the balmy air lurked no suspicion of malarial
fevers. Its proximity to the mouth of the river rendered this
spot suitable alike for commercial purposes and for maintaining
facile communication with the Carolina settlements.
Near by was an Indian village, the head-quarters of the
Yamacraws, a small tribe the chief or mico of which was the
venerable Tomo-chi-chi. Here too a post had been established
by Musgrove," a Carolina trader, married to a half-breed named
Mary. Before leading his colonists to this home which he had
selected for their first habitation, Oglethorpe was anxious to
propitiate the natives. He accordingly visited the village, and
obtained an interview with Tomo-chi-chi. Mary Musgrove, who
had acquired a tolerable knowledge of English and was favorably
inclined toward her husband's countrymen, on this occasion not
only acted as interpreter but exerted a valuable influence in se-
curing from the Indians pledges of amity. When first acquainted
With Oglethorpe's design of forming a settlement at Yamacraw
the natives manifested much uneasiness and even threatened to
prevent by force the advent of the whites. Assured, however, of
the friendly intentions of the English, and persuaded of the ben-
efits which would flow from direct association with them, the In-
* Musgrove's presence here contravened the natives, which forbade the establish-
the stipulations of a treaty long existent ment of trading-posts south of the Savan-
between the colony of South Carolina and nah River.
120 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
dians finally withdrew their opposition and, with protestations of
gladness, entered into an informal agreement by which the de-
sired lands were ceded, and promises given to receive the stran-
gers with good-will.
His preliminary arrangements having been thus accomplished,
Oglethorpe returned to Beaufort, reaching that town on the 24th.
During his absence the emigrants were greatly refreshed by their
sojourn on shore. They had been the recipients of every atten-
tion and hospitality. The following Sunday was observed as a
day of special thanksgiving, the Rev. Lewis Jones preaching be-
fore the colonists, and their chaplain, the Rev. Dr. Herbert, oc-
cupying Mr. Jones’ pulpit in Beaufort. The gentlemen of the
neighborhood united with the colonists on this occasion, and the
ceremonies terminated with a bountiful dinner provided by Ogle-
thorpe. Among the articles mentioned as constituting this first
feast were four fat hogs, eight turkeys, many fowls, English beef,
a hogshead of punch, a hogshead of beer, and a generous quantity
of wine. Although this repast was accompanied with a bounti-
ful supply of malt liquor, wine, and spirits, we are informed that
everything was conducted in such an agreeable manner that no
one became drunk. Throughout the course of the entertainment
there was an entire absence of everything savoring of disorder.
On the 30th of January the colonists, conveyed in a sloop of
seventy tons and in five periaguas, set sail for Savannah. En-
countering a storm they were forced to seek shelter from its vio-
lence at a point known as Look Out. Here they lay all night,
and the next day proceeded as far as John's, where the eight
men, there stationed by Oglethorpe, had prepared huts for their
reception. A plentiful supply of venison awaited their coming.
Upon this they supped, and there they spent the night. Re-
embarking in the morning, they arrived the same afternoon at
Yamacraw Bluff. Before dark they erected four large tents (one
for each tything) capable of accommodating all the people, and
transferred their bedding and other necessaries ashore. There
they slept, passing their first night upon the soil of Georgia.
Faithful to his trust, Oglethorpe, having posted his sentinels,
sought no protection save the shelter of the towering pines, and
lay upon the ground near the central watch-fire. The ocean had
been crossed, and the germ of a new colony was planted in
America.
tºº,
*
>§º
S-s
º
--
º
º
Bºº
-
§
º º
º
º º
º º º
º
º
º º:
º º ºl
º º
- º
º
-
ºt.
º º
º
º º º
- ºss
º
º º
º
- º
º
-
º
º º
º
-
º
º
º
º
º
º º
º
º
º
º
º'- º
º ----- -
- º -
º º º -
º
º:
s
i
s
s:
-
s>
s
§§s
-
s
º
*S.
>
& sº
- §
º º s §
--- º - º
-- º: -
- º º §ss s -
º S $ºs S
º º Nºs sº $
º * Sº \; \ss-
º is Sºč
º : S is sº;
º ; s is sº
º - #- s.S. º
- º †† 3 * §§§
º --- º º * > * $
º º º º s sº
º; sº is
º ºf sus's s
- º § º º * /> S § §§ s
º § - is
ºss SS
--- Sº, sº S.
- SSS Sº
s S. § --S
º S ~~
tº 32 S S
jS 3s sº
s = s.s.,
YS 3 gºs
Eº
º =ssis
º - Se: § -
º º º º º: s
- sº st
º §§§§
ſº Siss
º º º º S$º
ñº §§º
º º Sº
º º
º §§§ -
º Aº º Sjºg
º º º º <&\s
º r-->
º * º º
º, R
º º º º >
º º R;
º º - Ş.
º §
º



















































































CHAPTER VIII.
EARLY LABORS OF THE COLONISTS AT SAVANNAH. — OGLETHORPE’s LET-
TERS TO THE TRUSTEES. – COMMUNICATION AND RESOLUTIONS OF THE
GENERAL AssFMBLY OF SOUTH CAROLINA. — ASSISTANCE FROM PRIVATE
PARTIES IN CAROLINA.—ACCOUNT OF THE PROGRESS OF THE COLONIZA-
TION WRITTEN BY A GENTLEMAN FROM CHARLESTOWN. — OGLETHORPE
VISITs CHARLESTOWN AND ADDRESSES THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY. — CON-
GRATULATIONS FROM PENNSYLVANIA AND MASSACHUSETTS.
EARLY on the morning of the 2d of February, 1733 (O.S.),
Oglethorpe convened the people to thank God for his safe con-
duct of the colony to its appointed destination, and to invoke his
blessings upon the plantation. These religious services ended, he
Solemnly and earnestly reminded them of their duties as the
founders of Georgia, impressing upon them an appreciation of
the important fact that the seed now sown would yield a harvest
either for good or bad in the coming generations. Against the
evils of intemperance and idleness he uttered an emphatic warn-
ing, and cautioned them to be prudent and upright in their in-
tercourse with the Indians. “It is my hope,” said he, “that
through your good example the settlement of Georgia may prove
a blessing and not a curse to the native inhabitants.” Then,
having explained the necessity for their laboring in common until
the site of the town should be cleared, and having exhorted and
encouraged them to work amicably and cheerfully, he dismissed
them that they might enter upon the orderly discharge of the
duties claiming immediate attention. Some were detailed for
the erection of a crane with which to facilitate the landing of
bulky articles. Others plied axes and felled the tall pines, ren-
dering more comfortable the temporary shelters prepared so has-
tily the evening before for the accommodation of the emigrants,
and busying themselves with the erection of new booths. Others
still were detailed to unload the vessels, to split and sharpen posts
with which to stockade the town, and to begin the construction
of a fort at the eastern extremity of the bluff. Varied and ardu-
ous were these duties, but all with alacrity and energy entered
* See Wright's Memoir of General Oglethorpe, p. 60. London. 1867.
122 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
upon and prosecuted their performance. Sharing the privations
and the labors of his people, Oglethorpe was present everywhere,
planning, supervising, and encouraging. The general outline of
Savannah was soon indicated. In marking out its Squares, lots,
and streets, the founder of the colony was assisted by Colonel
William Bull of South Carolina, a gentleman of intelligence and
experience, who generously lent four of his servants, expert saw-
yers, to aid in preparing boards for houses. Oglethorpe claimed
in his own behalf and for his own comfort no labor from the
colonists. He caused four clustering pines to be left standing
near the bluff and opposite the centre of the encampment. Be-
neath their shadow he pitched his tent, and this canvas was his
abiding-place for nearly a year. Subsequently he contented him-
self with hired lodgings in one of the houses of his people.
Upon his arrival at Charlestown on the 13th of January, Ogle-
thorpe addressed a letter to the trustees communicating the
happy intelligence, and on the 10th of February, from his camp
at Savannah, penned his first communication on Georgia soil. It
runs as follows: —
“To the Trustees for establishing the Colony of Georgia in
America.
“GENTLEMEN, - I gave you an Account in my last of our Ar-
rival at Charles-Town. The Governor and Assembly have given
us all possible Encouragement. Our People arrived at Beaufort
on the 20th of January where I lodged them in some new Barracks
built for the Soldiers, while I went myself to view the Savannah
River. I fix’d upon a healthy situation about ten miles from
the sea. The River here forms a Half-Moon, along the South-
Side of which the Banks are about forty Foot high, and on the
Top a Flat which they call a Bluff. The plain high Ground
extends into the Country five or six Miles, and along the River-
side about a Mile. Ships that draw twelve Foot Water can ride
within ten Yards of the Bank. Upon the River-Side, in the
Centre of this Plain, I have laid out the Town. Opposite to it
is an Island of very rich Pasturage, which I think should be
kept for the Trustees’ Cattle. The River is pretty wide, the
Water fresh, and from the Key of the Town you see its whole
Course to the Sea, with the Island of Tybe, which forms the
Mouth of the River; and the other way you see the River for
about six Miles up into the Country. The Landskip is very
agreeable, the Stream being wide, and border'd with high Woods
on both Sides. The whole People arrived here on the first of
OGLETHORPE’S LETTER TO THE TRUSTEES. 123
February. At Night their Tents were got up. Till the seventh
we were taken up in unloading and making a Crane which I
then could not get finish'd, so took off the Hands, and set some
to the Fortification and began to fell the woods. I mark'd out
the Town and Common. Half of the former is already cleared,
and the first House was begun Yesterday in the Afternoon. Not
being able to get Negroes, I have taken ten of the Independent
Company to work for us, for which I make them an allowance.
I send you a copy of the Resolutions of the Assembly and the
Governor and Council’s Letter to me. Mº Whitaker has given
us one hundred Head of Cattle. Col. Bull, Mº Barlow, Mº Sº
Julian, and Mº Woodward are come up to assist us with some of
their own Servants. I am so taken up in looking after a hun-
dred necessary Things, that I write now short, but shall give you
a more particular Account hereafter. A little Indian Nation, the
only one within fifty Miles, is not only at Amity, but desirous
to be Subjects to his Majesty King George, to have Lands given
them among us, and to breed their Children at our Schools. Their
Chief, and his Beloved Man, who is the Second Man in the Na-
tion, desire to be instructed in the Christian Religion.
“I am, Gentlemen -
“Your Most Obedient, Humble Servant,
“JAMES OGLETHORPE.”
Here are the letter of the governor and council of South Caro-
lina and the resolutions of the Assembly alluded to in the fore-
going communication : —
“SIR. We can't omit the first Opportunity of Congratulat-
ing you on your safe Arrival in this Province, wishing you all
imaginable Success in your charitable and generous Undertaking
in which we beg Leave to assure you any Assistance we can
give shall not be Wanting in promoting the same. The General
Assembly having come to the Resolutions inclosed, we hope you
will accept it as an Instance of our sincere Intentions to forward
so good a Work, and of our Attachment to a Person who has at
all times so generously used his Endeavours to relieve the Poor
and deliver them out of their Distress, in which you have been
hitherto so successful that we are persuaded this Undertaking
can’t fail under your prudent conduct, which we most heartily
wish for. The Rangers and Scout-Boats are order'd to attend
you as soon as possible. Col: Bull, a Gentleman of this Board,
and whom we esteem most capable to assist you in the Settling
your new Colony, is desired to deliver you this, and to accom.
124 • THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
pany you and render you the best Services he is capable of, and
is one whose Integrity you may very much depend on.
“We are with the greatest Regard and Esteem, Sir,
“Your most obedient Humble Servants,
Council Chamber,
26th of Jan: 1732. ROBERT JOHNSON,
THOMAS BROUGHTON,
JoHN PEN WICKE, AL: MIDDLETON,
THOMAS WARING, A. SKEENE,
J. HAMMERTON, FRA : YONGE,
JAMES RINLOCK.”
“The Committee of his Majesty's Honourable Council ap-
pointed to confer with a Committee of the Lower House on his
Excellency's Message relating to the Arrival of the Honourable
James Oglethorpe Esqr : -
“Report: That agreeable to his Majesty's Instructions to
his Excellency, sent down together with the said Message, we
are unanimously of Opinion that all due Countenance and En-
couragement ought to be given to the Settling of the Colony of
Georgia.
“And for that End your Committee apprehend it necessary
that his Excellency be desired to give Orders and Directions
that Capt MacPherson, together with fifteen of the Rangers do
forthwith repair to the new Settlement of Georgia to cover and
protect M* Oglethorpe, and those under his care, from any In-
sults that may be offer'd them by the Indians, and that they
continue and abide there till the new Settlers have enforted
themselves, and for such further time as his Excellency may
think necessary.
“That the Lieutenant and four Men of the Apalachucola
Garrison be order'd to march to the Fort on Combahee to Join
those of the Rangers that remain; that the Commissary be or-
der'd to find them with Provisions as usual. That his Excel-
lency will please to give Directions that the Scout Boat at Port
Royal do attend the new Settlers as often as his Excellency shall
see Occasion. That a Present be given to M' Oglethorpe for the
new Settlement of Georgia forthwith of an hundred Head of
breeding Cattle, and five Bulls, as also twenty breeding Sows,
and four Boars, with twenty Barrels of good and merchantable
Rice; the whole to be deliver'd at the Charge of the Publick at
such Place in Georgia as M* Oglethorpe shall appoint. -
“That Parriaguas be provided at the Charge of the Publick
GIFTS TO THE COLONISTS. 125
to attend Mr Oglethorpe at Port Royal in order to carry the new
Settlers, arrived in the Ship Anne, to Georgia with their Effects
and the Artillery and Ammunition now on Board.
“That Col. Bull be desired to go to Georgia with the Hon:
James Oglethorpe Esq: to aid him with his best Advice and AS-
sistance in the Settling of that Place.””
This early and acceptable aid extended by the province of
Carolina was supplemented by private benefactions. Thus, Colo-
nel Bull, with four of his servants, came to Savannah and spent
a month there, supervising the work of the Sawyers, designating
the proportions of the buildings, surveying the lots, and render-
ing service most valuable. From Mr. Whitaker and his friends
were received one hundred head of cattle, a free gift to the col-
ony. Mr. St. Julian for several weeks directed the people in
erecting their houses and advancing the settlement. A present
of a silver boat and spoon was made by Mr. Hume for the first
child born on Georgia soil. These were awarded to the infant
of Mrs. Close. For two months Mr. Joseph Bryan gave his per-
sonal attention and the labor of four of his servants, who were
sawyers. Sixteen sheep were sent by the inhabitants of Edisto
Island. Mr. Hammerton contributed a drum. Mrs. Ann Dray-
ton loaned four of her Sawyers, and Colonel Bull and Mr. Bryan
furnished Mr. Oglethorpe with twenty servants to be employed
in such manner as he might deem most advantageous. Governor
Johnson presented seven horses.”
Well knowing that the planting of this colony to the south
would essentially promote the security of Carolina, shielding that
province from the direct assaults and machinations of the Span-
iards in Florida, preventing the ready escape of fugitive slaves,
guarding her lower borders from the incursions of Indians, in-
creasing commercial relations, and enhancing the value of lands,
the South Carolinians were eager to advance the prosperity of
Georgia.
The following extract from a letter of Mr. Oglethorpe to the
trustees, dated at Savannah, February 20, 1733, advises us of his
further impressions of Yamacraw Bluff : —
“Our People are all in perfect Health. I chose the situation
for the Town upon an high Ground forty Foot perpendicular
1 See Reasons for Establishing the Colony * See Stevens' History of Georgia, vol.
of Georgia with Regard to the Trade of i. p. 92. Philadelphia. MDCCCXLVII.
Great Britain, etc., pp. 42–46. London.
MDCCXXXIII.
126 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
above High-Water Mark: The Soil dry and sandy, the Water of
the River fresh, Springs coming out from the Sides of the Hills.
I pitch'd on this Place not only for the Pleasantness of its Situa-
tion, but because from the above-mention’d and other Signs I
thought it Healthy, for it is shelter'd from the Western and
Southern Winds (the worst in this Country) by vast Woods of
Pine-trees many of which are an hundred, and few under seventy
Foot high. There is no Moss on the Trees, tho' in most Parts of
Carolina they are cover'd with it, and it hangs down two or three
Foot from them : The last and fullest Conviction of the Health-
fulness of the Place was that an Indian Nation, who know the
Nature of this Country, chose it for their Habitation.” I
In his next communication, under date of March 12th, he con-
veys the following information in regard to the extent of the
province, the temper of the aboriginal population, and the prog-
ress of colonization : —
“This Province is much larger than we thought, being 120
miles from this river to the Alatamaha. The Savannah has a
very long course, and a great trade is carried on by the Indians,
there having above twelve trading boats passed since I have been
here. There are in Georgia, on this side the mountains, three
considerable nations of Indians; one called the Lower Creeks,
consisting of nine towns, or rather cantons, making about a
thousand men able to bear arms. One of these is within a short
distance of us and has concluded a peace with us, giving us the
right of all this part of the Country: and I have marked out the
lands which they have reserved to themselves. Their King”
comes constantly to Church, is desirous to be instructed in the
Christian religion, and has given me his nephew,” a boy who
is his next heir, to educate. The two other Nations are the
Uchees and the Upper Creeks: the first consisting of two hun-
dred, the latter of eleven hundred men. We agree so well with
the Indians that the Creeks and the Uchees have referred to me
a difference to determine which otherwise would have occasioned
2, W2,]”.
“Our people still lie in tents, there being only two clap-board
houses built and three sawed houses framed. Our crane, our
battery cannon, and magazine are finished. This is all that we
1 Reasons for Establishing the Colony of 2 Tomo-chi-chi.
Georgia with Regard to the Trade of 8 Toonahowi.
Great Britain, etc., p. 48. London.
MDCCXXXIII.
DESCRIPTION OF SAVANNAPI. 127
have been able to do by reason of the smallness of our number,
of which many have been sick and others unused to labour;
though I thank God, they are now pretty well, and we have not
lost one since our arrival here.”
In the South Carolina “Gazette” of March 22, 1783, may be
found the following account of a visit paid by some Carolina gen-
tlemen to Mr. Oglethorpe : —
“On Tuesday, the 13th Instant, I went on board a Canoe, in
company with M. George Ducat and M* John Ballantine, with
four Negroes; and about 10 o'clock we set off from M* Lloyd's
Bridge for Georgia and, passing by Port Royal on Wednesday
Night we arrived on Friday Morning an Hour before Day at
Yammaeraw, -a Place so called by the Indians, but now Savan-
nah in the Colony of Georgia. Some time before we came to the
Landing the Centinel challenged us, and understanding who we
were, admitted us ashore. This is a very high Bluff, - Forty
Feet perpendicular from High-water Mark. It lies, according to
Captain Gascoigne's Observations, in the Latitude 31 : 58. which
he took off Tybee, an island that lies at the Mouth of the Savan-
mah River. It is distant from Charles-Town S. W according to
the Course and Windings of the Rivers and Creeks, about 140
Miles; but, by a direct Course, 77, allowing Sullivants Island to
be in the Latitude 32:47: from Augustine N E and by E about
140 Miles, and by the Course of the Rivers is distant from Fort
Moore 300 Miles; but upon a direct Line but 115 Miles N. W.
and by W. This Bluff is distant 10 Miles from the Mouth of
the Rivers on the South Side; and Parrysburgh is 24 Miles
above it on the North, and is so situated that you have a beauti-
ful Prospect both up and down the River. It is very sandy and
barren, and consequently a wholesome Place for a Town or City.
There are on it 130 odd souls; and from the Time they em-
barqued at London to the Time I left the Place there died but
two sucking Children, and they at Sea. When they arrived,
there was standing on it a great Quantity of the best Sorts of
Pine, most of which is already cut down on the Spot where the
Town is laid out to be built. The Land is barren about a Mile
back, when you come into very rich Ground; and on both
Sides within a Quarter of a Mile of the Town is choice, good
Planting Land. Colonel Bull told me that he had been Seven
Miles back, and found it extraordinary good.
“M” Oglethorpe is indefatigable, takes a vast deal of Pains;
his fare is but indifferent, having little else at present but salt
128 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Provisions: He is extremely well beloved by all his People; the
general Title they give him is Father. If any of them is sick he
immediately visits them and takes a great deal of Care of them.
If any difference arises, he is the Person that decides it. Two
happened while I was there, and in my Presence; and all the
Parties went away, to outward Appearance, satisfied and con-
tented with his Determination. He keeps a strict Discipline; I
neither saw one of his People drunk or heard one swear all the
Time I was there ; He does not allow them Rum, but in lieu
gives them English Beer. It is surprising to see how chearfully
the Men go to work, considering they have not been bred to it;
There are no Idlers there ; even the Boys and Girls do their
Parts. . There are Four Houses already up but none finish'd;
and he hopes when he has got more Sawyers, which I suppose he
will have in a short time, to finish two Houses a Week. He
has ploughed up some Land, part of which he sowed with Wheat,
which is come up and looks promising. He has two or three
Gardens which he has sowed with divers Sorts of Seeds, and
planted Thyme, with other Sorts of Pot-herbs, Sage, Leeks,
Skellions, Celeri, Liquorice, &c, and several Sorts of Fruit trees.
He was palisading the Town round, including some Part of the
Common, which I do suppose may be finish’d in a Fortnight's
time. In short he has done a vast deal of Work for the Time,
and I think his Name Justly deserves to be immortalized.
“M” Oglethorpe has with him Sir Walter Raleigh's written
Journal, and, by the Latitude of the Place, the Marks and Tradi-
tion of the Indians, it is the very first Place where he went
ashore and talked with the Indians, and was the first English-
man that ever they saw : And about half a Mile from Savannah
is a high Mount of Earth under which lies their chief King; and
the Indians informed Mº Oglethorpe, that the King desired, be-
fore he died, that he might be buried on the Spot where he talked
with that great good Man.
“The River Water is very good, and Mr Oglethorpe has
proved it several Ways and thinks it as good as the River of
Thames. On Monday the 19th we took our Leave of M" Ogle-
thorpe at Nine o’Clock in the Morning and embarked for Charles
Town; and when we set off he was pleased to honour us with a
Volley of small Arms, and the Discharge of Five Cannon : And
coming down the Rivers, we found the Water perfectly fresh Six
Miles below the Town, and saw Six or Seven large Sturgeon
leap, with which Fish that River abounds, as also with Trout,
OGLETHORPE'S VISIT TO CHARLES–TOWN. 129
Perch, Cat, and Rock Fish &c, and in the Winter Season there is
Variety of Wild Fowl, especially Turkeys, some of them weigh-
ing Thirty Pounds, and abundance of Deer.””
In the absence of machinery, the labor of converting the pine
logs into boards was tedious and severe. Nevertheless the work
progressed, and one by one frame houses were builded. As rap-
idly as they were finished the colonists were transferred from
tents into these more permanent and comfortable lodgings. A
public garden was laid out and a servant detailed, at the charge
of the trust, to cultivate it. This was to serve as a nursery
whence might be procured fruit trees, vines, plants, and vege-
tables for the private orchards and gardens of the inhabitants.
It was also largely devoted to the propagation of the white mul-
berry, from the general cultivation of which, as food for the silk-
worm, great benefit was anticipated.
Sensible of the courtesies and assistance extended by Carolina,
Oglethorpe repaired to Charlestown to return thanks in behalf of
his colony, and to interest the public still more in the develop-
ment of the plantation. He was met at the water's edge by the
governor and council, who conducted him to Governor Johnson’s
mansion where he formally received the congratulations of the
General Assembly. In response to his application for additional
assistance, a handsome sum was voted by the Assembly, and the
citizens of Charlestown complimented him with a generous do-
nation. When next in Charlestown (June 9, 1733), he took
occasion to deliver before the governor and general assembly of
the province an address framed and pronounced in special ac-
knowledgment of Georgia's indebtedness to Carolina for aid
most opportune and bounteous. “I should think myself,” said
he, “very much wanting in Justice and gratitude if I should neg-
lect thanking your Excellency, you Gentlemen of the Council,
and you Gentlemen of the Assembly, for the assistance which you
have given to the Colony of Georgia. I have long wished for an
opportunity of expressing my sense of the universal zeal which
the inhabitants of this Province have shown for assisting that
Colony, and could not think of any better opportunity than now
when the whole Province is virtually present in its General Assem-
bly. I am therefore Gentlemen, to thank you for the handsome
assistance given by private persons as well as by the public. I
am to thank you not only in the name of the Trustees and the
* An Account showing the Progress of First Establishment, pp. 41, 42. London.
the Colony of Georgia in America from its MDCCXLI.
9
130 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
little Colony now in Georgia, but in behalf of all the distressed
people of Britain and persecuted Protestants of Europe to whom
a place of refuge will be secured by this first attempt.
“Your charitable and generous proceeding, besides the self-satis.
faction which always attends such actions, will be of the greatest,
advantage to this Province. You, Gentlemen, are the best J udges
of this since most of you have been personal witnesses of the
dangerous blows which this country has escaped from French,
Spanish and Indian Arms. Many of you know this by experi-
ence, having signalized yourselves personally either when this
Province by its own strength, and unassisted by anything but the
courage of its inhabitants and the Providence of God, repulsed
the formidable invasions of the French, or when it defeated the
whole body of the Southern Indians who were armed against
it and was invaded by the Spaniards who assisted them. You
Gentlemen, know that there was a time when every day brought
fresh advices of murders, ravages, and burnings; when no pro-
fession or calling was exempted from arms; when every inhabit-
ant of the Province was obliged to leave wife, family, and useful
occupations, and undergo the fatigues of war for the necessary
defence of the Country; and all their endeavors scarcely sufficient
to guard the western and southern frontiers against the Indians.
“It would be needless for me to tell you who are much better
judges, how the increasing settlement of a new Colony upon the
southern frontiers will prevent the like danger for the future.
Nor need I tell you how every plantation will increase in value
by the safety of the Province being increased ; since the lands to
the southward already sell for above double what they did before
the new Colony arrived. Nor need I mention the great lessening
of the burden of the people by increasing the income of the tax
upon the many thousand acres of land either taken or taking up
on the prospect of future security.
“The assistance which the Assembly have given, though not
quite equal to the occasion, is very large with respect to the pres-
ent circumstances of the Province ; and as such, shows you to be
kind benefactors to your new come countrymen whose settlements
you support, and dutiful subjects to his Majesty whose revenues
and dominions you by this means increase and strengthen.
“As I shall soon return to Europe I must recommend the in-
fant Colony to your further protection; being assured, both from
your generosity and wisdom that you will, in case of any danger
or necessity, give it the utmost support and assistance.”
OGLETHORPE CONGRATULATED. 131
Although the colony of Georgia was, from its location, particu-
larly beneficial to Carolina, its maintenance and development
were not without importance in the esteem of the more northerly
English plantations in America. Pennsylvania and Massachu-
setts, at an early period of the settlement, gave every assurance
of their good wishes for its confirmation and success. Thus
Thomas Penn, proprietor of the former colony, in a letter ad-
dressed to the trustees and written from Philadelphia on the
6th of March, 1733, approved very highly of the undertaking,
promised to contribute all the assistance in his power, and ac-
quainted them with the fact that he had himself subscribed one
hundred pounds sterling, and was then engaged in collecting
from others all sums he could influence, that they might be sent
to them and expended for the purposes designated in their
charter. *
From Boston, on the 3d of May, 1733, Governor Belcher
wrote to Mr. Oglethorpe as follows : —
“It is with great pleasure that I congratulate you upon your
safe arrival in America ; and I have a still greater in the ad-
vantages which these parts of his Majesty's dominions will reap
from your noble and generous pursuits of good to mankind in the
settlement of Georgia. May God Almighty attend you with his
blessing, and crown your toils with success.”
Ever on the alert to promote the best interests of his infant
colony, Oglethorpe omitted nothing which could possibly conduce
to its security, good order, advancement, and substantial pros-
perity.
CHAPTER IX.
OGLETHORPE's CoNCILLATORY CONDUCT TowARD THE INDIANs. – CHARAC-
TER AND INFLUENCE OF TOMO-CHI-CHI. — GEORGIA's DEBT of GRATI-
TUDE TO THIS MICO. — CONVENTION OF CHIEFs. – ARTICLEs of FRIEND-
SHIP AND COMMERCE PROPOSED AND RATIFIED.
IN nothing were the prudence, wisdom, skill, and ability of the
founder of the colony of Georgia more conspicuous than in his
conduct toward and treatment of the Indians. The ascendency
he acquired over them, the respect they entertained for him, and
the manly, generous, and just policy he ever maintained in his
intercourse with the native tribes of the region are remarkable.
Their favor, at the outset, was essential to the repose of the set-
tlement; their friendship necessary to its existence. In the be-
ginning, few in numbers and isolated in position, a hostile breath
would have blown it into nothingness. As claimants of the soil
by virtue of prior occupancy it was important that the title they
asserted to these their hunting-grounds should, at an early mo-
ment, be peaceably and formally extinguished. A resort to the
sword in assertion of England's dominion over this territory
would have led at once to ambush, alarm, and bloodshed. The
adoption of a violent and coercive course toward the aborigines
would have aroused their hostility and imperiled the success of
the plantation. Far better the plan of conciliation. This Ogle-
thorpe fully recognized, and shaped his policy accordingly.
It will be remembered that upon his preliminary survey of the
region when, in company with Colonel Bull, he selected a spot
for primal settlement, he sought an interview with Tomo-chi-chi
and, by friendly offers and kind arguments, won the favor of that
chief and his tribe and obtained their consent that the expected
colonists should occupy Yamacraw Bluff. A few days afterwards,
when the emigrants did arrive, true to his promise, this aged
mico, at the head of his little band, welcomed the new-comers at
the water's edge; and, when their tents were pitched upon the
shore, repeated his salutations. Of the ceremonies observed on
this occasion the following account has been preserved : In front
advanced the “Medicine Man” bearing in each hand a fan of
TOMO_CHI_CHI WELCOMES THE COLONISTS. 133
white feathers, – the symbols of peace and friendship. Then
came Tomo-chi-chi and Scenauki, his wife, attended by a retinue
of some twenty members of the tribe filling the air with shouts.
Approaching Oglethorpe, who advanced a few paces to meet
them, the medicine man, or priest, proclaiming the while the
brave deeds of his ancestors, stroked the governor on every side
with his fans, - apt emblems of amity. This done, the king and
queen drew near and bade him and his followers welcome. After
an interchange of compliments the Indians were entertained as
hospitably as the means at command would allow.
This acquaintance with Tomo-chi-chi ripened into a friend-
ship close and valuable.
That the Indians in the neighborhood might be impressed with
the power and military skill of the emigrants, Oglethorpe fre-
quently, when the opportunity offered, exercised the colonists in
their presence in the manual of arms, in marching and in firing,
and sometimes roused the forests from their slumbers by the
thunders of his cannon. Well did he know that such exhibitions
of superior power would exert a potent influence upon the minds
of the red men and engender a respect for the English all the
more wholesome because commingled with fear.
The situation of this feeble colony was, in the very nature of
things, extremely precarious. Located in the depths of a prime-
val forest, the tangled brakes and solemn shadows of which
proclaimed loneliness and isolation; the vast Atlantic rolling its
waters between it and the mother country; the Carolina settle-
ments at best few in numbers and contending in a stern life-
struggle for their own existence; Spaniards in Florida jealous of
this disputed domain, and ready at any moment to frustrate by
stealthy approaches and with force of arms all efforts of the Eng-
lish to extend their plantations along the Southern coast; and,
above all, Indian tribes in the occupancy of the country attached
to their grand old woods and gently flowing streams, watchful of
the graves of their ancestors, imposed upon by Spanish lies, dis-
quieted by French emissaries, cheated by Carolina traders, and
naturally inclined to resist all encroachments by the whites upon
their hunting-grounds, it did indeed appear that the preservation
and development of this colony were well-nigh impossible. But
its planting and perpetuation had been confided to the guardian
care of one who was, perhaps, beyond all others, most capable of
conducting the enterprise.
In his efforts to conciliate the native population he derived in-
134 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA,
calculable benefit from the friendship and kindly intervention of
Tomo-chi-chi. This chief, whose memory is so honorably asso-
ciated with the early history of Georgia, and whose many acts
of kindness and fidelity to the whites demand and must ever
receive the most grateful acknowledgment, although at this time
far advanced in years, was a man of commanding presence, grave
demeanor, marked character, established influence, of a philo-
sophical turn of mind, and in the full possession of all his facul.
ties. For some cause, the precise nature of which has never been
fully explained, he had, with a number of his countrymen, suffered
banishment at the hands of his people, the Lower Creeks. What-
ever the real reason may have been for this action on the part of
the Creeks toward Tomo-chi-chi, it does not seem that it was
the result of any special ill-will, or that the expatriation was a
punishment either for specific crime or general misconduct. The
probability is that he went into voluntary exile for a season, or
that he may have been temporarily expelled the limits of the
nation, on account of some political disagreements. Oueeka-
chumpa, the great chief of the O'Conas, claimed kinship with him
and saluted him as a good man and a distinguished warrior.
Removing from his former abode, after some wanderings he
finally, and not very long before the arrival of the colony of
Georgia, formed a settlement at or very near the present site of
the city of Savannah, where he gathered about him the tribe
of Yamacraws, consisting mainly of disaffected parties from the
Lower Creeks, and, to some extent, of Yemassee Indians, by whom
he was chosen mico, or chief. Prior to his removal to Yamacraw
Bluff he tarried for a season with the Palla-Chucolas. But little
can be gathered of his life previous to his acquaintance with
Oglethorpe. Ninety-one years had been, amid the forest shades,
devoted to the pursuits of war and the chase, and there is scarcely
a tradition which wrests from oblivion the deeds and thoughts of
this aged chieftain during that long and voiceless period.
During the visit which he subsequently made to London, in
company with Oglethorpe, his portrait was painted by Verelst,
and hung for many years in the Georgia rooms. This likeness,
which represents him in a standing posture with his left hand
resting upon the shoulder of his nephew and adopted son, Toona:
howi, who holds an eagle in his arms, was subsequently engraved
by Faber and also by Kleinsmidt. That Tomo-chi-chi was
noble in his connections we are fully advised, and there is that
about the countenance of this venerable mico, as it has thus been
72&ſ
-J&
ot
CŞož.
cº zozº
334 2224 ºz.
7
ºrato
：
ź%
·
，
- - º
zzacºz
ico
2 : SºS
2/2 . Aſ
Q/Z. zzº .7% O
%2 &
*A’zºz
o
Z72-
& C 7-
&
zzazz
o
99er-
z
O72
J/(
ºn 2
ºr--ºn-a-
2”
Jºos Bºen & Cº. ºoºo...ºth

GOOD-WILL OF TOMO-CHI–CHI. 135
handed down to us, which savors of intellect, dignity, manliness,
and kingly bearing.
It will readily be perceived how important it was to the inter-
ests of the colony that the good-will of this chief should be se-
cured at the earliest moment, and his consent obtained for the
peaceable occupation of the soil by the whites. On the occa-
sion of his first interview with Tomo-chi-chi, as we have already
seen, Mr. Oglethorpe was fortunate in securing the services of
Mary Musgrove" as an interpreter. Perceiving that she possessed
considerable influence with the Creeks, he retained her in this
capacity, allowing her an annual compensation of £100. The
meeting between the governor of the colony and the aged mico
beneath the grand live-oaks and towering pines, the sheltering
arms of which formed a noble canopy, was frank, cordial, and
Satisfactory. His personal friendship and the good-will of the
Yamacraws were firmly pledged, and permission was granted for
the permanent occupation of the site selected by Oglethorpe for
the town of Savannah.
Although amicable relations had thus been established with
the nearest Indians, it was necessary, in order to promote the
security of the colony, that consent to its foundation here should
be ratified by other and more powerful nations.
Learning from Tomo-chi-chi the names and the abodes of the
most influential chiefs dwelling within the territory ceded by the
charter, Mr. Oglethorpe enlisted the good offices of the mico in
extending to them an earnest invitation to meet him at Savannah
at Some early convenient day. The value of these interviews
with and the generous intervention of Tomo-chi-chi cannot easily
be overestimated in considering their influence upon the well-
being and prospects of this lonely colony struggling for its primal
existence. Had this chief, turning a deaf ear to the advances of
Mr. Oglethorpe, refused his friendship, denied his request, and,
inclining his authority to hostile account, instigated a determined
and combined opposition on the part not only of the Yamacraws,
but also of the Uchees and the Lower Creeks, the perpetuation
of this English settlement would have been either most seriously
imperiled or abruptly terminated amid smoke and carnage.
When, therefore, we recur to the memories of this period, and as
often as the leading events in the early history of the colony of
Georgia are narrated, so often should the favors experienced at
the hands of this Indian chief be gratefully acknowledged. If
* Her Indian name was Coosaponakesee.
136 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Oglethorpe's proudest claim to the honor and the respect of suc-
ceeding generations rests upon the fact that he was the founder
of the colony of Georgia, let it not be forgotten by those who
accord him every praise for his valor, judgment, skill, endurance,
and benevolence that in the hour of supreme doubt and danger
the right arm of this son of the forest and his active friendship
were among the surest guaranties of the safety and the very ex-
istence of that colony. The enduring and universal gratitude of
the present may well claim illustrious expression from the lips
of the poet, the brush of the painter, and the chisel of the
sculptor.
To the day of his death these pledges of amity and the assur-
ances of good-will and assistance given during these first inter-
views were faithfully observed. The firm friend of the white
man, the guide, the adviser, the protector, of the colonist, the
constant companion and faithful confederate of Oglethorpe, – as
such let us always remember the aged mico of the Yamacraws.
True to his promise Tomo-chi-chi exerted his influence in be-
half of the contemplated convention, and dispatched messengers
to the various principal towns and chief men of the Georgia
tribes, apprising them of the objects of the convocation and lead-
ing their minds in advance to a favorable consideration of the
propositions which had been intimated to him by Mr. Ogle-
thorpe. The interval, which necessarily intervened prior to the
assembling of the Indians, was improved by the founder of the
colony in furthering the settlement at Savannah and in paying a
visit to the province of Carolina. The fullest narrative of the
meeting between Mr. Oglethorpe and the Indians, in pursuance
of this invitation, is contained in the forty-sixth volume of the
“Political State of Great Britain,” and we repeat the account
as it is there given: —
“On the 14th of May, Mr. Oglethorpe set out from Charles-
town on his return to Savannah, which is the name of the town
now begun to be built in Georgia. That night he lay at Col.
Bull's house on Ashley River, where he dined the next day.
The Rev. Mr. Guy, rector of the parish of St. John's, waited
upon him there, and acquainted him that his parishioners had
raised a very handsome contribution for the assistance of the
colony of Georgia. Mr. Oglethorpe went from thence to Capt.
Bull's, where he lay on the 15th. On the 16th, in the morn-
ing, he embarqued at Daho, and rested at Mr. Cochran’s
island. On the 17th he dimed at Lieut. Watts' at Beaufort,
OGLETHORPE'S CONFERENCE WITH THE CREEKS. 137
and landed at Savannah on the 18th, at ten in the morning,
where he found that Mr. Wiggan, the interpreter, with the chief
men of all the Lower Creek nation, had come down to treat of
an alliance with the new colony.
“The Lower Creeks are a nation of Indians who formerly con-
sisted of ten, but now are reduced to eight tribes or towns, who
have each their different government, but are allied together and
speak the same language. They claim from the Savannah River
as far as S. Augustin, and up to the Flint river, which falls
into the bay of Mexico. All the Indians inhabiting this tract
speak their language. Tomo-chi-chi, mico, and the Indians of
Yamacraw are of their nation and language.
“Mr. Oglethorpe received the Indians in one of the new
houses that afternoon. They were as follows : —
“From the tribe of Coweeta — Yahou-Lakee, their king or
mico. Essoboa, their warrior, –the son of old Breen, lately
dead, whom the Spaniards called emperor of the Creeks, – with
eight men and two women attendants.
“From the tribe of the Cussetas — Cusseta, the mico, Tatchi-
quatchi, the head warrior, and four attendants.
“From the tribe of the Owseecheys — Ogeese, the mico, or war
king, Neathlouthko and Ougachi, two chief men, with three
attendants.
“From the tribe of Cheehaws — Outhleteboa, the mico,
Thlautho-thlukee, Figeer, Soota-Milla, war-captains, and three
attendants.
“From the tribe of Echetas — Chutabeeche and Robin, two
war-captains, (the latter was bred among the English) with four
attendants.
“From the tribe of Pallachucolas — Gillatee, the head war-
rior, and five attendants.
“From the tribe of Ocomas — Oueekachumpa, called by the
English “Long King, Coowoo, a warrior.
“From the tribe of Eufaule — Tomaumi, the head Warrior,
and three attendants.
“The Indians being all seated, Oueekachumpa, a very tall old
man, stood up, and with a graceful action and a good voice, made
a long speech, which was interpreted by Mr. Wiggan and John
Musgrove, and was to the following purpose. He first claimed
all the land to the southward of the river Savannah, as belong-
ing to the Creek Indians. Next he said that although they were
poor and ignorant, He who had given the English breath had
138 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
given them breath also ; that He who had made both, had given
more wisdom to the white men; that they were firmly per-
Suaded that the Great Power which dwelt in heaven and all
around, (and then he spread out his hands and lengthened the
Sound of his words), and which had given breath to all men, had
sent the English thither for the instruction of them, their wives
and children; that therefore they gave them up freely their
right to all the land which they did not use themselves, and that
this was not only his opinion, but the opinion of the eight towns
of the Creeks, each of whom having consulted together, had sent
some of their chief men with skins, which is their wealth. He
then stopped, and the chief men of each town brought up a bun-
dle of buck-skins, and laid eight bundles from the eight towns at
Mr. Oglethorpe's feet. He then said those were the best things
they had, and therefore they gave them with a good heart. He
then thanked him for his kindness to Tomo-chi-chi, mico, and his
Indians, to whom he said he was related ; and said, that though
Tomo-chi-chi was banished from his nation, he was a good man,
and had been a great warrior, and it was for his wisdom and
courage that the banished men chose him king. Lastly, he said,
they had heard in the nation that the Cherokees had killed some
Englishmen, and that if he should command them, they would
enter with their whole force into the Cherokee country, destroy
their harvest, kill their people and revenge the English. He
then sat down. Mr. Oglethorpe promised to acquaint the trus-
tees with their desire of being instructed, and informed them
that although there had been a report of the Cherokees having
killed some Englishmen, it was groundless. He thanked them
in the most cordial manner for their affection, and told them
that he would acquaint the trustees with it.
“Tomo-chi-chi, mico, then came in, with the Indians of Yama-
craw, to Mr. Oglethorpe, and, bowing very low, said: ‘I was a
banished man; I came here poor and helpless to look for good
land near the tombs of my ancestors, and the trustees sent peo-
ple here; I feared you would drive us away, for we were weak
and wanted corn; but you confirmed our land to us, gave us food
and instructed our children. We have already thanked you in
the strongest words we could find, but words are no return for
such favors; for good words may be spoke by the deceitful, as
well as by the upright heart. The chief men of all our nation
are here to thank you for us; and before them I declare your
goodness, and that here I design to die; for we all love your
SPEECH OF YAHOU-LAREE. 189
people so well that with them we will live and die. We do not
know good from evil, but desire to be instructed and guided by
you that we may do well with, and be numbered amongst the
children of the trustees. 1 He sat down, and Yahou-Lakee, mico
of Coweeta, stood up and said: “We are come twenty-five days'
journey to see you. I have been often advised to go down to
Charles-Town, but would not go down because I thought I might
die in the way; but when I heard that you were come, and that
you were good men, I knew you were sent by Him who lives in
Heaven, to teach us Indians wisdom ; I therefore came down that
I might hear good things, for I knew that if I died in the way
I should die in doing good, and what was said would be car-
ried back to the nation, and our children would reap the benefit
of it. I rejoice that I have lived to see this day, and to see
our friends that have long been gone from amongst us. Our
nation was once strong, and had ten towns ; but we are now
weak, and have but eight towns. You have comforted the ban-
ished, and have gathered them that were scattered like little
birds before the eagle. We desire therefore to be reconciled to
our brethren who are here amongst you, and we give leave to
Tomo-chi-chi, Stimoiche, and Illispelle, to call the kindred that
love them out of each of the Creek towns, that they may come
together and make one town. We must pray you to recall the
Yamasees that they may be buried in peace amongst their an-
cestors, and that they may see their graves before they die;
and their own nation shall be restored again to its ten towns.”
After which he spoke concerning the abatement of the prices of
goods, and agreed upon articles of a treaty which were ordered
to be engrossed.”
Tomo-chi-chi invited them to his town, where they passed the
night in feasting and dancing. On the 21st, the treaty was
signed. “A laced coat, a laced hat, and a shirt were given to
each of the Indian chiefs; to each of the warriors a gun, and a
mantle of Duffils ; and to all their attendants coarse cloth for
1 In A Curious Account of the Indians
by an Honorable Person, Mr. Oglethorpe
as the bird, and as strong as the beast ;
since like the first, they flew from the ut-
writes: “Tomo-chi-chi, in his first set
speech to me, among other things, said,
‘Here is a little present ; ? and then gave
me a buffalo's skin, painted on the inside
with the head and feathers of an eagle.
He desired me to accept it because “the
eagle signified speed, and the buffalo
strength : that the English were as swift
most parts of the earth, over the vast
seas, and like the second, nothing could
withstand them : that the feathers of the
eagle were soft, and signified love; the
buffalo skin was warm, and signified pro-
tection ; therefore he hoped that we would
love and protect their little families.’”
140 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
clothing. A barrel of gunpowder, four cags of bullets, a piece of
broad-cloth, a piece of Irish linen, a cask of tobacco pipes, eight
belts, and cutlashes with gilt handles, tape and inkle of all colors,
and eight cags of rum, to be carried home to their towns; one
pound of powder, one pound of bullets, and as much provision
for each man as they pleased to take for their journey home,”
were also distributed.]
During this interview the conduct of Mr. Oglethorpe toward
the Indians was characterized by marked kindness, courtesy, and
conciliation. He urged upon them an appreciation of the fact
that in making this settlement the English desired neither to
dispossess nor to annoy the natives, but that the earnest wish of
his government and people was to live in peace and friendship
with the surrounding tribes. He further explained the power of
the British nation and the general object in view in founding
the colony, and asked from the assembled chiefs and those whom
they represented a cession of the lands lying between the Savan-
nah and Alatamaha rivers. In addition, he invoked the ratifica-l
tion of a treaty of commerce and of perpetual amity.
The interview was in every respect satisfactory, and resulted
in the consummation of a treaty by which the Lower Creeks
agreed to place themselves under the general government of
Great Britain and to live in peace with the colonists. To the
trustees were granted all lands lying between the Savannah and
the Alatamaha rivers, from the ocean to the head of tide-water.
This cession also embraced the islands on the coast, from Tybee
to St. Simon's Island inclusive, with the exception of the islands
of Ossabau, Sapelo, and St. Catharine, which were reserved by
the Indians for the purposes of hunting, bathing, and fishing.
The tract of land lying above Yamacraw Bluff, between Pipe-
maker's Bluff and Pally-Chuckola Creek, was also reserved as a
place of encampment whenever it should please them to visit
their beloved friends at Savannah. Stipulations were entered
into regulating the price of goods, the value of peltry, and the
privileges of traders. It was further agreed that all criminal
offenses should be tried and punished in accordance with the
laws of England.”
Although this treaty was engrossed, and formally executed by
1 See The Political State of Great Brit- Gazetteer, ii., article “Georgia.” Lon-
ain, xlvi. 237; Gentleman’s Magazine for don. 1762.
July, 1733, iii. 384, et seq. ; American 2 See McCall's History of Georgia, i.
37, 38.
RATIFICATION OF THE TREATY. 141
Oglethorpe on the one part and the chiefs and principal warriors
who were then present on the other, in order that its terms
might be duly considered and approved, it was forwarded to the
trustees for their formal confirmation.
In due course it was returned with the following ratification : *
“The Trustees for establishing the colony of Georgia in Amer-
ica to the chief men of the nation of the Lower Creeks,
SEND GREETING:
“WHEREAs, The great king, George the Second, king of Great
Britain, did by his letters patent under the great seal of Great
Britain, bearing date the 9th day of June, in the 5th year of his
reign, constitute and appoint a body politic and corporate by the
name of the Trustees for establishing the colony of Georgia in
America :
“And, WHEREAs, The said Trustees have received from their
beloved Mr. James Oglethorpe, of West Brook Place, in the
county of Surry, Esquire, one of the common council of the said
Trustees, a copy of certain articles of friendship and commerce
between the said Trustees and the said chief men, which is in the
words following (that is to say), Articles of friendship and
commerce between the Trustees for establishing the colony of
Georgia in America, and the chief men of the nation of the
Lower Creeks.
“First. The Trustees, bearing in their hearts great love and
friendship to you the said head-men of the Lower Creek nation,
do engage to let their people carry up into your towns all kinds
of goods fitting to trade in the said towns, at the rates and prices
Settled and agreed upon before you the said head-men, and an-
nexed to this treaty of trade and friendship.
“Secondly. The Trustees do by these articles promise to see
restitution done to any of the people of your towns by the peo-
ple they shall send among you; proof being made to the beloved
man they shall at any time send among you, that they who have
either committed murder, robbery, or have beat or wounded any
of your people, or any wise injured them in their crops, by their
horses, or any other ways whatever; and upon such proof the
said people shall be tried and punished according to the English
law. .
* This ratification of these articles of of the nation of the Lower Creeks was
friendship and commerce between the made on the 18th of October, 1733. See
trustees for establishing the colony of Minutes of the Common Council for the
Georgia in America and the chief mico Years 1731 to 1736, p. 75.
142 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
“Thirdly. The Trustees when they find the hearts of you the
said head-men and your people are not good to the people they
shall send among you, or that you or your people do not mind
this paper, they will withdraw the English trade from the town
so offending. And that you and your people may have this
chain of friendship in your minds and fixed to your hearts, they
have made fast their seal to this treaty.
“Fourthly. We, the head-men of the Coweta and Cuseta
towns, in behalf of all the Lower Creek nation, being firmly
persuaded that He who lives in Heaven and is the occasion of
all good things, has moved the hearts of the Trustees to send
their beloved men among us, for the good of our wives and chil-
dren, and to instruct us and them in what is straight, do there-
fore declare that we are glad that their people are come here;
and though this land belongs to us (the Lower Creeks), yet we,
that we may be instructed by them, do consent and agree that
they shall make use of and possess all those lands which our na-
tion hath not occasion to use; and we make over unto them,
their successors and assigns, all such lands and territories as we
shall have no occasion to use ; provided always, that they, upon
settling every new town, shall set out for the use of ourselves
and the people of our nation such lands as shall be agreed upon
between their beloved men and the head-men of our nation, and
that those lands shall remain to us forever.
“Fifthly. We, the head-men, do promise for ourselves and the
people of our towns that the traders for the English which shall
settle among us, shall not be robbed or molested in their trade
in our nation ; and that if it shall so happen any of our people
should be mad, and either kill, wound, beat or rob any of the
English traders or their people, then we the said head-men of
the towns aforesaid do engage to have justice done to the Eng-
lish, and for that purpose to deliver up any of our people who
shall be guilty of the crimes aforesaid, to be tried by the English
laws, or by the laws of our nation, as the beloved man of the
Trustees shall think fit. And we further promise not to suffer
any of the people of our said towns to come into the limits of
the English settlements without leave from the English beloved
man, and that we will not molest any of the English traders
passing to or from any nation in friendship with the English.
“Sixthly. We, the head-men, for ourselves and people do
promise to apprehend and secure any negro or other slave which
shall run away from any of the English settlements to our na-
SCHEDULE OF PRICES. 143
tion, and to carry them either to this town, or Savannah, or
Palachuckola garrison, and there to deliver him up to the com-
mander of such garrison, and to be paid by him four blankets
or two guns, or the value thereof in other goods; provided such
runaway negro, or other slave, shall be taken by us or any of our
people on the farther side of Oconee River; and in case such
negro or runaway slave shall be taken on the hither side of the
said river, and delivered to the commanders aforesaid, then we
understand the pay to be one gun, or the value thereof; and in
case we or our people should kill any such slave for resistance or
running away from us in apprehending him, then we are to be
paid one blanket for his head, by any trader, for carrying such
slave's head unto him.
“Lastly. We promise with stout hearts, and love to our broth-
ers the English, to give no encouragement to any other white
people, but themselves, to settle amongst us, and that we will not
have any correspondence with the Spaniards or French ; and to
show that we both for the good of ourselves our wives and chil-
dren do firmly promise to keep the talk in our hearts as long as
the sun shall shine or the waters run in the rivers, we have each
of us set the marks of our families.
SCHEDULE OF THE PRICES OF GOODS AGREED ON, ANNEXED.
Two yards of stroud . o º º Five buck-skins.
One yard of plains . e º Q . One ditto.
White blanket . & e e º One ditto.
Blue ditto . go tº & Q . Five ditto.
A gun . . º tº o © {º Ten ditto.
A pistol . º o g e e . Five ditto.
A gun-lock . © e e º o Four ditto.
Two measures of powder . e tº . One ditto.
Sixty bullets © º © * & Ditto ditto.
One white shirt e o e o . Two ditto.
One knife . º o Q & g One doe-skin.
Eighteen flints e e & e . One buck-skin.
Three yards of cadiz . o & & One doe-skin.
Ditto ditto of gartering . 3. o . Ditto ditto.
One hoe e e o © * o Two buck-skins.
One axe © º . Ditto ditto.
One large hatchet o © º . Three doe-skins.
One small ditto © o © e . One buck-skin.
Brass kettles per lb. © . Ditto ditto.
Doe-skins were estimated at half the value of the bucks.
144 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
“And, WHEREAs, The said Trustees are 'greatly desirous to
maintain and preserve an inviolable peace, friendship and com-
merce between the said head-men of the Lower nation of Creeks,
and the people the said Trustees have sent and shall send to in:
habit and settle in the province of Georgia aforesaid, to endure
to the world's end ;
“Now know ye that we the said Trustees for establishing the
colony of Georgia in America do by these presents ratify and
confirm the said articles of friendship and commerce between the
Trustees for establishing the colony of Georgia in America, and
the chief-men of the Lower Creeks, and all and every of the ar-
ticles and agreements therein contained, and also the rates and
prices of goods above mentioned, settled and agreed upon before
the said head-men, and annexed to the said treaty of trade and
friendship.
“In Witness whereof the Common Council of the said Trustees
for establishing the Colony of Georgia in America have to these
presents made fast the common seal of the corporation of the
said Trustees, the eighteenth day of October, in the seventh year
of the reign of our sovereign lord George the Second, by the grace
of God of Great Britain, France and Ireland king, defender of
the faith, etc., and in the year of our Lord one thousand seven
hundred and thirty-three.
“By order of the said Common Council,
“BENJAMIN MARTYN, Secretary.” I
This treaty of the 21st of May, 1733, resulted in the pacifica-
tion of all the Lower Creek Indians, the Uchees, the Yamacraws,
and of other tribes acknowledging their supremacy. Nor did
the influences of this convocation rest with them only. They
were recognized by the Upper Creeks, and, at a later date, simi-
lar stipulations were ratified by the Cherokees. For years were
they preserved inviolate; and the colony of Georgia, thus pro-
tected, extended its settlements up the Savannah River and along
the coast, experiencing neither molestation nor opposition, but
on the contrary receiving on every hand positive and valuable
assurances of the good-will and sympathy of the children of the
forest. Probably the early history of no plantation in America
affords so few instances of hostility on the part of the natives, or
discloses so many acts of kindness extended by the red men.
To the prudence, conciliatory conduct, sound judgment, and wis-
1 See McCall's History of Georgia, i. 357, et seq.
TOMO—CHI—CHIPS GOOD OFFICES. 145
dom of Mr. Oglethorpe, seconded by the hospitality and generos-
ity as well as the direct personal influence of Tomo-chi-chi, was
the colony of Georgia indebted for this first and liberal treaty of
amity and commerce with the aborigines."
* See Historical Sketch of Tomo-chi-chi, pp. 25–37. C. C. Jones, Jr. Albany, N. Y.
1868.
10
CHAPTER X.
ARRIVAL OF THE SHIP JAMES. — FoRT ARGYLE BUILT AND GARRISONED.
— THE VILLAGES OF HIGH-GATE AND HAMPSTEAD LocateD AND PEO-
PLED. — FORTS AT THUNDERBOLT AND ON SKIDOwAY ISLAND. —Joseph’s
TOWN.—ABERCORN. —IRENE. — THE HORSE QUARTER.— EARLY PLAN-
TATIONS. — MANCHECOLAS FORT AT SKIDowAY NARROWs. – TYBEE LIGHT-
HOUSE. — PLAN OF SAVANNAH. — NAMES OF ITS SQUARES, STREETs,
WARDS, AND TITHINGs. – ARRIVAL OF HEBREW IMMIGRANTS. — DEED
SHOWING FIRST ALLOTMENT OF Town Lots, GARDEN LOTS, AND FARMS
IN SAVANNAH, AND CONTAINING THE NAMES OF THE ORIGINAL GRAN-
TEES.
DURING the month of March, 1733, the ranks of the colonists
were increased by small accessions from London. Some of them
came at their own charge, and all found their way to Savannah
through the intermediate port of Charlestown. In May seven-
teen persons arrived at Yamacraw Bluff, who had been approved
of by the trustees and conveyed at their expense. Among them
were some Italians from Piedmont accustomed to the propaga-
tion of silk-worms and the manufacture of raw silk. They were
engaged to develop an industry from the pursuit of which no in-
considerable gain was anticipated, and obligated themselves to
instruct the colonists in the cultivation of the white mulberry
tree, in the breeding of silk-worms, and in reeling the threads
from cocoons. The ship which conveyed them was the James,
Captain Yoakley. As this was the first vessel from England
which ascended the Savannah River, landed her passengers, and
discharged her cargo at Yamacraw Bluff, to her captain was
awarded the prize offered by the trustees."
The colonists at Savannah being busily employed in such
labors as were most conducive to the promotion of their comfort
and safety, Mr. Oglethorpe deemed it prudent, at this early pe-
1 The following notice of this arrival
may be found in the Gentleman’s Magazine
for 1733, p. 384: —
“Savannah, May 20, 1733. — The
James, Captain Yoakley, 110 tons and 6
guns, arrived here on the 14th with pas-
sengers and stores. This Ship rode in 2
Fathom and a half water close to the
Town at low water Mark. The Captain
received the Price appointed by the Trus-
tees for the first Ship that should unload
at this Town, where is safe Riding for
much larger Vessels.”
N_//Ņſaellº， ·：_%|-
|(/（NNN，((/（\'||
N``）.| 4A22||��~
|-%\\````\\\\\\\[((((((§§
|-Œ/67（?）.r.
¿
·• •�și,ſ',-
* * * * * * * * *
（~~~~ iſ ſ ≠ ≠ ≠
№ſº---ll
SØ|
3.
· ·• I •• Või| ，ºſ ºuN，， ！
}}· • ×ĀTĀ
20. Zºº., 7
2
º
º
2/ C.
Ž2.
*************wºw！***!
\，· ·|-
º.№， º●
&№·
№----±-
， ! ----2，
ſººſ：%%
∞„Ñ”.
[×4×4×4 ſae ，
227A.J. Zaº Z.Z.ºr Z/22
&
ſºſ||ſºſſae||ſ|ſſ||ºſſ|};
··// ±
alſº
！-
crºſº
*7）
ſae! !!！
miſſzaerae:
\\|§§§§§'ºſſºſ"¿%±,±）,
§§§auº'º'，${º}%，，，，%,,·
*"），}} （ſ) （4.6%<//~）;'）;
*）（.*;§§§§）;|-%±（/%'; }> }
±jš， ºſſº （№ſ
º.•）· ----
ºſº
*/*
- 9/~/2/42.
zzºz.
%.”
al auſſºſ
•
„ſae
ºrº
， , ， ，
|-
TĒT TĀLĀ， TĀWĪTĀTĒ
_|-~~~~-----
& ºſºſ）, º¿Aſ ºſ
}}¿?
„ſ“，
ſ_ſ||ſºſ №ſſae
}-1ſºrſ,■
ºw ，º'，e-+ º
º'，'!'};}"|}}}
º'！!！!!!！!！！!!!!！！!
±√∞TĀTĀ
ºſſºſ， ſaejaeſſºſ
++ º）·
!！！！!！! Țae
º al·ºſi
-\， ^|-
% º 4e Øz.
OZ)
Z
ož
¿?
، ،
6.
ºſa?|};
¿
“）;'|
Šºſ;
*s！Tºraeae
(~€.，ſººlººººº/,„”…”）（\ſ*）（（' -）！
*A*…**J • №-Jº º
Ķ|-„”） ***~
tS%
fººton & Co. Photo ºth
















































º scºred -
TRENCH's
|-1,
|-
ſ
O
| 0
#
SAVANNAH
|-[×××ſ√≠√∞'，
&#333$§§
- |-（…）
¿
~¿ſae;
Ķī£
¿Ë
………………
！”T，§§§§），…
·\，\,|\,…;）
§§§§§
§§§
*R）?（?：'，'|\， ）:
·ģ\！
¿№
|-"…--
|Lae§§
-*:'，
¿
----¿
----«» +}，¿?|----·
•ł№|-
så&&&&&&&&&&&
¿?
ſaeaeae
|×3×。、、、、、、、、、、、。
º
ſ-'，'--|-|-
&&&&&&&&*）№！！！！！！！！
A sºlºi-
（…：…
¿№~：§§§.
！
----
Jºen & Cº. Photoſ, whº




















FORT ARGYLE. HIGH-GATE. HAMPSTEAD. 147
riod in the life of the plantation, to advance his outposts and to
occupy strategic points in the neighborhood which would tend to
confirm the security of the town. Captain McPherson, of South
Carolina, with his rangers, had been stationed just above Yama-
craw Bluff at a point on the Savannah River known as the Horse
Quarter. His duty was, while the settlers were “enforting
themselves * and constructing their temporary shelters, to main-
tain strict watch against any hostile demonstration. Now, how-
ever, as a battery of cannon had been planted, and as the
stockade which surrounded the space allotted for the town was
partially completed, it was thought best to detach the captain
and a portion of his command that possession might be taken of
a locality on the Great Ogeechee River where the Indians, in their
predatory expeditions against Carolina, were accustomed to cross
that stream. Here a fort was builded which Oglethorpe, in honor
of his friend John, Duke of Argyle, called Fort Argyle. It com-
manded the passage of the river. That this outpost might be
strengthened, ten families were soon sent from Savannah to erect
dwellings and cultivate lands in its vicinity.
Between four and five miles south of Savannah, as its limits
were at first defined, and on rising ground, the village of High-
Gate was laid out, and twelve families, mostly French, were
assigned to its occupancy. About a mile to the eastward, the
village of Hampstead was located and peopled with twelve fam-
ilies, chiefly German. Gardening was to be the occupation of
these settlers, and their principal business was to supply the
inhabitants of Savannah with vegetables and provisions. In the
spring of 1736 Francis Moore, who then visited these little towns,
describes them as being “pretty,” and says that the planters
there domiciled were “very forward, having built neat huts and
cleared and planted a great deal of land.” The prosperity of
these villages was of short duration. In 1740 but two families
remained at High-Gate, while Hampstead had then been entirely
abandoned.
As a protection against hostile approach by the way of St.
Augustine Creek, a small fort was constructed at Thunderbolt.
To several families were homes here granted. So frail was this
defensive structure that it fell into decay as early as 1737. On
the northeast end of Skidoway Island ten families were located
in 1734, and a fort was built for their protection. This attempt
at early colonization at this exposed point proved so unsuccess-
ful that within four years the village disappeared and the fortifi-
cation fell into a deserted and dilapidated condition.
148 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Joseph's-Town, situated on the Savannah River opposite Ons-
low and Argyle islands, was another of the early outlying towns.
It was occupied by colonists from Scotland, but malarial fevers
and a failure of crops brought about its speedy abandonment.
On a creek or branch of the Savannah, distant some three
miles from its confluence with that river, and about fifteen miles
above the town of Savannah, the village of Abercorn was laid
out in 1733. The plan of the town embraced twelve lots, with a
trust lot in addition at either extremity. Four miles below the
mouth of Abercorn Creek was Joseph's-Town where Scotch gen-
tlemen had selected plantations. Journeying from this place
towards Savannah in the early days of the colony the visitor
would pass, in succession, Sir Francis Bathurst's plantation, Wal-
ter Augustin's settlement, Captain Williams' plantation, Mrs.
Matthews' place, the Indian school-house Irene, the Horse Quar-
ter, and the lands reserved by the Indians just west of Yama-
craw. A strange fatality attended all these early attempts at
colonization in the swamp region of the lower Savannah. Born
of the subjugation of the forests and the exhalations from the
rich, dank soil were miasmatic fevers and fluxes which engen-
dered lassitude and death. Short-lived were these little settle-
ments, and it was only after the introduction of slave labor that
these plantations bordering upon the Savannah River became
permanent and productive. The Europeans who strove to bring
them into a state of cultivation failed in the effort and quickly
passed away. Others who endeavored to complete their labors
experienced similar misfortune and disappointment.
Of the ten families assigned to Abercorn in 1733, all were
gone within a period of four years. Mr. John Brodie, with
twelve servants, then occupied the settlement, but, after an ex-
periment of three years, he abandoned the place, leaving its im-
provements to fall down piecemeal. Many of the servants who
cultivated the lands of the Scotch gentlemen at Joseph's-Town
died, and that plantation for a while reverted to the dominion of
1nature. . ."
For the defense of Skidoway Narrows, a Manchecolas Fort
was erected, and it was garrisoned by detachments from Captain
Noble Jones’ company of marines quartered near his residence,
called Wormsloe, on the Isle of Hope.
A light-house, to rise ninety feet above the ground, was com-
menced near the northern end of Great Tybee Island, and here
a guard was posted.
WARDS AND TITHINGS NAMED. 149
As the number of immigrants multiplied, plantations were
formed on Augustine Creek, on Wilmington Island, on the Isle of
Hope, on the Little Ogeechee, at Bewlie, and even as far south
as the Great Ogeechee River.
Several accessions to its population having occurred, and suffi-
cient progress having been made in clearing the bay, the square,
and the streets, in erecting a crane, in planting a battery of can-
non, in palisading the town, in the preparation of a commodious
garden, and in uncovering the general outlines of Savannah,
Oglethorpe, on the 7th of July, 1733, convened the colonists that
they might be definitely advised of the precise plan of the vil-
lage, learn the names which he proposed to bestow upon the
square, streets, wards, and tithings, and participate in the assign-
ment of town lots, gardens, and farms. The convocation oc-
curred early in the morning, and the business of the day was pre-
ceded by an invocation of the Divine blessing.
Four wards, each containing four tithings, were marked and
named, viz.: Percival Ward, so named in honor of John, Lord
Percival, the first Earl of Egmont, and president of the trustees
for establishing the colony of Georgia in America; Heathcote
Ward, so named in honor of George Heathcote, M. P., an alder-
man of London and one of the most active and influential mem-
bers of the board of trustees; Derby Ward, so called in compli-
ment to the Earl of Derby, who was one of the most generous
patrons of the colonization; and Decker Ward, so named in honor
of Sir Matthew Decker, whose benefactions to the charitable de-
sign had been conspicuous. The tithings embraced in Percival
Ward were called, respectively, Moore, Hucks, Holland, and
Sloper, in honor of Robert Moore, Robert Hucks, Roger Holland,
and William Sloper, members of Parliament all, and influential
trustees. Heathcote Ward was composed of Eyles, Laroche, Ver-
non, and Belitha tithings, so named to perpetuate the pleasant
memories of Sir Francis Eyles, Bart., one of the commissioners of
the navy and a member of Parliament, John Laroche, also a mem-
ber of Parliament, James Vernon, Esqr., and William Belitha,
all members of the trust. The four tithings constituting Derby
Ward were Wilmington, Jekyll, Tyrconnel, and Frederick. These
were named in compliment to the Earl of Wilmington, Sir Joseph
Jekyll, Master of the Rolls, who, with his lady, had contributed
six hundred pounds in furtherance of the laudable design of the
trustees, Lord John Tyrconnel, and Thomas Frederick, M. P.,
both members of the board of trustees. The tithings into which
150 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Decker Ward was divided were named Digby, Carpenter, Tower,
and Heathcote, in honor of Edward Digby, George, Lord Carpen-
ter, Thomas Tower, MI. P., and George Heathcote, M. P., trus-
tees all.
The first and only public square then designated, and which
was to serve as a model for all others which should be called into
existence by the expansion of the town, was Johnson Square. It
was so named in compliment to his excellency Robert Johnson,
governor of South Carolina, who cordially welcomed Oglethorpe
and his companions upon their advent, and contributed gener-
ously to the comfort and advancement of the colony.
The streets then laid out were Abercorn, Drayton, Bull, and
Whitaker, running north and south, and the Bay, Bryan, and St.
Julian streets, intersecting them at right angles. In naming
these also Oglethorpe sought, in an enduring manner, to express
the gratitude of the colony and its founder. Thus, the principal
street bore the name of Colonel William Bull, who accompanied
Oglethorpe when he selected Yamacraw Bluff as a suitable site
for Savannah, and on various occasions rendered the plantation
services disinterested and valuable. The liberality of Mr. Joseph
Bryan, of Mr. St. Julian, of Mrs. Ann Drayton, of Mr. Whitaker
of South Carolina, and of the Earl of Abercorn was in this manner
publicly acknowledged.
In the middle of Johnson Square a large sun-dial was erected
for the convenience of the inhabitants. It perished long ago, and
the spot where it stood is now dignified by a shaft dedicated to
the memory of General Nathanael Greene, which testifies to the
ages the enduring gratitude cherished for him who, in the primal
struggle for independence, next to Washington engaged the af-
fections and excited the admiration of the Georgia patriots.
Christ Church occupies to-day the trust lot then designated
as a site for a house of worship, and the general plan of the lots,
streets, and square, established at this time, served for a guide in
the subsequent years. The wisdom of Oglethorpe in conserving
open spaces, at regular and near intervals, that free ventilation
might be enjoyed in this warm latitude, was manifest ; and the
town lots, which the luxurious demands of the present may pro-
nounce too small, then amply sufficed for the needs of the colo-
nists. It will not be forgotten that these lots were intended
simply as sites for private dwellings. Appurtenant to them
were gardens and farms, situated on the outskirts of the town,
so that each male inhabitant of full age participating in the al-
MAGISTRATES APPOINTED, ETC. 151
lotment, became possessed of a town lot containing sixty feet in
front and ninety feet in depth, a garden lot embracing five acres,
and a farm containing forty-four acres and one hundred and
forty-one poles. The grant, therefore, aggregated fifty acres,
thus conforming to the instructions of the trustees and supply-
ing land sufficient for the support of the colonist who came at
the charge of the trust and brought no servants with him. The
entire plan of Savannah having been fully shown, there followed
an allotment, to each inhabitant, of his town lot, garden lot, and
farm. This done, at noon all the colonists partook of a boun-
teous dinner provided by Oglethorpe. Fresh beef, turkeys, ven-
ison, and vegetables from the public garden were supplemented
by a liberal supply of English beer.
“Hitherto,” says Mr. Wright, “Mr. Oglethorpe had retained
to himself undivided authority over his people, but finding, from
their increasing numbers, that the task of disposing the new set-
tlers to the reciprocal offices of a social state and of keeping the
troublesome in subordination was more than he could longer in-
dividually accomplish, he now determined to delegate to others
a portion of the powers with which he was invested.” Accord-
ingly, in the afternoon a town court for the determination of
causes both civil and criminal was established. Magistrates, a
recorder, constables, and tithing-men" were appointed and in-
ducted into office. A jury was drawn and empaneled, and a
case tried. “Conservators to keep the peace ’8 were named, and
Thomas Causton was selected as the keeper of the public stores.
Shortly after the conclusion of this important business a ves-
1 Memoir of General James Oglethorpe,
p. 73. London. 1867.
* On the 8th of November, 1732, the
trustees had commissioned George Symes,
Richard Hodges, and Francis Scott as
bailiffs, Noble Jones as recorder, Richard
Cannon and Joseph Coles as constables,
and Francis Magridge and Thomas
Young as tithing-men, for the then un-
located town of Savannah.
were Peter Gordon, William Waterland,
Thomas Causton, Thomas Christie,
George Symes, Richard Hodges, Francis
Scott, and Noble Jones.
For the village of Thorpe, which was
included within the precincts of Savan-
nah, the trustees commissioned, on the
18th of October, 1733, Robert Parker,
Sen, as chief constable, George Buckmar
and William Johnson as constables, and
The following persons composed the
first jury empaneled in Georgia : Samuel
Parker, Thomas Young, Joseph Cole,
John Wright, John West, Timothy Bow-
ling, John Millidge, Henry Close, Walter
Fox, John Grady, James Carwell, and
Richard Cannon.
* The persons named as such by the
trustees on the 8th of November, 1732,
Arthur Ogle Edgecombe and William
Riley as tithing-men.
Two days before they had sealed a
commission for Thomas Causton as sec-
ond bailiff of the town of Savannah, in
the room of Richard Hodges, deceased,
and had selected Henry Parker as third
bailiff.
152 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
sel arrived from England having on board forty Hebrew colo-
nists. They came to Savannah without the sanction of the trus-
tees, although the expenses incident to their transportation had
been defrayed with moneys collected under commissions granted
by the common council. It appears from the journal of the
trustees that among the commissions empowering the holders to
Solicit and receipt for contributions in aid of the colonization
were three in favor of Alvaro Lopez Suasso, Francis Salvador,
Jr., and Anthony Da Costa.
It was understood that all moneys which they might collect
were to be transmitted to the trustees, to be by them applied in
furtherance of the objects specified in the charter. Acting under
their commissions Messrs. Suasso, Salvador, and Da Costa did
secure benefactions to a considerable amount. Instead, however,
of paying these funds over to the trustees, or lodging them in
the Bank of England to the credit of the trust, as they should
have done, they busied themselves with collecting Hebrew colo-
nists to the number of forty and, without the permission of the
common council, appropriated the moneys which they had col-
lected to chartering a vessel and defraying the expenses requi-
site for the conveyance of these Israelites to Savannah. Receiv-
ing an intimation that Messrs. Suasso, Salvador, and Da Costa
were exceeding their authority and acting in violation of the in-
structions which accompanied the delivery of the commissions,
and apprehending that the purposes of these individuals, if con-
summated, would prove prejudicial to the best interests both of
the trust and of the colony, the trustees, as early as the 31st of
January, 1733, instructed their secretary, Mr. Martyn, to wait
upon them and demand a surrender of the commissions which
they held. With this demand Messrs. Suasso, Salvador, and Da
Costa refused to comply and, as we have stated, persisted in
appropriating the funds they had collected in the manner in-
dicated.
Mr. Oglethorpe had not been advised of the coming of these
colonists, and was somewhat at a loss to determine what disposi-
tion should be made of them. As the charter guaranteed freedom
of religious opinion and observance to all, save Papists, he wisely
concluded to receive them, and in due course notified the trus-
tees of their arrival and of his action in the premises. Those
gentlemen did not hesitate to avow their disapproval of the
whole affair. They declared that such irregular and unauthorized
conduct on the part of Messrs. Suasso, Salvador, and Da Costa
ISRAELITES AT SAVANNAH. 153
was prejudicial to the good order and scheme of the colonization,
and that the sending over of these people had turned aside many
intended benefactions. A committee was appointed to prepare
for publication a statement of the matter, and to assure the public
that they did not propose “to make a Jew's colony of Georgia.”
To Mr. Oglethorpe they wrote that they had heard with grave
apprehension of the arrival of these Israelites in Georgia, and
that they hoped “they would meet with no sort of encourage-
ment.” They counseled him to “use his best endeavors that
they be allowed no kind of settlement with any of the grantees,”
and expressed the fear that their presence in Savannah would
prove injurious to the trade and welfare of the colony.
The following extracts from the journal of the trustees evi-
dence their feeling and action in a matter which for some time
attracted no little attention both in England and in Georgia: —
“PALACE COURT. Saturday, December 22, 1733.
“At a meeting of Trustees, assembled by summons, Ordered
That the Secretary do wait on Mess" Alvaro Lopez Suasso,
Francis Salvador Jun' and Anthony Da Costa with the following
message in writing:
“Whereas a message, dated Jan; 31. 1732–3, was sent for the
redelivery of their Commissions with which they did not think
proper to comply, and which on the said Refusal were vacated
by the Trustees: And Whereas the Trustees are inform'd that by
monies rais'd by virtue of their commissions (which monies ought
to have been transmitted to the Trustees) certain Jews have
been sent to Georgia contrary to the intentions of the Trustees,
and which may be of ill consequence to the Colony: the Trus-
tees do hereby require the said Mess" Alvaro Lopez Suasso, Fran-
cis Salvador Jun', and Anthony Da Costa immediately to rede-
liver to Mº Martyn, their Secretary, the said Commissions and to
render an account in writing to the Trustees of what monies have
been raised by virtue thereof; and if they refuse to comply with
this demand that then the Trustees will think themselves obliged
not only to advertize the world of the demand and refusal of
the said Commissions and Account, and of the misapplication
before mentioned, in order to prevent any further impositions on
his Majesty's Subjects under pretence of an authority granted by
those vacated Commissions; but likewise to recover those com-
missions and demand an account of the monies collected in such
manner as their Counsel shall advise.”
154 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
“PALACE COURT. Saturday Janºw 5th, 1733–4.
“Ordered. That the Secretary do wait on Mess's Alvaro
Lopez Suasso, Francis Salvador Junº and Anthony Da Costa
With the following Message in writing:
“The Trustees for establishing the Colony of Georgia in
America having receiv'd a letter from Mess" Alvaro Lopez
Suasso, Francis Salvador Junº, and Anthony Da Costa, in answer
to a message sent for their Commissions, which letter does not
appear satisfactory to the said Trustees, they think themselves
oblig'd not only to insist on the redelivery of their Commissions,
but as they conceive the settling of Jews in Georgia will be pre-
judicial to the Colony, and as some have been sent without the
knowledge of the Trustees, the Trustees do likewise require that
the said Mess” Alvaro Lopez Suasso, Francis Salvador Jr. and
Anthony Da Costa, or whoever else may have been concerned in
sending them over, do use their endeavours that the said Jews
be removed from the Colony of Georgia, as the best and only
satisfaction they can give to the Trustees for such an indignity
offer'd to Gentlemen acting under his Majesty's Charter.”
“PALACE Court. Saturday Jan” 19th, 1733–4.
“The Secretary acquainted the Board that pursuant to their
order of Jan" 5th instant he had waited on Mess" Alvaro Lopez
Suasso, Francis Salvador Junº, and Anthony Da Costa, and left
with them the message of the Trustees in writing, and that he
had receiv'd the Commissions formerly given to them ; and then
he delivered the said Commissions to the Board.
“Resolved that the said Commissions be laid by, and the
further consideration of this affair be postponed till M* Ogle-
thorpe comes home.”
There the record ends; and, so far as we can learn, no further
action was taken. Ignoring the suggestions of the trustees, Ogle-
thorpe furnished ample accommodation and encouragement for
these Hebrew colonists, who by their peaceable behavior, orderly
conduct, and industry commended themselves to the favorable
consideration of the governor. In communicating with the trus-
tees he took Occasion to express the opinion that this accession
had not proved a detriment to the colony. He specially invites
the attention of his associates to the good offices of Dr. Nunis.
In acknowledging his kindness, the trustees request Mr. Ogle-
thorpe to offer him a gratuity for his medical services, but insist
that all grants of land within the limits of the province should
HEBREWS IN SAVANNAH. 155
be withheld from these Israelites. With these instructions, how-
ever, as we shall presently see, the founder of the colony of
Georgia did not comply. In the general conveyance of town
lots, gardens, and farms, executed on the 21st of December, 1733,
Some of these Hebrews are mentioned as grantees.
That the trustees were justified in condemning and rebuking
the irregularity, disobedience, and contumacy of Messrs. Suasso,
Salvador, and Da Costa, cannot be questioned. That it was en-
tirely prudent and proper in them to claim and exercise the
right of selecting colonists for the plantation is equally certain.
That they alone possessed the power of determining who should
seek homes in Georgia, and of binding applicants in advance to
a due observance of prescribed rules, was a privilege conferred
by the terms of the charter. That they should, under the cir-
cumstances, have entertained some apprehension of the effect
which would be produced upon the public mind by this unau-
thorized introduction, within the limits of the colony, of this con-
siderable body of Hebrews, excites no surprise. That they were
fully justified in recalling the commissions sealed in favor of
Messrs. Suasso, Salvador, and Da Costa, all will admit. And
yet Oglethorpe was right in receiving these people and accord-
ing them homes in Savannah. The excitement, in the end, en-
tirely subsided. These Hebrews proved orderly and useful citi-
zens. Many of them removed to South Carolina, but others
remained in Savannah, and their descendants may this day be
found in the city of Oglethorpe.
Although the formal allotment of lands within the confines of
Savannah was made in July, the requisite deed assuring the ces-
sions then specified was not executed until several months after-
Wards. It will be remembered that prior to the embarkation of
the first colonists the trustees conveyed to three of their number,
viz., Thomas Christie, William Calvert, and J oseph Hughes,
five thousand acres of land to be utilized in parceling out homes
for the early settlers in Georgia. Out of this tract were the
Savannah lands carved, and the original deed carrying into effect
and confirming the allotments made on the 7th of July, 1733,1
may now be seen in the office of the Secretary of State of Geor.
* Other allotments, made subsequently Savannah, which sailed from England on
to this date, are also included in this deed, the 12th of September, 1733.
Additional colonists had arrived, among See Gentleman's Magazine for 1733, p.
whom may be mentioned one hundred 493.
and thirty-two persons conveyed in the
156 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
gia. It is an instrument of the highest interest and value, and
has withstood in a remarkable degree the obliterating influences
of time and dust which, in the case of many contemporaneous
documents, have “eaten out the letters,” and “made a paren-
thesis betwixt every syllable.” Unfortunately, the “Plan of
Savannah '' which accompanied it, and to which reference is
therein made, has been lost. All efforts for its recovery have
thus far proved futile.
Preserving as it does the names of many of the earliest colo-
nists, indicating the estates granted, and designating the parcels
then conveyed, we make no apology for introducing the following
abstract of that important document: —
“To all to whom these Presents shall come ; We, Thomas
Christie and William Calvert, send greeting. Whereas by In-
dentures of Lease and Release made between the Trustees for
establishing the Colony of Georgia in America on the one part ;
and us the said Thomas Christie and William Calvert and Joseph
Hughes, deceased, on the other part, bearing date the twenty-
fifth day of October Anno Domini One thousand seven hundred
thirty and two, under the common seal of the said Trustees, they
the said Trustees did for the considerations therein mentioned
Grant and convey unto us the said Thomas Christie and William
Calvert and the said Joseph Hughes, deceased, and to the Sur-
vivors of us and our Assigns, Five Thousand Acres of Land
lying and being in the Province of Georgia in America, being
part and parcel of the Land which his Majesty graciously
granted to the said Trustees by his Letters Patent bearing date
the Ninth day of June Anno Domini One Thousand Seven
Hundred thirty and two, to be set out in such parts of the said
Province as should be thought convenient and proper by such
Person as should be appointed by the Common Council for that
purpose, under such limitations and in trust for such uses and
purposes as are therein mentioned, as in and by the said Inden-
tures, relation being to them had, may more fully appear: And
Whereas the said Common Council did by deed, under the Com-
mon Seal of the said Trustees, bearing Date the Twenty Sixth
day of October Anno Domini One thousand seven hundred thirty
and two authorize and appoint James Oglethorpe Esquire, of
Westbrook Place in the County of Surry, to set out and limit the
said Five Thousand Acres in such part of the said Province as he
should think most convenient ; And Whereas the said James
Oglethorpe hath set out and limited the said Five thousand
DEED TO LOTS IN SAVANNAH. 157
Acres in such a regular manner as is most convenient for the sup-
port of a Town and the Inhabitants thereof, and hath set out
part of the said Five Thousand Acres for a Town called Savan-
nah, with Lotts for Houses, and left a Common round the Town
for convenience of Air ; And, adjoining to the Common, hath
set out Garden Lotts of Five Acres each, and beyond such Gar-
den Lotts hath set out Farms of Forty. Four Acres and One
hundred forty and one Pole each, and hath drawn a Plan of the
Town, and Plot of the Garden Lots and Farms respectively, with
proper Numbers, References, and Explanations for the more easy
understanding thereof, which Plan and Plot are hereunto an-
nexed and set forth in Folio One and Folio Nine of this Book:
“Now Know Ye, that we, the said Thomas Christie and Will-
iam Calvert, pursuant to the said Deed, and in performance
of the said Trust, do Grant and Enfeoff unto John Goddard one
House Lot in Wilmington Tything in Derby Ward, expressed in
the said Plan by Number One, containing Sixty feet in front and
Ninety feet in depth, and one Garden Lot containing Five Acres,
expressed on the said Plot by Number Eleven, lying South East
from the Center of the said Town, and one Farm expressed in
the said Plot by Number Five and Letter A in the said Ward
and Tything, containing Forty Four Acres and One Hundred
Forty and One Pole, making together Fifty Acres of Land: To
Have and To Hold the said Fifty Acres of Land unto him the
said John Goddard during the term of his natural life, and after
his decease then to the Heirs Male of his Body forever, Upon
the Conditions and under the express Limitations hereinafter
mentioned.”
Upon similar conditions, town lots in the various tithings and
wards in Savannah, garden lots, and farms were conveyed in and
by this deed to Walter Fox, John Grady, James Carwall, Rich-
ard Cannon, Frances Cox, relict of William Cox, William Cox,
Jr., George Sims, Joseph Fitzwalter, Mary Samms, relict of John
Samms, Elizabeth Warren, relict of John Warren, William War-
ren, son of the said John Warren, Mary Overend, relict of Joshua
Overend, Francis Mugridge, Robert Johnson, William Horn,
John Penrose, Elizabeth Hughes, relict of Joseph Hughes, Mary
Hodges, relict of Richard Hodges, Mary Hodges, Elizabeth
Hodges, and Sarah Hodges, – daughters of the said Richard
Hodges, – James Muir, Thomas Christie, Joseph Cooper, John
West, James Willson, Thomas Pratt, William Waterland, Eliza-
beth Bowling, relict of Timothy Bowling, Mary Bowling,
158 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
daughter of the said Timothy Bowling, Elizabeth Millidge, relict
of Thomas Millidge, Heirs Male of the said Thomas Millidge,
William Little, Jane Parker, relict of Samuel Parker, Thomas
Parker, son of the said Samuel Parker, Mary Magdalene Tib-
beau, relict of Daniel Tibbeau, Heirs Male of the said Daniel
Tibbeau, Hannah Close, relict of Henry Close, Ann Close,
daughter of the said Henry Close, Joseph Stanley, Robert Clark,
Peter Gordon, Thomas Causton, John Vanderplank, Thomas
Young, Joseph Coles, Thomas Tebbit, John Dearn, John Wright,
Noble Jones, Ann Hows, relict of Robert Hows, John Clark,
William Gough, William MacKay, Thomas Ellis, Edward John-
son, Isaac Nunez Henriquez, William Mears, Moses le Desma,
Paul Cheeswright, Samuel Nunez Ribiero, John Musgrove, Noble
Wimberly Jones, Daniel Ribiero, Charles Philip Rogers, Moses
Nunez Ribiero, Robert Gilbert, Edward Jenkins, Senior, Jacob
Lopez d’Olivera, William Savory, Edward Jenkins, Junior, Isaac
de Val, David Cohen del Monte, Benjamin Shaftell, Bearsley
Gough, Robert Hows, Abraham Nunez Monte Santo, John Mil-
lidge, Jacob Yowel, Samuel Parker, Junior, Abraham Minis,
Jacob Lopez de Crasto, and David de Pas; the said grantees
“ yielding and paying for such Town Lott, Garden Lott, and
Farm, containing together Fifty Acres as aforesaid, to the said
Trustees for establishing the Colony of Georgia in America, and
to their Successors, yearly and every year, the Rent or Sum of
two Shillings of lawful Money of Great Britain, the same to be
paid to such person or persons and at such place in the said Town
of Savannah in the said Province of Georgia as by the Common
Council (for the time being) of the said Trustees shall be ap-
pointed. The first Payment to be made on the first Day of the
Eleventh year to be computed from the Day of the date of these
Presents: provided always, and these Presents are upon these
conditions, that if it shall happen that the said yearly Rent of
Two Shillings or any part thereof be unpaid by the space of
Twelve Kalendar Months next after the day of Payment, on
which the same ought to be paid as aforesaid, And if the said
several persons or their respective Heirs above mentioned shall
not within the space of Eighteen Kalendar Months from the date
hereof erect one House of Brick, or framed, square timber Work,
on their respective Town Lotts, containing at the least Twenty
four feet in length, upon Sixteen in breadth, and eight feet in
height, and abide, settle, and continue in the said Province for
and during the full term of three years to be computed from the
DEED TO LOTS IN SAVANNAH. 159
date hereof, and if the said several Persons and each of them
respectively shall not, within the space of ten years, to be likewise
computed from the date hereof, clear and cultivate Ten Acres of
the said Land herein before to them respectively granted ; And
if the said several Persons aforesaid shall not plant or cause to be
planted, One Hundred plants of the White Mulberry Tree which
are to be delivered unto them respectively by the said Trustees,
so soon as the same or sufficient part thereof be cleared, and
sufficiently fence and preserve the same from the bite of Cattle,
and in stead of such Trees as shall happen to die or be destroyed
shall not set other Trees of the same sort, And if any or either of
the said several persons above mentioned who shall by virtue of
these Presents, or of the Grant and Enfeoffment hereby made or
intended to be made, now or at any time or times hereafter
become possessed of the said Fifty Acres of Land or any part or
parcel thereof respectively, at any time or times alien, transfer,
or convey the same or any part thereof for any term of years, or
any estate or interest in the same, to any Person or Persons
whatsoever without special leave and licence of the said Common
Council (for the time being) or of such Officer as the said Com-
mon Council shall from time to time authorize to Grant such
licence ; And if the said Person or Persons or any other Person
who shall by virtue of these Presents and of the Grant in Tail
Male hereby made from time to time become possessed of the said
Fifty Acres of Land shall do or commit any Treason, Misprison
of Treason, Insurrection, Rebellion, Counterfeiting the Money of
Great Britain, or shall commit Murder, Felony, Homicide, Kill-
ing, Burglary, Rape of women, unlawful Conspiracy or Con-
federacy, and shall be thereof lawfully convicted; and if any of
the said Person or Persons hereinbefore mentioned or any other
Person or Persons who shall by virtue of these Presents and of
the Grant hereby made, from time to time become possessed of
any of the said Fifty Acres of Land shall at any time hire, keep,
lodge, board, or employ within the limits of the said Province of
Georgia any person or persons being Black or Blacks, N egroe or
Negroes, or any other Person or Persons being a Slave or Slaves,
on any account whatsoever without the special leave and licence
of the said Common Council (for the time being) of the said
Trustees, that then and from thenceforth in any or either of the
aforesaid cases it shall be lawful to and for the said Trustees for
establishing the Colony of Georgia in America and their Succes-
sors into and upon the said Fifty Acres of Land hereby granted
160 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
of such person so offending, and upon any and every part thereof
in the name of the whole to reënter and the same to have again,
retain, repossess and enjoy as if this present grant had never been
made ; And all and every such Person or Persons so neglecting,
or misbehaving him or themselves in any or either of the cases
aforesaid, and all other the occupyers and possessors of the said
Fifty Acres of Land (to such person so misbehaving as aforesaid
belonging) or any part or parcel thereof, thereout and from
thence utterly to expel, put out, and amove ; And also upon the
Entry in any of the cases before mentioned of such Officer or
Officers who shall by the said Common Council (for the time
being) be for that purpose authorized and appointed, the Grant
hereby made of the said Fifty Acres of Land unto such Person
so misbehaving as aforesaid shall cease, determine, and become
void. -
“In Witness Whereof the said Thomas Christie, and William
Calvert have hereunto set their Hands and Seals this twenty-first
day of December in the year of Our Lord One Thousand Seven
Hundred Thirty and Three.
•) “THos. CHRISTIE [L S].
“WM. CALVERT [L S].”
Attached to the foregoing conveyance is the following schedule
exhibiting the names of the Grantees and the numbers and loca-
tions of their respective gardens and farms : —
~---
Gardens. | Farms. Gardens. Farms.
John Graham, 3
PERCIVAL WARD. Samuel Marcer, 4
MORE TYTHING. No. I. William Brownjohn. 8
James Willoughby, HOLLAND TYTHING. L.
Robert More, SLOPER TYTHING. M.
Robert Potter, Henry Parker, 7
Robert Hanks, Thomas Gapen,
Thomas Egerton, Francis Delgrass,
John Desborough, Jeremiah Papot,
Lewis Bowen, Peter Baillou,
John Kelly, James Papot.
John º:
Thomas Chenter. *
HUCKS TYTHING. K. HEATHCOTE WARD.
John Millidge, 45 E. 10 || EYLES TYTHING. No. N.
Jacob Yowel, 65 W. | 1 LAROCHE TYTHING. O.
Samuel Parker, Junº, 32 W. 7 Jacob Lopez de Cras-
Abraham Minis, 51 W. 6 to, 42 W.
James Turner, 9 David de Pas. 27 W.
Thomas Atwell, 2 VERNON TYTHING. P.
Hugh Frazier, 5 BELITHA TYTHING. Q.
NAMES OF GRANTEES. 161
Gardens. Farms. Gardens. Farms.
Joseph Coles, 65 E. 3
DERBY WARD. #jºir, 51 E. | 8
WILMINGTON TYTH- John Dearn, 24 E. 2
ING. No. A. John Wright. 1 E. 5
John Goddard, 33 E. 5
Walter Fox, 12 E. 4 3.
John Grady, 53 E. 8 DECKER'S WARRD.
James Carwall, 61 E. 6 DIGBY TYTHING. No. E.
Richard Cannon, 62 E. 5 John Clark, 34 E. 5
Frances, Relict of Dr. William Gough, 36 W. 2
William Cox, 52 E. 7 William Mackay, 97 W.
George Sims, 41 E. 10 Thomas Ellis, 35 E. 9
Joseph Fitzwalter, 37 E. 9 Edward Johnson, 36 E. | 1
Relic t of John Isaac Nunez Hen-
Samms, 7 E. 3 riquez, . 33 W. 7
Elizabeth, Relict of William Mears, 23 E. 6
John Warren. 64 E. 2 Moses le Desma. 41 W. 10
JEKYLL TYTHING. B. || CARPENTER TYTHING. F.
Mary, Relict of Josh- Noble Jones, 29 E. 6
ua Overend, 51 E. 9 Paul Cheeswright, 40 E. 5
Francis Mugridge, 37 E. 2 Samuel Nunez Ribi-
Robert Johnson, 42 E. | 6 ero, 63 W. 3
William Horn, 59 E. 5 John Musgrove, 45 E. 9
John Penrose, 30 E. | 1 Noble Wimberly
Joseph Hughes, 26 E. 4 Jones, 25 E. 8
Mary, Relict of Rich- Daniel Ribiero, 43 W. 2
ard Hodges, 36 E. 10 Charles Philip Rog-
James Muir, 48 E. 7 ers, 47 E. 10
Thomas Christie, 3 E. | 8 Moses Nunez Ribie-
Joseph Cooper. 27 E. 3 TO, 64 W. 4
TYRCONNEL TYTHING. C. Robert Gilbert. 2 E. | 1
John West, 13 E. 3 TOWER TYTHING. G.
James Willson, 63 E. | 8 Edward Jen kins,
Thomas Pratt, 57 E. 5 Sen', 40 W. 2
William Waterland, 22 E. 4 Jacob Lopez d’Oli-
Timothy Bowling, 4 E. 2 vero, 30 W. 7
Elizabeth, Relict of William Savory, 33 W. 3
Thomas Millidge, 66 E. 6 Edward Jen k in s,
Elizabeth, Relict of Junº, 68 W. 9
William Little, 60 E. 7 Isaac de Val. 70 W.
Samuel Parker, Sen”, 49 E. 9 HEATHCOTE TYTHING. H.
Daniel Tibbeau, 39 E. 1 David Cohen del
Henry Close. 6 E. 10 Monte, 61 W. 30
FREDERICK TYTHING. D. Benjamin Shaftell, 72 W. 6
Joseph Stanley, 34 E. 6 Bearsley Gough,
Robert Clark, 9 E. 3 Robert Hows, 23 E. 5
Peter Gordon, 10 E, 7 Hows, 44 E.
Thomas Causton, 8 E. 10 A bra h a m Nu ne z
John Vanderplank, 5 E. 9 Monte Santo, 34 W.
Thomas Young, 38 E. 4 Peter Tondee.
After the surrender of their charter by the trustees, and upon
the establishment of a royal government for Georgia, the early
cessions of lots within the corporate limits of Savannah, although
11
162 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
signed by the colonial governor, were made in the name of the
king of England, of his “special grace, certain knowledge, and
mere motion.” The grantee took in free and common socage,
with a rent reservation of one pepper-corn payable yearly, if
demanded. He also covenanted to erect a house upon the lot
within two years from the date of the grant. Should he fail to
build within the two years, he further stipulated, upon the ex-
piration of that period, to pay annually to the Crown the sum of
£1. Should no building be placed upon the lot within ten years
from the date of the grant, it then reverted to the Crown.
During the administration of the affairs of the colony by the
trustees, grants for tracts containing more than fifty acres were,
upon application and approval, sealed by the common council
and transmitted ; or some one was selected in the colony and
empowered, in the name of the trust, to make the desired con-
veyance. These alienations at first were all in tail male, and
upon conditions which will hereafter be fully considered.
Upon the erection of the royal government these larger tracts
were held of the Crown in free and common socage ; the grantee
covenanting to pay within three years from the date of the grant,
on the 25th of March in each year, two shillings for every hun-
dred acres granted, to clear and work at least three acres in
every fifty acres “of plantable land,” and also to keep a specified
amount of stock on grazing lands.
On the 12th of August, 1755, the Lords of the Regency issued
instructions requiring the grantees to cultivate three acres in
every fifty which might be granted, and for every fifty acres con-
veyed to place and maintain at least three head of neat cattle,
or six sheep or goats.
CHAPTER XI.
OGLETHORPE MAKES A RECONNOISSANCE OF THE SOUTHERN FRONTIER OF THE
PROVINCE. – HE INSPECTS FORT ARGYLE. —INDUCEMENTS OFFERED TO
THE SALZBURGERS TO EMIGRATE TO GEORGIA. — THEIR SETTLEMENT AT
EBENEzER. — VON RECK's DESCRIPTION OF SAVANNAH. — HIs TRIBUTE
To OGLETHORPE. — PALACHOCOLAS. — RECEIPTS AND EXPENDITURES ON
BEHALF OF THE TRUST. — OGLETHORPE DEPARTS FOR ENGLAND.
THE colonists at Savannah and in its vicinity having been ac-
commodated in an orderly manner, and the business of the plan-
tation proceeding in a satisfactory way, Mr. Oglethorpe, desiring
to acquaint himself with the southern boundary of the province
and to ascertain its capabilities for defense against the Spaniards,
on the morning of the 23d of January, 1734, accompanied by
Captain Ferguson and sixteen attendants, among whom were two
Indian guides, set out in a large row-boat on a tour of observation.
He was followed by a yawl laden with provisions and ammuni-
tion. Having navigated the interior waters which separate the
main from the Outer islands looking upon the Atlantic, and hav-
ing taken general note of the intermediate headlands, rivers, and
sounds, he reached the “first Albany bluff” of St. Simon's Island
on the evening of the 27th and there landed. Although the rain
fell in torrents, the party, sheltered by the dense foliage of a large
live-oak, passed the night in comparative comfort. The next
day Oglethorpe proceeded to the sea-point of St. Simon's, and sub-
sequently examined an island which, in honor of his friend, Sir
Joseph Jekyll, Master of the Rolls, he named Jekyll. A some-
what careful inspection of the mouths of the Alatamaha River and
of the adjacent region convinced him it was expedient for
the proper defense of the colony that a military station and set-
tlement should, at the earliest practicable moment, be formed on
the main near the embouchure of that river; and that, as an
outpost, and protection of its entrance from the sea, a strong fort
should be constructed on St. Simon's Island. During this recon-
noissance he selected those sites which subsequently were peopled
and known as New Inverness and Frederica.
On his return he ascended the Great Ogeechee River to examine
164 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
into the condition of Fort Argyle. Here, for the first time since
his departure from Thunderbolt, he “lay in a house and upon a
bed.” He was pleased with the activity and intelligent labors of
Captain McPherson. Fort Argyle was already finished and was
pronounced in a defensible condition. It was “well flanked,” and
several guns were in position. This fort was designed to com-
mand the passage of the river, and lay across the trail by which
the Indians from the south were accustomed to advance against
South Carolina. That trail led to the Savannah River at a point
just opposito the old Indian village of Palachocolas.
The funds collected by the trustees had been well-nigh ex-
hausted by expenditures in behalf of the colonization when their
treasury was handsomely replenished through the munificence of
the general government. Of the moneys realized from the sale
of lands in the island of St. Christopher, the sum of ten thousand
pounds was, in pursuance of a resolution of the House of Com-
mons adopted on motion of Sir Charles Turner, paid over to the
trustees for establishing the colony of Georgia in America, to be
by them applied “towards defraying the charges of carrying over
and settling foreign and other Protestants in said colony.” This
timely relief enabled the trustees to accomplish a purpose from
the execution of which they had been prevented by a want of
money. Rightly had they, in the administration of the trust,
given a preference to English Protestants desirous of seeking
homes in the New World. Now, however, they were justified in
enlarging the scope of their charity because the resolution, in
obedience to which this liberal benefaction was made, contem-
plated in terms the colonization of foreign Protestants.
During the four years commencing in 1729 and ending in
1732, more than thirty thousand Salzburgers, impelled by the
fierce persecutions of Leopold, abandoned their homes in the
broad valley of the Salza and sought refuge in Prussia, Holland,
and England, where their past sufferings and present wants en-
listed the profound sympathy of Protestant communities. In the
public indignation engendered by their unjustifiable and inhu-
man treatment, and in the general desire to alleviate their suf-
ferings, Oglethorpe and the trustees fully shared. An asylum in
Georgia was offered. The suggestion commended itself to the
approval of the Society for the Propagation of Christian Knowl-
edge, and a correspondence was opened with a view to ascertain-
ing whether any of these oppressed and exiled people would con-
sent to become British subjects and embark for Georgia. In
INVITATION TO SALZBURGERS. 165
proof of their readiness to render substantial encouragement and
aid to such as desired to go under the auspices of the trust, the
common council, on the 15th of December, 1733, passed the fol-
lowing resolutions : —
“Resolved, That the Trustees for establishing a Colony in
Georgia, in America, do greatly approve the proposal of the
Society for promoting Christian knowledge for defraying the ex-
pence of settling certain of the poor Saltzburghers in Georgia in
America, and will readily join and concur in sending and set-
tling so many of them as by the contributions which the said
Society shall transmit to the Trustees, and what other money
the Trustees shall for that purpose receive, shall be enabled to
send and settle in the said Colony.
“Resolved, That the said Society be desired to inquire, by
their Correspondents in Germany, in the name of the said Trus-
tees, whether any of the said Saltzburghers will be willing to be-
come British subjects and to settle in the said Colony of Georgia
on the terms to be offered by the said Trustees.
“Resolved, That the said Society be desired to publish such
further Accounts of the deplorable state of the poor Saltzburgh-
ers as they shall think proper, and at the same time to make
publick the design of the said Society jointly with the said
Trustees to apply such contributions as shall be received for the
relief of the said poor Saltzburghers to the settling as many of
them as they shall be able as British Subjects in Georgia in
America.
“Agreed to the following Articles for the poor Saltzburghers
to go to Georgia, viz: —
“1st. The Trustees will defray, as far as their contributions
will enable them, the charges of passage and provisions for the
voyage to Georgia in America of such Emigrants, Girnberghers,
or Exiles from Bertoldsgoden as are persecuted for the Protes-
tant Religion.
“2nd. To all those who want it, some allowance will be made
for tools.
“3rd. On their arrival in Georgia each family will have provis-
ions given them, gratis, till they can take in their harvest, and
also seed will be there given them sufficient to sow the lands
they shall in the first year make ready for sowing.
“4th. Every man shall be entitled to three lots, viz: a Lot
for house and yard within the Town, a Lot for Garden plots near
the Town, and a Lot for tillage at a small distance from the Town
166 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
sufficient in the whole to give a comfortable subsistence to them-
selves and families: and that they shall have the said lands free-
hold to themselves and their heirs male forever.
“5th. That they shall obey such orders and regulations for the
maintenance of property, peace, and good government, as the
Trustees shall think necessary from time to time to establish ;
and on their arrival shall assist each other in clearing their
Lands, building houses, and such other works as shall be neces-
sary for their mutual safety in common with his Majesty's other
subjects there.
“6th. That they, upon their settling in Georgia, shall become
Denizens, and have all the rights and privileges of Englishmen.
“7th. That they shall be protected in the free exercise of their
Religion and in the full enjoyment of all the civil and religious
rights of the free subjects of Great Britain.”
To a communication addressed to the Reverend Samuel Urls-
perger, the venerable Elder of the Salzburgers, inquiring whether
any members of his congregation would be disposed to join the
colonists in Georgia if measures were adopted for their comforta-
ble transportation to and proper settlement in the province, a
favorable response was returned. The Society for the Propaga-
tion of Christian Knowledge engaged to transport from Rotter-
dam to Dover such as should present themselves, and chartered a
vessel for that purpose. At Dover they were to be received by
the trustees and forwarded at their charge to Georgia. Advised
of these arrangements, forty-two men with their families, num-
bering in all seventy-eight souls, set out on foot for Rotterdam.
They came from the town of Berchtolsgaden and its vicinity.
Arriving at Augsburg, they were the recipients of many kind-
nesses not only from Lutheran congregations, but also from all
classes of society. Three carts were presented to them: one to
transport their luggage, and the other two to convey their feeble
women and children. Departing thence on the 21st of October,
1733, under the conduct of Baron Philip George Frederick Von
Reck, by slow stages, in which they were in turn subjected to
insult and blessings, they made their way to Frankfort. There
embarking upon the Main, and sailing down the Rhine, they
reached Rotterdam on the 27th of November. At this city they
were joined by their chosen religious teachers, the Reverend John
Martin Bolzius and Israel Christian Gronau. On the 2d of De-
cember they embarked for England. So contrary were the winds
and so tempestuous Was the voyage that the ship in which they
ARRIVAL OF THE SALZBURGERS. 167
were conveyed did not come to anchor at Dover until the 21st of
that month. There they were visited by the trustees, who ad-
ministered to them the oath of loyalty to the British Crown and
supplied them with many comforts.
On the 8th of January, 1734 (O.S.), having a favorable wind,
they departed in the ship Purisburg for Savannah. “A universal
joy appeared among the Saltzburgers who praised God that he
had heard their prayers.” After a protracted and stormy pas-
Sage these pious, industrious, and honest emigrants, at one o'clock
in the afternoon of the 7th of March, 1734, reached Charlestown,
South Carolina. Mr. Oglethorpe, who chanced to be there at
the time, “sent on board our ship,” says the Baron Von Reck in
his entertaining journal, “by the Pilot's Sloop, a large Quantity
of fresh Beef, two Butts of Wine, two Tunn of Spring Water,
Cabbage, Turnips, Radishes, Fruit, &c. as a present from the
Trustees to refresh the Saltzburghers after their long Voyage.”
Arrangements were made for conducting the Purisburg with-
out delay to Savannah, and that river was entered three days af.
terwards. It was Reminiscere Sunday, according to the Lutheran
calendar, — the gospel of the day being “Our Blessed Saviour
came to the Borders of the Heathen after He had been persecuted
in His own Country.” “Lying in fine and calm weather, under
the Shore of our beloved Georgia, where we heard the Birds sing
melodiously, every Body in the ship was joyful.” So wrote the
Reverend Mr. Bolzius, the faithful attendant and spiritual guide
of this Protestant band. He tells us also that two days subse-
quently, when the ship arrived at the place of landing, “almost
all the Inhabitants of the Town of Savannah were gather'd to-
gether; they fired off some Cannons, and cried Huzzah which
was answer'd by our Sailors and other English People in our
Ship in the same manner. Some of us were immediately fetch'd
on Shore in a Boat, and carried about the City, into the woods,
and the new Garden belonging to the Trustees. In the meantime
a very good Dinner was prepared for us: And the Saltzburgers,
who had yet fresh Meat in the Ship, when they came on shore,
they got very good and wholesome English strong Beer. And
besides the Inhabitants shewing them a great deal of Kindness,
and the Country pleasing them, they were full of Joy and praised
God for it.” l
Leaving his people comfortably located in tents, and in the
* Extract of the Journals of Mr. Commissary Von Reck, etc., p. 132. London.
1734,
168 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
hospitable care of the colonists at Savannah, Mr. Von Reck set
out on horseback with Mr. Oglethorpe to take a view of the
country and select a spot where the Salzburgers might form their
settlement. At nine o'clock on the morning of the 17th of
March they reached the place designated as the future home of
the emigrants. It was about four miles below the present town
of Springfield, in Effingham County, sterile and unattractive.
To the eye of the commissary, however, tired of the sea and
weary of persecutions, it appeared a blessed spot, redolent of
sweet hope, bright promise, and charming repose. Hear his de-
scription : “The Lands are inclosed between two Rivers which
fall into the Savannah. The Saltzburg Town is to be built near
the largest, which is called Ebenezer," in Remembrance that God
has brought us hither; and is navigable, being twelve Foot deep.
A little Rivulet, whose Water is as clear as Crystal, glides by
the Town ; another runs through it, and both fall into the Eben-
ezer. The Woods here are not so thick as in other Places.
The sweet Zephyrs preserve a delicious coolness notwithstand-
ing the scorching Beams of the Sun. There are very fine Mead-
ows, in which a great Quantity of Hay might be made with
very little Pains : there are also Hillocks, very fit for Vines. The
Cedar, Walnut, Pine, Cypress and Oak make the greatest part
of the Woods. There is found in them a great Quantity of
Myrtle Trees out of which they extract, by boiling the Berries,
a green Wax, very proper to make Candles with. There is much
Sassafras, and a great Quantity of those Herbs of which Indigo
is made, and Abundance of China Roots. The Earth is so fer-
tile that it will bring forth anything that can be sown or planted
in it; whether Fruits, Herbs, or Trees. There are wild Vines,
which run up to the Tops of the tallest Trees; and the Country
is so good that one may ride full gallop 20 or 30 miles an end.
As to Game, here are Eagles, Wild-Turkies, Roe-Bucks, Wild-
Goats, Stags, Wild-Cows, Horses, Hares, Partridges, and Buffa-
loes.” ”
Upon the return of Mr. Oglethorpe and the commissary to
Savannah, nine able-bodied Salzburgers were dispatched, by the
way of Abercorn, to Ebenezer, to cut down trees and erect shel-
ters for the colonists. On the 7th of April the rest of the emi-
grants arrived, and, with the blessing of the good Mr. Bolzius,
entered at once upon the task of clearing land, constructing
1 The Stone of Help. Commissary Von Reck, etc., pp. 16, 18.
2 An Extract of the Journals of Mr. London. 1734.
SETTLEMENT OF EBENEZER. 169
bridges, building shanties, and preparing a road-way to Aber-
corn. Wild honey found in a hollow tree greatly refreshed them,
and parrots and partridges made them “a very good dish.” Upon
the sandy soil they fixed their hopes for a generous yield of peas
and potatoes. To the “black, fat, and heavy' land they looked
for all sorts of corn. From the clayey soil they purposed man-
ufacturing bricks and earthenware. On the 1st of May lots
were drawn upon which houses were to be erected in the town of
Ebenezer. The day following, the hearts of the people were re-
joiced by the coming of ten cows and calves, – sent as a pres-
ent from the magistrates of Savannah in obedience to Mr. Ogle-
thorpe's order. Ten casks “full of all Sorts of Seeds” arriving
from Savannah set these pious peoples to praising God for all
his loving kindnesses. Commiserating their poverty, the In-
dians gave them deer, and their English neighbors taught them
how to brew a sort of beer made of molasses, Sassafras, and pine
tops. Poor Lackner dying, by common consent the little money
he left was made the “Beginning of a Box for the Poor.” The
repeated thunder-storms and hard rains penetrated the rude huts
and greatly incommoded the settlers. The water disagreed with
them, causing serious affections of the bowels, until they found a
brook springing from a little hill, which proved both palatable
and wholesome. By appointment, Monday, the 13th of May,
was observed by the congregation as a season of thanksgiving.
Depending entirely upon the charity of the trustees for sup-
plies of all sorts, and having but few mechanics among them,
these Salzburgers labored under many disadvantages in building
their little town in the depths of the woods, and in surrounding
themselves with fields and gardens. Patient of toil, however,
and accustomed to labor, they cut and delved away day by day,
rejoicing in their freedom, blessing the Giver of all good for his
mercies, and observing the rules of honesty, morality, and piety,
for which their sect had so long been distinguished.
Communication with Savannah was maintained by way of
Abercorn, to which place supplies were transported by water.
Early in 1735 the settlement was strengthened and encouraged
by the arrival of fifty-seven persons. They were Salzburgers
all, and had been sent over by the trustees in the ship Prince of
Wales. Among the new-comers were several mechanics, whose
industry and skill were at once applied to hewing timber, split-
ting shingles, and sawing boards to the improvement and mul-
tiplication of the dwellings in Ebenezer. A large wooden tent
170 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
was erected for church purposes, and therein dwelt the minis-
ters. Here, in the wilds of Georgia, far from the influence of
civilization, and upon the borders of an Indian tribe, was spring-
ing up a thrifty town peopled by a Christian community ac-
knowledging the pure doctrines of the gospel, and worshiping
with all the simplicity and sincerity which characterized the
early ages of the church."
Of the town of Savannah the Baron Von Reck favors us with
the following impressions: “I went to view this rising Town,
Savannah, seated upon the Banks of a River of the same Name.
The Town is regularly laid out, divided into four Wards, in
each of which is left a spacious Square for holding of Markets
and other publick Uses. The Streets are all straight, and the
Houses are all of the same Model and Dimensions, and well con-
trived for Conveniency. For the Time it has been built it is
very populous, and its Inhabitants are all White People. And
indeed the Blessing of God seems to have gone along with this
Undertaking; for here we see Industry honored and Justice
strictly executed, and Luxury and Idleness banished from this
happy Place where Plenty and Brotherly Love seem to make
their Abode, and where the good Order of a Nightly Watch re-
strains the Disorderly and makes the Inhabitants sleep secure in
the midst of a Wilderness. There is laid out near the Town, by
Order of the Trustees, a Garden for making Experiments for the
Improving Botany and Agriculture ; it contains 10 Acres and
lies upon the River; and it is cleared and brought into such
Order that there is already a fine Nursery of Oranges, Olives,
white Mulberries, Figs, Peaches, and many curious Herbs: be-
sides which there are Cabbages, Peas, and other European Pulse
and Plants which all thrive. Within the Garden there is an ar-
tificial Hill, said by the Indians to be raised over the Body of
one of their ancient Emperors. I had like to have forgot one
of the best Regulations made by the Trustees for the Govern-
ment of the Town of Savannah. I mean the utter Prohibition
of the Use of Rum, that flattering but deceitful Liquor which
has been found equally pernicious to the Natives and new Com-
ers, which seldom fails by Sickness or Death to draw after it its
own Punishment.””
Of Mr. Oglethorpe the Rev. Mr. Bolzius, reflecting the sen-
1 See Strobel’s Salzburgers and their Commissary Von Reck and of the Rev. Mr.
Descendants, p. 71. Baltimore. 1855. Bolzius, pp. 12–15. London. 1734
2 An Extract of the Journals of Mr.
OGLETHORPE LAYS OUT EBENEZER. 171
timents of the Salzburgers, says: “From what Knowledge we
have of Him we conclude that He hath a great Esteem for God's
holy Word and Sacraments and a great Love for God's Ser-
vants and Children, and wishes to see the Name of Christ glo-
rified everywhere. God hath also blessed his Presence and
Undertakings in these Countries. And the People being well
persuaded of his Fatherly Mind and indefatigable Labour for
their Welfare, his Departure 1 was very sorrowful to them. God
bless Him and bring Him well home and hear all our Prayers
for Him. He hath taken all possible Care of us.”
To this unstudied tribute of the exile may be appended the
poet's glowing lines : —
“Lo ! swarming southward, on rejoicing Suns,
Gay colonies extend; the calm retreat
Of undeserved distress, the better home
Of those whom Bigots chase from foreign lands.
