Part 27 (2/2)

This so enraged colonel Brown, the British cousta, that he made several attempts to destroy captain M'Coy

Once, in particular, he despatched a captain and fifty ood a look out, that he surprised and killed the captain and twenty of hisbail', ht by the side of his father in this and ood fortune to save his father's life

At the head of so party of tories, near Brier creek, commanded by a British officer

As usual, an obstinate and bloody contest ensued The corappled with the officer; but not possessing strength equal to his courage, he was overpowered and thrown on the ground The youth, who had just fired his piece into the bosoer, flew to his aid, and with the butt of his gun knocked out the brains of the officer, at the very instant he was lifting his dirk for the destruction of his father

In a skirmish, in which his party were victorious, captain M'Coy was ht undauntedly for the liberties of his country After the death of his father, young M'Coy joined the brave captain Clarke In an expedition against colonel Brown, Clarke was defeated, and young M'Coyof his usta, but arrived only in ti hi tears, she fell upon his neck, and bitterlyher husband and only son

The behavior of young M'Coy, it is said, was heroic beyond his years

Instead ofwith his disconsolate mother, he exhorted her like one who had acted on principle, and now felt its divine consolations stronger than death

He entreated his mother not to weep for him, nor for his father

”In the course of nature,indeed, is early; but it is glorious My father was like a lion in battle for his country As a young lion, I fought by his side

And often, when the battle was over, did he embrace and call me his boy!

his own brave boy! and said I orthy of you both He has just gone before, and I now follow hi you the joy to rehest honor on earth; the honor of fighting and dying for the rights of man”

Anxious to save the life of so dear a son, poor Mrs M'Coy fell on her knees to colonel Brown, and with all the edin her looks, plead for his life But in vain With the dark features of a soul horribly triumphant over the cries of mercy, he repulsed her suit, and ordered the executioner to do his office! He hung up the young e joy, suffered his Indians, in her presence, to strike their tomahawks into his forehead; that forehead which she had so often pressed to her boso mother

Who, without tears, can think of the hard fate of poor colonel Haynes and his family?

Soon as the will of heaven had thrown Charleston into the hands of the British, lord Cornwallis, faan to publish The tenor of his gasconade was, that Carolina was now, to all intents and purposes, subjugated; that the ene were all at his h, by the war rubrick for conquered rebels, he had a right to send fire and sword before hih he had a right to feed the birds of heaven with rebel carcasses, and to fatten his soldiers with their confiscated goods, yet he ht

No, indeed! Far frohts On the contrary he wished to be merciful: and as proof of his sincerity, all that he asked of the poor deluded people of his majesty's colony of South Carolina was, that they should no longer take part nor lot in the contest, but continue peaceably at their homes And that, in reward thereof, they should be most sacredly protected in property and person

This proclamation was accompanied with an instrun of an inward and spiritual grace,”

in my lord Cornwallis towards the Carolinians; and which instruht have a covenant right to the aforesaid pros of protection, both in property and person

The heart of colonel Haynes ith his countrymen, and fervently did he pray that his hands could be with them too But, these, alas! were bound up by his wife and children, who well

Helpless and tre as they were, how could they be deserted by hiiven up to a brutal soldiery?

And why should he insure the destruction of a large estate, when all opposition seemed hopeless? In short, with thousands of others, he went and signed an instrument, which promised security to his family and fortune But alas! from that fatal moment he never more enjoyed peace To hate the ministerial measures as he did, and yet thus tamely to have submitted to them; to love his country as heartily as he did, and to know that she was now fighting, with her all at stake, and yet thus to have deserted her!

These keen self-conde reflections harrowed every root of quiet froroan, sleepless and tossing, all the restless night If he got up, it was but to sit, or walk to and fro in his family, with dark and woeful looks, like one whouishi+ng reflections, which appeared to be wearing hirave, a respite was afforded, and by a hand fro by his first proclamation, obtained to the instrunatures of many thousands of the citizens of South Carolina, then came out with a SECOND proclamation, in which he nominates the paper above not an instru, and calls upon all who had signed it, to take up ar to treat as deserters those who refused!

This fraud of my lord Cornwallis, excited in all honest nation It completely revived colonel Haynes

To his unspeakable joy, he no opened a door of honorable return to duty and happiness And since, contrary to the ht, he very naturally deterht the British, rather than his own countrymen He fled to his countryave him a command of horse

He was surprised and carried to Charleston, where lord Rawdon, then commandant, ordered him, in his favorite phrase, to be 'knocked into irons' A nified with the name of 'court martial', was held over hi Everybody in Charleston, Britons as well as Americans, all heard this sentence with horror, except colonel Haynes hie It appeared that the deed which he had done, signing that accursed paper, had run hier part, even of his ene that it was done enerous disposition to forgive hiive hihastly to be healed

To their own, and to the great honor of huovernor Bull at their head, preferred a petition to lord Rawdon in his behalf But the petition was not noticed The ladies then came forward in his favor with a petition, couched in the ned by all the principal fes

But all to no purpose It was then suggested by the friends of humanity, that if the colonel's little children, for they had no rief and the sested, I say, that if the colonel's little children, dressed in , were to fall at the knees of lord Rawdon, he would pity their ive to their prayers their only surviving parent

They were accordingly dressed in black, and introduced into his presence: they fell down at his knees, and, with clasped hands and tear-streaed his life: but in vain

So enerous foes, could not be made, unknown to colonel Haynes But he appeared perfectly indifferent about the result! and when told that they had all failed, he replied with the utmost unconcern -- ”Well, thank God, lord Rawdon cannot hurt me He cannot be more anxious to take my life than I am to lay it down”