^:j«v. Mr^ $39 '%,r^ ^^ %r^ :^^5r3Pv . W at 4t: JE^l -*3-' '^ .«arr • . c - .-ar' ■■ or ■ •4^*__i :.-..: C^BL-- or or i^m L /w'.. 'r-W*' -'^'^;vv.> ^>J< '''^ ?-^'^.ViiN \}^:^rMi^^^M. M^^M^ \j'\iywv '^ U ^^^ ^INCIDENTS AND SKETCHES CONNECTED WITH IHB EAKLY HISTORY AND SETTLEMENT OF THE WEST. ^<^^Q 22JS»S.W^^2li^^2£<2>SrSf« CINCINNATI: J. A. k U. P. JAMES, WALNUT STREET, BETWEEN FOURTH AND FIFTH. 185 3. CONTENTS. A Page. Advkntuhbs of Capt. Daniel Boon 10 A Tale of Western Chivalry 25 An Historical Sketch 38 An Indian Council 48 Adventures of Col. James Smith 49 American Antiquities 72 B Boiling Potatoes 71 C Chippewa Matrimony 48 Castle Rock 56 Catching Wild Horses on a Prairie 65 Cortez, Hernando 58 E Emigration 7 Early Habits, Customs, &c., of the West 71 F Farewell of the Seminole Chief. 53 G General Francis Marion 48 L Life Preserver 26 Life in the West 57 P Page. Power of Virtue 62 R Revolutionary Reminiscences 37 S Song of the Prairie 30 Sketches of the Olden Time 14 Sailing down the Ohio 61 T The Pioneer 29 The Emigrant's Daughter 33 The Last of the Indian Fighters 35 The Mothers of the West 13 The Western Mothers 42 The Corporal 43 The Prairie v 44 V Valley of the Mississippi 14 W White Indians 46 Wonderful Escape from Indians 46 Western Antiquities 53 EMBELLISHMENTS. A Page. A Clearing 9 Adam Poe and Big Foot 24 A Log Cabin 45 A Scene in the West • 69 American Antiquities 72 B Buffalo 57 Broad Horn, or Flat Boat 63 C Castle Rock 56 Catching Wild Horses on a Prairie 67 E Emigration 6 F Frontispiece. Col. Daniel Boon. H Hernando Cortez 59 L Page, Life Preserver 26 R Road through the Forest. Squaws ducking Col. Smith 61 The Pioneer 28 The Emigrant's Daughter 32 The Prairie 44 Village of Log-Huts W Western Antiquities. The Stone Fort 64 The Mound at Florence 65 F3S\ T3"i EARLY HISTORY OF THE WEST. EMIGRATION. The engraving for this article represents a halt for thf. nmht of an emigrant with his family — one, perhaps, who has left his natal soil and the in- heritance of his fathers, and seeks in the fax west for that independence in his worldly circuinstances ^'hich he has tried in vain to gain from the stony and barren patriinonial homestead : or perhaps one who has looked on his rapidly-increasing family, and, ambitious of doing something for his children while he is in the prime of life, or anxious to see them settled comfortably around him, that his old age may be cheered by their presence, has resolved lo go to the far lorst, the land which is represented as flow- ing with milk and boiiey, the land which repays with an hundred fold the labour expended on it, and the riches of whose bosom far exceed those in the mines of Peru. Resolved lo migrate, the emigrant collects togeth- er his little property, and provides himself with a wagon and with two or three horses, as his ineans permit ; — a rifle, a shot-gun, and an axe slung over his should(!r, form part of his equipments, and his trusty dog becomes the companion of his journey. — In the wagon are placed his bedding, his provisions, and such cooking-utensils as are indispensably ne- cessary. Every thing being ready, the wife and children take their seats, the father of the family mounts the box, and now they are on the move. As they pass through the village, vv^hich has been to them the scene of many happv hours, thev take a last look at the spt)is which are hallowed by associa- tion ; the church, with its lowly spire, an emblem of that humility which befits the Christian — and the burial-ground, where the weeping-willow bends mournfully over the headstone which marks the par- ent's grave ; nor do the children forget their play- ground, nor the white schoolhouse where the rudi- ments of education have been instilled into their minds. The road is at first comparatively smooth, and their journey pleasant ; their way is chequered with divers little incidents, while the contiimal changes in the appearances of the country around them, and the anticipation of what is to come, prevent those feelings of despondency which might otherwise arise, on leaving a much-loved home. When the roads are bad, or hilly, the family quit the wagon, and plod their way on foot ; and at night they may be seen assembled round the fire made by tlie roadside, partaking of their frugal supper. The horses are unharnessed, watered, and secured with their heads to the trough ; and the emigrants arrange tliemselves for the night, while their faithful dog keeps watch. Or if the close of the day finds them near a tavern or farm-house, a bargain is struck for the use of the fireplace and part of the kitchen, and the family pass the night on the floor, their feet to the embers and their heads pillowed on the saddles. Amid all the privations and vicissitudes in their journey, they are cheered up by ihe consciousness that each day lessens the distance between them and the land of promise, and that the fertile soil of the west will recompense them for all their trials. 8 At length our Jlitters, as they are called, reach the banks of the Ohio, whose placid bosom seems to invite their embarkation, while countless boats of every description meet their astonished gaze. We have resided many years at the west, and during this period have been with hundreds and hundreds who hi^ve seen the Ohio river for the first time, and we hav^c never known an individual who has gazed upon its broad expanse of water with a feeling of disappointment or regret , on the contrary, like pil- grims to the Holy Land, they forget all their pains and privations, and view it as indicating that the ob- ject of their journey is nearly attained. Our travellers, after resting themselves for a few days, aeain take up their line of march ; for the Ohio river, which was formerly the termination of all pil- grimages, is now but the frontier of a new country, and but the starting-point for the far-distant west. The roads soon become more and more rough ; the swamps and little forest-streams are rendered passa- ble by logs placed side by side, and the bridges thus formed are termed corduroy, from their ridgy and striped appearance. The axe and the rifle of the emi- grant are now brought daily and almost hourly into use : with the former, he cuts down saplings or young trees to throw across the roads, which in many places are almost impassable ; with the lat- ter, he kills sqifirrels, wild-turkeys, or such game as the forest affords him ; for by this time his provisions are exhausted. If perchance a buck crosses his path, and is brought down by a lucky shot, it is care- fully dressed, and hung up in the forks of the trees ; fires are built, and the meat is cut into small strips, and smoked and dried for future subsistence. This is the mode oi preserving the game of the forest, and these are the game-laws of the western pioneer. The road through the woods now becomes intri- cate, the trees being merely felled and drawn aside, so as to permit a wheeled-carriage to pass ; and the emigrant is often obliged to be guided in his route only by the blaze of the surveyor on the trees, and at every few rods to cut away the branches which obstruct his passage. The stroke of his axe re- verberates through the woods, but no answering sound meets the woodman's ear, to assure him of the presence of friend or foe. At night, in these soli- tudes, he hears and sees the wolves stealing through the gloom, and snuffing the scent of the intruders ; and now and then the bloodshot eye of the cata- mount glares through the foliage. At length, the emigrant arrives at the landmarks which indicate to him the proximity of his own possessions. A loca- tion for the cabin is now selected, near a small streana of running water, and, if possible, on the south side of a slight elevation. No time is lost ; the trees are immediately felled, and in a few days you can perceive a cleared space of ground, of perhaps a few rods in circumference ; stakes, forked at the tops, are driven into the ground, on which are placed logs, and the chinks between these are stopped with clay, mixed with lime, if these can be obtained. An en- closure is thus thrown up hastily, to protect the in- mates from the weather. The trunks of the trees, are rolled to the edge of the clearing, and surmounted by stakes driven crosswise into the ground ; the caps or the tops of the trees are piled on the trunks, and thus is formed a brush-fence, as it is termed. By degrees, the surrounding trees are girdled, (a circle of bark being removed from them,) and they die : such as are fit to make into rails, are cut down and split ; those unfit for this purpose, are left to ro», or are logged up and burned. 1^^ [Road through a Forest.] [A Clearing.] The next season, a visible improvement has taken p'ace ; several acres have been added to the clear- ing ; the woodman's residence begins to assume the dignified appearance of a farm ; the brush-fence is replaced by a worm-fence, or one which runs zigzag, as is seen in the cut ; the temporary shanty is trans- formed into a comfortable log-cabin ; and although the chimney is built of mud or clay, instead of bricks and mortar, and occupies one end of the house, it only shows that the inward man is duly attended to ; and the savoury fumes of venison, of the prairie-hen, and of other good things, prove that the comforts of t^is life are not forgotten, and that due respect is paid to that important organ in the human economy, the stomach. In a iew years, or even months, the retired cabin. once so solitary, becomes the nucleus of a little set- tlement ; other sections and quarter-sections of land are entered at the land-office by new-comers ; new portions of ground arc cleared, cabins are erected ; and in a short time our youthful city can turn out a force of eight or ten efficient hands, for a raising- bee, a logging-bee, &c., &c. A sawmill is soon in operation on one of the neighbouring streams, the log-huts receive a poplar weather-boarding, and, as the little settlement increases, a schoolhouse and church appear ; a mail is established, and, before many years elapse, a fine road is made to the nearest town; a stage-coach, which runs once or twice a week, connects the frontier with the populous country to the east of it ; and the traveller has thus an opportunity of viewing another evidence of American enterprise. [Village of log-huts.] 10 ADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN DANIEL BOON, Compnsing an Account of the Wars with the Indians on the Ohio, from 1769 to 1782. ■WRITTEN BY HIMSELF. [S« Frontispiece.] It was on the first of May, 1769, that I resigned my donie&tick happiness, and left my family and peaceable habitation on the Yadkin river in North Carolina, to wander through the wilderness of America, in quest of the country of Kentucky, in company with John Finley, John Stuart, Joseph Holden, James Moiiay,and William Cool. On the seventh of June, after travelling in a west- ern direction, we foimd ourselves on Red river, where John Finley had formerly been trading with the Indians, and from the top of an eminence saw with pleasure the beautiful level of Kentucky. For some time we had experienced the most uncomfort- able weather. We now encamped, made a shelter to defend us from the inclement season, and began to hunt and recoruioilre the country. We found abundance of wild beasts in this vast forest. The buflaloes were more immerous than cattle on their settlements, browsing on the leaves of the cane, or cr0]"ping the herbage on these extensive plains. We saw htmdreds in a drove, and the numbers about the salt springs were amazing. In this forest, the hab- itation of beasts of every American kind, we hunted with great success until December. On the twenty-second of December, John Stuart and I had a pleasing ramble ; but fortune changed the day at ihe close of it. We passed through a great forest, in Avhich stood tnvriads of trees, some gay with blossoms, others rich with fruits. Nature was here a series of wonders and a fund of delight. Here she displayed her ingenuity and industry in a variety of flowers and fruits, beautifully coloured, elegantly shaped, and charmingly flavoured ; and we were favoia'ed with numberless animals present- ing themselves perpetually to our view. In the de- cline of the day, near Kentucky river, as we as- cended the i)row of a small hill, a number of Indians rushed out of a canebrake and made us prisoners. The Indians plundered us, and kept us in confine- ment seven days. During this time, we discovered no uneasiness or desire to escape, which made them less suspicious ; but in the dead of night, as we lav by a large fire in a thick canebrake, when sleep had locked up their senses, my situation not disposing me to rest, I gently awoke my companion. We seized this favourable opportunity and departed, di- recting our course towards the old camp, but found it plundered and our company destroyed or dis- persed. About this time, as my brother with another adven- turer who came to explore the country shortly after lis, was wandering through the forest, they acciden- tally found our camp. Notwithstamling our unfor- tunate circumstances, and our dangerous situation, surrounded with hostile savages, our meeting for- tunately in the wil-derness gave us the most sensible satisfaction. Soon after this my companion in captivity, John Stuart, was killed by the savages, and the man who came with my brother, while on a private excursion, wa.s soon after attacked and killed by the wolves. VVe were now in a dangerous and helpless situation, e.xposed daily to perils and death, among savages and wild beasts, not a white man in the country but ourselves. Although many hundred miles from our families, in the howling wilderness, we did not continue in a state of indolence, but hunted every day, and pre- pared a little cottage to defend us from the winter. On the first of May, 1770, my brother returned home, for a new recruit of horses and ammunition, leaving me alone, without bread, salt, or sugar, or even a horse or a dog. I passed a few days uncom- fortably. The idea of a beloved wife and family, and their anxiety on my account, would have dis- posed me to melancholy if I had further indulged the thought. One day I undertook a tour through the country, when the diversity and beauties of nature 1 met with in this charming season expelled every gloomy thought. Just at the close of the day, the gentle gales ceased ; a profound calm ensued ; not a breath shook the tremulous leaf. I had g;iined the summit of a commanding ridge, and looking aroiuid with astonishing delight, beheld the ample plains and beauteous tracts below. On one hand, I surveyed the famous Ohio rolling in silent dignit}', and mark- ing the western boundary of Kentucky with incon- ceivable grandeur. At a vast distance, I beheld the mountains lift their venerable brows and penetrate the clouds. All things were still. I kindled a fire near a fountain of sweet water, and feasted on the loin of a buck which I had killed a few hours be- fore. The shades of night soon overspread the hemisphere, and the earth seemed to gasp after the hovering moisture. At a distance I frequently heard the hideous yells of savages. My excursion had fatigued my body and amused my mind. I laid me down to sleep, and awoke not until the sun had chased away the night. I coutimied this tour, and in a few days explored a considerable part of the country, each day equally pleasing as the first. After which I returned to my old camp, which had not been disturbed in my absence. I did not confine my lodging to it, but often reposed in thick cane- brakes to avoid the savages, who I believe frequent- ly visited my camp, but fortuiuxtely for me, in m}^ ab- sence. No populous city, with all its varieties of commerce and stately structures, could aOord such pleasure to my mind, as the beauties of mvture ] found in this country. Until the twenty-seventh of July, I spent my time in an uninterrupted scene of sylvan pleasures, when my brother, to my great felicity, met me, ac- cording to appointment at our old camp. Soon after we left the place, and proceeded to Cumber- land river, reconnoitring that part of the country, and giving names to the dillV-rent rivers. In March, 1771, I returned home to my family, being determined to bring them as soon as possible, at the risk of my life and fortune, to reside in Ken- tucky, which I esteemed a second paradise. On my return, I found my family in happy cir- cumstances. I sold my farm on the Yadkin, and what goods we could not carry with us, and on the twenty-fifth of September, 1773, we took leave of our friends and proceeded on our journey to Ken- tucky, in company with five more families, and forty men that joined us in Powel's Valley, which is one hundred and fifty miles from the new settled parts 11 of Kentucky. But this promising beginning was soon overcast with a cloud of adversity. On the tenth of October the rear of our company was attacked by a party of Indians ; who killed six, and wounded one man. Of these my oldest son was one that fell in the action. Though we repulsed the enemy, yet this imhappy afiair scattered our cattle and brought us into extreme difficulty. We returned forty miles to the settlement on Clench river. Wc had passed over two mountains, Powel and Walden's, and were approaching Cumberland mountain, when this adverse fortune overtook us. These mountains are in the wilderness, in passing from the old settlement in Virginia to Kentucky ; are ranged in a southwest and northeast direction ; are of great length and breadth, and not far distant from each other. Over them nature has formed passes less diiliculf than might be expecte^d from the view of such huge piles. The aspect of these clids are so wild and horrid, that it is impossible to behold them without horrour. Until the sixth of June, 1774, T remained with my family on the Clench, when myself and another person were solicited by Governour Dunmore, of Virginia, to conduct a number of .surveyors to the falls of Ohio. This was a tour of eight hundred miles, and took sixty-two days. On my return. Gov. Dumnore gave me the com- mand ol' three garrisons during the campaign against the Shawanese. In March, 1775, at the solicitation of a numl)er of gentlemen of North Carolina, I at- tended their treaty at Waiaga with the Cherokee Indians, to purchase the lands on the south side of Kentucky river. After this, I undertook to mark out a road in the best passage from the settlements through the wilderness to Kentucky. Having collected a number of enterprising men well armed, I soon began this work. We proceeded until we came within fifteen miles of where Boons- borough now stands, where the Indians attacked us, and killed two and wounded two more of our party. This was on the twenty-second of March, 1775. Two days after we were again attacked by them, wlien we had two more killed and three woundcid. Alter this, we proceeded on to Kentucky river with- out opposition. On the first of April, we began to erect the fort of Boonsborough, at a salt lick sixty yards from the river on the south side. On the fourth the Indians killed one of our men. On the fourteenth of June, having completed the fort, I returned to my family on the Clench, and whom I soon after removed to the fort. My wife and daughter, were supposed to be the first white women that ever stood on the banks of Kentucky river. On the twenty-fourth of December, the Indians killed one of our men and wounded another; and on the fifteenth of July, 1776, they look my daugh- ter prisoner. I immediately pursued them with eight men, and on the sixteenth overtook and en- gaged them. I killed two of them and recovered my daughter. The Indians, having divided themselves into sev- eral parties, attacked in one day all our infant settle- ments and forts, doing a great deal of damage. The husbandmen were ambushed and imexpectedly at- tacked while toiling in the field. 'I hey conuimed this kind of warfare until the fifteenth of April, 1777, when nearly one hundred of thorn attacked the vil- lage of Boonsborough, and killed a number of its inhabitants. On the sixteenth Colonel Logan's fort was attacked by two hundred Indians. There were only thirteen men in the fort, of whom the enemy killed two and wounded one. On the twentieth of August, Colonel Bowman ar- rived with one hundred men from Virgima, with which additional force we had almost daily skir- mishes with the Indians, who began now to learn the superiority of the " long knife," as they termed the Virginians ; being oulgeneralled in almost every action. Our aflairs began now to wear a better as- pect, the Indians no longer daring to face us in open field, but sought private opportunities to destro)' us. On the seventh of February, 1778, while on a hunting excursion alone, I met a party of one hun- dred and two Indians and two F'renchmen, marching to attack Boonsborough. They pursued and took me prisoner, and conveyed me to Old Chilicotbc, the principal Indian town on little Miami, where we ar- rived on the eighteenth of February, after an un- comfortable journey. On the tenth of March I was conducted to Detroit, and while there, was treated with great humanity by Governour Hamilton, the British commander, at that post, and intendant for Indian aflairs. The Indians had such an afTection for mc, that they refused one hundred pounds sterling, oflered them by the governour, if they would consent to leave me with him, that he might be enabled to lib- erate me on my parole. Several English gentle- men then at Detroit, sensible of my adverse fortune and touched with sympath}', generously offered to supply my wants, which 1 declined with many thanks, adding that I never expected it would be in my power to recompense such umnerited gene- rosity. On the tenth of April, tlie Indians returned with me to Old Chilicothe, where we arrived on the twenty-fifth. This was a long and fatiguing jnarch, although through an exceeding fertile country, re- markable for springs and streams of water. At Chilicothe I spent my time as comfortable as I could expect ; was adopted, according to their custom, into a family where I became a son, and had a great share in the afTection of my new parents, brothers, sisters, and friends. I was exceedingly familiar and friendly with them, always appearing as cheerfnl and contented as possible, and they put great confi- dence in me. I often went a hunting with them, and frequently gained their applause for my activity at our shooting matches. I was careful not to ex- ceed many of them in shooting, for no people are more envious than they in this sport. I could ob- serve in their countenances and gestures the greatest expressions of joy when they exceeded me, and when the reverse happene'd, of envy. The Shawa- nese king took great notice of me, and treated me with profound respect and entire friendship, often intrusting me to hunt at my liberty. I frequently returned with the spoils of the woods, and as ()ften presented some of what I had taken to him, expres- sive of duty to my sovereign. My food and lodging were in common with them, not so good indeed as I coidd desire, but necessity made every thing acceptable. I now began to meditate an escape, and carefully 12 avoided giving suspicion. I continued at Chilicothe until the first day of June, vi^hen I was taken to the salt springs on Sciotha, and there employed ten days in the manufacturing of salt. During this time, I hunted with my Indian masters, and found the land for a great extent about this river to exceed the soil of Kentucky. On my return to Chilicothe, one hundred and fifty of the choicest Indian warriours were ready to march against Boonsborough. They were painted and armed in a frightful manner. This alarmed me, and I determined to escape. On the twenty-sixth of June, before sunrise, I went off secretly, and reached Boonsborough on the thirtieth, a journey of one hundred and sixty miles, during which I had only one meal. I found our fortress in a bad state, but we immediately repaired our flanks, gates, posterns, and formed double bas- tions, which we completed in ten days. One of my fellow prisoners escaped after me, and brought ad- vice, that on account of my flight, the Indians had put off their expedition for three weeks. About the first of August, I set out with nineteen men, to surprise Paint Creek-town on Sciotha, with- in four miles of which we fell in with forty Indians going against Boonsborough. We attacked them, and they soon gave way without any loss on our part. The enemy had one killed and two wounded. We took three horses and all their baggage. The Indians having evacuated their town, and gone al- together against Boonsborough, we returned, passed them on the sixth, and on the seventh, arrived safe at Boonsborough. On the ninth, the Indian army, consisting of four hundred and forty-four men, under the command of Captain Duquesne, and eleven other Frenchmen, and their own chiefs, arrived and summoned the fort to surrender. I re(iuested two days' consideration, which was granted. During this we brought in through the posterns all the horses and other cattle we could collect. On the ninth, in the evening, I informed their commander, that we were determined to defend the fort while a man was living. They then proposed a treaty, they would withdraw. The treaty was held within sixty yards of the fort, as we suspected the savages. The articles were agreed to and signed ; when the Indians told us, it was their cus- tom for two Indians to shake hands with every white man in the treaty, as an evidence of friendship. We agreed to this also. They immediately grappled us to take us prisoners, but we cleared ourselves of them, though surrounded by hundreds, and gained the fort safe, except one man, who was wounded by a heavy fire from the enemy. The savages now began to undermine the fort, beginning at the watermark of Kentucky river, which is sixty yards from the fort ; this we discov- ered by the water being made muddy by the clay. We countermined them by cutting a trench across their subterraneous passage. The enemy discover- ing this by the clay we threw out of the fort, desist- ed. On the twentieth of August, they raised the siege, during which we had two men killed and four wounded. We lost a number of cattle. The loss of the enemy was thirty-seven killed, and a much larger number wounded. We picked up one hundred and twenty-five pounds of their bullets, besides what stuck in the logs of the fort. In July, 1779, during my absence. Colonel Bow- man, with one hundred and sixty men, went against the Shawanese of Old Chilicothe. He arrived un- discovered. A battle ensued, which lasted until ten in the morning, when Colonel Bowman retreated thirty miles. The Indians collected all their strength and pursued him, when another engage- ment ensued for two hours, not to Colonel Bow- man's advantage. Colonel Harrod proposed to mount a number of horses, and break the enemy's line, who at this time fought with remarkable fury. This desperate measure had a happy effect, and the savages fled on all sides. In these two engage- ments we had nine men killed and one wounded. Enemy's loss uncertain. Only two scalps were taken. June twenty-third, 1780, five hundred Indians and Canadians under Colonel Bird, attacked Riddle and Martain's station, at the forks of Licking river, with six pieces of artillery. They took all the in- habitants captives, and killed one man and two women, loading the others with the heavy bag- gage, and such as failed in the journey were toma- hawked. The hostile disposition of the savages caused General Clark, the commandant at the falls of Ohio, to march with his regiment and the armed force of the country against Peccaway, the principal town of the Shawanese, on a branch of the great Miami, which he attacked with great success, took seventy scalps, and reduced the town to ashes, with the loss of seventeen men. About this time, I returned to Kentucky with my family ; for during my captivity, my wife thinking me killed by the Indians, had transported my fam- ily and goods on horses, through the wilderness, amidst many dangers, to her father's house in North Carolina. On the sixth of October, 1780, soon after my set- tling a-gain at Boonsborough, I went with my brother to the Blue Licks, and on our return he was shot by a party of Indians, who followed me by the scent of a dog, which I shot and escaped. The severity of the winter caused great distress in Kentucky, the enemy during the summer having destroyed most of the corn. The inhabitants lived chiefly on buffa- lo's flesh. In the spring of 1782, the Indians harassed us In May they ravished, killed, and scalped a woman and her two daughters near Ashton's station, and took a negro prisoner. Captain Ashton pursued them with twenty-five men, and in an engagement which lasted two hours, his party were obliged to retreat, having eight killed, and four mortally wound- ed. Their brave commander fell in the action. August eighteenth, two boys were carried off from Major Hoy's station. Captain Holder pursued the enemy with seventeen men, who were also de- feated, with the loss of seven killed and two wound- ed. Our aflairs became more and more alarming. The savages infested the country and destroyed the whites as opportunity presented. In a field near Lexington, an Indian shot a man, and running to scalp him, was himself shot from the fort, and fell dead upon the ground. All the Indian nations were now united against us. 13 August fifteenth, five hundred Indians and Cana- dians came against Briant's station, five miles from Lexington. They assaulted the fort, and killed all the cattle round it ; but being repulsed, they retired the third day, having about eighty killed ; their wounded uncertain. The garrison had four killed, and nine wounded. August eighteenth. Colonels Todd and Trigg, Major Harland and myself, speedily collected one hundred and seventy-six men, well-armed, and pur- sued the savages. They had marched beyond the Blue Licks, to a remarkable bend of the main fork of Licking river, about forty-three miles from Lex- ington, where we overtook them on the nineteenth. The savages observing us, gave way, and we igno- rant of their numbers, passed the river. When they saw our proceedings, having greatly the advantage in situation, they formed their line of battle from one end of the Licking to the other, about a mile from the Blue Licks. The engagement was close and warm for about fifteen minutes, when we being overpowered by numbers, were obliged to retreat, with the loss of sixty-seven men, seven of whom were taken prisoners. The brave and much la- mented colonels, Todd and Trigg, Major Harland, and my second son, were among the dead. We were afterwards informed that the Indians, on num- bering their dead, finding that they had four more killed than we, four of our people they had taken were given up to their young warriours, to be put to death after their barbarous manner. On oiu: retreat, we were met by Colonel Logan, who was hastening to join us with a number of well- armed men. This powerful assistance we wanted on the day of battle. The enemy said, one more fire from us would have made them give way. I cannot reflect upon this dreadful scere, without great sorrow. A zeal for the defence of their coun- try led these heroes to the scene of action, though with a few men, to attack a powerful army of expe- rienced warriours. When we gave way, they pur- sued us with the utmost eagerness, and in every quarter spread destruction. The river was difficult to cross, and many were killed in the flight, some just entering the river, some in the water, others after crossing in ascending the cliffs. Some es- caped on horseback, a few on foot ; and being dis- persed everywhere, in a few hours, brought the melancholy news of this unfortunate battle to Lex- ington. Many widows were now made. The read- er may guess what sorrow filled the hearts of the inhabitants, exceeding any thing that I am able to describe. Being reinforced, we returned to bury the dead, and found their bodies strewed everywhere, cut and mangled in a dreadful manner. This mournful scene exhibited a horrour almost unpar- alleled : some torn and eaten by wild beasts ; those in the river eaten by fishes ; all in such a putrid condition that no one could be distinguished from another. When General Clark, at the falls of Ohio, heard of our disaster, he ordered an expedition to pursue the savages. We overtook them within two miles of their town, and we should have obtained a great victory had not some of them met us when about two hundred poles from their camp. The savages fled in the utmost disorder, and evacuated all their towns. We burned to ashes Old Chilicothe, Pecca- way. New Chilicothe, and Willstown ; entirely de- stroyed their corn and other fruits, and spread deso- lation through their country. We took seven pris- oners and fifteen scalps, and lost only four men, two of whom were accidentally killed by ourselves. This campaign damped the enemy, yet they made secret incursions. In October, a party attacked Crab Orchard, and one of them being a good way before the other, boldly entered a house, in which were only a woman and her children, and a negro man. The savage used no violence, but attempted to carry off" the negro, who happily proved too strong for him, and threw him on the ground, and in the struggle the woman cut off" his head with an axe, whilst her lit- tle daughter shut the door. The savages instantly came up and applied their tomahawks to the door, when the mother putting an old rusty gunbarrel through the crevice, the savages immediately went off". From that time till the happy return of peace be- tween the United States and Great Britain, the In- dians did us no mischief. Soon after this the In- dians desired peace. Two darling sons and a brother I have lost by savage hands, which have also taken from me forty valuable horses, and abundance of cattle. Many dark and sleepless nights have I spent, separated from the cheerful sgciety of men, scorched by the summer's sun, and pinched by the winter's cold, an instrument ordained to settle the wilderness. DANIEL BOON. Fayette county, Kentucky. THE MOTHERS OF THE WEST. " A spirit so resolute, yet so adventurous — so unambitious, yet so exalted — a spirit so highly calculated to awaken a love of the pure and the noble, yet so uncommon— never before actuated the ancestral matrons of any land or clime." The mothers of our forest-land! Stout-hearted dames were they; With nerve to wield the battle-brand, And join the border-fray. Our rough land had no braver. In its days of blood and strife — Aye ready for severest toil, Aye free to peril life. The mothers of our forest-land ! On Old Ken-tuc-kee's soil. How shared they, with each dauntless band, War's tempest, and life's toil! They shrank not from the foeman — They quailed not, in the fijrht — But cheered their husbands through the day. And soothed them through the night The mothers of our forcst-Iand ! Their bosoms pillowed men ! And proud were they by such to stand, In hammock, fort, or glen. To load the sure old rifle — To run the leaden ball — To stand beside a husband's place, And fill it should he fall. The mothers of our forost-land! Sucfi were their daily deeds, Their monument! — where does it standi Their epitaph ! — who reads'? No braver dames had Sparta, No nobler matrons Rome — Yet who lauds, or honours them, E'en in their own green home 1 The mothers of our forest-land ! They sleep in unknown graves : And had they borne and nursed a band Of ingrates, or of slaves. They had not been more neglected ! But their graves shall yet be found, And their monuments dot here and there " The dark and bloody ground." W D. Gallagher. 14 VALLEY OF THE MISSISSIPPI. SKETCHES OF THE OLDEN TIME. BY J. M. PECK. The " Great IVater,''^ as the aboriginal name Mis- sissippi signified, was first discovered and visited by Spaniards under Hernando de Soto, in April, 1541 — just three hundred years since. The expedition of De Soto, until recently, has been but little known, and for a long period respect- able authors even doubted whether the story of such an exploration, as is now known to have been made, was not mainly fabulous. The careful examination and translation of Spanish and Portuguese authori- ties have placed the subject beyond controversy. As our design is to furnish some short sketches of a period from one hundred and fifty to two hundred years later, we shall pass over this Spanish enter- prise with a very brief notice. Hernando de Soto was a follower of Pizarro in the conquest of Peru. Enriched with the spoils of the New \Vorld, he re- turned to Spain, his native country, and appeared in ffreat state and equipage at the court of Charles V., vhere he received the highest honors. He became Hied by marriage to a distinguished family of the lobility. But avarice and power are insatiate in Jieir demands. De Soto desired to rival Cortez in glory, and surpass Pizarro in wealth. He earnestly sought permission from the Crown of Spain to con- quer Florida, as North America was then called by the Spanish adventurers, at his own expense, and Charles V. readily granted permission, and made him governor of Cuba, and captain-general over all the countries he should subjugate to the Imperial Crown. At that period Florida, or North America, wa> supposed to abound with wealth, surpassing the riches of Peru and Mexico. We have not room to describe the mania that pre- vailed in Spain on the fitting out of this expedition. Houses, vineyards and lands were sold by their pos- sessors, to furnish means for the enterprise. Hun- dreds of Spaniards of all grades embarked in the ex- pedition. Among these were twelve priests, eight icclesiastics of inferior grade, and four monks; for n all the expeditions of French, Spanish and Portu- fuese to the New World, the rage for conquest and wealth, and for the conversion of the conquered na- tives to the Catholic faith, equally prevailed. De Soto was welcomed to Cuba with long and brilliant festivals and rejoicings. Leaving his wife to the command of the island in his absence, he em- barked, in ten small ships, about one thousand sol- diers besides seamen, three hundred and fifty horses, with numbers of cattle and swine, and other means to stock and colonize the country. He landed, his troops, armament, stock and provisions at the bay of Espiritu Santo, sent back his ships and commenced his march through the country They found swamps, morasses and rivers in their route, the Indians usually hostile, and, like the present race of Seminoles, refusing to be either conquered or converted. Their march was tedious, full of danger and hardships, and what was far more mortifying, the mines of gold, silver and precious stones, were never found. We can trace their route by the names of the rivers they passed. The names of Oehile, Apalachee, Atapahaw, Cosa (Coosaw,) Tascaluza, and Mauvila (Mobile) are found in their route. The latter was a large town, which is supposed to have stood at the junction of the Alabama and 'i'ombeebe rivers. It is described as " surrounded by a high wall, formed of huge trunks of trees, driven into the ground," with other logs of a smaller size across, bound together with vines, and filled up with mortar. At every fifty paces was a tower capable of holding six or eight fighting men. This town contained several thousand inhabitants and was defended with desperation, and subjugated with great loss by the Spaniards. The description of this and many other towns walled in, some with palisadoes, others with an embankment of earth, explains the origin of the supposed fortifications found amongst the antiquities of the Valley of the Mississippi. Of the Indian tribes mentioned are the Chicaza, the Alibamo, and the Casquin, the last of which were west of the Mis- sissippi, and doubtless answer to the Kaskaskia tribe. A multitude of other names are given which we omit. De Soto and his party were the first Europeans to behold the might)^ Mississippi, which rolled its im- mense mass of waters through the splendid vegeta- tion of an alluvial soil. The lapse of three centuries has not changed the character of the river. It was then- described as more than a mile broad, its wa- ters of a muddy, ash color, its current strong and impetuous, and full of floating timber, snags, islands and sand-bars. The Spaniards called the name of the river Rio Grande — the Great River — after its Indian name. De Soto and his men crossed this river near the low- er Chickasaw blufl^s. The wild fruits at that period, as now, were the walnut, the pecan, the mulberry, the percimmon, the grape, the papaw and the plum. The fish described were the same as now found in the lakes and bayous of that region, and vast herds of bufl^alo, deer, elk and bear, roamed through the forests and prairies. The most northerly point reached by De Soto, was an Indian town called Pacn/ia, situated probably in the southern part of Missouri. Finding no pros- pects of gold in this direction, De Soto and his party- turned their course down the Mississippi, still on its western side. They passed through a succession of Indian towns, some of which were enclosed with palisadoes and embankments of earth, and surrounded by a ditch. In one instance they describe an artifi- cial canal a league in length, excavated by the na- tives, and forming a communication between the 15 river and a large lake. We soon find ihem near llie Washita, and ainoni[st the Quappas, a tribe of In- dians still in existance. Their journal throws much light upon western an- tiquities. Mr. Stephens, in his recent work on the " Antiqiiiiies of Central America,*' has hit the true theory, when he suggests that the erection of the ru- ined cities he explored is of comparatively modern date, and built by a race of people not yet extinct. We have great conviction of the truth of this tlieory in relation to the antiquities of the Mississippi Val- ley, and were the sul)ject investigated in tlie mode and to the extent desirable, satisfactory evidence may be obtained that the supposed fortifications, and mounds, (so far as the latter are artificial) with other works, are the monuments of the skill and labor of the progenitors of the present race of Indians, and that their origin was within the period of a few hun- dred years. The historians of De Soto's expedition, describe towns that were enclosed both with palisadoes and embankments of earth, and in one instance of stone. They describe the residence of the Caziques, or chiefs, as built upon a conical hill, and where such an eminence was not found convenient, the pe )ple would collect and throw up the earth to form one with great labor. Other causes are given for the formation of artifi- cial mounds, which we must omit for the present. In the summer of 1542, De Soto was near the mouth of Red river. His party were now sufTerino- severely, his men and horses dying around him, and the Indians threatening hostilities. The energy and pride of character, which had carried him through greater difficulties than any European adventurer had encountered, now sunk rapidly. A malignant fever ensued, and in three days he died ! Thus perished Hernando de Soto, the companion of Pizarro, the governor of Cuba, and the first dis- coverer and explorer of the Mississippi! To conceal his death from the natives, his body was wrapped in a mantle, with suitable weights, and in the stillness of midnight, was silently sunk in the middle of the " Great Water." " The discoverer of the river slept beneath its turbid waves. He had crossed the continent in search of gold, and found nothing so remarkable as his burying place. The Indians were taught he had ascended to the sun. His soldiers pronounced his eulogy by grieving at their loss, and the priests chanted their requiems over his watery grave !" His successor, Luis de Moscoso, with the party, penetrated the western wilderness, and vast prairies, as they supposed, one hundred and fifty leagues, un- til they came in sight of vast ridges of mountains. Despairing of reaching Mexico, as they designed, they returned once more to the Mississippi, a few leagues above the mouth of Red river. Here they set up a forge, collected all the scraps of old iron they had brought from Florida, and, with great diffi- culty and labor, constructed five brigantnies, and af- ter seventeen days of peril and suffering, the survi- vors of the expedition, less than three hundred men, reached the town of Panuco, on the Mexican coast. The survivors, in fact, were blackened, haggard, shrivelled, half naked and starved ; clad only in the skins of deer and buffalo, and as the Spanish narra- tor states, looked more like wild beasts than men. The history of this expedition was written both in Portuguese and Spanish, within a few years after the return of De Moscoso, and the fragments of his army. The Portuguese narrative was written by a soldier who was in the expedition. An English translation of this work was published by Hackluyt, in 1009, and an imperfect al)ridgment is to be found in Purchas' Pilgrims, 1686. The Spanish history is by Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, a Spanish ecclesias- tic, and written from the journals of the men, and from conversations with the survivors. A complete work, in two volumes, has been colla- ted and published from both these authorities by The- odore Irving, Esq. Mr. Bancroft, in his History of the United Stales, vol. i. has given an outline of this expedition, and Herrera, the Spanish historian so fre- quently referred to by Dr. Robertson, in his history of America, copied a large proportion of the narrative of Garcilaso. We shall now leav* the "Great River" to roll its turbid waters, unnoticed and undisturbed by Europe- an adventurers, for the period of one hundred and thirty years, when the light canoe of Joliet and Mar- quette entered it from Canada by the route of the Wis- consin, (or as governor Doty has nick-named it, the IViskonsan, for which there is not a particle of Indian or French authority.) It does not appear from any authority we have noticed that the French explorers possessed any knowledge of the discovery of De Soto. About 1670, the notion prevailed amongst the French who had visited Canada, that a western passage to the Pacific ocean existed by means of a great river. This idea they had gotten from the In- dians along the northern lakes, but of its course or termination thcv knew nothing. M. Talon, tlie Intendant of New France, as Can- ada was then called, was a person of singular genius and enterprise, and he selected Joliet and Marquette to settle this question, .loliet was an enterprising' trader of Quebec, and largely acquainted with the In- dians — Marquette was a zealous missionary of the RecoUet order, and of much experience. They con- ducted an expedition through ihe lakes, up Green bay and Fox river, across the portage to the Wisconsin, and descended that river to the Mississippi, which they reached on the 17lh of June, 1673. They de- scended the river to the Arkansas, and having satis- fied themselves its course was to the Gulf of Mexico, and their stock of provisions beine nearly exhausted, they deemed it unsafe to proceed further amongst 16 unknown tribes of savages, and they returned to Can- ada by the way of the Illinois river and Chicago. Count de Froniinac gave the name of Colbert to the river they had explored, in compliment to the French minister of Marine. The services of Joliet were rewarded by a grant of the island of Anticosti, near the mouth of the river St Lawrence. Marquette returned to his humble missionary la- bors amongst the Indians. Charlevoix relates, that on the 18th of May, 1G75, while on his way from Chicago to Michilimacinac, he entered a river now bearing his own name, where he let drop some ex- pressions, which plainly indicated that he should end his days at that place. Soon after the boat landed, he erected his altar and said mass ; after which he retired a short distance to return thanks, desiring the men with him to absent themselves for half an hour. On their return they found him dead! Judge Martin, in his History of Louisiana, re- marks, — " This important discovery filled all Canada with joy, and the inhabitants of the capital followed the constituted authorities of the colony to the cathedral church, where the bishop, surrounded by his clergy, sung a solemn Te Deum. Little did they suspect that the event, for which they were rendering thanks to heaven, was marked, in tlie book of fate, as a prin- cipal one among those, which were to lead to the ex- pulsion of the French nation from North America ; that Providence had not designed the shores of the mighty stream for the abode of the vassals of any European prince ; but had decreed that it should be for a while the boundary, and forever after roll its waves in the midst of those free and prosperous com- munities, that now form the confederacy of the Uni- ted States." Several years passed by before any attempt was made to follow up the discoveries of Joliet and Mar- quette. As in all military expeditions of the Spanish and French, the priest was the companion of the sol- dier, so in all explorations, and trading establish- ments, the Catholic missionary was indispensable to the company. Trading posts and missionary stations had been formed along the lakes to Michilimacinac and the bay of Puants. Between 1678 and 1680, M. de la Salle, accompanied by chevalier Tonti, Father Louis Hennepin, of the order of Franciscans, and others, established trading posts along lakes Erie, Huron, Michigan, and the river Illinois. The history of these expeditions have been so recently and so often before the reading community, that a repetition in this place is deemed unnecessary. La Salle was the commander. Tonti, his lieutenant, afterwards became the historian. Hennepin also wrote two sketches, both of which were subsequently publish- ed, one of which, however, is unquestionably fabu- lous. The original plan of the enterprise was for M. de la Salle to proceed down the Mississippi to its mouth, while Hennepin penetrated that river to its source But La Salle, finding it necessary to return from his trading post, on the Illinois, to Canada for additional supplies, instructed M. Dacan and Hennepin, to pro- ceed with all despatch to explore the Upper Missis- sippi. Accordingly they departed from fort Creve Coeur, on the Illinois, with two men, and entered the Mississippi, March 8th, 1680. They ascended the Mississippi to the Falls of St. Anthony, which they named. Here they were made prisoners by the In- dians, were detained some months, and finally made their way into Canada by the Wisconsin. Return- ing to France, Hennepin published a splendid account of the vast country he discovered, which he named Louisiana, in honor of Louis XIV., and dedicated it to the great Colbert In this work he makes no mention of proceeding down the Mississippi. After the exploration of that river by La Salle, and his death, and after the publication of La Salle's expedi- tion by Tonti, Hennepin published another journal, including a voyage down the "Great River" prior to that of La Salle. This part of his story is evi- dently fictitious, and has been condemned by many distinguished writers. This new and revised edition of his journals was published in England in 1698, whither he had fled from France. The truth is, there is very little dependence to be placed in Hennepin. Peter Kalm, a Swedish naturalist, who was in Can- ada in 1759, says of Hennepin, " He has gained very little credit in Canada ; the name of honor they give him there, is, the great liar : he writes of places he never saw." Stoddard says, " His pretensions to the discovery of the mouth of the Mississippi, are founded in fraud and imposture." From all that we can gather, the trading posts of Cahokia and Kaskaskia, in Illinois, were established by La Salle, in 1683, while on his exploration of the Mississippi. La Salle returned to France, fitted out an expedi- tion to form a colony near the mouth of the "Great River," but missed the place and sailed westward along the Gulf of Mexico, and finally landed at the mouth of the river Guadaloupe, on the west side of the bay of St. Bernard. Here he built a fort, made a settlement of one hundred men, and with a party of fifty men made another unsuccessful attempt to find the mouth of the Mississippi. Returning to the bay of St. Bernard, the party coasted along its east- ern side, and entered a river, which, from the num ber of cattle found on its banks, was called Cow river This is supposed to be the same as the Rio Colerado of Texas. Sixteen miles up this river La Salle built another fort which he named St. Louis, which mount- ed twelve pieces of cannon and contained a subterra- nean magazine. To this point he brought his colo- ny. Here misfortune succeeded to misfortune. The Indians attacked the party and were beaten oflf with difficulty. Sickness proved fatal to the colony, and about one hundred of the adventurers miserably per- 17 ished. Disease and the fatigues of warfare interrupt- ed the labors of agriculture. The seed grain did not germinate and hut a scanty crop was realized. And to finish the series of calamities of this first Texan colony, their vessels, and a large part of their provis- ions and stores were destroyed by violent storms, and the neglect or unskilfulness of the oflicers and pilots. Such was the painful situation of the colony, that in April, 1686, La Salle selected twenty men, and made an effort to reach the Mississippi river by land in a northeastern direction. He proceeded some four or five hundred miles, but high waters, sickness, the desertion of some of his men and the want of ammu- nition compelled him to return. In this excursion, La Salle visited several powerful nations of Indians, who in general treated him with kindness. After spending the summer with the colony, and finding no relief arrive for his people, he again set out in January, 1687, with twenty men, to reach, if possi- ble, the Mississippi, and proceed to his colonies in Illinois. The winter rains had raised all the rivers, and incredible hardships were imposed on himself and his men. After wandering and suffering two months they reached a delightful part of the country that abounded with game. A portion of the men un- der his command had time to reflect on the fatigues they had suflfered, and secretly to deliberate on the means of escaping further toil. These poor fellows were from the lowest grade of society in France, wholly destitute of moral principles, and ready for the commission of the blackest crimes. They had been accustomed to steal or beg their bread about the streets of Rochelle, and honor and gratitude formed no part of their characters. They finally resolved to murder La Salle, and all such as should obstruct their designs, and remain in the country amongst the Indians. An opportunity soon offered. M. de la Salle sent his nephew, servant, and hunter in pursuit of buffalo. These were shot by the murderous par- ty in ambush. Their absence rendered him uneasy, especially as he had discovered signs of treachery among some of his men, and he went in search of his companions; leaving the party with Father Ath- anasius. Meeting Lancelot, one of the suspicious men, he enquired for his nephew, and the wretch pointed to a spot over which the buzzards were hov- ering. As La Salle advanced he was shot through the head by Duhault, and another assassin, who lay concealed in the tall grass, and died within an hour. Thus perished M. de la Salle, on the 19th of March, 1687, the first French explorer of the Mis- sissippi to its mouth. He was illustrious for his courage, enterprise, perseverance and misfortunes. He was one of the greatest adventurers of the age in which he lived, and his discoveries were extensive and of importance to the French nation. He was the first European who established permanent col- onies along the Mississippi, and opened the way for the settlement of Illinois, Missouri and Louis- iana. 