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Colonial and State Records of North Carolina
Letter from Griffith Rutherford to Cornelius Harnett
Rutherford, Griffith, ca. 1721 - 1805
August 06, 1776
Volume 10, Pages 726-727

[From MS. Records in Office of Secretary of State.]
Letter from General Griffith Rutherford to the North Carolina Council of Safety, about the Cherokee Outrages.

Salisbury, August 6th, 1776.

Sir:

Your Favour of the 29th July by Mr Toadvine is before me, and shall immediately comply with the Order of Council by sending Lieut Col Williams, of Surry, with 300 Men to Virginia, and as soon

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as Salt from Cross Creek comes to hand, shall send 50 Bushels under their Care.

I am sorry to hear that your advices from Surry were falsely grounded, both with Respect to the Militia and Ammunition.

At the first alarm I had from the frontiers, I determined to leave the Surry Militia at that time to defend their own, and take sufficient from the other Counties to put a stop to the Rage of the Enemy; and at the same time sent express Orders to Col. Armstrong, of Surry, to hold himself in Readiness to join me, if required, with the half of his Militia, and march against the Cherokees, in case the Council should give me express Orders to carry the War into the Nation; and on Tuesday, the 23d of last Month, I wrote him express Orders to join me at Head-Quarters, with 300 Men equipped for the purpose of War, against that day four Weeks.

Whereas I cannot take any men from Tryon, nor the second Battalion of Rowan (being frontiers), the Current of Tories running strong in Guilford and Anson; the Surry Gentlemen's Insinuations to Virginia, your Board thereby depriving me of 300 Men, and many Inhabitants in the Neighbourhood of this place being ill with fevers, all conspire to render it absolutely necessary that 500 or more should join me from Hillsborongh District, and therefore have wrote by Express for that Purpose.

No wonder that this and many more Distresses and Disorders should attend us, when Gentlemen to whom we ought otherwise to look up, and from whom we ought to have had many and necessary Orders have denyed their Presence.

Sir, your most Obt humble Servt,
GRIFFITH RUTHERFORD.