BUNCOMBE, Edward, soldier, born in St. Kitts, W. 1. ; died in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1777. He was educated in England, inherited a large estate, came to this country, and in 1776 settled in Tyrrel County, North Carolina During the revolutionary war he raised and commanded the 5th North Carolina regiment, and fought under General Francis Nash at the battles of Brandywine and Germantown. He was severely wounded in the latter engagement, and, after being captured, was taken to Philadelphia, where he soon died from the effects of his injuries. In 1791 his name was given to a county in North Carolina. The Americanism "speaking for Buncombe," signifying any speech made solely to please a constituency or the public, is derived from the following incident: A representative in congress from Buncombe County was in the habit of making speeches to which no one listened. One day, observing that many members were leaving the house while he was speaking, he declared that he did not care how many left--he was not speaking to the house, but to Buncombe.