drove the enemy
from about Fort Prince George and then, rapidly advancing, surprised
Little Keow'ee, killing every man of the defenders, and destroyed in
succession every one of the Lower Cherokee towns, burning them to
the ground, cutting down the cornfields and orchards, killing and
taking more than a hundred of their men. and driving the whole popu-
lation into the mountains before him. His own loss was very slight.
He then sent messengers to the .Middle and Upper towns, summoning
them to surrender on penalty of the like fate, but, receiving no reply,
he led his men across the divide to the waters of the Little Tennessee
and continued down that stream without opposition until he came in
the vicinity of Ephoee (Itse'yi), a few mile- above the sacred town of
Nikwasi', the present Franklin. North Carolina. Here theCherokee
had collected their full force to resist his progress, and the result was
a desperate engagement on dune 27, LTtio. by which Montgomery was
compelled to retire to Fort Prince George, after losing nearly one
hundred men in killed and wounded. The Indian loss is unknown.
His retreat sealed the fate of Fort Loudon. The garrison, though
hard pressed and reduced to the necessity of eating horses and dogs,
had been enabled to hold out through the kindness of the Indian
women, many of whom, having found sweethearts among the soldiers,
brought them supplies of f 1 daily. When threatened by the chiefs
the women boldly replied that the soldiers were their husbands and it
was their duty to help them, and that if any harm came to themselves
for their devotion their English relatives would avenge them. 1