The War in the Northwest 351 



manders. 76 The general break up of authority, of 

 course, allowed full play to the vicious and criminal 

 characters. Even before the mountaineers came 

 down the unfortunate Carolinas had suffered from 

 the misdeeds of different bodies of ill-disciplined 

 patriot troops, 77 almost as much as from the British 

 and tories. The case was worse now. Many men 

 deserted from the returning army for the especial 

 purpose of plundering the people of the neighbor- 

 hood, paying small heed which cause the victims 

 had espoused: and parties continually left camp 

 avowedly with this object. Campbell's control was 

 of the slightest ; he was forced to entreat rather than 

 command the troops, complaining that they left their 

 friends in "almost a worse situation than the enemy 

 would have done," and expressing what was cer- 

 tainly a moderate "wish," that the soldiers would 

 commit no "unnecessary injury" on the inhabitants 

 of the country. 78 Naturally such very mild meas- 

 ures produced little effect in stopping the plundering. 

 However, Campbell spoke in stronger terms of an 

 even worse set of outrages. The backwoodsmen 

 had little notion of mercy to beaten enemies, and 

 many of them treated the .captured loyalists with 

 great brutality, even on the march, 79 Colonel Cleav- 



76 Certificate of Matthew Willoughby, in "Richmond En- 

 quirer," as quoted. 



" Gates MSS. Deposition"of John Satty, and others, Sept. 

 7, 1780; of Wm. Hamilton, Sept. i2th, etc., etc., etc. 



18 Campbell's General Orders, Oct. i4th, and Oct. 26th. 



19 "Our captors . . . cutting and striking us in a most 

 savage manner." "South Carolina Loyalist." 