Not built on Rapine, Servitude, and Woe,
And in their turn some petty tyrant's prey ;
But, bound by social Freedom, firm they rise ;
Such as of late an Oglethorpe has formed,
And, crowding round, the charmed Savannah Sees.”
Having assigned a location to the Salzburgers, Mr. Oglethorpe,
who was on the eve of his departure for England, attended by
Paul Jenys, Esq., speaker of the South Carolina House of As-
sembly, proceeded on the 18th of March to Purrysburgh, whence
he purposed rowing up the Savannah to visit the Palachocolas
Indians. The floods from the Cherokee mountains, however, had
so swollen the river as to render its ascent tedious and difficult.
He therefore returned to Abercorn where, parting company with
his friend, he proceeded with some Indians and accomplished his
excursion to Palachocolas. A fort had been there erected at the
lowest passage of the river. This visit accomplished, he repaired
to Ebenezer where he found eight able-bodied men, with their
minister the Rev. Mr. Gronau, engaged in constructing booths
and tents in anticipation of the early arrival of their families.
Pausing, he laid out their town for them, and ordered six car-
penters, who had come up from Savannah, to assist in building
six houses. He then continued his journey to Savannah, where
he arrived on the 22d.
The trustees' yearly account — to be exhibited to the Lord
1 Mr. Oglethorpe was about to leave Wright's Memoir of General Oglethorpe,
the province on a visit to England. p. 79. London. 1867.
* Thomson’s Liberty, Part V. 638–646.
172 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas in
obedience to the requirements of the Charter — was duly sub-
mitted. From that return, made on the 9th of June, 1733, it ap-
pears that one hundred and fifty-two persons had been sent to
Georgia during the first year, on the trust's account. Of this
number one hundred and forty-one were Britons, and eleven
were foreign Protestants. The lands ceded by the trustees, to
be granted out in smaller parcels to colonists transported by the
charity, aggregated five thousand acres. In addition, four thou-
sand four hundred and sixty acres had been conveyed to parties
going at their own expense. The moneys received from private
subscriptions amounted to £3,723 13s. 7d., and of this sum
£2,254 17s. 9d. had been disbursed. During the year ending
the 9th of June, 1734, the persons transported by the charity
number three hundred and forty-one, of whom two hundred and
thirty-seven were British subjects and one hundred and four were
foreign Protestants.
Eight thousand one hundred acres were granted to be conveyed
in smaller tracts; and, to parties settling at their own charge,
additional grants had been made aggregating five thousand seven
hundred and twenty-five acres. º
Including the amount received pursuant to the act of Parlia-
ment, the total contributions in aid of the colonization dur-
ing this twelvemonth amounted to £11,502 198. 8d., whereof
£6,863 0s. 10d. had been applied by the trustees."
With the progress of the colonization the trustees certainly
had good cause to be pleased. Never was a trust more honestly
administered. Among all the English plantations we search in
vain for a colony the scheme of whose settlement was conceived
and executed upon like exalted, disinterested, and charitable prin-
ciples, whose colonists were selected with like care, whose affairs
were conducted with equal regularity, and whose supervisors and
agents could be matched in respectability, culture, and benevo-
lence. By judicious treatment the red men had been won over
to peace and amity. By treaty stipulations these sons of the
forest had surrendered to the Europeans their title to wide do-
mains. The pine-covered bluff at Yamacraw was transmuted into
a town, well ordered, regularly laid out, and possessing forty
completed houses and many others in process of construction. A
battery of cannon and a palisade proclaimed its power for self-
1 An Account shewing the Progress of the first Establishment, pp. 14, 16. London.
Colony of Georgia in America from its MDCCXLI.
PROGRESS OF THE COLONIZATION. 173
rotection. An organized town court was open for the enforce-
ent of rights and the redress of wrongs. From a tall flagstaff
oated the royal colors, and a substantial crane on the bluff facil-
tated the unburthening of vessels in the river below. A public
garden and private farms evidenced the thrift of the community,
and gave promise of a liberal harvest. An ample storehouse
sheltered supplies against a season of want. This little mother
town — miniature metropolis of the province — had already sent
out her sons; some of them to dwell along the line of the Sa-
vannah, others to watch by the Ogeechee, others to build homes
upon the islands and guard the approaches from the sea, others
to warn the mariner as he entered the mouth of the Savannah,
and others still to convert the neighboring forests into pleasant
fields. Planters, too, at their own charge, and bringing articled
servants with them, were already seeking out and subduing fer-
tile tracts. Thus the colony enlarged its domains and multiplied
its settlements.
After an absence of some fifteen months from home, Ogle-
thorpe resolved to visit England. The general conduct of the
affairs of the plantation was entrusted to Thomas Causton, the
trustees’ store-keeper and a bailiff. In cases of doubt and diffi-
culty he was to take counsel of Mr. James St. Julian, of South
Carolina, and of Mr. Francis Scott, gentleman, of Georgia. Sad
were the colonists as they contemplated the departure of him
upon whom above all others they leaned for guidance and protec-
tion. As he bade adieu to his people, who attended him to the
boat which was to convey him to Charlestown, they were all so
concerned that, in the language of Mr. Commissary Von Reck,
“they could not refrain their tears when they saw Him go who
was their Benefactor and their Father; who had carefully
watched over them as a good Shepherd does over his Flock, and
who had had so tender a Care of them both by Day and by
Night.”




CHAPTER XII.
&
TOMO-CHI-CHI AND RETINUE ACCOMPANY OGLETHORPE TO ENGLAND. — ODE
TO THE MICO. — ENTERTAINMENT OF THE INDIANs IN LONDON AND ITs
ENVIRONS. — RETURN TO GEORGIA. — HAPPY INFLUENCEs ExERTED By
THIS VISIT.
2
“IF you plant where Savages are,” says Lord Bacon, “do not
only entertain them with trifles and gingles, but use them justly
and graciously, with sufficient guard nevertheless; and do not
win their favour by helping them to invade their enemies, but
for their defence it is not amiss: and send oft of them over to
the country that plants that they may see a better condition
than their own and commend it when they return.” I
Rightly judging that the advantage and security of the prov-
ince would be materially promoted by taking with him some of
the most intelligent of his Indian neighbors, in order that they
might, by personal observation, acquire a definite conception of
the greatness and the resources of the British empire, and,
moved by the kindnesses and attentions which he was quite
sure would be extended to them on every hand while in England,
bring back with them memories which would surely tend to
cement the alliances and perpetuate the amicable relations which
had been already so auspiciously inaugurated, Mr. Oglethorpe
invited Tomo-chi-chi and some of the leading members of his
tribe to accompany him on his intended visit. The old mico
gladly accepted the invitation, and resolved to take with him his
wife Scenawki and Toonahowi, his adopted son and nephew.
Hillispilli, the war-chief of the Lower Creeks, four other chiefs
of that nation, to wit, Apakowtski, Stimalchi, Sintouchi, and
Hinguithi, and Umphichi, a Uchee chief from Palachocolas, with
their attendants and an interpreter, constituted the retinue.
Leaving Savannah, they reached Charlestown on the 27th of
March, and sailed from that port for England on board his
majesty's ship Aldborough on the 7th of April, 1734. After a
voyage of seventy days that vessel arrived safely at St. Helens
in the Isle of Wight.
1 Essays, etc., p. 77. London : John W. Parker & Son. MDCCCLIII.
TOMO-CHI-CHI VISITS ENGLAND. 175
In announcing his arrival in a letter addressed to. Sir John
Phillips, Baronet, Mr. Oglethorpe says, “An aged chief named
Tomo-chi-chi, the mico or king of Yamacraw, a man of an excel-
lent understanding, is so desirous of having the young people
taught the English language and religion, that, notwithstanding
his advanced age, he has come over with me to obtain means
and assistant teachers. He has brought with him a young man
whom he calls his nephew and next heir, and who has already
learned the Lord's prayer in the English and Indian language.
I shall leave the Indians at my estate till I go to the city, where
I shall have the happiness to wait upon you, and to relate all
things to you more fully : over which you will rejoice and
wonder.”
On the evening of the 21st of June, a grand entertainment was
given in honor of Mr. Oglethorpe, who presented to the trustees
a narrative of the progress and a statement of the status of the
colony of Georgia.
His reception was cordial and appropriate. Every mark of
distinguished consideration was bestowed, and the trustees, – at
a special meeting convened for that purpose, — by a unanimous
vote, thanked him for the ability, zeal, activity, and perseverance
with which he had conducted the affairs of the province. They
assured him that they would hold his services in lively and grate-
ful remembrance. The return of this philanthropist was heralded
throughout the kingdom. His Roman virtues were glowingly
recounted in prose and verse.
The visit of Tomo-chi-chi was also commemorated in the fol-
lowing lines : —
TOMO-CHA-CEII.
AN ODE.
“Hanc olim veteres vitam coluere Sabini,
Hanc Remus et frater : sic fortis Hetruria crevit,
Silicet et rerum facta est pulcherrima Roma.
“What Stranger this 3 and from what Region far
This wond’rous Form, majestic to behold 3
Uncloath'd, but arm'd offensive for the War,
In hoary Age and wise Experience old 3
His Limbs, inur'd to Hardiness and Toil,
His strong large Limbs what mighty Sinews brace
Whilst Truth sincere and artless Virtue smile
In the expressive Features of his Face.
His bold free Aspect speaks the inward Mind,
Aw'd by no slavish Fear, from no vile Passion blind.
176 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
“Erst in our Isle, with such an Air and Mien,
Whilst Britain's Glory stood in Times of Yore,
Might some redoubted Chief of her’s be Seen,
In all his painted Pride, upon the Shore.
Or He, who graceful from the Chariot's Height,
When conqu'ring Julius landed from the Main,
Urg’d his confederated Tribes to fight
Por gen’rous Freedom, - fierce Cassibelan ;
Or He, whose Fame, in Roman Annals told,
Must live thro’ ev'ry Age, – Caractacus the Bold.
“From the wide Western Continent of Land,
Where yet uncultivated Nature reigns,
Where the huge Forests undiminished stand,
Nor Towns, nor Castles grace the naked Plains;
From that new World undaunted he pursues
To our fam'd Nation his advent’rous Way;
His Soul elated high with glorious Views,
Our Strength, our Arts, our Manners to survey;
The boasted European skill to find,
And bear triumphant home, and civilize his kind.
“And O ! the idle impotent Disdain
Of vulgar Error, partial to decide
Must he be stil’d by Us a Savage Man 3
O! the blind Folly of conceited Pride
Ever by Reason's equal Dictates sway’d,
Conscious of each great Impulse in the Soul,
And all his Words and all his Actions weigh’d
By unaffected Wisdom's just Controul,
Must he be rank’d in an inferiour Place,
In our inglorious Times, to our degenerate Race
“Alas ! brave Indian, good old England’s Fame
Thou sees’t sunk down from its Meridian Height;
The noblest Ardors now no more inflame,
Of conscious Worth and Honor's dear Delight ;
As then, when welcom'd to your happy Shore,
Our Fleets first landed from the wat'ry way,
And each strange Region studious to explore,
Pass'd the long Gulf, and vast Pacific Sea ;
And round emerging to the Eastern main,
Maintain’d from Sun to Sun their Gloriana's Reign.
“Wealth without End, from such Exploits as These,
Crown'd our large Commerce, and extended Sway;
And hence, dissolv’d in soft luxurious Ease,
Our ancient Virtue vanish’d soon away.
Rare to be found is the old gen’rous Strain
So fam'd amongst us once for Patriot Zeal,
Of try’d Good Faith, and Manners stanch and plain,
And bold and active for their Country's weal;
Clear from all Stain, superior to all Fear;
Alas! few such as These, few OGLETHORPES are here.
ODE TO TOMO-CHI-CHI. 177
“Oft hast thou seen His gallant Spirit prov’d,
His noble Scorn of Danger oft hast known,
Admir’d his Wisdom, and his Candor lov’d,
And Openness of Heart, so like thy own;
What time, at home before long lov’d and blest,
He to Thy Country brought his Godlike Aim,
Born as he is, to succor the Distrest,
The Prey from proud Oppression to reclaim,
Of lawless Might to curbe the impious Rage,
And strike with conscious shame the prostituted Age.
“Oft hast thou seen with what assiduous Care
His own young Infant Colony he rears;
Like a fond Parent, anxious to prepare
His tender Offspring for maturer years,
To love of Labor he subdues their Minds,
And forms their Morals with instructive Laws,
By Principle their solid union binds,
And Zeal that only heeds the Public Cause;
Still with Example strengthening Reason’s Call,
Still by superior Toil distinguish’d from them all.
“Whate'er of Empire underneath the Sun
Time thro’ revolving Ages has survey’d,
First from such manly Discipline begun,
And Merit summon’d Fortune to its Aid.
And hence, when Op'ning scenes of Fate make known
The long determin’d Purpose of the Skies,
Shall GEORGIA, to a mighty Nation grown,
In Arts and Arms and Glorious Actions rise,
And stand renown'd upon the Western Shore,
Ev’n then, when Europe's Fame shall cease and be no more.
“Renown'd shall GEORGIA stand it's own short Hour,
For soon must all that’s Human pass away;
Fix’d are the gradual Dates of Earthly Pow'r,
To rise, to grow, to flourish, and decay;
Still the Effect must follow from the Cause,
And every Work of mortal Men must fall,
And kingdoms change by Nature's stated Laws,
Forever round the habitable Ball:
All must, in turn, the self-same Tenor run;
All raised by honest Toil, by License all undone,
“But sacred Virtue, ever self-sustain'd,
Whilst all things fleeting round her she surveys,
Alone to Time shall unobnoxious stand,
And live and flourish in perpetual Praise.
Thine with thy OGLETHORPE's fair Fame shall last,
Together to Eternity consign'd, •
In the immortal Roll of Heroes plac'd,
The mighty Benefactors of Mankind;
12
178 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Those Heav'n-born Souls from whose high Worth we know
The Deity himself best imag’d Here below.” I
Having for some days enjoyed the hospitalities of Mr. Ogle-
thorpe, the Indians were transferred to the Georgia office where
comfortable quarters had been intermediately provided for them.
There they were suitably attired, and there they painted their
faces according to the custom of their country. Crowds flocked
to see them. Presents of various kinds were bestowed, and no
effort was spared to interest, amuse, and instruct these strange
visitors.
On the 1st of August Sir Clement Cotterell was sent to con-
duct the Indians to Kensington Palace where they were to be
presented to the king. He found them all prepared for the im-
portant event, except one who was suffering severely from an
attack of small-pox. They were conveyed in three of the king's
coaches, each drawn by six horses. At the door of the palace
they were received by the king's body-guard, and then by the
Duke of Grafton, lord chamberlain, were presented to his maj-
esty.
The following account of what transpired on this interesting
occasion is borrowed from the “Gentleman's Magazine: ” —
“THURSDAY, August 1, 1734.
“Tomo-cha-chi, the king, Senauki his wife, with Tooanakowki
their son, Hillispilli the war-captain, and the other Cherokee In-
dians brought over by Mr. Oglethorpe from Georgia, were intro-
duced to his Majesty at Kensington, who received them seated
on his throne; when Tomo-cha-chi, micho, or king, made the fol-
lowing speech, at the same time presenting several eagle's feath-
ers which are trophies of their country:
“‘This day I see the majesty of your face, the greatness of
your house, and the number of your people. I am come for the
good of the whole nation called the Creeks, to renew the peace
which was long ago had with the English. I am come over in
my old days, although I cannot live to see any advantage to my-
self. I am come for the good of the children of all the nations
of the Upper and of the Lower Creeks, that they may be in-
structed in the knowledge of the English.
1 Georgia a Poem, Tomo-cha-chi, an Facies non omnibus una,
'Ode. A copy of verses on Mr. Ogle- Nec diversa, tamen.
thorpe's second voyage to Georgia. London, printed and sold by I. Roberts
in Warwick Lane. MDCCXXXVI.
SPEECHES OF TOMO-CHI—CHI. 179
“‘These are the feathers of the eagle which is the swiftest of
birds, and who flieth all round our nations. These feathers are
a sign of peace in our land, and have been carried from town to
town there; and we have brought them over to leave with you,
O great king! as a sign of everlasting peace.
“‘O great king whatsoever words you shall say to me I will
tell them faithfully to all the kings of the Creek nations.”
“To which his Majesty graciously answered, ‘I am glad of
this opportunity of assuring you of my regard for the people
from whom you come, and am extremely well pleased with the
assurances you have brought me from them, and accept very
gratefully this present as an indication of their good disposition
to me and my people. I shall always be ready to cultivate a
good correspondence between them and my own subjects, and
shall be glad of any occasion to show you a mark of my partic-
ular friendship and esteem.’
“Tomo-cha-chi afterwards made the following speech to her
Majesty. “I am glad to see this day, and to have the oppor-
tunity of seeing the mother of this great people. As our people
are joined with your Majesty's, we do humbly hope to find you
the common mother and protectress of us and all our children.’
“And her Majesty returned a most gracious answer. The war-
captain and other attendants of Tomo-cha-chi were very importu-
nate to appear at court in the manner they go in their own coun-
try, - which is only with a proper covering round their waist,
the rest of their body being naked, - but were dissuaded from it
by Mr. Oglethorpe. But their faces were variously painted
after their country manner, some half black, others triangular,
and others with bearded arrows instead of whiskers.
“Tomo-cha-chi and Sena-ki, his wife, were dressed in scarlet
trimmed with gold.”
Three days after, the chief who had been prevented by illness
from accompanying his companions when they were presented to
the king died of small-pox. Although medical aid and kind at-
tention had been invoked in his behalf, neither the skill of the
physician nor the efforts of nurses could arrest the progress of the
loathsome disease. His death weighed heavily upon the spirits
of the other Indians, who were very averse to interring him
in a strange land. His immediate sepulture, however, was a
matter of absolute necessity. Here, so far as our information
extends, occurs the first burial of an American chief on British
soil. A grave was prepared in St. John's cemetery, Westminster.
180 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Tomo-chi-chi, three of the chiefs, the upper church-warden, and
the grave-digger were the only persons present on the lonely and
melancholy occasion, — the fear of infection, in all probability,
deterring many who otherwise would doubtless have been in at-
tendance to witness the novel funeral rites.
The custom of the natives was observed as nearly as circum-
stances would permit. The corpse, sewed up in two blankets,
with a deal-board over and another under lashed together with a
cord, was carried to the grave on a bier. When the body was
lowered in the earth, the clothes of the deceased, a quantity of
glass beads, and some pieces of silver were thrown in the grave
after the manner of the American Indians, whose custom it was
to bury with the dead the effects of the deceased.
So depressed were the Indians by this bereavement that, in
order to divert their attention and afford them an opportunity
for quietly regaining their wonted composure, Mr. Oglethorpe
very kindly took them out to his country-seat. There they re-
mained for nearly two weeks. Having bewailed the dead ac-
cording to the established usages of their nation, they recovered
from the affliction which had so greatly distressed them. The
deceased was a brother of the queen. -
On Saturday, the 7th of August, Tomo-chi-chi and his compan-
ions were conveyed in the barge of the Archbishop of Canterbury
to Putney, where they were hospitably entertained by Lady
Dutry. After dinner, in taking leave of her, the aged mico ex-
pressed his regrets that he was unable in English to convey the
thoughts of his heart and tell her how sensibly he was moved by
the generous and noble reception she had given him, and how
great was the gratification he experienced in being permitted to
see and thank her in person for the assistance she had rendered
the colony of Georgia.
The following day they waited upon the Archbishop of Can-
terbury, at Lambeth. His venerable Grace received them with
the utmost kindness and tenderness, expressing a fatherly con-
cern for their ignorance with respect to Christianity, his strong
desire for their instruction, and his sincere satisfaction that a
door was now opened for the education and evangelization of
their race.
Although very weak, his Grace, when pressed to do so, de-
clined to sit during the interview. Tomo-chi-chi perceiving this,
with becoming propriety omitted the reply which he proposed to
make; and, craving the blessing of the aged prelate, added that
TOMO_CHI—CHI’S IMPRESSIONS OF LONDON. 181
he would not trespass further upon his weakness, but would com-
municate to his son-in-law, Dr. Lynch, what he desired to say.
He then retired. Subsequently, at a collation given in his honor,
he held an extended and cordial conference with Dr. Lynch,
during which he expressed the satisfaction he experienced in his
interview with the archbishop, and stated that he was deeply
moved by the tender consideration which had been accorded to
him. He urged upon the doctor's earnest consideration the neces-
sity for sending teachers to Georgia “by whom his people might
be educated and have their minds enlightened in the doctrines of
Christianity.” At parting he assured him of the joy which filled
his heart in anticipation of the fact that good persons would soon
be commissioned for the accomplishment of this important and
desirable work.
Upon the occasion of their visit to Eton, the Indians were re-
ceived with every mark of respect by the Rev. Dr. George, Dr.
Berriman, and the rest of the Fellows. “On closing their visit to
the schoolroom, Tomo-chi-chi begged that the lads might have a
holiday when the doctor thought proper. This caused a general
huzza.” They were then shown the several apartments of the
college, and took a respectful leave. Afterwards they went to
Windsor, where they were graciously received ; and thence to St.
George's chapel, where the prebends present named Dr. Maynard
to compliment the mico for the dean and chapter. The follow-
ing day they visited Hampton Court, saw the royal apartments,
and walked in the gardens, where a large concourse of people
had assembled to greet them. To them were subsequently shown
the Tower, the public buildings, Greenwich Hospital, and all the
great and interesting spectacles in London. Nothing was neg-
lected which might serve to awaken and gratify their curiosity,
or inspire them with a true conception of the power and grandeur
of the British nation.
Tomo-chi-chi was much impressed with the strength, riches,
and magnificence of the English empire. The solidity of the
London houses particularly attracted his attention. In the sim-
plicity of his heart he expressed his surprise that short-lived men
should erect such long-lived habitations. Nothing appeared to
escape his observation. At times he seemed oppressed by the
contrast, everywhere presented, between the ignorance, helpless-
ness, and poverty of his own people and the intelligence, power,
and wealth of London and its environs. On more than one occa-
sion did he avow his belief that, without the aid and friendship
182 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
of the English, the Indian tribes would, in his opinion, be doomed
to early annihilation. His sympathies were most earnest in their
behalf, and his constant wish was that competent teachers should
be sent over to counsel, educate, and christianize the youth of
his nation. Every one who came in contact with him was im-
pressed with the accuracy of his observations, the pertinency of
his inquiries, the maturity of his judgment, the wisdom and lib-
erality of his views, and the integrity of his professions. Recog-
nizing the importance of confirming the friendship which he had
formed for the infant colony, aware of the influence he was capa-
ble of exerting for good or for evil mot only among the members
of his immediate tribe but also within the limits of the Creek
confederacy, and appreciating how largely they were already in-
debted for his good offices and kindly intervention in behalf of the
early settlers, the trustees were peculiarly anxious that this visit
of the aged mico should prove in all respects satisfactory and pro-
ductive of future good. No pains therefore were spared, either
on their part, or on that of all who were interested in the welfare
of the province, in ministering to his constant entertainment and
the enjoyment of his companions.
Nearly four months had elapsed since the arrival of the Ald-
borough, and Tomo-chi-chi felt it was time that he should re-
turn to his little village on the banks of the Savannah and tell
his friends the incidents and lessons which were born of his
sojourn in the home of the white man. In an interview with
the trustees he remarked that although in his own country all
travelers were entertained without expense, he was quite sensible
that the stay of the Indians in England was a severe charge
upon them ; and, as cold weather was coming on, he desired to
return home at an early convenient day. He requested that the
weights, measures, prices, and qualities of all goods to be ex-
changed by the colonists for deer-skins and other peltry should
be settled in accordance with established rules; that no person
should be allowed to trade with the Indians without special
licenses from the trustees, so that if at any time his people were
defrauded by the traders they would at once know where to
apply for redress; and further, that a storehouse might be es-
tablished in every principal Indian village where the natives
could be supplied at first cost with such articles as they desired
to purchase. In justification of this application he referred to
the exorbitant prices demanded by the traders for their goods,
and the frauds practiced by them in Weights and measures, in-
TOMO-CHI-CHI DESIRES TO RETURN HOME. 183
sisting that to such impositions were to be chiefly ascribed the
animosities and quarrels which had sprung up in adjacent settle-
ments between the English and the Indians. From the trustees
he received the assurance that this subject would receive the
careful and immediate attention which its importance demanded."
Although Tomo-chi-chi desired to leave the shores of England,
it was not because there was any diminution in the attentions
shown him, or that the visit of the Indians began to be regarded
with indifference by a public keenly alive to its novelty and im-
portance when the strange guests were first installed in the
Georgia rooms. By the nobility, “curious to see them and
observe their manners,” princely entertainments were constantly
given. Whenever they appeared in public, multitudes followed,
shaking hands with these “rude warriors of the forest,” making
them many presents, and treating them with every mark of
friendship and civility. It is said that the presents received and
carried home by the Indians amounted in value to at least £400.
During their stay in London, the portraits of Tomo-chi-chi and
his nephew Toonahowi were painted and hung up in the Georgia
TOOTY).S.
In the “Gentleman's Magazine” for October, 1734, appears the
following notice of the departure of Tomo-chi-chi and his com-
panions : —
“WEDNESDAY, October 30, 1734.
“The Indian king, queen and prince, etc., set out from the
Georgia office in the king's coaches for Gravesend, to embark on
their return home. During their stay in England, which has
been about four months, his majesty allowed them £20 a week
for their subsistence, and they have been entertained in the most
agreeable manner possible. Whatever is curious and worthy ob-
servation in and about the cities of London and Westminster,
has been carefully shown them ; and nothing has been wanting
among all degrees of men to contribute to their diversion and
amusement, and to give them a just idea of English politeness
and our respect for them. In return they expressed themselves
heartily attached to the British nation. They had about the
value of £400 in presents. Prince William presented the young
mico John Towanohowi with a gold watch, with an admonition
to call upon Jesus Christ every morning when he looked on it:
which he promised. They appeared particularly delighted with
seeing his highness perform his exercise of riding the managed
1 See McCall's History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 46. Savannah. 1811.
184 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
horse, – the Horse Guards pass in review, and the agreeable ap-
pearance of barges, etc., on the Thames on Lord Mayor's day.
“In the same ship embark several relations of the English
already in Georgia, who were allowed the preference of going;
also Sir Francis Parkhurst, his son, three daughters, and ser-
vants, together with fifty-six Saltzburghers newly arrived from
Rotterdam. These people were at the German church in Trinity
Lane, where £47 were collected for them.”
The vessel in which Tomo-chi-chi returned was the transport-
ship, Prince of Wales, George Dunbar, captain. She arrived in
Savannah on the 27th of December, 1734.
In communicating to the trustees the intelligence of his re-
markably quick and prosperous voyage across the Atlantic, Cap-
tain Dunbar writes: “We arrived here [Savannah] all cheerful
and in good health. The Indians behaved with their accustomed
modesty, as did also the Saltzburgers, who are a sober and pious
people, and gave much less trouble than I expected; nor do I
think any of them were dissatisfied while on board.” He adds
in conclusion, “Tomo-chi-chi, Toonahowi, Hillispilli and Umpe-
chi were so kind as to come on board on the morning of our in-
tended departure, to see me. They have a very grateful remem-
brance of the many civilities which they received in England,
and desire me to inform your honors that Santechi has gone to
the Upper and Middle Creeks, who are at present extremely well
disposed to the British interest, and their deputies are expected
down in two months.” "
Upon his return we are told that Tomo-chi-chi freely im-
parted to his tribe and nation the impressions he had formed,
during his recent visit, of the power of the British empire, and
assured them of the marked courtesies, kindness, and hospitality
with which he and his companions had been everywhere enter-
tained during their sojourn in England. He exhorted them to
continue in friendship with their neighbors the colonists, and
sacredly to observe the obligations of the existing treaties. Says
McCall, “He acknowledged that the governor of the world, or
Great Spirit, had given the English great wisdom, power and
riches, so that they wanted nothing. To the Indians he had
given great extent of territories, yet they wanted everything.
Therefore he exerted his influence in prevailing on the Creeks to
resign to the English such lands as were of no use to themselves,
and allow them to settle amongst them, that they might be thus
1 London Magazine for March, 1735.
EFFECT OF TOMO-CHI-CHI’S WISIT. 185
supplied with useful articles for the cultivation of the soil, and
with the necessaries of life. He told them also that the English
were a generous nation, and would trade with them on the most
honorable and advantageous terms ; that they were brethren and
friends, and that they would protect them against danger, and
go with them to war against their enemies.” "
The beautiful and novel presents which Tomo-chi-chi and his
companions brought home with them went very far toward a
positive confirmation of his praises of the liberality of the English,
and produced a profound impression upon the natives. To many
of them did the generous mico freely give, from his treasures,
articles of value and ornament.
This visit of Tomo-chi-chi and his companions, and the inter-
est awakened by their personal presence in London, materially
assisted Mr. Oglethorpe and the trustees in enlisting the renewed
and earnest sympathies of the public, and in securing substantial
aid not only for the colonists, but also for the education of the
natives and their instruction in religious knowledge. Applica-
tion was made to the Rev. Dr. Wilson, Bishop of Sodor and Man,
to prepare a manual for their more facile indoctrination in the
principles of Christianity. With this request he complied,
and the results of his labors in this behalf are embodied in
“The Knowledge and Practice of Christianity made easy to the
Meanest Capacity, or an Essay towards an Instruction for the
Indians,” a work which was printed at the expense of the Society
for Propagating the Gospel in Foreign Parts, and passed through
Several editions. It does not appear, however, that it was ever
extensively used among the Indians, or that any marked prog-
ress was achieved in the contemplated labor of their evangeliza-
tion.
A letter was composed by a Cherokee chief and sent to the
trustees. It was drawn and curiously marked in red and black
figures on the neatly dressed skin of a young buffalo. A transla-
tion was prepared by an Indian interpreter when it was first
delivered at Savannah in the presence of fifty chiéfs and many
prominent citizens for the purpose of transmission to England.
This unique epistle contained the grateful acknowledgments of
the Indians for the honors and civilities which had been extended
to Tomo-chi-chi and his companions, their admiration of the
grandeur of the British court and kingdom, and a declaration of
their strong attachment to Oglethorpe. Upon its receipt by the
* History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 46.
186 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
trustees this hieroglyphic painting was framed and suspended in
the Georgia office in Westminster."
Widely disseminated among the Indian nations was the
knowledge of this sojourn of the mico of the Yamacraws in the
home of the white men, and faithful the report of his hospitable
reception and gracious treatment by the English. Grateful were
the Creeks for the kindness and consideration extended to one of
their race. The beneficial results flowing from, and the senti-
ments of good-will engendered by, this visit tended most decid-
edly to perpetuate the amicable relations existing between the
colonists and the natives.
1 American Gazetteer, London, 1762; article “Georgia.”
CHAPTER XIII.
RELIGIOUS INSTRUCTION OF THE Colonists AND THE INDIANS. – FREDERICA
NAMED, AND ITs SETTLEMENT AUTHORIZED BY THE TRUSTEES. – OGLE-
THoRPE RESUMEs TEMPORARILY HIS SEAT IN PARLIAMENT. – INTRODUC-
TroN or RUM AND SLAves INTO GEORGIA PROHIBITED BY SPECIAL ENACT-
MENT. — CAUSTON IN CHARGE of THE COLONY. —SILK CULTURE. – STAL-
wART Colonists SELECTED FOR THE SOUTHERN FRONTIERs. – RULES OF
THE TRUSTEEs For THE YEAR 1735. — ARRIVAL OF THE MORAVIANS. –
THEIR History IN GEORGIA. —Scotch EMIGRATION FROM INVERNESS. -
THE DARLEN SETTLEMENT FORMED ON THE ALATAMAHA.
THIS visit of Tomo-chi-chi and his companions to England was
turned to good account by Mr. Oglethorpe, who sought by their
personal introduction to the British public not only to impress the
natives with a proper conception of the power and superiority of
the white race, but also to enlist in behalf of their social, moral,
and religious amelioration the intelligent and substantial sym-
pathies of the English people. The employment of mission-
aries to instruct them in the doctrines of Christianity was urged
upon the immediate and favorable consideration of the trustees,
and Dr. Wilson, Bishop of Sodor and Man, moved by Ogle-
thorpe's appeal, promised to prepare a manual for their religious
edification. “The Knowledge and Practise of Christianity made
easy to the Meanest Capacity, or an Essay towards an Instruc-
tion for the Indians” was, as has been stated, written and pub-
lished in fulfillment of this engagement. In his preface the author
mentions that his little book was undertaken in consequence of
a conversation which he and some others had with the “honor-
able and worthy General Oglethorpe” concerning the condition,
temper, and genius of the Indians in Georgia. “And indeed,”
he adds, “that most worthy gentleman's great and generous con-
cern for both the present and future interests of these natives,
and his earnest endeavours to civilize them first, and make them
capable of instruction in the ways of religion and civil govern-
ment, and his hearty wishes that something might be done to
forward such good purposes prevailed with the author, however
indifferently qualified for such a work, to set about the following
essay.”
188 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
The practical results anticipated were not realized. But little
good was accomplished by the missionaries. The proposed trans-
lation of this essay into the language of the Creek confederacy
was never made, and the Indians, with few exceptions, continued,
after their fashion, to observe the religious rites and to entertain,
the superstitions which had been handed down by the sun-wor-
shiping priests of former generations.
The trustees never lost sight of the fact that Georgia was a
Protestant colony. In all their deliberations and arrangements
the encouragement of religious thought and observance among
the settlers was a matter of constant solicitude. To keep them
supplied with spiritual advisers and religious publications was
ever their aim. The public, too, sympathized in this sentiment
and effort. Benefactions in support of a minister, and contribu-
tions of catechisms, devotional exercises, and Christian guides
are frequently acknowledged in the proceedings of the common
council. As early as the 18th of April, 1733, the trustees re-
ceived from an unknown benefactor, at the hands of the Rever-
end Samuel Wesley, a silver chalice and patine for the use of the
church in the town of Savannah; and from time to time sums of
money were paid over to them, to be applied to the erection of
that house of worship. Of the character of the religious litera-
ture provided for the guidance and edification of the colonists
some idea may be formed from the following entry in the journal
of the trustees: —
“PALACE COURT,
Wednesday, May the 30th, 1733.
“Received by the hands of Mr. Hales, from an unknown person,
for the use of the Colony of Georgia, the following books : viz:
Two hundred of Dr. Thomas Gouch's Shewing how to walk with
God; two hundred Help and Guide to Christian Families, by
William Burkitt; two hundred Gibson's Family Devotion ; two
hundred Common Prayer Books: minion, 12 mo; two hundred
Horn Books; two hundred Primmers; one hundred Testaments;
one hundred Psalters; two hundred A. B. C. with the Church
Catechism; one hundred Lewis's Catechism; one hundred of The
Young Man instructed ; two hundred Friendly Admonition to the
I)rinkers of Brandy; the whole to the value of fifty-four pounds,
ten shillings.” With such solemn publications and rudimentary
books was it proposed to beguile the leisure hours, entertain the
rising generation, and comfort the hearts of the dwellers by the
Savannah.
§
IMPORTATION OF RUM AND SLAVES FORBIDDEN. 189
Oglethorpe's reception by the trustees, as we have seen, was
most cordial. After he had submitted to them a report of the
condition of the province, he was complimented by a unanimous
expression of their “great satisfaction with the eminent services
he had rendered to the colony.” His scheme for building a
new town near the mouth of the Alatamaha River and construct-
ing fortifications for the protection of the southern confines of
the province found favor in the eyes of the common council, who
resolved to name the new town Frederica. The seal of the cor-
poration was also affixed on the 26th of September, 1785, to a
deed erecting therein “a Court of Judicature for trying causes,
as well criminal as civil, by the name and style of the Town
Court.”
Resuming his seat in Parliament, Mr. Oglethorpe was in-
strumental in procuring the passage of two bills for the con-
jectured benefit of the province. One of these was an act to
prohibit the importation and sale of rum, brandy, and other dis-
tilled liquors within the limits of Georgia. In August, 1733,
several persons had died at Savannah, as was suggested, from the
too free use of rum. Mr. Oglethorpe so notified the common
council, who, on the 21st of November following, “Resolved that
the drinking of Rum in Georgia be absolutely prohibited, and
that all which shall be brought there be staved.” Although the
founder of the colony endeavored to enforce the observance of
this regulation, traders from Carolina supplied both the settlers
and the Indians with smuggled spirits which, as was alleged,
“produced disease among the former and disorderly conduct on
the part of some of the latter.” In South Carolina no prohi-
bition existed, and the importation of rum, both from New Eng-
land and from the West Indies, was constant and heavy. Upon
the moderate use of English beer and the wines of Madeira the
Georgia authorities placed no restriction. With these the trus-
tees' store at Savannah was regularly supplied, and the magis-
trates there were empowered to grant licenses for retailing beer
both of foreign manufacture and of home brewing.
The other act forbade the introduction of slavery, and was
entitled “An act for rendering the Province of Georgia more
defensible by prohibiting the importation of black slaves or
negroes into the same.” If suffered to rely upon the aid of
negroes the trustees feared that the colonists would fail to acquire
“habits of labour, industry, economy, and thrift by personal
application.” Both these statutes received royal Sanction. In
190 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
commenting upon this legislation Burke sagely remarked that
While these regulations and restrictions were designed to bring
about wholesome results, they were promulgated without a suffi.
cient appreciation of the nature of the country and the disposition
of the people to be affected by them. Long and earnestly did
many of the colonists petition for the removal of these prohibi-
tions, which placed the province at a disadvantage, when its priv-
ileges were contrasted with those of sister settlements, and, be-
yond doubt, so far at least as the employment of slave labor was
concerned, retarded its development.
During Mr. Oglethorpe's absence the charge of the colony
devolved upon Thomas Causton, storekeeper and chief bailiff,
assisted by the other bailiffs and by the recorder of Savannah.
He was cautioned by the trustees to keep them fully advised of
everything of moment which transpired within the province; to
have a care that no one traded with the Indians without special
license; to draw all bills for account of the colony upon the
trustees at thirty days’ sight; to see to it that the sick and
indigent, incapable of supporting themselves, and orphans of an
age so tender that they could not be articled as apprentices,
should, as occasion required, be assisted at the expense of the
trust ; to have the glebe land in Savannah inclosed by a sub-
stantial fence; to be zealous in the rigid enforcement of the laws
against tippling; to lose no opportunity in encouraging the
people to fence and cultivate their lands, as, upon the products
thence derived, depended their subsistence; to forward an esti.
mate of the cost of constructing a church in Savannah, of brick
or timber, sixty feet long, forty feet wide, and twenty feet high
within ; to promote settlements on Vernon River; to favor “the
setting up of Brew-Houses,” thus leading the people away from
the use of distilled liquors; to allow the Salzburgers another
year's full allowance from the public store; to urge on to com-
pletion the lighthouse which was being built on Tybee Island;
and to compel the town court in Savannah to hold a session once
in every six weeks for the trial of civil causes, and to convene for
the disposal of criminal cases as often as occasion demanded. No
fees were to be exacted by officers issuing warrants.
The encouragement extended by the trustees and the Board
of Trade to the production of raw silk in Georgia was not with-
out some palpable results. From time to time samples were
received. In May, 1735, the trustees, accompanied by Sir Thomas
Lombe, exhibited a specimen to the queen, who desired that it
g
SOUTHERN FRONTIER TO BE FORTIFIED. 191
should be wrought into a fabric. This was done, and her majesty
was so much pleased with the manufactured silk that she ordered
it to be made up into a costume in which she appeared at Court
on her birthday."
A memorial addressed to his majesty by the governor and as-
sembly of South Carolina, dated the 9th of April, 1734, produced
a profound impression upon the minds of the trustees for estab-
lishing the colony of Georgia in America, and confirmed them in
their intention to strengthen the southern part of the province.
After thanking his majesty for “his favour and protection,” and
especially for his benign care in erecting a province to the south
of Carolina, so conducive to the safety of that colony; after allud-
ing to the effort of the French to enlarge their possessions and to
alienate the affections of the Indians from the English settle-
ments; and after referring to the threatening attitude main-
tained by the Spaniards in Florida, these memorialists invited
the attention of the Crown to the necessity of guarding the har-
bors and ports of Carolina and Georgia, and of establishing mili-
tary posts to the south, so as to defend the territory adjacent to
the Spaniards and protect the British trade with the Gulf.”
As might have been reasonably anticipated, some of the ear-
liest emigrants proved as inefficient members of society in the
New World as they had shown themselves to be unfortunate in
the Old. Relying upon the assistance extended by the trust,
they neglected to put forth such efforts as were demanded by the
emergency of their situation. The trustees, although they had
exercised caution in the selection of colonists, resolved to be more
careful than ever in inquiring into the character and antecedents
of all applicants, and to make it known by published proposals
that for the population of the southern confines of the province
they desired men of strength and courage, accustomed to labor,
of frugal habits, and capable of enduring hardships. In their
interviews with those who sought to be enrolled as colonists they
distinctly advised them of the fact that in the beginning they
must expect to encounter privations and exposures, and resolve
to labor industriously in order to acquire a comfortable subsist-
ence for themselves and families. While a year's provisions and,
lands were promised, they were informed that those lands were
clothed with forests, and that new-comers must lie in temporary
* Political State of Great Britain, vol. i. Account shewing the Progress of the Colony
pp. 242, 469. of Georgia in America, pp. 50–56. Lon-
* See a copy of this memorial in An don. MDCCXLI.
$
192 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
shelters until they could build comfortable houses. They were
further told that they must subsist principally upon salt meat,
meal, and water ; that they would be compelled to “work hard,
keep guard for fear of enemies,” and clear and cultivate the ground
before a harvest could be reaped; that the climate was warm
in summer and that the insects were troublesome; that thunder-
storms in Season were frequent and violent; that those who
drank distilled liquors were liable to contract dangerous sick-
nesses; and that temperance was necessary not only for the pres-
ervation of their substance but also for the maintenance of health.
Those who were temperate and industrious were encouraged in
the hope that by God's assistance they could soon establish them-
selves in comfort upon their own lands. Such, however, as mis-
trusted their ability to undergo this probationary period of toil
and exposure were warned not to undertake the voyage. Not a
few of the faint-hearted withdrew their applications, but their
places were speedily filled by others."
The trustees deemed it proper also to prepare and publish rules
for the information and guidance both of those who should be
“sent on the Charity,” and of such as should “go at their own
expence.” Here they are: —
** RULES FOR THE YEAR 1735.
“The Trustees intend this year to lay out a County and build
a new Town in Georgia.
“They will give to such Persons as they send upon the Char-
ity; viz to every Man a Watch-coat, a Musquet and Bayonet; to
those who have them not of their own, an Hatchet, an Hammer,
an Handsaw, a shod Shovel or Spade, a broad Hoe, a narrow
Hoe, a Gimlet, a drawing Knife, and there will be a publick
Grindstone to each Ward or Village. He will also have an Iron
Pot, and a Pair of Pot hooks, and a Frying-pan.
“And for his Maintenance in the Colony for one Year he will
have, to be delivered in such Proportions and at such Times as
the Trust shall think proper, 300 Pounds of Beef or Pork, 114
Pounds of Rice, 114 Pounds of Pease, 114 Pounds of Flour, 44
Gallons of Strong Beer, 64 Quarts of Molasses for brewing of
Beer, 18 Pounds of Cheese, 9 Pounds of Butter, 9 Ounces of
Spice, 9 Pounds of Sugar, 5 Gallons of Vinegar, 80 Pounds of
Salt, 12 Quarts of Lamp Oil, and a Pound of Spun Cotton, and
12 Pounds of Soap.
1 See A Voyage to Georgia begun in the year 1735 by Francis Moore, pp. 10, 11.
London. 1744.
RULES FOR THE YEAR 1735. 193
“And to the Mothers, Wives, Sisters, or Children of such Men,
Provision will be given in the Colony for one Year in the follow-
ing Manner, viz: to be delivered as above, 300 Pounds of Beef
or Pork, 114 Pounds of Rice, 114 Pounds of Pease, 114 Pounds
of Flour, 64 Quarts of Melasses for Brewing of Beer, 18 Pounds
of Cheese, 9 Pounds of Butter, 9 Ounces of Spice, 9 Pounds of
Sugar, 5 Gallons of Vinegar, 30 Pounds of Salt, 6 Quarts of
Lamp Oil, and half a Pound of Spun Cotton, and 12 Pounds
of Soap.
“And for every Person above the Age of Seven, and under
the Age of Twelve, half the said Allowance;— being esteemed
half an Head.
“And for every Person above the age of Two and under the
age of Seven, one third of the said Allowance; — being esteemed
one third of an Head.
“The Trustees pay their Passage from England to Georgia,
and in the Voyage they will have the following Provisions, viz, in
every Week four Beef Days, two Pork Days, and one Fish Day;
and their Allowance served out daily as follows; that is to say:
“On the four Beef Days four Pounds of Beef for every Mess
of five Heads, and two Pounds and a half of Flour, and half a
Pound of Suet or Plums.
“On the two Pork Days, five Pounds of Pork and two Pints
and a half of Peas for every five Heads.
“And on the Fish Day two Pounds and a half of Fish and
half a Pound of Butter for every five Heads.
“The whole at sixteen Ounces to the Pound.
“And allow each Head seven Pounds of Bread of fourteen
Ounces to the Pound, by the Week.
“And three Pints of Beer and two Quarts of Water (whereof
one of the Quarts for Drinking and the other for boiling Vict-
uals) each Head by the Day for the Space of a Month; and a
Gallon of Water (whereof two Quarts for Drinking and the
other two for boiling Victuals) each Head by the Day after dur-
ing their being on their Passage.
“The Heads to be accounted in this Manner: Every Person
above the Age of Twelve Years to be accounted a whole Head :
all Persons of the age of Seven Years and under the Age of
Twelve Years, to be accounted Two for One; all Persons above
the Age of Two Years and under the Age of Seven Years, to be
accounted Three for One ; and any Person under the Age of Two
Years is not to be accounted.
13
194 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
“And the said Persons are to enter into the following Cove-
nants before their Embarkation: viz.: —
“That they will repair on Board such Ship as shall be pro-
vided for carrying them to the Province of Georgia; and during
the Voyage, will quietly, soberly, and obediently demean them-
selves; and go to such Place in the said Province of Georgia,
and there obey all such Orders as shall be given for the better
settling, establishing, and governing the said Colony.
“And that for the first Twelve Months from landing in the
said Province of Georgia they will work and labour in clearing
their Lands, making Habitations, and necessary Defences, and in
all other Works for the common Good and publick Weal of the
said Colony, at such Times, in such Manner, and according to
such Plan and Directions as shall be given.
“And that they, from and after the Expiration of the said last
mentioned Twelve Months will, during the two next succeeding
Years, abide, settle, and inhabit in the said Province of Georgia,
and cultivate the Lands which shall be to them and their Heirs
Male severally allotted and given, by all such Ways and Means
as, according to their several Abilities and Skills they shall be
best able and capable.
“And such Persons are to be settled in the said Colony either
in new Towns or new Villages.
“Those in the Towns will have each of them a Lot sixty Feet
in Front and ninety Feet in Depth whereon they are to build an
House ; and as much Land in the Country as in the whole shall
make up Fifty Acres.
“Those in the Villages will each of them have a Lot of Fifty
Acres which is to lie all together, and they are to build their
House upon it.
“All Lots are granted in Tail Male and descend to the Heirs
Male of their Bodies for ever; and in case of Failure of Heirs
Male, revert to the Trust to be granted again to such Persons as
the Common Council of the Trustees shall think most for the
Advantage of the Colony. And they will have a special Regard
to the Daughters of Freeholders who have made Improvements
on their Lots, not already provided for by having married, or
marrying Persons in Possession, or intitled to Lands in the Prov-
ince of Georgia in Possession or Remainder.
“ All Lots are to be preserved separate and undivided, and
cannot be united, in order to keep up a Number of Men equal to
the Number of Lots for the better Defence and Support of the
Colony.
RULES FOR THE YEAR 1735. 195
“No person can lease out his House or Lot to another without
Licence for that Purpose, that the Colony may not be ruined by
Absentees receiving and spending their Rents elsewhere. There-
fore each Man must cultivate the same by himself or Servants.
“And no person can alienate his Land or any Part, or any
Term, Estate, or Interest therein, to any other Person or Persons,
without special Licence for that Purpose, to prevent the uniting
or dividing the Lots.
“If any of the Land so granted shall not be cultivated, planted,
cleared, improved, or fenced with a Worm-fence or Pales six Feet
high during the Space of Ten Years from the Date of the Grant,
then every Part thereof not cultivated, planted, cleared, improved,
or fenced as aforesaid, shall belong to the Trust ; and the Grant,
as to such Parts, shall be void.
“There is reserved, for the Support of the Colony, a Rent
charge for ever of Two Shillings Sterling Money for each Fifty
Acres, the Payment of which is not to commence until Ten Years
after the Grant.
“And the Reversion or Remainder expectant on the Demise
of such Persons without Issue Male shall remain to the Trust.
“But the Wives of the Freeholders, in case they should sur-
vive their Husbands, are, during their Lives, intitled to the Man-
sion-house and One Half of the Lands improved by their Hus-
bands; that is to say, inclosed with a Fence of Six Feet high.
“All Forfeitures for Non-residence, High-Treason, Felonies,
&c., are to the Trustees for the Use and Benefit of the Colony.
“Negroes and Rum are prohibited to be used in the said Col-
ony; and Trade with the Indians, unless licensed. -
“None are to have the Benefit of being sent upon the Charity
in the manner above mentioned but
“1st. Such as are in decayed Circumstances and thereby dis-
abled from following any Business in England ; and who, if in
Debt, must have Leave from their Creditors to go.
“2nd. Such as have numerous Families of Children, if assisted
by their respective Parishes, and recommended by the Minister,
Church-Wardens, and Overseers thereof.
“The Trustees do expect to have a good Character of the said
Persons given, because no Drunkards or other notoriously vicious
Persons will be taken.
“And for the better to enable the said Persons to build the
new Town, and clear their Lands, the Trustees will give Leave
to every Freeholder to take over with him. One Male Servant, or
196 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Apprentice, of the Age of Eighteen Years, and upwards, to be
bound for not less than Four Years; and will, by way of Loan
to such Freeholder, advance the charges of Passage for such Ser-
vant or Apprentice, and of furnishing him with Cloathing and
Provision hereafter mentioned, to be delivered in such Propor-
tions, and at such Times as the Trust shall think proper: viz.:
With a Pallias and Bolster and Blanket for Bedding: A Frock
and Trowsers of Lintsey Wolsey, a Shirt, and Frock, and Trow-
sers of Osnabrigs, a Pair of Shoes from England, and two Pair
of Country Shoes for Cloathing : and 200 Pounds of Meat and
342 Pounds of Rice, Pease, or Indian Corn for Food for a Year.
“The Expence of which Passage, Cloathing and Provision is
to be repaid the Trustees by the Master within the Third Year
from their Embarkation from England.
“And to each Man Servant and the Heirs Male of his Body
forever, after the Expiration of his Service, upon a Certificate
from his Master of his having served well, will be granted Twenty
Acres of Land under such Rents and Agreements as shall have
been then last granted to any others, Men Servants, in like cir-
cumstances.
“Sign'd by Order of the Common Council of the Trustees for
Establishing the Colony of Georgia in America, this Second Day
of July, 1735. BENJ. MARTIN, Secretary.”
“To such Persons who can carry Ten Men Servants, and set-
tle with them in Georgia at their own Expence, and whose Char-
acters the Trustees, upon Inquiry, shall approve of, will be
granted Five hundred Acres of Land in Tail Male, and descend
to the Heirs Male of their Bodies forever, under the Yearly Rent
of Twenty Shillings Sterling Money for every Hundred Acres,
for the Support of the Colony; the payment of which is not to
commence until Ten Years after the Grant.
“And the Land is so granted upon the following Conditions
and Covenants.
“That such Persons do pay the Rent reserved as the same
shall become due; and no part to be unpaid for Six Months after
due.
“That they, within a Month from the Grant, shall register
the same, or a Memorial thereof, with the Auditor of the Planta-
tions.
“That they, within Twelve Months from the Grant, shall go
to and arrive in Georgia with ten able bodied Men Servants,
being each of the age of Twenty Years and upwards.
RULES FOR THE YEAR 1735. 197
“That they shall abide in Georgia with such Men Servants
Three Years from the Registering the Grant there, building their
Houses, and cultivating their Lands.
“That they shall clear and cultivate within Ten Years from
the Grant, Two hundred Acres of Land, Part of the said Five
hundred Acres, and plant Two thousand White Mulberry-trees
or Plants thereon ; and on every Hundred of the other Three
hundred Acres One thousand White Mulberry-trees or Plants,
when cleared, and preserve the same Quantity from time to time
thereupon, the Trustees obliging themselves to furnish the plants.
“That they do not alienate the said Five Hundred Acres of
Land or any Part for any Term of Years, or any Estate or In-
terest in the same to any Person or Persons without special
Leave.
“That they do not make Pot-ash in Partnership without
Leave; but may make it themselves not in Partnership.
“On the determination of the Estate in Tail Male the Land
to revert to the Trust.
“That they shall not depart the said Province without Li-
CellSe. ,
“All forfeitures for Non-Residence, High Treason, Felonies,
&c are to the Trustees for the Use and Benefit of the Colony.
“If any Part of the said Five hundred Acres of Land shall
not be cultivated, planted, cleared, and fenced round with a
Worm Fence, or Pales Six Feet high, within Eighteen Years
from the Grant, all and every such Part shall revert to the
Trust ; and the Grant as to such Part, to be void.
“And the Common Council of the Trust, at the Expirations
of the Terms such Men Servants shall be severally bound for,
(being not less than Four Years) when requested by the Grantee,
will grant to each of such Men Servants Twenty Acres of Land
in Tail Male, under such Rents, Conditions, Limitations, and
Agreements as shall have been then last granted to any others,
Men Servants, in like Circumstances.
“When the Land reverts to the Trust on the Determination
of the Estate in Tail Male it is to be granted again to such Per-
sons as the Common Council of the Trust shall think most for
the Advantage of the Colony. And the Trust will have a Spe.
cial Regard to the Daughters of those who have made Improve-
ments on their Lots, not already provided for, by having mar-
ried, or marrying Persons in Possession, or intitled to Lands in
the Province of Georgia in Possession or Remainder.
198 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
“And the Wives of such Persons, in case they should survive
their Husbands, are, during their Lives, intitled to the Mansion-
house and one half of the Lands improved by their Husbands;
that is to say, inclosed with a Fence Six feet high.
“Negroes and Rum are prohibited to be used in the said Prov-
ince, and Trade with the Indians, unless licensed.” I
Compared with the regulations established by the trustees
when they formulated their earliest plans for the conduct of the
colony, these rules indicate no material departure from the in-
ducements then offered and the resolutions originally formed.
In 1735 another Protestant sect found a home in Georgia.
Among the Solicitors whose intervention had been secured to
influence foreign Protestants to escape the poverty and the per-
secutions of their own lands by seeking freedom of religious
thought and worship and new abodes in the province of Georgia,
was Nicolaus Ludovicus, Count of Zinzendorf and Pottendorf,
who, in his efforts to shape a Christian community “on the model
of the primitive Apostolic congregations,” organized on his estate
of Berthelsdorf a colony of Moravian brethren who, impelled by
religious persecutions, had emigrated from Bohemia. In their
articles of faith sympathizing generally with the doctrines em-
braced in the Augsburg Confession, and yet possessing denomi-
national peculiarities, the adherents of this persuasion were pious
in their lives, guarded in their walk and conversation, indus-
trious in their habits, grave in deportment, and upright in all
their dealings. The town of Herrnhut which they builded was
noted for sobriety, activity, and good order. In January, 1735,
responding to his request, the trustees granted five hundred acres
of land in Georgia to Count Zinzendorf, with permission to ab-
sent himself from the colony on condition that he sent over ten
male servants to cultivate those lands. This was the earliest aid
extended by the common council to the Moravians, and it was
supplemented by other benefactions as applications multiplied.
Accompanied by the Rev. Mr. Gottleib Spangenberg, the first
emigrants of this religious persuasion arrived in Georgia in the
spring of 1735, and settled along the line of the Savannah River
between the Salzburgers and the town of Savannah.
The history of the Moravians in Georgia may be quickly told.
Under the auspices of Count Zinzendorf, seconded by the good
offices of the trustees, additions were made from time to time
1 An Account shewing the Progress of the Colony of Georgia in America, etc., pp. 43-
49. London. MDCCXLI.
THE MORAVIANS IN GEORGIA. 199
to this settlement. A school-house called Irene, was builded
near Tomo-chi-chi’s village, for the accommodation and instruc-
tion of Indian children. In its conduct and prosperity the aged
mico manifested a lively interest. With the Salzburgers the
Moravians associated on terms of the closest friendship. In sub-
duing the forests and in the erection of comfortable homes they
manifested the most commendable zeal. Above all others were
they successful in tilling the ground and in the accumulation of
provisions which sufficed not only for their own wants but also
for the relief of their less provident neighbors. Their abodes
were remarkable for thrift, sobriety, and honesty. In the educa-
tion and religious instruction of the Indians did they manifest
the liveliest interest, and the school at Ireme was organized and
conducted for their special benefit. They were in all respects
useful colonists. When summoned, however, to bear arms in de-
fense of the province against the Spaniards, they refused to do
so, alleging that not being freeholders there was no civil obliga-
tion resting upon them to perform military service. They
further insisted that their religious convictions prevented them
from becoming soldiers, and stated that before emigrating to
Georgia it had been expressly stipulated that they should be ex-
empt from the performance of military duties. In January, 1737,
Count Zinzendorf had a personal interview with Oglethorpe and
the trustees in London. After mature consideration, it was re-
solved, in view of their peculiar religious tenets and of the facts
connected with their settlement in Georgia, that the Moravians
should be excused from all military service. This exemption
embittered the minds of the other colonists against them and
rendered a further residence in the province unpleasant. Ac-
cordingly, in 1788, some of them, having first refunded to the au-
thorities all moneys which had been disbursed in defrayal of the
expenses connected with their passage from England and their
location in the province, abandoned their farms in Georgia, –
already so comfortable and exhibiting such tokens of thrift and
remuneration, — and removed to Pennsylvania. Others remained
in Georgia until, upon a renewal of hostilities between the Span-
iards and the colonists, they were again summoned to the field.
A second time did they refuse to take up arms; and many, bid-
ding farewell to their homes on the Savannah, joined their breth-
ren in Pennsylvania, where the Settlements of Bethlehem and
Nazareth preserve to this day some of the distinguishing features
of this peculiar people.
200 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Persuaded of the importance of strengthening the southern
frontiers of Georgia, and moved to speedy action by the memo-
rial of the General Assembly of South Carolina and by the ear-
nest petition of the trustees, Parliament was induced to grant a
further sum of £26,000 “for the settling, fortifying, and defend-
ing of that colony.” Their treasury being thus replenished, and
anxious to enlist colonists of acknowledged reputation and valor,
the trustees commissioned Lieutenant Hugh Mackay to recruit
among the Highlands of Scotland. So successful was he, and so
Satisfactory did the proposals of the common council prove, that
one hundred and thirty Highlanders, with fifty women and chil-
dren, were accepted and enrolled at Inverness. These, together
with several grantees going at their own charge and taking ser-
vants with them, sailed from that city on the 18th of October,
1735, on board the Prince of Wales, commanded by Captain
George Dunbar. The Savannah River was safely entered in the
following January. This proved a most valuable and efficient
accession to the colony. “These,” says Dr. Stevens, relying
upon the researches of Prof. Wm. Mackenzie, of the University
of Edinburgh, “were not reckless adventurers or reduced emi-
grants volunteering through necessity, or exiled by insolvency
and want. They were men of good character, and were care-
fully selected for their military qualities. In fact, they were
picked men, numbers of them coming from the Glen of Stralb-
dean, about nine miles distant. They were commanded by offi-
cers most respectably connected in the Highlands. Some of
their descendants have held and still hold high offices of honor
and trust in the United Kingdom.” The trustees were rejoiced
to find so valuable and hardy a company to people and guard
the southern confines of the province.
The town council of Inverness, grateful for the kind offers of
Oglethorpe to the Highlanders and anxious to express their re-
gard for his philanthropy, conferred on him the honor of a bur-
gess of the town.
Besides this military band, others among the Mackays, the
Dunbars, the Bailies, and the Cuthberts applied for large tracts
of land in Georgia, which they occupied with their own servants.
Many of them went over in person and settled in the province."
These Highlanders were accompanied by a minister of their
own selection, the Rev. John McLeod, a native of the Isle of
Skye.
1 Stevens' History of Georgia, vol. i. pp. 126, 127. New York. MDCCCXLVII.
S
`s-
SCOTCH EMIGRATION. 201
A few days after their arrival at Savannah they were trans-
ported in periaguas to the southward. Ascending the Alata-
maha River to a point on the left bank of that stream about
sixteen miles above St. Simon's Island, they there landed and
formed a permanent settlement which they named New Inver-
ness. Here they erected a fort, mounted four pieces of cannon,
built a guard-house, a store, and a chapel, and constructed huts
for temporary accommodation preparatory to putting up more
substantial structures. These Scots were a brave, hardy race, –
just the men to occupy this advanced post. In their plaids, and
with their broadswords, targets, and fire-arms, they presented “a
most manly appearance.” To the district which they were to
hold and cultivate they gave the name of Darien.
Previous to their departure from Savannah some Carolinians
endeavored to dissuade them from going to the South by telling
them that the Spaniards, from the houses in their fort, would
shoot them upon the spot selected by the trustees for their future
home. Nothing daunted, these doughty countrymen of Bruce
and Wallace responded, “Why, then, we will beat them out of
their fort, and shall have houses ready built to live in.” "
This valiant spirit found subsequent expression in the efficient
military service rendered by these Highlanders during the wars
between the colonists and the Spaniards, and by their descend-
ants in the American Revolution. To John Moore McIntosh,
Captain Hugh Mackay, Ensign Charles Mackay, Colonel John
McIntosh, General Lachlan McIntosh, and their gallant comrades
and followers, Georgia, both as a colony and a State, owes a
large debt of gratitude. This settlement was subsequently aug-
mented from time to time by fresh arrivals from Scotland. Al-
though located in a malarial region, it maintained its integrity
and increased in wealth and influence. Its men were prompt and
efficient in arms, and when the war cloud descended upon the
southern confines of the province no defenders were more alert
or capable than those found in the ranks of these Highlanders.
At an early date a passable road, located by Captain Hugh
Mackay, was constructed to connect New Inverness with Savannah.
For the preliminary survey Indian guides were furnished by
Tomo-chi-chi. This route is followed to this day by the highway
leading from Savannah to Dariem.
1 See letter of General Oglethorpe to Collections of the Georgia Historical So-
the trustees under date February 27,1735, ciety, vol. iii. p. 15. Savannah. 1873.
CHAPTER XIV.
REVEREND JoHN WESLEY ENGAGED As A MissionARY. —DR. BURTON's AD-
VICE TO HIM. — THE GREAT EMBARKATION. — ANECDOTEs of OGLE-
THORPE DURING HIS RETURN Vox AGE TO GEORGIA. — ARRIVAL OF THE
SYMOND AND THE LONDON MERCHANT AT TYBEE RoADs. – Accessions
TO THE POPULATIONS OF EBENEzER AND IRENE. — THE SALzBURGERs
DESIRE A CHANGE OF LOCATION.—THEIR REMOVAL To NEw EBENEzER
ON THE SAVANNAH RIVER, - MARTYN's Account of THE NEw SETTLE-
MENT.
DURING this sojourn in England Oglethorpe was busily en-
gaged in preparing for what was subsequently known as the
“grand embarkation.” Much of his time was spent in the selec-
tion of colonists, in unfolding the special wants of the province,
and in the accumulation of necessary supplies. In many details
he was greatly assisted by Mr. Francis Moore, who, at his sug-
gestion, was appointed by the trustees keeper of the stores. Widely
extended now was the fame of Mr. Oglethorpe, and exalted the
position he occupied in the esteem of the British nation. His
broad philanthropy, his executive ability, his courage, his pru-
dence, his self abnegation, his intelligence, and his success in
planting and fostering the colony of Georgia attracted the ad-
miration of all. Everywhere was he honored and praised. The
general sentiment was reflected by Mr. Cave, the proprietor of
the “Gentleman's Magazine,” when, among the prizes offered by
him for the four best poems to be composed upon “The Chris-
tian Hero,” he named as the first a gold medal bearing on one
side the head of the Rt. Hon. Lady Elizabeth Hastings, and on
the other a portrait of Oglethorpe, with the motto “England
may challenge the World.” e
In their desire to enlist the services of competent ministers to
preach the Gospel both to the colonists and to the Indians, the
attention of the trustees was attracted toward the Rev. John
Wesley, a young gentleman whose ancestors had been distin-
guished for their learning and piety, himself a Fellow of Lincoln
College, Oxford, a fine classical scholar, and an earnest student
of divinity. These qualifications, supplemented by a regularity
REV. JOHN WESLEY. 203
of behavior, an abstemious manner of life, and a readiness to
endure hardships, commended him as one, seemingly at least,
admirably fitted to assume the office of an evangelist in Georgia.
On the 29th of August, 1735, he was introduced, by the Rev.
Dr. Burton, to Mr. Oglethorpe, who urged him to go to Sa-
vannah in the capacity of a religious teacher. After some re-
flection Mr. Wesley consented to do so. With the conduct of
the Rev. Samuel Quincey as resident minister in Georgia the
trustees were not pleased. They therefore, on the 10th of Octo-
ber, 1735, revoked his appointment, and nominated in his stead
the Rev. John Wesley with a salary of £50.” Charles Wesley,
wishing to accompany his brother, was accepted by Mr. Ogle-
thorpe as his private secretary. He was also designated as secre-
tary of Indian affairs in the province of Georgia.
To his young friend fresh from the benches of the University,
deeply imbued with religious sentiments yet unused to the practi-
cal affairs of life, single in purpose and still little acquainted with
experimental piety, firm in his belief yet intolerant of all which
coincided not with his convictions, unaccustomed to deal with
men and emergencies, proclaiming the power of godliness yet
ignorant of those modes of persuasion by which the unrighteous
are led to a knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus, the Rev.
Dr. Burton addressed a communication eminently wise and ap-
propriate. Among other observations he indulged in the follow-
ing: “Under the influence of Mr. Oglethorpe, giving weight to
your endeavours, much may be effected under the present circum-
stances. The Apostolical manner of preaching from house to
house will, through God's grace, be effectual to turn many to
righteousness. The people are babes in the progress of their
Christian life, to be fed with milk instead of strong meat; and
the wise householder will bring out of his stores food propor-
tioned to the necessities of his family. The circumstances of your
present Christian pilgrimage will furnish the most affecting sub-
jects of discourse; and what arises pro re nata will have greater
influence than a laboured discourse on a subject in which men
think themselves not so immediately concerned.
“With regard to your behaviour and manner of address, that
must be determined according to the different circumstances of
persons, etc. But you will always, in the use of means, consider
the great end, and therefore your applications will of course
vary. You will keep in view the pattern of that Gospel preacher,
* Journal of the Trustees, vol. i. p. 291.
204 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
St. Paul, who became all things to all men that he might gain
some. Here is a nice trial of Christian prudence. Accordingly,
in every case you would distinguish between what is essential
and what is merely circumstantial to Christianity; between
What is indispensable and what is variable; between what is of
Divine and what is of human authority. I mention this because
men are apt to deceive themselves in such cases, and we see the
traditions and ordinances of men frequently insisted on with
more rigour than the commandments of God to which they are
subordinate. Singularities of less importance are often espoused
with more zeal than the weighty matters of God’s law. As in
all points we love ourselves, so especially in our hypotheses.
Where a man has, as it were, a property in a notion, he is most
industrious to improve it, and that in proportion to the labour of
thought he has bestowed upon it; and as its value rises in imagi-
nation, we are in proportion more unwilling to give it up, and
dwell upon it more pertinaciously than upon considerations of
general necessity and use. This is a flattering mistake against
which we should guard ourselves.” Had these sage counsels
been observed, the Rev. Mr. John Wesley would have been
spared no little annoyance and mortification during his residence
in Georgia, and the community in Savannah would have escaped
much which engendered ill-will and distraction.
On Tuesday, the 14th of October, 1735, Mr. Oglethorpe, ac-
companied by the brothers John and Charles Wesley, the Rev.
Mr. Ingham, and by Charles Delamotte, the son of a London
merchant and a friend of the Wesleys, set out from Westminster
for Gravesend, where they were to embark for Georgia. Two
vessels had been chartered by the trustees: the Symond, Captain
Joseph Cornish, of 220 tons, and the London Merchant, of like
burthen, Captain John Thomas. Among the stores on board
were large quantities of provisions, small arms, cannon, ammuni-
tion, agricultural tools, and articles for family use. As a convoy,
H. M. sloop of war Hawk, commanded by Captain Gascoigne,
was detailed. On board the Symond and the London Merchant
two hundred and two persons were assembled to be conveyed on
the trust's account.” Among these were many English people,
a number of German Lutherans under the conduct of Mr. Von
Reck and Captain Hermsdorf, and twenty-five Moravians with
their bishop, the Rev. David Nitschman. Departing at their
1 A Voyage to Georgia begun in the Year 1735, p. 11. By Francis Moore. London.
1744.
ON THE VOYAGE. 205
own charge were Sir Francis Bathurst, his son, three daughters,
servants, and some relatives of Planters already located in the
province.
Although it was intended that Mr. Oglethorpe should take
passage in the Hawk, he denied himself the comforts of the
apartments there fitted up for his accommodation, and took a
cabin in the Symond, where he could at all times exercise a
watchful care over the emigrants.
Contrary winds delayed for several weeks the departure of
these vessels. It was not until the 10th of December that, with
“a moderate gale, they stood out for Sea.” The voyage was
protracted and tempestuous. At times the ships barely escaped
destruction, so violent were the storms and so unruly the waves.
Amid these perils the composure of the foreign Protestants was
remarkable. The missionaries were the guests of Oglethorpe
and ate at his table. Prayers were read twice a day, and they
expounded the Scriptures, catechised the children, and on every
Lord's Day administered the Sacrament. Although he had, on
his own account, laid in a large supply of live-stock and dainties,
Mr. Oglethorpe distributed them freely among the sick and the
feeble, often contenting himself with the ordinary ship's fare.
When the weather permitted, he repaired on board the London
Merchant and personally inspected the condition of the emigrants
conveyed in that vessel, prescribing and enforcing such regula-
tions as were conducive to their health and comfort.
With the calm religious conduct of the Lutherans and the
Moravians Mr. John Wesley was much impressed, and he entered
upon the earnest study of the German language that he might
acquire a more intimate acquaintance with their peculiar views
and rules of conduct. During the voyage these Christians “sung
psalms and served God in their own way.” Turnips, carrots,
potatoes, and onions, issued with the salt provisions, prevented
scurvy. To promote comfort and good order, the ships had been
divided into cabins, with gangways between them, in which the
emigrants were disposed according to families. The single men
were located by themselves. Weather permitting, the vessels
were cleaned between decks, and washed with vinegar to keep
them sweet. Constables were appointed “to prevent any disor-
ders,” and so admirably was discipline preserved that there was
no occasion for punishment except in the case of a boy, “who
was whipped for stealing of turnips.” The men were exercised
with small arms and instructed by Mr. Oglethorpe in the duties
206 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
which would devolve upon them as land-holders in the new settle-
ment. To the women were given thread, worsted, and knitting
needles. They were required to employ “their leisure time in
making Stockings and Caps for their Family, or in mending
their Cloaths and Linnen.” ". In this sensible way were matters
conducted on these emigrant ships, and the colonists, during a
protracted voyage, prepared for lives of industry in their new
homes.
The missionaries were, as we have observed, the constant guests
of Mr. Oglethorpe. By him were they treated with marked con-
sideration; and, although the emigrants differed in their relig-
ious persuasions, he “showed no discountenance to any.”
On one occasion the officers and certain gentlemen who had
been invited to dine with him, not relishing the grave demeanor
of the clergymen, took some liberty with them. This conduct
excited the indignation of Mr. Oglethorpe, who exclaimed,
“What do you mean, Sirs? Do you take these gentlemen for
tithe-pig parsons? They are gentlemen of learning and respecta-
bility. They are my friends, and whoever offers any affront to
them insults me.” This rebuke Secured for the missionaries
entire respect from all on board.
The Rev. Henry Moore relates another anecdote: “Mr. Wes-
ley hearing an unusual noise in the cabin of General Oglethorpe
stepped in to inquire the cause: on which the General imme-
diately addressed him, ‘Mr. Wesley you must excuse me, I have
met with a provocation too great for man to bear. You know
the only wine I drink is Cyprus wine, as it agrees with me the
best of any. I therefore provided myself with several dozens
of it, and this villian Grimaldi, (his Italian servant who was
present and almost dead with fear) has drunk nearly the whole
of it. But I will be revenged. He shall be tied hand and foot
and carried to the man of war. (He alluded to a ship of War
which sailed with them.) The rascal should have taken care
how he used me so, for I never forgive.’ ‘Then I hope, sir, (said
Mr. Wesley, looking calmly at him,) you never sin.' The Gen-
eral was quite confounded at the reproof; and, after a pause,
putting his hand into his pocket, he took out a bunch of keys
which he threw at Grimaldi, saying “There villain, take my
keys and behave better for the future.’”
The criticism of Mr. Wright is not without force. In com-
menting upon this circumstance, as thus narrated by Mr. Moore,
1 Moore's Voyage to Georgia, p. 15 London, 1744.
TYBEE I,IGHT-HOUSE. 207
he says: The foregoing anecdote is so circumstantially told that
one might fancy the narrator to have been a by-stander. But
he was not born at the time, and only professes to have heard it
from Wesley some fifty years afterwards. Wesley's memory
then failed him ; for otherwise he would have remembered that
the sloop of war was separated from her consorts by a violent
gale on the day after they sailed, and did not join them again
during the whole voyage. The Cyprus wine must have been
very tempting indeed if Grimaldi had consumed several dozens
of it by that time. But, evidently, the biographer's object was
to magnify Wesley, and by putting the words “I never forgive ’’
into Oglethorpe's mouth — words which it is by no means prob-
able he ever uttered—to give a handle for the young missionary’s
Sanctimonious rebuke."
Impeded by rough seas and adverse winds, the Symond and
the London Merchant did not arrive in sight of Tybee Island
until the evening of the 4th of February, 1736. The next morn-
ing, with the first of the flood, they passed over the bar and came
to anchor within Tybee Roads.
Without delay Mr. Oglethorpe went ashore to ascertain what
progress had been made in the erection of the light-house on the
upper end of that island, intended for the guidance of vessels
entering the Savannah River. This beacon was to be twenty-five
feet square at the base, ninety feet high, and ten feet each way
at the top. It was to be constructed of “the best pine, strongly
timber'd, raised upon Cedar Piles, and Brickwork round the
Bottom.” When finished it would prove “ of great service to all
shipping, not only to those bound to this port, but also to Caro-
lina, for the land of all the Coast for some hundred miles is so
alike, being all low and woody, that a distinguishing Mark is of
great consequence.” To Mr. Oglethorpe's surprise and annoy-
ance the most unpardonable delay had occurred in the erection
of this important structure. Although the materials had been
prepared in Savannah and brought to the spot, Blythman, the
Carpenter in charge, and his ten assistants, had only piled the
foundation. Even the brickwork was not laid. When called to
account for his “scandalous neglect,” Blythman could offer no
excuse save that he had used his men in clearing away the trees
so that the beacon might be rendered more conspicuous; that
much time had been consumed in piling the foundation and in
* Memoir of General James Oglethorpe, * Moore's Voyage to Georgia, p. 18.
p. 102. London. 1867. London. 1744.
208 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
transporting the materials; and that more braces were found
necessary than he had at first imagined. The chief explanation
of the delay was found in the fact that the workmen were fre-
quently intoxicated, idle, and disobedient. Rum was so cheap
in Carolina that they experienced no difficulty in supplying
themselves with it. A day's pay would purchase liquor sufficient
to keep them drunk for a week. “I heard Mr. Oglethorpe,”
writes Mr. Moore in his journal, “after he return'd to the Ship,
say that he was in doubt whether he should prosecute the Man,
who is the only one here able to finish the Work, and thereby
leave the Work undone, and lose the Materials which were all
ready ; or else forgive what was past, and have the Beacon
finish’d. He took the latter counsel, and agreed with him for a
Time certain and a Price certain, appointing Mr. Vanderplank to
see that the work advanced according to the Agreement; and not
to pay but proportionably to what should be done.”
Having carried the colonists on shore upon Peeper Island,
where they could dig a well and refresh themselves, Mr. Ogle-
thorpe, early on the morning of the 6th, departed for Savannah.
He had previously sent a dispatch to Lieutenant Delegal, com-
manding the king's independent company at Port Royal, order-
ing him to repair at once with his command to St. Simon's Island
that he might protect the projected settlement at Frederica. Upon
his arrival in Savannah Mr. Oglethorpe was welcomed by all the
freeholders under arms, and was saluted by twenty-one discharges
from the battery of cannon. Sincere and universal was the de-
light of the citizens at the return of their leader and best friend.
The clergymen and gentlemen who accompanied him having
been introduced, and Savannah congratulated upon this intelli-
gent addition to the population of the colony, orders were issued
for supplying the newly arrived on Peeper Island with fresh meat
and vegetables. They were promptly obeyed, and in a generous
and satisfactory manner. The articles distributed consisted of
“fresh beef, fresh pork, venison, wild turkeys, soft bread, strong-
beer, small-beer, turnips, and garden greens, and this in such
plenty that there was enough for the whole Colony for some days.
This was doubly agreeable to the Colony both because they found
the comfort of fresh food after a long voyage, and also that a
Town, begun within these three years by people in their own
circumstances, could produce such plenty.” "
It was Mr. Oglethorpe's intention to locate all the emigrants
1 Moore's Voyage to Georgia, p. 21. London, 1744.
DISSATISFACTION AT EBENEZER. 209
transported on the trust's account in the Symond and the Lon-
don Merchant at Frederica, that they might assist in the rapid
development of that town and in the construction of its fortifica-
tions. The Moravians, desiring the benefit of their ministers, not
wishing to divide their congregation, and being reluctant to go to
the southward where “they apprehended blows,”—fighting be-
ing “against their religion,”—persuaded Mr. Oglethorpe to per-
mit them to join the settlement of their countrymen near Irene
school-house. Thither they went some days afterwards and were
heartily welcomed. Several of the Lutherans also craved per-
mission to dwell among their brethren at Ebenezer, and this
privilege was accorded to them. Captain Hermsdorf, however,
with a little company, assured Mr. Oglethorpe that he would
“never forsake him, but serve with the English to the last.” His
offer was accepted, and he subsequently accompanied Mr. Ogle-
thorpe when he set out to establish his new town and fort at the
mouth of the Alatamaha.
By this and other accessions, the population of Ebenezer had
increased so that it now numbered two hundred souls. Neverthe-
less, contentment and prosperity did not obtain in the town. In
the anticipated fertility of the soil the inhabitants were disap-
pointed. Much sickness prevailed, and they were oppressed by
the isolated nature of their location. The creek upon which the
town was situated was uncertain in volume, serpentine, and diffi-
cult of navigation. Although Ebenezer was distant by land from
the Savannah River only six miles, in following the creek which
furnished the sole outlet by water, twenty-five miles must be
traversed before its confluence with the Savannah could be
reached.
Moved by these and other depressing considerations, the Rev.
Messrs. Bolzius and Gronau visited Savannah, at the instance of
their flock, and conferred with Mr. Oglethorpe as to the pro-
priety of changing the location of the town. Moore says the
Salzburgers at Ebenezer were so discontented that they “de-
manded to leave their old Town, and to settle upon the Lands
which the Indians had reserved for their own Use.” I
Having patiently listened to the request, Mr. Oglethorpe, on
the 9th of February, 1736, set out with the Salzburger ministers
and several gentlemen for Ebenezer to make a personal inspec-
tion of the situation and satisfy himself with regard to the ex-
pediency of the removal. He was received with every mark of
* Voyage to Georgia, etc., p. 23. London. 1744.
14
210 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
consideration, and proceeded at once to examine the causes which
induced the inhabitants to desire a change. Admitting that the
existing “dissatisfaction was not groundless, and that there were
many embarrassments connected with their situation,” he never-
theless endeavored to dissuade them from their purpose by re-
minding them that the labor already expended in clearing their
lands, building houses, and constructing roads would, upon re-
moval, be almost wholly lost. The hardships incident upon
forming an entirely new settlement were urged upon their seri-
ous consideration. He also assured them that in felling the
forests, and in bringing the lands on the bank of the Savannah
River under cultivation, they would contract the same diseases
which afflicted them in their present location. He concluded,
however, by saying to them that if they were resolved upon
making the change he would not forbid it, but would assist
them, as far as practicable, in compassing their design."
After this conference, and upon Mr. Oglethorpe's return to
Savannah, the question of a change of location was again consid-
ered by the Salzburgers, who resolved among themselves that a
removal was essential to the prosperity of their colony. Acting
upon this determination the community, without delay, set about
migrating to the site selected for the new town. This was on a
high ridge, near the Savannah River, called “Red Bluff” from
the peculiar color of the soil. It received the name of New
Ebenezer; and, to the simple-minded Germans, oppressed by
poverty and saddened by the disappointments of the past, seemed
to offer future happiness and much-coveted prosperity. The
labor of removal appears to have been compassed within less
than two years. In June, 1738, Old Ebenezer” had degenerated
1 In reporting this change of location Compare Harris’ Biographical Memorials
to the trustees, Mr. Oglethorpe, on the
13th of February, wrote as follows: “The
people at Ebenezer are very discontented
and Mr. Von Reck, and they that come
with him, refuse to settle to the South-
ward. I was forced to go to Ebenezer
to quiet things there and have taken all
the proceedings in writing. Finding the
people were only ignorant and obstinate,
but without any ill intention, I consented
to the changing of their Town. They
leave a sweet place where they had made
great improvements, to go into a wood.”
See Collections of the Georgia Historical
Society, vol. iii. p. 13. Savannah, 1873.
of Oglethorpe, pp. 130, 132. Boston. 1841.
Wright's Memoir of Oglethorpe, p. 113.
London. 1867. Strobel’s Salzburgers
and their Descendants, p. 89. Baltimore.
I 855.
2 Rev. Mr. John Wesley, writing in
1737, records in his Journal the following
description of this abandoned settlement:
“Old Ebenezer, where the Saltzburghers
settled at first, lies twenty-five miles West
of Savannah. A small Creek runs by the
Town, down to the River, and many
Brooks run between the little Hills: But
the soil is a hungry, barren sand; and
upon any sudden Shower, the Brooks rise
NEW EBENEZER. 211
into a cow-pen, where Joseph Barker resided and “had the care
of the Trust's Cattle.” William Stephens gives us a pitiable
view of the abandoned spot when he visited it on the 26th of
that month : Indian traders, returning from Savannah, lodging
for the night with Barker, who was unable to give due account
of the cattle under his charge, and a servant, Sommers, moving
about with “the Small-Pox out full upon him.”" Thus early
did “Old Ebenezer’” take its silent place among the lost towns
of Georgia. Its life of trials and sorrow, of ill-founded hope and
sure disappointment, was measured by scarcely more than two
years, and its frail memories were speedily lost amid the sighs
and the shadows of the monotonous pines which environed the
place.
The situation of the new town was quite romantic. “On the
east lay the Savannah with its broad, smooth surface and its
ever varying and beautiful scenery. On the south was a stream,
then called Little Creek, but now known as Lockner's Creek,
and a large lake called ‘Neidlinger's Sea; while to the north,
not very distant from the town, was to be seen their old ac-
quaintance, Ebenezer Creek, sluggishly winding its way to min-
gle with the waters of the Savannah. The surrounding country
was gently undulating and covered with a fine growth of forest
trees, while the jessamine, the woodbine, and the beautiful azalea,
with its variety of gaudy colors, added a peculiar richness to the
picturesque scene. But, unfortunately for the permanent pros-
perity of the town, it was surrounded on three sides by low
swamps which were subject to periodical inundation, and conse-
quently generated a poisonous miasma prejudicial to the health
of the inhabitants.” ”
several Feet perpendicular, and overflow
whatever is near them. Since the Saltz-
burghers remov’d, two English Families
have been placed there; but these too
say, That the Land is good for nothing;
and that the Creek is of little Use; it being
by Water twenty miles to the River; and
the Water generally so low in Summer-time,
that a Boat cannot come within six or seven
miles of the Town.” See An Extract of the
Rev. Mr. John Wesley's Journal, etc., pp.
59, 60. Bristol, n, d. -
1 Journal of the Proceedings in Georgia,
vol. i. pp. 226, 227. London. 1742. In
1740 this cow-pen was still in existence
at Old Ebenezer, the trustees having a
great number of cattle there. “But,”
continues the narrative, “they were much
neglected, there not being Horses or Men
sufficient to drive up the young and out-
lying cattle.” See A State of the Province
of Georgia attested upon Oath in the Court
of Savannah, November 10, 1740, p. 9.
London. 1742. Compare An Impartial
Enquiry into the State and Utility of the
Province of Georgia, p. 48. London. 1741.
Harris' Complete Collection of Voyages and
Travels, etc., vol. ii. p. 337. London.
1748.
* Strobel's Salzburgers and their De-
scendants, p. 91. Baltimore. 1855.
212 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
The plan adopted in laying out the town was prescribed by
General Oglethorpe, and closely resembles that of Savannah;
the size of the lots and the width of the streets and lanes being
in each case quite similar. To John Gerar, William DeBrahm,
his majesty’s Surveyor-General for the Southern District of
North America, who in 1757 erected a fort at Ebenezer, are we
indebted for an accurate plan of that town." As the village in-
creased, this plan was extended. Its distinctive characteristics
were retained. From contemporaneous notices we learn that
New Ebenezer, within a short time after its settlement, gave
manifest token of substantial growth and prosperity. The houses
there erected were larger and more comfortable than those which
had been built in the old town. Gardens and farms were cleared,
inclosed, and brought under creditable cultivation, and the se-
date, religious inhabitants enjoyed the fruits of their industry
and economy.
Funds received from Germany for that purpose were employed
in the erection of an orphan house, in which, for lack of a church,
the community worshiped for several years.
We presume the account of the condition of Ebenezer in
1738–39, furnished by Benjamin Martyn,” is as interesting and
reliable as any that can be suggested. It is as follows: “Fifteen
miles from Purysburg on the Georgia side, is Ebenezer, where
the Saltzburghers are situated; their Houses are meat, and regu-
larly set out in Streets, and the whole CEconomy of their town,
under the Influence of their Ministers, Mess. Bolzius and Gronau,
is very exemplary.” For the Benefit of their Milch Cattle, a
Herdsman is appointed to attend them in the Woods all the Day,
and bring them Home in the Evening. Their Stock of out-lying
1 History, of the Province of Georgia,
etc., plan facing p. 24. Wormsloe. 1849.
2 An Impartial Enquiry into the State
and Utility of the Province of Georgia,
p. 47. London. 1741.
8 Another contemporaneous account is
almost identical : “On the Georgia side
[of the Savannah River], twelve miles
from Purysburg, is the Town of Ebenezer,
which thrives very much ; there are very
good Houses built for each of the Min-
isters, and an Orphan House ; and they
have partly framed Houses and partly
Huts, neatly built, and formed into regu-
lar streets; they have a great deal of
Cattle and Corn-Ground, so that they
sell Provisions at Savannah ; for they
raise much more than they can con-
sume.” See A State of the Province of
Georgia attested upon Oath in the Court of
Savannah, November 10, 1740, p. 5. Lon-
don, 1742. See also idem, pp. 29, 31.
An Impartial Enquiry into the State and
Utility of the Province of Georgia, p. 13.
London, 1741. Compare Harris’ Com-
plete Collection of Voyages and Travels,
etc., vol. ii. p. 337. London. 1748.
The Rev. Mr. John Wesley's descrip-
tion is as follows: “New Ebenezer, to
which the Saltzburghers removed in March,
1736, lies six Miles Eastward from the
Old, on a high bluff, near the Savannah
2& <
E Z E R 2.2%
3.22 E B E N
? ~ -§§\!
§ ~€.
Ķ
'[
E
ſ.
IILLIT
IFº
—I
Ł
£66
260
ſº
fe fºx/
-
*z, W, //,
Jºr//zro Br, tº Y (º. Pho


NEW EBENEZER. 213
Cattle is also under the Care of two other Herdsmen, who attend
them in their Feeding in the Day, and drive them into Cow-
Pens at night. This secures the Owners from any Loss, and the
Herdsmen are paid by a small Contribution among the People.
These are very industrious, and subsist comfortably by their La-
bour. Though there is no regular Court of Justice, as they live
in Sobriety, they maintain great Order and Decency. In case
of any Differences, the Minister calls three or four of the most
prudent Elders together, who in a summary Way hear and de-
termine as they think just, and the Parties always acquiesce
with Content in their Judgment. They are very regular in their
public Worship, which is on Week-Days in the Evening after
their Work; and in the Forenoon and Evening on Sundays.
They have built a large and convenient House for the Reception
of Orphans, and other poor Children, who are maintained by
Benefactions among the People, are well taken Care of and
taught to work according as their Age and Ability will permit.
The Number computed by Mr. Bolzius in June, 1738, whereof
his Congregation consisted, was one hundred forty-six, and some
more have since been settled among them. They are all in gen-
eral so well pleased with their condition, that not one of their
People has abandoned the Settlement.”
General Oglethorpe received a letter, dated Ebenezer, March
13, 1739, signed by forty-nine men of the Salzburgers and veri-
fied by their ministers, in which they assured him that they were
well settled, and pleased with the climate and condition of the
country; that although the season was hotter than that of their
native land, having become accustomed to it, they found it toler-
able and convenient for working people ; and that their custom
was to commence their out-door labor early in the morning and
continue it until ten o'clock, resuming it again from three in the
afternoon until sunset. During the heated term of midday, mat-
ters within their houses engaged their attention. The general
was also informed that they had practically demonstrated the fal-
sity of the tale, told them on their arrival, that rice could be cul-
tivated only by negroes. “We laugh at such a Talking,” — so
River. Here are some Tracts of Fruitful left unplanted. Nay, even one of the
Land, tho’ the greatest Part of that ad-
joining to the Town, is Pine-barren. The
Huts, 60 in number, are neatly and reg-
ularly built; the little Piece of Ground
allotted to each for a Garden, is every-
where put to the best Use, no spot being
main Streets, being one more than was
as yet wanted, bore them this year a crop
of Indian Corn.” – An Extract of the Rev.
Mr. John Wesley's Journal, etc., p. 60.
Bristol, n, d.
214 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
they wrote, – “seeing that several People of us have had, in last
Harvest, a greater Crop of Rice than they wanted for their own
Consumption. Of Corn, Pease, Potatoes, Pumpkins, Cabbage,
&c., we had such a good Quantity that many bushels are sold,
and much was spent in feeding Cows, Calves and Hogs.” The
letter concludes with an earnest petition that negroes should be
excluded from their town and neighborhood, alleging as a reason
that their houses and gardens would be robbed by them, and
that, “besides other great inconveniences, white people were in
danger of life from them.” "
Of humble origin, primitive in their habits, accustomed to
labor, free from covetousness and ambition, temperate, indus-
trious, frugal, and orderly, solicitous for the education of their
children and the maintenance of the needy and the orphan,
meddling not in the affairs of their neighbors, acknowledging al-
legiance to the trustees and the king of England, maintaining
direct connection with the parent church in Germany, and sub-
mitting without question to the decisions of their ministers and
elders in all matters, whether of a civil or ecclesiastical nature,
engaging in no pursuits save of an agricultural or a mechanical
character, and little given either to excitement or wandering,
these Salzburgers for years preserved the integrity of their com-
munity and their religion, and secured for themselves a comfort-
able existence. As early as 1738 the Salzburgers at Ebenezer
made some limited experiment in growing cotton and were much
encouraged, the yield being abundant and of an excellent qual-
ity. The trustees, however, having fixed their hopes upon silk
and wine, the cultivation of that plant was not countenanced.”
It was estimated by Mr. Benjamin Martyn, secretary of the
trustees, that up to the year 1741 not less than twelve hundred
German Protestants had arrived in the colony. Their princi-
pal settlements were at New Ebenezer, Bethany, Savannah,
Frederica, Goshen, and along the road leading from Savannah
to Ebenezer. They were all characterized by industry, sobriety,
and thrift.
1 An Impartial Enquiry into the State 1742. An Account shewing the Progress of
and Utility of the Province of Georgia, the Colony of Georgia in America, etc.,
pp. 69, 72. London. 1741. Compare 4 pp. 66, 69. London. 1741.
State of the Province of Georgia attested 2 See McCall's History of Georgia, vol. i.
upon Oath, etc., pp. 5, 29, 30, 32. London. p. 199. Savannah. 1811.
CHAPTER XV.
ANECDOTE OF ToMo-CHI-CHI. — OGLETHORPE ACCOMMODATES DISPUTES
BETWEEN THE INDIANS AND CERTAIN TRESPASSERS FROM CAROLINA. —
AUGUSTA LOCATED AND SETTLED. — FRANCIS MOORE’s DESCRIPTION OF
SAVANNAH. — OGLETHORPE PROCEEDS TO ST. SIMON’s ISLAND AND
DESIGNATES A PLAN FOR FREDERICA. — HE VISITs NEw INVERNESS, AND
THEN, RETURNING TO TYBEE ROADS, CONDUCTS THE NEWLY ARRIVED IM-
MIGRANTS TO ST. SIMON's ISLAND. — DESCRIPTION OF FREDERICA, FoRTs
ST. ANDREW, ST. SIMON, AND GEORGE. — OGLETHORPE ASCERTAINS THE
BOUNDARY LINE BETWEEN GEORGIA AND FLORIDA. — INDIAN DANCE.
RETURNING from our visit to the Salzburgers, during which
we have traced the development of the German settlements
beyond the stage of colonization claiming present notice, we find
Mr. Oglethorpe in Savannah engaged in arranging for his con-
templated departure to St. Simon's Island. Fifty rangers, one
hundred workmen, and Captain McPherson and his company
have been ordered overland to Darien that they might support
the Highlanders on the Alatamaha, and assist in founding the
town of Frederica. The road leading from Savannah to the Ala-
tamaha River is being definitely located. A deputation from
Purrysburgh, consisting of the honorable Hector Berenger de
Beaufain, M. Tisley Dechillon, a patrician of Berne, and several
other Swiss gentlemen, waits upon Mr. Oglethorpe to congratu-
late him on his return, and to acquaint him with the condition of
their settlement. A military review is had, and before the parade
is dismissed Mr. Oglethorpe addresses the assembled multitude
in an animated speech full of commendation, sage counsels, and
good wishes.
On the 12th of February he returned to the ships which were
still riding at anchor in Tybee Roads. While there, on board the
Symond, he received a formal visit from Tomo-chi-chi, Scenauki
his wife, Toonahowi his nephew, and several attendants. They
expressed their joy at his return, and offered presents of venison
and other refreshments. When introduced to the missionaries,
the old mico remarked to Mr. John Wesley, “I am glad you are
come. When I was in England I desired that some would speak
216 THE DIISTORY OF GEORGIA.
the great word to me. I will go up and speak to the wise men
of our nation, and I hope they will hear. But we would not be
made Christians as the Spaniards make Christians: we would be
taught before we are baptized.” Scenauki then presented the
missionaries with two large jars, one containing honey and the
other milk, and invited them to come to Yamacraw and instruct
the Indian children, saying that the milk and honey represented
their kindly inclinations.
Tomo-chi-chi informed Mr. Oglethorpe that he had been for
two months anxiously awaiting his coming, and that, during this
time, he had retained two Indian runners in order that the intel-
ligence of his arrival might be communicated at the earliest
moment to the Lower and Upper Creeks. Those runners had
been dispatched to convey the tidings. He further advised him
that he had a party of his warriors at Darien assisting the High-
landers in building their town. He also told him of a complaint
made by the Uchees that, contrary to the terms of the existing
treaty, cattle had been brought into their territory; and that, in
opposition to their wishes, planters from Carolina, with their
negroes, had formed settlements within their reserved limits. Or-
ders were thereupon issued by Mr. Oglethorpe directing Captain
AEneas McIntosh to notify these trespassers to withdraw their
cattle and negroes within three days. If within the designated
period they were not sent away, they were then to be arrested,
brought to Savannah, and turned over to the magistrates, by
whom proceedings for their punishment would be forthwith insti-
tuted. At the same time he forwarded to Savannah Town, a
copy of the act entitled “An Act for maintaining the Peace
with the Indians in the Province of Georgia,” prepared by the
honorable the Trustees for establishing the Colony of Georgia in
America, and approved by his majesty George II. in council on
the 3d of April, 1735, with directions to acquaint every Indian
trader with its provisions, and to enjoin upon all strict compliance
with its requirements. This prompt action on the part of Ogle-
thorpe illustrates alike his decision of character, the sedulity with
which he guarded the rights of the Indians and maintained the
good faith which should be observed between them and the colo-
mists, and the confidence he reposed in the veracity of Tomo-
chi-chi.
As illustrating another trait in the character of the founder of
the colony of Georgia, – which may be properly designated his
delicate appreciation of honor and propriety, - we mention this
SETTLEMENT OF AUGUSTA. 217
circumstance. Mr. Spangenberg, the Moravian minister, and a
great friend of the Wesleys, wishing to ingratiate himself with
Oglethorpe and render a service to the colony, informed him
that several Germans, over whom he wielded influence, had gone
to Pennsylvania. He offered to journey thither and bring them
to Georgia that they might increase and strengthen the province.
To this suggestion Oglethorpe responded that he would not be
instrumental in enticing any one from another colony, but that
if Mr. Penn consented to their coming he would receive them."
Although his thoughts had been for some time largely occu-
pied in maturing plans and accumulating stores for the popula-
tion and protection of the southern frontier of Georgia, Mr.
Oglethorpe did not neglect the establishment and maintenance
of necessary posts in other quarters. In 1735 the town of
Augusta” was marked out, and the next year a garrison was de-
tailed for its defense. Warehouses were built and furnished
with goods suitable for the Indian trade. Boats, each capable of
conveying about ten thousand weight of peltry, soon navigated
the Savannah River, conducting lucrative commerce with Charles-
town and Savannah. This point became a general resort in the
spring of the year for Indian traders. Here they annually pur-
chased from the Indians some two thousand pack-horse loads of
skins and other articles offered by the natives in the way of
barter. Including residents of the town, pack-horse men, boat-
hands, and servants, it is estimated that at an early date not less
than six hundred white persons were here engaged in commerce.
* Moore's Voyage to Georgia, p. 38.
London. 1744.
* As early as 1716 Savannah Town, bet-
ter known as Fort Moore, had been located
on the left bank of the Savannah River,
with the aborigines increase that before
the close of 1716 Hastings applied for
three additional assistants to aid him in
its conduct. At Savannah Town a laced
hat readily commanded eight buck-skins;
not a great distance below the site occu-
pied by the more modern village of Ham-
burg. Its establishment was suggested
by the Carolina authorities to facilitate
the trade with the Upper Creeks and the
Cherokees. To this point goods were
transported from Charlestown both by
land and water. The first agent in charge
of the storehouse at Savannah Town was
Captain Theophilus Hastings. He was
assisted by John Sharp and Samuel
Muckleroy. This settlement received its
name from the Sawannos or Savannahs,
a native tribe dwelling upon the banks
of the river. So rapidly did the traffic
a calico petticoat could not be purchased
for less than twelve; and so great was
the demand for salt, gunpowder, kettles,
rum, looking-glasses, and other articles
of European manufacture that the trad-
ers were allowed by the commissioners
to exact as much as the savages could be
persuaded to give in exchange for them.
Upon the settlement of Augusta and
the opening of stores at that point, Sa-
vannah Town lost its vantage ground as
a trading post, and soon fell into decay.
Its fort, however, was long garrisoned
by the Carolinians, and maintained as a
Valuable outpost.
218 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Multitudes of Indians flocked hither at certain seasons. So ad-
Vantageous was its situation for traffic with the savage nations
that the town soon became a mart for Indian trade superior to
any other within the limits of either South Carolina or Georgia.
A road capable of being traveled on horseback was opened to
Savannah." O’Bryan began the settlement of the town of Au-
gusta at his own expense, and there erected a well-furnished
storehouse. As a reward for his energy and enterprise Ogle-
thorpe, on the 8th of March, 1739, recommended the trustees
“to sign in his favor a grant of five hundred acres of land.”
Roger de Lacey, a noted Indian trader, was another of the early
settlers of Augusta, and the garrison there supported by the
trustees was for some time commanded by Captain Kent.” Be-
fore the name of the royal princess was here perpetuated, a trad-
ing post, in contravention of treaty stipulations, had been estab-
lished on the right bank of the Savannah, hard by the junction
of what is now known as Rae's Creek with that river.
Before departing with Mr. Oglethorpe for Frederica, let us, in
company with Mr. Francis Moore, view the attractions of the
metropolis of the province, and note the development which has
occurred during the past three years : —
“Savannah is about a mile and a quarter in Circumference;
it stands upon the flat of a Hill; the Bank of the River (which
they in barbarous English call a Bluff) is steep, and about 45
Foot perpendicular, so that all heavy Goods are brought up by a
Crane, an Inconvenience designed to be remedied by a bridged
Wharf, and an easy Ascent, which in laying out the Town, care
was taken to allow room for, there being a very wide Strand be-
tween the first Row of Houses and the River. From this Strand
there is a very pleasant Prospect; you see the River wash the
Foot of the Hill which is a hard, clear, sandy Beach a mile in
Length; the Water is fresh, and the River 1000 Foot wide.
Eastward you see the River increased by the Northern Branch
which runs round Hutchinson's Island, and the Carolina Shore
beyond it, and the Woody Islands at the Sea, which close the
Prospect at 10 or 12 Miles Distance. Over against it is Hutchin-
son’s Island, great part of which is open Ground, where they
mow Hay for the Trust's Horses and Cattle. The rest is Woods,
1 Account shewing the Progress of the McCall's History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 50.
Colony of Georgia, etc., p. 22. London. Savannah. 1811.
MDCCXLI. A State of the Province of 2 Compare Stevens' History of Georgia,
Georgia, attested upon Oath, etc., p. 6, vol. i. p. 137. New York. MDCCCXLVII.
MOORE'S DESCRIPTION OF SAVANNAH. 219
in which there are many Bay-trees 80 Foot high. Westward
you see the River winding between the Woods, with little Isl-
ands in it for many Miles, and Toma-chi-chi’s Indian Town stand-
ing upon the Southern Banks, between 3 and 4 Miles distance.
“The town of Savannah is built of Wood ; all the Houses of
the first 40 Freeholders are of the same Size with that Mr. Ogle-
thorpe lives in, but there are great Numbers built since, I believe
100 or 150, many of these are much larger, some of 2 or 3 Stories
high, the Boards plained and painted. The Houses stand on
large Lotts, 60 Foot in Front, by 90 Foot in Depth; each Lott
has a fore and back Street to it; the Lotts are fenced in with
split Pales; some few People have Pallisades of turned Wood be-
fore their Doors, but the Generality have been wise enough not
to throw away their Money which, in this Country, laid out in
Husbandry, is capable of great Improvements, though there are
several People of good Substance in the Town who came at their
own Expence, and also, several of those who came over on the
Charity, are in a very thriving way; but this is observed that
the most substantial People are the most frugal, and make the
least Shew, and live at the least Expence. There are some also
who have made but little or bad Use of the Benefits they re-
ceived, idling away their Times, whilst they had their Provisions
from the publick Store, or else working for Hire, earning from 2
Shillings, the Price of a Labourer, to 4 or 5 Shillings, the Price
of a Carpenter, per diem, and spending that Money in Rum and
good Living, thereby neglecting to improve their Lands, so that
when their Time of receiving their Provisions from the Publick
ceased, they were in no Forwardness to maintain themselves out
of their own Lands. As they chose to be Hirelings when they
might have improved for themselves, the Consequence of that
Folly forces them now to work for their daily Bread. These are
generally discontented with the Country; and if they have run
themselves in Debt, their Creditors will not let them go away till
they have paid. Considering the Number of People there are but
very few of these. The Industrious ones have throve beyond
Expectation ; most of them that have been there three Years, and
many others, have Houses in the Town, which those that Let
have, for the worst, 104 per annum, and the best let for 30 g.
“Those who have cleared their 5 Acre Lotts have made a very
great Profit out of them by Greens, Roots, and Corn. Several
have improv'd the Cattle they had at first, and have now 5 or 6
tame Cows; others, who to save the Trouble of Feeding them,
220 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
let them go into the Woods, can rarely find them, and when they
are brought up, one of them will not give half the Quantity of
Milk which another Cow fed near Home will give.
“Their Houses are built at a pretty large Distance from one
another for fear of Fire ; the Streets are very wide, and there are
great Squares left at proper Distances for Markets and other Con-
veniences. Near the Riverside there is a Guard-house inclosed
with Palisades a Foot thick, where there are 19 or 20 Cannons
mounted, and a continual Guard kept by the Free-holders. This
Town is governed by 3 Bailiffs, and has a Recorder, Register, and
a Town Court which is holden every six weeks, where all Matters
Civil and Criminal are decided by grand and petty Juries as in
England; but there are no Lawyers allowed to plead for Hire,
nor no Attornies to take Money, but (as in old times in England)
every man pleads his own Cause. In case it should be an Or-
phan, or one that cannot speak for themselves, there are Persons
of the best Substance in the Town appointed by the Trustees to
take care of the Orphans, and to defend the Helpless, and that
without Fee or Reward, it being a Service that each that is capa-
ble must perform in his turn.
“They have some Laws and Customs peculiar to Georgia; one
is that all Brandies and distilled Liquors are prohibited under
severe Penalties; another is that no Slavery is allowed, nor Ne-
groes; a Third, that all Persons who go among the Indians must
give Security for their good Behaviour; because the Indians, if
any Injury is done to them and they cannot kill the man who
does it, expect Satisfaction from the Government, which, if not
procured, they break out into War by killing the first white Man
they conveniently can.
“No Victualler or Ale-house Keeper can give any Credit, so
consequently cannot recover any Debt.
“The Free-holds are all entailed which has been very fortunate
for the Place. If People could have sold, the greatest part, before
they knew the Value of their Lotts, would have parted with them
for a trifling Condition, and there were not wanting rich Men
who employed Agents to Monopolize the whole Town : And if
they had got Numbers of Lotts into their own Hands, the other
Free-holders would have had no Benefit by letting their Houses,
and hardly of Trade, since the Rich, by means of a large Capital,
would underlet and undersell, and the Town must have been al-
most without Inhabitants as Port Royal in Carolina is, by the
best Lotts being got into a few Hands.
MOORE'S DESCRIPTION OF GEORGIA. 221
“The mentioning the Laws and Customs leads me to take notice
that Georgia is founded upon Maxims different from those on
which other Colonies have been begun. The Intention of that
Colony was an Asylum to receive the distressed. This was the
charitable Design, and the governmental View besides that was
with Numbers of free white People, well settled, to strengthen
the southern Part of the English Settlements on the Continent of
America, of which this is the Frontier. It is necessary therefore
not to permit Slaves in such a Country, for Slaves starve the poor
Labourer. For, if the Gentleman can have his Work done by a
Slave who is a Carpenter or a Bricklayer, the Carpenters, or Brick-
layers of that country must starve for want of Employment, and
so of other Trades.
“In order to maintain many People it was proper that the Land
should be divided into small Portions, and to prevent the uniting
them by Marriage or Purchase. For every Time that two Lotts
are united, the Town loses a Family, and the Inconvenience of this
shews itself at Savannah, notwithstanding the Care of the Trus-
tees to prevent it. They suffered the Moiety of the Lotts to
descend to the Widows during their Lives: Those who remarried
to Men who had Lotts of their own, by uniting two Lotts made
one to be neglected ; for the strength of Hands who could take
care of one, was not sufficient to look to and improve two. These
uncleared Lotts are a Nusance to their neighbours. The Trees
which grow upon them shade the Lotts, the Beasts take shelter
in them, and for want of clearing the Brooks which pass thro'
them, the Lands above are often prejudiced by Floods. To pre-
vent all these Inconveniences the first Regulation of the Trustees
was a strict Agrarian Law, by which all the Lands near Towns
should be divided, 50 Acres to each Free-holder. The Quantity
of Land by Experience seems rather too much, since it is impos-
sible that one poor Family can tend so much Land. If this Alott-
ment is too much, how much more inconvenient would the unit-
ing of two be 2 To prevent it, the Trustees grant the Lands in
Tail Male, that on the expiring of a Male-Line they may regrant
it to such Man, having no other Lott, as shall be married to the
next Female Heir of the Deceased, as is of good Character. This
manner of Dividing prevents also the Sale of Lands, and the Rich
thereby monopolizing the Country.
“Each Freeholder has a Lott in Town 60 Foot by 90 Foot, be-
sides which he has a Lott, beyond the Common, of 5 Acres for a
Garden. Every ten Houses make a Tything, and to every Tyth-
222 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
ing there is a Mile Square, which is divided into 12 Lotts, be-
sides Roads; Each Free-holder of the Tything has a Lott or
Farm of 45 Acres there, and two Lotts are reserved by the Trus-
tees in order to defray the Charge of the Publick. The Town
is laid out for two hundred and forty Freeholds; the Quantity of
Lands necessary for that Number is 24 Square Miles; every 40
Houses in Town make a Ward to which 4 Square Miles in the
Country belong; each Ward has a Constable, and under him 4
Tything Men. Where the Town-Lands end, the Villages be-
gin ; four Villages make a Ward without, which depends upon
one of the Wards within the Town. The Use of this is, in case
a War should happen that the Villages without may have Places
in the Town, to bring their Cattle and Families into for Refuge,
and to that Purpose there is a Square left in every Ward big
enough for the Out-Wards to encamp in. There is Ground also
kept round about the Town ungranted, in order for the Fortifi-
cations whenever Occasion shall require. Beyond the Villages
commence Lotts of 500 Acres; these are granted upon Terms of
keeping 10 Servants, &c. Several Gentlemen who have settled
on such Grants have succeeded very well, and have been of great
Service to the Colony. Above the Town is a Parcel of Land
called Indian Lands ; these are those reserved by King Toma-chi-
chi for his People. There is near the Town to the East, a Gar-
den belonging to the Trustees, consisting of 10 Acres; the situa-
tion is delightful, one half of it is upon the Top of a Hill, the
Foot of which the River Savannah washes, and from it you see
the Woody Islands in the Sea. The Remainder of the Garden is
the Side and some plain low Ground at the Foot of the Hill
where several fine Springs break out. In the Garden is variety
of Soils; the Top is sandy and dry, the Sides of the Hill are Clay,
and the Bottom is a black rich Garden Mould, well watered.
On the North-part of the Garden is left standing a Grove of Part
of the old Wood as it was before the arrival of the Colony there.
The Trees in the Grove are mostly Bay, Sassafras, Evergreen
Oak, Pellitory, Hickary, American Ash, and the Laurel Tulip."
This last is looked upon as one of the most beautiful Trees in
the World; it grows straight-bodied to 40 or 50 Foot high ; the
Bark smooth and whitish, the Top spreads regular like an Orange-
tree in English Gardens, only larger; the Leaf is like that of a
common Laurel, but bigger, and the under-side of a greenish
Brown : It blooms about the Month of June ; the Flowers are
1 Magnolia grandiflora, the queen of the Southern forests.
PUBLIC GARDEN IN SAVANNAH. 223
white, fragrant like the Orange, and perfume all the Air around
it ; the Flower is round, 8 or 10 Inches diameter, thick like
the Orange-Flower, and a little yellow near the Heart : As the
Flowers drop, the Fruit, which is a Cone with red Berries, suc-
ceeds them. There are also some Bay-trees that have Flowers
like the Laurel, only less.
“The Garden is laid out with Cross-walks planted with Orange-
trees, but the last Winter a good deal of Snow having fallen, had
killed those upon the Top of the Hill down to their Roots, but
they being cut down, sprouted again, as I saw when I returned
to Savannah. In the Squares between the Walks were vast
Quantities of Mulberry-trees, this being a Nursery for all the
Province, and every Planter that desires it, has young Trees
given him gratis from this Nursery. These white Mulberry-
trees were planted in order to raise Silk, for which Purpose sev-
eral Italians were brought, at the Trustees' Expence, from Pied-
mont by Mº Amatis ; they have fed Worms and wound Silk to
as great Perfection as any that ever came out of Italy; but the
Italians falling out, one of them stole away the Machines for
winding, broke the Coppers, and spoiled all the Eggs which he
could not steal and fled to South Carolina. The others, who
continued faithful, had saved but a few Eggs, when M. Ogle-
thorpe arrived, therefore he forbade any Silk should be wound,
but that all the Worms should be suffered to eat through their
Balls in order to have more Eggs against next Year. The Italian
Women are obliged to take English Girls Apprentices, whom
they teach to wind and feed; and the Men have taught our Eng-
lish Gardeners to tend the Mulberry-trees, and our Joyners have
learned how to make the Machines for winding. As the Mul-
berry-trees increase, there will be a great Quantity of Silk made
here.
“Beside the Mulberry-trees there are in some of the Quarters
in the coldest part of the Garden, all kinds of Fruit-trees usual
in England such as Apples, Pears, &c. In another Quarter are
Olives, Figs, Vines, Pomegranates and such Fruits as are natural
to the Warmest Parts of Europe. At the bottom of the Hill, well-
sheltered from the North-wind, and in the warmest part of the
Garden, there was a Collection of West-India Plants and Trees,
Some Coffee, some Cocoa-Nuts, Cotton, Palma-Christi, and several
West Indian physical Plants, some sent up by M. Eveliegh a pub-
lick-spirited Merchant at Charles-Town, and some by Dr Hous-
toun from the Spanish West Indies, where he was sent at the Ex-
224 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
pence of a Collection raised by that curious Physician, Sir Hans
Sloan, for to collect and send them to Georgia where the Climate
was capable of making a Garden which might contain all kinds
of Plants; to which Design his Grace the Duke of Richmond,
the Earl of Derby, the Lord Peters, and the Apothecary’s Com-
pany contributed very generously, as did Sir Hans himself." The
Quarrels among the Italians proved fatal to most of these Plants,
and they were labouring to repair that loss when I was there,
Mr. Miller being employ'd in the room of Dº Houstown who died
in Jamaica. We heard he had wrote an Account of his having
obtain’d the Plant from whence the true Balsamum Capivi is
drawn; and that he was in hopes of getting that from whence
the Jesuit's Bark is taken, he designing for that Purpose to send
to the Spanish West Indies.
“There is a plant of Bamboo Cane brought from the East
Indies, and sent over by Mr. Towers, which thrives well. There
was also some Tea, seeds which came from the same Place; but
the latter, though great Care was taken, did not grow.
“There were no publick Buildings in the Town, besides a
Storehouse; for the Courts were held in a Hut 36 Foot long
and 12 Foot wide, made of split Boards, and erected on M* Ogle-
thorpe's first Arrival in the Colony. In this Hut also Divine
Service was perform'd ; but upon his Arrival this time, M' Ogle-
thorpe order'd a House to be erected in the Upper Square, which
might serve for a Court House and for Divine Service till a
Church could be built, and a Work-house over against it ; for as
yet there was no Prison here.”
Having perfected his arrangements to promote the best in-
terests of that portion of the colony located upon and near the
Savannah River, having ordered Mr. Walter Augustine and Mr.
Tolme 3 to complete the survey of the country lying between the
Savannah and the Alatamaha rivers with a view to the location
and construction of a highway connecting the towns of Savannah
and Darien, having “raised fifty Rangers and one hundred work-
men " to assist in his contemplated labors on St. Simon's Island,
and having sent Captain McPherson “with a Parcel of his Ran-
1 On the 20th of February, 1734, the 2 Moore's Voyage to Georgia, pp. 28–33.
death of William Houstoun was reported London. 1744.
to the trustees, whereupon, on the rec- 8 Mr. Hugh Mackay, Junior, with ten
ommendation of Sir Hans Sloane, Robert rangers Was detailed as an escort, and two
Millar was appointed to succeed him as pack-horses carried the provisions, Tomo-
Botanist to the Colony of Georgia, at a chi-chi furnished some Indian guides.
salary of £150 per annum.
OGLETHORPE DEPARTS FOR FREDERICA. 225
gers” overland to support the Highlanders' on the Alatamaha,
Mr. Oglethorpe, on the 12th of February, 1736, returned to the
Symond and the London Merchant, lying at anchor in Tybee
Roads.