'I'he murderers of La Salle, joined by other mal- contents, took possession of the provisions, ammuni- tion, and every thing belonging to the deceased. They soon quarreled among themselves, and the two assassins were shot. Father Athanasius, Cavalier, (another priest and brother of La Salle,) with seven others found their way to Illinois, and from thence to France. Many of the colonists, left on the Color- ado, perished with hunger and sickness, or were cut off by the Indians. About two years after the death of La Salle, the few survivors were seized by the crews of some Spanish vessels, and conducted to New Leon. Thus ended the first colony in Texas. For the period of ten years after the death of La Salle, war prevailed between the English colonies of New England, and the French colonies of New France, under Count de Frontinac, and no attempt was made to carry out the favorite project of La Salle, of colonizing the Lower Mississippi. The colonies of Illinois, under the management of the chevalier Tonti, received accessions, and missions were established by the Jesuit and other orders, amongst various Indian tribes. The Canadian hun- ters, or coureurs dit bois, made excursions to the Mississippi, missionaries were planted amongst the Indians on the Illinois, Ohio, and other tributaries of that river. Before 1699, they had stations amongst the Tensas, Yazous and Oumas on the Lower Mis- sissippi. After the peace of Riswick, which put an end to the hostilities between the French and English colo- nies in the north, M. Iberville, who had commanded the French fleet along the coast of Acadia, projected the prosecution of the plan of La Salle, of establish- ing colonies on the Lower Mississippi. ' A small fleet was fitted out, and a company of marines, with about two hundred colonists, including a few women and children. Iberville coasted along the Gulf in search of the settlement of the unfortunate La Salle, and discovered some of the mouths of the " Great River," and finally fixed on the bay of Biloxi, at the mouth of the Rio Perdido, where he erected a fort and planted his colony, in 1699. M. Bienville, the brother of Iberville, was sent with ten Canadians, in two perogues, to explore the Mississippi and find places for settlements. They crossed lakes Ponchar- train and Maurepas, and entered the " Great River" through Bayou Manchac. Floating down to the forks they met an English ship of sixteen guns, command- ed by captain Bar, who informed Bienville that he had left another ship below, employed in sounding the passes of the river. These ships had been sent out by Danial Coxe of New Jersey, who claimed an immense tract of land, granted by Charles I. of Eng- land to Sir Robert Heath, in 1627. They were af- terwards to return, and convoy out vessels with fam- ilies to establish an English colony. Captain Bar, 18 was uncertain whether the river he was in was the Mississippi, and Bienville contrived to deceive him with the notion that it lay much further to the west, and that the country where they were, was a por- tion of the French colony of Canada. At the place where the ship was detained by unfavorable winds was a singular bend, which, from meeting the Eug lish ship, was called the English Turn, a name it still retains. Two or three little settlements were made by Bienville, along the river, now known as St. Francisville, Baton Rouge, and Fort Adams. Iberville made several voyages to France for colo- nists and necessaries, and finally died in one of the West India islands, while fitting out an expedition against Carolina. M. Bienville now became commandant of the colo- ny in Louisiana. The first settlers of this colony do not appear to have resorted to the earth for a subsist- ance, but depended entirely on supplies from France or St. Domingo. Fishing and hunting afforded them fresh meat, and the people carried on a small trade with the Indians. The officers of government, in- stead of concentrating the population, and directing their attention to agriculture, seemed intent on mak- ing new discoveries, and exploring the country for the precious metals. The wool of the buff"alo was point- ed out to them as the future staple commodity of the country, and they had a number of these animals con- fined and tamed for that purpose. Two description of colonists came out with Iberville. The first were unaccustomed to manual labor, but they possessed enterprise, and expected to realize fortunes from the Indian trade, and from the mines of gold and silver with which they fancied the country abounded. The second class, and those much the most numerous, were poor, idle and vicious, and expected to be sup- ported by the bounty of government, rather than by their own industry. Accessions to the colony only made their condition the more ileplorable. During the short admmislration of Iberville, more than sixty persons perished with disease and hunger, so that at the close of the year 1705, the colony was reduced to one hundred and fifty persons. Some attempts were made to explore new and dis- tant regions. In the year 1700, St. Denys, twelve Canadians and a number of Indians were sent on a voyage of discovery up Red river. After a tiresome nxpedition of six months, the party returned without •jraining any material information concerning the In- dian tribes on Upper Red river. Another party under Lesueur, ascended the Missis- sippi to the falls of St. Anthony, which Dacan and Hennepin had visited, in 1680. Lesueur and his party proceeded up the St. Peter's river more than one hundred and twenty miles, and entered another stream, which from the color of its waters, he named Green river, and near which was a mine of copper and ochre. Here he built a fort and passed the win- ter. In the spring they returned with thirteen thou- sand weight of ore, which they reported to have gathered near a mountain, and which was shipped from Biloxi to France. Between 1705 and 1712, the colony in Louisiana suflfered from attacks of hostile Indians, as well as from scarcity of provisions. Five Frenchmen were killed by the Tagouiaco Indians, who dwelt on one of the streams that flowed into the Ouahache, as the Ohio was then called. Bienville then attacked the Alabamos, without gaining any material advantage. The Choctaws and Chickasavvs were friendly, but soon a war broke out between these tribes, in which the colonists became involved. Father Foucault and his colleague were murdered bv the Coroas. Towards the close of the seventeenth century, the French of Kaskaskia discovered the copper mines in Wisconsin territory, and formed an establishment for working them, but they were interrupted and driven o'J by the Indians. They next turned their attention up the Missouri river, which they ascended in 1705, as far as the mouth of the Kanzas river, and met with a friendly reception from the natives. They were soon aftei engaged in trade with the Missouri Indians. The colony of Louisiana suffered extremely for the first thirteen years of its existence. Conteiuions and jealousies existed among the colonial authori- ties, and the people were dissatisfied. Many of their misfortunes may be attributed to mismauage- ment and want of system. In that period of time, about two thousand five hundred settlers arrived, very few returned, and yet in 1712, it contained only four hundred whites, twenty negro slaves, and about three hundred head of cattle. The money expended on the colony in that period amounted to the enormous sum of 689,000 livres. At this time the war in Europe demanded all the attention and resources of the Crown of France. The king, though unable to afford supplies, was de- termined to keep Louisiana out of the hands of his enemies. The country was still supposed to possess im- mense mineral riches in gold, silver and precious stones, although these precious metals had remained undiscovered by both the Spanish and French explo- rers. By letters patent, bearing date September 14th, 1712, Lous XIV. granted to Anthony Crozari, counsellor of state, &;c., the exclusive privilege of the commerce of Louisiana. This embraced the whole country lying on both sides of the river Mis- sissippi, and included now in the states of Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee. Illinois, Arkansas, and Mis- souri, lie was constituted proprietor of all the mines he should discover in the country, reserving to the Crown one fifth of all bullion of gold and sil- ver, and one tenth of the produce of all other mines. The exclusive privilege of commerce was granted for the term of fifteen years; but the property of the mines was conveyed in perpetuity to him and his 19 heirs, on condition of a reversion to the Crown of France of all such mines and minerals, should the working of them be discontinued for three years in succession. In 1716, the famous banker, John Law, through the patronage of the regent, Duke of Orleans, obtain- ed a charter from the crown for his celebrated bank. It was first composed of twelve hundred shares of three thousand livres each, which soon rose lo a high premium. The next year, (1717) M. Crozart solici- ted permission to retrocede to the Crown his privi- lege of the exclusive commerce and the mines of Louisiana, which was granted by an arret of the council of state, during the minority of Louis XV. The same month, letters patent were granted to an association of individuals at Paris, under the name of " The Company of the West,'''' by which they were invested with exclusive privileges of the commerce of Louisiana, and the working of the mines to the same extent as Crozart, with additional rights and privileges of disposing of the lands. The revenue from the mines, reserved to the Crown in the patent of Crozart, were declared to belong to the company. This company was connected at once with Law's fa- mous bank, and the income from the commerce, lands and mines of Louisiana, occupied the place of a specie capital, and constituted the foundation of its credit. The next year it was declared a royal bank, and its shares rose to twenty times their par value. Thousands of capitalists rushed to the stock board, tlie " Mississippi Bubble" was soon inflated, which burst in 1720, and left the deluded specula- tors penniless. Like modern bubbles of '« Fancy Stocks," the most extravagant anticipations were en- tertained by the members of the Company of the West, and which resulted in the most signal disap- pointment. Major Stoddard, in his Historical Sketches of Lou- isiana, very justly remarks: " The Mississippi scheme was no less bold in its conception, than disastrous in its consequences. It seized within its grasp, the bank, the mint, all the trading companies, and all the revenues of the king- dom. The object was to employ this vast capital in opening the rich mines of Louisiana, and in cultiva- ting its fertile soil, in carrying on the whole com- merce of the nation, and in managing its revenues. The company created three hundred thousand shares, at five hundred livres each ; three hundred thou- sand shares, at five thousand livres each ; all of which were sold in market, and before the comple- tion of the sales they arose to an enormous height. The amount of stock thus created, without taking the rise into calculation, amounted to sixteen hundred and seventy-seven millions five hundred thousand livres ; or three hundred and ten millions six hun- dred and forty-eight thousand, one hundred and forty-eight dollars ! " Such indeed was the phrenzy of speculation, that the whole nation, clergy and laity, peers and ple- beians, princes and statesmen, mechanics and even ladies, employed their wealth in purchasing these shares. The scheme was calculated to enrich the nation as well as the holders of the scrip ; but a per- fidious breach of royal faith destroyed the credit of the paper, and multitudes were involved in ruin, though the public treasury gained by it the annual sum of twenty-three millions of livres. The ene- mies of the financier Law, (and these were the dig- nified clergy, who were ambitious of getting him su- perceded in office by one of their own order,) pre- vailed on the regent to reduce, by an arret, the value of the paper, so as to bring it on a level with the coin, and other commodities of the kingdom. This reduction destroyed all public confidence; it proved fatal to the minister, and to the splendid paper fabric, which vanished like a dream, and left the multitude to bewail their credulity, and to execrate the authors of their ruin." Whatever might have been the immediate cause of the downfall of this splendid and gigantic system of factitious credit, it must be obvious to all reflect- ing men, that its ultimate dissolution was inevitable. Its foundation rested on the commerce and metallic wealth of Louisiana. Fancy exhibited the immense mines of gold and silver of the Valley of the Missis- sippi, sought in vain by De Soto, as its basis. The gold and silver remains still undiscovered. Doubtless this ('ompany of the West was of great service in settling the country, and preserving the col- ony from starvation. Under its auspices hundreds of adventurers came out. New Orleans was founded in 1717, tobacco was cultivated, Fort Chartres in Il- linois built, and the lead mines of Missouri discover- ed and worked. Colonies were extended at various points along the Mississippi river. In 1731, the company surrendered the country to the Crown. The same year the "Company of the West" was instittited, the project of an exploration for minerals in Illinois and Missouri was formed. The most liberal inducements to French emigrants, especially miners and mechanics, were held out, and Phillipe Francis Renault, as agent and manager of the Com- pany of St. Phillips, came out. This company was an association of individuals, formed under the pa- tronage of the Company of the West, for prosecut- ing the mining business in Upper Louisiana. Re- nault is supposed to have been a prominent member of the Western Company, and in some documents he is spoken of as Director-general of the Mines of the Royal India Company in Rlinois. He left France in the year 1719, with two hundred me- chanics, miners and laborers, and provided with all things necessary to prosecute the objects of the com- pany. At St. Domingo, he purchased five hundred slaves for working the mines, which he brought to Illinois, where he arrived in 1720. These were the progen- itors of those now held to servitude in UlinoHs, and distinguished as "French slaves." Kaskaskia and Cahokia were then mission stations and French trad- ing posts. At that period the Indians of Illinois did not exceed five thousand in number. Those near the 20 French settlement, were near Cahokia, and in the vi- cinity of Kaskaskia. The Caoquias and Tamarouas, (according to the French orthography of the period,) two Illinois tribes united, had their village near the present site of Cahokia, and five miles south-east from St. Louis, Here was a cliapel and two mis- sionaries. At Kaskaskia, as Charlevoix stales, the Jesuits had a college and a flourishing missipn, divid- ed and situated in two places. The most numerous was on the American Bottom, ahout fifteen miles up the Mississippi river from Kaskaskia. Still further up was a mission site and a small Indian village. The whole number of the Indians throughout the Valley of the Mississippi, by no means equalled the suppositions of some of our modern authors. Their villages were widely dispersed and contained but a few hundred, men, women and children. Renault established himself and his colony a few miles above Kaskaskia, in what is now the south- west corner of Monroe county, and called the village he founded St. Phillips, and near it planned and built Fort Charlres. Some authorities, however, repre- sent this work to have been projected several years earlier, but after a careful examination of the subject, the evidence is decidedly in favor of Renault. From this point he sent out his mining and exploring par- ties into various sections of Illinois and Upper Lou- isiana, as Missouri was then called. Excavations for minerals were made along Drewry's creek in Jack- son county, about the St. Mary in Randolph county, in Monroe county, along Silver creek in St. Clair county, and in many other places in Illinois, the re- mains of which are still visible. Silver creek took its name from these explorers, and tradition states that considerable quantities of silver ore was raised and sent over to France. It is thought, however, that no successful discoveries were made. In Missouri, the exploring and mining parties were headed by M. La Motte, an agent said to have been well versed in the knowledge of mining. In one of his earliest excursions, he discovered the lead mines on the St. Francois, which bear his name. Anu)ngst these early "money diggers," was De Lochon. He claimed to be a mineralogist, and was sent up the Meremeg, a stream that enters the Mis- si -sippi from the west, about eighteen miles below St. Louis. De Lochon having dug in a place point- ed out to him, drew up a large quantity of ore, a pound of which employed him four days in smelting, and as he pretended, obtained two drams of pure sil- ver. His associates accused him of putting in that amount himself. Some months after, having forgot- ten the place, he hit upon the same " digging," with- out being aware of his silver mine ; he succeeded in obtaining, from about three thousand weight of ore, fourteen pounds of poor lead, which cost him four- teen hundred francs. Others were sent out but with no better success. Renault made various discoveries of lei'l. and made considerable excavations at the mines north of Potosi, Mo., that still bear his name but the company were entirely disappointed in alt their high raised expectations of finding gold and silver. Renault finally turned his whole attention to the smelting of lead, of which he made considerable quantities. It was conveyed from the interior on pack horses to the Mississippi river, sent to New Orleans in perogues, and from thence shipped to France. The object of the company having failed, and itb interests retroceded to the crown of France, Renault was left without the means of prosecuting the min- ing business. His efforts and expenses were not overlooked by the government. He received grants of lands on four occasions. One of these covered the Mine La Motte. Another grant covered the site of Peoria, Illinois, and the adjacent country, and is still claimed by purchase from his heirs and repre- sentatives. It has never been confirmed and proba- bly never will be. Renault remained in Illinois till 1742, when he sold oflT his slaves to his French neighbors, and returned to France, and the mining business went down. Amongst the explorers of Louisiana, of the " olden time," we must not overlook the name of Bernard de la Harpe. Major Stoddard, in his Sketches of Louisiana, says he " has had access to the man- uscript journal of this gentleman," and that " it in a great measure comprehends the history of Louisiana from its first discovery to 1722." We have already noticed the exploration of Red river by St. Denys. In 1716, he again penetrated the interior, with mules, horses and goods from Nachatoches to Guadaloupe, in Texas, where his goods and men were taken by the Spaniards and carried to Mexico. In 1719, La Harpe, with a body of troops, ascend- ed Red river to the village of the Cadoques, and built a fort which he called St. L^ouis de Carlorel/e. A correspondence was opened between him and the Spanish commandant, and also the superior of the missions in Texas. The Spanish commandant ex- pressed desires to be at peace with the French, but claimed that the post La Harpe occupied was within the Spanish territory. La Harpe replied that the Spaniards well knew the post on Red river was not within the dominions of Spain, that the province they called Texas formed a part of Louisiana; that La Salle had discovered and taken possession of it in 1685, and that this possession had been renewed at various liiues since that period; that the Spanish ad- venturer, Don Antonio du Miroir, who discovered the northern provinces in 1683, never penetrated east of New Mexico, or the Rio Bravo, that the French were the first to make alliances with the Indian na- tions : that the rivers flowed into the Mississippi, con- sequently the lands between them belonged to France ; and that if he would do him the pleasure of a visit, ho 21 would find that he occupied a post which he knew liow to dcft-nd. Here are the argiimeiils, as employed by Lb. Ilarpe, of llie riglil of the United Stales to Texas, *' in a mil sliell." The conlesi ended with this cor- respondence, and the post estal)li.she(l hy La Harpe, was maintained by ihe French till lionisiana fell into the hands of Spain at ihe treaty of 1762, though the government was not changed iintil 1709. M. de la Harpe in 1720, with half a dozen soldiers, a few Indians, and eleven horses, loaded with goods and provisions, made an excursion from his post on Red river, to the Washita and Arkansas rivers. He met with a friendly reception from the Indians, took possession of the country, and hoisted the flag of France. He sold his goods profitably, and then floated down the Arkansas in perogues to the Missis- sippi, and reached Biloxi through Boyou Manchac, and lakes Maurepas and Poncharlrain. On the Ar- kansas, La Harpe describes an Indian village of three miles in extent, containing upwards of four thousand intiabitants. He describes it as situated about one luindred and twenty miles south-west of the Osages. Various attempts had been made by th^French to establish a colony on the bay of St. Bernard, without success. In 1721, La Harpe, under royal orders, embarked at New Orleans with a detachment of troops, engineers and draftsmen, to take a more ac- curate survey of the hay and country than his prede- cessors had done. He found eleven and a half feet of water on the bar at the entrance, and surveyed four large rivers that entered it. He described the soil along the coast as extremely fertile, and the country beautifully variegated with woods, prairies, and streams of pure water. This bay is now known as Galveston. Another explorer was named M. Dufisne. He was sent out to explore the country of the Missouris, Osages, and Panoucas. He ascended the Mississip- pi to the mouth of the Saline river, about twenty miles below St. Genevieve, and from thence traveled westward, over a rocky, broken and timbered coun- try, as he reckoned, three hundred and fifty miles, to the principal village of the Osages. This village he describes as situated on a hill about five miles from the Osage river, and contained about one hundred cabins, and two hundred warriors. These Indians spent but a small part of their time at their village, being engaged in hunting the other part. The Panoucas were in two villages, about one hundred and twenty miles west of the Osages, in a prairie country, abounding with buffaloes. Near them were three hundred horses, which the Indians prized exceedingly. The Paonis were at the distance of four hundred and fifty miles. The village of the Missonris was situated three hundred and fifty yards from the river that bears their name. M. Dutisne took formal possession of the country in the name of the king of France, and erected posts with the king's arms as a testimony of ;he claim. A few isolated facts, gleaned from various author- ities, will close these sketches. To encourage compact settlements and the cultiva- tion of the soil, it was imagined thai large grants of land, of several miles in front on the large rivers, to powerful and wealthy individuals in France, would be sound policy. Acconlinglv a large grant was made to John Law, the great bank projector, of twelve miles square, lying on the Arkansas river. Law stipulated to bring fifteen hundred German em- igrants to seme this and other tracts. Two hundred Germans came out in 1721, and landed at Bihixi, but never reached the Arkansas. Amongst these was a female adventurer, who had been attached to the wardrobe of the wife of Czarowitz Alexius Pelro- wiiz, the only son of Peter the Great, emperor of Russia. She put on the airs of a princess, and im- posed on the credulity of many persons, and the re- port soon prevailed that she was the daughter of the Duke of Wolfenbultle, whom the Czarowitz hail married, had treated with cruelty, and, as was the common report in Europe, had died. The fictitious princess succeeded in producing the belief that she had been the real wife of the brutal Czarowitz, that instead of death and burial, she had fled secretly, had traveled in France, incognito, and taken passage at L'Orient among the German emigrants. Her sto- ry gained credit, and especially with the chevalier d'Aubant, a Prussian and an officer of the garrison at Mobile, who had been at St. Petersburgh, had seen the real princess, and who in the mingled feel- ings of love and chivalry, imagined he recognized her features in those of her servant-maid. In short he married her, and after a long residence in Louisi- ana, returned with her to Paris, with a daughter, where he left her a widow. She went to Bruns- wick, where Iter imposture was discovered, and she was ordered to leave the country. She returned to Paris, lived in great poverty, and died in 1771. THE MASSACRE OF THE NATCHEZ. The Natchez were the most powerful and intelli- gent tribe of Indians in the Valley of the Mississippi. Their residence is sufficiently indicated by the city that perpetuates their name, though they spread over a considerable portion of the southern part of the state of Mississippi. According to their own tradi- tions, they had migrated from the south, and their man- ners, customs and opinions, in many respects, resem- bled the more civilized Mexicans and Peruvians. They were idolators, worshipers of the sun, had a temple, and an altar dedicated to that luminary, on which a perpetual fire burned. At first they treated the French colonists with great kindness. In 1722, the Chickasaws gave them trouble, and attacked and destroyed a fort on the Yazous. The friendly ex- ertions of the Natchez saved the settlers. The next year, (1723,) the commandant at Fort Rosalie treat- ed them with indignity and injustice. The quarrel 22 began between an old Natchez warrior and a sol- dier about some corn. The Natchez challenged the Frenchman to single combat, who, in alarm, cried murder ! The Natchez turned to depart from the camp, was fired upon by the guard and was mortally wounded. No punishment was inflicted on the per- petrators, while, in other respects, the commandant rendered himself odious to the Natchez. The mur- der of the warrior aroused up the whole tribe to seek revenge, and they attacked the French in all quarters and killed many of them. At last the Stung Ser- pent, an influential chief, interposed his authority, a treaty of peace was made, and former confidence restored. The peace served to lull the Natchez into security, and gave the French opportunity to medi- tate and execute one of the blackest acts of treachery. The governor, Bienville, ratified the treaty, and soon after, in a most cautious and dastardly manner, arriv- ed at Fort Rosalie with seven hundred men, and at- tacked and slaughtered the defenceless natives for four days. From this time the Natchez despaired of living in peace with the French, and secretly and silently plotted their destruction. By 1729, M. de Chopart, the commandant at Fort Rosalie, had been guilty of such repeated acts of injustice, as to render an investigation of his conduct inevitable, and he was ordered to appear before M. Perier, who at that time administered tlie government at New Orleans. But he found means to justify himself, and