The battle fought and won,--'twas over and done with two full hours
before noon,--Dan Morgan knew well what must befall, lacking the
swiftest after-doing on our part. With Greene near a hundred miles away,
and my Lord Cornwallis less than three hours' gallop to the southward on
Turkey Creek, the time was come for the hastiest welding of our little
army with that of the general-in-command; if, indeed, the promptest
running would take us to the upper fords of the Catawba before
Cornwallis should intervene and cut us off.
Accordingly, Jennifer and I were detailed to carry the news of the
victory to Greene's camp at Cheraw Hill; and when we rode away on the
warm trail of the flying British, we left Dan Morgan's men hard at it,
burning the heavy impedimenta of the capture, and otherwise making ready
for the swiftest of forced marches to the north.
'Twould be a thankless task to take you with us stage by stage on our
cross-country gallop to advertise General Greene of the victory at the
cow pastures. Suffice it to say that we made shift to turn the head of
the advancing British main, now in motion and hastening with all speed
to cut Dan Morgan off; that we were by turns well soaked by rain and
stream, deep mired in bogs, chased times without number by the enemy's
outriders, and hardshipped freely for food and horse provender before we
saw the camp on the Pedee. All this you may figure for yourselves, the
main point being that we came at length to the goal, weary,
mire-splashed and belted to the last buckle-hole to pinch down the
hunger pains, but sound of skin, wind and limb.
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