Finding their captains unwilling to risk their ships without
having previously acquired a knowledge of the entrance into
Jekyll Sound, he bought the cargo of the sloop Midnight, which
had just arrived, on condition that it should be at once delivered
at Frederica, and with the understanding that Captains Cornish
and Thomas should go on board of her, acquaint themselves with
the coast and entrance, and then return and conduct their vessels
to that place. During their absence these ships, - the Symond
and the London Merchant, — their cargoes still on board, were
to remain at anchor at Tybee Roads, in charge of Francis Moore,
keeper of the stores. Mr. Horton and Mr. Tanner, with thirty
single men of the colony, and cannon, arms, ammunition, and
intrenching tools, were ordered to proceed to the southward in
the sloop Midnight. The workmen who had been engaged at
Savannah and Tomo-chi-chi’s Indians were directed to rendez-
vous at convenient points whence they might be transported as
occasion required. The sloop sailed for St. Simon's Island on
the morning of the 16th, and in the evening of the same day
Mr. Oglethorpe set out in the scout-boat” to meet that vessel at
Jekyll Sound.
Captain Hermsdorf, two of the colonists, some Indians, and
Captain Dunbar with his boat accompanied him. Passing through
channels, separating the islands from the main, varying in width
from two hundred yards to more than a mile, the voyagers now
1 These Highlanders, under the com-
mand of Captain Hugh Mackay, were
then posted on the Alatamaha River,
within one mile and a half of the point
where Fort King George formerly stood,
and where his majesty's Independent
Company had been stationed for several
years. The want of supplies and the lack
of facile communication with Carolina had
obliged that troop to abandom its camp
and destroy the fort. Moore's Voyage to
Georgia, p. 34. London. 1744.
2 Of one of these scout-boats Mr. Fran-
cis Moore furnishes the following descrip-
tion: “This was a strong-built, swift
Boat, with three swivel Guns and tem
Oars, kept for the visiting the River-
Passages and Islands, and for preventing
the Incursions of Enemies, or Runaways,
from whence it is called Scout-boat. The
Crew is composed of Men bred in Amer-
ica, bold and hardy, who lie out in the
Woods, and upon the Water, Months to-
gether, without a House or Covering.
Most of them are good Hunters or Fish-
ers. By Killing Deer and other Game
they can subsist themselves in case their
Provisions should fail; but indeed, on
these Sea Islands no one can starve, since,
if at the worst a Man was lost, there are
Oysters and Shell-fish enough to subsist
him.”—Voyage to Georgia, p. 20. London.
1744. a
15
226 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
skirted along bluffs clothed with pines, cedars, live-oaks, and
vines even to the water's edge, all mirrored in the placid surface
of the sea-green estuaries, and again pursued their southward
course across bold sounds and through creeks permeating low-
lying and wide-extended marshes. Rowing between Wilmington
Island and the main, Mr. Oglethorpe paused to inspect the settle-
ment of Mr. Lacy. He and five gentlemen had there located
their five hundred acre grants, and built their houses near together
for mutual protection. These they had palisaded and defended
with cannon. Masters and servants composed the garrison, and
a guard was mounted every night. Above one hundred acres of
land had been cleared in the vicinity of the fort. “Milk, cattle,
hogs, garden-stuff and poultry’ abounded. This fort commanded
the water passage between the islands to Savannah. Mr. Lacy
had here experimented in making potash, but finding its produc-
tion unprofitable he was then sawing timber for the Sugar
Islands, and splitting staves for Madeira. At the “Northward-
most point" of Skidoway Island the party again stopped and
visited the village, guard-house, and battery of cannon there situ-
ated. The free-holders of the island performed guard-duty at
the battery, and about thirty acres of rich land in the neighbor-
hood had been cleared and cultivated. Leaving Skidoway on the
left, and the mouths of Vernon and Ogeechee rivers on the
right, and conducted by the master, Captain Ferguson, who was
“perfectly acquainted with all the water passages and in the
darkest night never missed the way ’’ although there were so
many channels as “to make a perfect labyrinth,” the scout-boat
and her consort pressed forward toward their destination. “Mr.
Oglethorpe being in haste,” says one of the party, “the men
rowed night and day and had no other rest than what they got
when a snatch of wind favoured us. They were all very willing,
though we met with very boisterous weather. The men vied
with each other who should be forwardest to please Mr. Ogle-
thorpe. Indeed, he lightened their fatigue by giving them re-
freshments which he rather spared from himself than let them
want. The Indians, seeing the men hard laboured, desired to
take the oars, and rowed as well as any I ever saw, only differing
from the others by taking a short and long stroke alternately,
which they call the Yamassee stroke.”
On the morning of the 18th the island of St. Simon was
reached. The sloop Midnight had come in ahead of, and was
waiting for, Mr. Oglethorpe. He immediately set all hands to
FREDERICA LOCATED. 227
work. The tall grass growing upon the bluff at Frederica was
burnt off, a booth was marked out “to hold the stores, – digging
the ground three Foot deep, and throwing up the Earth on each
Side by way of Bank, - and a Roof raised upon Crutches with
Ridge-pole and Rafters, nailing small Poles across, and thatching
the whole with Palmetto-Leaves. Mr. Oglethorpe afterwards laid
out several Booths without digging under Ground, which were
also covered with Palmetto-Leaves, to lodge the Families of the
Colony in when they should come up ; each of these Booths was
between thirty and forty Foot long, and upwards of twenty Foot
wide. . . . We all made merry that Evening, having a plentiful
Meal of Game brought in by the Indians.
“On the 19th, in the Morning, Mr. Oglethorpe began to mark
out a Fort with four Bastions, and taught the Men how to dig
the Ditch, and raise and turf the Rampart. This Day and the
following Day were spent in finishing the Houses, and tracing
out the Fort.” 1
Such was the simple beginning of Frederica.” Near this town
Mr. Oglethorpe fixed the only home he ever owned in the prov-
ince. In its defense were enlisted his best energies, military
skill, and valor. Brave are the memories of St. Simon's Island.
None prouder belong to the colonial history of Georgia.
Three days afterwards arrived from Savannah a periagua with
workmen, provisions, and cannon, for the new settlement. Cap-
tains Cornish and Thomas returned from the southward to Tybee
Roads on the 26th and, although persuaded of the fact that there
was ample water for the conveyance of their vessels to Frederica,
still refused to conduct the Symond and the London Merchant to
the southward. Mr. Oglethorpe was compelled, against his will,
to order that their cargoes should be unloaded into the Peter and
James, which could not carry above one hundred tons, and that
the remainder be transferred in sloops to Savannah for safe
storage until opportunity offered for conveying it to its original
destination. He was also forced to the great inconvenience and
expense of collecting periaguas * sufficient for the transportation
of the colonists from Tybee Roads to St. Simon's Island.
These preliminary labors having been inaugurated at Frederica,
* Moore's Voyage to Georgia, etc., p. 44 of a Forecastle and a Cabbin; but the
London. 1744. rest open, and no Deck. They have two
* Named by Oglethorpe and the trus- Masts which they can strike, and Sails
tees after Frederick, Prince of Wales. like Schooners. They row generally with
* “Long, flat-bottomed boats carrying two Oars only.” – Moore's Voyage to
from 20 to 35 tons. They have a Kind Georgia, p. 49. London. 1744.
228 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Mr. Oglethorpe set out on his return to the mouth of the Savan-
nah to superintend the transfer of passengers and stores. Deflect-
ing from his direct course that he might see the Highlanders at
Darien, so soon as his boat came in sight he was saluted by all
the men “under arms.” These Highlanders were not a little
rejoiced to welcome Mr. Oglethorpe, to learn that a town was to
be settled so near them, and to be assured that direct communi-
cation by land would soon be established between that point and
Savannah. Although invited by Captain Hugh Mackay, the
commander of the settlement, “to lie in his Tent where there
was a Bed and Sheets (a Rarity as yet in this Part of the World)
Mr. Oglethorpe excused himself, chusing to lie at the Guard
Fire, wrapt in his Plad, for he wore the Highland Habit. Capt.
MacKay and the other Gentlemen did the same, tho’ the Night
was cold.” With the condition of affairs at New Inverness he
was well pleased, and congratulated the Scotchmen upon their
industry, progress, and soldierly appearance.
Arrived again in Tybee Roads, Mr. Oglethorpe assembled the
colonists and stated to them that he found it impossible to pre-
vail upon the captains of the Symond and the London Merchant
to go to St. Simon's Island with their ships, passengers, and car-
goes. He also acquainted them with the difficulties and hard-
ships which must be endured in making the passage thither in
open boats, and offered to suffer them, if they so desired, to set-
tle at Savannah and upon the adjacent territory. Two hours'
time was granted them for consideration, and for consultation
with their families. At the expiration of this period the free-
holders came together again and, in a manly way, assured him
that they were resolved not to leave one another, but to carry
out the original intention of building the new town of Frederica.
They further declared themselves ready to undertake the inland
passage. With this brave conclusion Mr. Oglethorpe was highly
gratified.
Much incensed at the reprehensible behavior of the captains
of the transports, and inconvenienced by the demurrage conse-
quent upon their timidity, he was also indignant at the delay
thus caused in the consummation of his plans, annoyed at the
additional charges for transfer of passengers and cargo, and so-
licitous for the health of the colonists who would be exposed in
open boats, at an inclement season, during the passage from Ty-
bee Roads to Jekyll Sound.
It was not until the 2d of March that the fleet of periaguas
FREDERICA. 229
and boats, with the families of the colonists on board, set out
from the mouth of the Savannah River. Spare oars had been
rigged for each boat. With their assistance, the men of the
colony rowing with a will, the voyage to Frederica was accom-
plished in five days. Mr. Oglethorpe accompanied them in his
Scout-boat, keeping the fleet together, and taking the hindermost
craft in tow. As an incentive to unity of movement, he placed
all the strong beer on board a fast boat. The rest labored dili-
gently to keep up ; for, if they were not all at the place of ren-
dezvous each night, the tardy crew lost its ration. Frederica was
reached on the 8th, and there was general joy among the col-
onists.
So diligently did they labor in building the town and its forti-
fications that by the 23d of the month a battery of cannon, com-
manding the river, had been mounted, and the fort was almost
finished. Its ditches had been dug, although not to the required
depth or width, and a rampart raised and covered with sod. A
storehouse, having a front of sixty feet, and intended to be three
stories in height, was completed as to its cellar and first story.
The necessary streets were all laid out. “The Main Street that
went from the Front into the Country was 25 yards wide. Each
Free-holder had 60 Foot in Front by 90 Foot in Depth, upon
the high Street, for their House and Garden ; but those which
fronted the River had but 30 Foot in Front, by 60 Foot in
Depth. Each Family had a Bower of Palmetto Leaves, finished
upon the back Street in their own Lands: The Side towards the
front Street was set out for their Houses: These Palmetto Bow-
ers were very convenient Shelters, being tight in the hardest
Rains; they were about 20 Foot long and 14 Foot wide, and, in
regular Rows, looked very pretty, the Palmetto Leaves lying
smooth and handsome, and of a good Colour. The whole ap-
peared something like a Camp; for the Bowers looked liked
Tents, only being larger and covered with Palmetto Leaves in-
stead of Canvas. There were 3 large Tents, two belonging to
Mr. Oglethorpe, and one to Mr. Horton, pitched upon the Parade
near the River.”
Such is the description of the town in its infancy as furnished
by Mr. Moore, whose “Voyage to Georgia’’ is one of the most
interesting and valuable tracts we have descriptive of the coloni-
zation.
That there might be no confusion in their constructive labors,
Mr. Oglethorpe divided the colonists into working parties. To
230 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Some was assigned the duty of cutting forks, poles, and laths for
building the bowers. Others set them up. Others still gathered
palmetto leaves, while “a fourth gang,” under the superintend-
ence of a Jew workman, bred in Brazil and skilled in the matter,
thatched the roofs “nimbly and in a neat manner.”
Men accustomed to the agriculture of the region instructed
the colonists in hoeing and preparing the soil. Potatoes, Indian
corn, flax, hemp-seed, barley, turnips, lucern-grass, pumpkins, and
water-melons were planted. The labor was common and enured
to the benefit of the entire community. As it was rather too
late in the season to till the ground fully and get in such a crop
as would promise a yield sufficient to subsist the settlement for
the coming year, many of the men were put upon pay and set to
work upon the fortifications and the public buildings.
Mr. Hugh Mackay, about this time, arrived in Frederica, and
reported that, with the assistance of Messrs. Augustine and
Tolme and the guides furnished by Tomo-chi-chi, he had sur-
veyed and located a road, practicable for horses, between Savan-
nah and Darien. This information was very gratifying to the
colonists on St. Simon's Island, assuring them that their situa-
tion was not so isolated as they at first supposed.
Frederica was located in the midst of an Indian field 4 con-
taining between thirty and forty acres of cleared land. The
grass yielded an excellent turf which was freely used in Sodding
the parapet of the fort. The bluff upon which it stood rose
about ten feet above high-water mark, was dry and Sandy, and
exhibited a level expanse of about a mile into the interior of the
island. The position of the fort was such that it fully com-
1 The aborigines cleared considerable was general and of long duration. Prom-
spaces on the Sea Islands along the Geor-
gia coast, planting them with maize,
pumpkins, gourds, beans, melons, etc.
These indications of early agriculture
were not infrequent in various portions
of Georgia. The richest localities were
selected by the aborigines for cultiva-
tion ; their principal towns and maize-
fields being generally found in rich val-
leys where a generous soil yielded, with
least labor, the most remunerative har-
vest. The trees were killed by girdling
them by means of stone axes. So old
were these Indian fields that in them no
traces appeared of the roots and stumps
even of the most durable trees. The oc-
cupancy of these islands by the red race
inent bluffs are to this day marked by
their refuse heaps, composed chiefly of
the shells of oysters, conchs, and clams,
and the bones of the animals, reptiles,
birds, and fishes upon which they sub-
sisted, intermingled with sherds of pot-
tery, broken articles, and relics of vari-
ous sorts. Many localities are hoary with
ancient shell-mounds, while Sepulchral
tumuli of earth are not infrequent. Be-
sides the primitive population perma-
nently domiciled on these islands, at cer-
tain seasons of the year large numbers of
Indians from the main here congregated
and spent much time in hunting and fish-
Ing.
ATTRACTIONS OF FEEDERICA. 231
manded the reaches in the river both above and below. With
their situation the colonists were delighted. The harbor was
land-locked, having a depth of twenty-two feet of water at the
bar, and capable of affording safe anchorage to a large number
of ships of considerable burden. Surrounded by beautiful forests
of live-oaks, water-oaks, laurel, bay, cedar, sweet-gum, Sassafras,
and pines, festooned with luxuriant vines, [among which those
bearing the Fox-grape and the Muscadine were peculiarly pleas-
ing to the colonists, and abounding in deer, rabbits, raccoons,
squirrels, wild-turkeys, turtle-doves, redbirds, mocking birds, and
rice birds,” with wide extended marshes frequented by Wild geese,
ducks, herons, curlews, cranes, plovers, and marsh-hens, - the
adjacent waters teeming with fishes, crabs, shrimps, and oysters,
and the island fanned by southeast breezes prevailing with the
regularity of the trade winds, – the strangers were charmed with
their new home. Within their fort were enclosed and preserved
several of those grand old live-oaks which for centuries had
crowned the bluff, and whose shade was refreshing beyond any
shelter the hand of man could devise. The town sprang into be-
ing as a military post. It was ordered and grew day by day under
the immediate supervision of Oglethorpe. The soil of the island
was fertile, and its health unquestioned. Lieutenant George
Dunbar, on the 20th of January, 1739, made oath before Francis
Moore, recorder of the town of Frederica, that since his arrival
with the first detachment of Colonel Oglethorpe's regiment the
preceding June, all the carpenters and many of the soldiers had
been continuously occupied in building clap-board huts, carrying
lumber and bricks, unloading vessels, [often working up to their
necks in water, in clearing the parade, burning wood and rub-
bish, making lime, and in other out-door exercises, – the hours
of labor being from daylight until eleven or twelve M. and from
two or three o'clock in the afternoon until dark. Despite these
exposures, continues the affiant, “All the time the men kept so
healthy that often no man in the camp ailed in the least, and
none died except one man who came sick on board and never
worked at all; nor did I hear that any of the men ever made the
heat a pretence for not working.”.”
Beyond question Frederica was the healthiest of all the early
settlements in Georgia, and St. Simon's Island has always enjoyed
1 An Impartial Enquiry into the State * Buffalo and quail were found on the
and Utility of the Province of Georgia, main.
pp. 40, 41. London. 1741. * State of the Province of Georgia at-
232 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
an enviable reputation for salubrity. Until marred by the deso-
lations of the late war, this island was a favorite summer resort,
and the homes of its planters were the abodes of beauty, com-
fort, and refinement. A mean temperature of about fifty degrees
in winter and not above eighty-two degrees in summer; gardens
adorned with choice flowers, and orchards enriched with plums,
peaches, nectarines, figs, melons, pomegranates, dates, oranges,
and limes; forests rendered majestic by the live-oak, the pine,
and the magnolia grandiflora, and redolent with the perfumes of
the bay, the cedar, and the myrtle; the air fresh and buoyant
with the southeast breezes and vocal with the notes of song-
birds; the adjacent sea, sound, and inlets replete with fishes; the
shell roads and broad beach affording every facility for driving
and riding; the woods and fields abounding with game, and the
culture and generous hospitality of the inhabitants, impressed all
visitors with the delights of this favored spot. Sir Charles Lyell,
among others, alludes with marked satisfaction to the pleasures
he there experienced.
Among the reptiles which not only attracted the notice of, but
to a considerable degree, upon first acquaintance, disquieted, the
early colonists, the alligators were the most noted. Listen to this
description furnished by an eye-witness" in 1736: “They are
terrible to look at, stretching open an horrible large Mouth, big
enough to swallow a Man, with Rows of dreadful large sharp
Teeth, and Feet like Draggons armed with great Claws, and a
long Tail which they throw about with great Strength, and
which seems their best Weapon, for their Claws are feebly set
on, and the Stiffness of their Necks hinders them from turning
nimbly to bite.” In order that the public mind might be dis-
abused of the terror which pervaded it with respect to these
reptiles, Mr. Oglethorpe, having wounded and caught one, had it
brought to Savannah, and “made the boys bait it with sticks
and finally pelt and beat it to death.” The rattlesnakes, too,
were objects of special dread.
Leaving his people occupied with the labors assigned to them
at Frederica, Mr. Oglethorpe set out on the 18th of March” for
the frontiers, “to see where his Majesty's Dominions and the
tested upon Oath, etc., p. 25. London. Province of Georgia, pp. 61, 63, 64. Lon-
1742. Compare Affidavits of Lieut. Ray- don: 1741.
mond Demare, Hugh Mackay, and John 1 Francis Moore, Voyage to Georgia, etc.,
Cuthbert, to same effect. An Impartial p. 57. London. 1744.
Enquiry into the State and Utility of the 2 Moore says April. See A Voyage to
Georgia, p. 63. London. 1744.
RECONNOISSANCE OF SOUTHERN FRONTIER. 233
Spaniards joyn.” He was accompanied by “Toma-Chi-Chi,
Mico, and a Body of Indians, who tho’ but few, being not forty,
were all chosen Warriors and good Hunters.” They were con-
veyed in two scout-boats, and the next day were joined by the
periagua, commanded by Captain Hugh Mackay, with thirty
Highlanders, ten men of the Independent Company, and in-
trenching tools and provisions on board. Upon the northwestern
point of Cumberland Island,” washed by the bay on the one side
and on the other by the channel running to the southward, Ogle-
thorpe marked out a fort, called it St. Andrew, and left Captain
Mackay with his command to build it, and some Indians to hunt
and shoot for them while thus employed.
Proceeding on his voyage, Mr. Oglethorpe named the next
large island to the south Amelia,”—“it being a beautiful Island,
and the Sea-shore cover'd with Myrtle, Peach-Trees, Orange-
Trees, and Vines in the wild Woods.” Tomo-chi-chi conducted
him to the mouth of the St. John’s, pointed out the advanced
post occupied by the Spanish guard, and indicated the dividing
line. It was with difficulty that the old chief and his followers
could be restrained from making a night attack on the Spaniards,
upon whom they thirsted to take revenge “for the killing of
some Indians” during the mico's absence in England. Stopping
at Fort St. Andrew on his way back, Oglethorpe was surprised
to find the work in such a state of “forwardness, – the Ditch
being dug, and the Parapet raised with Wood and Earth on the
Land-side, and the small Wood clear'd fifty yards round the
Fort.” This seemed the more extraordinary, adds Francis
Moore, because Mr. Mackay had no engineer, or any assistance
other than the directions which Mr. Oglethorpe gave. The
ground consisting of loose sand, it was a difficult matter to con-
struct the parapets: “therefore they used the same Method to
support it as Caesar mentions in the Wars of Gaul, laying Trees
and Earth alternately, the Trees preventing the Sand from fall-
ing, and the Sand the Wood from Fire.”
1 Oglethorpe's letter to the lieutenant
governor of South Carolina. Collections
of the Georgia Historical Society, vol. iii.
p. 28. Savannah. 1873.
* This island was named Wisso by the
Indians, signifying Sassafras. It was
called Cumberland in honor of his royal
highness the Duke of Cumberland, at
the suggestion of Toonahowi, nephew of
Tomo-chi-chi, to whom, during his visit
to England, the duke had given a gold
repeating watch that he “might know
how the time went.” “We will remem-
ber him at all times,” said Toonahowi,
“and therefore will give this Island this
name.”
* Called by the Spaniards Santa Maria.
234 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Upon their return to Frederica the Indians encamped near the
town, and, on the 26th, favored Mr. Oglethorpe and all the peo-
ple with a war dance. “They made a Ring, in the middle of
which four sat down, having little Drums made of Kettles cov-
er'd with Deer-skins, upon which they beat and sung: Round
them the others danced, being naked to their Waists, and round
their Middles many Trinkets tied with Skins, and some with the
Tails of Beasts hanging down behind them. They painted their
Faces and Bodies, and their Hair was stuck with Feathers : In one
Hand they had a Rattle, in the other Hand the Feathers of an
Eagle, made up like the Caduceus of Mercury: They shook these
Wings and the Rattle, and danced round the Ring with high
Bounds and antick Postures, looking much like the Figures of
the Satyrs.
“They shew’d great Activity, and kept just Time in their
Motions; and at certain times answer'd, by way of Chorus, to
those that sat in the Middle of the Ring. They stopt, and then
stood out one of the chief Warriors, who sung what Wars he had
been in, and described (by Actions as well as by Words) which
way he had vanquish'd the Enemies of his Country. When he
had done, all the rest gave a Shout of Approbation, as knowing
what he said to be true. The next Day Mr. Oglethorpe gave
Presents to Toma-chi-chi and his Indians, and dismiss'd them
with Thanks for their Fidelity to the King.”"
For the further protection of the approaches to Frederica by
the inland passages, a battery, called Fort St. Simon, was
erected at the south end of St. Simon's Island. It was designed
to command the entrance to Jekyll Sound. Adjacent to it was
laid out a camp containing barracks and huts for the soldiers.
At the southern extremity of Cumberland Island Fort William
was afterwards built with a view to controlling Amelia Sound
and the inland passage to St. Augustine. Upon San Juan Island
to the south, and near the entrance of the St. John's River, Ogle-
thorpe observed the traces of an old fort. Thither he sent
Captain Hermsdorf and a detachment of Highlanders, with in-
structions to repair and occupy it. Having ascertained that this
island was included in the cession of lands made by the Indians
to his majesty, he named it George, and called the fortification
Fort St. George. With the exception of one or two posts of
observation, this constituted the most southern defense of the
colony, and was regarded as an important position both for hold-
1 Moore's Voyage to Georgia, p. 71. London, 1744.
FREDERICA. 235
ing the Spaniards in check and for giving the earliest intelligence
of any hostile demonstration on their part." The energy and
boldness displayed by the commander-in-chief in developing his
line of occupation so far to the south, and in the very teeth of the
Spaniards in Florida, are quite remarkable, and indicate on his
part not only a daring bordering upon rashness, but also no little
confidence in the courage and firmness of the small garrisons
detailed to fortify and hold these advanced and isolated positions.
Returning to Frederica from this tour of observation, Mr. Ogle-
thorpe found the workmen busily occupied in constructing the
fort; the outer works were being “palisaded with Cedar Posts
to prevent our Enemies turning up the green Sod.” Upon the
bastions platforms of two-inch plank were laid for the cannon.
A piece of marsh lying below the fort was converted into a water
battery, called “the Spur,” the guns of which, being on a level
with the water, were admirably located for direct and effective
operation against all vessels either ascending or descending the
TIVéI’.
A well was dug within the fort which yielded an abundant
supply of “tolerable good water.” The people having no bread,
and the store of biscuits being needed for the crews of the boats
which were kept constantly moving from point to point, an oven
was built, and an indented servant, a baker by trade, was de-
tailed to bake bread for the colony. For the flour furnished by
each individual an equal weight was returned in bread, “the dif-
ference made by the water and salt” being the baker's gain.
This fresh bread, in the language of one who partook of it, was a
great comfort to the people. Venison brought in by the Indians
was frequently issued in lieu of salt provisions. Poultry, hogs,
and sheep were occasionally killed for the sick. Such domestic
animals, however, were, at that early period, so scarce in the set-
tlement that they were “carefully guarded for the purpose of
breeding.” A little later, live-stock came forward in abundance
by boats from Port Royal and Savannah.
Grave apprehensions were entertained of an attack from the
Spaniards, and Mr. Oglethorpe was untiring in his efforts to
place the southern frontier in the best possible state of defense.
It is remarkable how much was accomplished under the circum-
1 On the upper end of Cumberland built. “Its walls were of wood, filled in
Island, and upon a high neck of land with earth. Round about were a ditch
commanding the Water approaches each and a palisade.” Wesley's Journal, p.
way, Fort St. Andrew was subsequently 6l. Bristol, n. d.
236 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
stances. His energy was boundless, his watchfulness unceasing.
Scout-boats were constantly on duty observing the water ap-
proaches from the south as far as the mouth of the St. John.
Indian runners narrowly watched the walls of St. Augustine, and
conveyed intelligence of every movement by the enemy. Look-
outs were maintained at all necessary points to give warning of
threatened danger. Mr. Bryan and Mr. Barnwell promised, in
case Frederica or its out-posts were attacked, to come to their
support with a strong body of volunteers from Carolina. Chiefs
of the Cheehaws and the Creeks proffered their assistance.
Acting upon the belief that it was better to confront the Span-
iards upon the confines of the colony than to abide the event of
their invasion, volunteers came in such numbers from Carolina
and Georgia that General Oglethorpe was compelled to issue
orders that all who had plantations should remain at home and
cultivate them until actually summoned to arms.
Hearing a report that the Spaniards were intent upon dislodg-
ing the settlers from Frederica, Ensign Delegal, taking thirty
men of the Independent Company under his command and row-
ing night and day, reached Frederica on the 10th of May and
tendered his services. Without permitting them to land, Ogle-
thorpe ordered English strong beer and provisions on board,
sent a present of wine to Ensign Delegal, and, upon the same
tide, in his scout-boat conducted the party to the east point of
St. Simon's Island where it is washed by Jekyll Sound and there
posted the company, locating a spot for constructing a fort, and
commanding a well to be dug. By the 16th, Ensign Delegal
succeeded in casting up a considerable intrenchment and in
mounting several cannon.
This post, strengthened on the 8th of June by the arrival of
Lieutenant Delegal, with the rest of the Independent Company
and thirteen pieces of cannon belonging to them, was subse-
quently known as Delegal's Fort at the Sea-point.
Workmen at Frederica were employed in building a powder
magazine under one of the bastions of the fort. It was made of
heavy timber covered with several feet of earth. The construc-
tion of a large storehouse, a smith's forge, a wheelwright's shop,
and a corn-house also engaged their attention. The men capable
of bearing arms were trained in military exercises each day by
Mr. McIntosh. The colonists were in a state of constant alarm,
and everything was made subservient to the general defense.
Even the feeble avowed their willingness to sacrifice their lives
BRAVERY OF THE COLONISTS. 237
in protecting their new homes. Inspired by the intrepidity and
vigilance, the fearlessness and the activity, of Oglethorpe, who
was constantly on the move, visiting the advanced works, press-
ing his reconnoissances even within the enemy’s lines, and mak-
ing every available disposition of men and munitions which could
conduce to the common safety, soldiers and citizens kept brave
hearts, labored incessantly and cheerfully, observed a sleepless
watch upon the sea and its inlets, and stood prepared to offer
Stout resistance to the Spaniard. It was a manly sight, this little
colony fearlessly planting itself upon island and headland, sepa-
rated from all substantial support, and yet extending itself on
land and water to the very verge of hostile lines held by an
enemy greatly superior in men and warlike appliances.
CHAPTER XVI.
FREDERICA A MILITARY TOWN. — MISSION OF MR. DEMPSEY AND MAJOR
RICHARDS. — AMICABLE RELATIONS ESTABLISHED BETWEEN GEORGIA AND
FLORIDA. — OGLETHORPE’s INTERVIEw witH THE SPANISH OFFICIALs. –
SUBSEQUENTLY THE SPANLARDS CALL UPON THE ENGLISH TO Evacuate
ALL TERRITORY LYING SOUTH OF ST. HELENA SOUND. — ConFERENCE witH
SOUTH CAROLINA COMMISSIONERS IN REGARD TO THE INDIAN TRADE. —
OGLETHORPE DEPARTS A SECOND TIME FOR ENGLAND.
WITH their situation at Frederica, exposed as it was, the
colonists expressed themselves entirely delighted. The mag-
nificent forests of cedar, bay, laurel, and live-oak; the luxuriant
vines drooping in graceful festoons even to the water's edge; the
voices of song-birds filling the soft air with sounds sweeter far
than they had ever heard in Europe; the vernal atmosphere red-
olent of jessamines, orange blossoms, and the thousand delight-
ful flowers which lend their commingled fragrance and beauty
to this charming spot; the presence of game and fish in great
variety, and the generous appearance of the soil, all inspired the
emigrants with a sense of satisfaction, happiness, and hope.
Situated on the west side of St. Simon's Island, on a bold bluff
confronting a bay formed by one of the mouths of the Alatamaha
River, Frederica was planned as a military town and constructed
with a view to breasting the shock of hostile assaults. Its houses
were to be substantially built, not of wood, as in Savannah, but
of tabby. Its streets by their names proclaimed the presence of
military officers. Its esplanade and parade-ground characterized
it as a permanent camp.
Including the camp on the north, the parade on the east,
and a small wood on the south which served as a blind in
the event of an attack from ships coming up the river, the set-
tlement was about a mile and a half in circumference. The
town proper was to be protected by embankment and ditch,
and places for two gates, called respectively the Town and
Water posts, were indicated. The citadel was to be made of
tabby and formidably armed. In front a water battery, mount-
ing several eighteen-pounder guns, was designed to command the
MISSION OF MER. DEMPSEY. 239
river. It was contemplated to guard the town on the land side
by a formidable intrenchment, the exterior ditch of which could
be filled with water.
As Savannah was the commercial metropolis of the colony, so
was Frederica its southern outpost and strong defense. St.
Simon's Island was soon to become the Thermopylae of the
Southern Anglo-American provinces. In the military history
of the colony there is no brighter chapter, in the eventful life
of Oglethorpe no more illustrious epoch than that which com-
memorates the protracted and successful struggle with the Span-
iards for the retention of this charming island.
While planning this new settlement to the south, the trustees
were not unmindful that they were about to engage in an enter-
prise the execution of which would probably provoke the pro-
hibitory intervention of Spain. Although peace conferences had
been held and concessions made, that nation, ea imo corde, re-
fused to abandon all claim to the territory lying between the
Savannah and the Alatamaha rivers, and still viewed, with ill-
concealed jealousy, any extension of British colonization in the
direction of the St. John.
To conciliate the Spanish authorities in Florida and compass, as
far as practicable, a pacification of slumbering disagreements, Mr.
Charles Dempsey, with the sanction of the Spanish ambassador
then resident near the Court of St. James, was commissioned by
the British government to proceed to St. Augustine and there
arrange the terms of a convention between the governors of
Georgia and Florida with a view to the settlement of any dis-
putes touching the boundary line between those provinces. He
accompanied Mr. Oglethorpe to Georgia in the Symond.
Previous to his first departure from Tybee Roads to St. Simon's
Island, Mr. Oglethorpe had instructed Major Richards of Purrys-
burgh to procure a suitable boat, and proceed with Mr. Dempsey
to St. Augustine. On the 19th of February, 1736, those gentle-
men set out upon their mission ; Mr. Dempsey, in addition to his
dispatches from the home government, conveying a conciliatory
letter from Mr. Oglethorpe to the governor of Florida.
When on the 18th of March Mr. Oglethorpe left Frederica
upon his southern reconnoissance, no advices had been received
from Mr. Dempsey. Wishing to ascertain the cause of this si-
lence, and being solicitous for his safety, Mr. Oglethorpe gladly
hastened the inception of the expedition, knowing that its course
would lead to the Florida coast, where he hoped at an early day
240 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
to learn definitely of the movements and success of the commis-
sioner. Another reason which induced Mr. Oglethorpe to go
just at this time when his services on St. Simon's Island were
greatly needed was the fear that the Indians, if unrestrained by
his personal presence, might in their animosity feel themselves
strong enough to attack some of the feeble advanced posts of the
Spaniards, and by this means, in the unsettled state of feeling,
precipitate general hostilities between the Spaniards and the
colonists.
He also desired, as has been intimated, to ascertain from the
Indians the boundary line, as they understood it, which separated
Georgia from Florida. Having proceeded as far as the mouth of
the St. John, he landed to make inquiry of the Spanish guard,
there posted, concerning the fate of Mr. Dempsey and Major
Richards. Unfortunately the post was deserted and he was una-
ble to satisfy his anxieties. The next morning, however, he met
Major Richards in a boat returning from St. Augustine, and
from him received the following explanation of Mr. Dempsey’s
delay and continued absence. Before reaching St. Augustine
the yawl in which they were proceeding was capsized. The en-
tire party was compelled to scramble through the breakers to
the shore, dragging the overturned boat with them. After walk-
ing several leagues through the sand, they were overtaken by
Don Pedro Lamberto, a captain of horse, who conducted them to
the Spanish governor, by whom they were received with great
civility. Mr. Dempsey's return was postponed in consequence of
repairs which it was necessary to put upon the boat. Major
Richards brought letters to Mr. Oglethorpe from Don Francisco
del Moral Sanchez, captain-general of Florida and governor of
St. Augustine, in which, after profuse compliments and ex-
pressions of thanks for the letters received at the hands of Mr.
Dempsey, he complained that the Creek Indians had fallen
upon some of the Spaniards and defeated them, and that he was
in daily apprehension of further hostilities which he desired Mr.
Oglethorpe to prevent. Major Richards added that the Spanish
authorities at Havana had been fully advised of what was
transpiring on the coast, and that he had promised the governor
of Florida to return within three weeks with the reply which
Mr. Oglethorpe might desire to make to his communication.
From other sources Mr. Oglethorpe received information that,
notwithstanding these professions of friendship and assurances of
an earnest desire on his part to perpetuate the amicable relations
DUPLICITY OF THE SPANIARDS. 241
existing between Georgia and Florida, the governor of St. Au-
gustine had sent to Charlestown to purchase arms which he in-
tended placing in the hands of the Florida Indians, and that by
their assistance, in conjunction with the Yemassees and a detach-
ment from the garrison at St. Augustine, he purposed an early
movement upon the colonists at Frederica, hoping to accomplish
either their utter destruction, or total expulsion from the island
of St. Simon. He was also advised that the alleged hostility
on the part of the Creeks was simply a pretext for this covert
movement, and designed to shift in advance the burden of a
commencement of hostilities from the shoulders of the Span-
iards to those of the English; that the garrison at St. Augustine
consisted of five companies of infantry of sixty men each, and
a company of horse numbering about forty men; and that rein-
forcements had been called for and were daily expected from
Havana." Regarding this information as entirely reliable, Mr.
Oglethorpe dispatched a periagua with twenty oars and four
swivel guns, accompanied by a scout-boat, well armed, to the
mouth of the St. John's River, with orders to patrol that river
and prevent any Indians from crossing, hoping thus to preclude
the possibility of an attack by the Indians in this quarter. The
fort located upon the St. George's Island passage was rapidly
pressed to completion in order that its guns might assist the
periagua in hindering the ascent of any hostile boats through the
island channels. Two ships were posted in the river near Freder-
ica to engage the Spanish vessels, should an entrance from the
sea be attempted by them. The fortifications on St. Simon's
Island were strengthened by every means at command, and addi-
tional troops summoned for their defense. Through the aid of
Tomo-chi-chi, parties of Indians were sent out with instructions
to intercept the Creek hunters and dissuade them from attacking
the Spanish outposts until a general conference could be held.
Other warriors were stationed in the woods on the coast oppo-
site Frederica, with orders to prevent any Spanish cavalry from
advancing across the country upon the settlement of the High-
landers at Darien, and at all times to hold themselves in readi-
ness to cross over and unite in the defense of Frederica should
that place be threatened.
On the 13th of April Mr. Oglethorpe dispatched Major Rich-
ards and Mr. Horton with his reply to the captain-general of
Florida. They went in the marine boat, accompanied by a peri-
* See Francis Moore's Voyage.
16
242 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
agua carrying a three months’ supply of provisions. In his re-
sponse Mr. Oglethorpe acquainted his excellency that in order
to remove all cause of uneasiness and to prevent lawless persons
from creating any disturbance between the subjects of the two
Crowns, he had commissioned armed boats to patrol the waters
separating the British and Spanish territories. He concluded by
thanking him for his former civilities, and by commending Major
Richards and his companions to his favorable consideration.
Upon reaching St. George's Fort, Major Richards sent over to
the Spanish side of the river St. John to announce his arrival;
but neither men nor horses were there, as had been promised, to
conduct him to St. Augustine. As the major was anxious to
keep his appointment, — which was that he would report at St.
Augustine within three weeks from the time of his departure, —
and as a voyage in open boat involved too much danger and ex-
posure, Mr. Horton prevailed upon him to remain where he was.
With two servants he set out on foot to visit the governor and
advise him that Major Richards had arrived upon the confines of
Florida bearing letters from Mr. Oglethorpe. A few days after-
wards two smokes, which were the signal agreed upon, were per-
ceived at the Spanish look-out. The marine boat was immediately
sent over. It returned with the intelligence that a guard and
horses were ready to conduct Major Richards to St. Augustine,
but that the Spaniards behaved more like enemies than friends.
The officers and men of the boat counseled Major Richards not
to go with them unless the Spaniards left some one as security
for his safety. The major resolved to venture, nevertheless, and
having been taken in charge by the Spaniards on the other side
set out at once upon his journey. Some days after this, another
smoke appearing at the Spanish post, the boat again went over,
when a dirty paper, containing a message in German, traced with
a pencil, was handed to the officer in charge. The Spaniards said
it had been written by Major Richards and was addressed to
Captain Hermsdorf. It simply advised him that he had safely
reached the quarters of the Spanish captain of horse. The Span-
iards appearing in numbers more formidable than usual, Mr.
Horton not returning, and Major Richards sending such a short
dispatch, Captain Hermsdorf concluded that the latter was de-
tained as a prisoner. His fort not being tenable, and “his men
proving indifferent,” that officer resolved to abandon his exposed
position and retire to Amelia Sound whence, if repulsed, he could
retire under the protection of the guns at St. Andrew. While
ANXIETY ON ACCOUNT OF MAJOR RICHARDS. 243
lying at anchor near the south end of Cumberland Island, he was
overtaken by Mr. Oglethorpe in Captain Gascoigne's six-oared
yawl-boat, attended by Rae's scout-boat, who ordered him to fol-
low. Leaving Captain Hermsdorf with the periagua and the
marine-boat at St. George, Mr. Oglethorpe proceeded with the
yawl and the scout-boat, bearing a flag of truce, to the Spanish
side that he might ascertain what had become of Major Richards,
Mr. Horton, and their companions. The customary post was de-
serted. After traversing the neighborhood for some time, and
seeing no one, Oglethorpe was about returning when one of his
lads, named Frazier, appeared driving before him a tall man with
a musket upon his shoulder, two pistols in his girdle, and a long
and a short sword depending from his side. “Here, sir, I have
caught a Spaniard for you,” said the boy. Having treated the
captive civilly, and having given him wine and victuals, Mr.
Oglethorpe inquired concerning Major Richards and Mr. Horton;
whereupon the fellow pulled out a letter which he said was from
Mr. Horton, whom, with Major Richards, he added, the governor
of St. Augustine had put under arrest. Mr. Oglethorpe rewarded
him, and designated noon of the next day for returning an an-
swer. This information led Mr. Oglethorpe to anticipate an
early attack from the Spaniards. He withdrew at once to St.
George, which he placed in the best possible attitude of defense.
During the night fires were kindled at various points to light up
the adjacent waters and discover the enemy if he attempted to
pass. Returning to the Spanish look-out on the morrow, at the
appointed hour, he was chagrined at finding that the Spaniard
had not kept his engagement. Some horsemen were observed
concealing themselves behind the sand-hills, and a launch, filled
with men, was seen lying under the shelter of a sand-bank near
the mouth of the St. John's River. Upon rowing in the direc-
tion of this launch, her crew started up and pulled out to sea.
Finally he succeeded in having a conference with a horseman,
well mounted and dressed in blue, to whom he entrusted the let-
ters intended for the Spaniard whom he had met on the previous
day. The horseman promised to attend to their proper delivery,
and also to return with replies. Having waited two days for a
response, and none being delivered, Mr. Oglethorpe, leaving all
the other boats at Fort St. George, repaired in the yawl to Fred-
€l 1C3,
Advices received from Florida induced Mr. Oglethorpe to ex-
pect an early demonstration against that town. Every precaution
244 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
was taken and all preparations were made which the utmost pru-
dence, forethought, and military ingenuity could devise to place
the colonists there and the garrisons in the dependent forts in
the best practical attitude, both offensive and defensive. The
more closely we scrutinize the efforts of the commander-in-chief
at this important juncture, the more remarkable appear the re-
sults which he then achieved with the small numbers and scanty
resources at command. His energy was untiring, and his watch-
fulness unceasing. No exposure proved too hazardous, no per-
sonal exertion too onerous. During this period of doubt and
peril he was bravely seconded by his subalterns, and by the vener-
able Tomo-chi-chi, who remained ever near, accompanying him
upon his scouts by land and water, assisting in the construction
of forts and in the disposition of troops, by means of guides and
runners giving information of the movements of the Spaniards,
and by his presence and influence inciting his warriors to the
cheerful performance of continued and valuable services.
Beyond all question the Spaniards purposed an early attack
upon Frederica. By the time, however, that they had consum-
mated their arrangements, such reports were conveyed to them
of the strength of the positions occupied by the colonists, of the
obstacles to be overcome, and of the probable loss to be encoun-
tered, that the projected expedition was delayed. When, more
than two years afterwards, it was launched against St. Simon's
Island, the Spanish arms encountered only disappointment, de-
moralization, and defeat. The history of this island and the
heroic memories of its gallant defense are among the most memo-
rable recollections of the colonial period of Georgia. They illus-
trate at once the ability, valor, and military skill of Mr. Ogle-
thorpe, the patience, endurance, and bravery of the colonists, and
the fidelity of the aged mico of the Yamacraws and his followers.
To the great relief of all Mr. Horton arrived at Frederica dur-
ing the night of the 14th of June. He had met Mr. Oglethorpe
en route. To Mr. Francis Moore he gave the following account
of his adventures: After departing, with two servants, from the
Spanish look-out, he walked along the sea-shore until he reached
the river flowing near the castle of St. Augustine. Arriving
there about four o'clock in the afternoon, he fired his gun several
times as a signal for a boat to convey him across: At last One
came. Having crossed the river he was conducted to the gover-
nor, who received him with much civility. Thence he went to
Don Carlos Dempsey's house. The next day a detachment was
MAJOR FICHARDS ARRESTED. 245
sent to escort Major Richards to St. Augustine, who arrived
shortly afterwards. Both he and Mr. Horton were welcomed by
the inhabitants, “who looked upon them as the Messengers of
their Deliverance, for bringing them the news that the English
boats patrole upon the River to hinder the barbarous Indians
from passing and molesting them.”
While waiting for the governor's answer to Mr. Oglethorpe's
communication, they were one night invited to a dance at the
residence of the governor's interpreter, where they remained until
one o'clock in the morning and then returned to their lodgings
at Mr. Dempsey’s house. While they were still in bed, the town
major, Diego Paulo, attended by a file of musketeers, waited
upon Mr. Dempsey and informed him that Major Richards, Mr.
Horton, and their servants were charged with having been en-
gaged that very morning in “taking a plan of the town and
castle,” and that the governor, acting upon the accusation, had
ordered a sergeant and twelve men to make prisoners of them.
About ten o’clock the same morning, the governor “came to
Don Carlos's Lodging, accompany’d by some officers and the pub-
lic Scrivener of the Garison, and having sat down, began a formal
Information and Examination of Major Richards. The Governor
ask’d him what brought him there ; he answer'd that he was
come pursuant to his promise to his Excellency of returning to
him with Letters from Mr. Oglethorpe. He then asked where
Mr. Oglethorpe was 2 He answered he could not tell where he
then was, but he had left him at Frederica. Upon which he
asked what Fortifications and number of Men were at Frederica 2
To which the Major answered he did not know. He then asked
what Fortifications and number of Men were at Jekyl Sound,
Cumberland Island, Amelia Island, and St. John’s 2 To which
the Major answered the same as before. Whereupon the Gov-
ernor retired ; and some time after sent for the Major to his
House. He then examined Mr. Horton as to the Strength of
Georgia; but he refus’d to give them any answer: Upon which
they threaten’d to send him to the Mines. To which he answer'd
that he was a Subject of Great Britain, and his Sovereign was
powerfulsenough to do him Justice.
“The next Day, upon Don Carlos's application, the Guards
were taken off, he undertaking for them, and promising upon
Honour, that they should not walk about the Town, nor leave it
without his Excellency's Permission. Some Days after, they sent
out Don Ignatio Ro880, − Lieutenant Colonel of the Garrison,--
246 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
with a Detachment of it, in a large Boat called a Launch. He
staid out about five Days, and returned extremely fatigu'd, - the
Men having row'd the Skin off their Hands, - and reported that
the Islands were all fortified and full of Men and arm'd Boats.
“After this Don Carlos spoke to the Governor, Bishop, and
the rest of the Officers. A Council of War was call’d, and it was
resolv’d to send back Major Richards, Mr. Horton and the other
Men, and also letters of Civility to Mr. Oglethorpe with Don
Carlos Dempsey, Don Pedro Lamberto, Captain of Horse, and
Don Manuel d’Arcy, Adjutant of the Garrison, and to desire
Friendship.” Mr. Horton was accordingly released, and, while
returning with his servants in a boat, met Mr. Oglethorpe, to
whom he communicated the intelligence of the approach of the
Spanish authorities and Mr. Dempsey in a launch. He was
ordered by Mr. Oglethorpe to press on as rapidly as he could
and to arrange for the reception of those gentlemen on board
Captain Gascoigne's vessel, that they might acquire no informa-
tion of the situation and strength of Frederica and its adjacent
forts. That Mr. Dempsey, who, during his residence at St. Au-
gustine, was handsomely supported by the trustees, labored hon-
estly and effectually to maintain amicable relations between the
Spaniards in Florida and the colonists in Georgia cannot be
doubted. That he was largely instrumental in bringing about a
pacification on more than one occasion will be admitted ; but it
is most certain that the energy and daring of Oglethorpe, coupled
with a very respectable show of batteries, scout-boats, and armed
men, were more potent than all else in restraining the Spaniards
from the commission of hostilities.
The circumstances attendant upon the reception of the Spanish
authorities and the confirmation of a treaty of friendship between
the colonies may be summed up as follows : —
On the 12th of June, Oglethorpe, accompanied by Tomo-chi-chi
and his Indians in their canoes, started with a large periagua and
two ten-oared boats containing fifty men, cannon, and two months’
provisions, to relieve Fort St. George which he feared might at
that time be besieged. On his way he met a boat in which was
Mr. Horton, who had been released and was at that time return-
ing home, by whom he was informed that two Spanish officers
were coming on a friendly mission to St. Simon. Not being
able to postpone his visit to St. George, Mr. Oglethorpe sent
orders to Captain Gascoigne to entertain the Spanish officers on
his vessel, the Hawk, and to keep them on board until his return,
ARRIVAL OF SPANISH COMMISSIONERS. 247
O
so that they might not be able by personal inspection to gain
any definite knowledge of the strength or location of Frederica.
When within a few miles of his destination, the launch hove in
sight which conveyed the Spanish commissioners, – Don Pedro
de Lamberto, colonel of horse, and Don Manuel D’Arcy, secretary
to the governor, – and also Mr. Dempsey and Major Richards."
Wishing to avoid the ceremony which must ensue if he made
himself known to them, and anxious to compass his visit to Fort
St. George, Mr. Oglethorpe desired Mr. Mackay to communicate
with the launch and advise the commissioners to come to an
anchor until a safeguard could be furnished, because the coun-
try was full of Indians. They accordingly did so. It was with
great difficulty that Tomo-chi-chi and his Indians could be re-
strained from attacking the launch and killing the Spanish com-
missioners, so intense was the desire for revenge which animated
their breasts.
Having concluded his visit to Fort St. George, Mr. Oglethorpe
set out on his return to Frederica that he might receive the com-
missioners with becoming state. He passed unobserved very near
Captain Gascoigne's ship, where the commissioners were being
handsomely entertained. As soon as he reached Frederica he
detailed Ensign Mackay to bring from Darien “some of the
genteelest Highlanders” that they might be present at the con-
ference.” He “ ordered two handsome tents lined with Chinese,
with marquises and walls of canvas, to be sent down and pitched
upon Jekyl island.” He also forwarded some refreshments, and
dispatched two gentlemen to the commissioners to acquaint them
with the fact that he would wait upon them in person the next
day.
On the 18th Mr. Oglethorpe, with seven mounted men (which
were all he had), repaired to the Sea-point that the Spaniards
might see there were men and horses there. “At his setting
out a number of cannons were fired, which they also could hear
at Jekyl island. When he arrived at the point, the independent
company was under arms, being drawn up in one line at double
distances, to make them appear a larger number to the Spaniards
who lay upon Jekyl island; the independent company saluted
him with their cannon, managing them so as to seem to have
many more guns by reloading.” 8
Captain Gascoigne came over in his boat with two scout-boats,
1 Wright's Memoir of Oglethorpe, p. 159. * Georgia Historical Society Collections,
* Moore's Voyage. i. 150.
248 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
º
and having taken Mr. Oglethorpe on board conveyed him to
Jekyll Island, where he landed and welcomed the Spanish officers.
An invitation for dinner the next day on board the Hawk, ex-
tended by Captain Gascoigne, was accepted by Mr. Oglethorpe
and the commissioners, Mr. Oglethorpe saying that he would on
that occasion formally receive any communication they desired
to make.
The following day, the 19th, Ensign Mackay arrived on board
the man-of-war, with the Highlanders, who, with their broad-
swords, targets, plaids, etc., were drawn up on one side of the
ship, while a detachment of the independent company in regi-
mentals lined the other side. The sailors manned the shrouds,
and kept sentry with drawn cutlasses at the cabin door. The
Spanish commissioners were handsomely entertained, and after
dinner delivered their messages in writing. They drank the health
of the king of Great Britain and the royal family; so did Mr.
Oglethorpe that of the king and queen of Spain. The cannons
of the ship fired, and were answered by such heavy guns as
were within hearing. The next day they were entertained in
like manner, and had long conferences with Mr. Oglethorpe.
“On the 21st he gave them their answer. They made him
some presents of snuff, chocolate, etc., and he returned them very
handsome ones. All the time they were there we sent down
sheep, hogs and poultry, with garden stuff in plenty for all their
men, as also butter, cheese, wine, beer and all other refreshments.
“Tomo-chi-chi, Hyllispilli, and near thirty of the chiefest In-
dians being returned from the southward, came on board painted
and dressed as they are for war. Hyllispilli demanded justice
for killing the Indians, and other outrages. The Spanish com-
missary, Don Pedro, knew some of the facts, but seemed to doubt
the rest. Each party had an interpreter.”
The Indians proved that a party of forty Spaniards and In-
dians had fallen upon some of their nation, who, depending upon
the general peace between the Spaniards, the Indians, and the
English, were lying without suspicion and consequently without
guard. Thus surprised, several were killed and taken captive.
The boys who were captured were murdered by having their
brains dashed out, and the wounded were slain. Don Pedro,
struck with horror at this cruelty, inquired how they knew these
facts. A young Indian was produced who had been wounded
upon the occasion. He exhibited the scar, and told how, in the
confusion, he had escaped by concealing himself among some
CONFERENCE WITH THE SPANIARDS. 249
bushes. He further stated that he had for two days followed the
attacking party, hiding himself in thickets, seeing all that passed,
and intending to revenge himself upon stragglers should there
chance to be any. It was also proved that an Indian, who had
formed one of the party, bragged of what had been done to one
of the Creeks who went down to St. Marks to trade with the
Spaniards, at the same time saying that the party had been sent
out from St. Augustine.
Upon this Mr. Oglethorpe desired Don Pedro to represent
these facts to the governor of St. Augustine, and to say to him
that he should expect satisfaction in behalf of the Indians for
this insult, they being subjects of the king of Great Britain.
This being interpreted to the Indians, Hillispilli said he hoped
Mr. Oglethorpe would go with them, and then he would see
what they would do to the Spaniards; but that if he would not
accompany them they would go by themselves and take revenge.
“When this happened,” said he, “I was gone with you to
England. Had I not been with you this would not have hap-
pened, for had I been with my men they should not have been so
surprised. You will go with me, and you shall see how I will
punish them, but if you will not help me I have friends enough
who will go with me to revenge the murder.” At this all the
young Indians gave a shout. Don Pedro said that there was a
party of Indians which he knew went from the neighborhood of
St. Augustine, but that they were not Spaniards; that he him-
self at that time was in Mexico on a message from the governor;
that such cruelty must be abhorred by every Christian ; and that
he would take it upon him to say that the people who had com-
mitted this outrage should be punished. Pohoia, king of the
Floridas, was named as the party who commanded the expedi-
tion. Don Pedro gave his assurance that if ever he came into
St. Augustine so that the Spaniards could secure him, the
governor and council of war would punish him as his cruelty
deserved ; and that if he came not within their power they
would banish him.
To this Hillispilli said, “We hear what you say. When we
see it done, we will believe you.” Tomo-chi-chi persuaded him
to be content, and, during the stay of the commissioners, exerted
his influence in restraining the violent passions of his people and
preventing them from offering direct insult and personal violence
to the Spaniards.
This conference resulted in a temporary restoration of appar-
250 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
ent good feeling, and brought about a practical pacification be-
tween Florida and Georgia which suffered no violent interruption
for a period of more than two years. The Spaniards departed
on the 22d, well pleased with their reception and professing ami-
cable sentiments towards the colony of Georgia and its knightly
governor.
Mr. Oglethorpe's account of this interview with the Spanish
officials, as furnished in a letter to the trustees, is, in some re-
spects, more circumstantial : * —
“After dinner we drank the king of Britain's and the king of
Spain's health under a discharge of cannon from the ship; which
was answered with fifteen pieces of cannon from Delegal's fort
at the Sea-point. That again was followed by the cannon from
the fort of St. Andrew's, and that by those of Frederica and
Darien, as I had before ordered. The Spaniards seemed ex-
tremely surprised that there should be so many forts, and all
within hearing of one another. Don Pedro smiled and said,
“No wonder Don Ignatio made more haste home than out.’
After the healths were done, a great number of Indians came on
board, naked, painted, and their heads dressed with feathers.
They demanded of me justice against the Spaniards for killing
some of their men in time of peace.” . . .
“Don Pedro having asked several questions, acknowledged
himself fully satisfied of the fact, excusing it by saying that he
was then in Mexico, and that the Governor being newly come
from Spain and not knowing the customs of the country, had
sent out Indians under the command of the Pohoia, king of the
Floridas, who had exceeded his orders which were not to molest
the Creeks. But the Indians not being content with that answer,
he undertook that, at his return to Augustine, he would have the
Pohoia king put to death, if he could be taken, and if he could
not, that the Spaniards would supply his people with neither
powder, arms, nor anything else, but leave them to the Creeks.
The Indians answered that he spake well, and if the Spaniards
did what he said, all should be white between them ; but if not,
they would take revenge, from which, at my desire, they would
abstain till a final answer came.
“The Indian matters being thus settled, we had a conference
with the Spanish Commissioners. They thanked me first for my
1 Wright's Memoir of General James ities, with which it is unnecessary to
Oglethorpe, p. 160, et seq. London. 1867, shock the reader.
2 Here follow details of revolting atroc-
CONFERENCE WITH THE SPANIARDS. 251
restraining the Indians who were in my power, and hoped I
would extend that care to the upper Indians. They then, after
having produced their credentials, presented a paper the con-
tents whereof were to know by what title I settled upon St.
Simon's, being lands belonging to the king of Spain. I took
the paper, promising an answer next day. The substance was,
that the lands belonged to the king of England by undoubted
right: that I had proceeded with the utmost caution, having
taken with me Indians, the natives and possessors of those lands;
that I had examined every place to see if there were any Span-
ish possessions, and went forward till I found an outguard of
theirs, over against which I settled the English without commit-
ting any hostilities or dislodging any. Therefore I did not ex-
tend the king's dominions, but only settled with regular garri-
sons that part of them which was before a shelter for Indians,
pirates, and such sort of disorderly men."
“The rest of the evening we spent in conversation, which
chiefly turned upon the convenience it would be, both to the
Spaniards and English, to have regular garrisons in sight of each
other. Don Pedro smiled and said he readily agreed to that,
and should like very well to have their Spanish guard upon the
south side of Helena river, which is within five miles of Charles-
town, and where the Spaniards had a garrison in King Charles
the First's time. I replied I thought it was better as it was ; for
there were a great many people living between who could never
be persuaded to come in to his sentiments. At last Don Pedro
acquainted us that he thought the Spaniards would refer the set-
tling of the limits to the Courts of Europe, for which purpose
he should write to their Court, and in the meantime desired no
hostilities might be committed, and that I would send up a com-
missary to sign with the government an agreement to this pur-
pose. I thereupon appointed Mr. Dempsey to be my Commis-
sary and to return with them. Don Pedro is the ruling man in
Augustine and has more interest with the Council of War than
the Governor. As he passed by St. George's Point, he sent a
whole ox as a present to the garrison. He gave me some sweet-
1. At the time of the peace of Utrecht,
the territory as far south as the river St.
John was in the possession of the Indian
allies of Great Britain, and the Spaniards
never attempted to settle within it. By
the terms of that treaty all possessions in
North America were declared to belong
to the parties who then occupied them ;
and, as the Indians continued to hold
the disputed district, and acknowledged
themselves subject to the king of Eng-
land, by their cession it had become the
property of the British Crown.
252 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
meats and chocolate. I gave him a gold watch, a gun, and fresh
provisions. To Don Manuel I gave a silver watch, and sent
back a boat to escort them. If the Spaniards had committed any
hostilities, I could, by the help of the Indians, have destroyed
Augustine with great facility. But, God be praised, by His bless.
ing, the diligence of Dempsey, and the prudence of Don Pedro,
all bloodshed was avoided.”
This protestation of friendship on the part of the Spaniards,
and this qualified concession of the right of the Georgia colonists
to plant their town and batteries south of the Alatamaha River
were soon recalled. In the fall of the year a peremptory demand
was made by the Spanish government for the evacuation by the
English of all territory lying south of St. Helena's Sound.
Perceiving that vigorous measures and a stronger force were
requisite for the preservation of the colony, and yielding to the
Solicitations of the trustees that he should be present at the ap-
proaching meeting of Parliament to influence larger supplies for
Georgia, Mr. Oglethorpe, having arranged for the government
and protection of the province during his absence, embarked for
England on the 29th of November, 1736.1
During his absence in England, nothing of special moment
transpired on the southern frontiers. Mr. Horton appears to
have been left in general charge of the defenses in that quarter.
He established himself at Frederica, whence he made frequent
tours of inspection to its outposts and dependent works. Of a
visit which he paid to the town early in February, 1737, Mr.
Stephens, secretary of the colony, gives us rather a stupid ac-
count,” from which we gather that the inhabitants were living
“in perfect Peace and Quiet, without Fear of any Disturbance
from Abroad, and without any Strife or Contention at Law at
Home, where they sometimes opened a Court, but very rarely
had any Thing to do in it.” Only slight improvements had been
made during the preceding year in clearing and cultivating land,
because of the constant apprehension of incursion by the Span-
iards and the amount of military service the able-bodied men
were obliged to perform.
Provision was made for the comfort of the colonists so far at
least as the means at command would justify. The oven built at
Frederica was in active use, and a baker, detailed for that purpose,
supplied the community with fresh bread. Cattle, sheep, and
1 See Wright's Memoir of General James 2 See A Journal of the Proceedings in
Oglethorpe, p. 167. London, 1867. Georgia, etc., vol. i. p. 98. London. 1742.
INDIAN TRADE. 253
poultry were sent from Carolina and from Savannah, and In-
dians were employed in supplying the garrisons with fresh ven-
ison.
Before departing for England Mr. Oglethorpe was called to
Savannah to give general directions in regard to the administra-
tion of affairs in that town and vicinity, and especially to hold a
conference with a committee from the General Assembly of South
Carolina with regard to the Indian trade which they charged
him with desiring to monopolize to the prejudice of the Carolina
traders.
The merits of this controversy are thus intelligently stated
by the Rev. Dr. Harris." As the boundaries of Georgia sepa-
rated the Indians on the west side of the Savannah River from
the confines of South Carolina, it was claimed that they must be
admitted as in affinity with the new colony. At any rate, Ogle-
thorpe deemed it so expedient to obtain the consent of the natives
to the settlement of his people, and regarded their good-will so
essential to a secure and peaceful residence, that his earliest care
had been to make treaties of alliance with them. That these
treaties should include agreements for mutual intercourse and
trade seemed to be not only a prudential but an indispensable
provision, particularly as Tomo-chi-chi and the micos of the
Creeks who accompanied him to England requested that some
stipulations should be made in regard to the quantity, quality,
and prices of goods, and the accuracy of the weights and measures
used in determining the articles offered in purchase of their buf-
falo-hides, deer-skins, peltry, etc. The trustees thereupon estab-
lished certain regulations designed to prevent in future the impo-
sitions of which the Indians complained. To carry these into
effect it was thought right that none should be permitted to
trade with the Indians except such as were licensed, and would
agree to conduct the traffic according to prescribed rules and
upon fair and equitable principles. The Carolina traders not
being disposed to apply for permits, and declaring their un-
willingness to subject themselves to the stipulations and restric-
tions indicated, were disallowed by the Georgia commissary who
occupied a trading house among the Creeks. This action of
the Georgia official proved very distasteful to them, and the
complaints which they lodged with the Provincial Assembly of
South Carolina led to the appointment of the committee just re-
ferred to whose conference with Oglethorpe was held at Savan-
* Biographical Memorials of James Oglethorpe, pp. 152 et seq. Boston. MDCCCXLI.
254 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
nah on the 2d of August, 1736. In their printed report the
members of that committee say: “The Cherokee, Creek, Chicka-
saw, and Catawba Indians, at the time of the discovery of this
part of America, were the inhabitants of the lands which they
now possess, and have ever since been deemed and esteemed the
friends and allies of his Majesty's Subjects in this part of the
Continent. They have been treated with as allies, but not as
subjects of the Crown of Great Britain; they have maintained
their own possessions and preserved their independency; nor
does it appear that they have by conquest lost, nor by cession,
compact, or otherwise, yielded up or parted with those rights to
which, by the laws of nature and nations, they were and are en-
titled.
“The Committee cannot conceive that a charter from the
Crown of Great Britain can give the grantees a right or power
over a people who, to our knowledge, have never owed any al-
legiance, or acknowledged the sovereignty of the Crown of Great
Britain or any Prince in Europe, but have indiscriminately vis-
ited and traded with the French, Spaniards, and English as they
judged it most for their advantage; and it is as difficult to un-
derstand how the laws of Great Britain or of any Colony in
America can take place, or be put in execution in a country
where the people never accepted of, nor submitted to such laws;
but have always maintained their freedom, and have adhered to
their own customs and manners without variation or change.”
Hence the committee inferred and insisted that the regula-
tions adopted by the trustees could not be regarded as binding
upon the Indians or serve to render exclusive any traffic with
them. Oglethorpe acknowledged that the Indians were inde-
pendent, but asserted that, in entire consistency with this fact,
they had entered into a treaty of alliance with the colony of
Georgia ; that having themselves indicated certain terms and
principles of trade, these were adopted and enjoined by the trus-
tees; and that this was done not to claim authority over the
Indians or to control their conduct, but simply to make manifest
what was required of those who should go among them for the
purpose of barter and sale.
In answer to the allegation that the Carolina traders had been
excluded, he declared that in granting licenses to trade with the
1 Report of the Committee appointed to South Carolina, and the Disputes subsisting
Examine into the Proceedings of the People between the two Colonies. Charles-Town.
of Georgia with Respect to the Province of 1736.
SPANISH DEMANDS. 255
Indians dwelling within the limits of Georgia he refused the
application of no one who promised to conform to the provisions
of the act. He also asserted that he had given, and should in
every instance continue to give, such instructions to the Georgia
traders as had formerly been imparted by the province of Caro-
lina to her traders; that in case any new instructions, issued by
the province of South Carolina to her traders, should be commu-
nicated and appear to him of equal benefit to the two provinces,
he would add them to the instructions of the Georgia traders;
and finally that, pursuant to the desire of the committee, he
would direct all his officers and traders among the Indians in
their talks to make no distinction between the two provinces,
but to speak in the name and behalf of his majesty's subjects.
It appears, however, that with the result of the interview the
commissioners were not satisfied. They still objected because
permits were required, and especially because they must come
through the hands of the governor of Georgia.
Returning to Frederica in the latter part of September, Mr.
Oglethorpe renewed the commission of Mr. Dempsey, empower-
ing him, as the emergency arose, to agree with the governor of
Florida upon terms for a conventional adjustment of any mis-
understandings which might occur between the provinces. A
treaty, quite conciliatory in its stipulations, was concluded by him
on the 27th of October following. Soon, however, was a message
received from the governor making known the fact that a Span-
ish minister had arrived from Cuba charged with a communica-
tion which he desired to deliver in person. A conference ensued
during which that minister repudiated the concessions contained
in the existing treaty, and peremptorily demanded, in the name
of the Spanish Crown, that all the territory lying south of St.
Helena's Sound should be immediately evacuated by the English
colonists. Asserting that the king of Spain was resolved to
enforce his right to it, refusing to listen to any argument in sup-
port of British rights, and accompanying his demand with men-
aces, the Spanish minister unceremoniously withdrew.
To assist in warding off this threatened blow, and to facilitate
the rapid accumulation of men and munitions of war requisite
for the protection of the colony, the presence of Oglethorpe in
England was imperatively demanded, and he resolved to embark
with all possible expedition."
1 See Historical Account of the Rise and and Georgia, vol. ii. p. 48. London.
Progress of the Colonies of South Carolina MDCCLXXIX.
CHAPTER XVII.
DISPUTE BETWEEN GEORGIA AND CAROLINA witH REGARD TO THE NAVIGATION
. OF THE SAVANNAH RIVER, - DISAGREEMENTS BETWEEN THE SALzBURGERs,
SOME CAROLINIANS, AND THE UCHEE INDIANs. – THE HOME GovernmENT
MEMORIALIZED BY THE TRUSTEES TO FURNISH TROOPS AND MUNITIONS OF
WAR FOR THE PROTECTION OF GEORGIA AGAINST THE SPANIARDS. — OGLE-
THORPE EMPOWERED TO RAISE A REGIMENT, AND PROMOTED TO THE RANK
OF COLONEL. — APPOINTED GENERAL, AND COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF HIS
MAJESTY'S FORCES IN CAROLINA AND GEORGIA. — RETURNS TO GEORGIA
witH HIS REGIMENT. — MILITARY OPERATIONS AT FREDERICA. — SPIES
IN CAMP. — OGLETHORPE’s RESOLUTION AND ENERGY. — CONFERENCE AT
SAVANNAH WITH THE INDIANs. – CAUSTON's DEFALCATION AND REMOVAL.
— WILLIAM STEPHENS. — DEPRESSED CONDITION OF THE FINANCES OF THE
CoLONY. — OGLETHORPE's GENEROSITY.
BEFORE departing for England Mr. Oglethorpe intervened for
the accommodation of certain matters which seriously threatened
an interruption of the peace of the colony. Augusta being con-
veniently located for commerce with the Indian nations, some
Carolina traders were induced to open stores at that place. Land
carriage proving tedious and expensive, they resolved to trans-
port their goods by water from Charlestown. As the boats were
passing Savannah, the magistrates, mindful of the law prohibit-
ing the introduction of distilled liquors into the province, and
regarding the Savannah flowing between Hutchinson's Island
and Yamacraw Bluff as a part of Georgia, ordered them to be
stopped and searched. A considerable quantity of rum was
found on board. The casks containing it were stayed, and the
persons in charge of the boats were arrested and confined. At
this proceeding the Carolinians were greatly incensed, and de-
manded of the Georgia magistrates “by what authority they
presumed to seize and destroy the effects of their traders, or to
compel them to submit to their code of laws.” Apprehending
that they had acted precipitately, and that they had perhaps
transcended their powers, the authorities at Savannah made im-
mediate concessions to the deputies from Carolina. The confined
were set at liberty, and the goods destroyed were returned as far
as practicable in kind; the Carolinians engaging on their part
COLONIAL TROUBLES. 257
to smuggle no more strong liquors within the limits of Geor-
ia."
g The matter, however, did not end here, but was eventually
brought to the notice of the Board of Trade. After examining
into the facts and hearing argument, the commissioners con-
cluded that while the navigation of the Savannah was open alike
to the inhabitants of both colonies, and while it was incumbent
upon the Georgians to render the Carolinians all friendly as-
sistance in their power, it was not lawful for Carolina traders to
introduce ardent spirits among the settlers in Georgia.
Another difficulty arose in the following manner. A Salz-
burger had indiscreetly cleared and planted four acres of land be-
yond the boundary of Ebenezer, thus encroaching upon the re-
served territory of the Uchees. Other Salzburgers permitted
their cattle to stray away and eat up the growing corn of those
Indians at a point some twenty miles above that village. But
what vexed the Uchees most, as we are informed by Oglethorpe,
was that some people from Carolina swam a great herd of cattle
over the Savannah, and, bringing negroes with them, formed a
plantation near the Uchee town. Taking advantage of the irrita-
tion of the Indians, Captain Green advised them to fall upon the
Salzburgers, and to declare war against the English. So soon as
he was informed of these occurrences, Mr. Oglethorpe compelled
the Carolinians to recross the Savannah with their negroes and
cattle, and ordered the Salzburgers to confine themselves and
their cattle within the limits which had been prescribed for their
Occupancy.
Instead of taking Green's advice, the Uchees sent their king
and twenty warriors to Mr. Oglethorpe to thank him for having
redressed their wrongs even before they had requested him to do
so. Such conduct on his part, they added, made them love him ;
and that so far from entering upon a war against the English
they were now ready to “help them against the Spaniards.”
They also offered Oglethorpe the services of one hundred warriors
for a year if he should require their aid.”
Yielding to the Solicitations of the trustees, who desired his
presence in London that he might unite with them in securing
from Parliament further supplies for Georgia, Mr. Oglethorpe,
1 Historical Account of the Rise and * See letter of Oglethorpe to the trus-
Progress of the Colonies of South Caro- tees, Colonial Documents, vol. i. p. 31.
lina and Georgia, vol. ii. p. 48. London.
MDCCLXXIX.
17
258 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
on the 29th of November, 1786, set sail for England. Narrowly
escaping shipwreck in the Bristol Channel, he reached London
early in January, 1737, and, on the 19th, attended a special
meeting of the trustees. After reporting to them the progress
of the colony, and assuring them of the amicable relations which
had been maintained with the Indian nations, near and remote,
he entered upon a full explanation of his negotiations with the
Spanish authorities in St. Augustine, and justified the strong
suspicions he entertained that the existing treaty stipulations
would be disregarded by them. With his labors for the defense
of the southern boundary of the province they were made ac-
quainted, and he concluded by urging the necessity for a prompt
detail of troops to occupy those exposed stations. By a unani-
mous vote was he thanked for his past services, and it was re-
solved at once to petition Parliament for a grant of men, muni-
tions, and money, with which to protect the province against the
threatened invasion of the Spaniards.
In the “London Post' appeared an article, suggested by the
intelligence recently communicated by Mr. Oglethorpe, in which,
after discussing the benefits to the English nation accruing from
the colonization of Georgia, and alluding to the thriving condi-
tion of the province induced by royal patronage, parliamentary
aid, and the generosity of private contributors “whose laudable
zeal will eternize their names in the British annals,” the writer
thus eulogizes the labors of Oglethorpe: “a gentleman whose
judgment, courage, and indefatigable diligence in the service of
his country have shewn him every way equal to so great and
valuable a design. In the furtherance of this noble enterprise
that public spirited and magnanimous man has acted like a vigi-
lant and faithful guardian, at the expense of his repose and to
the utmost hazard of his life. And now the jealousy of the
Spanish is excited and we are told that that Court has the mod-
esty to demand from England that he shall not be any longer
employed. If this be the fact, as there is no doubt it is, we have
a most undeniable proof that the Spaniards dread the abilities
of Mr. Oglethorpe. It is, of course, a glorious testimony to his
merit, and a certificate of his patriotism that ought to endear
him to every honest Briton.””
The Spanish ambassador near the Court of St. James entered
formal protest against sending troops from England to Georgia,
and remonstrated against the return of Mr. Oglethorpe.
1 Cited in the Gentleman's Magazine, vol. vii. p. 500.
OGLETHORPE COMMISSIONED AS COLONEL. 259
Information was soon received that the authorities at St. Au-
gustine had ordered the English merchants there located to de-
part; that barracks were being constructed in that town for the
accommodation of two thousand five hundred soldiers who were
soon to be shipped from Havana in three men-of-war and eight
transports; and that provisions in large quantities were being ac-
cumulated.
Urged by these and other hostile indications, and sensible of
their inability to afford suitable protection to the colonists, the
trustees petitioned the Crown that “a necessary supply of forces *
might speedily be raised and forwarded for the defense of the
colony of Georgia. The petition was allowed, and Oglethorpe
was named as colonel of the regiment to be enlisted. He was
also appointed general and commander-in-chief of his majesty's
forces in Carolina and Georgia, that he might the more readily
wield the entire military power of the two provinces in their
mutual defense. The regiment was to consist of six companies
of one hundred men each, exclusive of non-commissioned offi-
cers and musicians. A company of grenadiers was subsequently
added.
Before his command was fully recruited, Oglethorpe kissed his
majesty's hand on receiving his commission as colonel. Although
men were being rapidly enlisted, and although it was apparent
that the full complement of the regiment would soon be secured,
so threatening was the attitude assumed by the Spaniards in
Florida it was deemed expedient to reinforce Georgia without
further delay. Accordingly a detachment of troops was ordered
1 That petition was couched in the
following language: “The humble Me-
morial of the Trustees for establishing
the Colony of Georgia in America, hum-
bly sheweth : That they being intrusted
by your Majesty with the care of the
Colony of Georgia, which was formerly
part of your Majesty's Province of South
Carolina, and your Majesty’s Colony of
Georgia being very much exposed to the
power of the Spaniards, and being an
object of their envy by having valuable
ports upon the homeward passage from
the Spanish West Indies, and the Span-
iards having increased their force in the
neighborhood thereof; the Trustees in
consequence of the great trust reposed
in them by your Majesty find them-
selves obliged humbly to lay before your
Majesty their inability sufficiently to pro-
tect your Majesty’s subjects settled in
Georgia under the encouragement of
your Majesty’s Charter, against the late
increase of forces, and therefore become
humble suppliants to your Majesty on
the behalf of your Majesty’s subjects set-
tled in the Province of Georgia, that your
Majesty would be pleased to take their
preservation into your royal considera-
tion, that by a necessary supply of forces
the Province may be protected against
the great dangers that seem immediately
to threaten it.
“All which is most humbly submitted
to your Majesty’s great wisdom.
“Signed by order of the Trustees this
10th day of August, 1737.
“BENJAMIN MARTYN, Secretary.”
260 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
thither from Gibraltar, which reached Savannah on the 7th of
May, 1788. The famous clergyman and eloquent orator, the
Rev. George Whitefield, who had been appointed to take the
place of the Rev. John Wesley in Georgia, was a passenger on
board the ship in which these soldiers were transported.
About the same time two or three companies of the general's
own regiment, under the command of Lieut. Col. James Coch-
rane, arrived in Charlestown and were marched southward by
the road which led from Port Royal to Darien.
Disdaining to “make a market of the service of his Country.”
by selling commissions in his regiment, Oglethorpe secured as
officers only such persons as were gentlemen of family and char-
acter in their respective counties. He also engaged some twenty
young men of position, but without fortune, to serve as cadets.
These he proposed to promote as vacancies occurred and their
conduct warranted. So far from deriving any pecuniary benefit
from these appointments, the general, in some cases, from his
private fortune advanced the fees requisite to procure commis-
sions, and provided moneys for the purchase of uniforms and
clothing. At his own expense he engaged the services of forty
supernumeraries, – “a circumstance,” says a contemporaneous
writer, “very extraordinary in our armies, especially in our plan-
tations.”
To engender in the hearts of the enlisted men an interest in
and an attachment for the colony they were designed to de-
fend, and to induce them eventually to become settlers, permis-
sion was granted to each to take a wife with him. For the
support of the wife additional pay and rations were provided."
So carefully was this regiment recruited and officered that it
constituted one of the best military organizations in the service
of the king.
Sailing from Portsmouth on the 5th of July, 1738, with the
rest of his command, numbering, with the women, children, and
supernumeraries who accompanied, between six and seven hun-
dred souls, in five transports convoyed by the men-of-war Bland-
ford and Hector, General Oglethorpe arrived safely in Jekyll
Sound on the 18th of the following September.” The next day
the troops were landed at the Soldiers' Fort, on the south end
1 See Harris' Memorials of Oglethorpe, 1867. Gentleman's Magazine, vol. viii.
pp. 188, 189. Boston. 1841. Wright's p. 164.
Memoir of Oglethorpe, p. 191. London. 2 Stephens’ Journal of Proceedings, vol.
i. pp. 294, 295. London. 1742.
ARRIVAL OF OGLETHORPE'S REGIMENT. 261
of St. Simon's Island. This reinforcement was welcomed by an
artillery salute from the battery, and by shouts from the gar-
rison. Upon coming within soundings off the Georgia coast on
the 13th, Sir Yelverton Peyton, in the Hector, parted company
and sailed for Virginia. Until the 21st, the general encamped
near the fort, superintending the disembarkation, and issuing
necessary orders. His regiment was now concentrated, and every
officer is represented to have been at his post.
Frederica was visited on the 21st, and there Oglethorpe was
saluted with fifteen guns from the fort. The magistrates and
inhabitants waited upon him in a body, tendering their con-
gratulations upon his return. Several Indians were present who
assured him that the Upper and Lower Creeks were in readiness
to come and see him so soon as they should be notified of his
presence. In a letter” to Sir Joseph Jekyll, dated the 10th
of September, 1738, General Oglethorpe, alluding to the fact
that the Spaniards, although having fifteen hundred men at
St. Augustine, there being nothing but the militia in Georgia,
had delayed their contemplated attack until the arrival of the
regular troops, acknowledges that God had thus given “the
greatest marks of his visible Protection to the Colony.” He
advises Sir Joseph that the passage had been fine, but one soldier
having died, and that the inhabitants who had hitherto been so
harassed by Spanish threats were now cheerful, believing that
the worst was over, and that, relieved from the constant guard
duty which they had been compelled to perform, sometimes two
days out of five, to the neglect of their crops and improvements,
they might now prosecute their labors and make comfortable
provision for the future.
Realizing the necessity of opening direct communication be-
tween Frederica and the Soldiers' Fort, at the south end of the
island, on the 25th General Oglethorpe set every male to work
cutting a road to connect those points. So energetically was the
labor prosecuted, although the woods were thick and the distance
nearly six miles, the task was concluded in three days.
To the Honorable Thomas Spalding 8 are we indebted for the
following description of this important avenue of communica-
tion: “This road after passing out of the town of Frederica in a
1 Gentleman's Magazine for January, * Sketch of the I.ife of General James
1739, p. 22. Oglethorpe. Collections of the Georgia
* Collections of the Georgia Historical Historical Society, vol. i. p. 261. Savan-
Society, vol. iii. p. 48. Savannah. 1873, nah. 1840.
262 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Southeast direction, entered a beautiful prairie of a mile over,
when it penetrated a dense, close oak wood ; keeping the same
course for two miles, it passed to the eastern marsh that bounded
St. Simon's seaward. Along this marsh, being dry and hard, no
road was necessary, and none was made. This natural highway
was bounded on the east by rivers and creeks and impracticable
marshes; it was bounded on the west (the island side), by a
thick wood covered with palmetto and vines of every character
so as to be impracticable for any body of men, and could only be
traveled singly and alone. This winding way along the marsh
was continued for two miles, when it again passed up to the high
land which had become open and clear, and from thence it pro-
ceeded in a direct line to the fort, at the sea entrance, around
which, for two hundred acres, five acre allotments of land for the
soldiers had been laid out, cleared, and improved. I have again
been thus particular in my description, because it was to the
manner in which this road was laid out and executed that Gen-
eral Oglethorpe owed the preservation of the fort and town of
Frederica. . . . His fort and batteries at Frederica were so sit-
uated as to water approaches, and so covered by a wood, that
no number of ships could injure them. And he now planned
his land route in such a manner that again the dense wood of
our eastern islands became a rampart mighty to save. And
fifty Highlanders and four Indians occupying these woods did
save.”
We learn from that admirable “History of the Rise, Progress,
and Present State of the Colony of Georgia,” contained in Dr.
Harris’ “Complete Collections of Voyages and Travels,” that
“ on the arrival of the Regiment of which Mr. Oglethorpe was
appointed Colonel, he distributed them in the properest manner
for the Service of the Colony; but notwithstanding this was of
great Ease to the Trustees, and a vast Security to the Inhabit-
ants, yet Colonel Oglethorpe still kept up the same Discipline,
and took as much Care to form and regulate the Inhabitants with
respect to military Affairs as ever. He provided likewise differ-
ent Corps for different Services; some for ranging the Woods;
others, light armed, for sudden Expeditions; and he likewise
provided Vessels for scouring the Sea Coasts, and for gaining
Intelligence. In all which Services he gave at the same time his
Orders and his Example; there being nothing he did not which
he directed others to do; so that if he was the first Man in the
1 Vol. ii. p. 332. London. 1748.
OGLETHORPE'S INSTRUCTIONS. 263
Colony, his Pre-eminence was founded upon old Homer's Max-
ims: He was the most fatigued, and the first in Danger, dis-
tinguished by his Cares and his Labours, not by any exterior
Marks of Grandeur, more easily dispensed with since they were
certainly needless.” •
The finances of the trust being in a depressed condition, the
general drew largely upon his private fortune and pledged his
individual credit in conducting the operations necessary for the
security of the southern frontiers and in provisioning the settlers.
To Alderman Heathcote he writes: “I am here * (at Frederica)
“in one of the most delightful situations as any man could wish
to be. A great number of Debts, empty magazines, no money to
supply them, numbers of people to be fed, mutinous soldiers to
command, a Spanish Claim, and a large body of their Troops
not far from us. But as we are of the same kind of spirit these
difficulties have the same effect upon me as those you met with
in the City had upon you. They rather animate than daunt
me.” 1
On the 8th of May, 1738, Oglethorpe, as “general and com-
mander in chief of all and singular the forces employed and to
be employed in the provinces of South Carolina and Georgia in
America,” was instructed by his majesty George II. to diligently
ascertain and promptly report the designs, preparations, and
movements of the Spaniards in Florida; upon arrival in Georgia
to make such disposition of his forces as would best secure the
colony from “any surprise or unexpected attack from the Span-
iards; ” to place all forts in the best attitude, offensive and de-
fensive ; to refrain from giving any cause of provocation to the
Spaniards, and at all times to assure them of England's constant
desire to “maintain the strictest friendship; ” to permit no en-
croachments upon Spanish territory and, as far as lay in his
power, to prevent the Indians from committing any acts of hos-
tility.
But, should the Spaniards attempt to drive the colonists out of
their forts, or invade the territory acknowledging allegiance to
the English Crown, then he was ordered, with all the forces
under his command, not only to repel such invasion and preserve
the integrity of the provinces, but also to assume the offensive in
such manner as he should deem best for the service. Should
he have cause to suspect that the Spaniards purposed a demon-
stration against either of the provinces, he was clothed with full
* Collections of the Georgia Historical Society, vol. iii. p. 62. Savannah. 1873.
264 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA,
power to summon all ships stationed on the coast that they might
assist in the defense of the territories." Most faithfully and effi-
ciently were these instructions obeyed.
While on board the Blandford it was discovered that one of
the enlisted soldiers in Oglethorpe's regiment had been in the
Spanish service, and that he was endeavoring to persuade several
of his comrades, upon their arrival in Georgia, to desert with him
to the Spaniards in Florida. His scheme further contemplated
the murder of the officers at the post to which his company
might be ordered, and desertion to the enemy with such valua-
bles as could then be secured. He had a plenty of money, and
stated that he was to be rewarded according to the number of
men he should be able to seduce.
Upon the concentration of the regiment in Georgia it was as-
certained that several of the enlisted men were spies. They
strove to persuade some stanch companions to betray a post to
the Spaniards. Instead of complying with their suggestion, the
honest and loyal fellows revealed to their commanding officer
this evil intention. One of these spies, when arrested, con-
fessed he was a Papist, and denied that the king of England
possessed any authority over him. A court-martial was con-
vened, and the traitors, being found guilty, were whipped and
drummed out of the service. One of them, Shannon by name,
afterwards committed murder at Fort Argyle. He was brought
to Savannah and there tried, condemned, and executed.
Oglethorpe was extremely mortified at beholding this treach-
erous element, exceedingly small although it was, in his regi-
ment, and used prompt measures for its extirpation.
On the 8th of October the general, attended by Captain Hugh
Mackay and Captain Sutherland, set out in an open boat for
Savannah.
Arriving there on the morning of the 10th, he was received
at the water-side by the magistrates, and saluted by the militia
under arms and by the cannon from the fort. During the day
the citizens thronged to greet him, and the night was spent in
bonfires and rejoicings.
The following day Tomo-chi-chi waited upon the governor.
He had been very ill, but the good old man was so greatly re-
joiced at his return that he said it recovered him, making him
“moult like an eagle.” He informed Oglethorpe that the chiefs
of several of the towns of the Creek nation were at his house
1 See Colonial Documents from State Paper Office, vol. i. pp. 75–77.
INTERVIEW WITH THE INDIANS. 265
waiting to present in person their congratulations upon his safe
arrival and to assure him of their fidelity to the king.
The 13th was designated for their reception. At the appointed
time Tomo-chi-chi came down the river from his settlement,
bringing with him the mico or king of the Chehaws, the mico of
the Oakmuges, the mico of the Ouchases, and the mico of the
Parachacolas, with thirty warriors and fifty-two attendants. As
the Indians landed and walked up the bluff at Savannah, they
were saluted by a battery of cannon and escorted by a detach-
ment of militia to the town hall where General Oglethorpe was in
readiness to receive them. On Seeing him they expressed great
joy, and said that the Spaniards, persuading them that he was at
St. Augustine, had invited them down to their fort to meet him
there. They accordingly went thither, but as soon as they ascer-
tained the fact that he was not present they returned, although
valuable articles were offered them by the Spaniards who pre-
tended to account for his absence by saying that he was very ill
on board a ship in the harbor. They further stated that although
strongly advised by the Spaniards to fall out with the English
they still adhered to the terms of amity contained in the existing
treaties, were firm in their attachment to his majesty the king
of England, and had come to testify their loyalty. They assured
the general that they would on all occasions assist him in repel-
ling the enemies of the king ; that deputies from the remaining
towns would come down and express their congratulations and
good-will as soon as they were apprised of his arrival; and that
the Creek nation was prepared to send one thousand warriors to
any point he should designate, where they would be entirely sub-
ject to his command.
They desired that correct brass weights and sealed measures
should be lodged with the king of each town, so that they
might be enabled to protect themselves against the false weights
and measures of the Carolina traders by whom they were con-
stantly and sadly defrauded. An invitation was extended to
Oglethorpe to visit their towns during the coming summer and
see their people. This he promised to accept. Handsome pres-
ents were distributed among them, and the interview terminated
With good feeling. At night the Indians had a dance at which
the general was present, and the next day they set out on their
return homeward.
Subsequent events demonstrated the necessity for complying
with the invitation extended by the Indians during this interview.
266 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Alluding to the existing troubles, and avowing his purpose of
executing this journey at an early day, General Oglethorpe, on
the 15th of June, wrote the trustees as follows: 1 –
“I have received frequent and confirmed advices that the Span-
iards are striving to bribe the Indians, and particularly the Creek
nation, to differ from us; and the disorder of the traders is such
as gives but too much room to render the Indians discontented;
great numbers of vagrants being gone up without licences either
from Carolina, or us. Chigilly, and Malachee, – the son of the
great Brim, who was called emperor of the Creeks by the Span-
iards, - insist upon my coming up to put all things in order, and
have acquainted me that all the chiefs of the nation will come
done to the Coweta town to meet me and hold the general as-
sembly of the Indian nations, where they will take such meas-
ures as will be necessary to hinder the Spaniards from corrupting
and raising sedition amongst their people. This journey, though
a very fatiguing and dangerous one, is quite necessary to be
taken; for if not, the Spaniards, who have sent up great presents
to them, will bribe the corrupt part of the nation; and, if the
honester part is not supported, will probably overcome them and
force the whole nation into a war with England. Tomo-chi-chi and
all the Indians advise me to go up. The Coweta town, where the
meeting is to be, is near five hundred miles from hence; it is in
a straight line three hundred miles from the sea. All the towns
of the Creeks and of the Cousees and Talapousees, though three
hundred miles from the Cowetas, will come down to the meeting.
The Choctaws also and the Chickasas will send thither their dep-
uties; so that 7000 men depend upon the event of this assembly.
The Creeks can furnish 1500 warriors, the Chickasas 500, and
the Choctaws 5000. I am obliged to buy horses and presents to
carry up to this meeting.”
The conduct of Thomas Causton, the first magistrate of Sa-
vannah and keeper of the public stores, had for some time
failed to secure the commendation of the trustees and the ap-
proval of Oglethorpe who, busied with fortifying Frederica, had
been forced to commit the administration of affairs in the north-
ern portion of the province in a large degree to the judgment
and honesty of this official. The season had now arrived for a
full investigation, and Oglethorpe proceeded to carry into effect
the instructions communicated and acknowledged in the follow-
ing letters : —
1 See Letter from Savannah, under date October 22d, 1738.
CAUSTON'S IRREGULARITRES. 267
“GEORGIA OFFICE, Westminster, June 2nd, 1738.
“SIR,
“The Trustees being greatly alarm'd at the great number of
certified accounts amounting to £1,401 13s. 2d. brought for pay-
ments since Tuesday last, immediately met to concert the most
proper measures to secure their effects in Georgia and Mº Cau-
ston's person to answer for his conduct in receiving three cargoes
without any order whatsoever from the Trustees; for these cer-
tified accounts unpaid now amount to £5,236 0s. 6d. And the
sola bills, provisions, and effects receiv'd by M. Causton since
Midsummer last amount to £13,086 9s. 9d. for the application
of which he has given the Trustees no account.
“The situation of the Trustees’ affairs is such that they cannot
sit still in these circumstances, but must, in their own justifica-
tion insist upon an immediate seizure of M" Causton to be de-
tain’d until he gives sufficient security to answer this surprising
conduct of his which may draw the Trustees into the greatest
inconvenience and discredit, while at the same time they, on
their part, have taken all possible care to prevent such incon-
veniences happening; and unless he shall produce to you such
accounts as you think, when transmitted to the Trustees will
prove satisfactory to them, you are desired, forthwith to send
him with his books and papers in safe custody to the Trustees
that he may make up his accounts with them ; but if it should
so happen, which the Trustees are afraid cannot be the case, that
Mº Causton should produce such an account as will be in your
opinion satisfactory to the Trustees, you are desired forthwith to
transmit such his account by the first opportunity, and to con-
tinue him upon sufficient Security until the Trustees have exam-
in’d and approv’d thereof.
“The Common Council will at their next meeting seal an
Instrument to remove him from his office of First Bailiff, which
is intended as a suspension to wait the making up of those ac-
counts.
“As the Trustees’ conduct must stand evidently clear from
any imputation of neglect, they strongly recommend it to you
(being one of themselves) to use all possible means to preserve
that Credit they have hitherto been possessed of, and which they
desire to have continued consistent with the characters they bear
and which the disinterested manner they have always acted in
has justly entitled them to.
“It is almost impossible for the Trustees to express the great
268 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
resentments which they have entertain’d at the behaviour of a
person to whom they show'd such marks of distinction and fa-
Vour, who by a conduct for which they cannot as yet find a name,
has already disabled them from bearing an expense of an esti-
mate which they had calculated with the utmost frugality and
economy for the services of the Colony from Midsummer next.
“I am Sir
“Your most obedient humble Servant
“HARMAN WERELST, Accountant.
“To the Hon" Gen. OGLETHoRPE, at Gosport.
to the care of the Postmaster at Portsmouth.”
“Gosport, June 4th, 1783.
“HARMAN WERELST Esq.r &c. &c ^-
“By the accounts you sent me of the state of the Trustees’
affairs there has been more expended in Georgia than granted by
Parliament, but if it is in store, and forth coming, it will serve for
the provision of this year. If I find that the circumstances are
such as you apprehend them, I shall not issue any of the £500
sola bills till I have further orders from the Trustees. I do not
doubt but I shall set all things to rights. . . . I know there will
be a good deal of trouble in it, but I am accustom'd to difficul-
ties, so that they never make me despair.
“If there has been any fraud in these certified accounts, and
that the persons did not deliver the effects certified to the Trus-
tees’ use, but that the certificate was a piece of Roguery, agreed
upon between the deliverer and the signer, to be sure such cer-
tificates are not binding upon the Trustees, tho’ the person sign-
ing was employed by them. Therefore, in my poor opinion, the
Trustees should delay the payment of those certified accounts till
they have the examination from Georgia. . . .
“I am Sir Your very humble Servant
“JAMES OGLETHORPE.
“P. S. I have the Trustees’ order for making an immediate
seizure on Causton, his books and papers, and shall see them im-
mediately executed. This must be kept with the greatest se-
crecy, for if he should know the orders before they are executed,
the effect will perhaps be prevented. I have not trusted even
my Clerk.”
On the 7th of June, 1738, the common council sealed the re-
moval of Mr. Thomas Causton from his office of first bailiff, and
CASE OF THOMAS CAUSTON. 269
appointed Mr. Henry Parker in his room. In forwarding these
documents to Oglethorpe they desired him to use, or to refrain
from using, them in compliance with the suggestions contained in
their letter of the 2d inst. They further insisted that Causton
should be arrested in any event, and that his books and papers
should be secured. To those books and papers access was to be
accorded him so that he might enjoy ample opportunity for mak-
ing up his accounts from Lady Day, 1734, to date. All the trus-
tees’ effects were to be promptly withdrawn from his possession;
and, during the period consumed in making out his accounts and
necessary for their careful examination when submitted, he was to
be retained in safe custody or placed “upon sufficient security.”
Mr. Thomas Jones was designated as the proper party to make
an examination and submit a full report. Copies of all accounts
and of Mr. Jones' report upon them, accompanied by Mr. Ogle-
thorpe's opinion, were to be forwarded to the trustees at the
earliest practicable moment. Until further instructions Causton
was not to be sent to England, but was to be detained in safe
custody or under bond.
Fortified with these documents, and acting under these orders,
Oglethorpe proceeded at once to their proper execution. Ignorant
of what was in store for him Causton, with a bold front, appeared
at the head of the magistrates to welcome the general on his
arrival from Frederica. He was accompanied by others, par-
ticipants in his peculations, who, having reason to dread an in-
vestigation into their conduct during the general’s absence, joined
in the public salutations, hoping thereby to conciliate his favor.
He was soon informed that the grand jury in Savannah had pre-
pared a representation of the “grievances, hardships, and neces-
sities” of the inhabitants, in which they complained bitterly of
the misconduct of Mr. Causton, alleging that he had expended
much larger sums than were authorized by the trustees, that he
had brought the colony into debt, that he had exceeded his pow-
ers, that he was arbitrary and oppressive in the discharge of his
official duties, and that he was partial in the distribution of the
public stores. It was suggested by not a few that as the com-
mercial agent of the trustees and the keeper of the public stores
he had utilized his position for his own advancement and the ben-
efit of special friends. It was believed that the funds of the
trustees had been by him appropriated to the improvement of
his plantation at Ockstead, where he and his family resided in
comfort and plenty beyond the reach of his neighbors. That he
270 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
was arrogant in his behavior, that he had rendered the other mag-
istrates subservient to his will, that he had played the part of a
petty tyrant in the community, and that he ruled the people
through their necessities, taking advantage of their daily wants
and making these the means of keeping them in subjection to
his pleasure, could not be doubted. It was evident also that he
had perverted the due administration of the law, and had sed-
ulously suppressed from the knowledge of the trustees many just
complaints preferred by the colonists at Savannah.
After a patient examination into the condition of affairs, which
established on the part of Causton a woful mismanagement of
the trust funds sent for the support of the province, General
Oglethorpe on the 17th of October “called all the Inhabitants
together at the Town-House, and there made a pathetic Speech
to them, setting forth how deeply the Trust was become indebted
by Mr. Causton's having run into so great Exceedings beyond
what they had ordered, which Debts the Trust had nothing left
at present to discharge besides what Goods and Effects they had
in the Store, which must in a great Measure be applied to those
Purposes, especially first to all such as the Stores were owing
anything to, by which Means there would be a Necessity of re-
trenching the ordinary Issues that something might remain for
the necessary Support of Life among the industrious People who
were not to be blamed. This had such an Effect, that many
People appeared thunder-struck, knowing not where it would
end; neither could the most knowing determine it.”"
The next day Causton was dismissed from office and required
to deliver into the hands of Mr. Thomas Jones all books, papers,
and accounts connected with the public stores. General Ogle-
thorpe also demanded of him bond, with ample security, to appear
and answer any charges which might be preferred against him.
It being impossible to procure in Savannah bondsmen of means
sufficient to respond to the sums in which Causton would proba-
bly be found indebted to the trust, General Oglethorpe was con-
tent with Causton's individual bond, coupled with an “assignment
of all his improvements at Ockstead or elsewhere.”
After weeks and months consumed in the examination, Mr.
Jones informed Mr. Stephens “that after so much Time spent
about making up Mr. Causton's Accounts, there was so little
Progress made in it that he could hardly say it was begun; so
many Intricacies appeared more and more every Day, such In-
1 Stephens' Journal of Proceedings, etc., vol. i. p. 305. London. MDCCXLII.
CAUSTON'S ACCOEJNTS. 271
consistencies, many Things wrongly charged, abundance omitted
which ought to have been brought to Account, and several Day-
books said to be lost (which he could not believe but were con-
cealed), that at the Rate they went on, he defied any Man living
to adjust it; and for his Part he was quite tired looking into such
Confusion which he was confident was by Art and Cunning made
inextricable; insomuch that he was positive the Balances, for-
merly made, were framed at Will and sent to the Trustees so; for
unless he (Mr. Causton) kept copies of them distinctly, it was
impossible for him to make out the same from the Books now
before him.” -
On the other hand, Mr. Causton complained of the treatment
he received at Mr. Jones' hands, and protested against being
called a villain and a knave. He declared he had served the
trust well, and was prepared to defend his character from all
aspersions."
It being impracticable to adjust these accounts in Savannah,
Causton was ordered to London, where he appeared before the
common council. Failing there to produce proper vouchers, he
was permitted to depart for Georgia where he stated he would
be able to arrange everything to the satisfaction of the trustees.
Sailing for Savannah he died at sea” and, in the bosom of the
ocean, found rest from all his troubles.
The vacancy caused by the deposition of Causton was filled
by the appointment of Colonel William Stephens, who was then
in Savannah occupying the position of secretary of the trustees
in the province of Georgia.
The mismanagement in the disbursement of the funds and
supplies which had been sent over for the support of the colony
and the depleted condition of the trustees’ treasury rendered a
retrenchment of the ordinary issues most imperative.
In a letter written by General Oglethorpe on the 19th of Oc-
tober, 1738, and addressed to the trustees, after alluding to the
careless manner in which Causton had “trifled away the public
money” and squandered the resources of the colony, he discloses
the alarming fact that the scout-boatmen, rangers, and others
upon whose active service and watchfulness the province relied
for protection, were unpaid and actually starving. “When I
told them,” says the general, “the Trustees’ circumstances, their
affection was so great that they offered to serve on until the
1 Stephens’ Journal of Proceedings, vol. * Stevens' History of Georgia, vol. i.
i. pp. 362, 406. London. MDCCCXLII. p. 222. New York. MDCCCXLII.
272 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Trustees’ affairs mended; I thanked them but reduced the
Rangers since I could not feed them with hopes of what I could
not make good. The Scout-Boats I have for this month paid out
of my own money, since they are absolutely necessary, and I will
not charge the Trustees with new debts.
“There is a worse circumstance than any above, viz: the In-
dustrious Poor People, who have saved something by frugality,
have lodged their little all in the Store, hoping to have provisions
from thence in their Necessity ; and now if the Store cannot
pay they must perish for want ; the like misery must befall all
the Trustees' servants as well as many of the inhabitants whom
sickness and misfortunes have prevented from having a crop this
year. . . .
“I can see nothing but destruction to the Colony unless some
assistance be immediately sent us. I support things for a while
by some money I have in my hands, and the rest I supply with
my own money, for I will not incur Debts nor draw Bills upon
You. . . .
“If this (I know not what name to give it) had not happened,
the Colony had overcome all it's difficulties and had been in a
flourishing condition.”
He advises the trustees that the Italians are pleased with their
new home, and that Camuse and the members of his family had
wound some silk as fine as that made in Georgia during the past
year. The mulberry-trees in the public garden were again grow-
ing luxuriantly, and promised a foliage which would soon subsist
“a great quantity of worms.” Clay had been found from which
a potter was manufacturing excellent ware. Several yokes of
oxen and several carts with horses were employed by the in-
habitants of Savannah. The trustees’ saw-mill was turning out
seven hundred feet of boards per diem; and, if managed prop-
erly, would “bring an income.” The idle people had run away,
and “a spirit of industry seemed to be stirring.” He hopes with
his own money to “make shift to support the most valuable part
of the people.”
“I have already expended a great deal,” writes this noble and
generous man, “and, as far as the income of my estate and em-
ployments for this year will go, I shall sooner lay it out in sup-
porting the Colony (till I can hear from you) than in any other
diversion.” g
After payment of outstanding debts, he estimates £5,000 as
the lowest sum practicable for carrying on the civil concerns
OGLETHORPE'S REPORT. 273
of the colony, “if any success is to be expected in the produc-
tion of wine and silk, and a form of government is to be main-
tained.”
Existing orders for the erection of churches and the cultivation
of lands for religious uses, both in Savannah and Frederica, could
not be obeyed unless the requisite funds were supplied.
Recurring to the Causton defalcation, he concludes as follows:
“I examined him to know what could be the meaning that he
dare to exceed so excessively your Orders, thereby plunging the
Colony into its present difficulties. He answered that he made
no expenses but what necessity forced him to, and that he could
prove that necessity. He entered into several particulars; That
the Multitude forced him to build a Fort for fear of the Span-
iards; That the charge of Saltzburghers and other charges were
not provided for in the Establishment sent over by the Trustees;
That he received the Establishment too late to comply with it.
He did not pretend to justify himself in not sending over the
Ballance of his accompts. His negligence to bring his Acco” to
a Ballance half yearly, or every year at least, has been the occa-
sion of the melancholy Scituation he has put us in. Some things
he alledged that had weight. That the prices of Provisions were
treble to what they were at my first arrival here, from whence
we calculated the Estimate. That the Spanish Alarms obliged
him to comply with the humour of the people here, for which
reason he was forced to give any prices to Sloops to bring down
provisions to the Colony. He said farther that he had not been
guilty of any fraud, nor converted any of the Trustees' money to
his own use. He at first seemed pretty stubborn, but upon a
second examination he was more submissive. When I was about
to comit him he pleaded that it was not usual here to comit Free-
holders for any but Capital Crimes. That Watson, who was
accused of killing a man and had been found guilty by a Jury,
was bail'd upon his own Recognizance. That he submitted to
the Trustees, and that all he had acquired in his six years' service,
and that all he had in the world, was laid out in improvements
on his Lot in the Colony, and that he would give all as security
to abide and justify his acco”. He has accordingly given se-
curity. He has delivered the Stores, Books, &c., unto Mr. Jones
according to your appointment. I have not been able to enter
into the rest of the affairs of the Colony. The Saltzburghers
thrive and so do the people at Hampstead and Highgate. There
are abundance of good Houses built in this Town. I desire to
18
274 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
know in what manner you would have me proceed in Causton's
affair.” 1
This defalcation of Causton, and his prodigal waste of the
moneys and stores of the trust committed to his keeping, brought
the plantation to the very verge of ruin. Appalled at the situa-
tion, not a few of the colonists seriously contemplated abandon-
ing the province and seeking subsistence in Carolina. Sensible
of the hardships they would be called upon to endure before
ample relief could be afforded, the general did not undertake to
dissuade any, who were so minded, from attempting to better
their fortunes elsewhere. Upon reflection, however, they con-
cluded to remain ; trusting to favoring seasons and the good dis-
position of the trustees to repair at the earliest moment the losses
which had been so unexpectedly and causelessly entailed.
But for the immediate and generous aid extended by Ogle-
thorpe, but for the magnetism of his presence and example, but
for his just administration of affairs, his encouraging words, and
his charitable deeds, the effect produced upon the colonists in
Savannah by this crisis in their affairs would have proved most
disastrous. This is not the only occasion upon which, as the
sequel will show, the founder of Georgia proved himself also her
saviour. -
tº
1 Collections of the Georgia Historical 1873. Compare Gentleman's Magazine for
Society, vol. iii. pp. 57–62. Savannah. 1739, pp. 22, 23.
CHAPTER XVIII.
THE BROTHERs JoHN AND CHARLES WESLEY IN GEORGIA.
AFTER a short sojourn in Savannah, the Reverend Charles
Wesley repaired to Frederica where he entered upon the dis-
charge of his duties as private secretary to General Oglethorpe.
It will be remembered that he also held from the trustees the
commission of Secretary of Indian Affairs for the colony of
Georgia.
Unfortunately, at an early date an estrangement ensued be-
tween the general and his secretary. In addition to his official
duties Mr. Wesley assumed the spiritual guidance of the inhabi-
tants at Frederica. He was thus brought into personal contact
and confidential relations with the entire population. Among
the dwellers there were some whose reputations were not with-
out reproach, and whose manner of life did not command the
approbation of the young ecclesiastic who carried ever with him
a standard of morality and religious excellence inculcated in
the school of the divines, yet seldom realized in the walk and
conversation of ordinary mortals. Youthful and inexperienced,
confiding in his disposition, unsuspecting, and liable to be im-
posed upon by the designing and the unscrupulous, his sym-
pathies were not infrequently warmly enlisted where the mature
judgment of one better informed and not unacquainted with the
wiles of his fellow-men, and women too, would have suggested
caution and reflection. Fresh from the shades of scholastic life
he was, without preparation, transplanted into the midst of a
community heterogeneous in its character and, from the very na-
ture of its composition and situation, largely insensible to the
restraining influences of civilization. Deeply imbued with relig-
ious sentiments, and intent upon the execution of his evangelical
mission, he regarded all the business of life as wholly subordi-
nate to an observance of the rules of the church and the exhi-
bition of Christian virtues. Wherever he detected a deviation
from what he conceived to be the true path of rectitude he did
not hesitate to rebuke the wanderer. Fastidious in his notions
276 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
of right and wrong, with ample time and inclination to listen to
the disagreements existent among the settlers, often misinformed
as to the genuine merits of the quarrel, ignorant of the true
mode of adjusting it, busying himself with matters which prop-
erly did not concern him, sometimes interfering where he should
have stood aloof, and again espousing causes which, upon a nar-
rower inspection, should not have enlisted his sympathies, in his
efforts to promote peace and advance the Christianity of the com-
munity he signally failed, and drew down upon himself the ill-
will of not a few.
Oglethorpe, on the other hand, burthened with the cares and
the responsibilities of his station, commissioned to develop and
guard the life of the colony, confronting engagements, exposures,
and dangers enough to oppress the stoutest heart, and familiar
with the management of men and weighty affairs, had no leisure
for the exhibition of idle sentiment or the discussion of questions
of casuistry. With trifling evils and imaginary wrongs he could
not pause to deal.
These two men viewed the situation from standpoints widely
different. Oglethorpe strove to fortify the hearts and the homes of
his people so that they might constitute an insurmountable bar-
rier to the threatened incursion of the Spaniards. While not
indifferent to the social and moral tone of Frederica, and while
solicitous that religion should be upheld and the ordinances of
the church supported, he was deeply engrossed in the building
of houses, the construction of batteries, the accumulation of Sup-
plies, and the enforcement of police and military regulations.
At this remote and exposed point he exacted and commanded
prompt obedience from all. Clothed with the amplest powers to
direct, his measures may at times have seemed to the clergyman,
accustomed to question, arbitrary and perhaps dictatorial. The
situation was novel, and the ecclesiastic brought no experience to
assist him in learning the lesson of the hour.
As has been suggested, Mr. Wesley attempted the difficult
task of reforming what he regarded as improprieties in the con-
duct of the inhabitants of Frederica, and of reconciling the
petty jealousies and occasional disputes in which they indulged.
The consequence was just what might reasonably have been
anticipated. He failed in his object and incurred the enmity of
both parties at variance. Many went so far as to form plans to
rid the town of his presence. Complaints were lodged against
him with General Oglethorpe, who, instead of discountenancing
REV. CHARLES WESLEY. 277
them and demanding for his secretary and clergyman the defer-
ence and respect due to his station, listened too readily to the
charges preferred and suffered them to prejudice his mind against
“the truly amiable, ingenuous, and kind-hearted minister.”
Failing to interpret leniently his well-meant but injudiciously
conducted purposes, and omitting to caution him in a friendly
way against the commission of acts prompted by inexperience
and the lack of worldly wisdom, he treated him with disdain and
neglect.
The apology suggested by Mr. Southey for this conduct on the
part of Oglethorpe is, perhaps, the most plausible which can be
offered. The general, who had causes enough to disquiet him,
arising from the precarious state of the colony, was teased and
soured by the complaints urged against Mr. Wesley, and re-
gretted that he had not brought with him one possessing a calmer
temper and a more practical turn of mind. “I know not how
to account for his increasing coldness,” writes Wesley, in speak-
ing of his intercourse with Oglethorpe. His accusers noted the
change which had been produced by their insinuations, and tak-
ing advantage of it manifested more openly than before their
animosity toward the clergyman. His situation was now most
unpleasant. His usefulness was gone. Little respect was ex-
tended by the inhabitants of Frederica. Even his personal safety
was threatened. All friends, except Mr. Ingham, had seemingly
deserted him. He was even charged by the general with mutiny
and sedition, and with stirring up the people to desert the colony.
This Wesley stoutly denied and demanded that he should be
confronted face to face with his accusers. Upon further exam-
ination the grave suggestions proved to be unfounded. This
Oglethorpe practically admitted, and yet outwardly declined to
come to a reconciliation with his secretary who still continued to
wait upon him and to discharge the duties of his position.
Mr. Wesley was totally unprepared for the rough mode of life
he experienced on the southern frontier. He had brought with
him nothing save his clothes and books, and was mortified and
incensed at the failure and neglect to supply him with necessary
comforts. In the midst of his distresses he was seized with a
fever which so unnerved him that he envied the quiet grave of a
scout-boatman who had just died.
In an hour of calm reflection becoming convinced of the in-
justice shown to Mr. Wesley, General Oglethorpe, then on the eve
of setting out upon a dangerous expedition, sent for his secre-
278 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
tary and thus addressed him: “You will soon see the reasons
for my actions. I am now going to death. You will see me no
more. Take this ring and carry it from me to Mr. V
If..there is a friend to be depended upon, he is one. His interest
is next to Sir Robert's. Whatever you ask within his power he
Will do for you, your brother, and your family. I have expected
death for some days. These letters show that the Spaniards
have long been seducing our allies, and intend to cut us off at a
blow. I fall by my friends : – Gascoigne whom I have made,
the Carolina people upon whom I depended to send their prom-
ised succours. But death is to me nothing. T will pursue
all my designs, and to him I recommend them and you.” “He
then gave me,” says Mr. Wesley, “a diamond ring. I took it
and said “If, as I believe,
Postremum fato quod te alloquor, hoc est,
hear what you will quickly know to be true as soon as you are
entered upon a separate state. This ring I shall never make any
use of for myself. I have no worldly hopes. I have renounced
the world. Life is bitterness to me. I came hither to lay it
down. You have been deceived as well as I. I protest my inno-
cence of the crimes I am charged with, and take myself to be
now at liberty to tell you what I thought I should never have
uttered.” [Then follow in the MS. Journal some lines in cipher.]
When I finished this relation he seemed entirely changed, and
full of his old love and confidence in me. After some expres-
sions of kindness, I asked him ‘Are you satisfied ?' He replied
‘Yes entirely.” “Why then Sir, I desire nothing more upon
earth, and care not how soon I follow you.' . . . He then em-
braced and kissed me with the most cordial affection.
“I attended him to the scout-boat where he waited some min-
utes for his sword. They brought him first, and a second time,
a mourning sword. At last they gave him his own which had
been his father’s. “With this sword,” said he, “I was never yet
unsuccessful.” “I hope, sir,’ said I, ‘you carry with you a bet-
ter, even the sword of the Lord and of Gideon.” “I hope so too,”
he added. When the boat put off, I ran before into the woods
to see my last of him. Seeing me and two others running after
him, he stopped the boat and asked whether we wanted anything.
Captain McIntosh, left commander, desired his last orders. I
then said “God be with you. Go forth, Christo duce et aus-
pice Christo.’ ‘You have says he, ‘I think, some verses of
mine. You there see my thoughts of success.’ His last words
CHARLES WESLEY AND OGLETHORPE. 279
to his people were ‘God bless you all.’ The boat then carried
him out of sight.” "
Thus came a rift in the angry skies through which the sun-
light of mutual confidence and restored friendship descended to
dispel the doubts and gladden the hearts of the general and his
secretary.
Upon Oglethorpe's return Wesley met him at the bluff; and,
in the evening, they walked together. The general then in-
formed him of the dangers which had recently threatened the
colony. Upon giving him back his ring Wesley remarked, “I
need not Sir, and indeed I cannot tell you how joyfully and
thankfully I return this.” “When I gave it to you,” responded
Oglethorpe, “I never expected to receive it again, but thought
it would be of service to your brother and you. I had many
omens of my death, particularly their bringing me my mourning
sword; but God has been pleased to preserve a life which was
never valuable to me, and yet in the continuance of it, I thank
God, I can rejoice.” “I am now glad,” replied Wesley, “of all
that has happened here, since without it I could never have had
such a proof of your affection as that you gave me when you
looked upon me as the most ungrateful of Villains.” While
Wesley was speaking, the general appeared full of tenderness to-
ward him. He condemned himself for his late anger, which he
imputed to want of time for consideration.
“The next day,” continues Wesley, “I had some farther talk
with him. He ordered me everything he could think I wanted,
and promised to have a house built for me immediately. He
was just the same to me he formerly had been.” Finding that
the secretary was restored to the general's favor, the people of
Frederica became on the instant civil and courteous.
In May, 1736, Mr. Wesley took leave of the general, having
been deputed by him to repair to Savannah and there grant
licenses to the Indian traders. In alluding to this departure
from Frederica he writes: “I was overjoyed at my deliverance
out of this furnace, and not a little ashamed at myself for being
so.” Persuaded that his days of usefulness in the colony were
ended, and purposing a return to England, Mr. Wesley, in June,
resigned his commission. In discussing this matter with him
General Oglethorpe said: “I would you not to let the trustees
know your resolution of resigning. There are many hungry fel-
lows ready to catch at the office ; and, in my absence, I cannot
1 Journal of the Rev. Charles Wesley, vol. i. pp. 19, 20.
280 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
put in one of my own choosing. The best I can hope for is an
honest Presbyterian, as many of the Trustees are such. Perhaps
they may send me a bad man, and how far such a one may in-
fluence the traders and obstruct the reception of the Gospel among
the heathen, you know. I shall be in England before you leave
it. Then you may either put in a deputy or resign.”
Charged with dispatches from the general to the government,
the trustees, and the Board of Trade, Wesley bade adieu to Sa-
vannah, and, after a tedious and dangerous voyage interrupted
by a deviation to Boston, at which port the vessel, the London
Galley, was compelled to put in for repairs and provisions, went
ashore at Deal on the 3d of December. He had been accom-
panied to Charlestown, South Carolina, whence he sailed, by his
brother John. At the time of his departure he was greatly en-
feebled by a bloody flux and a fever.