was restored to the command. On his return he continued to in- dulge his malice against the Indians. The act that stung them to madness was his attempt to build a town on the site of the village of White Apple, a large Indian town, situated about twelve miles below the city of Natchez and three miles from the Missis- sippi, and which they regarded as a sacred place. He ordered their huts to be removed and the Indians to leave the village. Among the fruitful expedients to gain time, till they could unite the warriors of the nation, and devise means to take vengeance on their enemies, thev proposed to give the Frencli command- ant each one fowl and one basket of corn for permis- sion to remain till after harvest. They held frequent and sftpret councils amongst themselves, and invited the CHickasaws to join them. Notwithstanding their secrecy, one of tiieir chief women suspected the plot, and revealed it to a soldier. Still M. Chopart disre- garded the warning. Tiie plot being matured, on the 30th of November, 1729, the Grand Sun, with his warriors, repaired to the fort with the tribute of corn and fowls. They rushed into the gate, disarm- ed the soldiers and commenced an indiscriminate massacre. The slaves and a few of the women and children were saved. All the men were murdered. Not a chief or warrior would stain his hands with tlie blood of M, Chopart, and one of the meanest of the Indians was ordered to kill him with a wooden tomahawk. The settlement contained about seven hundred French, of whom a very few only escaped. The forts and settlements on the Yazous and Wash- ita shared the same fate ! The news of this massacre filled New Orleans with alarm and dismay, but M. Perier, the commandant, was very active in devising the means of redress. The French gained the Chickasaws to their side, who furnished fifteen hundred warriors, which were met in the neighborhood of Natchez with a detach- ment of troops from New Orleans, under command of M. Loubois. The Natchez expected to be attacked, and had strongly fortified themselves in the fort. They pro- fessed to be desirous of peace, and much finesse was employed on both sides. At last the Natchez con- trived to desert the fort in the night, and, loaded with plunder, they crossed the Mississippi and re- turned to a position on Red river a few miles below Nachitoches. Here they erected a fort. M. Pe- rier, having received a reinforcement from France, marched a strong force, with artillery, against them. They defended theraseles bravely, made several des- perate sallies, but were repulsed with great slaughter. Their defence and their attempts to negotiate a peace were all in vain, and they finally surrendered at dis- cretion. The women and children were reduced to slavery, and dispersed among the plantations. The remnants of this once powerful nation were finally sent to St. Domingo. Thus perished the most en- lightened, civilized, and noble tribe of this continent. A few fugitives, who escaped the massacre, fled to the Chickasaws and Creeks and became amalgama- ted with those tribes. AVe have already stated the religion of the Nat- chez was idolatrous. One of their customs was bar- barous. On the death of a chief, or Sun, as they were called, and on some other occasions, human sacrifices were off'ered. Their chief Suns were in- vested with absolute power, and there were inferior Suns, that constituted a kind of subordinate nobility. The Natchez are represented by different authors, as just, generous, humane, and ready to extend relief to objects of distress. They were acquanited with the virtues of many medicinal plants, and the French represent the cures performed by them as almost in- credible, Charlevoix, who spent some days with this tribe in December, 1721, gives various details of their manners, customs and religion, in which he is sustained by other respectable authorities. He ,also states that on the death of a chief, or Sun, his nurse, and frequently his body guards, to the number of one hundred or more, were put to death, that he might be followed to the "spirit-land" with a reti- nue equal to his rank on earth. Besides the sun and fire, they worshiped little wooden gods in shape of monkies and rattlesnakes, placed on the altar. The Jesuits had a mission established in their vil- lage, but we find no evidence of much success in the conversion of the Natchez, as amongst more super- stitious tribes. 25 A TALE OF WESTERN CHIVALRY. The engraving for this article represents one of those scenes which were formerly so frequent in spois which are now densely populated, one of those brave actions in whicli the hardy pioneers of the west, those gallant fellows who fought their way inch by inch against the native redmen of the forest, were so frequently engaged. The memories of these actions are fast passing awav. Would that they might be perpetually re- corded. That Americans might always have before them a record of the perils and sulTcrings of their fathers. The following account of the desperate struggle of Adam Poe is from M'Clung's interesting sketches : — * " About the middle of .Tuly, 1782, seven Wyan- dotts crossed the Ohio a few miles above Wheeling, and committed great depredations upon the southern shore, killing an old man whom they found alone in his cabin, and spreading terrour throughout the neigh- bourhood. Within a few hours after their retreat, eight men assembled from diflerent parts of the small settlemeni and pursued the enemy with great expedi- tion. Among the most active and efficient of the party were two brothers, Adam and Andrew Poe. Adam was particularly popular. In strength, action and hardihood, he had no equal — being finely formed and inured to all the perils of the woods. " They had not followed the trail far, before they became satisfied that the depredators were conducted by Big Foot, a renowned chief of the Wyandott tribe, who derived his name from the immense size of his feet. His height considerably exceeded six feet, and his strength was represented as Herculean. He had also five brothers, but little inferior to himself in size and courage, and as they generally went in com- pany, they were the terrour of the whole country. Adam Poe was overjoyed at the idea of measuring his strength with that of so celebrated a chief, and urged the pursuit with a keenness which quickly brought him into the vicinity of the enemy. For the last ftiw miles, the trail had led them up the southern bank of the Ohio, where the footprints in the sand were deep and obvious, but when within a few hun- dred yards of the point at which tlie whites as well as the Indians were in the habit of crossing, it sud- denly diverged from the stream, and stretched along a rocky ridge, forming an obtuse angle with its former direction. Here Adam halted for a moment, and directed his brother and the other young men to fol- low the trail with proper caution, while he himself still adhered to the river path, which led through clusters of willows directly to the point where he supposed the enemy to lie. Having examined the priming of his gun, he crept cautiously through the bushes, uniil he had a view of the point of embarca- tion. Here lay two canoes, empty and apparently deserted. Being satisfied, however, that the Indians were close at hand, he relaxed nothing of his vigi- lance, and quickly gained a jutting cliff, which hung immediately over the canoes. Hearing a low mur- mur below, he peered cautiously over, and beheld the object of his search. The gigantick Big Foot, lay * Sketches of western adventure, containing an account of the most intercstiiig incidents connected with the settlement of the west, from 1755 to 1794 ; together with an appendix, by John A. M'Ciung 4* below him in the shade of a willow, and was talking in a low deep tone to another warriour, who seemed a mere pigmy by his side. Adam cautiously drew back, and cocked his gun. The mark was fair — the distance did not exceed twenty feet, and his aim was unerring. Raising his rifle slowly and cautiously, he took a steady aiin at Big Foot's breast, and drew the trigger. His gun flashed. Both Indians sprung to their feet with a deep interjection of surprise, and for a single second all three stared upon each other. This inactivity, however, was soon over. Adam was too much hampered by the bushes to retreat, and setting his life upon a cast of the die, he sprung over the bush which liad sheltered him, and summon- ing all his powers, leaped boldly down the precipice and alighted upon the breast of Big Foot with a shock which bore him to the earth. At the moment of con- tact, Adam had also thrown his right arm around the neck of the smaller Indian, so that all three came to the earth together. " At that moment a sharp firing was heard among the bushes above, announcing that the other parties were engaged, but the trio below were too busy to attend to any thing but themselves. Big Foot was for an instant stunned by the violence of the shock, and Adam was enabled to keep them both down. But the exertion necessary for that purpose was sd great, that he had no leisure to use his knife. Big Foot quickly recovered, and without attempting to rise, wrapped his long arms around Adam's body, and pressed him to his breast with the crushing force of a Boa Constrictor! Adam, as we have already remarked, was a powerful man, and had seldom en- countered his equal, but never had he yet felt an embrace like that of Big Foot. He instantly relaxed his hold of the small Indian, who sprung to his feet. Big Foot then ordered him to run for his tomahawk which lay within ten steps, and kill the white man, while he held him in his arms. Adam, seeing his danger, struggled manfully to extricate himself from the folds of the giant, but in vain. The lesser Indian approached with his uplifted tomahawk, but Adam watched him closely, and as he was about to strike, gave him a kick so sudden and violent, as to knock the tomahawk from his hand, and send him stagger- ing back into the water. Big Foot uttered an excla- mation in a tone of deep contempt at the failure of his companion, and raising his voice to its highest pifch, thundered out several words in the Indian tongue, which Adam could not understand, but sup- posed to be a direction for a second attack. The lesser Indian now again approached, carefully shun- ning Adam's heels, and making many motions with his tomahawk, in order to deceive him as to the point where the blow would fall. This lasted for several seconds, until a thundering exclamation from Big Foot, compelled his companion to strike. Such was Adam's dexterity and vigilance, however, that ho managed to receive the tomahawk in a glancing direc- tion upon his left wrist, wounding him deeply but not disabling him. He now made a sudden and des- perate eflbrt to free himself from the arms of the giant and succeeded. Instantly snatching up a rifle (for the Indian could not venture to shoot for fear of hurting his companion) he shot the lesser Indian through the body. But scarcely had he done so when Big Foot arose, and placing one hand upon his collar and the other upon his hip, pitched him ten 26 feet into the air, as he himself would have pitched a child. Adam fell upon his back at the edge of the water, but before his antagonist could spring upon him, he was again upon his feet, and slung with rage at the idea of being handled so easily, he attack- ed his gigantick antagonist with a fury which for a time compensated for inferiority of strength. It was now a fair fist fight between them, for in the hurry of the struggle neither had leisure to draw their knives. Adam's superior activity and experience as a pugilist, gave him great advantage. The Indian struck awkwardly, and finding himself rapidly drop- ping to leeward, he closed with his antagonist, and again hurled him to the ground. They quickly rol- led into the river, and the struggle continued with unabated fury, each attempting to drown the other. The Indian being unused to such violent exertion, and having been much injured by the first shock in his stomach, was unable to exert the same powers which had given him such a decided superiority at first ; and Adam, seizing him by the scalp lock, put his head under water, and held it there, until the faint struggles of the Indian induced him to believe that he was drov/ned, when he relaxed his hold and attempted to draw his knife. The Indian, however, to use Adam's own expression, "had only been pos- summing!" He instantly regained his feet, and in his turn put his adversary under. " In the struggle, both were carried out into the current, beyond their depth and each was compelled to relax his hold and swim for his life. There was still one loaded rifle upon the shore, and each swam hard in order to reach it, but the Indian proved the most expert swimmer, and Adam seeing that he snould be too late, turned and swam out into the stream, intending to dive and thus frustrate his ene- my's intention. At this instant, Andrew, having heard that his brother was alone in a struggle with two Indians, and in great danger, ran up hastily to the edge of the bank above, in order to assist him. Another white man followed him closely, and seeing Adam in the river, covered with blood, and swimming rapidly from shore, mistook him for an Indian and fired upon him, wounding him dangerously in the shoulder. Adam turned, and seeing his brother, called loudly upon him to "shoot the big Indian upon the shore." Andrew's gun, however, was empty, having just been discharged. Fortunately, Big Foot had also seized the gun with which Adam had sliot the lesser Indian, so that both were upon an equality. The contest now was who should load first. Big Foot poured in his powder first, and drawing his ramrod out of its sheath in too great a hurry threw it into the river, and while he ran to re- cover it, Andrew gained an advantage. Still the Indian was but a second too late, for his gun was at his shoulder, when Andrew's ball entered his breast. The gun dropped from his hands and he fell forward upon his face upon the very margin of the river. Andrew, now alarmed for his brother, who was scarcely able to swim, threw down his gun and rushed into the river in order to bring him ashore — but Adam, more intent upon securing the scalp of Big Foot as a trophy, than upon his own safety, called loudly upon his brother to leave him alone and scalp the big Indian, who was now endeavouring to roll himself into the water, from a romantic desire, peculiar to the Indian warriour, of securing his scalp from the enemy. Andrew, however, refused to obey, and insisted upon saving the living, before attending to the dead. Big Foot, in the meantime had suc- ceeded in reaching the deep water before he expired, and his body was borne ofl* by the waves, without being stripped of the ornament and pride of an Indian warriour. " Not a man of the Indians had escaped. Five of Big Foot's brothers, the flower of the Wyandott nation, had accompanied him in the expedition, and all perished. It is said that the news of this calamity, threw the whole tribe into mourning. Their remark- able size, their courage, and their superiour intelli- gence, gave them immense influence, which, greatly to their credit, was generally exerted on the side of humanity. Their powerful interposition, had saved many prisoners from the stake, and had given a milder character to the warfare of the Indians in that part of the country. A chief of the same name was alive in that part of the country so late as 1792, but whether a brother or a son of Big Foot, is not known. Adam Foe recovered of his wounds, and lived many years after his memorable conflict ; but never forgot the tremendous "hug" which he sustained in the arms of Big Foot." LIFE PRESERVER. The above cut represents a simple, cheap, yet efRcacious Life Preserver for ice. Fatal acci- dents very often occur from the fracture of this brittle material ; for it is very frequently the case that assistance cannot be rendered without immin- ent danger to the second person, even when the victim is within a few feet of the spectators. This cheap machine is simply a lever, supported by a moveable frame or carriage, so portable as to be easily conveyed from one point to another. At one end of the lever, is attached a large strong hoop, and at the other, a rope. The fulcrum is in such a relative position to each end of the lev- er, as to require but little force to be applied to the rope, to raise the weight of a man at the op- posite extremity. This apparatus has two ad- vantages ; the entire safety of those on shore, and the certain relief of the unfortunate if he has strength to hold on to the hoop, without danger of personal injury ; for it raises him perpendicularly from the water, and avoids the danger of being cut or bruised by the fractured ice. Such machines should be kept where there is frequent crossing of rivers, at villages, on the ice in the winter season, or near mill-ponds, where the sport of skating is much practised. 29 THE PIONEER, Did we wish to impersonate our young- and growing republic by some graphic symbol by which its first and onward progress might be in- dicated, we could not choose one more appropri- ate than that furnished by the artist in our en- graving. There stands the young and vigorous pioneer, buoyant with hope and high expectations of the future, stripped for the mighty contest be- tween human strength and the giant forest-sons of nature. With his axe in hand he stands ah)ne in the midst of the vast wilderness, far from the hallowed associations of youth and the charities of home and of neighborhood, prepared to pros- trate the umbrageous forest and admit the life- giving sunbeams to the exuberant bosom of mo- ther earth. Wlien first he left the teeming shores of the Atlantic, bearing upon his head a parent's blessing and within his heart the glow of pure patriotism, he saw not the dangers and difficulties he had to encounter. But when they arose threatening around him — when the flood disputed his progress — the towering mountain loomed up like a giant before him, and the red-man of the forest watched his every movement with a jealous eye — then the moral courage of his nature expand- ed and strengthened, and his soul was elevated with the thoughts of that mighty conquest he was about to acbieve. His axe was his trusty clay- more, his young wife — his country's honor — uni- versal freedom — these composed his oriflamme to encourage him in the heat of battle ; and his cause was the cause of religion, humanity, truth, equity and freedom. With such a weapon, such a rallying standard, such a noble incitement, did the hardy pioneer wrestle with the gnarled oak and towering beech till they were overcome, and luxuriant grainfields like a green oasis in the midst of the desert, gladdened his heart with the smiles of abundant prosperity. Where he had re- cently fought his victorious battle, a village up- rose, a monumental trophy of his prowess ; and from eastern lands — lands where his ancestors dwell — the commercial marts upon the borders of the sea — he hears the echo of his song of triumph, and beholds a mighty tide of physical and intellec- tual strength flowing on in his track, to populate, beautify and enrich the domain he has conquered, and to rear and foster there other pioneers to push farther onward toward the sands of the great Pacific. Such has been the onward progress of our country. But little more than two hundred years have elapsed since the first permanent colony from Great Britain landed upon the snow-clad rock of Plymouth, to co-operate with others who had erected a few altars along the more southern regions of the Atlantic shore. Like the young pioneer, they came from home with the blessings of millions of their countrymen upon theit heads, the fire of patriotism and religious zeal warming their hearts, while upon their foreheads they wore a broad phylactery on which was inscribed from the sacred scriptures of freedom — " Where Liberty dwells, there is my country." The forest— the flood — the savage — all dispu- ted their progress; but stout hands and stouter hearts — the encouraging voice of contemporaries and the beckoning hand of posterity — the right- eousness of their cause and the bright reward that glittered upon the distant goal, all combined to make them look upon danger as unworthy of notice, and to inspire them with that courage which makes mountains dwindle into mole-hills when intercepting the progress of a mighty move- ment. As circle follows circle when a pehble is cast into the quiet lake, so did civilization extend its conquering influence from this little nucleus, until cities, and villages, and fields of grain spread out like a beauteous panorama, to the very base of the towering Alleganies. But there was one thing yet to be accomplished. The young pio- neer felt his strength, nv.d the new world he had developed presented a far better scope for his en- ergies than the beaten track pursued by his an- cestors. He felt that parental authority was a ruinous restraint, and compliance therewith to be incompatible with the necessary efforts for the accomplishment of his glorious designs; and he resolved to break the fetter. For a time he laid aside the axe and the plough and battled manful- ly for freedom. The contest was long and pain- ful, but the star of his destiny lighted his path, the principles of right were the " cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night," and after seven long years of painful struggle, the eagle of victory perched upon his standard, and the British lion retreated, maimed and affrighted, to his lair. Thus freed, our young republic opened wide its benevolent arms as an asylum for the oppres- sed of all lands. It had changed the wilderness into a rich and inviting territory, and a vast flood of emigration poured its tributary waters into its bosom till the Alleganies no longer formed an obstructing dyke. Over their rough battlements this flood found its way, and through the vast and fertile valley of the Ohio irrigating streams of physical strength, intelligence and wealth flowed, spreading freshness and beauty wherever they penetrated. Year after year, new pioneers open- ed paths farther and farther into the wilderness, and formed new channels for the tide of emigra- tion and population, till now the Mississippi — the father of floods — flows for hundreds of miles amid the fields and dwellings of a busy people. Now, when we speak of our country, — our do- main — the term is vague and inconclusive. From the lagoons of Florida to the farthest verge of the 30 great lakes — from Eastport to Astoria, our domain is extended, and our " little piece of striped bun- ting" is acknowledged and revered. The time has been, and that but recently when the " far west" was a definite point of boundary. But now, where is it 1 St. Louis, but a few years since a town upon our western frontier has now become almost the centre of our union. Where, until recently, the wolf made his lair — a point more than a thousand miles from the sea — wharves are covered with the silks of India, the cutlery of Britain, and the fruits of the islands of Oceanica. Follow the Missouri up even to the Yellow Stone, and the voices of friends and kindred greet you on every side. Nay, stand upon the crest of the Rocky mountains and view upon one side the spurs of the Alleganies, upon the other, the waters of the Pacific, and around you the vast ex- panse of mountain, prairie, river, city, village, and you are but looking upon " our country" — the mighty result of the pioneer's energy. Such the past, such the present, but what is en- shrouded in the dark veil of the future ! We now present a family of freemen more than sixteen millions in number, bound to protect the teraphim of our fathers — truth, liberty and justice. To our care is entrusted the ark of that covenant which our fathers made with mankind when they framed the Declaration of Independence and en- veloped it within the sacred folds of the Constitu- tion. They placed it within the holy of holies of the tabernacle of American Liberty, and we are bound by a pledge that must not be broken, to transmit it to those who succeed us in our right- eous warfare with principles inimical to human liberty. Ours is a country "Where the men of a nation stand out on the sod, And tread where their fathers triumphantly trod ; — and we should feel it a sacred duty to guard well our altars from the pollution of sacrifices made by unholy ambition to party idols. We should fos- ter education as one of the strongest bulwarks of our liberty, and use every effort to imbue our literature with a proper national feeling, such as arises from the habitual exercise of the pure prin- ciples of democracy ; not that democracy about which political parties prate, but that spirit rec- ognised by the Declaration of Independence. "Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty." Let us, therefore, consider ourselves, each a sentinel upon the watch-towers of freedom,and when asked, "Watchman, what of the night 1" be able imme- diately to respond, "All is well !" SONG OF THE PRAIRIE. Oh ! fly to the prairie, sweet maiden, with me, As green, and as wide, and as wild as the sea ! Its bosom of velvet the summer winds ride, And rank grass is waving in billowy pride. The city 's a prison too narrow for thee; Then away to the prairies so boundless and free! Where the sight is not checked till the prairie and skies, In harmony blending, commingle their dies. The fawns in the meadow-fields fearlessly play; Away to the chase, lovely maiden away ! Bound, bound to thy courser, the bison is near ! And list to the tramp of the light-footed deer. Let England exult m her dogs and her chase : Oh ! what's a king's park to this limitless space ? No fences to leap, and no thickets to turn — No owners to injure — no furrows to spurn. But softly as thine on the carpeted hall, Is heard the light foot of the coursers to fall; And close-malted grass no impression receives, As ironless hoofs bound aloft from the leaves. Oh fly to the prairie ! — the eagle is there ; He gracefully wheels in the cloud-specked air : And timidly hiding her delicate young, The prairie-hen hushes her beautiful song. Oh, fly to the prairie, sweet maiden, with me ! The vine and the prairie-rose blossom for thee; And hailing the moon in the prairie-propp'd sky, The mocking-bird echoes the katy-did's cry. Let Mexicans boast of their herds and their steeds The free prairie-hunter no shepherd-boy needs; The bison, like clouds, overshadow the place. And the wild spotted coursers invite to the chase. The citizen picks at his turtle and fowls. And stomachless over his fricassee growls : We track the wild turkey ; the rifle supplies The food for the board, and the stomach to prize. The farmer may boast of his grass and his grain: He sows them in labor, and reaps them in pain ; But here the deep soil no exertion requires — Enriched by the ashes, and cleared by the fires. Then fly to the prairie in wonder, and gaze, As sweeps o'er the grass the magnificent blaze ; The world cannot boast more romantic a sight — A continent flaming and oceans of light! The woodman delights in his trees and his shade: But see ! there's no sun on the cheek of his maid ; His flowers are faded, his blossoms are pale, And mildew is riding his vapory gale. Then fly to the prairie ! — no bush to obscure. No marsh to exhale and no ague to cure. Translucent and fresh comes the grass-scented breeze^ Unchilled by the mountain — unbroken by trees. Sublime from the north he descends in his wrath, And scatters the reeds in his snow-covered path; Or, loaded with incense, steals in from tne west, As bees from the prairie-rose fly to their nest. Oh, fly to the prairie ! for freedom is there — Love lights not that home with the torch of deepair; No wretch to entreat, and no lord to deny — No gossip to slander — no neighbor to pry. But struggling not there the heart's impulse to hide, Love leaps like the fount from the crystal-rock side, And strong as its adamant, pure as its spring. Waves wildly in sunbeams his rose-colcred wing. THE EMIGRANT'S DAUGHTER. 