136 The Winning of the West 



the court remained open he could get no volunteers, 

 he on his own responsibility closed it off-hand, and 

 proclaimed that it would not be opened until after 

 he came back from his expedition. The speculators 

 grumbled and clamored, but this troubled Clark not 

 at all, for he was able to get as many volunteers as 

 he wished. The discontent, and still more the panic 

 over Bird's inroad, made many of the settlers deter- 

 mine to flee from the country, but Clark sent a small 

 force to Crab Orchard, at the mouth of the Wilder- 

 ness road, the only outlet from Kentucky, with in- 

 structions to stop all men from leaving the country, 

 and to take away their arms if they persisted ; while 

 four-fifths of all the grown men were drafted, and 

 were bidden to gather instantly for a campaign. 36 

 He appointed the mouth of the Licking as the 

 place of meeting. Thither he brought the troops 

 from the Falls in light skiffs he had built for the 

 purpose, leaving behind scarce a handful of men to 

 garrison the stockade. Logan went with him as 

 second in command. He carried with him a light 

 three-pounder gun; and those of the men who had 

 horses marched along the bank beside the flotilla. 

 The only mishap that befell the troops happened to 

 McGarry, who had a subordinate command. He 

 showed his usual foolhardy obstinacy by persisting 

 in landing with a small squad of men on the north 

 bank of the river, where he was in consequence sur- 

 prised and roughly handled by a few Indians. Noth- 

 ing was done to him because of his disobedience, for 



36 Bradford MSS. 



