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CHAPTER

V.

State of the ENGLISH and SPANIARDS, in the northern part of AMERICA; and GENERAL OGLETHORPE's expedition against ST AUGUSTINE, in 1740.

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PON the continent of North America, the CHAP. war alfo extended between the crowns of V. Great Britain and Spain; where the Spaniards had long looked upon the British fettlements, as terri- 1740. tories difmembered from their American empire; for the crown of Spain, pretended a right to all America, under a grant from the Pope; and when the English began to eftablish Virginia, they not only protefted against it, but attempted, though in vain, to dislodge them.

KING Charles II. having granted a charter of the lands to the fouth of Virginia, which he erected into a province, and called Carolina; this, under the fame vain pretence of the Pope's grant, the Spaniards oppofed, attacking and deftroying a fettlement, made by Lord Cardrofs, in the fouthern part of that province, and killing most of his people. But the northern part improved, and encreafed greatly; and Charles

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PART Charles Town, the capital of South Carolina, I. became confiderable; though the Spaniards, ftirr~ing up the Indians to harrafs them, they were 1740. eternally difquieted; till in the year 1733, his Britannic majefty divided the fouth part from the rest of Carolina, and made it a distinct province, under the name of Georgia; which was bounded to the N. E, and feparated from Carolina, by the river Savanna, and on the S. extended to the Spanish frontiers of Florida. This country was then entirely in the poffeffion of the Indians; and was acknowledged to them, by a treaty made by the governor and people of Carolina with the Creek Indians, whereby they mutually agreed that neither party fhould pass the faid river.

JAMES OGLETHORPE, Efq; one of the truftees of Georgia, who led the English colony into that province, on his arrival in 1733, concluded a treaty with all the cantons of the Creek Indians, by which they agreed to that colony's fettling in their part of the province of Georgia, upon certain conditions; he alfo concluded a treaty with the two nations of Cherokees and Chickaffaws, relating to their part of the fame province; and from that time the Indians never molested the English fettlement in Carolina.

MR OGLETHORPE alfo concluded a provifional treaty with the governor of Augustine, and general of Florida, relating to the boundaries between the English and Spaniards, till the pleasure of the two courts could be known; by which the river St Mathea, which the Spaniards called St John's, remained the limits between the two nations, being the fame river mentioned in the grant of King Charles II. and

lies in 30 deg. 10 m. as the river Savanna does CHAP. in 32 deg. o m.

V.

WHEN the Spanish court in 1737, ftill aggravated their differences with the English, Don 1740. Thomas Geraldino, the Spanish ambaffador at the court of London, prefented a memorial, demanding all the land to 33 deg. 30 m. N. latitude in America, and required the government to order the English fubjects to withdraw; but if this could not be done, infifting that at least no troops should be fent there, and particularly remonstrated against the return of Mr Oglethorpe, who was then in England. At the fame time news arrived from Commodore Dent, who commanded his Britannic majefty's fhips at Jamaica; and from Governor Bull, who commanded in Carolina; that the Spani ards, at the Havanna, were preparing embarkations, and 3,000 men, to invade Carolina. His Britannic majefty, upon this, immediately appointed Mr Oglethorpe general of his forces in Carolina and Georgia, ordered him to raise a regiment, and repair there; where he arrived time enough to prevent the execution of the Spanish defigns, though a confiderable number of their troops had already got to Auguftine.

WHEN the reprizals were published in America, a party of the garrison of Augustine came up and furprized two highlanders upon the island of Amelia, cut off their heads, and mangled their bodies with all the wantoning of inhumanity; General Oglethorpe went immediately in purfuit of them, and with fuch expedition, that he followed them by land and water, above a hundred miles in lefs than twenty-four hours, but they efcaped. However the general, by way of reprizal, paffed the river St Mathea, or St John's, into Florida, drove in the guards of Spanish horse, posted upon that river, and ad

PART vanced as far as a place called the Canallas; at the I. fame time fending Capt. Dunbar with a party up

the river St Mathea, to reconnoitre a fort called 1740. Pickalata, near that river, upon the lakes of Florida, twenty miles from the fea; which they attacked, but, having no artillery, were repulfed notwithstanding they accomplished the general's intentions, having well viewed both that place and another fort called St Francis, upon the fame lakes. In January, General Oglethorpe returned to Frederica, the chief town in the fouth of Georgia, where he met with Capt. Warren, who was lately arrived with the Squirrel man of war; and having confulted with him, Capt. Warren went and cruized off the bar of Auguftine, whilft General Oglethorpe, with a detachment of troops on board of boats, and fome artillery, went up the lakes of Florida, rowing by day and failing by night, fo that he attacked the two forts of Pickalata and St Francis, and took them the fame day. From the information of the prifoners, which confirmed the other accounts the general had of the weak condition of Auguftine; he fent up to Charles Town, to defire the affiftance of the people of Carolina, and to confult measures with the commanders of the men of war, in order immediately to block up Auguftine, before the Spaniards could receive provifions and affiftance from Cuba; which if executed, the place muft, in all probability, be foon reduced.

AUGUSTINE is the principal town of ftrength in Spanish Florida, fituate at the mouth of the river Matanzas, about twenty leagues fouth of the river St Mathea, or St John's, the boundary of Georgia; whofe inhabitants had fhewn great indications of their inclination to infeft the people of Carolina, having, by ungenerous arti

fies, been long attempting to raife an infurrec- CHAP. tion among the flaves of that province, which V. was effected in September, 1739, and twentythree of the white inhabitants maffacred in a moft 1740. cruel and barbarous manner; but the militia engaging the revolters, defeated and killed, or took the greatest part of them prifoners: this, as occafioned by the inftigation of the Spaniards, created an univerfal concern through the province of fouth Carolina, for they expected nothing less than thus continually to feel the cruelty of the Spaniards; they looked on St Auguftine, in the fame manner their mother country had formerly done on the African Sallee, as a den of thieves and Ruffians, and the receptacle of debtors and flaves, to whom, by a proclamation published at Auguftine, they had promised freedom and protection on their desertion from the English. Such a proceeding awakened the attention of all the inhabitants of Carolina; every one that had any relation, any tie of nature, every one that had a life to lofe, was fenfibly fhocked at fuch a danger daily impending over their heads; and to aggravate their concern, they had information that the remainder of the preparations made at the Havanna in 1737 for invading Carolina, were now ready for that purpofe: prompted by fuch ftrong incentives, the lieutenant-governor, the council, affembly, and inhabitants of Carolina, feemed very ready to affift General Oglethorpe, on an enterprize fo promifing of fuccefs, and fo likely to destroy all their fears from the incurfions of the Spaniards.

THE Indian nations in Georgia, having alfo been confiderably engaged in the profecution of the war, it may be proper to give fome de

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