Ogeechee, April 20, 1789 

             
Dear sir:
   I have to inform Your Honor of a melancholy catastrophe which 
happened in my neighborhood last Saturday evening about 8 
o'clock at the house of a Mr. Stephen Mills in Effingham County,
Skulls Creek, about two miles from where I live. Came a company
of Indians supposed to be about eight or ten in number who fell 
in at Mr. Mills's and killed Mrs. Mills, the wife of Stephen
Mills, and two of her children and their nephew Billy Meazells,
son of David Meazells, carried off the tick(ings), threw out the 
feathers,carried off the tick (INGS)s and what other clothing they
could find, threw some of the pewter into the fire and carried 
away the rest; left four bows and about forty arrows, some of 
them sticking into corpses.  One of the children lived until the 
next day with three arrows stickling into it. One child they 
stamped to death and almost to a jelly. Left Mrs. Mills stripped
naked and in a deplorable situation to behold. They shot her with
guns and scalped Mrs. Mills and Billy Meazells.  They left a cap
of turkey skin with feathers, some natural as they grew and others
artificially fixed, so that when put on a man's head it cuts a 
droll figure. A scout is gone in pursuit of them but had not 
returned this morning when I left home. The inhabitants are 
gathering together in parties to make a defence if they can be
supported with men and provision. These men have been driven off
last fall and lost their provision then and have been obliged to 
purchase ever since and are now just returned to their 
plantations and preparing for planting.  Your Honor will be
able to judge what is most expedient.  A number of horses was 
taken off the same night, as I am informed.