It was his intention to return to Georgia; and with this object
in view he retained his office until April, 1738. While then re-
covering from an attack of pleurisy he was notified to embark for
the province. His physicians forbade him to undertake the jour-
ney. He accordingly renewed his resignation, but General Ogle-
thorpe, “unwilling to lose so honest and faithful an officer,” still
urged him to retain his place, promising to supply it with a deputy
until he was “sufficiently recovered to follow.” This flattering
invitation he felt constrained to decline. In the ensuing month
his resignation was accepted, and his connection with the affairs
of the colony terminated.
It is worthy of remembrance that the idea of founding and
maintaining an orphan house in Georgia was first suggested to
the Rev. Mr. Whitefield by the Rev. Charles Wesley.
Upon his arrival in Georgia the Rev. John Wesley, then un-
known to fame, but at a later period regarded as the “greatest
figure that has appeared in the religious world since the Reforma-
tion,” accompanied by his friend Delamotte, became a resident
of Savannah. Although commissioned as a spiritual adviser to
the inhabitants of that town, he preferred to announce and to
regard himself rather as a missionary to the Indians than as a
minister to the colonists. Chafing under the confinement inci-
dent to the discharge of his clerical duties in Savannah, he de-
clared, “I never promised to stay here one month. I openly
stated, both before and ever since my coming hither, that I
neither would nor could take charge of the English any longer
than till I could go among the Indians.” His ambition was to
JOHN WESLEY AND TOMO-CHI-CIII. 281
convert the heathen. With Tomo-chi-chi he had an interview
on the 14th of February, 1736. The mico assured him that
although the Indians were perplexed by the French on the one
hand, by the Spaniards on the other, and by traders in their
midst, and that while their ears were now shut and their tongues
divided, he would call his chiefs together and persuade the wise
men of his nation to hear the Great Word. He cautioned the
missionary against making Christians after the fashion in which
they were manufactured by the Spaniards, and counseled instruc-
tion before baptism. Well did he understand that, for the time
being, the presentation of a string of beads or of a silver cross
would suffice to seduce the native from the primitive faith in
which he had been reared, but in such conversion he reposed no
confidence. The conduct of white Christians impressed him un-
favorably. Nevertheless he was willing to afford the missionary
every facility for the prosecution of his contemplated labors, and
by influence and example to induce others to hearken to his
teachings. There lurked, however, in the breast of the mico a
grave doubt as to the success of the mission. Mr. Wesley's re-
ply,” while perhaps just in the abstract, was little calculated
to win the confidence or encourage the sympathy of the chief:
“There is but one : — He that sitteth in Heaven, – who is able
to teach man wisdom. Tho' we are come so far, we know not
whether He will please to teach you by us or no. If He teaches
you, you will learn Wisdom, but we can do nothing.”
On another occasion, when urged by Mr. Wesley to hearken to
the doctrines of Christianity and become a convert, the old man
scornfully responded: “Why these are Christians at Savannah !
Those are Christians at Frederical Christians drunk | Christians
beat men | Christians tell lies ' Me no Christian.”
Upon the termination of a public audience with the Indians,
Mr. Wesley and Tomo-chi-chi dined with Mr. Oglethorpe. The
meal concluded, the clergyman asked the aged mico “what he
thought he was made for.” “He that is above,” replied the
Indian, “knows what He made us for. We know nothing. We
are in the dark. But white men know much, and yet white men
build great houses as if they were to live forever. But white
men cannot live forever. In a little time white men will be dust
as well as I.” Wesley responded, “If red men will learn the
Good Book they may know as much as white men. But neither
we nor you can understand that Book unless we are taught by
* An Extract of the Rev. Mr. John Wesley's Journal, etc., p. 11. Bristol, n.d.
282 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Him that is above; and He will not teach unless you avoid what
you already know is not good.” “I believe that,” said the chief.
“He will not teach us while our hearts are not white, and our
men do what they know is not good. Therefore, He that is
above does not send us the Good Book.” In these sentiments of
the native we recognize a strange commingling of satire, irony,
and candor, which indicated strength in an apparent confession of
weakness, evinced knowledge by an admission of ignorance, and
pointed the self-satisfied clergyman to the contemplation of that
stern decree which levels both small and great, wise and foolish,
civilized and savage, remanding the mightiest as well as the low-
liest to one common grave.
In Spence’s “Anecdotes”" we are informed that in a conversa-
tion between General Oglethorpe and Tomo-chi-chi in regard to
prayer, the latter said the Indians never prayed to God but left it
with Him to do what He thought best for them : “that the asking
for any particular blessing looked to him like directing God; and,
if so, that it must be a very wicked thing. That for his part he
thought everything that happened in the world was as it should
be ; that God of Himself would do for every one what was con-
sistent with the good of the whole; and that our duty to Him
was to be content with whatever happened in general, and thank-
ful for all the good that happened in particular.”
In this conviction the Indian was not singular. Apollonius
frequently asserted that the only supplication which ought to
be offered by worshipers in the temples of the Gods was: “O
Gods ! grant us those things which you deem most conducive to
our well-being.” Socrates, that oracle of human wisdom, be-
cause the Gods who were accustomed to bestow favors were best
able to select such gifts as were most fit, warned his disciples
against the danger and impropriety of offering petitions for spe-
cific things. The prayer, “O Jupiter, ea quae bona Sunt nobis
orantibus, aut non orantibus, tribue ; quae vero mala, etiam oran-
tibus ne concede,” has been more than once in the school of the
philosophers commended as most appropriate. In that wonder-
ful satire in which Juvenal, by apt examples, portrays the ruinous
consequences which have ensued where the gods complied with
the expressed desires of men, it will be remembered that in an-
swer to the inquiry,
“Nil ergo optabunt homines?”
he responds, –
1 London edition of 1820, p. 318,
JOHN WESLEY AND THE CHICASAWS. 283
. “Si consilium vis,
Permittes ipsis expendere numinibus quid
Conveniat nobis, rebusque sit utile nobis.””
Epicurus believed that invocations, prayers, and sacrifices were
superfluous; that in all the accidents and difficulties of life there
was no propriety in having recourse to the Gods, or in prostrat-
ing ourselves before their altars; but that we ought, in perfect
tranquillity, to contemplate all the vicissitudes of life, and, with-
out emotion, confront the changing fortunes which might be-
fall us.
“On Tuesday, the 20th day of July,” says Mr. Wesley in his
Journal, “five of the Chicasaw Indians (twenty of whom had
been in Savannah several days) came to see us, with Mr. An-
drews, their interpreter. They were all warriors; — four of them
Head-men. The two chiefs were Paustoobee and Mingo Mattaw.
Our conference was as follows:
“Q. Do you believe there is One above who is over all
things?
Paustoobee answered: “We believe there are four Beloved
Things above; the Clouds, the Sun, the Clear Sky, and He that
lives in the Clear Sky.
“ Q. Do you believe there is but One that lives in the Clear
Sky 2
“A. We believe there are two with him, - three in all.
“Q. Do you think He made the Sun and the other Beloved
Things?
“A. We cannot tell. Who hath seen 2
“Q. Do you think He made you?
“A. We think He made all men at first.
“Q. How did He make them at first 2
“A. Out of the ground.
“Q. Do you believe He loves you?
“A. I don’t know. I cannot see him.
“Q. But has He not often saved your life?
“4. He has. Many bullets have gone on this side and many
on that side, but He would not let them hurt me. And many
bullets have gone into these young Men, and yet they are alive.
“Q. Then, can’t. He save you from your enemies now 2
“A. Yes; but we know not if He will. We have now so
many enemies round about us that I think of nothing but death.
And if I am to die, I shall die, and I will die like a man. But
1 Tenth Satire, line 346 et seq.
284 - THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
if He will have me to live, I shall live. Tho' I had ever so many
enemies, He can destroy them all.
“Q. How do you know that ?
“4. From what I have seen. When our enemies came
against us before, then the Beloved Clouds came for us. And
often much rain and sometimes hail has come upon them, and
that in a very hot day. And I saw when many French and
Choctaws and other nations came against one of our towns.
And the ground made a noise under them, and the Beloved Ones
in the air behind them. And they were afraid and went away,
and left their meat and drink and their guns. I tell no lie. All
these saw it, too.
“Q. Have you heard such noises at other times?
“4. Yes, often ; before and after almost every battle.
“Q. What sort of Noises were they?
“4. Like the noise of drums and guns and shouting.
“Q. Have you heard any such lately?
“A. Yes, four days after our last battle with the French.
“Q. Then you heard nothing before it?
“A. The night before I dream'd I heard many drums up there,
and many trumpets there, and much stamping of feet and shout-
ing. Till then I thought we should all die. But then I thought
the Beloved Ones were come to help us. And the next day I
heard above a hundred guns go off before the fight begun. And
I said when the Sun is there the Beloved Ones will help us, and
we shall conquer our Enemies. And we did so.
“Q. Do you often think and talk of the Beloved Ones?
“A. We think of them always, wherever we are. We talk of
them and to them, at home and abroad, in peace, in war, before
and after we fight, and indeed whenever and wherever we meet
together.
“Q. Where do you think your souls go after death 2
“A. We believe the Souls of Red Men walk up and down near
the place where they died, or where their bodies lie. For we
have often heard cries and noises near the place where any
prisoners had been burnt. -
“Q. Where do the Souls of White Men go after death 2
“A. We can’t tell. We have not seen.
“Q. Our belief is that the souls of bad men only walk up and
down : but the souls of good men go up.
“A. I believe so too. But I told you the talk of the ma-
tion.
REV. JOHN WESLEY. 285
“ (Mr. Andrews. They said at the burying they knew what
you were doing. You were speaking to the Beloved Ones above
to take up the soul of the young woman.)
“Q. We have a Book that tells us many things of the Be-
loved One above. Would you be glad to know them 2
“A. We have no time now but to fight. If we should ever
be at peace we should be glad to know.
“Q. Do you expect ever to know what the White Men know?
“(Mr. Andrews. They told Mr. O. they believe the time will
come when the Red and the White Men will be one.)
“Q. What do the French teach you ?
“A. The French Black-Kings” never go out. We see you
go about. We like that. That is good.
“Q. How came your nation by the knowledge they have 2
“A. As soon as ever the Ground was found and fit to stand
upon, it came to us, and has been with us ever since. But we
are young men. Our old men know more. But all of them do
not know. There are but a few whom the Beloved One chuses
from a child, and is in them, and takes care of them, and teaches
them. They know these things: and our old men practice:
therefore they know : But I don’t practice. Therefore I know
little.” 8
So far as we can ascertain, further conferences between Mr.
Wesley and the Indians were infrequent and unaccompanied by
any valuable results. Ignorant of their language, and unable to
command an interpreter through whom the mysteries of his
faith might be intelligently communicated, Mr. Wesley found his
cherished scheme for the conversion of the Indians impracticable.
He was forced to abandon it and to devote himself to clerical
labors among the Europeans.
His first impressions of Savannah were happy. Writing to
his mother he says, “The place is pleasant beyond imagination,
and, by all I can learn, exceeding healthful even in Summer for
those who are not intemperate.” He desires that some of the
poor and religious persons of Epworth and Wroote would come
over to him. Although his parishioners numbered some seven
hundred,” there being no church edifice, religious services were
held in the court-house. His scholarly attainments, earnest man-
* Some days previously a young woman Wesley's Journal, pp. 26–28. Bristol,
had been buried in Savannah, and these n. d.
Indians were present at the funeral. * In July, 1737, Mr. Wesley took a cen-
2 Priests. sus of Savannah by going from house to
* An Extract of the Rev. Mr. John house, and computed the number of in-
286 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
ner, and well-considered discourses at first attracted the favor-
able notice of the community. So popular was he then as a
preacher that, a public ball and religious exercises being an-
nounced for the same hour, “the church was full while the ball-
room was so empty that the entertainment could not go forward.”
Contrasting his agreeable surroundings with the trials which
his brother Charles was experiencing at Frederica, he exclaims,
“How different are the ways wherein we are led; yet I hope
toward the same end. I have hitherto had no opposition at all;
all is smooth and fair and promising. Many seem to be awak-
ened; all are full of respect and commendation. We cannot see
any cloud gathering; but this calm cannot last; storms must come
hither too; and let them come when we are ready to meet them.”
His friend Delamotte had organized a school of between thirty
and forty children whom he taught “to read, write, and cast ac-
counts.” Every Saturday afternoon, and on the Lord's day be-
fore the evening service, Mr. Wesley catechised these pupils.
Thus was inaugurated the first Sunday-school in the province of
Georgia.
As many of his parishioners as desired to do so met at his
house after the evening service, and also on every Wednesday
afternoon to “spend about an hour in prayer, singing, and mutual
exhortation.” This was the earliest series of prayer-meetings
held in the colony; and here, in the modest and scantily fur-
nished reception room of the parsonage in Savannah, was cra-
dled the Methodist Episcopal Church, destined to become one of
the most potent societies among the Protestant denominations of
the world."
With the Moravian bishop, Nitschman, he associated on terms
of the closest and tenderest intimacy. Truly did he admire his
simple faith, unostentatious piety, his quiet demeanor, his stern
integrity, his irreproachable character. It was most agreeable to
him to commune with the members of that sect and to minister
to them in seasons of sickness and distress. His clerical engage-
ments at Savannah were occasionally interrupted by visits to Fred-
erica. There he found “so little either of the form or power of
religion " that he expresses his joy in being “removed from it.”
habitants at 518, of whom 149 were under
sixteen years of age. The rest of his
parishioners dwelt in the neighborhood of
the town.
1 Mr. Wesley thus interprets the rise of
Methodism: “The first rise of Methodism
was in 1729 when four of us met together
at Oxford. The second was at Savannah
in 1736 when twenty or thirty persons
met at my house. The last was at Lon-
don on this day, May 1st 1738, when forty
or fifty of us agreed to meet together
every Wednesday Evening.”
REV. JOHN WESLEY IN SAVANNAH. 287
Despite his earnestness and regularity in the discharge of his
priestly ministrations, his labors ceased to be crowned with the
success which at the outset of his career waited upon them, and
he clearly perceived that his popularity both as a preacher and as
a spiritual adviser was manifestly on the wane. Persuaded that
his whole heart was in his work, he was at a loss to account for
these distressing indications, which daily grew more decided.
Observing much coolness in the behavior of one who had pro-
fessed friendship for him, Mr. Wesley demanded the reason, and
was answered on this wise : “I like nothing you do ; all your
sermons are satires upon particular persons. Therefore I will
never hear you more : and all the people are of my mind, for we
won’t hear ourselves abused. Besides, they say they are Protes-
tants, but as for you they can’t tell what religion you are of.
They never heard of such a religion before. They do not know
what to make of it. And then your private behaviour: all the
quarrels that have been here since you came have been long of
you. Indeed there is neither man nor woman in the town who
minds a word you say ; and so you may preach long enough but
nobody will come to hear you.”
Many took offense at his rigid adherence to the custom of bap-
tism by immersion. In the celebration of the Lord's Supper he
would admit no Dissenter to the Communion unless he consented
to be re-baptized. He insisted upon dividing the public prayers
“according to the original appointment of the Church; ” begin-
ning the morning prayers at five, the litany, Communion office,
and Sermon at eleven, and the evening service at three. He was
also charged with a design to establish auricular confession as a
prerequisite to admission to the privileges of the Holy Com-
munion. Forgetting the injunctions of the Rev. Dr. Burton,
so excessive was his zeal in the advocacy of favorite doctrinal
views and in the denunciation of evil that he moulded his dis-
courses so that they became caustic satires not only upon the
condition of affairs but upon the conduct of individuals. His
rebukes and corrections were pungently administered alike in
private and in public. He was on all occasions a censor morum,
and his criticisms were passed equally upon magistrate, citizen,
and church member. Instead of drawing men by the cords of
love, he alienated them by his denunciations and applied stric-
tures. In the language of another, he “drenched them with the
physic of an intolerant discipline.” Overstepping the limits
which should be observed at all times by a clergyman, he busied
288 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
himself with the quarrels and complaints of the town, and in
open court counseled the inhabitants to oppose the magistrates
in the execution of justice.1
Such unusual conduct angered the people, and gradually they
discontinued their attendance upon divine worship. Wesley lost
the power which he at first exerted over the consciences of the
populace. He alienated the affections of his hearers, and in the
end became convinced that he was accomplishing little in the ser.
vice of his Master. Not long afterwards, in reviewing this period
of his life, so unsatisfactory in its efforts and so replete with trials
and disappointments, he freely confessed that he who went to
America to convert others was then himself unconverted to God ;2
that all the time he was in Savannah he was “beating the air,”
“fighting continually but not conquering,” and failing to appre-
ciate the loving kindness of the Lord.
He who at subsequent period
“Filled the earth with golden fruit,
With ripe millennial love,”
was the prolific cause of unrest, and almost an object of hatred
in the community.
Meanwhile Mr. Wesley enjoyed wonderful health. His con-
stitution seemed to improve under hardships and labors which
would have impaired the stoutest physical powers. Of the three
hundred acres set apart in Savannah for glebe land he cut off
what he deemed sufficient for a good garden, and there he fre-
quently worked with his own hands. He ate moderately, slept
little, and left not a moment of his time unemployed. To the
changing seasons, and in all kinds of weather, he exposed himself
with the utmost indifference. His journeys into South Carolina
were sometimes performed on foot, and with no shelter at night
save the friendly boughs of a tree. His energy, resolution, self-
denial, and endurance were at all times conspicuous.
The circumstances which brought the usefulness and services
of Mr. Wesley as a clergyman in Savannah to an abrupt and a
notorious conclusion may be thus briefly narrated. With Mr.
Causton, the chief bailiff and keeper of the public stores, and
with the members of his family, the missionary associated on
friendly terms. Miss Sophia Hopkins, a niece of Mrs. Causton,
and a young woman of uncommon personal and intellectual
1 Stephens' Journal of Proceedings, vol. 2 Extract of the Journal of Rev. Mr.
i. p. 15. London. MDCCXLII. John Wesley, p. 73. Bristol, n. d.
REV, JOHN WESLEY AND MISS HOPKINS. 289
charms, had been his pupil. He gave her French lessons. Un-
der his religious ministrations she became a professed convert
and united herself with the church. It would appear that this
constant association with a pretty, fascinating maiden eventually
excited tender emotions in the breast of the youthful and sus-
ceptible ecclesiastic. He was evidently on the eve of declaring
his affection when his friend, Mr. Delamotte, excited his appre-
hensions by expressing doubts in regard to the sincerity of Miss
Hopkins’ religious convictions. He also cautioned him against
cherishing or avowing too fond an attachment for her. Taking
counsel of the Moravian elders, they too advised him not to con-
template a matrimonial alliance with her. Thus admonished,
Mr. Wesley became more guarded in his conduct and more re-
served in his intercourse. Perceiving the change in his deport-
ment, Miss Hopkins was piqued, mortified, and angered. Some-
thing closely resembling a rupture ensued; and, not long after-
wards, this charming and coquettish young lady gave her hand
to a Mr. Williamson.
A few months subsequent to her marriage Mr. Wesley “ob-
served some things which he thought reproveable in her be-
havior.” He mentioned them to her. “At this,” writes that
clergyman in his Journal, “she appeared extremely angry and
said she did not expect such usage from me.” The next day
Mrs. Causton made excuses for her niece, and expressed much
regret at what had transpired.
Having, after the lapse of a few weeks, “repelled Mrs. Will-
iamson from the Holy Communion,” Mr. Wesley was arrested
under the following warrant issued by the recorder: —
“GEORGIA. SAVANNAH. s. s.
“To all Constables, Tythingmen, and others whom these may
(2070,667°70,
“You and each of you are hereby required to take the body of
John Wesley, Clerk: and bring him before one of the Bailiffs
of the said Town to answer the complaint of William William-
son and Sophia his wife, for defaming the said Sophia, and re-
fusing to administer to her the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper
in a publick Congregation without cause, by which the said Will-
iam Williamson is damaged One Thousand Pounds Sterling.
And for so doing this is your Warrant, certifying what you are
to do in the premises.
“Given under my hand and seal the 8th day of Aug: Anno.
Dom : 1737. THº CHRISTIE.”
19
290 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
By Jones, the constable, he was carried before the recorder
and bailiff Parker. Williamson was there. To the charge that
he had defamed his wife, Mr. Wesley entered a prompt and em-
phatic denial. As to the other allegation, he answered that
“the giving or refusing the Lord's Supper being a matter purely
ecclesiastical,” he would not acknowledge any power in the mag.
istrate to interrogate him in regard to it. Mr. Parker informed
him that he must appear before the next court to be holden for
Savannah. Mr. Williamson then said, “Gentlemen, I desire Mr.
Wesley may give bail for his appearance.” But Mr. Parker
immediately refused the application, with the remark, “Sir, Mr.
Wesley's word is sufficient.”
Causton required that the reasons which induced Mr. Wesley
to repel Mrs. Williamson from the Holy Comunion should be
assigned in open court. To this demand the clergyman declined
to accede. On the second day after the arrest Mr. Causton vis-
ited Mr. Wesley at his house, and after some sharp words said,
“Make an end of this matter. Thou hadst best. My Niece to
be used thus ! I have drawn the sword and I will never sheath
it till I have satisfaction.” “Soon after,” so runs Mr. Wesley's
diary, “he added, ‘Give the reasons of your repelling her before
the whole congregation.” I answered, ‘Sir, if you insist upon it
I will, and so you may be pleased to tell her.” He said, “Write
to her and tell her so yourself.' I said, ‘I will,’ and after he
went I wrote as follows:
“TO MRS. SOPHIA WILLIAMSON.
“At Mr. Causton’s request I write once more. The Rules
whereby I proceed are these :
“So many as intend to be Partakers of the Holy Communion
shall signify their names to the Curate at least some time the
day before. This you did not do.
“And if any of these have done any wrong to his
Neighbors, by word or deed, so that the Congregation be thereby
offended, the Curate shall advertise him that in any wise he pre-
sume not to come to the Lord’s Table until he hath openly
declared himself to have truly repented. If you offer yourself
at the Lord's Table on Sunday, I will advertise you (as I have
done more than once) wherein you have done wrong. And when
you have openly declared yourself to have truly repented, I will
administer to you the Mysteries of God.
“Aug. 11, 1737. JOHN WESLEY.
“Mr. Delamotte carrying this, Mr. Causton remarked, among
THE REV. JOHN WESLEY IN COURT. 291
other warm sayings, ‘ I am the person that am injured. The
affront is offered to me, and I will espouse the cause of my Niece.
I am ill-used, and I will have satisfaction if it is to be had
in the world.’
“Which way this satisfaction was to be had, I did not yet con-
ceive. But on Friday and Saturday it began to appear ; Mr.
Causton declaring to many persons that Mr. Wesley had repelled
Sophy from the Holy Communion purely out of revenge, because
he had made proposals of marriage to her which she rejected
and married Mr. Williamson.”
Having thoroughly espoused the cause of his niece, Mr.
Causton set about stirring up the public mind and endeavored
to create a general sentiment adverse to Mr. Wesley. He even
busied himself with the selection of jurors whose sympathies
were in unison with his own. Persuaded by him Mrs. William-
son made an affidavit, full of insinuations, in which she asserted
“ that Mr. Wesley had many times proposed marriage to her, all
which proposals she had rejected.”
When the grand jury was impaneled, it was manifest that
Causton had much to do with its composition. Forty-four mem-
bers were present, and among them Wesley noted one French-
man, who did not understand the English language, a Papist,
a professed infidel, three Baptists, sixteen or seventeen Dissent-
ers, and several persons who had quarreled with him and openly
vowed revenge.
The court being organized on Monday the 22d, Mr. Causton
delivered a long and earnest charge, in which he cautioned the
jurymen “to beware of spiritual tyranny, and to oppose the new
and illegal authority which was usurped over their consciences.”
The chief bailiff, uncle by marriage to the complainant, was
playing the double rôle of judge and prosecuting attorney.
Mrs. Williamson's affidavit having been read, Causton delivered
to the grand jury a paper entitled “A List of Grievances pre-
sented by the Grand Jury for Savannah, this day of Aug.,
1737.” It had evidently been prepared under his direction,
and was designed to mould in advance the finding of that body.
After holding this document under advisement for more than a
week, and after the examination of sundry witnesses, the jury on
the 1st of September returned that paper into court. As modi-
fied by a majority, it read as follows : —
“That John Wesley, Clerk, hath broken the Laws of the
Realm, contrary to the Peace of our Sovereign Lord the King, his
Crown, and Dignity;
292 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
“1. By speaking and writing to Mrs. Williamson against her
husband's consent;
“2. By repelling her from the Holy Communion; &
“3. By not declaring his Adherence to the Church of Eng-
land;
“4. By dividing the Morning Service on Sundays;
“5. By refusing to baptize Mr. Parker's child otherwise than
by dipping, except the parents would certify it was weak and not
able to bear it;
“6. By repelling Wm. Gough from the Holy Communion;
“7. By refusing to read the Burial-service over the body of
Nathaniel Polhill;
“8. By calling himself Ordinary of Savannah;
“9. By refusing to receive Wm. Aglionby as a God-father
only because he was not a communicant;
“10. By refusing Jacob Matthews for the same reason, and
baptizing an Indian Trader's Child with only two sponsors.”
Nine of these charges being purely ecclesiastical in their char-
acter, Mr. Wesley insisted that the present court could take no
cognizance of them. As to the rest of the indictment he pleaded
not guilty and demanded an immediate trial. Again and again
did he press for a hearing, which was denied upon some frivolous
pretext or other, such, for example, as that “Mr. Williamson was
gone out of town.” So malevolent was the spirit moving the
parties preferring these charges against Mr. Wesley that with a
view to damaging his clerical reputation far and near they caused
the indictment found by a majority of the grand jury to be
published in various newspapers in America.
Mr. Wesley had openly avowed a desire to answer directly to
the trustees. Twelve of the jurors, three of them being consta-
bles and six tithing-men, who would have constituted a majority
had that body been properly constituted of four constables and
eleven tithing-men, signed the following document which was
transmitted in due course : —
“To the Honorable the Trustees for Georgia.
“Whereas two Presentments have been made, the one of Au-
gust 23rd, the other of August 31st, by the Grand Jury for the
Town and County of Savannah in Georgia, against John Wes-
ley, Clerk:
“We, whose names are underwritten, being Members of the
said Grand Jury, do humbly beg leave to signify our dislike of
the said Presentments, being by many and divers circumstances
DISSENT OF A PORTION OF THE JURY. 293
thro’ly persuaded in ourselves that the whole charge against Mr.
Wesley is an artifice of Mr. Causton's, design'd rather to blacken
the character of Mr. Wesley than to free the Colony from Re-
ligious Tyranny as he was pleas'd in his charge to us to term it.
But as these circumstances will be too tedious to trouble your
Honors with, we shall only beg leave to give the Reasons of our
Dissent from the particular Bills.
“With regard to the First Bill we do not apprehend that Mr.
Wesley acted against any laws by writing or speaking to Mrs.
Williamson, since it does not appear to us that the said Mr. Wes-
ley has either spoke in private or wrote to the said Mrs. William-
son since March 12 [the day of her marriage] except one letter
of July the 5th, which he wrote at the request of her aunt, as a
Pastor, to exhort and reprove her.
“The Second we do not apprehend to be a true Bill because we
humbly conceive Mr. Wesley did not assume to himself any au-
thority contrary to Law : for we understand every person intend-
ing to communicate should “signify his name to the Curate at
least some time the day before,” which Mrs. Williamson did not
do : altho’ Mr. Wesley had often, in full congregation, declared
he did insist on a compliance with that Rubrick, and had before
repell'd divers persons for non-compliance therewith.
“The Third we do not think a True Bill because several of us
have been his hearers when he has declared his adherence to the
Church of England in a stronger manner than by a formal Dec-
laration; by explaining and defending the Apostles', the Nicene,
and the Athanasian Creeds, the Thirty Nine Articles, the whole
Book of Common Prayer, and the Homilies of the said Church :
and because we think a formal Declaration is not required but
from those who have receiv'd Institution and Induction.
“The Fact alleged in the Fourth Bill we cannot apprehend to
be contrary to any law in being.
“The Fifth we do not think a true Bill, because we conceive
Mr. Wesley is justified by the Rubrick, viz.: “If they (the Par-
ents) certify that the child is weak, it shall suffice to pour water
upon it: ' intimating (as we humbly suppose) it shall not suffice
if they do not certify.
“The Sixth cannot be a true Bill because the said William
Gough, being one of our members, was surprized to hear himself
named without his knowledge or privity, and did publickly de-
clare ‘It was no grievance to him, because the said John Wes-
ley had given him reasons with which he was satisfied.’
294 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
“The Seventh we do not apprehend to be a true Bill, for Na-
thaniel Polhill was an Anabaptist, and desir'd in his life-time
tha the might not be interr'd with the Office of the Church of
England. And further, we have good reason to believe that Mr.
Wesley was at Frederica, or on his return thence, when Polhill
was buried.
“As to the Eighth Bill we are in doubt, as not well knowing
the meaning of the word Ordinary. But, for the Ninth and
Tenth we think Mr. Wesley is sufficiently justified by the Canons
of the Church which forbid any person to be admitted Godfather
or Godmother to any child before the said person has received
the Holy Communion ; whereas William Aglionby and Jacob
Matthews had never certified Mr. Wesley that they had received
it.”
Perceiving that he could obtain neither justice nor even a
hearing from the town court in Savannah, persuaded that there
Was no possibility of instructing the Indians, being under no en-
gagement to remain a day longer in Savannah than he found it
convenient, and believing that his ministry would prove more
acceptable in England than in Georgia, he consulted his friends
as to the propriety of his returning home. They agreed that it
was best for him to do so, but not at that time.
On the 3d of November he again appeared in court, and also
on the 22d of that month. On the last occasion Mr. Causton
exhibited to him sundry affidavits filed in his case, all of which
Wesley pronounced false and malicious. No trial was, on either
date, accorded to him. Upon conferring a second time with
his friends they were of the opinion that he might now set out
immediately for England. The next evening he called upon
Mr. Causton and acquainted him with his purpose to leave the
colony at an early day. He also put up in the public square the
following notice : “Whereas John Wesley designs shortly to set
out for England, this is to desire those who have borrowed any
books of him to return them, as soon as they conveniently can,
to John Wesley.”
There was nothing concealed about this determination; and
he quietly, and with the full knowledge of the community, pre-
pared for his journey. On the 2d of December, the tide serving
about noon, he proposed to bid farewell to Savannah and start
for Charlestown whence he was to sail for England. “But about
ten,” says Mr. Wesley, “the Magistrates sent for me and told
me I must not go out of the Province, for I had not answer'd the
REV. JOHN WESLEY LEAVES GEORGIA. 295
Allegations laid against me. I replied I have appeared at six or
seven Courts successively in order to answer them, but I was not
suffer'd to do so when I desired it time after time. They then
said, however, I must not go unless I would give security to
answer those allegations at their Court. I asked, what security?
After consulting together about two hours the Recorder shew’d
me a kind of bond engaging me under a penalty of fifty pounds
to appear at their Court when I should be required. He added,
But Mr. Williamson too has desired of us that you should give
bail to answer his action. I then told him plainly, Sir, you use
me very ill, and so you do the Trustees. I will give neither any
bond nor any bail at all. You know your business and I know
mine.
“In the afternoon the Magistrates publish'd an Order requir-
ing all the Officers and Centinels to prevent my going out of the
Province, and forbidding any person to assist me in doing so.
Being now only a prisoner at large in a place where I knew by
experience every day would give fresh opportunity to procure
evidence of words I never said and actions I never did, I saw
clearly the hour was come for leaving this place: and, as soon as
Evening Prayers were over, about eight o'clock, the tide then
serving, I shook off the dust of my feet and left Georgia after
having preached the Gospel there (not as I ought, but as I was
able) one year and nearly nine months.” "
Stephens” informs us that Mr. Wesley was accompanied on
this occasion by three obnoxious characters: Coates, a busybody,
a mischief-maker, and heavily indebted both to the trust and
to the citizens of Savannah; Gough, an idle fellow, impudent in
his behavior, leaving behind him many unpaid obligations, and
a wife and child whom he more frequently beat than fed; and
Campbell, a barber, an insignificant, loose fellow, fit for any leader
who would make a tool of him.
Landing at Purrysburgh the next morning, Mr. Wesley and
his companions pursued their journey on foot to Beaufort, whence
he proceeded by boat to Charlestown. Taking passage on board
the Samuel, Captain Percy, he departed from America on the
24th of December, 1737, never more to revisit the scene of his
early labors, conflicts, trials, and disappointments.
We make no apology for having dwelt at this length upon the
incidents connected with the life and ministrations in Georgia “ of
1 Extract of the Rev. Mr. John Wesley's * Journal of Proceedings, etc., vol. i.
Journal, etc., pp. 55, 56. Bristol, n, d. pp. 45–47. London. MDCCXLIl.
296 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
a man whose eloquence and logical acuteness [to borrow the
language of Lord Macaulay] might have made him eminent in
literature, whose genius for government was not inferior to that of
Richelieu, and who, whatever his errors may have been, devoted
all his powers, in defiance of obloquy and derision, to what he
sincerely considered as the highest good of his species.”
Whatever shadows and doubts gathered about him in the
morning of his ministerial career were all quickly dispelled by
the glorious beams of the Sun of Righteousness. Then, in the
plenitude of intellectual and moral power, he proclaimed the
glad tidings of Salvation to the nations, gathering about him tens
of thousands, founding a sect of strong virtue and stern religious
sentiment, and closing one of the most remarkable lives in Eng-
lish history with the triumphant cry, “The best of all is, God is
with us. He giveth his servants rest. We thank Thee, O Lord!
for these and all Thy mercies. Bless the Church and King, and
grant us truth and peace through Jesus Christ our Lord forever
and ever. The clouds drop fatness. The Lord is with us, the
God of Jacob is our refuge. Farewell.”
CHAPTER XIX.
MUTINY IN OGLETHORPE's REGIMENT. — ATTEMPT TO ASSASSINATE THE GEN-
ERAL. — NEGRO INSURRECTION IN SOUTH CAROLINA. — OGLETHORPE DENIES
CAUSTON's INSINUATIONs. – REv. M.R. NoFRIs. – GRANT OF £20,000 BY
PARLIAMENT. — MAGISTRATES AND FREEHOLDERS OF SAVANNAH APPLY TO
THE TRUSTEES FOR FEE SIMPLE TITLES TO LAND, AND FOR THE PRIVILEGE
OF INTRODUCING NEGRO SLAVES. — THE HIGHLANDERS AT DARLEN AND
THE SALZBURGERS AT EBENEZER PROTEST AGAINST THE ADMISSION OF
SLAVERY. — OGLETHORPE COUNSELS AGAINST THE PROPOSED CHANGES. —
HE Is ATTACKED BY MALCONTENTs. – DEPRESSED CONDITION OF THE
PROVINCE. — THE TRUSTEEs REFUSE TO PERMIT THE INTRODUCTION OF
NEGRO SLAVES, AND DECLINE TO ENLARGE THE TENURE OF LANDS.
HAVING accommodated matters at Savannah as thoroughly as
circumstances would permit, and having inaugurated such a sys-
tem of disbursements from the public stores as appeared most
equitable for canceling the indebtedness contracted by Causton
and relieving the pressing necessities of the inhabitants, General
Oglethorpe, on the 25th of October, 1738, departed in open boat
for Frederica, leaving, in the language of Colonel Stephens, “a
gloomy prospect of what might ensue, and many sorrowful coun-
tenances.” His energies were now to be concentrated upon the
fortification of the southern confines of the colony, the defensive
capabilities of which the Spaniards manifestly intended to test at
no distant day.
Early in the following November he established his head-
quarters temporarily at Fort St. Andrew on Cumberland Island
that he might personally superintend and encourage the con-
struction of the military defenses which were being there erected.
This island was then garrisoned by the companies which had
been detailed from Gibraltar. In addition to their pay these
troops, for a limited period after their arrival in Georgia, had
been allowed extra provisions from the king's store. When, in
November, these rations were discontinued, conceiving them-
selves wronged and defrauded of their rights, the men became
dissatisfied. As the general was conversing at the door of his
hut with Captain Mackay, a turbulent fellow had the temerity
to come up, unannounced, and demand a renewal of the allow-
298 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
ance. Oglethorpe replied that the terms of enlistment had been
fully complied with ; and that if he desired any benefit at his
hand such rude and disrespectful behavior was not calculated to
Secure a favorable consideration of his application. The fellow
thereupon became outrageously insolent. Captain Mackay drew
his sword, which the desperado wrested from him, broke in half,
and, having thrown the hilt at that officer's head, rushed away
to the barracks. There snatching up a loaded gun and crying
aloud “One and All,” he ran back, followed by five or more of
the conspirators, and fired at the general. Being only a few
paces distant, the ball whizzed close by Oglethorpe's ear, while
the powder scorched his face and singed his clothes. Another
soldier presented his piece and attempted to discharge it. For-
tunately it missed fire. A third drew his hanger and endeav-
ored to stab the general who, however, having by this time
unsheathed his sword, parried the thrust. An officer coming up
ran the ruffian through the body. Frustrated in their attempt
at assassination, the mutineers sought safety in flight, but were
apprehended and put in irons. After trial by court-martial the
ring-leaders were found guilty and shot.
Thus wonderfully was the general preserved for the important
trusts committed to his care, and so narrowly was a calamity
averted which would have plunged the colony into the depths of
uncertainty and peril. At this trying moment, had she been de-
prived of Oglethorpe's guidance, Georgia, feeble and uncertain,
would have been left well-nigh naked to her enemies.
Spanish emissaries from St. Augustine endeavored to inaugu-
rate an insurrection among the negroes of South Carolina. To
them freedom and protection were promised. Every inducement
was offered which could encourage not only desertion from, but
also massacre of, their owners. Of the runaway slaves the gov-
ernor of Florida had formed a regiment, appointing officers from
among them, and placing both officers and enlisted men upon the
pay and rations allowed to the regular Spanish soldiers. Of this
fact the Carolina negroes were fully aware. Influenced by the
hope of booty, incited to the perpetration of unholy deeds by
1 Compare Gentleman's Magazine, vol. Georgia, vol. ii. pp. 70, 71. London. 1779.
ix. pp. 214, 215. Stephens’ Journal of Stevens' History of Georgia, vol. i. pp.
Proceedings, vol. i. p. 326. London. 1742. 154, 155. New York. 1847. Wright's
McCall's History of Georgia, vol. i. pp. Memoir of Oglethorpe, pp. 204, 205. Lon-
124, 125. Savannah. 1811. Hewitt's don. 1867. Harris’ Biographical Me-
Historical Account of the Rise and Prog- morials of Oglethorpe, pp. 194, 195, 369.
ress of the Colonies of South Carolina and Boston. 1841.
NEGRO INSURRECTION IN CAROLINA. 299
ruthless men in Spanish employ, and purposing a forcible pas-
sage through Georgia into Florida, a band of negro slaves assem-
bled at Stono, killed two young men in charge of a warehouse
at that point, and then appropriated the guns and ammunition
there stored. Thus armed, they elected one of their number
captain, and, under his leadership, marched towards the South-
west with colors flying and drums beating. Forcibly entering
the house of Mr. Godfrey, they murdered him, his wife, and chil-
dren, took all the arms, fired the premises, and moved on in the
direction of Jacksonborough. Plundering and burning every
house on their line of march, and killing every white person they
met, they compelled all negroes to join them. Governor Bull,
who was returning to Charlestown from the southward, met this
armed force, and, avoiding it, spread the alarm, which soon
reached the Presbyterian church at Wiltown where the Rev.
Archibald Stobo was preaching to a considerable congregation.
By a law of the province all planters were obliged to carry
their weapons with them when assembled for divine worship.
This regulation, at the present critical juncture, proved most
useful. Leaving the women in the church, the men, under the
command of Captain Bee, hastened in pursuit of the negroes
who were each moment becoming more formidable in numbers.
They had now marched about twelve miles and had spread des-
olation through all the settlements adjacent to and upon their
route. Having found rum in some of the houses, they drank
freely of it. When overtaken by the whites, they had halted in
an open field where they were singing and dancing and indulging
in yells of barbaric triumph. Circumventing them to prevent
escape, the planters moved upon them, killing some, capturing
others, and dispersing the rest. The leaders and first insurgents
were summarily dealt with.
Profound were the terror and consternation caused by this
servile insurrection. During its short continuance more than
twenty persons were murdered, and many valuable dwellings burnt
to the ground. But for the timely intervention of the armed
planters worshiping at Wiltown church, the destruction of life
and property would have been far greater, and it is not improb-
able that the uprising thus inaugurated would have become wide-
spread. Advised of this unhappy transaction, General Ogle-
thorpe issued a proclamation requiring the apprehension of all
negroes found within the limits of the province of Georgia, offer-
ing a reward for runaways, and detailing a company of rangers
300 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
to patrol the southern frontier “and block up all passages by
which they might make their escape to Florida.” I
The negro population in South Carolina at this time was esti-
mated at forty thousand. The whites did not number more than
five thousand. Grasping with stupid avidity at the most des-
perate suggestions which promised license and booty, those slaves
had, on more than one occasion, been seriously tampered with
by the Spaniards. The permicious infuence exerted by such
emissaries may be more easily conjectured than described. That
the authorities at St. Augustine encouraged insurrection and de-
sertion among the Carolina slaves, suggested a general massacre
of the whites both in South Carolina and Georgia, and promised
soldiers’ pay and rations to all who should find their way to
Florida, cannot be doubted. Negro sergeants were employed on
recruiting service, with secret rendezvous in Carolina. Two
Spaniards were apprehended in Georgia and committed to prison
for enticing slaves from their Carolina masters. Thus did Spain
grow daily more and more offensive. in the development of her
plans for the annoyance, disquietude, and destruction of the
English colonies adjacent to her possessions in Florida. To the
vigilance of Oglethorpe and the services of his scouts was Caro-
lina largely indebted for the retention of her slave property, and
for deliverance from the horrors of a general servile insurrection.
In making up and explaining his accounts Causton had been
dilatory and perverse. During a conversation with Mr. Jones he
insinuated that General Oglethorpe “very well knew what ex-
traordinary occasions had created these great exceedings; which
the Trustees not approving of, he [Causton] was given up to be
driven to ruin.” Informed of these aspersions, the general at
once came to Savannah and, sending for Causton, in the presence
of Colonel Stephens and Mr. Jones reprimanded him for the
freedom he had taken with his name. “If,” he added, “in the
course of your inquiries you find any written orders from me,
you ought to produce them; or, if you have verbal orders only,
you should not scruple to charge them to my account and leave
me to exonerate myself: or, if in divers cases you have no
other plea than the necessity of the service, you ought to set
forth what that necessity was, leaving it to the Trustees how
far it may content them.” Then recommending him to use
1 Historical Account of the Rise and Prog- London. MDCCLXXIX, McCall's His
ress of the Colonies of South Carolina and tory of Georgia, vol. i. pp. 125, 126.
Georgia, vol. ii. pp. 72-74.
FINANCES OF THE COLONY. 301
neither delays nor shifts in making up his accounts, he dismissed
him."
It was during this short visit that Oglethorpe heard for the
first time a sermon from the Rev. Mr. Norris, newly arrived in
Savannah. With his excellent, practical discourse, “exhorting
to holiness of life as a means of forgiveness through Christ's
death,” he was well pleased. In his utterances this clergyman
seems to have given much satisfaction to the venerable Colonel
William Stephens, whose opinion was that “sublime points in
divinity are ill-suited to a young colony, where the preacher's
labours would be best bestowed in plainly setting forth the sad
consequences of a vicious life, the amiableness of the Christian
religion, with the certain rewards attending the practice of it;
and inculcating those duties to God and our neighbour which are
so essential to religion, and the practice of which, we are taught
to hope, through the mediation of our Saviour will be accepted,
though not through any merit of our own : relying on Him in
faith.” 2 *
So occupied was Oglethorpe with the military affairs of the
Southern portion of the province he found it impracticable to re-
turn to Savannah during the remainder of the year, as he hoped
to do, that he might open a Court of Claims rendered necessary
by Causton's extravagance and confusion of accounts.
As exhibiting a partial statement of the finances of the colony,
and furnishing an explanation of the circumstances under which
the trustees became largely in arrears in meeting the current
expenses of the province, we submit the following extract from
a letter penned by Oglethorpe at Frederica, dated the 20th of
November, 1738, and addressed to the Right Honorable Thomas
Winnington, Paymaster of the Forces: “The Parliament, to
defray the charges of the improvements of the Colony of Georgia
and the military defence thereof used to grant £20,000 for the
year. The King ordered a regiment for the defence of the Col-
ony and thereupon the Trustees were contented to abate £12,000
in their demands, and £8,000 only was granted to them. But as
the Regiment did not arrive till near a year afterwards, the Trus-
tees were obliged to support the military charge of the Colony
during the whole time, which was very dangerous by reason of
the threatened invasion of the Spaniards, of which you received
so many accounts. No officer of the Trustees dared abandon
* See Wright's Memoir of General Ogle- 2 Journal of Proceedings in Georgia,
thorpe, p. 206. London. 1867. Vol. i. p. 309. London. MDCCXLII.
302 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
a garrison, reduce any men, or dismiss the militia whilst the
Spaniards threatened the Province and the King's troops were
not arrived to relieve them. A debt of near £12,000 is con-
tracted because by unforeseen accidents the regiment was delayed
and the military expence was continued till their arrival, though
the Parliamentary grant ceased.” He then entreats Mr. Win-
nington to aid the trustees in their application to Parliament for
a sum sufficient to discharge the debt thus incurred; and for the
excellent reason that “if the people who furnished with neces-
Saries a colony then threatened with invasion, and the people
who then bore arms for the defence of it (and thereby secured
that important frontier till the arrival of the King's troops)
should be ruined by not being paid their just demands, it would
prevent hereafter any frontier colony from receiving assist-
ance.” 1
Private contributions in aid of the colonization had each year
grown smaller. The self-sustaining abilities of the province dis-
appointed expectation. Utterly unable were the trustees to de-
fray the charges incident to the support of the civil and military
list. The fortifications lacked cannon and munitions of war, and
many of the inhabitants clamored for food. In this emergency
Parliament granted £20,000 which enabled the common council
to redeem all outstanding obligations and provide for the further
and efficient administration of the trust.
The impoverished condition of the province, the scarcity of
supplies, Causton's defalcation, the spasmodic and unsatisfac-
tory nature of the agricultural operations near Savannah, the
enervating character of the climate, the disappointments which
had been experienced in the effort to compass a comfortable sup-
port and accumulate wealth, the departure of not a few colonists,
who, crossing the river, sought better fortunes in South Caro-
lina where lands were granted in fee and the ownership of slaves
was permitted by law, and the ruinous outlook, coupled with
much dissatisfaction and lack of industry on the part of some of
the settlers, induced the magistrates to unite with the freeholders
dwelling in Savannah and its vicinity in a petition to the trustees
in which, after expressing their disappointment that the hopes
held out to them in England of pleasant and profitable homes in
Georgia had not been realized; after asserting that their best
exertions in tilling the soil had failed to procure sufficient provis-
ions and the means requisite for purchasing clothing and medi-
1. Notes and Queries, 3d S. vol. x. p. 64. _ -- -
PETITION OF MAGISTRATES AND FREEHOLDERS. 303
cines; after declaring that, in the absence of cheap slave labor,
they were unable to compete successfully with their neighbors in
Carolina; after expressing the conviction that the cultivation of
silk and wine could never be made remunerative so long as white
servants only were employed; after assuring the trustees that
commerce languished because, not being possessed of the fee in
their lands and improvements, they were incapable of offering
them as security to merchants in procurement of goods as Was
frequently done in other English provinces; after alluding to
the numbers who had left the plantation because of the preca-
rious land titles existent therein, and the small accessions which
had of late been made to the population of the province; and
after referring to other causes which retarded the progress of the
settlement, they invoked serious and immediate consideration by
the trustees of the “two following chief causes of their misfor-
tunes: ” —
“First. The Want of a free Title or Fee Simple to our Lands,
which, if granted, would both occasion great Numbers of new
Settlers to come amongst us, and likewise encourage those who
remain here chearfully to proceed in making further Improve-
ments, as well to retrieve their sunk Fortunes, as to make Provis-
ion for their Posterity.
“Second. The Want of the Use of Negroes with proper Lim-
itations; which, if granted, would both induce great Numbers of
White People to come here, and also render us capable to subsist
ourselves by raising provisions upon our Lands until we could
make some Produce fit for Export, and in some measure to bal-
ance our Importation. We are very sensible of the Inconven-
iences and Mischiefs that have already, and do daily arise from
an unlimited Use of Negroes; but we are as sensible that these
may be prevented by a due Limitation, such as so many to each
White Man, and so many to such a Quantity of Land; or in
any other manner which your Honours shall think most proper.
By granting us, Gentlemen, these two Particulars, and such other
Privileges as his Majesty's most dutiful Subjects in America
enjoy, you will not only prevent our impending Ruin, but, we
are fully satisfied, also will soon make this the most flourishing
Colony possessed by his Majesty in America, and your Memories
will be perpetuated to all future Ages, our latest Posterity sound-
ing your Praises as their first Founders, Patrons and Guardians;
but if, by denying us those Privileges, we ourselves and Families
are not only ruined, but even our Posterity likewise, you will
304 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
always be mentioned as the Cause and Authors of all their Mis-
fortunes and Calamities; which we hope will never happen.” I
This petition was dated at Savannah on the 9th of December,
1788, and was signed by one hundred and twenty-one of the male
inhabitants.
The submission of this memorial coming to the knowledge of
the Scotch at New Inverness, eighteen prominent members of
that community, on the 3d of January, 1789, addressed the fol-
lowing communication to His Excellency General Oglethorpe:
“We are informed that our Neighbours of Savannah have
petitioned your Excellency for the Liberty of having Slaves.
We hope, and earnestly entreat that before such Proposals are
hearkened unto your Excellency will consider our Situation and
of what dangerous and bad Consequence such Liberty would be
to us, for many Reasons;
“I. The Nearness of the Spaniards who have proclaimed Free-
dom to all Slaves who run away from their Masters makes it
impossible for us to keep them without more Labour in guard-
ing them than what we would be at to do their work:
“II. We are laborious, and know that a White Man may be
by the Year more usefully employed than a Negro:
“III. We are not rich, and becoming Debtors for Slaves, in
case of their running away or dying, would inevitably ruin the
poor Master, and he become a greater Slave to the Negro Mer-
chant, than the Slave he bought could be to him :
“IV. It would oblige us to keep a Guard-duty at least as severe
as when we expected a daily Invasion; and if that was the Case,
how miserable would it be to us and our Wives and Families to
have an Enemy without and more dangerous ones in our Bosom
“V. It is shocking to human Nature that any Race of Man-
kind, and their Posterity should be sentenced to perpetual
Slavery; nor in Justice can we think otherwise of it than that
they are thrown amongst us to be our Scourge one Day or other
for our Sins; and as Freedom to them must be as dear as to us,
what a Scene of Horror must it bring about ! And the longer it
is unexecuted, the bloody Scene must be the greater. We there-
fore, for our own sakes, our Wives and Children, and our Pos-
terity, beg your Consideration, and intreat that instead of intro-
ducing Slaves, you’ll put us in the way to get us some of our
Countrymen, who with their Labour in time of Peace, and our
1 Account shewing the Progress of the Colony of Georgia in America, etc., Pp.
59, 63. London. MDCCXLI.
LETTER OF THE SALZBURGERS. 305
Vigilance if we are invaded, with the Help of those, will render
it a difficult thing to hurt us, or that Part of the Province we
possess. We will forever pray for your Excellency, and are with
all Submission,” 1 etc.
True to the prejudices and the traditions of their nation, and
confident in their manhood, so spake these hardy sojourners on
the southern confines of the colony.
Indorsing the protest thus filed by the people of Darien, com-
mending their own industry and success, and auguring well for
the future, the ministers of the Ebenezer Congregation and forty-
nine Salzburgers signed and forwarded to General Oglethorpe
the following letter, dated the 13th of March, 1739.
“We Saltzburghers, and Inhabitants of Ebenezer that have
signed this Letter, intreat humbly in our and our Brethren's
names, your Excellency would be pleased to shew us the Favour
of desiring the honourable Trustees for sending to Georgia
another Transport of Saltzburghers to be settled at Ebenezer. We
have, with one Accord, wrote a Letter to our Father in God, the
Reverend M. Senior Urlsperger, at Augspurg, and in that Letter
expressly named those Saltzburghers and Austrians whom, as our
Friends, Relations, and Countrymen, we wish to see settled here.
We can indeed attest of them that they fear the Lord truly, love
Working, and will conform themselves to our Congregation.
We have given them an Account of our being well settled, and
being mighty well pleased with the Climate and Condition of
this Country, having here several Preferences in spiritual and
temporal Circumstances for other People in Germany, which
your Honour will find in the here inclosed Copy of our Letter to
Mº Senior Urlsperger, if they fare as we do, having been pro-
vided in the Beginning with Provisions, a little Stock for Breed,
some Tools, and good Land by the Care of the honorable Trus-
tees; and if God grants his Blessing to their work, we doubt not
but they will gain with us easily their Bread and Subsistence,
and lead a quiet and peaceable Life in all Godliness and Honesty.
“Though it is here a hotter Season than our native Country
is, yet not so extremely hot, as we were told on the first time of
our Arrival; but since we have been now used to the Country
we find it tolerable, and, for working People, very convenient;
setting themselves to work early in the Morning till Ten O'Clock;
and in the Afternoon from Three to Sun-set; and having Busi-
1. An Acceount shewing the Progress of the Colony of Georgia in America, etc.,
pp. 64, 65. London. MDCCXLI.
20
306 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
ness at Home, we do them in our Huts and Houses in the Mid-
dle of the Day till the greatest Heat is over. People in Ger-
many are hindered by Frost and Snow in the Winter from doing
any work in the Fields and Vineyards; but we have this Prefer-
ence to do the most and heaviest Work at such a time, prepar-
ing the Ground sufficiently for planting in the Spring. We were
told by several People, after our Arrival, that it proves quite im-
possible and dangerous for White People to plant and manufac-
ture any Rice, being a Work only for Negroes, not for European
People ; but having Experience of the contrary we laugh at such
a Talking, seeing that several People of us have had, in last
Harvest, a greater Crop of Rice than they wanted for their own
Consumption. If God is pleased to enable us by some Money
for building such Mills, convenient for cleaning the Rice, as we
use in Germany for making several Grains fit for eating, then the
Manufacture of Rice will be an easy and profitable thing. For
the present we crave your Excellency’s Goodness to allow, for
the Use of the whole Congregation, some Rice Sieves, of several
Sorts, from Charles-Town, which cannot be had at Savannah ;
We will be accountable to the Store for them.
“Of Corn, Pease, Potatoes, Pomkins, Cabbage, &c., we had
such a good Quantity that many Bushels are sold, and much was
spent in feeding Cows, Calves, and Hogs. If the Surveyor, ac-
cording to his Order and Duty, had used Dispatch in laying out
our Farms, (which we have got not sooner than last Fall) item, if
not, we all were disappointed by long Sickness, and planting the
yellow Pensilvania Corn ; we would have been able, by the
Blessing of God to spare a greater Quantity of Grain for getting
Meat-Kind and Cloathes, of which we are in Want. It is true
that Two-Acres of Ground for each Family's Garden are set out
some time ago, but being there very few Swamps fit for planting
of Rice, and some Part of them wanting a good deal of Dung,
we were not able, in the Beginning, to dung it well; therefore
we could not make such a good Use of those Acres as we now
have Reason to hope, by the Assistance of God, after our Planta-
tions are laid out. Hence it will be that we plant the good
Ground first, and improve the other Soil then when Occasion
will require it, in the best manner we can. In the first Time
when the Ground must be cleared from Trees, Bushes, and Roots,
and fenced in carefully, we are to undergo some hard Labour,
which afterwards will be the easier and more pleasing, when the
hardest Trial is over, and our plantations are better regulated.
PROTEST OF THE SALZBURGERS. 307
A good deal of Time was spent in building Huts, Houses, and
other necessary Buildings in Town and upon the Farms; and
since, we wanted Money for several Expences ; several Persons
of us hired themselves out for some Weeks for building the Or-
phan-house and its Appurtenances; item, The Reverend Mº
Gromaw’s House, which happened to be built in the hottest Sum-
mer Season; and now some of us are employed to build the Rev-
erend Mr Bolzius’ House; which Buildings have taken away
some time from our Work in the Ground ; but the fair Oppor-
tunity of earning some Money at Home was a great Benefit to
us; this now being so, that neither the hot Summer Season nor
anything else hinders us from Work in the Ground, and we wish
to lead a quiet and peaceable Life at our Place.
“We humbly beseech the honourable Trustees not to allow it
that any Negro might be brought to our Place or in our Neigh-
bourhood, knowing by Experience that Houses and Gardens will
be robbed always by them, and White People are in Danger of
Life because of them, besides other great Inconveniences. Like-
wise we humbly beseech you and the Trustees not to allow to
any Person the Liberty of buying up Lands at our Place, by
which, if granted, it would happen that by bad and turbulent
Neighbours our Congregation would be spoilt and poor, harmless
People troubled and oppressed : But we wish and long for such
Neighbours to be settled here whose Good-name and honest
Behaviour is known to us and our Favourers. The Honourable
Trustees have been always Favourers and Protectors of poor and
distressed People; wherefore we beseech you and them they
would be pleased to take us further under their fatherly Care,
that the Remembrance of their Benevolence and Kindness to our
Congregation might be conveyed to our late Posterity, and be
highly praised. We put up our Prayers to God for rewarding
your Excellency and the Honourable Trustees manifold for all
their good Assistance and Benefits which are bestowed upon us,
and beg humbly the Continuance of your and their Favour and
Protection, being with the greatest Submission and Respect, your
Honour's most obedient dutiful Servants,” 1 etc.
It will thus be seen that the colonists were divided in senti-
ment upon the question of the expediency of introducing negro
slaves into the province. General Oglethorpe's views on the sub-
ject are embodied in a letter to the trustees written from Savan-
1 An Account shewing the Progress of the Colony of Georgia in America, etc., pp.
66–69. London. MDCCXLI.
308 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
nah on the 12th of March, 1739. In it he states that Mr. Will-
iams, to whom many of them were deeply indebted, had induced
the poor people of Savannah “to sign the petition for Negroes
which affirms that white men cannot work in this Province.”
This assertion he declares he can disprove by hundreds of wit-
nesses, by all the Salzburgers, by the people of Darien, by many
at Frederica and Savannah, and by all in the province who were
industriously inclined. “The idle ones,” he adds, “are indeed
for Negroes. If the Petition is countenanced the Province is
ruined. Mr. Williams and Dr. Tailfeur will buy most of the
lands at Savannah with Debts due to them, and the Inhabitants
must go off and be succeeded by Negroes. Yet the very Debtors
have been weak enough to sign their Desire of Leave to sell.” "
In another communication” to the trustees, written at Frederica
on the 4th of July in the same year, he protests against any
material change in the existing land tenures, advising the trustees
that the “Titles are at present upon a very good Footing, and
that those who made most noise about their Lands were such as
had taken no care to make any use of them.”
Twelve days afterwards, in reporting the status of affairs to
the trustees, he again refers to this subject in the following man-
ner: “There is one Tailfeur, an Apothecary Surgeon who gives
Physick, and one Williams, of whom I wrote to you formerly, a
Merchant, who quitted planting to sell rum. To these two
almost all the Town [Savannah] is in debt for Physick and
Rum, and they have raised a strong spirit to desire that Lands
may be alienable, and then they would take the Lands for the
Debts, monopolize the Country, and settle it with Negroes. They
have a vast deal of Art, and if they think they cannot carry this,
they would apply for any other alteration since they hope thereby
to bring confusion, and you cannot imagine how much uneasiness
I have had here. I hope, therefore, you will make no altera-
tions.” 8
Robert Williams, to whom allusion is made, was open and vio-
lent in his denunciation of the policy pursued by the trustees in
regard to the tenure by which lands in the province were holden
of them, and kept the public mind at Savannah in a constant
ferment on this subject.*
1 Collections of the Georgia Historical 4 Stephens’ Journal of Proceedings,
Society, vol. iii. p. 70. Savannah. 1873. vol. i. pp. 8, 27, 57, 149, 289. London.
2 Idem, pp. 72–79. MDCCXLII.
8 Collections of the Georgia Historical
Society, vol. iii. p. 79. Savannah, 1873.
MALCONTENTS. 309
Possessing some means and a valuable commercial correspond-
ence, he desired to utilize them in the accumulation of wealth.
Hence his anxiety to have the fee simple to lands vested in the
colonists so that they might either pledge or sell them. In either
event he would be able to secure his loans, and finally to become
possessed of much of the landed estate.
Doctor Patrick Tailfer was scarcely less pronounced in his
criticisms upon the conduct of the colony, and in his representa-
tions of existing grievances. He was a thorn in the side of Gen-
eral Oglethorpe, to whom, under the nom de plume of The Plain
Dealer, he addressed a communication upon colonial affairs full
of condemnation, complaint, and sarcasm. He was the chief of
a club of malcontents whose conduct became so notorious that
they were forced, in September, 1740, to quit the province and
take refuge in South Carolina. When thus beyond the jurisdic-
tion of the Georgia authorities, in association with Hugh Ander-
son, David Douglass, and others, he published a Scurrilous tract
entitled “A True and Historical Narrative of the Colony of Geor-
gia in America,” 1 which they dedicated to General Oglethorpe.
In the epistle dedicatory, which may be accepted as a specimen
of the entire production, the authors say: “Under the Influence
of our Perpetual Dictator we have seen something like Aris-
tocracy, Oligarchy, as well as the Triumvirate, Decemvirate, and
Consular Authority of famous Republicks which have expired
many Ages before us. What Wonder then we share the same
Fate? Do their Towns and Villages exist but in Story and Rub-
bish 7 We are all over Ruins. Our Publick-works, Forts, Wells,
Highways, Lighthouse, Store, Water Mills, &c., are dignified like
theirs with the same venerable Desolation. The Log-house in-
deed is like to be the last forsaken Spot of your Empire; yet
even this, thro’ the Death or Desertion of those who should
continue to inhabit it, must suddenly decay; the bankrupt Jailor
himself shall be soon denied the Privilege of human Conversa-
tion, and when this last Moment of the Spell expires, the whole
shall vanish like the Illusion of some Eastern Magician.
“‘— Like Death you reign
O'er silent subjects and a desert Plain.’”
Craving rum, negro slaves, and fee-simple titles to lands, such
disaffected colonists hesitated not to malign the authorities, dis-
quiet the settlers, and belie the true condition of affairs. Georgia
1 Charles-Town, South Carolina, p. 118. Printed by P. Timothy for the authors.
MDCCXLI.
310 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
was certainly in an embarrassed and an impoverished situation.
Her population was increasing but slowly. Labor was scarcely
remunerative, and the Spanish war-cloud was looming up along
her southern borders; but the impression which Dr. Tailfer and
others sought to convey of the status of the colony was exagger-
ated, spiteful, and without warrant.
Having duly considered the petition of the magistrates and
freeholders of Savannah, and taken counsel of General Ogle-
thorpe and other influential inhabitants of the province, the trus-
tees returned the following answer: —
“To the Magistrates of the Town of Savannah in the Province
of Georgia.
“The Trustees for establishing the Colony of Georgia in
America have received by the Hands of Mr Benjamin Ball of
London, Merchant, an attested Copy of a Representation signed
by you the Magistrates, and many of the Inhabitants of Savan-
nah on the 9th of December last, for altering the Tenure of the
Lands, and introducing Negroes into the Province, transmitted
from thence by Mr Robert Williams.
“The Trustees are not surprized to find unwary People drawn
in by crafty Men to join in a Design of extorting by Clamour
from the Trustees an Alteration in the fundamental Laws framed
for the Preservation of the People from those very Designs.
“But the Trustees cannot but express their Astonishment that
you, the Magistrates, appointed by them to be the Guardians of
the People, by putting those Laws in Execution, should so far
forget your Duty as to put yourselves at the Head of this At-
tempt.
“However, they direct you to give the Complainants this
Answer from the Trustees; That they should deem themselves
very unfit for the Trust reposed in them by his Majesty on their
Behalf, if they could be prevailed upon by such an irrational at-
tempt to give up a Constitution, framed with the greatest cau-
tion, for the Preservation of Liberty and Property, and of which
the Laws against the Use of Slaves, and for the Entail of Lands
are the surest Foundations.
“And the Trustees are the more confirmed in their Opinion
of the Unreasonableness of this Demand that they have received
Petitions from the Darien and other Parts of the Province, rep-
resenting the Inconvenience and Danger which must arise to the
good People of the Province from the Introduction of Negroes:
and as the Trustees themselves are fully convinced that besides
REPLY OF THE TRUSTEES. 311
the Hazard attending of that Introduction, it would destroy all
Industry among the White Inhabitants; and that, by giving
them a Power to alien their Lands, the Colony would soon be
too like its neighbours, void of White Inhabitants, filled with
Blacks, and reduced to be the precarious Property of a Few,
equally exposed to domestick Treachery and foreign Invasion :
And therefore the Trustees cannot be supposed to be in any Dis-
position of granting this Request; and if they have not, before
this, signified their Dislike of it, their Delay is to be imputed to
no other Motives but the Hopes they had conceived that Time
and Experience would bring the Complainants to a better Mind.
And the Trustees readily join Issue with them in their Appeal
to Posterity, who shall judge between them, who were their best
Friends, those who endeavoured to preserve for them a Property
in their Lands by tying up the Hands of their unthrifty Pro-
genitors: or they who wanted a Power to mortgage or alien them;
who were the best Friends to the Colony, those who with great
Labour and Cost had endeavoured to form a Colony of his Maj-
esty's Subjects, and persecuted Protestants from other Parts of
Europe; had placed them on a fruitful soil, and strove to secure
them in their Possessions by those Arts which naturally tend to
keep the Colony full of useful and industrious People capable
both to cultivate and defend it, or those who, to gratify the
greedy and ambitious views of a few Negro Merchants, would
put it into their Power to become sole owners of the Province
by introducing their baneful Commodity which, it is well known,
by Sad Experience, has brought our Neighbour Colonies to the
Brink of Ruin by driving out their White Inhabitants, who were
their Glory and Strength, to make room for Blacks who are now
become the Terror of their unadvised Masters.
“Signed by order of the Trustees this Twentieth day of June
1739. BENJ. MARTYN, Secretary. [L. s.]” I
On the 20th of October General Oglethorpe informed the
trustees that their reply had been received and published, and
that the effect produced by it upon the colonists was good. Ac-
companying this response came orders dismissing from office the
magistrates in Savannah who had signed the petition, and ap-
pointing others in their stead. Perceiving that their agitation of
the question of the introduction of negro slavery into the prov-
ince had only confirmed the trustees in their opinions and or-
* An Account shewing the Progress of the Colony of Georgia, etc., pp. 70, 71.
London. MDCCXLI.
312 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA,
ders, the leading malcontents, headed by Dr. Tailfer, who by
their clubs, horse-racing, idleness, and lawless conduct had done
much to debauch the community at Savannah, deserted the col-
Ony.
This was the second time that the trustees had been impor-
tuned to sanction the employment of slave labor within the limits
of Georgia. Twice did they positively refuse the desired permis-
sion. Although such was their determination, and although the
effect of their resolution was pronounced salutary by General
Oglethorpe, it may well be questioned whether the adoption of a
different policy, permitting the introduction of negro slaves un-
der wholesome restrictions, would not have materially advanced
the prosperity of the plantation. Such labor was demanded by
the nature of the soil and climate. The prohibition upon Geor-
gia placed her at a disadvantage when her situation in this re-
gard was contrasted with that of her sister colonies. Indented
white servants had been tried, and the experiment was unsatis-
factory. The clearing and cultivation of malarial lands origi-
nated fevers and various disorders far more prejudicial to the
European than to the African constitution. The potent rays of
the summer's sun enfeebled the white servant, while they shone
harmlessly above the head of the negro laborer. During the
heated term it was the general experience that many of the
whites were incapable of performing half their allotted tasks.
The expenses incident to the employment of white servants were
considerably greater than those connected with the maintenance
of negro operatives. The exclusion of slave labor and the re-
fusal to grant estates in fee did turn aside many planters from
the attractive swamp lands of Southern Georgia and retard the
development of the colony.
Although in their reply of the 20th of June, 1789, the trus-
tees refused to enlarge the tenures of land, in a few months they
concluded to modify their views upon this important subject. Ac-
cordingly, in August of that year they passed a set of ponder-
ous resolutions which they caused to be published in the “London
Gazette” on the 8th of September, and ordered to be inserted also
in the columns of the “Charlestown, South Carolina, Gazette.”
Without reproducing them, we give their purport as condensed
by Benjamin Martyn, secretary of the trustees." With a view
1 Account shewing the Progress of the History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 132 et seq.
Colony of Georgia in America, etc., p. 30. Savannah, 1811.
London. MDCCXLI. Compare McCall's
MODIFICATION OF LAND TENURES. 313
to enlarging the tenure on failure of issue male, and in order to
provide for the widows of grantees, it was ordained that lands
already granted, and such as might thereafter be granted, should,
on failure of issue male, descend to the daughters of the gran-
tees. In case there should be no issue male or female, then the
grantees might devise such lands. In the absence of any devise,
the lands were to descend to the heirs at law of the original gran-
tees. The possession of the devisee could not exceed five hun-
dred acres. Widows of grantees were declared entitled “for
and during the term of their natural lives,” to hold and enjoy
the dwelling-house, garden, and one moiety of the lands of which
their respective husbands died seized.
All persons desiring to avail themselves of the benefit of this
enlargement were notified to present their claims in order that
proper grants might be forthwith, and without charge, prepared
and executed.
While this modification emured to the benefit of the grantee
and confirmed the ownership of the land in his heirs, it permit-
ted only a qualified alienation by way of devise. It did not fully
comply with the request preferred in the petition which we have
just considered.
These resolutions were published by paragraphs in the Charles-
town “Gazette; ” but, as they were not well understood, Colonel
William Stephens was requested on a certain day to read them
at the court-house in Savannah and to explain them. “After
he had finished his task,” says Captain McCall,” “and exerted
his utmost abilities in giving an explanation, one of the settlers
ludicrously remarked that the whole paper consisted of males and
tails : that all the lawyers in London would not be able to bring
the meaning down to his comprehension ; and that he under-
stood as little of its meaning then as he had when Stephens be-
gan. Others wished to know how often those two words had
occurred in the resolutions, that the number ought to be pre-
served as a curiosity, and that the author ought to be lodged in
bedlam for lunacy.”
* History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 140. Savannah. 1811.
CHAPTER XX.
DISSENSIONS AMONG THE OFFICERS OF OGLETHORPE’s REGIMENT. — OGLE-
THORPE VISITS CHARLESTOWN AND EXHIBITS TO THE GENERAL AssEMBLY
OF CAROLINA HIS COMMISSION AS COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF. — REPORT OF
THE CONDITION OF THE COLONY IN. 1739. —OGLETHORPE VISITs CowPTA
TOWN. — CONFERENCE AND TREATY WITH THE INDIANs. – OGLETHORPE
AT SAVANNAH. — LAST ILLNESS AND DEATH OF TOMO-CHI-CHI. — IM-
PENDING WAR WITH SPAIN. — THE SOUTHERN FRONTIER STRENGTHENED.
— SPANISH OUTRAGE ON AMELLA. ISLAND. — OGLETHORPE RETALLATES,
BURNS FORT PICOLATA, AND CAPTURES AND GARRISONS FORT FRANCIS
DE PAPA. — HE APPLIES FOR ADDITIONAL BOATs, ARTILLERY, AND MU-
INITIONS.
IN the midst of his multitudinous and perplexing cares Gen-
eral Oglethorpe was annoyed by unseemly dissensions among the
officers of his regiment. Upon charges preferred by Lieutenant-
Colonel Cochrane, Captain Hugh Mackay was tried by court-
martial and honorably acquitted. Captain Norbury, convicted
by another court-martial of using disrespectful language to his
commanding officer, was ordered to beg his pardon. Not long
afterwards Captain Mackay accused Colonel Cochrane of “fol-
lowing merchandize to the neglect of his duty, selling to the sol-
diers at exorbitant profit, occasioning a spirit of mutiny, and
breaking treaty with the Spaniards.” Upon Captain Mackay's
return from St. Andrew where he had been sent to superintend
the execution of a mutineer by the name of Hurley, he was
assaulted by Colonel Cochrane and beaten with a great stick.
This affray occurred in the presence of General Oglethorpe, who
at once placed both those officers under arrest. As there were
not officers of sufficient rank in the colony to constitute a court-
martial for the trial of Colonel Cochrane, he and Captain Mac-
kay were ordered to report to the War Department in England
that the differences between them might be examined into and
adjusted. The subsequent investigation resulted in the with-
drawal of Lieutenant-Colonel Cochrane from the Georgia forces.
Lieutenant-Colonel Cook succeeded to the vacancy thus created
in Oglethorpe's regiment.
CONDITION OF THE COLONY. 315
On the 3d of April the general presented himself before the
Assembly of South Carolina. His commission as commander-
in-chief of his majesty's forces in that province, as well as in
Georgia, was opened and read. Having, in pursuance of this
authority, regulated the military establishment of that colony,
he returned to Savannah. One company of his regiment was
now garrisoning Fort Frederick, near Beaufort. To stimulate
the industry of the freeholders at and near Savannah, he offered
a bounty, above the current market price, of two shillings per
bushel for all corn, and of one shilling per bushel for such pota-
toes as should be harvested from the crop of the present year.
In a long and interesting letter," dated Frederica, July 4th,
1739, Oglethorpe acquaints the trustees with the general condi-
tion of the province and with his efforts to make it a self-sustain-
ing plantation. He was still embarrassed by Sundry violations
in Savannah of the “Rum Law,” but the efficient conduct of the
magistrates at Frederica had there effectually suppressed the
traffic in that article. His regiment was comfortably housed in
cleft-board buildings. The frontier islands were protected by
regular troops, but additional boats, to facilitate intercommuni-
cation, were needed. There was a lack of watchmen for pre-
Serving the peace of the country, and of horsemen to scour the
woods for the protection of cattle, the apprehension of outlaws,
and the arrest of runaway slaves from Carolina. The plantation
on Amelia Island, under the charge of Mr. Hugh Mackay, was
reported as being in a flourishing condition. Twelve days after-
wards he dispatched Mr. Auspourger to England with twenty
pounds weight of silk. A more generous yield had been pre-
vented by the death of many of the worms. They were being.
bred in a house which had formerly been used as a hospital; and
it was Mr. Camuse's impression that the infection occasioned sick-
ness and destroyed many of them.
Perceiving that the French and Spaniards were endeavoring
to cause disturbances among the Indians who were amicably
inclined toward the colonies of Carolina and Georgia, and to se-
duce them from the allegiance which they acknowledged to the
British Crown, Oglethorpe recognized the necessity of holding a
personal conference with the nations about to assemble at Coweta
Town. The pacification of seven thousand red warriors depended
upon his successful intervention. The salvation of Georgia was
* Collections of the Georgia Historical Society, vol. iii. pp. 72-79. Savannah.
1873.
316 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
involved. The journey was long, fatiguing, and dangerous, but
perils daunted him not.
On the 17th of July, 1739, he set out upon this important ex-
pedition." Accompanied by Lieutenant Dunbar, Ensign Leman,
and Cadet Eyre, and attended by servants, he proceeded in his
cutter up the Savannah. Landing at the Uchee town, five and
twenty miles above Ebenezer, where he had engaged Indian trad-
ers to meet him with saddle and sumpter horses, the general
entered upon his journey of three hundred miles through a track-
less wilderness. Along rough ravines, through tangled thickets,
and over dreary swamps in which the horses mired and plunged,
the travelers patiently followed their native guides. More than
once were they compelled to construct rafts on which to pass
great rivers. Many smaller streams were crossed by wading or
swimming. Wrapped in his cloak, and with his portmanteau for
a pillow, this hardy leader slept upon the ground; or, if the
night happened to be wet, he sheltered himself in a covert of
cypress boughs spread upon poles. For a distance of two hun-
dred miles these adventurers neither saw a human habitation nor
met a living soul. As they neared their journey's end they here
and there found provisions which the primitive peoples they were
about to visit had deposited for them in the woods.
When the general had approached within forty miles of his
destination, he was received by a deputation of chiefs who es-
corted him the remainder of his way to Coweta, the principal
town of the Muskhoghee or Creek Indians. Although the Amer-
ican aborigines are rarely demonstrative, nothing could have ex-
ceeded the joy manifested by these red men on Oglethorpe's
arrival.”
In having undertaken so long and difficult a journey for the
purpose of visiting them, by coming amongst them with only a
few attendants in fearless reliance on their good faith, by the
readiness with which he accommodated himself to their habits,
and by the natural dignity of his deportment, Oglethorpe won
the hearts of his red brothers whom he was never known to
deceive. On the 11th of August the chiefs of the several tribes
assembled, and the great council was opened with all the Solemn
rites prescribed for such occasions. After many “talks,” terms
of intercourse and stipulations for trade were satisfactorily ar-
ranged. Oglethorpe, as one of their beloved men, partook of the
1 Wright's Memoir of Oglethorpe, pp. ? Letter to the Trustees, dated Fort Au-
213, 214. gusta, September 5th, 1739.
OGLETHORPE VISITS COWETA TOWN. 317
Foskey," or black-medicine drink, and smoked the calumet, or
pipe of peace.
On the 21st of the same month was concluded a formal treaty
by which the Creeks renewed their fealty to the king of Great
Britain, and, in terms full and explicit, confirmed their previous
grants of territory. The general, on the part of the trustees,
engaged that the English should not encroach upon their reserves,
and promised that the traders should deal fairly and honestly
with them. The bad conduct of some traders had inflamed the
tempers of the Indians, and Oglethorpe found it very difficult to
assuage their wrath. “If I had not gone up,” he writes, “the
misunderstanding between them and the Carolina traders, fo-
mented by our neighbouring nations, would probably have occa-
sioned a war which, I believe, might have been the result of this
general meeting ; but as their complaints were just and reason-
able, I gave them satisfaction in all of them, and everything is
settled in peace.” The Choctaws were persuaded not to make
war upon the French, and the general was assured by the chiefs
of all the tribes that they would march to his assistance when-
ever he should summon them.
At this conference were present General James Oglethorpe,
commissioner and representative of his majesty King George II. ;
Chickeley Nenia, chief king of Coweta Town, Malatche, mico, son
of Brim, late emperor of the Creek nation, the chiefs and war-
riors of Coweta Town; the king of the Cusetas, Schisheligo,
second mico of the Cusetas, Iskegio, third chief of the Cusetas,
and other chief men and warriors of that nation; Ochaohapko,
one of the chief men of the town of Palachuckolas, Killatee,
chief war captain, and other chief men and warriors, “deputies
with full powers to conclude all things for the said town; ”
Towmawme, mico of the Ufawles, with several other chief men
and warriors commissioned to represent all the towns of that
nation; Matalcheko, captain of the Echeetees, with other chief
men and Warriors of that people; Neathaklo, chief man of the
Owichees, with several other chief men and warriors; Occulla-
viche, chief man of the Chehaws, with other chief men and war-
1 Foskey, a decoction of the leaves and
young shoots of the cassena or yaupon
(Prinos glaber) producing an exhilarating
effect. It is prepared with much formal-
ity, and, being considered a sacred bever-
age, none but the chiefs, war captains,
and priests or beloved men partake of it;
*
/--~~~~ - - --~~
and these only upon special occasions.
Accounts of its preparation and use may
be found in Lawson's Voyage to Carolina,
p. 90, London, 1709; The Natural His-
tory of Florida, by Bernard Romans, p.
94; and Adair's History of the American
Indians, p. 108.
--~
~~ -
* ----
3.18 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
riors; Hewanawge Thaleekeo, chief man of the Oakmulgees,
with several of the chief men and warriors of that nation; the
king of the Oconees, with several chief men and warriors; and
Neachackelo, second chief of the Swagles, with several chief men
and warriors, all empowered to represent their several nations
and to bind them in the convention. The general assembly was
opened by a speech from Oglethorpe, and was conducted accord-
ing to the religious forms and customs observed by the Indians.
After due deliberation it was unanimously resolved that they
would adhere to their ancient love for the king of Great Britain,
and maintain their agreement made in 1733 with the trustees for
establishing the colony of Georgia.
It was further declared that all the territory from the Sa-
vannah to the St. John, including the islands on the coast, and
from the river St. John to Appalache Bay, embracing the Ap-
palache Old-fields, and from that bay to the mountains, did by
ancient right belong to the Creek nation: that they had main
tained that right by force of arms against all opposers, and that
they could show heaps of bones of their enemies who had per-
ished in the attempt to wrest these lands from them. The Indian
commissioners admitted that the Creek nation had long enjoyed
the protection of England, that the Spaniards had no claim upon
the lands indicated, and that they would permit no one except
the Georgia trustees and their colonists to settle upon them. The
grant already made to the trustees, embracing lands upon the
Savannah River, the sea-coast as far as the St. John and as high
as the tide flowed, and all the islands except St. Catharine, OS-
Sabaw, and Sapelo, was reaffirmed and pronounced valid. They
claimed a reservation extending from Pipe-Maker's Bluff to Sa-
vannah.
On the part of the English it was stipulated that they would
appropriate no lands save those mentioned as having been ceded
by the Creek confederacy to the trustees. They also covenanted
to punish any person intruding upon the territory reserved by
the Creeks."
Well might the trustees, in conveying their thanks for the
successful execution of this perilous and important mission, admit
that no one except Oglethorpe had ever engaged so strongly the
affections of the Indians.
Commenting upon this remarkable journey of General Ogle-
1 McCall's History of Georgia, vol. i. appendix No. 3, pp. 863–867. Savannah.
1811.
OGLETHORPE AT ALJGUSTA. 319
thorpe, Mr. Spalding, with no less truth than fervor, remarks:
“When we call into remembrance the then force of these tribes,
—for they could have brought into the field twenty thousand
fighting men, – when we call to remembrance the influence the
French had everywhere else obtained over the Indians, – when we
call to remembrance the distance he had to travel through solitary
pathways . . . exposed to summer suns, night dews, and to the
treachery of any single Indian who knew — and every Indian
knew — the rich reward that would have awaited him for the act
from the Spaniards in St. Augustine, or the French in Mobile,
surely we may proudly ask, what soldier ever gave higher proof
of courage 2 What gentleman ever gave greater evidence of
magnanimity? What English governor of an American province
ever gave such assurance of deep devotion to public duty 2 °
But for this manly conference with the red men in the heart
of their own country, and the admiration with which his presence,
courage, and bearing inspired the assembled chiefs, Oglethorpe
could not have compassed this pacification and secured this treaty
of amity so essential to the welfare of the colony now on the
eve of most serious difficulties with the Spaniards in Florida.
The exposures and anxieties sustained during this visit to
Coweta Town so wrought upon the iron constitution of the gen-
eral that, upon arriving at Fort Augusta on his return toward
Savannah, he was there prostrated by a severe fever. While
thus suffering, he was visited by chiefs from the Chickesas and
the Cherokees. The latter complained that some of their nation
had been poisoned by rum sold to them by the traders. They
were much incensed, and threatened revenge. Upon inquiring
into the matter the general ascertained that some unlicensed
traders had communicated the small-pox to the Indians, who,
ignorant of the method of treating the disease, had fallen vic-
tims to that loathsome distemper. He found it difficult to con-
vince the chiefs of the true cause of the calamity. They were
at length appeased, and departed with the assurance that they
might apprehend no trouble in dealing with the licensed traders
from Georgia, as permits were never granted to those unworthy
of confidence.”
Augusta was now a thriving post, frequented by Indians and
traders. While still here he received information that the gov-
ernor of Rhode Island had issued commissions for fitting out pri-
1 Collections of the Georgia Historical * See Wright's Memoir of Oglethorpe,
Society, vol. i. p. 263. Savannah. p. 219. London. 1867.
MDCCCXL.
320 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
vateers to prey upon Spanish commerce. He was surprised that
a distant colony should have acquired a knowledge of a rupture
with Spain, when Georgia, lying adjacent to Florida and there-
fore in immediate peril, was still in ignorance of an actual or
meditated declaration of war.
Returning to Savannah he there found dispatches announcing
hostilities between England and Spain. On the 3d of October
he assembled the freeholders under arms. At noon they all re-
paired to the court-house. The magistrates in their gowns took
their seats upon the bench, and Oglethorpe sat with them. He
then addressed the multitude, acquainting the citizens of Savan-
nah with the fact that, in the present emergency, they need
entertain no fears of the Indian nations, all of whom had been
brought into closer alliance by the recent convention at Coweta
Town. Although the province lay open to the sea, English frig-
ates would cruise along the coast for its protection, and additional
land forces were expected. The instructions he had received
from his majesty's Secretary of State in reference to the opening
war with Spain were then communicated to them, and the inhab
itants exhorted to activity, watchfulness, and bravery.
The address concluded, the cannons of the fort were dis-
charged, and the freeholders “fired three handsome vollies with
their small arms, as it were in defiance, without the appearance
of any dread of the Spaniards.” "
Observing that the common, from which the trees had been
cut, was now overgrown with bushes, and that the squares and
some of the streets were filled with weeds, the general ordered
the entire male population out on police duty and caused these
spaces to be properly cleared and cleaned. By actual count he
ascertained that there were then in the town about two hundred
men capable of bearing arms. A plenty of bread and beer put
them all in good heart.
And now the colony was called upon to mourn the demise of
one of its best and truest friends, the venerable Tomo-chi-chi.
His final illness was protracted, and he passed away in the full
enjoyment of his mental faculties. The following letter conveys
an interesting account of the last moments and sepulture of this
noted Indian king : —
“SAVANNAH IN GEORGIA, Oct: 10, 1739.
“ King Toma-chi-chi died on the 5th, at his own town, 4 miles
from hence, of a lingering Illness, being aged about 97. He was
1 Stephens' Journal of Proceedings, vol. ii. p. 150. London. MDCCXLII.
DEATH AND BURIAL OF TOMO-CHI-CHI. 321
sensible to the last Minutes, and when he was persuaded his
death was near he showed the greatest Magnanimity and Sedate-
ness, and exhorted his People never to forget the favours he had
received from the King when in England, but to persevere in
their Friendship with the English. He expressed the greatest
Tenderness for Gen. Oglethorpe, and seemed to have no Con-
cern at dying but its being at a Time when his Life might be
useful against the Spaniards. He desired his Body might be
buried amongst the English in the Town of Savannah, since
it was he that had prevailed with the Creek Indians to give
the Land, and had assisted in the founding of the Town. The
Corpse was brought down by Water. The General, attended by
the Magistrates and People of the Town, met it upon the Wa-
ter's Edge. The Corpse was carried into Percival Square. The
pall was supported by the General, Col" Stephens, Col" Mon-
taigut, M* Carteret, Mº Lemon, and Mº Maxwell. It was fol-
lowed by the Indians and Magistrates and People of the Town.
There was the Respect paid of firing Minute Guns from the
Battery all the time during the Burial, and Funeral — firing with
small Arms by the Militia, who were under arms. The General
has ordered a Pyramid of Stone, which is dug in this Neighbour-
hood, to be erected over the Grave, which being in the Centre of
the Town, will be a great Ornament to it, as well as testimony
of Gratitude.
“Tomo-chi-chi was a Creek Indian, and in his youth a great
Warriour. He had an excellent Judgment and a very ready
Wit, which showed itself in his Answers on all Occasions. He
Was very generous, giving away all the rich presents he received,
remaining himself in a wilful Poverty, being more pleased in
giving to others, than possessing himself; and he was very mild
and good natured.” +
Nearly a century and a half have elapsed since these funeral
honors were paid, and the monument ordered by General Ogle-
thorpe has never been erected. Even the precise spot where
this Indian chief was interred has faded from the recollection of
later generations. Neither street nor public square perpetuates
his name, and his memory dwells only in occasional remem-
brance. This should not be. Ingratitude is a grievous fault.
May we not hope for the sake of her good name, in response to
the wish of General Oglethorpe, and as an acknowledgment of
1 Gentleman’s Magazine, vol. x. p. 129. ings, vol. ii. pp. 152, 153. London.
Compare Stephens' Journal of Proceed- MDCCXLIL
21
322 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
the debt of gratitude she owes to this noted Indian, that Savan-
nah, herself a living witness of the enterprise, courage, and taste
of the founder of the colony of Georgia, a city which has ren-
dered such conspicuous tribute to the memories of Greene, and
Pulaski, and Jasper, and the Confederate Dead, will, at no dis-
tant day, cause to be lifted up in one of her high places a suita-
ble monument in just and honorable appreciation of the friend-
ship and services of the venerable Tomo-chi-chi ?
Relying upon the promise made at Coweta, Oglethorpe, early
in October, dispatched runners to the Indian towns requesting
the chiefs of the Creeks and Cherokees to send one thousand
warriors to the southern frontiers to coöperate with him against
the Spaniards. Before leaving Savannah for Frederica he in-
spected the arms, reviewed the militia, distributed ammunition,
accommodated the differences existing among the civil officers,
and granted letters of marque to Captain Davis whom the Span-
iards had misused. The captain soon converted his sloop into a
privateer mounting twenty-four guns.
For years had British trade with America suffered annoyance
and loss from the Spanish guarda-costas. Under various and
frivolous pretenses English merchantmen were seized and carried
into Spanish ports where they were generally confiscated. The
sailors on board were confined and subjected to cruel treatment.
Redress was loudly demanded by the people of England, but Sir
Robert Walpole, conscious of the advantages of peace to a com-
mercial nation, sought to secure by negotiation that satisfaction
which might properly have been demanded at the cannon's
mouth. By the terms of the convention at Pardo, in January,
1739, Spain agreed to pay a sum of money by way of compensa-
tion for the losses sustained by British subjects. With regard to
the territory in dispute between Florida and Georgia it was ar-
ranged that the governors of these respective provinces should
allow matters to remain in statu quo until the boundaries were
settled by commissioners to be named by both courts. This con-
vention was unpopular in England. The neglect on the part of
Spain to pay the stipulated sum at the appointed time furnished
Walpole with a plausible pretext for declaring war. Admiral
Vernon was appointed to the command of a formidable squadron
in the West Indies, and Oglethorpe was ordered to annoy the
Spanish settlements in Florida."
Acting under instructions from the Duke of Newcastle, he had
1 See Wright's Memoir of Oglethorpe, p. 224. London. 1867.
SPANISH OUTRAGE ON AMELIA ISLAND. 323
for some time abstained from establishing any new posts, and had
not increased his fortifications on the southern frontier. So Soon,
however, as he heard that the stipulations of the convention had
been violated on the part of Spain, he renewed his exertions to
place the colonies of Georgia and South Carolina in a strong
posture of defense. Fortifications were repaired and reinforced.
Vessels of war were detailed to guard the coast. A troop of
rangers was advanced to prevent the Spanish horse from invad-
ing the disputed territory. Indian warriors were summoned
from the interior to act as scouts, and his regiment was put in
fighting trim. Since the withdrawal of his outpost on St. George's
Island in 1736, his most southerly outlook was on Amelia Island.
There a scout-boat was stationed with a crew of sixteen men.
To these the general afterwards added a sergeant's guard. As
Some of the seamen and soldiers had families, there were now
residing on the island about forty persons, whose little settlement
was protected with palisades and a battery of two or three guns.
On the 5th of November, 1739, the general set out for Fred-
erica. Henceforth he was to see little of Savannah. His place
was near the enemy, - his home upon the waters and in the
forts which guarded the southern confines of the colony.
The first blood spilt was by the hand of the Spaniard. On
the 15th of November intelligence was brought to Frederica that
a party of Spaniards had recently landed in the night on Amelia
Island. Concealing themselves in the woods, on the ensuing
morning they shot two unarmed Highlanders who were in quest
of fuel, and then, in the most inhuman manner, hacked their
bodies with their swords. Francis Brooks, commanding the scout-
boat, heard the firing and gave the alarm to the fort which was
garrisoned by a small detachment from Oglethorpe's regiment.
Although pursued, the enemy escaped, leaving behind them the
proofs of their inhuman butchery."
Informed of the outrage, Oglethorpe followed in the hope of
overtaking and punishing its perpetrators. The effort proved
futile; but the general, by way of retaliation, swept the river
St. John, landed on the Spanish main, drove in the out-guards,
* In the account of this transaction con-
tained in the Gentleman’s Magazine for
1740 (vol. x. p. 129), it is stated that
after they were shot the heads of these
two Highlanders were cut off and their
bodies cruelly mangled by the enemy.
The perpetrators of this outrage consisted
of Spaniards, negroes, and Indians. See
letter of General Oglethorpe to the Lieu-
tenant-Governor of South Carolina, dated
November 16, 1739.
The Spanish Hireling Detected, etc.,
pp. 50, 51. London. 1743.
324 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
and burnt three outposts. Marching in the direction of St. Au-
gustine he ravaged the country. For three days he remained
in this locality collecting cattle and endeavoring to provoke the
enemy to combat. At one time the Spanish horse, attended by
negroes and Indians, appeared, but upon being attacked retreated
precipitately and took shelter within their forts. He also dis-
patched Lieutenant Dunbar up the river, with a force, to surprise
Forts St. Francis and Picolata. Landing at night he attempted to
carry the latter, but after an effort of several hours, finding that
the fort could not be reduced without the aid of artillery, he
withdrew.
On new year's day, 1740, Oglethorpe, taking a detachment of
his regiment and accompanied by Captains Mackay and Des-
brisay, Lieutenant Dunbar, Ensigns Mackay, Mace, Sutherland
and Maxwell, Adjutant Hugh Mackay, the rangers, the Chick-
esas under the command of Fanne Mico, Captain Gray, the Uchee
king and his warriors, Hewitt, Hillispilli and Santouchy with
their Creek gun-men, Mr. Matthews and Mr. Jones, conveyed in
a periagua, thirteen boats, and a privateer sloop, ascended the
Alata (or St. John's) River and surprised and burnt Fort Pico-
lata. He then invested Fort St. Francis de Papa, planting four
pieces of cannon for its reduction. Although the enemy at first
refused to surrender, and briskly returned the infantry fire di-
rected against the tower, the second discharge from the artillery
evoked a cry for quarter. At the time of its capitulation this
fort was armed with two pieces of cannon, one mortar, and
three swivel guns. The situation of this fortification was impor-
tant, being within twenty-one miles of St. Augustine, in the
midst of a territory well stocked with cattle and horses, and com-
manding the ferry across the river to Picolata. In carrying this
post General Oglethorpe narrowly escaped death from a can-
non shot. Deeming it too valuable a point to be abandoned, he
strengthened its defenses and occupied it with a garrison."
In his dispatches to the trustees the absence of an adequate
supply of Scout-boats is earnestly deprecated. Although the
French had attacked the Carolina Indians, although the Span-
iards had thus inaugurated their hostile demonstrations against
Georgia, and although they seemingly were preparing to put into
execution their threat “to root the English out of America,”
1 For full details of these incursions, ruary, 1740. Collections of the Georgia
see letter of General Oglethorpe to Colo- Historical Society, vol. iii. pp. 105-108.
nel Stephens, dated Frederica, 1st Feb- Savannah. 1873,
ST. AUGUSTINE TO BE ATTACKED. 325
Oglethorpe thus writes: “We here are resolved to die hard and
will not lose one inch of ground without fighting; but we cannot
do impossibilities. We have no cannon from the king, nor any
others but some small iron guns bought by the Trust. We have
very little powder, no horse for marching, very few boats, and no
fund for paying the men but of one boat. The Spaniards have a
number of launches, also horse, and a fine train of artillery well
provided with stores. The best expedient I can think of is to
strike first. As our strength consists in men, and as the people
of the colony as well as the old soldiers handle their arms well
and are desirous of action, I think the best way is to make use
of our strength, beat them out of the field, and destroy their
plantations and out-settlements, – in which the Indians, who are
very faithful, can assist us, – and to form the siege of Augus-
tine, if I can get artillery. It is impossible to keep this Prov-
ince or Carolina without either destroying Augustine or keeping
horse-rangers and scout-boats sufficient to restrain their nimble
parties. I must therefore again desire you would insist for our
having an establishment of four ten-oared boats to the south-
ward and one at Savannah, as well as a train of artillery, some
gunners, and at least 400 barrels of cannon and 100 barrels of
musquet powder, with bullets proportionable.
“I am fortifying the town of Frederica, and I hope I shall
be repaid the expences; from whom I know not. Yet I could
not think of leaving a number of good houses and merchants’
goods, and what is much more valuable, the lives of men, women,
and children in an open town, at the mercy of every party,
and the inhabitants obliged either to fly to a fort and leave their
effects, or suffer with them.”
CHAPTER XXI.
OGLETHORPE PREPARES FOR AN ADVANCE UPON ST. AUGUSTINE. — AID IN-
VOKED AND RECEIVED FROM SOUTH CAROLINA. — SIEGE OF ST. AUGUS-
TINE. — OGLETHORPE’s COTTAGE NEAR FREDERICA. — DESCRIPTION OF
FREDERICA IN 1740. — VILLAGE OF ST. SIMON. — MILITARY Posts ON
THE SOUTHERN FRONTIER. — VILLAGE OF BARRIMACKE. — EFFICIENT SER-
VICES RENDERED BY INDIAN ALLIES.
HIS plan for inaugurating offensive operations having been
approved by the home authorities, ascertaining that the galleys
which had been guarding the St. John's River and the upper
coast of Florida had been withdrawn and sent to Havana for
reinforcements and supplies, and learning that the garrison at St.
Augustine was suffering for lack of provisions, General Ogle-
thorpe deemed it a fitting season to attempt the reduction of that
town and the expulsion of the Spaniards from the province of
which it was the capital.
Admiral Vernon was instructed to demonstrate against the
Spanish possessions in the West Indies, while Oglethorpe con-
ducted all his available forces against the seat of Spanish domin-
ion in Florida. The assistance of South Carolina was urgently
invoked, but the authorities at first would not acquiesce in the
feasibility of the enterprise."
1 In a letter dated Frederica, December
29, 1739, General Oglethorpe explained
to the Carolina authorities his designs
against St. Augustine, and the assistance
he desired to receive from that province.
A requisition was therein made for twelve
eighteen-pounder guns, with two hundred
rounds of ammunition for each piece, one
mortar with proper complement of powder
and bombs, eight hundred pioneers, either
negroes or white men, and the requisite
tools, “such as spades, hoes, axes, and
hatchets, to dig trenches, make gabelines,
and fascines.” Vessels and boats sufficient
to transport the artillery, men, and provis-
ions, and six thousand bushels of corn or
rice to feed the thousand Indians who
were to unite in the expedition, were
also demanded. He desired that as many
horsemen as could be collected should, un-
der the guidance of Mr. McPherson or Mr.
Jones, cross the Savannah and rendezvous
at the ferry on the “Alata.” River, from
which point they would be conducted into
“Spanish Florida.” It was suggested that
fifty good horsemen might be raised at
“Purrisburg,” and that four months’ pro-
visions for four hundred men of his regi-
ment should be contributed, and boats suf-
ficient to transport them. Of artillery on
hand the general reported thirty-six coe-
horns and about eighteen hundred shells.
In addition to the four hundred men
drawn from his regiment, and the Indians
OGLETHORPE PREPARES TO INVADE FLORIDA. 327
A rapid movement being regarded as essential to success, Gen-
eral Oglethorpe repaired to Charlestown to urge early and potent
coöperation. As a result of the conference which there ensued,
the legislature, by an act approved April 5, 1740, agreed to con-
tribute a regiment of five hundred men, to be commanded by
Colonel Vanderdussen, a troop of rangers, presents for the In-
dians, and three months' provisions. A large schooner, convey-
ing ten carriage and sixteen swivel guns and fifty men under the
command of Captain Tyrrell, was also furnished for the expe-
dition. Commodore Vincent Price, with a small fleet, pledged
his assistance.
On the 1st of April General Oglethorpe published a mani-
festo, in which, recognizing Alexander Vanderdussen, Esq., as
colonel of the Carolina regiment, he empowered him for the space
of four months to hold regimental courts-martial for the trial of
offenders. At the expiration of that period all connected with
that regiment were to be suffered to return to their homes. To
the naval forces uniting in the expedition a full share of plunder
was guaranteed. To the maimed and wounded, and to the wid-
ows and orphans of such as might perish in the service, was
promised whatever share of the spoils should fall to the lot of the
general-in-chief. Indian enemies, if taken captive, were to be
treated as prisoners of war, and not as slaves."
The mouth of the St. John was designated as the point of
rendezvous.
Runners were sent from the Uchee town to the Indian allies to
inform them of the contemplated demonstration against St. Au-
gustine and to request a concentration of their warriors at Fred-
erica at the earliest moment. This done, the general returned
at once to St. Simon's Island where he devoted himself to equip-
ping his troops and collecting the requisite munitions of war.
* Pausing not for the arrival of all his forces, and wishing to
reduce the posts through which the enemy derived supplies from
the country, General Oglethorpe, with four hundred men of his
own regiment and a considerable band of Indians, led by Molo-
chi, son of Prim, the late chief of the Creeks, Raven, war chief
of the Cherokees, and Toonahowi, nephew of Tomo-chi-chi, on
whom he had engaged, he expected to be plete Collection of Voyages and Travels,
able to arm and utilize for the expedition vol. ii. pp. 338, 339. London. 1748.
about two hundred men of the Georgia See also The Spanish Hireling Detected,
colony, if arrangements could be made for etc., pp. 52–57. London. 1743.
paying and feeding them. * See Harris' Memorials of Oglethorpe,
For this letter in full, see Harris’ Com- pp. 378, 380. Boston. 1841.
328 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
the 9th of May passed over into Florida and, within a week, suc-
ceeded in repossessing himself of Fort Francis de Papa, and in re-
ducing Fort Diego,” situated on the plains about twenty-five miles
distant from St. Augustine. The latter work was defended by
eleven guns and fifty regulars, besides some Indians and negroes.
Leaving Lieutenant Dunbar and sixty men to hold this post, the
general returned with the rest of his command to the place of
rendezvous where, on the 19th of May, he was joined by Captain
McIntosh with a company of Highlanders, and by the Carolina
troops under Colonel Vanderdussen. The anticipated horsemen,
pioneers, and negroes, however, did not come.
From the best information he could obtain, gathered from
prisoners and otherwise, General Oglethorpe ascertained that
the castle of St. Augustine at that time consisted of a fort built
of soft stone. Its curtain was sixty yards in length, its parapet
nine feet thick, and its rampart twenty feet high, “casemated
underneath for lodgings, and arched over and newly made bomb-
proof.” Its armament consisted of fifty cannon, — sixteen of
brass, – and among them some twenty-four pounders. The gar-
rison had been for some time working upon a covered way, but
this was still in an unfinished condition. The town of St.
Augustine was protected by a line of intrenchments with ten
salient angles, in each of which field pieces were mounted. In
January, 1740, the Spanish forces in Florida, by establishment,
consisted of the following organizations : *—
. . . numbering 100 officers and men.
& 4 100 66 66 66
& 4 100 6& 66 66
1 Troop of Horse . . . . . .
1 Company of Artillery . . . . . . .
3 Independent Companies of old Troops, each
2 Companies of the Regiment of Austurias, each “ 53 “ 64 64
1 Company 66 & 4 “ Valencia, 66 53 “ &é 66
1. 66 6é 66 & 4 Catalonia, 66 53 {{ 66 66
2 Companies “ 66 “ Cantabria, each “ 53 “ &6' 66
2 & 4 &é 66 66 Mercia, each 66 53 66 &é << *
Armed Negroes . . . . . . . . 66 200 “ &é 66
£6 200
White Transports for labor . . . . .
1 Company of Militia (strength unknown).
Indians (number not ascertained).
1 The object of this fort was to guard
the passage of the St. John's River and
maintain communication with St. Marks
and Pensacola. It was a place of some
strength, and the traces of the earth-
work there thrown up may still be seen
about a fourth of a mile north of the ter-
mination of the Bellamy road. Fair-
banks’ History and Antiquities of St. Au-
gustine, pp. 144, 145. New York. 1858.
2 This work had been erected by Don
Diego de Spinosa upon his own estate.
Its remains, with one or two cannon, are
still visible. Idem, p. 144.
8 See letter of General Oglethorpe to
the Lieutenant-Governor of South Caro-
OPERATIONS AGAINST ST. AlJGUSTINE. 329
It was General Oglethorpe's original purpose, as foreshadowed
in his dispatch of the 27th of March, 1740, with four hundred
regular troops of his regiment, one hundred Georgians, and such
additional forces as South Carolina could contribute, to advance
directly upon St. Augustine, and attack, by sea and land, the
town and the island in its front. Both of these, he believed,
could be taken “sword in hand.” He would then summon the
castle to surrender, or surprise it. Conceiving that the castle
would be too small to afford convenient shelter for the two
thousand one hundred men, women, and children of the town,
he regarded the capitulation of the fortress as not improbable.
Should it refuse to surrender, he proposed to shower upon it
“Granado-shells from the Coehorns and Mortars, and send for the
Artillery and Pioneers and the rest of the Aid promised by the
Assembly;” also for Mortars and Bombs from Providence.” If
the castle should not have yielded prior to the arrival of “these
Aids,” he was resolved to open trenches and conduct a siege
which he reckoned would be all the easier, the garrison having
been weakened by the summer's blockade.
About the time of the concentration of the Georgia and Caro-
lina forces for combined operations against St. Augustine, that
town was materially reinforced by the arrival of six Spanish
half-galleys, manned by two hundred regular troops and armed
with long brass nine-pounder guns, and two sloops loaded with
provisions.
Warned by the preliminary demonstration which eventuated,
as we have seen, in the capture of Forts Francis de Papa and
Diego, the enemy massed all detachments within the lines of St.
Augustine, collected cattle from the adjacent region, and pre-
pared for a vigorous defense.
Apprehending that he might not be able to carry the town by
assault from the land side, where its intrenchments were strong
and well armed, unless supported by a demonstration in force
from the men-of-war approaching the town where it looks to-
ward the sea and where it was not covered by earthworks, and
being without the requisite pioneer corps and artillery train for
the conduct of a regular siege, before putting his army in motion
General Oglethorpe instructed the naval commanders to rendez-
lina, under date December 29, 1739. The * Spanish Hireling Detected, etc., pp.
Spanish Hireling Detected, etc., pp. 57, 58. 59–61. London. 1743.
London. 1743. Collections of the Georgia * Of South Carolina.
Historical Society, vol. iii. pp. 108, 109.
Savannah. 1873.
330 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," 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 coöperate 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 outpost on the North
River, about two miles north of St. Au-
gustine. A fortified 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 creek 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.
SIEGE OF ST. ADGUSTINE. 331
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."
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.” 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-
* 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 erection.
Four mortars and forty coehorns were
employed in the siege.
See Fairbanks’ History and Antiqui-
ties of St. Augustine, p. 146. New York.
1868.
* The light guns, at long range, caused
trifling effect upon the strong walls 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.
332 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,"
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.
THE SIEGE OF ST. AUGUSTINE RAISED. 333
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."
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.” 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 Guard with him, and escaped to Charles
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 foul Men of his
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.
* Wright's Memoir of General James
Oglethorpe, p. 254, London, 1867.
334 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.” I
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
might 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.
ILLNESS OF GENERAL OGLETHORPE. 335
few against its brave and distinguished leader.' 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.”
For two months after the termination of this expedition Ogle-
thorpe lay ill of a continued fever contracted during the ex-
posures and fatigues 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, etc., 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-
ceedings, etc., vol. ii. pp. 438, 444-448, 461
et aliter. London. 1742 Hewitt's His-
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
Historical 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.
336 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
to all whom he talked with, though he chose to converse with
very few.” I
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.”
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.
OGLETHORPE'S COTTAGE. 337
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,” + “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 Demeré, 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.” 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,” 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 In this estimate must necessarily be in-
Society, vol. i. p. 273. Savannah. 1840, cluded such officers and men of Ogle-
* Collections of the Georgia Historical thorpe's regiment as were there stationed.
Society, vol. i. p. 274. Savannah. 1840. * Page 106. Charles-Town, South Car-
Bancroft's History of the United Sates, olina. 1741.
vol. ii. p. 434. Boston. 1852.
22
338 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” 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 Oath, etc., p. 11. 264. London, 1867. *
London. 1742. An Account shewing the
Progress of the Colony of Georgia, etc.,
SOUTHERN FORTIFICATIONS. 339
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 Barrimacké, of twenty-
four families.
Upon Amelia Island, where the orange-trees were growing
wild in the woods, were stationed the Highlanders with their
scout-boats. They had a good plantation upon which they raised
corn enough for their subsistence, a little fort, and “a stud of
horses and mares.” "
“Nowhere,” remarks Mr. Spalding,” “had mind, with the
limited means under its control, more strongly evinced its power.
And it will be seen hereafter that it was to the great ability
shown in the disposition of these works that not Georgia only
but Carolina owed their preservation; for St. Simon's was des-
tined soon to become the Thermopylae of the Southern Anglo-
American provinces.” Besides compassing the improvement of
1 See An Impartial Enquiry into the Memoir of Oglethorpe, p. 264. London.
State and Utility of the Province of Geor- 1867.
gia, etc., p 53. London. 1743. Wright's * Collections of the Georgia Historical
Society, vol. i. p. 258. Savannah. 1840.
340 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
and garrisoning his defensive works along the southern frontier
with the men of his regiment, Oglethorpe kept in active service
considerable bodies of Indians whose mission was to harass the
Spaniards in Florida, annoy their posts, and closely invest St.
Augustine. So energetically did these faithful allies discharge
the duty assigned them, and so carefully did they watch and
thoroughly plague the garrison and inhabitants of St. Augustine,
that they dared not venture any distance without the walls.
Adjacent plantations remained uncultivated. Within the town,
food, fuel, and the necessaries of life became so scarce that the
Spanish government was compelled to support the population by
stores sent from Havana. To the efficient aid of his Indian allies
was Oglethorpe on more than one occasion indebted for the con-
summation of important plans. It would not be an exaggeration
to affirm that to their friendship, fidelity, and valor was the
colony largely beholden not only for its security, but even for its
preservation. “If we had no other evidence,” writes Mr. Spald-
ing, “ of the great abilities of Oglethorpe but what is offered
by the devotion of the Indian tribes to him, and to his memory
afterwards for fifty years, it is all-sufficient ; for it is only master
minds that acquire this deep and lasting influence over other
men.”
CHAPTER XXII.
OGLETHORPE RENEWS HIS DEMAND FOR MEN-OF-WAR AND MILITARY
STOREs. –SCURRILOUS ATTACKS UPON OGLETHORPE AND THE TRUSTEEs’
SERVANTs. – SPANISH FORCES CONCENTRATED FOR THE SUBJUGATION OF
GEORGIA. — ATTACK UPON ST, SIMON's ISLAND, AND ITS HEROIC DE-
FENSE CONDUCTED BY OGLETHORPE. — NARRATIVES OF THIS IMPORTANT
AFFAIR.—OGLETHORPE's CountER BLow DELIVERED AGAINST FLORIDA. —
DESCRIPTIONS OF FREDERICA IN 1743. — OGLETHORPE’s DEPARTURE FOR
ENGLAND. — HIS CHARACTER, SUBSEQUENT CAREER, AND DEATH.
THERE was a lull in the storm, but the skies were still over-
cast. In the distance were heard ominous mutterings portending
the advent of another and a darker tempest. Anxious, but calm,
Oglethorpe scanned the adverse skies and prepared to breast
their fury. On the 12th of May, 1741, he reports to the Duke of
Newcastle the arrival, at St. Augustine, of a reinforcement of
eight hundred soldiers, and informs the home government of a
settled determination on the part of the Spanish authorities to
invade the provinces of Georgia and Carolina so soon as the
result of Admiral Vernon's expedition in the West Indies shall
have been ascertained. He makes urgent demand for men-of-war
to guard the water approaches, for a train of artillery, arms, and
ammunition, for authority to recruit the two troops of rangers to
sixty men each and the Highland company to one hundred, to
enlist one hundred boatmen, and to purchase or build and man
two half galleys. Alluding to the expected advance of the Span-
iards, the writer continues: “If our men of war will not keep
them from coming in by sea, and we have no succour, but de-
crease daily by different accidents, all we can do will be to die
bravely in his Majesty's service. . . . I have often desired as-
sistance of the men-of-war, and continue to do so. I go on in for-
tifying this town, making magazines, and doing everything I can
to defend the Province vigorously, and I hope my endeavours
will be approved of by his Majesty, since the whole end of my
life is to do the duty of a faithful subject and grateful servant.
I have thirty Spanish prisoners in this place, and we continue so
masters of Florida that the Spaniards have not been able to re-
342 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
build any one of the seven forts which we destroyed in the last
expedition.”
It does not appear that the men-of-war and ordnance requested
were ever furnished.
With a little squadron composed of the Guard sloop, the sloop
Falcon, and Captain Davis' schooner Norfolk carrying a detach-
ment of his regiment under command of Major Heron, General
Oglethorpe on the 16th of August, 1741, bore down upon a large
Spanish ship lying at anchor, with hostile intent, off the bar of
Jekyll Sound. A heavy storm intervening, the Spanish vessel
put to sea and was lost to sight. Unwilling to dismiss his minia-
ture fleet until he had performed more substantial service, the
general boldly continued down the coast, attacked and put to
flight a Spanish man-of-war and the notorious privateer Black-
Sloop commanded by Destrade, a French officer, challenged the
vessels lying in the inner harbor of St. Augustine to come out
and engage his small squadron, remained at anchor all night
within sight of the castle, cruised for some days off the Matanzas,
and, after having alarmed the whole coast, returned in safety to
Frederica.
In the midst of these labors and anxieties incident upon his
preparations to resist the threatened Spanish invasion, and at a
time when harmony and content were most essential to the well-
being of the colony, Oglethorpe was annoyed by sundry com-
plaints from evil-minded persons. Most of them were frivolous,
and a few quite insulting in their character. The publication of
two tracts, one entitled “An Impartial Enquiry into the State
and Utility of the Province of Georgia,” and the other “A State
of the Province of Georgia attested upon Oath in the Court of
Savannah, November 10, 1740,” ” both presenting favorable
views of the colony and disseminated in the interest of the trust,
irritated these malcontents and gave rise to several rejoinders,
among which, as particularly reflecting upon the conduct of the
commander-in-chief and his administration of affairs, may be
mentioned “A Brief Account of the Causes that have retarded
the Progress of the Colony of Georgia in America, attested upon
Oath, being a Proper Contrast to “A State of the Province of
Georgia attested upon Oath,’ and some other Misrepresentations
on the same Subject.”? The charge was openly made that some
of the magistrates at Savannah and Frederica (the principal
towns in Georgia) had willfully injured the people by declaring
1 London. 1741. * London. 1742. 8 London. 1743.
COMPLAINTS FROM EVIL–MINDED PERSONS. 343
“from the Bench that the Laws of England were no laws in
Georgia,” by causing “false imprisonments,” by “discharging
Grand Juries while matters of Felony lay before them,” by “in-
timidating Petit Juries,” and, in short, “by sticking at nothing
to oppress the people.” It was further alleged that there was no
way of applying to his majesty for redress. General Oglethorpe
was accused of partiality and tyranny in his administration. In
support of these charges various affidavits were obtained from
parties claiming to be residents of Frederica, Darien, Savannah,
Ebenezer, and Augusta, most of them, however, being sworn to
and verified outside the limits of Georgia. Those who are curious
with regard to the contents of these affidavits, so far as they reflect
upon the conduct of the Frederica magistrates, are referred to
the depositions of Samuel Perkins, John Roberson, and Samuel
Davison."
A desire to sell forbidden articles and to ply trades for which
special permission had been granted to others, opposition to the .
regulation which prohibited the owners of hogs and cattle from
allowing them to run at large on the common and in the streets
of Frederica, alleged misfeasance in the conduct of bailiffs and
under-magistrates in the discharge of their duties, the unprofit-
ableness of labor, overbearing acts committed by those in au-
thority, and similar matters, formed the burthen of these sworn
complaints. While they tended to distract the public mind and
to annoy those upon whose shoulders rested the administration of
affairs, they fortunately failed in producing any serious impression
either within the colony or in the mother country. We allude
to the subject in its proper connection simply as a matter of his-
tory, and to show how ill-judged and ill-timed were these efforts
of the malcontents, among whom Pat Tailfer, M. D., Hugh
Anderson, M. A., and Da: Douglas should not be forgotten.
The utter destruction of the provinces of Georgia and South
Carolina was the avowed object of the Spaniards, who promised
to extend no quarter to English or Indians taken with arms in
their hands. The struggle was to be desperate in the extreme.
To the urgent applications for assistance forwarded by General
Oglethorpe, Lieutenant-Governor Bull turned a deaf ear. The
Carolinians, instead of furnishing supplies and munitions of
war, and marching to the south to meet the invader where the
battle for the salvation of both colonies was to be fought, re-
1 A Brief Account of the Causes that Georgia, etc., appendix, pp. 1–19. Lon-
have retarded the Progress of the Colony of don. 1743.