33 THE EMIGRANT'S DAUGHTER. My mother's grave ! 'T is there beneath the trees. I love to go alone and sit, and think, Upon that grassy mound. My cradle hours Come back again so sweetly, when I woke, And lifted up my head, to kiss the cheek That bowed to meet me. — Mrs. Sigourney. Ay, there is, indeed, a mournful pleasure in turning aside from the ceaseless bustle of busy life — to leave behind its wearying toils and dis- tracting cares, and steal noiselessly into the city of the dead, and hold sweet converse with de- parted friends who now inhabit its lonely dwel- lings. Even to the stranger from a distant land, who carelessly deciphers the time-worn memo- rials which mark the name of the indwellers, there is something soothing and refreshing in meditations which arise while passing among the habitations of the graveyard, and seeing eviden- ces all around him, not only that infancy, youth, manhood, and old age, have alike contributed to swell the population of this quiet spot, but that the affections of the living for the dead are yet link- ed to departed ones by the outward service of the sculptor's chisel, as well as the deep graven impressions upon the heart. He feels as if he was standing upon the boundary which divides the past and the present generation, and is hold- ing silent yet instructive communion with the sympathies of the living and the dead; and this feeling lulls the storm of passion into repose, subdues the ardor of ambition, and clothes the tractile spirit with the garment of humility. But when the parent approaches the grave of a darling child, or a child bends over the green sward beneath which a parent sleeps — when liv- ing friends stand around the tenements of friends departed — then it is that the fountains of deep feeling are unsealed, and the warmest sympathies of our nature are brought into action. The cold stoic who may pass along the world's highway, unmoved by the miseries of his fellow-travellers and untouched by the pathetic appeals of sufferino- brethren, cannot withstand the melting influence imparted at the sight of the grave of a dear rela- tive or friend, and he involuntarily pays to past affection the purest tribute of a generous heart — a tear. There is no temple more holy, wherein we may worship with purer devotion, than the church- yard ; nor is there an altar more sacred than the sepulchral mound whereat the heart may pour out its holiest aspirations, or whereon affection may deposite its precious offering, albeit but an evanescent flower of the field. Around such an altar, within such a temple, memory delights to linger and dwell, and to paint in all the glowing colors of the halcyon of life the delightful images of the past, when the sleeping one was at our side, shared in our joys and sorrows, and minis- tered bounteously to our comfort and happi- ness. Deeper still are the feelings of the child when summoned by circumstances to leave the vicini- ty of a mother's grave, forego the soothing pleas- ure of a pilgrimage thither, and depart for a strange land. It is a hard thing to say farewell to living friends, those with whom we may still interchange words of affection even when sepa- rated by mountains and seas ; but, when called upon to leave a mother's grave behind, to permit the flowers we have planted upon it to wither and die, to break off our holy communings with the hallowed dead, and leave the path to her tomb to be trodden only by strangers or overgrown with brambles, then it is that we are forced to sever a link in the chain of pure affection, that nothing temporal can supply. And such is the link broken by thousands of the emigrants who swell the mighty stream of population which is constantly flowing westward from the shores of the Atlantic, and irrigating in every direction the vast wilder- ness of the Occident. The brief story of one is the story of thousands ; and we give it with the unaffected simplicity of truthful narrative, as it was told us. During the prevalence of the yellow fever in New York, in 1790, a distinguished merchant, alarmed for the safety of himself and family, closed his store and retired with his whole house- hold to his paternal estate, on the bank of the Hudson, then in possession of his only survivinor parent, an aged mother. His family consisted of a wife, three daughters, and a son ; the latter a youth of only fourteen summers. But they had hardly reached their rural retreat, joyous with the thoughts that they were safely beyond the reach of the pestilence, before the painful evi- dence of the presence of the contagion was visi- ble in the wife. The miasma of the "infected district," had impregnated her life-blood ere she left the city, and, in less than a week after she reached the abode of apparent health and safety, she was borne to the family churchyard. Next, a daughter who had watched incessantly at the bedside of her dying mother, followed her ; then the son, and at last another daughter — all, all were cut down like blooming flowers of the field, and disappeared for ever. One child alone remain- ed to the grief-stricken father — a blooming girl of seventeen ; and upon her were all his warmest affections centred. Broken in spirit by the terri- ble blows he had suffered, and entirely unnerved for the arduous duties of commercial life, the merchant closed his business in the city, and re- solved to pass the remainder of his days in the quiet seclusion of his paternal home, where all that was dear to him were now enshrined. Time passed on — the aged mother retired to her final resting-place, and the daughter became 34 tO the father — the lonely, heart-broken father — the only staff upon which he could lean for support in his affliction. With the true philosophy of woman's love and woman's courage, she seemed to gain new strength with every shock ; and that sorrow which bore down the spirits of her father, was a prompter to her exertions to buoy him up. But all her efforts were vain ; for the canker- worm of grief destroyed his health, and gave warning that ere long he must join his silent household in the sleep of death. Although in the presence of her father, the daughter seldom permitted her tears to flow, yet not a daj^ passed in summer that she did not strew fresh flowers upon the graves of her dear lost ones, nor in winter that her scalding tears did not mingle with the snow that covered them. The spot where her mother, and sisters, and brother, were buried, became so hallowed in her mind, that she often fancied that she heard their sweet voices floating upon the evening breeze in summer, and their sighs trembling upon the keen winds of winter. She knew that ere long her only parent must likewise be a dweller there ; and the thought that circumstances might separate her from that holy place, caused anguish most severe. The father died ! and then the feeling of utter loneliness came over the poor girl with its great- est power. Though the comforts of a maternal uncle's home were hers — though she became the affianced bride of a wealthy young farmer to whom she had yielded her heart and all the affec- tions it possessed, and to whom she had been given as a precious jewel, by her dying father — yet a cloud of deep melancholy cast a shade over her path, and memory chained her affections to the spot where the dearest treasures of earth, to her, were deposited. Years sped on in their rapid flight — three chil- dren, beautiful buds of promise, blessed their union, and awakened new emotions in her bosom, which gradually weaned her thoughts from the sorrowful retrospect of the past. But adverse gales of fortune nearly wrecked the pecuniary prospects of her husband, and he resolved to join the tide of emigration flowing rapidly into Mich- igan, the then El Dorado of the " far west." Willing to be guided by circumstances, even though they dealt harshly with her feelings, the affectionate wife gave her willing assent to bid kind friends farewell and seek a new home in the western wilderness. But one thought — the thought of leaving the graves of her beloved ones behind — gave her the greatest sorrow 5 and when the trying hour of departure came, and friends gathered round to bid them adieu and invoke blessings upon them and their enterprise, she exchanged those greetings without much emotion : but when for the last time she strewed the early spring flowers upon the tombs of her parents and sisters, and laved the upspringing herbage upon their graves, "with her warm tears, then it was that a fearful struggle, between duty and affection for the dead, took place She yielded, however, and with a sorrowful heart pressed her babes to her bosom and followed her kind husband to the wild regions of the far west. A few jrears passed on — the almost desert where the Jog-hut of our emigrant was reared began to " blossom like the rose," and the com- forts of home and of neighborhood clustered around them. The strong feeling of filial affec- tion which embittered the first few months of her residence in the forest, gradually weakened, and she became calm and happy in the pleasing duties of educating her children, and soothing her hus- band in his toils. Disease, however, invaded the emigrant's dwelling, and her children were left motherless. Her fond husband deposited her precious remains beneath the umbrageous branch- es of a magnolia, and her children in their turn planted wild flowers upon their mother's grave. " The lonely man still ploughed the soil. Though she, who long had soothed his toil. No more partook his care; But in her place a daughter rose, As from some broken stem there groAvs A blossom fresh and fair." Thoroughly imbued with all the virtue and piety of her mother, this daughter, then just ex- panding into womanhood, became the excellent instructress of the younger children and a sooth- er of the cares and sorrows of her father. Strong and robust, she endured the labors and many pri- vations of a wilderness-home with cheerfulness; and, when the duties of the day were over, it was her delight to have all drawn around the fireside and listen to her reading and expounding of the Writings of Truth. And when the summer twilights came on, she might frequently be seen amid her little brothers and sisters, sitting upon her mother's grave, impressing upon their young hearts the beauty of her example, and drying their tears of sorrow by pointing to some bril- liant star as it came forth, as the imaginary land of rest where the spirit of their mother was hap- py, and looked down upon them with all a parent's solicitude. Frequently she might be seen with basket on her arm, carrying neces- saries to some unfortunate family m the wilder- ness, far away from her own home ; and then hieing to the spot where her father's axe was heard, to tell him of the blessings she had re- ceived while bestowing her gifts. The emigrant's daughter was indeed a lovely flower, and many were the sturdy young foresters who sought, but in vain, to pluck her from her parent-stem. She 35 was there too closely allied to be easily induced to leave her father's roof, while his comfort de- manded her service and her little brothers and sisters required her maternal care. Af^ain disease came to their dwelling:, and the father was laid beside his wife. His eldest son took his place at the plough, while the daughter acted as a guardian spirit to all. The sequel may be told in a few words. She married a back- woodsman, a man of stern integrity, strong mind and exemplary honesty ; and the talented Dr. T 1, a late distinguished, though very young member of the popular branch of the Indiana legislature, was ever proud of the privilege of call- ing her mother. (From the West. Lit. Journal.) THE LAST OF THE INDIAN FIGHTERS. Died, at his residence in Logan county, on thi; 29lli April last, General Simon Ki:ntox, aged eighty- one years, less seventeen days. The deceased is believed to have been the last survivor, of that hardy and intrepid band of pioneers, composed of Boon, Kenton, Logan, and Crawford, who took so active a part in the jlrst exploration of the western country, during the closing quarter of the last century. Simon Kenton was a Virginian by birth, and em- igrated to the wilds of the West in the year 1771. He was born, according to a manuscript which he dedicated to a gentleman of Kentucky, several years since,) in Fauquier county, on the 15th of May, 1755, of poor parents. His early life was passed principally upon a farm. At the age of sixteen, having a quarrel with a rival in a love-affair, he left his antagonist upon the ground for dead, and made quick steps for the wilderness. In the course of a few days, wandering to and fro, he arrived at a small settlement on Cheat creek, one of the forks of the Monongahela, where he called himself Butler. Here, according to Mr. M'Clung, whose interesting account of Kenton, in the " Sketches of Western Adventure," we are following, he attached himself to a small company headed by John Mahon and Jacob Greathouse, which was about starting farther west on an exploring expedition. He was soon in- duced, however, by a young adventurer of the name of Yager, who had been taken by the western Indi- ans when a child, and spent many years among them, to detach himself from the company, and go with him to a land which the Indians called Kan- tuc-kee, and which he represented as being a perfect elysium. Accompanied by another young man, named Stradcr, ihey set off for the backwoods par- adise in high spirits : Kenton not doul)ting that he should find a country flowing with milk and honey, Mliere he would have little to do but to eat, drink, and be merry. Such, however, was not his luck. They continued wandering through the wilderness for some weeks, without finding the " promised land," and then retraced their steps, and succes- sively explored the land about Salt-Lick, Little and Big Sandy, and Guyandotte. At length, being totally wearied out, they turned their attention entirely to hunting and trapping, and thus spent neany two years. — Being discovered by the Indians, and losing one of his companions, (Strader,) Kenton was com- pelled to abandon his tr:ipping-waters, and hunting- grounds. After divers hard.ships, he succeeded in reaching the mouth of the Little Kenhawa, with his remaining companion, where he found and attached himself to another exploring party. This, however, was attacked by the Indians, soon after commencing the descent of the Ohio, compelled to abandon its canoes, and strike diagonally through the woods for Green-briar county. Its members suffered much in accomplishing this journey, from faiigue, sickness, and famine ; and on reaching the settlements, sep- arated. Kenton's rival of the love-affair had long since recovered from the castigation which he had given him. But of this, the young hero had not heard. He therefore did not think proper to venture home ; but, instead, built a canoe on the Monongahela, and once more sought the mouth of the Great Kenhawa, where he hunted till the spring of 1774. This year he descended the Ohio as far as the mouth of Big Bone creek, and was engaged in various explorations till 1778, when he joined Daniel Boon in his expe- dition against the Indian town on Paint creek. — Im- mediately upon his return from this, he was de- spatched by Col. Bowman, with two companions, to make observations upon the Indian towns on the Little Miami, against which the colonel meditated an expedition. He reached the tow ns in safety, and made the necessary surveys without being observed by the Indians ; and the expedition might have ter- minated much to his credit, and been very useful to the settlers in Kentucky, had he not before leaving the towns stolen a number of the Indians' horses. The animals were missed early in the following morning, the trail of the marauders was discovered, and pursuit instantly comnrrenced. Kenton and his companions soon heard cries in their rear, knew thai they had been discovered, and saw the necessity of riding for their lives. They therefore dashed through the woods at a furious rate, with the hue and cry after them, until their course was suddenly interrupted by an impenetrable swamp. Here they from neces- sity paused for a few moments, and listened atten- tively. Hearing no sounds of pursuit, they resumed their course — and skirting the swamp for some dis- tance, in the vain hope of crossing it, they dashed off in a straight line for the Ohio. They continued their furious speed for forty-eight hours, halting but once or twice for a few minutes to take some re- freshment, and reached the Ohio in safety. The river was high and rough, and they found it impos- sible to urge the jaded horses over. Various efforts w-ere made, but all failed. Kenton Avas never re- markable for prudence ; and on this occasion, his better reason seems to have deserted him entirely. By abandoning the animals, he might yet have escaped, though several hours had been lost in en- deavouring to get them over. But ibis he could not make up his mind to do. He therefore called a council, when it was determined, as they felt satisfied they must be some twelve hours in advance of their pursuers, that they should conceal their horses in a neighbouring ravine, and themselves take stations in an adjoining wood, in the hope that by sunset, the hiffh wind would abate, and the state of the river 36 be such as to permit their crossing with the booty. At the hour waited for, however, the wind was higher and the water rougher than ever. Still, as if com- pletely infatuated, they remained in their dangerous position through the night. The next morning was mild, the Indians had not yet been heard in pursuit, and Kenton again attempted to urge the horses over. But, recollecting the difiiculties of the preceding day, the aflVighted animals could not now be induced to enter the water at all. Each of the three men therefore mounted a horse, abandoning the rest, (they had stolen quite a drove,) and started down the river with the intention of keeping the Ohio and Indiana side till they should arrrive opposite Louisville. But they were slow in making even this movement; and they had not ridden over a hundred yards when they heard a loud halloo, proceeding apparently from the spot which they had just left. They were soon surrounded by the pursuers. One of Kenton's com- panions effected his escape, the other was killed. Kenton was made prisoner — " falling a victim," says Mr. M'Clung, " to his excessive love of horse- flesh." After the Indians hnd scalped his dead companion, and kicked and cuffed Kenton to their hearts' con- tent, they compelled him to lie down upon liis back, and stretch out his arms to their full length. They then passed a stout stick at right angles across his breast, to each extremity of which, his wrists were fastened by thongs of buffalo-hide. Stakes were next driven into the earth near his feet, to which they were fastened in like manner. A halter was then tied round his neck, and fastened to a sapling which grew near. And finally, a strong rope was passed under his body, and wound several times round his arms and at the elbows — thus lashing them to the stick which lay across his breast, and to which his wrists were fastened, in a maimer peculiarly painful. He could move neither feet, arms, nor head ; and was kept in this position till the next morning. The Indians then wishing to commence their return-journey, unpinioned Kenton, and lashed him by the feet, to a wild, unbroken colt, (one of the animals he had stolen from them,) with his hands tied behind him. In this manner he Avas driven into a captivity as cruel, singular, and remarkable in other respects, as any in the whole history of Indian warfare upon this continent. " A fatalist," says the author of the Sketches of Western Adventure, " would recognise the hand of destiny in every stage of its progress. In the infatuation with which Kenton refused to adopt proper measures for his safety, while such were practicable ; in the persevering obstinacy with which he remained on the Ohio shore until flight became useless ; and afterward, in that rem.arkable succession of accidents, by which, without the least exertion on his part, he was so often at one hour tantalized with a prospect of safety, and the next plunged into the deepest despair. He was eight times exposed to the gauntlet — three times tied to the stake — and as often thought himself upon tlie eve of a terrible death. All the sentences passed upon him, whether of mercy or condemnation, seem to have been pronounced in one council only to be reversed in another. Every friend that Providence raised up in his favour, was immediately followed by some enemy, uho unexpectedly interposed, and turned his short glimpse of sunshine into deeper darkness than ever. For three weeks he was con- stantly see-sawdng between life and death ; and during the whole time, he was perfectly passive. No wisdom, or foresight, or exertion, could have saved him. Fortune fought his battle from first to last, and seemed determined to permit nothing else to interfere." He was eventually liberated from the Indians, when about to be bound to the stake for the fourth time, and burnt, by an Indian agent of the name ot Drewyer, who was anxious to obtain intelligence for the British commander at Detroit, of the strength and condition of the settlements in Kentucky. He got nothing important out of Kenton ; but the three weeks Football of Fortune was sent to Detroit, from which place he effected his escape in about eight months, and returned to Kentucky. Fearless and active, he soon embarked in new enterprises ; and was with George Rogers Clarke, in his celebrated expedition against Vincennes and Kaskaskia — with Edwards, in his abortive expedition to the Indian towns in 1785 — and with Wayne, in his decisive campaign of 1794. Simon Kenton, throughout the struggles of the pioneers, had the reputation of being a valuable scout, a hardy woodsman, and a brave Indian-fighter ; but in reviewing his eventful career, he appears greatly to have lacked discretion, and to have evinced frequently a want of energy. In his afterlife, he was much respected ; and he continued to the last, fond of regaling listeners with stories of the early times. A friend of ours, who about three years ago made a visit to the abode of the venerable patri- arch, describes in the following terms, his appearance at that time : " Kenton's form, even under the weight of seventy-nine years, is striking, and must have been a model of manly strength and agility. His eye is blue, mild, and yet penetrating in its glance. The forehead projects very much at the eyebrows — which are well-defined — and then recedes, and is neither very high nor very broad. His hair, which in active life was light, is now quite gray ; his nose is straight ; and his mouth before he lost his teeth must have been expressive and handsome. I ob served that he had yet one tooth — which, in con- nexion with his character and manner of conversa- tion, was continually reminding me of Leatherstock- ing. The whole face is remarkably expressive, not of turbulence or excitement, but rather of rumination and self-possession. Simplicity, frankness, honesty, and a strict regard to truth, appeared to be the prom- inent traits of his character. In giving an answer to a question which my friend asked him, I was particularly struck with his truthfulness and simpli- city. The question was, whether the account of his life, given in the Sketches of Western Adventure, was true or not. ' Well, I'll tell you,' said he : ' not true. The l^ook says, that when Blackfish the Injin warriour asked me, w^hen they had taken me pris- oner, if Colonel Boon sent me to steal their horses, I said ' no, sir !' ' Here he looked indignant, and rose from his chair. ' I tell you I never said ' sir .'' to an Injin in my life ; I scarcely ever say it to a white man.' Here Mrs. Kenton, who Avas engaged in some domestick occupation at the table, turned roimd and remarked, that when they were last in Kentucky, some one gave her the book to read to 37 her husband ; and that when she came to that part, he would not let her read any farther. ' And I tell you,' continued he, ' I was never tied to a stake in my life to be burned. They had me painted black when I saw Girty, but not tied to a slake.'" We are inclined to think, notwithstanding this, that the statemeni in the " Sketches," of his being three times tied to the stake, is correct ; for the author of that interesting work had before him a manuscript account of the pioneer's life, which had been dictated by Mr. Kenton, to a gentleman of Kentucky, a number of years before, when he had no motive to exaggerate, and his memory was com- paratively unimpaired. — But he is now beyond the reach of earthly toil, or trouble, or suffering. His old age was as exemplary, as his youth and man- hood had been active and useful. And though his last years were clouded by poverty, and his eyes closed in a miserable cabin to the light of life, yet shall he occupy a bright page in our border history, and his name soon open to the light of fame. Old Rifle. REVOLUTIONARY REMINISCENCES. An old gentleman, one of the few survivors of Lee's celebrated partisan legion, gave me the follow- ing account of a charge made by a detachment of that gallant corps, which he pronounced the most ef- fective it ever made : — We were lying near Fort Granby, (said he,) watcli- ing the movements of the British army, and seeking daily for opportunities to cut off its supplies, or any detached parties that might be pushed out. Early one morning, Captain Armstrong, the most dashing, headlong and gallant fellow of our corps, was detach- ed with twelve men, on a reconnoitring expedition, and during the afternoon of the same day. Captain Eggleston was sent out with a party of eighteen on the like errand in a different direction. Towards evening, the parties met, and having formed a junc- tion, retired into a piece of woods which skirted the road, and which, though prostrated, apparently by a tornado, yet afforded sufficient cover to hide us from casual observation, when dismounted : while at the same time, it enabled us to see every thing passin' remains is to bring her home to his lodge. He neither swears before God to love her till death — an oath which it depends not on his own will to keep, even if it be not perjury in the mo- ment it is pronounced — nor to endow her with all his worldly goods and chattels, when, even by the act of union, she loses all right of property ; but apparently, the arrangements answer all purposes to their mutual satisfaction. Mrs. Jameson. 