Virginia Argus

Augusta Herald.

There was a public magazine kept at the house of Col. Thomas in Spartanburg district, South Carolina, in the year 1779, and it being discovered that a party of tories had determined on a certain day to attack, and if possible, to make themselves masters of the place, a number of men had collected together from the neighborhood for its defence. But it so happened, that as soon as the tories made their appearance in a body, on a hill near the magazine, all the men to whom its defence had been confided, fled, except Josiah Culbertson, a private soldier, who animated by the true American spirit, resolved, that he would neither fly nor yield, while he had strength to fight. He therefore called his wife and her mother, and two or three other women to his assistance, and having several muskets in the house, the women were directed to load the guns and hand them to Culbertson, as fast as he fired them off. As soon as the tories advanced within moderate gun shot, Culbertson began to fire upon them, and as he had taken his station in an upper room, he fired from different windows with as much rapidity as his own exertions and the activity of the women in loading and handing him the muskets would enable him to do. The tories though they returned his fire from their whole body, yet they did not know by what number they were opposed, but they saw and severely felt, that they had to contend with a bravery, which they had no wish to encounter in close quarters, and after an engagement of 15 or 20 minutes, the assailants precipitately retreated, and could never more be prevailed upon to renew the attack, and the brave Mr. Culbertson had the satisfaction to find, that he had actually beat off one hundred and forty five tories and preserved the magazine.—

This worthy veteran, we are told, particularly distinguished himself in the battle of King's Mountain, and in the famous defeat of Colonel Tarleton, and he now lives an industrious farmer in the upper part of South Carolina, respected by his neighbors, and we trust, will long be honored by his country.—ib.