His troops were exhausted from the all-night ride and, in any case, there were not enough of them to enable him to cross the mountains and give the Watauga men battle on their own ground with a fair promise of victory.

So keeping east of the hills but still close to them, Ferguson turned into Burke County, North Carolina.

He sat him down in Gilbert Town (present Lincolnton, Lincoln County) at the foot of the Blue Ridge and indited a letter to the "Back Water Men," telling them that if they did not lay down their arms and return to their rightful allegiance, he would come over their hills and raze their settlements and hang their leaders.

He paroled a kinsman of Shelby's, whom he had taken prisoner in the chase, and sent him home with the letter.

Then he set about his usual business of gathering up Tories and making soldiers of them, and of hunting down rebels.
One of the "rebels" was a certain Captain Lytle.