49 ADVENTURES OF COL. JAMES SMITH. Our engraving represents a scene in the ad- ventures of Col. James Smith, who was attached to the army of Braddock — taken prisoner by the Indians and adopted by one of the tribes. He escaped in 1789 and removed to Kentucky, and was for many years a resident of Bourbon county. In the spring of the year 1755, James Smith, then a youth of eighteen, accompanied a party of three hundred men from the frontiers of Pennsyl- vania, who advanced in front of Braddock's army, for the purpose of opening a road over the mount- ain. When within a few miles of the Bedford springs, he was sent back to the rear, to hasten the progress of some wagons loaded with provisions and stores for the use of the road-cutters. Having de- livered his orders, he was returning, in company with another young man, when they were suddenly fired upon by a party of three Indians, from a cedar thicket, which skirted the road. Smith's companion was killed on the spot ; and although he himself was unhurt, yet his horse was so much frightened by the flash and report of the guns, as to become totally unmanageable, and, after a few plunges, threw him with violence to the ground. Before he could re- cover his feet, the Indians sprung upon him, and, ©ve»"powering his resistance, secured him as a pris- oner. One of them demanded, in broken English, whether " more white men were coming up ;" and upon his answering in the negative, he was seized by each arm and compelled to run with great rapidiiy over the mountain until night, when the small party encamped and cooked their supper. An equal share of their scanty stock of provisions was given to the prisoner, and in other respects, although strictly guarded, he was treated with great kindness. On the evening of the next day, after a rapid walk of fifty miles, through cedar thickets, and over very rocky ground, they reached the western side of the Laurel mountain, and beheld, at a little distance, the smoke of an Indian encampment. His captors now fired their guns, and raised the scalp halloo ! This is a long yell for every scalp that has been taken, followed by a rapid succession of shrill, quick, piercing shrieks, somewhat resembling laughter in its most excited tones. They were answered from the Indian camp below, by a discharge of rifles and a long whoop, followed by shrill cries of joy, and all thronged out to meet the party. Smith expected in- stant death at their hands, as they crowded around him ; but to his surprise, no one ofl^ered him any violence. They belonged to another tribe, and en- tertained the party in their camp with great hospital- I ity, respecting the prisoner as the property of their ' guests. On the following morning, Smith's captors ' continued their march, and on the evening of the ■ next day arrived at fort Du Quesne — now Pittsburgh. When within half a mile of the fort, they again j raised the scalp halloo, and fired their guns as be- fore. Instantly the whole garrison was in commo- , tion. The cannon were fired — the drums were i beaten, and French and Indians ran out in great ' numbers to meet the party, and partake of their triumph. Smith was again surrounded by a multi- 7* tude of savages, painted in various colours, and shouting with delight ; but their demeanour was by no means as pacifick as that of the last party he had encountered. They rapidly formed in two long lines, and brandishing their hatchets, ramrods, \ switches, &c., called aloud upon him to run the gauntlet. Never having heard of this Indian cere- ! niony before, he stood amazed for some lime, not I knowing what to do ; but one of his captors ex- I plained to him, that he was to run between the two lines, and receive a blow from each Indian as he passed, concluding his explanation by exhorting him to " run his best," as the faster he ran the sooner the affair would be over. This truth was very plain — and young Smith entered upon his race with great spirit. He was switched very handsomely along the lines, for about three fourths of the distance, the stripes only acting as a spur to greater exertions, and he had almost reached the opposite extremity of the line, when a tall chief struck him a furious blow with a club upon the back of the head, and instantly felled him to the ground. Recovering himself in a moment, he sprung to his feet and started forward again, when a handful of sand was thrown in his eyes, which, in addition to the great pain, completely blinded him. He still attempted to grope his way through ; but was again knocked down and beaten with merciless severity. He soon became insensi- ble under such barbarous treatment, and recollected nothing more, until he found himself in the hospital of the fort, under the hands of a French surgeon, beaten to a jelly, and unajble to move a limb. Here he was quickly visited ^y one of his captors — the same who had given him such good advice, when about to commence his race. He now inquired, with some interest, if he felt " very sore." Young Smith replied, that he had been bruised almost to death, and asked what he had done to merit such barbarity. The Indian replied, that he had done nothing, but that it was the customary greeting of the Indians to their prisoners — that it was something like the English " how d'ye do ?" and that now all ceremony would be laid aside, and he would be treated with kindness. Smith inquired if they had any news of General Braddock. The Indian re- plied that their scouts saw him every day from the mountains — that he was advancing in close columns through the woods — (this he indicated by placing a number of red sticks parallel to each other, and pressed closely together) — and that the Indians would be able to shoot them down " like pigeons." Smith rapidly recovered, and was soon able to walk upon the battlements of the fort, with the aid of a stick. While engaged in this exercise, on the morning of the 9 , he observed an unusual bustle in the fort. The Indians stood in crowds at the great gate, armed and painted. Many barrels of powder, ball, flints, &c., were brought out to them, from which each warriour helped himself to such articles as he required. They were soon joined by a small detachment of French regidars, when the whole party marched off together. He had a full view of them as they passed, and was confident that they could nut exceed four hundred men. He soon learned that it was detached against Braddock, who was now within a few miles of the fort ; but from their great inferiority in numbers, he regarded their destruction as certain, and looked joyfully to 50 the arrival of Braddock in the evening, as the hour which was to dehver him from the power of the In- dians. In the afternoon, however, an Ind /in runner arrived with far different intelligence. The battle had not yet ended when he left the field ; but he announced that the English had been surrounded, and were shot down in heaps by an invisible enemy ; that instead of flying at once or rushing upon their concealed foe, they appeared completely bewildered, huddled together in the centre of the ring, and be- fore sun-down there would not be a man of them alive. This intelligence fell like a thunderbolt upon Smith who now saw himself irretrievably in the power of the savages, and could look forward to no- thing but torture or endless captivity. He waited anxiously for further intelligence, still hoping that the fortune of the day might change. But about sun- set, he heard at a distance the well-known scalp halloo, followed by wild, quick, joyful shrieks, and accompanied by long-continued firing. This too surely announced the fate of the day. About dusk, the party returned to the fort, driving before them twelve British regidars, stripped naked and with their faces painted black! an evidence that the un- happy wretches were devoted to death. Next came the Indians displaying their bloody scalps, of which they had immense numbers, and dressed in the scar- let coats, sashes, and military hats of the officers and soldiers. Behind all came a train of baggage- horses, laden with piles of scalps, canteens, and all the accoutrements of British soldiers. The savages appeared frantick with joy, and when Smith beheld them entering the fort, dancing, yelling, brandishing their red tomahawks, and waving their scalps in the air, while the great guns of the fort replied to the incessant discharge of rifles without, he says, that it looked as if the lower regions had given a holiday, and turned loose its inhabitants upon the upper world. The most melancholy spectacle was the band of prisoners. They appeared dejected and anxious. Poor fellows ! They had but a few months before left London, at the command of their tuperiours, and we may easily imagine their feel- ings, at the strange and dreadful spectacle around them. The yells of delight and congratulation were scarcely over, when those of vengeance began. The devoted prisoners — British regulars — were led out from the fort to the banks of the Allegany, and to the eternal disgrace of the French commandant, were there burnt to death one after another, with the most awful tortures. Smith stood upon the bat- tlements and witnessed the shocking spectacle. The prisoner was tied to a stake with his hands raised above his head, stripped naked, and surround- ed by Indians. They would touch him with redhot irons, and stick his body full of pine splinters and set them on fire — drowning the shrieks of the vic- tim in the yells of delight with which they danced around him. His companions in the meantime stood in a group near the stake, and had a foretaste of what was in reserve for each of them. As fast as one prisoner died under his tortures, another filled his plact, until the whole perished. All this took place so near the fort, that every scream of the victims must have rung in the ears of the French commandant ! Two or three days after this shocking spectacle, most of the Indian tribes dispersed and returned lo \ their homes, as is usual with them after a great and decisive battle. Young Smith was demanded of the French by the tribe to whom he belonged, and was immediately surrendered into their hands. The party embarked in canoes, and ascended the Allegany river, as far as a small Indian town about forty miles above fort Du Quesne. There they abandoned their canoes, and striking into the woods, travelled in a western direction, until they arrived at a considerable Indian town, in what is now the state of Ohio. This village was called Tullihas — and was situated upon the western branch of the Mus- kingum. During the whole of this period. Smith suffered much anxiety, from the uncertaintv of his future fate, but at this town all doubt was removed. On the morning of his arrival, the principal members of the tribe gathered around him — and one old man with deep gravity, began to pluck out his hair bv the roots, while the others looked on in silence, smoking their pipes with great deliberation. Smith did nut understand the design of this singular ceremony, but submitted very patiently to the man's labours, who performed the operation of " picking" him with great dexterity, dipping his fingers in the ashes oc- casionally, in order to take a better hold. In a very few moments Smith's head was bald, with the ex- ception of a single long tuft upon the centre of his crown, called the " scalp lock." This was carefully plaited in such a manner, as to stand upright, and was ornamented with several silver brooches. His ears and nose were then bored with equal gravity, and ornamented with ear-rings and nose-jewels. He was then ordered to strip — which being done, his naked body was painted in various fantastick colours, and a breech-cloth fastened around his loins. A belt of wampum was then placed around his neck, and silver bands around his right arm. To all this Smith submitted with much anxiety, being totally ignorant of their customs, and dreading lest, like the British prisoners, he had been stripped and painted for the stake. His alarm was increased, when an old chief arose, took him by the arm, and lendijig him out into the open air, gave three shrill whoops, and was instantly surrounded by every inhabitant of the village — warriours, women and children. The chief then addressed the crowd in a long speech, still holding Smith by the hand. When he had ceased speaking, he led Smith forward, and deliver- ed him into the hands of three your.g Indian girls, who grappling him without ceremony, towed him ofl to the river which ran at the foot of the hill, dragged him in the water up to his breast, and all three sud- denly clapping their hands upon his head, attempted to put him under. Utterly desperate at the idea of being drowned by these young ladies. Smith made a manful resistance — the squaws persevered and a prodigious splashing in the water took place, amidst loud peals of laughter from the shore. At length, one of the squaws became alarmed at the furious struggles of the young white man, and cried out earnestly several times, " No hurt you ! no hurt you !" Upon this agreeable intelligence. Smith's resistance ceased, and these gentle creatures plunged him un- der the water, and scrubbed him from head to foot with equal zeal and perseverance. As soon as they were satisfied, they led him ashore, and presented him to the chief — shivering with cold, and dripping witb water. The Indians then dressed him in a $/y ^ 53 ruffltd shirt, leggins, and moccasins, variously orna- menteil, seated him upon a bear-skni, and gave him a pipe, tomahawk, tobacco, pouch, flint and steel. The chiefs then look tlieir seats by his side, and smoked for several miimtes in deep silence, when the eldest delivered a speech, through an interpreter, in the following words : " My son, you are now one of us. Hereafter, you have nothing to fear. By an ancient custom, you have been adopted in the room of a brave man, who has fallen ; and every drop of white blood has been washed from your veins. We are now your brothers, and are bound by our law to love you, to defend you, and to avenge your injuries, as much as if you were born in our tribe." He was then introduced to the members of the family into which he had been adopted, and was received by the whole of them with great demon- strations of regard. In the evening, he received an invitation to a great feast — and was there presented with a wooden bowl and spoon, and directed to fill the former from a huge kettle of boiled corn and hashed venison. The evening concluded with a war-dance, and on the next morning, the warriours of the tribe assembled, and leaving one or two hunt- ers, to provide for their families in their absence, 'he rest marched off for the frontiers of Virginia. FAREWELL OP THE SEMINOLE CHIEF. Land of our love, farewell ! Fields, where the palm-grass waves, and thickets green, Homes, lowly huts, where joy, and srrief have been. Cool springs, sweet waters flowing, silvery lakes. Tall trees, with blossoms white as north snow flakes, Wild vines, fair flowers — farewell ! All living things, farewell ! Iiearn, faithftd dog, the stranger-mnster's call ; Suffer thou too, poor steed, the white man's thrall ; Bound on, ye gentle deer : rest in your lair. Fierce panthers, when shall hunter rouse ye there"? Between us, peace — farewell ! Chir fathers' graves, farewell ! We long to lay our bones by yours, and know These forest birds would sing, these spring flowers blow Above our last low bed — Oh, sweet the earth Denied us, where our li'tle ones had birth ! Graves of our sires — farewell I Place of death-strife, farewell ! Broken tomahawk — the warriour's brow Wears not the battle spirit— silent now The deep blood stirring war-cry bonds around His hands, and heart, the Seminole's bound — Fields of the brave — farewell ! Winds, dews, earth, skies— farewell ! The ship floats proudly on our own smooth ))ay, Her broad sails fluttering long to bear away The red man from his hon.e — no more, no more, Returning to his forest-belted shore. Land of my love — farewell ! WESTERN ANTIQUITIES. FROM THE WESTERN MESSENGER. "There may be no sucli ruins in Ainorira. as arc to be found in Eu- rope, or in Asia, or in Africa; but otiicr ruins there are of prodigimis inagnituile." — John Neal. The remains of antiquity which are spread over the great valleys of the Ohio and Mississippi, cannot fail to arrest the attention of the intelligent and ob- servant traveller. They carry him back, in imagi- nation, to those remote ages, when this fertile region was inhabited by a people now extinct, of whom tradition has preserved no account. If he docs not behold the broken columns, and the mouldering ruins of splendid palaces and magnificent temples, like those which adorned the banks of the Nile, the plains of Greece, and the seven hills of the " Eternal City" — ruins which still shadow forth the magnilicent wealth and power of the people by whom they were erected ; his eye, nevertheless, rests upon the works of past ages, which speak in silent but expressive language of extinct nations. They speak of a peo- ple who, perhaps, wore once mighty in power, and who proudly rejoiced ii\ their strength ; who, possibly, could boastof warriours and statesmen, of orators and poets. But they have passed away ; the place that has known them will know them no more ; their glory has departed, and their history is lost in the oblivion of ages. These great works, the ruins of which are now only to be seen, were probably constructed in the proud hope, that the fame of the people by whonr they were erected, would be transmitted to future ages, and tell of their glory and renown. How vain the hope! If they ever bore any records of past history — of the warlike exploits of heroes, or thrf civic honours of statesmen, the destroying hand of time has obliterated the characters, and not all the efforts and researches of the antiquary have been able to restore them. By what people they were erected, and what were the purposes of their erec- tion, are now matters of speculation or conjecture. A number of able men, who have devoted much time to antiquarian research, have endeavoured to draw aside the veil, and penetrate the mystery which sur- rounds them, but their labours in this respect have been fruitless. They have laboured zealously, and produced ingenious theories, but the mystery is al- most as profound as ever, and is likely to remain so. In the present article I do not mean to advance a new theory, nor controvert any theories which have been already maintained. To attempt either, did I even consider myself qualified for the task, would lead to a vast field of inquiry and investigation for- eign to my present object. That the people by whom the works before us were erected, were numerous and powerful, and considerably advanced in the knowledge of the useful arts, will scarcely be ques- tioned by any who have at all investigated the sub- ject. None but a numerous people who were govern ed by established laws, and were under the influence of commanding power, could have constructed mounds, or erected fortifications, of such magnitude and extent. Works which exhibit proofs of immense labour, and display a considerable degree of skill in their construction, are inconsistent with the free and uncontrolled habits, and opposed to the manners, customs, and mode of life, of the native tribes who roamed through our forests when this continent was discovered by Columbus. Addicted to a wandering life, divided into small and independent tribes, and contented with a bare subsistence for the present, without reference to the future, such men, under such circumstances, never could have engaged in worko requiring so much time and labour in their construc- tion. They are evidently the productions of a peo- ple of settled habits, who lived in cities, and congre- gated together for mutual support and defence. The immense cemeteries which have been discovered at Grave Creek, near Wheeling, at the " Big Bone 54 Park" on the Wabash, and other places, indicate that this people lived in cities, or in large communi- ties, and that the population of the valley of the Ohio, was once as dense, if not more so, than it is at pres- ent. In some of these cemeteries thousands of bodies have heen thrown together, and covered with a mound of earth ; in others they include a consider- able si)ace of ground, and the bodies have been in- terred in gpjives after our own manner. Near Nash- ville, in the state of Tennessee, a cemetery of the latter description may yet be seen. 'i'he mounds are the most substantial and endur- ing monuments of the aborigines, and the most stri- king in tlieir general features. They are of various dimeiisioMS, varying from eight or ten feet to one hundred feet in height, and from fifty or sixty to five or six hundred «feet in circumference. Some are cir- cular, and form regular cones ; some are oblong ; and others hexagonal, and carried up from the base to the apex with perfect regularity and geometrical precision. Mounds of tlie latter description are of rare occurrence ; the most remarkable and interest- ing monument of this kind, of which I have any Jvuowledge, is situated within the limits of the town of Florence, in the state of Alabama, which will be hereafter described. This monument of ancient skill and labour I have contemplated with admiration ; al- though much injured by the hand of time, its original form is perfectly preserved. Some mounds have platforms or pavements, front- ing the east, as that within the circular enclosure at Circleville, as described by Atwater in his valuable and interesting memoir on the " Anticpiilies of Ohio ;" the greater number, however, have no similar ap- pendages. These mounds, so difl'ereiit in form and size, were no doubt constructed for different purpo- ses, but the purposes to which they were applied are wholly matters of conjecture, and will probably ever remain so. Some may have been erected to com- memorate some great event in the nation's history ; others as monuments to the mighty dead whose re- mains repose beneath, av\'aiting the assembly of na- tions, when the notes of the last trumpet shall sound. Some may have been intended as watch towers, or places of defence ; others as places for the publick worship of tlieir deities. However doubtful or un- certain we may be with regard to the design of all, th;it some were depositories of the dead is clearly est;)blished by the number of human bones discover- ed on opening them : that at Grave Creek was found to contain several ihousnnd human skeletons. The ancient works which are supposed to have oeen originally constructed for foriifications, or places of defence, are extremely numerous, and are to be found on almost all the rivers of the West, and in the most eligible positions, and in the midst of exten- sive bodies of fertile land. " The most numerous," says Breckenridge, "as well as the most considera- ble of these remains are found precisely in those' parts of the country, where the traces of a numerous population might be looked for," and hence he infers, and not without reason, that in ancient times cities have existed containing several hundred thousand souls. To some minds this may appear like the wild speculation of an enthusiastick antiquary ; but, as before suggested, the remains themselves clearly in- dicate the existence of a dense and numerous popu- lation. The fortifications, or places of defence, were plan- ned with a skill that would not discredit the most experienced engineer of the present day. They ap- pear to have been aptly fiited to resist the various modes of attack, which we may suppose to have been practised at a period when the use of firearms was unknown, and when men engaged in battle fighting hand to hand. The most assailable points were skilfully guarded. The curious reader, by re- ferring to Atwater's " Antiquities of Ohio," will obtain a much more clear and accurate idea of the charac- ter and design of these ancient works, than any description in mere words. These ancient works are not confined to a partic- ular section of the Western country ; they are found throughout the whole valley, upon almost every river or large water course that empties into the Ohio or Mississippi. In Tennessee and Alabama they are as numerous as in Ohio or Kentucky. One of the most remarkable in the former state, is what is called THE STONE FORT , Situated in Franklin county, on a point of land at the junction of the east and west branches of the Duck river, and near the main road leading from Nashville to Winchester. This fort includes in its area about thirty-two acres. The walls are composed of stones of various sizes collecied from the surface of the surrounding coun- try, and rudely throvi^n together ; there is no appear- ance of their having been united by cement, nor do they exhibit any marks of the hammer. The walls E E, which are covered with a coat of earth from one to two feet thick, are about sixteen feet in thick- ness at the base, about five feet at the top, and from eight to ten feet high. At the northern extremity, near the front wall, are two conical pillars or mounds of stone, designa- ted on the annexed plan A A. Each of these mounds is about six feet high, and ten feet in diameter at , the base ; originally they may have been of some- what greater altitude, and being on the exteriour of the wall may have been intended as watch towers. In the rear of the mounds is the northern wall, ex- tending to a high bank on both branches of Duck river, and opposite to a waterfall on each, often or twelve feet in heirty feet across the top, and making allowances for the ravages of time, must have been originally from twelve to fifteen feet high: it is now ?bout eight feet. The mound and wall bear the same mark of I age, both being covered with large timber of the 1 same age and description of that found growing on 56 the surrounding lands. The wall has the appear- ance of a breastwork, and the remains of a ditch is apparent on the outside." These works are situated on the river bottom, and are half surrounded by a very high ridge, which runs parallel to the Tennessee river, about four hundred yards distant. This ridge, upon which the principal part of the town of Florence is situated, overlooks and entirely commands the whole. The mound, with its surrounding wall, thus situated and exposed to attack, could not have been designed as a place of defence. It must have been appropriated to another purpose. It was probably a place of worship, a high altar upon which sacrifices were offered to some deity whom the people ignorantly worshipped. On its summit, perhaps, the blood of the victim flowed, and the smoke of the incense ascended. May not the circular wall have been the place where these people assembled to witness the rites and ceremonies of their religion ? This monument of ancient labour and skill I have contemplated with admiration, and busy fancy has pictured to the imagination the scenes which were there displayed in bygone ages, — the superstitious rites which were performed, when the darkness of idolatry covered the nations of the earth. ANCIENT INSCRIPTION. In connexion with the ancient remains above de- scribed, and not inapplicable to the subject of the present article, I will mention another monument of a different character, and certainly belonging to an- other race, and to a much more recent period. Near the Black Warriour river, in the state of Alabama, some eighteen or twenty years since, a rock was discovered on which was an inscription bearing date six hundred years ago. A copy of the inscription was taken by an officer of the United States army ; and from him the writer of this article received it. This rock is of a triangular shape ; it measures 20^ inches in width at the base ; from the top to the base 22 inches ; 3^ inches wide at the top ; at the base 10^ inches thick, and at the top 9^ inches. It weighed two hundred and three pounds. On this rock was the following inscription in Roman let- ters : — HISRNEHNDRE V. 12 3 2. This inscription is said to be much defaced by the rude hand of time, but the foregoing letters and fig- ures were distinctly ascertained. This rock was found on what is supposed to have been an ancient highway, sixteen feet wide, leading to a mound on McCoun's bluff on the Black Warriour. The area of the highv/ay is regular, and at the time of the discovery was four or five inches below the common level of the earth on either side, and there ■were trees growing on it from two to four feet in diameter. If the above inscription has been accu- rately copied, and if it be truly of the age indicated, it affords ground for curious speculation. If this stone were placed on the highway at the time the inscription declares, this continent must have been visited by Europeans, long antecedent to its discov- ery by Columbus. I allude to this rock and inscrip- tion, not that I have any great faith Iti the antiquity of the inscription, but as a subject of curiosity con- nected with the antiquities of the