344 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
mained at home, leaving the Georgians single-handed to breast
the storm."
The “Gentleman's Magazine” contains the following estimate
of the Spanish forces under the command of Don Manuel de
Monteano, governor of Augustine and commander-in-chief of the
expedition, and Major-General Antonio de Rodondo, engineer
general, participating in the attack upon St. Simon's Island:—
“2 Colonels with Brevits of Brigadiers.
“One Regiment of Dragoons, dismounted, with their Saddles
and Bridles.
“The Regiment call’d The Battalion of the Havannah.
“10 Companies of 50 each, draughted off from several Regi-
ments of Havannah. -
“One Regiment of the Havannah Militia, consisting of 10
Companies of 100 Men each.
“One Regiment of Negroes, regularly officer'd by Negroes.
“One ditto of Mulattas, and one Company of 100 Miguelets.
“One Company of the Train with proper Artillery.
“Augustine Forces consisting of about 300 Men.
“Ninety Indians.
“And 15 Negroes who ran away from South Carolina.”
From the various accounts of this memorable struggle we select
that prepared by Oglethorpe himself, written on the spot, with
the scars of battle fresh around him and the smoke of the con-
flict scarce lifted from the low-lying shores and dense woods of
St. Simon's Island. The commanding eye that saw, the stern
lips which answered back the proud defiance, and the strong arm
which, under Providence, pointed the way to victory, are surely
best able to unfold the heroic tale. We present the report as
it came from his pen : *—
“FREDERICA IN GEORGIA, 30th July, 1742.
“The Spanish Invasion which has a long time threatened the
Colony, Carolina, and all North America has at last fallen upon
us and God hath been our deliverance. General Horcasilas, Gov-
ernour of the Havannah, ordered those Troops who had been em-
ployed against General Wentworth to embark with Artillery and
everything necessary upon a secret expedition. They sailed with
a great fleet: * amongst them were two half Galleys carrying 120
1 See letter of General Oglethorpe, * See Collections of the Georgia Histor-
dated Frederica, June 8, 1742, Wright's ical Society, vol. iii. p. 133 et seq. Savan-
Memoir of Oglethorpe, p. 298. London. nah. 1873.
1867. * Consisting of fifty-six sail, and be-
2 For 1742, vol. xii. p. 694, tween seven and eight thousand men.
SPANISH INVASION. 345
men each & an 18 pound Gun. They drew but five feet water
which satisfied me they were for this place. By good great For-
tune one of the half Galleys was wrecked coming out." The Fleet
sailed for St. Augustine in Florida. Capt. Homer the latter end
of May called here for Intelligence. I acquainted him that the
Succours were expected and sent him a Spanish Pilot to shew
him where to meet with them. He met with ten sail” which
had been divided from the Fleet by storm, but having lost 18 men
in action against them, instead of coming here for the defence of
this Place he stood again for Charles Town to repair, and I hav-
ing certain advices of the arrival of the Spanish Fleet at Augus-
time wrote to the Commander of His Majesty's Ships at Charles
Town to come to our assistance.”
“I sent Lieut. Maxwell who arrived there and delivered the
letters the 12th of June, and afterwards Lieut. MacKay, who ar-
rived and delivered letters on the 20th of June.
“Lieut. Colonel Cook who was then at Charles Town, and was
Engineer, hastened to England, and his son-in-law Ensign Eyre,
Sub-Engineer, was also in Charles Town, and did not arrive here
till the action was over; so, for want of help, I myself was
obliged to do the duty of Engineer.
“The Havannah Fleet, being joined by that of Florida, com-
posed 51 sail, with land men on board, a List of whom is an-
nexed: they were separated, and I received advice from Capt.
Dunbar (who lay at Fort William with the Guard Schooner of
14 Guns and ninety men) that a Spanish Fleet of 14 sail had at-
tempted to come in there, * but being drove out by the Cannon
of the Fort and Schooner they came in at Cumberland Sound.
I sent over Capt. Horton to land the Indians and Troops on
* This was a large settee having one
hundred and fifty men on board. A few
days afterwards the fleet was dispersed
by a storm, so that all the shipping did
not arrive at St. Augustine.
* These he attacked, driving some of
them ashore.
* “Never did the Carolineans,” says
Mr. Hewitt, “make so bad a figure in
the defence of their country. When
union, activity and dispatch were so req-
uisite, they ingloriously stood at a dis-
tance, and suffering private pique to pre-
vail over public spirit, seemed determined
to risk the safety of their country, rather
than General Oglethorpe by their help
should gain the smallest degree of honour
and reputation. . . . The Georgians with
justice blamed their more powerful neigh-
bors, who, by keeping at a distance in the
day of danger, had almost hazarded the
loss of both provinces.”
Historical Account of the Rise and Prog-
ress of the Colonies of South Carolina and
Georgia, vol. ii. pp. 119, 120. London.
1779.
* This was on the 21st of June. Most
of the accounts place the number of
Spanish vessels, then attempting to enter
Amelia Sound, at nine, instead of four-
teen.
346 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Cumberland. I followed myself and was attacked in the Sound,
but with two Boats fought my way through. Lieut. Tolson,
who was to have supported me with the third and strongest boat,
quitted me in the fight and run into a River where he hid him-
Self till next day when he returned to St. Simon's with an account
that I was lost but soon after found. I was arrived there before
him, for which misbehaviour I put him in arrest and ordered him
to be tryed. The Enemy in this action suffered so much that
the day after they ran out to sea and returned for St. Augustine
and did not join their great Fleet till after their Grenadiers were
beat by Land.
“I drew the Garrison from St. Andrews, reinforced Fort Will-
iam, and returned to St. Simon's with the Schooner.
“Another Spanish Fleet appeared the 28th off the Barr ; by
God’s blessing upon several measures taken I delayed their com-
ing in till the 5th of July. I raised another Troop of Rangers,
which with the other were of great service.
“I took Captain Thomson's ship * into the service for defence
of the Harbour. I imbargoe’d all the Vessells, taking their men
for the service, and gave large Gifts and promises to the Indians
so that every day we increased in numbers. I gave large re-
wards to men who distinguished themselves upon any service,
freed the servants,” brought down the Highland Company, and
Company of Boatmen, filled up as far as we had guns. All the
vessels being thus prepared 4 on the 5th of July with a leading
Gale and Spring Tide 36 sail of Spanish vessels run into the
Harbour in line of Battle.
“We cannonaded them very hotly from the Shipping and
Batterys. They twice attempted to board Capt. Thomson * but
1 In endeavoring to reach St. Augus-
tine for repairs, four of their vessels
foundered at Sea.
2 This was the merchant ship Suc-
cess, mounting twenty guns. The gen-
eral sent one hundred soldiers on board
of her and filled her with necessary
military stores. Thus she became, in
the language of one of her crew, “ready
for twice the number of Spaniards.”
8 For their passage and outfit, they
had agreed to labor for the trust for a
given period.
4 This little fleet consisted of the
Success, Captain Thompson, of twenty
guns and one hundred and ten men, with
springs upon her cables, General Ogle-
thorpe's schooner of fourteen guns and
eighty men, and the sloop St. Philip,
of fourteen guns and eighty men. Eight
York sloops were close in shore, with
one man on board each of them, whose
instructions were, in case the enemy
were about to capture, to sink or run
them on shore.
Gentleman’s Magazine, vol. xii. p. 495.
5 This attempt was made by the Span-
ish commodore with a ship of twenty-
two guns, and a settee with an eighteen-
pounder, and two nine-pounders in her
bow. So stout was the resistance offered
by Captain Thompson with the great guns
NAVAL ENGAGEMENT. 347
were repulsed. They also attempted to board the Schooner, but
were repulsed by Capt. Dunbar with a Detachment of the Regi-
ment on board.
“I was with the Indians, Rangers, and Batterys, and some-
times on board the ships, and left Major Heron with the Regi-
ment. It being impossible for me to do my duty as General and
be constantly with the Regiment, therefore it was absolutely
necessary for His Majesty's service to have a Lieut. Colonel
present, which I was fully convinced of by this day's experience.
I therefore appointed Major Heron to be Lieut. Colonel, and
hope that your Grace will move His Majesty to be pleased to
approve the same.
“The Spaniards after an obstinate Engagement of four hours,
in which they lost abundance of men, passed all our Batterys
and Shipping and got out of shot of them towards Frederica.
Our Guard Sloop was disabled and sunk : one of our Batterys
blown up, and also some of our Men on board Capt. Thomson,
upon which I called a Council of War at the head of the Regi-
ment where it was unanimously resolved to march to Frederica
to get there before the Enemy and defend that Place: & To de-
stroy all the Provisions, Vessels, Artillery, &c., at St. Simon's,
that they might not fall into the Enemy's hands. &
“This was accordingly executed, having first drawn all the
Men on shoar which before had defended the shipping. I myself
staid till the last, and the wind coming fortunately about I got
Capt. Thompson's Ship, our Guard Schooner, and our Prize
Sloop to sea and sent them to Charles Town. This I did in the
face and spite of thirty-six sail of the Enemy: as for the rest
of the Vessells, I could not save them, therefore was obliged to
destroy them.
“I must recomend to His Majesty the Merchants who are suf-
ferers thereby, since their loss was in great measure the preserv-
ing the Province.
“We arrived at Frederica, and the Enemy landed at St.
Simon’s.”
of his ship, by Captain Carr and his com-
pany of marines, and by Lieutenant
Wall and Ensign Otterbridge in charge
of a detachment from Oglethorpe's regi-
ment, that the Spaniards were obliged to
retire with loss. A snow of sixteen guns
at the same time attempted to board the
Guard schooner, but was repulsed by
Captain Dunbar.
See Harris' Complete Collection of Voy-
ages and Travels, vol. ii. p. 341. London.
1748.
* From the statement made by five
Spanish prisoners captured and brought
in by the Creek Indians, it appeared that
Don Manuel de Monteano, governor of
St. Augustine, was the commander-in-
chief of the expedition, and that Major-
348 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
“On the 7th a party of their's marched toward the Town : our
Rangers discovered them and brought an account of their march,
on which I advanced with a party of Indians, Rangers, and the
Highland Company, ordering the Regiment to follow, being re-
solved to engage them in the Defiles of the Woods before they
could get out and form in the open Grounds. I charged them at
the head of our Indians, Highland Men and Rangers, and God
was pleased to give us such success that we entirely routed the
first party, took one Captain prisoner, and killed another, and
pursued them two miles to an open Meadow or Savannah, upon
the edge of which I posted three Platoons of the Regiment and
the Company of Highland foot so as to be covered by the woods
from the Enemy who were obliged to pass thro’ the Meadow
under our fire." This disposition was very fortunate.” Capt.
Antonio Barba and two other Captains with 100 Grenadiers and
200 foot, besides Indians and Negroes, advanced from the Span-
ish Camp into the Savannah with Huzzah's and fired with great
spirit, but not seeing our men by reason of the woods, none of
their shot took place, but ours did.”
General Antonio de Redondo was chief
engineer. He and two brigadier-generals
accompanied the forces which came from
Cuba. The aggregate strength of the
expedition was about five thousand men,
of whom four thousand three hundred
were landed on St. Simon. Heavy Scout-
ing parties were sent out in every direc-
tion by General Oglethorpe to observe
the movements of the enemy and retard
any advance in the direction of Fred-
erica, the defenses of which were being
strengthened as rapidly and as thoroughly
as time and the forces at command would
permit.
1 In this charge Oglethorpe encoun-
tered one hundred and twenty Spanish
pioneers, forty Yemassee Indians, and
an equal number of negroes. So violent
was the onslaught that nearly the whole
party was either captured or slain. With
his own hands the general captured two
prisoners. Captain Sanchio, command-
ing this advance, was taken prisoner by
Lieutenant Scroggs of the rangers, and
Toonahowi, although shot through the
right arm by a Spanish officer, drew his
pistol with his left and killed his antag-
onist on the spot. See Wright's Memoir
of Oglethorpe, p. 305. McCall's History
of Georgia, vol. i. p. 181.
2. After locating his troops, Oglethorpe
hastened back to Frederica to prepare
the rangers and the marine company for
action at a moment's warning.
8 Captain McCall furnishes the follow-
ing account of this affair: Captain Noble
Jones, with a detachment of regulars and
Indians, being out on a Scouting party,
fell in with a small detachment of the
enemy's advance, who were surprised and
made prisoners, not deeming themselves
so far in front of the main army. From
these prisoners information was received
that the whole Spanish army was ad-
vancing: this was immediately commu-
nicated by an Indian runner to the gen-
eral, who detached Captain Dunbar with
a company of grenadiers to join the reg-
ulars and Indians, with orders to harass
the enemy on their advance. These de-
tachments having formed a junction ob-
served at a distance the Spanish army on
the march; and taking a favorable posi-
tion near a marsh, formed an ambuscade.
The enemy fortunately halted within a
hundred paces of this position, stacked
their arms, made fires, and were prepar-
AFFAIR OF THE BLOODY MARSH. 349
“Some Platoons of ours in the heat of the fight, the air being
darkened with the smoak, and a shower of rain falling, retired in
disorder.
“I hearing the firing, rode towards it, and at near two miles
from the place of Action, met a great many men in disorder who
told me that ours were routed and Lieut. Sutherland killed. I
ordered them to halt and march back against the Enemy, which
orders Capt. Demere and Ensign Gibbon obeyed, but another
Officer did not, but made the best of his way to Town. As I
heard the fire continue I concluded our Men could not be quite
beaten, and that my immediate assistance might preserve them :
therefore spurred on and arrived just as the fire was done. I
found the Spaniards intirely routed by one Platoon of the Regi-
ment, under the Comand of Lieut. Sutherland, and the Highland
Company under the Comand of Lieut. Charles MacKay.
“An Officer whom the Prisoners said was Capt. Don Antonio
Barba' was taken Prisoner, but desperately wounded, and two
others were prisoners, and a great many dead upon the spot.
Lieut. Sutherland, Lieut. Charles MacKay and Sergt. Stuart
having distinguished themselves upon this occasion, I appointed
Lieut. Sutherland Brigade Major, and Sergt. Stuart second
Ensign.
“Capt. Demere and Ensign Gibbon being arrived with the
men they had rallied, Lieut. Cadogan with an advanced party of
the Regiment, and soon after the whole Regiment, Indians, and
ing their kettles for cooking, when a
horse observed some of the party in am-
buscade, and, frightened at the uniform
of the regulars, began to snort, and gave
the alarm. The Spaniards ran to their
arms, but were shot down in great num-
bers by Oglethorpe's detachment, who
continued invisible to the enemy; and
after repeated attempts to form, in which
some of their principal officers fell, they
fled with the utmost precipitation, leaving
their camp equipage on the field, and
never halted until they got under cover of
the guns of their battery and ships. Gen-
eral Oglethorpe had detached Major Hor-
ton with a reinforcement, who arrived
only in time to join in the pursuit. So
complete was the surprise of the enemy
that many fled without their arms; others
in a rapid retreat discharged their mus-
kets over their shoulders at their pursuers;
and many were killed by the loaded arms
which were left on the ground: generally
the Spaniards fired so much at random
that the trees were pruned by the balls
from their muskets. Their loss in killed,
Wounded, and prisoners was estimated
at five hundred. The loss in Ogle-
thorpe's detachment was very inconsider-
able. From the signal victory obtained
over the enemy, and the great slaughter
amongst the Spanish troops, the scene
of action just described has ever since
been denominated the bloody marsh. His-
tory of Georgia, vol. i. pp. 185–187. Sa-
Vannah. 1811. Compare Spalding's
“Life of Oglethorpe,” Collections of the
Georgia Historical Society, vol. i. pp. 281–
284. Savannah. 1840.
* The Spaniards regarded the loss of
this officer as more severe than that of a
thousand men.
350 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Rangers, I marched down to a causeway over a marsh very near
the Spanish Camp over which all were obliged to pass, and
thereby stopt those who had been dispersed in the fight in the
Savannah from getting to the Spanish Camp." Having passed
the night there, the Indian scouts in the morning advanced to
the Spanish Camp and discovered they were all retired into the
ruins of the Fort and were making Intrenchments under shelter
of the cannon of the ships. That they guessed them to be above
4,000 men. I thought it imprudent to attack them defended by
Cannon with so small a number but marched back to Freder-
ica” to refresh the soldiers, and sent out Partys of Indians and
Rangers to harrass the Enemy. I also ordered into arrest the
officers who commanded the Platoons that retired.
“I appointed a General Staff: Lieut. Hugh MacKay and
Lieut. Maxwell Aids de Camp, and Lieut. Sutherland Brigade
Major.” On ye 11th of July the Great Galley and two little
ones came up the river towards the Town. We fired at them
with the few Guns so warmly that they retired, and I followed
them with our Boats till they got under the cannon of their ships
which lay in the sound.
“Having intelligence from the Spanish Camp that they had
lost 4 Captains and upwards of 200 men in the last Action, be-
sides a great many killed in the sea-fight, and several killed in
the night by the Indians even within or near the camp, and that
they had held a Council of War in which there were great di-
visions, insomuch that the Forces of Cuba separated from those
of Augustine and the Italick Regiment of Dragoons sep-
arated from them both at a distance from the rest near the
woods, and that there was a general Terror amongst them, upon
which I was resolved to beat up their Quarters in the night and
marching down with the largest body of men I could make, I
halted within a mile and a half of their camp to form, intending
to leave the Troops there till I had well reconitred the Enemy's
disposition.
“A French Man who without my knowledge was come down
amongst the volunteers fired his Gun and deserted. Our In-
dians in vain pursued and could not take him. Upon this, con-
1 In these two engagements the enemy 2 This was on the 8th of July.
sustained a loss of two captains, one 8. During the 9th and 10th of July all
lieutenant, two sergeants, two drum- hands were employed on the works at
mers, and one hundred and sixty privates Frederica, except the scouts and Indians.
killed; and one captain and nineteen These brought in some scalps and pris-
men captured. OL16I S.
THE DECOY LETTER. 351
cluding we were discovered, I divided the Drums in different
parts and beat the Grenadiers march for about half an hour, then
ceased, and we marched back with silence.
“The next day ! I prevailed with a Prisoner, and gave him a
sum of money to carry a letter privately and deliver it to that
French Man who had deserted. This letter was wrote in French
as if from a friend of his, telling him he had received the money;
that he should strive to make the Spaniards believe the English
were weak. That he should undertake to pilot up their Boats
and Galleys and then bring them under the Woods where he
knew the Hidden Batterys were ; that if he could bring that
about, he should have double the reward he had already received.
That the French Deserters should have all that had been prom-
ised to them. The Spanish Prisoner got into their Camp and
was immediately carried before their General Don Manuel de
Montiano. He was asked how he escaped and whither he had
any letters, but denying his having any, was strictly searched and
the letter found, and he upon being pardoned, confessed that
he had received money to deliver it to the Frenchman, for the
letter was not directed. The Frenchman denied his knowing
anything of the contents of the Letter or having received any
Money or Correspondence with me, notwithstanding which, a
Council of War was held and they deemed the French Man to be
a double spy, but General Montiano would not suffer him to be
executed, having been imployed by him: however they imbarqued
all their Troops,” and halted under Jekyl: they also confined all
1 July 13th. never leave behind them such direful Re-
* St. Simon's town was destroyed by membrances; but here religious Fury
the Spaniards prior to their evacuation of goes Hand in Hand with Conquest, re-
the island. To a writer in the London Mag- solv'd to ruin whom they can’t convert.
azine for 1745 (page 549), who made his The Fort has some Remains still, and
observations in the early part of 1743, are seems to have been no extraordinary af-
Weindebted for the following notice of this fair; tho’ no Place was ever better de-
place : “At the South Point of this Isl- fended, and the Enemies seem, by their
and of St. Simon, are the Ruins of the Works and Intrenchments to have thought
Town of St. Simon's destroyed by the themselves sure of keeping the Town,
Spaniards at their Invasion. By the re- but found themselves wofully mistaken.
maining Westiges it must have been a Down the Beach to the westward is a
very uniform Place; and the Situation is Look-out of Tappy-work which is a very
quite charming, tho' it now makes one good Mark for Standing over the Bar into
melancholy to see such a Desolation in so the Harbour; and on the opposite Point
new a Country. The only Building they of Jekyl Island is a very remarkable
left standing was one House which they Hammock of Trees much taken notice of
had consecrated for a Chapel. How dif- by Seamen on the same Account. Some-
ferent the Proceedings of the more gen- what lower and more Northerly is the
erous English even in their Parts who Plantation call’d Gascoign's which under.
352 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
the French on board and imbarked with such precipitation that
they left behind them Cannon, &c., and those dead of their wounds,
unburied. The Cuba Squadron stood out to sea to the number
of 20 sail: General Montiano with the Augustine Squadron re-
turned to Cumberland Sound, having burnt Captain Horton's
houses, &c., on Jekyll. I, with our boats, followed him. I dis-
covered a great many sail under Fort St. Andrew, of which eight
appeared to me plain, but being too strong for me to attack, I
sent the Scout Boats back.
“I went * with my own Cutter and landed a man on Cumber-
land who carried a letter from me to Lieut. Stuart at Fort Will-
iam with orders to defend himself to the last extremity.
“Having discovered our Boats & believing we had landed
Indians in the night they set sail with great haste, in so much
that not having time to imbarque, they killed 40 horses which
they had taken there, and burnt the houses. The Galleys and
small Craft to the number of fifteen went thro’ the inland Water
Passages. They attempted to land near Fort William, but were
repulsed by the Rangers ; they then attacked it with Cannon and
small Arms from the water for three Hours, but the place was so
bravely defended by Lieut. Alexander Stuart that they were re-
pulsed and ran out to sea where twelve other sail of Spanish ves-
sells had lain at anchor without the Barr during the Attack with-
out stirring; but the Galleys being chased out, they hoisted all
the sails they could and stood to the Southward. I followed
them with the Boats to Fort William, and from thence sent out
the Rangers and some Boats who followed them to Saint John's,
but they went off rowing and sailing to St. Augustine.
“After the news of their defeat in the Grenadier Savannah
arrived at Charles Town, the Men of War and a number of Car-
olina People raised in a hurry set out and came off this Barr
after the Spaniards had been chased quite out of this Colony,
where they dismissed the Carolina vessels, and Capt. Hardy
promised in his Letters to cruise off St. Augustine.
went the same Fate with St. Simon's. An
Officer's Command is station'd at South
Point, who disposes his Centries so as
to discover Vessels some Leagues at Sea,
and upon any such Discovery an Alarm-
Gun is fir’d, and an Horseman sent up
with Notice to the Head-Quarters which
is nine miles from this Place. If they
appear to make for the Harbour, a per-
pendicular mounted Gun is fir’d as a
Signal, which, by the Ascent of the Smoke
is a Direction to a Ship a long Way in
the Offing, and is a most lucky Contriv-
ance. The road from hence to Frederica.
is cut through the Woods, and through
the Marshes rais’d upon a Causeway.”
1 July 16th.
OGLETHORPE REQUESTS REINFORCEMENTS. 353
“We have returned thanks to God for our deliverance, have
set all the hands I possibly could to work upon the Fortifications,
and have sent to the Northward to raise men ready to form
another Battalion against His Majesty's Orders shall arrive for
that purpose. I have retained Thompson's ship, have sent for
Cannon Shott, &c., for Provisions and all kinds of stores since I
expect the Enemy, who (tho' greatly terrified) lost but few men
in comparison of their great numbers, as soon as they have re-
covered their fright will attack us with more caution and better
discipline.
“I hope His Majesty will approve the measures I have taken,
and I must entreat Your Grace to lay my humble request before
His Majesty that he would be graciously pleased to order Troops,
Artillery and other Necessarys sufficient for the defence of this
Frontier and the neighboring Provinces, or give such direction
as His Majesty shall think proper, and I do not doubt but with a
moderate support not only to be able to defend these Provinces,
but also to dislodge the Enemy from St. Augustine if I have but
the same numbers they had in this expedition.” "
To this interesting narrative we append, without comment,
two contemporaneous accounts copied from documents on file in
the Public Record office in London, and found among the Shaftes-
bury Papers: —
“The following particular Account of the Spaniards invading
Georgia was received by Messrs. Skinner & Simson, Merchants
in London, from Mr. John Smith, who was then on board the Sue-
cess Frigate, Captain William Thomson, dated at Charles Town
in South Carolina, the 14th of July last.
“This serves to inform you of my safe arrival in Georgia after
a Passage of 10 weeks. We met with no Molestation from the
Privateers in our way, nor could make no Prizes, tho' we pursued
and brought to several Vessels.
Our People were all healthy
1 For further account of this memora-
ble defense, see Harris’ Complete Collec-
tion of Voyages and Travels, vol. ii. pp. 340,
342. London. 1748 McCall's History
of Georgia, vol. i. pp. 176, 190. Savan-
nah. 1811. Hewitt's Historical Account
of the Rise and Progress of the Colonies
of South Carolina and Georgia, vol. ii. pp.
114, 119. London. 1779. Stevens' His-
tory of Georgia, vol. i. pp. 180, 196. New
York, 1847. Harris' Memorials of Ogle-
thorpe, pp. 250, 268, Boston, 1840.
Wright's Memoir of Oglethorpe, pp. 299,
317. London. 1867. Spalding’s “Life
of Oglethorpe,” Collections of the Georgia
Historical Society, vol. i. pp. 275, 284.
Savannah, 1840. Ramsay’s History of
South Carolina, vol. i. pp. 144, 147.
Charleston. 1809. London Magazine,
vol. xi. pp. 515, 516, 568. Gentleman’s
Magazine for 1742, vol. xii. pp. 494, 496,
550, 561, 693, 694. Gentleman’s Aſada-
zine for 1743, vol. xiii. pp. 84, 638, 639.
- 23
354 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
'till the last three weeks of our Passage, when a Malignant Fever
game amongst them and sweeped away several Soldiers, and the
best part of our Ship's Company with our Chief Mate, Carpen-
ter, and Boatswain. I was also visited, but got well over it.
“Three days after our arrival in Georgia we were alarmed by
several small Vessels being seen off the Harbour which we took
to be Spaniards. The General sent his Privateer Schooner to
Fort William which lyes to the Southward of our Harbour to help
to defend that Place in case of being attacked, and the next day
(being the 22nd of June) sent out his own Barge to make dis-
covery if the Enemy had landed. They returned in the after-
noon with Account that the Enemy with eleven Galleys were in
the Sound called Cumberland, about 20 miles to the Southward
of St. Simon's, where we lay. Upon which the General put two
Companies of Soldiers in three Boats and went along with them
himself to the relief of Fort William, so that crossing Cumber-
land Sound the Galleys, full of men, bore down upon them. He
began the Engagement himself with his own Boats' Crew, and ex-
changed several Volleys with one of the Galleys. In the mean
time two Galleys engaged one of the General's Boats wherein
was 50 Soldiers commanded by one Toulson, who thinking him-
self hard set, bore away and left the General with the other two
Boats engaged, but they bravely fought their way through with
the loss only of one man, and got to Fort William. Toulson got
clear and afterwards came to St. Simon's. That night we heard
several great Guns fired, and volleys of small arms to the South-
ward, so that we got all ready for an attack; next day heard
nothing of the General, which put everybody under great concern.
The Day after saw a Sail off the Bar which proved to be the
General’s Schooner with himself aboard, and a Company of Sol-
diers, who brought account of all being well at Fort William,
and that they had beat off 9 Galleys which thought to sur-
prize them. The General came ashore and was saluted by us
with 31 Guns, and by the Fort. He confined Mr. Toulson for
leaving him, and sent for Captain Thomson, advised him to send
his Goods to Town, and get all ready for defence, for he thought
of being attacked at St. Simon’s. And soon after we had an Ac-
count that there were 32 Sail hoisting Spanish Colours where they
lay in the same place for 5 days without making the least at-
tempt, but sent out their small Vessels to sound the Bar. July
the 4th, they got under sail and came to in the right way off the
Channel so that we expected to be attacked next day. The Gen-
ENGAGEMENT WITH THE SPANISH FLEET. 355
eral came on board of us and made a very handsome Speech en-
couraging us to stand by our Liberties and Country. For his
part he was resolved to stand it out, and would not yield one inch
to them tho’ they appeared so formidable. He was convinced
they were much superior in Numbers, but then he was sure his
men were much better, and did not doubt (with the favour of
God) but he would get the better. We having but 10 seamen on
board, the General sent us 100 Soldiers, and being well provided
with warlike Stores, were ready for twice the number of Span-
iards. There were several Vessels in the Harbour which we (as
Commodore) placed in the following order, viz: —
“The Success, captain Thomson, 20 guns, 100 men, with springs
upon our cable.
“The General’s Schooner, 14 guns, 80 men, on our starboard
bow.
“The St. Philip Sloop, 14 guns, 50 men, on our starboard
quarter.
“8 York Sloops close in Shore with one man on board each in
case of being overpowered, to sink or run them on shore.
“July 5th. The Spanish Vessels got all under Sail and stood in.
They sent two Quarter Galleys carrying 9 Pounders, and one
Half Galley with two 18 Pounders in her bow to begin the At-
tack which were warmly received by the Fort, which exchanged
several Shot with them. The Wind and Tide both serving, they
soon came up with us and fired upon us, which we returned very
briskly. They attempted to come up under our stern, upon
which I run out two 6 Pounders at the Stern Ports (they being
the Guns I commanded) and fired upon her which made them
lye upon their Oars, and drive with the Tide. The Admiral
came next and was saluted with our whole broad-side, then by
the Schooner and Sloop, which made him sheer off from us. In
short we received all their Fire and returned the same very
briskly, having fired near 300 Shot out of our Ship, they coming
on one by one just gave us time to load, so that I believe there
was not one Ship but had some Shot in her. They fired at
the York Sloops which had run aground. After, they came to
anchor and landed a great many men, of which they had great
Plenty.
“The General sent us off Thanks for our brave Resistance and
ordered his men ashore and us with what other Vessels could go
to make the best of their way to Charles Town or anywhere
to save the Vessels; upon which, we gott ourselves in train for
356 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
going to Sea, and cutting our Cable dropped down with the Tide.
The Schooner and Prize Sloop followed us, next morning got
over the Bar, and said 4 Galleys standing after us, we got all
ready for a second engagement, and having sea-room, would have
made a market of them, but they did not care to come over the
Bar.
“All that night saw several fires, and a sloop blow up, which
proved the General destroying all that might be of service to the
Enemy, intending to march all his men to Frederica and there
hold it out.
“July 7th. Got all into Charles Town. Captain Thomson
petitioned the Assembly for assistance to the General, and to
have his own Ship manned to go against the Enemy with the
Man of War and what other Merchantmen they can fit out,
which they have taken into consideration.
“The Flamborough, Man of War, and two Sloops, with a
Galley, have been gone from this place a fortnight, and been
drove to the Northward by a Gale of Wind. They yesterday
came abreast of this place and had account how the General's
Affairs stood : upon which they made sail for the Southward.
“I wish our Fleet had been ready to have gone with them, and
I dare say we would have catcht them all. Every minute ap-
pears an age to me till we can assist our Friends to the South-
ward and ’till I have Satisfaction for being left naked : they
have got my all amongst them : not having one shirt but as I
borrow. I hope next opportunity to write you better news. In
the mean time remember me to all our Friends.” "
“ On 28th of June 1742 thirty three Spanish Vessels ap-
peared off the Bar. The General staid at S" Simon's taking all
possible measures for the Defence of the Harbour, and opposed
them in such a manner that they could not become Masters of
the Bar ’till 5th instant when they entered the Harbour in line
of Battle ahead. The General’s Disposition of the Land Troops
prevented the Spaniards from landing. The General's three
vessels, with Capt. Dunbar and a Detachment of the Regiment
on board, and Capt. Thomson's Ship, fought stoutly. The Offi-
cers and Men in the Merchant Service, as well as those of the
Regiment behaved with the greatest courage. After three hours'
fight by the Land Batteries as well as the Vessels, the Spanish
Fleet broke all through and made for Frederica, but in a very
1 P. R. O. Shaftesbury Papers. The above was published in the Daily 4d.
vertiser.
ſº
DEFENSE OF ST. SIMON'S ISLAND. 357
Shatter'd condition, which obliged the General immediately to
send the Regiment for the defence of that Place, and followed
in the rear himself, and before he would leave S' Simon's, had
all the Cannon, Magazines, &c. burst and destroyed, and sent
out such Vessels as were on float to sea, the Harbour having
been left open by the Spaniards running up the River. The
loss is very considerable, and chiefly owing to the want of Ar-
tillery, Engineers, good Gunners, and Ships of Force, — the Off-
cers of the Regiment, Sailors, Indians &c. having done all that
men could do for their numbers. The General himself was
everywhere but chiefly at the Main Battery and Shipping, Major
Heron being with the Regiment on Shore, and Col. Cook at
Charles Town, by leave of Absence by reason of sickness, on
his way to England. The General is preparing to make the
best defence he can in this Place.
“General Oglethorpe being arrived on the 6th of July by
day break, without the loss of a man, having brought up all the
wounded on his Horses, he dismounted and marched on foot
himself and gave his own Horse to me. He immediately gave
Orders for the Defence of this Place, sending out Scouts on all
sides and, supplying the broken and lost arms &c. ordered all
the Companies to be paraded on the afternoon of the same day.
The Creek Indians brought in five Spanish Prisoners on the 7th
day: On which day about the hour of ten, the Rangers who
had been on the Scout came chased in by the Spaniards, giving
an account that the Enemy was within a mile of this Place
where they had kill'd one Small. The General leaped on the
first Horse and immediately marched the Highland Company,
who were then under arms a parading, and ordered sixty from
the Guard to follow. He himself galloped with the Indians to
the Place which was just within the Woods about a Mile from
hence, where he found Captain Sebastian Santio, and Captain
Magaleeto with 120 Spanish Troops and forty five Spanish In-
dians. Captn Grey with his Chickesaws, Capt. Jones with his
Tomohetans, and Tooanahowi with his Creeks, and the General
with six Highland Men, who outran the rest, immediately charged
them. Cap" Mageleeto was killed, Capt.” Sebastian Santio taken,
and the Spaniards entirely defeated. The General took two
Spaniards with his own Hands. Capt." Mageleeto shot Toona-
howi in his right arm as he rushed upon him. Toonahowi,
drawing his Pistol with his left Hand, shot him through the
Head. The General pursued the Chace for near a mile, when
358 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Ö
halting at an advantageous Piece of Ground, stayed till the
Guard came up, and then posting the Highlanders on the right,
and the guard upon the left of the Road, - hid in a Wood with a
large Savannah or Meadow in their Front over which the Span-
iards must pass to come to Frederica, – the General returned
and ordered the Regiment, Rangers and Companies of Boatmen
to march. Whilst they were preparing, we heard Platoons fir-
ing. The General immediately got on Horseback, and riding
towards it met three Platoons on the left coming back in great
disorder, who gave him an account they had been broke by
the Spaniards who were extremely numerous. Notwithstanding
which, he rallied them and he himself rode on, and to his great
satisfaction found Lieut. Sutherland and the Platoon of the Reg-
iment under his command, and Lieut. MacKay with the High-
landers had entirely defeated the Spaniards who consisted of two
Companies of Grenadiers, making 100 Men and 200 Foot. Don
Antonio Barbara, who commanded them, was Prisoner, but was
mortally wounded ; they also took several other Grenadiers and
the Drum. The General ordered all the Troops to march from
Frederica to him. As soon as they arrived he pursued the Enemy
four Miles. In the two Actions there were one Captain, one Cor-
poral, and sixteen Spaniards taken, and about 150 killed : the
rest are dispersed in the Woods, for the General halted all night
at a Pass through the Marshes over which they must go in their
return to their Camp, and thereby intercepted them. The In-
dians are out, hunting after them in the Woods, and every hour
bring in Scalps.
“July 8. Before daybreak the General advanced a Party of
Indians to the Spanish Camp at Sº Simon's who found they were
all retired into the Ruins of the Fort, under the Cannon of the
Men of War. Upon which the General marched back and ar-
rived here about Noon. About the same time a Party which the
General had drawn from Fort William arrived, notwithstand-
ing the Spanish Fleet lyes between us to secure us from that
Place.
“July 9. This day was spent in going on with the Works.
“ Frederica. July 9th 1742.” "
That a small force of between six and seven hundred men, as-
sisted by a few weak vessels, should have put to flight an army
of nearly five thousand Spanish troops, supported by a powerful
fleet and amply equipped for the expedition, seems almost inca-
1 P. R. O. Shaftesbury Papers.
ESTIMATE OF FORCES ENGAGED. 359
pable of explanation. General Oglethorpe's bravery and dash,
the timidity of the invaders, coupled with the dissensions which
arose in their ranks, and the apprehensions caused by the French
letter, furnish the only plausible explanation of the victory.
Whitefield's commentary was : “The deliverance of Georgia
from the Spaniards is such as cannot be paralleled but by some in-
stances out of the Old Testament.” The defeat of so formidable
an expedition by such a handful of men was a matter of astonish-
ment to all. Had Don Manuel de Monteano pushed his forces
vigorously forward, the stoutest resistance, offered along his short
line of march and from the walls of the town, would have been
ineffectual for the salvation of Frederica. Against the contin-
gency of an evacuation of this stronghold Oglethorpe had pro-
vided, as best he could, by a concentration of boats in which to
transport the garrison to Darien " by way of the cut previously
made through General's Island. This necessity, however, was
fortunately never laid upon him.
1 The following is an estimate of the
forces engaged : —
SPANISH Troops.
One Regiment of dismounted Dra-
goOnS . . . . . . . . . 400
Havana Regiment . . . . . 500
Havana Militia, . 1,000
Regiment of Artillery . 400
Florida Militia * & 400
Battalion of Mulattoes . . . . . 300
Black Regiment 400
Indians . 90
Marines . . 600
Seamen . 1,000
Total . . 5,090
GENERAL OGLETHORPE'S COMMAND.
His Regiment . g tº 472
Company of Rangers . . . 30
Highlanders . . . . . . . 50
Armed Militia. . . . . . . . . 40
Indians . . . . . . . . 60
Total . . . . . 652
See McCall's History of Georgia, vol. i.
p. 196. Savannah. 1811.
* Of the condition of this town in 1743
we find the following account in the Lon-
don Magazine for 1745, page 551 : “Our
first Stage we made New Inverness, or the
Darien, on the Continent near 20 miles
from Frederica, which is a Settlement of
If the naval forces at Charles-
Highlanders living and dressing in their
own Country Fashion, very happily and
contentedly. There is an Independent
Company of Foot of them, consisting of
70 men who have been of good service.
The Town is regularly laid out, and built
of Wood mostly, divided into Streets and
Squares; before the Town is the Parade,
and a Fort not yet finish’d. It is situ-
ated upon a very high Bluff, or point of
Land, from whence, with a few cannon,
they can scour the River, otherwise it is
surrounded by Pine-barrens, and Woods,
and there is a Rout by Land to Savannah
and Fort Argyle, which is statedly recon-
noitred by a Troop of Highland Rangers
who do duty here. The Company and
Troop, armed in the Highland manner
make an extreme good appearance under
arms. The whole Settlement may be
Said to be a brave and industrious Peo-
ple ; but were more numerous, planted
more, and raised more cattle before the
Invasion, with which they drove a good
Trade to the Southward; but Things
seem daily mending with them. They
are forc’d to keep a very good Guard in
this Place, it lies so open to the Insults
of the French and Spanish Indians, who
once or twice have shewn Straglers some
very bloody Tricks.”
360 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
town had responded to his requisitions, a considerable portion of
the Spanish fleet might have been captured. Oglethorpe's suc-
cess in his military operations may be explained by the fact that
he constantly acted on the offensive. He was never content to
grant any peace to an enemy who was within striking distance.
The temerity and persistency of his attacks inspired his followers,
and impressed his antagonist with the belief that the arm deliver-
ing the blow was stronger than it really was.
The memory of this defense of St. Simon's Island and the
southern frontier is one of the proudest in the annals of Georgia.
Thus was the existence of the colony perpetuated. Thus was
hurled back in wrath and mortification a powerful army of inva-
sion whose avowed object was to show no quarter," but to crush
out of existence the English colonies. Had success attended
the demonstration against Frederica, the enemy would have ad-
Vanced upon the more northern strongholds. Appreciating this,
and deeply sensible of their great obligations to General Ogle-
thorpe for the deliverance vouchsafed at his hands, the governors
of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and
North Carolina,” addressed special letters to him “thanking him
for the invaluable services he had rendered to the British-Amer-
ican Provinces, congratulating him upon his success and the great
renown he had acquired, and expressing their gratitude to the
Supreme Governor of Nations for placing the destiny of the
southern colonies under the direction of a General So well quali-
fied for the important trust.”
Upon the disappearance of the Spanish forces Oglethorpe at
once bent his energies to strengthening the fortifications at
Frederica and repairing the damages which had been sustained
by the southern forts. For a long time he seems to have counted
upon a return of the expedition, and could not bring his mind
to believe that the enterprise upon which so much preparation
and money had been expended would be thus hastily and almost
causelessly abandoned. Within a few months the works upon St.
1 Samuel Cloake, who was a pris- cut the throats of those they should take
oner on board the Pretty Nancy, taken
by the Spaniards from the English
and fitted out for the invasion of Geor-
gia, made oath that during the time
they lay off the bar the Spaniards often
“whetted their swords and held their
knives to this deponent's and other Eng-
lish prisoners' throats, saying they would
at Georgia.”
Harris’ Complete Collection of Voyages
and Travels, pp. 342, 343. London. 1748.
2 The governor of South Carolina did
not unite in these congratulations and
thanks; but the people of Port Royal did,
much to his chagrin.
OGLETHORPE INVADES FLORIDA. 361
Simon's, Jekyll, and Cumberland islands were more formidable
than ever. What those additional defensive works at Frederica
were we shall shortly see.
Not content with having repulsed the Spaniards in their effort
to crush the colony, General Oglethorpe was soon engaged in
“carrying the war into Africa.” Finding the enemy so strong
in St. Augustine that they defeated all the parties of Indians
he sent against them, ascertaining that a large detachment was
marching towards the river St. Mattheo, and concluding that this
was a movement to extend their quarters so as to be prepared
for the proper location and accommodation of reinforcements ex-
pected from Havana in the spring, taking with him a considerable
body of Creek warriors, a detachment from the Highland com-
pany of rangers, and a portion of his regiment, Oglethorpe
landed by night in Florida in March, 1743, and, moving rapidly,
drove the enemy, with loss, within the lines of St. Augustine.
Having disposed his command in ambush, the general, with a
small party, advanced within sight of the town, intending to
skirmish and draw the garrison out. The enemy declined to
leave their fortifications; and the English, being too weak to
attack, and having compelled the Spaniards to abandon their ad-
vanced posts in Florida, returned, having performed the extraor-
dinary march of ninety-six miles in four days.” This was the
last expedition led by the general against the Spaniards.”
Still persuaded that the attack upon Frederica would be re-
newed at an early day, he continued to strengthen the southern
frontier. Until he left Georgia on the 23d of July, 1743, never
again to return, he resided at his cottage on St. Simon's Island.
1 In the language of General Ogle-
thorpe, “they were so meek there was no
provoking them.”
* See General Oglethorpe's letters of
the 12th and 21st of March, 1743. Collec-
tions of the Georgia Historical Society,
vol. iii. pp. 149, 151. Savannah. 1873.
London Magazine for 1743, vol. xii. pp.
356, 357.
London Gazette, July 9, 1743.
3 This demonstration had the effect of
restraining the enemy within the lines of
St. Augustine; and the active cruising of
the English guard schooner and scout-
boats held in check the privateers which
were in the habit of annoying the nav-
igation to the southward. “In fine,”
writes a Charles-Town merchant to his
correspondent in London, under date Au-
gust 10, 1743, “Georgia is a Gibraltar to
this Province and North America, how-
ever insignificant some People may make
it.”
London Magazine for 1743, vol. xii, p.
567.
While sailing in his shallop to recon-
noitre St. Augustine, the general was
nearly killed by the bursting of one of
his cannon. A piece of a sail-yard struck
him with such violence on the head that
the blood gushed from his ears and nose.
He soon recovered from the shock, how-
ever, and remained on deck encouraging
and directing his men.
362 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Of all the places planted and nurtured by him, none so warmly
enlisted his energies and engaged his constant solicitude as this
fortified town at the mouth of the Alatamaha.
Upon the general's departure, William Stephens was left as
deputy general of the colony, and Major Horton as military
commander at Frederica. With the civil matters of the prov-
ince the latter had no concern except where his assistance, as
commander-in-chief of the military, was occasionally invoked to
enforce the measures of the president and council. In such
instances he acted with calmness and humanity, securing the
respect and esteem of the better class of the colonists.
On the 22d of March, 1743, the magazine at Frederica was
blown up, to the general alarm and regret of the inhabitants.
Although it contained at the time three thousand bombs, so well
bedded were they but little damage occurred. A vagabond Irish-
man was suspected of having fired the magazine."
We have two descriptions of Frederica in 1743, the period of
its greatest prosperity and importance, which we make no apology
for transcribing.
The first is from the lips of a captain conversant with the ap-
pearance and condition of the town.
Captain John MacClellan, who left Georgia on the 31st of
January, 1743, on his arrival in England reported the colonists
busily engaged in placing themselves in the best attitude of de-
fense in anticipation of a second attack from the Spaniards;
that Fort William had been fortified anew with brick work, and
that “great numbers of Men were employ'd in compleating the
Fortifications at Frederica, the Walls whereof are judged strong
enough to be Proof against Eighteen-Pound Shot ; ” that two
towers, one at each corner of the town wall, capable of holding
one hundred men each and designed to protect the flanks by
means of small arms, had been erected ; that the men were “full
of spirits and unanimous to make a vigorous Defence to the last
Drop of Blood;’ that General Oglethorpe had been reinforced
by two hundred men from Virginia, raised by Major Heron,
many of whom were disciplined soldiers from Colonel Gouge's
late regiment, and that thirty horsemen were on their way to
Georgia to “recruit the Rangers.””
1 See McCall's Georgia, vol. i. p. 203. 2 London Magazine for 1743, vol. xii.
Savannah. 1811. Gentleman's Magazine p. 305.
for 1744, vol. xiv. p. 393. London Maga-
zine for 1744, vol. xiii. p. 359.
DESCRIPTION OF FREDERICA. 363
The second is from the pen of an intelligent traveler, who
made his observations early in 1743. It reads as follows : —
“Frederica, on the Island of St. Simon, the chief Town in the
Southernmost Part of the Colony of Georgia, is nearly in Lat:
31° 15' North. It stands on an Eminence, if consider'd with
regard to the Marshes before it, upon a Branch of the famous
River Alatamaha, which washes the West side of this agreeable
little Island, and, after several Windings, disembogues itself into
the Sea at Jekyl Sound. It forms a kind of a Bay before the
Town, and is navigable for Vessels of the largest Burden, which
may lie along the wharf in a secure and safe Harbour; and may,
upon Occasion, haul up to careen and refit, the Bottom being a
soft oozy Clay, intermix’d with small Sand and Shells. The
Town is defended by a pretty strong Fort of Tappy," which has
several 18 Pounders mounted on a Ravelin in its Front, and
commands the River both upwards and downwards; and is sur-
rounded by a quadrangular Rampart, with 4 Bastions, of Earth,
well stockaded and turfed, and a palisadoed Ditch which include
also the King's Storehouses, (in which are kept the Arsenal, the
Court of Justice, and Chapel) two large and spacious Buildings
of Brick and Timber; On the Rampart are mounted a consider-
able Quantity of Ordnance of several sizes. The Town is sur-
rounded by a Rampart, with Flankers, of the same Thickness
with that round the Fort, in Form of a Pentagon, and a dry
Ditch ; and since the famous attempt of the Spaniards in July
1742,” at the N. E. and S. E. Angles are erected two strong cov-
er'd pentagonal Bastions, capable of containing 100 men each,
to scour the Flanks with Small Arms, and defended by a Num-
ber of Cannon ; At their Tops are Look-outs which command
the View of the Country and the River for many miles: The
Roofs are shingled,” but so contriv'd as to be easily clear'd away,
if incommodious in the Defense of the Towers. The whole Cir-
cumference of the Town is about a Mile and a Half, including,
within the Fortifications, the Camp for General Oglethorpe's Reg-
iment at the North Side of the Town, the Parades on the West,
1 A mixture of lime made of Oyster- * Shingles are split out of many Sorts
shells, with Sand, Small Shells, &c., of Wood, in the shape of Tiles, which,
which, when harden'd, is as firm as when they have been some Time expos'd
Stone. I have observ'd prodigious Quan- to the Weather, appear of the Colour of
tities of Salt Petre to issue from Walls Slate, and have a very pretty Look; the
of this Cement. Houses in America are mostly Shingled.
* See Lond. Mag. 1742, pp. 461, 515, -
516, 567.
364 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
and a small Wood to the South, which is left for Conveniency
of Fuel and Pasture, and is an excellent Blind to the Enemy in
case of an Attack; in it is a small Magazine of Powder. The
Town has two Gates, call'd the Land-port, and the Water-port ;
next to the latter of which is the Guard-house, and underneath
it the Prison for Malefactors, which is an handsome Building
of Brick. At the North End are the Barracks, which is an ex-
tremely well contriv'd Building in Form of a Square, of Tappy
Work, in which, at present, are kept the Hospital, and Spanish
Prisoners of War : Near this was situated the Bomb Magazine
which was blown up on March 22, 1744, with so surprizingly
little Damage.”
“The town is situated in a large Indian Field. To the East
it has a very extensive Savannah (wherein is the Burial Place)
thro' which is cut a Road to the other Side of the Island, which
is bounded by Woods, save here and there some opening Glades
into the Neighboring Savannahs and Marshes, which much eluci-
date the Pleasure of looking. Down this Road are several very
commodious Plantations, particularly the very agreeable one of
Capt. Demery, and that of Mr. Hawkins. Pre-eminently appears
Mr. Oglethorpe's Settlement, which, at Distance, looks like a
neat Country Village, where the consequences of all the various
Industries of an European Farm are seen. The Master of it has
shewn what Application and unabated Diligence may effect in
this Country. At the Extremity of the Road is a small Village,
call'd the German Village, inhabited by several Families of
Saltzburghers, who plant and fish for their Subsistence. On the
River Side one has the Prospect of a large Circuit of Marshes,
terminated by the Woods on the Continent, in Form like an
Amphitheatre, and interspers'd with the Meanders of abundance
of Creeks, form'd from the aforesaid River. At a Distance may
be seen the white Post at Bachelor’s Redoubt, also on the Main,
where is kept a good Look-out of Rangers. To the North are
Marshes, and a small Wood, at the Western Extremity of which
are the Plantations of the late Capt. Desbrisay, and some others
of less note; together with a Look-out wherein a Corporal’s
Guard is stationed, and reliev'd weekly, called Pike's, on the
Bank of the River, from whence they can see Vessels a great
way to the Northward. On the South is a Wood, which is, how-
1 See Lond. Mag. 1744, p. 359. they not been well bedded, would have
2 I have been told that in this Explo- done much Mischief.
sion near 3,000 Bombs burst, which, had
DESCRIPTION OF FEEDERICA IN 1743. 365
ever, so far clear'd as to discover the Approach of an Enemy at
a great Distance; within it, to the Eastward, is the Plantation
of Capt. Dunbar ; and to the Westward a Corporal’s Look-out.
The Town is divided into several spacious Streets, along whose
sides are planted Orange Trees," which, in some Time, will have a
very pretty Effect on the View, and will render the Town pleas-
ingly shady. Some Houses are built entirely of Brick, some of
Brick and Wood, some few of Tappy-Work, but most of the
meaner sort, of Wood only. The Camp is also divided into sev-
eral Streets, distinguished by the names of the Captains of the
several Companies of the Regiment; and the Huts are built gen-
erally of Clap-boards and Palmetto's, and are each of them capable
to contain a Family, or Half a Dozen Single men. Here these
brave Fellows live with the most laudable CEconomy; and tho’
most of them when off Duty practise some Trade or Employ-
ment, they make as fine an Appearance upon the Parade, as any
Regiment in the King's Service; and their exact Discipline does
a great deal of Honour to their Officers; They have a Market
every Day ; The Inhabitants of the Town may be divided into
Officers, Merchants, Store-Keepers, Artisans, and People in the
Provincial Service; and there are often, also, many Sojourners
from the neighbouring Settlements, and from New York, Phila-
delphia and Carolina, on account of Trade. The Civil Govern-
ment does not seem yet to be quite rightly settled by the Trus-
tees, but is, at present, administered by three Magistrates, or
Justices, assisted by a Recorder, Constables, and Tything Men.
The Military is regulated as in all Garrison-Towns in the Brit-
āsh Dominions. In short, the whole Town, and Country adja-
cent, are quite rurally charming, and the Improvements every-
where around are Footsteps of the greatest Skill and Industry
imaginable, considering its late Settlement, and the Rubs it has
so often met with ; and as it seems so necessary for the Barrier
of our Colonies, I am in Hopes of, one Time, seeing it taken
more Notice of than it is at present.” ”
For the ensuing few years, and during the retention of Ogle-
thorpe's regiment on St. Simon's Island, but little change oc-
* The Inhabitants begin to plant this
charming Fruit very much, and ’tis to be
hop’d will banish their numerous Peach
Trees to their Country Settlements,
which are Nurseries of Muskettos and
other Vermin. The Season I was there,
they had Oranges enough of their own
Growth for Home Consumption.
* This was written in the beginning of
1743. See London Magazine for 1745,
vol. xiv. pp. 395, 396. Compare notice
in The North-American and the West-In-
dian Gazetteer. London. 1778.
366 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
curred in the condition of Frederica. It retained its importance
as a military post, and was regarded as the safeguard of the
province against Spanish invasion. The expectations, if indeed
any were seriously entertained, of elevating this town into com-
mercial importance were practically abandoned previous to the
withdrawal of the troops. In fact, even before the existing diffi-
culties with Spain were formally accommodated by treaty and
it became manifest that there would in all likelihood occur no
further serious demonstrations along the southern frontier, the
population of Frederica began to decrease.
The home authorities, however, were loath to acknowledge
its manifest tendency to decadence, and for some time, by Occa-
sional reports and notices, endeavored to assure the public of the
continued prosperity of a town which had attracted such special
attention in connection with the progress and perils of the colony
of Georgia.
An article having appeared in the “Daily Gazetteer" giving
“a most Scandalous and untrue account of the present state of
the Colony of Georgia, particularly levelled at the Southern Part
thereof (which is the Frontier against the French and Span-
iards),” in justice to the public, William Thomson and John
Lawrence, Jr., who had been trading with the colony for some
years and who had left Georgia in June, 1747, on business call-
ing them to England, united in a card to the editor of the
“London Magazine” in which they stated: “That instead of
the false Representation of the said Gazetteer “That only seven
Houses were in the Town of Frederica,’ the said Town has
several Streets, in every one of which are many good Houses,
some of Brick, some of Tappy (which is a Cement of Lime and
Oyster Shells); That the High Street is planted with Orange
Trees and has good Houses on both sides. That the Fort, be-
sides other Buildings, has two large Magazines three Stories high,
and Sixty Feet long; That there are Barracks in the Town, on
the North side, ninety Feet Square, built of Tappy, covered with
Cypress Shingles, and a handsome Tower over the Gateway of
twenty Feet square; That there are two Bastion Towers, of two
stories each, in the Hollow of the Bastions, defended on the Out-
side with thick Earth-Works, and capable of lodging great Num-
bers of Soldiers, the two long Sides being nearly fifty Feet, and
the short Sides twenty-five ; And that instead of the Inhabitants
removing from thence, several Families were come and more
* Vol. xvi. p. 484.
DEPARTURE OF GENERAL OGLETHORPE. 367
coming from North Carolina to settle in Georgia, who will cer-
tainly establish themselves there unless they are prevented by
any Fears which may arise from the Reduction of the Rangers
and Vessels which have hitherto made that Frontier safe : That
before the Barracks were finished, very good Clap-board Huts
were built sufficient for the lodging of two Companies who do
Duty at Frederica (with their Wives and Families) which by an
Accident of Fire were lately burnt down ; since which others
have been made for married Soldiers; and the Soldiers have the
Privilege of cutting Timber and building Houses for their Fami-
lies, which many have done, and thrive very well, and we know
the Soldiers are regularly paid and kindly treated. We also cel-
tify that there are several Farms which produce not only Indian
Wheat and Potatoes, but English Wheat, Barley, and other
Grain. In short, Provisions in general are plentiful, Venison,
Beef, Pork, at Two Pence Half-Penny per Pound, and sometimes
under. Fish extremely cheap.”
Upon the confirmation of the Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1748,
most of the troops were withdrawn from St. Simon's Island, and
the fortifications soon began to fall into decay.
In the departure of General Oglethorpe the province of Georgia
lost its best benefactor, surest guide, and ablest defender. His
return was influenced neither by rewards offered by the British
ministry, alarmed at the rumors of an invasion by the Pretender
and eager to conciliate the High-Church and Jacobite parties,
nor by the treacherous accusations of Lieutenant-Colonel Cooke
and his associates. In truth, his pecuniary resources were dried
up, and bills which he had drawn “for his Majesty's Service’
had been returned dishonored to the amount of £12,000. For
ten years had this “Romulus, father, and founder of Georgia,”
with no end in view save the enlargement of his majesty’s do-
minion, the propagation of the Christian religion, the promotion
of the trade of the realm, and the relief of the indigent and the
deserving, voluntarily banished himself from the pleasures of
court and metropolis, postponed his parliamentary duties, and
exposed himself to dangers and privations incessant and exhaust-
ing. Instead of gratifying himself with the pleasures and luxuries
which his social position and fortune warranted him in enjoying,
of his own free will and influenced by philanthropic and patriotic
considerations of the noblest sort, he forsook his home and com-
forts to share the lot of the emigrant; his couch the earth, his
shelter the canopy of the heavens. The success of the coloniza-
368 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
tion had been compassed not only by his encouragement, direction,
and valor, but also by a liberal expenditure of his private prop-
erty. The province was now established upon a sure basis.
The natives were in amity with the English, and the Spaniards
had learned a lesson they were not likely soon to forget. He
now returned to England in fulfillment of a desire earnestly enter-
tained, but repressed because of the necessitous condition of the
province, and in response to a leave of absence sanctioned by the
authorities at home. His separation from the colony he regarded,
at the time, as only temporary. Arrived in London he demanded
that the charges preferred against him by Lieutenant-Colonel
Cooke, of his regiment, should be immediately investigated. That
officer having named several parties as witnesses who resided in
America, the inquiry was adjourned until the 4th of June, 1744,
“when a Board of General Officers scrutinized the charges article
after article; and after sitting three days, pronounced the whole
to be groundless, false, and malicious.” The finding of the court-
martial was approved, and Lieutenant-Colonel Cooke was dis-
missed from the service. In the language of Dr. Holmes' the
character of General Oglethorpe “now appeared in resplendent
light, and his contemporaries acknowledged what impartial his-
tory must record, that to him Carolina was indebted for her
safety and repose, as well as Georgia for her existence and pro-
tection.”
Promoted to a major-generalcy, and then to a lieutenant-
generalcy, and finally commissioned as general in the British
army, retaining his seat in Parliament until 1754, recognized as
governor of the colony of Georgia until the surrender of the
charter of the province by the trustees in 1752, and always mani-
festing the liveliest interest in the welfare of that plantation,
the companion and friend of Dr. Johnson, Goldsmith, Burke,
Sir Joshua Reynolds, Miss Hannah More, Boswell, Horace Wal-
pole, Mrs. Montague, Mrs. Garrick, Mrs. Boscawen, Mrs. Carter,
and of many others scarcely less distinguished for their social
and intellectual qualities, the patron of learning, the soul of
honor, the embodiment of loyalty and valor, and the model of
manly grace and courtesy, he died on the 1st of July, 1785, full
of years and crowned with universal respect. The morning of
his life had been stormy, the noon tempestuous, but the evening
of his days was full of happiness and tranquility.
“I have got a new admirer,” writes Miss Hannah More from
1 The Annals of America, vol. ii. p. 19. Cambridge. 1829.
TRIBUTES TO GENERAL OGLETHORPE. 369
Mrs. Garrick's house in the Adelphi, “and we flirt together pro-
digiously; it is the famous General Oglethorpe, perhaps the most
remarkable man of his time. He was foster-brother to the Pre-
tender, and is much above ninety years old; the finest figure of
a man you ever saw. He perfectly realizes all my ideas of
Nestor. His literature is great, his knowledge of the world ex-
tensive, and his faculties as bright as ever. He is one of the
three persons still living who were mentioned by Pope; Lord
Mansfield and Lord Marchmont are the other two. He was the
intimate friend of Southern, the tragic poet, and all the wits of
his time. He is perhaps the oldest man of a gentleman living.
I went to see him the other day and he would have entertained
me by repeating passages from Sir Eldred. He is quite a prewa.
chevalier, heroic, romantic, and full of the old gallantry.” Dr.
Johnson wished to write his life, and Edmund Burke regarded
him as the most extraordinary person of whom he had ever read,
because he had founded a province and lived to see it severed
from the empire which created it and erected into an independent
state. A short time before his death he paid his respects to Mr.
John Adams, who had arrived in London as the first minister
plenipotentiary of the United States of America near the Court
of St. James. There was something peculiarly interesting in this
interview. He who had planted Georgia and nurtured it during
the earliest stages of its dependent condition as a colony held
converse with him who had come to a royal court as the repre-
sentative of its separate national existence.
His body reposes within Cranham church, and a memorial
tablet there proclaims his excellences; but here the Savannah
repeats to the Alatamaha the story of his virtues and of his valor,
and the Atlantic publishes to the mountains the greatness of his
fame, for all Georgia is his living, speaking monument.
24
CHAPTER XXIII.
MR. WILLIAM STEPHENs APPOINTED PRESIDENT OF THE PROVINCE. —CIVIL
ESTABLISHMENT AT FREDERICA. — STATE OF THE Colony. — SILK CUL-
TURE. —INCREASE AND THRIFT OF THE GERMAN POPULATION.—AFFAIRs
AT NEW EBENEZER. — GRAPE CULTURE.
UPON the settlement and fortification of the southern frontier
of the province a new county was carved out and named Frederica.
Hitherto, Georgia had contained but one county, and that was
known as Savannah. In April, 1741, Colonel William Stephens,
who for several years had been acting in the colony as secretary
to the trustees, was by them appointed president of the county of
Savannah. In the administration of public affairs he was aided
by four assistants. As General Oglethorpe spent most of his
time in Frederica, the designation of a presiding officer for that
division of the province was regarded as superfluous. Bailiffs
were constituted whose duty it was, under the immediate super-
vision of the general, to attend to the concerns of that county.
At Augusta, Captain Richard Kent was, in November, 1741,
commissioned as “Conservator to keep the peace in that town
and in the precincts thereof.”
In anticipation of the return of General Oglethorpe to Eng-
land, and in order to provide for the government of the entire
colony, the trustees decided that the president and assistants who
had been appointed for the county of Savannah should be pro-
claimed president and assistants for the whole province, and that
the bailiffs at Frederica should be considered simply as local
magistrates; their powers being subordinate to those conferred
upon the president and assistants. They further advised that the
salary of the recorder of Frederica be raised, and that he corre-
spond regularly with the president and assistants at Savannah,
and transmit to them from time to time the proceedings of the
town court, and an account of such transactions and occurrences
in the southern part of the province as it might be necessary for
them to know."
1 Journal of the Trustees, 1736–1745, pp. 239, 243, 244.
COLONEL WILLIAM STEPHENS. 371
Thus, upon the departure of General Oglethorpe, he was suc-
ceeded in the office of colonial governor by the honest-minded
and venerable Colonel William Stephens, whose devotion to the
welfare of the colony and fidelity to the instructions of the trus-
tees had been for more than five years well approved." In asso-
ciation with his members of council or assistants, he was directed
to hold in Savannah, each year, four terms of the general court
for the regulation of public affairs and the accommodation of all
differences affecting person or propety. Public moneys could be
distributed only under warrant signed and sealed by the president
and a majority of his assistants in council assembled. Monthly
accounts were to be exhibited to the Board of Trustees showing
the amounts disbursed and the particular purposes to which they
had been applied.
Although General Oglethorpe's regiment was retained for the
defense of the colony, the militia of the province was organized,
and all citizens capable of bearing arms were regularly trained
and disciplined. Major William Horton remained in command
of the troops in Georgia, with his headquarters at Frederica. In
the administration of the civil affairs of the province he did not
intervene, except where his assistance was invoked to enforce the
measures of the president and council. On all occasions he acted
with prudence, calmness, and humanity, winning the esteem, con-
fidence, and friendship of law-abiding citizens.
Bailiffs or magistrates were commissioned in various and re-
mote parts of the province whose duty it was to act as “conser-
vators of the peace,” hear and determine “petit causes,” and
commit, for trial by the general court, offenders whose trans-
gressions exceeded their limited jurisdictions.
The colony was still at a low ebb. The distractions caused
by Spanish incursions, the refusal of the trustees to permit the
importation and sale of rum, to sanction the introduction of slave
labor and to enlarge the tenure of land, and the failure of crops,
disheartened many and induced them to avail themselves of the
greater privileges offered in South Carolina where similar restric-
tions were unknown. Intent upon the cultivation of silk and
wine, the home authorities discouraged the tillage of rice, cotton,
and indigo, from which profit might more readily have been re-
alized. The trouble lay chiefly with the English colonists; not a
few of whom, unaccustomed to agricultural pursuits and manual
occupations, were easily discouraged and could illy suppress their
feelings of disappointment.
* See Journal of the Proceedings in Georgia, vols. i. ii. iii, London. MDCCXLII.
372 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Notwithstanding the losses sustained during the siege of St.
Augustine, and the distractions consequent upon their terms of
active service during the hostilities between Georgia and Flor-
ida, the Highlanders at Darien made commendable progress and
Were, year by year, surrounding themselves with comfortable
abodes and remunerative fields. The Salzburgers too, at Eben-
ezer, mindful of the thrift and industry to which they had been
accustomed at home, were prospering in many ways. Already
were they producing more than they could consume, and a spirit
of contentment pervaded their community. Through the assist-
ance of friends in Germany they had been enabled to build two
comfortable and substantial houses for public worship, one at
New Ebenezer called Jerusalem Church, and the other, about
four miles below, on the public road leading from that town to
Savannah, named Zion Church. The joy experienced upon the
dedication of these sacred buildings was soon turned to grief by
the death of one of their faithful pastors, the Rev. Israel C.
Gronau, who, in the Supreme moments of a lingering fever, desir-
ing a friend to support his hands uplifted in praise of the Great
Master whom he had so long and so truthfully served, exclaimed,
“Come, Lord Jesus! Amen l l Amen l l l " and with these words,
the last upon his lips, entered into peace.
Rev. Mr. Bolzius continued to be the principal pastor and, as
an assistant, the Rev. Mr. Lembke was associated with him.
With that industry and patience so characteristic of them as a
people, the inhabitants of New Ebenezer were among the earliest
and the most persevering in their efforts to carry into practical
operation Mr. Oglethorpe's wishes in regard to the production of
silk. In 1736 each Salzburger there was presented with a mul-
berry-tree, and two of the congregation were instructed by Mrs.
Camuse in the art of reeling.
Under date of May 11, 1741, Mr. Bolzius, in his journal, re-
cords the fact that within the preceding two months twenty
girls succeeded in making seventeen pounds of cocoons which
were sold at Savannah for £3 8s. The same year five pounds
were advanced by General Oglethorpe to this clergyman for the
purchase of trees. With this sum he procured twelve hundred,
and distributed them among the families of his parish.
On the 4th of December, 1742, five hundred trees were sent by
General Oglethorpe to Ebenezer, with a promise of more should
they be needed. Near Mr. Bolzius’ house a machine for the
manufacture of raw silk was erected and the construction of a
SILK CULTURE. 373
public Filature was contemplated. Of the eight hundred and
forty-seven pounds of cocoons raised in the colony of Georgia in
1747, about one half was produced by the Salzburgers at Eben-
ezer. Two years afterwards this yield was increased to seven
hundred and sixty-two pounds of cocoons and fifty pounds and
thirteen ounces of spun silk. Two machines were in operation
in Mr. Bolzius' yard, capable of reeling twenty-four ounces per
day. It was apparent, however, that while, by ordinary labor,
about two shillings could be earned, scarcely a shilling per diem
could be expected by one engaged in the manufacture of silk.
This fact proved so discouraging to the colonists that, except at
Ebenezer, silk culture was generally relinquished. The Germans
persevered, and, as the result of their energy, over a thousand
pounds of cocoons and seventy-four pounds and two ounces of
raw silk were raised in 1750, and sold for £110 sterling. The
community was now pretty well supplied with copper basins and
reeling machines. Considerable effort was made in England to
attract the notice of the home government to this production of
silk in Georgia, and to enlist in its behalf the fostering care of
those in authority. In 1755 a paper was laid before the Lords
of Trade and Plantations, signed by about forty eminent silk
throwsters and weavers, declaring that “having examined about
300 wº. of Georgia raw-silk they found it as good as the Pied-
montese, and better than the common Italian silks.” Assur-
ance was given that there was the “ utmost reason to afford all
possible encouragement for the raising of so valuable a commod-
ity.” I
In 1764 fifteen thousand two hundred and twelve pounds of
cocoons were delivered at the Filature in Savannah, then under
the charge of Mr. Ottolenghe, of which eight thousand six hun-
dred and ninety-five pounds were contributed by the Salzburgers.
Two years afterwards, the production of silk in Georgia reached
its acme, and from that time, although encouraged by Parliament,
continued to decline until it was practically abandoned a little
while before the inception of the Revolution. Operations at the
Filature in Savannah were discontinued in 1771. Sir James
Wright, in his message to the Commons House of Assembly,
under date 19th of January, 1774, alludes to the fact that the
Filature buildings were falling into decay, and suggests that they
be put to some other use.
Disregarding the disinclination existing in other portions of
1 Gentleman's Magazine for 1755, p. 185. London Magazine for 1755, p. 186.
374 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
the colony to devote much time and labor to the growing of trees
and the manufacture of silk, the Salzburgers, incited by their
worthy magistrate, Mr. Wertsch, redoubled their efforts, and
in 1770, as the result of their industry, shipped two hundred and
ninety-one pounds of raw silk. At the suggestion of the Earl of
Hillsborough, who warmly commended the zeal of these Germans
and interested himself in procuring from Parliament a small sum
to be expended in aid of the more indigent of the community, Mr.
Habersham distributed among them the basins and reels then
being in the unused public Filature in Savannah.
“So popular had the silk business become at Ebenezer that
Mr. Habersham, in a letter dated the 30th of March, 1772, says:
“Some persons in almost every family there understand its pro-
cess from the beginning to the end.” In 1771 the Germans sent
four hundred and thirty-eight pounds of raw silk to England, and
in 1772 four hundred and eighty-five pounds : — all of their own
raising. They made their own reels, which were so much es-
teemed that one was forwarded to England as a model, and an-
other taken to the East Indies by Pickering Robinson.” I
In the face of the distractions experienced-upon the commence-
ment of hostilities between the colonies and the mother country,
silk culture languished even among these Germans, and was
never afterwards revived to any considerable degree. The un-
friendliness of climate, the high price of labor, the withdrawal
of all bounty, which had been the chief stimulus to exertion, and
the larger profits to be derived from the cultivation of rice and
cotton, combined to interrupt silk-raising, and, in the end, caused
its total abandonment.
The construction of a bridge over Ebenezer Creek materially
promoted the interests and the convenience of those residing at
Ebenezer, and the erection of churches at Bethany and Goshen,
the former about five miles northwest of Ebenezer, and the latter
some ten miles below and near the road leading to Savannah,
indicated the growth of the German plantations along the line
of the Savannah River. -
The settlement at Bethany was effected in 1751 by John Gerar
William DeBrahm, who there located one hundred and sixty
Germans. Eleven months afterwards these colonists were joined
by an equal number, “the Relations and Acquaintance of the
former.” The Salzburgers then numbered about fifteen hundred
1 Silk Culture in Georgia, by Dr. Stevens. Harris' Memorials of Oglethorpe, pp.
410, 411. Boston. 1841.
THE GERMAN SETTLEMENTS. 375
souls." Alluding to the location and growth of these planta-
tions, and the agricultural pursuits of their cultivators, Surveybr-
General DeBrahm says: “The German Settlements have since
Streatched S: Eastwardly about 32 miles N : W-ward from the
Sea upon Savannah Stream, from whence they extend up the
same Stream through the whole Salt Air Zona. They culti-
vate European and American Grains to Perfection ; as Wheat,
Rye, Barley, Oats; also Flax, Hemp, Tobacco and Rice, Indigo,
Maize, Peas, Pompions, Melons — they plant Mulberry, Apple,
Peach, Nectorins, Plumbs and Quince Trees, besides all manner
of European Garden Herbs, but, in particular, they Chose the
Culture of Silk their principal Object, in which Culture they
made such a Progress, that the Filature, which is erected in the
City of Savannah could afford to send in 1768 to London 1,084
Pounds of raw Silk, equal in Goodness to that manufactured in
Piemont; but the Bounties to encourage that Manufactory being
taken off, they discouraged, dropped their hands from that Cul-
ture from year to year in a manner, that in 1771 its Product was
only 290 Pounds in lieu of 1,464, which must have been that
year's Produce, had this Manufactory been encouraged to increase
at a 16 years rate. In lieu of Silk they have taken under more
Consideration the Culture of Maize, Rice, Indigo, Hemp & To-
bacco: But the Vines have not as yet become an Object of their
Attention, altho' in the Country especially over the German Set-
tlements, Nature makes all the Promises, yea gives yearly full
Assurances of her Assistance, by her own Endeavours producing
Clusture Grapes in Abundance on its uncultivated Vines: yet
there is no Person, who will listen to her Addresses, and give her
the least Assistance, notwithstanding many of the Inhabitants
are refreshed from the Sweetness of her wild Productions. The
Culture of Indigo is brought to the same Perfection here, as in
South Carolina, and is manufactured through all the Settlements
from the Sea Coast, to the Extent of the interior Country.” 2
On the 19th of November, 1765, the Ebenezer congregation was
called upon to mourn the loss of its venerable spiritual guide, the
Rev. Mr. Bolzius, who had been at once teacher and magistrate,
counselor and friend, during the thirty years of poverty and pri-
vation, labor and sorrow, hope and joy, passed in the wilds of
Georgia. He was interred, amid the lamentations of his people,
in the cemetery near Jerusalem Church and no stone marks his
grave.
1 History of the Province of Georgia, * History of the Province of Georgia,
etc., p. 20. Wormsloe. 1849. etc. pp. 21, 22. Wormsloe. 1849.
376 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
After his demise the conduct of the society devolved upon
Messrs. Lembke and Rabenhorst. This involved not only the
spiritual care of the people, but also the preservation and proper
management of the mill-establishments and public property be-
longing to the Ebenezer Congregation. “ These two faithful
men,” writes the Rev. P. A. Strobel, “labored harmoniously
and successfully in the discharge of their heavy civil and religious
obligations, and gave entire satisfaction to those with whose inter-
ests they were intrusted.” During their administration the large
brick house of worship, known as Jerusalem Church, was built.
The materials used in its construction were, for the most part,
supplied by the Salzburgers, while the funds necessary to defray
the cost of erection were contributed by friends in Germany.
Upon the death of Mr. Lembke, the Rev. Christopher F.
Triebner “was sent over by the religious fathers in Germany as
an adjunct to Mr. Rabenhorst. Being a young man of talents,
but of an impetuous and ambitious disposition, he soon raised
such a tumult in the quiet community that all the efforts of the
famous Dr. Muhlenburg, who was ordered on a special mission to
Ebenezer in 1774 to heal the disturbances which had arisen,
barely saved the congregation from disintegration. The schism
was, however, finally cured, and peace was restored.” For the
better government of the society, articles of discipline were pre-
pared by Dr. Muhlenburg, which were formally subscribed by
one hundred and twenty-four male members. This occurred at
Jerusalem Church on the 16th of January, 1775, and affords sub-
stantial evidence of the strength of the congregation.
The property belonging to the church, according to an inven-
tory made by Dr. Muhlenburg in 1775, consisted of the following
items : —
“1. In the hands of Pastor Rabenhorst a capital of £300
16s. 5d.
“2. In the hands of John Casper Wertsch, for the store, £300.
“3. In the mill treasury, notes and money, £229 16s. 2d.
“4. Pastor Triebner has some money in hands, (£400), the
application of which has not been determined by our Reverend
Fathers.
“5. Belonging to the Church is a Negro Boy at Mr. John
Flöerls', and a Negro Girl at Mr. David Steiner's.
“6. A town-lot and an out-lot, of which Mr. John Triebner
has the grant in his hands.
1 The Salzburgers and their Descendants, etc., p. 149. Baltimore. 1855.
THE CONGREGATION AT EBENEZER, 377
“7. An inventory of personal goods in the mills belonging to
the estate.
“8. And, finally, real estate, with the mills, 925 acres of land.”
Including certain legacies from private individuals and dona-
tions from patrons of the colony in Germany, it is conjectured
that this church property was then worth not much less than
twenty thousand dollars. w
So long as the congregation at Ebenezer preserved its integrity,
direct allegiance to the parent church in Germany was acknowl-
edged, its precepts, orders, and deliverances were obeyed, its
teachers welcomed and respected, and accounts of all receipts,
disbursements, and important transactions regularly rendered.
Its pastors continued to be charged with the administration of
affairs, both spiritual and temporal, and were the duly constituted
custodians of all church funds and property. Upon their arri-
val in Georgia these Salzburgers, wearied with persecutions and
stripped of the Small possessions which were once theirs, were
at first quite dependent upon public and private charity for bare
subsistence. They were then unable, by voluntary contributions,
to sustain their pastors and teachers and to build churches.
Foreign aid arrived, however, from time to time, and this was
supplemented in a small yet generous way by the labor of the
parishioners and by such sums and articles as could be spared
from their slow accumulations. With a view to providing for
the future, all means thus derived were carefully invested for the
benefit of church and pastor. This system was maintained for
more than fifty years, so that in the course of time not only were
churches erected, but reasonable provision was made for clergy-
man, teacher, and orphan. The education of youths was not
neglected; and DeBrahm assures us that in his day a library had
been accumulated at Ebenezer in which “could be had Books
wrote in the Caldaic, Hebrew, Arabec, Siriac, Coptic, Malabar,
Greek, Latin, French, German, Dutch and Spanish, beside the
English, viz: in thirteen Languages.” I
The efforts of the trustees to encourage the cultivation of the
grape proved even more futile than those expended in the pro-
duction of silk. No practical results were reached except such
as entailed loss and disappointment. From the experiment of
Abraham DeLyon, who procured vines from Portugal and planted
them upon his garden-lot in Savannah, much good was anticipated.
Although encouraged by the trustees, the business did not expand
* History of the Province of Georgia, etc., p. 24, Wormsloe. 1849.
378 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
into proportions sufficient to claim public attention, and the col-
ony, as a wine-producing community, proved an utter failure.
As illustrating the early hopes entertained, and as presenting
the only picture of a Georgia colonial vineyard which has been
handed down to us, we reproduce the following from Colonel Wil-
liam Stephens’ “Journal of Proceedings in Georgia: ”I “ Tues-
day, December 6th, 1737. After dinner walked out to see what
Improvement of Vines were made by one Mr. Lyon a Portugese
Jew, which I had heard some talk of ; and indeed nothing had
given me so much Pleasure since my Arrival as what I found
here ; though it was yet (if I may say it properly), only a Minia-
ture, for he had cultivated only for two or three Years past about
half a Score of them which he received from Portugal for an Ex-
periment; and by his Skill and Management in pruning &c. they
all bore this Year very plentifully a most beautiful, large Grape
as big as a Man's Thumb, almost pellucid, and Bunches exceed-
ing big ; all which was attested by Persons of unquestionable
Credit (whom I had it from) but the Season now would allow
me only to see the Vines they were gathered from, which were
so flourishing and strong that I saw one Shoot, of this last Year
only, which he allowed to grow from the Root of a bearing Vine,
as big as my Walking-Cane, and run over a few Poles laid to
receive it, at least twelve or fourteen Foot, as near as I could
judge. From these he has raised more than a Hundred, which
he has planted all in his little Garden behind his House at about
four Foot Distance each, in the Manner and Form of a Vineyard:
They have taken Root and are about one Foot and a half high;
the next Year he says he does not doubt raising a Thousand more,
and the Year following at least five Thousand. I could not be-
lieve (considering the high Situation of the Town upon a Pine Bar-
ren, and the little Appearance of such Productions in these little
Spots of Ground annexed to the House) but that he had found
some proper Manure wherewith to improve the sandy Soil; but
he assured me it was nothing but the natural Soil, without any
other Art than his Planting and Pruning which he seemed to set
some Value on from his Experience in being bred among the
Vineyards in Portugal; and, to convince the World that he in-
tends to pursue it from the Encouragement of the Soil proving
so proper for it, he has at this Time hired four Men to clear and
prepare as much Land as they possibly can upon his forty-five
Acre Lot, intending to convert every Foot of the whole that is fit
1 Vol. i. p. 48. London. MDCCXLII.
GRAPE CULTURE. 379
for it into a Vineyard: though he complains of his present Ina-
bility to be at such an Expence as to employ Servants for Hire.
From hence I could not but reflect on the small Progress that has
been made hitherto in propagating vines in the publick Garden
where, the Soil being the same, it must be owing to the Unskil-
fulness or Negligence of those who had undertaken that Charge.”
CHAPTER xXIV.
OGLETHORPE’s INTERCOURSE witH AND INFLUENCE over THE INDIAN NA-
TIONS. – PLOT OF CHRISTIAN PRIBER. — ExPLoSION of THE BoME-MAG-
AZINE AT FREDERICA. — MARY MUSGROVE. — THOMAS Bosoxſworth. —
MEMORIAL OF MARY BOSOMWORTH. — MALATCHE OPIYA PRoclaimed
KING. – HosTILE DEMONSTRATION ON THE PART of MARY BOSOM worth,
HER HUSBAND, AND A LARGE RETINUE OF INDIANs. – ADJUSTMENT of
THE BOSOMworth CLAIM.
DURING General Oglethorpe's residence in Georgia amicable
relations were maintained between the colonists and the Indians.
Traffic was conducted upon an equitable basis, and all complaints
were patiently considered and satisfactorily adjusted. Wherever
cessions of territory occurred, the rights of the natives to reserved
lands were duly respected. Any assistance rendered by the ab-
origines was acknowledged, and generous compensation allowed
for their services, whether in war or in peace. Most potent was
the influence exerted by General Oglethorpe over the Creeks,
the Cherokees, and neighboring nations. So upright and liberal
was he in all his intercourse with them, so far removed from
deceit, injustice, and cruelty, so frank, manly, and confiding in
his conduct and utterances, so opposed to everything savoring
of meanness or duplicity, that these primitive peoples regarded
him with respect and affection. To his expressed wishes they
responded promptly, whether they related to a grant of land, the
transmission of intelligence, or a detail of warriors to aid him in
his operations against the Spaniards in Florida. The friendship
of these Indians was readily won, and at that early day they
were observant of plighted faith. Invaluable were they to the
general in keeping him advised of the secret machinations of the
Spaniards and French, and in assisting him to subvert the plans
of his adversaries. “We love him,” responded the Creek chief
Similly to the Spaniards, as they endeavored to seduce him from
his alliance with Oglethorpe, “because he gives us everything
we want that he has. He has given me the coat off his back
and the blanket from under him.” Beyond doubt a liberal dis-
tribution of presents and a constant care exercised in relieving
PLOT OF CHRISTIAN PRIBER. 381
their wants, contributed in no small degree to the acquisition and
retention of the friendship of these sons of the forest. However
much we may be inclined to criticise the conduct of this native
race when demoralized by contact with the vices of Europeans,
cheated by traders, despoiled of their ancient domains, and in-
flamed by outrage, robbery, and murder, it must be admitted
that in the beginning the Indians were hospitable, kind, and
generous. In an hour of feebleness and want they were stanch
friends of the colony of Georgia. During all the early years of
its existence the province suffered no violence at the hands of
the original proprietors of the soil. Let this fact be remembered
with gratitude, and let it not be forgotten that General Ogle-
thorpe, by his wisdom, justice, moderation, and liberality, was
largely instrumental in bringing about and maintaining this for-
tunate state of affairs.
While he was engaged in warding off the heavy blow deliv-
ered by the Spaniards against St. Simon's Island, a dangerous
plot was discovered which seriously menaced the security of the
Southern provinces.
In 1736 a German Jesuit, named Christian Priber, was em-
ployed by the French to alienate the Cherokees from their affil-
iation with the English. Proceeding to the chief town of the
nation he there assumed the garb of an Indian, acquired the,
Cherokee language, familiarized himself with the customs of that
people, and by his superior address and intelligence succeeded in
winning general favor. Rendering himself eminently useful in
the employments both of peace and war, he acquired an ascen-
dency over the minds of the Cherokees and neighboring tribes
which amounted almost to absolute sway. Then it was that he
revealed his dire hatred of the English, and strove to bring about
an open rupture between the Indians and the provinces of South
Carolina and Georgia. Acting upon his suggestion, the chief
of the Cherokees was crowned king of the confederated towns.
Pompous titles were conferred upon the head men and distin-
guished warriors, and Priber himself was appointed royal secre-
tary to the king of the Cherokees. Under this official title he
corresponded with the Indian agents and the colonial authorities.
His communications were insulting and dictatorial. They spoke
of the native rights of the Indians and of their resolution to
repossess themselves of ceded territory. They breathed love for
the French and hatred of the English. Warned of the career of
this strange person, and of the prejudicial influence he was ex-
382 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
erting upon the Cherokee nation, the authorities of South Car-
olina dispatched Colonel Fox to demand him of the Cherokees.
This officer was courteously received and led into the great
square where stood the council house of the tribe. There, to his
surprise and regret, he perceived that the person whom he had
come to arrest was treated on all sides with the greatest respect,
and was surrounded by a strong body-guard. His errand having
been announced, with his demand the Indians refused to com-
ply, and Colonel Fox was ordered to withdraw himself from the
Cherokee territory, Priber offering a detail from his body-guard
to insure the safe conduct of the English officer. In 1743, how-
ever, while journeying toward Mobile, unarmed and attended
by only a few warriors, he was arrested at Tallipoose Town by
some traders, and sent down, with all his papers, under strong
Indian guard, to Frederica, to be examined and disposed of by
General Oglethorpe.
In his Indian guise Priber was brought before the general
upon his return from Florida. Not a little was he surprised to
find, under this coarse attire of deer-skins, a man of polished ad-
dress, great abilities, and extensive learning. He was versed in
the Cherokee language, of which he had prepared a vocabulary.
Latin, French, German, Spanish, and English he spoke fluently.
When interrogated, he hesitated not to admit that he was a
member of the Society of Jesus, and that he had been deputed by
his superior to bring about a confederation of all the Southern In-
dians, to inspire them with industry, to instruct them in the use-
ful arts, and to induce them to throw off their allegiance to the
British Crown. He proposed to form a settlement at Cusseta,
where all disaffected English, French, and German colonists, and
all runaway negro slaves, might find a refuge. There criminals
were to be sheltered. This place was designed as an asylum for
fugitives from justice, and for the cattle and effects they might
bring with them. All crimes and licentiousnesses were to be tol-
erated, except murder and idleness. Among his manuscripts was
found a well-digested plan of government for the Indian confed-
eracy which he hoped to establish. So firmly persuaded was he
of the ultimate success of his scheme, he boldly stated to his in-
terrogators his belief that before the lapse of the current century
“Europeans would have a very small footing on the American
continent.” Upon his person was a private journal revealing in
part his designs, and containing various memoranda relating to
his project. In it he mentions that he had a secret treasurer
PRIBER IN CONFINEMENT. 383
in Charlestown, and that he expected great assistance from the
French and from another nation, whose name is left blank. Let-
ters addressed to French and Spanish governors, demanding
protection for the bearer, Mr. Priber, and referring to him for
further particulars, were also in his possession. Among the priv-
ileges to be accorded to the citizens of his town were a commu-
nity of women, the right to dissolve marriage at pleasure, and
freedom to indulge every appetite.
When it was suggested to him that his plan of government
was lawless, dangerous, and difficult, and that it would require
long years for its establishment, he replied: “Proceeding prop-
erly, many of these evils may be avoided ; and, as to length of
time, we have a succession of agents to take up the work as fast
as others leave it. We never lose sight of a favorite point ; nor
are we bound by strict rules of morality in the employment of
means when the end we pursue is laudable. If we err, our gen-
eral is to blame, and we have a merciful God to pardon us.”
He hinted that there were other Jesuits laboring among the In-
dians for the accomplishment of a like result.
Regarded as a dangerous enemy to Georgia, Priber was con-
fined in the barracks at Frederica. His captivity he bore with
stoical indifference. Conversing freely, and conducting himself
with extreme politeness, he attracted the notice of many of the
citizens of the town and was the recipient of favors at their
hands. While thus a prisoner, a fire occurred in the bomb-mag-
azine which was very near his quarters. Several thousand shells
were exploded. General was the alarm. It was confidently
believed that Priber had perished, - slain by fragments of the
exploded projectiles. By those who ventured first into his apart-
ment he was found unhurt, calmly reading a favorite Greek au-
thor. When asked why he had not endeavored to make his
escape from so dangerous a locality, he coolly responded that
in his opinion the safest place was just by exploding shells, as
few, if any, would return to the precise spot whence they were
expelled, and therefore he quietly remained where he was and
passed unharmed through the disaster.
Fortunately for the peace of the Southern provinces Priber
died suddenly during his captivity, and thus was his nefarious
design frustrated."
1 See inclosure in General Ogle- Stevens' History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 164.
thorpe's letter of the 22d of April, 1743, New York. MDCCCXLVII. Romance
addressed to the Duke of Newcastle. of American History, p. 22. New York.
384 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
We turn now to another Indian trouble instigated and con-
ducted by an avaricious, designing, and unscrupulous white man,
which seriously imperiled, and almost compassed the destruction
of, the colony.
It will be remembered that Oglethorpe, in his earliest inter-
view with Tomo-chi-chi and his tribe, secured the services of
Mary Musgrove, the wife of an Indian trader, as an interpreter.
Finding that she possessed considerable influence with the Creek
nation, and that her inclinations towards the English were very
friendly, he retained her in that capacity, allowing her, as com-
pensation for her services, one hundred pounds sterling per an-
num. Her assistance was invaluable, and her aid, not only in
concluding treaties but also in securing warriors from the Creek
confederacy during the conflict between Georgia and Florida, in-
dispensable. Promptly did she respond on all occasions to any
request made of her, and for her General Oglethorpe entertained
and expressed a sincere regard. She was certainly of great use
to him and to the colony. Had he remained, the trouble which
will now be mentioned would probably have been avoided.
Mary Musgrove afterwards became Mary Matthews, and sub-
sequently married Thomas Bosomworth, at one time chaplain to
Oglethorpe's regiment. On the 4th of July, 1743, he was com-
missioned by the trustees “to perform all religious and ecclesi-
astical affairs in Georgia.” He had accepted a grant of lands
from the common council and taken up his residence in the
colony. “Hitherto,” in the language of Stevens, “the career of
Mary had been one of generous self-denial and of unremitted la-
bours for the good of the Colony. She had not indeed received
the full reward of her services, but she rested on the faith of the
government and was, until her marriage with Bosomworth, quiet
in her conduct and moderate in her demands. But, from 1744,
her whole character was changed, and the Colony which her ser-
vices had kept in peace and security was now, through her mis-
directed influence, to feel the dreadful horrors of expected mas-
sacre and extermination.”
The year after his marriage, Bosomworth returned to England
and informed the trustees that he did not purpose residing any
longer in Georgia. In 1746, he came again to Savannah and
indicated his contempt for the regulations of the trustees by in-
1872. Compare Logan's History of the documents in the office of the Secretary
Upper Country of South Carolina, vol. i. of State, Columbia, S. C.
pp. 406 et seq. Charleston 1859. MS.
MEMORIAL OF MARY BOSOMWORTH. 385
troducing six negro slaves on the plantation of his wife on the
south side of the forks of the Alatamaha River, known as Mount
Venture. This affront the trustees promptly resented, and in-
structed President Stephens and his assistants to cause the im-
mediate removal of those slaves. The execution of this order
provoked the wrath of Bosomworth. He resolved upon revenge.
Having first conciliated the Indians, with much cunning and
caution he began to develop his plans, which embraced not only
compensation from the general government for the losses sus-
tained and the services rendered by his wife, but also absolute
possession of Ossabaw, St. Catherine, and Sapelo islands, and of
a tract of land near Savannah which the Indians had reserved
for themselves in former treaties with the colonists.
Placing his demand at the exorbitant sum of £5,000, and
casting aside every restraint which might have been expected
from one of his profession, he “put on the iron features of the
extortioner, determined rather to light up through the nation the
fires of the war-dance than cancel one claim or relinquish one
acre.” That something more was due to Mrs. Bosomworth for
losses sustained and labors performed in the service of the colony
could not be doubted; but, moved by her avaricious and un-
scrupulous husband, her claim was magnified beyond measure.
By his address he secured the sympathy of several of the officers
of Oglethorpe's regiment resident at Frederica, and prepared the
following memorial which he induced his wife to sign : —
“To the Honorable Lieut: Col” Heron, Commander in Chief of
his Majesty's forces in the Province of Georgia.
“The Memorial and representation of Mary Bosomworth I of
the said Province, humbly she weth:
“That your Memorialist was born at the Coweta Town on
the Oakmulgee River, which is a branch of the Alatamaha, and
the chief-town of the Creek Indian nation.
“That she is by descent on the Mother's side (who was sister
to the old Emperor) of the same blood with the present Micos
and chiefs now in that nation, and by their laws and the voice of
the whole people is esteemed their rightful and natural Princess.
“That her ancestors tho’ under the appellation of savages,
were a brave and free-born people who never owed allegiance to,
or acknowledged the sovereignty of, any crowned head whatever,
but have always maintained their own possessions and indepen-
dence against all opposers by war at the expense of their blood;
* Her Indian name was Cowsaponckesa.
25
386 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
as they can shew by the many trophies of victory and relicts of
their enemies slain in defence of their natural rights.
“That they have entered into several treaties of Peace, Friend-
ship, and Commerce with persons properly empowered in behalf
of the Crown of Great Britain.
“That they have made several concessions of land, their nat-
ural right, in behalf of his Majesty, and have for several years
past, on their parts strictly and faithfully observed the treaty of
friendship and alliance entered into with hon: Maj. Gen. Ogle-
thorpe in behalf of his Brittanick Majesty, and have on all oc-
casions been ready to fight against his Majesty's enemies, which
they have much annoyed.
“That both the French and Spaniards well know, by dear ex-
perience, how terrible they are to their enemies in war. They
are so highly sensible of the vast importance of the friendship
and alliance of the Creek Nation to the British interest that they
have for some time past and are at this juncture laboring by all
the artifices imaginable to seduce that nation from their alliance
with his Majesty's subjects; which will be certainly a great ad-
dition of strength and power to his Majesty's enemies: and the
dangerous consequence may be the hazard of the Safety of his
Majesty's Southern Frontier.
“That your Memorialist hath by her interest since the first
settlement of the Colony of Georgia, for the space of 14 years,
continued that important nation steady and steadfast in their
alliance with the English at the expense of her own private for-
tune, to the ruin of herself and family, as will appear by a plain
narrative of matters of fact.
“That whereas your Memorialist by the laws of Great Britain
is a subject of that Crown, and has given many signal proofs of
her zeal and loyalty as such ; amongst the many blessings she
hopes to enjoy under his Majesty's government is a right of com-
plaining of the grievances which she at present labors under,
which are now become too great for her any longer to bear; and
the hopes of redress she esteems none of the least.
“Your Memorialist therefore humbly begs leave to represent
unto you a state of her deplorable case which she hopes will ap-
pear to be such that the justice of a British Parliament will be
extended to her relief. -
“That your Memorialist about the age of 7 years was brought
down by her father from the Indian Nation to Pomponne in
South Carolina, and there baptized, educated, and bred up in the
principles of Christianity.
MEMORIAL OF MARY BOSOMWORTH. 387
“That she was in South Carolina when the Indian war broke
out in the year 1715: that the cause thereof was the acts of in-
justice which the Indians had received from the Traders as she
has been informed by old Chichilli, her mother's brother, who,
at the head of the Creek Indians, at that time advanced as far as
Stono River.
“That in the year 1716 Col. John Musgrove, your Memori-
alist's father-in-law, was sent into the Nation as Agent of South
Carolina, who entered into a treaty of alliance with the Creek Na-
tion in behalf of that Government, the conditions of which were
that traders should be sent up among them &c., and that none
of his Majesty's subjects should live, hold any lands, or claim
any right or title to any cattle &c. to the South of the River
Savannah, which was to be the boundary between the Creeks
and his Majesty's subjects.
“That after she was married to Mr. John Musgrove she was
settled in Carolina upwards of 7 years, till June 1732, at which
time she and her husband, at the request of the Creek Nation
and by the consent of Governor Johnson, moved all their goods,
cattle, &c. to the South of the river Savannah and settled a trad-
ing-house at Yamacraw, near the place where Savannah now
stands, where they took from the Indians very large quantities
of deer-skins, and had large credit and supplies of goods to carry
on that traffic from Merchants in Charlestown.
“That upon the arrival of James Oglethorpe with the first em-
barkation of the settlement of the Colony of Georgia, the Indians
that were then settled at Yamacraw were very uneasy and threat-
ened to take up arms against them, which they certainly would
have done as they looked upon all white people settling here as
a breach of the treaty with Carolina, had not your Memorialist
used the utmost of her influence to bring about a treaty between
Mr Oglethorpe and the Indians that were then there ; which
treaty was provisionary till the consent of the Nation could be
obtained, which was effected with difficulty by your Memorial-
ist’s influence.
“That her husband, John Musgrove, carried considerable ef-
fects into Georgia; that as there was at that time no other house
in the Colony, they supplied the first settlers with every neces-
sary their plantation afforded, or that they could purchase on
credit from Charlestown.
“That she and her husband having then little experience of
the world and the designs of bad people, have greatly suffered by
388 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
giving large credit to sundry persons in public service in Georgia,
and out of mere compassion relieving their necessities, most of
whom have either left the Colony, or are not able to pay her.
“She further declareth that in the years 1733 and 1734 she
took from the Indians near 1200 weight of deer-skins each year,
as she can make appear by remittances made to Charlestown,
and that the trade would have very much increased, as great
numbers of Indians were daily coming from the Nation to trade
with her; by which trade alone she could soon have made a very
large fortune, had she pursued the same methods that the rest of
the traders did in persuading the Indians to constantly go out
hunting, which she had influence enough to have done.
“But as at that time there was no other defence for this Infant
Colony and the Southern parts of Carolina which lay exposed
to the incursions of the Spanish and Indians in amity with them,
but the alliance of the Creeks, she so far preferred the lives and
property of the Colonists to her own interests that she not only
used her influence to keep the Creeks steady in their alliance
with his Majesty's subjects, but constantly supported at her own
expence numbers of her friends and other war Indians who were
always ready to go against his Majesty's enemies; by which
means her trade daily decreased and almost went to ruin: the
Indians, who were her hunters, being almost daily employed in
some expedition for the British service, and thereby rendered
unable to pay their debts to her, which amounted to several
thousand weight of leather, which remains unpaid to this day,
some being dead, and others killed in his Majesty's service, par-
ticularly her own brother and other near relatives at the Siege of
Augustine in the year 1740.
“That in the years 1736 and 1737 when Mr. Oglethorpe
thought proper to strengthen the southern parts of the Province
by a settlement at the Island of Simon and on the Alatamaha,
the assistance of the Creek Indians became more necessary, as
there were advices that the Spaniards were then making prepa-
rations to dislodge this Colony.
“That she was then sent for on all occasions to Frederica when-
ever any Indians came there, as they did not choose to talk of
affairs of consequence unless she was there ; which has often
occasioned her absence from home for several months at a time,
by which means her own affairs daily went to ruin, being, in her
absence on public affairs, entirely left to the care of servants.
“That as these frontiers lay exposed to the ravages of the ene-
MEMORIAL OF MARY BOSOMWORTH. 389
mies Indians, buoyed up by the extensive promises and rewards
which so signal a service would merit, at the request of Gen.
Oglethorpe, she settled a trading house on the south side of the
Alatamaha River, about 60 miles up in the country: the inten-
tion of which was that the Creek Indians that would be constantly
with them there, would be an outgard to prevent any incursion
of Indians in friendship with the Spaniards, and be always ready
when his Majesty's service required, which answered the intention
of the Public, but was a heavy burden upon your Memorialist.
“That after the war with Spain, the services of the Indians
were so constantly needed, that no advantage could be made by
the trade there ; that she constantly employed her interest to
bring down her friends from the nation to fight against his
Majesty's enemies, which, since the war they have so annoyed,
that they have been a strong barrier against the designs of the
Spaniards, as must be allowed by every person.
“That by her, and her then husband’s absence at their settle-
ment on the Alatamaha, all their affairs at Savannah, which
were very considerable, went to ruin.
“That in the year 1742 her then husband, Jacob Matthews,
being taken sick, was brought from the Alatamaha to Savannah
and there soon after died: that her affairs being in great confu-
sion occasioned her stay there longer than she expected : that
the Indians at her settlement on the Alatamaha being uneasy
that she did not return left the place, which the Yamassees tak-
ing advantage of, came in a party, committed several murders,
and entirely destroyed her settlement.
“That in the year 1743 when his Excellency General Ogle-
thorpe returned to England he then paid her £180 which, with
£20 before received, made £200, which was all she received for
her services from 1732 to that time, whereas, notwithstanding
the fatigue she has undergone in frequently travelling several
hundred miles by water in open boats, exposed to both heat and
cold, and no covering but the canopy of the heavens, the losses
sustained in her own private affairs by the neglect thereof on his
Majesty's service from the settlement of the Colony will, upon
moderate computation, amount to £5,714, 17 shillings and eleven
pence sterling.
“That as she has hitherto relied in vain on General Ogle-
thorpe's promises to make her restitution for all her losses sus-
tained in his Majesty's service, to solicit redress for her grievances
and to obtain from the Government at home such rewards for
390 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
her services as were adequate to the consequence thereof, as you
Sir, have the deserved honor to command his Majesty's forces in
this Province, and may have personal knowledge of the truth of
several facts herein stated, viz. the merit of your Memorialist's
past services, the necessity of a strict alliance with the Creeks,
the danger that at present threatens the peace of Carolina and
Georgia from the loss of that friendship, the causes whereof, and
the consequence of her present interest, (if she is not deprived
of the means of using it): she therefore humbly begs that you
will make a statement of those things to the Government at
home in such a light as you will think conducive to the welfare
of the Colony and his Majesty’s service.
“That whereas his Majesty in the Preamble of the Royal
Charter to the Honorable the Trustees for establishing the Col.
ony of Georgia has been graciously pleased to declare that the
intention of the settlement of said Colony was partly as a protec-
tion to South Carolina, whose Southern frontier lay exposed to
the frequent ravages of enemies, which signal instance of his
Majesty's care for that Province is gratefully acknowledged by
a Memorial from the Governor and Council of said Province
dated 9th April 1734;
“And whereas, his Majesty's intentions in the settlement of
Georgia have so far answered that no out-settlement has been cut
off, boats taken, or men killed since that time; your Memorialist
therefore humbly hopes that upon a statement of her case to the
Governor and Council of South Carolina how far the inhabitants
of that Province have been enabled to improve its Southern part
by your Memorialist's influence in continuing the Indians in al-
liance with his Majesty’s subjects, that that Government would
be induced to make her some restitution for losses sustained in
his Majesty's service, as she is now largely indebted to mer-
chants in Charlestown and to other persons in South Carolina.
“And lastly your Memorialist cannot help repeating with an
equal mixture of grief of heart and indignation that her wrongs
have scarcely a parallel in the history of the British Government.
Language is too weak to represent her present case. She labors
under every sense of injury and circumstance of distress, being
insulted, abused, and despised by the ungrateful people who are
indebted to her for every blessing they enjoy.
“The only return she has met with for her past services and
maternal affection has been unjust loads of infamy; — branded by
the name of traitor for making pretension to rights to which she
MEMORIAL OF MARY BOSOMWORTH. 391
is entitled by the laws of God and Nature. She has in vain made
application for a grant from the Crown, and is desirous and will-
ing to hold what possessions she is entitled to by the laws of
Nature and Nations as a subject of Great Britain.
“It is with reluctance that your Memorialist declares that the
Colony of Georgia was settled by her interest with the Creeks;
that it has in a great measure been supported by it ; and that she
has now interest to command 1,000 fighting men to stand in the
face of his Majesty's enemies and to countermine the designs of
the French and Spaniards, if suitable encouragement is given her
to prevent her the necessity of her flying to her Indian friends for
bread which will greatly exasperate them.
“The French emissaries are at this moment trying every
scheme to debauch their faith from the English. They magnify
the power of France, and are loading them with presents.
“They study to render the English contemptible which is
greatly confirmed by your not being able to give them presents
as usual.
“Your Memorialist therefore humbly begs leave to represent
that the expence of our safety must be considerable if you think
the alliance of the Creeks worth preserving. These ends cannot
be effected by any other means but by extraordinary presents
being allowed them,--a proper person being sent among them in
whom they repose confidence, and who can remove every insinu-
ation of his Majesty's enemies.
“That whereas your Memorialist is highly sensible that it is
not in your power to redress her grievances, and of the difficulties
you labor under in not being allowed funds for continuing the
Creeks in Alliance, and how far his Majesty's service may suffer
thereby, she therefore humbly begs that you will lay this Memo-
rial before his Grace the Duke of New Castle with the assurance
that if the Government should think proper to allow a certain
sum per annum to be applied amongst the Indians that she, on
her part, would engage by her interest among them to do every
duty that was ever done by Rangers &c. in Georgia, which have
lost the Government so many thousand pounds; and with the
Regiment under your command and her interest with the Creeks
she believes that every foot of his Majesty’s possessions in this
important frontier could be maintained against his Majesty's en-
emies.
“All which is humbly Submitted, &c.
“MARY BOSOMWORTH.
“August 10th, 1747.”
392 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
This earnest, inflated, and yet respectful petition was framed,
as we have intimated, by the Rev. Mr. Bosomworth, the then
husband of the applicant. Fortified by sundry letters commend-
atory of the past services and present influence of the Memorialist
(among which may be mentioned communications from General
Oglethorpe, Major William Horton, Captain Richard Kent, Colo-
nel William Stephens, and Colonel Alexander Heron, and also
by translations of eulogistic talks by Chickilli Tuskeestonnecah,
king of the warriors of the Creek nation, and Malatche Opiya,
mico), this document was forwarded for the consideration of the
home authorities. Colonel Heron appears to have sympathized
in this scheme of the Bosomworths for additional compensation.
Colonel Stephens in one of his letters to the trustees does not
hesitate to affirm that this officer was to participate largely in the
expected remuneration, and that his support of the memorial had
been thus purchased.
Not content with prevailing upon his wife to take the step just
indicated, the Rev. Thomas Bosomworth resorted to an addi-
tional expedient to compass his ambitious, grasping, and sordid
purposes. On the 14th of December, 1747, an Indian king,
Malatche by name, of the Creek nation, and sixteen companions,
chiefs of various towns composing that confederacy, chanced to
be on a visit to Frederica. Bosomworth, who was very friendly
to Malatche, was also there. Exerting his influence with this
mico he persuaded him to have himself then and there formally
acknowledged as the head of the Creek nation, with full power
to cede lands, conclude treaties, and transact any other business
connected with the kingly administration of the affairs of his
people.
This suggestion meeting with the approval of his companions,
appropriate ceremonies were performed wherein Malatche was
proclaimed and saluted as the supreme chief of the Muscogulgee
confederacy. At the suggestion of Bosomworth the following
document was prepared and signed : —
“FREDERICA IN GEORGIA, December 14th, 1747.
“Know all men by these presents that we Simpeopy, war-king
of the Cowetas, Thlockpalahi, head warrior of the said town,
Moxumgi, king of the Etchitas, Iswige, head warrior of the Et-
chitas, and Actithilki, beloved man of the said town, Ciocoliche,
king of Osuchees, Appalya and Ischaboagy, beloved men of
Nipky, and Himmopacohi, warriors of said town, Tokeah, war-
king of the Chehaws, Whyanneachi and Etowah, warriors of the
MALATCHE PROCLAIMED KING. 393
said town, Mahelabbi, beloved man of the Cusetas, and Scheyah,
warrior of the said town, and Estchothalleachi Yahulla, Mico of
the Tiskugas, having full power by the laws of the nation to con-
clude everything for the towns we represent, do hereby acknowl-
edge Malatche Opiya Mico to be our rightful and natural prince.
And we likewise further acknowledge that by the laws of our
nation we think ourselves obliged to stand by, ratify, and confirm
every act and deed of his as much as if we ourselves were present,
and we therefore make this public declaration to all subjects of
the Crown of Great Britain that Malatche Opiya Mico has full
power and authority, as our natural prince, to transact all affairs
relating to our Nation as firmly and fully to all intents and pur-
poses as we the whole nation might or could do if present. In
confirmation of which presents we have hereunto set our hands
and affixed our seals in behalf of the different towns we represent,
the day and date above written.” +
Of this document, signed and sealed by the declarants, and
witnessed by Colonel Heron, Sir Patrick Houstoun, and four
others, Malatche requested that a copy should be sent over to the
king of England, and that due record should be made of the orig-
inal. Having thus far succeeded in his design, Bosomworth next
prepared, and prevailed upon Malatche to execute a deed by
which, as emperor of the Upper and Lower Creek nations, he con-
veyed to Thomas and Mary Bosomworth, of the Colony of Georgia,
the three islands on the coast, known as Hussoope or Ossabaw,
Cowleggee or St. Catharine, and Sapelo. The consideration
mentioned was “ten pieces of stroud, twelve pieces of duffles, two
hundred weight of powder, two hundred weight of lead, twenty
guns, twelve pairs of pistols, and one hundred weight of vermil-
ion.” It was an absolute conveyance, with full covenant of war-
ranty, to Bosomworth and his wife, their heirs, and assigns, so
long as the sun should shine or the waters run in tho rivers.
This transaction followed hard upon the other. In fact the first
was simply a prelude to the second. In the existing treaties with
the Creek Indians these three beautiful and extensive islands
had always been reserved by the natives as their special property
for the purposes of hunting, fishing, and bathing.
The reverend gentleman having thus acquired title to this at-
tractive and princely domain proceeded to utilize it by stocking
these islands with cattle purchased in Carolina. To the planters
in that province he became largely indebted. His stock-raising
* See McCall's History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 367. Savannah. 1811.
394 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
not proving as remunerative as he anticipated, this ambitious
clergyman, with a view to attaining greatness and acquiring a
fortune rapidly, encouraged his wife to announce herself as a
sister of Malatche, descended in a maternal line from an Indian
king who held from nature the entire territories of the Creeks.
He persuaded her also to assert her right to them as superior
both to that of the trustees and of the king. Mary accordingly
assumed the title of an independent empress, disavowing all alle-
giance or subjection to the British Crown, and summoned a gen-
eral convocation of the Creeks, to whom, in a long speech pre-
pared for the occasion, she explained the justice of her claim, the
great injury which they, her beloved subjects, had sustained at
the hands of the English by the loss of their territories, and the
necessity which was laid upon them to regain them by force of
arms. Inflamed by her harangue, the assembled Indians ad-
mitted her claims, and pledged themselves to defend to the last
extremity her royal person and lands. Putting herself at the
head of a large body of warriors, she set out for Savannah to
demand from the president and council a formal acknowledgment
of her assumed rights. A messenger was dispatched to convey
in advance to the president of the colony a notification of her
approaching visit, and to acquaint him with the fact that she had
assumed the sovereignty over the entire territory of the Upper
and Lower Creeks. This notification was accompanied with a
demand for the immediate evacuation by the whites of all lands
lying south of the Savannah River, and was coupled with a
threat that, in case of refusal, every settlement within the speci-
fied limits should be extirpated.
Alarmed at these bold pretensions, and sensible of her influ-
ence over the Creeks, President Stephens ordered the militia to
hold themselves in readiness to march to Savannah upon shortest
notice, and at once proceeded to put the town in the strongest
attitude of defense. Its whole force amounted to only one hun-
dred and seventy men capable of bearing arms. A messenger,
dispatched to meet Mary while she was still several miles from
the town to inquire whether she was serious in her intentions,
and to endeavor to persuade her to dismiss her followers and
abandon her pretensions, found her resolute and inflexible.
Nothing remained but to receive the Indians boldly. The
militia were ordered under arms, and, as the Indians entered the
town, Captain Noble Jones, at the head of a troop of horse,
stopped them and demanded whether their visit was of a friendly
HOSTILE DEMONSTRATION BY THE CREEKS. 395
or a hostile character. Receiving no reply, he commanded them
to ground their arms, declaring that his instructions were not to
suffer an armed Indian to set foot in the town, and that he was
determined to enforce those orders at every hazard. The In-
dians reluctantly submitted. Thomas Bosomworth in his canon-
ical robes, with his queen by his side, followed by the kings and
chiefs according to their respective rank, marched into Savannah
on the 20th of July, making a formidable appearance. The citi-
zens were terror-stricken at the sight. Advancing to the parade
they found the militia drawn up under arms to receive them.
They were saluted with fifteen cannon, and conducted to the
president's house.
Bosomworth being commanded to withdraw, the Indian chiefs
in a friendly manner were required to declare their object in
paying this visit in so large a body without being convened by
any person in authority. Having been previously taught what
reply to make, they responded that Mary would speak for them,
and that they would abide by what she said. They further
stated that they heard she was to be sent captive over the great
waters, and they were come to know on what account they were
to lose their queen ; that they intended no harm, and wished
that their arms might be restored to them. They gave the as-
surance that after consulting with Bosomworth and his wife
they would amicably settle all public affairs. Their guns were
accordingly returned to them, and strict orders issued to allow
them no ammunition until the council should see more clearly
into their dark designs. The day following, the Indians, having
had some private conferences with Mary, with sullen counte-
nances marched about the streets in a tumultuous manner, appar-
ently determined on mischief. All the men being obliged to
mount guard, the women and children, afraid to remain in their
houses by themselves, were greatly terrified, expecting every mo-
ment to be murdered and scalped. During this period of con-
fusion a false rumor was circulated that the Indians had cut off
President Stephens' head with a tomahawk. So exasperated
were the inhabitants that it was with great difficulty the officers
could restrain the troops from firing upon the savages. Bosom-
Worth was arrested and made to understand that in the event of
hostilities he should be marked as the first victim. So soon as he
was carried into close confinement Mary became frantic, threat-
ening vengeance against the magistrates and the entire colony,
ordering all white persons to depart immediately from her terri-
396 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
tories, cursing Oglethorpe, and pronouncing his treaties fraudu-
lent. Furiously stamping her foot upon the earth, she swore by
her Maker that the whole globe should know the ground she
stood upon was her own. To prevent the whites from acquiring
any ascendency over the chiefs and warriors, she kept the lead-
ing men constantly under her eye, and would not suffer them to
utter a sentence on public affairs except in her presence.
Finding it utterly impossible to pacify the Indians while un-
der the baleful influence of their pretended queen, President
Stephens privately laid hold of her and put her in close confine-
ment with her husband. In order to facilitate a reconciliation,
a feast was prepared for all the chiefs and leading warriors, at
which they were informed that Bosomworth had involved him-
self in debts which he was unable to pay; that he wanted not
only their lands but also a large share of the presents which the
king had sent over for the chiefs and warriors as a compensation
for their useful services and firm attachment to him during the
war against their common enemy; that Bosomworth wished to
obtain these presents to satisfy, at their expense, his creditors in
Carolina; that the lands adjoining Savannah had been reserved
for them to encamp upon when they should visit their beloved
white friends, and the three maritime islands for them to fish
and hunt upon when they came to bathe in the salt waters; that
neither Mary nor her husband had any right to those lands, but
that they were the common property of the whole Creek nation,
and that the great King George had ordered the president to
defend their right to them, expecting that all his subjects, both
white and red, would live together like brethren.
Many of the chiefs, convinced that Bosom worth had deceived
them, declared they would no longer be controlled by his advice.
