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The Complete Writings of Washington Irving, Including His Life (v. 12)
The Complete Writings of Washington Irving Including His Life - v. 12 Author:Washington Irving Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER HL 3OUTH CAROLINA. THREATENED.—ITS CONDITION AND POPULATION.—STORMt VOYAGE OF SIR HENRY CLINTON.—LOSS OF HORSES.—CHARACTER OF LIEUTENANT-COLONEL TARLE... more »TON.— FLEET ARRIVES AT TYBEE.—SIR HENRY CLINTON ADVANCES UPON CHARLESTON.—LINCOLN PREPARES FOR DEFENSE.—COMMODORE WHIPPLE.—GOVERNOR HUTLEDGE.—FOREBODINGS OF WASHINGTON.—EMBARKATION OF BRITISH TROOPS AT NEW YORK.—WASHINGTON SENDS DE KALB WITH REINFORCEMENTS.—HIS HOPEFUL LETTER TO STEUBEN. HE return of spring brought little alleviation to the sufferings of the army at Morristown. All means of supplying its wants or recruiting its ranks were paralyzed by the continued depreciation of the currency. While Washington saw his forces gradually diminishing, his solicitude was intensely excited for the safety of the Southern States. The reader will recall the departure from New York, in the latter part of December, of the fleet of Admiral Arbuthnot with the army of Sir Henry Clinton, destined for the subjugation of South Carolina. " The richness of the country," says Colonel Tarleton, in his history of the campaign, "its vicinity to Georgia, and its distance from General Washington, pointed out the advantage and facility of its conquest. While it would be an unspeakable loss to the Americans, the possession of it would tend to secure to the crown the southern part of the continent which stretches beyond it." It was presumed that the subjugation of it would be an easy task. The population was scanty for the extent of the country, and was made up of emigrants, or the descendants of emigrants, from various lands and of various nations: Huguenots, who had emigrated from France after the revocation of the edict of Nantz; Germans, from the Palatinate ; Irish Protestants, who had received grants of land from the crown; Scotch Highlander...« less