348 The Winning of the West 



however, to get the attacks made quite simultane- 

 ously. 



The back districts of North Carolina suffered 

 heavily at the outset; however, the inhabitants 

 showed that they were able to take care of them- 

 selves. The Cherokees came down the Catawba 

 murdering many people; but most of the whites 

 took refuge in the little forts, where they easily with- 

 stood the Indian assaults. General Griffith Ruther- 

 ford raised a frontier levy and soon relieved the 

 besieged stations. He sent word to the provincial 

 authorities that if they could only get powder and 

 lead the men of the Salisbury district were alone 

 quite capable of beating off the Indians, but that 

 if it was intended to invade the Cherokee country 

 h ! e must also have help from the Hillsborough 

 men. 48 He was promised assistance, and was told 

 to prepare a force to act on the offensive with the 

 Virginians and South Carolinians. 



Before he could get ready the first counter-blow 

 had been struck by Georgia and South Carolina. 

 Georgia was the weakest of all the colonies, and the 

 part she played in this war was but trifling. She 

 was threatened by British cruisers along the coast, 

 and by the tories of Florida; and there was con- 

 stant danger of an uprising of the black slaves, who 

 outnumbered the whites. The vast herds of cattle 

 and great rice plantations of the South offered a 

 tempting bait to every foe. Tories were numerous 

 in the population, while there were incessant bicker- 



48 Do., sth Series, I, 613. 