Even Malatche, the leader of the Lower Creeks, appeared for the
moment satisfied, and was greatly delighted to hear that pres-
ents were to be distributed. Taking advantage of this favorable
change in their sentiments, President Stephens determined to
make immediate distribution of the royal bounty and to dismiss
the Indians. While preparations were being made to carry this
intention into effect, Malatche, whom the Indians compared to
the wind because of his fickle and variable temper, having sought
and intermediately obtained a personal interview with Bosom-
worth and his wife, rose up in the midst of the chiefs and war-
riors assembled to receive their respective shares of the king's
gifts, and, with frowning countenance and in a violent manner,
PRESIDENT STEPHENS’ ADDRESS. 397
delivered an inflammatory speech abounding in dangerous in-
sinuations and threats, asserting the paramount claims of Mary,
as queen of the Creeks, to all the lands in question; declaring
that her words were the voice of the nation, that three thousand
warriors were prepared to maintain with their lives her rights;
and finally concluding by drawing from his pocket a document
which he delivered to President Stephens in confirmation of
what he said. This paper had evidently been prepared by Bo-
somworth, and was an ambitious and violent assertion of the pre-
tensions and designs of Mary. When the paper was read in
council the members were struck with astonishment. Perceiv-
ing the effect which had been produced, Malatche became un-
easy, and begged a return of the paper that he might hand it
back to the party from whom he received it. President Stephens
discerning more clearly than ever how sadly the Indians had been
duped by the ambitious, mercenary, and designing Bosom Worth,
addressed the chiefs and warriors in the following language : —
“Friends and brothers: When Mr. Oglethorpe and his peo-
ple first arrived in Georgia they found Mary, then the wife of
John Musgrove, living in a small hut at Yamacraw; he had a
license from the governor of South Carolina to trade with the In-
dians. She then appeared to be in a poor, ragged condition, and
was neglected and despised by the Creeks; but General Ogle-
thorpe, finding that she could speak both the English and the
Creek languages, employed her as an interpreter, richly clothed
her, and made her a woman of the consequence she now appears.
The people of Georgia always respected her until she married
Bosomworth, but from that time she has proved a liar and a
deceiver. In fact, she was no relation of Malatche, but the
daughter of an Indian woman of no note, by a white man. Gen-
eral Oglethorpe did not treat with her for the lands of Georgia,
for she had none, but with the old and wise leaders of the Creek
nation, who voluntarily surrendered their territories to the king.
The Indians at that time having much waste land which was
useless to themselves, parted with a share of it to their friends,
and were glad that white people had settled among them to sup-
ply their wants.” He further told them that the present dis-
contents had been artfully infused into the minds of the Creeks
by Mary, at the instigation of her husband who demanded a third
part of the royal bounty in order to rob the naked Indians of
their rights; that he had quarreled with the president and coun-
cil of Georgia for refusing to answer his exorbitant demands, and
398 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
had filled the heads of the Indians with wild fancies and ground-
less jealousies in order to ferment mischief and induce them to
break their alliance with their best friends who alone were able
to supply their wants and defend them against their enemies.
At this point the Indians acknowledged that their eyes were
opened and that they were ready and anxious to smoke the pipe
of peace. Pipes and rum were brought, and all, joining hand
in hand, drank and smoked in friendship. The distribution of
the royal presents — except the ammunition, with which it was
deemed imprudent at this moment to entrust them — was made,
and even Malatche seemed fully satisfied with the share he re-
ceived.
While an amicable adjustment of existing difficulties had thus
been effected, and while all were rejoicing in the reëstablishment
of friendly intercourse, Mary, drunk with liquor, rushed like a
fury into the midst of the assembly, telling the president that
these were her people and that he had no business with them.
The president calmly advised her to retire to her lodgings and to
forbear poisoning the minds of the Indians, as otherwise he would
order her again into close confinement. Turning to Malatche in
a great rage, she repeated to him with some ill-natured comments
what the president had said. Malatche thereupon sprang from
his seat, laid hold of his arms, called upon the rest to follow his
example, and dared any man to touch his queen. In a moment
the whole house was filled with tumult and uproar. Every In-
dian having his tomahawk in his hand, the president and coun-
cil expected nothing but instant death. During this confusion
Captain Jones, who commanded the guard, with wonderful cour-
age interposed and ordered the Indians immediately to surren-
der their arms. This they reluctantly did. Mary was conveyed
to a private room where a guard was placed over her, and all
further communication with the Indians was denied her during
their stay in Savannah.
The natives were finally persuaded to leave the town peace-
ably and to return to their settlements. Mary and her husband
were detained until about the first of August, when, having fully
confessed their errors and craved pardon, they were allowed to
depart."
1 Account of the Rise and Progress Stevens’ History of Georgia, vol. i. p.
of the Colonies of South Carolina and 227 et seq. New York. MDCCCXLVII.
Georgia, vol. ii. p. 152 et seq. London. Letter of Wm. Stephens and Others to the
MDCCLXXIX. Trustees, dated Savannah, September 8,
McCall's History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 1749.
214 et seq. Savannah, 1811.
CLAIM OF MARY BOSOMWORTH. 399
Outrageous as had been the conduct of Bosomworth and his
wife, Mary’s demand was still pressed in London. Her claim
to the islands of Ossabaw, St. Catharine, and Sapelo proved a
source of constant annoyance to the colonists. After years of
negotiation the affair was finally adjusted in 1759 by paying to
Mrs. Bosomworth £450 for goods alleged to have been expended
by her in his majesty's service during the years 1747 and 1748,
by allowing her a back salary at the rate of £100 per annum for
sixteen years and a half, during which she acted in the capacity
of government agent and interpreter, and by confirming to her
and her designing husband full right and title to St. Catharine
Island, in consideration of the fact that they had fixed their resi-
dence and planted there."
In the mean time both the brothers Thomas and Abraham
Bosomworth had been dismissed
the trust.
1 When visited by an English traveler
in 1743, this island was inhabited by
eight or ten families of Indians, who had
considerable tracts of open land, and were
largely engaged in the cultivation of corn.
It abounded with game, “on which,” says
in disgrace from the service of
the writer, “ the good Indians regaled us,
and for Greens boiled us the Tops of
China Briars, which eat almost as well as
Asparagus.” London Magazine for 1745,
pp. 551, 552.
CHAPTER XXV.
THE REV. GEORGE WHITEFIELD. — Hon. JAMES HABERSHAM. — BETHESDA
ORPHAN HOUSE. — WHITEFIELD's ExERTIONS IN ITS BEHALF. — AN-
ECDOTE OF BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. — PLAN TO CONVERT THE ORPHAN
House INTO A SEMINARY OF LEARNING. —WHITEFIELD'S MEMORIAL. —
ADDRESS OF THE GENERAL AssFMBLY. — GOVERNOR WRIGHT’s RESPONSE.
—BARTRAM's DESCRIPTION OF BETHESDA. — FATE OF THIS ELEEMOSY-
NARY SCHEME.
AMONG the prominent names associated with the colonial his-
tory of Georgia few, if any, are more widely known than that of
the Rev. George Whitefield. Among the charitable schemes de-
vised for the support and the education of the penniless and be-
reaved children of the province, none acquired a more permanent
reputation or served a more valuable purpose than the Bethesda
Orphan House. Natural and most fitting was it that the benef-
icent capabilities of a plantation, itself the offspring of benevo-
lence, should have enlisted the sympathies and secured the
coöperative labors of a noted philanthropist. Since the days of
Luther and Calvin no one has appeared better qualified than
Whitefield to bear messages of mercy to suffering humanity.
None more eloquent in utterance, or powerful in commending his
convictions to the apprehension of the thousands who flocked to
hear him, has attracted the attention of English-speaking peoples.
Above medium stature, slender, finely formed, graceful in
every movement, of fair complexion and regular features, with
dark blue eyes lively and expressive, possessing a voice excelling
alike in melody and compass, – its modulations accompanied by
gestures most appropriate and impressive, - with an intellect
quick and strong, a memory very retentive, and a courageous de-
portment which evinced no fear in the discharge of duty: such is
the pen-portrait of the Fellow of Pembroke College, the chosen
companion of the Wesleys and of Ingham, and one of the Oxford
club of fifteen, the originators and first champions of Methodism.
To him, a young clergyman in London, earnestly laboring and
yet “waiting to see what Providence would point out,” came
ietters from John Wesley written from Savannah. “Only Mr.
REV. GEORGE WHITEFIELD. 401
Delamotte is with me till God shall stir up the hearts of some
of His Servants who, putting their lives in His hands, shall
come over and help us where the harvest is so great and the
laborers are so few. What if thou art the man, Mr. Whitefield 2
Do you ask me what you shall have? Food to eat and raiment
to put on ; a house to lay your head in such as your Lord had
not, and a crown of glory that fadeth not away.” Upon reading
these lines his heart leaped within him and echoed to the call.
Neither the tears of an aged mother nor the hope of preferment
at home Swerved him from his purpose. Accepted by Oglethorpe
and the trustees, he embarked for Georgia in December, 1737.
The ship which bore him and his companion, the Hon. James
Habersham, one of the sweetest, purest, most useful, and noblest
characters in the long line of colonial worthies, touched at Gib-
raltar to take in a detachment of troops for the province. And
now the vessel proceeded on her voyage filled with soldiers caring
little for spiritual things.
Colonel Cochrane, the commanding officer, and Captain Mac-
kay were polite to the missionary and afforded him every oppor-
tunity for preaching and holding religious conferences. Incessant
were his ministrations and eloquent his discourses. Before the
ship reached Charlestown, swearing had well-nigh ceased, cards
were exchanged for Bibles, oaths were supplanted by prayers, and
the great cabin had been converted into a bethel.
Arriving in Savannah he was, in the absence of Mr. John
Wesley, entertained at the parsonage by Mr. Delamotte, the
school-master.
Prior to his departure from London the idea of founding an
orphan house in Georgia had been suggested to Mr. Whitefield
by the Rev. Charles Wesley. Upon an inspection of the condi-
tion of the colony becoming firmly convinced of the necessity for
and the utility of such an institution, he resolved at once and in
earnest to compass its foundation. Reflecting upon the laws
which denied to the colonists the use of rum and negro slaves
and declined to invest them with a fee simple title to land, he
expressed the opinion that while such regulations were well
meant at home and were designed to promote the good order and
integrity of the plantation, they were incapable of enforcement.
in so hot a country. To locate people in Georgia on such a foot-
ing, he declared, was little better than tying their legs and bid-
ding them walk. Thus early was he persuaded that one of the
chief causes which retarded the development of the colony was
26
402 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
the prohibition placed upon the introduction of negro labor.
That restraint he sought to remove, and, at a later period, was
largely instrumental in securing such a modification of existing
laws that the employment and ownership of African slaves were
allowed within the province. The experience of Wesley and
Ingham taught him there was small hope of converting the In-
dians. With the discharge of the priestly duties which devolved
upon a clergyman in Savannah he was not content. A visit to
the Salzburgers’ orphan house at Ebenezer, a short sojourn at
Frederica and at Darien, and a personal acquaintance with the
resources of the colony convinced him that aid for the erection
and support of his contemplated orphan house must come from
abroad. He therefore sailed for London on the 6th of Septem-
ber, 1738.
Upon unfolding his project to the trustees, they were pleased
to grant five hundred acres of land in Georgia as a home for his
purposed institution. Funds were needed for the erection of
buildings, and Whitefield went abroad in the land to solicit
them. Although many churches were closed against him, in
imitation of his Divine Master, “who had a mountain for His
pulpit and the Heavens for a sounding board,” he commenced
preaching in the fields. So wonderful were these open-air min-
istrations, so eloquent was he in utterance, and so powerful in
thought and argument, that multitudes flocked to hear him. His
audiences not infrequently numbered twenty thousand. Their
singing could be heard for two miles, and his magnificent voice
often reached nearly half that distance. Lord Chesterfield said
of him, “He is the greatest orator I ever heard, and I cannot
conceive of a greater.” From the common people who came to
listen to him at Moorfields, Kennington Common, Blackheath,
and elsewhere, he collected for his orphan house more than
41,000. The willingness with which his hearers gave, and the
prayers they offered when throwing in their mites, were very en-
couraging to him.
Accompanied by a family of eight men, one boy, two children,
and his friend Mr. Seward, he sailed for America on the 14th of
August, 1739. His fame had preceded him. Upon his landing
in Philadelphia invitations to preach were extended in all direc-
tions. So occupied was he in responding to them that he did
not reach Savannah until the 11th of January, 1740.
Previous to his arrival, his friend Mr. Habersham had located
the grant of five hundred acres about ten miles from Savannah,
º ºn ºn ºf
o/, ”

BETHESDA ORPHAN HOUSE. 403
and had begun to clear and stock the land. Meanwhile, such or-
, phans as he had collected were entertained and instructed in a
house hired for that purpose. Years afterwards, in reviewing
his conduct in connection with the inception of the institution,
Mr. Whitefield remarked: “Had I proceeded according to the
rules of prudence I should have first cleared the land, built the
house, and then taken in the orphans; but I found their condi-
tion so pitiable and the inhabitants so poor, that I immediately
opened an infirmary, hired a large house at a great rent, and
took in, at different times, twenty-four Orphans. To all this I
was encouraged by the example of Professor Franck. But I for-
got to recollect that Professor Franck built in Glaucha, in a pop-
ulous country, and that I was building in the very tail of the
world, where I could not expect the least supply, and which the
badness of its constitution, which every day I expected would be
altered, rendered by far the most expensive part of his Majesty's
dominions. But had I received more and ventured less, I should
have suffered less, and others more.”
The first collection made in America in aid of the Orphan house
was at the church of the Rev. Mr. Smith, in Charlestown, early in
March, 1740. Mr. Whitefield was on a vist to that place, having
gone there to meet his brother, who was a ship-captain. He was
invited to deliver a public address in behalf of his Georgia or-
phans, and the contribution amounted to £70. On the 25th of
that month, with his own hand he “laid the first brick of the
great house which he called Bethesda, i.e. house of mercy.” At
this time the orphans under his charge numbered forty. Besides
them, there were about sixty servants and workmen to be paid
and fed. Having but little to his credit in bank, he again de-
parted to influence subscriptions of money and provisions. By
the 5th of June he was welcomed in Savannah, bringing for Be-
thesda money and supplies valued at more than £500. His fam-
ily, as he termed them, now numbered one hundred and fifty, and
their subsistence and compensation depended entirely upon his
exertions. He could take no rest, and in a little while was off
for Charlestown on his way to the populous Northern provinces.
While in this town the Rev. Alexander Garden, a man of learn-
ing and an Episcopal clergyman, took occasion to denounce
Whitefield for what he termed his wild doctrines and irregular
manner of life. To keep his flock from straying after this mi-
gratory and brilliant shepherd, Mr. Garden discoursed from the
passage, “Those that have turned the world upside down are
406 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
prosperity anticipated and predicted for it, was an institution of
great benefit to the colony, and that its sheltering arms minis-
tered to the comfort of many homeless orphans and pointed the
way to future industry, respectability, and independence, cannot
be questioned. True it is that several persons who exercised a
controlling influence over Georgia affairs during the last quarter
of the eighteenth century were wards of this charity."
Mr. Whitefield's energy surpassed his prudence. In his enthu-
siasm he lost sight of his better judgment. Thus, so eager was he
to complete the construction of his orphan house that he engaged
the services of all the brick-layers and sawyers and of most of
the carpenters in Georgia, when he was not in funds to pay for
their labor, and when a smaller number might have been em-
ployed to greater advantage. His zeal was so great that he col-
lected orphans long before his premises were ready for occupation,
in the mean time engaging David Douglass' house, at an exorbi-
tant rent, for their reception. So eager was he to multiply the
objects of charity under his charge that he, on more than one
occasion, undertook to transfer to Bethesda lads of considerable
age who were already employed in satisfactory positions. Charg-
ing the Rev. Mr. Norris with preaching false doctrines and
setting the Charlestonians by the ears, he was not always him-
self acceptable in the presentation of his religious views. Hear
what Colonel Stephens says: “The service of the Day was per-
formed again by Mr. Whitefield who, since his return this Time,
thought fit to make Use of the Surplice again that had for some
Time before been laid aside by him. The main Drift of his Ser-
mons, Morning and Afternoon, was to maintain the Doctrine of
a peculiar Election of such as were predestinated to be saved,
condemning utterly an universal Redemption by Christ's Blood ;
which terrible Doctrine was shocking to all such as by a sincere
Repentance and true Faith in Christ hoped for Salvation thro'
His Mediation.”
Of Mr. Whitefield's persuasive oratory and magnetic influence
we can cite no illustration more apt than that furnished by the
calm, calculating utilitarian, Benjamin Franklin. Multitudes
were then flocking to hear him preach in Philadelphia. “It was
wonderful to see the change soon made in the manners of our
inhabitants. From being thoughtless or indifferent about relig-
ion, it seemed as if all the world were growing religious so that
one could not walk through the town in an evening without hear-
1 Among them may be mentioned Milledge, Ewen, and Langworthy.
WHITEFIELD'S ELOQUENCE. 407
ing psalms sung in different families of every street.” The sight
of many helpless children unprovided for “inspired the benevo-
lent heart of Mr. Whitefield with the idea of building an Orphan
House in Georgia in which they might be supported and edu-
cated. Returning northward he preached up this charity and
made large collections, for his eloquence had a wonderful power
over the hearts and purses of his hearers of which I, myself, was
an instance.
“I did not disapprove of the design, but as Georgia was then
destitute of materials and workmen, and it was proposed to send
them from Philadelphia, at a great expense, I thought it would
have been better to have built the house at Philadelphia and
brought the children to it. This I advised; but he was resolute
in his first project, rejected my counsel, and I therefore refused
to contribute. I happened soon after to attend one of his ser-
mons, in the course of which I perceived he intended to finish
with a collection, and I silently resolved he should get nothing
from me. I had in my pocket a handful of copper money, three
or four silver dollars, and five pistoles in gold. As he proceeded
I began to soften and concluded to give the copper. Another
stroke of his oratory made me ashamed of that, and determined
me to give the silver; and he finished so admirably that I emptied
my pocket wholly into the collector's dish, gold and all. At this
sermon there was also one of our club who, being of my sen-
timents respecting the building in Georgia, and suspecting a
collection might be intended, had, by precaution, emptied his
pockets before he came from home. Toward the conclusion of
the discourse, however, he felt a strong inclination to give, and ap-
plied to a neighbor, who stood near him, to lend him some money
for the purpose. The request was fortunately made to perhaps
the only man in the company who had the firmness not to be
affected by the preacher. His answer was, “At any other time,
Friend Hopkinson, I would lend to thee freely; but not now, for
thee seems to be out of thy right senses.’”
Dr. Franklin in alluding to the suggestion of Mr. Whitefield's
enemies that he applied these collections to his private uses con-
tinues: “I who was intimately acquainted with him, being em-
ployed in printing his Sermons and Journals, never had the least
suspicion of his integrity, but am to this day decidedly of opinion
that he was in all his conduct a perfectly honest man; and me-
thinks my testimony in his favor ought to have the more weight
as we had no religious connection. He used indeed, sometimes
408 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
to pray for my conversion, but never had the satisfaction of be-
lieving that his prayers were heard. Ours was a mere civil
friendship, sincere on both sides, and lasted to his death.” I
Conceiving the design of converting the Bethesda Orphan
House into “a seminary of literature and academical learning,”
Mr. Whitefield, on the 18th of December, 1764, submitted to his
excellency James Wright, Esq., “Captain General and Governor
in Chief of his Majesty's Province in Georgia,” and to “the
members of his Majesty's Council in the said Province,” the fol-
lowing memorial : —
“That about twenty-five years ago your Memorialist, assisted
by the voluntary contributions of charitable and well-disposed
persons, at a very great expence, and under many disadvantages
did erect a commodious house with necessary out-buildings, suit-
able for the reception of orphans and other poor and deserted
children; and that with the repair of the buildings, purchase of
negroes, and supporting a large Orphan family for so many years,
he hath expended upwards of twelve thousand pounds sterling
as appears by the accounts which have from time to time been
audited by the magistrates of Savannah.
“That your Memorialist, since the commencement of this in-
stitution, hath had the satisfaction of finding that by the money
expended thereon, not only many poor families were assisted and
thereby kept from leaving the colony in its infant state, but also
that a considerable number of poor helpless children have been
trained up who have been and now are useful settlers in this and
the other neighbouring provinces.
“That in order to render the institution aforesaid more ex-
tensively useful, your Memorialist, as he perceived the Colony
gradually increasing, hath, for some years past, designed within
himself to improve the original plan by making further provision
for the education of persons of superior rank who thereby might
be qualified to serve their king, their country, or their God
either in Church or State. That he doth with inexpressible
pleasure see the present very flourishing state of the Province ;
but with concern perceives that several gentlemen have been
obliged to send their sons to the northern provinces, who would
much rather have had them educated nearer home, and thereby
prevent their affections being alienated from their native country,
and also considerable sums of money from being carried out of
this into other provinces.
1 Benjamin Franklin; his Autobiography, etc., p. 166. New York : Harper &
Brothers.
WHITEFIELD'S MEMORIAL. 409
“Your Memorialist further observes that there is no Seminary
for Academical Studies as yet founded southward of Virginia;
and consequently if a college could be established here (espe-
cially as the last addition of the two Floridas renders Georgia
more centrical for the southern district) it would not only be
highly serviceable to the rising generation of this colony, but
would probably occasion many youths to be sent from the British
West India Islands and other parts. The many advantages
accruing thereby to this province must be very considerable.
“From these considerations your Memorialist is induced to
believe that the time is now approaching when his long expected
design for further serving this his beloved Colony shall be carried
into execution.
“That a considerable sum of money is intended specially to be
laid out in purchasing a large number of negroes for the further
cultivation of the present Orphan House and other additional
lands, and for the future support of a worthy, able president,
professors, and tutors, and other good purposes intended.
“Your Memorialist therefore prays your Excellency and Hon-
ours to grant him in trust for the purposes aforesaid two thou-
Sand acres of land on the north fork of Turtle River, called the
Lesser Swamp, if vacant, or where lands may be found vacant
south of the river Alatamaha.”
Both Houses of Assembly, being then in session in Savan-
nah, promptly considered the memorial, and on the second day
after its receipt united in the following address to Governor
Wright : —
“May it please your Eveellency.
“We, his Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the Coun-
cil and Commons House of Assembly of Georgia in General As-
sembly met, beg leave to acquaint your Excellency that with the
highest satisfaction we learn that the Rev. Mr. George Whitefield
has applied for lands in order to the endowment of a College in
this Province. The many and singular obligations Georgia has
continually laid under to that Reverend Gentleman, from its very
infant state, would in gratitude induce us, by every means in our
power, to promote any measure he might recommend: but in the
present instance, where the interest of the Province, the advance-
ment of Religion, and the pleasing prospect of obtaining proper
education for our youth so clearly coincide with his views, we
cannot in justice but request your Excellency to use your utmost
endeavours to promote so desirable an event, and to transmit
410 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
home our sincere and very fervent wishes for the accomplishment
of so useful, so beneficent, and so laudable an undertaking.
“By order of the Upper House,
“JAMES HABERSHAM, President.
“By order of the Commons House,
“Alex: WYLLY, Speaker.”
On the same day his excellency Governor Wright was pleased
to return the following answer: —
“GENTLEMEN,
“I am so perfectly sensible of the very great advantage which
will result to the Province in general from the establishment of
a Seminary for Learning here, that it gives me the greatest
pleasure to find so laudable an undertaking proposed by the Rev.
Mr. Whitefield. The friendly and zealous disposition of that
gentleman to promote the prosperity of this Province has been
often experienced, and you may rest assured that I shall transmit
your address home with my best endeavours for the success of the
great point in view.
“20th December, 1764. JAMES WRIGHT.”
Having thus secured unqualified approval by the Georgia au-
thorities of his design to convert the orphan housel into a col-
lege, Mr. Whitefield went to England that he might, by personal
influence, obtain from the Crown the necessary sanction and
assistance. The address of the Georgia Houses of Assembly was
laid before the Lords Commissioners for Trade and Plantations.
That the matter might be brought directly to the notice of his
majesty, Mr. Whitefield prepared and delivered into the hands
1 William Bartram, who visited this in- room and parlour. The upper story cor-
stitution on the 25th of September, 1765,
describes the orphan house as a “neat
brick Building well finished and painted
both within and without : its dimensions
60 x 40 with cellaring all the way through,
two stories high, with good garrets and a
turret, and bell on the top. Piazzas ten
feet wide project on every side, and form
a pleasant walk both winter and Summer
round the house. The inside apartments
are well divided. On the ground floor a
passage runs from end to end, at the ex-
tremities of which a stair-case of red bay,
not unlike mahogany, leads to the upper
story. On one side of this passage are
three rooms, a parlour, chappel, and
library. On the other side a long dining
responds with the lower, and the garrets
are also conveniently divided. This cele-
brated building stands on an acre and
a half, well fenced : one side of which
fronts a salt water creek which is dry
when the tide is out, but flows eight feet
high when the tide rises. On the oppo-
site side is a garden handsomely laid out
and planted with oranges, pomegramates,
figs, peaches, and other fruit trees, and
at a small distance the School-house,
stables, and other outbuildings are regu-
larly disposed. To all this Mr. White-
field has added a plantation well stocked
with negroes for the use of a College.”
Gentleman's Magazine for 1767, p. 168.
SCHEME OF ME. WHITEFIELD, 411
of the clerk of the Privy Council another memorial in which he
prayed for a charter upon the plan of the college of New Jersey,
and expressed his readiness “to give up his present trust and
make a free gift of all lands, negroes, goods, and chattels which
he now stands possessed of in the Province of Georgia, for the
present founding and towards the future support of a College to
be called by the name of Bethesda College in the Province of
Georgia.”
By the Lord President of the Privy Council this memorial was
referred to his grace the Archbishop of Canterbury. A corre-
spondence ensued during the course of which, in response to an
inquiry from his grace respecting the present endowment and
future pecuniary expectations of the proposed institution, Mr.
Whitefield writes: “Upon a moderate computation I believe its
present annual income is between four and five hundred pounds
sterling. The house is surrounded with eighteen hundred acres
of land. . . . The number of negroes, young and old, employed
on various parts of these lands in sawing timber, raising rice for
exportation, and corn with all other kinds of provision for the
family, is about thirty. Besides these the College will be im-
mediately possessed of two thousand acres of land near Ala-
tamaha which were granted me by the Governor and Council
when I was last at Georgia, and a thousand acres more, left,
as I am informed, by the late Reverend and worthy Mr. Zub-
berbuler. So that, by laying out only a thousand pounds in
purchasing an additional number of negroes, and allowing an-
other thousand for repairing the house and building the two in-
tended wings, the present annual income may very easily and
speedily be augmented to a thousand pounds per annum. Out of
this standing fund may be paid the salaries of the Master, pro-
fessors, tutors, etc., and also small exhibitions be allowed for some
orphan or other poor students who may have their tutorage and
room-rent gratis, and act as servitors to those who enter common-
ers. What these salaries and exhibitions ought to be may, at a
proper season, be submitted to your Grace's future consideration.
At present I would only further propose that the negroe children
belonging to the College shall be instructed in their intervals of
labor by one of the poorest students, as is done now by one of the
scholars in the present Orphan House. And I do not see why
an additional provision may not likewise be made for educating
and maintaining a number of Indian children, which I imagine
may easily be procured from the Creeks, Choctaws, Cherokees,
412 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
and other neighbouring nations. Hence the whole will be a free
gift to the Colony of Georgia: — a complex extensive charity be
established; and at the same time not a single person obliged by
any publick act of assembly to pay an involuntary forced tax to-
Wards the support of a semimary from which many of the more
distant and poorer Colonists' children cannot possibly receive any
immediate advantage, and yet the whole Colony, by the Chris-
tian and liberal education of a great number of its individuals,
be universally benefitted.”
The presidency of the institution Mr. Whitefield did not crave
for himself. His shoulders he did not regard as suited to the
support of such an academical burthen. His capacity he pro-
nounced too limited for such a scholastic trust. To be a presby-
ter at large was his mission. His earnest wish was to obtain a
college charter “upon a broad bottom,” to provide proper mas-
ters to instruct and prepare for literary honors many youths who
in Georgia and the adjacent provinces were desirous of supe-
rior educational advantages, to inaugurate a liberal trust which
would endure long after he was gathered to his fathers, and to
know that his beloved Bethesda would not only be continued as
a house of mercy for poor Orphans, but would also be confirmed
to the latest posterity “as a seat and nursery of sound learning
and religious education.” +
Pleasing as were these anticipations, they were never realized.
Pending these efforts for the consummation of this cherished
scheme, Mr. Whitefield again visited Georgia; and, writing from
Bethesda in January, 1770, declares that everything there ex-
ceeded his most sanguine expectations. Two wings had been
added to the orphan house for the accommodation of students,
and Governor Wright had in person laid the foundation of the
college.
As indicating the respect entertained for Mr. Whitefield by
the colonial authorities, and their deep interest in his labors,
we reproduce the following from the “Georgia Gazette: ” “Sa-
vannah, January 31, 1770. Last Sunday his Excellency, the
Governor, Council, and Assembly having been invited by the
Rev. Mr. Whitefield, attended at divine service in the chapel of
the Orphan-house Academy where prayers were read by the Rev.
Mr. Ellington, and a very suitable sermon was preached by the
Rev. Mr. Whitefield from Zachariah iv. 10, ‘For who has despised
1 A Letter to his Excellency, Governor Wright, etc., etc., pp. 1–30. London.
MDCCLXVIII.
DESTRUCTION OF THE ORPHAN HOUSE. 413
the day of small things?’ to the great satisfaction of the auditory;
in which he took occasion to mention the many discouragements
he met with, well known to many there, in carrying on the in-
stitution for upwards of thirty years past, and the present prom-
ising prospect of its future and more extensive usefulness. After
divine service the Company were very politely entertained with
a handsome and plentiful dinner, and were greatly pleased to
see the useful improvements made in the house, the two addi-
tional wings for apartments for students, one hundred and fifty
feet each in length, and other lesser buildings in so much for-
wardness; and the whole executed with taste and in so masterly
a manner; and being sensible of the truly generous and disinter-
ested benefactions derived to the Province through his means,
they expressed their gratitude in the most respectful terms.”
Before leaving for the Northern provinces Mr. Whitefield con-
versed fully with Governor Wright in regard to the provisions of
an act for the establishment of the intended Orphan House Col-
lege, for which application was to be made at the next session of
the General Assembly, and arranged for the completion of the
structures in process of erection at Bethesda.
Early on the morning of the 30th of September, 1770, he whose
voice had so long and so eloquently filled the land died of an
acute attack of asthma in the village of Newburyport, Massachu-
setts. Shortly afterwards the buildings at Bethesda were con-
sumed by fire. So rapid was the conflagration that but little of
the furniture and only a few of the books were saved. “Happy
was it,” exclaims Captain McCall,” “for the zealous founder of
this institution that he did not survive the ruins of a fabric on
which his heart was fixed, and to the completion of which he had
devoted so much time and labor.” Profound was the impression
produced in Savannah by the intelligence of his death. Church
and state house were draped in black, and the governor and coun-
cil arrayed themselves in the habiliments of mourning. Funeral
discourses were pronounced and the entire population bemoaned
his loss.
In his will appears the following devise : “In respect to my
American concerns, which I have engaged in simply and solely
for His great name's sake, I leave that building commonly called
the Orphan House, at Bethesda, in the Province of Georgia, to-
gether with all the other buildings lately erected thereon, and
likewise all other buildings, lands, negroes, books, furniture, and
* History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 162. Savannah. 1811.
414 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
every other thing whatsoever which I now stand possessed of in
the Province of Georgia aforesaid, to that elect Lady, that Mother
in Israel, that Mirror of true and undefiled religion, the Right
Honorable Selina, Countess Dowager of Huntingdon: desiring
that as soon as may be after my decease, the plan of the intended
Orphan-House Bethesda College may be prosecuted: if not prac-
ticable or eligible, to pursue the present plan of the Orphan-
House Academy on its old foundation and usual channel; but if
her Ladyship should be called to enter her glorious rest before
my decease, I bequeath all the buildings, lands, negroes, and
everything before mentioned which I now stand possessed of in.
the Province of Georgia aforesaid, to my dear fellow-traveller
and faithful, invariable friend, the Honorable James Habersham,
President of His Majesty's honorable Council; and should he
survive her Ladyship I earnestly recommend him as the most
proper person to succeed her Ladyship, or to act for her during
her Ladyship's life time in the Orphan-House Academy.”
In pursuance of this devise Lady Huntingdon sent over a
housekeeper to manage the domestic affairs of the institution,
continued the Rev. Mr. Crosse as teacher, and constituted Mr.
Percy president and general manager. Her plans, however, were
violently frustrated by the fire to which reference has already
been made.
With her private means she erected new buildings sufficient
to accommodate the few pupils in attendance upon the school.
Moribund was the condition of the institution during her life,
and still more unsatisfactory its administration under the Board
of Trustees appointed by the state when Georgia exercised do-
minion over this property. Another devastating fire occurred,
which converted into ashes the greater portion of the main struc-
ture; and a hurricane, uplifting the tides, desolated the rice-fields.
The trustees were powerless to make the needed repairs, and the
legislature, by an act assented to on the 22d day of December,
1808, directed the sale of the estate and provided for the dis-
tribution of its proceeds among certain eleemosynary institutions
in the city of Savannah.
In 1854 the Board of Managers of the Union Society pur-
chased a part of the original Bethesda tract, and upon the very
spot formerly occupied by Whitefield's orphan house erected
buildings for the accommodation and instruction of the boys
committed to their charitable care. Thus happily is the phil-
* Clayton's Digest, p. 463.
PERPETUATION OF THE CHARITY. 415
anthropic scheme of the most noted of English pulpit orators,
who “loved to range in the American woods,” who was never
happier than when “holding a levee of wounded souls,” and
whose generous arms were ever open to succor the poor and the
Orphan, perpetuated in the living present.
CHAPTER XXVI.
THE COLONY UNDER PRESIDENT STEPHENs. – PRACTICAL EVASION OF THE
REGULATION PROHIBITING THE INTRODUCTION OF NEGRO SLAVES. — THE
PRESIDENT, ASSISTANTS, AND PEOPLE REPEAT THEIR PRAYER FOR THE AL-
LOWANCE OF SLAVERY. — RESPONSE OF THE TRUSTEES. — SLAVERY PER-
MITTED. — PROPOSITION TO SUBORDINATE GEORGIA To SouTH CAROLINA.
— CASE OF CAPTAIN DEMETREE. — ABROGATION OF THE ACT FORBIDDING
THE IMPORTATION AND MANUFACTURE OF RUM AND OTHER DISTILLED
LIQUORS. – LAND TENURES ENLARGED. —SOLA BILLS. — FIDELITY OF THE
TRUSTEES. – COMMERCIAL House OF HARRIS & HABERSHAM.
DEEMING it conducive to the convenience of the inhabitants
and promotive of good government, the trustees, on the 15th of
April, 1741, divided the province of Georgia into two counties,
— Savannah and Frederica. The former included all settlements
upon the Savannah River and upon both banks of the Great
Ogeechee River, and such additional territory south of the latter
stream as should be designated when a proper map of the coun-
try could be prepared. Within the latter were embraced Darien,
Frederica, and the entire region lying south of the Alatamaha
River. Over each a president and four assistants were to bear
rule, constituting a civil and judicial tribunal for the administra-
tion of affairs and the adjudication of all controversies. For
the county of Savannah Colonel William Stephens was selected
as president, with a salary of £80 per annum, and Henry Parker,
Thomas Jones, John Fallowfield, and Samuel Marcer were named
as his assistants. No nominations were made for Frederica, al-
though General Oglethorpe was requested to suggest a suitable
president. The local bailiffs there remained in charge. So long
as General Oglethorpe continued to reside in Georgia all disa-
greements between the counties and their respective officials
could be readily settled, because he exercised a controlling in-
fluence throughout the entire province.
In anticipation of his return to England, and to avoid the erec-
tion of separate governments, the trustees, on the 18th of April,
1743, abrogated so much of the constitution as provided for the
appointment of a board for Frederica, and empowered the presi-
PRESIDENT WILLIAM STEPHENS. 417
dent and assistants at Savannah to administer the civil affairs of
the whole colony. Thus, upon the departure of General Ogle-
thorpe, Colonel Stephens became president of Georgia. He was
the son of Sir William Stephens, Baronet, Lieutenant-Governor
of the Isle of Wight. For many years had he been a member of
Parliament. Because of his friendship for Oglethorpe was he
induced, in 1737, to accept the position of secretary in Georgia
to the trustees. In discharging the duties appertaining to this
office he exercised a general supervision over colonial affairs, ad-
vised the trustees of all noteworthy occurrences, assisted General
Oglethorpe, and acted as counselor to the magistrates. His loy-
alty to the trustees and his prompt obedience to all their com-
mands were conspicuous. His interest in everything appertain-
ing to the good order and prosperity of the plantation was
pronounced. A zealous member of the Established Church, he
declined to sympathize with the peculiar doctrines advanced by
the Wesleys and by Whitefield. So pleased were the common
council with his fidelity that in 1741 he was advanced to the
presidency of Savannah County; and, two years afterwards, was
made president of the colony. Although his experience, attain-
ments, good judgment, and probity of character admirably fitted
him for the execution of the important trust, so advanced was he
in years, and so great were his physical infirmities, that he was
incapable of dispatching, with becoming rapidity, the public
business. As the years rolled on he himself became quite sensi-
ble of his feebleness, and in 1750 consented that his assistants
should, in the main, proceed without him. Henry Parker was on
the 19th of March in that year appointed vice-president, and
attended to the duties of president, although Colonel Stephens
continued to hold the office until April or May of the following
year, when he resigned and was succeeded by Mr. Parker. He
then carried into effect his intention of retiring into the country
where he would “be at liberty to mind the more weighty things
of a future state, not doubting but the Trustees would enable him
to end his few remaining days without care and anxiety.” In
this expectation he was not disappointed, for the common coun-
cil, “in consideration of his great age and infirmities, and his
past services,” granted him a comfortable annuity.
The evening of his days was peacefully spent at his plantation,
near Savannah, which he named Bewlie 1 because of a fancied
* This plantation consisted of five hun- Its grant to Mr. Stephens was confirmed
dred acres at the mouth of Vernon River, by General Oglethorpe on the 19th of
27
418 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
resemblance which it bore to the manor of his grace the Duke of
Montague in the New Forest : a locality in after years rendered
memorable by the debarkation of Count d'Estaing on the 12th
of September, 1779, and by the erection of formidable batteries
for the protection of this water approach to the city of Savannah
during the war between the States. Here he lingered until
about the middle of August, 1753, when, at the tea table, having
just tasted the proffered cup, he remarked with great composure,
“I have done eating and drinking in this world.” Conducted to
his bedroom, he lay upon his couch, unable either to speak or to
receive nourishment, until the next day, when this venerable ser-
vant of the trust and firm friend of the colony rested from his
labors and entered into peace."
During the early part of President Stephens' administration
Georgia did not prosper. The trustees still enforced their regu-
lations regarding land tenures, slaves, and rum. Failing to ap-
preciate the true difficulties of the situation, they sacrificed the
material interests of the plantation to their notions of policy and
propriety. The present was utterly unsatisfactory, and the fu-
ture appeared devoid of hope. The acres planted in mulberries
were so neglected that they scarcely evinced any token of their
former cultivation. Offered bounties failed to stimulate the pro-
duction of silk, and of vines there were none. Rice was planted
only in small quantities; cotton was a curiosity; indigo seldom
seen ; and the corn crop was insufficient for home consumption.
The malaria of the swamps poisoned the white laborer, and the
hot sun robbed him of all energy. As a general rule the articled
servants, upon the expiration of their terms, deserted the colony,
and none appeared to supply their places. Immigration had al-
most ceased. Money was scarce and labor high. Farms were
neglected and the inhabitants were dejected. The only commer-
April, 1738. Of this place Mr. Ste- close by, which parts the Isle of Wight
phens, on the 21st of March, 1739, writes from the main Land, and makes a beau-
as follows: “I was now called upon to tiful Prospect; from all which Tradition
give the Place a Name; and thereupon tells us it took its Name and was antient-
naturally revolving in my Thoughts di- ly called Beaulieu, though now vulglarly
vers Places in my native Country, to try
if I could find any that had a Resem-
blance to this, I fancied that Bewlie, a
Manor of his Grace the Duke of Mon-
tague in the New Forest, was not unlike
it much as to its Situation ; and being on
the Skirts of that Forest, had Plenty of
large Timber growing everywhere near :
moreover a fine Arm of the Sea running
Bewlie ; only by leaving out the a in the
first Syllable, and the u in the end of the
last.” A Journal of the Proceedings in
Georgia, etc., vol. ii. pp. 166, 318, 319.
London. 1742.
1 The Castle-Builders, or the History of
William Stephens, p. 128. London.
MDCCLIX.
LETTER OF MER, HABERSHAM. 419
cial house in Savannah of any repute was that of Harris &
Habersham, and its shipments at first were chiefly confined to
deer-skins, lumber, cattle, hogs, and poultry.
At the request of the Rev. Mr. Bolzius, Mr. James Haber-
sham, who then possessed and exerted a decided political, moral,
and commercial influence in the colony, prepared a letter in
which he carefully reviewed the condition of the province, com-
mented upon the chimerical plans of the trustees, and suggested
wise changes in their policy. Contrary to his expectations, this
communication found its way into the hands of the common
council. When he ascertained this fact Mr. Habersham feared
that all hope of favor and countenance from that honorable body
was at an end, and that, taking umbrage at the views he had
expressed and the strictures in which he had indulged, the trus-
tees would be disposed to visit upon him their displeasure. On
the contrary, his forcible presentation of the case and his cogent
reasoning attracted their particular notice, and gave rise to de-
liberate discussion. Instead of incurring their wrath, he was, to
his surprise, appointed by them as an assistant in Savannah, in
the place of Samuel Marcer who had proved faithless to his
trust.
Although frequently memorialized on the subject, the trustees
uniformly refused to sanction the introduction of negro slavery
into the province." They could not be persuaded to allow the
Georgia colonists even to hire negroes owned in Carolina. The
impolicy of an adherence to this course of administration bad
long been apparent to many. It was now more evident than
ever that if the employment of the African laborer was not per-
* As late as March 17, 1748, the fol- the Colony of Georgia, as the Danger
lowing minute appears in the Journal of
the Trustees: “That after so many dec-
larations that the introduction and use of
Negroes in the Colony is not only incon-
sistent with the intention of his Majesty’s
Charter, but also directly contrary to an
express Act approved by his Majesty in
Council in the year 1735, for the year
1735, for prohibiting the Importation and
Use of Negroes, declaring the meaning
and intention of the said Charter; the
Trustees are surpris'd any expectations
of them can yet remain at Savannah and
in other parts of the Colony, and there-
fore it must be, and is upon that founda-
tion a resolution of the Trustees never to
permit the introduction of Negroes into
which must arise from them in a Fron-
tier Town is so evident, and as the People
who continue to clamour for Negroes de-
clare that the Colony can never succeed
without the use of them, it is evident they
don't intend by their own Industry to
contribute to its success, and must there-
fore rather hinder than promote it, the
Trustees therefore require it may be sig-
nified to all the Inhabitants of the Colony
that if any of them persist in declaring
they cannot succeed without Negroes, it
would be of service to the Colony as well
as themselves for them to retire into any
other Province, where they will be freely
allow'd the use of Negroes.”
420 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
mitted the development of the province would be fatally ob-
structed. The colonists determined, therefore, to disregard the
injunctions of the trustees. The terms for which European
servants had been engaged had generally expired, and there was
no way of remedying this deficiency in labor except by hiring
negro slaves from their masters in South Carolina, with the pro-
viso that if any attempt was made on the part of the Georgia
authorities to enforce the regulations of the trustees the owner
of the slave should be promptly notified so that he might come
forward and claim his property. Finding that this evasion of
the law succeeded, the colonists went one step further and hired
negro slaves for a hundred years, or during life, paying in ad-
Vance the full value of the slaves; the former owners covenant-
ing to intervene and claim them in case such action was rendered
necessary by any proceedings on the part of the Georgia authori-
ties.
Finally, purchases from negro-traders were openly concluded
in Savannah. “Some seizures,” says Captain McCall, “were
made by those who opposed the principle, but as a majority of
the Magistrates favored the introduction of slaves into the Prov-
ince, legal decisions were suspended from time to time, and a
strong disposition was evidenced by the courts to evade the op-
eration of the law. So great was the majority on that side of
the question that anarchy and confusion were likely to be kin-
dled into civil war. Several negro servants had been purchased
for the Orphan House, and Mr. Habersham declared that the
institution could not be supported without them. The servants
sent over from England by Mr. Whitefield, after a few months,
refused to yield to the menial duties assigned to them. Many
ran away, and were supported and secreted in Carolina by their
countrymen until an opportunity offered to escape further north,
where they were secured against a compliance with the condi-
tions of their indentures. The few who remained were too old,
too young, or too much afflicted with disease to render services
equal to a compensation for their clothing and subsistence.
Those who had fled soon found that they could procure land in
the other colonies on easy terms, and engage in employments less
degrading and more advantageous.”
Thomas Stephens, son of President Stephens, who had been
sent as special agent of the land-owners in Savannah to secure
a redress of grievances from the Crown, and obtain a repeal of
1 History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 206. Savannah. 1811.
PARTIAL EMPLOYMENT OF SLAVES. 421
the law prohibiting the introduction of negro slaves, had signally
failed in accomplishing his mission."
These violations and evasions of the regulations in regard to
the employment of negroes within the colony having been brought
to the notice of the trustees, the common council sharply repri-
manded the president and assistants, and ordered them at once
to put an end to these encroachments. In their response those
gentlemen expressed a fear that the trustees had been misin-
formed in regard to their conduct. They confidently asserted
that the board had always discouraged the use of black slaves in
the province, and had charged those to whom lands were granted
not to attempt the introduction or use of negroes.” It is more
than hinted, however, that while the president and his assistants
were indulging in these protestations to the trustees they stimu-
lated popular clamor and secretly connived at the accession of
negroes. They were charged by Mr. Dobell with duplicity and
dissimulation, and Colonel Alexander Heron boldly averred :
“It is well known to every one in the Colony that Negroes have
been in and about Savannah for these several years past: that
the magistrates knew and winked at it, and that their constant
toast is “the one thing needful,” by which is meant Negroes.”
Those who supported the plans of the trustees in this regard
were denounced, “and the leading men both of New Inverness
and Ebenezer were traduced, threatened, and persecuted” for
their opposition to the introduction of negro slavery. Such was
1 See Stevens’ History of Georgia,
vol. i. pp. 300–305. New York.
MDCCCXLVII.
* On the 2d of October, 1747, Presi-
dent Stephens and his assistants wrote as
follows to the trustees: “We are afraid
from what you have wrote in relation to
their settling Lands on the Little Ogechee
found means of bringing and employing
a few negroes on the said Lands some
time before it was discovered to us. Upon
which discovery they thought it high
time to withdraw them for fear of their
being seized, and soon after withdrew
Negroes that the Honorable Trustees
have been misinformed as to our conduct
relating thereto, for we can with great
assurance assert that this Board has al-
ways acted an uniform part in discour-
aging the use of Negroes in this Colony
well knowing it to be disagreeable to the
Trust as well as contrary to an Act ex-
isting for Prohibition of them, and al-
ways give it in charge to those whom we
have put in possession of lands not to at-
tempt the introduction or use of Negroes,
but notwithstanding our great Caution
Some people from Carolina. Soon after
themselves and families out of the Colony,
which appears to us at present to be the
* Resolution of divers others, particularly
the whole Inhabitants of Augusta who
have had Negroes among them for many
years past and now declare that if they
cannot obtain that Liberty they will
remove to the Carolina side where they
can carry on their Trade and Plantations
with the same advantage as where they
now are, and several others of late, find-
ing us strenuous in endeavoring to see
the Trustees’ orders fulfilled, express
themselves in the same strain.”
422 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
the excitement on this subject that the opponents of the scheme
for the employment of African labor shrunk from further contest
with its advocates. The magistrates were intimidated ; and even
good Mr. Bolzius, who, with his followers, had always protested
against the admission of negro slaves, wrote to the trustees on
the 3d of May, 1748: “Things being now in such a melancholy
state, I must humbly beseech your Honors not to regard any
more our or our friends' petitions against Negroes.”
No two individuals were so instrumental in prevailing upon
the trustees to relax this prohibition as the Rev. Mr. Whitefield
and the Honorable James Habersham. The former boldly as-
serted that the transportation of the African from his home of
barbarism to a Christian land, where he would be humanely
treated and be required to perform his share of toil common to
the lot of humanity, was advantageous, while the latter affirmed
that the colony could not prosper without the intervention of
slave labor.
On the 10th of January, 1749, the president and assistants and
a considerable number of the inhabitants of Georgia forwarded
to the trustees a petition, to which the town seal was affixed,
suggesting certain restrictions and regulations under which they
prayed that negro slaves might be admitted into the colony.
This petition having been read and considered by the trustees, it
was resolved to memorialize his majesty in council for a repeal of
the act prohibiting the importation and use of black slaves within
the province of Georgia. A committee, of which the Earl of
Shaftesbury was appointed chairman, was raised to prepare an
act repealing the former act on this subject.
Persuaded that the time had now come when their consent
must perforce be given to the introduction of slave labor, and
desirous of guarding its employment by wholesome and humane
regulations, the trustees authorized the following communication:
- “GEORGIA OFFICE, July 7th, 1749.
“SIR AND GENTLEMEN, -f acquainted you in my Letter
dated May 19th last that the Trustees had resolved to petition
his Majesty that the Act for rendering the Colony of Georgia
more defencible by prohibiting the Importation and Use of black
Slaves or Negroes into the same might be repeal’d, and to prepare
a Law by which Negroes may be admitted under several Restric-
tions and Regulations. They have this now under their Consid-
eration, and as you took into Consultation with you upon this
Affair several of the principal People of the Colony when you
CONCESSION BY THE TRUSTEES. 423
propos'd the Regulations which occurr'd to you, you must assem-
ble such again that they may see the Regulations upon which
the Trustees think proper to form the Act, which do not differ
widely from those which you transmitted, but there are some ad-
ditional Ones which the Trustees look on as absolutely necessary.
“In the first place they can never lose sight of the Colony
being a Frontier, of the Danger which must attend too great a
Disproportion of Blacks and White Men, and the Facility with
which the Negroes may make their Escape from Georgia to Au-
gustine. They have resolv'd therefore that every Man who shall
have four Male Negroes above the age of 14 shall be obliged to
have and constantly keep one indented White Male Servant aged
between 20 and 55. If he shall have eight Male Negroes he
shall constantly keep two indented White Male Servants of the
aforesaid age, and for every four Negroes upwards he shall keep
one additional White Male Servant of the aforesaid age, – his
Sons not to be reckon'd among such White Servants. If any
Person having such Numbers of Negroes as aforesaid shall refuse
or neglect to provide such Male Servants in proportion within
twelve Calendar Months, he shall forfeit for every Negro above
the Number for which he has White Male Servants so aged, the
sum of £10 Sterlé, and the further sum of £5 Sterlº each Month
after, during which he retains such Negro.
“No Artificer shall be suffer'd to take any Negro as an Ap-
prentice, nor shall any Planter lend or let out a Negro or Negroes
to another Planter, to be employ'd otherwise than in manuring
and cultivating the Plantations in the Country.
“Proprietors of Negroes shall not be permitted to exercise an
unlimited Power over them.
“All Negroes imported into or born in the Province of Georgia
shall be register'd ; and no Sale of Negroes from one man to an-
other shall be valid unless register'd. Inquisitions shall be made
once in every year, or oftener if need be, into the Registers by
Juries in the several Districts, who shall immediately afterwards
make their Report to the Magistrates.
“As other Provinces have greatly suffer'd by permitting Ships
with Negroes to send them on shore when ill of contagious Dis-
tempers (as particularly South Carolina has often by the Yellow
Fever) proper places must be appointed for such Ships as bring
Negroes to Georgia to cast anchor at, in order to their being
visited, and to perform such Quarentain as shall be order'd by the
President and Assistants, and no Ships must be suffer'd to come
424 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
nearer than those Places before they are visited by proper Offi-
cers and a Certificate of Health is obtain'd. And in case of any
contagious Distempers on board, proper places must be appointed
at a Distance from the Towns for Lazarettos where the whole
Crew of the Ship and the Negroes may be lodg’d and supplied
with Refreshments and assisted towards their Recovery. You
must acquaint the Trustees by the first Opportunity with the
Names and Descriptions of the proper Places for the Ships to
stop at, and likewise where to perform a Quarentain if there are
contagious Distempers on board, that those Places may be spec-
ified in the Act.
“No Master shall oblige or even suffer his Negro or Negroes to
work on the Lord's Day, but he shall permit or oblige them to
attend at some time in that Day for Instruction in the Christian
Religion, which the Protestant Ministers of the Gospel must be
oblig'd to give them. The Minister or Ministers shall on all oc-
casions inculcate in the Negroes the natural Obligations to a
married state where there are Female Slaves cohabiting with
them, and an absolute Forbearance of blaspheming the Name of
God by profane Cursing or Swearing. No Inter Marriages be-
tween White People and Negroes shall be deem'd lawful Mar-
riages: and if any White Man shall be convicted of lying with a
Female Negro or any White Woman of lying with a Male Negro
He or She shall on such Conviction be . . . and the Negro shall
receive a Corporal Punishment.
“As the Culture of Silk is the great object of the Trustees,
and they are determin'd to make it, as far as lyes in their Power,
the object of all the People in Georgia by never ratifying any
Grants in which the Conditions for planting, fencing, and keep-
ing up the proper Number of Mulberry Trees are not inserted,
and by insisting on the forfeiture of all Grants where those Con-
ditions are not perform’d, they have resolv'd that every Man
who shall have four Male Negroes, shall be oblig'd to have, for
every such four, one Female Negro instructed in the Art of wind-
ing Silk. The Conditions, as mentioned in my other Letter are
that 1000 Mulberry Trees shall be planted on every hundred
Acres, the same proportion to be observ’d in less Grants; and
that for the Preservation of the Trees against Cattle, the Planter
shall fence in his Mulberry Trees or plant them in Places already
fenc'd.
“As there are several Publick Works which are absolutely
necessary, such as maintaining the Light-house, providing for the
NEGRO SLAVERY ALLOWED. 425
Pilot and Pilot Boat, the Repairs of the Church, the Wharf, and
the Prison, and building Lazarettos, and other publick Services
such as the Support of the Minister when other Supports shall
fail, and several Officers of Civil Government, as Constables,
Tythingmen &c. and as some Funds will be requisite for these,
the Trustees think nothing can be more reasonable than a Duty
upon Negroes at Importation, and an annual Tax P Head upon
the Possession of them, which Tax and Duty must be paid, for
the use of the Trust, into the hands of proper persons appointed
by the Trustees. It will therefore be requisite for you in your
Consultation to consider what Duty and Tax may, in your opin-
ion, be proper for the aforesaid Services, and other necessary
public Uses of the Colony, and transmit your opinion hereon
under the Seal as before, by the first opportunity.
“I am, Sir, and Gentlemen
“Your very humble Serv" .
“BENJ. MARTYN, Secºrv.
“To W* STEPHENs Esq. President
and the Assistants.
“By the Charles-Town Galley, - Capt. Bogg.”.”
A convention was called in due course, and Major Horton, the
military chief of the colony, presided over its deliberations. A
conclusion was speedily reached. The suggestions of the trus-
tees were substantially adopted; and on the 26th of October,
1749, a representation was signed by twenty-seven persons of the
highest respectability in the province, requesting that slavery be
at once allowed under the limitations mentioned. This docu-
ment,” properly attested, was forwarded by the earliest opportu-
nity to the trustees who, with a few trifling modifications and
additions, approved its provisions. Among the latter were enact-
ments that a penalty of £10 should be paid by every master
1 P. R. O., Georgia, B. T., vol. x. came to Savannah to meet the President,
* Presiding over this convention and
signing this document were the last pub-
lic acts performed by Major Horton. A
few days afterwards he was seized with a
malignant fever which soon terminated
his useful life. In a letter to General
Oglethorpe Mr. Habersham pays this
merited compliment: “Major Horton's
unwearied and generous exertions in the
service of this Colony have perhaps con-
tributed not a little to abridge the num-
ber of his days. By particular desire he
Assistants, and other representatives to
consult on an affair of the greatest im-
portance to the Colony. His conduct
and opinions gave renewed specimens of
his wisdom and prudence. Your Excel-
lency knew him well, therefore it would
be vain in me to attempt a description of
his merits. Envy itself is obliged to con-
fess that he shined in war and in peace,
in public and in private stations.” See
McCall's History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 210.
Savannah. 1811.
426 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
who either forced or permitted his negro slave to work on the
Lord's day, and that if the owner omitted to compel his slave to
attend at some time on Sunday for instruction in the Christian
religion he should be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and, on
conviction, should be find not less than £5 for each offense.
Thus did the trustees abandon one of their most cherished
theories, and thus did Georgia, after a struggle of sixteen years,
acquire the right, long enjoyed by her sister English colonies in
America, of owning and using negro slaves.
When General Oglethorpe's regiment was disbanded at Fred-
erica on the 29th of May, 1749, one company was retained for the
defense of the province. Such of the soldiers, mustered out of
service, as desired to remain enjoyed the lands allotted to them
in fulfillment of a promise made by the trustees at the time of
their enlistment. Others, who preferred to go to England, were
transported in boats to Charlestown whence passages were pro-
vided for them at the charge of the general government.
Returning in these boats came Captain Daniel Demetree and
a small detachment of ten or twelve men. They landed at Caus-
ton’s Bluff, where the captain mentioned to some of the inhab-
itants that he was on his way to Frederica. He further stated
that he was about to assume command at that point. As he
failed to report to the president and his assistants, and disclosed
to them neither his orders nor his intentions, they were at a loss
to understand his extraordinary conduct, and ordered Captain
Noble Jones to wait upon him and demand both an explanation
of and an apology for this discourtesy. Captain Demetree's
reply to Captain Jones was that he was acting under instructions
from his grace the Duke of Bedford, communicated with the con-
sent of the trustees, and that he was to receive his orders from
and to report only to the governor of South Carolina. He re-
luctantly appeared before the council in answer to their summons.
Mortified at this contemptuous treatment, Governor Stephens
addressed a communication to the trustees in which he intimated
that Governor Glen's influence had been improperly exerted with
the duke, that to all appearances it was contemplated either to
lower the dignity of Georgia or to place that province under the
control of Carolina, and that the small party which Captain
Demetree had brought with him would be of little use to the
province if placed under his control, and of none at all if subject
to the orders of the governor of South Carolina. Colonel Ste-
phens probably did not know the fact at the time, but so it was,
CASE OF CAPTAIN DEMETREE. 427
that the expediency of subordinating Georgia to Carolina was in
certain quarters seriously discussed. Some went so far as to pro-
pose that the former province should be merged in the latter.
The trustees protested at the suggestion, however, claimed their
vested rights, and so put the hint to flight. President Stephens
conjectured that Governor Glen was using his influence to bring
Georgia into contempt, and was seeking to gratify a private pique
because of a misunderstanding which had arisen in consequence
of his interference with the Indian trade at Augusta.
Persevering in his determination to preserve his official dig-
nity and maintain the colonial sovereignty of Georgia, President
Stephens directed the troops and citizens at Frederica to seize
the boats which Demetree had in charge, to hold them as the
property of Oglethorpe's regiment, and, until further orders, to
take no notice of the captain either in a civil or military capac-
ity. A copy of this letter of instructions to the authorities at
Frederica and a statement of Demetree's conduct were forwarded
to Governor Glen. While it is true that his reception was not
such as his rank in the army merited, or such as, under ordinary
circumstances, he was warranted in expecting from the Georgia
authorities, his lack of courtesy had been so notorious that the
president and assistants, to preserve their self-respect, maintain
the dignity of the colonial government, and bring that officer
to terms, found it necessary to adopt this course. Taking coun-
sel of his better judgment, and acknowledging the error he had
committed, Captain Demetree soon made ample apology to the
colonial council. This done, he was permitted to assume com-
mand of the military force stationed at Frederica.1
Another regulation of the trustees, to which they tenaciously
clung, was now abrogated. By a vote of the House of Commons
they were directed to repeal the act which prohibited the intro-
duction of rum * and other distilled liquors. Certain sumptuary
laws, also, forbidding the use of gold and silver in apparel, fur-
niture, and equipage, had become wholly obsolete. Such legis-
lation, well meant, perhaps, was entirely unnecessary, for the
poverty of the colonists did not allow of personal display or
domestic extravagance.
* See McCall's History of Georgia, vol. further stated that “a beverage com-
i. p. 211. Savannah. 1811. pounded of one part of rum, three parts
* President Stephens, in writing to the of water, and a little brown Sugar, was
trustees, expressed the opinion that less very fit to be taken at meals,” and that it
rum Was consumed in the colony after was, “during the warm season, far more
its use was permitted than when it was wholesome than malt liquors.”
obtained and drunk clandestinely. He
428 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
We have had occasion from time to time to note the petitions
of the colonists, and the disappointments experienced by them
in their efforts to secure from the trustees an enlargement of
the tenure by which lands were holden. We have also consid-
ered the reasons advanced by them in justification of their
determination to grant only qualified estates. As the province
grew older and stronger, as its liability to destruction by the
Spaniards on the one hand and the Indians on the other ap-
peared less imminent, and as the disadvantages under which its
citizens labored when contrasted with the privileges enjoyed by
peoples of neighboring English plantations became more appar-
ent, the trustees concluded to modify their regulation on the
subject, and finally gave publicity to the following resolution in
regard to the tenure of lands in Georgia : —
“GEORGIA OFFICE, WESTMINSTER,
“May 25th, 1750.
“Whereas the Trustees for establishing the Colony of Georgia
in America thought it necessary in the first establishment of that
Colony to restrain the Grants they made of Lots of Land to
limited Tenures only, in order thereby to prevent many abuses
which at that time might probably have defeated the good
ends proposed by that establishment, and during the late War it
might have been of dangerous consequence to have alter'd the
Tenures; but as a general peace and tranquillity happily prevail,
the said Trustees are of opinion that the intended enlargement
of the Tenures may now be safely made, and have come to the
following resolution, viz':
“That the Tenures of all Grants of Land whatsoever already
made to any person within the Province of Georgia be enlarged
and extended to an absolute Inheritance, and that all future
Grants of Land shall be of an absolute Inheritance to the
Grantees, their Heirs and Assigns.”
Thus had the trustees been compelled, by force of circum-
stances to abrogate, one after another, several fundamental reg-
ulations which they at first promulgated for the government of
the colony. All restrictions, formerly imposed in obedience to
their peculiar views, were now removed. Lands were held in
fee simple, and the power of alienation was unrestricted. The
ownership and employment of negro slaves were free to all, and
the New England manufacturer here found an open market for
his rum.
The trustees also misinterpreted the capabilities of the cli-
SOLA BILLS. 429
mate and soil of Georgia. Although substantial encouragement
had been afforded to Mr. Amatis, to Jacques Camuse, to the
Salzburgers at Ebenezer, to Mr. Pickering Robinson, to Mr.
Habersham, and to Mr. Lloyd ; although copper basins and
reeling-machines had been supplied and a Filature erected; al-
though silk-worm eggs were procured and mulberry-trees mul-
tiplied, silk culture in Georgia yielded only a harvest of disap-
pointment. The vine too languished. The olive-trees from
Venice, the barilla seeds from Spain, the kali from Egypt, and
other exotics, obtained at much expense, after a short season
withered and died in the public garden. The hemp and flax,
from the cultivation of which such rich yields were anticipated,
never warranted the charter of a single vessel for their trans-
portation, and indigo did not commend itself to general favor.
Exportations of lumber were infrequent. Cotton was then little
more, than a garden plant, and white labor had been unable to
compete successfully with Carolina negroes in the production of
rice. Up to this point the battle had been with nature for life
and subsistence; and upon the stores of the trust did many
long rely for food and clothing. Of trade there was little, and
that was confined to necessaries. With the exception of occa-
sional shipments of copper money for circulation among the in-
habitants, sola bills' constituted the currency of the province.
These were issued by the trustees and placed in the hands of
their Georgia agents to be by them paid out as occasion re-
quired. They were redeemable in England, and, when not spe-
cially indorsed, passed current as any Bank of England notes.
When presented for payment and redeemed they were canceled
in the presence of one common-council man and two trustees.
A careful record was preserved of all bills issued and redeemed.
* The following is a copy of one of dorsement hereon, sign'd by the said two
these bills, with its indorsement : —
“Georgia Bill of Exchange }
payable in England.
A. No. 13,464. Westminster 29th May,
1749. Thirty days after sight hereof, we
the Trustees for Establishing the Colony
of Georgia in America Promise to pay
this our Sola Bill of Exchange to Wm
Stephens Esqr, Henry Parker, Wm Spen-
cer, and Jas Habersham or the order of
any two of them, the Sum of One Pound
Sterling at our Office in Westminster, to
answer the like value received in Georgia
on the Issue hereof, as testified by In-
who shall Issue this Bill.
:Él.
Sealed by order of the Common Coun-
cil of the said Trustees for Establishing
the Colony of Georgia in America.
HARMAN WERELST, Accotant.
(Endorsed)
Georgia, October 13th, 1749.
This Bill was then Issued to William
Stephens Esq; for value received. There-
fore Please to Pay the Contents to him
or order. HENRY PARKER,
WM SPENCER.
1749.
WILL STEPHENs.”
430 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
While General Oglethorpe remained in Georgia, to him was con-
fided the issuing of them, and after his departure this duty de-
volved upon the president and assistants. The trustees required
that specific report should be made of the purpose for which each
bill was issued. More than one hundred and thirty-five thousand
dollars were thus sent over to the colony at different times and
disbursed in payment of salaries and in discharge of other ex-
penses connected with the execution of the trust. At the ex-
piration of their charter the accountant reported to the trustees
that sola bills to the amount of £1,149 had not been returned
for payment. Whereupon, the common council placed that
sum in the hands of Mr. Lloyd, a reputable silk merchant, who
engaged to redeem them when presented. Public notice was
also inserted in the American gazettes requiring their presenta-
tion before the 1st of January, 1756.1
In their administration of the financial affairs of the colony
the trustees exhibited the utmost prudence, care, and economy.
In all their labors they were exact. No body of men could have
executed a trust with greater fidelity or in a manner further re-
moved from personal gain or the hope of private emolument.
They were philanthropists all, and in the consciousness of duty
discharged, in the scrupulous distribution of blessed charities, in
honest efforts for the amelioration of the condition of their own
unfortunate fellow citizens and of the oppressed Protestants of
Europe, in the dissemination of the truths of Christianity upon
distant shores, and in the patriotic extension of British dominion
did they find honor and reward. Commercial, industrial, and
governmental mistakes they did commit, but their errors were
all of the head and not of the heart. For more than a century
and a quarter has their record been made up, and it stands to-
day without a single stain.
To the house of Harris & Habersham is Georgia indebted for
the establishment of her earliest commercial relations not only
with Philadelphia, New York, and Boston, but also with Lon-
don. They were the first merchants here engaged in exporting
and importing. By them was the first ship chartered for a Geor-
gia cargo. This was in 1749, and the articles exported consisted
chiefly of pitch, tar, staves, rice, and deer-skins. Liberal in their
dealings, possessing a commercial credit and correspondence be-
yond any others in the province engaged in mercantile pursuits,
and eager to promote the prosperity of the metropolis of Geor-
1 See Stevens' History of Georgia, vol. i. pp. 315. New York. MDCCCXLVII.
HOUSE OF HARRIS & HABERSHAM. 431
gia, these gentlemen sought to stimulate the inhabitants to such
a degree of industry that their home products would suffice not
only for consumption within the plantation but also for exporta-
tion. Their effort was, by an accumulation of needed supplies,
to secure the trade of the Carolina planters and sell their crops
for them. By attracting English shipping to the port they in-
creased the growth and importance of Savannah and furnished a
direct outlet for all articles seeking a foreign market. So suc-
cessful were the operations of this enterprising firm that the
colony materially increased in wealth and in the enjoyment of
comforts to which its inhabitants had hitherto been strangers.
Within a very few years after the establishments of its relations
with England, and after the introduction of negro slaves, a mem-
ber 1 of this house thus writes: “My present thoughts are that
the colony never had a better appearance of thriving than now.
There have been more vessels loaded here within these ten
months than have been since the Colony was settled. Our ex-
portations for a year past are an evident proof that if proper
labouring hands could have been had years before, this Colony
before now would have demonstrated its utility to the Mother
Country and the West India Islands. Two days ago a large ship
arrived here addressed to my partner and myself, which is the
fifth sea vessel which has been here to load within a year; more,
I may affirm, than has ever been loaded in this Colony before
since its first settlement, with its real produce.”
* The Honorable James Habersham.
CHAPTER XXVII.
MISSION OF PICKERING ROBINSON AND JAMES HABERSHAM. – FILATURE
ERECTED IN SAVANNAH. – ENCOURAGEMENT OF THE SILK CULTURE. — A
PROVINCIAL ASSEMBLY AUTHORIZED AND CONVENED. —ITs FIRST SEssion,
ITS COMPOSITION, AND ITS PROCEEDINGs. – THE TRUSTEES PROTEST
AGAINST THE ANNEXATION OF GEORGIA To SouTH CAROLINA. – ORGANI-
ZATION OF THE COLONIAL MILITIA.—FIRST GENERAL MUSTER. – Con-
SERVATORS OF THE PEACE NAMED. — THEIR Powers. — MARY Bosom-
WORTH's DEMAND. — RELIGIOUS ToI.ERATION. — RUMoRED UPRISING OF
THE CHEROKEES. — REVIEW OF THE POLICY OF THE TRUSTEES. — THEIR
NAMES, OCCUPATIONS, AND CONDUCT. — CLERGYMEN. — CHURCHES. —RE-
LIGIOUS DENOMINATIONS.
ON the 26th of June, 1750, Henry Parker was commissioned
as vice-president of the colony of Georgia, and James Haber-
sham appointed secretary. The same day provision was made
for holding at Savannah, “between Michaelmas and Lady Day
next,” an assembly of the people of Georgia “to propose, debate,
and represent to the trustees what shall appear to them to be
for the benefit not only of each particular settlement but of the
Province in general.”
That he might acquaint himself with the construction and
management of filatures, with the most approved mode of prop-
agating the silk-worm, and the best method of preparing silk for
market, Mr. Pickering Robinson had been sent to France at the
expense of the trust. Upon his return, being regarded as com-
petent to assume the general charge and management of this
important branch of industry, he was granted a salary of £100
per annum, with £25 additional for a clerk, and ordered to pro-
ceed to Georgia, and there, by every available means, stimulate
the production of silk." Mr. James Habersham was named as a
lations, both white and black, the amount
of land cultivated and the crops grown
1 Mr. Robinson was further instructed
to make a careful inspection of the prov-
ince, and to prepare a detailed report of
its condition. He was to examine the
church, the light-house, the prison, the
town house, the public and private
wharves; visit the several settlements in
Georgia; ascertain their respective popu-
thereon, the condition of the fences, the
relative distances of towns and planta-
tions, the situation and status of the forts,
their respective garrisons, armaments, and
storehouses, the present appearance of
the vineyards and mulberry groves; and
SILK a CULTURE ENCOURAGED. 433
commissioner to act with him in the discharge of the duties ap-
pertaining to this matter. Mr. Robinson carried with him a
quantity of silk-worm eggs, but none of them, save about half an
ounce, could be vitalized. It was determined to erect a filature
in Savannah as a sort of normal school for the instruction of the
inhabitants in the art of silk culture. This building was con-
structed of rough boards, was thirty-six feet long by twenty
wide, and had a loft upon the flooring of which the green co-
coons were spread. It was commenced on the 4th of March,
1751. Basins were put up on the 1st of April, and about a
month afterwards the reeling began.
To encourage the colonists the trustees proposed to purchase
all the balls and wind them at their own expense, paying from
1s. 6d. to 2s. 4d. per pound for green cocoons.
This compensation proving unsatisfactory to some of the resi-
dents in Savannah and Purrysburg, the vice-president and assist-
ants, at the request of Messrs. Robinson and Habersham, issued
a proclamation on the 26th of April, in which they promised to
pay for cocoons delivered in Savannah the following prices : for
cocoons made by one worm, hard, weighty, and of good substance,
2s. per pound; for such as were of an inferior quality, pointed,
spotted, or bruised, 1s. 3d. per pound; and for dupions, 6d. per
pound. For raw silk from cocoons of the first quality they
agreed to give 14s, per pound; for that reeled from cocoons of
the second quality, 12s. per pound; and for the product of double
cocoons, 6d. per pound. These prices were most extravagant.
In their efforts to elicit from Georgia some respectable yield of
the article upon which they had so long fixed their hopes of
profit, the trustees took little note of the cost of production.
Present expenditures, they trusted, would be justified by the
labors and the rewards of the future. Camuse and his son and
daughter, who by their perverse conduct had given the commis-
sioners no little trouble, returned to Savannah and found em-
ployment in the Filature.
All these exertions, outlays, and bounties eventuated in little
else than continued disappointment. After incurring an ex-
pense — including the passages of servants, the cost of provisions
from the public store, bounties on cocoons, salaries, machines,
basins, and filatures — of nearly £1,500, the trustees, at the date
explain why the culture of the grape and trustees fully with regard to the province.
of silk had not progressed more favora- See Shaftesbury Papers in Public Record
bly. In a word, he was to inform the Office, London.
28
434 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
of the surrender of their charter, had succeeded in raising scarcely
a thousand pounds of raw silk, - a costly experiment, truly,
demonstrating the vanity of that expectation in the realization
of which they believed England would be saved £500,000, and
that employment would be given to forty thousand of her sub-
jects."
On the 8th of April, 1751, as we have seen, Mr. Parker was
appointed president of the colony in the room of Colonel Will-
iam Stephens who retired upon a pension of £80 per annum.
Mr. Noble Jones was commissioned as register of the province,
and Pickering Robinson and Francis Harris were named as
assistants to the president.
In pursuance of the resolution adopted by the trustees in June,
1750, writs of election had been issued for the selection of dele-
gates to a provincial assembly to convene at Savannah on the
15th of the following January. Sixteen delegates composed
that assembly, and they were “proportioned to the population of
the different parishes or districts.” For the convocation, appor-
tionment, and qualification of these assemblymen, the following
regulations were established by the common council.
The assembly was to convene in the town of Savannah once a
year at such time as should be designated as most convenient by
the president of the colony and his assistants, and remain in ses-
sion not longer than one month.
Every town, village, or district in the province, containing a
population of ten families, was empowered to send one deputy.
Any settlement embracing thirty families could appoint two
delegates. To the town of Savannah four deputies were allowed;
to Augusta and Ebenezer two each ; and to Frederica two, pro-
vided there were thirty families resident there.
As the privilege of enacting laws was, by charter, vested
solely in the trustees, this assembly could not legislate. Its
powers were limited to discussing and suggesting to the trustees
such measures as they might deem conducive to the welfare of
particular communities and important for the general good of
the province.
Within three days after their assembling these deputies were
required to submit in writing a statement showing the number
of inhabitants, both white and black (specifying sex and age in
every instance), the quantity of land cultivated by each inhab-
itant and in what crop planted, the number of negroes owned
1 See Stevens' History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 275. New York. MDCCCXLVII.
FIRST COLONIAL ASSEMBLY. 435
and employed, the quantity of mulberry-trees standing and
fenced on each plantation, and the progress made by each man
or family in the culture of silk, indigo, cotton, etc., in the several
towns or parishes represented by them.
These accounts, and also the suggestions of the assembly
when signed by its presiding officer, were to be delivered to the
president and assistants for prompt transmission to the trustees.
The presiding officer was to be chosen by the delegates. When
Selected by them, he must be presented for the approval or dis-
approval of the president of the colony. Should the president
decline to sanction the choice of the assembly, if demanded by
any three of the members, he was required to give his reasons
for such disapproval and to transmit the same in writing for the
consideration of the trustees.
For delegates to the first assembly, which was convened at the
earliest practicable moment, no qualifications were prescribed ;
but after the 24th of June, 1751, no inhabitant could be elected
a deputy who had not one hundred mulberry-trees planted and
properly fenced upon every tract of fifty acres which he possessed.
From and after the 24th of June, 1753, no one was capable of be-
ing a delegate who had not strictly conformed to the prescribed
limitation of the number of negro slaves in proportion to his
White servants, who had not in his family at least one female in-
structed in the act of reeling silk, and who did not annually pro-
duce fifteen pounds of silk for every fifty acres of land owned by
him.
Such were the curious qualifications prescribed for membership
of the first quasi-deliberative, quasi-legislative body which ever
assembled in Georgia. They were evidently intended to stimu-
late the production of silk, that commodity which blinded the
eyes of the trustees and warped their judgment in directing the
industrial pursuits of the colonists.
The assembly convened at Savannah on the day appointed,
and organized by the election of Francis Harris as speaker. The
following members appeared, and, having taken the “ oaths of
allegiance, supremacy, and abjurgation ” were duly seated: –
From the Savannah District: Francis Harris, speaker, John
Milledge, William Francis, and William Russel.
From the Augusta District: George Cadogan and David Doug-
lass.
From the Ebenezer District: Christian Reidlesperger and The-
obald Keiffer.
436 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA."
From Abercorn and Goshen Districts : William Ewen.
From Joseph's Town District: Charles Watson.
From Vernonburg District: Patrick Houstoun.
From Acton District : Peter Morell.
From Little Ogeechee District: Joseph Summers.
From Skidaway District: John Barnard.
From Midway District: Audley Maxwell, and
From Darien District: John Mackintosh.
Noble Jones and Pickering Robinson were, by the president of
the colony and his assistants, appointed a committee to inquire
into the general condition of the province and to present a special
report thereof to the assembly.
After an exchange of courtesies with Vice-President Parker,
the assembly proceeded to business and, having deliberated some
two weeks, submitted the following “heads of grievances” which
they thought the president and his assistants were able to re-
dress.
1st. The want of a proper pilot-boat.
2d. The want of leave to erect a building under the Bluff for
the convenience of boats’ crews, negroes, etc, - such building to
be erected by subscription. -
3d. The want of standard weights, scales, and measures.
4th. The want of a survey of the river.
5th. The want of an order to prevent the masters of vessels
from discharging ballast into the river.
6th. The want of a commissioner to regulate pilots and pi-
lotage.
7th. The want of an inspector and sworn packer to inspect the
produce of the colony.
8th. The want of a clerk of the market.
9th. The want of proper regulations for the guard.
10th. The want of suitable officers to command the militia.
11th. The want of repairs to the court-house.
To these suggestions the following answers were returned:
1st. The Board not having funds with which to purchase a
substantial pilot-boat, this matter would be referred to the trus-
teeS.
2d. The Board would provide a location for the boat-house.
3d. The Board had already applied to the trustees for standard
weights and measures, and hoped soon to be furnished with them.
4th. The Savannah River shall be surveyed so soon as the Ser-
vices of a competent party can be secured.
OBJECTIONS TO ANNEXING GEORGIA TO CAROLINA. 437
5th. A prohibitory order would be at once promulgated.
6th. This want would soon be supplied by the appointment of
a suitable person.
7th. The appointment would be made without delay.
8th. A clerk should be named.
9th. Suitable regulations would be established.
10th. Competent officers would be commissioned.
11th. Materials had already been provided for these repairs
and workmen designated to make them.
The assembly remained in session until the 8th of February,
1751, and, before adjourning, submitted an address and addi-
tional representations touching the magistracy, Indian affairs,
the introduction of negroes, silk culture, the continuance of the
charter, and other matters, all of which were forwarded for the
consideration of the trustees. Among these was one representa-
tion which specially attracted the notice of the trustees and
evoked from them the following “Objections to annexing Georgia
to South Carolina,” which are now of file among the Shaftesbury
Papers in the public record office in London : —
“As the Assembly of the Province of Georgia have set forth
in a Representation dated Jan’ 15, 1751, that the annexing of
this Province to South Carolina will soon reduce it to the same
desolate condition in which the Southern Parts of South Carolina
were before the Establishment of Georgia, the Trustees think it
their Duty in behalf of the People to represent the same to your
Lordships: and the Assembly having given us one Reason for
this, the great Distance they are at from Charles-Town, and con-
sequently the hazards and intolerable Expence and Inconven-
iences of attending so remote a Seat of Government as Represen-
tatives, and Seat of Justice as Jurymen or Clarks, the Trustees
think it incumbent on them to state to your Lordships that the
nearest Part of Georgia is at least 80 Miles by Land and 100
Miles by Water from Charles-Town, that the Travellers by Land
have many Rivers to cross, and the Roads thro’ the Southern
Parts of Carolina are in the Winter almost impassable: That the
Passage by Water is over Sounds which in Winter are very dan-
gerous, and Boats must be hired at a great Expence for this
Passage, and that many of the Inhabitants of Georgia in the
Southern Parts are above 170 Miles by Land and above 200
Miles by Water from Charles-Town,
“Another Objection which the Trustees beg leave to mention
to your Lordships is the Jealousy which some of the Charles-
4.38 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Town Merchants have of the Town of Savannah becoming from
the superior fitness of its situation the great Mart for the Indian
Trade, to prevent which they will distress the present Inhabit-
ants of Georgia by all the means in their power, and particularly
by reviving old claims to large tracts of Land in Georgia which
they never did cultivate and which the Indians would never
suffer them to cultivate. By getting these they must dispossess
great Numbers of the Inhabitants of Lands which they have long
been in possession of and have cultivated under his Majesty's
Charter, and this will consequently expose the Inhabitants of
South Carolina to another Indian War for the same reasons that
that Province was involved in one in the Year 1718 when the In-
dians laid South Carolina in a manner waste with fire and sword.
“The Trustees think it needless to observe to your Lordships
that annexing the Colony is absolutely repugnant to his Majesty's
Charter which does expressly declare that it shall be a separate
and independent Province and that the Inhabitants shall not be
subject to the Laws of South Carolina.
“As the Trustees’ Power of governing the Colony will expire
on the 9th of June, 1753, but their Trust for granting the Lands
is to remain in them, and their successors (to be chosen by them)
forever; and as these two Powers being unconnected, and inde-
pendent of each other may be attended with many unforseen
difficulties, the Trustees are ready to accommodate the Adminis-
tration with a surrender of their Trust on such Terms as they
think themselves obliged, in behalf of the People, to stipulate
for, which Terms they are ready to offer to his Majesty's Council.
“As the Trustees ought not to surrender their Trust but on
such Conditions only as will secure to the Inhabitants of Georgia
those Rights and Privileges which were promised them at their
first going thither, they hope if such surrender is not accepted of,
that for the security of their large property in the Lands as Trus-
tees, they shall be allowed the Alternative, viz of recommending
to his Majesty the Persons to be employed in the Government of
Georgia.”
This project for the annexation of Georgia to South Carolina
originated with the citizens and friends of the latter province.
Among Georgians it was regarded with extreme disfavor. So
manifestly unjust was it and so thoroughly at variance with the
provisions of the charter, the scheme of the colonization, and the
vested rights both of the trustees and of the colonists, that so
soon as it was seriously considered it was heartily repudiated.
ORGANIZATION OF THE MILITIA. 439
Responding to the promise made to the assembly in their reply
to the tenth representation, President Parker and his assistants,
on the 16th of April, 1751, proceeded to organize and officer the
militia of the province. This action was all the more important
because General Oglethorpe's regiment having been disbanded,
and there being but few military organizations within the limits
of the plantation, the citizens were forced to rely upon themselves
for police duty at home, and for the protection of the frontiers
against any incursions of the Indians. All adult white male
inhabitants who possessed three hundred acres of land and more
were ordered to appear, well accoutred and with horses, to be
organized as cavalry. White male proprietors of less property
were armed as infantry. The militia force was thus organized
into four companies, one of horse and three of foot, numbering
in all some three hundred men. The first general muster in the
lower districts was held at Savannah on Tuesday the 13th of
June, 1751, when about two hundred and twenty men, infantry
and cavalry, armed and equipped, paraded under the command
of Captain Noble Jones. In the language of the record of the
day, they “behaved well and made a pretty appearance.” +
Conservators of the peace were named for the most populous
districts in the province which did not enjoy the privileges of
established courts. Thus, Captain John McIntosh was appointed
at Darien, Audley Maxwell for the district of Midway and the
Great Ogeechee, and James Fraser at Augusta. Each conser-
vator of the peace, with the assistance of three reputable free-
holders in his neighborhood, was empowered to hold what at a
later period would have been designated a justice's court, for the
trial of trifling misdemeanors and for the determination of civil
suits where the amount involved did not exceed forty shillings.
The courts at Savannah and Frederica were regularly holden for
the adjudication of weightier complaints both civil and criminal.
The day after the adjournment of the assembly Mary Bosom-
worth, attended by her husband, waited upon President Parker,
renewed her application for compensation, complained of the
injustice done to her reputation, endeavored to vindicate her
conduct in asserting a claim to the ceded lands, expressed a deter-
mination, in the event that she failed in obtaining justice at the
hands of the colonial authorities, of proceeding to England and
bringing her grievances to the notice of the Crown, and de-
manded a sum of money sufficient to defray her expenses thither.
* See Stevens' History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 250. New York. MDCCCXLVII.
440 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Deeming it best to take no notice of her representations and her
threats the council refused her request. Thereupon Bosomworth
sold his wife's alleged interest in the lands lying between Pipe-
Maker's Creek and Savannah, and her house and lot in that
town. With the funds thus realized, the two went to Charles-
town whence they sailed for London. While they were absent
and engaged in prosecuting that vexatious suit which so long
engaged the attention of the government, the islands of Ossabaw,
St. Catharine, and Sapelo, and also the lands on the Savannah
River lying between Pipe-Maker's Creek and the town of Sa-
vannah, –all of which were claimed by Mary Bosomworth as her
individual property, - were, on the 22d of April, 1758, formally
ceded by the Creek nation to his majesty the king of England.
A year or two afterwards, as has been stated, the pretensions
and demands of the Bosomworths were finally accommodated in
England by a payment to Mary of some £2,100, and by a sur-
render to her of all title held by the Crown to the island of St.
Catharine where she had fixed her home and where she subse-
quently died and was buried.
Every religious belief, the Roman Catholic excepted, was tol-
erated in Georgia. While the Church of England was held in
special favor and was encouraged, the colony numbered among
its inhabitants Presbyterians, Methodists, Lutherans, Moravians,
Anabaptists, and Hebrews. And now certain Quaker families
entered the province and formed a settlement about seven miles
above Augusta upon a tract of land known to this day as the
Quaker Spring. The territory within which they fixed their
abodes had been formerly owned by a tribe of Indians called the
Savannahs. Thence were they expelled by the Uchees who oc-
cupied adjacent lands. Peaceably inclined as they were, these
Quakers hoped to dwell in amity with the neighboring Indians.
While engaged in clearing lands and in building comfortable
homes they were alarmed by the intelligence that the Cherokees
were on the eve of invading the white settlements. Without
pausing to ascertain the truth of the report, they hastily aban-
doned the country, leaving behind them no trace of their short
occupancy save a spring and a slender memory.
The fortifications at Augusta were now in a ruinous condition
and were incapable of affording protection to the inhabitants.
The soft airs of spring invited to the fields and all were busy
with their agricultural pursuits, when the report of an uprising of
the Cherokees was proclaimed everywhere. About the middle
HOSTILE ATTITUDE OF THE INDIANS. 441
of May, 1751, an express from Augusta, sent by Patrick Graham,
reached Savannah with the information that James Maxwell and
a number of Indian traders, who fled precipitately from the Chero-
kee nation to save their lives, had just entered that town. They
brought news that two traders had been murdered and that they
themselves had been robbed of all their goods. It was appre-
hended that the Indians would soon be upon the war-path.
Fleeing from their plantations the inhabitants of Augusta and its
vicinity took refuge in a church. Detachments of mounted mili-
tia were sent in every direction, but no traces of the enemy could
be discovered in the neighborhood of the town. A letter was
received from James Fraser inclosing a copy of an affidavit made
by Maxwell which unfolded more fully the hostile temper of the
Indians.
Uncertain whether the whole affair was not a trick on the
part of the traders to bring on a war with the Indians and thus
screen themselves from the payment of their debts, the president
and assistants determined to adopt the more prudent course and
to place the colony in a state of defense. The magazine was
examined and officers were ordered to muster and discipline
the militia. Noble Jones was appointed colonel, and Noble W.
Jones, who had been a cadet in General Oglethorpe's regiment,
was assigned to the command of a troop of horse. Bourquin
and Francis were commissioned as captains of infantry compa-
nies, and Captain McIntosh at Darien and the officers at Fred-
erica and on Cumberland Island were warned of the impending
danger. The governor of Carolina strengthened his outposts
in the neighborhood of the Cherokees and supplied Fort Moore
with ammunition. It transpired subsequently that some of the
young warriors of the Cherokee nation had insulted some of the
traders because they had not brought with them a large supply
of ammunition. The chiefs, however, condemned this conduct
and were disposed to cultivate a friendly intercourse with the
traders, who were suffered to depart. On their return, having
again failed to bring as much ammunition as the Indians desired,
they were all seized. The Cherokees, then threatened with hostil-
ities by the Notteweges who were in alliance with the French,
charged that the neglect on the part of the traders to supply
them with ammunition would disqualify them from offering suit-
able resistance. The traders proposed, if liberated, to go to Au-
gusta and procure a liberal quantity of powder and lead. The
Indians consented to release only two of them, who were to
442 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
obtain the ammunition and return within thirty days. For the
fulfillment of this engagement their companions were detained
as hostages. Finding that no more favorable conditions could
be secured, the traders acceded to them and two of their number,
James Beamor and Richard Smith, set out for Augusta. Imme-
diately upon their arrival at that town they made oath to the facts
as they had transpired, and their affidavits were at once for-
warded to the governor of South Carolina whose business it was
to look after the behavior of the Cherokees, as most of the traders
with those Indians were inhabitants of the province over which
he presided. The apprehension was generally entertained that
the Cherokees had been seduced by the French, and that they
were seeking a pretext to declare war against Georgia and Car-
olina.
Various circumstances tended to confirm this suspicion. The
Cherokees and Notteweges not long afterwards were found as
friends attacking the Uchees. Bands of Indians wandered near
the settlements, some venturing within a few miles of Savannah
and creating wide-spread alarm. Fortunately, however, all dis-
turbances soon ceased, and the colony escaped the anticipated
horrors of Savage warfare." *4.
The time approached when the Trustees for establishing the
Colony of Georgia in America resolved to surrender their charter
and relieve themselves from the further execution of a trust
which had grown quite beyond their management. For twenty
years had they supported its provisions with an earnest solicitude,
a philanthropic zeal, and a loyal devotion worthy of every com-
mendation. The careful conception and the honest development
of the scheme for the colonization of Georgia and the restrictions
so long imposed upon alienations of land and the employment of
slave labor have claimed our attention. The mistakes committed
in encouraging the agricultural capabilities of the province have
not passed unnoticed, and, upon a more intimate acquaintance
with the character of the soil and the nature of the climate, we
have been able to account for the sad disappointments experi-
enced in the effort to cultivate the vine and propagate the silk-
worm. The skill and the honesty with which the finances of the
province were administered have excited our admiration, and we
have seen ample cause to applaud the tact, liberality, and fair-
ness with which the aborigines were propitiated and their friend-
ships won. Upon the brave chapter which commemorates the
1 Consult McCall's History of Georgia, vol. i. pp. 240-247. Savannah. 1811.
TRIBUTE TO THE TRUSTEES. 443
struggle between the gallant Oglethorpe and the envious Span-
iard we have lingered with pride, and the illustrious names and
good deeds associated with the primal settlement and develop-
ment of this colony have found safe lodgment in our grateful
recollection. We have seen a feeble plantation upon Yama-
craw Bluff expanding, year by year, until it now assumes the
proportions of a permanent colony and discloses the potentialities
of a future nation. The English drumbeat on the banks of the
Savannah is answered by the Highland bagpipe on the Alata-
maha, and the protecting guns of Frederica are supplemented by
the sentinel field-pieces at Augusta. At every stage of progress
and in every act, whether trivial or important, these trustees,
capable and worthy, evinced a clear conception of duty, a patience
of labor, a singleness of purpose, an unselfish dedication of time
and energy, an integrity, and a rigid adherence to all that was
pure, elevated, and humanizing, which become quite conspicuous
when their proceedings are minutely and intelligently scanned.
That they erred in their judgment in regard to the best method
of utilizing many of these marish lands, smitten by sun and
storms and pregnant with fevers and fluxes, may not now be
doubted. That the theory upon which they administered the
trust was in some respects narrow and retarding in its influences
is equally certain. That they were unfortunate in the selection
of some of their agents excites no surprise. But that they were
upright, conscientious, observant, and most anxious to promote
the best interests of the colony as they comprehended them will
be freely admitted.
A few words more and we turn to those proceedings which
withdrew the province from the guardianship of its earliest
friends and placed it under the dominion of a royal governor.
To the spiritual welfare of the colonists the trustees were
sensibly alive. They also hoped to accomplish much in civil-
izing and christianizing the Indian nations. With the “Soci-
ety for Propagating the Gospel in Foreign Parts” they were
in happy accord. Several of their number were distinguished
clergymen of the Church of England. Of one, the Rev. Dr.
John Burton, it was said he was a man of acknowledged tal-
ents and of most amiable and winning virtues. Another, the
Rev. Dr. Richard Bundy, was prebend of Westminster and
chaplain in ordinary to the king. A third, the Rev. Arthur
Bedford, was chaplain to the Prince of Wales, and the au-
thor of several interesting and valuable works. A fourth, the
444 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Rev. Samuel Smith, LL.B., was rector of All Hallows on the
Wall. . A fifth, the Rev. Dr. Stephen Hales, was equally re-
nowned as a naturalist and as a divine. “ Perhaps,” says Dr.
Aiken, “the records of biography can produce no character
more marked by the union of blamelessness with active benevo-
lence.” A sixth was the Rev. Thomas Rundle, prebendary of
Durham, and afterwards promoted to the bishopric of Derry;
while the seventh, the Rev. Thomas Wilson, was the senior preb-
endary of Westminster. The associates of these gentlemen in
the Board of Trustees were prominent in station and of ac-
knowledged virtue. Let their names be perpetuated in honor:
John, Lord Percival, first president of the trustees and first
Earl of Egmont; Edward, the sixth Baron Digby; George,
Lord Carpenter ; James Oglethorpe, M. P.; George Heath-
cote, M. P. ; Thomas Tower, M. P.; Robert Moore, M. P.;
Robert Hucks, M. P.; Roger Holland, M. P.; William Sloper,
M. P. ; Sir Francis Eylès, Bart., M. P. ; John Laroche, M. P. ;
James Vermon, Esqr., a commissioner of excise; William Be-
litha ; Adam Anderson, the author of a clever work upon Trade
and Commerce; Captain Thomas Coram, the special patron of
the Foundling Hospital and always busied with schemes of char-
ity and of public utility; James Stanley, tenth Earl of Derby;
Anthony Ashley Cooper, Earl of Shaftesbury, grandson of the
first earl of that name ; John, Lord Tyrconnel; James, Lord
Limeric ; James, Lord D'Arcy ; Richard Chandler, Esqr. ;
Thomas Frederick, M. P.; Henry L’Apostre, Esqr.; Sir Will-
iam Heathcote, Bart., M. P. ; John White, Esqr. ; Robert
Kendall, Esqr., alderman of London ; John Page, M. P. ;
William Hanbury, Esqr. ; Christopher Tower, M. P. ; Sir Eras-
mus Phillips, Bart., M. P. ; Sir John Gonson, Knight; George
Tyrer, Esqr., alderman of Liverpool; William, Lord Talbot,
afterwards Earl Talbot and Baron Dynevor ; Richard Coope,
Esqr.; William Wollaston, Esqr., M. P. ; Robert Eyre, Esqr. ;
Thomas Archer, Esqr., M. P., elevated to the peerage in 1747
as Baron Archer of Umberslade; Hon. Henry Archer, M. P. ;
Robert Tracy, Esqr., M. P.; Francis Wollaston, Esqr. ; Sir
Robert Cater, Knight, alderman and sheriff of London; Sir
Jacob de Bouverie, Bart., elevated to the peerage as Lord
Longford, Baron of Longford and Viscount of Falkestone ; Sir
Harry Gough, Bart., M. P. ; Sir Roger Burgoyne, Bart., M. P.,
one of the commissioners of the Navy ; Lord Sidney Beauclerk,
M. P., one of his majesty's Privy Council; Henry, Earl Bath-
TRUSTEES. 445
urst, afterwards Baron Apsley and Lord Chancellor of Eng-
land; Hon. Philip Percival; Sir John Frederick, Bart., M. P.;
Hon. Alexander Hume Campbell, M. P., Solicitor-General to
the Prince of Wales and Lord Registrar of Scotland; Sir John
Barrington, Bart., M. P.; Samuel Tufnell, Esqr., M. P. ; Sir
Henry Calthorpe, K. B., M. P.; Sir John Philipps, Bart., M. P.,
one of the Commissioners for Trade and Plantations ; Velters
Cornewall, Esqr., M. P., “a steady patriot, whom no prom-
ises, rewards, titles or expectations could seduce from the true
interests of his country; ” John Wright, Esqr.; Francis Co-
kayne, Esqr., Lord Mayor of London ; Samuel Lloyd, Esqr., a
prominent silk merchant; Second Earl of Egmont, one of the
postmasters-general, first Lord of the Admiralty, and, when
sworn as a member of the Privy Council, enrolled in the Eng-
lish peerage as Lord Lovel and Holland; Anthony Ewer, Esqr. ;
Edward Hooper, Esqr., M. P., a commissioner of customs; the
Right Hon. Sir John Cust, Bart., M. P., afterwards Speaker
of the House of Commons and a member of his majesty's
Privy Council ; the Right Hon. Slingsby Bethel, M. P., al-
derman and Lord Mayor of London ; Right Hon. Stephen
Theodore Jansen, M. P., Lord Mayor of London ; and Richard
Cavendish, M. P., one of his majesty's commissioners of cus-
toms."
At their suggestion many rectors and vestrymen in the United
Kingdom interested themselves in obtaining subscriptions of
money in aid of the charity and in procuring donations of bibles,
prayer-books, and other religious works for the edification and
instruction of the colonists. Moreover, funds were raised to pay
the fixed salaries of the clergymen and missionaries sent over to
minister in spiritual things to the settlers, and to assist in the
erection of religious temples at the prominent points of coloniza-
tion. Glebe lands also were set aside for the use of parish
churches and for the sustentation of the clergy in charge. All
Protestant denominations participated. Papists only were ex-
cluded from the benefits of the benevolent design. The Rev.
Dr. Herbert, who volunteered his services, accompanied the first
embarkation and comforted the emigrants as they pitched their
tents beneath the tall pines on Yamacraw Bluff. The vessel
which bore them was richly freighted with bibles, testaments,
common prayer-books, psalters, catechisms, and other religious
* See Stevens' History of Georgia, vol. i. appendix. New York, MDCCCXLVII.
MS. Minutes of the Trustees.
446 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
works. Comfortable provision was made for the support of the
missionary and the dissemination of spiritual reading. He was
succeeded by the Rev. Samuel Quincy, who for more than two
years was the only clergyman at Savannah. Then came the
brothers Wesley, of whose labors, trials, and disappointments we
have already spoken. The Rev. Benjamin Ingham and Dela-
motte were their assistants, but their labors for the conversion
of the Indians, the instruction of the children of the province,
and the guidance of its inhabitants in the paths of righteous-
ness were not crowned with flattering success. At Darien the
Rev. John McLeod led the Highlanders most acceptably in
prayer, and guarded the ark of the covenant amid the solemn
cypress groves of the Alatamaha.
Responding to the invitation of the Rev. John Wesley, and
accepting the offers of the trustees, the Rev. George Whitefield
lifted his eloquent voice in behalf of the moral, intellectual, and
spiritual education of the Georgia colonists, and expended some
of the best energies of his noble life in founding and maintain-
ing the orphan house at Bethesda. And there too was James
Habersham who, amid his engagements as teacher, secretary,
legislator, and merchant, exhibited the crowning virtues of a
Christian and contributed the valuable services of a catechist
and reader.
Recommended by the Archbishop of Dublin and the Bishop of
London, and bearing the blessings of Selina, Countess of Hun-
tingdon, the Rev. William Norris for some time discharged the
duties of missionary at Savannah and Frederica. During his
ministry he is said to have baptized one hundred and forty-two
persons, of whom seventy-one were soldiers. He left Georgia
under a cloud, and was followed by the Rev. Christopher Orton,
who in August, 1742, died at Savannah when his ministrations
were little more than fairly commenced.
The next clerical appointment was unfortunate. On the 4th
of July, 1743, the Rev. Thomas Bosomworth was commissioned
to perform all religious and ecclesiastical offices in Georgia. At
Frederica he officiated as chaplain to Oglethorpe's regiment,
but marrying the Indian woman Mary Matthews soon became
involved in schemes for personal aggrandizement and the accu-
mulation of property which seriously impaired the tranquillity of
the province and necessitated his recall.
The Rev. Bartholomew Zouberbuhler was sent over in his
place. Although a native of St. Gall in Switzerland, at an early
REV. MR. ZOUBERBUHLER. 447
age he accompanied his father to Carolina and acquired a good
education in Charlestown. Visiting England he was ordained
as a deacon and priest by the Bishop of London. His ability to
speak the French and German languages recommended him to
the trustees, who had been recently memorialized by the inhab-
itants of Vernonsburg and the adjacent villages to furnish them
with a minister of Calvinistic principles. They had suggested
the employment of the Rev. John Joachim Zubly, of St. Gall, as
a suitable religious teacher, but as proper terms could not be
agreed upon the trustees substituted Mr. Zouberbuhler in his
stead. Although he spoke English rather imperfectly, the labors
of this parson were generally acceptable. Out of the six hun-
dred and thirteen inhabitants which Savannah contained in 1748,
three hundred and eighty-eight are said to have been Dissen-
ters. After preaching and teaching diligently for three years
he returned to England “with ample testimonials to his good
behavior.” At the close of 1749 he was again in Georgia where,
with great zeal, he resumed his labors. The church edifice in
Savannah, which was commenced on the 11th of June, 1740,
was not completed until the 7th of July, 1750. The day of its
dedication was the anniversary of the establishment of the first
court in Savannah seventeen years before, and also of the defeat
of the Spaniards by General Oglethorpe when they attempted
to capture the island of St. Simon. Although this sacred struc-
ture has been supplanted by another of stronger materials and
more august proportions, the lot upon which Christ Church in
Savannah now stands was the earliest dedication to ecclesias-
tical uses made within the confines of the province of Georgia.
The blessings of nearly a century and a half rest upon it, and
five generations of worshipers have here learned the way to
heaven. r
In 1750 the gentlemen of Augusta built “a handsome and
convenient church '' opposite one of the curtains of the fort and
So near that its guns afforded ample protection. This was the
furthest point the Church of England had thus far advanced into
the Indian territory. In order to attract a minister, the inhab-
itants of this town promised to erect a parsonage, cultivate the
glebe lands, and contribute £20 a year toward his maintenance.
The Rev. Jonathan Copp, a native of Connecticut and a gradu-
ate of Yale College, having in December, 1750, been ordained in
England as a deacon and priest by Dr. Sherlock, Bishop of Lon-
don, came to Augusta the following year and there entered upon
448 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
his ministry. His congregation numbered nearly one hundred.
Among them were eight communicants. The parsonage, how-
ever, had not been erected, the glebe lands were uncultivated,
and the hope of receiving prompt payment of the stipend of £20
appeared uncertain. “Separated from any brother clergyman
by one hundred and thirty miles of wilderness,” on the frontier
of civilization, in proximity to the Indian territory and daily lia-
ble to the merciless attacks of Savages, “with but little to cheer
and much to discourage, with small emolument and arduous
labour,” he here continued as a missionary until 1756, when he
accepted a call to the rectorship of St. John's parish in South
Carolina.
With the virtuous arid religious lives of the German Lutherans
at Ebenezer, with the erection of their churches, Jerusalem
and Zion, and with the ministrations of their devoted pastors,
Martin Bolzius, Israel Christian Gronau, and H. H. Lembke,
we are already somewhat familiar. The Salzburg church at
St. Simon's, organized in 1743 and possessing a membership
of some sixty individuals, was under the pastorate of the Rev.
John Ulrick Driesler, and continued to exist until General Ogle-
thorpe's regiment was disbanded. The death of its spiritual
head and the dispersion of the congregation terminated its feeble
existence.
Short was the sojourn of the Moravians in Georgia, and yet
the recollection of their quiet, industrious, and pious lives is
pleasant, and they have linked with the religious history of the
colony under the trustees the names of Count Zinzendorf, Span-
genberg, Nitschman, Boehler, Mack, Layshart, Hayger, and Zeis-
berger. To the teachings of the Rev. Peter Boehler did Mr.
John Wesley attribute his conversion, and more Indian children
were instructed in the little school-house at Irene, builded and
supported by the Moravians, during the few years of its ex-
istence, than at all other places in the colony combined. The
United Brethren did not tarry long enough in Georgia to create
anything like a lasting impression upon the temper and institu-
tions of the province.
Although the Israelites in Savannah obtained a room which
they fitted up and used as a synagogue, their numbers, during
the period when the trustees governed the colony, were too few
to justify the erection of a temple.
With the exception of the Lutheran and Moravian settlements,
the Georgia communities up to this time had not been remarka-
RELIGIOUS EFFORTS OF THE TRUSTEES. 449
ble either for their religious devotion or subserviency to pastoral
rule. The trustees, however, had done what they could to sustain
the worship of Almighty God, and to enjoin upon the colonists
an observance of the rules of morality and religion."
* See Stevens’ History of Georgia, vol. i. book second, chapter 10. New York.
MDCCCXLVII. c
29
CHAPTER XXVIII.
THE TRUSTEEs SURRENDER THEIR CHARTER AND GEORGIA PAsses INTo THE
HANDs of THE CROWN. — DEED of SURRENDER.— SERVANTs of THE
TRUSTEES CONTINUED IN OFFICE PENDING THE ERECTION of A Roy AL
GoverNMENT. — PATRICK GRAHAM succeeds MR. PARKER As PRESIDENT.
– POPULATION AND CONDITION of GEORGIA IN 1753. — Roy AL PLAN FoR
THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A CIVIL GoverNMENT. — CAPTAIN JoHN REy-
NOLDS APPOINTED AS FIRST ROYAL GOVERNOR. – HIS POWERS AND
DUTIES. - PUBLIC SEAL. — GEORGIA DURING THE INTERREGNUM.–THE
LIEUTENANT-GoverNOR.—THE CouncIL.—QUALIFICATIONs of ELECTORs
AND OF REPRESENTATIVES. — THE COMMON's House of AssFMBLY. — THE
GENERAL ASSEMBLY. —THE Courts. – THE CHIEF JUSTICE AND Asso-
CIATE JUSTICES. — THE PRovost MARSHAL, ETC., ETC.
ALTHOUGH the charter granted by his majesty King George II.
to the Trustees for establishing the Colony of Georgia in Amer-
ica did not, by its terms, expire until the 9th of June, 1753,
persuaded that the proper administration of the affairs of the
province and the defrayal of the expenses connected with the
suitable maintenance of the civil and military establishments
were beyond their capabilities, the common council, on the 25th
of April, 1751, appointed a committee, with the Earl of Shaftes-
bury as its chairman, to adjust with the general government
“proper means for supporting and settling the Colony for the
future, and to take from time to time all such measures as they
should find necessary for its well being.” That committee was
also empowered to frame, affix the seal of the corporation, and
present to the Privy Council such representations or memorials
as they might deem appropriate to carry into effect the inten-
tions of the trustees. Acting under these instructions a memo-
rial was prepared and submitted. Informed that the Lords of
the Privy Council had appointed Thursday evening, the M9th of
December, 1751, to consider the trustees’ memorial to his maj-
esty, and certain reports thereon emanating from the Lords Com-
missioners of the Treasury and from the Lords Commissioners
for Trade and Plantations, the committee convened on the 14th
of December and empowered the Earl of Shaftesbury, Mr.
Hooper, Mr. Vernon, Mr. Tracy, Mr. Frederick, and Mr. Lloyd
COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMON COUNCIL. 451
to attend and, in case they should be called upon by the Lords of
the Council, to deliver in the name of the trustees the following
communication : —
“To the Right Honorable the Lords of his Majesty's most Honor-
able Privy Council.
“The Trustees for establishing the Colony of Georgia in Amer-
ica, who are ready for the service of the Crown to surrender their
Trust for granting the Lands in the said Colony, think it their
indispensable duty to offer the following considerations to your
Lordships on behalf of the People settled there.
“That the Colony of Georgia be confirmed a separate and in-
dependent Province as it is expressly declared in his Majesty's
Charter it shall be, in confidence of which the Inhabitants, both
British and Foreign, have gone thither, and as the Assembly
of the Province of Georgia have petitioned for in a representa-
tion to the Trustees dated January the 15th, 1750.
“That the Inhabitants of the Colony be confirmed in their
titles and possessions which have been granted to them under the
Charter.
“That the arrears of Quit Rents, due at this time, be remitted,
since most of the Inhabitants have been prevented, by the war
and the various obstacles that always occur at the first settling
of a Colony, from cultivating so much of their Lands as it might
be expected they would have done, and that the Quit Rents for
the future be reduced from four to two shillings for each hun-
dred acres, this last sum being as much as is usually reserved in
any of his Majesty's Provinces in America.
“That as there will be occasion for a Secretary or Agent in
England to transact the affairs of the Province here, and to carry
on the Correspondence with the Government in Georgia, and as
the Trustees' Secretary, Mr. Martyn, has served them ably and
faithfully in that capacity from the very date of the Charter,
and is much better acquainted with the State of the Colony than
any other person residing in England, and as the Trustees have
the greatest reason to believe it will be very agreeable and en-
couraging to the People there, they humbly desire your Lord-
ships will be the means of recommending him to his Majesty
for the said employment, with such an appointment as may be
thought proper.” •
On the 19th of December the committee did attend upon the
Lords of the Privy Council and, being by them called in, were
informed that the lords had read the memorial of the trustees
452 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
to his majesty and the reports thereon from the Lords Commis-
sioners of his Majesty's Treasury and the Lords Commissioners
for Trade and Plantations, and that they observed in the report
from the Lords Commissioners for Trade that the trustees who
waited upon them had stated that if, for the service of the
Crown, it would be expected they should surrender their trust
for granting lands in the colony, they would have some conditions
to offer to his majesty's council in behalf of the people settled
there. The Lords of the Council therefore desired to ascertain
from the committee if the trustees were then prepared to lay
those conditions before them. The committee responded that
they were, and in the name of the trustees presented the docu-
ment prepared on the 14th. This done, the committee with-
drew ; and, after some time, having been called in again, they
were informed “that the Lords of the Council could not advise
his Majesty to recommend to Parliament the granting any sum
of money to the Corporation of the Trustees unless they were
desirous of making an absolute surrender of their Charter.” If
such was the pleasure of the trustees, the committee was requested
to state in what manner they proposed to make such surrender.
Thereupon the committee again withdrew; and, after considering
the present condition of the colony, “and the total inability of
the Trustees to defray the expences of the Civil Government
from Lady Day 1751, to furnish the Troops stationed in Georgia
with provisions, or to give any encouragements to the production
of Raw Silk without a further supply,” immediately drew up and
severally signed the following: —
“We, whose names are here underwritten, being a Committee
appointed by the Common Council of the Trustees for establish-
ing the Colony of Georgia in America, and being fully authorized
by them, do hereby signify that we are ready and willing to
make an absolute surrender of all the powers, rights, and trusts
vested in the said Trustees by his Majesty's Royal Charter bear-
ing date the 9th day of June 1732, without any condition or
limitation, humbly recommending the Rights and Privileges of
the Inhabitants of the said Colony to his Majesty's most gracious
protection. SHAFTESBURY.
ROBT. TRACY.
JOHN FREDERICK.
SAML. LLOYD.
December 19th, 1751. EDWARD HOOPER.”
Upon being called in, the committee presented this paper, and
PROCEEDINGS UPON SURRENDER OF CHARTER. 458
then withdrew to await the action of the Privy Council. In a
little while they were informed by Mr. Sharpe, the clerk of the
council, that he was instructed by their lordships to acquaint
them with the fact that they “had referred the said paper to
the Attorney and Solicitor General to consider thereof and report
to their Lordships in what manner the same might be most
effectually carried into execution.”
On the 8th of January, 1752, the Earl of Shaftesbury made
full report to the trustees of all that had transpired, whereupon
it was resolved “That the Trustees do concur with and ap-
prove of all the several steps taken by the Committee, and do in
a particular manner approve of, ratify, and confirm, as the Act
of the Trustees, the paper respectively signed by the five Mem-
bers of the Committee December the 19th, and by them deliv-
ered to the Lords of the Council:
“Resolved that the thanks of the Trustees be given to the said
Committee for their conduct in general, and in particular for
their care in recommending the rights and privileges of the In-
habitants of the Colony to his Majesty's protection :
“Resolved that it be referred to the said Committee to con-
sider what papers may be necessary on behalf of the Inhabitants
of Georgia to lay before the Attorney and Solicitor General when
they take the reference from the Lords of the Council into con-
sideration, and to order the same to be laid before them :
“Resolved that the said Committee be empowered to take all
such further measures as they shall judge necessary in order to
perfect the Surrender of the Trust, in confidence that his Maj-
esty's subjects inhabiting the Colony of Georgia will suffer no
diminution in their rights and possessions by the Trustees’ deliv-
ering into his Majesty's hands the Trust which they received
from his Majesty on behalf of and for the benefit of his said
subjects.” "
Acting upon the reference from the Lords of the Privy Coun-
cil, the attorney and solicitor general on the 6th of February re-
turned the following report : —
“To the Right Hon” the Lords of the Committee of Council for
Plantation Affairs.
“May it please your Lordships.
“In obedience to your Lordships' Order of the 19th of Decem-
ber last, setting forth that his Majesty was pleased, by his Order
in Council of the 13th May last, to refer unto your Lordships the
1 Journal of the Trustees, 1745–1752, pp. 177-183.
454 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Memorial of the Trustees for establishing the Colony of Georgia
in America setting forth that his Majesty was pleased by his
Royal Charter, dated the 9th of June 1732, to make, erect, and
create the Colony of Georgia, and to constitute the Memorialists
to be one Body politick and corporate for establishing the said
Colony, and to grant them power to elect their own Successors
forever, and also to vest in them and their successors forever
seven undivided parts of all the lands therein particularly de-
scribed as Trustees for granting the same to such of his Maj-
esty’s indigent subjects and persecuted Foreign Subjects as should
desire to inhabit and reside there: And powers of government
over the said Colony were thereby vested in them for the term
of twenty-one years: and further setting forth (amongst other
things) the several steps they've taken from time to time for the
peopling, settling, and establishing the said Colony, together with
the present state and condition thereof: But as the said term of
government will expire so soon as the 9th of June 1753, (tho’
the power of granting lands is vested in them forever) they hum-
bly pray that proper means may be soon provided for putting
the government of the Colony on a more sure foundation than it
is at present thro’ the uncertainty of the Memorialists’ being en-
abled to support it, least so great a misfortune should happen as
the immediate desertion and loss of this important Colony: And
that your Lordships had that day proceeded to take the said
Memorial into your consideration, and being informed that a
Committee of the said Trustees was attending and had some pro-
posals to offer to your Lordships in addition to the foregoing
Memorial, they were called in and the following Proposal was
delivered by them to your Lordships: viz.: “We, whose names
are hereunder written, being a Committee appointed by the Com-
mon Council of the Trustees for establishing the Colony of Geor-
gia in America, and fully authorized by them to do, hereby sig-
nify that we are ready and willing to make an absolute surrender
of all the powers, rights, and trusts vested in the said Trustees
by his Majesty's Charter bearing date the 9th of June 1732
without any conditions or limitations, humbly recommending the
rights and privileges of the inhabitants of the said Colony to his
Majesty's most gracious protection. SHAFTESBURY.
ROB" TRACY.
JOHN FREDERICK.
SAM LLOYD.
December, 1751. EDWP HOOPER.’”
REPORT OF THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL. 455
“Which being taken into consideration, your Lordships were
thereby pleased to refer the said proposal to us to consider
thereof, and report to your Lordships in what manner the same
may be most effectually carried into execution.
“We have considered the said Proposal, and perused the said
Charter of the 9th June, 1732, and the Grant from Lord Car-
teret of the same year, and find that by the Charter the Colony
of Georgia was made a separate Province to be governed by its
own laws, and not by the Law or Government of South Caro-
lina; That the Memorialists were thereby made a Corporate
Body with perpetual succession, and that seven eighths of the
lands there were granted to them for ever, to be held by the
Crown at the rents therein mentioned, with power for them by
their Common Council named and to be named according to the
directions of the Charter, under their Common Seal, to distribute
and convey portions of such lands to such subjects, national
born or denizens, or others that shall be willing to become sub-
jects, on such terms and for such estates and on such conditions
as the same can be lawfully granted and as to the Common
Council shall seem fit: And that for the term of twenty one
years the Memorialists should have power of making such laws
and appointing Governors and Officers as they judge proper. We
find also, by the Lord Carteret's said Grant, his one eighth of
the lands was vested in the same Trustees on the same trusts.
“In consequence of those Grants we are humbly of opinion
that the Memorialists have sufficient power to make such Sur-
render and Grant as is proposed.
“The proper method of doing this will be, as we humbly con-
ceive, for the Trustees, with the privity and by direction of the
Common Council, to execute a Deed of Surrender to his Majesty
of their said Charter and of all the powers, jurisdictions, fran-
chises, and privileges therein conveyed to them, and thereby to
grant all their lands and territories to his Majesty : as well the
one eighth derived from Lord Carteret's Grant as the seven
eighths included in his Majesty's said Charter, but subject to
such Estates and Interests as the Inhabitants there have in any
of the lands by virtue of Grants from the Corporation.
