Brown confronted Lieutenant McGirth, who denied that he had incited the attack. Although the denial was not persuasive, Sergeant Baker convinced Brown that an attempted escape was their best explanation of the event. There was no way to conceal what had happened, and the colony was aroused as never before by the capture of one of their few forts and by the unprecedented “execution” of a hostage. Archibald Bulloch reported the savage incident to General Robert Howe, in Charles Town, and asked him to send a force to defend Georgia. Troops were dispatched but did not arrive until after McIntosh had moved south and the invaders had faded away into the swamps and woods of west Georgia and north Florida. The Georgia troops found that their fort had been ransacked, burned, and abandoned shortly after its capture by the Rangers.

CHAPTER 30

A Deadly Duel

APRIL 1777

Georgia political and military leaders realized that their real authority did not extend far from Savannah, with most of the settlers in the south intimidated by the Rangers and those farther up the Savannah River reluctant to give any support to the revolution. It was truly a divided state. Archibald Bulloch, as president and head of the Council of Safety, was the most revered man in Georgia, and the one person who was able to coalesce almost unanimous support among the otherwise sharply divided political factions. He was given almost dictatorial powers to recruit and deploy a strong militia, but he died suddenly and mysteriously a few days after taking office, and the Council of Safety promoted Button Gwinnett to succeed him. There was some trepidation about this decision, but Gwinnett had a few fervent supporters who refused to consider any other choice.

One of Gwinnett’s earliest official acts was to have George McIntosh, Lachlan’s brother, arrested on charges of violating the embargo against trade with the British, and placed in irons in the common jail. In fact, a Tory factor had changed the shipping papers and surreptitiously sent the ship to St. Augustine, delivering the rice to British buyers. The entire Scottish clan deeply resented the insult that had been aimed at them, and as soon as possible, while Gwinnett was visiting Augusta, the Council of Safety released McIntosh on bail and ordered him to report to Philadelphia for trial. The Continental Congress considered the case and determined that there was insufficient evidence for a trial.

Button Gwinnett was furious when he returned to Savannah and learned that George McIntosh had been set free, but he placed most of the blame on Lachlan and the Scots clan from St. Andrews. After only a few days, he decided that it was time to fulfill his ultimate ambition: to assume command of the state’s military force as the acting president and lead another invasion of Florida.

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