Clarke said, “It really gripes me to know that we’ve let the bloody Rangers control almost all our Georgia territory between here and the Florida line, and it’s time we pushed them out once and for all.”

Cautiously, Aaron responded, “They’ve never operated much right along the coast, but if this expedition fails, we might see both them and the Redcoats in Savannah.”

“Well, now that General Howe finally got here with his one thousand Continentals and if Houstoun and Williamson ever come with the other militia from Georgia and South Carolina, we’ll have enough strength to go all the way to St. Augustine.”

With approval from the Georgia council and the governor, Elijah Clarke and his two hundred mounted militia had moved down to the north side of the Altamaha, where they had waited until the last week in May, when General Howe and his Continentals joined them at the site of the destroyed fort named in his honor. Then they had crossed the river without opposition and were waiting again, this time for almost another month, for the arrival of Governor Houstoun and Colonel Williamson, each of whom was supposed to bring about five hundred state militia. The Georgia contingent finally appeared across the river on July 4, and the South Carolinians arrived a week later. Now all of them had crossed the river and were bivouacked along its southern shore.

At the invitation of General Howe, the other leaders and their top aides were assembled in his large tent. He was the first to speak.

“I would like to welcome Governor Houstoun, Colonel Williamson, Colonel Clarke, and others. Now that we are all together, it is imperative that we understand what collective forces we have and how best to coordinate our movements southward. I must say that I have never participated in a military operation with four independent commanders, but this is the arrangement and I am willing to honor it.

“As all of us will remember, our agreed plan has been to assemble at Fort Howe with expedition, then to move southward and take Fort Tonyn, just across the St. Marys River in Florida. With our combined strength, this should not be a major obstacle. Our next move will then be as directly as possible to St. Augustine, which we can expect the British to defend strenuously. If we can inflict serious casualties on them in advance and also demonstrate our own strength and capabilities, it is quite likely that they will capitulate without a major engagement. We will be supplied by boats from Charles Town and Savannah, using the inland waterway.”

Elijah raised his hand and began to speak without being recognized.