When such Grant and Surrender shall be made, we humbly
conceive his Majesty will have both the Government of the Col-
ony in his own hands and the lands and territories thereto be-
longing, subject to the Grants of any part thereof now subsist-
ing: and as to the said one eighth, subject to the Quit Rents
reserved in the Lord Carteret's Grant: and may put the gov-
456 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
ernment thereof on such a foot as his Majesty shall in his great
wisdom think proper.
“All which is humbly submitted to your Lordships' great wis-
dom. D. RYDER.
6th February, 1752.1 W. MURRAY.”
A question having arisen as to the best method, after accept-
ance of the surrender of the charter, of empowering the colonial
officers and magistrates appointed by the trustees to retain their
positions and discharge the duties appertaining to them respec-
tively until a royal government could be regularly erected in
the province and new officers commissioned, the matter was re-
ferred to the attorney and solicitor general for suggestion. They
returned the following report: —
“To the Right Honorable the Lords Commissioners for Trade and
I’lantations.
“May it please your Lordships.
“In pursuance of your Lordships' desire, signified to us in Mº.
Hill's letter of the 17th inst., setting forth that the Lords of the
Committee of Council for Plantation Affairs had referred to your
Lordships a Memorial of the Trustees for establishing the Col-
ony of Georgia, with directions to propose a Draught of what
your Lordships should think most advisable to be done in order
to obviate the difficulties therein suggested, a copy of which
Memorial your Lordships had directed to be inclosed for our
opinion in what manner the present Magistrates and other Offi-
cers appointed by the Trustees for the administration of justice
and execution of government can, upon the surrender of the
Charter, be impowered to act in their respective employments
till a new administration of Government shall be settled;
“We have taken the said Memorial into consideration, and are
of opinion that if the surrender of the Charter by the Trustees
cannot be postponed and the present government there kept up
till a new method of administrating the government can be set-
tled (which seems most advisable), the properest way for author-
izing the present Magistrates and Officers to continue in the
exercise of their respective offices in the mean time will be for
his Majesty to issue a Proclamation for that purpose under the
great seal of Great Britain to be published in Georgia.
“All which is submitted to your Lordships' consideration.
D. RYDER,
25 Febº, 1752. W. MURRAY.” 2
1 Marquis of Lansdowne's Collection. 2 Marquis of Lansdowne's Collection.
Reports. America. Vol. lxi. Reports. America. Vol. lxi.
IAST MEETING OF THE TRUSTEES. 457
His majesty having agreed to accept a surrender at the hands
of the trustees upon the terms suggested, instructions were is-
sued for the preparation of a deed of grant and surrender to be
executed in duplicate, one by his majesty, and its counterpart by
the trustees. At a meeting held on the 21st of March, 1752, the
common council resolved “that the Trustees or any three or more
of them be empowered and directed to affix the seal of the Cor-
poration to such Deed of Surrender and Grant of the Trust, and
likewise the Grant to his Majesty of the one eighth part of the
Lands and Territories lying within the limits described in the
Charter, which had been granted and sold to the Trustees by the
Right Honorable John, Lord Carteret, as should be prepared by
his Majesty's Attorney General.”
This proposition for surrender having been thus made and ac-
cepted, on the 29th of February the trustees notified the “Secre-
tary at War ’’ that as they were about to surrender their trust
into the hands of his majesty, the expenses of the scout-boat in
Georgia, and provisions for the detachments of troops stationed
in the province could not be borne by them beyond the coming
midsummer. They also obtained from Parliament a grant of
364,000 with which to discharge all the outstanding liabilities of
the trust. The Lords Justices and the Lords Commissioners for
Trade and Plantations were furnished with a memorial and repre-
sentation exhibiting the manner in which the trust had been
discharged, the present state of the colony, the character and
amount of its products, the necessity for extending suitable en-
couragement to silk culture, and the propriety of giving early
and satisfactory assurances to the colonists that they would be
assisted in this regard.
The last meeting of the trustees was held on the 23d of June,
1752. The secretary then produced the “counterpart of an In-
denture expressing and declaring the said Surrender and Grant,
which Indenture he had received from William Sharpe Esqr. by
order of the Lords of the Committee of his Majesty's most Hon-
orable Privy Council for Plantation Affairs, and which, when
sealed, is to be exchanged with a counterpart under the Great
Seal, signifying his Majesty's acceptance of the said Surrender
and Grant.”
This deed of surrender is a lengthy and carefully prepared
document, containing many introductory recitations, in which a
history of the creation, nature, and powers of the trust, and also
of the acquisition of all lands within the territorial limits of the
458 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
province, is fully given. We present only such portion of this
important paper as refers to the cession of the property, rights,
and franchises held by the trustees.
“Now this Indenture witnesseth that the said Trustees for es-
tablishing the Colony of Georgia in America for themselves and
their successors have for the considerations and motives afore-
said, and for divers other good considerations them thereunto
moving, granted, surrendered, and yielded up, and by these pres-
ents do for themselves and their successors grant, surrender, and
yield up unto his said most Excellent Majesty, his heirs and
successors, the said recited Letters Patent, and their said Corpo-
ration, and all right, title, and authority to be or continue a Cor-
porate Body, and all the Powers of Government, and all other
Powers, Jurisdictions, Franchises, Preheminences and Privileges
therein and thereby granted or conveyed to them: and have
granted and do hereby grant unto his said Majesty, his heirs and
successors, all the said lands, Countrys, Territorys and Premises,
as well the said one eighth part thereof granted, meant, or in-
tended to be granted by the said John, Lord Carteret, to them
as aforesaid, as also the said seven eighths parts thereof granted,
meant, or intended to be granted as aforesaid in and by his said
Majesty's Letters Patent or Charter above recited, together with
all the soils, grounds, havens, ports, gulphs and bays, mines, as
well Royall mines of Gold and Silver as other minerals, precious
stones, quarries, woods, rivers, waters, fishings, as well Royall
Fishings of Whale and Sturgeon, as other fishings, Pearles, Com-
modities, Jurisdictions, Royalties, Franchises, Privileges and Pre-
heminences, with the said Territories and the Precincts thereof
and thereunto in any sort belonging or appertaining, and all
other the Premises, and all rents, reversions, remainders, and
other profits reserved, due, or payable, or which may happen
upon or by virtue of any demise or grant heretofore made of the
premises or any part thereof, and all their estates, rights, title,
interest, claim or demand whatsoever of or to the said premises
and every part thereof: To Have and to Hold all and singular
the premises to his said Majesty, his heirs and successors, to the
use of his said Majesty his heirs and successors, subject neverthe-
less, and without prejudice to, all such grants, leases, contracts,
estates and interests in law or equity as have been heretofore
lawfully made or granted by the said Trustees for establishing
the Colony of Georgia in America, or by any acting in authority
under them in America, and which are now subsisting according
GEORGIA IN CHARGE OF THE CROWN. 459
to the said Letters Patent, which said surrender and grant his
said most excellent Majesty hath accepted, and by these presents
for himself, his heirs and successors doth accept. In witness
whereof to one part of this Indenture remaining with the Trus-
tees for establishing the Colony of Georgia in America his said
most excellent Majesty has caused his Great Seal to be affixed,
and to the other part thereof, remaining with his said Majesty,
the said Trustees and with the privity and by direction of the
Common Council of the Corporation have caused their common
seal to be affixed,” etc.
This deed of surrender, having been read and considered, was
approved of by the trustees, and the seal of the corporation was
affixed to it on the 23d of June, 1752. The seal was there-
upon defaced, and the trustees ceased to exist as a body corpo-
rate.
The history of Georgia, as the ward of the trustees, is ended.
Henceforward, and until clothed with the attributes of state Sov-
ereignty by the successful results of the American Revolution,
she will be recognized as one of the daughters of the Crown, un-
der the special charge of the Lords Commissioners for Trade and
Plantations. By the terms of the surrender her integrity as an
independent province, separate from South Carolina, was fully
assured, and all grants of land hitherto made to the inhabitants
were recognized and protected.
Early in July, 1752, the lords justices, with the advice of the
Privy Council, issued a proclamation to the effect that until his
majesty in his royal wisdom should see fit to establish another
form and order of government for Georgia all officers of that
colony, both civil and military, holding appointments from the
trustees, should continue in their respective places of trust and
receive such emoluments, salaries, and fees as had been incident
thereto respectively. Such officers were admonished to be dili-
gent and faithful in the discharge of their duties, and it was en-
joined upon the inhabitants of the province to render them every
obedience and assistance.
Benjamin Martyn was appointed agent of the colony, in Eng-
land.
Upon the death of Mr. Parker, Patrick Graham succeeded to
the presidency of Georgia. His assistants were James Haber-
sham, Noble Jones, Pickering Robinson, and Francis Harris. In
a letter from these gentlemen to the Board of Trade, dated Sa-
vannah in Georgia, April 11, 1753, we are informed that the
460 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
population of Georgia, by recent count, consisted of two thousand
three hundred and eighty-one whites and one thousand and sixty-
six blacks. This estimate did not include his majesty's troops
and boatmen then in the colony, or a congregation of two hun-
dred and eighty whites, with negro slaves aggregating five hun-
dred and thirty-six, coming from South Carolina and partially
located in the Midway settlement, or Butler's colony with sixty
slaves. Six vessels were reported as then lying at the wharves
in Savannah, loading for London and American ports. Joseph
Ottolenghe who, in Italy, had acquired a knowledge of the best
method of conducting filatures, was about to succeed Mr. Picker-
ing Robinson in charge of the silk culture. Remittances were
requested in support of this industry, and also in aid of the
friendly Indians who were craving additional presents.
On the 5th of March, 1754, the Lords Commissioners for Trade
and Plantations submitted the following plan for establishing a
civil government in his majesty's colony of Georgia: —
“That of the different Constitutions now subsisting in his
Majesty's Dominions in America that form of Government estab-
lished by the Crown in such of the Colonies as are more immedi-
ately subject to its direction and government appears to us the
most proper form of Government for the Province of Georgia.
“We should therefore propose that a Governor should be ap-
pointed by Commission under the Great Seal in like manner as
the Governors of his Majesty's other Colonies and Plantations
are appointed, with powers and directions to call an Assembly
to pass laws, to erect Courts of Judicature, to grant lands, and
to do all other necessary and proper things in such manner and
under such regulations as shall, upon due consideration, appear
to be the best adapted to the present circumstances of the Col-
ony: all which matters as well as every other regulation neces-
sary to be made for the better ordering and governing the
Colony conformable to the plan proposed, will come under con-
sideration when we shall receive his Majesty's directions to pre-
pare instructions for the Governor, &c. *
“We would likewise propose that twelve persons should be
appointed by His Majesty to be his Council of the said Colony,
with the same powers, authorities, and privileges as are given
to or enjoyed by the Council of his Majesty's other Colonies.
“That the Governor be appointed Vice-Admiral of the said
Colony, with the same powers and authorities as are usually
given to the Governors of other his Majesty's Colonies, and that
PLAN OF A CIVIL GOVERNMENT". 461
he, together with such other Officers as shall be thought proper
to be appointed, do constitute a Court of Admiralty for the regu-
lation of matters subject to the Admiralty jurisdiction.
“That proper officers be appointed for the better collecting
and regulating his Majesty's Customs and Duties, and for other
matters, subject to the Jurisdiction of the Lords Commissioners
of his Majesty's Treasury and the Commissioners of the Customs.
“That for matters relative to his Majesty's revenue of Quit
Rents and Grants of Land, there be appointed a Register and
Receiver of Quit Rents, and a Surveyor of Lands.
“That a Secretary be appointed for the transaction of all
affairs usually belonging to the Office of Secretary in the other
Colonies, such as registering of Deeds and keeping the Public
Records, and who may likewise act as Clerk of the Council.
“It will also be necessary that a Provost Marshal should be
appointed to execute the office of Sheriff until the Province is
divided into Counties. And we would further propose that an
Attorney General should be appointed to assist the Governor and
Council in matters of Law which may come before them in their
Judicial capacity.
“These are all the establishments which appear to us neces-
sary to be immediately made, the charge whereof, including an
allowance heretofore usually given by the Trustees to a Minister
and two Schoolmasters, the contingent charges of government,
and the bounty upon the culture and produce of Silk will, at a
moderate computation, amount to about three thousand pounds
per annum during the infancy of the Colony and until it shall be
in a condition to bear the expence of its own establishment.”
This plan was approved, and the Lords Commissioners of
Trade and Plantations were directed to nominate to his majesty
such person for the office of governor of the province as they
should deem well qualified for the trust. They were also in-
structed to inform themselves as to their characters and capa-
bilities, and to recommend proper persons to compose the pro-
Vincial council and to fill the other offices created.
Sanctioning their nominations, his majesty was pleased, on the
6th of August, 1754, to appoint Captain John Reynolds gover-
nor of the province of Georgia, William Clifton, Esq., attorney-
general, James Habersham, Esq., secretary and register of the
records, Alexander Kellet, Esq., provost marshal, and William
Russell, Esq., naval officer.
Mr. Henry Yonge and Mr. William DeBrahm were commis-
462 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
sioned as “Joint Surveyors of Land in Georgia,” at a salary each
of £50 per annum, and Sir Patrick Houstoun, Bart., was selected
as register of grants and receiver of quit rents, with like salary.
Patrick Graham, Sir Patrick Houstoun, Bart., James Habersham,
Alexander Kellet, William Clifton, Noble Jones, Pickering Rob-
inson, Francis Harris, Jonathan Bryan, and William Russell were
confirmed as members of council. To their number Clement
Martin was subsequently added.
The device submitted by the Lords Commissioners of Trade
and Plantations for a public seal for the colony was, on the 21st
of June, 1754, approved by his majesty, and the chief en-
graver of seals was ordered forthwith to engrave one of silver for
the use of the province. It was to be of equal size with those
sent to North and South Carolina. The design was as follows:
On one face was a figure representing the Genius of the colony
offering a skein of silk to his majesty, with the motto “Hinc
laudem sperate Coloni,” and this inscription around the circum-
ference, “Sigillum Provinciae nostrae Georgiae in America.” On
the other side appeared his majesty's arms, crown, garter, Sup-
porters, and motto, with the inscription “Georgius II., Dei Gratia
Magnæ Britanniæ Francia et Hiberniae Rex, Fidei Defensor,
Brunswici et Luneburgi Dux, Sacri Romani Imperii Archi The-
saurarius et Princeps Elector.”
From the time of the surrender of the charter until the arrival
of Governor Reynolds in Georgia the government of the prov-
ince was administered, according to the plan inaugurated by the
trustees, by a president and four assistants who received their
instructions from and made report to the Lords Justices and the
Lords Commissioners of Trade and Plantations.
And here, before entering upon the history of Governor Rey-
nolds’ administration, it is appropriate that we should note the
powers conferred upon the royal governor, the composition and
functions of the General Assembly, the constitution of the courts,
and some other regulations ordained for the conduct of the colony
as a province under the immediate government of the Crown.
The official title of Governor Reynolds was Captain-General
and Governor in Chief of his Majesty's Province of Georgia, and
Pice-Admiral of the same. He was addressed as Your Excellency,
and was, within the colony, the immediate and highest represen-
tative of his majesty, enjoying prerogatives which, within a
limited jurisdiction and in a modified degree, savored of royalty.
As captain-general he commanded all land and naval forces
OFFICE OF ROYAL GOVERNOR. 463
appertaining to the province, and appointed all officers of the
militia.
As governor in chief he was one of the constituent parts of
the General Assembly, possessing the sole power of convening,
adjourning, proroguing, and dissolving that body. It rested with
him to approve or to veto any bill passed by the council and the
assembly. All officers who did not receive their warrants di-
rectly from the Crown were appointed by him; and if vacancies
occurred, by death or removal, in offices usually filled by the
immediate nomination of his majesty, the appointees of the
governor acted until the pleasure of the home government was
promulgated. Until superseded, they received the profits and
emoluments appertaining to the stations they were called upon
respectively to fill. He was custodian of the greav seal, and, as
chancellor, exercised within the province powers of judicature
similar to those reposed in the High Chancellor of England. He
presided in the court of errors, composed of himself and the mem-
bers of council as judges, hearing and determining all appeals
from the superior courts. As ordinary, he collated to all vacant
benefices, granted probate of wills, and allowed administration
upon the estates of those dying intestate. By him were writs
issued for the election of representatives to sit in the Commons
House of Assembly. As vice-admiral, while he did not sit in
the court of vice-admiralty, -a judge for that court being usually
appointed from England, – in time of war he issued warrants
to that court empowering it to grant commissions to privateers.
With him reposed a power to pardon all crimes save treason and
murder. It was optional with him to select as his residence such
locality within the limits of the province as he regarded most
convenient for the transaction of the public business, and he
might direct the assembling of the General Assembly at that
point. He was invested with authority, for just cause, to sus-
pend any member of council; and, in a word, to “do all other
necessary and proper things in such manner and under such
regulations as should, upon due consideration, appear to be best
adapted to the circumstances of the Colony.”
The king's council consisted of twelve members in ordinary,
and of two extraordinary members appointed by the Crown to
hold office during his majesty's pleasure. When, by reason of
death or absence, the number of councilors in the province was
less than seven, the governor was authorized to fill all vacan-
cies up to that number until the king's pleasure could be signi-
464 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
fied. Should the governor be dead, or absent from Georgia, the
administration of affairs devolved upon the lieutenant-governor,
who was styled His Honor, and who, while executing the gov-
ernment, was entitled to half the salary and fees enjoyed by the
governor. When the governor was present the lieutenant-gov-
ernor was entitled neither to salary nor to perquisite. If both
the governor and the lieutenant-governor were dead or absent,
the senior member of the council in ordinary administered the
government, receiving the same compensation as that allowed
to the lieutenant-governor when acting in the place of the gov-
ernor. The two extraordinary members of council, who were
the surveyor-general of the customs and the superintendent-gen-
eral of Indian affairs, were not allowed to preside in the absence
of the governor and lieutenant-governor.
When sitting as one of the three branches of the legislature,
the council was styled the Upper House of Assembly. It also
acted as privy council to the governor, assisting him with advice
in conducting the government. As an upper house of assembly,
or as a privy council, five members constituted a quorum, if
there were so many present. Three, however, on an emergency,
were sufficient for the transaction of business. As a council they
convened whenever the governor saw fit to summon them. On
such occasions the governor presided and suggested matters for
consideration and advice.
When sitting as an upper house the members of council met
at the same time that the Commons House of Assembly was con-
vened, was presided over by the lieutenant-governor (if he was
of the council and present), or, in his absence, by the senior mem-
ber present, and observed forms of procedure similar to those
used in the House of Lords in Great Britain, with the excep-
tion that no member had the right to make a proxy, and no ad-
journment during the session could be authorized for a longer
period than from Saturday to Monday.
The qualification of an elector was the ownership of fifty acres
of land in the parish or district where he resided and voted ;
that of a representative was the proprietorship of five hundred
acres of land in any part of the province. Writs of election were
issued by order of the governor in council, under the great seal
of the province, were tested by him, and were returnable in forty
days. The representatives, when convened, were called the Com-
mons House of Assembly. Choosing their own speaker, who was
presented to the governor for his approbation, this body, com:
REPRESENTATIVES, COURTS, ETC. 465
posed of the immediate representatives of the people, and con-
forming in its legislative and deliberative conduct to the prece-
dents established for the governance of the English House of
Commons, continued its session until dissolved by the governor.
Its adjournments were de die in diem, except when Sunday in-
tervened. The representatives selected their own messenger and
doorkeeper, but their clerk was appointed by the governor. This
Commons House of Assembly claimed and enjoyed the exclusive
right of originating money bills. The upper and lower houses, as
thus constituted, formed the General Assembly of the province,
and legislated in its behalf. Journals were regularly kept by
each body. All bills having passed both houses were submitted
to the governor for his consideration. If approved by him, the
seal of the colony was attached and they were duly filed. All-
thenticated copies were then prepared and transmitted for the
information and sanction of the home government.
Provision was made for the establishment in Georgia of a
court of record to be known as the General Court," to be holden
four times a year and to possess the same jurisdiction in the prov-
ince that the courts of King's Bench, Common Pleas, and Ex-
chequer exercised in England. Letters-patent were also issued
for erecting a “Court of Session of Oyer and Terminer and
General Gaol Delivery,” to be holden twice a year. The civil
business was to be transacted in the general court, and the crim-
inal business in the court of oyer and terminer. Grand juries
were returned twice a year. As the judges of the two courts
were the same, and as a general jail delivery only twice a year
was found insufficient in a warm climate where the accused suf-
fered much from close confinement, arrangements were subse-
quently made to abolish the “Court of Session of Oyer and
Terminer,” to transfer its business to the general court, and to
cause four grand juries to be returned each year. The general
court remained stationary at Savannah where its sessions were
regularly held.
The presiding judge was styled Chief Justice of Georgia. He
was a “Barrister at Law,” had attended at Westminster, was
appointed by warrant under his majesty's sign manual and
* For form of letters-patent for es- Bryan as its justices, and specifying its
tablishing this court in the province of jurisdiction, see Chief Justice Anthony
Georgia, designating its regular terms to Stokes' View of the Constitution of the
be held on the second Tuesday in January, British Colonies in North America, etc.,
April, July, and October in each year, pp. 259–261. London. MDCCLXXXIII.
appointing Noble Jones and Jonathan
30
466 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
signet, and enjoyed a salary of £500 sterling, raised by annual
grant of Parliament. The assistant justices were three in num-
ber. They received no salaries except on the death or in the
absence of the chief justice, and were appointed by the governor.
During the king's government there was also a court of vice-
admiralty, with a justice appointed by the Crown, to judge of
captures at Sea and to take cognizance of all maritime causes.
Inferior or justices courts were provided for the trial of minor
causes. Where the debt or damages claimed did not exceed forty
shillings, there was no appeal. The jurisdiction of courts of con-
science was limited to £8. Attorneys at law, who also acted as
counsel, were admitted by the general court.
The provost marshal received his appointment from the Crown.
His duties were akin to those of the sheriff of a county in Eng-
land. He was also the returning officer for every district and
parish in the province, and was by law empowered to appoint
deputies pro hac vice, to hold such elections for him.
Before entering upon the duties of his office the governor was
required to take the oaths of allegiance, of supremacy, of objurga-
tion, for the due execution of his office, and for the punctual
observance of all acts of Parliament. It was also obligatory upon
him to make the declaration against transubstantiation.
We conclude this abstract of the political machinery provided
for the executive, legislative, and judicial administration of the
colony under the auspices of the Crown with the following ex-
tract from Chief Justice Stokes’ “View of the Constitution of
the British Colonies in America,” 1 to which we are largely in-
debted for the summary just presented: “Georgia continued
under the King's Government to be one of the most free and
happy countries in the world; justice was regularly and impar-
tially administered; oppression was unknown; the taxes levied
on the subject were trifling; and every man that had industry be-
came opulent; the people there were more particularly indebted
to the Crown than those in any other Colony; immense sums
were expended by Government in settling and protecting that
country; troops of rangers were kept up by the Crown for several
years; the Civil Government was annually provided for by vote
of the House of Commons in Great Britain, and most of the
inhabitants owed every foot of land they had to the King's free
gift: in short there was scarce a man in the Province that did
not lie under particular obligations to the Crown. As a proof of
1 Page 139. London. MDCCLXXXIII.
PROGRESS OF GEORGIA. 467
the amazing progress that Georgia made I should observe that
when Governor Reynolds went to that province in 1754 the
exports did not amount to £30,000 a year: but at the breaking
out of the Civil War they could not have been much less than
£200,000 sterling.”
CHAPTER XXIX.
GOVERNOR REYNOLDs’ ADMINISTRATION.— REPORT TO THE LoRDs CoMMrs-
SIONERS OF TRADE AND PLANTATIONS OF THE CONDITION OF THE Colony.
– HARDWICKE SUGGESTED AS THE CAPITAL of GEORGIA. – Establish-
MENT OF THE GENERAL COURT, THE COURT of CHANCERY, THE Court of
OYER AND TERMINER, THE COURT OF ADMIRALTY, MAGISTRATEs. COURTs,
AND SPECIAL COURTS FOR THE TRIAL OF SLAVES. – CONvocation of THE
GENERAL ASSEMBLY. – GoverNOR REYNoLDs’ INAUGURAL ADDREss, AND
RESPONSES OF BOTH HOUSES. – LEGISLATIVE ACTs. – MILITIA AND SLAve
LAWS. – EDMUND GREY. – SURRENDER OF FORMER GRANTS AND SUBSTI-
TUTION OF NEW CONVEYANCES FROM THE CROWN.
OF all the English colonies in North America Georgia alone
had been complimented by liberal and constant aid from the
public treasury of the mother country. The trustees had under-
taken its foundation and development relying mainly upon pri-
vate contributions to defray the charges of the plantation.
Their hope was that the province in a few years would prove not
Only self-sustaining but also a source of emolument to Great
Britain. In this expectation they were disappointed. The
charities which, at the outset, flowed in so freely were speedily
exhausted, and there were no new benefactions proportioned to
the growing needs of the colony. The war with the Spaniards
entailed unusual expenses. Silk culture proved unprofitable.
Many of the inhabitants, relying upon the arm outstretched for
their support, failed to exhibit that industry and to put forth
those exertions which were demanded by the situation. For a
long time the want of a liberal land tenure and the prohibition
maintained against the introduction and use of negro slaves
exerted a retarding influence and engendered marked dissatisfac-
tion. Continued applications were made to the general gov-
ernment for assistance, and after an experiment of nearly twenty
years, although all restrictions had been removed and every
effort within their power had been expended to stimulate enter-
prise and invite immigration, the trustees found themselves in-
capable of longer supporting their charge. The English nation
had now assumed the burthen, and with the inauguration of a
new administration came the hope of better days.
ARRIVAL OF GOVERNOR REYNOLDS. 469
Sailing in the man-of-war Port Mahon, Governor Reynolds
landed at Savannah on the 29th of October, 1754. He was
received with every demonstration of respect and joy. Bonfires
at night supplemented the general delight which was manifested
during the day. After a formal introduction to the president
and assistants in council assembled, his commission was read.
He was then conducted to the president’s chair whence he an-
nounced the dissolution of the old board and the formation of
a royal council under letters-patent from the Crown. The next
morning, the members of council took the oath of office and
completed their organization. Other officers, named by his maj-
esty, were sworn to faithfully perform the duties devolving upon
them. His commission as captain-general and vice-admiral of
the province was “read and published at the head of the militia
under arms before the council chamber. It was listened to with
profound attention and saluted with several rounds of musketry
and shouts of loyalty.” 1 A public dinner, given by the mem-
bers of council and the principal inhabitants of Savannah in
honor of the governor, closed the public exercises of the occasion,
and the province passed thus simply and joyously from the
hands of the trustees into the direct keeping of the Crown.
Governor Reynolds’ earliest impressions of the condition and
needs of the province are conveyed in a letter and two memorials
to the Lords Commissioners of Trade and Plantations, dated “at
Savannah, in Georgia, December 5th, 1754.” After announcing
his arrival on the 29th of October, and his pleasant reception by
the inhabitants, he proceeds to give an account of the commer- .
cial metropolis and capital of Georgia. “The town of Sa-
vannah is well situated and contains about a hundred and fifty
houses, all wooden ones, very small and mostly very old. The
biggest was used for the meeting of the President and Assist-
ants, wherein I sat in Council for a few days, but one end fell
down whilst we were all there, and obliged us to move to a kind
of shed behind the Court-house, which being quite unfit, I have
given orders, with the advice of the Council, to fit up the shell of
a house which was lately built for laying up the silk, but was
never made use of, being very ill-calculated for that purpose as
Mr. Ottolenghe informs me, wherefore he says he has no further
use for it, but it will make a tolerable good house for the Coun-
prison being a small wooden structure and entirely insecure, he
1 See Stevens' History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 386. New York. MDCCCXLVIL
*** *
cil and Assembly to meet in, and for a few offices besides.” The
470 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
ordered it to be strengthened and supplied with bolts and bars.
With the advice of the council a proclamation was published
continuing all officers in their present employments until further
notice. Writs of election were issued for selecting representa-
tives to serve in a general assembly to convene in Savannah on
the 7th of January, 1755. The erection of “Courts of Jus-
tice and Judicature,” in accordance with his majesty's instruc-
tions, was receiving consideration. Some Indians had already
come down to salute the new governor. They stated that so
soon as the hunting season was over numbers would appear to
receive the presents which were subject to distribution. The
necessity for additional troops to garrison the southern frontier
of the province and to prevent the desertion of negro slaves to
the Spaniards in St. Augustine, who were constantly encouraging
them to run away from their masters, was strongly urged upon
the immediate and favorable notice of the home government.
Liberal presents were requested for the Chickasaws, Creeks,
Uchees, Choctaws, and Cherokees, whom, as he was advised by
Mr. McGillivray and other Indian traders of repute, the French
at Mobile were endeavoring to excite to hostilities against South
Carolina and Georgia. For the further protection of the colony
demand was made for an infantry force of one hundred and fifty
men, and requisitions were filed for cannon, small arms, and am-
munition.
One of the memorials is couched in the following language:
“Your Memorialist finds the charge and expence of living in this
country much greater than he imagined, every article of life, ex-
cept beef and pork, being extremely dear, particularly labour of
all kinds, so that he could not subsist the meanest of his servants
here with lodging and board, only till he could hire a house to live
in, under two shillings sterling a day each : that his salary being
no more than six hundred pounds a year, he finds that it will
cost him at least that sum to live as a private gentleman without
any regard to the dignity of his office, the perquisites whereof he
perceives will be extremely low. He therefore humbly begs that
your Lordships will be pleased to take the matter into your con-
sideration, and to increase his salary in such proportion as to your
Lordships shall seem proper, and he is the more inclined to hope
that your Lordships will be pleased to grant his prayer as his
half-pay in the Navy is saved to the Government at home during
his employment here.”
A few months later Governor Reynolds inspected the Southern
HARDWICKE. 471
confines of the province; and, upon his return to Savannah, ad-
vised the Lords Commissioners of Trade and Plantations that
Frederica, on St. Simon's Island, of late the most strongly fortified
town in the colony, was in ruins. Its houses were in a dilapi-
dated condition, its forts were out of repair, and the twenty can-
non there remaining — some of them eighteen-pounders – “were
all spoilt for want of care.” The other guns originally mounted
there had, upon the withdrawal of General Oglethorpe's regiment,
been transferred to Savannah where they were lying in the sand
“without vents or tompions.” While he regarded Frederica as
the best situation “for a garrison to cover and protect the Prov-
ince from invasion by sea,” he did not deem it a proper site for a
capital. So pleased was he with the natural advantages of the
Great Ogeechee River, and with the central situation of a bluff
on its right bank about fourteen miles from its mouth, where, in
January, a little town had been laid out, which, on the 4th of
February, 1755, with the approbation of council, he had named
Hardwicke, in honor of his relative, the Lord High Chancellor of
England, that he eulogizes the location and bespeaks for it an
honorable future. “Hardwicke,” so runs his letter of the 1st of
May, “has a charming situation, the winding of the river making
it a peninsula ; and it is the only fit place for the capital. There
are many objections to this town of Savannah being so, besides
its being situated at the extremity of the province, the shoalness
of the river, and the great height of the land, which is very in-
convenient in the loading and unloading of ships. Many lots
have already been granted in Hardwicke, but only one house is
yet built there ; and as the province is unable to be at the ex-
pence of erecting the necessary public buildings, and the annual
sum of £500 allowed for erecting and repairing public works,
entertaining Indians, and other incidental expenses being insuffi-
cient for all those purposes, I am in hopes your Lordships will
think proper to get a sufficient sum allowed for erecting a Court-
House, an Assembly-House, a Church, and a Prison at Hard-
wicke, which will be such an encouragement to private people to
build there as will soon make it fit for the seat of government to
the universal benefit of the province.” I
Upon the agitation of this project to transfer the capital of the
colony from Savannah to the Great Ogeechee,” twenty-seven lots
1 Board of Trade, v. 167. to its original Indian name than the ap-
* This river was then called the Great pellation subsequently adopted.
Hogohechie, which responds more nearly
472 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
were quickly taken up in the town of Hardwicke, and twenty-
one thousand acres of land in its vicinity were granted to vari-
ous parties who favored and promised to develop the enterprise.
DeBrahm proposed that the place should be fortified by the
erection of “three polygons, six hundred feet each, and three
detached bastions to be armed with twenty-five cannon,” and
suggested a garrison of one hundred and fifty men.]
The home government neglecting to furnish the necessary
funds, and Governor Reynolds being without the means requisite
to compass the contemplated change, his scheme of transferring
the seat of government to Hardwicke was never consummated,
and the town, deprived of its anticipated dignity and importance,
developed simply into a little trading village adapted to the con-
venience of the few who there located and cultivated lands in the
vicinity.”
By DeBrahm & it was reckoned among the five seaport towns
of the province. Although for many years a port of entry, its
commerce was wholly domestic and coastwise, being chiefly con-
fined to the conveyance of the products of the region, in small
vessels, to Savannah, and the transportation, in return, of such
articles and supplies as were needed by the planters.
The attorney-general of the province, having arrived in Savan-
1 See Plans and Elevations of the Forts
necessary in Georgia, forwarded with Gov-
ernor Reynolds’ letter of the 5th of Janu-
ary, 1756, and now of file in the Public
Record Office, London; Maps B. T., vol.
xiii. No. 14.
2 The design of transferring the capi-
tal of the colony from Savannah to Hard-
wicke, conceived by Governor Reynolds,
was adhered to by his successor, Governor
Ellis. “The depth of water in the river,
its more central position, its greater dis-
tance from Charlestown, – the proximity
to which, he argued, restricted the com-
merce of Savannah, – the convenience of
its harbour as a naval station, and the
fertility of its adjacent lands, were the
principal motives which operated with
him to enforce the plan suggested by his
predecessor. As a consequence of cling-
ing to this scheme of removal, Governor
Reynolds had neglected necessary repairs
to the public buildings of Savannah, and
its inhabitants had ceased enlarging and
beautifying a town so soon to be deserted.
The Filature was in a dilapidated condi-
tion, the Church was so decayed that it
was only kept from falling down by sur-
rounding it with props, and the prison
‘ was shocking to humanity.’
“The removal of the Scat of Govern-
ment to Hardwicke, which had received
the favorable notice of former Governors,
was discouraged by Sir James Wright,
who argued that if the object of a re-
moval was to obtain a more central posi-
tion, Hardwicke was too near ; while, on
the other hand, a removal there would be
very disadvantageous to the present capi-
tal which was conveniently settled for in-
tercourse with the Indians and for trade
with South Carolina. The project was
therefore abandoned, and the attention of
the Assembly was directed to enlarging
and strengthening the City which Ogle-
thorpe had founded.” Stevens' History
of Georgia, vol. i. p. 433; vol. ii. p. 19.
& History of the Province of Georgia, etc.,
p. 25. Wormsloe. 1849.
ORGANIZATION OF THE COURTS. 473
nah, on the 12th of December submitted his report suggesting
the best method of putting into practical operation his majesty's
pleasure with regard to the erection of courts within the prov-
ince. The council thereupon proceeded at once to establish those
courts so that there might be no delay in the orderly administra-
tion of justice. The general court, of which Noble Jones and
Jonathan Bryan were constituted justices, was organized in Sa-
vannah where it was permanently located. Four regular terms
were to be holden in each year, to wit, on the second Tuesday
of January, April, July, and October. Its province was to take
cognizance of all actions, real, personal, and mixed, where the
amount in controversy exceeded forty shillings. Criminal mat-
ters were also subject to its jurisdiction; its powers and authority
being similar to those inherent in the King's Bench, the Common
Pleas, and the Court of Exchequer in England. If the amount
involved exceeded £300, an appeal lay to the governor and coun-
cil; and if the judgment was for more than £500, a further ap-
peal could be prosecuted to his majesty in council, provided the
appellant entered into proper security to press his appeal and
respond to the final condemnation. Notice of such appeal was to
be given within fourteen days after the rendition of the judg-
ment.
A court of chancery for hearing equity causes was organized.
In it the governor sat as chancellor, and its other officers were a
master, a register, and an examiner. Its doors were to be open
after each session of the general court, if business required.
For the trial of criminal matters a special court of oyer and
terminer, with two terms a year, was at first provided. But the
business of this court having been soon transferred to the gen-
eral court, the court of oyer and terminer was discontinued.
For the punishment of violations of the Acts of Trade, and for
the adjudication of claims concerning salvage, the wages of mar-
iners, and other maritime affairs, a Court of Admiralty was es-
tablished. Over this the governor presided as vice-admiral, and
the other officers were James Edward Powell, judge advocate;
William Clifton, advocate general; Alexander Kellet, marshal;
and William Spencer, register. An appeal lay to the High Court
of Admiralty in England.
Justices were appointed for the several districts of the prov-
ince, and they were authorized to hear and determine causes
where the amount involved did not exceed forty shillings.
For punishing slaves committing capital crimes a commission
474 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
of oyer and terminer might, upon an emergency, be issued to
the justice of the district in which the offense was committed, to
try the accused without a jury. If found guilty and sentenced
to death, the justice might award execution, and set upon the
slave a value which was afterwards to be paid to the owner by
the General Assembly, “as an encouragement to the people to
discover the villainies of their slaves.” I
Responding to the summons of the governor, the representa-
tives assembled in Savannah on the 7th of January, 1755, and
perfected their organization by the election of David Douglass as
speaker. The council, or Upper House of Assembly, was also
present. Governor Reynolds submitted the following inaugural
address : —
“Gentlemen of the Council and of the Assembly:
“I congratulate you upon the regard his Majesty has been
graciously pleased to shew this Province in fixing here a regular
Form of Government immediately under his royal Authority,
the great Advantages of which are too obvious to require men-
tion ; and as his Majesty has done me the Honour to appoint me
your Governor, I take this first Opportunity to assure you that
it shall be my Study, during the Course of my Administration,
to promote the Prosperity of the Colony that you and your Pos-
terity may reap the Benefit that will attend its flourishing State ;
the only Advantage I propose to myself is my Share of the Hon-
our that will arise from the Success of our mutual Endeavours
in this Undertaking. I expect therefore that you will all chear-
fully and loyally contribute your Assistance to this laudable End;
and as the most effectual Means to attain it are Unanimity,
Method, and close Application, let me recommend it to you and
advise that the more weighty and important Affairs of the Col-
ony be taken into your immediate Consideration at your first
Meeting, and afterwards Things of lesser Moment.
“I think it proper for the public Service that you first of all
frame some Provincial Laws for the well regulating the Militia,
for the making public roads, and establishing a Provision for
defraying the Expences of holding the two Courts of Oyer and
Terminer which his Majesty has directed to be held on the second
Tuesday in December and the second Tuesday in June, and I
likewise recommend to your Consideration the making a Pro-
vision for the Ordinary Contingencies of Government as far as
1 see MS. Minutes of Council, pp. 34, 38. Stevens' History of Georgia, Vol. i.
pp. 391, 392. New York. MDCCCXLVII.
GOVERNOR REYNOLDS” ADDRESS. 475
the Circumstances of the People will conveniently admit of the
S2, Iſle.
“Gentlemen, as you are called together for no other Purpose
but to consult about the best Methods of promoting your OWn
Welfare, I doubt not but you’l take care to suffer nothing to
disunite you or draw off your attention from the public Good.
I, on my Part, shall be ready to concur with you in every Thing
that can be conducive to your true and lasting Interest.”
This complimentary and conciliatory speech from the first
royal governor to the primal legislative assembly convened in
Georgia evoked from that body an immediate and cordial resolu-
tion of thanks. On the part of the council, Sir Patrick Hous-
toun, Mr. Kellet, and Mr. Harris were appointed a committee to
prepare a responsive address to his excellency. Presented in
due course, it was couched in the following dutiful language : —
“To his Eveelleney John Reynolds Esqr. Captain General and
Governor in Chief in and over his Majesty's Province of Geor-
920.
“The humble Address of his Majesty's Council met in Gen-
eral Assembly.
“May it please your Excellency.
“We his Majesty's most dutiful and loyal Subjects, the Coun-
cil of this Province met in General Assembly, beg leave to re-
turn your Excellency our hearty Thanks for your Speech deliv-
ered to us.
“We are very sensible of the great and obvious Advantages
that will necessarily result from the regard his Majesty has been
graciously pleas'd to shew this Province in fixing here a Regular
Form of Government immediately under his Royal Authority,
and from your Excellency's General Character and the Knowl-
edge that from our nearer approach to your Excellency's Person
we have of your Abilitys and Inclinations, we are well assured
that it will be your Excellency's study during the Course of your
Administration to promote the Prosperity of this Colony that we
and our Posterity may reap the benefit that will attend its flour-
ishing State, and that the only Advantage your Excellency pro-
poses to yourself is your Share of the Honour that will arise
from the Success of our mutual Endeavours in this Undertaking.
“We are determin’d to contribute our Assistance to this laud-
able end, and as we are convinced that the most effectual Means
to attain it are Unanimity, Method, and close Application, we
shall take into immediate consideration at our first Meeting the
476 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
more weighty and important Affairs of this Colony, and after-
wards things of lesser moment.
“We will very chearfully coöperate in framing those Provin-
cial Laws that your Excellency has been pleas'd to recommend,
and being perfectly satisfy'd that we are call'd together for no
other purpose but to consult about the best Methods of promot-
ing our own Welfare, we shall take care to suffer nothing to
disunite us or draw off our attention from the Public Good : and
we make no doubt but your Excellency will be ready to concur
with us in every Thing that can be conducive to our true and
lasting Interest.”
Upon the receipt of this address the Governor returned this
2,]] SW el’ —
“ Gentlemen of the Council.
“I give you thanks for your Address and assure you that my
best Endeavours shall never be wanting to recommend me to the
Continuance of your good Opinion.”
The following are the official courtesies which were exchanged
between Governor Reynolds and the Commons House of AS-
sembly : —
“May it please your Evcellency.
“We, his Majesty's most dutiful and loyal Subjects, the Rep-
resentatives for the Province of Georgia in Assembly met, beg
leave to return your Excellency our sincere and hearty Thanks
for your Affectionate Speech.
“We have a most grateful sense of the tender Regard his
Majesty has been graciously pleased to show to this Province
under the benign influence of his Royal Authority, and doubt
not but we shall reap the same Advantages from it and enjoy
the same Privileges under it as the other his Majesty's Provinces
in America do. -
“We beg to offer his Majesty our most dutiful Acknowledg-
ments for this instance of his Pastoral Care, and also for the Wise
Choice he has been pleased to make of your Excellency whom
we have great reason to believe possessed of every qualification
necessary toward discharging your duty to your Royal Master
and making the People, over whom you preside, happy.
“We thank you Sir, in particular for the kind assurance you
have been pleased to give us of your hearty inclination to pro-
mote the Good of the Colony and to join with us in everything
we propose for that End.
“We, on our Parts, assure your Excellency that it shall be
ADDRESS OF THE REPRESENTATIVES. 477
our constant aim and study to propose nothing but what we
judge consistent with the Honour and Dignity of our Sovereign
and the Good of our Constituents, being well convinced that the
true Interests of his Majesty and his loyal Subjects are so closely
connected that whatever tends to promote the Honour of the
one is likewise for the advantage of the other: having all of us
this in view we doubt not we shall be unanimous in all our Pro-
ceedings; and we shall in the first Place take under our Consid-
eration such Affairs as shall appear to be of the greatest Impor-
tance and that require our immediate Attention.
“We will likewise consider of Methods for raising Money
towards defraying the Contingent Expences of Government ;
but our present Situation and Circumstances are such that we
shall be able to contribute very little for that Purpose; but we
hope from what we have already experienced of his Majesty's
Royal Favour that he will be pleased to grant us such Assistance
as will make good our Deficiencies, and at the same time we
assure your Excellency that our inclination shall not be wanting
as far as our ability will permit.
“We hope that the whole tenor of our Actions will tend to
convince your Excellency that we have nothing more at heart
than to consult the Honour and Dignity of our most Gracious
Sovereign, and truly to promote the Interest of this Colony; in
the doing of which we flatter ourselves we shall in some measure
lessen to you the weight of Government and procure you the
lasting Satisfaction of having contributed so largely towards ren-
dering us a flourishing People, which we believe to be your sin-
cerest wish.”
To this address his excellency thus responded : —
“Gentlemen of the Assembly.
“It gives me great satisfaction to find you so truly sensible
of his Majesty's paternal care of this Colony. I am obliged to
you for the kind marks of your esteem in this Address and for
the Assurances you give me of proceeding in the Public Busi-
ness with unanimity. I shall be glad of any Opportunity of
convincing you of the Sincerity of my good Wishes for your
Prosperity, and I promise myself from your Application that
they will be crowned with Success.”
Thus happily, at the inception of the royal government, was
the legislative department of the province brought into associ-
ation with the governor. Mindful of its promise, the General
Assembly entered at once upon the discharge of its appropriate
478 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
duties, continuing in session during the administration of Gov.
ernor Reynolds, with the exception of three vacations which
occurred from the 7th of March, 1755, to the 2d of February,
1756; from the 19th of February to the 1st of November, 1756 ;
and from the 15th of December, 1756, to the 10th of January,
1757.
One of the earliest and most important acts passed by this
legislative body was that regulating the militia of the province
and providing for its security and defense. It directed the organ-
ization of all white male inhabitants between the ages of sixteen
and sixty into companies, troops, battalions, and regiments. It
required that they be armed, and drilled at stated intervals.
Officers of companies were enjoined, six times in each year, to
inspect the arms and accoutrements of all the men attached to
their several commands. No persons were exempt from the per-
formance of military duty except members of his majesty's coun-
cil and their officers, members of the assembly and their officers,
the chief justice and the justices of the court of common pleas,
the attorney-general, attorneys of the court, the clerk of the
Crown and pleas, the provost marshal, the master and register of
the high court of chancery, the judge of the vice-admiralty, the
officers of his majesty's customs, the surveyor-general, the clergy,
the catechist of Savannah, the public treasurer, the powder-re-
ceiver, the commissary, comptrollers, waiters, and all duly quali-
fied and acting justices of the peace. During seasons of rebellion,
insurrection, or actual invasion, these exemptions ceased except
in the case of members of council and of the assembly and their
officers, of pilots, and of ferrymen. It was 'obligatory upon the
masters of male indented servants to see not only that they were
armed, but that they were present at all musters and trainings
designated by the Act. Except when charged with treason, fel-
ony, or breach of the peace, every militiaman while going to,
attending upon, or departing from a muster was exempt from
arrest and from the service of any process. Penalties were speci-
fied for disobedience to the orders of a superior officer. Provision
was made for the concentration of the entire manhood of the
province on occasions of general danger, and the mode of giving
alarms was pointed out. The manner of organizing patrols, of
impressing boats, animals, provisions, and ammunition in seasons
of peril, the constitution and conduct of courts-martial, the tem-
porary enlistment of slaves, compensation to the owner if his
slave was wounded or killed in service, and encouragements to
LEGISLATIVE ACTS. 479
slaves to behave manfully in the presence of the enemy, are all
specified with great particularity.”
The other acts passed during Governor Reynolds’ administra-
tion were as follows: —
(a.) An act for imprinting, emitting, and making current the
sum of seven thousand pounds sterling, in paper bills of credit,
to be let out at interest, on good security, at six per cent. per
annum. The object of this act was to supply a currency for the
province. These bills were declared a legal tender in liquidation
of all debts and dues, and ample provision was made for securing
their effectual payment by the parties to whom they were issued.
(b.) An act levying a specific tax upon negroes, lands, moneys
at interest or invested in trade, and upon town-lots, in order to
realize a sum sufficient to defray the expenses of the courts of
oyer and terminer and some other “contingencies of government.”
(c.) An act rendering it obligatory upon each planter to pro-
tect his fields or other inclosures with a fence at least five feet
and a half high.
(d.) An act levying an impost upon all ships, snows, brigs,
polacres, sactias, sloops, schooners, and crafts trading with the
province, in order to raise an amount large enough to keep the
light-house on Tybee Island in repair, and to build a dwelling
there for the use of the pilot.
(e.) An act to prevent fraudulent deeds and conveyances, and
to compel the registration, within specified periods, of all mort-
gages and alienations of lands and negroes.
(f) An act for establishing a market in the town of Savan-
nah, and to prevent forestalling, engrossing, and unjust exac-
tions therein.
(g.) An act fixing the legal rate of interest in the province at
ten per cent. per annum.
(h.) An act empowering surveyors to lay out public roads in
Georgia to facilitate speedy communication between the inhab.
itants residing in distant parts of the province, and providing for
the establishment of ferries. By this act the plantation was
divided into districts, surveyors were appointed for each, and the
citizens required to perform specified labor in keeping the high-
ways and bridges in repair.
(i.) The act entitled “An Act for the better ordering and gov.
erning Negroes and other Slaves in this Province,” embodying the
1 Acts of the General Assembly of the * Acts passed by the General Assembl$/
Colony of Georgia, 1755–1774, now of the Colony of Georgia, 1755–1774, now,
first printed, pp. 9–34. Wormsloe. first printed, pp. 73–99. Wormsloe.
MDCCCLXXXI. MDCCCLXXXI.
480 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
earliest legislation touching the treatment and management, the
trial and punishment, the privileges and disabilities, the sale and
recovery, of negro slaves in Georgia, possesses a deep historical
interest. The offspring of negroes, mulattoes, and mestizos,
slaves at the time of the passage of the act, was doomed to
perpetual slavery. Slaves were not permitted to absent them-
selves from the abodes or plantations of their owners without a
Written permit. Any person giving a ticket of leave to a slave,
without the consent of his owner, was to forfeit 423. A slave,
unaccompanied by a white person, found away from the residence
of his owner, was liable to examination by any white citizen. If
without a ticket, he was subject to apprehension and moderate
correction. If he resisted, and assaulted and struck the party
apprehending or chastising him, he might be killed, and the
homicide was pronounced justifiable. Any person unlawfully
beating or maiming the slave of another was declared liable to
respond in damages. Unusual assemblages of slaves were to be
dispersed, and their houses could be, without warrant, searched
for arms and ammunition.
Persons maimed or wounded in apprehending runaway slaves
were to be compensated by the General Assembly. In case of
death, their legal representatives could demand pecuniary satis-
faction from the public treasury.
Slaves charged with the commission of capital crimes were to
be tried by two justices of the peace and not less than three
nor more than five freeholders resident in the district where
the felony was committed. The investigation was to be speedy,
and the execution of sentence summary, so that others might be
deterred from offending in like manner.
In cases “not extending to the taking away of life or mem-
ber,” one justice and two freeholders constituted a competent
court. The testimony of slaves was admitted for or against their
fellows.
If a slave should willfully burn or destroy any stack of rice,
corn, or other grain, the growth of the province, or maliciously
set fire to any tar-kiln, barrel of pitch, tar, turpentine, or resin,
or steal another slave, or designedly poison any one, he was,
upon proof, to be condemned to suffer death as a felon.
Homicide of any white person by a slave, except by misadven-
ture or in defense of his master or other person charged with his
care and management, any’ attempt on the part of a slave to
raise an insurrection, and any endeavor to entice one of his fel-
ACT REGULATING SLAVES. 481
low servants to run away from the province involved the death
penalty. A white person attempting to steal and carry the
slave of another out of Georgia was subject, on conviction, to
pay a fine of £50.
Actual theft of a slave, or the defacing of his or her mark,
was pronounced felony without benefit of clergy.
Slaves condemned to death were, before execution, to be ap-
praised by a justice and two freeholders, at any sum not ex-
ceeding £50. Upon proper certificate, the public treasurer was
authorized to pay one half of this appraised value to the owner
of the slave, and the other half to the party who had suffered
injury at the hands of the condemned and executed.
Upon the trial of slaves, all persons who were cognizant of the
facts connected with the commission of the Offense charged could
be compelled to appear and testify.
The master, or other person having the care of a slave accused
of a capital crime, who should conceal or convey away such
slave so that he could not be brought to trial and punishment,
was to be fined £50. If the offense was not capital, the fine
was limited to £20.
Constables were charged with the execution of sentences
passed upon slaves in their respective districts. Their compen-
sation, in case of corporal punishment, was three shillings. In
carrying into effect the death penalty they were allowed ten
shillings.
Compelling a slave to labor on the Lord's day (“works of
absolute necessity and the necessary occasions of the family only
excepted '') involved in each instance a fine of ten shillings ster-
ling. *
No slave, except in the presence of a white person, could carry
or use any firearm or offensive weapon, unless provided with a
special written permission from his owner or manager. Under
no circumstances were slaves allowed “to carry any guns, cut-
lasses, pistols, or other weapons,” between Saturday evening after
sunset and Monday morning before sunrise. Should a slave pre-
sume to strike a white person, for the first and second offense
such punishment, not extending to life or limb, as the presiding
magistrate and freeholders should prescribe, was to be meted out
to him. For the third offense he should suffer death. Griev.
ously wounding, maiming, or bruising a white person by a slave,
although the first offense of the sort, subjected the offender to
the death penalty, provided such wounding, maiming, or bruising
31
482 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
was not done by command of his owner or employer, or in the
defense of the person or property of such owner and employer.
When apprehended, a fugitive slave was to be at once re-
turned to his owner if he could be ascertained. If his master or
overseer were unknown, the fugitive was to be committed to the
custody of the constable of the district in which he was taken up,
whose duty it became to advertise him, giving personal descrip-
tion of the slave and of his marks and brand. Until claimed, the
constable was required to provide the slave with sufficient food,
shelter, and clothing. If within six weeks from the date of ad-
vertisement the owner of the slave did not appear and claim his
property, it was then obligatory upon the constable, upon pay-
ment of his fees and reasonable charges, to turn the slave over to
the provost marshal. This officer was required, by frequent ad-
vertisement, to continue the effort to ascertain the owner. If,
after the expiration of eighteen months, the slave remained un-
claimed, the provost marshal was then to sell him at public out-
cry. The proceeds of such sale, after deducting all charges, were
to be paid to the public treasurer, in whose hands they were to re-
main for a year and a day, open to the claim of the true owner.
If within that period no claimant appeared, then such proceeds
were to be applied to the payment of the claims of the owners of
negroes publicly executed.
Special punishments were provided in the case of free ne-
groes, free persons, and slaves who harbored runaway slaves.
No slave, without permit, could expose for sale fishes, garden
stuff, or wares, or be employed as a carter, fisherman, or porter.
Any person selling to a slave, without the consent of his
owner or manager, beer or any spirituous liquor was liable to
a fine of twenty shillings for the first offense, and double that
amount for the second.
No owner, master, or mistress of any slave could permit such
slave to work out of the house or family “without a ticket in
writing,” under pain of forfeiting the sum of one pound ten shil-
lings sterling for every such offense; one half of this penalty to be
paid to the justices of the district for the use of the poor, and the
other moiety to the informer. The employer of such slave was to
forfeit to the informer fifteen shillings sterling for each day he so
employed such slave without permit. It was competent, however,
for the owners of slaves to hire them out by the day, or week,
or year, the wages of such slaves being payable to their owners.
No slave was allowed on his own account to keep any boat,
ACT REGULATING SLAVES. 483
periagua, or canoe; or to breed or own any horse or neat
cattle.
Persons residing out of Savannah might, under certain re-
strictions, empower their slaves to sell goods, provisions, and
commodities within the limits of the town.
Slaves found without tickets, beyond the confines of their
master's plantation, could be whipped. If carrying arms, though
provided with a ticket of leave, they were liable to a similar
punishment.
Persons suffering negro slaves to beat drums, blow horns, or
indulge in any public meetings or strange assemblages, were, on
conviction, to forfeit thirty shillings for every such offense.
Cruelty to slaves was prohibited by the following section : —
“Whereas cruelty is not only highly unbecoming those who
profess themselves Christians, but is odious in the Eyes of all
Men who have any sense of Virtue or Humanity, therefore to
restrain and prevent Barbarity being exercised towards Slaves,
be it enacted by the Authority aforesaid, that if any person or
persons whatsoever shall wilfully murder his own Slave or the
Slave of any other person, every such person shall, upon convic-
tion thereof by the oath of two witnesses, be adjudged guilty of
Felony for the first offence and have the benefit of Clergy, mak-
ing satisfaction to the Owner of such Slave : but the second
offence shall be deemed Murther, and the offender shall suffer
for the said Crime according to the Laws of England, except that
he shall forfeit no more of his Lands and Tenements, Goods and
Chattels, than what may be sufficient to satisfy the owner of
such Slave so killed as aforesaid. And in case any shall not be
able to make the Satisfaction hereby required, every such person
shall be sent to any Frontier Garrison of this Province, or com-
mitted to the Goal at Savannah, and there to remain at the pub-
lic expence for the space of seven years, and to serve or to be
kept to hard labour; and the pay usually allow'd by the public
to the Soldiers of such Garrison, or the profits of the Labour of
the Offender, shall be paid to the owner of the Slave murdered.
“And if any person shall, on a sudden heat or passion, or by
undue correction, kill his own Slave, or the Slave of any other
Person, he shall forfeit the sum of fifty pounds sterling.
“And in case any person or persons shall wilfully cut the
tongue, put out the eye, castrate, or cruelly scald, burn, or de-
prive any Slave of any limb or member, or shall inflict any other
cruel punishment other than by whipping or beating with a
484 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
horse-whip, cow-skin, switch, or small stick, or by putting irons
on, or confining or imprisoning such Slave, every such person
shall for every such offence forfeit the sum of ten pounds ster-
ling.”
Neglect on the part of the owner or employer to furnish a slave
with sufficient clothing and food subjected the offender to a fine
not exceeding three pounds sterling for each offense, the same,
when collected, to be appropriated to the benefit of the poor of
the district.
Should any slave be cruelly treated and no white person be
present to testify in regard to the inhumanity, the owner or man-
ager of such slave was to be deemed and held guilty, unless he
made his innocence clearly to appear.
No slave was permitted to become the lessee of any house,
room, store, or plantation. Any person letting or hiring such
premises to a slave forfeited £3 sterling to the informer.
Not more than seven male slaves could travel together on the
highway unless accompanied by some white person.
Slaves could not be compelled to labor more than sixteen hours
out of the twenty-four, and any person enforcing work beyond
this amount forfeited in each instance #3 sterling.
Teaching slaves to write, or employing them as scribes, was
strictly prohibited.
No one was permitted to have a plantation or settlement, where-
on slaves were worked, without keeping a white person also on
such plantation. Every owner of twenty slaves was required to
retain a white servant capable of bearing arms. Owners of fifty
slaves were compelled to have at least two white servants, and an
additional white servant for every additional twenty-five slaves.
Liberal rewards were offered for the apprehension of slaves
attempting to desert to the Spaniards in Florida, and special
instructions were promulgated for their capture, detention, and
delivery to their owners.
This act was to be given in special charge to the grand juries
of the province.
It is worthy of remark that not a few of the provisions of this,
the first act on the subject, were, with certain modifications, re-
enacted and maintained of force not only during the existence of
Georgia as a colony, but also until the failure of the Confederate
struggle for independence brought about the liberation of negroes
from slavery within the confines of Georgia. When we remem-
ber that many of the slaves whom this act was intended to regu-
LEGISLATIVE ENACTMENTS. 485
late were fresh from the shores 6f Africa, uncivilized, unrestrained
by the influences of Christianity, unused to discipline, and in-
clined to the exhibition of violent passions, we are the better
prepared to appreciate the necessity for these stringent rules
published for their governance and the protection of the whites.
It will be perceived that a recognition of the contubernal rela-
tion existing between these slaves and the necessity for their
religious instruction are entirely ignored by the provisions of
this bill.
The other public acts passed by the General Assembly may be
quickly enumerated:—
(j.) An additional act for defraying the expenses of the
courts of oyer and terminer and other governmental charges.
(k.) An act establishing the method of drawing and summon-
ing jurors within the province.
(l.) An act authorizing the attachment of the personal estate
of absent debtors in order to facilitate the collection of indebted-
nesses existing on their part. This act is the parent of the at-
tachment and garnishment laws existent to this day in the State
of Georgia.
(m.) An additional act providing for the laying out and main-
tenance of public roads in the province, the preservation of the
town and common of Savannah in good order, the repair of the
wharves, and the regulation of important ferries.
(n.) An act empowering justices of the peace to bind out all
Acadians in the province, who refused to labor, to such persons
as were willing, in consideration of the personal service to be
rendered by them, to supply them with sufficient provisions,
clothing, and lodging.
(0.) An act imposing penalties upon all persons who should
declare that the acts of the General Assembly of the province of
Georgia were not of force and authority.
(p.) An act proclaiming it high treason to counterfeit his
majesty's broad seal of this province.
(4.) An act requiring the master of every ship or vessel en-
tering any port of Georgia to deliver to the clerk of the naval
office, for the use of the colony, four ounces of good, clean, and
serviceable gunpowder for every ton which his vessel registered;
and in default of such powder, to pay to the officer designated
sixpence sterling for every ton expressed in the register of his
ship or vessel. The object of this regulation was to accumulate
a public store of gunpowder for the defense of the province.
486 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
(r.) And lastly, an act for confirming sales of lands in Geor-
gia made by attorneys and agents of absent parties, and prescrib-
ing the proper method of authenticating documents executed
beyond the limits of the province and intended to be used and
recorded therein. *
Although few in number, these acts ministered to the pressing
needs of the colony and, in their preparation, involved no little
deliberation and discussion. Nor were these the only public
measures considered and passed upon by this legislative assem-
bly. Early in the session the harmony of the body was disturbed
by the machinations of Edmund Grey, a member who, coming
from Virginia, had, with some followers, formed a settlement at
Brandon, above Augusta. He was a man of strong will, of inor-
dinate ambition, unscrupulous in his conduct, and a pestilent fel-
low. The disturbance caused by him in the assembly and its
eventual suppression are thus described in a letter addressed by
Governor Reynolds to the Board of Trade, under date of Febru-
ary 28, 1755: —
“Here was an appearance of Sedition about a fortnight ago by
the instigation of one Edmund Grey, a pretended Quaker, who
fled from Justice in Virginia and is a person of no property here,
but has an artful way of instilling Jealousy of their liberties into
the peoples’ minds, and without the least scruple supports his
assertion with any falsehoods that may serve his purpose. This
man, by getting a qualification made over to him for that pur-
pose, was elected a Representative for Augusta, for he has per-
suaded many people that he has great interest in England by
shewing a letter he pretends to have received from a person of a
noble family there with whom he pretends to have formed a
scheme for monopolizing the Indian trade and introducing such
sort of Government here as would suit best with that and some
other schemes he has the impudence to say he was consulted
upon. He tells the People that this Government will soon be at
an end, and then he has promised by his interest to give places
of profit to many people, and has actually influenced five Repre-
sentatives with himself to withdraw from the House in order to
break the Assembly and prevent business being done; but his
design was so ill concerted that he and his Associates have been
expelled the House by a majority of the whole number of Repre-
sentatives, not only for withdrawing themselves, but for signing a
letter which was voted to be a seditious one by both Houses.”
The intercepted letter was couched in the following language:
MACHINATIONS OF EDMUND GREY. 487
“SAVANNAH 15th Jam : 1755.
“GENTLEMEN, - If you regard the liberties of your country,
as we cannot doubt but they are dear to you, it is highly neces-
sary that you come immediately to Savannah, there, by your
presence to animate and support your friends in their endeavours
to procure those blessings that can alone render this Colony flour-
ishing and happy. In this we hope you will not fail, and sub-
scribe ourselves hearty and sincere friends to you and Georgia.
CHARLEs WATSON. EDMUND GREY.
MARK CARR. JOHN MACKINTOSH.
JOHN FARMUR. EDWARD BARNARD.
JOHN HARN. WILLIAM GRAY.
“To the Freeholders of the Province of Georgia.”
T)isappointed in his ambitious and pernicious scheme, this mar-
plot withdrew himself from the province and located on neutral
ground lying between the Alatamaha and the St. John rivers.
Thither flocked criminals, outlaws, and debtors seeking escape
from the just demands of their creditors. Edmund Grey and his
gang became a pest and a nuisance to the entire region.
According to the terms of the proclamation issued by Governor
Reynolds on the 1st of January, 1755, all persons holding lands
in Georgia by virtue of grants from the trustees or their agents,
or in consequence of allotments made by the president of the
colony and his assistants (not exceeding five hundred acres to a
single individual), were to be released from all conditions ex-
pressed in such grants and deeds of allotment, and from the pay-
ment of all arrearages of quit rents, provided, on or before the
7th day of April next thereafter, they appeared, either in person
or by attorney, before the governor in council, and, surrendering
the muniments of title which they then held, received new grants
in the name of his majesty and under the broad seal of the col-
ony. These substituted grants, which ran in the name of the
king and were made “of his special grace, certain knowledge,
and mere motion,” reconveyed the lands in free and common soc-
age, upon the following conditions, however: that “the grantees
and their assigns would yield and pay to the Crown, on the 25th
of March in every year, at the rate of two shillings sterling for
every hundred acres conveyed, the first payment to be made at
the expiration of two years from and after the date of the
grants; ” that they and their assigns should annually clear and
* Subsequently extended by proclamation of the 26th of May, 1755, to the last
day of June of that year.
488 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
cultivate at least five acres in every hundred granted; and also
that the grants should be duly registered within six months from
date.
Regarding the condition which necessitated the clearing and
cultivation, each year, of five in every hundred acres granted as
onerous and calculated to retard agricultural operations and, hin-
der the rapid colonization of the province, the General Assem-
bly, on the 22d of January, 1755, prepared a remonstrance to the
king praying the abrogation of this article, and suggesting as a
substitute an agreement on the part of all grantees to occupy the
lands conveyed and to reside within the province for a period of
at least three years. This memorial received the approval of the
governor and was forwarded. After the usual reference, the
home authorities consented to the repeal of the obnoxious feature.
To the suggestion of Sir Thomas Robinson, one of his majes-
ty's secretaries of state, that Georgia should assist in raising men
and supplies for the two royal regiments to be recruited for the
defense of America, the General Assembly, on the 3d of F ebruary,
1755, responded through the governor that, “while they were
extremely willing and desirous to concur in any measure that
might conduce to the general security and welfare of the conti-
nent of North America, they found this colony, so far from being
able at present to assist their fellow subjects, itself in great want
of his Majesty's Royal consideration and further assistance.”
Two weeks afterwards a lengthy memorial setting forth the
defenseless condition of the province, and invoking troops, artil-
lery, fortifications, arms, and ammunition, was prepared and
transmitted to his majesty.
To a communication dated Whitehall, March 13, 1756, an-
nouncing that the Earl of Loudoun had been appointed com-
mander-in-chief of his majesty's forces in America, that he was
about to set out with two regiments of foot, a train of artillery,
and a quantity of warlike stores, and requesting aid from the
colony, the General Assembly on the 11th of November responded
that, while Georgia had no funds and was incapable of raising
any for military uses, she would, nevertheless, to testify her zeal
in his majesty's service, engage, if any of the king's forces came
within her limits, to supply them with forage and provisions to
the extent of her ability.
On the 17th of November of the same year the governor laid
before the General Assembly, for its careful consideration, an ur-
gent communication from the Earl of Loudoun, dated Albany,
EEEBLENESS OF GEORGIA. 489
August 20, 1756, announcing the fall of Oswego and the destruc-
tion of the English naval power on the lakes, cautioning Gov-
ernor Reynolds to place the province in the strongest attitude of
defense, confessing his inability to do more than check the ad-
vance of the French in his neighborhood, and calling upon Geor-
gia to assist him with money and recruits. The intelligence of
this disaster to the British arms and the threatening posture of
the French and Indians awakened the liveliest apprehensions.
It was with genuine regret that the assembly, on the 22d of No-
vember, felt constrained, in their reply to the governor, to admit
the weak and impecunious condition of the province which pre-
vented it from extending to others the protection and assistance
which it earnestly solicited for itself.
So feeble were the American provinces, and so intent was each
colony upon its own defense, that the hopes which had been con-
ceived in England of strengthening Lord Loudoun's command
by recruits drawn from this side the water were only partially
realized. That officer, convinced that he was not strong enough
to inaugurate offensive operations, pitched his camp at Albany
and acted on the defensive. Meanwhile, the French wore the
laurel of victory and extended their power among the Indian
nations. Carolina and Georgia were threatened by an invasion
of French and Cherokees, and the public mind remained for some
time in a state of perturbation."
By the terms of the law as first promulgated upon the erection
of a royal government in Georgia, the right to fix all fees of pub-
lic officers was confided to the governor and council. As the im-
mediate representatives of the inhabitants of the province, the
members of the Lower House of Assembly conceived that they
were entitled to a voice in this matter. They therefore ad-
dressed a petition to the Crown, praying that the General Assem-
bly might be entrusted with the regulation of these fees, as they
were in reality paid by the people of the colony and might prop-
erly be regarded in the light of specific taxes. This remonstrance,
however, for some time passed unheeded, and the schedule of
fees was made out by the council who took as their guide that
established in South Carolina.
The last legislative act to which we will allude in connection
with the General Assembly convened during Governor Reynolds'
administration was a memorial, dated the 21st of February, 1755,
* See Letter of Governor Lyttleton of Reynolds, and received by him January
South Carolina, addressed to Governor 25, 1757.
-
490 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
representing the hardship of the qualifications of electors and
representatives as established in the instructions of his majesty to
the governor of Georgia, and praying that the assembly should
be permitted to prescribe the qualifications of its own members.
In support of their views, the representatives pressed upon the
consideration of the home authorities that, under the existing
regulations, which no colonial law could abrogate, an elector for
representatives in the assembly must be the owner of at least
fifty acres of land, and a representative himself must be a free-
holder to the extent of five hundred acres. According to this
rule, residents in towns, possessing buildings and improvements
of much greater value than five hundred acres of land in the
country, who did not chance to be the owners of five-hundred-
acre lots, were excluded from the privilege of sitting in the as-
sembly; and freeholders of town lots exceeding in value the fifty
acres by which others became qualified to vote were declared
incompetent to cast votes for representatives. The injustice of
the royal instructions was, upon review, readily recognized, and
the property qualifications were modified in accordance with the
views of the General Assembly." r
1 See Stevens' History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 412, New York. MDCCCXLVII.
CHAPTER XXX.
MIDway DISTRICT-THE DORCHESTER SOCIETY. – ITS REMOVAL FROM
DorchESTER AND BEECH ISLAND IN SOUTH CAROLINA AND SETTLEMENT
IN THE MIDway DISTRICT. —THE TOWN OF SUNBURY.
THE road leading from Savannah to the Darien settlement on
the Alatamaha, which, in obedience to General Oglethorpe's
instructions, was located by Captain Hugh Mackay assisted by
Indian guides furnished by Tomo-chi-chi, not only served as the
established route for inland communication between the northern
and southern portions of the province, but tended to facilitate
the population of the intermediate region. The swamp belt of
Georgia, through which this highway led, was very fertile and
well adapted to the cultivation of rice, cotton, corn, indigo, and
vegetables of various sorts. Its agricultural advantages attracted
the notice of the colonists, and of planters from South Carolina
who, upon the abrogation of the regulation prohibiting the intro-
duction of negroes, began to move in with their slaves and to
form plantations along the line of this road, in the delta of the
Great Ogeechee, and upon the high grounds to the south border-
ing upon salt-water streams and upon the extensive swamps
emptying into them. The territory lying between the Great
Ogeechee and South Newport rivers was called the Midway Dis-
trict because of its central location, being about equidistant from
the Savannah and Alatamaha rivers, which then constituted
respectively the northern and southern boundaries of Georgia.
It has been suggested by some, and the belief is to a limited
extent current, that the name both of the district and of the
river which permeates it is, and was at the earliest period, Med-
way and not Midway, and that this appellation was borrowed
from one of the well-known rivers of Merrie Old England." The
* The Medway, in the county of Kent, wanderings. The Saxons added the syl-
is a noble stream. Its trunk and branches
cover thirty square miles of the surface
of the county, and its length is nearly
sixty miles, of which forty are navigable.
This river well deserves the name of
Waga, by which the Britons described its
lable Med, the sign of middle, because
the river runs through the centre of the
county, and thus gets its present name of
Medway. Encyclopædia Britannica, 8th
Edition, article “Kent,” vol. xiii. p. 65.
See also vol. viii. p. 716.
492 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
records do not justify the intimation, and in the light of history
it should be repudiated.
In December, 1695, a band of Protestants, associated together
as a Congregational Church, arrived in South Carolina. The
ancestors of these immigrants, Puritans in belief and conduct,
jealous of their religious faith, and strongly imbued with sen-
timents of political freedom, coming from the counties of Devon,
Dorset, and Somersetshire, assembled at Plymouth, England,
early in 1630, and resolved to seek in New England for broader
fields and larger liberty. Sailing on the 30th of March, after a
protracted voyage they reached the shores of Massachusetts and,
early in June, founded within that province the town of Dorches-
ter. There for sixty-five years did they and their descendants
abide until some of them, influenced by a desire to encourage a
settlement of churches and to promote the extension of religion
in the Southern plantations, determined to remove to South
Carolina. They were industrious, prudent, thrifty, self-reliant,
intelligent, tyranny-hating, God-fearing peoples. Bringing with
them their own pastor, the Rev. Joseph Lord, they came not
as wanderers and as mendicants, but as enterprising colonists,
prepared with their own arms and means to wrest from primeval
forests new homes and comfortable subsistence. Selecting a lo-
cation on the Ashley River about eighteen miles above Charles-
town, they there builded houses, cleared lands, and erected a
church. In honor of the place whence they departed, they
called their town Dorchester. A portion of their settlement Was
also known as Beech-Hill. Theirs was one of the earliest Con-
gregational or Independent churches established in South Caro-
lina.
After a residence of more than fifty years, finding their lands
impoverished and insufficient for the rising generation, — Dor-
chester and Beech-Hill proving very unhealthy, - the good re-
ports of the lands in Georgia having been confirmed upon the
personal inspection of certain members of the Society who had
iseen sent for that purpose, and a grant of 22,400 acres of land
having been secured from the authorities in Georgia, which grant
was subsequently enlarged by the addition of 9,950 acres, the
members of the Dorchester Society, in 1752, commenced moving
into what is now the swamp region of Liberty County.
on the 6th of December of that year Mr. Benjamin Baker'
1 He was born at Torchester, South Oglethorpe in his expedition against St.
Carolina, in 1717, and attended General Augustine. During the Revolutionary
THE DORCHESTER IMMIGRATION. 493
and family, and Mr. Samuel Bacon with his family, the pioneers
of the immigration, arrived and proceeded to form their settle-
ments. They were quickly followed by Messrs. Parmenus Way,
William Baker, John Elliott, John Winn, Edward Sumner, and
John Quarterman. Finding that his congregation was generally
inclined to remove from Dorchester, South Carolina, to the new
possessions in Georgia, the Rev. Mr. Osgood joined such members
of his flock as had preceded him, and in March, 1754, took up
his abode in their midst. The society gradually collected around
him, a log church was erected on Midway Neck where the ven-
erable Midway Congregational Church now stands, and the first
sermon was there preached on the 7th of the following June."
The settlements formed by these valuable immigrants lay be-
tween Mount Hope Swamp — the head of Midway River — on
the north and Bulltown Swamp on the south. At first, however,
they were not so extensive. They touched neither the pine-bar-
rens on the west nor the salt water on the east.”
Begun in 1752, this immigration was continued from time to
time until 1771 when it practically ceased.” If we may credit the
records of the Society, there occurred forty-four removals in all,
of which one family came from Charlestown, four families from
Pon-Pon, and the remaining thirty-nine from Dorchester and
Beech-Hill. These removals were most numerous during the
years 1754, 1755, and 1756. These peoples brought their negroes
with them, and it appears probable, from the best lights before
us, that the population of this colony, after its complete estab-
lishment, consisted of about 350 whites and 1,500 negro slaves.
The region into which the Dorchester Congregation came was
previously known as the Midway District. To the colonial as-
sembly which convened in Savannah in 1751 Audley Maxwell,
War he was a marked patriot, and en-
Body; they continued drawing their Ef-
countered great loss and many privations
at the hands of the king’s forces. Even
now his memory is cherished as that of
a brave man, a virtuous and influential
citizen, and a devoted Christian.
* See Mallard's Short Account of the
Congregational Church at Midway, Geor-
gia, p. 6. Savannah. 1840.
* MS. Notes of the Rev. Dr. Charles
Colcock Jones.
* DeBrahm says: “The Beach-Hill
Congregation settled upon the Heads of
the two Newport Rivers early in the year
1752, when they left Carolina in a great
fects and Cattle after settling all other
Concerns in their native Province until
1755; many rich Carolina Planters fol-
lowed the Example of that Congregation,
and came with all their Families and
Negroes to settle in Georgia in 1752; the
Spirit of Emigration out of South Caro-
lina into Georgia became so universal
that year, that this and the following year
near one thousand Negroes was brought
in Georgia, where in 1751 were scarce
above three dozen.” History of the Prov-
ince of Georgia, etc., p. 21. Wormsloe.
1849.
494 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Esq., was sent as a delegate, the population of the district
then entitling it to such representation. Many of the families
who were resident in this district prior to the arrival of the Dor-
chester Congregation united with that society, when domiciled
in its new home, in sustaining divine ministrations. The Con-
gregationalists resident at Dorchester and Beech-Hill, South
Carolina, did not all come to Georgia. Some families continued
to dwell there, and their descendants may still be found in the
neighborhood. Others removed elsewhere. It may be truthfully
stated, nevertheless, that upon the establishment of the new settle-
ment in Georgia the Dorchester colony in South Carolina speed-
ily lost its integrity and distinctive characteristics.
In locating their plantations amid the swamps of what was
soon to be known as St. John's Parish, and destined at no distant
day to acquire a most enviable reputation as Liberty County,
the following plan was adopted : —
After laying by their crops in Carolina in the fall of the year,
the planters came with able-bodied hands, and, during the winter,
cleared land and built houses. In a season or two having thus
sufficiently prepared the way, they brought their families and
servants in the early spring and at once entered upon the culti-
vation of the soil. Thus was the removal rendered as safe and
comfortable as the nature of the case permitted.
Strange to say, their dwellings and plantation quarters were
invariably located on the edges of the swamps in utter disregard
of the manifest laws of health. In such malarial situations was
the entire year passed. Their houses at first were built of wood,
one story high, with dormer windows in the roofs, small in size,
without lights, with no inside linings, and with chimneys of clay.
The negro-houses were made either of clay or poles. For market,
rice was the only article cultivated. While corn was planted on
the upland, chief attention was bestowed upon the clearing, ditch-
ing, and drainage of the swamps. A miasmatic soil was thus
exposed to the action of the sun at their very doors. The conse-
quence of such injudicious location and of a general inattention
to domestic comfort was violent sickness and considerable mor-
tality. So frequent were the deaths among children that they
seldom arrived at puberty. Those who attained the age of man-
hood and womanhood possessed feeble constitutions. According
to the register kept by the society from 1752 to 1772, the
period during which this settlement was formed, 193 births
and 134 deaths occurred. The mortality was greatest during the
THE MIDWAY SETTLEMENT. 495 .
months of September, October, and November. April, May,
June, and August appear to have been the healthiest months.
Bilious fevers in the fall and pleurisies in the winter and spring
were the diseases which proved most fatal. It used to be said of
such as survived a severe attack of bilious fever in the fall that
they would certainly die of pleurisy in the winter or spring.
The Indians being in the vicinity and at times indulging in
acts of hostility, some of the dwellings of these early settlers
were made of hewn cypress logs after the fashion of block houses,
and were bullet proof.
The style of agriculture in vogue was of the most primitive
sort. The ground was tilled with hoes only. Plows were not
in use. All rails for fencing were carried on the heads and shoul-
ders of the negroes, and in the same manner was rice transported
from the fields. This grain was threshed and beaten by hand.
Thus was the crop prepared for market. At first the planters
sold their crops in Savannah. A trip to that place was the event
of the year, and the anticipated journey was talked of in the
neighborhood for some time before it was undertaken. Horses
were specially fed and carefully attended for a week or more pre-
paratory to the jaunt. Ordinary journeys to church and of a
social character were performed on horseback. Hence horse-
blocks were to be seen at every door. When he would a-wooing
go, the gallant appeared mounted upon his finest steed and in his
best attire, followed by a servant on another horse, conveying his
master's valise behind him.
Shortly after the Revolutionary War stick-back gigs were intro-
duced. If a woman was in the vehicle and unattended, the wait-
ing-man rode another horse, keeping alongside and holding the
check rein in his left hand. When his master held the lines, the
servant rode behind. Men often went armed to church for fear
of the Indians.
The country was filled with game. Ducks and wild geese in
innumerable quantities frequented the rice-fields. Wild turkeys
and deer abounded. Bears and beavers were found in the
Swamps, and buffalo herds wandered at no great remove to the
Southward and northward. There was no lack of Squirrels, rac-
coons, opossums, rabbits, snipe, woodcock, and quail. Wild cats
and hawks were the pest of the region, while the congar often
awoke dissonant echoes in the depths of the dark and vine-clad
Swamps. The waters which they held teemed with fishes, alli-
gators, terrapins, frogs, and Snakes.
496 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA,
Such, in a word, was the condition of the swamp region of the
Midway District when these stanch Congregationalists came in
to possess it. This accession to the population of the colony,
aside from the physical strength and additional wealth which it
imparted, was in many respects most important. A stimulus was
given to the production of rice. Examples of intelligent indus-
try, sobriety, and of genuine manhood were multiplied. Settlers
from abroad were encouraged to cast their lots within the borders
of the colony. An element of moral and intellectual power was
acquired which, during the subsequent years, exerted a potent
influence in shaping the educational, religious, and political for.
tunes of Georgia.
The rapid development of the agricultural resources of this
Midway District, the increase of its population, the growing wants
of the inhabitants, the distance from Savannah, and the delays
consequent upon the transmission of crops to that commercial me-
tropolis, necessitated the opening of a port nearer home where
the products of the numerous plantations might find ready sale
or shipment, and where merchants might be induced to offer
needed supplies. Hence the origin of the town of Sunbury, for
many years one of the most prosperous seaports on the Georgia
Coast.
It was during his reconnoissance of the southern confines, un-
dertaken by General Oglethorpe in January, 1734, that the eyes
of the founder of the colony of Georgia first rested upon that
bold and beautiful bluff which, overlooking the placid waters of
Midway River and the intervening low-lying salt-marshes, de-
scries in the distance the green woods of Bermuda Island, the
dim outline of the southern point of Ossabaw, and, across the
sound, the white shores of St. Catharine. Although formal ces-
sion had been made by the Lower Creeks of all lands along the
sea-coast from the Savannah to the Alatamaha, extending west-
ward as high as the tide flowed, and including all islands except
a few which the Indians specially reserved for the purposes of
hunting, fishing, and bathing, no English settlements had, at that
early day, been formed south of the Great Ogeechee River. Fort
Argyle, garrisoned by Captain McPherson and his troop of ran-
gers, and commanding the passes by which the Indians during
the late wars were accustomed to invade Carolina, was then the
only military post of any consequence in the direction of the
Spaniards. From this nameless bluff the aborigines had not
then removed, and their canoes might be seen passing and re-
SUNBURY. 497
passing to and from Hussoope (Ossabaw) and Cowleggee (St.
Catharine) islands and the main. To the quiet woods and waters
of this semi-tropical region the English were strangers. The
Bermuda grass which, at a later period, so completely covered
Sunbury Bluff did not then appear, but magnificent live-oaks, in
full-grown stature and solemn mien, crowned the high-ground
even to the very verge where the tide kissed the shore. Cedars,
festooned with vines, overhung the waters. The magnolia gran-
diflora, queen of the forest, excited on every hand the admira-
tion of the early visitor. The sweet-scented myrtle, the tall
pine, the odoriferous bay, and other indigenous trees lent their
charms to a spot whose primal beauty had encountered no change
at the hand of man. The woods were resonant with the songs
of birds whose bright plumage vied in coloring with the native
flowers which gladdened the eye and gave gentle odors to the
ambient air. Fishes abounded in the waters and game on the
land. Cool sea-breezes tempered the heat of summer, and severe
cold was unknown in the depth of winter. It was a gentle, at-
tractive place, this bold bluff, as it came green and beautiful
from the hand of Nature. For twenty years and more it retained
its virgin attractions, and now the woodman's axe was heard in
its groves, and the keel of the enterprising colonist was parting
its tranquil waters.
By a grant under the great seal of the province of Georgia,
bearing date the 4th of October, 1757, his majesty George II.
conveyed to Mark Carr, his heirs and assigns forever, in free and
common socage, “all that tract of land, containing five hundred
acres, situate and being in the District of Midway in the Province
of Georgia, bounded on the east by the Midway river, on the
West by land of Thomas Carr, on the south by vacant land, and
on all other sides by marshes of the said river.”
The grantee of these lands, which embraced the site of the
future town of Sunbury, had been for a score of years a man of
mark in the colony. Recognizing the propriety of establishing
a commercial town in this part of the province, on the 20th of
June, 1758, he conveyed three hundred acres of this five-hundred-
acre tract, including that portion bordering upon Midway River,
to “James Maxwell, Kenneth Baillie, John Elliott, Grey Elliott,
and John Stevens, of Midway, Esquires,” . . . in trust that the
same should be laid out as a town by the name of Sunbury;
one hundred acres thereof being dedicated as a common for the
use of the future inhabitants; and in further trust “that they,
32
498 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
the said James Maxwell, Kenneth Baillie, John Elliott, Grey
Elliott, and John Stevens and their successors, should sell and
dispose of all and singular the lots to be laid out in the said town
of Sunbury to and for the proper use and behoof of the said Mark
Carr.”
Captain McCall” suggests that “the town was called Sunbury,
—the etymology of which is probably the residence of the sun, -
from the entire exposure of this place to his beams while he is
above the horizon.” We believe that this projected village was
named for Sunbury, a quiet and beautiful town in Middlesex
County, on the bank of the Thames only a little way above
Hampton Court, and distant some eighteen miles by land from
London ; it being a pleasant custom among the colonists to per-
petuate in their new homes the memories of persons and places
dear to them in the mother country.
In ancient records, says Lysons, this place (Sunbury in Eng-
land) is called Sunnabyri, Sunneberie, Suneberie, etc. Sunna-
byri is composed of two Saxon words, –sunna, the sun, and
byri, a town, – and may be supposed to denote a place exposed
to the sun, or with a southern aspect.
A name better suited to this locality could scarcely have been
suggested. It recalls the peaceful memories of one of the gentle
towns of old England, and typifies the genial influences of the
“King of Day” as, from early dawn until sunset, he irradiates
with floods of light the bold bluff “on the westermost bank of
the river Midway.” -
Two of the trustees, John Stevens and John Elliott, were
prominent members of the Midway Congregation. James Max-
well had been for several years a resident of that district. He
and John Stevens were members of the Provincial Congress
which assembled at Tondee's Long-room in Savannah on the 4th
of July, 1775.”
Kenneth Baillie and Grey Elliott were active and influential
citizens. The latter was subsequently selected by the General
Assembly to act as an assistant from the colony of Georgia to
Dr. Benjamin Franklin who had been chosen by several of the
provinces, Georgia among the number, and sent on a special
1 History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 255. Sa- iel Roberts, John Baker, Sr., John Ba-
vannah. 1811. con, Sr., James Maxwell, Edward Ball,
2 The following members of that Con- William Baker, Sr., William Bacon, Jr.,
gress came from the parish of St. John : John Stevens, and John Winn, Sr.
James Screven, Nathan Brownson, Dan-
s-sess=
`S`~~• ~ ~~~--~~~.--~~~~~（_）~~~~ -..
-！=--~~~~:：~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~
*----
→Sºº！~~~ ~）-_- - - - - ~~~~ ~ ~
: ~i~~ ~~----***=+-*
§§§），~E~~~~）--№！--~~~~ ~~~~
§）,ſ \,*** --~~~~）.------~~~
$（_sa și№==š, ś~ ~ ！ ~~~~---
·}\ >\• X）\ - \ | \\ȘI \\ 5·\ T ：-
SSSS，, , ， º,\\ ? »）ș\\^.{"§§§）,… •- SJ（~
§ş Ș ș） > º. s.”, w ^ \\ y，\, >, * ?", * ? ， ） ） ? : » à №ſ (* *>'; ; ; ; ,;\, ,77777777ZĒşN
»ș|și și \\, §.• „? Ai s : < ?> ·{}}| &ȘNºw ł ·3{„”●{*>+ ·* y\,A'\,si ' ， !s º, º\\
Șſrų Èł& »， ， ， ， !ș\'*, *$,?” și Śº,º) { }：\>'， v'}\v{ºſº （„“）“? È "L'#'（）'）,'}}
v.º.! , ！！\, ，- |-• • •r-à ：|-è `│ ¡, ſºº
! №. ！! !！ ！! × ×», ,'$i}}） （}） > （$）\ \*\\?\>\T）* „Ť » !Zvý
{
4 &
2437/4
z/3%.
C2
g/ & e/o/,
A/0/2 9/ 4e J%an %22z44%. com/ºxogy 3%3a/ee/ * &zº/”
22.302 Areaaºon złe.7% Józe 3 /ööð 22 767eacº, 222 2/3e
ș\º
,^
š\
$
JI ºſ ſn | S.���! SI S^<
•
ș|#|#|#| |#|}|}|&||&||&|èļšŠ
£{ { º.）�~& | Nºol ºNºſ col Șt|N
$|$|$|}||}|}|}|}||}|&||&|�
2
Z75 T.
/2.3"
/24"
|zzº
Zººl
2-2
2 of
zo 2
zo-
#2 & 74
Žºver /vrezzº-sty.
&R|ſeſſº
|×RÈ|}}}
}} | }}*{ } \ ; &�Noſ tą
}|}|}|}|}|}|}|}|}|}|}|
Squaziz.
zº.3
23-4
ex:/ºrz cºrry
ºzº]
223
27:
2Z.
hurch.
o/ /3,
_GZ ///º (#/A - - eſ.azz3%
or, Že waveo /*-rrro.4/ 23 o ºr ºf e
Zorcſ. Zoz cer, Zzzzzz zo /* ea zi, /ºzzº- 24° 23 o ze, ZZ942%. Že -/:/5 /ø “Z
A. eve/ .5% ea/ as 7, A'e , 4- 3roz, cé, , -Z’c. c.4 –4 & 2, 2 22.
/3 << zº, c & 3, we arra 23ay - Z, a /*
2-7) 23:
& 3ré, bºss
4. Sº
* $ 3
44-5-2
4; sºf
4. Jºo
42 *.
, Jerſ, Jr., Br, tº 3 (7. P/o/o.////


















PLAN OF SUNBURY. 499
mission to England to represent the wants and grievances of the
colonies, remonstrate against such acts of the Crown as were
deemed oppressive, and oppose taxation without representation."
All the trustees, therefore, were men of position and character,
and their selection for the trust indicated, on the part of Mark
Carr, well-placed confidence and sound judgment. Responding
to the objects of the conveyance, Messrs. James Maxwell, Ken-
neth Baillie, John Elliott, Grey Elliott, and John Stevens, with
due dispatch set about laying off the town upon the “westermost
bank” of Midway River. The plan, as matured and carried out
by them, embraced three public squares, known respectively as
Ring’s, Church, and Meeting, and four hundred and ninety-six
lots. These lots had a uniform front of seventy feet, and were
one hundred and thirty feet in depth. Lots numbered one to
forty, inclusive, fronting on the river, were denominated Bay
Lots, and carried with them the ownership of the shore to low-
water mark. Four lots constituted a block, bounded on three
sides by streets, and on the fourth by a lane. The streets were
seventy-five feet broad, and the lanes twenty feet wide. The
plan of the town was entirely regular. The streets in one direc-
tion ran at right angles to the river, and were, at right angles,
intersected by the cross-streets and lanes. From north to south
the length of Sunbury, as thus laid out, was 3,430 feet. Its
breadth on the south side was 2,230 feet, and on the north 1,880
feet.
Within a short time substantial wharves were constructed, the
most marked of which were subsequently owned and used by
the following merchants: Kelsell & Spalding, Fisher, Jones &
Hughes, Darling & Co., and Lamott.
That Sunbury must rapidly have attracted the notice of the
colonists and quickly secured a population by no mean sinsignifi-
cant or destitute of influence in that day of small things, is evi-
denced by the fact that as early as 1761 the governor, by and
with the advice and consent of his council, established and
declared it to be a port of entry, and appointed Thomas Carr
collector, John Martin naval officer, and Francis Lee searcher.
These appointments were confirmed by the commissioners of his
majesty's customs.”
* See McCall's History of Georgia, vol. “I judged it necessary for his Majesty's
ii. p. 7. Savannah. 1816. Y, Service that Sunbury, - a well settled
* In his letter to Lord Halifax, writ- place, having an exceeding good harbour
ten in 1763, Sir James Wright says: and inlet from the sea, – should be made
500 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Captain McCall, in alluding to the early history of Sunbury,
says: “Soon after its settlement and organization as a town, it
rose into considerable commercial importance; emigrants came
from different quarters to this healthy maritime port, particularly
from Bermuda ; about seventy came from that island, but unfor-
tunately for them and the reputation of the town, a mortal epi-
demic broke out and carried off about fifty of their number the
first year: it is highly probable they brought the seeds of the
disease with them. Of the remainder, as many as were able, re-
turned to their native country. This circumstance, however, did
not very much retard the growing state of this eligible spot: a
lucrative trade was carried on with various parts of the West
Indies in lumber, rice, indigo, corn, etc. Seven square-rigged
vessels have been known to enter the port of Sunbury in one
day, and about the years 1769 and 1770 it was thought by many,
in point of commercial importance, to rival Savannah. In this
prosperous state it continued with very little interruption until
the war commenced between Great Britain and America.”
In his report on the condition of the province of Georgia,
dated the 20th of September, 1773, Sir James Wright mentions
Savannah and Sunbury as being the only ports in the province.
The inlet to the latter he describes as “very good; and, although
the river is not more than twenty-two miles in length, fifteen
feet of water may be carried up to the town distant twelve miles
from the sea.” From the same source we learn that during the
preceding year fifty-six vessels of various sorts were entered and
cleared at the custom-house in the port of Sunbury.” The col-
lector of the port at this time was James Kitchen, with a sal-
ary of £65 sterling, and fees of office amounting to £90. The
comptroller and searcher was Isaac Antrobus, salary £60, fees of
office amounting to a like sum.
Sunbury soon commanded the rice crop from the adjacent
swamp region. Indigo was planted on the island just below,
then called Bermuda, and now known as the Colonel's Island.
The principal trade was with the West Indies and with the
a Port of Entry; and I have appointed
Thomas Carr, Collector, and John Mar-
tin, Naval Officer for the same. There
are eighty dwelling houses in the place:
three considerable merchant stores for
supplying the town and planters in the
neighborhood with all kinds of necessary
goods; and around it for about fifteen
miles is one of the best settled parts of
the country.”
1 History of Georgia, vol. i. pp. 255, 256.
Savannah. 1811.
2 Collections of the Georgia Historical
Society, vol. iii. p. 161 et seq. Savannah.
1873.
COMMERCE OF SUNBURY. 501
Northern colonies. From the former, supplies of rum and sugar
were obtained, and from the latter rum, flour, biscuits, and pro-
visions. To the West Indies were shipped rice, corn, peas, in-
digo, lumber, shingles, live-stock, and barreled beef and pork.
Governor Wright regarded the trade with the Northern colonies
as injurious to the province of Georgia, because, says he, “they
take but little of our produce, and drain us of every trifle of
Gold and Silver that is brought here, by giving a price for
Guineas, Moidores, Johannes's Pistols and Dollars far above
their real and intrinsic value, so that we can never keep any
amongst us.”
So anxious was Sunbury to concentrate all the trade of the
interior that at one time it was proposed to connect Midway
and North Newport rivers by a canal running between Bermuda
Island and the main. This project, however, was never consum-
mated. Occasionally vessels arrived from English ports bring-
ing manufactured goods, but such generally sought Savannah as
the port of entry and discharge. The purchases of the Sunbury
merchants were largely made in or through Savannah, and were
thence conveyed in coasting sloops and schooners through the
inland passages. Below the town, and on the road to the Colo-
nel's Island, is a locality known as the Stave Landing, whence,
in these early days, constant shipments of staves and shingles
were made. On the eastern side of that island, the site of the
old ship-yard is still pointed out where vessels were repaired and
new ones built. It was here that the British landed during the
Revolutionary War, when, under Lieutenant-Colonel Fuser, they
attempted the reduction of Sunbury.
The health of this town from the time of its settlement until,
and even after, the Revolutionary War was good. It became a
pleasant residence for the families of many planters who were
cultivating rice in the neighboring swamps.
CHAPTER XXXI.
INDIAN PRESENTS DISTRIBUTED AT AUGUSTA. — ARRIVAL OF ACADIANs. –
DEBRAHM’s Colon Y AT BETHANY. — MILITARY CONDITION OF THE PROV-
INCE. — Gover NOR REYNOLDs’ AND CAPTAIN DEBRAHM's REPRESENTA-
TION OF THE FORTS AND GARRISONS NECESSARY FOR THE DEFENSE OF
GEORGIA. — SUGGESTION TO PURCHASE ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY NEGRO
SLAVEs witH which TO CONSTRUCT THE REQUISITE FORTIFICATIONS. —
DISAGREEMENTS BETweeN THE ExECUTIVE AND THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY.
—DR. WILLIAM LITTLE. — REYNOLDs’ ADMINISTRATION OF PUBLIC AF-
FAIRs CRITICISED. — HE IS RECALLED, AND HENRY ELLIS IS NAMED AS
LIEUTENANT-Gover NOR. — GOVERNOR REYNOLDS RESIGNS, AND RESUMES
HIS STATION IN THE BRITISH NAVY.
UPON the arrival of the Indian presents in December, 1755,
Governor Reynolds proceeded to Augusta that he might super-
intend their distribution and utilize the occasion in confirming
the amicable relations existing between the colonists and their
red neighbors. While there, awaiting the assembling of the
chiefs, he was summoned to Savannah by a matter claiming his
immediate and personal attention. He was therefore constrained
to leave the presents, and the addresses he had prepared, with
Mr. William Little, commissioner and agent for Indian affairs,
who, a week after the departure of the governor, read those
speeches and distributed the presents to some three hundred
chiefs and head warriors. The convocation was peaceful and
amicable. Well pleased with the royal gifts, the aborigines re-
newed their pledges of friendship.
The affair which necessitated the speedy return of the gov-
ernor to Savannah was the unexpected arrival of two transports
having on board four hundred French Papists. They had been
sent by Lieutenant-Governor Lawrence of Nova Scotia who, in
an accompanying letter, informed Governor Reynolds that for
the better security of that province and in pursuance of a resolu-
tion of his council he had forwarded these people to Georgia, not
doubting but that they would be received and cared for." The
prohibition against Papists was still unrepealed, and Georgia was
1 See Letter of Governor Reynolds to the Board of Trade, under date of January 5,
1757.
ACADIANS. 503
not in condition to assume conveniently the support of such a
number of needy persons. The governor was sore perplexed, but
his humane resolution was thus announced to the Lords Commis-
sioners of Trade and Plantations: “The season of the year
would not admit of their going back again, and therefore I was
obliged to receive them, and their provisions being all expended
and the poor wretches ready to perish, I was obliged to order
them to be supplied immediately : which, with the hire of some
boats to distribute them about the Province, has occasioned an
expence of near 80 pounds.”
Hard was the lot of these Acadians. Of French descent, and
adherents to the Romish faith, leading pastoral lives and busied
only with agricultural pursuits and the rearing of flocks and
herds, they found themselves, upon the cession of Nova Scotia
(then known as Acadie) to the British Crown, deprived of the
sympathy of France and subjected to the will of a nation alien
to them in language and religion. Forced to swear allegiance to
England or to quit their homes, they elected the former alter-
native, with the proviso, however, that they should never be re-
quired to bear arms either against France or their old Indian
allies. This condition being sanctioned by the royal governor of
the province, they were for some time suffered to remain in quiet
possession of their homes and property. Then came an order
from the Crown requiring an unconditional oath or an immediate
departure. The Acadians refusing compliance with this demand,
it was finally determined to remove the entire population, and to
scatter these peoples among the English colonies in North Amer-
ica “where they could not unite in any offensive measures, and
Where they might be naturalized to the government and coun-
try.” To Lieutenant-Colonel Winslow, commanding the Mas-
sachusetts forces, was the enforcement of this harsh decree en-
trusted.
By a proclamation so cunningly framed that its true design
Was not revealed, and yet enjoining a compliance by penalties so
severe that they could not be endured, the attendance of all male
Acadians was required on the 5th of September, 1755, at Grand
Pré, where Colonel Winslow commanded. The convention oc-
curred in the village church. Going into the midst of the as-
sembled multitude, that officer announced the startling resolu-
tions of Lieutenant-Governor Lawrence and his council: “Your
lands and tenements, cattle of all kinds, and live stock of all
sorts are forfeited to the Crown, with all other your effects, sav.
504 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
ing your money and household goods, and you yourselves are to
be removed from this Province.”
Appalled at a calamity which they were powerless to avert,
and stunned by the terrors of this frightful edict, these peoples
submitted to a fate which consigned them to penury, expatria-
tion, and the blackness of desolation. That all hope of remain-
ing longer might be wrested from them, their dwellings, barns,
mills, school-houses, and even churches were committed to the
flames. In the language of another, “for several successive even-
ings the cattle assembled around the Smouldering ruins as if in
anxious expectation of the return of their masters, while all night
long the faithful watch dogs of the neutrals howled over the scene
of desolation and mourned alike the hands that had fed and the
houses that had sheltered them.”
Forced to depart at the point of the bayonet, crowded into
vessels at the rate of two persons to every ton, and carrying only
a modicum of luggage, these Acadians were torn from their
homes and cherished associations, and were parceled out at the
will of their English masters among the British colonies from
Massachusetts to Georgia. It was a brutal outrage, the like of
which can scarcely be found in history. Said one of the suffer-
ers, “It was the hardest case which had happened since our
Saviour was on earth.” To Georgia was allotted the care of
four hundred of these outcasts. Distributed throughout the prov-
ince, they were sustained at the public expense. In the spring,
many of them, building rude boats, departed in them for Caro-
lina, hoping eventually to find their way back to the homes from
which they had been so inhumanly expelled. For the control of
those who remained the General Assembly passed a special act
which was approved on the 8th of February, 1757. After recit-
ing that most of the Acadians then in the province were residing
in and about Savannah, and that they were illegally cutting and
appropriating to their own use much valuable timber belonging
to the inhabitants, this act empowered the justices of the peace
to bind them out to such persons as should be willing to sup-
ply them and their families with sufficient food, clothing, and
shelter. Thus were they practically treated as servants. Abso-
I See Grahame's History of the United * Pathetically has the poet Longfel-
States, vol. iii. pp. 384, 385. Lon. low, in his Evangeline, depicted the sor-
don. 1836. See Stevens' History of rows of these outraged peoples.
Georgia, vol. i. pp. 413–417. New York.
MDCCCXLVII.
DEFENSELESS CONDITION OF GEORGIA. 505
lutely prohibited were they from having and using any firearms
or offensive weapons, except upon the plantations and under the
supervision of their masters. Feeble and of limited duration
was the impression produced upon the province by the intromis-
sion of these unfortunate Acadians. After a short sojourn nearly
all of them departed, some to South Carolina, some to France,
and others to Nova Scotia. Those who remained were the least
enterprising, and soon lapsed into utter obscurity and oblivion.
Far otherwise was it with the colony of Germans which De
Brahm planted at Bethany. The original settlement of one hun-
dred and sixty persons, begun in 1751, was so rapidly recruited
that within eleven months the community numbered fifteen
hundred souls."
True to the instincts of his military calling, Governor Rey-
nolds devoted more attention to the defenses of the province
than to any other matter connected with its administration and
development. The population of Georgia, dispersed as it was,
aggregated scarcely sixty-four hundred souls. Of these, seven
hundred and fifty-six, capable of bearing arms, were enrolled in
the militia and officered. Badly equipped, and organized into
eight companies, they were regularly drilled six times during
the year. Widely separated, their concentration on an emer-
gency was very difficult. There was not a fortification within
the limits of the colony in even tolerable condition.
At Augusta the wooden fort, one hundred and twenty feet
square, was so rotten that a great portion of it was propped up
to prevent its walls from falling. Its eight small iron guns were
honey-combed, and their carriages were decayed. Of ordnance
stores there was no supply. The defenses at Frederica which,
during the Spanish troubles, were so formidable had lapsed into
ruin, and the twenty old cannon there remaining were lying dis-
mounted and without ammunition. In Savannah the prospect
was equally discouraging. Eleven old cannon, three and four
pounders, without carriages, twenty-seven old swivel guns, and
sixty-one old muskets, “most of them with broken stocks and
many without locks,” constituted the entire show of armament.”
The small log forts which the trustees had builded at various
points had tumbled almost into nothingness.
Summoning to his aid John Gerar William DeBrahm, one of
1 History of the Province of Georgia, p. Board of Trade, under date January 5,
20. Wormsloe. MDCCCXLIX. 1756.
* See Letter of Governor Reynolds to the
506 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
the royal surveyors and of late a captain of engineers of high
repute, Governor Reynolds matured, and on the 5th of January,
1756, submitted the following: “Representation of the Forts
and Garrisons necessary for the defence of Georgia : ” —
“Georgia being a large but weak Province, is unable to raise
a number of men to meet an Enemy in the Field or Woods. It
requires therefore to be provided in sundry places with forts
wherein few men may defend the Province (i. e. the settled part
of the Province) against many, and keep the Inhabitants free
from Invasions.
“To fortify this Province will require to choose such places
where the Enemy must take his passage (as well by water from
the East as by land from the West) which places likewise are
convenient to communicate one with another by Land as well
as by Water to make their correspondence and assistance as easy
as possible. *
“The places for Forts near the Sea are first COCKSPUR, a
small Island in the mouth of Savannah River commanding the
North but much better the South Channel. The North Channel
is only for small craft, but the South Channel is for large vessels.
“Secondly. SAVANNAH, being the first landing place and like-
wise the best settled Town in the Province, on Savannah River.
“Thirdly. HARDWICKE, being likewise the first landing place
upon Great Ogeechee River, where also is the passage over that
river to correspond between Savannah and Frederica.
“Fourthly. FREDERICA, being the Southermost place of the
present Settlements, but the Center between Savannah and St.
John's Rivers, upon an Island commanding the chief branch of
Alatamaha River, a convenient Place to harbour Men of War,
and, being also protected by them, also the fittest place for a
Garrison Town or Place of Arms.
“The LAND PAss AGEs for the Enemy are along the Rivers
Savannah, Great Ogeechee, and Alatamaha. These Rivers are
therefore all to be fortified in such places where they leave off to
be navigable, viz' :
“At Augusta, and at the fork of Ochonee and Alatamaha
Rivers, and upon a South and North Course from these two
places on a convenient Spot on Great Ogeechee River, to stop
the Enemy's passage along the River and to defend likewise the
passage for the communication between the Forks and Augusta.
“To protect this communication it is necessary to raise Two
Hundred Rangers, commanded by two Captains with the assist-
SCHEME FOR FORTIFYING GEORGIA. 507
ance of four Lieutenants and Six Sargents. They are to be sta-
tioned in the following places and manner viz' :
In Frederica, one Capt" and one Serg" with . ſº tº ę 29 Men.
“Augusta, one Capt" and one Serg" with . dº e º . 29 “
In Savannah, one Lieu': and one Serg" with e ſº * e 29 “
“ Hardwicke, one Lieu" with & tº º tº º fº . 25 “
“ The Forks, one Lieu" with . e º s e g tº 25 «
“The Ogeechee Pass one Lieu" with . & te tº º . 25 &
Between Savannah and Augusta one Serg" with ſº g º 14 “
Between the Pass and Hardwicke one Serg" with . Q ſº ... 10 <<
Between the Forks and Frederica one Serg" with . ſº gº 14 “
200
“Their duty is to reconize the communication every day, to
carry Letters and Orders, and to convey Messengers, Travellers,
and Troops when marching.
“Frederica to be one half an Hexegon, i.e. of three Poligons
960 feet each, with two Whole and two Demi Bastions towards
the Land, two Demi Bastions and a Cittadel towards the River,
which Citadel must command both Town and River, and lodges
the whole Garrison.
“The necessary Artillery for this Place is
10 24, 18 Pounders
12 12 Pounders ! Cannon.
20 1, 2, 3, 8, 9 Pounders
4 12 10 Pounders. Haubices.
4 100 50 Pounders. Mortars.
50
“The Garrison for the place is to be 300 Regulars, sufficient
to defend it against a surprise, but against a siege the Garrison
must be reinforced with 700 men.
350 Militi
350 Inim. } To make a Garris" of 1000 men.
700
“Hardwicke is to be a Triangle, i. e. three Poligons, 600 feet
each, with three detached Bastions, being only a Citadel com-
manding the River and Town.
ARTILLERY FOR THIS PLACE.
24, 18 Pounders
12 ſº Cannon.
1, 2, 3, 8, 9 Pounders
12 10 Pounders. Haubices.
100 50 Pounders. Mortars.
1
i
508 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
The Garrison is . g e te te * 150 Regulars.
º 150 Militia.
The Reinforcement 300 Men } 150 Indians.
450
“Cockspur is to be a Triangular Fort, i. e. three Poligons, a.
132 feet, with three Semi Bastions or a Block House with a Re-
doubt of 4 Poligons, each 100 feet, without any Bastion, being
only to defend the Mouth of Savannah River.
ARTILLERY.
6 24 18 Pounders
3 12 Pounders C
2 9 Pounders 2.Ill] Oſl.
2 8 Pounders
2 10 Pounders. Haubices.
15
The Garrison is . . . . . . 30 Regulars.
35 Militia.
The Reinforcement 70 Men } . Inim.
100
“Savannah is to be a Square, i. e. four Poligons, each 448 feet,
with four Bastions, 3 upon the Bluff to command the Town, and
one below the Bluff : besides a Battery upon the Bluff to com-
mand the River, being only a Citadel to command both the River
and Town.
ARTILLERY.
8 24 18 Pounders
4 12 Pounders }*
10 1, 2, 3, 8, 9 Pounders
2 12 10 Haubices.
2 100 50 Mortars.
26
The Garrison is tº ſº © g o 150 Regulars.
{}; Militia.
150 Indians.
*=s**
450
“Augusta will be the same as Savannah, only altogether upon
one Horison, or like Hardwicke, being a Citadel of that Form.
The Reinforcement 300 Men . o ©
ARTILLERY.
12 12 , Pounders
10 1, 2, 3, 8, 9 Pounders } Cannon.
2 10 Pounders. Haubices.
sºmeºmº
24
FORTIFICATION OF GEORGIA. 509
The Garrison is . . . . . 150 Regulars.
150 Militia.
#. Indians.
*-
450.
“The Pass, or Ferry over the head of the Great Ogeechee River
will be a Block House, in a Redoubt of 4 Poligons, 100 feet
each, without any Bastion, being only a Protection of the Passage
over the River.
The Reinforcement 300 Men . o
ARTILLERY.
4 8 Pounders } Cannon.
4 3 Pounders
8
The Garrison is • e tº e º 30 Regulars.
e M 35 Militia.
The Reinforcement 70 Men } 35 Indians.
100
“The Forks will be the same as Hardwicke, or Augusta, that is
a Triangle or Square.
ARTILLERY.
22 1, 2, 3, 8, 9 Pounders. Cannon.
2 10 Pounders. Haubices.
24
The Garrison is e e º e e 150 Regulars.
The Reinforcement 300 Men . e e { 150 Militia.
150 Indians.
450
Regular Garrisons in all . 960 ARTILLERY.
Militia . e o e . 1020 24, 18 Pounders 29
Indians . © & º . 1020 Cannon. ; Pounders 37
Rangers e e o & 200 1, 2, 3, 8, 9 Pounders 84
— Haubices, 12, 10 Pounders 14
3,200 Mortars, 100, 50 Pounders 8
172
“All these Forts are only projected in earth work faced with
Facines or Turf, being the cheapest way in all Parts of the World
to fortify by ; but since workmanship is so very dear in these
parts because of the scarcity of White People to employ to such
purposes, and those few that can be got cannot be obliged for any
time, and consequently there is no accounting upon White People
let the encouragement be what it will; it will therefore answer
much better and be more advantageous to buy 150 Negroes and
510 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
to but them under the conduct of three conductors and six over-
seers, to every fifty negroes one conductor and two overseers; one
of the conductors to be a Bricklayer, one a Carpenter, and one a
Blacksmith : two of the overseers to be Bricklayers, two Carpen-
ters, and two Blacksmiths, and if possible all Sailors likewise.
They chuse the best hands of those sensible Negroes they think
fit to assist in their business when required. These Negroes are
to be employed either in one place or in two or three as will be
requisite to carry on the most necessary Works. These trains of
Pioneers are under the direction of a Premiere Engineer who is
assisted by a Lieutenant or Second Engineer, and are likewise to
have a Doctor and two Mates.
“If these Negroes are bought in Africa and brought over to
America they will not amount to 4500 pounds sterling. Their
maintenance per annum each at
5 pounds sterling . . . . . . . . . . . . . £750
The Six Overseers Salary per annum £30 sterlg. . . . . . 180
The 3 Conductors Salary per annum £50 . . . . . . . . 150
The Doctor with two Mates per annum . . . . . . . . 180
The Second Engineer per annum . . . . . . . . . . 182
£1,825
The amount of it in 10 years, which time all the work may be
finished . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $18,250
For extraordinary expenses to build or buy Boats, Iron, Steel,
and necessary Tools, and to hire now and then Soldiers or others
when necessary, £1000 per annum . . . . . . . . . . . 10,000
Add to this the buying the Negroes . . . . . . . . . 4,500
£32,750
Suppose of 150 Negroes at the end of Ten Years there are but
100 left, every one of these will be worth 40 pounds sterlg. to sell
in America, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Consequently the expense of fortifying the whole Province of
Georgia (subtracting the sale of the Negroes) will amount only to £28,750
£4,000
“No other Calculation can be made in this part of the World,
and it is certainly a way to do anything of this kind much
cheaper than in Europe.”
Novel as this scheme was, and economical as it appeared to be,
it did not receive the sanction of the Board of Trade, and the
defenses of Georgia were suffered to remain in a deplorable con-
dition. Fortunately their protective powers were not called into
requisition.
Contemporaneously with this document was received from the
POLITICAL DISAGREEMENTS. 511
governor a dolorous letter in which, again alluding to his small
salary of £600 a year, he states that all the perquisites of his
office do not amount to £60 per annum; that his fees for issuing
new grants aggregate not more than £123 15s. ; that although
he lived in the most frugal way, his expenses exceeded his in-
come; that no outfit had been allowed him; that he had been at
a charge of £1,000 in that behalf, and that he saw no way of reim-
bursing himself for this outlay. He earnestly prays the favor-
able consideration of the Lords Commissioners of Trade and
Plantations, and requests that his salary be made equal to that of
the governor of North Carolina. We do not find that this peti-
tion was granted. The truth is the governor before long became
involved in a controversy with the General Assembly, and soon
lost what influence he at first exerted over that body.
On the part of the chief magistrate it was urged that the
members of the house were too greedy of power; that his mes-
Sages were not by them treated with becoming respect; that
they were niggardly and dilatory in providing means for the
support of government and the defrayal of the expenses of the
court of oyer and terminer; that they were indifferent in re-
gard to the prompt and efficient administration of justice; and
that at least some of them were unfaithful and incompetent. His
strictures upon the general conduct of his council were equally
severe."
Per contra, it was asserted that upon Governor Reynolds’ first
arrival in the colony he was heartily welcomed, and that the live-
liest anticipations were entertained of a happy and prosperous
administration ; that only a few months after entering upon the
duties of his office he entrusted its affairs and those of the prov-
ince to William Little, a surgeon in the Navy, whom he had
brought over with him in the capacity of a private secretary, a
person unaccustomed to the transaction of business and “ of the
most despotic principles;” that this Dr. Little was guilty of ex-
tortion as clerk of the general court, of falsifying a minute of the
house of representatives, of which he was the clerk, “in order to
cover his sinking a Bill which had passed both Houses,” and also
of forging another minute in regard to another bill which had
received the sanction of the General Assembly; that although
advised of all this the partiality of the governor for his favorite
led him to bestow upon this unworthy recipient two or three
* See Letter of Governor Reynolds to the Board of Trade, dated the 29th of March,
1756.