West, and which may have some connexion with the Roman coins found ill Tennessee, of the reigns of Commodus and of Antoninus Pius. The contemplation of the various monuments of human labour to which I have alludeil, and attempt- ed to describe, involuntarily excite in the mind a train of melancholy reflections upon the uncertain tenure by which even nations hold their existence. The mightiest empires have been dissolved ; the proudest cities have crumbled into ruins. In this fa- voured land, where the energies o^a free people are now exerted in building up a system of things which they hope will be perpetual, a mighty nation once existed, who little thought their fame would be lost in the revolutions of ages. They have disappeared — " their monuments remain, but the events they were intended to keep in memory, are lost in obliv- ion." W. T. CASTLE ROCK, ON THE BIO PRAIRIE, UPPEK MISSISSIPPI. A sketch and description of this curious rock, were found in the Philadelphia Saturday Courier, of October 10. It is situated, we are informed, on the Big prairie, about ninety miles southwest of lake Pepin, Upper Mississippi. It stands upon a small rise of ground, at the first sight it appears like a castle or a church without a cupola, and can be seen twenty or thirty miles. " The base-rock is about one hundred feet in cir- cumference, and in height about sixty ; the rock on the top varies in circumference, from three to fifteen, or, perhaps, twenty feet ; the height of this rock is, at least, thirty feet, and it appears as if the least puff of wind would blow it over, — it stands on so small a foundation, a mere pivot, and on so elevated an eminence. The rock is called by the Sioux In- dians, the Standing stone, or Castle rock ; — they have tried frequently to get on the top, but have never succeeded. [Buffalo.] LIFE IN THE WEST. The following vivid description of a buffalo-hunt, is from Washington Irving's tour on the prairies. Mr. Irving remarks : — Having made two or three ineffectual shots from horseback, we determined not to seek the camp un- til we had made one more effort. Casting our eyes about the surrounding waste, we descried a herd of buffalo about two miles distant, scattered apart, and quietly grazing near a small strip of trees and bushes. It required but little stretch of fancy to picture them so many cattle grazing on the edge of a common, and that the grove might shelter some lowly farmhouse. We now formed our plan to circumvent the herd, and by getting on the other side of them, to hunt them in the direction where we knew our camp to be situated; otherwise, the pursuit might take us to such a distance as to render it impossible for us to find our way back before nightfall. Taking a wide circuit therefore, we moved slowly and cautiously, pausing occasionally, when we saw any of the herd desist from grazing. The wind fortunately set from them, otherwise they might have scented us and have taken the alarm. In this way, we succeeded in getting round the herd without disturbing it. It con- sisted of about forty head, bulls, cows and calves. Separating to some distance from each other, we now approached slowly in a parallel line, hoping by degrees to steal near without exciting attention. They began, however, to move off quietly, stopping at every step or two to graze, when suddenly a bull that, unobserved bv us, had been taking his siesta 8* under a clump of trees to our left, roused himself from his lair, and hastened to join his comjianions. We were still at a considerable distance, but the game had taken the alarm. We quickened our pace, they broke into a gallop, and now commenced a full chase. As the ground was level, they shouldered along with great speed, following each other in aline ; two or three bulls bringing up the rear, the last of whom, from his enormous size and venerable frontlet, and beard of sunburnt hair, looked like the patriarch of the herd ; and as if he might long have reigned the monarch of the prairie. There is a mixture of the awful and the comick in the look of these huge animals, as they bear their great bulk forward, with an up-and-down motion of the unwieldy head and shoulders ; their tail cocked up like the queue of Pantaloon in a pantomime, the end whisking about in a fierce yet whimsical .style, and their eyes glaring venomously with an expression of fright and fury. For some time I kept parallel with the line, with- out being able to force my horse within pistol-shot, so much had he been alarmed by the assault of the buffalo, in the preceding chase. At leno^th, I suc- ceeded, but was again balked by my pistols mis- sing fire. My companions, whose horses were less fleet, and more wayworn, could not overtake the herd ; at length, Mr. L. wiio was in tlie rear of the line, and losing ground, levelled his double-barrelled gun, and fired a long raking shot. It struck a buf- falo just above the loins, broke its backbone, and brought it to the ground He stopped and alighted 58 to despatch his prey, when borrowing his gun which had yet a charge remaining in it, I put my horse to his ispeed, again overtook the herd which was thun- dering along, pursued by the count. With my pres- ent weapon there was no need of urging my horse to such close quarters ; galloping along parallel, therefore, I singled out a buflalo, and by a fortunate shot brought it down on the spot. The ball had struck a vital part ; it could not move from the place where it fell, but lay there slruggling in mortal agony, while the rest of the herd kept on their head- long career across the prairie. Dismounting, I now fettered my horse to prevent his straying, and advanced to contemplate my victim. I am nothing of a sportsman : I had been prompted to this unwonted exploit by the magnitude of the game, and the excitement of an adventurous chase. Now that the excitement was over, I could not but look with commiseration upon the poor animal that lay struggling and bleeding at my feet. His very size and importance, which had before inspired me with eagerness, now increased my compunction. It seemed as if I had inflicted pain in proportion to the bulk of my victim, and as if there were a hundred fold greater waste of life than there would have been 'n the destruction of an animal of inferiour size. To add to these after-qualms of conscience, the poor animal lingered in his agony. He had evidently received a mortal wound, but death might be long in coming. It would not do to leave him here to be torn piecemeal, while yet alive, by the wolves that had already snuffed his blood, and were skulking and howling at a distance, and waiting for my de- parture, and by the ravens that were flapping about, croaking dismally in the air. It became now an act of mercy to give him his quietus, and put him out of his misery. 1 primed one of the pistols, therefore, and advanced close up to the buflalo. To inflict a wound thus in cool blood, I found a totally different thing from firing in the heat of the chase. Taking aim, however, just behind the fore-shoulder, my pistol for once proved true ; the ball must have passed through the heart, for the animal gave one convulsive throe and expired. While I stood meditating and moralizing over the wreck I had so wantonly produced, with my horse grazing near me, I was rejoined by my fellow -sports- man, the virtuoso ; who, being a man of universal adroitness, and withal, more experienced and hardened in the gentle art of " venerie," soon managed to carve out the tongue of the buffalo, and delivered it to me to bear back to the camp as a trophy. BIOGRAPHY. ^ HERNANDO CORTEZ.— Born, 1483— Died, 1554. Hernando Cortf.z, a descendant of a noble but poor family, was born at Medellin, in Estremadura, in 1485. The law, to which he was bred at Sala- manca, he quitted for a military life. In 1504, he went to St. Domingo, and, in 1511, accompanied Velasquez to Cuba, and received from him a grant of land, as a reward for his services. The conquest of Mexico being resolved upon, Velasquez intrusted him with the command of the enterprise. The ex- pedition, which consisted of ten small vessels, and only seven hundred men, sailed on the 18th of No- vember, 1518; and, on his arrival at Tabaco, Cortez set fire to his ships, that his soldiers might have no other resource than their own valour. The Tlasca lans he conquered and converted into allies, and then advanced towards Mexico, where he was ami- cably received. Jealous of his success, Velasquez now sent Narvaez to supersede him, but Cortez marched against the latter, took him prisoner, and gained over the new-come troops. The conduct of Cortez to the natives soon produced hostilities, and he was driven from Mexico. By the decisive victory of Otumba, however, he resumed the ascendency, and, after a long siege, in which perished 100,000 Mexicans, he regained possession of the capital, and finally subjugated the whole of the kingdom. In 1536, he commanded in person a fleet which dis- covered California. Charles V., while under the impulse of gratitude, created him governour and captain-general of Mexico, and marquis of Guaxaca; but he subsequently removed him from the gov- ernonrship. In order to obtain justice, Cortez, in 1540, returned, for the second time, to Spain ; and he accompanied the emperour to Algiers, where he highly distinguished himself. Yet he was unable to procure even an audience. " Who are you ?" ex- claimed Charles, when Cortez had on one occasion, forced his way to the step of the emperour's car- riage. "I am one," replied the undaunted warriour, " who has given you more provinces than your an- cestors left you towns." Cortez died at Seville, in comparative obscurity, on the 2d of December, 1554. Such is a brief account of the life of this remark- able man. We shall close our biography of him, with a description of the city of Mexico, at the time of Cortez's conquest, which will give our readers a slight idea of its magnificence. The city of Mexico, which contained sixty thou- sand families, was divided into two parts, one of which, called Tlatelulco, was inhabited by the meaner sort, while the court and nobility resided in the other, which had the appellation of Mexico, which from thence was given to the whole city. It stood in a spacious plain, surrounded by high rocks and mountains, from which many rivulets falling down into the valley, formed several lakes, and among these were two that extended about thirty leagues in circumference, and were surrounded by fifty towns. These lakes communicated with each other, through openings left in a stone-wall, by which they were divided, and over these openings were wooden bridges, with sluices on each side, by which the lower lake was supplied from the other : the water of the uppermost was fresh, while that of the lower was salt, a circumstance proceeding from the nature of the soil. In the middle of the lake, stood the city of Mex- ico, in nineteen degrees thirteen minutes north lati- tude, yet the climate was mild and healthy ; for the natural moisture of the situation was corrected by frequent breezes of wind. It was joined to the main land by three noble causeways ; the streets were large and straight, and had a great number of canals for the convenience ot water carriage, in canoes and barks of various sizes above fil'ty thousand of which vessels belonged to the citv. All the publick buildings and houses of the nobil- ity were stone, and even the habitations of the com- 59 mon people, though more mean and irregular, w.re disposed in such a manner as to form several large courts, in which their merchandise was exposed for sale. The square of Tlatelulco, in which they kept fairs on particular days of the year, though one of the largest in the world, was, on these occasions, quite filled with tents, containing a variety of goods, and covered with coarse cotton cloths, which were proof against sun and rain. Here they sold by barter, jewels, chains of gold, and different utensils of silver curiously wrought, together with paintings, landscapes made of feathers beautifully arranged, different sorts of cloths, drink- ing cups of a kind of porcelain, fruit, fish, and all manner of provisions. Maize or cocoa served as money for small value ; they had no weights, but a variety of measures ; and instead of numbers, cer- tain characters, by which they adjusted the prices of goods. There was a house appointed for judges of commerce, who decided all differences arising among the merchants, and these appointed inferiour officers to maintain justice and good order in the fair. Their temples were magnificent and spacious, particularly that dedicated to Vitziputzli, their god of war, who was esteemed the supreme of all their deities. The first part of this edifice was a great square, enclosed within a wall of hewn stone, on the outside of which were cut wreaths of serpents. At a little distance from the principal gate, was a place of worship, with a flat roof, in which were fixed many trunks of trees in a row, with holes bored in them at equal distances, through which passed several bars run through the heads of men who had been sacrificed. On each side of the square, was a gate over which stood four statues of stone, representing inferiour deities, to whom the people on their entrance paid reverence ; and though the dwellings of the priests and their attendants were built on the inside of this wall, there was space sufficient for ten thousand people to dance on their solemn festivals. In the middle of the square stood a lofly stone tower, having a staircase of one hundred and twenty steps, by which people ascended to the top, which formed a flat pavement forty feet square, beautifully paved with jasper, and surrounded with rails of a serpentine form. At the top of these stairs stood two marble statues well executed, supporting two large candlesticks of an extraordinary fashion. A little farther was a green stone, about three feet high, and terminating in an angle, on which the priests extended the wretched victim while they opened his breast and plucked out his heart. Be- yond this stone, fronting the staircase, stood a chap- el of admirable workmanship, in which was placed the idol, upon a high altar, surrounded with curtains. It was of the figure of a man, sitting in a chair, sus- tained by a blue globe furnished with four rods jetting out from the sides, each terminating in the likeness of a serpent's head ; and these rods the priests placed on their shoulders when they exposed the idol to the view of the publick. The head of the figure was covered with a helmet, composed of plumes in the form of a bird with a bill and crest of burnished gold. The countenance of this idol was horrible, tlie [Hernando Corlez.] nose and forehead being swathed with bands of a blue colour : in the right hand it held a curling ser- pent, and in the left a shield of four arrows, with five white plumes placed in the form of a cross, and the Mexicans related many extravagant stories re- specting these ornaments. There was placed on the left hand of this idol, another of the same size and form, made for Talock, the supposed brother of the former, and equally re- vered by the Mexicans. The ornaments of these chapels were of inestimable value, and there were in the city, eight temples built nearly in the same manner, and almost as rich : those of a similar size amounted to two thousand, dedicated to as many idols of different names. Besides the palace in which Montezuma kept his court, he had several magnificent pleasure houses, in one of which, a most elegant building supported by pillars of jasper, he kept an aviary of birds, remarkable either for their singing or plumage, so numerous, that three hundred men were employed in attending them. Not far from this was another vast edifice, where the emperour's fowlers resided, and took care of the birds of prey, among which were some bred to the game like our hawks, and in the same place were voracious eagles of a very extraordinary size. In the second square of this house his wild beasts were kept, consisting of bears, tigers, lions, and Mexican bulls, which are extremely strong, nimble and fierce : and over their dens was a large apartment for buffoons and monsters, who were kept and instructed for the entertainment of the emperour. Montzeuma's grandeur was equally conspicuous in his armories. In one building a number of workmen were employed in making shafts for arrows, grinding flints for the points, and forming all sorts of arms, offensive and defensive ; in another building the arms were laid up in great order ; these consisted of bows, arrows and quivers, two-handed swords, edged with flints, darts and javelins, head-pieces, breastplates, quilted jackets, and bucklers made ot 60 impenetrable skins to cover the whole body, which they carried rolled upon their shoulders till they were ready to engage. To all these buildings there were large gardens well cultivated, producing a great variety of fragrant flowers and medicinal herbs set in squares, and adorned with beautiful summer- houses and fountains of water. But of all Montezuma's buildings, the most remark- able was his house of sorrow, to which he retired on the death of any favourite relation, or in case of publick calamity : this place was very well adapted to promote gloomy sentiments ; the walls, roofs, and ornaments were black ; instead of windows, it had only narrow openings in the walls, which admitted no more light, than was just sufficient to make the whole place appear more dismal. The emperour had also several pleasant country- seats, with large forests for the chase of lions and tigers, in which he took great delight. In these sports a number of men were employed to surround the game, and contract the circle into a certain space, where he beheld the combats of his huntsmen with the wild beasts, in which exercise the Mexicans were not less daring than dexterous. Montezuma had two sorts of guards, one of com- mon soldiers who filled the courts of the palace, and were posted in bodies at the principal gates : the other consisted of two hundred nObles of distinguished rank, who were obliged to attend every day at the palace, to guard his person. This attendance of the nobility was divided be- tween two bodies, who were upon duty by turns, comprehending the lords of the whole empire, who were obliged to repair to court from the most distant provinces ; a scheme contrived by Montezuma, who thereby kept the nobility in dependance, and had an opportunity of becoming acquainted with their per- sons, capacities, and dispositions. He very seldom granted audience, and w^hen any one was so far honoured, he entered barefoot, and made three reverences, saying at first, " lord," at the second, " my lord," and at the third, " great lord." He appeared in great state on these occasions, being surrounded by his courtiers ; he listened attentively, and answered with severity, seeming delighted with the confusion of the speaker. Montezuma frequently dined in publick, but always sat alone at the table, which was usually covered with upward of two hundred dishes of different meats ; out of which he fixed on a certain number for his own use, and ordered the rest to be divided among the nobility. He sat on a little stool at a large low table, which was covered with napkins and cloths of fine cotton. His dining-room was divided in the middle by a rail, which, without ob- structing the view, kept the domesticks and crowd at a distance. Within the rails he was attended by three or four old favourite servants : the dishes were brought in by twcnity women, richly dressed, who served up the meat, and presented him with the cup : the dishes, which were of fine earthen ware, as well as the cloths and napkins, having been once used, were distributed among the servants : he had cups and salvers of gold, and sometimes drank out of co- coa and other shells, richly ornamented with jewels. He drank several sorts of liquors, one of which was a kind of beer made of maize ; others were per- fumed with rich odours, and a third sort mixed with the juice of salutiferous herbs. After eating, he drank a kind of chocolate, and used to smoke a sort of tobacco perfumed with liquid amber : indeed the juice of this herb was one of the ingredients with which the priests wrought themselves up to a fit of enthusiasm, whenever they were obliged to deliver ' an oracular answer. Among other attendants at his fable, were gener- ally three or four bufibons, who diverted him with their ludicrous talents, and at proper intervals he was entertained with musick produced by pipes and seashells, accompanied by voices that formed an agreeable concert. The subject of these songs was generally the exploits of their ancestors, and the memorable actions of their kings. Thev had also merry songs used in dancing, accompanied with the musick of two little drums, made of hollow pieces of wood of different sizes and sounds : these were most commonly used in a dance called Mitates, practised at festivals, in which the nobility and the vulgar, mingling without distinction, used to shout, make odd gesticulations, and drink to each other till they were drunk. The people, at other times assembling in the squares and porches of the temple, made matches for wrestling, shooting at the mark, and running races. Here were also rope-dancers, performing in an astonishing manner, without the assistance of poles, and numbers of people playing at ball, near the statue of an idol, which the priests brought out, as the superintendant of that diversion. In a word the inhabitants of Mexico were almost every day entertained with shows and amusements, contrived by Montezuma, to divert their imaginations, which might otherwise have been employed to his disad- vantage. The prodigious wealth of Montezuma, which ena- bled him to support the expense of his court, and to keep two large armies always in the field, arose from the salt-Avorks and other taxes, established from time immemorial, from the produce of the gold and silver mines, and from the contributions levied on the subject, amounting to one third of the annual produce of that vast and populous empire. These taxes were collected by officers depending on the tribunal of the royal revenue, that resided in the court, and punished the least neglect or fraud with the loss of life. All the towns in the neighbourhood of Mexico furnished fuel for the royal palace, and men for the emperour's works. The nobility were obliged to guard his person, to serve in his army with u stipu- lated number of vassals, and to make him many presents, which though he received as gifts, they durst not neglect to offer. He had different treasu- rers for the several kinds of contributions ; and the tribunal of the crown-revenue, having issued out what was wanted for the expenses of the war, and the royal palaces, converted the rest into ingots of gold. Besides this tribunal, there was a council of jus- tice, which received appeals from inferiour courts ; a council of state, a council of war, judges of com- merce, and other officers, each of whom carried a staff as a badge of distinction. As the Mexicans had no Avritten laws, but were governed by the customs and institutions of their ancestors, their trials were short and verbal ; murder. 61 thefr, nrliiltery, and any disrespect, even the slight- est, towards the emperour, were capital crimes, and punished with death ; but all other misdemeanors found an easy pardon. 'I'he chihhen ol" the common people were in.struct- ed in publick schools, and those of the noble in well- endowed colleges, where they passed through three classes ; in the first of which they were taught to decipher the characters and hieroglyphicks, and to repeat the historical songs ; in the second they learned to acquire a modest, civil, and polite deport- ment ; and in the third tliey were employed in robust exercises, as wrestling, managing their arms, and carrying weights ; and' inured to the hardships of sufferingr hunger and thirst, and bearing the inclem- encies of the weather. These qualifications being acquired, the young noblemen who were designed for war, were sent as volunteers to the army, to accustom themselves to the dangers and hardships of a campaign, and were often placed among the baggage-men, and loaded with provisions, to mortify their pride and inure their bodies to fatigue, before they were enrolled as soldiers, an honour to which none were admitted, who had not given proofs of their intrepidity. In every town there was a regular militia, so that their armies were formed with ease ; for the princes, caciques, and governours, M'-ere obliged to repair to the rendezvous, with a certain number of soldiers. Their troops were better disciplined than those of the other Indian nations ; and the emperour, with a view to reward acts of valour, instituted several or- ders of knighthood. It has been asserted, as a proof of the grandeur of the Mexican empire, that IMontezumi had thirty vassals, each of whom could bring one hundred thousand armed men into the field. The Mexican year, like ours, consists of three hundred and sixty-five days, but was divided into eighteen months, of twenty days each, and at the end of the year five days were added to make it an- swer the course of the sun, and these were entirely appropriated to pleasures and diversions. They had likewise weeks of thirteen days, to which were given different names ; and a longer period, called ages, which consisted of four weeks of years. This period of time was represented in a very singular manner : in the centre of a larire circle, divided into fifty two degrees, allowing a year for every degree, they painted the sun, from "whose rays proceeded four lines of different colours, which equally divided the circumference, leaving thirteen degrees to each semi-diameter; and these divisions served as signs of their zodiack, upon which the ages had their revolutions, and the sun his aspects, adverse or prosperous, according to the colour of the line. In a larger circle which enclosed the other, they marked with their characters the princi- pal occurrences of the age, and these secular annals were considered as publick instruments, serving for proofs of their history. The Mexican marriages were celebrated in the following manner : the contract being settled, the parties appeared in the temple, ami the priest having examined them respecting their mutual passion, tied the tip of the woman s veil, and the corner of the bridegroom's garment together, and accompanied them, joined in this manner, to 'heir dwelling, where they M'ent round the fire seven times, and then sutuig down to receive a share of the heat, the marriage was accomplished. Then the husband demanded the brideV portion, which he was obliged to return in case of separation, which often took place by mutual consent : in that case the father took care of the boys, and the mother of the girls ; and the marriage being thus dissolved, the parties were forbidden to join again on pain of death : an mstitution wisely calculated to check the natural levity of the people. Fancj% in her picturesque rovings, may tune her lay in favor of solitude — may boast of "her lit- tle empire within, and the sweet converse with inanimate creation ; but reason interrupts these ideal joys, and says, the mind cannot long be its own companion without becoming its own enemy. Trees and brambles are but poor society ; we will pine for one who w'ill think as we think, or induce us to forsake our own opinions for his. Avarice in old age, says Cicero, is foolish ; for what can be more absurd, than to increase our provisions for the road, the nearer we approach to our journey's end. SAILING DOWN THE OHIO. BY AUDUBON. The natural features of North America are not less remarkable than the moral character of her in- habitants ; and I cannot find a Ijetter subject than one of those magnificent rivers th;it roll the collected waters of her extensive territories to the ocean. When my wife, my eldest son (then c^n infant), and myself, were returning from Pennsylvania to Kentucky, we found it expedient, the waters beina unusually low, to provide ourselves with a skiff, to enable us to proceed to our nbode at Henderson.' I purchased a large, commodious, and light boat of that denomination. We procured a mattress, and our friends furnished us with ready-prepared viands> We had two stout negro rowers, and in this trim we left the village of Shippingport, in expectation of reaching the place of our destination in a vers- few days. It was in the month of October. The autumnal teints already decorated the shores of that queen of rivers, the Ohio. Every tree was hung with louf^ and flowing festoons of different species of vines, many loaded with clustered fruits of varied brillian- cy, their rich bronzed carmine mingling beautifully with the yellow filiagc, which now predominated over the yet green leaves reflecting more lively teints from the clear stream than ever landscape painter portrayed or poet imagined. The days were yet warm. The sun had assumed the rich and glowing hue which at that season pro- duces the siiigidar phenomenon called there the " Indian summer." The moon had rather passed the meridian of her grandeur. We glided down the river, meeting no other ripple of the water than that formed by the propulsion of our borr. Leisurely 62 we moved along, gazing all day on the grandeur and beauty of the wild scenery around us. Now and then a large cat-fish rose to the surface of the water in pursuit of a shoiil of fry, which, start- ing simultaneously from the liquid element, like so many silvery arrows, produced a shower of light, while the pursuer with open jaws seized the strag- glers, and with a splash of his tail, disappeared from our view. Other fishes we heard uttering beneath our bark a rumbling noise, the strange sounds of which we discovered to proceed from the white perch, for on casting our net from the bow, we caught several of that species, when the noise ceas- ed for a time. Nature, in her varied arrangements, seems to have felt a partiality towards this portion of our country. As the traveller ascends or descends the Ohio, he cannot help remarking, that, alternately, nearly the whole length of the river, the margin, on one side, is bounded by lofty hills and a rolling surface ; while, on the other, extensive plains of the richest alluvial land are seen as far as the eye can connnand the view. Islands of varied size and form rise here and there from the bosom of the water, and the winding course of the stream frequently brings you to places where the idea of being on a river of great length changes to that of floating on a lake of moderate ex- tent. Some of these islands are of considerable size and value ; while others, small and insignificant, seem as if intended for contrast, and as serving to enhance the general interest of the scenery. These little islands are frequently overflowed during great freshets or floods, and receive at their heads pro- digious heaps of drifted timber. We foresaw with great concern the alterations that cultivation would soon produce along those delightful banks. As night came, sinking in darkness the broader portions of the river, our minds became aff'ected by strong emotions, and wandered far beyond the present moments. The tinkling of bells told us that the cattle which bore them were gently roving from valley to valley in search of food, or returning to their distant homes. The hooting of the great owl, or the mufHed noise of its wings as it sailed smoothly over the stream, were matters of interest to us ; so was the sound of the boatman's horn, as it came Avinding more and more softly from afar. When daylight returned, many songsters burst forth with echoing notes, more and more mellow to the listening ear. Here and there the lonely cabin of a squatter met the eye, giving note of commencing civ- ilization. The crossing of the stream by a deer fore- told how soon the hills would be covered with snow. Many sluggish flat-boats we overtook and passed — some laden with produce from the diff*erent head- waters of the small rivers that pour their tributary streams into the Ohio ; others, of less dimensions, crowded with emigrants from distant parts, in search of a new home. Purer pleasures I never felt ; nor have you, reader, I ween, unless indeed you have felt the like, and in such company. The margins of the shores and of the rivers were at this season amply supplied with game. A wild turkey, a grouse, or a blue-winged teal, could be pro- cured in a few moments ; and we fared well, for whenever we pleased, we landed, struck up a fire, and provided as we were with the necessary uten- sils, procured a good repast. Several of these happy days passed, and we neared our home, when, one evening, not far from Pigeon Creek (a small stream which runs into the Ohio, from the state of Indiana), a loud and strange noise was heard, so like the yells of Indian warfare, that we pulled at our oars, and made for the opposite side as fast as possible. The sounds increased; we imagined we heard cries of " murder ;" and as we knew that some depredations had lately been com- mitted in the country by dissatisfied parties of abo- rigines, we felt fur a while extremely uncomfortable. Ere long, however, our minds became more calmed, and we plainly discovered that the singular uproar was produced by an enthusiastick set of IVIelhodists, who had wandered thus far out of the common way, for the purpose of holding one of their annual camp- meetings, under the shade of a beech forest. With out meeting with any other interruption, we reached Henderson, distant from Shippingport by water about two hundred miles. When I think of these times, and call back to my mind the grandeur and beauty of those almost unin- habited shores ; when I picture to myself the dense and lofty summits of the forest, that everywhere spread along the hills, and overhung the margins of the stream, unmolested by the axe of the settler; when I know how dearly purchased the safe navigation of that river has been by the blood of many worthy Vir- ginians ; when I see that no longer any aborigines are to be found there, and that the vast herds of elks, deerand buff^iloes, which once pastured on these hills and in these valleys, making for themselves great roads to the several salt springs, have ceased ta exist ; when I reflect that all this grand portion of our Union, instead of being in a state of nature, is now more or less covered with villages, farms, and towns, where the din of hammers and machinery is constantly heard ; that the woods are fast disappear- ing under the axe by day, and the fire by night ; that hundreds of steam-boats are gliding to and fro, over the whole length of the majestick river, forcing com- merce to take root and to prosper at every spot- when I see the surplus population of Europe com ing to assist in the destruction of the forest, and transplanting civilization into its dark recesses — when I remember that these extraordinary changes which have all taken place in the short period of twenty years, I pause, wonder, and although I know all to be the fact, can scarcely believe its reality. POWER OF VIRTUE. If a young man would win to himself the hearts of the wise and brave, and is ambitious of being the guide and leader of them, let him be assured that his virtue will give power, and power will con- solidate and maintain his virtue. Let him never then squander away the inestimable powers of youth in tangled or trifling disquisitions, with such as perhaps have an interest in perverting or un- settling his opinions, and who speculate into his sleeping thoughts and dandle his nascent pas- sions ; but let him start from them with alacrity and walk forth with firmness ; let him early take an interest in the business and concerns of men and let him as he goes along look steadfastly on the statues of those who have benefitted his coun- try, and make with himself a solemn compact to stand hereafter amon » o w ^. o H tsl C > t»^^ CATCHING WILD HORSES ON A PRAIRIE. Immensely variegated as is the surface of the globe, there are still but few of its features that present an aspect of more surpassing interest and beauty than the far-lengthening, wide-expanding prairie. The oceans, the mountains, the hills, the valleys, the torrents and rivers, afford thousands of most admirable scenes, but the face of a prairie smiles with surpassing charms, with indescribable loveliness. " Lo ! they stretch In airy undulations, far away, As if an ocean in its gentlest swell Stood still, with all its rounded billows fixed And motionless for ever. — Motionless 1 No, they are all unchained again. The clouds Sweep over with their shadows, and beneath The surface rolls and fluctuates to the eye; Dark hollows seem to glide along and chase The sunny ridges. Breezes of the South ! Who toss the golden and the flame-like flowers, And pass the prairie hawk, that, poised on high. Flaps his broad wings, yet moves not — ^ye have played Among the palms of Mexico, and vines Of Texas, and have crisped the limpid brooks That from the fountains of Sonora glide Into the calm Pacific — have ye fanned A nobler or a lovelier scene than this 1 Man hath no part in all this glorious work : The hand that built the firmament hath heaved And smoothed these verdant swells, and sown their slopes With herbage, planted them with island groves, And hedged them round with forests. Fitting floor For this magnificent temple of the sky — With flowers whose glory and whose multitude Rival the constellations ! The great heavens Seem to stoop down upon the scene in love — A nearer vault, and of more tender hue, Than that which bends above the eastern hills." Stretching far away with indistinct boundaries, or merging into the horizon, the southern prairie ap- pears like a vast sea ; its undulations, the seeming swells, its clumps of trees, the islands. Whether the tall, luxuriant grass, mingled with an innumerable va- riety of flowers loaded with perfume, waves upon its surface, or is shorn close like a pasture, it always ex- hibits the aspect of unequalled fertility and beauty, " And the heart swells, while the dilated sight Takes in the encircling vastness." The rich clumps of fine trees, collected together here and there in every possible form, and of every species, and some of them planted with the nice reg- ularity of art, add the charm of variety to the lovely scene, while they afford a grateful shelter to the wan- dering herds and the weary hunter. It is a rapturous vision to gaze upon these " gar- dens of the desert ;" but how few ever enjoy the lux- ury ! Few countries are adorned with these beautiful scenes, and none more bountifully than America, bi no portions of America do they exhibit more beauti- ful or more varied aspects than in Mexico and Texas, The prairies of Texas especially, are as wonderful in their vast extent, as they are peculiar in beauty 9* and singular in fertility. The adventurous colonist, attracted by the paradisiacal scene, who is, perhaps, the first " of that advancing multitude, Which soon shall fill these deserts, finds himself not in this great solitude alone. It is thickly peopled with myriads of gaudy insects that flutter over the flowers, with sliding reptiles, beauti- ful birds, graceful deer, bounding buffaloes, and nu- merous troops of fine and noble wild horses. The settler selects his spot, builds himself a dwelling in a shady island, and by conforming to certain requisi- tions of the government, becomes at once the rightful proprietor of nearly as much territory as his eye caa at once survey, and when he finds time to enclose it with substantial landmarks, he feels secure against in- trusion. He plants his sugar and his cotton, and what- ever else he may choose to cultivate, and the benig- nant climate and prolific soil shortly yield him the most abundant crop, and he reaps more than a hun- dred fold. The soil is easily subdued, and with little care whole herds of cattle grow up to enliven the wide domain, where they roam throughout the year without barns and without the northern haystacks or granaries. If he wishes a horse, or a drove of horses, to ride, to travel, to hunt, or to work, he has only to ride into the prairie, and the animals cost him only the trouble of catching them. The horses of Texas are small, run wild in numerous droves over the prairies, and are easily taken and rendered serviceable. They were probably originally introduced by the Spaniards, and are called mustangs. To illustrate the manner of taking these animals, is the object of the engraving and the present article. The pursuer provides himself with a strong noosed cord, made of twisted strips of green hide, which, thus prepared, is called a lazo, the Spanish word for a band or bond. He mounts a fleet horse, and fas- tens one end of his lazo to the animal, coils it in his left hand, leaving the extended noose to flourish in the air over his head. Selecting his game, he gives it chase ; and as soon as he approaches the animal he intends to seize, he takes the first opportunity to whirl the lazo over his head, and immediately checks his own charger. The noose instantly contracts around the neck of the fugitive mustang, and the creature is thrown violendy down, sometimes unable to move, and generally, for the moment, deprived of breath. This violent method of arrest frequently in- jures the poor animal, and sometimes even kills him. If he escapes, however, with his life, he becomes of great service to his master, always remembering with great respect the rude instrument of his capture, and ever afterwards yielding immediately whenever he feels the lazo upon his neck. Being thus secured, the lazoed horse is blindfolded ; terrible lever, jaw-breaking bits are put into his mouth, and he is mounted by a rider armed with most barba- rous spurs. If the animal runs, he is spurred on to 66 the top of his speed, until he tumbles down with ex- haustion. Then he is turned about and spurred back again ; and if he is found able to run back to the point whence he started, he is credited with having bottom enough to make a good horse: otherwise he is turned off as of little or no value. This process of breaking mustangs to the bridle is a brutal one, and the poor animals often carry the evidence of it as long as they hve. After service, during the day, they are hoppled by fastening their fore legs together with a cord, and turned out to feed. To fasten them to one spot in the midst of a prairie, where neither tree, nor shrub, nor rock is to be found, is quite a problem. But that is accomplished by putting on a halter, tying a knot at the end, digging a hole about a foot deep in the earth ; thrusting in the knot, and pressing the earth down around it. As the horse generally pulls nearly in a horizontal direction, he is unable to draw it out. The mustangs are small, generally about thirteen hands high, strong, well-formed, and of various co- lors. They have a most malicious expression, and are very crafty and mischievous. When a number are caught, they are generally driven to market, where they are purchased for three or four dollars, branded, hoppled, then turned out and abandoned to themselves until needed. At some future time they will doubtless become a valuable article of export. The following graphic description of the wild horse of the prairie, is from an Orleans paper. It appears in a series entitled "Prairie Sketches." "We were water-bound at 'Walnut Creek,' The water was too high to admit of our crossing, and for three days we had remained listless and idle on the banks of the stream. The fourth day came, and still the water continued rising : and as we could not proceed on our travel, three of us, weary of idleness, determined to start in pursuit of buffalo. We dis- charged the old charges from our fire-arms, and having carefully loaded again, we mounted and rode off. As yet we had seen but one buffalo, and that was an old bull, with flesh as tough as leather. We started at eight in the morning, and rode two hours and a half without seeing a thing that had life, except the innu- merable musquitoes, flies, and ground insects. We rode through beds of sun-flowers miles in extent, with their dark seedy centers and radiating yellow leaves following the sun through the day from east to west, and drooping when the shadows close over them, as though they were things of sense and senti- ment. These buds are sometimes beautifully varied with a delicate flower of an azure tint, yielding no perfume, but forming a pleasing contrast to the bright yellow of the sun-flower. "About half past ten we discovered a creature in motion at an immense distance, and we instantly started in pursuit. Fifteen minutes' riding brought us near enough to discover by its fleetness it could not be a buffalo, yet it was too large for an antelope or a deer. On we went, and soon distinguished the erected head, the flowing mane, and the beautiful pro- portions of the wild horse of the prairie. He saw us, and sped away with an arrowy fleetness till he gain- ed a distant eminence, when he turned to gaze at us, and suffered us to approach within four hundred yards, when he bounded away again in another di- rection, with a graceful velocity delightful to behold. We paused — for to pursue him with a view of catch- ing him, was clearly impossible. When he discov- ered we were not following him, he also paused ; and now he seemed to be inspired with as great a curiosi- ty as ourselves experienced ; for, after making a slight turn, he came nearer, till we could distinguish the inquiring expression of his clear bright eye, and the quick curl of his inflated nostrils. "We had no hopes of catching, and did not wish to kill him ; but our curiosity led us to approach him slowly, for the purpose of scanning him more nearly. We had not advanced far, however, before be moved away, and circling round, approached us on the oth er side. 'Twas a beautiful animal — a sorrel, with a jet black mane and tail. We could see the muscle6 quiver in his glossy limbs as he moved ; and when, half playfully and half in fright, he tossed his flowing mane in the air, and flourished his long silky tail, our admiration knew no bounds, and we longed — hope- lessly, vexatiously longed to possess him. " Of all the brute creation the horse is the most ad- mired by man. Combining beauty with usefulness, all countries and all ages yield it their admiration. — But, though the finest specimen of its kind, a domes- tic horse will ever lack that magic and indescribable charm that beams like a halo around the simple name of freedom. The wild horse, roving the prairie wil- derness, knows no master — has never felt the whip- never clasped in its teeth the bit to curb its native freedom, but gambols unmolested over its grassy home, where nature has given it a bountiful supply of provender. Lordly man has never sat upon its back; the spur and bridle are unknown to it: and when the Spaniard comes on his fleet trained steed, with noose in hand to ensnare him, he bounds away over the velvet carpet of the prairie, swift as the ar- row from the Indian's bow, or even the lightning darting from ihe cloud. We might have shot him from where we stood, but had we been starving we would scarcely have done it. He was fttt, and we loved him for the very possession of that liberty we longed to take from him, — but we would not kill him. We fired a rifle over his head : he heard the shot and the whiz of the ball, and away he went, disappear- ing in the next hollow, showing himself again as he crossed the distant rolls, still seeming smaller, until he faded away in a speck on the far horizon's verge. "Just as he vanished we perceived two dark spots on a hill about three miles distant. We knew them to be buffalo, and immediately set off in pursuit." Our youth is like the dream of the hunter on th 71 EARLY HABITS, CUSTOMS &c OF THE WEST. DRESS. On the frontiers, and particularly amongst those %vho were much in the habit of hunting, and going on scouts, and campaigns, the dress of the men was part- ly Indian, and partly that of civilized nations. The hunting shirt was universally worn. This was a kind of loose frock, reaching half way down the thighs, with large sleeves, open before, and so wide as to flap over a foot or more when belted. The cape was large, and sometimes handsomely fringed with a ravelled piece of cloth of a different color from that of the hunting shirt itself. The bosom of this dress served as a wallet to hold a chunk of bread, cakes, jirk, tow for wiping the barrel of the rifle, or any other necessary, for the hunter or warrior. The belt, which was always tied behind, answered several purposes, besides that of holding the dress together. In cold weather the mittens, and sometimes the bul- let-bag, occupied the front part of it. To the right side was suspended the tomahawk and to the left the seal ping-knife, in its leathern sheath. The hunting- shirt w.as generally made of linsey, sometimes of coarse linen, and a few of dressed deerskins. These last were very cold and uncomfortable in wet weath- er. The shirt and jacket were of the common fash- ion. A pair of drawers or breeches and leggins, were the dress of the thighs and legs, a pair of moccasons answered for the feet much better than shoes. These were made of dressed deer skin. They were mostly made of a single piece with a gathering seam along the top of the foot, and another from the bottom of the heel, without gathers, as high as the ankle joint or a little higher. Flaps were left on each side to reach some distance up the legs. These were nice- ly adapted to the ankles and lower part of the leg, by thongs of deer skin, so that no dust, gravel, or snow could get within the moccason. The moccasons in ordinary use cost but a few hours' labor to make them. This was done by an instru- ment denominated a moccason awl, which was made of the backspring of an old claspknife. This awl with its buckhorn handle, was an appendage of every shot pouch strap, together with aroU ofbuckskin for mend- ing the moccasons. This was the labor of almost eve- ry evening. They were sewed together and patched with deer skin thongs, or whangs as they were com- monly called. In cold weather the moccasons were well stuffed with deer's hair or dry leaves, so as to keep the feet comfortably warm ; but in wet weather it was usual- ly said that wearing them was ' a decent way of going barefooted ;' and such was the fact, owing to the spon- gy texture of the leather of which they were made. Owing to this defective covering of the feet, more than to any other circumstance, the greater number of our hunters and warriors were afllictcd with the rheu- matism in their limbs. Of this disease they were all apprehensive in cold or wet weather, and therefore al- ways slept with their feet to the fire to prevent or cure it as well as they could. This practice unquestiona- bly had a very salutary effect, and prevented many of them from becoming confirmed cripples in early life. In the latter years of the Indian war our young men became more enamored of the Indian dress through- out, with the exception of the matchcoat. The draw- ers were laid aside and the leggins made longer, so as to reach the upper part of the thigh. The Indian breech-clout was adopted. This was a piece of linen nearly a yard long, and eight or nine inches broad. This passed under the belt before and behind, leaving the ends for flaps hanging before and behind over the belt. These flaps were sometimes ornamented with some coarse kind of embroidery work. To the same bells which secured the breech-clout, strings which supported the long leggins were attached. When this belt, as was often the case, passed over the hunt- ing-shirt, the upper part of the thighs and part of the hips were naked. The young warrior instead of being abashed by this nudiiy, was proud of his Indian-like dress. In some few instances I have seen them go into places of pub- lic worship in this dress. The linsey petticoat and bed-gown which were the universal dress of our women in early times, would make a strange figure in our days. A small home- made handkerchief in point of elegance would ill sup- ply the place of that profusion of ruflles with which the necks of our ladies are now ornamented. They went barefooted in warm weather, and in cold, their feet were covered with moccasons, coarse shoes, or shoepacks, Avhich would make but a sorry picture beside the elegant morocco slippers often embossed with bullion, which at present ornament the feet of their daughters and grand-daughters. The coats and bed-gowns of the women as well as the hunting-shirts of the men, were hung in full dis- play on wooden pegs around the walls of their cab- ins, so that while they answered in some degree the place of paper hangings, or tapestry, they announced to the stranger as well as neighbor the wealth or pov- erty of the family in the articles of clothing. This practice has not yet been wholly laid aside amongst the backwoods families. The historian would say to the ladies of the pres' ent lime : — our ancestors of your sex knew nothing of the ruflles, leghorns, curls, combs, rings and other jewels with which their fair daughters now decorate themselves. Such things were not then to be had. Many of the younger part of them were pretty well grown up before they saw the inside of a store room, or even knew there wa^ such a thing in the world, un- less by hearsay, and indeed scarcely that. Instead of the toilet, they had to handle the distaff or shuttle, the sickle or weeding hoe, contented if they could obtain their linsey clothing and cover their heads with a sun bonnet made of six or seven hun- dred linen — Doddridge's Notes. Boiling Potatoes. — An Irish Journal gives the following directions for cooking potatoes. Put them in a pot or ketde without a lid, with water just sufli- cient to cover them. After the water has come near- ly to boil, pour it off, replace it with cold water, into which throw a good portion of salt. The cold water sends the heat from the surface to the heart, and makes the potatoes mealy. After they are boiled and the water is poured off, let them stand on the fire 10 or 15 minutes to dry. It is the ornament, and, as if the soul, of history, that the relation of events is illustrated by an exposi- tion of the causes which produced them. — Bacon. 72 AMERICAN ANTIQUITIES. We regret that we are unable to furnish a com- plete history of the remarkable curiosity, a figure of which is presented above. The following descrip- tion of it, is from the pen of an attentive correspon- dent, to whom the proprietors of the present vol- ume are under many obligations, for his polite atten- tion. He remarks, " There is now before me a silver frontlet, obviously I think part of a crown. The en- graving upon it is first the crest, a crown surmounted by a lion passant. The escutcheon as delineated, field argent. Beneath this is a scroll containing the words THE QUEENE OF PAMUNKEY. Those non descript things in the dexter chief and smister base quarters are a passant, and the whole is bordered with a wreath. Just within the wreath, you will see inscribed, Charles the second, king of England, Scotland, France, Ireland and Virginia. The ornament was purchased of some Indians many years ago by Alexander Marson,of Falmouth, the grandfather of the present proprietor. You know that thfi Pamunkey tribe still occupies its old ground in King William County, exercising to a certain extent its own laws, an " impenum in T M imperio.'" •'• ■'"• Fredericsburg, Va. / (*K^^^rt^vi«i^«r ■ m^~ I- iWCi.'s'i '^ y^:^^,?M^ ...:>l^^ DlMtPi ¥U^A (wjy y^^^ vfr ^r w^r,u'^ Sfp^"'' 'yy^y^ ,:^i;w *^^> Vw^vi/'" -^"*-^«v, Miili^yyv Hw!:i^j^:>^ft^ mSbOEmk 'wT vv. 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