512 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
other employments of value; that the General Assembly had been
dissolved leaving half the taxes of the past year uncollected and
those for the current year unprovided for, merely to frustrate an
inquiry into the conduct of Dr. Little ; that the governor con-
stantly endeavored to belittle the council, ignoring them when
questions of moment were to be discussed, and convening them
upon occasions the most trivial; that he only partially communi-
cated to the members his majesty's instructions; that he fre-
quently acted in direct opposition to their advice in the determi-
nation of affairs in which they were to coöperate; that, utterly
ignoring the presence and office of the members of council who
attended him to Augusta upon the occasion of the distribution of
the royal presents to the Indians, he delegated the whole busi-
ness to Dr. Little, who was totally unworthy of the trust; that
he suspended Mr. Clement Martin, a member of council, for no
cause other than that he presented the council’s remonstrance
against Dr. Little; that without consultation with that body he
appointed “judicial and ministerial offices of justice ’’ and re-
fused to allow the protests of members to be entered upon the
minutes; that he inserted or omitted what he pleased in making
up the journal of council; that he had erected “a new and ex-
traordinary Judicature,” where he alone presided; that he inter-
fered in a lawless manner in the conduct of causes in the general
court; that he failed to countenance the officers in the fearless
discharge of their legitimate duties; that he had been partial in
ceding the public lands; that he encouraged vexatious prosecu-
tions against parties who incurred his anger; that he transcended
his powers in filling offices which stood only within the gift of
the Crown; that his general conduct of affairs had produced such
dissatisfaction that the colony so far from increasing in popula-
tion and wealth was daily retrograding; and that his administra-
tion of the government was incompetent, partial, and tyrannical."
Exaggerated as some of these charges may have been, the
complaints which came up from the colony were too frequent
and too earnest to be suffered by the Lords Commissioners of
Trade and Plantations to pass unheeded. That the governor
was too much under the influence of his unscrupulous secretary
was manifest to all. It was not to be denied that he applied to
1 See Letter of Alexander Kellet, mem. 7, 1756 See Letter of Jonathan Bryan
ber of Council and Provost General of the to Lord Halifax, dated Savannah, April 6,
Colony, to the Lords Commissioners of 1756.
Trade and Plantations, under date of July
RECALL OF GOVERNOR REYNOLDS. 513
the conduct of the colony, the council, and the House of Assem-
bly the same arbitrary rules which he had been accustomed to
promulgate upon the quarter-deck of his man-of-war. Evidently
he was not fitted for his present station, and the colony was not
flourishing under his guidance. His majesty was memorialized
on the subject, and from Whitehall there came an order, dated
the 3d of August, 1756, signifying the royal pleasure that the
Lords Commissioners of Trade and Plantations “should imme-
diately direct Governor Reynolds to come to England to answer
for his conduct in his Government.” The same document ap-
proved the “recommendation of Henry Ellis Esq. to be appointed
Lieutenant-Gövernor of Georgia during the absence of Mr. Rey-
nolds,” and requested the Lords of Trade “to prepare and trans-
mit for his Majesty's signature the proper commission for that
purpose.”
In pursuance of these instructions the Lords Commissioners of
Trade and Plantations, two days afterwards, forwarded a copy
of this royal order to Governor Reynolds, enjoining his prompt
return to England “to the end that an account of the present
situation and circumstances of the Province and his conduct in
the administration of government there might be laid before his
Majesty for his further directions thereupon.”
This communication was received on the 16th of February,
1757. Resigning the government into the hands of his successor,
he embarked for England in a merchant ship, the Charming
Martha. Captured in transitu by a French privateer, he was
carried into the port of Bayonne. Thus delayed, he did not
reach London until the 7th of July. During his imprisonment
he was stripped of all his possessions. To the charges preferred
against him Governor Reynolds prepared and submitted an elab-
orate reply. In that defense he claimed that while he might
have committed mistakes, he had never been guilty of anything
criminal, or of any willful disobedience of orders. With great
propriety he entreated the Lords Commissioners of Trade and
Plantations to remember the fact that he was the first royal
governor, and to consider the difficult task he had to perform in
framing the earliest laws, in establishing a police, in adapting a
constitution, and in selecting competent persons to fill the various
minor offices of trust. His defense, as a whole, did not excul-
pate him in the eyes of the Board of Trade. He was allowed to
resign his gubernatorial commission and to resume his rank in
the Navy.
33
514 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
In reviewing the conduct of Governor Reynolds it must be
admitted that to one of his calling the position of governor of a
province was peculiarly trying. In the language of Bishop
Stevens,” “unused to legislative bodies, unconversant with courts
of law, unversed in the functions of his office, he was transferred
from the quarter-deck of a man-of-war to the helm of a royal
province, and was required to begin, arrange, digest, and carry
out, the many necessary steps and changes in the first establish-
ing of a new, and to the people untried, form of government.
This required a patience, energy, knowledge, and firmness which
Governor Reynolds did not possess. He was not adequate to the
duties which his station required, and yielding to the machina-
tions of his private secretary he made himself obnoxious by de-
volving upon a parasite powers which he himself should have
used with knowledge and discretion.” Once again afloat, how-
ever, he took his place among the trusted officers of the greatest
naval power of the world, and died an admiral of the blue.
1 History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 425. New York. MDCCCXLVII.
CHAPTER XXXII.
LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR ELLIS ARRIVES IN GEORGIA AND IS HEARTILY WEL-
coMED. — TEMPER OF THE ColoSY. — PRUDENCE AND IMPARTIALITY OF
THE NEw CHIEF MAGISTRATE. – HE VISITS THE SOUTHERN FRONTIER AND
REcoMMENDS THE REMovAL of THE SEAT OF GOVERNMENT FROM SAVAN-
NAH. To HARDwſcKE. – CourTESIES ExCHANGED BETWEEN THE EXECUTIVE
AND THE GENERAL Assembly. — GEORGIA DIVIDED INTO EIGHT PARISHES;
— LEGISLATrve ENACTMENTs. – PROVISION FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT, IN-
coRPoRATION, AND SUPPORT of CHURCHES. – ELLIS’ REPORT OF THE CON-
DITION of THE PROVINCE IN 1758. — ELLIS COMMISSIONED GOVERNOR. -
GEORGIA UNABLE To Assist IN THE WAR AGAINST THE FRENCH IN AMER-
ICA.—CoNFERENCE AND TREATY witH THE INDIANS AT SAVANNAH.-ED-
MUND GREY AND HIs ADHERENTs. – HEAT AT SAVANNAH. – GOVERNOR
ELLIS IN ILL-HEALTH solicITs A RECALL. —JAMES WRIGHT APPOINTED
HIs SUCCEssoR. —DEPARTURE OF GOVERNOR ELLIS.
AvoidING the errors which had been committed by Captain
Reynolds in the administration of governmental affairs in Geor-
gia, and cognizant of the unsettled condition of the public mind
in that province, Governor Ellis at the outset appears to have
formed a resolution to act the part of a pacificator and, by a firm,
impartial, and yet conciliatory course, to accommodate all divis-
ions of sentiment, and to unify the inhabitants in a general ef-
fort to promote peace, good order, and prosperity. The official
duties which were now to claim his attention were to him quite
novel. His tastes had hitherto led him in the paths of scientific
inquiry and geographical discovery. His had been the life of a
student and of an author.
When not forty years old he was entrusted by Parliament with
the conduct of an important expedition in quest of a new passage
to the Pacific. For more than a twelvemonth, in the execution
of this commission, did he endure the dangers and the rigors of
frozen seas. The results of his observations and discoveries were
communicated in a publication which attracted general notice
and elicited much commendation not only in England, but also
in France, Germany, and Holland. So highly were his services
and attainments appreciated both by the learned of England and
by the government itself that at the hands of the former he was
516 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
complimented with a fellowship of the Royal Society, and by the
latter was rewarded with the appointment of deputy commissary
general.
Through the influence of the Earl of Halifax he was selected
as the successor of Governor Reynolds: and the “London Gazette”
in noticing his promotion speaks of him as an “active, sensible,
and honest man.”
Although royal assent to this advancement was signified on
the 3d of August, 1756, the year was hastening to its close be-
fore the governor found a suitable opportunity for departing
upon his mission. Arriving in Charlestown late in January, he
was there the recipient of many courtesies extended by the Caro-
lina authorities. It was not until the 16th of February, 1757, that
he reached Savannah. As he landed from his barge, welcoming
shouts ascended from the assembled multitude. Wearied with
and disappointed at the rule of Governor Reynolds, the inhab-
itants longed for the advent of the new chief magistrate from
whom so much was expected. They received him with open
arms. Amid the joy of the present and the anticipations of the
future the sorrows of the past were forgotten.
Pausing not to dally with the salutations of the citizens, with
genuine civility he at once repaired to the residence of Governor
Reynolds and there paid his formal respects. Then it was that
he gratefully responded to the general welcome supplemented by
thunders of artillery from the land battery and from the ship-
ping in port. Accompanying Captain Reynolds to the chamber
where the members of council were assembled, he produced his
commission as lieutenant-governor of the province. It was pub-
licly read. He took the oaths of office. The great seal was
delivered into his custody; and so the ceremony of his induction
into the gubernatorial chair of Georgia was ended. The evening
was given up to illuminations, the firing of guns, and to lusty
cheers. Little, the marplot, was publicly burned in effigy. Soon
from the freeholders of Savannah, of Ogeechee and Midway dis-
tricts, from the Masonic fraternity, and from other organized
societies came congratulatory addresses complimentary to the
lieutenant-governor and anticipatory of the benefits which would
flow from the reforms it was confidently believed he would
inaugurate. Among those who, in an organized capacity, ten-
dered a welcome was a band of school-boys, associated together
as a military company. Having first paraded before his excel-
lency and secured his commendation of their soldierly appearance
WISE POLICY OF GOVERNOR ELLIS. 517
and well-executed manoeuvres, through their captain these boys
presented this address : —
“SIR,-The youngest Militia of this Province presume by
their Captain, to salute your Honour on your arrival. Although
we are of too tender years to comprehend the blessing a good
Governor is to a Province, our parents will doubtless experience
it in its utmost extent, and their grateful tale shall fix your name
dear in our memories.”
This episode Governor Ellis cherished among the most pleas-
ing incidents connected with his early sojourn in the colony.
Prior to leaving England he bad endeavored to familiarize
himself with the pressing wants of the colony, and to acquire an
intelligent apprehension of the causes which produced its existing
distractions. The lamentable state of the public defenses and
the absence of military stores were within his knowledge. He
had also been made acquainted with the malevolent influences
which the French were seeking to exert over the minds of the
Cherokees, and with the jealousies entertained by the Spaniards.
It was evident that the continued good-will of the natives could
be thoroughly retained only through the liberal use of acceptable
gifts. Before sailing for Georgia he had therefore addressed a
memorial to the Lords Commissioners of Trade and Plantations
requesting them without delay to forward five hundred muskets
with which to arm the militia of the province, to send additional
presents for the Indians, and to dispatch a ship of war to protect
the coast.
This application was heeded, and the speedy fulfillment of his
request at the outset not only rendered the province more capa-
ble of self-protection, but confirmed the confidence of the colo-
mists both in his inclination to promote their welfare and in his
ability to compass their security.
One of his earliest public acts was to reinstate two members of
council who, without just cause, had been removed by Governor
Reynolds. This he did with such fairness and impartiality that
no umbrage was taken.
The temper of the community is thus reported in an early com-
munication : “I found the people here exceedingly dissatisfied
with each other, and an almost universal discontent arising from
the late proceedings, and persons in power. Few approached
me that were not inflamed with resentment and liberal in invec-
tives; urgent that I should take some immediate and very violent
steps, such as a total change in public officers, and the dissolution
518 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
of the Assembly.” The sound judgment exercised and the wise
course pursued by him under these delicate and trying circum-
stances are certified by the following extract from one of his
letters to the Board of Trade: “Sensible of my own inexperience
and of the violence of such counsels, fearful of being misled, and
aiming rather at healing the wounds and extinguishing the flame
of party than stirring it anew, I forebore making any material
alteration until I should be qualified to act from observation and
experience in order that the changes I shall then make may
rather be attributed to my own judgment than to the advice of
designing and interested people. This suspense will give time
for men's passions to subside, and for truth to appear through
the cloud of party prejudice that at present obscures it.”
This conduct, calm, conservative, self-reliant, deliberate, dis-
passionate, and statesmanlike, produced an effect most beneficial.
The tool of no faction, the instrument of no party, he sought only
the public good. The colonists quickly recognized his merit, his
impartiality, his integrity, his zeal for the common weal, and
accorded to him a place high in their respect and affection.
He took occasion without delay to memorialize the Board of
Trade upon the necessity of at once furnishing the colony with a
chief justice so that judicial proceedings might be conducted with
becoming uniformity, dignity, and fairness. During the pre-
ceding administration the legal rights of parties had, on various
occasions, failed of proper assertion, and sometimes the suprem-
acy of the bench within its legitimate sphere was openly disputed
and violently set at naught. His representations also with re-
gard to maintaining amicable relations with the Indians, rebuild-
ing the forts on the frontiers, enlisting troops to defend them,
and in respect to the encouragement of silk culture, were intelli-
gent and emphatic.
That the members of the General Assembly might enjoy a
respite from their labors and have time for reflection before en-
tering upon the business to which he purposed inviting their
attention, Governor Ellis by a short message, sent in on the 17th
of February, 1757, adjourned that body until the 8th of March,
and, prior to its assembling, continued its recess until the 16th
of June.
In April he visited the southern parts of the colony and formed
the personal acquaintance of many of its inhabitants residing at
points remote from Savannah, the commercial metropolis and
still the capital of the province. So impressed was he with the
ADDRESS OF GOVERNOR ELLIS. 519
central location of Hardwicke on the Great Ogeechee, with its
commercial advantages, and with the fertility of the adjacent
lands, that he sympathized fully in the suggestion which had
been made by Governor Reynolds that the capital of Georgia
should be transferred from Savannah and established at this point.
Clinging to this scheme, and hoping that it would commend it-
self to the approbation of the Board of Trade, Governor Reynolds
had sadly neglected the public buildings at Savannah. The in-
habitants, too, believing that the seat of government was soon
to be thence removed, ceased to be interested in extending and
beautifying their town. As has already been intimated, the Fila-
ture was then out of repair. Christ Church was so much de-
cayed that it had to be propped up to keep it from falling down,
and the prison “was shocking to humanity.”
Upon the assembling of the Upper and Lower Houses on the
16th of June, 1757, the governor addressed them as follows : —
“Gentlemen of the Council and of the Commons House of As-
sembly.
“The Honour his Majesty has been graciously pleased to con-
fer on me in appointing me to preside in the Government of this
Province calls in a particular Manner for the Exertion of my
best Abilities to approve myself not unworthy of so distinguish-
ing a Mark of the Royal Favour.
“Persuaded I am that the surest Means of doing this will be
to consult your Felicity and the general Welfare of this Infant
Colony.
“Directed by these Considerations I shall always be glad of
your Advice and Assistance, and shall esteem every Proposal of
yours of the same Tendency as the most important Service you
can render me.
“I can with unfeigned Sincerity declare that I enter upon this
Station with the most disinterested Views, without Prejudice to
any Man or Body of Men, or Retrospect to past Transactions or
Disputes, but animated with the warmest Zeal for whatever con-
cerns your Happiness or the publick Utility: sincerely inclined
to concur with you in every just and necessary Measure, and fully
resolved that if unfortunately my Wishes and Endeavours prove
fruitless, to be the first to solicit my Recall.
“From such Dispositions on my Part I would willingly hope
that you will not be wanting on yours; I flatter myself that your
Zeal for the publick Good is at least equal, and that you come
1 See Stevens' History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 433. New York. MDCCCXLVII.
520 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
together in the most dispassionate Temper, divested of Preposses-
sion, Animosity and Distrust, — Heartily disposed to coöperate
with me in promoting the publick Service by establishing Order,
mutual Confidence and domestic Tranquillity, as there never was
a Conjuncture when these were more immediately necessary.
“However interesting the Objects that used to engage your
Thoughts may seem, they certainly bear no Proportion to those
that now demand your Attention. Your Religion, your Liberty,
your all is at stake. I do therefore earnestly exhort you to study
your true Interests only ; not to spend your Time, so valuable to
yourselves and the Public, in the Pursuit of Things trivial or
unreasonable, that may defeat the great Ends of your Meeting.
Lay aside your Jealousies of each Other and of Government, and
do not forget that you are People who have great and daily Obli-
gations to your Mother Country for Support and Protection in
this your exposed and hopeless State; that you have a consti-
tutional Dependence upon her, calculated for your Advantage,
Security, and the general Good; and that from a suitable and
becoming Conduct alone you will be entitled to, and may rea-
sonably expect a Continuation of her Regard and Assistance;
and every Sort of Encouragement and Indulgence from me that
his Majesty's Instructions (framed upon the purest principles
of Equity and the strictest Regard to your Happiness) can au-
thorize.
“It is evident how much you have been the object of the royal
Attention and Favour by the late Establishment of a regular
System of Government among you, wherein your Interest and
Convenience were principally consulted.
“It is further manifested by the Readiness with which the late
supply of Arms and Ammunition were granted and Presents for
securing the Indians in your Alliance and Defence at a Time of
great Exigence when the very Existence of the State is threatened
by the Efforts of a powerful and implacable Enemy.
“These Considerations ought to inspire you with the deepest
Sentiments of Gratitude, and these Sentiments will be best shown
in the Discharge of those Duties you owe yourselves and your
Country upon this important Occasion.
“As I know how precious your Time now is, I call you to-
gether but for a short Sitting, although upon Points of the last
Consequence to your present Safety, Credit, and future Pros-
perity.
“Gentlemen, it would be needless to represent to you the dan-
ADDRESS OF GOVERNOR ELLIS. 521
gerous Situation you are in, and the absolute Necessity there is
of exerting Yourselves vigorously, by employing in the most
speedy and efficacious Manner every Means in your Power that
may tend to avert those affecting Calamities that have already
been so severely felt by some and are justly dreaded by all his
Majesty's American Subjects, notwithstanding his paternal En-
deavours to prevent them.
“The Chief Part of these Misfortunes may not improperly be
ascribed to the shameful Neglect, not to say Perverseness of those
who suffer, and by whose timely Efforts and Attention they might
in a great Measure have been prevented.
“Instructed by so fatal an Example, and urged by so many
pressing and alarming Circumstances, I doubt not that you will
distinguish yourselves by an uncommon Zeal and Alacrity in con-
-certing and carrying into Execution such Measures as are most
suitable to the dangerous Crisis.
“When Alarms are sounding from every Quarter, and when
so active and formidable an Enemy is upon your Borders, pro-
jecting by every Means that inveterate Malice can suggest the
Accomplishment of your Ruin, no Time is to be lost.
“I am sensible it is but little you are able to do, yet that Lit-
tle should be done with Spirit and Cheerfulness becoming Eng-
lishmen who know how to prize the peculiar and inestimable
Blessings they enjoy.
“The Construction of Log Forts in proper Situations would
certainly contribute to your Safety by affording Places of Re-
treat where, upon any sudden Emergency, a short stand might
be made until Succour could arrive: and any Encouragement
that can be given toward procuring an Accession of Inhabitants
would accelerate your Prosperity, add to your Strength, and be
the best Security in Times to come.
“These weighty Considerations naturally suggest the Expedi-
ency and Necessity of framing forthwith such Laws as shall be
most conducive to those salutary Ends.
“Gentlemen of the Commons House of Assembly.
“I have ordered the State of the publick Debt to be laid be-
fore you, and I rely upon your taking the most effectual and least
burthensome Method for its Discharge and for preventing the
like Incumbrances for the future. As the Maintenance of the
publick Faith and Credit of this Province is at all Times essen-
tially necessary, more especially at the present when your Safety
is so closely connected with it, I therefore hope it will constitute
a capital object of your Deliberations.
522 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
“Gentlemen of the Council and of the Commons House of As-
sembly.
“I defer matters of a more general Nature to a future Occasion
when the Season will admit of a longer Absence from your pri-
vate Concerns, and have now only to recommend to you in the
strongest Manner Unanimity and Dispatch, and you may depend
on my ready Concurrence in everything that can promote your
real Happiness.”
Upon an assembly lately at variance with the chief magis-
trate of the colony, and sometimes suffering from a lack of unity
among its members, this affectionate, high-toned, and patriotic
speech from the new governor produced a profound and most
favorable impression. Mr. Habersham, Mr. Knox, Mr. Harris,
Mr. Clifton, and Mr. James Mackay were appointed to prepare
and present to the governor an address of thanks. This was
done in the following terms : —
“May it please your Honour.
“We, his Majesty's most dutiful and loyal Subjects, the Coun-
cil of Georgia in General Assembly met, beg Leave to return
your Honour our unfeigned Thanks for your affectionate Speech
to both Houses at the opening of this Session.
“With Hearts overflowing with Gratitude to the best of Kings
for his paternal Goodness in taking the distressed Circumstances
of this Province into his royal Consideration and appointing your
Honour to preside over us, we take this first Opportunity of con-
gratulating your Honour upon your safe Arrival in this Prov-
ince, and promise to ourselves from your Honour's distinguished
Abilities, acknowledged Probity, and unwearied Application, that
the Day of your Arrival will prove the AEra of the Prosperity of
this Colony.
“We beg Leave to assure your Honour that we shall at all
Times esteem it our indispensable Duty to offer you our best Ad-
vice and Assistance, and shall also chearfully coöperate with you
in every just and necessary Measure for the general Welfare and
Felicity of this infant Colony; not doubting but your Wishes
and Endeavours will merit the Divine Favour, and that your
Honour will prove a long and lasting Blessing to this Province.
“We are truly sensible of our exposed and helpless State, and
the great Necessity there is for Unanimity and mutual Confi-
dence in this Time of publick Danger, and we do with the great-
est Sincerity assure your Honour that we will, to the utmost of
our Power, studiously avoid every Occasion of Altercation and
RESPONSE OF THE ASSEMBLY. 523
the Pursuit of Things trivial or unseasonable, and that we shall
ever retain the most grateful Remembrance of the great Obliga-
tions we have to our Mother Country for Support and Protection,
and of her constant Attention to our Safety so recently manifested
by the very seasonable Supply of Arms and Ammunition, and
Presents for securing the Indians in our Alliance and Defence in
this critical Conjuncture; constantly bearing in Mind our Con-
stitutional Dependence on her, and endeavouring to frame our
Conduct so that it may intitle us to a Continuance of her Regard
and Assistance and to the royal Favour and Indulgence.
“The distressed and calamitous Condition of many of his Maj-
esty's Subjects on this Continent deeply affects us, and we shall,
with the greatest Readiness, concur in every Measure in our
Power to enable your Honour to defeat the Machinations of our
Enemies and to avert those Evils their Malice may suggest for
the Accomplishment of our Ruin.
“We are sorry to say that little is in our Power, but that Little
we shall do with Spirit and Alacrity, accounting the Preserva-
tion of those invaluable Blessings, our Religion, Laws, and Lib-
erties, our nearest Concern.
“We shall give immediate Attention to the framing of such
Laws as may best tend to the Security of this Province and the
Increase of its Inhabitants, and shall readily join in effectually
supporting the public Credit, and preventing future Incum-
brances.” 1
The pledges thus given were honestly and patriotically ob-
served. During the administration of Governor Ellis harmony
and good-will obtained between the executive and the houses
constituting the General Assembly. Even the efforts of Little,
who had so long disturbed the public tranquillity, to poison the
minds of some of the legislators and to excite a prejudice against
the new chief magistrate failed to engender any distrust or to
cause a division in the sentiments of the assembly. He had been
unmasked. The day of his influence and power was over. Those
who had of late fattened by the favor of Governor Reynolds
deserted the cause of the deposed chief magistrate, and Governor
Ellis was soon able to report the “hydra faction which had long
preyed upon the happiness of the people seems at present ex-
piring.”
Regularly were the sessions of the General Assembly held dur-
* See M.S. Journal of the Council in Assembly for the Province of Georgia, pp.
l63–171.
524 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA,
ing Governor Ellis' term of office, and its deliberations were
characterized by harmony, ability, and honesty.
One of the most interesting acts passed by the legislature dur-
ing this administration was that dividing the several districts of
the province into parishes, providing for the establishment of
religious worship according to the rites and ceremonies of the
Church of England, and empowering the church-wardens and
vestrymen of the respective parishes to assess rates for the repair
of churches, the relief of the poor, and for other parochial ser-
vices. This act was approved on the 17th of March, 1758. Ac-
cording to its provisions the “Town and District of Savannah ex-
tending up the Savannah river, and including the islands therein,
as far as the southeast boundary of Goshen, from thence in a
Southwest line to the river Great Ogeechee, and from the town
of Savannah eastward as far as the mouth of the river Savannah,
including the sea islands to the mouth of the river Great Ogee-
chee, and all the settlements on the north side of the said river
to the western boundaries thereof,” constituted the parish of
CHRIST CHURCH.
The district of Abercorn and Goshen and the district of Eben-
ezer, extending from the northwest boundaries of Christ Church
Parish up the Savannah River as far as the Beaver Dam, and
southwest as far as the mouth of Horse Creek on the river Great
Ogeechee, were constituted a parish by the name of SAINT
MATTHEW.
The district of Halifax, extending from the northwest bounda-
ries of St. Matthew's Parish up the Savannah River from the
mouth of Mackbeen’s Swamp to the head thereof, and from
thence to the head of Lambol’s Creek and to the Great Ogeechee
River, was erected into a parish and called SAINT GEORGE.
“The district of Augusta, extending from the northwest
boundary of the parish of Saint George, and southwest as far
as the river Ogeechee, and northwest up the river Savannah as
far as Broad river" was designated as the parish of SAINT
PAUL.
“The town of Hardwicke and district of Ogeechee on the
south side of the river Great Ogeechee, extending northwest up
the said river as far as the Lower Indian Trading Path leading
from Mount Pleasant, and southward from the town of Hard-
wicke as far as the swamp of James Dunham, including the set-
tlements on the north side of the north branches of the river
Midway, with the island of Ossabaw, and from the head of the
GEORGIA DIVIDED INTO PARISHES. 525
said Dunham's swamp in a northwest line” were denominated
the parish of SAINT PHILIP.
Sunbury, in the district of Midway and Newport, and all the
territory “from the southern bounds of the parish of Saint Philip,
extending southward as far as the north line of Samuel Hast-
ings, from thence southeast to the south branch of Newport, in-
cluding the islands of Saint Catharine and Bermuda, and from
the north line of the said Samuel Hastings northwest,” consti-
tuted the parish of SAINT JOHN.
“The town and district of Darien extending from the south
boundary of the parish of Saint John to the river Alatamaha, in-
cluding the islands of Sapelo and Eastwood, and the sea islands
to the north of Egg island, and northwest up the river Alata-
maha to the forks or the said river,” were formed into the parish
of SAINT ANDREW.
“The town and district of Frederica, including the islands of
Great and Little Saint Simon, and the adjacent islands,” were to
constitute the parish of SAINT JAMES.
The church already erected in Savannah, and the ground ap-
purtenant thereto used as a burial place, were in and by this
act designated as the Parish Church and Cemetery of Christ
Church.
It was further provided that “Bartholomew Zouberbuhler,
clerk, the present Minister of Savannah, shall be the rector and
incumbent of the said Church of Christ Church, and he is hereby
incorporated and made one body politick and corporate by the
name of the rector of Christ Church in the town of Savannah;
and shall be and he is hereby enabled to sue and be sued by
such name in all courts within this Province, and shall have the
cure of souls within the said Parish, and shall be in the actual pos-
session of the said Church with its cemetery and appurtenances,
and shall hold and enjoy the same to him and his successors, to-
gether with the glebe land already granted to him, and the mes-
Suage or tenement near to the said Church, with all and singular
the buildings and appurtenances thereunto belonging, and also
all other lands, tenements and hereditaments as shall or may
hereafter be given and granted to the said Church or the incum-
bent thereof.” y
Similar provisions were made for the incorporation, in the
town of Augusta, of the Parish Church of Saint Paul; and Gov-
ernor Ellis, James Habersham, Francis Harris, James Mackay,
James Edward Powell, William Clifton, William Knox, David
.*
526 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Montaigut, James Deveaux, Noble Wimberley Jones, Thomas
Rasberry, William Russel, William Spencer, and Charles Wat-
son were appointed commissioners, so soon as they should be
thereunto enabled by allowance of Parliament, by charitable do-
nations, or by provision of the General Assembly of Georgia, to
cause a church to be erected in each of the other six parishes,
viz., Saint Matthew, Saint George, Saint Philip, Saint John,
Saint Andrew, and Saint James, and to have builded in each of
those parishes a convenient parsonage, with out-buildings, for
the habitation of the rector. They were also empowered to lay
out and inclose a cemetery or burial place for each of those
churches.
Upon the erection of these ecclesiastical structures and the
appointment of rectors, incorporations were to be allowed as in
the cases of Christ Church in Savannah and of Saint Paul in Au-
gusta.
Vestry-men and church-wardens were to be selected and sworn
to the faithful performance of their duties.
For the purpose of keeping church edifices in repair, for the
care of the respective cemeteries, sacred utensils, and ornaments,
to provide bread and wine for the Holy Eucharist, to pay the
salaries of clerk and sexton, and to make provision for the poor
and impotent of the several parishes, the rector, church-wardens,
and vestry-men were authorized to levy a tax on the estate, real
and personal, of all the inhabitants within the respective par-
ishes, sufficient to yield in the parishes of Christ Church and of
St. Paul É30 each, and in the parishes where no churches had
been as yet erected £10 each. The method of assessing and
collecting this tax is pointed out.
With the rector, church-wardens, and vestry-men rested the
power of appointing sextons and of fixing their salaries and fees.
The rector was to be one of the vestry, and the church-wardens
in each parish were directed to procure, at the charge of the
parish, a well-bound paper or parchment book wherein the vestry-
clerk of the parish was to register the “births, christenings, mar-
riages, and burials of all and every person and persons that shall
from time to time be born, christened, married, or buried within
the said parish, under the penalty of five pounds sterling on fail-
ure thereof.” For each entry the veštry-clerk was entitled to
receive, as a fee, one shilling sterling. These registers were to
be adjudged and accepted in all courts of record in the province
as furnishing sufficient proof of the births, marriages, christen-
PROVISIONS FOR ERECTING CHURCHES. 527
ings, and burials therein mentioned ; and if any party was con-
victed of willfully making or causing to be made any false entry
therein, or of maliciously erasing, altering, or defacing an entry,
or of embezzling any entry or book of record, he was to be ad-
judged guilty of a felony and to be punished with death without
benefit of clergy. Each vestry was instructed to nominate a
proper person to keep a record of its proceedings, and to act as
the custodian of its books and papers. No authority was con-
ferred upon rectors to exercise any ecclesiastical jurisdiction, or
to administer ecclesiastical law.
Such are the leading provisions of the act dividing Georgia
into parishes, and erecting churches in sympathy with the tenets
of the Established Church of England. While the patronage of
the Crown and of the colonial assembly was extended in this
special manner in aid of churches professing the Episcopal faith,
it was not designed to favor them by an exclusive recognition.
The idea appeared to be to accord to that denomination within
the limits of Georgia a prestige akin to that which the Church of
England enjoyed within the realm, to create certain offices for
the encouragement of that religious persuasion and the extension
of the gospel in accordance with its forms of worship and mode
of government, and to provide a method by which faithful reg-
isters of births, marriages, christenings, and deaths might be kept
and perpetuated. Numerous were the Dissenters then in the prov-
ince. They were represented by Presbyterians, Lutherans, Con-
gregationalists, Methodists, a few Baptists, and some Hebrews.
To all sects, save Papists, was free toleration accorded, and when-
ever a dissenting congregation organized and applied for a grant
of land whereon to build a church the petition did not pass un-
heeded. There can be no doubt, however, but that it was the
intention of the government, both royal and colonial, to engraft
the Church of England upon the province and, within certain
limits, to advance its prosperity and insure its permanency. At
the same time an adherence to its rubrics was in no wise made
a condition precedent to political preferment.
As a Salutary precaution against domestic insurrections and
other sudden dangers, each white male inhabitant of the province
“from the age of sixteen years and upwards" was, by an act as-
sented to on the 28th of July, 1757, required to carry with him
“on Sabbath days, fasts, and festivals,” to the place of public
worship within the town or district where he resided, “one good
gun, or pair of pistols, with at least six charges of gun powder
and ball.”
528 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
To encourage skilled labor within the province, and to induce
white men from other colonies to settle in Georgia and ply the
trades of carpenters, masons, bricklayers, plasterers, and joiners,
the General Assembly passed an act on the 15th of March, 1758,
forbidding the employment of negro slaves in those avocations
unless the white artisans should refuse to work at fair and rea-
sonable prices to be ascertained by commissioners designated for
that purpose."
That disputes and disagreements between the colonists and the
Indians might be avoided, acts were approved forbidding all per-
sons, under heavy penalties, to traffic with the natives or to ac-
quire lands from them except by special license.
Quarantine regulations were established by statute, and com-
missioners were appointed to summon and superintend the labor
of the inhabitants in the erection of log-forts at convenient points
for the further security of the province.
The embargo, as enjoined by his majesty's proclamations, prov-
ing insufficient to deter evil-disposed persons from obtaining sup-
plies of provisions and stock from Georgia with a view to selling
them to the enemy, the General Assembly, by an act assented to
on the 19th of July, 1757, established severe prohibitions with
regard to the transportation of cattle, horses, sheep, hogs, corn,
rice, flour, and bread beyond the southern limits of the prov-
ince.”
A general system of patrols,” with extensive powers and respon-
sibilities, was devised for preserving order upon plantations and
throughout the colony.
In order to quiet the titles to lands, a statute was enacted which
declared “That all and every person or persons that are now pos-
sessed of or do hold any Lands or Tenements whatsoever within
the said Province of Georgia by and under grants from the late
honourable Trustees for establishing the Colony of Georgia, or by
and under Grants from his Majesty obtained since the surrender
of the Charter of the said Trustees, are hereby established and
confirmed in the Possession of their several and respective Lands
and Tenements, and such Grants thereof are hereby accordingly
ratified and confirmed and declared to be good and valid to all
Intents and Purposes whatsoever against all and all manner of
1 Acts of the General Assembly of the Col- of the Colony of Georgia, 1755–1774, now
ony of Georgia, 1755–1774, now first print- first printed, pp. 135, 159. Wormsloe.
ed., p. 149. Wormsloe. MDCCCLXXXI. MDCCCLXXXI.
2 Acts passed by the General Assembly 8 See Act of July 28, 1757.
LEGISLATIVE ENACTMENTS. 529
Persons claiming any Estate or Interest therein by and under
the said Lords Proprietors of Carolina, or by or under any former
Grant obtained before the date of his Majesty's Charter to the
said Trustees for establishing the Colony of Georgia, any Act,
Law or Statute to the Contrary notwithstanding.”.”
This act which, in due course, received the sanction of the
home government, afforded considerable relief, and, in the most
authoritative way, declared the invalidity of quite a number of
grants affecting lands in the southern portion of the province
which emanated in a rather loose fashion from the Lords Proprie-
tors of Carolina and had never been accompanied by any pos-
Sessio pedis.
By a prior act, assented to on the 15th day of March, 1758,
all persons claiming lands under any warrant of survey, allot-
ment, or conveyance from the trustees, or from the president of
the colony and his assistants, who had not already done so, were
required, within three years from the 20th of March, 1758, to
appear before the governor and council, make good their claims,
and receive, in lieu of former titles, king's grants for the same,
By special enactment the rate of interest in the colony was re-
duced to eight per cent per annum; qualifications for jurors
were prescribed; provision was made for the more speedy re-
covery of debts in justices’ courts; the legal fees of magistrates
and constables were fixed; the method was determined by which
feme coverts should unite with their husbands in alienating
lands; special or extraordinary courts were organized for the
trial of causes arising between merchants and mariners; penal-
ties were promulgated to prevent the stealing of horses and neat
cattle, and punishments ordered to be inflicted upon those who
changed the mark or brand of another, or unlawfully killed his
stock; fences were regulated; and the militia laws of the prov-
ince were carefully revised.
At the hands of the General Assembly Savannah claimed and
received much attention. Among the acts passed may be men
tioned one establishing a watch in that town; two regulating
taverns, punch houses, and the sale of spirituous liquors; two
more for the proper conduct of the market; a sixth establishing
further rules for the conduct of the watch; a seventh forbidding
the erection of wooden chimneys; an eighth empowering trus-
tees to purchase a residence for the use of the present and fu-
* Acts passed by the General Assembly now first printed, p. 188. Wormsloe.
of the Colony of Georgia, 1755–1774, MDCCCLXXXI.
34
530 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
ture governors of the province; a ninth regulating the assize of
bread; a tenth for the construction of a public magazine; an
eleventh for the repair of Christ Church ; and a twelfth for the
general regulation of the town. Tybee light-house was not for-
gotten. Provision was made for the support of the courts of
oyer and terminer, and for the defrayal of expenses connected
with the administration of the government. Masters of vessels
were prevented from conveying debtors from the province, and
frauds in lumber were pointed out and denounced. Nearly fifty
acts passed by the general assemblies convened during Governor
Ellis' administration received royal sanction. Their delibera-
tions were characterized by honesty of purpose, unity of senti-
ment, and a laudable devotion to the best interests of the colony.
All dissensions had ceased, and the attitude maintained by this
legislative body toward the governor was in all respects deferen-
tial and conciliatory. Under the wise, conservative, and gentle
rule of Governor Ellis Georgia was rapidly lifting herself above
the shadows which gathered so darkly about her during the ad-
ministration of Governor Reynolds, and was already entering
upon that era of development and prosperity which was so sig-
nally confirmed under the able guidance of Governor Wright.
The following extract from a letter addressed by Governor
Ellis to the Board of Trade, under date May 30, 1758, advises
us of the condition of some of the military defenses of the colony,
and of other matters of moment appertaining to the welfare of
the province : — g
“Immediately after our Assembly rose I took a Journey to
the South in order to examine into the state of things in that
Quarter. On my way I touch'd at the River Ogeeche and saw
the Fort that had lately been raised there in consequence of the
Resolutions of the Assembly last year. It is of a Quadrangular
Figure, each side measuring 100 yards, constructed with thick
logs set upright, fourteen feet long, five whereof are sunk in the
Earth, and has four little Bastions, pierced for small and great
guns that would render it very defenceable. From thence I pro-
ceeded to Medway where I found the Inhabitants had inclosed
their Church in the same manner, and erected a Battery of eight
guns at Sunbury in a very proper situation for defending the
River.
“I reached Frederica two days, after", the ruinous condition of
which I could not view without concern. A dreadful Fire, that
lately happened there, has destroyed the greatest part of the
CONDITION OF THE PROVINCE. 531
town. Time has done almost as much for the Fortifications.
Never was there a spot better calculated for a place of arms or
more capable of being fortified to advantage. It lies on the west
side of the Island St. Simon's, and the chief and most southern
branch of the great river Alatamaha. The military works were
never very large, but compact and extremely defenceable.
“The Sound will conveniently admit of 40 Gun Ships, and
those of 500 Tons burthen may come abreast of the Town; but
for three Miles below it the River winds in such a manner that
an Enemy must in that space be exposed to our Fire without
being able to return it. In short it is of the last importance that
that place should be kept in constant Repair and properly Gar-
risoned, as it is apparently and really the Key of this and the
rest of the King's Provinces to the South, but the wretched con-
dition in which it now is makes it easy to conjecture what would
be its fate should Spanish War suddenly break out.
“From hence I went to the Island of Cumberland on the south
point whereof stands Fort William, a Post of no less consequence,
as is evident from the Defence it made against Twenty Eight
Spanish Vessels and a considerable Land Force that attack'd it
unsuccessfully in the year 1742.
“General Oglethorpe has, in my humble opinion displayed a
great deal of Skill in his choice of such Situations.
“This Fort commands a noble Inlet from the Sea, – the en-
trance of the River St. Mary, - which runs deep into the Coun-
try, - and the Inland Passage thro' which the runaway Negroes
and other Deserters are obliged to go on their way to St. Au-
gustine.
“The works are of no great extent but admirably contrived to
be maintained by a small Garrison, and might be repaired with-
out any great expence. £3000 Sterling would be sufficient, and
Frederica might be rebuilt with solid and lasting materials as well
as be rendered very strong for about £10,000, and until these
things are done I apprehend this Province, and I may add the
next, will be very insecure.
“While I was at Cumberland I saw and had much discourse
with M. Gray. He is a very unintelligible character, shrewd,
sagacious, and capable of affording the best advice to others, but
ridiculously absurd in every part of his own conduct.
“He is now settled upon that Island with his family, and en-
gaged in a small Traffick with the Spaniards and Creek Indians.
With him I found a person lately come from St. Augustine who
532 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
informed me that a new Governor and 200 fresh Troops from
the Havannah were just arrived there, and that the Spaniards
persisted in their design of settling a New Colony in the envi-
rons of that Castle; and that they were preparing to build two
or three other Forts on the River of St Juan.
“This Information has a little alarmed our people, which is
not much to be wondered at considering their defenceless condi-
tion. Another circumstance which augments their fears is an
account we have received that three French Privateers are now
cruising upon our Coast, whilst we have no Vessel of War sta-
tioned here to molest them, and but a very incompetent force to
prevent their Crews doing much mischief should they attempt a
descent.
“It is more than a year and a half since a Troop of Rangers
were begun to be raised here. The late Governor drew Bills
upon the Earl of Loudoun for their Subsistence, which were pro-
tested.
“Upon the most urgent and repeated remonstrances his Lord-
ship, ten months ago, furnished me with a Credit upon the Pay-
Master at New York for £850 Sterling to maintain them ’till
further orders. That sum is expended, but those orders are
not yet arrived, notwithstanding his Lordship has embarked for
England.
“I am now supporting them upon my own Credit which, that
I may be the longer able to do, I have been compell'd to disband
half their number, and if General Abercromby, to whom I have
repeatedly and pressingly wrote upon this subject, does not speed-
ily authorize me to keep them on foot and appropriate a proper
Fund for that purpose, I shall be constrained to dismiss the rest.
“There remains but to acquaint your Lordships that every-
thing is quiet here, and that the Colony improves apparently.
“There is a probability that the raising of Silk will engage
the attention of our People more than heretofore and that that
important undertaking will one day or other compensate for the
trouble and expence which has attended its Infancy. This Sea-
son promises fair in its behalf: 6000 weights of cocoons, of a
good quality are already brought to the Filature and more are
yet expected.”
The urgent need for appropriations to defray the charges in-
cident to the maintenance of the few irregular troops in the
service of the colony, the patriotic action of the governor in re-
taining the services of the rangers and in supporting them at his
COMMUNICATION OF GOVERNOR ELLIS. 533
personal risk and upon his individual credit, the sense of inse-
curity entertained because of the absence of necessary military
forces, and the existence of Indian troubles are all brought to the
notice of the Lords Commissioners of Trade and Plantations in a
letter from the governor dated the 25th of October, 1758, from
which we make the following extract: —
“Your Lordships are too well acquainted with the real circum-
stances of this Frontier Province to blame my solicitude for its
safety. One point in particular concerns me so much that I can-
not now be silent upon it, notwithstanding I have so often men-
tioned it. I mean what relates to the Rangers raised here by
my Predecessor, who are not yet upon any establishment, but
have for many months past been maintained upon my own Credit
and risque. They are highly necessary to be kept on foot and
have been more than tacitly allowed of by the Earl of Loudoun.
I am therefore afraid I cannot answer to disband them, although
I am not able to support them much longer. His Lordship gave
me a credit last year for £850 to subsist them until further Or-
ders, but those have never arrived, and that sum has been ex-
pended long ago.
“Since General Abercromby assumed the chief command I have
wrote no less than four times successively to him upon this very
subject, but I cannot be favoured with one line for answer. In
short, this affair has created me a great deal of uneasiness and
embarrassment. Surely my Lords, if the present times were less
perturbed and dangerous, there would be sufficient reasons for
keeping up a small Body of Troops here.
“The want of means to inforce the Laws necessarily brings the
Government into contempt, and constrains me to wink at many
enormities committed by our own People and the Savages. It is
not uncommon for the former to set the Civil Power at defiance,
and gangs of the latter have more than once lived at discretion
upon the outsettlers and drove away numbers of their cattle. A
few months ago some straggling Indians from the Northward,
who are now settled in the Creek Country, robbed and murdered
a whole family not forty miles from this town.' I immediately
insisted upon satisfaction from the Creeks who, with some diffi-
culty and reluctance, in part gave it me : for one of the murder-
ers they put publickly to death. The others made their escape
but parties are sent in quest of them, and I have strong assur
ances that they shall suffer the same fate when they can be
! Savannah.
534 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
taken. It is very happy this affair ended thus; for had those
Savages been more averse to do Justice we could not have com-
pelled them. Our weakness then must have been most apparent,
and Crimes of this nature would probably have been perpetrated
daily.
“It would be endless to relate to your Lordships the various
shifts and expedients I have been reduced to, to conceal our ina-
bility. This sort of management may do for a season, but man-
kind are too penetrating to be long imposed upon even by the
most refined policy.” "
The loyal interest manifested by Mr. Ellis in the welfare of
the colony, his honest enforcement of all regulations promulgated
by the Crown, his pacific policy, and his wise administration of
public affairs so thoroughly commended him to his majesty's
favor that on the 17th of May, 1758, he was announced as gov-
ernor in chief of the province. .
In maintaining amicable relations with the Spaniards he was
quite fortunate, and his correspondence with the governor of
Florida is characterized by a commendable courtesy, dignity, and
fairness. The intimation at one time thrown out by the Spanish
ruler that the English were inciting the Indians to an invasion of
Florida was promptly repelled by Governor Ellis, and its falsity
clearly shown. He also denied that there was any intention on
the part of the Georgia colonists to appropriate a portion of the
territory rightfully claimed by his Catholic majesty. Until the
peace of 1763, when the country lying between the rivers Ala-
tamaha and St. Mary was placed under the jurisdiction of
Georgia, there had always existed some question as to the south-
ern boundary of the province, and the intermediate region was
known as a disputed territory to the ownership of which Georgia
and Florida each claimed a right to the exclusion of the other.
On the 20th of July, 1757, Governor Ellis laid before the
General Assembly an important communication from the Earl of
Chatham, calling for a contribution of men and money from
Georgia to aid in an offensive movement against the French in
Canada. In framing a response, the General Assembly adopted
this language: “We his Majesty's most dutiful and loyal sub-
jects, the Members of his Majesty's Council and Commons House
1 See Letter of Dunk Halifax, James taries of state, dated Whitehall, February
Oswald, Soame Jenyns, and W. G. 8, 1759, calling special attention to this
Hamilton to the Right Hon. William communication from Governor Ellis.
Pitt, one of his Majesty’s principal secre- P. R. O., Am. & W. Ind. No. 535.
*
RESPONSE OF THE ASSEMBLY. 535
of Assembly of the Province of Georgia in General Assembly
met, have seriously and attentively considered your Honour's
Message with the Copy of a Letter from the right honourable
William Pitt Esqr. one of his Majesty's principal Secretaries of
State.
“The very seasonable and vigorous Measures his Majesty has
been graciously pleased to take for the Preservation and Defence
of his American Dominions at this critical juncture has a just
Title to our most dutiful and grateful Acknowledgments.
“It is with the utmost concern we reflect upon the extreme
Poverty of the Inhabitants of this Province, as we are thereby
deprived of an opportunity of manifesting our Inclination of
contributing effectually to the common Cause, and of demon-
strating with what Chearfulness we should embrace every Oppor-
tunity of testifying our Loyalty and Zeal for the best of Kings.
“But when your Honour considers the great Efforts we have
made this Session by doubling our Taxes and appropriating so
great a Share of our Time and Labour for erecting Places of
public Defence in different Districts of this Province, you will
Sir, be convinced that we are unable to do more, and that noth-
ing has been wanting on our Parts but Ability to vie with the
most zealous and opulent of his Majesty's Subjects.
“It would be Presumption in Us, Sir, to suppose your Honour
a Stranger to the Melancholy State of this Colony, a bare Recol-
lection of which awakens in us every Apprehension that can
result from a knowledge of the most imminent and complicated
Danger. To find ourselves in a Country surrounded with the
most cruel and insolent Savages, absolutely destitute of every
Means of defending ourselves from their Barbarities in Case of a
Rupture, without any Forts that are not utterly in Ruins, or
Artillery but what are in a Manner unfit for Service: without
Magazines or Fund to erect them : without any Troops stationed
here save twenty odd Rangers (raised in the hurry of an Alarm)
yet unestablished, unpaid, and undisciplined: without any Vessel
of War for the Protection of our Coast: with but few Inhabitants
and those poor and widely dispersed over the Province: Open on
the one side to every Incursion of Indians, and, on the other,
exposed to every possible Insult from the most inconsiderable of
the Enemy's Vessels: in such a Situation our All is precarious.
“When we reflect on his Majesty's unabating Goodness to the
lowest and most distant of his Subjects, and advert to the recent
Instances we have experienced of his Paternal Regard to this
536 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Colony: when we consider Sir, the importance of this Province
to the Mother Country, and its being a Barrier to the other
Provinces on this Continent against such formidable Neighbours
as the French, Spaniards, and some of the most powerful and
numerous of the Indian Nations: and when, at the same Time,
we observe the Manner in which his Majesty's principal Secretary
of State has wrote to your Honour (so unsuitable to our pres-
ent Circumstances) We must conclude that his Majesty and his
Ministers have not been so frequently and so fully informed of
the real State and Condition of this important Frontier as our
Necessities and the critical Situation of Things on this Continent
require.
“The uncommon Zeal your Honour has displayed for the Wel-
fare of this Province since your arrival here justly demands our
hearty Thanks, and merits our utmost Confidence. It is there-
fore Sir, upon you that we must depend for a faithful Transmis-
sion of these Facts to his Majesty in the most clear and precise
Manner: not doubting but they will have all the Weight, and
produce all the Effects that we can reasonably desire.
28th July, 1757. By order of the Upper House,
PAT HOUSTOUN.
By order of the House,
DAVID MONTAIGUT, Speaker.”
For these reasons, so strenuously urged, did Georgia a third
time confess her inability to contribute toward the vigorous pros-
ecution of the war against the French in Canada. The excuses
rendered were valid, and they were so recognized by those in
authority.
Although the king's vessels of war, with their headquarters at
Charlestown, South Carolina, were ordered to guard the coast of
Georgia then infested with privateers, they responded only spas-
modically and very inefficiently to this duty. They preferred
rest in the harbor to active exercise at sea. Finding his remon-
strances ineffectual to beget greater activity on their part, Gov-
ernor Ellis, on his own motion, fitted out a ship mounting a bat-
tery of fourteen carriage and an equal number of swivel guns,
placed her under the command of experienced officers, and for
six weeks kept her busily cruising up and down the Georgia
coast. The effect was most wholesome both upon the enemy and
the slothful marine guard at Charlestown.
The intrigues of the French with the Indians dwelling beyond
the northern borders of the provinces of Carolina and Georgia
INDIAN CONFERENCE AT SAVANNAH. 537
necessitated the adoption of unusual precautions to retain their
friendship. At a conference between Governors Ellis of Georgia
and Lyttleton of South Carolina and Colonel Bouquet, command-
ing the king's forces in the southern department, it was agreed
that the Indians should be invited to Charlestown and afterwards
to Savannah where, by hospitable entertainment, a liberal distri-
bution of gifts, and an exhibition of military strength on the part
of the colonists, the red warriors might be induced to refrain
from violating their amicable relations. Influenced by the ear-
nest representations of Governor Ellis, Colonel Bouquet detailed
one hundred troops of the Virginia Provincials to take post at
Savannah, and placed the Georgia Rangers upon the king's estab-
lishment.
The conference between the governor and council and the
chiefs and head men of the Upper and Lower Creeks occurred at
Savannah on the 25th of October, 1757. Anxious to impress
these savages with the highest possible conception of the military
strength of the town, Governor Ellis ordered that they should be
received by the first regiment of militia, commanded by Colonel
Noble Jones, that sixteen cannon should be mounted in the dif-
ferent batteries around Savannah," and that seven field-pieces
should be placed in position in front of his dwelling. As the
Indians approached, escorted by Captain Milledge and the Ran-
gers, they were met beyond the lines by Captain Bryan and a
cavalcade of the principal inhabitants, who welcomed them in the
name of the governor and regaled them in a tent pitched for that
purpose. This preliminary reception concluded, preceded by the
citizens on horseback, the Rangers bringing up the rear, the pro-
cession of Indians advanced to the town gate where salutation
was made with three cannon from the King's battery, three from
the Prince's, five from Fort Halifax, and five from Loudoun's
bastions. Pausing at the gate, the citizens opened to the right
and left, facing inwards, and the Indians, marching between
them, entered the town, where they were received by Colonel
Jones at the head of the regiment and conducted with drums
beating and colors flying to the council chamber. While passing
the governor's residence the column was saluted by the battery
there stationed, and this compliment was repeated by the guns in
the water battery and by cannon on vessels in the river.
At the council house the regiment filed to the right and left
and, in parallel lines facing the chiefs and warriors as they ad-
* This town had been fortified by Captain DeBrahm.
538 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
vanced, presented arms. At the steps of the council chamber
they were saluted by the Virginia Blues; and, upon entering the
house, they were met by the governor who with outstretched
arms welcomed them thus: “My friends and brothers, behold
my hands and my arms 1 Our common Enemies, the French,
have told you they are red to the elbows. View them. Do they
speak the truth 2 Let your own eyes witness. You see they are
white, and could you see my heart, you would find it as pure, but
very warm and true to you, my friends. The French tell you
whoever shakes my hands will immediately be struck with dis-
ease and die. If you believe this lying, foolish talk, don’t touch
me. If you do not, I am ready to embrace you.”
This speech, so well adapted to the comprehension of the na-
tives, and so much in unison with their favorite style of utter-
ance, completely captivated their hearts. Approaching the gov-
ernor they shook his hand warmly, and declared that the French
had often sought to deceive them. Friendly greetings followed,
and the ceremonies of the day were concluded by a dinner at
which the head men of the twenty-one towns represented were
kindly and pleasantly entertained. During their stay in Savan-
nah these red men were complimented with many presents, and
were bountifully feasted. On the following Thursday, having
been honored with another military parade and by martial Sa-
lutes, they assembled in the council chamber, which was thronged
to its utmost capacity by the citizens. There they were again
addressed by Governor Ellis. “Observe, my friends,” said he,
“how serene and cloudless this day appears! I cannot but con-
sider it as a good omen of the success of this interview; and I
hope that you are all come with hearts resembling it, unclouded
by jealousies, and with dispositions suitable to the good work of
tightening the chain and making the path straight forever be-
tween us.” He then read in their hearing, with great solem-
nity, a communication which he had prepared, entitled “A Letter
from the Great King to his Beloved Children of the Creek Na:
tion.” Its conciliatory terms were pleasing to the Indians, and
their response promised peace and amity.
The result of this convention was all that could have been de-
sired. It was shown in the treaty of the 3d of November fol:
lowing, by which friendly relations between the province of
Georgia and the Creek confederacy were firmly pledged."
1 See MS. Minutes of Council. Stevens' History of Georgia, vol. i. pp. 440–443.
New York. MDCCCXLVII.
ADJUSTMENT OF THE BOSOMWORTH CLAIM. 539
On the lands lying between the Alatamaha and the St. John's
were congregated many outlaws and fugitives from justice.
Their chief settlement, known as New Hanover, was located on
the Satilla River about thirty miles above its mouth. Some of
them dwelt upon Cumberland Island. Followers of the notori-
ous Edmund Grey, they were a law unto themselves. Claiming
no title to land save that derived from naked occupancy, and ac-
knowledging no allegiance to Georgia, they were justly regarded
as a dangerous population. Fears were entertained that they
would cause disturbances both with the Spaniards in Florida and
with the neighboring Creek Indians. Orders were therefore is-
sued by the Crown to disperse this band of marauders. In ful-
fillment of them, commissioners, with ample powers, were ap-
pointed both by South Carolina and Georgia, who, proceeding
to New Hanover and Cumberland Island, disclosed their mission
and succeeded in prevailing upon these disreputable peoples to
abandon the territory where, without warrant, they had fixed
their homes. This peaceful solution of the difficulty was very
gratifying, for it was generally believed that the intervention of
force would be requisite to clear the region of these undesirable
inhabitants.
It was during Governor Ellis’ administration, and largely
through his instrumentality, that the Yexatious claims of Mary
Bosomworth were brought to a final settlement. That there
might be no question affecting the title of the Crown to the land
lying between Pipe-Maker's Creek and the Savannah River, and
to the islands of Ossabaw, Sapelo, and St. Catharine which had
been ceded to the English by the Indians on the 28th of May,
1751, the validity of that conveyance was sanctioned and recog-
nized by the Indian treaty of the 22d of April, 1758. The claim
of Mrs. Bosomworth, however, was still outstanding and was re-
garded as a cloud upon the title. When it was finally deter-
mined to surrender to her in fee the island of St. Catharine where
she had established her residence, and to pay her the sum of
£450 for goods disbursed by her in his majesty's service during
the years 1747 and 1748, and the further sum of £1,600 in full of
all her demands as government agent and interpreter, she agreed
to waive all claim to the islands of Ossabaw and Sapelo. These
islands were sold at public auction. The former brought £1,350
and the latter £700. The proceeds thence derived were paid over
to Mrs. Bosom worth. The lands lying between Savannah and
Pipe-Maker's Creek were also disposed of at public outcry, and
540 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
realized £638. This sum was paid into the treasury of the
province."
Governor Ellis was seriously affected by the climate of Georgia.
The potent rays of the summer sun he found very debilitating in
their influence. In July, 1758, writing in his piazza, Open at
each end and completely shaded, with a breeze blowing from the
southeast and no houses near to reflect the heat, he says Fahren-
heit's thermometer registered 102°. Twice before, to wit, on the
28th of June and the 11th of July, had the mercury attained that
height, and for days it rose to 98°. That summer he regarded
as unusually hot, and imagined that the weather betokened the
advent of a hurricane. Savannah being situated upon a sandy
eminence, shut in by tall woods, he thought the heat more intense
than in other parts of the colony. Although he deemed it highly
probable that the inhabitants of Savannah breathed “a hotter
air than any other people on the face of the earth,” he concludes
with the admission, “but few people die here out of the ordinary
course.” ”
Captain McCall in commenting upon this letter of Governor
Ellis comes thus loyally and truthfully to the rescue: “As Gov-
ernor Ellis was a man of sense and erudition, and no doubt made
his observations with accuracy, I shall not presume to call in
question the facts which he relates, but I feel bound to assert,
under the authority of the oldest inhabitants now living in Sa-
vannah, that there have been but few instances in which the
mercury has risen above 96°, and none in which it has risen above
100° in the shade within the last thirty years. The trade winds
prevail on the sea-coast of Georgia with great uniformity in the
summer, particularly on the southern part of it; and it is not
unworthy of remark that I resided at Point Peter near the mouth
of St. Mary's River eighteen months, and the garrison consisted
of near one hundred troops, and that I do not recollect, after the
first fortnight, to have seen three men in bed with the fever, and
that only one died during that period, and his disease was a con-
sumption. Indeed the seashore is healthy, except in the vicinity
of stagnant fresh water. . . .
“I have annexed these remarks because Governor Ellis asserts
that the maritime parts of Georgia are the most unhealthy and
unpleasant.”
1 See Stevens’ History of Georgia, vol. vannah. 1811. Compare Historical Account
i. p. 454. New York. MDCCCXLVII. of the Rise and Progress of the Colonies of
* See Gentleman’s Magazine for 1759, South Carolina and Georaia, vol ii. pp.
p. 314. 258, 259. London. MDCCLXXIX.
* History of Georgia, vol. i. p. 254. Sa-
HEALTH OF SAVANNAH. 541
Beyond controversy, during the period of its early occupancy
when it was closely fenced about by forests forbidding a free
circulation of air, when little attention was bestowed upon drain-
age, when the inhabitants were in large measure unacclimated,
and when alluvial lands, dank and reeking with the decayed veg-
etable mould of unnumbered centuries, were first exposed to the
action of the sun's rays, the health of Savannah was much infe-
rior to that which it now enjoys, and the temperature unques-
tionably more intolerable. With the exception of occasional epi-
demics, this city, under existing sanitary regulations, despite the
fact that it dwells in a malarial region, must be regarded as not
unhealthy; and no one familiar with the delightful influences
of the southeast breezes which, during the hot months, prevail
with the regularity of trade-winds, will deny that many climatic
pleasures are here enjoyed, even in the heart of summer.
Governor Ellis' health became so feeble that, in November,
1759, he solicited a recall. His hope was that his successor
would be speedily selected, and that he would avoid the debili-
tating influences of another warm season in Georgia. Although
his request was granted, and James Wright, Esq., was commis-
sioned as lieutenant-governor of the province on the 13th of May,
1760, he did not arrive in the colony to relieve Governor Ellis
until the following October.
Upon the expiration of his official duties the province of Geor-
gia possessed a population of some six thousand whites and three
thousand five hundred and seventy-eight blacks.
In severing his official connection with the colony, Governor
Ellis, on the 13th of October, 1760, thus addressed the General
Assembly: —
“ Gentlemen of the Council and of the Commons House of As-
Sembly.
“His Majesty having been graciously pleased to grant me his
Royal Licence for returning to Europe, and appointed the hon-
ourable James Wright Esquire Lieutenant Governor of this
Province, I have called you together to inform you thereof, and
at the same Time to return both Houses of Assembly my very
sincere and hearty Acknowledgments for the great Assistance
they have afforded me in carrying on the King's Service and the
Business of the Colony during the whole Course of my Admin-
istration.
“Possessed as I am with the most grateful Sense of this and
every other Obligation conferred on me by the good People of
542 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
Georgia, they may be perfectly assured of my best Wishes and
most zealous Endeavours upon all Occasions to promote whatever
may contribute to their Happiness and the Welfare of the Prov-
ince.”
To this graceful farewell the General Assembly on the ensuing
day returned the following response : —
“May it please your Excellency.
“We his Majesty's most dutiful and loyal Subjects, the Coun-
cil of Georgia in General Assembly met, beg Leave to return
your Excellency our hearty Thanks for the affectionate Manner
in which your Excellency has been pleased to acquaint Us with
your having obtained his Majesty's royal Licence for returning
to England. At the same time that we congratulate your Excel-
lency on your obtaining a Permission which this Climate and
your intense Application to the Duties of your Station made nec-
essary, allow us to express our unfeigned Sorrow at being de-
prived of your Excellency's prudent and upright Administration
to which, under Divine Providence, we hold ourselves indebted
for that Measure of interior Quiet and Happiness we have hith-
erto enjoyed.
“The many useful Laws which have received your Excel-
lency's Assent, whereby Proceedings in the Courts of Law have
been rendered more easy and expeditious, and the Civil Rights
and Properties of the People fenced against the corrupt Practices
of wicked and designing men: the Ability which you have ex-
erted in healing those unhappy Divisions with which the Colony
was rent at your Arrival; the Credit you have restored to the
Government; and the Zeal with which you have promoted and
encouraged every measure tending to the public Advantage, in-
titule your Excellency to our most grateful and hearty acknowl-
edgments: nor do we esteem it less happy for us, nor less hon-
ourable for you Sir, that whilst other more opulent and more
populous Provinces have been ravaged by a barbarous and cruel
Enemy, this infant Colony, surrounded with more numerous Sav-
ages, and with an open and defenceless Frontier to our powerful
European Enemy, has not been involved in a ruinous and de-
structive War.
“We beg leave to assure your Excellency that we have the
greatest Relyance on your attention to the Welfare and true
Interests of this Colony so fully manifested in the whole Course
of your Administration ; and we persuade ourselves that your
Excellency will, on your Arrival in England, repeat your Repre-
DEPARTURE OF GOVERNOR ELLIS. 543
sentations of the Dangers to which we are exposed, and the little
Probability there is of our receiving timely and adequate Suecour
from the neighbouring Provinces should any Calamity befall Us.
His Majesty's great Goodness to all his People and his equal
Regard to their Happiness and Prosperity give us the strongest
Reasons to hope that this Colony will soon more amply partake
of the Protection afforded to his American Subjects, and that
through your Excellency's good Offices the Province will be im-
mediately put in such a State of Defence as shall not only give
real Security to its Inhabitants but render it an effectual Barrier
to his Majesty's Southern Provinces.” "
Having turned over the affairs of state to his successor, the
Honorable James Wright, Governor Ellis departed from Georgia
on the 2d of November, 1760. The address of the assembly ex-
pressed the general regret. The inhabitants of the province
were deeply moved at the retirement of the governor whose kind
and paternal administration, whose honesty of purpose and un-
wearied exertions for the advancement of the welfare of the col-
ony, whose integrity, and personal worth had produced the most
favorable impression upon all. The Georgia Society, the mer-
chants of Savannah, the citizens of Augusta, and others presented
him with affectionate and complimentary addresses regretting
his departure, extolling his administration of public affairs, com-
mending his character, and praying for his welfare. As a token
of the gratitude entertained by the citizens of Savannah, the
Union Society requested his acceptance of a handsome piece of
plate.”
Few were the regrets which accompanied Governor Reynolds
when he bade farewell to distracted and unhappy Georgia; but
now the good-will and the blessings of a sorrowing people clus-
tered about their retiring chief magistrate. The apple of discord
had been supplanted by the olive of peace. Happy in the con-
fidence and the love of those over whom he ruled, fortunate and
just in his intercourse with the Indian nations, successful in the
conduct of the affairs of the colony, and secure in the esteem of
the home government, pleasant and honorable is the memory
which Governor Ellis has bequeathed to the colonial annals of
Georgia.
Subsequently commissioned as governor of Nova Scotia, he
occupied that position for two years and a half. Warned by fee-
1 See M.S. Journal of the Council in 2 See Stevens' History of Georgia, vol
Assembly, pp. 429–432. i. p. 456. New York. MDCCCXLVII.
544 THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA.
ble health, he dismissed all public cares and sought repose in the
south of France. Finally, having attained a venerable age, and
to the last intent upon the prosecution of some favorite physical
researches, he fell on sleep, as did Pliny the elder, within sight
of Vesuvius and upon the shore of the beautiful Bay of Naples.
INDEX TO VOLUME I.
ABERCORN, village of, 148.
Acadians, 502–505.
Achese, village of, 42.
Agricultural implements, 7.
Agriculture, primitive, 6.
Alibamons, 1, 65.
Alligators, 232.
Altamaca, village of, 42.
Amatis, Mr., 117.
Amelia Island, Spanish outrage on, 323.
Anasco, Juan de, 48–50.
Anastasia Island, 331.
Anderson, Hugh, 309.
Anne, the galley, 117.
Antiquities of the Southern Indians,
5–33.
Antiquity of the red race, 12, 13.
Appalachian Indians overcome by Gov-
ernor Moore, 76.
Argyle, Duke of, 335.
Argyle, Fort, 147, 164.
Arms of primitive manufacture, 53.
Arrow and spear points, 23–25.
Arrow-makers, 23, 24.
Augusta, located, 217. Trade at, 218.
Oglethorpe ill at, 319, 440. The in-
habitants alarmed, 441, 447. Distribu-
tion of Indian presents at, 502. Its
defenseless condition, 505.
Auspourger, Mr., 315.
Axes, stone, 25.
Ayllon, Lucas Vasquez d’, 34,48.
Azilia, Margravate of, 70–75.
BACHELOR's Redoubt, 339.
Bacon, Lord, 174.
Bank of England, the financial agent of
the Trustees, 96–98.
Barrimacké, village of, 339.
Bartram, William, 3, 55, 410.
Beaufort, 118. Sojourn of the colonists
at, 120.
Bee, Captain, 299.
Belcher, Governor, 131.
Bethany, 374.
Bethesda Orphan House, 402–415. Grant
of land to, 403. Scheme for convert-
ing it into a “seminary of literature
and academical learning,” 408-412.
Bartram’s account of, 410. Burnt, 413.
Subsequent history of, 414, 415.
Bewlie, 417, 418.
Bloody Marsh, affair of, 348, 349.
Blow-guns, 25.
Bolzius, Rev. John Martin, 166, 167, 372.
His death, 375.
Bosomworth, Mary, her claim against
the authorities, 384-399. Her memo-
rial, 385–391. Her conduct in Savan-
nah, 394–399. Adjustment of her
claim, 399, 439, 440, 539.
Bosomworth, Rev. Thomas, 384-399.
Bow, use of the, 23–25.
Breech-clouts, 12.
Bryan, Jonathan, 462.
Bull, Colonel, 118, 122, 125, 150. Gov-
ernor, 299, 343.
CABOT, Sebastian, 34, 67.
Calvert, William, 114.
Camuse, 272, 315.
Canasagua, 61.
Carr, Mark, conveys lands for the town
of Sunbury, 497, 498.
Carteret, Lord, 80, 81.
Castle of St. Augustine, 328.
Causton, Thomas, 151, 190. Irregulari-
ties of, 266. Placed under bond and
deposed from office, 269. Examina-
tion into his accounts, 269-271. De-
pressing effect of his defalcation, 274.
His treatment of Rev. John Wesley,
288–296, 300.
Charlestown, arrival of the colonists at,
117.
Charter of the colony of Georgia, 87–95.
35
546 INDEX TO
VOLUME I.
Acceptance of, by the Trustees, 96.
Proceedings upon the surrender of, by
the Trustees, 450–458. Deed of sur-
render, 458, 459.
Chellaque, 57.
Cherokee Indians, 1, 3, 4, 76–79.
Chests, primitive, 52.
Chiaha, 61–66.
Chicasaw chiefs, their interview with Rev.
John Wesley, 283–285.
Chief Justice of Georgia, 465.
Chieftain mounds, 18.
Chisca, 62.
Choctaws, 2, 3.
Christ Church in Savannah, 150, 525.
Christie, Thomas, 114.
Chungke game, 26, 27.
Churches, provision for the erection of, in
the several parishes, 525–527.
Clergymen in Georgia under the Trus-
tees, 445–449.
Clifton, William, 461, 462.
Coga, 65.
Cochrane, Lieutenant-Colonel, 314, 401.
Colonel’s Island, 50l.
Colonization of Georgia, charitable na-
ture of the scheme, 85, 86, 101–105.
Commissioners named for the erection of
churches in the various parishes, 525,
526.
Common council of the Trustees, 89, 96,
I65.
Commons House of Assembly, 464, 465.
Address to Governor Reynolds, 476,
477. Address to Governor Ellis, 522,
523. Response in reply to the requi-
sition of the Earl of Chatham, 534–536.
Address to Governor Ellis, 542.
Conjurer, office and powers of the, 10, 11.
Conservators of the peace, 439.
Cooke, Lieutenant-Colonel, 314, 367.
Copper, primitive use of, 23.
Council of Georgia, address of, to Gov-
ernor Reynolds, 475.
Courts, composition and organization of,
465, 466,473.
Coweta Town, important convention and
treaty at, 316–318. Cession of lands at,
3.18.
Creek Indians, 1, 3, 4, 137–144. Dem-
onstration of, in Savannah, 394–399.
Conference with, at Savannah, 537, 538.
Cremation, 18.
Cumberland Island, 233.
Cuming, Sir Alexander, 76-79.
Cutifachiqui, De Soto and his command
entertained at, 47. Location of, 55, 56.
The queen of, welcomes De Soto, 46.
Her capture, 57. Her escape, 58, 59.
DARIEN, 201, 223.
1743, 339.
Davis, Captain, 322.
Death and burial of a Creek chief in Lon-
don, 178–180.
De Brahm, John G. W., 212, 374, 461,
472, 505.
Deed showing earliest conveyance of
town lots, garden lots, and farms to
colonists in Savannah, 156–161; of sur-
render of the charter of the colony of
Georgia, 458, 459.
Delamotte, Charles, 204.
Delamotte's school in Savannah, 236.
Delegal, Captain, 236. Ensign, 236.
Fort, 236.
Demetree, Captain Daniel, improper be-
havior of, 426, 427.
Dempsey, Charles, 239. His mission to
St. Augustine, 240–251, 258.
Designs of the Trustees, 98–100.
De Soto, Hernando, expedition of, 37–66.
Digby, Edward, 89.
Discoidal stones, 26.
Dorchester Congregation, arrival of, and
settlement in the Midway District, 492–
496.
Douglass, David, 309.
Dunbar, Captain George, 184, 347.
Description of, in
EARLY posts south of the Savannah
River, 68. *
Ebenezer, 168. Settlement of, 169, 209.
Abandonment of, 210, 211.
Elector, qualification of an, 464,490.
Elevations for chieftain lodges, 15.
Ellis, Henry, appointed Lieutenant-Gov-
ernor of Georgia, 513. His former pur-
suits, 515. Arrival of, and welcome in
Savannah, 516. His early purposes and
labors in behalf of the province, 517,
518. Sympathizes in the suggestion to
change the seat of government from
Savannah to Hardwicke, 519. His
addresses to the Upper and Lower
Houses of Assembly, 519–522. His re-
port of the condition of the province,
530–534. Commissioned as Governor,
534. Addresses to the Creek Indians,
538. Fits out a ship for the protection
INDEX TO WOLUME I.
of the Georgia coast, 536. Oppressed by
the heat at Savannah, 540. Solicits a
recall on account of ill-health, 541. His
farewell address to the General Assem-
bly, 541. Relieved by Lieutenant-Gov-
ernor Wright, 543. Leaves Georgia
amid universal regret, 543. Commis-
sioned Governor of Nova Scotia, 543.
His death, 544.
Embarkation, the great, 202–207.
Embassy of Sir Alexander Cuming, 76–
79.
English prisons, horrors of, 84.
Episcopal Church in Georgia, 526, 527.
Eugene of Savoy, Prince, 83.
Expedition of Hernando De Soto, 37–66.
FEES, regulations of public, 489.
Fish-preserves, 15. -
Florida, ancient, 5.
Florida Indians, characteristics and an-
tiquities of the, 5–33. Their villages,
7, 8; and dwellings, 8, 9. Kingly
office among the, 9, 10. Head war-
riors, 10. Conjurers, 10. Physical
characteristics of the, 12. Queens, 12.
Antiquity and semi-civilization of the,
12, 13. Mound-building, 13–22. Fu-
neral customs, 18–21. Refuse piles,
21. Intaglios and sculpture, 22. Wor-
ship of the Priapus, 22. Use of cop-
per, 23. Manufacture of arrow and
spear points, 23–25; and of imple-
ments of stone, bone, and shell,
25. Piscatorial contrivances, 25, 26.
Chungke game, 26, 27. Manufacture
and use of pipes, 27–29; and of pot-
tery, 29–31. Use of pearls and shell
ornaments, 31, 32. This primitive
population violently shocked by Span-
ish inroads, 33.
Florida invaded by Oglethorpe, 323, 324,
327–335, 361.
Fort Diego captured, 328.
“ Francis de Papa captured, 324, 328.
King George, 68.
“ Moosa, 330, 332.
“ Picolata burnt, 324.
“ St. Andrew, 235, 297, 339.
“ St. George, 234, 242, 246.
“ St. Simon, 234.
“ William, 334, 339, 531.
Foskey, 317.
Franklin, Dr. Benjamin, 406, 407.
Frederica, named, and its settlement
547
sanctioned by the Trustees, 189. Lo-
cated by Oglethorpe, 227. Arrival of
colonists at, 229. Description of, 229,
230. Salubrity and attractions of,
231, 232. Indian dance at, 234, 235.
Constructive labors at, 236. A mili-
tary town, 238, 239. Communication
established with the Soldiers’ Fort, 262.
Population of, in 1740, 337. Descrip-
tion of, 338, 339. Bomb-magazine,
explosion of its, 362. Description of,
in 1743, 362-365, 366, 367. Troops
withdrawn from, in 1748, 367, 471. Its
defenseless condition, 505, 530, 531.
Frederica County, 370, 416.
French deserter, 350, 351.
Funeral customs, 18–21.
GARDEN, Rev. Alexander, 403.
Gascoigne, Captain, 127, 204, 246.
General's Island, canal cut through,
339.
Georgia, Ribault's description of, 35.
Primitive inhabitants of, and their an-
tiquities, 5–33. Signs of ancient occu-
pancy of, 36. Traversed by De Soto
and his companions, 36–66. Traces of
ancient mining in upper, 69, 70. Its
settlement anticipated by Sir Robert
Mountgomery’s Margravate of Azilia,
70–75. Charter of the colony of, 87–
95. Original cession of lands to the
Trustees of the colony of, 90–92. Ac-
ceptance of the charter by the Trustees
of the colony of, 96. Corporate seal,
97. A barrier to Carolina against the
Spaniards and Indians, 99, 118. Colo-
nization of, as advocated by the Trus-
tees, 98, 99; by Oglethorpe, 100–103;
and by Benjamin Martyn, 103–105.
Landed estates in, granted by the Trus-
tees, 106–112. Southern boundary of,
in dispute, 534. Importation of spirit-
uous liquors and slaves into, prohib-
ited, 110–112, 189. Embarkation of
earliest colonists, and settlement in,
113–117. Gifts to the first settlers in,
125. Isolated situation of the colony
of, 133. Treaty with the Creek In-
dians in, 137–144. Arrival of the
Salzburgers in, 167. A Protestant
colony, 188. History of the Moravians
in, 198, 199. Scotch emigration to,
200. Moore's description of, 221. Set-
tlement of colonists at Frederica, 227–
548 INDEX TO
VOLUME I.
232. Southern confines of, 233, 234.
Dispute between Carolina and Georgia
in regard to the Indian trade, 253–255;
in regard to the navigation of the Sa-
vannah River, 256—257. Condition of
the finances of, 263, 301, 302. State
of the province of, in 1739, 315. Con-
vocation of Indians and treaty at Cow-
eta Town, 316, 319. Cession of lands,
31 8] The Spaniards resolved upon the
destruction of, 343. Their expedition
against St. Simon’s Island, 344–358.
Divided into two counties, 416. Not in
a prosperous condition under the pres-
ident and assistants, 418. Trustees
sanction the introduction and use of
negro slaves in the province, 422–425.
Attempt to subordinate her to South
Carolina, 426, 427. Introduction of
rum and spirituous liquors into, Sanc-
tioned, 427. Land tenures enlarged,
428. Objections to annexing this prov-
ince to Carolina, 437, 438. Threatened
invasion of, by the Cherokees, 441.
Retrospective view of the progress of
the colony of, 443. Surrender of the
charter of the colony of, by the Trus-
tees, 450–458. Passes into the hands
of the Crown under the charge of the
Lords Commissioners of Trade and
Plantations, 459 Population of, in
1753, 460. Plan for the civil govern-
ment of, submitted by the Lords Com-
missioners of Trade and Plantations,
460, 461. Officers of, under the royal
government, 461. Seal, 462. Consti-
tution of assembly, courts, etc., under
the royal government, 462-468. Ar-
rival of Governor Reynolds in, 469.
Organization of the courts of, 473.
Legislative acts passed for the regula-
tion of the affairs of, 479,486. Unable
to assist the Earl of Loudoun in the
common defense, 488. Settlement of
the Dorchester Congregation in, 492–
496. Location and development of
the town of Sunbury in, 496–500. Ar-
rival of Acadians in, 502-505. Plan
suggested by Governor Reynolds for
the defense of, 505–510. Arrival in, of
Lieutenant-Governor Henry Ellis, 516.
Divided into parishes, 524, 525. Gov-
ernor Ellis' account of the condition of,
530-533. Unable to assist in the gen-
eral defense, 535, 536. Moved at the
departure of Governor Ellis, 543. Pop-
ulation of, in 1760, 541.
Georgia tribes, antiquities of the, 5–
33.
German Protestants, settlements in Geor-
gia, 241, 375.
Goldsmith, Oliver, 116.
Governor, royal, of Georgia :
462; his powers, 463.
Graham, Patrick, president of Georgia,
459–462.
Grand embarkation, the, 202–204.
Grants by the Trustees, 106–110, 156–
161. -
Grape culture, 377.
Lyon, 378.
Grave-mounds, 17–20.
Grey, Edmund, seditious conduct of, 486,
487, 531. Settlements at New Hanover
and on Cumberland Island, 539.
Gronau, Rev. Israel Christian, 166.
death, 372.
Guaxule, 60.
his title,
Vineyard of De
His
HABERSHAM, Honorable James, 374, 401,
402, 405, 410, 414. His review of the
condition of the province,419. Favored
the introduction of negro slaves into
Georgia, 422, 431. Appointed Secre-
tary of Georgia, 432, 433. One of the
assistants, 459. Secretary, and regis-
ter of the records, 461, 462.
Hampstead, village of, 147.
Hardwicke, scheme to make it the cap-
ital of Georgia, 471, 472, 519.
Harris, Francis, 459, 462.
Harris & Habersham, commercial house
of, 430, 431.
Head warrior, office of the, 10.
Heath, Sir Robert, 67.
Hebrew colonists, 152–155. {
Herbert, Rev. Dr. Henry, 117, 445.
Hermsdorf, Captain, 204, 209, 225, 234,
242.
Heron, appointed Lieutenant - Colonel,
347.
High priest, office of the, 10.
Highgate, village of, 147.
Highlanders in Georgia, 201, 225, 228,
332, 339, 371.
Highway between Savannah and Darien,
201, 224.
Hillispilli, 174, 248, 249.
Hitchittees, 2.
Hopkins, Miss Sophia, 288-296.
INDEX TO
Horton, Major, 241, 244-246, 252, 339,
342. His character and death, 425.
Houstoun, Sir Patrick, 462.
Houstoun, William, 224.
Hughes, Joseph, 114.
IMAGES, 22, 51, 52.
Implements, primitive, 25.
Indian dance, 234.
Indian fields, 230.
Indian nations in the Georgia territory,
1–5, 126. Treatment of, by DeSoto, 40.
Indian trade, 110, 253–255.
Ingham, Mr., 204.
Insolvent debtors, miseries of their situa-
tion in England, 84.
Intaglios, 22.
Irene, school-house of, 199.
Italians, arrival of, 146.
JAMES, the ship, 146.
Jekyll Island, 163.
Jerusalem Church, 372.
Johnson, Governor Robert, 117, 118, 150.
Johnson Square, 150.
Jones, Captain Noble, 148, 348, 357, 394–
399. Register of the province, 434,
439. Appointed colonel, 441 ; and as-
sistant, 459, 462.
Jones, Noble W., 441.
Joseph's Town, 148.
Jury, members of the first, in Savannah,
151.
KELLET, Alexander, 461, 462.
Kent, Captain Richard, 370.
Ring, office of, 9.
King's council, 463,464.
LACY, Mr., 226.
Land tenures, 106–110, 162. Magistrates
and inhabitants of Savannah petition
for an enlargement of, 302–304. Quali-
fied enlargement of, 313. Further en-
largement of, 428. Grants from the
Crown substituted in lieu of the orig-
inal grants from the Trustees, 487,488,
528, 529.
Lederer, Johannes, 58, 69.
Legislation during Governor Reynolds'
administration, 478–486. During Gov-
ernor Ellis’ administration, 524–530.
Leon, Juan Ponce de, 34.
Letter of a Cherokee chief, 185.
Lieutenant-Governor of Georgia, 463,464.
WOLUME I. 549
Little, Dr. William, 511, 512.
London, visit of Tomo-chi-chi to, 175–
186.
Lords Commissioners of Trade and Plan-
tations, assume control of Georgia, 459.
Submit a plan for the civil govern-
ment of Georgia, 460, 461. Governor
Ellis' reports to, 530-534.
Lords Proprietors of Carolina, grants to
the, 67. Concession by, to Sir Robert
Mountgomery, 70. Surrender of their
rights to the Crown, 81.
Loudoun, Earl of, calls for aid, 488, 489,
532.
Luna, Tristan de, 58, 69.
Lutherans, 204.
McCALL, Hugh, 313, 498, 500, 540.
Mackay, Hugh, 200, 228, 230, 233, 248,
298, 300, 314, 315.
McIntosh, AEneas, 216.
McLeod, Rev. John, 200.
Maize, cultivation of, 5.
for food, 7.
Malatche Opiya, proclaimed King, 393.
Malcontents in Georgia, 308-310,342.
Margravate of Azilia, 70–75.
Martin, Clement, 462.
Martyn, Benjamin, 96. His reasons for
establishing the colony of Georgia, 103–
105. His description of Ebenezer, 212,
459.
Mateos, Juan, 64.
Mausoleum at Talomeco, 8, 51–54.
Mauvila, 8, 65.
Methodism, rise of, 286.
Midway District, 491. Arrival of the
Dorchester Congregation, 492, 493.
Militia, organization of the, 439.
Mining, traces of ancient, in Cherokee
Georgia, 58, 6.2, 69–70.
Miruelo, Diego, 34.
Monteano, Don Manuel de, 344, 347,
351,
Moore, Francis, 202, 218–224, 229, 244.
Moore, Governor, 76.
Moore, James, 70.
Moosa, Fort, 330, 332.
Moravians, history of the, in Georgia,
198, 199, 209.
Mound-building, 13–15.
Mound-builders, 21, 22.
Mounds, animal and bird shaped, 14, 15.
Mounds, classification and description of
15–22.
Preparation of,
550 INDEX TO
VOLUME I.
Mountgomery, Sir Robert, 70–75.
Moytoy, King of the Cherokees, 77.
Muhlenburg, Rev. Dr., 376.
Musgrove, Mary, 119, 135. Her claim
against the authorities, 384-399. Her
conduct in Savannah, 394–399.
Muskhogee Indians, 2, 3.
NAMES of the early inhabitants of Sa-
vannah to whom allotments were made,
157, 158, 160, 161.
Narvaez, 67.
Natchez, 2.
Negro insurrection in South Carolina,
299.
Negro population in South Carolina,
300.
Negro slavery prohibited in the colony
of Georgia, l 10–112, 189. Allowed,
423–426.
New Ebenezer, 210-214. Condition of
affairs at, in 1739, 305-307. Silk cul-
ture at, 372-374. Value of church
property at, 376. Congregation and
library at, 377.
New Hanover, 539.
New Inverness, 201, 228. §
Nitschman, Rev. David, 204, 286.
Norris, Rev. Mr., 30l.
Nut-oil, 6.
OBJECTIONs to annexing Georgia to
Carolina, 437-439.
Ocute, 42.
Oglethorpe, James Edward. His early
life, 82,83. A member for Haslemere,
83. Chairman of the committee to re-
lieve the miseries of insolvent debtors,
85. Plans the colonization of Georgia,
85, 86. Applies for a charter for the
colony of Georgia, 87, Advocates the
Scheme for colonization, 100–103. Con-
ducts the colonists to Georgia, 113–
120. Estimate of his character, abili-
ties, and philanthropy, 115. Arrival
at Charlestown, 118. Welcomed by
the Carolina authorities, 1 19. Ascends
Savannah River and selects a home for
the colonists, 118–120. His first in-
terview with Tomo-chi-chi, 119. Su-
pervises the labors of the colonists at
Savannah, 121, 122. Letter to the
Trustees, 122. Communication of the
governor and resolutions of the Gen-
eral Assembly of Carolina addressed
to, 123, 124. Letters to the Trustees,
125-126. Visited by a South Carolina
gentleman, 127-129. His labors and
influence, 127, 128. Visits Charlestown
and addresses the General Assembly of
Carolina, 129. Congratulated by the
governors of the Northern provinces,
131. Conciliatory conduct of, toward
the Indians, 132. Welcomed by Tomo-
chi-chi, 132, 133. His friendship for
that mico, 135. Concludes a treaty of
alliance and concession with the Creek
Indians, 137–143. Locates and names
the wards, tithings, streets, and squares
of Savannah, 149–150. Receives He-
brew colonists at Savannah, 152–155.
Makes an allotment of town lots, gar-
den lots, and farms to the inhabitants
of Savannah, 156–161. Makes a re-
connoissance of the southern frontier,
163. Locates the Salzburgers, 168.
Rev. Mr. Bolzius' tribute to, 171. Lays
out Ebenezer, 171. Departs for Lon-
don, taking with him Tomo-chi-chi and
retinue, 173, 174. His reception in
England, 175. Resumes his seat in
Parliament, 189. His reputation widely
extended, 202. Returns to Georgia,
204. Anecdotes of, 206. Welcomed
in Savannah, 208. Visits Ebenezer,
210. Consents that the Salzburgers
shall change their location, 210. Visit-
ed by Tomo-chi-chi, 215, 216. Compels
trespassers from South Carolina to
withdraw, 216. Proceeds to Frederica,
225, 226. Lays off that town, 227.
Visits the Highlanders at Darien, 228.
Embarrassed by the ill-behavior of the
captains of the Symond and the Lon-
don Merchant, 228, , Conducts the
colonists to Frederica, 229. Ascer-
tains the southern boundary of the
province, 233, 234, 240. His activity,
237. IXetects the duplicity of the
Spaniards, 241. Advances the fortifi-
cations of the southern frontier, 241.
Communicates with the captain-gen-
eral of Florida, 241. Inquires after
Major Richards and Mr. Horton, 243.
Prepares for an early attack from the
Spaniards, 243. His wonderful energy
and ability, 244. His reception of the
Spanish commissioners, 24.8—252. Con-
ference with a committee of the Gen-
eral Assembly of Carolina in regard to
INDEX TO
the Indian trade, 253–255. Settles
dispute in reference to the navigation
of the Savannah River, 256. Accom-
modates difficulties with the Uchee
Indians, 257. Sails for England, 258.
Complimented in London, 258. Se-
cures military forces and stores for
Georgia, 259. Commissioned as Colo-
nel, 259. Appointed General, and
Commander-in-Chief of his Majesty's
forces in Georgia and Carolina, 259.
Recruits his regiment, 260. Sails for
Georgia, 260. Arrival at Frederica,
261. Opens communication between
Frederica and the Soldiers’ Fort, 261.
Embarrassed by an empty treasury,
263. Attends a conference with the
Creek Indians at Savannah, 265. De-
poses Causton and orders an exami-
nation into his accounts, 269, 270,
271, 273. His generosity, 272. His
association with Rev. Charles Wesley,
276–280. Interview with Tomo-chi-chi,
282. Mutiny in his regiment, and the
general assaulted, 297, 298. Repri-
mands Causton, 300. Opposes the intro-
duction of negro slaves into the prov-
ince, 308, 309. His commission as Gen-
eral and Commander-in-Chief of the
colonies of Carolina and Georgia read
before the General Assembly of South
Carolina, 315. Letter to the Trustees,
315. Visits Coweta Town, 316. His ser-
vices at the convention of Indians held
at that place, 316–319. Sick at Au-
gusta, 319. Attends the funeral of
Tomo-chi-chi, 321. Prepares for the
defense of the province against the
threatened attack of the Spaniards,
323. Invades Florida, 323, 324. Plans
the capture of St. Augustine, 326.
Conducts the siege of that town, 329–
335. Raises the siege, 333. Ill at
Frederica, 335. His home on St.
Simon's Island, 336, 337. Aid ex-
tended to him by the Indians, 340. Re-
news his requisition for troops and
munitions, 341. Alarms the Florida
coast, 342. Annoyed by malcontents,
342. His report of the Spanish dem-
onstration against St. Simon’s Island,
344–353. His strategy, 351. His won-
derful success in frustrating the plans
of the enemy, 358, 359. Congratula-
tions extended by the governors of
VOLUME I. 551
American provinces, 360. Carries the
war into Africa, 361. Wounded, 361.
Departs for London, 368. Sketch of
his subsequent career, 368, 369. His
influence over the Indian nations, 380.
Deals with Christian Priber, 383,
496.
Oglethorpe's regiment, 260. Distribu-
tion of, 262. Spies in, 264. Mutiny
in, 297, 298. Dissensions among the
officers of, 314, 336, 37 l.
Ornaments, 12.
Orphan house, Whitefield's, 402–415.
Oueekachumpa, speech of, 137.
PALACHocoLAs, fort at, 171.
Palanquins, 12, 46.
Palmer, Colonel, 331.
overpowered, 332, 334.
Pardo, Juan, 69.
Parish registers, 526.
Parishes, Georgia divided into, 524, 525.
Parker, Henry, Vice-President of Geor-
His command
gia, 417. Becomes President, 417.
Patofa, 43.
Pearls, 31. At Cutifachiqui, 47. At
Talomeco, 51–54. At Chiaha, 63, 64.
Penn, Thomas, 131.
Percival, Lord John, Viscount, 88.
Periaguas, 227.
Peyton, Sir Yelverton, 261, 330.
Phillips, Sir John, 175.
Pipes, manufacture and use of, 27–29.
Piscatorial contrivances, 25, 26.
Pohoia, King, 249.
Point Quartel, 331.
Port Royal, 118.
Pottery, manufacture and use of, 29–31.
Poza battery, 331.
Prayer, Tomo-chi-chi's notion in regard
to, 282.
Prayer meetings in Savannah, 286.
President's and assistants’ petition for
the introduction and use of negro
slaves, 422, 459, 462.
Priapus, worship of the, 22.
Priber, Christian, scheme of 381–383.
Price, Commodore Vincent, 327.
Provincial Assembly, 434, 435.
bers of, 435, 436.
436, 437.
Provost marshal, 466.
Public garden in Savannah, 129, 170
222, 223.
Mem-
Proceedings of,
y
Purrysburgh, 215.
552
INDEX TO VOLUME I.
QUAKER settlement above Augusta, 440.
Qualifications of membership for the
Provincial Assembly, 435.
Queen of England in a costume manu-
factured of Georgia silk, 191.
Queens of the Florida tribes, 12.
Quincey, Rev. Samuel, 203.
RALEIGH, Sir Walter, 24, 128.
Reck, the Baron. von, 166, 168, 173,
204.
Refuse-piles, 21.
Regulations framed by the Trustees, 106–
112.
Religion, free exercise of, accorded, 92.
Religious instruction of the colonists and
of the Indians, 187, 188.
Representative, qualification of a, 464.
Retreats, 16.
Reynolds, Captain John, appointed Gov.
ernor of Georgia, 461. His title and
powers, 462, 463. His administration,
468. His reception in Savannah, 469.
His impressions of Georgia, 470. Ap-
plies for increase of salary, 470, 511.
Inspects the southern portion of the
province, 471. Suggests the removal
of the capital from Savannah to Hard-
wicke, 471. Organizes the courts,
473. Convenes the General Assembly,
474. His addresses to Council and to
the Commons House of Assembly,
474–476, 477, 478. Legislative acts
passed during his administration, 478–
486. Provides for the Acadians, 502,
503. His suggestions for the fortifica-
tion of Georgia, 505–510. Troubles
with his Council and the Assembly,
511, 512. Charges preferred against,
511–513. Recalled, 513. Resigns his
position as Governor, and resumes his
place in the Navy, 513. Review of his
conduct, 514.
Ribault, Captain John, 35.
Rice, cultivation of, by the Salzburgers,
306.
Richards, Major, 239–242.
Robinson, Pickering, 432, 436, 459, 462.
Rodondo, Major General Antonio de,
344.
Rules for the year 1735, 192–198.
Rum, the introduction of, and other dis-
tilled liquors into the province of
Georgia prohibited, 110, 189. After-
wards allowed, 427.
Runaway slaves, regiment formed of, in
St. Augustine, 298.
Russell, William, 461, 462.
ST. AUGUSTINE. Expedition against,
planned by Oglethorpe, 327. Condition
and armament of the castle of, 328.
Spanish forces assembled for the de-
fense of 328. Siege of, 329–335.
Threatened by Oglethorpe in 1743,
361.
St. Christopher, moneys received from
the sale of the Island of, 164.
St. Paul, Parish Church of, 525.
St. Simon, village of, 339, 351.
St. Simon's Island, gallant memories of,
244, 360. Spanish forces concentrated
for the capture of, 344. Accounts of
the Spanish demonstration against,
344-358. Estimate of forces engaged,
359. Comments upon the successful
defense of, 358, 359.
Salgrado, Don Antonio, disperses Colonel
Palmer's command, 332.
Salzburgers, 164. Invited by the Trus-
tees to settle in Georgia, 165. Depar-
ture for England, 166; for Georgia,
167. Arrival in Savannah, 167. Lo-
cate at Ebenezer, 168–170. Remove to
New Ebenezer, 210. Description of
the, 214. Troubles with the Uchee
Indians, 257. Letter to Oglethorpe,
305. Silk culture among the, 371-374.
Value of church property owned by,
376.
Sanchez, Don Francisco del Moral, 240.
Savannah. Arrival of the colonists at,
120. Their early labors in, 121. Ogle-
thorpe's description of, 122, 126. A
South Carolina gentleman’s impres-
sions of, 127–129. Public garden in,
129, 222-224. Arrival of the ship James
at, 146. Wards, tithings, streets, and
square of, laid off and named, 149, 150.
Assignment of town lots, garden lots,
and farms to the inhabitants of, 151,
156–161. Arrival of Hebrew colonists
at, 152–155. Arrival of the Salzburgers,
167. Baron von Reck's description of,
170. Francis Moore’s description of,
218–224. Conference with the chiefs
of the Creek Indians at, 265. Ogle-
thorpe's representation of the condition
of, 272. Rev. John Wesley’s impres-
sions of, 285, 320. Burial of Tomo-
INDEX TO
chi-chi in, 321. Vineyard in, 378.
Hostile demonstration in, by Mary Bos-
omworth and a large retinue of In-
dians, 394–399. Establishment of the
commercial house of Harris & Haber-
sham in, 430. Meeting of the first Pro-
vincial Assembly in, 435–437. Arrival
and welcome of Governor Reynolds in,
469. His impressions of, 469. Scheme
to remove the seat of government from,
to Hardwicke, 471, 472. Defenseless
condition of, 505. Arrival in, and wel-
come, of Lieutenant-Governor Henry
Ellis, 516. Legislation in regard to,
529, 530. Conference with Creeks at,
537, 538. Heat at, 540. Health of, 541.
Savannah County, 416.
Savannah River, dispute in regard to the
navigation of, 256.
Savannah Town, 216, 217.
Scenauki, 174, 216.
Scotch immigration, 200, 201.
Scout-boats, 225.
Sculpture, primitive, 22.
Seal, corporate, of the colony of Georgia,
97. Under royal governors, 462.
Selina, Countess Dowager of Hunting-
don, 414.
Seminole Indians, 2.
Sepulchral caves, 20.
Servile insurrection in South Carolina,
299.
Shell heaps, 53.
Shell ornaments, 31, 32.
Siege of St. Augustine, 327–335. Causes
of the failure of the, 334.
Signal stations, 16.
Silk culture in Georgia, 97, 190, 272,
371-374. Bonus for the encourage-
ment of, 433, 532.
Silver Bluff, 55.
Skidoway Island, 147, 226.
Skidoway. Narrows, manchecolas fort
at, 148.
lavery in Georgia prohibited, 110–112.
Magistrates and citizens of Savannah
petition for its introduction, 302–304.
IProtests from the Highlanders at Da-
rien and the Salzburgers at Ebenezer,
304–307. Oglethorpe's views on the
subject, 308. Response of the Trustees,
310. Their refusal to permit the use of
negro slaves a mistake, 312, 419. The
introduction and use of negro slaves
advocated by Whitefield, 402,405. The
WOLUME I. 553
law prohibiting the introduction of,
evaded, 420. President and assistants
petition for the introduction and use of
negro slaves in Georgia, 422. Favor-
able response of the Trustees, 422–425.
Negro slavery allowed, 423–426. Leg-
islative enactments for the regulation
of negro slaves in Georgia, 480–485.
Slaves, negro, in Carolina, 300.
Sola bills, 429.
Soldiers’ Fort, 261. Communication
opened with Frederica, 262.
Soto, Hernando de, his expedition
through the territory embraced within
the present limits of Georgia, 37–66.
South Carolina, letter of the governor
and council of, to Oglethorpe, 123.
Resolutions of the General Assembly
of, 124. Aid extended by, to Georgia,
125. General Assembly of, addressed
by Oglethorpe, 129, 130. Memorial of
the governor and assembly of, to the
king, 191. Conference with a commit-
tee from, in regard to the Indian trade,
253–255. Negro insurrection in, 298–
300. Assistance furnished by, in the
expedition against St. Augustine, 326,
327. Conduct of the troops from, dur-
ing the siege of St. Augustine, 332,333.
Refuses to assist in the defense of St.
Simon's Island, 343, 345. Attempt to
subordinate Georgia to, 425, 426. Ob-
jections to annexing Georgia to, 437,
438.
Southern boundary line of Carolina un-
determined, 68, 69.
Southern Indians, physical characteris-
tics of the, 3–5, 11. Antiquities of the,
5–33.
Spalding, Hon. Thomas, 261, 319, 337,
339.
Spangenberg, Rev. Gottlieb, 192, 217.
Spaniards demand an evacuation of all
territory south of St. Helena Sound,
255. Excite servile insurrections in
Carolina, 300. Outrage by, on Amelia
Island, 323. Attempt the destruction
of Georgia, 343–358.
Spanish commissioners, reception of 248–
252.
Spanish duplicity, 241.
Spanish forces present at the siege of
St. Augustine, 328. Concentrated for
the capture of St. Simon's Island, 344,
359.
554 INDEX TO
VOLUME I.
Statues in the temple at Talomeco, 51,
52. *...*
Stephens, Colonel William, 252,271, 301,
313. Deputy-general of Georgia, 362.
Appointed president of the county of
Savannah, 870,371. Describes vineyard
in Savannah, 378, 394. His address
to the Creeks in Savannah, 397, 406.
Appointed president of Georgia, 417.
Sketch of him, 417. His letter to the
Trustees, 421.
Stevens, Rev Dr. William B., 514.
Stokes, Chief Justice, 466.
Stone graves, 20.
Stone piles, 20.
Suasso, Salvador, and Da Costa, im-
proper conduct of, in sending Hebrew
colonists to Savannah, 152–155.
Sufferings of De Soto's command, 43, 44.
Suicide of an Indian guide, 49.
Sunbury, the town of, its location, 496–
498. Its name, 498. Plan of 499.
Trustees of 497–499. Declared a port
of entry, 499. Its rapid development
and trade, 500, 501. A battery erected
at, 530.
Sunday-school, first, in Georgia, 286.
Sun-dial, erection of a, in Savannah, 150.
Symond and the London Merchant, 204,
207, 225. Improper conduct of the
captains of the, 227.
TAIL male, grants in, 106–112.
Tailfer, Dr. Patrick, 308, 309.
Talomeco, 8, 18. Temple at, 51–53.
Tattooing, 12.
Tax for ecclesiastical purposes, 526.
Temples for sun-worship, 15.
Terron, Juan, 59.
Thorpe, village of, 151.
Thunderbolt, fort at, 147.
Toalli, 41.
Tomo-chi-chi, 119, 126. Welcomes Ogle-
thorpe and the colonists, 132, 133.
Sketch of, 134, 135. Portrait of, 134.
His friendship for Oglethorpe, 135, 136.
Speech of, 138, 139. Accompanies
Oglethorpe to England, 174. His re-
ception in London, his entertainment
and conduct while there, 175–186. Ode
to, 175—178. His address to the king,
I78, 179. Interview with the Archbish-
op of Canterbury, 180. Visits Eton,
Windsor, Hampton Court, the Tower,
Greenwich Hospital, etc., 181. His im-
pressions of the grandeur of the British
metropolis, 181. Requests that suita-
ble regulations be established for the
conduct of the Indian traders, 182.
Presents received by him, 183. De-
parts for Georgia, 183. Effect of his
visit, 185–187. Interview with Rev.
John Wesley, 215, 216. Furnishes
guides, 230. Accompanies Oglethorpe
on his southern tour of observation,
233, 246, 248, 264. Conversations with
Rev. John Wesley, 281 ; and with
General Oglethorpe, 282. His last ill-
ness, death, and burial, 320, 321. A
monument due to him, 321, 322.
Toonahowi, 174, 183, 327, 348, 357.
Treaty of alliance and concession with
the Creek Indians, 137–144.
Triebner, Rev. Christopher F., 376.
Truncated pyramids, 15.
Trustees for establishing the Colony of
Georgia in America, 88. Charter priv-
ileges granted to, 88–95. Common
Council of the, 89. Grant of territory,
90–92. Acceptance of the charter by
the, 96. Corporate seal adopted, 97.
Designs of, made public, 98–100. Reg-
ulations promulgated by, 106–112. Su-
perintend the first embarkation of col-
onists, 113, 116. Letters received by,
from Oglethorpe, 122, 125, 126. Ratify
a treaty of concession and alliance with
the Creek Indians, 141. Grant of ter-
ritory to, by the Creeks, 140. Action
of, with regard to Hebrew colonists at
Savannah, 152–155. Encourage the col-
Onization of foreign Protestants, 164–
166. Yearly accounts of, 171, 172. In-
terest shown by, in ministering to the
entertainment of Tomo-chi chi and ret-
inue during their stay in London, 182.
Their anxiety for the religious instruc-
tion of the colonists and natives, 188.
Sanction a new settlement to the south,
189. Prohibit the introduction of dis-
tilled liquors and negro slaves into the
province of Georgia, 189. Publish their
“Rules for the year 1735,” 192–198.
Encourage emigration of Highlanders,
200. Petition the Crown for men and
munitions, 259. Order an examination
into the conduct of Thomas Causton,
267–269. Importuned by the magis-
trates and inhabitants of Savannah to
enlarge the tenure of lands and to per-
INDEX TO WOLUME I.
mit the introduction and use of ne-
groes, 302–304. Protests received by,
from the inhabitants of New Inverness
and of Ebenezer, 304–307. Their re-
sponse, 310–312. Their refusal to sanc-
tion the introduction of negro slav-
ery a mistake, 312. Advised by Ogle-
thorpe of the condition of the province
in 1739, 315. Grant of land to White-
field's orphan house, 403. As late as
March, 1748, they still refuse to sanc-
tion the use of negro slaves in Georgia,
419. Letter to, from President Ste-
phens, 421. Memorialized by the pres-
ident and assistants to permit the in-
troduction and use of negro slaves in
Georgia, 422. Favorable response to
the application, 422–425. Consent to
the purchase and employment of negro
slaves, 426; and to the introduction
and use of rum and spirituous liquors,
427. Enlargement of land tenures, 428.
Removal of restrictions imposed by
them, 428. Their administration of the
finances of the province, 429, 430. Re-
view of the policy of, 442. Alive to
the spiritual welfare of the colonists,
443, 445. Names and occupations of,
443–445. Resolve to surrender their
charter, 450. Proceedings upon the
surrender, 450–458. Deed of surrender,
458, 459. The corporate existence of,
terminates, 459.
Tybee light-house, 148, 207, 530.
UCHEEs, 2.
Union Society of Savannah, 414.
Upper House of Assembly, 464,
Urlsperger, Rev. Samuel, 166.
Urn burial, 19.
VACA, Alvar Nunez, Cabeça de, 34.
Vanderdussen, Colonel Alexander, 327,
331–333.
Vega, Garcilasso de la, 51.
Velasco, Louis de, 58, 69.
Vernon, Admiral, 322, 326.
Verrazzano, 34.
Vineyard of Abraham de Lyon, 377, 378.
Voyages, early, 34.
WALPOLE, Sir Robert, 322.
War between England and Spain, 320.
Warren, Captain, 330, 331.
Wesley, Rev. Charles, 203, 204. Arrival
555
at Frederica, 275. His religious views
and conduct, 275–278. Misunderstand-
ing between General Oglethorpe and
himself, 277. The reconciliation, 278.
Bids adieu to Georgia, 280. Suggests
to the Rev. George Whitefield the ex-
pediency of founding an orphan house
in Georgia, 280, 401.
Wesley, Rev. John, engaged as an evan-
gelist in Georgia, 203. Advice of Rev.
Dr. Burton, 203. Sets out for Georgia,
204. Anecdote of, 206. Describes Old
Ebenezer, 210. His description of New
Ebenezer, 213. Interview with Tomo-
chi-chi, 215, 216. Intentions in coming
to Georgia, 280. Conversations with
Tomo-chi-chi, 281. Conference with the
Chicasaw chiefs, 283–285. His early
impressions of Savannah, 285. Prayer-
meetings at his parsonage, 286. Affec-
tion for the Moravians, 286. A censor
morum. His health and labors, 288.
Trouble with Miss Sophia Hopkins and
the Caustons, 288–296. Arrested, 289.
Charges preferred against him, 291,
292. Dissent of certain members of the
grand jury, 292–294. Leaves Georgia,
295. His triumphant death, 296, 401.
Whitefield, Rev. George, 260, 359, 400.
Arrives in Georgia, 401. Determines
to erect an orphan house in Georgia,
402. His services in that behalf, 402–
415. Advocates the introduction and
use of negro slaves, 402,405. His per-
suasive oratory, 406–408. Benjamin
Franklin’s account of, 406–408. Scheme
for enlarging the orphan house and
converting it into a “seminary of liter-
ature and academical learning,” 408.
His memorial on this subject, 408, 409.
His letter to the Archbishop of Canter-
bury, 411. His death, 413. His will,
413. Favored the introduction of ne-
gro slaves into Georgia, 422.
Williams, Robert, 308.
Wilson, Rev. Dr., Bishop of Sodor and
Man, 185, 187.
Wiltown Church, 299.
Wormsloe, 148.
Wright, Honorable James, 410. Suc-
ceeds Governor Ellis as governor of
Georgia, 543.
XERES, Louis Bravo de, 64.
Xualla, 58.
556 INDEX TO WOLUME I.
YAHOU-LAKEE, speech of, 139. ZINZENDoRF, Count, 198.
Yamacraw Bluff, 118. Zion Church, 372.
Yemassee Indians defeated by Governor Zouberbuhler, Bartholomew, 525.
Craven, 76.
Yonge, Henry, 461.
* ---, --~~~~ - sº, :- sº- 3. * *,
* * * * * * - * *
* - . .* * - - * -r
* - g -.
t; - ... • -
&
*
t
.*
- - #
*
*
*
s
&
&
º
i º - -
*.
* - Jº -
°.
J
}
&
- - • *-*.
*
~ - ~~ 2” - -- ~- --
- * …, * " * ~ - * * *
- - - ... -- ~~ * --> T->
*
... * *
- ** -
Ar”
- # ... *
* *. * *
• - r → -
*. -
r
A
t
*







- ***…--~~~~~--~--~~~~º ſº-sº•º.0* *， º* ：=≡º º---~~~~ º• • • •！= <！-- ****==~：：~~==*= <！-！
¿?
į
|
\
∞-
№– -- A -----~--~--------------º--…- .-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-…-- ----- .
º， º ， ， ， ， , ， ）

T
º-
with the book
_____ ſº tº A R a s-- - - - - -
THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
DATE DUE
&’sº-º-º-º-º: ºrs.
S. E. F. 2-3 | `. T.
! :
*.* tºº, *…*
; : : -, ~ * *S, as
}-\ , , ; ; ‘J { j979

*~ *
*...* * * * * * * * *, *, * * * *
* * * * * * * ***, *, *s, *, *, *... sº
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * **, *, *
* * * * * * * *, *, *, *, * * * ~ *.*.*.*
* * > *, *, *, *s, * > *; * A w.x ºr ºr v . . . * * *
* * * * * * * * ** * * * * * * * * *, *, * ~ *... ºr ~,
º ** * * *
ºw ºz ºz.
** * * * ~ * : **** * * * * : * : * ~ *,
** * * * * * * * * " *-* * *
tº sº
Sº...º.º.
* * * * * * *
* * * * * *A* * *
* * * * * * * * * * *, *, *, * * * * *, *, * *
*L* * * * * * * * *.*.*.* * * * * * * * * *
** * ºr R." - ºr "
- *...* * * * * *
* * * * * *, *.*.*.* r *
** **** * * * * * * : *
*...* ºr *...* * * º
* * * * * A." -
- ** ** * *...* * º
º * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * * * ºr ºf tº *.* tº ºr *-* * * *
* * *, *.*.*.*, *, * * * * * *.
*
º
º º *...* ºr *
º, º ºr *, *, *, *... x : * * - º * *
tº ºr s. v . Jºº, ºw º * * *. w
* * * * * *, * *...* A - * * * *, *: * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * * *- - * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *.* * * *.* * * ~ *, *.
* * * * * * E. º * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ~ * * * *
*** * * * . * * * * *.
º
* *w "As ºf A- ". . * * * * * * * * *
• ‘Afi º ** * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *- ºr
- * ~ * -
º
* Wº ºt"
º *** * * * * *
sº -
º
* * * ºr -
* * * * * * * * * * * *.
º, &
º º’ ‘A
- ** * * * * * * * º
º Vº * : *L ...' * * * *
- ºf Nº wº, º ºr *-ºs s. v. W. & W ºr -ºº ºvº. º.º.º.º.º.º.º.
ºf ~ *.*.*, *, *, *. v., v. As as “... v. º. º. º.º. º Xº
* *, *, * : * * * * * * * * ºr * * * * * * * * * * * * * º wa w wº * * * - * * * * * * * * -
** - * * * * * * * - *** * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * * * * * - * *.* * * * ºr ºn as w = wº ſº sº º ºx" sº *, * W
--> * - - • va ºr tº Nº. v. A. * *.* Wº v.” “A " +
- tº ºs º ºr ***, * * ***...* ºr º
* *.* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
** * * * * * * * * * * * * ~ *~ ***, *...*
• * - S. S. º. º. º. º. º. º. º. º ºx ºr ºr ºn 2 v - ºv
*...* * * * * *...*-* * * * * ***.* * * * * * * ~ * º
** * * * * * * * * * * * *.*.*.*.*.*, *, *, * : * ~ * *.* º
º: * : * ~ & Cº., -
* * * * *, wº
- * - ~
* * * * * * * * * * * **** * * * ***, *, *, *, *, *.
* * * * : * > . Sº sº. Sº sº º Aº ‘a wºº as “… v. -- ºr *
* : * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *, *, *, *, *, *, *, * : * : * ~ *
* * * * * * * : * ~ *, * *.*.*.*.*. * : *-* * * ~ * * * * : * ~ *.
a tº *s, * * * * * *, * r *, *, *, **
*, *.* * * * * * * * * * * * *
: "A," " : *, * *.* * * *
* = *- : * ~ * * r * * ~ * *,
* * : * ~ * * * ~ *...* * * * * ~ *.x º'
* : * * * *A* *, * ~ *~ * * * ~ *
º º M ºr w w tº º
--- º, Y ~ ºf **
** * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *-
* * * * * * * * *, *, * * * ~ *, *, *, * > *
** * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
** *, *..." Q, ºr * * * *
* * *
* * *
Y.Y., S.M.N.
º *
* * * * : * ~ * r * > * - º --
** * ~ * : * * * * *-* * * * - ºr wº
*...* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * : *, *, * * *
- - - * * wº
‘s. - * * * ~ * * *
* * * * : *
º' ºr º- ºr *-* * : * * * * * W. R.
* * * *.* *** * * * * * * * *.
* * * * * * ea º ºx a. º.
-, *
º *
* * * * * * * *. W. v. M. º. *
º, º a v. º. º. a ra. -- A * * *
* * * * * * * * * * * *-* * * * * r &
* * * * * * * * * * * * : * ~ *, *. * *
* *, * * * * * * * * * * * *... º ... * * * * ** * * * * * º
- ... "... * * * *... * * * * º *** * * * * * *
- * * * * * * * * * *, *- : * * ". * - *** * ~ *... N ºx-wºº's -
* * * * * * * * * * º A * * * * wº * * * .
* * * * * * - * * * * * * * : * : * * * * * * : * : * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
*...* * º 'º * * * * * * * : *-* * , * * * * * * * * * * *, *, * ~ * * * * - : A * * ,
- * - * * * * * * * * * º * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
- * : * • *~ *-*. - - ** * * *, *, *...* * * * * * * *.
- - * * : * ~ * - **** * * * * * ** * *
* * * * * * * *, *, *, *, * * * * * *
* > * - - -
º
* : * * * * * : * ~ *.
* r * wa w ºr “
* *
* * * : * W. M. º. * * * * * *, * > * > * * * * * * *.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.
* * * * : A &; , ºº, ºf W. º. ºº & X * * ~ *-** * * * * * * * * * * * * *.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*
\; \; * : *, *, *.*2 ºz º. º. º. º. º.º. v. v. N. × sº - ºr wºrs. *- : z < *, *, ºv. .
*A. * .*.*, * A * : * * * * * * * **** * * * * : *, *, *, *.x v = ºr ºf ººº-
** ** *, *, * * * ~ * * *...* * * * * * * * * *-* * * *- : * > *
* * * * * * * *** A.M. º. v. -- ~ : * ~ *, *, *.* º:
v- w -w ºf ºr ºld v. « , we v. we a-
* * - Nº
< *...* * ſº
ºw
* . P.
* * * * * * * > <- *, *. º
*- : *.* * ***
* : * . was
wº. ºf
: ºº
*"...º.º.
Lºs
[.
.
---
º “e - - - ... -->
* * * * *, *, *, * : * ~ * : *
- ... - * ºf . "
* *
2.
* * * 5 *
sº. A ºr * * *:: *.*.* *
f : * * * * Tº º º
º ºw - ſº * * *
º d
2 * * *.* *
* * *
* * * * : *
ºf º º " " . *
º-º-º-º-º:
- , " ... • *-
I-------
C- tº ºf a
v. - ". . . . .
3 * * * * * * *
* * *
* * 4 = x -:
a 2- -za ºr a -->
- = z* > ------->
gº
---º-º-º:
"... º.º.º.º. º
tº ºr ºrd - 8 ºr -º
sº.º. 4 ~ * * * * * * *
* -º º ºs º º sº , ºr ºf
3-s a - sº .
º
**** *
ºrs, &
ºº:: * ~ *, *,
º; ºr º º